Logs:Squishy
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| RL Date: 10 March, 2012 |
| Who: Emme, Hypatia |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: After finding a child's corpse, Emme got drunk. The next day, she needs a hangover cure. Hypatia's a little too curious. |
| Where: Infirmary, High Reaches Weyr |
| When: Day 27, Month 2, Turn 28 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: I'han/Mentions, Iolene/Mentions, Mielline/Mentions, Petros/Mentions, Thedrin/Mentions |
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| Infirmary, High Reaches Weyr Two sets of double doors, one from the the inner caverns and a recently built set from the dragon infirmary, lead into the unnaturally hushed human infirmary. Despite fastidious cleaning, the scent of redwort and numbweed has long since soaked into every smooth-carved surface, along with other, subtler medicinal smells. Pristinely made cots are lined up against the walls; most of them are left open to view, but some in the back are surrounded by curtains for delicate procedures or critical patients. About halfway between the two entrances is the counter for the healers on duty; it guards the entrance to the storage rooms just beyond, their shelves and cabinets lined with meticulously labeled bottles, boxes, jars, and even vats of supplies. The Weyrhealer's office is also here, along with another side room for mixing up medicines and the like.
It may have taken up to a few hours, but Hypatia certainly has heard. It helps that one of her best friends is in the same wing, and of course I'han let it slip to her right away that the Tillek heir had possibly been found -- and by none other than their own Emme and Mielline. While the healer did intend to try to track down one of them, likely the less-impressively-ranked brownrider, to ask a few (thousand) questions, she does look surprised when the target of her inquiry just walks right in the next morning. Looking abruptly up from the piece of paper upon which she was noting inventory, Hypatia says brightly, "I'm sure. Do you know how it started?" Emme scowls, of course, at the chipper voice. "Could you sound less happy please? At least until whatever foul drink I have to take kicks in?" Pleading, even, the brownrider manages to sound appropriately pathetic. "Yes. It started after I lost count of how much I had to drink, and after the room spun around until I spewed my dinner into the weyr bowl, but mostly... after I woke up this morning when the very epitome of evil - sunlight - filtered into my weyr." she describes, making sure to be explicit and thorough. In case there are remedies that work better whether one has lost their food violently or not. "Oh, yes. Certainly. I will be as drab and dry as the lady desires," Hypatia drawls, sounding entirely displeased with the entire situation. Not because she is, but because Emme asked her to sound less happy and who was she to refuse? "It's not too foul, at least. Sounds like a job for borage and basil. I can mix that up in a couple of minutes; you go ahead and lie down, draw the curtain around and keep yourself in the dark, if it feels better." Borage, also known as starflower, is kind of pasty -- it might take a few minutes to be transformed properly into a /drink/. Okay, that makes Emme smile just a little. Though it's more of a rueful acknowledgement of Hypatia humoring her then anything really cheerful. "Basil... used in cooking too." she recites, turning a little pale at the thought of food. So she gives -no- argument at all about laying down on a cot, in the dark, so she can whimper a bit more in private. By the time the healer returns, she'll be caught mumbling things to herself. But not really to herself, because she does at least address her currently not-visible friend: Rhazekth. When Hypatia re-appears with Emme's remedy in a tall, opaque cup -- best not to look too closely at the color of what it's made of -- she is carefully soft-stepping, not making any loud sounds or allowing any excess light in to the quiet, dark whimper-space Emme has created. "Okay," she whispers, kneeling next to the cot and offering the brownrider the cup, which rather reeks of basil. "It's not the most tasty thing in the world, but I can bring you some water once you've got it down quickly." "By the sea, you've saved me." Emme quips, sitting up so she can take the cup in one hand and pinch her nose with the other prior to gulping down the basilicious remedy to her woes. "Thanks, really. I swear I'll never drink that much again. No matter -what- I'm trying to forget." Solemnly sworn, the brownrider even crosses an 'x' over her heart in as playful a manner as she can imagine, while handing the cup back over and trying not to gag on the aftertaste. Blaaarrrrrrgh! "Was it really that bad?" Hypatia pries, though she's treading gently as she can because agitating a patient isn't a good idea. Nor is being nosy at a patient. Even if you are actually just a curious teenager -- for all that at eighteen it's hard to claim still being a teenager -- behind it all. Therefore, her voice is soft when she asks, and light, and trying her damndest not to irritate the headache and not to irritate Emme's pscyhe, either. "I mean, I heard about what happened. Sort of. Not the details." "Are you kidding? It was horrible. And disgusting. And... and gross. And horrible." Emme exclaims, making a face and falling back down against the pillows. "It was -squishy-. Like, sinking my hand in to mush or something. And some of it -clung to my hand-. And augh, I think I touched an eyeball." Weep. "And it was just a little kid. That's the worst." Shiver. Now she's cold again. Just thinking about it! "Eyeballs," Hypatia explains, sage and calm, "are very squishy, yes. So, I mean, if it seemed outrageously squishy you probably did. Though -- it was in the water? That would make it squishier, considering it's been a long time, and floaters suck up water and all that." She seems to be compartmentalizing the fact it was a child, because it would likely be too hard for her to ask in those circumstances. That, or she really is just that inured to the topic. "I -- suppose I can understand how being around an /unexpected/ corpse is a lot harder than going into a planned autopsy. I wish they'd let us do it, though. Tillek probably won't ever release cause of death." Or, likely, be able to figure it out at all, but she's no interest in dwelling on that. "Floaters. Is that the technical term for it?" A niggle of dry humor - pun intended - sinks its way into Emme's voice at that. "I can't rightly say I would be looking forward to a planned autopsy either. But maybe I should try thinking it wouldn't be so bad. I mean, if I want to use harpering in a way that would help with ... certain situations." Maybe. Even she sounds skeptical at that. "I have to honestly say I don't know how they can even tell for sure that it's Thedrin. I mean, wouldn't the water damage be enough to obscure it some?" Hypatia is nodding along as Emme talks, though she can't actually confirm everything she's said. At least she can explain some of it: "Floater's a dead body found in water, yeah. It is about as technical as it gets; I've never heard it called anything else. Though there aren't that many people who like studying that sort of thing." She's lucky she's friends with riders who get her back to the pre-eminent Journeyman Petros. "You are correct there as well, madam brownrider, water makes it harder to identify a body. But I'm sure they know his measurements, since he had to have had clothes, and that's why you measure. Bones. Measuring waterlogged tissue doesn't work too well, but you can always measure bones." "But, couldn't there have been other children who were of similar size? If all they could use were bones and hair color after all the damage the water had done..." Emme's voice trails off, and she rubs at her forehead again. "It just seems so odd. And I was there when we found the signet ring too. The sailors on -that- ship were smuggling goods, and claimed not to know anything about Thedrin. And they seemed believable. Maybe we shouldn't have taken their word afterall." the girl decides, sounding sad. "Is there anything else you can tell me? Maybe we can make some use of that information. About the bones. I can talk to Mielline - and maybe she can convince someone that we shouldn't stop searching." "You'd have to actually -- get rid of the flesh to be able to measure the bones," Hypatia points out in a flat, dry sort of way that isn't hiding the fact that even she thinks that sounds unpleasant. Especially on a child. "But bones will always tell you age, if you've got someone who knows how to tell, and if you have measurements you can make fair comparisons. Because of the lack of tissue they won't be exactly the same." Once she's finished with her explanation is when what Emme said /previously/ actually sinks in, and her eyebrows rise at the same time that her eyes actually narrow a little bit. "Smuggling goods? Was the wrecked ship smuggling too? Also, as far as not looking anymore goes -- were there other children of a similar age and size missing? Has anyone confirmed the height of the body? That only changes negligibly in water. The problem is you don't know who else was on the boat so you can't know if it is or isn't him at all without anything else to compare to." Emme is quite unable to contain her shudder at the thought of that - as well as her imagination feeding her all sorts of lovely images about how that might happen. That 'hrk' sound is totally her and she's not afraid to admit it. "I... I see." she says, finally. "I'm not certain. I found the b-body because I fell through some boards at the top of the stairs and landed in the freezing water on top of it. I couldn't see anything else around me. And when they got my and my wrapped bundle back up through the hole I was taken home. I don't know what else they found. Suppose I should have declined to leave right away." is admitted in a shame-filled voice. "Maybe I can ask some questions and find out about the other things you mentioned. You've been a big help." Hypatia's eyes only widen more -- I'han had not given her nearly enough detail, and she'd be sure to chastise the greenrider later -- as Emme explains her entire ordeal in clearer detail. "Shells, no. I think you were entirely within your right to step off! Considering you could've died of hypothermia, and all. It's actually probably a good thing you drank so much, though I hope there were warm non-alcoholic drinks involved as well. And a long hot bath, though not right away or anything." Not that she's giving instructions; it happened in the past, after all. "I'm sure somebody knows the answers, anyway. /Are/ you going into law?" "When I first got back, yeah. I even took the hot tea into the hot baths with me." Emme admits, sounding thoughtful. "All I can do is try to talk to people about it; who wants to listen to just some rider anyway. Certainly Tillek won't want much to do with me. I'll just start with Mielline. She's so nice to us. She'll listen, even if it doesn't go any further then that." Which appears to satisfy the girl's guilt somewhat, with a vague but mor egenuine smile appearing afterwards. "That was the idea. I was rather adamant about it. But people were so... suspicious. And nobody seemed to want my help in that regard anyway. The blooded exiles I mean. But the children seemed to appreciate the one song I wrote. A lullaby for them, to remind us of the island." Now, obviously, she's babbling. "So I thought maybe I would help that way instead. Just... make sure the culture didn't die out completely. And now I'm a rider. And some think riders shouldn't do a craft also. And... er, sorry. This probably all sounds like nonsense." "Not entirely," Hypatia admits, because maybe she did have to repeat some of it in her head a couple of times to be able to follow everything. "I -- think a lot of the times riders are used in place of the guard that holds have? And so you could always just be doing that. Investigative-type things. Even if you're not actually becoming a crafter. Although I swear there are other riders that participate in crafts, considering it's not like there's Thread and all." As far as the exile politics, these days she's steering clear of it: maybe she feels guilty about her initial discomfort, after starting to consider Iolene a friend. "Riders can write songs, too. I'd ask you to sing for me but I think you're probably still a bit sick?" "That's an idea." Emme muses, considering the idea of guard-type duties at a smaller hold. But if nothing else she takes to heart the knowledge that the non-exile has about what riders can and cannot do and will keep it in mind for the future. "I'm better then I was, at least. If you've a song you actually want to hear, I might be able to pull it off credibly." Hypatia shrugs a little, and says, "Give me a rain check, I don't want to overexert you. Headaches are slimy little creatures that vanish and reappear at will, and I don't know if singing won't massively stress you. But some other time, please, I'd love it! /Are/ you feeling any better, by the by? Want that water?" By now, surely, poor Emme has gotten through the entire rancid starflower-basil mess. It might take another half hour to /work/, but maybe the dark is helping? "Alright then. I will." Emme promises, and then gives a single nod. "The water would be great. Please. Need to get rid of that basil taste. Maybe soon I'll be able to get some food down and be rid of the rest of it." The darkened room has helpd immensely, apparently. "The sun not stabbing into my eye sockets like ice picks helps quite a lot actually. I'm hardy, and bounce back quickly. But this whole hangover thing? I could do without it." With a tiny laugh, Hypatia says, "I'm not surprised. You're a bold one, too -- I would /never/ drink that, regardless of the hangover!" Just because she makes it for people doesn't mean she has any interest in consuming it, and it's a little secret (but pleased) smile that she's got on her face as she stands up and calls over her shoulder, "Be right back!" soft but definitive. No need to be noisy and make it harder yet again for Emme. In about two minutes, she reappears with a nice tall glass of water and offers that over. "You can rest here the rest of the day, if you want, I doubt anyone will mind. Though I would recommend eating lunch." "Well, after tasting it... I can't say I blame you for not ever drinking it." Grumble. "It just means I won't consume that much alcohol in one sitting again." Gratitude for the water is evident even before she gulps it down. And perhaps even moreso for the offer to just hibernate in the curtained off cube she finds herself in. "You know, I think I will. At least for the morning." Which means she'll be out like a light again in seconds flat once Hypatia's gone back to her duties. |
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