Solo A Place for Everything (and Everyone)

[Asterope]

47th/Summer/517

It was the dawn that marked Aster's official fifth, full day in the city. She stood by the window in her room (which she noticed seemed to change walls, and on some occasions did not exist at all), her fingers pressed against the glass lightly as she waited for the sun to rise.

She felt it before she saw it; her body tingled slightly, her skin enveloped in a faint golden glow that faded quickly. She didn't feel her body shift, but suddenly she had a slightly more advantageous view out the window, and her hair was in her face where before it had been tucked back. Slightly more content, she reached one hand up to run her palm over the smooth glass-like surface of her horn, grounding herself in her body. A moment later, the pale light of the sun struck the glass in front of her, making her blink to readjust her vision.

She stood at the window a few moments longer, greeting Syna silently before she turned away. Aster stepped over the sleeping form of Navi carefully, slipping out of her chemise and plucking one of her dresses from the chest at the foot of her bed. She'd grabbed the blue one, the simple cotton material ending a few inches below her knees. She took a moment to sweep the waves of her hair up into a loose bun on the top of her head before pulling on her boots. After a moment of consideration, she pulled her more lightweight cloak around her shoulders, fastening it. The morning air had a chill to it.

Navi opened one eye sleepily as Asterope turned the handle of the door. "Go back to sleep," Aster told the dog. Upon not being called over, Navi let out a wet huff and closed her eye again. Exiting her room, Aster took care to keep her steps light on the stairs as she crept down them; it was far too early for most people to be up, and she didn't want to wake anyone. She eased out the front door as best as she could, minimizing the chime of the bell, and then set off down the street. She knew by now it didn't matter what direction she took, whether she had a destination in mind or not; though, today happened to be the latter.

Despite it being pointless to try and map out the city, Asterope found she enjoyed walks through Alvadas, and while buildings were always changing locations, she was coming to recognize a few that she'd seen on multiple occasions. At such an early hour, not many people were out yet, and many of the shops and businesses were still closed.

Enjoying the calm of the streets, Aster decided to look for somewhere that was serving breakfast at such an early hour. While she didn't have to eat, she had found herself becoming partial to the tastes of different types of teas, and a warm drink sounded perfect at the moment. Looking around, however, it wasn't any sort of small business that caught Aster's eye.

Across the street was a building she hadn't yet seen; it towered over the buildings around it, constructed of pale stone with marble steps leading up to a set of double wooden doors. Curiosity seized her, and she crossed the street to investigate. Climbing the steps, she examined the doors for any sort of identifier to tell her what the building was; it was slightly intimidating, after all, and she worried that perhaps she wasn't supposed to be there.

The doors were blank, but just above them, carved delicately into the stone, was the symbol of a partially unrolled bandage surrounded by an inverted triangle. Aster cocked her head ever so slightly to the side as she studied the symbol. It implied something to do with healing, anyway, so Aster went ahead and pushed one of the heavy doors open.

It swung inward, revealing a long hallway. She stepped inside, and the door swung shut behind her, causing her to startle slightly before she began to walk down the hallway. The click of the heels of her boots on the marble beneath her echoed around the hallway. Reaching the end of the passage, Aster found herself standing in the entrance of a wide room; to her right was a large desk with a rather bored looking woman sitting behind it, picking at her nails. She didn't look up.

(Word Count: 743; Total: 743)

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Asterope]

Aster waited for a beat, and then two, and finally stepped forward hesitantly when the young woman still didn't look up.

"Uhm. Hello,"Asterope said, politely as possible, slightly put off by the other's apparent rudeness. The woman finally looked up, scanning Aster up and down.

"Yeah?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't mean to be a bother, but I was just wondering what exactly this place is."

The woman blew out a breath. "Welcome to Ionu's Mercy, Alvadas' resident healing house." The line was clearly one she'd said before. "How can we help you?"

Asterope perked up slightly at her words; so she'd been right after all.

She worried her lower lip between her teeth for a moment as she considered. She'd been in Alvadas a few days already, and had yet to begin searching for a job; she had no idea where to even start, but she would have to find something eventually, just to get by let alone save up for her future travels. If she could do something that she enjoyed and was somewhat competent in, then all the better.

"Well you see, I'm looking for work and I was wondering if perhaps-," she was cut off abruptly.

"You'll be wanting to talk to Miss Caene about that."

Aster opened her mouth to ask where she could find this Miss Caene, but the girl flicked a silver bell sitting on the desk before she had a chance. The ringing echoed loudly in the large room, bouncing off the marble sharply before slowly fading into nothing. The woman waited for the ringing to stop before addressing Aster again.

"She'll be by when she has a minute. You can wait there," the girl gestured behind Aster and promptly went back to picking at her nails.

With a murmured thanks, Aster turned to seat herself in one of the chairs against the opposite wall, neatly tucking her feet beneath it and folding her hands on her lap.

With no visible clock, it was impossible to tell how long she'd been waiting. It felt both like mere minutes and yet hours. A man wandered in at one point with a broken arm, and was directed further down the hallway, deeper into the building.
Another man came in with a cough, and after a brief conversation with the woman at the desk, was directed to wait with Aster.

The Eth gave a polite smile when the man met her eyes before glancing away,
examining the decorated walls as she'd been doing. Finally, there were the sounds of footsteps coming from within the hospital; Aster focused on the tall, dark-skinned woman that approached the desk.

She couldn't hear what was being said, but a moment later the woman turned and beckoned to her before striding back down the hall she'd come from. Aster stood in a single fluid moment and hurried after her, a slight jog to her first few steps so that she could catch up.

There was carpeting in this hallway, thick and plush underfoot as Aster walked quickly. The walls were lined with doors on either side, all of them closed except for the one Aster stepped into, following the taller woman.

"I assume you must be Miss Caene?" Aster ventured, as she watched the woman take a seat behind a narrow desk.

The office, at least Aster assumed that's what it was, was small but neatly organized. Aside from the desk, with a chair on either side, there was a small couch and table pushed into one corner. A shelf lined with books sat on the wall nearest to her, and there was a large window on the back wall, the curtains pulled open to let in the sunlight. Papers and a few pens lay across the desk, a few potted plants at the edges.

"You would assume correctly." The dark-skinned woman, Miss Caene, smiled faintly. Her voice had a lilting tone to it, yet was firm all the same. Aster was momentarily reminded of Nara, and blinked a few times to shake the thought away. "I hear you're interested in a job?"

(Word Count: 686; Total: 1,429)

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Asterope]

Aster nodded her affirmation, taking a seat across from the doctor, who steepled her fingers beneath her chin and watched the Eth with keen eyes before beginning to question her. Why did she want work there, of all places? What experience did she have? What was her specialty? Who had taught her?

The questions came quickly, and Aster clasped her hands in her lap as she tried to keep track of them, attempting to stay grounded and not become overwhelmed by the other woman's rapid-fire inquiries. With a deep breath, she did her best to answer.

"I like helping people," she said, plainly and honestly. "I don't like to see people suffer, and I..."she hesitated for a moment, struggling to find the right words without delving into her deeply personal feelings regarding her presence among mortals.

"I like to know that I'm doing some good in the world."She finally settled on her words, hoping the simplicity in them could still convey the genuine feeling behind them. "I was taught by someone very important to me. An older woman."

The faintest hint of a smile tugged at the corners of Aster's mouth as she thought of Nara, and the brief resemblance she'd seen between her and the woman before her. "The basics of medicine, and some herbalism. I'm hardly an expert, but I'd like to become one, someday. In the meanwhile this seems like the place best suited for me, I suppose."

The woman sitting across from her hummed thoughtfully, regarding Aster unblinkingly as she seemed to consider. Aster struggled not to squirm beneath the prolonged gaze.

"What was your name again?" The silence was finally broken.

"Asterope. But you can call me Aster."

"Alright, Aster. Welcome to Ionu's Mercy."

Aster blinked as she registered the words.That's it?, she thought in surprise, before echoing the sentiment aloud. The other woman laughed, not unkindly.

"That's it. You can call me Irene, by the way, since we'll be working together." Irene stood from her place behind her desk, skirting around it."So can you start now?"

"Now?" Aster repeated, baffled by how quickly things seemed to be going.

"Of course. I can always use the extra hands. You can stick with me for today," She added, upon seeing Aster's bewildered and somewhat uncertain expression.

"I...yes. Okay. I can start now," Aster said, hesitantly, standing as well. Irene seemed pleased by her answer, and motioned for her to follow as she left the room.

She followed Irene down the hall and through one of the closed doors; how the doctor knew which room held which patient was a mystery to Aster. Sitting on a small bed, Aster recognized the man that had come in with a broken arm. He held the injured arm close to his chest, the dull, off-white gleam of bone visible in the light coming through the window.

Irene was looking at her with a raised brow, so Aster stepped forward, smiling slightly at the man. "Hello. I'm Aster; could I take a look at that, please?" The man grunted, offering his arm with careful movements.

The break was in his forearm, and Aster wracked her memory for the few anatomy lessons that Nara had given to her. Two bones, radius and...

"Ulna," Irene supplied from behind her, as if she could hear her thoughts."The ulna's the one that's broken, not the radius." She moved forward so that she could trace a line from the break, just below the man's elbow, to his wrist. She was careful not to touch the skin. "See? The bone is on the outside, it ends beneath the little finger. The radius would end under the thumb," She explained."Are you used to splinting breaks that pierce the skin?"

Aster shook her head, and stepped back to make room for Irene. She'd seen Nara do it before, but had yet to attempt it herself. There was already a tray filled with medical supplies on the small table by the bed, which Irene began to sort through.

"We're going to need something for pain; check that cabinet while I get this ready, will you?" She motioned to the cabinet on the far wall; through the glass, Aster could see various labelled vials, jars, and bottles sitting on the shelf.

(Word Count: 716; Total: 2,145)

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Asterope]

Aster made her way across the room, opening the doors of the cabinet and sorting through the various bottles with careful fingers. The gentle clinking of glass filled the room as she checked the labels on the different vials and jars, tongue tucked between her teeth as she concentrated on the simple task; she hardly wanted to mess up something so basic in front of her new boss.

Her fingers settled on one of the larger jars, filled with a reddish brown liquid that looked familiar. Her eyes skimmed the label, written in neat but scrawling handwriting: 'Poppy Tincture'. Satisfied, she pulled the jar from the cabinet, returning to Irene, who was in the process of cleaning the wound. The man had his eyes squeezed shut, face in a grimace as Irene carefully poured what smelled like strong, clear spirits over the wound to disinfect it, catching the excess with a clean cloth beneath his arm.

Aster inspected the wound idly as Irene took the bottle from her; it didn't seem to be bleeding anymore, at least not much, and was rather small. The shard of bone that had pierced the skin had done so cleanly, and there was perhaps less than an inch of bone visible through the wound.

"Finish cleaning it, will you?" Irene addressed Aster without looking up from where she was measuring out a teaspoon of the tincture. Aster took the proffered cloth, carefully cleaning the edges of the wound, mindful not to disturb the visible bone.

Handing the glass to Aster when she'd finished, Irene moved to the small basin on the other side of the room, rolling her sleeves up and beginning to wash her hands thoroughly. Aster offered the man the glass, and he took it with his good hand, eyeing it suspiciously.

"It will help with the pain,"Aster smiled gently. "Though you'll probably want to drink it in one go, it doesn't taste the best." The man muttered a thanks, and downed the shot of tincture in a single swallow, coughing slightly and making a face of distaste. Aster took the glass back, setting it down as Irene returned.

"I have to reset the bone, and it is going to hurt. Do you want something to bite down on?" The man shook his head stubbornly. "Very well. Aster, watch carefully,"she addressed the Eth.

Gripping the man's wrist firmly, Irene positioned her other hand above the protruding piece of bone. In one swift, firm movement, she pushed down, forcing the bone back into place in the arm. The man jerked, though his arm stayed mostly in place thanks to Irene's grip, and yelled wordlessly.

"Good, almost done," Irene soothed, as the man breathed heavily through his nose. Running her fingers deftly over his forearm, she pressed down on the area just below the wound until she was satisfied the bone was realigned. Loud swears came from the man, but with less intensity. Irene examined the man's arm for a moment, pulling up his other one to compare the two side-by-side, and seemed satisfied with the results.

"Suturing a wound like this is a bit more difficult since the edges aren't quite clean; you need to make sure to close it properly and not leave any of the edges open," Irene explained as she prepped the materials needed for stitches. Aster felt somewhat useless, but with this particular injury outside her area of knowledge, there wasn't much else she could do; if anything, it was quite the good learning experience, at least.

Finished sterilizing and threading the needle, Irene began her work. Aster watched closely, following the repetitive motions with her eyes; pierce one side, pierce the other, knot, pull to tighten, knot again, cut the thread, and repeat. Irene made it look easy, her hands moving quickly and with no hesitation, yet remaining gentle. The wound wasn't overly large, and it seemed like only a chime or two passed before she was done.

"This was a simple break overall, even though it pierced skin. You're quite lucky," she remarked to the man, idly, as she set the needle down. Turning, she redirected her gaze to Aster. "From here it's about the same as any other break." Irene stepped back from the man, brushing a stray strand of hair from her face. "The wound won't need to be wrapped since it was stitched, just splint the arm." It was both an explanation and instruction in one.

(Word Count: 744; Total: 2,889)

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Asterope]

Moving to take Irene's previous position, Aster sorted through the tray, plucking a slim but solid piece of wood from the bottom, already shaped to act as a splint. She remembered on several occasions Nara having to improvise her own splints out of sturdy wood lying around. With careful hands she maneuvered the man's arm until it was straight, laying the wood flat against his inner forearm.

Taking a roll of bandages, she tried to keep her movements gentle despite the tightness with which she had to apply the bandages; she wound the cloth around his wrist, effectively fastening the splint to his arm, before cutting and securing it, and repeating the process along the center of his forearm and just beneath his elbow. She was careful to avoid the stitched area, keeping the bandages just below it.

"Good," Irene said, simply. "And what medicines should we give him?"

"Some poppy tincture for pain over the next few days," Aster hummed, automatically, examining her handiwork to make sure the splint was firmly in place and the bandages tight enough. She absentmindedly chewed her lower lip as she considered, Irene waiting patiently.

"Maybe some powdered juniper for the stitches, just to avoid any potential infection," she finally said, glancing at Irene.

"That could work," Irene acknowledged."I usually prefer to prescribe elentai root to avoid infection, though. That way I know there's no possible way to mess up the application, so it will do its job."

Satisfied, Irene went to rummage through the cabinet, filling a small bottle with some poppy tincture that she handed to the man along with some dried elentai roots. "Take the tincture as needed, but I won't be resupplying; chew a root a day. Come back in...five days or so, so I can make sure its healing properly, and we'll do a sturdier splint then. The front desk will take care of payment. Unless you have any questions?"

The man shook his head, his gaze glancing between both Aster and Irene as he said his thanks. He stood, shambling out of the room with the herbs clutched tight in his good hand, his broken arm held close to his chest.

"Let's try for something a bit simpler so I can really see you at work, hmm?" She offered Asterope a fleeting smile as she turned to exit the room. Despite not having done much herself, Aster felt a certain sense of content satisfaction to have helped someone; a feeling she hadn't experienced for some time, and was surprised to realize she missed.

"It's almost funny that I found this place," Aster commented as she followed the doctor down the hall. "I could have walked by it so easily, and I would have been stuck finding a job at a shop or tavern."

Irene chuckled, not looking back as she spoke."You could have," she agreed. "But Ionu made sure you didn't. After all,"she paused in front of a door, finally turning to face Asterope.

"Everything has its place, even in this city. Now, shall we?" Without another word, Irene turned and pushed open the door, revealing the sounds of a woman coughing.

Aster stood for a moment, mulling over Irene's words, before a small smile pulled at her mouth and she stepped into the room, closing the door behind her with a soft click.

(Word Count: 557; Total: 3,446)

"Common" | "Nari" | "Pavi" | Thoughts
"Other People's Speech"

[Madeira Dusk]

Grades Awarded!

Don't forget to edit/delete your grade request!

Asterope

Skills

• Observation: 4XP
• Investigation: 1XP
• Socialization: 3XP
• Planning: 1XP
• Medicine: 3XP
• Herbalism: 2XP

Lores

• Alvadas: changing locations
• Location: Ionu's Mercy
• Planning: saving for the future
• Irene Caene: healer at Ionu's Mercy
• Anatomy of a forearm
• Poppy tincture: sedative
• Medicine: cleaning wounds
• Medicine: suturing a tear
• Medicine: setting a broken arm
• Medicine: using a splint
• Herbalism: using Elentia to avoid infection

Awards & Retribution


Notes
Congrats on your first thread! I really got he feel for meek, polite Aster. Hopefully she'll learn to be more confident and assertive as her skills increase! I will be watching her in the threads to come.

If you have any questions about your grade let me know!

Ps- Not really necessary, I'd appreciate more contrast between your font and your template. White words on a bright background is a recipe for a headache.