Visits with Doctor Ronchas had practically become routine for Japi and the girls. Annual checkups and shots made sure the girls stayed healthy. Japi was glad to have her children, Lithanus' children, but it was beginning to worry her that they had to have shots every twelve months in order to stay healthy. She had decided to have a word with the doctor, without her kids.
"Hello Selma," Japi smiled at the woman who didn't look up. Same routine. Luckily, the Doctor was just coming down the hall. This time they wouldn't have to wait without having a clue if he was busy or not. Japi was a bit relieved.
"Good morning, good morning," Ronchas repeated the greeting in his usual manner. "You three are up, bright and early, bright and early."
"You are too, Doctor," Lilly laughed. She had always thought the doctor was funny. He always seemed to calm her nerves.
Addy had a differing opinion. "Hey Doc," she greeted, but only in formality. Even though she'd been training with Uncle Sekenre, the doctor's thoughts still made no sense to her. They were jumbled and mixed up.
Selma was normal, thinking constantly about things from magazines and who just broke up with their celebrity husband/wife, whatever. Even the clumsy airhead, Nurse Violet had stable thoughts in her head, though they were much more constantly on Ronchas than what she was supposed to be doing at the moment.
Still, Addy did her best to be nice. And her best happened to be letting her sister do the interacting.
Lilly knew her sister was not a fan of the doctor, and was happy to be the bridge for that gap.
"You two just had a birthday too, didn't you? Just had a birthday." Ronchas was looking at their file at the desk. He was so bright and cheerful looking in comparison to unsocial secretary.
"Yes sir, we did," Lilly answered his question, even though she knew it wasn't really a question.
The phone rang. Selma didn't pick it up. Ronchas didn't either.
Japi sighed. She felt sorry for the person on the other end of the line. You had to get very lucky when calling the office. She had never made an appointment with Selma. Always either Dr. Ronchas, if he wasn't already busy, Violet or that other nurse, Garner? She couldn't remember the name for sure. She'd never actually seen the woman, and apparently, according to the certificate plaques on the walls, there was supposed to be another doctor, though she'd only seen another man once and never spoke with him.
"All right, then. Follow me. Follow me." Ronchas waved the folder that contained all the girls' information from the day Japi and Lithanus first stepped into the clinic.
The three of them followed him into his office where Japi sat on a chair in the corner and the twins, as routine dictated, sat up on the long bed-table. Addy was wearing her doctor-visit scowl.
She hated being in this sterile room. It smelled like cleaning supplies and bodies. Lots and lots of people had been in this room, some of them sick. She didn't know if it was her psyonic abilities telling her that or just her. Either way, it was gross.
Lilly didn't have a problem with the room. She smiled as much as usual, the pleasant look on her face, telling the world, and more importantly, her sister, that everything was going to be fine.
"And how are their abilities manifesting?" Ronchas asked as he shone the light in all four eyes, four ears, and two mouths.
Japi had forgotten she'd told him about them years ago. He hadn't asked again since then. But now he was?
"They're receiving training from their uncles." She didn't mention that those two men were from different dimensions. She didn't think it would be a problem, since there were many people living in this one who could use powers like that.
"Uncles? Uncles!" Ronchas' face brightened as though remembering something very funny. "Yes, yes. I met one of them before, bringing the girls to see me, to see me."
Japi remembered the event. "Oh." She coudln't think of anything else to say. Sekenre had said, quite vehemently, that he didn't like the doctor.
Ronchas held the flashlight in front of Addy's face. "Say ahh!"
Addy did as she was told and Ronchas shined the light down to see her throat. He did the same to Lilly.
Ronchas proceeded to listen to their hearts, instructing them to take deep breaths.
The checkup was over without much more talk. Only Ronchas spoke, with his instructions and occasional mumblings. Japi watched and wondered what it was that made Sekenre dislike him, but came up with nothing more than that the man was a little off. Most genious types were.. just a little off.
"Whose brother's are they?"
Japi snapped back out of her thoughts and realized the doctor was looking at her. The question she just missed was directed at her. "I'm sorry, what?"
Ronchas smiled an odd smile and repeated himself. It was as though he knew he was going to have to and waited until she was paying attention. "Whose brothers are they? The uncles? Yours or Lithanus'."
"Oh, mine," Japi answered quickly, then paused. "Sort of." They weren't blood brothers, couldn't have been. Luckily it hadn't been Krillo who'd taken the girls to the doctor. He would have known then, that they couldn't be. But she figured there was no harm in telling him the truth, at least in part.
"They're close friends. We grew up together." The second part was practically a lie. Practically only since they didn't actually grow up together, just grew together, in wisdom and spirit. That was the sort of thing that can make you closer that siblings. That's what it is to be "brothers and sisters" of spirit.
Of course it was no use going into all that with the doctor. It would have been a silly thing to bring up. So instead, she told the lie.
"All done, all done." Ronchas chimed as he tossed away the second needle.
Addy was relieved when the shots were done and hopped immediately down from her seat. Lilly followed soon after. She was ready to head out and looked to her mother for confirmation.
"You two, go wait outside." Japi instructed the girls.
They did as they were told. Lilly was the first to leave and Addy was not far behind. Japi closed the door on the way out, but Lilly found that Addy was still right next to it, sticking her ear against it.
"Don't do that," she scolded her sister in a hushed whisper. "We're not kids anymore." She looked over at Selma who didn't seem to be paying attention. What if the secretary scolded them? That would be so embarrassing. They weren't kids anymore!
Addy waved her hand at her sister to hush up, instead of telling her with her mind. She found that sometimes gestures were a better way to communicate with Lilly, expecially when telling her to hush up. She listened better that way.
Lilly did "hush up" but only because she didn't want her mother hearing them through the door. Since Addy didn't make the link, she didn't really have any other options, now that Addy's mind was closed, thanks to Uncle Sekenre's training. That was the only bad thing about that training.
On the office side of the door, Ronchas set about rearranging things for the next set of patients, giving Japi a moment to collect her thoughts.
She found she had new questions for him, about the powers, about the shots. "How important are the shots?" she asked him. No reason to waste time.
"Why, very important, very very important," Ronchas assured her. "If the twins do not get their shots, their immune systems will not function at their best. They will become much weaker and need to avoid all chances for infection if that happens. That means people too! That means people too." He paused a moment, giving her time to take that in. "But I assure you, that's worse case senario. Worst case. It's unlikely that something that drastic would happen. Very unlikely."
"And they'll have to have it every year for their whole lives?" she asked.
"Maybe not," Ronchas mused. "Maybe not. I'm monitoring the effect of it on their systems, that's what I'm doing. I want to see if eventually they'll be strong enough to not need it anymore, or maybe just not as much. Not as much. At the very least. The very least."
Ronchas was beginning to get on her nerves. His voice, his tone, was too reasurring. "Well what happens if you're not around to make sure of all that anymore?" Her tone was getting a little more strained herself.
Ronchas noticed. "Well of course, there are other doctors involved, other doctors. Other doctors who can take care of the research. I've kept very good notes. Very good notes. Everything is logged." He nodded his head with each sentence.
Japi sighed. She decided not to ask about the powers, since she doubted she'd get a very straight answer anyways. She opened the door and noticed Addy stooped on the other side. She sighed again and looked at her, tiredly.
Addy looked up and grinned sheepishly. She knew from her mother's expression that this was a time she wouldn't get in trouble for it.
Lilly put her hands on her hips. "I told you not to," she whispered.
"You have a good day, Doctor Ronchas," Japi said as she left the room.
"You too, dear." He replied in his usual tone. "You too."
"What did he say Mom?" Lilly asked, wanting to do it the right way.
Japi looked at Lilly and smiled her "give up" smile. "A lot of nothing."
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