Summer was coming to a close and preparing to become autumn, cool winds regularly coming to banish the heat of the mid-year season one breeze at a time. As such, the colors of everything on the ship were reaching their most beautiful right before the cold weather would be able to sweep in and remove the leaves from the trees. The day had since ended for most, students and staff alike as well as various other workers around the ship had clocked out for the day.
The sun was beginning to set, casting an even more beautiful light on the expertly laid out and maintained grounds of just about the whole of the vessel. It was a sight that Victor never got tired of seeing, especially after a day of working in a sterile white box having to maintain a professional facade at all times and act in practiced routine.
The students of the school meanwhile merely had to look forward to this environment to accompany them as they walked home or partook in after school clubs or Sensha-do practice. The lattermost event not happening for at least another week given that the yearly required inspection on all vehicles in the Saint Gloriana fleet was underway. Another headache at the start of the year for those involved in the sport, but once again an ultimately necessary one.
Meanwhile, Doctor Koveryn's walk home wasn't a good one, as technically his work day was not concluded yet. There was still one more 'patient' he had to check up on who wasn't able to meet him at the school clinic today, though he expected that. He also technically wasn't able to do her initial exam to be authorized into the school for this academic year, though thanks to understanding of the powers that be she's been allowed to have the examination late.
Victor soon found himself at a dormitory door, one of the many within spitting distance of the campus. After double checking that he had the right number, he tapped his knuckles on it a few times.
"It's open!" A muffled voice called, prompting Victor to take a deep breath and open up the door before walking in.
The dorm room had a similar layout to all the others nearby, that is to say it had enough space to comfortably house one or two occupants, though most opted for the single option when possible. This particular one was styled in a way that made it quite obvious that the occupant was a fan of tanks and sensha-do. Maybe not to the degree of a certain Ooarai student, but enough to be obvious. Tank models lined one shelf while multiple trophys and other smaller bits of memorabilia relating to the sport sat here and there. It was all laid out in a clean and elegant way which betrayed the practiced grace and cleanliness that all Saint Gloriana students had.
A previously recorded match of Saint Gloriana's from a previous year was paused on the television, seemingly framing a Saunders Sherman of some kind. A Firefly, perhaps? Victor couldn't quite tell, most Shermans looked the same to him. Sitting at a desk, side-on to Victor near the front living space which had the television, was the woman that Victor came to see. He bowed a bit to her, and she grumbled as she emptied her hands of the tiny pieces to the complex Crusader Mk. III model she had before her.
She turned with a feigned smile to Victor, blonde hair flowing and being brushed aside as a set of blue eyes met Victor's, the girl bowing her head slightly. "Hey, uh, thanks for coming. Sorry I couldn't get there on my own... Stupid leg, you know?" She said, kicking the unmoving limb with her other leg.
The doctor kept a straight face, sighing and nodding, "It's no trouble at all, Earl Grey, you're right on my way home anyway," he assured her, walking over to where she sat as she spun a bit around in the office chair.
Currently Earl Grey was clad in more or less a disheveled school uniform for the Gloriana school, having taken off the sweater and pantyhose but keeping the white button-up undershirt and skirt. The tie for the white shirt was even still loosely around her neck. "Still... Seems a bit ridiculous that you need to come all the way here yourself," she said, looking to the floor as the doctor borrowed a chair from the small dining set present to sit across from her. Standing and doing the examination in the short-ish chair she was in would have given him a bit of a sore back.
"I said it's no trouble, especially at this time of year. I hope you've been taking in the sights around the ship before the frost comes in and ruins it," He replied, opening the rather small suitcase he brought with him and grabbing his stethoscope, draping it around his neck before grabbing his clipboard which had only Earl Grey's profile present. The only one left to fill out, actually.
Victor of course was also out of uniform by this point, though naturally not to the degree that Earl Grey was. His lab coat had gone, back in his locker at the hospital, and all that was left were the comfy pair of trainers he wore - great for the standing around all day he tended to be doing - followed by some nice grey trousers and a darker grey turtleneck. The sleeves of which pulled up halfway due to the weather.
The examination Victor performed on Earl Grey was more lax and less professional than the others he had done that day, if for no other reason than the more calm and intimate atmosphere that the housecall brought. As such, there were some additional questions intertwined with the standard set on the questionnaire that Koveryn figured he should ask anyway even if they were somewhat medically irrelevant.
"Have you been alright? You personally, besides the leg and... You know," would have been one such question. Shockingly, the doctor almost sounded genuinely concerned.
Earl Grey was still taking an interest in the carpet on the floor at this stage, though soon looked Victor in the eye once more with a smile. "Come on, it's been almost three years now," she said. "You don't need to keep worrying about me like this, I'm fine. Just a little bummed I can't move like I used to, or," she trailed off, glancing to the paused footage on the television.
Victor's gaze followed hers to the screen, then back again, and he nodded reluctantly. "Right. Right..." He cleared his throat, referring back to his clipboard and continuing the questionnaire.
The responses that followed from Grey were all in a similar vein to Darjeeling's - straight forward and rather rapid fire, albeit not quite as quick. Earl Grey also had an actual trace of humor in her speaking with certain questions and how she would phrase her responses.
Once again, the physical portion of the examination followed - Koveryn placing the clipboard back into his slim bag as he checked her heart, lungs, eyes and so on. Once done, with Victor's stethoscope also returning to his bag, he sighed. "Your breathing is a little fluttery, you sure you're okay?" He asked, scooting ever so slightly closer to her, "You know you're not a commander anymore. You don't need to bottle up your emotions for the sake of others or hide anything," he continued. His tone had lowered, Earl Grey once again having a keen interest in the ground moreso than the doctor's face.
"Exams always make me nervous..." She said, "even when I know I'll pass I still get nervous, you know? That whole non-zero chance that something could come up that I missed..." Still, she avoided eye-contact.
His brow furrowed, and he leaned back in the chair before standing and placing it back where he got it originally without a word. Soon, his hand made it's way to one of her shoulders. "You can't be strong for others if you fight their demons yourself. You 'passed' the exam with an almost perfect bill of health, and I'm always here to talk, alright?" He said, gaining a nod from the girl.
"I have your number still," she replied, practically adding to his statement, which promptly gained a nod from him.
Giving a short rub of his hand on her shoulder, Victor removed the hand and grabbed his suitcase, offering a smile to Earl Grey. "Perhaps we can chat over some coffee sometime?" He teased, Earl Grey smirking up at him.
"Tea or nothing, you heretic!" She replied back jokingly, snickering somewhat before waving a goodbye as the good doctor eventually left her room, the girl sighing and glancing over to her phone which did indeed have his number in the contact list.
The remainder of Victor's walk home was uneventful, his brain half at ease and half on edge after finally meeting with Earl Grey and performing her examination. "Not as bad as she used to be but still clearly not over it..." He mumbled, making notes aloud to himself, shaking his head.
"She was even a little shaky on some of the psyche questions, and that breathing issue," he sighed once again, exasperatedly, looking absently up to the sky and the plethora of stunning, fiery colors being produced by the setting sun. He soon paused, looking down the road - the cherry blossom trees flanking either side threatening to let their leaves loose early, as if prematurely shedding for the winter with small piles of the vibrant leaves littering the ground in places.
Momentarily, Koveryn was partially awestruck, never quite getting used to how gorgeous the various plants and professionally landscaped areas all around the ship looked at this time of year. The pinnacle of beauty before it was all washed away in a white haze, plants dying or otherwise barely clinging to life only to start their cycle from the beginning all for these couple weeks of awesome visuals.
Eventually, Victor continued on with a huff. "Such a beautiful world around us and we retreat into our inner minds to hide from one thing or another... Maybe I should actually take her out sometime, get her away from all of this nonsense to do with... That..." He considered before shoving it out of his mind. He was just as guilty as getting lost in his thoughts as some of the people he criticized were.
It was, after all, a burden of his profession to be versatile and deal with multiple medical disciplines. Both physical anatomy and the mental with psychology, and even though he cared for a relatively small population of mostly school students, there was always the occasional genuine problem of either case which caused him to think too much. This was no different, and he had decided he thought about it enough for today.
With some effort, he shoved it out of his mind. He had no time to think about this any further, especially with all the paperwork and additional patients he'd need to see in the coming weeks. Post-match assessments of those potentially a little banged up, the inevitable wave of sickness spreading from so many students suddenly congregating on school grounds with the new academic year and all the other small details in between.
Once home, Victor through the door after walking through it and shutting it behind himself, he took a deep breath. He'd done enough work today, now was time to unwind. He'd allow himself to be caught up in the petty matters of his workplace and patients when the sun rose once more.
Tomorrow was another day.