runningred | (no subject)

Athelstan holds his hand firmly, and waits.

"Alright. Here goes. Breathe deep."

He aligns the needle with the hollow between two ribs and presses down. There's a pop as it breaks though into the chest cavity and Jay angles the needle with his heart. He releases the plunger and the little receiver squirts towards his left ventricular.

There's a moment of cold and then pain starts as the wires dig in and a brief pulse triggers what for the next seven seconds will feel like a heart attack.

Jay grabs his shoulder and holds him down.

Ragnar keeps his eyes tightly shut, breathes deep, clutches Athelstan's hand, thinks of love and Blood Eagles, and otherwise doesn't move at all while a wave of indescribably pain goes through him, and he feels as if his life was ending and the world momentarily darkens completely.

"You're all right", Athelstan whispers, and counts the seconds for him.

And then there is light. The receiver sends a jolt to restart Ragnar's cardiovascular rhythms and the pain ends.

Ragnar opens his eyes and looks up at Athelstan, eyes still unfocused, and murmurs something.

"I know." He can guess at what Ragnar said. "And I'm here."

"Just breathe deep. Take your time." Jay cleans up and set the needle down, not prepping the second until they're ready.

Ragnar lifts his other hand to wrap it around Athelstan's as they are holding on to his hand, and breathes silently for a little.

"I am here."

"And not going anywhere."

He's dreading his turn, but all the more determined to go through with it now.

Which is more or less why he chose to do them in that order. That and if Ragnar had to watch Athelstan go through it without knowing it was going to be okay, he might have... well, broken Jay's arm at least.

Slowly, still not letting go of Athelstan, Ragnar sits up and moves his head and shoulders, as if letting out tensions he didn't even realise he had held in.

"How do you feel?" Athelstan asks.

Jay hands him a glass of water and follows it with a glass of something fizzy and sweet. Sugar is never a bad thing after a shock like that.

Ragnar gulps down the water, and then slowly sips the sweet and fizzy drink.

"Okay now," he says, squeezing Athelstan's hand again. "That was a bit odd. But it only took a short moment."

He turns his head to smile into Athelstan's eyes.

Athelstan smiles back.

"Only you could call that 'a bit odd'."

Jay chuckles, giving them both time and space till Athelstan's ready.

"And now, you can feel my heart beat," Ragnar says. "Do we put the receiver in place now, or only after the thing on Athelstan's heart has gone in?"

"Let's do me first", Athelstan decides. "Get it over with."

"The receivers won't hurt more than a moment's discomfort. Like stepping on a tack."

"Athelstan, if you're ready?" He washes the mouth-guard and preps the second needle as Athelstan gets himself comfortable.

Ragnar stands, then pulls up a chair and sits behind the head of the massage table so he can put his arms firmly around Athelstan, to hold him close during the terrible seconds of the device going in.

Athelstan prepares himself as much as he can, slipping the mouth guard into place and taking Ragnar's hand to squeeze.

He nods to Jay.

Jay nods in answer and repeats the process, very careful to make it as swift and easy as he can.

Once for needle is out, he helps Ragnar hold Athelstan through the moment of pain.

Ragnar holds Athelstan firmly, murmuring reassurance into his dark hair, momentarily not caring at all what Jay sees or hears, only that Athelstan knows that he'S there, and with him.

Jay is already a trusted person, and Athelstan's fingers dig hard into whatever's under them as he tries and fails not to scream, muffled by the mouthguard.