Taladaras :: Air Dragon (bymybook) wrote in brightstar, @ 2019-05-30 00:02:00 |
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Entry tags: | !thread, character: laura proudfoot, character: njall strand |
Who Laura Proudfoot & Njall Strand
What Laura hasn't been feeling well. Njall tells her why.
When 30 May 2019, Morning
Where Brightstar Medical Offices
Rating Low
She was supposed to be lounging in bed with Ethan, enjoying the morning after her birthday, not sitting around in medical, waiting to see a healer. She had promised Ethan, however, that if she hadn't felt better in the morning, she would see someone. As much as she would rather be doing anything other than this, Laura hated feeling sick. Loathed it, really, and on top of her churning stomach, she had completely ruined her birthday night in with her husband.
She had felt a little off for a couple of days, but she chalked it up to a couple of late nights, and the possibility that she was coming down with a bit of a cold. It didn't truly hit her until the night before. The moment that the scent of the gnocchi that Ethan had made her hit her nose, her stomach had decided to lead a revolt. She had spent most of the night getting cozy with their toilet.
Even now, just remembering the events of the night before had her eyeing the nearest trash can.
While Njall would never claim that he was the most punctual type, he always tried to make sure that he didn't fall into the Extended Wait Times trap that was the most common experience between patients and their healers. As such, he stuck his head out from the treatment area within a handful of minutes of being told of the latest drop-in. "Mrs. Proudfoot?" He knew her of course, but this was the professional song-and-dance. "You can follow me back."
He led the way to an empty room before pausing to get a good look at her. Even without diagnostic spells, her pale skin with its slight sheen was a dead giveaway that something was amiss. Her eyes were a little glassy and slightly dilated as well, and he urged her to sit. "So, what's going on? How are you feeling?"
There was no hiding the mild look of relief that washed over Laura's face when she saw Njall. While she had no doubt that some of the newer healers were perfectly competent at their jobs, she'd known Njall for a while now. She trusted him. Standing slowly, she very nearly sat right back down again as her head spun. Lovely - now she was getting light headed.
Taking a moment to compose herself, she gave him a small nod, and a half smile, before following him back. Settling herself on the end of the exam table, she sighed. "The short version? I feel like shit," she told him with a light chuckle. "I spent most of the night with my face getting intimately acquainted with the inside of my toilet. I'm utterly exhausted, my head's spinning any time I move, and the smell of Ethan's cooking makes it worse. Actually, the smell of most things."
"Ouch." Njall winced in unaffected sympathy. With a glance at her chart, his brows rose, clearly surprised. "And on your birthday too. That sucks." It wasn't exactly healer parlance, but sometimes vernacular just worked better. "So, let's see what might be going on and start you on the road to feeling better. Maybe to the point in sweet talking your husband into a do-over."
He gave her a confident smile--more tools of his trade--and started with a few basic spells. Lights glowed and popped and wisped around her, but nothing jumped out as a bug. Something else jumped out, however, and his face split into a wide, delighted grin. "You especially need to talk your husband for a do-over. There's just one thing, however: you're gonna have to skip the drinks."
"Tell me about it - I think it broke his heart a little that I couldn't even look at the lovely dinner he made last night." In truth, he'd been more worried about her than anything else. "I think he'll have no objections to a do-over."
She sat patiently as he performed his tests, watching as the lights flitted around and did whatever it was they were supposed to do. It was all far above her understanding, but as long as he understood, she didn't care. The grin on his face had her narrowing her eyes slightly, one eyebrow raising as he spoke. "Skip the drinks? I don't like the sound of that. Njall, what's going on?"
"I'm kind of glad you're sitting down." He attempted to temper his smile into something a little more professional. The jury was out on his success rate. Besides, he was never quite sure how people would take this life-altering news. Njall had seen it go a million different ways over the years. "Laura, you're pregnant."
Okaaaaay. What on earth kind of news was he going to deliver that he would want her sitting for? There was a small part of her that wanted to panic, but if it was something bad, he wouldn't be smiling like that. Right? Healers didn't tend to smile when they were delivering bad news.
His next words completely derailed any kind of train of thought she'd been having. Pregnant. Holy shit. She stared at Njall blankly for a moment, head tilting as her eyes blinked behind the dark frames of her glasses. "Huh." Her shoulders shook slightly, and it took a moment for her to realize that she was laughing. "Well, apparently Ethan took what I said in Vegas very seriously."
Laughter was a good sign, usually. Njall watched her carefully, however. Sometimes it could lead directly in the opposite direction, depending on the undercurrent of actual emotion. Counter-reactive responses. He wasn't terribly well-versed in mind healing and psychology, but he'd read a few things over the years. "Oh? That Vegas trip seems to be a well-springs of auspicious happenings. Finn and Matt. You and Ethan."
It had led to some very interesting events, hadn't it? Laura wouldn't change a thing about it, though. She was happy. They had always talked about having kids (Laura wanted an army of them), so it wasn't like this was entirely out of their plans. "So, Njall, what do I need to know? God, I mean, how far along am I?” She had so many questions that she needed answered, so that she could go back and tell Ethan everything.
With a small wave, Njall conjured a couple of pamphlets. He was still smiling. Getting to deliver good news, especially to a receptive and joyous patient was a relative rarity in his professional life. "Well, to start, you're five weeks along, so it's still really early days. Even though I'm just a GP, I'm no stranger to treating expectant mothers and have delivered a number of babies in my time. That being said, however, I can recommend a few really good midwives and female healers in the Laramie area if you'd feel more comfortable going in that direction."
He took out a small charmed pad of paper and started writing on it. "I'd like to go ahead and start you on a prenatal potion, which you can either get here or arrange for an owl or Floo shipment. They travel remarkably well, all things considered, and most good apothecaries are very discrete. You'll want to cut out alcohol immediately, of course, and start monitoring your symptoms and watching what you eat. Sometimes there's a correlation that can become apparent in a short amount of time."
He thought of Nat for a second, because how could he not. Laura wouldn't be having her issues, however. As far as Njall knew, they were both healthy, average adults. "I'm guessing you're probably going to have more questions, and I'll try to answer everything I can."
Laura pondered that for a moment. "Honestly? I think I'd rather stick with you, if you wouldn't mind, of course. I trust you, which is huge when it comes to me and healers." She had never been a fan of healers, but she liked Njall. He had done a lot for her and Ethan over the years. Plus, there was the fact that he was also a being. If anyone understood, it would be him.
The idea of going months without wine brought a slight frown to the blondes face, but it only lasted a flicker of a second. She made a mental note to start keeping track of her food intake and symptoms. She had a spare journal she could use to do that with.
Biting her lip, Laura took a deep breath. She needed to tell him, now, in case it made things more complicated. "Njall, you should know … I'm half Veela. My mother's side. I don't know if this complicates things, but I know it's important."
Half-a-beat and an incremental brow raise was all that he allowed himself at this news. Some of the pleased warmth he'd been feeling at Laura's decision to keep him on her case had definitely cooled, because his brain decided to screech to a halt. Half-Veela. Half-something. Like Nat. Dammit. But Laura wasn't Nat. And a Veela definitely wasn't a naiad. Njall started to nod right up until he made himself stop, because chances are he might have looked a little crazed otherwise. "Most of the tests we'll start running in the coming months will be standard for any pregnancy," he said slowly, trying to phrase it correctly. "My main focus is going to be monitoring you to make sure you and the baby are healthy, and I'll be as transparent as I possibly can through every step."
He took in a deep breath, setting his shoulders and looking at her directly. "There are certain tests that, if they become necessary--and only would in extreme cases--would be flagged by BACO and probably result in you and your sister needing to be registered. It's… It's what happened to me. I need you to know that I'm under no legal obligation to alert the AWC of your status, but there's a very remote chance that it could happen. It's probably something you should discuss with your sister and Ethan. But--" Njall smiled slowly at her again--"maybe lead with the important bits first."
Laura took in every word that he was saying, realizing that he was absolutely right. She knew that it was a bit of a risk - her unregistered status had never really been a problem before, but now? Well, now she had her child to think about. "If it comes to that, I'll deal with it. I'll give Rory and Ethan the heads up, though." She'd also need to send a message to her brother. All in due time.
"I appreciate your honesty, Njall. If I'm being honest, one of the reasons why I want you to continue as my healer is because of your being status, though it's mostly because you're one of the few healers I can stand." She gave him a soft smile, folding her hands in her lap. "Well, let's talk potions then, shall we? Please, tell me that there's somethin' you can do for this God awful mornin' sickness?"
"High praise," was his only dry response, but he followed it up with a grin. He summoned a couple of vials from a nearby storage cabinet. They glowed a frosty sort of purple. "The good news for you is that most antiemetics aren't contraindicated in pregnancies. Once we update your status with the apothecary of your choice, they'll know what ingredients to start avoiding and compiling lists based on your reactions. For now, I'd recommend avoiding rich, fatty, or spicy foods until your stomach settles a little. Assuming these do what they're supposed to, you'll be back to eating whatever you're craving as soon as you know it."
"I'll be sure to let Ethan know when he's cooking. At least now I'll be able to reassure him that it wasn't his dinner that made me sick.' Nodding, she took the vials from him, making mental notes on what he was telling her. It was a lot of information, especially when her mind was still reeling from the news. After settling on her preferred apothecary, Laura sighed. While it was a mostly happy sigh, there was an underlying hint of worry, considering the events of the past several weeks.
"Is there anything else I should know? I mean, I'm sure I'm now in for a lot more frequent visits to your office, now." Which she would need to get scheduled.
Being neither blind, nor deaf, Njall couldn't help but note the slight trepidation in the soon-to-be-mom's gaze and sigh. He put his hand gently on her wrist, and gave it a supportive squeeze. "That should be it for now. I'll have Bettina start setting up regular appointments for you; just standard exams to make sure mom and baby are doing all right. And I'll drum up some additional reading suggestions and have her send them over." He gave her an encouraging and hopeful grin, real delight shining in his eyes. "You're gonna be a mom!"
He wouldn't be very good at his job if he couldn't pick up on the subtle signs that something was wrong. That comforting touch at her wrist did help, and she placed her other hand over his, giving him it a soft squeeze in return, her eyes coming up to meet his as a smile softened her worried features. “Thank you, Njall. Really.” She’d have to remember to ask Bettina to have appointment reminders sent to both the library, and her home. That would be the best way to ensure that she got them.
She could feel her eyes begin to water again, as the soft smile turned into a wide grin. “Oh my God, I’m going to be a mom!”</div>