002 ☎ audio; backdated to the 12th with sincere apologies FOR MY TIMING

[tragicomedienne]

[Nanami's fever has spiked worse than anything. She sounds a little woozy.

She breathes in and rattles, then coughs.]

Listen. I've been thinking.

The people who disappear...

... How do we know they're not going to able to find them and follow them?

What's the difference? [Rattle.] No matter how you leave, what's stopping them from figuring out how to get to you?

[A long pause.]

Don't say anything about the hospital.

I know, already.

Comments

audio; WOW LATEST IN THE WORLD, IT'S ME

[revolutionized]

[She sounds a little hoarse, herself, but mostly irritable.

This train of thought unsettles her, is why.]

That's kinda morbid, isn't it? [...] Shouldn't you be asleep?

[tragicomedienne]

[Of course it's morbid. Like other horrible things, the idea's seeded deep where she can't let go of it.]

I couldn't. I've been sleeping all week.

You sound terrible.

[revolutionized]

When you're sick, you're supposed to sleep a lot. You've gotta conserve your energy—

[she coughs hard into her fist, and continues]

—and it's just a scratchy throat, that's all. You sound worse than me.

[tragicomedienne]

I had to go to the bathroom.

Just a scratchy throat? Be serious. Maybe you're the one who should be resting; you sound delusional.

[Never mind that Nanami's paranoia is off the charts.]

[revolutionized]

If you rest, you'll feel better. What's got you talking about this stuff anyw—

[And even over audio, she bristles.]

And I'm not delusional. There's people a lot worse off than me. [And that thought manages to make her uncomfortable enough to change topics.] ...Like I said, it's only a sore throat. As long as I can still help people around here, that's what I'm gonna do.

[tragicomedienne]

I thought sick people were supposed to get a lot of rest! If you're stubborn like that, won't you just get other people sick, too?

[Delusional, delusional, delusional.]

[revolutionized]

[She had said that, hadn't she.

Well:] Oi, oi, calm down. It's not bad yet. If it gets worse, then I'll rest. [...] Have you eaten anything yet? D'you need tea or something? [Wasn't that supposed to help with colds? Or the flu...whatever this illness is.]

[tragicomedienne]

[Utena isn't thinking at all, but Nanami truly can't think about the health of other's enough to call her on it past an irritable 'tccch' that she hopes conveys her opinion of her willful perseverance.]

I'm drinking water.

Are you offering food? Isn't cooking a little feminine for you?

[revolutionized]

[Rolling her eyes...] I know how to cook some things. [She'd stayed with Akio long enough to pick up a little, and what she didn't pick up she'd learned during the long months here.] Do you?

[It's an innocuous question, all things considered, but she's trying to make a point too. She can't imagine Nanami cooking anything.] If you don't want any, just say so.

[tragicomedienne]

That's not the point!

[Nanami's so quickly on the defensive that the obvious answer is 'no.' Most of her salary goes to food - she never really thought of how expensive it could be just to keep one person fed.

She's too tired for food right now.]

If you're offering, maybe you've learned something, after all!

I only want something cooked to the perfect temperature for the ingredients.

[But wouldn't that make it easier for Utena to feed her something bad? Or poison her?!

Nanami's fever is really climbing.]

[revolutionized]

Fine, whatever.

[In contrast, Utena's too tired to argue.]

I'll be there soon.

[Luckily for Nanami, it is not in Utena's nature to resort to poisoning.

But if it were...]