Magic in the air - Check up
"Speech"
So, by the time the storm had broken three days later we'd successfully screwed up our sleeping patterns, and I'd blown up a wall in an attempt to make a barrier so the girls could sleep... I don't wanna talk about it, I was sleep deprived, sue me.
Carla had also turned an interesting shade of red when she'd realised the two of them had fallen asleep in a boy's room, which was amusing to see, the serious little kitten was far more innocent than I'd first thought.
Yeah, as it turns out, neither of them had been given 'The Talk', which had honestly surprised me given Carla's intelligence, I had figured she had already known given how she had blushed around Madam Bell when we'd met. But no, she thought prostitutes got paid JUST to sleep ALONGSIDE men in a bed, which IS technically accurate, but it's also really not.
So Carla was under the impression that they'd done something wrong, meaning I was stuck explaining that; no, neither of you are harlots. Yes, you can still get married, and no, we aren't married. No, that's not what happens, and no, I'm not explaining that.
Yeah, Wendy was mostly just confused at Carla's embarrassment, She just scrunched her face up adorably, trying to figure out what the big deal was.
Unfortunately, Carla now knows that she's misunderstanding something, and now has questions, about what I obviously know.
Fortunately, however, she knows she won't be getting those answers from me, or anyone else in the guild for that matter. The master and the illusions were apparently not willing to explain, which I mean, fair, they were all connected to one old man after all.
And then I'd blown up the wall trying to help them the next night, and the discussion was then, for the most part, forgotten.
Yeah, it's become apparent that these two have been rather secluded, outside of been raised by the guild's members, which to reiterate, are illusions, even if they ARE self-aware illusions. I think I'll have to ask Sasha to talk to them, she's... female... so, good enough.
... Moving on.
In other news, the three of us had kept busy for the next couple of weeks afterward, only taking low-level and local missions, such as herb collection. We were saving money, granted we had a good amount already, but it didn't hurt to be overly prepared.
Other than that though, we were collecting things we might need for the desert, cloaks to stop sunburn, goggles for sand storms, and a ton of water bags. We were studying up safe plants to get water from in an emergency, along with how to tap for water. Medical supplies were a given, along with food rations, a map of the area, camping supplies, and, of course, rope. All hail rope, any DnD player will tell you how important that can be.
During that time, I'd also 'helped' Wendy with her psychology 'practice' as promised, and as adorable as it was, she'd had me laying on a makeshift couch like you'd see in a movie, or I suppose a play here. I'm not sure how she knew about that trope, but I suspect Nerik.
I'd also provided first-aid training to both the girls on my team, it was going, well, better now? Kind of, the first time Wendy used actual bandages she tied her OWN legs together, and the second time I got both arms tied behind my back. She was putting them on the right limbs now, at least.
Myself and Carla were also making progress on our new magic, she was now able to increase her size and change her clothing some, which was necessary for transformation magic, unless you want to choke on a tie or something.
While I was now capable of forming small barriers... of course they kept exploding at any impact, but at least they weren't just exploding randomly, soooo progress, right?
And now? Now we were on the train to Clover, where we would ALL be getting check-ups at the hospital because, as I'd now confirmed, none of us had ever had one. Granted, in my case it was more this body hadn't, but details.
Now, considering we'd be paying out of pocket and the trouble I'd gone through to set up this appointment, I can see why neither of the girls had had one before. Still, it was a good idea to have a baseline for us all, I mean who knows what could happen and when we would need medical aid.
After that, we would finally be taking a boat from the northeast side docks of the city, across an 'open' lake, meaning it was connected by rivers. It was mostly to bypass the weeks of travel it would take on foot, but also because Wendy was adamant about not going to a place called the spooky forest, which we would have had to go though. Then, once we were dropped off in the desert, we could start the search, this would take some time, but we did have an aerial advantage so hopefully not be TOO long.
For now, though, the train had finally stopped, and we were unfortunately free, I groaned.
"Salem it isn't THAT bad," Carla rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, it's worse. Come on, the sooner we get to the hospital, the sooner I can put this down," I gestured to the rucksack I was carrying. Now to be fair, Wendy and Carla were both too small to carry the bag without it dragging so it had to be me, that doesn't mean, however, that I was happy about it.
Gotta say though, the city was rather nice now we weren't being escorted everywhere by guards, the terrain itself was mountainous, especially on the outskirts of the city, which were rather spread out. The city itself, however, was built slightly into part of the mountain and on man-made ledges which made it bigger than it looked, along with a lot of stone housing with some wood roofing from the mountain forests.
All in all, the city was rather beautiful, even the hospital looked nice, as we approached. It was a large multi-story stone building with thick wooden paneling and roofing.
The lobby we entered into was decorated with children's drawings and leaflets, but was actually rather empty.
I wonder if that's normal here?
"Welcome to the Four Leaf's Hospital, how may I help you?" A gentle if elderly voice greeted us. Behind the lobby's welcome desk sat an elderly white-haired woman with thick glasses and a pink uniform.
Carla flew onto the granite desk, "Good morning, we made three appointments for one o'clock, our names are under Carla, Wendy Marvell, and Salem Warden."
I coughed, getting the woman and my teammate's attention, "Actually you're under Carla Marvell."
"W-what," Carla stuttered out, wide-eyed.
"What? I needed a last name, and you two might as well be sisters," I replied as innocently as possible.
Carla sputtered red-faced, much to my amusement, while Wendy grinned happily, "Does this mean we're sisters?"
I shrugged and responded before Carla could get her bearings, "I mean this is official paperwork, so in all but blood, yeah."
"Yes!" The bluette cheered.
Carla just turned redder, and it was adorable. Though the look she just shot me promised retribution.
The elderly woman replied, not even questioning the Exceed's existence, she simply smiled in amusement, "Of course dears, let me see here."
I'm not sure if I should be concerned about why she isn't questioning Carla's existence, especially considering what must come through the hospital for her to get to that point, or if I should just be glad that she wasn't going to give us any issues regarding our appointment?
Meh, won't be my problem when we're gone. I'll just be glad that we won't have any issues while we're here.
"Ah, yes here we go, fill these out first," She handed over some documents that we quickly gathered, filled out, and returned.
We did admittedly have some difficulties with some of the questions, such as place of birth for example, but in the end we all simply put Fiore, along with other vague answers.
However, what was surprising was the 'circle if you're a mage' part of the form. I suppose I shouldn't be, considering where I am and that magic might require a more... thorough overview, but still, it was strange to see.
"Mister Warden if you could head to room 408. Wendy Marvell, and Carla Marvell room 404 and 403," She listed off.
"Thank you, Ma'am," I inclined my head politely, while Carla just ducked her head. She can be as embarrassed as she likes, but the fact she hasn't complained about actually being called her sister is telling.
The hospital, like most, was a maze but thankfully had decent sign directions, meaning we made it to the correct area without much fuss.
"Good luck girls," I waved off my teammates as they left for their own rooms.
"Y-Yes quite," Was Carla's nervous reply as her embarrassment suddenly died at the reminder. The Exceed was obviously nervous about what she might find with this visit, but was resolute as she took a breath and walked off.
Likewise, Wendy was also somewhat nervous, but I think that had more to do with being separated from her teammates and having to talk to a stranger, rather than actually being at a hospital. She certainly wasn't a fan of the sterile environment, though her nose was wrinkled at the smells of the hospital.
She went off without a word, mentally preparing herself as she entered the room, if her little gestures were anything to go by.
And then there was one, let's see here 408, 408. Ah, here we go.
I entered into a small white room, where an elderly man was standing looking over something, at least until I entered.
Makes sense, male-to-male. Is that standard here or just a coincidence?
"Ah, my one o'clock, Salem, correct?" He asked with a stern but not unkind voice. He was pale with sharp features and bald on the top of his head, with white hair around the sides and back and a well-groomed white mustache. He was wearing black scrubs with a white doctor's coat? Jacket? Eh, whatever.
"That's me doc, what you need me to do?" I inquired.
"Straight to the point? Good. Right, strip down and change into a gown, then lay on the bed, I'll ask you questions as we go," I nodded my compliance and proceeded to do exactly that.
"Now any prior injuries or conditions I need to be aware of?" He began, obviously not having read my paperwork, typical, but doctors were busy people.
"I'm a guild wizard, so yeah some. Hmm, err, shrapnel injuries as a backlash from my magic and I've been stabbed before, knife in my right shoulder. Note, that all of my injuries were treated magically via our team healer," I explained while gesturing at said injuries.
The doctor, whose coat I now realized had a name tag that read 'Fuji', simply made a note on his clipboard.
"And do any of these older injuries still cause any form of discomfort," He continued, not even looking back up from his clipboard.
"Nah, no problems," I found myself responding. Surprisingly, there had been no aching from the storm we'd had. Not even a psychological response after the wound, such as a weariness of sharp objects, not sure if that's a good or bad thing regarding my mental health, but I'll cross that particular bridge later.
The doctor hummed, "Very well, I shall still need to take a look at them later. However, you appear to have it in hand for now."
The doctor nodded to himself as I finished changing, "Right then, on the bed."
You know what? I like this guy, no-nonsense, and gets the job done. Likely terrifying for a normal child, but I found his bluntness quite refreshing.
Not sure how he became a pediatrician, though.
Now I was finished with my check-up and back in the waiting room, I was looking through the medical leaflets. Did you know you could get a doctor who specializes in magical effects on the body, yours or otherwise, because I didn't.
Still, we were only here for some check-ups, and I'm happy to say I'm in good health even accounting for my previous injuries. But then Wendy is our team healer, so that's a given.
Speaking of, Wendy had just arrived back in the waiting room from her own appointment.
"Salem," Wendy called, waving at me rather energetically as she approached.
"Hey Wendy, all good?" Was my casual reply as she approached.
She smiled happily, "Yup, she was really nice, and then when I told them I used Dragon Slayer magic they had me see a magic doctor, and they believed me, and she said everything was fine!"
Well, so much for a check-up, what the hell did I miss?
Wendy was grinning widely, obviously ecstatic and unintentionally flashing her fangs, ah yeah, that would do it. The problem with having Dragon Slayer magic, but being unable to use any of the techniques, is a lack of people believing.
Still, at least they didn't ask about her Draconic mother, or maybe they did? ... Shit, don't bring it up, she seems happy.
"And guess what!" She continued.
I raised my brow, "What?"
"They said that they do classes and that I could join," I'm pretty sure she just quietly squealed, that's adorable... best not to draw attention to it or she'll get embarrassed.
"That's great Wendy, I'm sure we can figure something out when we all get back, you CAN fly now after all," I agreed, instinctively patting the girl's head.
Wendy hummed happily at the act and likely in agreement, while I was more concerned over how much this would all cost... Meh, questions for later, dessert first.
Wendy was in high spirits after her own appointment, which I'm taking as a good sign.
But I do question exactly how this doctor knew that Wendy was doing alright with her Dragon Slayer magic, or how they could identify the magical signature. I mean, she WAS doing alright, but I had knowledge of the future, they didn't.
I wonder if there are old records from the Dragon War? Or perhaps Natsu had been seen before, in Magnolia, or perhaps Gajeel the Iron Dragon slayer? If they had, then was there a correlation between how the older dragon slayers and Wendy's magic worked?
Likely, but no, I don't think Makarov would have had Natsu seen by a hospital, Porlyusica was his go-to healer for all things magical. Well, that and the two hospitals would both need to have access to the medical files. Then again, they may well have a way to share information rapidly, I still have a lot to learn about this world.
Hmm, maybe Gajeel did have a check-up, he doesn't seem the type, but logic COULD work on him. The iron dragon slayer was probably in the Phantom Lord guild by now, so it wasn't out of the question.
I noticed a hand waving in front of my face and Wendy's voice calling for me, "Saaaalem."
"Ah, Yeah, sorry I was thinking about something," I made my return to reality known.
Wendy cocked her head to the side in confusion before brightening back up, "So, umm, is Carla out yet?"
"Nah, you're the second. I'm sure it won't be much longer, her case is sort of special after all," I answered.
"Special?" Wendy questioned as her face scrunched up in thought.
I rolled my eyes in amusement, "Right, she isn't exactly human, and this IS a human hospital. I wouldn't worry, I'm sure the magical specialists can take care of it."
Or I am now that I know they exist.
Wendy brightened again, thankfully her confidence was getting better now, and required less coaxing out.
"Yeah," She agreed.
Over the course of the next half an hour, I watched as Wendy attempted to make small talk with other people in the lobby, most notably the staff members. She was primarily asking about the classes the hospital provided, but would often get distracted by other topics.
And while I still had to get the conversation going and had to get her back on subject sometimes, I was glad to see her coming out of her shell. Meeting all of these new people and getting new experiences was doing wonders for her self-esteem.
Admittedly, she was still tripping herself up at times, but she had endeared herself to the staff, and was happy enough.
Finally, Carla would return to the lobby, looking rather irritated.
Well, shit, who am I punching.
"Yo, Carla, you done?" I asked instead, getting the girls' attention and simultaneously getting Wendy's attention from her conversation with the old woman at the desk, Heather, I believe.
"Ah- oh, yes, I believe so," The young cat girl's irritation bled away as she responded.
"You believe so?" One of my brows raised in question to go along with my inquiring voice.
"It's quite alright, Salem. They simply wished to be thorough, I have everything I need," She waved me off.
"So I don't need to deck anyone?" I questioned.
"Bwa," Wendy exclaimed, stuck between a gasp and an exhale at my question.
Carla's maw ticked upward into a smile for a second before she huffed and placed her paws on her hips, "No Salem, you will not be striking anyone."
Wendy responded with an adorable groan and/or pout at the subject matter, "No," Wendy of all people told me, as sternly as she could.
Which was honestly more cute than intimidating. It was still a shock though, and it took me a second to reply.
I'm so proud.
"Fiiine," I drawled out as I rolled my eyes in jest. I couldn't keep the smile from my face, which ruined it a bit, but hey I'm happy with my friends.
Wendy nodded and stood straight, proud of herself, before turning to Carla and fidgeting slightly, though not nervously.
"Sooo, did you find old how old you are, Carla?," Wendy finally asked expectantly if not eagerly. But quieter than before, like it was a secret, which I suppose it could be.
Do they have patient confidentiality here?
"Indeed, I'm nine," The Exceed proclaimed, obviously prideful of the fact she was no longer the 'youngest' on the team.
It was certainly unexpected though, I thought she'd still be younger than the two of us, instead she's the oldest here... well baring my own reincarnation shenanigans.
That incubation time, or perhaps hibernation time, only makes me more interested in Exceed's as a species. Then again, it still might have something to do with how her egg was transferred to Earthland.
"So does that make you my big sister?," Wendy innocently questioned.
"A-ah, y-yes?" Was her unsure answer.
I couldn't help my bark of laughter.
I groaned at the extra weight in the backpack as I adjusted it slightly.
Carla smirked then huffed in amusement, "Come now Salem, we would rather not be stuck with the same clothes again like we were at Pitt, now do we?"
"No," I sighed out, reluctantly stuck carrying said clothes.
She was right, after all, we needed extra clothes, we could damage them, or get them dirty, or simply need to change them, anything could happen on trips like this, so it was best to be prepared.
That doesn't mean I needed to be happy with the extra weight, though.
The cat girl patted my leg in faux sympathy, "Correct, think of it as training, yes."
I grunted in the affirmative, not like I could say no after all.
"Come on, come on, We're going to miss the boat," Wendy called us along.
Easy for her to say I'm the one being weighed down. Then again, given how strong Wendy is, I doubt that she'd have any trouble with the weight, more so the size of the bag.
"We're coming, dear sister," Carla responded happily, though certainly still red.
Wendy beamed.
"Dear sister, huh?" I inquired.
"Quiet you," The she-cat huffed without any heat.
"Yeah, yeah, I know, I should have asked first. But don't tell me I wasn't right," I countered.
"Hum," She turned her head away in disinterest. She had, however, yet to release my leg from where she had patted me. Even as we walked, she kept herself close to me, so she was likely feigning any irritation on her part.
After paying our medical bill, which as it turned out would be partly covered by the guild because we were minors, it was still cheaper than it would have been.
This was a result of Wendy's rather rare magic and Carla's status as a new sentient being, we hadn't been charged for the medical diagnostics in regards to that. But in return, several specialists would be able to do some studies on said magic and species, but NOTHING without direct permission and a trusted adult such as the guild master present, I had made damn sure of that.
Wendy, of all people, was elated at the prospect of furthering studies on Dragon Slayer magic, which as it turns out the hospital did have SOME documentation on.
Carla was more against the idea, having been pestered about it during her own check-up, and I still say I should have been allowed to punch her doctor for doing that during an actual check-up and not after, but was vetoed by the girls.
Still, considering what little information we had on her species, it was likely a good idea. The last thing we wanted was for Carla to get sick or hurt beyond Wendy's ability to heal, and have no one who understands her physiology.
Thankfully, I had told her as much, and Wendy had practically begged her afterward until she'd relented.
Don't get me wrong, Carla still wasn't happy about it, but she understood and was more resigned about it than upset.
So I was rather gladdened to see that she was still in good spirits.
After getting out of the hospital, we headed to the docks to find a boat across the lake, and while we'd found one, the crew was resupplying and wouldn't be ready for several hours. It was then that Wendy had brought up her lack of clothing, and Carla had used it as both an excuse to get back at me and to actually get us some much-needed supplies.
Now we were walking back through the dock area, and it too was rather nice, the area was beautiful, and had far more wooden structures than the city proper. Nevertheless, the area was crowded with workers and fishermen peddling their catches, something Carla actively made a show of wrinkling her nose at.
The boat that we'd hired at the dockyard was, apparently, a Brig, now I don't know much about wooden sailing vessels, but it had two masts with about 20 crewmen on hand, and while an old vessel, it was obviously well taken care of.
The trip would take roughly two days and cost 200,000 jewels which was around 2,000 dollars, which was basically everything we'd earned since the storm.
Regrettably, it was one of the few vessels to actually charter passage across the lake, rather than upriver, so we didn't have much in the way of choice.
I mean we still had a good 500,000 jewels saved, so we were fine for the time being, but we might have to do a few odd jobs here and there while moving between the desert settlements.
As we arrived at the ship gangway, I couldn't help but ask, "So, we ready?"
"Yep," Wendy was the first to respond, with no hint of that previous nervousness she had when it came to me going to the desert.
"I believe that's something that should have been asked before we hired the boat, Salem," Carla huffed cheerfully.
"Probably," I returned.
Right then, let's go screw up canon.
A/N:This chapter is a week or two later than I wanted but I've had 2 dentist appointments, 5 birthdays, gotten dragged into Thanksgiving by American friends, and finally I've been busy preparing for christmas/Yule.
Regardless, happy Yule/Christmas/Holidays or whatever it is for you this time of year. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter, see you in the next year, so happy new year as well.
But yeah, I'm not sure if I pulled off the first part of the Chapter very well:
One thing to mention is Carla's explained reaction from the last chapter in this one, yes I know she's fairly young, but she's also a different species and very intelligent (as stated before) but more importantly is actively looking for connections and friends, etc, while also been very cautious of how people treat her and Wendy. So it makes sense to me that she would at least have a limited knowledge on intimate subjects, if only through subtext in regards to the newspaper scandals and story books and so on. She IS still young and fairly secluded in the guild no matter her intelligence, so while she has a premise she doesn't have an understanding nor full knowledge of the subject hence her misunderstanding.
On the other hand, Wendy while intelligent in her own right doesn't actively seek knowledge and while she would like more friends she is content with her current life, and therefore doesn't understand why theres a problem which is ironic because it isn't a problem just Carla jumping the metaphorical gun.
@Xavier Arias Gonsalves - I know of Fire Force but haven't watched it so I couldn't tell you that one, but he is wearing armor for a reason and constantly blowing yourself up is a good way to toughen up. as for Bakugo again I know of him, cluster is kind of like Salem's Full Force attack utilizing multiple explosions from the magic in the air, I think?
