Hello everyone, thank you for the review, favorites and follows! Thankfully the Doctor will have the capacity to speak in this chapter and after. Thanks for reading,

Levi H.

"Everyman has a secret pain. It must be dragged from the dark and into the light. It must be reckoned with" ~ Author Unknown

This body was not used to this type of feeling. Being so grounded made the very old man uncomfortable, fidgety which was not helping his current condition at all. When his eyes had open for the second time it seemed as if a set amount of time had passed. He could still move his fingers and even wiggle his toes. However this time he did not feel the pain, the relentless and pounding pain that had haunted him last time. The Doctor was not naïve enough to believe that it had gone away; it was simple submerged by a cocktail of drugs that pushed the pain to the recesses of his mind. He shifted slightly on his side curled in on himself. The cold air was causing him to shiver and goose bumps to rise on his skin. The Doctor did not dare move, it was impossible for him to assess the situation and if he could not assess the situation he could be a danger to others and himself. There was a shift in the lighting of the room that pulled the Doctor's thoughts out of his internal monologue. The lighting returned to its normal low tone but he could distinctly feel the other presence in the room, tightening all of his muscles he waited with baited breath.

S57 entered the building, nodding to the people they knew on this shift; Flix handed them a large book that belonged to the slender person. Putting the book on a table in a small nook hidden from view, as usual the halls were filled with people rushing here and there going to their assigned places, or to send a message or fill an order of medicine, it had become routine to navigate the flock. Headed to the stairs they ran up five flights to her current patient's room. As she entered the private chamber she immediately noticed the figure on the bed stiffen. 'He's awaken then' they pondered. Slowly walking over to his bedside they kneeled down and looked at the tightly clenched eyes of the man. With a sight the figure extended two fingers and rubbed them from the base of the ear to his collar bone, the universal sign for peace and goodwill. They could feel the hairs rise on the man's neck as their digits made the gesture. The patient did not open his eyes however he did loosen the clenched nature of his body. With the slight shirt in demeanor S57 placed a flat hand between the shoulder blades of the other figure on the bed, and then proceeded to do the same on his abdomen and forehead. These were the most common place to detect a body hear of lack thereof, from S57's deduction the man was cold, so they placed a light blanket over his shivering form.

There had been a touch that had startled the Doctor, it unnerved him so much that he almost forgot what that touch meant, an extension of goodwill. Unconsciously his body relaxed before his mind had realized why. Then there was a hand on other places, but it was not harsh or rough and did not linger on his skin for long the feeling was gone. Then there was a new warmth, it encompassed him, protected him, shielded his body from the cold and being exposed. His eyes slipped open again to see a figure walk across the room. They seemed to be peering at a book on a low table across the small space that was his room apparently. After a few seconds they turned around. The Doctor closed his eyes quickly, however he did know it hadn't been fast enough and the other person knew he was looking at them. The covers were slightly lifted and a pressure applied to his wrist and then it was gone. There was more shuffling of feet which prompted the Doctor to open his eyes once more. The clinking of glass against glass could be seen as a clear liquid was poured into a small cup.

Even if this patient's stomach was far too damaged for solid food the fact that he needed water was unquestionable. If he chose to hurl it in their face it was his decision. That had happened more times than one would image. This man though seemed not to have much of a temper; he had not yelled or complained yet which was a rarity. Perhaps he could not speak? 'Foul, the diagnosis would have shown that' their internal voice mocked. Huffing they set the glass down on the table she asked in a warm tone "would you like me to help you drink this?" there was a period of silence then a shake of the head no. A huge clap of thunder and a brilliant streak of lightning illuminated the sky. Then they turned to observe the ever darkening sky. The sound of shattering glass caused them to whip around and see the trembling hand of the thin man. She tried to give him an encouraging look and gathered the outer blanket off of the bed. Inspecting the mattress, none of the water had seeped through to the padding, thus they pushed the wet duvet into a hidden slot on the flat paneled wall. Out of another panel they pulled another cover and fanned it out over the man in the bed. The soft sound of glass shards being crushed under the figures shoe was almost relaxing. They went and poured another glass of the liquid. This time they remained by his side and tilted the glass to his lips and let the man drink. Once he had finished the small portion they set the glass aside and moved to another panel on the wall. With a click of a button a small switchboard was illuminated. "Some people do not prefer the rain and thunder. There are some other options if you like" there was no positive or negative response, verbal of physical from the man. They continued saying "I shall just go through all the options, if there is one you prefer nod" With a flick of the finder the rain was suddenly drowned out by the sounds of a forest, where three walls of had been glass now a dense wood could be seen.

The sudden shirt of surrounding was not unappreciated, the sound of rain got boring after hearing it enough, however the forest somehow did not bring him that much more comfort. Then there was a desert, baked by an unseen sun. This too was not unbeautiful but the brightness was a little much for his eyes. The mountains and lake scene created the same response and the earlier illusions. The sudden envelopment into the deep cosmos almost had him nod his head but then there was the street of people. Normal people with daily lives, on their phones, with grocery bags and cups of coffee, none of the other settings had relaxed him like this so he timidly nodded his head. The figure saw this and with a press of a button the light sound of human interactions gently filled the room. Sinking into the soft warm bed the Doctor closed his eyes for a moment completely calm. That was until the other person in the room called out lightly "Have you a name that I may address you by?" Shifting over to his other side the Doctor observed the person holding a large worn book as they stood by a chair.

It seemed like such a long time for the man to answer they wondered if he did not have a name, or had forgotten it, or perhaps fallen back asleep. Sitting down and opening the book there was the extremely soft reply of "Doctor, my name's the Doctor"