[RL (sort of, WHO WAS PHONE) with Setsuna and later the Doctor, backdated to Worst Fear virus]

[lockon2urheart]

[It was pretty clear from Setsuna's post that for some reason (the community, almost definitely), comments either weren't registering with him or weren't getting through at all. Lockon decided to cut out the middle man and just call him, and prove that he and the others were alive that way. He paced as his communicator called, waiting for the connection.]

Comments

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[Not long after he'd made his journal post, Setsuna had shut himself down in Tamaki's basement; he wasn't working on Exia like he usually would be, instead he was sat in the pilot's seat with his hands resting on the Gundam's control panel.

A sudden buzzing interrupted his thoughts and he stared glumly at his communicator. The number calling came up as unknown and he pressed the answer button cautiously]

"Hello?"

[lockon2urheart]

[There was a tinge of relief in Lockon's voice when he spoke. He'd half-expected the call to fail or be denied somehow.]

"Setsuna. It's me, it's Lockon. I'm fine - no, we're all fine, it's just a virus. It's okay."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[All he could hear was a low hissing, like interference. Frowning in confusion, he checked the screen again - yes, it had definitely connected. So why wasn't anyone speaking?]

"Hello??"

[lockon2urheart]

[Confused, he tried again, speaking louder. He didn't normally have this kind of trouble calling cross-world, although admittedly he hadn't tried it too much.]

"I said it's Lockon, and we're all alright, Setsuna! It's just a virus, so don't worry about it! Everyone's fine!"

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[Still nothing. Setsuna sighed angrily.]

"What's the point in calling somebody if you're not even going to speak?"

[He debated hanging up, but decided to give the person one last chance to say something.]

[lockon2urheart]

"..."

[Oh, this was how it was going to be? Let him get through, but not let Setsuna hear?

Well fine. If Setsuna couldn't hear Lockon, then he'd have to find someone Setsuna could hear.]

"Hold on, hold on, just wait, Setsuna, don't hang up on me yet, I've got a plan.."

[Okay, it didn't make much sense to talk to someone who couldn't hear a word you said, but Lockon still spoke into the phone as he ran out of the room to fetch the Doctor.]

[timey_wimey]

[The Doctor, meanwhile, was in the control room, busy staring at his own screen as he tried to figure out what the hell was going on with Setsuna. It had to be some sort of virus, that was clear, but what? He ran a hand through his hair in frustration.

On hearing the heavy footsteps coming toward him, though, he looked up, spotting Lockon there and blinking.]

"What are you running all over the place for?"

[lockon2urheart]

[Lockon wasn't really in the mood to mince words, and he didn't know how much time he had before Setsuna hung up. He held out the phone, quickly.]

"It's Setsuna. You've got to tell him I'm right here, he can't hear anything I say."

[timey_wimey]

[The Doctor gestured expansively to his monitor, where Setsuna's post was still visible.]

"What do you think I've been trying to do?! He just capslocked at me!" [His eyes were wide, voice incredulous. If Setsuna hadn't hung up yet, he'd have no problem hearing the Doctor.] "Setsuna F. Seiei, using capslock! I think I would have preferred it if he'd stuck to dots! Honestly, Lockon, whatever this virus is, it's not pulling any punches."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[That...sounded like the Doctor. Except he sounded far away, like he wasn't talking into a phone.

Setsuna had no idea what was going on. He spoke a bit louder into his communicator, in case the line was bad]

"Doctor? Is that you?"

[timey_wimey]

[Not waiting for an invitation, the Doctor sprang to his feet and took the phone off of Lockon, pressing it to his own ear and pacing around the room.]

"It is now, but I wasn't the one that called you. Hello!"

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

"..."

[The Doctor's voice suddenly sounded a lot clearer, but what he was saying didn't make much sense. Setsuna stared at the device, wondering what Ten was playing at]

[timey_wimey]

[When there was no reply, the Doctor rolled his eyes.]

"Oi! There's no need to dot down the phone at me! Although you might have hung up on me for all I know. I hope you haven't, though, because that would be rude even by my standards. You haven't hung up on me, have you?"

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

"No."

[The Doctor probably wasn't going to get much more than that out of him; it was possible that Setsuna talked even less on the phone than he did in real life]

[timey_wimey]

"Okay, good. While we're here, I wasn't lying earlier, by the way."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[Setsuna didn't respond straight away. In his confusion he had briefly forgotten to be upset about his current situation, but Ten's words had brought it all back to him. His grip tightened on the communicator and he felt his heart rate pick up again as he tried to keep calm]

"Stop it."

[timey_wimey]

[His voice turned exasperated.] "I'm telling the truth! Honestly, this virus..."

[He cast around, looking at Lockon for help.] "Lockon, help me out here! Tell me something to tell him - [he jerked his head at the phone] - that only you and him would know!"

[lockon2urheart]

[He had been itching for a chance to join in the conversation again, such as he could when Setsuna couldn't even hear him.]

He had nightmares when he first joined Celestial Being, really bad ones. I used to help calm him down from them. Confused the heck out of me at first when I tried to hug him the next day and got an elbow to the gut for my trouble. I never told anyone else about it all, so that should do it.

[timey_wimey]

[The Doctor nodded gratefully and turned back to the phone, speaking rapidly.]

"Did you get that, Setsuna? Well, probably not... but I can prove he's here, honestly! He just told me about how when you first joined Celestial Being he used to help you calm down from nightmares that you had. Only then when he tried to hug you the next day you used to give him an elbow in the gut, right? Come on, how else would I know that unless he'd just told me, hmm?"

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

"..."

[Setsuna stared at his device, unable to speak. The Doctor was right, he had had bad nightmares back then, and Lockon had been the one to hold him and soothe him (and yeah, he might have got elbowed once or twice but really, that was his own fault for trying to hug Setsuna with no warning). There was no way the Doctor could know that, Lockon had promised not to tell anyone...

Setsuna didn't know what to think. He opened his mouth to respond, but no words came out.]

[timey_wimey]

[He turned his head to mouth at Lockon "I think we're getting somewhere". Turning back to the phone, he resumed trying to convince Setsuna.]

"So, what do you say?" [His voice suddenly turned a lot more serious.] "I wouldn't lie to you about something like this, Setsuna. I'm not that cruel."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

"H-how..."

[He took a deep breath to steady his voice]

[quietly] "I don't understand."

[timey_wimey]

[equally as quietly] "I know, Setsuna. But you will." [He sighs heavily] "If my hunch is right, then what we've got on our hands here is a particularly nasty virus. And don't say that that's an excuse."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

Setsuna remained silent as he thought that over; a virus? What sort? He didn't feel any different - but then, you usually didn't when you were affected. Still, he couldn't think of anything that had happened recently that was unusual. The past ten months had been pretty uneventful, for the most part.

Still struggling to wrap his head round the whole idea - he wanted to believe the Doctor, he really did - Setsuna struggled to find words]

So he's... Lockon's alive? He's there?

[timey_wimey]

[Simply:] Yes. [And then, almost as an afterthought:] Actually, he was the one who called you first, not me.

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[still uncertain] I couldn't hear anything.

[lockon2urheart]

"Tell him I was talking, Doctor. He just couldn't hear me - or rather, the virus wouldn't let him hear me."

[Lockon was really starting to hate this virus.]

[timey_wimey]

[He nodded at Lockon and turned back to the phone]

"He says that he was talking, but you just couldn't hear him - or rather, the virus wouldn't let you hear him. His words, not mine, by the way."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[Setsuna kept quiet, trying to sort through his thoughts]

[timey_wimey]

[The Doctor gave him a few minutes, then cleared his throat] "Setsuna? You still there?"

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[speaks quietly] Yeah...

[timey_wimey]

"And...?"

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

"I guess I don't need to worry anymore. If it's just a virus, it'll be over soon."

[He says that, but his tone is flat; no indication that he's either pleased or unsure about this knowledge]

[timey_wimey]

"Is that what you're really thinking?"

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

"..."

[He wasn't sure how to answer that, his thoughts were all still so muddled]

[timey_wimey]

[a sigh]

"I know it's difficult to believe, but I promise you that I wouldn't lie. Not about something like this."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[with a tiny bit more emotion in his voice] "I trust you."

[he hesitates before speaking again] "So they... the Gundams... they can be fixed?"

[timey_wimey]

[Subconsciously, although he knows Setsuna can't see it, he nods in thanks to that trust. It's something he appreciates, perhaps more than Setsuna realises it.]

"I'd think so, yeah. At least, last time I checked, Tieria was definitely up to something, and when Tieria's up to something, things usually happen." [He smiles wryly as he says this, throwing a cheeky, knowing glance towards Lockon, like a shared joke.]

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[Despite firmly telling himself that Ten was right and the others were all alive, hearing him say Tieria's name so easily still made Setsuna's breath catch in his throat a little.]

"That's...that's good, then."

[timey_wimey]

"Mmm. I thought you'd think so."

NEITHER OF YOU SAW THAT FAIL

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[After several more minutes of awkward silence: ]

"I'm sorry I didn't believe you before. And tell Lockon I'm sorry I got annoyed."

SURRRRE

[timey_wimey]

"He's standing right here, I don't need to." [Looks at Lockon expectantly, nodding his head at the phone; does he want to pass on a message to Setsuna through the medium of Ten?]

I KNOW I SAW IT 8]

[lockon2urheart]

"Tell him he doesn't need to apologise, for a start." [Sort of smiling with relief that Setsuna believes them now, even if it's tinged with sadness - both that he had to do this at all, goddamn virus, and that he can't talk to Setsuna directly.]

"And...just, reassure him that the others are okay too, will you? Tell him Tieria and Allelujah, they're both safe. Ian too, which means Exia can definitely be fixed."

[timey_wimey]

[Nods and relays the message back] "He said that you don't need to apologise, for a start. Also, he says that the others are completely fine, Tieria and Allelujah are safe and so's Ian, so no worries on the fixing Exia front."

[doomedyouth00.livejournal.com]

[Nods, even though they can't see it]

I'm glad everyone is okay. I guess I'll talk to them once... once the virus is over.

[it still feels weird to think that this is all a virus, but he's trying to force himself to believe it]

[He closes his eyes briefly, imagining Exia as she's meant to be: whole and completely fixed. He exhales slowly]

Good. Because I don't think the duct tape is going to do the job, sorry.