Flanked by two old friends {Chase}

[©erridwen Corrigan]

Cerridwen glided down the halls, stopping every so often to press a hand a cool hand to her forehead. This has never happened before. What was causing this ridiculous headache? She felt nauseated and her very own medicines weren't working. The frustration this caused Cerridwen only contributed to her searing headache. Rounding a corner, Cerridwen came to a door labeled with Chase's name. Dr. Redwicke was etched into a plate, plastered on a door. Without knocking Cerridwen walked in, to see a gorgeous assistant, receptionist, whatever she was. Awesome.

The girl was beautiful, and Cerridwen at the moment couldn't have looked anymore depressing. Here the girl stood dazzling, and Cerridwen clearly couldn't compete. This girl must be with Chase--err Dr. Redwicke, because there was no way, any guy in his right mind would pass up a girl like this, and what with Cerridwen bailing on him, and going MIA for the last two and a half months, it was understandable he'd gotten a girlfriend since they last talked. There was a good reason though why she hadn't called, or even tried to contact him. Her two best friends Depression, and Loneliness had flanked each side of her, and had escorted her home one night just before the Summer Solstice.

Since then, the terrific trio have gone almost everywhere together, to Cerridwen's dismay. Thought's of Eryk would arise, or angry thoughts at her sister. Very rarely has she stepped out of the cottage in the last few months. She was still lucky she even had her job. This was her first REAL expedition out since that lovely day out with Dr. Redwicke.

"Is Mr. Redwicke in? I do not feel well at all.." Cerridwen didn't give much away after that. She almost felt as though she should be hostile with this girl, though the assistant was probably very sweet.

To say Cerridwen wasn't feeling well, was an understatement. She thought she was going to die. She had never felt so under the weather as she did now. Her skin was a sickly pale, not the fair shade it normally was, her hair was unruly and any hopes at wearing something presentable had been shot the second she partially flew/stumbled out the door of her cottage. Flying took to much energy, so she mostly walked here, and by now she just looked over all a mess.

Please don't judge..please, please, please don't judge me.

Cerridwen took a seat when instructed and waited. She pondered the possibilities of what she had caught. Her own medicines and healing remedies usually did the trick, but her herbs and spices had failed her. Ugh. Thinking about the entire situation only enhanced Cerridwen's headache.

[Dr. Chase Redwicke]

A noise came from down the hall, and a patient exited one of the examination rooms. Chase followed them, bid them adieu, and joined Georgia behind the receptionist's desk.

"You have a walk-in, Chase," She informed him quietly, and Chase let out a sigh. Of course he did. He should know better by now to make lunch plans - nothing around here went the way you hoped it would. He gave Georgia an apologetic look, but she waved him off. "Don't worry about it, you can make it up to me with dinner."

He gave his girlfriend an appreciative smile and kissed her lightly on the cheek. She spun around on her swivel chair and returned to update the file he just handed her. Chase looked over the counter to see his next patient. And boy was he startled.

"Cerridwen?!" He exclaimed, walking around the desk. She looked... awful. And he thought that in the nicest way possible. He wasn't sure how to greet her. Should he demand where she'd been the entire summer? Why she never fulfilled her promise to bring him to the Summer Solstice celebration in the Faedom? Though he felt like it, Chase was never one to start a scene, nor did he think it was worth it. Sure, he'd been a little upset at first when he received no invitation, and sure he beat himself up over not getting her phone number, and of course he felt rejected when she never contacted him again, but almost three months had gone by, and the wounds had closed over. There was no point in tearing them open again. As a doctor, and as a sensible man, he knew this.

"Here, follow me," He instructed, a hint of a smile attached to the words. It was good to see her again - the possibility that she'd disappeared forever had indeed haunted his thoughts. He worried all sorts of scenarios, and by her condition today he wondered if one or more might've been the case. The doctor lead his patient to the first examination room, seeing as how the third one down the hall needed to be sanitized before it could be used again. He pushed open the door and stepped aside, holding it wide for her entrance.

"It's good to see you again, although I wish it were under better circumstances," He gave her an apologetic grimace, as though her pain was personally his fault, "What can I do for you today?"

[©erridwen Corrigan]

He looked to her and Cerridwen looked to him. She knew he would be feeling mixed emotions. Probably anger being one of the prominent feelings. She had promised him the Summer Solstice, taking him into the fae realm, and she had gone, gotten herself sick and screwed it over. Well no, she hadn't gotten herself sick, Mr. Depression and Mr. Loneliness caught up to her, but that counted as being ill right? She had been coping, at first she thought if she ignored them long enough that they would just go away, but sure enough they didn't, and then this awful bug, or illness caught up to her, causing her to go down for the count. Figuratively speaking of course.

Chase said her name and she smiled weakly. "Hello Chase..." She murmured quietly feeling the eyes of another on her. The receptionist no doubt was probably responsible for the extra set of eyes she could feel .

When he said to follow, she got up slowly making sure she wouldn't topple over at the first step. Once the ground was deemed stable and still, she continued on, down the hall after Chase. This was going to be awkward. Why had she gone here? Oh how she was being stupid. She could have gone anywhere. Well no, she couldn't have. She was a fae, and not everywhere knew how to take care of fae. Well no place, except here of course; And in the Queendom naturally. Why hadn't she gone there?

Some inner voice nagged her, asking this question over and over as she took a seat. Standing wasn't doing her any favors at all.

Once the door was shut, and she was alone with him, she looked up to meet his eyes, the same, dark mysterious eyes. "It's err nice to see you too" She nodded brushing some loose strands of hair out of her face. When he asked her what she was here for she couldn't do anything but let out a small laugh. "You honestly need to ask that Chase?" Cerridwen asked. "And here I was thinking you were intelligent.." Cerridwen said sarcastically. Clearly whatever Cerridwen had, had taken a toll on her mood and personality. "Chase I look dreadful, I feel awful, and I'm quite certain I'm going to die" She uttered upset. "My very own remedies aren't working, they always work, I grew my own things, I create everything, and nothing is working..." She whimpered terribly disturbed by this.

"I don't know what's wrong with me..." Cerridwen said at last. "I've had an awful headache, I feel nauseous, and I'm pale. REALLLY pale." She uttered emphasizing 'really'. "I feel..." She said slowly "Like I'm going to die. Please say I'm not going to die..." She added being a tad bit dramatic. This was a new situation for her. As far as she could tell so far, she was not a big fan of the sterile clean rooms, or all the interesting equipment placed strategically around the room. None of it looked very fun. From this, she concluded that she just did not like doctors. Not one little bit.

[Dr. Chase Redwicke]

He was about to protest and inform Cerridwen that he was just trying to be polite, but she eventually removed the sarcasm and replaced it with her symptoms. She perhaps put them in a slightly over-dramatic layout, but it wasn't anything Chase hadn't heard before.

"Let's start with your remedies then," Chase said gently, sitting down at the desk next to the chair she sat in. He opened a drawer in the desk and pulled a form out of a file folder and started scribbling illegible script onto the first page. "Not that I don't trust your skills, I just need to know what sort of medication you're prescribing yourself." The doctor didn't want to offend her, but it was necessary information. He kept scrolling what were presumably letters across the paper, occasionally checking off something on a list. He wasn't quite sure how comfortable Cerridwen would be if he asked her a bunch of personal questions, so he didn't bother filling out a few segments of the form.

First he had to know if she wanted him to be her physician. He sort of hoped she refused... it was odd, for him to wish for something like that. It wasn't that he didn't like her - actually it was the exact opposite. He liked Cerridwen very much, even when she looked dreadful, felt awful, and was quite certain she was going to die. He liked her even if she was pale. REALLY pale. He bit back a smile.

The reason he didn't want to be her doctor was because of all that information. For example, Georgia wasn't his patient, which was for the best, because knowing absolutely everything about your girlfriend was the surest way to turn you off her. Let some other guy worry about her pap tests and pregnancy scares. Some things were meant to be kept private, and it was a general rule of thumb for doctors; never date a patient.

Maybe that was why he was reluctant to be Cerridwen's medical practitioner. Was he still clinging to those sparks he felt when they first met? Was he imagining something more between them? He was tempted to peek into Cerridwen's mind, to see if she maybe felt the same way. But Chase knew all too well the delicacy of privacy, and refused to flat-out invade someone's private thoughts. His telepathy was always kept on a very low level, enough that he could consciously block out other people's thoughts, but not enough that if someone called out to him, he wouldn't notice. It was a strange thing; tuning everything else out until it became a dull roar, and then if someone mentally called for him, it would sound as though they were speaking directly to him.

So unless Cerridwen reached out to him mentally, he'd keep the figurative lid shut on her thoughts. Until then, he continued filling out the form while he waited for Cerridwen's reply.

[©erridwen Corrigan]

Did he not trust her? She knew what she was doing. She had read books, and her mother had taught Minerva who had eventually passed on all her knowledge to Cerridwen. These "Medications" have been in the Corrigan line for ages, and not once have they failed. Well they have, but not often. Cerridwen wanted to come off as offended but that took to much effort and energy that she just didn't have. What had she tried? Cerridwen was silent for a moment before speaking up. "Well I had a fever a few days ago, and I used some yarrow. I added about a quart of dried yarrow to some boiling water and let that sit. I drank that until the fever had gone down and finally totally gone." She said trying to remember what else she had grown. "Yarrow contains salicylic acid, a component of aspirin. It also induces sweating by opening the pores, which can help bring down fever." Cerridwen added offhandedly before he could tell her she was wrong for using yarrow. Doctors...pfft. Who needed them?

When he asked if she wanted him to be her physician she shook her head quickly. "I don't like doctors...errr I prefer the fae ways to those of...science, and logic." Cerridwen nodded. Cerridwen wanted to add a 'plus it would be awkward' but refrained. The sterile smell was starting to get to her. Everything seemed so clean, and not at all homey. Cerridwen tried to ignore this little factor and get back on topic.

"As for my unsettled stomach, I've tried...Ginger tea, I made some ginger snaps, and I've tried peppermint. Nothing. Which is not abnormal, these remedies are 50/50 but what surprises me is that I've tried getting rid of my headache for ages. Peppermint again was tried as well as passion leaf...some of it in my tea before bed, and usually I wake up headache free..." Cerridwen murmured sadly.

Was her ability just losing it's touch? Was she losing a connection with her aspect? This terrified her more than anything. In her eyes and mind this was worse than death. 'Chase...please...just please figure out what's wrong.' She said within her mind as she sat there in gloomy silence. She spoke to him within her head, hoping he would fix this, asking him to tell her what was wrong. If this was somehow linked to her ability, Cerridwen would be distraught. For a minute her mind stilled, and she thought about what it would be like to lose her ability. She'd be nothing. She'd lose her job, Eryk had left her, Minerva would...be so angry and embarrassed all at once, what if she was really losing her aspect? She couldn't. She loved her connection to the earth more than life itself. She HAD to fix this. If it were the last thing she accomplished on Earth, she would fix this.

"Chase...please tell me what's wrong so I can go home..." Cerridwen sighed finally her energy totally drained, the energy she had wasted worrying, now totally gone.

[Dr. Chase Redwicke]

He nodded along, aware of the medicinal benefits of yarrow and ginger. A bunch of possibilities came to mind, but he was able to narrow down the list to a couple more likely suspect.

"I don't think you need to panic just yet," He said, instead of choosing to comment on her dislike for doctors. The man looked up from the forms and put the pen down, relieved that she didn't want him to be her physician. Without reading her mind, he could tell that the idea made her uncomfortable, and it was another sign of hope. Still, he wished he knew why his heart sped up whenever he thought about why he might be hoping. He was a doctor, not a psychologist.

"So far your symptoms don't indicate anything serious. Although it is unusual for a fae to develop illness or disease, it's not completely unheard of. Your home remedies I trust have worked in the past, but a great portion of medicine relies on faith in your own treatment," Though he wasn't a psychologist, as a doctor it was his responsibility to know the psychology behind medicine. "Has anything, I don't know... changed in your usual routine over the last couple weeks or so?" He wondered if something had maybe shaken her faith on the effectiveness of her own cures. Perhaps her Aspect sensed the doubt and simply refused to produce the proper vitamins and quality ingredients to someone that didn't trust it. He'd heard some pretty crazy tales from his grandmother about faeries that were attacked by their own Aspect for insulting it. It could be possible that this was a much subtler version of those entertaining bedtime stories.

"And just to clarify, no I don't think it's all in your head," He was aware of how his question could be interpreted, "I have another theory, but it revolves around your answer. So please, think hard and answer as honestly as you can."

He was so, so, so tempted to peek into her mind, and seeing as how technically it wouldn't be invading the privacy of one of his patients, he could just... no. No. Chase wrestled with the morality of rummaging through another's thoughts without their knowledge or permission. He was positive he could find the answer faster that way - discover an abnormality she'd experienced over the past couple weeks that might explain her current state. But his own set of personal rules must be upheld, no matter how alluring the thought of diving into Cerridwen's subconscious might be. He could NOT let his personal curiosity get the better of him, and he locked that mental door, then bolted it again. Then threw out his bolt cutters.

[©erridwen Corrigan]

Has she changed anything in her normal routine? Yes. Has she been depressed? Yes. Does this mean she's stopped eating? Yes. Has she stopped gardening? Yes. Has she felt lonely? Yes. All of the answers he asked her, or would ask would be answered with a yes. "No." She said simply shaking her head. It was as simple as that. She didn't need him thinking she was crazy. She really wasn't, just every so often Depression and Loneliness would step in to check on her. They especially loved to linger in the kitchen, around all of the things Eryk had ordered, all of the things he had drawn on the walls, they clearly enjoyed seeing her suffer. "I haven't really skewed from my routine...I'm just I don't know. Tired" She offered. "Maybe I'm just weak from not enough sleep" Cerridwen suggested, which was true. Sleep deprivation could have been a cause to this sudden cold.

At his next words though, she winced. He didn't think she was crazy? Answer honestly? Ughhh. Cerridwen looked to him and realized for the first time that maybe she was over Eryk. When she was around this man, or doing something she loved such as painting, or gardening, she didn't think about Eryk. At least not until recently when she hadn't been able to garden, and she didn't even want to think about her artistic abilities. Though they weren't linked to her aspect, surely they were affected as well.

"Chase, I appreciate you seeing me with no warning. I'm err...sorry for just kind of coming here, and I deeply apologize for not taking you to the summer solstice.." Cerridwen murmured looking down to the ground. She was terribly sorry. It would have been so much fun to take him to, though she could still take him to the fae world if he wanted.

"If you don't...err have plans, then maybe you could help me back to the queendom, I had a somewhat difficult time getting here, and getting back probably won't be very easy..." Cerridwen offered. Well that was kind of a stretch, she probably could have gotten back on her own, but spending time with Chase, and making it up to him would mean so much to her. Cerridwen coughed into the back of her hand and looked up to him. "You'd be able to see the scenery, I live quite a ways within the queendom, so it would be an opportune moment for you, plus you could go exploring on your own once inside, you don't need to help me all the way home." said Cerridwen. Though it would be loved, you don't have to she added in her mind.

[Dr. Chase Redwicke]

He frowned, uncertain he could trust her answers. It was so tempting to jump into her mind and sort through all this, but she wasn't dying and this wasn't urgent. It just sounded like a mere head-cold, one she'd likely experienced before and was just overreacting to. When she acknowledged the summer solstice promise she made him, he nodded, feeling the loss but also a little guilty at how guilty she sounded. Cerridwen seemed like a woman of her word, and Chase knew what it felt like to break a promise. Quite frankly, it sucked.

"Oh, uh..." She wanted to make it up to him by having him come with her? He knew it wouldn't be as festive as the solstice would've been, but her offer was even more tempting than the idea of exploring her mind. And so instead of resisting, he accepted, "...that would be wonderful. I mean... I'd love to escort you home."

Chase offered a smile in return, and the good doctor slid the forms he was filling out into a file. He printed on the file label as neatly as he could (which still wasn't very legible) before he deposited the more or less useless form back into the cabinet.

"I would love to see where you live, if that isn't too forward," He added, not wanting to sound overzealous at accepting her offer. Of course he was eager - it was the Faedom he'd long begrudged thanks to his insensitive mother. But he told himself to take a breath and stay cool. Nothing was less attractive than a man loosing his cool. Still, the fae could easily be overcome with emotion, and it was very difficult for the half-fae to stifle his more exciting emotions. He wasn't sure which he was more eager for; spending more time with Cerridwen or seeing the world he'd been denied his entire life. The fact that he got to do both today was nearly enough to send him off the edge of cool into the totally uncool. Which would be really uncool.

Why was his mental vocabulary suddenly so limited...?

[©erridwen Corrigan]

Cerridwen smiled, for the first time in days. "Really?" She asked looking up to him now, her eyes shinning bright. "You'll...you'll go?" She asked again making sure she heard correctly. When she spied him placing a folder away in attempts to clean up, Cerridwen pushed herself up so she could stand. He was willing to go with her even when she had clearly proven to be crazy, and slightly over dramatic. "I sincerely apologize for being such a diva" Cerridwen shrugged "I'm just not use to being so powerless and not in control." She murmured as a lame excuse as to why she overreacted so much.

Cerridwen looked outside, it was grey out but nothing hazardous, it wasn't snowing, or windy, and it almosed looked like the sun was trying to break through the clouds.

To forward? Hell no. Cerridwen looked at him and shook her head. "Noo, no no, of course not sweetheart. You're fine" Cerridwen said blushing at the term of endearment that slipped out of her mouth. Cerridwen needed to stop being so friendly. She pulled her hair back into a low ponytail and waited for him to collect his things. "I should probably go check out...I'll meet you perhaps in front?" Cerridwen questioned. She did not want to see the receiptionist, or whoever the girl was. Without waiting for an answer Cerridwen left him to his thoughts. The time she took down the hall was spent thinking heavily about the girl and how she was connected to Chase. Were they dating? A sister? Cerridwen didn't want to ruin something he had with another girl, not that she would, she just didn't want to upset the other girl, that was the last thing on her mind.

"I errr...he's done" Cerridwen said when she got to the desk. "I suppose I owe you some sort of payment.." She muttered unsure of how much exactly it would be. Hopefully not a ton, she didn't generally carry a bunch of mundane currency on her, just coins acceptable in the faedom. They seriously needed to think about switching to some other form though, it was a tad but smarter, and not as bulky.

[Dr. Chase Redwicke]

How could she doubt his desire to see the faedom? "Of course!" Chase crowed, eager to silence her worries. Not only was he going to finally see the world his mother belonged to, but he was going to spend the afternoon with Cerridwen! As she apologized, he waved it off, knowing full-well how she felt, "Don't worry about it," he grinned, "trust me when I say you are a much preferred diva to some of the students I get in here."

Then she called him sweetheart, and his cheeks darkened a shade the same time hers did. He looked away as she tied back her hair and nodded, agreeing that he'd meet her out front. When she left, he took a deep, steadying breath and told himself to pull it together. He decided to give Cerridwen a moment out front with Georgia... Georgia! Oh! How could he have forgotten?!

He rushed out of the office, face flushed, long white coat billowing behind him. He caught Georgia in the middle of bringing up a standard doctor's visit bill and waved his hand. "No, I didn't do anything for her. She doesn't need to pay. Plus, she works for the school, so she'd be covered anyway." Georgia nodded, but her brows were pulled together in a silent question. He was so flustered. Her eyes darted to Cerridwen, wondering if she should be worried about something. She hadn't originally thought so - Cerridwen burst in here looking like a maniac with wild hair and wild eyes, but now that Georgia took a second to really examine her, she was shocked to discover the woman was exquisitely beautiful. Her eyes narrowed at Chase, suddenly suspicious of what they'd been doing in the examination room this whole time to get them both so pink in the face. Chase just claimed he hadn't been examining her...

"Georgia, I'm sorry," Chase told her hurriedly, stripping out of his doctor's coat and slipping on his fall jacket, "I'm going to escort Ms. Corrigan home."

Georgia's mouth fell apart in shock. Was he really going to blow her off, just like that?! And so obviously too? He was cheating on her with this fairy-girl and ditching their dinner plans all at the same time?! But Chase's apologetic smile was so benign...

The receptionist watched Chase hold the door open for Cerridwen. Oh, there were going to be some interesting words exchanged when he got back...

Meanwhile, Chase grinned at Cerridwen, oblivious to the angry girlfriend he left behind. "So... where to?"