Welcome to Gaia! ::

It had been a busy week when it came to work but surprisingly it was quiet on the Negaverse front. Knocking on the wooden chess table just to avoid jinxing things, he had finally gotten back to his peaceful and well-organized schedule. Like clockwork, he’d gotten back to the few things he did outside his home that weren’t draining or patrol-related. It felt refreshing which was a new oddity to him because he hadn’t realized how much the strain of not having a schedule had bothered him.

One night, after coming back from a seminar he noticed something in his mailbox which was odd since he had cleared it of mail earlier in the day. It hadn’t been what he’d expected though he was a bit surprised at the new reading material in addition to a movie of sorts. Outside of the over-the-top musicality of it, he could see what they were talking about in their note. It wasn’t something he really intended to watch again but the books were something he’d put on in the background while working through his personal notes on a few things that were going on in his clinic.

The books of yokai were interesting, even if he would never really let on to most that he did in fact like those stories and folklore tales of creatures. Magic was still something he didn’t quite like but the older tales sometimes described things that just weren’t able to be explained back then and he would find himself wondering what mundane explanation might be good for most things.

One thing he’s found almost hilarious was the historical account of the Salem witch trials and it had him laugh when he’d seen it in the list of books. It was always interesting to hear different points of view on things he’d had familial records of but to see it in a senshi’s collection of books was on the nose almost.

He’d been near the end of it after a few days of listening when a knock came on the door. Face falling for a moment, he cringed at the thought that his week of peace was over and his cousin, the tart, or Aloysius were here due to some “work” related injury or illness. Standing up and moving away from the small chess table, he walked over to the door and turned the outdoor light on before opening it.

It wasn’t who he expected, not in the slightest, but from what he could tell they didn’t look bloodied so maybe the week of peace wasn’t over. Looking around them, checking for anything troublesome outside, he then sighed and rubbed his face a bit. “Is everything alright? I never expected you to show up here at this time of night.” Maybe they had tried to reach him through the tablet, which he hadn’t checked since he hadn’t powered up the past day or so.

“Come in, I was working on something while listening to a book.”

Listening and processing what they said, he offered a short nod. It wasn’t that he’d forgotten, it was more that he wasn’t sure if the corrupt would take up his offer. He felt for them, at least when it came to their medical condition as migraines were insufferable when he got the odd one but to have them frequently had been debilitating from what he’d seen the other time.

Heading to his kitchen he filled the electric kettle with water and flipped the switch to turn it on. “Tea? I have a lot of varieties due to a family member of mine.” Careful with what he let loose, he pulled down the one he knew he was going to use before motioning for them to look through the rest.

Considerate, good, very good. They’d left their shoes by the door and didn’t track anything into his home. He’d nearly flipped when René had tracked mud in a few weeks back after a rain storm. The mention of another name had him pausing until he remembered a bit from their first meeting when they’d let him know that they had set up a sort of need-to-know box of things for after they corrupted. It was a good plan, something that made sense when considering the randomness of what one lost when being corrupted. It was something he’d been reading about after meeting them, there were more than enough cases of it to run a study at this point. It was interesting at least but he could understand how it might prove difficult if someone had allergies or conditions they forgot about. Someone like Kioshi, who had a sulfa allergy, might find themselves dead or in an ER if they were lucky after something as simple as a routine round of antibiotics. It was a bit frustrating but it wasn’t something the individual could control.

“I can work from the ground up for a history, if possible an allergen test could be run if you were curious. Allergies can change over the years so it might be a good idea considering the situation you have. Otherwise, I think continuing what prior prescriptions and treatment plans you have through Arseno would be best.” Running through the list of things for a new patient, he was already planning for a schedule of things to get everything in order.

Looking over at the laptop near the chess table his brow furrowed as he wondered if they were looking into his habits or noticed how he burned through audiobooks like a wildfire through a dry forest. “Yes, something to listen to while I work on research. A doctor’s studying is never done, otherwise, they might as well lay down and die or stop practicing medicine.” It was something that bothered him when it came to the older doctors that he had worked under during his rotations, when they had gotten comfortable and he knew that procedures were being skipped and things had been slipping through the cracks.

“Alright, I can do that. There’s cream, sugar, honey, or lemon to add to it if needed.” Pulling open what looked like a small breadbox revealed jars of most of the things he’d mentioned as he grabbed two cups down from the cabinet and added two spoonfuls of honey to his cup and setting the teabag beside it. He wouldn’t put it in until the water was added so that the bag wouldn’t stick to the honey at the bottom. A second spoon was set down on a spoon rest for the other as he turned to watch the kettle already almost nearing a boil. It had been something that his secretary had gotten him that first year he’d had his practice open and it proved reliable and efficient.

While he still didn’t quite have a positive opinion of the stereotypical type of people who got tattoos instead of spending their money on more stable things, he could get behind the sort of continuing education and hygiene that he’d heard were something this corrupt stood behind. “Seminars both live or online in my case with virtual or deceased patients in place of the living. It would be frowned upon for many reasons if things were done at a seminar on the living you see.” On top of how many rules and regulations it would violate for the individual and the practitioner.

“I can manage a history of sorts over time but I can work on just a baseline tonight and I have an idea of a schedule that I can go over with at some point after I check it against my own as well as your schedule. Some of them will have to be done during the day due to fasting rules as well as the normal circadian rhythm of most people. As for the movie…” Shaking his head a bit, he pressed a palm to his temple as he sighed.

“The theatrics were over the top as was the story and setting but I can see some things that bother me. The idea of purchased genetic perfection on top of the idea of leased or loaned organs goes against everything most doctors stand for.” Though he had little to say when it came to heavily handed genetic choices appearing in his own extended family. Whether it was by accident or not it was impossible not to notice how almost every member of his family was blonde and had some variation of blue eyes.

“The books though, I dabbled through a few historical ones and the two I saw about pharmacology. I try to keep up with the medical journals with my own account so anything outside of it tends to get lost beneath the monthly updates.” It had gotten to a point that he could no longer really scroll to the bottom in an agreeable amount of time. It was also good that he didn’t have to download things to hear them anymore otherwise he would have sent his harddrive to an early grave by now.

“True true, things were different back then and not just in the field of medicine. I am sure your area of work had its own less than ideal beginnings as well?” Not that he knew much about it other than the few occasions that he’d seen piercings or other cosmetic modifications get infected leaving a person in the ER and then to the operating room in some cases.

“I prefer honey of sugar as a method of keeping a pollen allergy from cropping up though any additions to tea are up to the individual of course.” It was why he had other options for the odd occasion when he had a guest. Most of the time it was family but more often than not it was specifically Alexandre or Katya. Not that his cousin drank tea but they did at least bring more to him from time to time when they felt the need to try and apologized for throwing wrenches in the clockwork schedule of his life.

The mention of confidentiality did have the corner of his mouth coming up almost into a smile, more of an expression than was normally on his flat face when he wasn’t annoyed or exasperated. “Confidentiality, saftey, regulations, and procedure are all things I seek to uphold so I approve of anything that also encourages that nowadays.”

Hearing the kettle click, he moved and went about adding water to each cup without getting a single drop on the counter before setting the kettle back on its base. Adding the teabag to his cup, he swirled the spoon in it three times before tapping it on the edge of the cup before cleaning the spoon and setting it on the drying rack near the sink and washing his hands. Mentally he took note of the time and would take the bag out here in three minutes as per the instructions and toss it into the trash. “I do prefer history and non fiction books, I’ll keep that in mind though and I will avoid the things you are actively listening to so that there aren’t any hiccups in your progress.” He’d never dealt with sharing such a service before but he’d known that sometimes with René or Katya took to watching something here on his Netflix account they tended to mess with his lists and order of TV watching. Not that he watched much outside of documentaries but the fact they were messing with it irked him at times.

“You can follow me back to the examination room back here from last time. I won’t do any blood draws or anything tonight but I will keep what you said in mind and provide you a schedule as well. It may be easier to contact me via mundane means in this case, I can provide you my work email or cell phone though I will not hesitate to block any extraneous messages. I prefer my peace over social things.” It was something he didn’t really agree with when it came to his cousin even if he did go to family gatherings. That was a different matter because it was family but everyone else was more or less a bother most times.

Moving down the hall with his tea, he pulled down a small sanitary mat to set the cup on so that it wouldn’t get anything on the counter. There was enough space for them to set theirs down as well before he started with another round of handwashing and getting gloves on. A clipboard was pulled down from one cabinet then various kits with swaps and tests were pulled down as well before being set on another mat in an order that probably didn’t mean anything to the other.

“I’ve seen a bit about those older methods, rituals and things along those lines back then.” Sometimes related to witches or even just other cultures that may not have fit in with the local populations over the years. Traditions passed down or things carried on the skin, it wasn’t something he liked in the here and now but he could understand how it may have been important back then.

“Good to hear about non porus materials being used, bacteria in an open wound like that is asking for gangrene.” It was something he’d seen a few times, though not because of a piercing but it was something that sought out any opportunity that the conditions were right for.

“That will work then, I saw a few other things I may listen to in the future. It would be interesting to hear your opinion on things. I enjoy my cousin’s company dearly but I also know him too well and it has been refreshing to talk about new topics with someone different.” It wasn’t quite a compliment and that same flat expression he wore didn’t change much with eras he spoke but it had been something not unwelcome.

Motioning for them to sit on the table, he nudged his rolling stool with his leg to get it to move across the floor. “Most bloodwork will be fine but I will have you do a set with fasting though only for an eight hour window. I can give you a week’s notice if that is acceptable?” Enough to give them time to figure out a day off or to arrange if someone needed to drive them before or after. Everyone reacted to fasting differently and from what he could tell Kiyoshi was already on the thinner side so it might not go over as well but he’d watch carefully for any worrying signs.

“I see, I know there are conferences and seminars for most professions but I can’t say I thought about one for tattoos and piercings really.” Though now that he thought about it, it did make sense as it would be a way to talk about safety and techniques much as they were during medical conferences.

“While I don’t wholly agree with tattoos I also wouldn’t exactly say they define someone’s character either. Much as how clothes don’t define someone as much as I have seen someone believe.” Thinking of how things were during certain socials where clothing and connection was all that mattered even if someone was vile otherwise. Moving to take their blood pressure, he held a hand up to keep them from speaking for a moment as he took the measurement and wrote it down. It was a bit elevated but that made sense considering they had been at work earlier. Once that was done he put his hand down and went about gathering their temperature and pulse rate. Everything was within normal levels so far which was good but also not unexpected considering how active one was when out on patrol. There wasn’t much room for laziness in the Negaverse and he appreciated that.

“I would be fine with that, as long as it doesn’t interrupt my work day at the clinic. I believe it would benefit us both as well if we went on patrols together. I can look out for signs of an oncoming migraine and you can assist in feeling out those signatures I can’t quite notice yet. It’s mutually beneficial and would keep your health concerns out of the public eye as it were.” It also meant he could keep an eye on the senshi and learn a bit more about magic, as much as he still hated it all.

“That would be good, taking the day off before and after in case you take poorly to fasting. I usually have patients sit and have a snack or two afterward to avoid them passing out on the drive home.” He’d seen some of them drop as soon as they got up off the table or come down with a migraine. But he’d also seen people fine afterwards and go for a jog so it really was widely varied and he did his best to keep an eye out on everyone.

“Interesting, there are pharmaceutical companies that sometimes do seminars but I take those with a grain of salt considering their marketing.” It was a minefield he hated navigating, something he wondered how that other corrupt he knew managed it all. Shaking his head he listened more about what they were saying.

“True and it can pose issues when hiring as well though it depends on the profession I assume. Even if I’m not bothered by it, I feel as if my patients might if my secretary or front of house person had modifications or ink.” Shrugging he knew it was more about the image of things which was why he let his secretary decorate and manage the design of the waiting room and most of the office. There hadn’t been any complaints so he saw no reason to change things.

Finishing up the other measurements, he leaned back and scribbled notes down on his clipboard that he’d type up later on this evening while listening to more of that audiobook he’d been listening to when they’d interrupted. “I’ve got everything I need for now and I can let you know via text what time would work best. I should send you a message regarding it before the end of the week and then, of course, it would be scheduled out a week or more after that to let you organize your schedule.”

Nodding at them mentioning keeping him safe, he almost laughed a bit at the thought that he was having a witch watching out for him. It felt wrong deep in his core but he also couldn’t really count them out considering how things had been so far. “It’s good to keep the medic safe because otherwise who is going to play damage control?” Raising an eyebrow as the hint of a smile came out, he then got up and went to remove his gloves and clean up before washing his hands.

Looking over his shoulder, this would be an interesting puzzle to solve and they were considerate of his time and schedule unlike everyone else. “Let me know if you have any other migraines between now and then as well, track when and where you felt symptoms and what you might have eaten or drank before them. It would be good to have that info and also being aware of things will help you navigate things a bit more on your own as well.” Give them the ability to help themselves as it were.