Shtiya had been lucky to get a place apprenticing at what he felt was the most professionally-presented healer’s and apothecary shops in Republic City. The Apothecary lacked a flashy name or gimmicky sign, preferring instead to rely on the time-honoured tradition of word of mouth and good practice to bring patients and customers to its halls. It was a simple shop with two rooms in the back for seeing patients. The front part was a reception and store, with commonly needed herbal remedies readily available. Mr Choi, the owner, was a proficient herbalist and artful healer, who had been delighted with the addition of a Waterbending healer to his own practices. Shtiya had been taken on as his apprentice and was paid with both room and board and a very small stipend, sufficient for buying a cup of tea and a book for his one day off per month.

The young man enjoyed his work in the shop, learning everything he could from Wu about the local herbs and cures. Thusfar he’d learned to treat boils and abscesses by soaking them in increasingly hot water until they burst on their own, how to properly and efficiently bandage any manner of wound, just exactly which herbs would break a fever the fastest, and how to determine the proper dosage of remedies for small children.

When he wasn’t learning – which is to say, when there weren’t many cases or the shop was very busy while there were cases – Shtiya tended the counters, made the sales, kept the shop tidy, and stocked the shelves. These tasks all appealed to his organizational nature, so he didn’t mind. He did, however, long for the day that he might take a case all on his own – and not just assist.

That day had, so far, been very quiet. A young woman with a toddler had come in for something to give the baby for teething, and an elderly man had come by for a stomach tonic. Otherwise, the place had been quiet. Shtiya occupied himself with whistling while he cleaned and polished the counter.

Never again,Argued the youth as he clenched his sides. With a short, sharp groan, he let his face express the pain he felt in his stomach. Well, maybe not pain, just extreme discomfort. Either way it wasn’t good. The pain, that is; the meal was actually quite delicious, just not worth this discomfort.

Hunched, the dark waterbender leaned against a stone shop with his left arm supporting his weight while the right remained clenched around his waist. With each grumble, it just got worse and worse, and with each grumble he tightened the grip on his dark blue, short sleeved top with a white trimming giving birth to more creases that he’d have to eventually pay for. Lovely, just lovely, he thought as his icy blue eyes finally caught sight of the weird lines that developed on his shirt’s lower left side. At least his tan pants were still mostly clean, and that was saying something. Traffic was bad in this part of town, so today he chose to head out on foot, caught the tram and then meandered over to Wu’s on the advice of his brother. It was a good plan, if the meal had gone down, but as was always his misfortune, it wasn’t resting well today.

A few more groans and huffs escaped Armook’s mouth, and with each one he could tell that the people around him were avoiding him like a skunk-bear. Great, he thought as he tried his best to smile away their worries. Although, that was pointless they didn’t care about him.

“Okay, one…” whispered the young millionaire to himself, as he forced himself to move ahead. He winced as he looked up at the signs announcing the many storefronts. Bakery, butcher, sweets, and some other shops that weren’t that useful to him, and then from the corner he saw it. Apothecary, it read. Simple, plain and the only one he had seen since Wu’s started giving him problems a half-hour ago. But he could make it. Sucking up the horrible feeling, he walked to the curb, looked both ways, and quickly crossed when the cars were stuck on the red. Thankfully, he didn’t have any mishaps and arrived in one piece.

The pain returned, and hoping not to scare the people inside, Armook refused to grip his sides, forced his usually daydreamer stare, and walked straight to the door, turned its small brass knob and walked right on in.

There was a fun little bell chime, announcing his arrival. He squinted his eyes and pursed his lips at the arrival of a rather massive stomach pang. I can do this, he thought as he headed for the counter, and the rather slender young man just behind it. Thankfully, the old lady on the far side of the shop didn’t give him much attention. Unfortunately, with each step, it just kept on getting worse and worse, this time. This time, there was that awful addition of that salty taste in the back of his mouth. That was it. Wu’s was going to come out.

When he reached the counter, he stood there for a few seconds, just enough to push that feeling back down into the recesses of his stomach. When he felt in control, he began in a somewhat light tone, “Er…um, hello. I just had something to eat, and it is not sitting well with me…” he paused, and leaned on the counter with both arms. It was like delivering a baby, only not at all like that.

“Please help,” he managed to let out as the pain intensified. Thankfully, the food wasn’t trying to escape via the rear.

A slow day indeed. An elderly woman wanting a licorice tea had come in, and so Shtiya took to the herbs, working behind the counter to mix up the tea efficiently. Licorice was good for the blood pressure, and the stomach. He bid the woman welcome to peruse the ready-made remedies on the far wall, and she did so. The petite young man mixed the tea and weighed it carefully before packing. Just as he'd set it aside for the woman and let her know to not feel rushed, but tell him when she was ready to purchase, someone came in.

Shtiya looked up as the bell chimed sweetly, signaling another customer's arrival. Only this young man did not seem to be here just for common cures — in fact, he looked rather ill. His dark skin and blue eyes indicated Water Tribe blood, but that was merely a passing observation. Shtiya immediately put his towel down over the table-top as the man came in, and by the time he was standing over him — because nearly everyone stood over the diminutive Shtiya — the young Waterbender was already assessing him with his eyes.

Something to eat that wasn't sitting well, eh? Food poisoning, most likely. "P-p-please come back this way," said Shtiya, but not before pausing to pick up a small bucket and hand it to the man. "And if you f-——-eel sick, just go ahead and do it in there."

He took the young man to one of the two back rooms and had him sit or lie down as he so chose. Keeping a bucket nearby, the young man looked his patient over. Most likely this was a simple food poisoning case. For that kind of thing, there was not much to be done other than get the offending food out of the body and try to rehydrate. "H-—--ow long has the pain been happening?" he asked, gently taking the man's wrist with his forefinger and thumb, feeling for the pulse. As he calculated the heart rate, he noted a faint bit of sweat breaking out on the young man's forehead. Poor thing.

"And it's j-j-j-just since you ate, is that right?" Shtiya's voice was gentle and soothing, despite his stutter.

“Thank you,” whispered the young bender as he took the gray, metallic bucket from the young, rather androgynous young man.

Painfully, Armook followed the other man to where he was being led. With each step the pain just got worse and worse. Honestly, all he wanted to do was either sit or lay down. Either one would have brought some much needed relief. Thankfully, the room he was brought to gave him both options. There was bed, a rather simple bed, and a wooden chair right next to it. The bed that was it, that would have been perfect.

Without caring, the rich waterbender set the metal bucket on the floor with a large clang, and then immediately sat himself upon the white sheets of the springy, noisy mattress. Oh, it was nothing like his bed. This was rather hard and noisy, while his bed was plush, so soft, so comfy. Looking down at the tiled floor of the room, the dark man was a bit taken aback by the swiftness of his young attendant. How long was this going on for… that was a good question. Maybe about half an hour. Or not.

“I’m not too sure,” began Armook, with an embarrassed smile as he pulled his arm back after having his pulse taken. “It wasn’t too bad when it began, just an upset sto-sto-st-st,” the pain was immediately forgotten at that sensation; without hesitation, Armook swiped the bucket off of the floor and immediate plunged his mouth into it.

Oh, it was not a good sensation at all, and to top it all off, the smell. Yuck, that awful smell just made the whole excursion even worse. Somehow the smell was even worse then the actual action because it then made him vomit even more. Honestly, he couldn’t even remember having anything like corn in the past forty-eight hours, and yet there it was; some yellow and white sort of nugget in his puke soup.

Still queasy, he turned back to the young attendant. “Sorry, and yeah. From what I can remember it began a little while after I ate at Wu’s. You know, that one place by Madam Swan’s Gorgeous Pretty Beauty Salon.” With that short explanation, Armook then set the bucket on the floor, softly this time. The last thing he wanted was to have the smell waft up and cause another cycle. Still, he felt a little bit better, only his abdominal area felt very painful. With that he then laid himself on the bed, and enjoyed what could only be described as a wonderful relief. It was like his stomach was getting a cramp or something and he finally gave it the rest it so desired.

“I hope you don’t mind, this feels much better,” began the starry-eyed waterbender as he looked at the Apothecary store’s employee. “Any idea as to what this is. My brother recommended the restaurant to me, and sure it was good, but he didn’t go through this.”

Oh, how it hurt. If only he could get some relief.

As Shtiya suspected, the young man soon threw up. He brushed the man's hair back to keep him from getting sick in it, and then got up to fetch a towel and cloth from the shelf. Dampening the cloth with cool water, he gingerly laid it on the back of the man's neck. "That's b-b-better," he said. "B-—-etter out than in."

The smell didn't really bother him. He was lucky he'd been apprenticing healing for a while, because he'd already seen much worse! A little vomit was nothing, really, and he took the man's bucket away, replacing it with a clean one in the room. "I'll be right back," he said, and took it out to rinse and empty. While out, he thoroughly washed his hands and helped the elderly woman pay for her tea.

When he returned to the room, he brought with him a pitcher of water, a small glass, and a packet of powder. The young, well-dressed man laid down on the bed and Shtiya waved off his apology. "No n-n-need to apologize," Shtiya said. "And please, rest as l---ong as you like." He poured a little water into the glass and set it on the table. It made a soft tick sound as he set it down; everything Shtiya did was gentle and quiet. He was that kind of person.

As the young man told him what had happened, he nodded to show that he was listening. "And you'd n-never eaten there before?" Shtiya asked. He kept the bucket nearby. Often food poisoning's exits came in waves before the body emptied itself entirely. His patient asked what it was and the petite waterbender nodded.

"It looks like a s-s-s-simple case of food poisoning," he said. "It can h---appen anywhere, really. You probably ate something c-contaminated. It might take a f-few days for you to feel b-—-ack to normal, but once your body has gotten rid of the c-c-culprit, you should start feeling better." Usually food poisoning resolved itself within twelve or twenty-four hours. This young man seemed otherwise perfectly healthy, so Shtiya saw no real reason to worry.

He tore open the packet of powdered herbs and tipped it into the glass, stirring it with waterbending. "Wait a little while to see if the sick comes again, and then slowly sip this," he instructed his patient. Overall, the most important things he needed to get this young man to understand were his need to continue to take fluids even if he threw them up — didn't want him to get dehydrated! — and his need not to take solid food for at least twelve hours. And, likely, not to return to the establishment from whence the food poisoning came. Easy enough.

The ill waterbender groaned with his icy blues eyes shut as he tried his best to not move. It was just far too painful to move. He could have just laid there for the rest of the day without a care in the world, but then the young man laid a damp cloth over him, the shock brought him back from what would have been a delightful slumber. Again, the young apothecary spoke, and it wasn’t until that moment that Armook noticed something about him, the stutter. Honestly, the first introduction hadn’t been long enough for him to notice, but now it was right out there. Either this kid had a bad case of the nerves or he was one of those unfortunate few with that handicap.

After the cloth was removed, the rich waterbender laid his left forearm over his head with a groan, this was a very uncomfortable bed, but still he’d be here for quite a while. Or he could ask the young man to call for a cab. Nah, why put so much pressure on a guy he didn’t even know. Wait, was still even here…no, wait he was. He was really quite. Poor kid, those nerves; they must be bad. Even worse he chose a profession where there was a lot of people-talking, definitely not a wise chose for a potential nervous wreck.

At least, from what the young man just told him, he shouldn’t worry too much. Just food poisoning, nothing more and nothing less. Great the last thing he needed was food poisoning. Yuck it was an awful thing to have. He was hoping for a prognosis that was maybe more along the lines of, that meal just didn’t sit well you’ll be fine in a bit or something else along those lines. Oh well, it looked like he wouldn’t be returning to Wu’s anytime soon.

The sound of something being ripped caused Armook to open and eye and watch the young apothecary prepare what looked like a remedy. Hopefully, it would work the last thing he needed was to be charged for something that failed him…yeah like he couldn’t afford losing a few Yuans. Oh, the irony.

Wow, he was a waterbender! That was pretty neat, although what else would he assume. The apothecary looked like some of the people in his family photos, only more womanly than a man should.

When he noticed the concoction no longer being swirled, and after he heard his instructions, Armook motioned for the liquid in the container to rise and to head straight into his opened mouth. Wow, that was pretty bad; it sort of churned in the air rather than remain streamlined.

After gulping down the rather bitter drink with a frown he began, “So you’re a waterbender. As you can see, I am too. Although, I am just a little bit better than what you just saw. Also, I hope I don’t sound too rude, but your clothes look way too Water Tribey; are you a recent immigrant?”

The Apothecary

[/center]

Shtiya wasn't nervous, contrary to his patient's thoughts. He just... had a stammer. Always had. It was embarrassing and outside of work, he tended not to speak very much because of it. However, he felt that his stutter didn't mean that he couldn't be a great healer, and so he tried to swallow his embarrassment and be as professional as possible while working. He actually felt more calm and in control when with patients than he did any other time. The stammer decreased while he worked but came back stronger after periods without talking.

He instructed the patient not to eat anything solid for the next twelve hours. After that, the young man should start with small and simple foods that were kind to the stomach. If the vomiting did not return he could feel free to step up his diet again, and take notes about where he'd gotten the food to begin with and hopefully learn from that mistake.

"It's bitter, I'm afraid," said Shtiya, "but it should make the churn-——--ing stop." He noticed the other man bending and smiled softly. When he stated he was usually a better bender, he laughed a bit. "You're s-sick," he said. "It's to be expected."

He didn't seem nervous.

As the other man asked him if he were recent immigrant, Shtiya shrugged. He supposed he could have made more of an effort to blend in, but he liked his old clothes. Even if the blue tunic and dark trousers were indicative of his status as 'not from the City', so what? And he definitely wouldn't go without the bandages on his arms. Too many questions, and not good ones, either. "I'm from the N---orth Pole," he answered, "though I've been in Republic City for quite some time now." He didn't consider himself a recent immigrant.

((Sorry finals))



Armook watched the younger man as he spoke. Attentively, he was able to finally make full notes of his clothing. It was indeed something only people from the North could get. It looked like the same material that his father used in the clothing he had decorating that one room that old man was so fond of. It was quite weird for his old man to be so enamored by his cultural heritage when he himself had never even set foot in either of the two Water Tribes. Hmm, maybe he could do it and make dad jealous.

But that was beside the point, looking down, the rich waterbender found himself staring at the bands of cloth wrapping themselves around the young man’s hands and arms. Strange, he didn’t notice any finger rubbing or twitching or anything for that matter that nervous people so loved to do. Maybe it was just a speech impediment. That being said, he didn’t sound too confident; it was as if he spoke for the sheer fact that he had to speak.

Still, he called it correctly. The young man was from the North. The only problem being that he wasn’t quite a recent immigrant. Oh well, not every new person immediately swapped their wardrobe as soon as they arrived. In addition, just look at his father that man still hadn’t necessarily adapted yet, sometimes he’d wear that outdated attire that Northerners probably no longer wore. Wow, his family was quite odd…yeah, that wasn’t surprising.

“My family is also from the North, well not exactly like that. My great grandfather was from the North, and my dad always makes sure that we don’t forget it. Also-”

That was fast, Armook felt that spasm and immediately arched himself up. Instinctively, or rather he remembered where the bucket was turned, and aimed his vomit in its general direction. Damn, he was too slow.

“I’m so sorry,” began the rich bender as he motioned for the frothy, orange liquid to lift up off the floor. At first, there were signs that it was working, but his belly cramped up on him and he could no longer continue.

“Again, I’m so sorry…” He never got the young man’s name did he? “Er…um, so what was your name again?” He asked, at what might possibly be the worst time to ask.

Shtiya wore his hair in the wolf-tail style, very "old school" for a Water Tribe boy. But, he was a creature of habit. Even though he'd been in Republic City for a good while now, he saw no reason to change his clothes when he was comfortable and happy with the ones he owned. Besides, the young healer was hardly made of money. He was paid mostly in room and board, with just a small bit otherwise. It suited him fine — his family had never been rich and he wouldn't have known what do with money even if he'd had it.

When the young man said his family was from the North also, Shtiya nodded, but realized quite quickly that the young man was about to throw up again. Unfortunately, he didn't quite hit the bucket. Well, it was no surprise. Food poisoning couldn't be cured in a matter of minutes! No, the boy would need some time. And likely he'd vomit more, too.

Not that it bothered Shtiya. He waved the man's bending off and took care of it himself. "Don't apologize," he said. "There's n-no need." He sat back for a second. "My name is Shtiya. I d--on't believe you told me yours?" It would help if he knew, after all.

The room was starting to need a little ventilation — Shtiya got up and stood at the window, going up onto tip-toes to open it all the way. Cool, fresh air swept in, and he smiled. Never discount the importance of comfort, his teachers had always said. Ventilation, proper diets, sanitation — these were the keys to the best care for patients. He turned back to the man on the bed. "You can s-—--tay here as long as you like," he said. "And d-d-don't worry. We don't charge for time." His smile was gentle.

Iluak blinked furiously in hope that he would wake from this awful dream.
"Jasmine? Uh...that's nice."

He sloppily threw on his loose kimono without tying it for the sake of speed.
"Sorry...just...examination...getting undressed...I just assumed, uh, never mind. If this didn't scare you away from healing I don't think anything will. I'm fine now."
He tied his kimono exposing a bit of his chest and then took a cup of tea.

His legs dangled off the high examination table which made him feel short. Did every patient he had feel that way? It was terrible. Seeing his feet unable to touch the ground made the man feel deliriously tall. WIth closed eyes Iluak set down his half empty tea cup and lied down. Had his eyes been open he would have been looking at Mei.

"Do do do do do do do do do." Sleep had already claimed Iluak Chu's addled brain even if his body would not listen. His mouth mumbled a tuneless version of the bassline to Ba Sing Se Infirmary Blues while his fingers idly tried to mimic his fingers on an upright bass. Even asleep he felt compelled to practice every night.

The moment he drifted from sleep bass playing to actual sleep the nightmare started. Then the tossing began, then mumbled pleas then forcing his eyes to open. Sleep was like that. Short and unpleasant.

"Looks like I didn't sleep long."
It took him a moment to see that very little time had passed. Fifteen minutes at most. He wished for something strong to knock him out and give him a dreamless sleep.
He didn't want to admit how tired he was because of nightmares but he couldn't think of a reason for his restless sleep that didn't involve being attacked by invisible people.
"I usually wake up three or four times a night. It's normal...for me."

He reached out to take his cup of tea and felt glad Mei was there with him. In the course of one night she'd cemented into a position of importance. Before she had just been the cute girl that assisted him at times.
"As my own healer I'm prescribing myself a day off tomorrow."
Iluak finished his tea and tried to finish his thought which was to ask Mei-Zhen out. He desperately wanted to show Me a side of him that didn't involve emotional trauma and self-destruction. There were other facets to Iluak Chu...he just couldn't think of any at the time.

"What about you...any plans?"

Iluak's Clinic

Her mind struggled to remain professional, or at the very least polite. Mei bit her lip and held out a cup of tea which Iluak took after hastily pulling his kimono back on. The way it hung open didn’t help matters. She stared at her own cup of tea.

“I should have known. That was…wrong of me. I promise it won’t happen again.” Through the embarrassment, Mei managed to wrangle her healer self back into control, “I still need to check, though.”

Mei looked up from her cup to see Iluak lying down on the examining table, humming so softly it became a murmur. His eyes were closed, and a moment later the quiet song trailed away to deep breathing. This was closer to what she’d expected. Moving as noiselessly as she could, Mei reached for the cabinet above the counter, pulling out bandages, and taking stock of the equipment in the room. Clean water would be needed.

It took a few minutes and when Mei returned to the examining room with her waterskin refreshed, she noticed that sleep was not taking to the healer well. He was murmuring again, words that were indiscernible but came out as plaintive as he twitched and tossed. Iluak’s eyes opened suddenly.

“Looks like I didn’t sleep long. I usually wake three or four times a night. It’s normal…for me,” Iluak said. He reached out and grabbed his half full cup of tea.

“No wonder you look so tired all the time,” Mei-zhen replied. “I can’t imagine how difficult that must be.” The loss of concentration, of stress that it must cause…Mei knew she could not make wise decisions if she lost a good night’s sleep. To think that even when Iluak did sleep, that that sleep was so fitful…it was a credit to him that he worked as well and as professionally as he did. It was admirable, if it didn’t make one a bit sad at the same time.

Iluak declared he was prescribing himself a day off. Mei grinned. “Good. You could use one.” She reached for her waterskin, twisting off the top and waving her arm forward. The water streamed out until it wrapped itself around her right hand. “Now stay still for a moment. I want to check your nose,” she added, letting her watery hand hover steadily in front of Iluak’s face. Even from there she could feel the pathways zig-and-zag where there needed to be a straight flow. Mei narrowed her concentration and the water began to glow.

When asked about her plans for the next day, she smiled again, though her gaze was still fixed on doing what she could for Iluak’s broken nose. “I thought I’d spend a few hours here tomorrow, early. I could fill in for you if you’d like, so you can rest. Unless you were actually going to close the clinic…” Her mind stumbled for a moment, unable to remember the last time that happened. Had Iluak taken a day off? “If Ling has what we need, I suppose we’ll go file our paperwork.”

Iluak had closed his clinic before, but never for anything he considered fun. In exchange for rent and supplies he made house calls at Mugen Yuan's request. His leisure time was usually spent trying to trick his brain into forgetting specific parts of his life.

He not to think of Mei's comment about how tired he looked. Granted, it was much kinder than the comments he typically gave people but it made him terribly self-conscious. For the first time in a while he thought about taking the advice of his friend and putting a small amount of effort into his looks. That included getting some sleep.

As nose was in the middle of being healed an interrogative grunt far too reminiscent of a confused dog for Iluak's comfort escaped his throat before he could even manage to awkwardly ask Mei out.
"Paperwork?

He wiggled his nose for a moment to check if the healing had gone well. He desperately wanted to make sure every chi path was connected and flowed properly. Being a patient did not sit well with him. Healers that were not him made Iluak nervous.
He took a few deep and painful breaths through his nose and as he did Mei was no longer a pretty woman who made his hear flutter but a student of healing he felt compelled to evaluate.
"Chi paths feel good...breathing is fine...bleeding has stopped. I've never said this to another healer but...that was adequate."

Without an ounce of self-consciousness Iluak stripped off the top part of his kimono the grunted as he nodded his head toward the wound in his side from falling on a bottle. Tiny shards of glass had entered the wound and would need to be excised.
At the moment there was no room in Iluak's heart for any romantic notions. This was about healing. More importantly, his healing.

"Make sure you get all the glass. If I get an infection and die I'll be very cross. More cross than usual."
Iluak's typical sardonic smile was not present. Dying would put him out a great deal.

Iluak's Clinic

Mei nodded, her focus still intent on repairing as much of Iluak’s broken nose as her waterbending abilities let her. In practice it felt much like adjusting the flow of a river that had been stopped up by debris, clearing out each piece bit by bit until the energy flow was unimpeded. “Ling and I need to file for a detective’s license,” she replied, her voice distant. “We have a rental place picked out too. But, everything does need to be properly filed and taken care of.” The glow in the water around her hand faded, though it stayed floating, dripping an occasional drop onto the examination table. “There.”

Iluak was silent for a moment, testing and wiggling his nose while it took several deep breaths. Mei bit her lip, waiting for appraisal. His reply was entirely and so essentially Iluak Chu and his brand of healing that the word “adequate” held far more meaning for her than it normally would. She grinned. “I’ll keep working on it.”

Without much pause, the doctor shed his kimono top, and grunted as he nodded to his side. Across his ribs there were small gashes and tiny glittering. Mei’s mouth fell open at the sight of this injury while her mind gears grinded forward to try to understand what had happened.

“Make sure you get all the glass,” Iluak added. “If I get an infection and die I’ll be very cross. More cross than usual.”

“What--how did this--you were going to go out for tea with glass in your side?” The gears had turned to a form of indignation. Iluak cared about his health now that she had started but had been all too willing to ignore it to just…what? Drink tea in a nice shop? All of his points were just as valid if he had left them there untreated until later…only then he would have had no one to blame but himself. There wasn’t any sense in leaving yourself that injured, none that Mei could see. She made an annoyed little harrumph then added, “…I’ll get the tweezers.”

In a smooth swipe, the water in her hand pulled away in a thin stream and flowed back into her waterskin. She twisted the cap closed. She turned back to the cabinets and opened the left most one, rifling through it until she pulled out a small leather case. As she turned back to Iluak, her blue eyes focused only on the thin cuts, she opened the case and pulled out a small pair of tweezers. With a steady light movement she began picking at the little pieces of glass, letting the tips of the tweezers find the solid object and ease them out. With a light tink, they were dropped onto a thin tray she set out beside her.

“You were just going to let this go,” she muttered. Another piece, glinting dull red in the light. Tink. “That is not what you’re supposed to do when you’re injured…”

“What--how did this--you were going to go out for tea with glass in your side?”
Iluak scoffed as if going out for tea with glass in his side was completely natural.
"Give me a break. I don't get invited to tea often. The closest I have been to being asked out was when that idiot cop I treated earlier asked if I wanted to step outside so he could beat me up." Iluak decided not to mention how long he berated the officer for shredding his feet travelling on a wire and getting into a fight without his armor. He would also not admit to suggesting that the officer's stupidity was due to genetic defencincies caused by the man's parents being brother and sister.

"You were just going to let this go? That is not what you’re supposed to do when you’re injured…”
Iluak let out another round of subdued laughter. His side hurt more as body jostled with his chuckling. It was amusing to be a patient of someone so...patient. It was a far cry from his own bedside manner.
"It's no wonder people come in here asking for you. 'Where's the pretty girl?' I just smirk and say they have to deal with my ugly mug. They tend to leave after that. With you around more I may actually earn a few yuans here and there."

He checked his side and to his own surprise didn't feel the need to double check someone's work.
"That's at least worth a meal. You like Narook's? Believe it or not but their Water Tribe cuisine is actually authentic...and good."
Gratitude was not something that came easily to Iluak Chu so when he actually felt it it was so odd that there was no room for nerves and self-consciousness.
He absentmindedly ran his hand over Mei's healing work. "Is tomorrow night good for you? I plan on sleeping a good part of the day tomorrow.

Iluak's Clinic

Tink. Another shard landed. Mei-zhen paused, trying to understand what Iluak had just said. Her face scrunched in confused frustration, her lips pulled into a thin line. “That’s not an excuse,” she finally came up with. For a moment she was silent but then added, “Why would an officer want to beat you up? You had just treated him and you don’t go around breaking the law.”

Only a few pieces were left now. Tink. Tink. Iluak suppressed a chuckle, but that didn’t stop his chest from showing it. Mei’s hands stopped, the tweezers hanging in the air, as his ribcage shuddered. When he said he wasn’t a good patient he hadn’t been making a joke. Iluak was making it difficult, whether he intended to or not. “Stop laughing!” she commanded, but her tone still held a polite undercurrent. “You’re going to make it worse.”

“It’s no wonder people come in here asking for you,” the healer said. “’Where’s the pretty girl?’ I just smirk and say they have to deal with my ugly mug. They tend to leave after that. With you around more I may actually earn a few yuans here and there.”

The last shard clattered onto the table. Mei unscrewed the cap of her waterskin and again repeated the motion to stream the liquid out and around her hand. With another familiar wave of Mei’s hand it began to glow and she held it up against Iluak’s side. The feeling of water, of energy, flowing filled her senses as the tiny broken paths searched to make themselves whole again. “You do not have an ugly mug,” she muttered, then stuck her tongue out to the side in concentration, “but I do appreciate that people value the skills I learned from you.” When Mei felt she had done what she could, she let the water back into the waterskin, capped it, and set to properly placing the bandages where the gashes had been. The skin still held a bit of the red tint of fresh unhealed skin, and it was better to provide protection than leave it unguarded.

When she was finished Iluak inspected it, with the keen eye of an experienced instructor. As he did, he indicated the work was worth a meal, possibly the Water Tribe cuisine of Narook’s. He ran his hand over his side, offering up the next night as a possibility. Mei felt the left over bandages crumple in her hands, as her mouth opened and closed noiselessly for a few moments. “I don’t need anything. I mean, you taught me all of this so it’s only fair that I repaid that but…” Her eyes darted down to her hands where the bandages twisted, then up to the ceiling. “If you’d just like to because--I am free tomorrow.” She left the other words that bubbled up in her mind hang there unspoken. Gushing would do her no good and probably send Iluak into an acerbic speech and everything would turn out horrible. This was more positive. This has potential.

For the first time in his entire life Iluak Chu was grateful for the annoying, meddlesome and rapid fire advice he received from the only person other than Mei whose company was not a complete chore for both sides, Tsubaki Ito.
Be yourself. Just don't be totally yourself. Dial it down to about a four on the Chu scale."
"That's good. I'll meet you here tomorrow night." He blinked a few times. That felt like four out of ten Chus. He didn't openly state that it was probably a bad idea for a young woman with such potential spending time under his influence.

A date. Even in his head that sounded alien. Romantic attraction itself was unfamiliar territory to the man. Outside of a crush on his healing teacher as a boy and a small, meaningless fling with a coworker at the Satomobile factory women were just male patients with a few different needs. Part of him wondered if this was just a scam by Mei do get some free midwifing out of him. He imagined her and her much more handsome boyfriend coming to visit him expecting him to deliver their child for free because the mother once gave him a pity date.

He studied Mei for a moment and realized that was ridiculous...at least it would be to think so before he could trick her into an examination.
Her dying of a terminal illness and wanting free medicine also came to mind, but that also would have to wait until an examination.

The scenarios in his head got more strange and intricate and pushed his paranoia past even the measuring of the Chu scale. Small talk had to be engaged.
"So...how long have you known your sister?"
Iluak felt like reopening his wound to distract Mei from his idiot statement originally meant to distract himself.

Iluak's Clinic

Mei nodded. She continued nodding for a few seconds before responding in a slightly higher pitch than she was used to, “…Okay.”

This was a date, wasn’t it? A date date and not a payment. Mei had tried to be clear that she felt Iluak owed her nothing, but she always stumbled over herself when it came to personal emotions outside the family. There was no self-consciousness, no holding back, when it came to Ma-ma and Ling. They were…well, they were family. They were beyond familiar, and around the corner to unmovable fixtures in her life. Difficult emotions with them didn’t exist. But the handsome healer she had an infatuation with? The healer who had just apparently asked her out? Mei was an expert in tying her tongue in intricate knots.

She wrapped up the bandages and cleaned up the examination table, keeping her eyes on the tasks at hand. Staying focused would keep her from making a fool of herself…unless she had done that already, sometimes it was hard to tell.

“So…how long have you known your sister?”

Mei paused, her hand full of unused bandages hovering in front of the open cabinet. Her face froze for a moment as the question attempted to sink in. The ice wasn’t too thick, and when it broke, she smiled and replied, “Her entire life. Ling’s three years younger. Actually…I probably should get back to the Golden Fan. She’ll get worried if I don’t and she’s liable to have stopped having fun with her card games.”

Ling was a capable young woman, most would say far more than Mei could ever be on her best day. She understood the way Republic City worked, even when it didn’t at all, and could wrap her mind around the complexities that her older sister just was not capable of. Yes, she had gotten in too deep once, and yes that was Mei’s fault for not asking any questions, but Ling still had the knowledge and the skills to thrive.

But Ling did worry about Mei, and it was sweet. It wouldn’t be good to let her little sister worry when she was fine.

Everything was back in its proper place, and the shards of glass were thrown out in the nearest trash bin. After washing her tea cup and returning it to its place in the kitchenette (leaving the pot and other cup for Iluak in case he wanted more), she stopped in the doorway between the examining room and the main office. Mei scratched the back of her head and grinned nervously.

“So I’ll…see you tomorrow night then,” she said. Mei waved and then left.