Chapter Text
The reformation of the Akademiya isn't going smoothly at all.
Alhaitham crossed off the next candidate's application with no hesitation whatsoever, the scratching of his pen against the paper was barely heard at all with how swift he was. With only about twenty more to go through, and some more paperwork to finish, he'll be able to retire for the night.
This was one of the things he failed to account for when he developed this plan with his ragtag group of rebels. The aftermath was a fallout he would've preferred to not have dealt with, but unfortunately his position as the Scribe and the one of the only people who are able to keep things running without the Akademiya potentially collapsing from all the new changes made it impossible for him to ignore it.
Which was how he found himself with a lot of paperwork to fill out. The remaining two Sages sometimes took chunks of his work off of him when they had the time, but other than that he was stuck with this job until he can find new Sages to oversee the four other Darshans.
The selection process was so much more tedious than he originally thought.
Almost every applicant are either unfit for the positions or are too good that it would days of debating to reach a conclusion.
Alhaitham sighed, placing the pen down once he finally got through all the paperwork for the day. Getting up from his seat, he decided to go outside to get some fresh air. Sitting at his desk all day was not pleasant whatsoever.
As soon as he stepped out of his home however, he became a witness to a sight he wasn't expecting to see, nor wanted to see again.
General Mahamatra Cyno, followed by a group of matra, was carrying his roommate in his arms, looking practically mangled, unmoving.
~
"What happened to him?" Alhaitham demanded once he managed to get an audience with Cyno. They were outside of Kaveh's room in Bimarstan, in the waiting area.
"I found him while I was on the trail of a few Eremites." Cyno's ever present stoic face made it difficult to tell if he thought of this matter as mere everyday work or he was genuinely angry that a crime only the lowest, most evil people humanity had would stoop to, and Alhaitham had to grip his wrist to stop the relief he felt from hearing the rage in the General Mahamatra's voice.
"The footprints led to a small cave, deep in the desert. Had they have been more vigilant to cover up their tracks, I wouldn't have apprehended them, nor would I have found your roommate." The anger in his voice wavered slightly.
"Go on." Alhaitham said, mentally preparing himself for Cyno's description of Kaveh's injuries. The frown on his face was too deep even for him.
"I already sent a group to the cave to further investigate the area, but from what I remember, he was in critical condition when I came across him. The Bimarstan doctors are still treating him, however I can speculate based on what injuries I saw. Broken arms, several cuts and bruises, stab wounds from having two swords impaling his thighs, which were pinning him against the ground, a bruised neck, and finally...there were remains of bodily fluids all over the room, including on his body, a clear sign of... activities that have taken place." There was a growl in his voice when speaking of the last crime.
Alhaitham felt an urge to murder. It was so rare to make the Scribe feel this way, make him lose his composure, or at least on the verge of losing it.
But in the end, he remained composed as ever. Not just for his sake, but for Kaveh's.
~
Alhaitham found himself at Bimarstan almost everyday, uncaring to the work that was now piling up on his desk because of this.
It was always the same request. The same questions.
He watches as Kaveh's chest rise and fall in a steady rhythm under the thin, flimsy gown that covered up any hidden injuries that were inflicted upon him. There were casts on both of his arms and bandages around his neck. He looked almost peaceful sleeping, and Alhaitham could've been fooled into thinking he was merely resting if it weren't for the oxygen tubes in his nostrils, or the tubes connected to his body that provided nutrients to his system.
Alhaitham sighed, risking caressing his face as gentle as he could.
"What happened to you?"
Kaveh's eyes began to open almost after he said those words. He quickly withdrew his hand and placed it on his thigh instead, watching as he regained consciousness. A light groan was emitted from his throat. His eyes soon came into focus, and he looked up at Alhaitham.
"You're awake." Alhaitham stated the obvious. "Are you in any pain?"
Kaveh blinked at him. Once, then twice, before something came out of his mouth as a murmur but he still caught it all the same.
"Haitham..." He began. "...I didn't give them anything."
"Give them what?"
"Any information about you." Kaveh coughed for a brief moment. "I didn't."
Alhaitham now had the culprits and their motive. They targeted Kaveh because of him. They hurt Kaveh because of him.
And he didn't do anything to stop it.
But now that Kaveh's back, safe, he vowed to never let it happen again.
Why are you caring now?
Alhaitham ignored that voice in his head.
~
When Kaveh was officially discharged from the hospital, he clung to Alhaitham's arm when he saw him walk in.
The Scribe couldn't find it in him to care that people were staring at him as he escorted him home.
~
It was difficult trying to adjust to the changes.
In his home, there would always seem to be a commotion of sorts as long as the two residents were around. Kaveh would usually be the cause of the many, many arguments they had, always something about Alhaitham would take both keys to the house with him or how his deadlines are looming over him and he just had to misplace his papers somewhere, or even how the food was too cold because he got home later than expected.
Alhaitham had always wished for a quiet environment even before Kaveh moved in, and for a few days before that event, he was happy to bask in the silence.
Now, he was starting to hate it.
Without his own voice to break the heavy atmosphere around, the house was deathly silent. Kaveh didn't want to speak of his own volition at times, and even if he did, it always seemed to match whatever Alhaitham was thinking at the moment - as if trying to please him.
He found it disturbing at best, and heartbreaking at worst.
The Kaveh he knew would never be this silent or quiet. He would be loudly sketching his new ideas for grand and unnecessarily detailed buildings or just talking to himself with a voice too loud for his liking. He would be defending his latest endeavor or deflecting his arguments about the amount of cooking ingredients that were burned through almost everyday.
Alhaitham ended up having to work and study from home in order to keep Kaveh calm, refusing to let anyone else take care of him. Lesser Lord Kusanali didn't mind, and took to selecting the new Sages on her own. His presence was comforting for him, it seemed.
But that wasn't always the case.
Sometimes, when he approached him, he would flinch.
Sometimes, when he opened the door to his room, he would scream or hide under the covers of his blanket, muttering little things like "don't take me again" or "I won't run away again I promise".
Sometimes, even a simple good morning can cause him to flee. This was especially true if the blonde had just woken up from a particularly horrible dream.
Every time it happened, he wished the Akasha wasn't discontinued. It was a selfish, unpleasant thought, but the way his roommate shivered under the covers with no hope of unseeing the things that were done to him unless he lost sleep, was enough to make this thought justified.
Whenever someone visited their home, Kaveh would be clinging to Alhaitham like his life depended on it, even if it's someone he knew personally.
Alhaitham didn't know how to help. He wasn't one for psychology or anything related to it.
All he knew was that he had to adapt to Kaveh's behaviour patterns.
So he did.
Alhaitham began by doing any of his remaining assignments for him, as well as taking care of some of his other things. He made a specific request to the Akademiya to give Kaveh leave for an indeterminate amount of time, and thanks to Lesser Lord Kusanali, it was approved of.
Next, he let him stay in his room. Cyno made a comment that he calms down whenever he was near him (Alhaitham omitted the other details), and suggested that he allow him to sleep in his room until he was ready to rest on his own.
When this idea was suggested to him, Kaveh's eyes widened, before they shrunk and he opened his mouth, probably to say something about how he didn't deserve that, but Alhaitham beat him to it.
"It's your choice. I won't force you if you believe it won't do you any good."
Kaveh didn't say anything, his mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. He was twisting his fingers between each other. It was such an uncharacteristic action that it made his heart crack ever so slightly.
Then after a while, he gave a nod. It was subtle, but Alhaitham's trained eye caught it.
"Very well. It might not be comfortable since the bed isn't too large, so if you wish to back out, you may do so."
Kaveh never slept in his own room again after that.