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#oc: ena ikeda
rosenongrata · 1 month
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solitary solidarity - v
Summary: A selection of writings that explore the early days of the odd relationship between Doctor Veritas Ratio and Missus Kagome Ikeda.
A/N: ouhhh i love this chapter so much. it was so fun to write !!
c.w/s: varies on what part, but i'll make sure to mark each addition with the proper tags in the a/n. OC-insert. c.ws for chapter: new character introduction. SOFT PAPA RATIO (i mean what). child (Ena) has schizophrenia, so there's going to depictions of that. depictions of malnourishment. minor blood mention. a singular fainting spell. his students are bitches (they gossip). Ratio throws a piece of chalk at someone.
w.c: 1.6k
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It’s been a while since Kagome has attended work in-person – all of it has been online instead this past week. No one has seen even a glance of her since that awkward debacle between her and her intrusive husband – Shoto Watanabe. Not even Dr. Ratio has caught a glimpse of her – her office gone dark. But it’s not as if he has her cellphone number at this time…and he’s not about to go ask for it.
However,
He hoped he would’ve gotten some information out of her before her disappearance – he’s not too sure if she’s avoiding him and the rest of the Guild or if something did truly come up since then. As much as his heart wants to say she’s evading him again – he suspects otherwise.
And then this morning in his office he was met with a rather big surprise in the form of a small girl – one that looked rather malnourished with how scrawny she is, her limbs eerily thin and her skin pale as snow.
“…Since when did you have a daughter?” Dr. Ratio blurts out – for once he’s the one asking the stupid question.
He can’t help but feel stupefied by Kagome’s reappearance with a little black-haired girl following close behind her. If it were not for their lookalike silver eyes – he would’ve assumed her daughter was someone else’s. Or perhaps he’s not quite adept at seeing similarities in offspring and their parents.
“About 11 years ago,” Kagome sighs, her hand briefly squeezing the girl’s much smaller hand, “…I’d love to elaborate how she was found recently, but… I’d rather not discuss it while she’s here.”
“Hmph,” He scoffs, crossing his arms and leaning back in his office chair, “I will let that slide for now.” He glances at the girl for a split moment, but when she hides further behind her mother, he looks back to his peer. “What’s her name?” He didn’t care all that much to know, but he suspects Kagome has something up her sleeve.
“Ena. The very same name I gave her when she was born…” Her smile is bittersweet – even a glimmer of relief shining in her otherwise lifeless eyes.
“And let me guess…” He sighs, “You need me to…babysit her?” He deadpans, half-glaring at his coworker.
“Precisely, but it wouldn’t be terribly often.” She murmurs, “She’s very quiet and…nonintrusive from what I’ve seen from her so far. It was also mentioned to me that she’s quite the music prodigy.” Her usually neutral expression shatters to form a little smile, and then she sighs, her face dropping, “…Among other things that are less…joyful.”
“…Such as?”
“Well…” She looks down at her little girl, who looks back at her. Kagome crouches down with her knees close together, she pulls Ena in for a small hug, “Pediatric Schizophrenia is one – and perhaps the biggest issue she will face for the rest of her life.” Ena tries to pull away from Kagome, pushing her little hands against her shoulder – Kagome releases her.
“Something that severe at such a young age is quite uncommon…” He muses.
“Doctor, I will continue to answer any questions you have about Tetra…as long as you look after Ena sometimes – only when I’ve got my hands tied with work, really. I…trust you enough right now.” She looks over at him once more, her eyebrows slightly knitted – she’s desperate.
“Fine, then. If she’s truly as unobtrusive as you claim, she can tag along. I will not isolate her in my office, either.”
“Thank you so much…” She sighs in relief, “You hear that, Ena? The nice doctor will look after you for me sometimes. He’s a good man, so don’t worry about him hurting you.”
(…Me, of all people…) He sighs softly, barely audible.
“Okay…” Ena murmurs, her eyes glued to the floor as if it’s infinitely more interesting than whatever conversation is occurring.
“Mama has to go now… She’s got a meeting and a lot of paperwork to catch up on. But Doctor Veritas Ratio is here, okay? Don’t be afraid to speak up – he appreciates honesty.”
“That’d be correct – honesty and knowledge go hand in hand.” He nods, his voice only a smidgen softer than before. He’s trying, at least.
Kagome straightens her legs, briefly rubbing Ena’s head while offering her a soft smile, “I’ll see you later, Ena. You too, Doctor.” She nods to them both before departing from the office.
“Farewell, Kagome.” He replies, watching her leave before his dual-toned eyes dart to Ena – her eyes are about as lifeless as her mother’s. For a split moment, he wonders if it runs in the family somehow – unlikely, but the thought entertains him for about 0.2 seconds.
Ena looks elsewhere – anywhere that isn’t his face – around the room, his clothes, his desk… Her hands are held to her chest, fiddling with her fingers and picking at her skin. And then she hisses when she pulls a bit of skin off too far – causing her to bleed.
“…Alright. Come here.” He gestures to her with one hand to walk up to him as he scours his desk for a band aid, “You should not pick at your skin like that…” He scolds half-heartedly.
When she nervously arrives in front of him, he cleans the small wound and wraps the bandage around her bloody index finger. He double checks it to make sure it's tight enough. Satisfied with his work he releases her hand, which immediately retracts to her chest.
“There.” He mutters, “I must teach a class soon, so you’ll have to come with me. But, you may sit at my desk there.”
“Okay, Mr. Doctor.” She nods sheepishly.
(Mr. Doctor… It’s going to be a long day.) He sighs inwardly.
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Arriving late to class – due to having to hunt down the wandering, distracted Ena a couple of times – his students immediately break out into chattering gossip when he enters the room with the little girl right behind him. Yet all he has to do is throw a single glare at the disciples scattered about the room and they’ve all fallen silent.
Except for one.
“Hey, uh… Dr. Ratio, what’s with the kid…?” A student squeaks.
“…Do not get any wise ideas,” He sighs underneath his headpiece, “I am…babysitting her for a colleague that said she only trusts me for now.”
“A colleague? That trusts you? Who in their right mind would do that?”
“It’s better that she trusts me than you.” He snaps, “Now, you have five seconds to leave my classroom.”
“What if I don’t—”
A piece of chalk smacks the student right in the forehead, enough force behind it to tumble them out of their seat. And once they’re escorted out and Ena takes her seat at his desk, the professor begins his class. Although, the previous argument hardly stops the muttering between students.
Ena grows more nervous by the second – the whispering among the adults sounds all too much like the muttering noise in her head that she puts up with each and every day. Her legs swing back and forth – they’re not quite long enough to touch the floor yet – and she picks at her hands, except for the already bandaged one.
When the professor finally turns his back to her for a moment too long, she storms out of the classroom. He’s far more perceptive than she expects, though,
“Ena!” He shouts, and his voice faintly shakes from panic. He drops the new piece of chalk he was using and charges after her, “You all stay right in your places!” He yells to the students right as he leaves through the doors.
He’s right on her trail – so close yet a little too far to catch her. He’s a bit amazed at how someone with such tiny legs is outrunning him right now – especially how she’s also malnourished. It must be adrenaline fueling her right now, he concludes, but also knows she’ll run out of that fuel sooner rather than later—
And then she crashes to the floor in an empty hallway, already sobbing – tears waterfalling down her slightly sunken, pale cheeks. He sighs, slowing down from his run and approaching her with cautious steps, yet loud enough that she isn’t further frightened by his appearance.
“Ena…” He arrives at her side, swiftly bending to one knee and taking mental notes while he carefully observes her condition, “I will talk to my students later, but right now I need to—” He notices she’s fainted the second her sobs become abruptly silent, “Ugh… Alright.” He sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose momentarily before slipping his arms under her lithe body and plucking her from the ground while he straightens his legs.
He tells himself he’ll send out a class dismissal for the day, but also informs his students Ena’s current condition is largely their own fault. Regardless of how young many of the students are, they should know better than the gossip among themselves about a little girl – let alone in his lecture hall.
But, for now, he’s already on his way back to his doctor's office. Soon laying her down on the sofa, also resting her head on a pillow and lifting her feet on the armrest to help assure a safe recovery from her fainting spell. She wakes up before a minute passes, thankfully, so he can’t help but sigh with relief. Her consciousness only exists long enough for her to drink a cup of water, and then she’s out like a light.
…He then decides to conjure up a daily meal plan for her – Kagome can thank him later.
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rosenongrata · 26 days
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solitary solidarity - vi
Summary: A selection of writings that explore the early days of the odd relationship between Doctor Veritas Ratio and Missus Kagome Ikeda.
A/N: ouhhh i love this chapter so much. it was so fun to write !!
c.w/s: varies on what part, but i'll make sure to mark each addition with the proper tags in the a/n. OC-insert. depictions of illnesses (both physical and mental). c.ws for chapter: SOFT PAPA RATIO x2. mentions of an apocalyptic world.
w.c: 1.6k
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The second time Kagome comes by his office to drop off Ena, Dr. Ratio reassures himself he’s a lot more prepared compared to the first time. He’s even managed to methodically throw together a meal plan for the malnourished girl – borderline anorexic, really. While he’s certain that Kagome has been doing her best to get her to eat, he’s confident he’s more well-suited for the job than she is. He’s a medical doctor for good reasons.
“Ena.” He turns to her in his chair, his eyes forcibly softening when he faces her – she’s sitting on the sofa again, kicking her legs back and forth.
She blankly stares at him for a long moment – he can hear the metaphorical clock ticking in his head, marking each second that goes by waiting for her to say something back.
“…Mr. Doctor.” She finally says, her voice hardly above a raspy whisper.
“Alright, good, you’re listening.” He nods, “Do you remember what you had for breakfast?” He follows up – he’s well-aware that she’s at high risk for memory loss, especially short term.
“Uhm…” She stares down at her hands, which are tucked into tight balls on her lap, “I…”
“It’s alright if you do not remember, Ena. I am not intending to pressure you.” He reassures.
“Uhm… Kagome said it was toast and…egg…?” She tilts her head while she lifts her head to stare at him.
(Kagome? She doesn’t call her Mother or anything? How peculiar… I suppose it takes time for any previously abandoned child to grow comfortable calling someone their parent…) He ponders, eyes drifting away as he taps a pen to his lips, “Do you remember how much you ate?” He asks next.
“This much…?” She lifts up a shaky hand and uses two fingers to show him a rough estimate of how much she ate.
(…Not helpful, Ena.) He sighs inwardly, but keeps his thought to himself to assure her comfort, “Good. A little bit is better than nothing.”
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Not too long later, the doctor needs to be a professor for a while, so he brings Ena along as he did last time. And thankfully, while they walk there, she doesn’t wander off like before. However, he can nearly feel her trembling from behind him when they arrive at the familiar doors.
“Ena,” Dr. Ratio turns toward the little girl and crouches down to her height, “I have spoken to my students since the last time you were here. They are now well-aware of the consequences they’ll face should they make any negative remarks or rumors about you.” He assures with his typically curt tone.
He’s thankful that so far she hasn’t ever shown signs of hating how he speaks or how he holds himself. She seemingly only hates it when he stands a little bit too close to her – she needs a lot of physical space. He doesn’t mind keeping his distance – he doesn’t like it when people get too cozy in his personal space, either.
“Okay, Mr. Doctor…” Ena looks down at the ground for a longer time than when she was staring at him.
When he straightens his legs and back, promptly turning to the door to pry it open, he hears a lengthy yawn escape her. He glances over his shoulder and down at her, seeing her rub at her teary eyes.
“…Have you been sleeping enough, Ena?” He inquires, his hand drifting away from the door as he turns toward her.
“Uhm…” She mumbles in confusion before yawning again.
“…I’ll take that as a no.” He shakes his head, “Come, you can sit at my desk and rest some there.” He turns away again.
“B-But…” She sputters, “What if… What if…”
“What if…?” He mentally sighs as he turns to her again, “If you are concerned about being hurt, I assure you that no harm will come to you while you are under my care.”
“Oh…” She sighs, arms flopping to her sides, “What about you…?” She glances at him for a fleeting moment, but then quickly decides to stare at his sandals instead.
“I will also be fine – no worries.” He reassures, “Ready to go in?” His hand grabs the door handle again.
“Mhm…” She nods.
And with that tiny affirmative squeak, he strides into the lecture hall with her behind him – with her dragging her sleepy body up to his desk.
About a mere 10 minutes into the lecture, Ena slips under the large teacher’s desk and curls up in the empty space – soon falling asleep with her arms folded under her head. Much to her pleasure, no one can see her here. The front of the desk has no gaps or transparent panels, allowing her to peacefully rest in the relative darkness. The floor could kill to be comfier, but it’s nothing she’s not used to.
Dr. Ratio notices halfway through the class that she’s disappeared again—
“…Ena?” He blinks, sighing and looking around the large room to see any signs of her, “Did anyone see where she went?” He asks, his voice somehow even more bitter than it usually is.
“She went under your desk.” One student answers.
He sighs in relief when he checks underneath the desk out for himself, easily spotting her curled up and fast asleep. Walking back to the board and picking up his chalk from its sill, he announces with a remarkably softer voice,
“She’s asleep right now, so stay quiet.” His eyes narrow into dangerous slits, and the students obey, much to his joy.
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Ena has been asleep most of the day, the doctor thinks while he stares at her resting on the sofa in his office. Class ended a while ago and she still wouldn’t wake up, so he carried her back here – sure, carrying around a child earned him a few weird looks, but he’s not concerned with that right now.
He’s already attempted a couple of times to wake her up to eat her late lunch, but her only response was to hide her face further into the sofa’s throw pillow. He ultimately gave in, figuring that she needed sleep more than food for now. After that, he finds himself scrolling through his emails on his phone – one fist propping up his head while the elbow rests on the desk.
He doesn’t have any appointments today, surprisingly enough. And no one has come in with any emergencies. He thanks the high heavens for one calm day out of many frustrating ones. So when he hears two gentle taps to the door, he jolts in his seat a little – not that anyone saw that or needs to.
He stands up and opens the door, “Oh, Kagome.” He blinks, “Here to pick up Ena, I presume.” He notes in a whisper.
“Yes, that’d be correct.” Kagome nods, and he slides to the side so she can enter the office. She sighs and strides up to where Ena rests, staring down at her for a long moment. “Did she have any troubles today?” She pivots toward him right after he shuts the door and sits down at his desk again.
“None so far. She’s been asleep most of the day. However, she hasn’t had lunch as she refuses to wake up.” He informs.
“Ah… She’s still adjusting to living at home with me.” She sighs, “I’m still…sorting everything out.”
“I can tell,” He shrugs, “…Does Shoto live with you both?”
“No. He lives abroad in Tetra most of the time.” She shakes her head, “I wish I could find a more comfortable place for her, though. I know that she doesn’t like Tetra. Not with the way it is right now…and it’s not like she knows what it was like before…” She trails off as she glances down at her young daughter.
“…?” He patiently waits with one eyebrow raised.
“…Before the apocalypse.” She grumbles, “It’s been…maybe nearly twenty or thirty years at this point – seems like it’s not going away any time soon, either.”
“An apocalypse…” He echoes, “So, that’s why you’re so evasive.”
“Yes.” She nods, locking eyes with him again, “It’s gotten far too close to becoming world-ending rather than just world-changing, but humans are…stubborn.” She huffs, “Humans will walk through hell with a smile on their face, I suppose.”
Observing her – he finally notices how her shoulders slump and her eyes are nearly closed. He taps his fingers along his desk before interrupting whatever train of thought she was having,
“You’re dismissed – you two should get plenty of rest before tomorrow.” He rises to his full height, back straightened as he walks over to her with a file of various papers, “Do not overwork yourself more than you have to. Also,” He hands her the file, “I made this meal plan for Ena. It should help her grow more comfortable with eating over time.” He nods.
“You…” She puts a hand to her head as she stares down at the papers in her other hand, “You did that for her?” She laughs weakly, “Thank you very much, Doctor.” She smiles at him, “You are quite sweet when you want to be.”
“I—” He blushes lightly before scoffing and waving her off, “I was not doing it to be sweet, Kagome.” He grumbles, “…But keep her going – growing up in an apocalyptic world is no easy feat, after all. She deserves to recover and flourish as any other child does.”
She smiles, watching how his stare drifts to Ena’s resting body and how those same dual-toned eyes soften a little bit.
“And I agree. No child deserves to go through it… Thank you again, Doctor.” She exhales softly.
“…No problem. She’s…a good kid.”
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rosenongrata · 5 months
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yayyyy i can stop worrying about finishing this!
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