The five weeks TO endured after the surgery were the longest they had ever suffered. They thought at first that they’d be able to walk right after the surgery was done. They even hoped they’d be able to move as they had before, since the leg was so specially designed.
This was not the case.
The initial recovery period involved them simply lying on their bed in a recovery room, doing nothing. At first, it wasn’t so bad; people visited and their chip was synced to the secured network that Scraprock had rigged so they could research whatever they liked. Still, that got boring after the first. DH, Flit, and Snout all did their best to visit frequently, but they had their own things to do. Constance, DH, and Avery spent the most time with them, but DH was working on projects with Vik, Constance was studying daily at the Scraprock school, and Avery was still working on their own daily physio while making time not only to visit DH, but to see everyone.
The only thing that got TO through the fatally boring recovery period was a simple fact that DH told them upon realizing how long they’d be bedridden.
*There’s a huge flight room on Scraprock*
The promise of a flight room, a place where TO could fly for as long as they wanted day after day, was the thing that occupied their mind through recovery. Their studying turned from the political and cultural studies they had done to more advanced flying techniques. They even ventured into the world of HSF - Hardcore Stunt flying- and watched in a mixture of admiration, desire, and terror as they watched other winged species fly in ways that TO had previously thought impossible. There were even guides on how to perform techniques normally limited by wing type.
TO thought their flying skills were top tier. Of course, why shouldn’t they? They had been one of the best in training, and King Decon’s synths had the best skills in the Galaxy. Now, it was clear that their skills were just ok. They were a strong flyer - they could glide longer than their peers, and swoop around small spaces with more precision than many others. Some people they were watching now had skills that far surpassed their own! They did amazing mid-air stunts and daring maneuvers that TO wouldn’t have tried before. Moves that made their little game of diving and swooping up at the last second seem childish.
They’d get better, they told themself. When they could fly again, they’d work every day to get to this level.
When they tired of study, they played flight simulation games to practice the techniques they saw - though this wouldn’t help them at all with the muscle memory it would take to actually learn the moves. When they tired of that, they practiced drawing by reproducing different wing types on the drawing tablet - not a learning tablet, one that had been given to them but from where it came from TO couldn’t say. They’d draw all kinds of wings, with and without feathers, focusing on the differences that made different types of wings work in different ways. After that, they drew what they thought the flight room might look like. A combination of styles, some much like the flight simulation that Flit had put them in once, some more like the more industrial flight room they had in training. They didn’t really care what it looked like though, so long as they could fly again. It had been so long since they had been able to just fly for fun.
Now, the five weeks had passed and TO was finally given the ok to start flying again with their new leg, they suffered a major disappointment. They weren’t disappointed in the room - it was huge, the patchwork vibe of the ship making it look like the metal had grown out organically to create perches and obstacles for them to fly around - They were disappointed in themself. The first time they tried to fly they approached the edge with a slight limp, and quickly jumped off like they had so many times back in training. They dropped, as they always did, then spread their wings to slip into a glide. It was a basic maneuver - the most basic! it was one of the first things they learned to do in training - step off, and glide. At first, they weren’t even expected to flap and rise up, just glide safely to the floor!
This first time after their surgery, TO couldn’t even do that. Yes, their new leg was weighted the same as their old one, and they could feel some sensations of pressure when they walked or when something touched the thin membrane that covered it, but they couldn’t feel it’s presence like they could their hands or their good leg so they compensated too much for the weight, and spun. They might have been able to adjust quickly in the air–they knew how!–but the moment they shifted and corrected their positioning it was as though their wings just weren’t strong enough, and they quickly crumpled up as TO fell to the floor. Well, almost to the floor. If they had been back in training, they would have died, or at the very least suffered major injuries. Here, they fell into a safety net and ended up with the wind knocked from them and a severely bruised ego.
Their ego wasn’t helped by DH, who glided down after them, gracefully catching the nearby ladder which led back to the takeoff platform.
“You alright?” They asked as they climbed down the last few rungs, stepping onto the small metal platform to the side.
“I’m fine.” TO hissed, more in embarrassment than actual anger, which DH could easily tell by the flush to TO’s ears. “Apparently, I’ve just lost the ability to fly.”
Despite DH’s effort to hold back a chuckle, TO could see the amused flick of their mate’s ears. “You have a new leg, you’ve been bedridden or wheelchair bound for weeks, and you’ve not been able to fly regularly since we left training. Your muscles atrophied, and your body’s adjusting to the new leg. It’ll take time!”
TO muttered curses under their breath as they struggled to their feet. They could see DH nearby, making quick movements, wanting to run and help TO get up but holding themself back. As embarrassing as it was to struggle with something so simple, TO was grateful that DH didn’t just rush to help them. Most people, DH included, jumped to help them if they stumbled with their new leg, or even fell down, and it bothered TO a lot more than they wanted to admit. They had to figure this out on their own, get used to doing the hard things against if they wanted to improve quickly.
Besides, there was no reason anyone should be worried about them. Failure here wasn’t a matter of life or death. Even this failure, which would have once cost them their life, or at least heavy injuries, was essentially harmless.
It took several minutes to get from where they had fallen to the platform, and longer than they’d have liked to climb up the ladder to the upper platform. They had to go slowly as their muscles seemed to tire out more quickly now, and they kept missing their footing with the prosthetic leg.
Finally, they got to the upper platform, rolling onto their back as they breathed a sigh of relief. Their muscles burned, and their wings felt heavy and cumbersome.
“Maybe that’s enough for now.” DH said as they knelt next to TO, “Maybe we came here too early. We can do other exercises, though! We can-“
“No.” TO hissed, rolling onto their stomach and pushing themself up again, “No. No, I’m not leaving it like this!”
DH knelt next to TO, a hand on their shaking shoulder, “Hey, look... it’s gonna take a while, you know? You’re not going to be back at your old level overnight!”
“Maybe not.” TO said as they pushed themself up to their knees, and then to their feet. They looked around, their eyes wide, their ears pinned with spite and frustration as they took in their surroundings, “But at the very least... I should be able to make it from this side of the platform-” They pointed to the other side of the circular room, “To the platform over there.”
“TO...” DH said as TO walked once more towards the edge, trying to suppress the limp that plagued them, trying to at least pretend that they could feel their leg. It was their leg, it was handcrafted for them by people who loved and cared about them! It would be a part of them! And before this day was done, they would fly again.
Or at least glide.
“I have to figure this out!” TO said as their ears pinned back. They could do this once before, they should be able to do it again!
“... Please don’t hurt yourself.” DH said, “I know you want to do this, but-“
“I won’t hurt myself.” They said. As they glanced back at DH, they saw the doubt in their mate’s eyes, and they knew that DH was just worried about them. In that moment, a part of them wanted to just give up for the day just for DH, to go back to their room and rest their tired muscles and take the worried expression from DH’s face.
They couldn’t, though. “I have to.” They said, “Please. I have to fly again!”
DH pursed their lips, their ears twitching in a mix of worry and sympathy. “Alright.” They finally said, just as TO was worried that they would insist that they rest, “I’m here. I’ll help... but if you do actually hurt yourself, we have to stop.”
“I won’t hurt myself.” TO said, standing at the edge and focusing on the platform on the other side, “I’ll succeed.”
======
Hours later, exhausted and sore, TO soaked in a hot mineral bath back in their room while DH carefully rubbed just between their wings on their back, massaging the muscles in an attempt to make them feel better.
The pain was worth it, as was every bruise they had earned from each fall. TO had done it. They had flown over to the other side of the room. Yes, they ached all over and they didn’t even know if they’d be able to get out of bed tomorrow, but they were content. Even their frustration had temporarily seeped away with their minor success.
“You know it’s going to take a while, right?” DH said as they finished their massage on TO’s back. “You did really well today, but you have to do basic exercises with your wings every day, and it could take years before you’re at the same level you were before-“
“I know.” TO said, sinking into the tub as far as they could and letting the heat from the steaming water seep into their muscles. “But I flew today, and I’ll fly more tomorrow. I can remember the basic flight training we got before and I can use that to help me improve faster. And who knows, maybe the Chilacians will have something to help me!
“Maybe.” DH said, smiling. They came around to the other side of the massive tub and pulled off the simple one-piece dress they wore that day, dropping it into the small laundry machine set into the wall.
“Constance is alright?” TO asked as DH slipped into the water.
“She’s fine.” They promised, “Last I checked, she fell asleep listening to some kids’ music and drawing.”
After TO’s surgery, Constance begged and pleaded to be allowed to stay in the same room as TO overnight, and in all honesty TO had no problem with that. Sometimes, she slept in the pod with DH and TO, but other times she slept in a small cot nearby. It took a few weeks for her to feel comfortable enough to spend the night elsewhere, and when that happened, either Avery took care of her for the evening, or Pearla and GiDi. Lendulin often took her for the day to go swimming as well, and if she did, it was likely that afterwards she would just collapse, exhausted, in Lendulin’s room once they were done.
For the most part, though, she stayed with TO and DH.
“Are we her parents?” DH asked out of nowhere.
“She had parents.” TO said, their ears dipping.
“I know, but we pretty well adopted her, right?” They said. “I mean, she’s a child in our pod now, isn’t she? And you’re the one that Luke said to watch over her, so that would make you her parent, and since I’m your partner-“
TO pursed their lips, their ears twitching thoughtfully, “I suppose.” They said, “I hadn’t thought of it that way.” they admitted, “I suppose we are.”
DH chuckled as they sunk into the hot water. “Should we tell Flit and Snout that they’re grandparents, then?”
TO grinned and closed their eyes as they leaned back. They felt as though they might fall asleep, but a moment later, they felt pressure on their prosthetic. When they looked up, DH had their hand on it under the water.
“No issues with this in the water, then?” They asked. “We’ve kept you limited to showers so far, to keep the leg from being fully submerged. It should be fully waterproof, but-“
“No problems.” They said, “I kind of even felt the water when I put my leg in the tub. It was like putting my leg into water that was exactly the same temperature as my body.”
“Good.” DH said, leaning back once more. “I’m just glad that you’re ok, that the leg is working. I’m glad that everything just feels so...” They paused, considering their words, “I don’t know. Peaceful?”
TO nodded, “Peaceful.” They agreed. They had to go to Apoikia still, but there was no rush, and no risk of being separated. There were no looming threats, no hiding from authorities, no fear of sudden attack, capture, or correction.
for the first time, everything felt safe.
