Well, I got three chapters done right now, and I'd like to thank the sole reviewer of this fic so far, supernae. Thanks. ;) And now, it's the doctor's turn. On to the show...

Chapter 3: Good Day, Doctor Death

Later that day, the affable young blonde headed towards the town clinic to meet the residence that is likely most essential for her livelihood. She wasted little time in rushing through the door to meet the people who be taking caring of her whenever she feels under the weather.

On the reception desk to the left was a pleasant-looking you nurse with chocolate brown short hair similar to Claire's, and matching deep brown eyes. She wore a frilly white apron over a traditional blue dress.

"Hi! Welcome to the clinic! How may I help… you?"

Without saying a word, Claire merely ignored the nurse's greeting and made a beeline towards a room on the right with a strict focus in her eyes.

"Oh, I guess whoever it is had more important business with the Doctor…" the nurse said to herself in disappointment.

Not to have the mood ruined, she simply shrugged it off and went on merrily with her business.

Immediately, Claire found herself to be in a spacious office with many shelved books, as well as a few neatly filed papers on a desk. The new farmer found herself in awe at the relatively modern-looking abode that was practically spotless.

"Huh? I haven't seen you before, have I?" a deep voice spoke aloud.

However, Claire remained distracted by the room's sparkling cleanliness.

"Well, are you new to this town?" the voice spoke again.

Somehow, the second try did the charm, as the dazed farmer finally looked forward.

The young man sitting before her had jet black hair and even darker pupils with a face that formed a stoic expression. He wore a clean white lab coat over a neat white dress shirt, along with a shiny head mirror and stethoscope.

"Ah, oh! Yes!" Claire suddenly blurted out. "My name is Claire Kafka, and--"

"Oh, so you're the one who took over the farm," The professional-looking figure deduced. "I actually heard about you from a few of my patients a little while ago."

Claire blinked.

"Strange… there's something that feels familiar about him, though it could be déjà vu." She thought to himself as she observed the man's face.

"That's a great guess! I wouldn't know if you'd assume any of the new strangers that came by here would be the new farmer in town until you nailed the right one, but if not, congratulations!" Claire answered back.

"Let me assure you, I made a fair logical analysis before I made my estimation," Doctor explained. "In any case, my name is Timothy Trent, but as you can tell, I'm a doctor. But for some reason, a few people around here simply prefer to me by my profession."

"So… some guys simply call you "Doctor"?" Claire asked.

The redundantly-nicknamed doctor nodded.

"Um… do you have any better nicknames?"

"Well, there is the simple "Tim", and then I received this much more interesting moniker from way back in my days a medical student. You see, I spent some of my earlier years in Japan to study foreign medicine, and one of my colleagues was swift to dub me "Itoshiki Mikoto". Now, when I found out about the elaborate kanji writing system of the language, I decided to look up the meaning behind this name and discovered that the combination of the name characters make out the term "zetsumei", meaning "death". I have no clue whatsoever as to why he gave me such a name with witty Japanese wordplay, but I could assume he just wanted to have some fun with a foreigner." Dr. Trent explained.

"Wow… so you were known as "Doctor Death" in Japan? That's…interesting…"

"Yes, but I'm afraid the results of that name is but a story for another time." Dr. Trent sighed.

Suddenly, the young doctor formed a rather charming and earnest smile.

"In any case, please come to see me right away when you don't feel well."

The blonde farmer was suddenly struck with fond feelings upon seeing this.

"That serious face… that cheerful grin. I remember now. He kinda reminds me of Dad." She thought with a grin.

"Everyone in town is pretty healthy, you know. But there are many unhealthy people in big cities. It must be nature that helps sustain our good health. I'm sure of it."

A jabbing pain suddenly struck Claire's just.

"Yeah, I guess so…" she said in a restrained voice.

"I'm studying everyday. There is no end to the world of medicine," Dr. Trent continued, "Just so many challenges. How about you? I assume farming must be hard. Especially for a first-timer. And you're a woman, too."

The novice farmer sighed deeply.

"No, I don't mean to sound sexist. It's just… females in general tend to have a relatively more fragile frame, and, seeing as there are a few conditions concerning the growing female body, and that you just came from the city…. I'm just saying that the work might be quite taxing if you've yet to physically prepare for it. I'm sorry if I haven't made myself more polite." He clarified.

"Oh, it's no problem. I can tell you're trying to be a nice guy. My dad was that way, too, and he was nice to me on a normal basis." Claire answered.

"I see… did he happen to be a Doctor, as well?" Dr. Trent asked curiously.

"No, just the personality bit. But this is nice… it's starting to feel like I already have a home away from home, except the local Doctor's like my Dad. But… um… I think it would be a little awkward to think of a guy only a few years older than me as a Dad." Claire rambled.

"At least you have someone to feel comfortable with around here. Glad I can be of service." Dr. Trent grinned.

"This is actually kinda neat. I'm having an easier time making friends with the Doctor than with Gray. And he's actually a really nice guy, too! But…oh, I still hope I can make friends with him. Poor Gray looks like he could use a good friend to break him out of his grumpy slump every once in awhile and I really hope I can do just that."

"Well, please take care, Claire. I still have some personal business to take care of for now, but my assistant Elli and I are here for you if you have any problems, okay?"

The blonde girl gave a quick nod just before she decided to head off into more unseen territory.

"Oh, by the way! There is a special tonic I just got from another town. You can energize and recover from fatigue at the same time after taking a proper dose of it. It's not as effective as the medicine we usually provide, so I don't sell it. However, I made some improvements, so it should be reasonably potent. It's bitter, though."

Claire made a quick heel turn to face the Doctor once more, and stared at the sample bottle reluctantly.

"If it was even sour, I'd still like to try it, but bitter doesn't suit me that well."

And yet, her trembling hand slowly reached for the sample.

"But… if it's really supposed to be good for your health and all, I'll go for it, I guess."

"Right! I knew you'd try it. Go ahead, bottoms up!" Dr. Trent urged the nervous young lady.

With her remaining hesitation suddenly gone, the resolute blonde opened her mouth wide and practically chugged the substance down. Afterwards, she slammed the bottle right onto the desk and made a thoroughly disgusted face.

"Baaaaaad…." She gagged.

"Well, I wasn't exactly going for bubble gum flavor, but it works, right?" Dr. Trent asked.

A barely composed Claire nodded slowly.

"Oh, great! I knew you'd understand the quality of this tonic. How about one more?"

Poor Claire could only help but stare back at Dr. Trent like he had transformed into some psychopath.

"You really are… "Doctor Death"… aren't you?" she continued to gag.

"I was kidding. Just… just please don't rely on any medicine too much, okay?" Dr. Trent answered.

"After tasting this, why would I?" Claire rebuked.

"True…" Dr. Trent said with a chuckle, "Well, it was actually quite fun talking with you today, Claire. You helped me out, too. But I must say, it was really courageous of you to try the medicine like that despite my warning. You must really want to be an asset to me."

"Oh, that would be nice!" Claire said ash she chuckled along with the good doctor, "Say, is there anything else I can do to help?"

"Sure. There happen to be some medicinal grasses that grow around town. If you could just gather a few for me every once in awhile, it would be a great aide in producing more medicine." He suggested.

"Oh… really? Um…. Actually, I happen to be gathering a few of those plants for my first profit, and I'm really quite poor right now. I don't know if I can afford to do it." Claire answered regretfully.

"No worries! One or two samples a week should suffice. It's amazing how much can be done with just the bare minimum. I'm sure that shouldn't be too much a problem, will it?" Dr. Trent asked.

"N-no! Not all! And thanks!" Claire said cheerfully.

"No no… thank you for volunteering, Claire." Dr. Trent insisted.

"I think I better go, now. From what I'm seeing through the window, the sun's starting to go down." Claire said.

"Is that so? Well then, I suppose it's time to close up for the day. Sorry we couldn't speak longer than this, but again, I enjoyed the opportunity."

"Me too!"

"See you later, Claire."

"You too, Dr. Death!"

"I would preferred to be called Dr. Trent."

"Oh, then later, Dr. Trent!"

"That's much better."

Once Claire left, the friendly receptionist from earlier approached the good doctor.

"Who was that just now, Doctor? It sounded like you were having some fun with the recent arrival." She asked.

"Elli! Oh, that was Miss Claire Kafka, the new farmer taking over. I recently had a most interesting 1st meeting with her." Dr. Trent explained.

"Really? I did notice a slight grin from you earlier. To be honest, Doctor, it wouldn't hurt if you were a little fun-loving like that more often. As good as it feels being your nurse, I really wished you did your part in lightening this place up. They do say good moods make for good health…" Elli suggested.

"I suppose you have a point for the casual occasion, but I can't afford to reduce myself to a clown when there's serious business afoot. I am a Doctor, after all." Dr. Trent stated.

"Maybe your new friend can help you strike a balance?" Elli suggested.

" "Friend", huh?" Dr. Trent repeated.

"The two of you did seem to hit it off pretty quickly from what I could make of it, and if she could bring out your mischievous side… then yes, I'd say that counts as being friends." Elli reasoned.

"Hmmm…. That does feel like sound logic…" Dr. Trenet replied with a curious nod.

Up next: Claire gets some honey for her new pal, Gray. But he isn't at the Blacksmith! What's going on?! Instead, she heads to the library to offer her gift to Mary. One tiny surprise comes in, and insanity insues. See what it is next chapter. ;)