"Good morning. I'm Dr. Taymor." His voice was kind. He extended his hand, and Killian shook it.

"Killian. This is my wife, Emma."

Taymor also shook Emma's hand, commenting,

"It's great to meet both of you. My family has heard the stories of all you've done for the town, and I'm glad I get a chance to thank you personally."

"Oh. You're… welcome…" Emma replied uncomfortably. She still had trouble sometimes with the recognition that came with being the savior.

Dr. Taymor strode to the sink and began to wash his hands, glancing at Killian's paperwork as he did so.

"Is it okay if I stay?" Emma asked as she went to take the open chair by the door.

"Of course. No worries." The doctor dried his hands on a paper towel as he continued. "Actually, it can be helpful to have both partners present, to help each other remember and think of questions the other might miss. I'm expecting this to be pretty straightforward, though."

Taymor sat on the stool and woke the computer, which seemed to have Killian's vitals already loaded on the screen.

"So, Killian. Do you have any particular concerns you'd like to address with me today?"

"Ah… well…" he stammered, finding his throat had gone dry. "Mainly just that I'm in good health? Despite my… rather unique history?"

Taymor nodded understandingly. "That's actually not an uncommon request around here. With all of the jumping between realms, curses, heart stealing and everything… let's just say my implanted medical training should have included a course in magic."

Killian smiled weakly. "Aye."

The doctor began to skim through Killian's questionnaire. "So… this part about your birthdate. Tell me about that."

So Killian described how he had cheated death by living in Neverland all those years. "And so, truth be told, I can't even begin to guess my real age."

"But leaving out the stent in Neverland, where time was essentially stopped for you, and the twenty-eight 'frozen' years during the curse, you think you've aged to about…"

"Thirty-five? Give or take?"

"Okay." He flipped a few pages forward, skimmed the Review of Systems page, and went back to the cover page. "And you seem to feel mostly healthy, aside from some stress and chronic pain? Nothing else bothering you at present?"

Killian shook his head.

"Your pain, if I may ask, is it from your hand?"

Killian glanced down at his stump. "Aye."

"How often?"

"Maybe… three to four times per month."

"And how long does it last?"

"Sometimes hours, sometimes a day or two."

"How severe? On a scale of one to ten?"

"It… varies," Killian admitted. "Usually no worse than a six or a seven."

"How do you deal with the pain when it comes?"

"Rum, usually," he replied flippantly, then caught the look Emma gave him out of the corner of his eye. "In the past, anyway. Emma and I have been trying magical relief recently."

"Is it effective?"

Killian scratched behind his ear. "Somewhat." He had not had the heart to tell Emma that her magic wasn't as helpful as she'd hoped. He knew she hated to see him in pain, and only wanted to help.

"That's good. If you ever need more assistance with that, my colleague, Dr. Asante, might be a good resource. You could give him a try."

Killian nodded. "Thank you."

The physician continued to read the answers. "No allergies or current meds… looks like you have pretty healthy habits… no current smoking or drug use?"

"No."

"Good. And you'd like to be tested for STIs today?"

He shifted on the table slightly. "I think… that may be wise. For both our sakes."

Taymor smiled and nodded. "And nothing that you know of in your family history? Heart issues, diabetes, cancers?"

"Not that I'm aware of, no."

"Ok, then the only thing left to discuss is immunizations. You're in kind of a unique situation in that you didn't come over with either of the curses, so you weren't granted immunity in that way to the diseases of this realm. And neither were you raised here, like Emma was, to receive the recommended vaccines as a child. So you are susceptible, and with the rise in people electing not to vaccinate their children, some of the diseases are becoming more prevalent. Now, you're likely pretty safe in the confines of Storybrooke, through what we call 'herd immunity.' But if you're ever planning to travel, say, on this sailing trip you mentioned, there is a chance you'd come into contact with a germ you have no resistance to. So it would be my recommendation that you do get immunized today or in the near future. But that, of course, is up to you."

Killian looked over at Emma, who was listening seriously. "What do you say, Swan? If I contracted a disease on an excursion, could you not just heal me?"

She looked uncertain. "Maybe. But… I mean, injuries are one thing. They're… discrete, and I can see where they start and stop. Illness is so… systemic. I'm worried I wouldn't know how to help you."

He gave her a soft smile. "I have every confidence in you, love. But this is about your peace of mind. And for that, I would do anything."

She smiled at him shyly, as if not quite feeling she deserved his devotion. Turning back to Dr. Taymor, Killian said,

"I guess I will be going with your recommendation, then."

"Good. I'll just put in an order and Milton will get them ready for you."

Killian wasn't sure what he'd just agreed to, but he watched the doctor click and type on the computer. Then Taymor stood and stepped toward the exam table.

"Okay. I'm just going to check you out now, all right?"

"Aye."

First, he retrieved a black device from the wall behind Killian. When he pressed a button, a light came on; some sort of electrical torch, then. Killian remembered having Dr. Whale shine one of those lights in his eyes that night- quite painful it was, at the time. Sure enough, that was Taymor's intention as well, although without the concussion and bruised face, the light was more an annoyance than anything else this time around. He had Killian follow the his finger with his eyes, then look at particular spots in the room while he moved the light back and forth in front of them. Finally, he pulled Killian's lower eyelids down and had him look up. As Killian blinked away the resulting tears, Dr. Taymor fiddled with some sort of funnel-shaped attachment and asked,

"Any trouble with your vision? Black spots, dry eyes?"

"No."

"And you can see clearly?"

"Aye."

"Good. Can you look over your right shoulder; I'm going to look in your ears now."

Killian complied, and the doctor grasped his earlobe and gently introduced the plastic funnel into his ear canal. Killian wondered what the inside of an ear looked like.

"Other ear, please."

He turned his head the other way and grinned at Emma, who gave him a little wave.

"That looks good." Taymor removed the funnel and Killian returned his gaze to center. "No hearing loss or ringing in your ears? Ear pain?"

Killian shook his head.

"Tilt your head back for me." He briefly shone the torch into each of Killian's nostrils, then commanded,

"And open your mouth."

He pulled a flat piece of wood from his jacket pocket and pressed it against Killian's tongue. "Say 'ahhh.'"

"Ahh?" Killian managed to make it sound confused, and Emma giggled. The doctor removed the wood and said,

"Lift up your tongue."

Then he took a step back. "Do you have a dentist here in town?"

"Not yet."

"Huh. Well, you have pretty good teeth for a pirate."

"Thanks?"

"Dental care is still important, though. Bad teeth can actually affect other parts of your body, including your heart."

"That's on the list," Emma assured him.

"Good. And you're not a loud snorer?"

"Not to my knowledge."

"Do you ever wake up feeling like you've stopped breathing?"

"Only in my nightmares."

Taymor nodded and set the torch on the table at Killian's left side.

"I'm going to feel the lymph nodes in your neck. If they ever swell, it can indicate a problem."

He reached forward and placed his fingers behind each of Killian's ears, pressing firmly but not painfully. Then he slowly ran both hands down the sides of Killian's neck, pausing every few centimeters to make a circular motion. Killian looked straight ahead, not really focusing on anything. He could feel when the doctor's right hand reached the scar from Excalibur. For how dire a wound that had been, the scar it had left was now only barely visible.

When he had reached Killian's collarbone, Dr. Taymor moved his hands closer together and did the same top-to-bottom, circular movement from his jawline downward. He moved to midline and was a little more gentle examining Killian's windpipe, but Killian was still reminded of the countless times a foe had wrapped their hands around his throat with less honorable intentions. The examining hands paused, and Killian was asked to swallow, which he found slightly tricky on demand.

"Everything feels normal so far," Dr. Taymor assured him. "Now let me just listen to your heart and lungs."

He pulled the trademark stethoscope from around his neck. Even Killian could recognize that device. The rubber ends went in the doctor's ears, and he held the circular, flat end in his hand.

"If you would turn sideways on the table so I can reach both your chest and back…"

Killian rotated so he could face Emma. His left leg was up on the table, with the knee bent, but his right still hung off the edge. Again, the sight of Emma brought a smile to his face, which she returned.

"I'm going to loosen the gown on top to give me access to your chest, ok?"

With Killian's consent, the doctor untied the top two ties on the back of the gown and slipped it off his shoulders so it lay gathered around his waist.

"This may be a little bit cold at first," he warned before placing the end of the stethoscope below Killian's left shoulder blade. "And take some nice deep breaths for me, in through your nose and out through your mouth."

Killian obeyed, and the doctor moved the stethoscope to different places on his back and chest. This went on for several minutes before Taymor stepped back.

"Well, your heart and lungs sound great. Let's get that gown back on and at least keep your shoulders warm."

When that was accomplished, he asked Killian to lie down on his back, and he brought a pillow from the edge of the table for Killian to rest his head on. "Now I'll check the organs in your abdomen. Can you raise the gown up to your chest, please?"

As Killian complied, Taymor made sure the drape remained over his legs and hips, leaving him bare from chest down to just above his pelvis.

"Tell me if anything is tender, all right?"

At Killian's nod, the doctor began to push down on different places on his abdomen. It didn't hurt, but it wasn't exactly comfortable either. When that was over, he then moved his hands in a similar pattern, but tapping instead of pushing. Killian was mystified, frankly. But the physician seemed to be listening intently, so he didn't want to question the diagnostic value of his actions. After a few moments, Taymor used his stethoscope to listen to several areas. When he was satisfied, he returned the device to its place around his neck.

"There's just a few more lymph nodes for me to check before we sit you back up, in your armpits and groin."

He had Killian raise each arm in turn as he pressed into the flesh of his armpits and down the side of his chest. This he did over the gown. But for the "groin" nodes, he discreetly lifted the drape a bit and tucked his hands beneath, reaching into the inside of his hip joint. This he did on both sides, being extra careful not to touch anything else unintentionally. Killian raised an eyebrow at the ceiling, feeling a little weird, to be honest. Then Taymor stepped back and announced,

"All of that was just fine. You can go ahead and sit back up."

Killian brought the gown back down over his stomach as he sat, turning once more to dangle both legs off the table. Taymor approached with what looked like a small carpenter's hammer in his hand.

"This is just to test your reflexes," he explained before folding back the drape so that Killian's knees and lower legs were visible. The pirate wondered briefly if he was expected to try and catch the tool or something, but then the doctor used it to tap on his knee, and his leg jerked of its own volition.

"Bloody hell," exclaimed a startled Killian. "Sorry. Why did that happen?"

"It has to do with your nervous system. It's a reflex that helps with balance." He repeated the test on the other side, and Killian grinned in wonder.

"There are other spots that work the same, but not quite as dramatically." He demonstrated on Killian's Achilles tendon, which caused a twitch in his foot. Then he stood and grasped Killian's right arm. A strike on his forearm caused his hand to lift slightly on the thumbward side, and one to the elbow contracted one of the muscles in his upper arm.

"Fascinating, to be sure," Killian remarked as Taymor repeated the elbow test on his left arm. "But what use is this?"

"It's just a test of your neurological function," Taymor replied. Killian noted he did not attempt the lower-down strike point on his stump. The doctor set his hammer down, saying,

"Do you mind if I take a quick look?"

Killian shrugged. "If you like. Although you're a bit too late to do anything about it."

"No, no, I was just wondering if there were anything I could do to help with the phantom pains." He gently rubbed the scars and the flesh above them. He pressed against the ends of the bones and felt the pulse beneath the skin. "Is any of this hurting you?"

"No. That pain is long since gone."

"That's good." He released Killian's stump gently. "Well, like I said, Dr. Asante may be able to help you if you ever need it."

Killian nodded.

"Moving on, can you stand for me, and close your eyes?"

Killian slid off the table and shoved the drape in a pile at the pillow end. Feeling slightly foolish, and extra alert after so many decades in danger, he shut his eyes.

"I'm going to give you a few gentle shoves, just keep your eyes closed and do your best to keep your balance."

It really wasn't much of a challenge, especially after having been warned it was coming. Killian shrugged the test off as another of this realm's oddities.

"Good. You can open your eyes again."