In the late hours of the afternoon, a short-statured doctor was waiting for the Young Hyori in the medical area. He was bald with a greying moustache. Sporting a laboratory coat and glasses, he was reviewing the recounts of the episode of the suspected toddler's quirk usage. Any report of events happening inside the Imperial House was confidential. Meaning the doctor was just discovering them. His bag had been held at the inner palace entrance and put in a guarded cabinet. Everything he needed could be found in the nursing room. As soon as he had arrived, a maid had kept him company. She had let him know she had been sent by the Empress Dowager to assist him during the audition and he could ask her for supplementary information. A subtle way of telling him he couldn't ask for her departure and was expected to be detailed and precise in his conclusions. Another maid had walked towards the women's area to bring the toddler. Upon arriving, she had been directed towards the Empress Dowager's quarters where the child had been spending the last hour. Once she arrived in front of the doors of the quarters, she knocked and waited to be invited in.
Ms Nobu was nervous. Fourty-six minutes had passed since the Empress Dowager had been 'sleeping' with the toddler. She had been keeping her eyes on the clock, hoping the elderly woman would wake up. But she hadn't. When she heard knocking on the doors, she walked to open them enough to have a look at the person on the other side. The maid announced she had come to bring the toddler to the specialist who had arrived.
"Wait here." Commanded Ms Nobu.
She turned around and walked into the bedroom. The toddler was awake beside the still Empress Dowager. She was evenly breathing. Her eyes were closed. She had closed the dazed woman's eyes. Having her staring ahead with distant eyes had felt cursed. And it might dry her eyes. She figured the dazed people's limbs could be displaced as long as none of their motor skills were solicited. Playing doll with the Empress Dowager's body made her feel ill. But letting her lay down like a puppet felt downward cursed. She would rather be ill than cursed.
"Young Hyori, the specialist is waiting for you. It's time for your audition." She murmured from the edge of the bed. "Come with me. A maid will bring you to the medical unit."
The toddler climbed out of the bed with a last look at the 'sleeping' woman. She circled the bed and walked out of the bedroom, trailing after Ms Nobu. At the door, a maid was waiting for her. She followed the maid inside the halls. They stopped in front of Ms Shinsou's suite and the maid knocked on the door. The maid had to retrieve the toddler's umbrella before walking under the sun with her. Ms Shinsou decided to assist her daughter during the audition. Together, they walked out of the women's area and made their way towards the medical area.
Once in the doctor's office, they were greeted by the specialist who promptly stood up to greet them.
"My salutations. I'm Doctor Garaki, a quirk specialist." Said the man with a joyful tone and a big smile. "I've been summoned to audition a child. As much as you look very young, I guess you aren't my patient." He joked while addressing Ms Shinsou.
The toddler had been hiding behind her Mother. When the doctor crouched down to get on her level, the small child hid further. Her Mother turned around to pick up the infant in her arms. The doctor then stood up and gestured for the Mother to sit her child on the auscultation table.
"From what I read, the child had been involved in several moments of absence from her caterers. Could you tell me more? As her mother, you might have more insight than me regarding the matter at hand." He told Ms Shinsou.
"I don't have anything to tell you that you haven't already read." Countered the Mother with a slight frown.
"I mean…" The doctor seemed to search his words. "From what I read, the kid seems to have a mind quirk. But we need more details on what it does and what are the triggers. That's why I'm here."
The Mother didn't answer.
"Alright." Said the doctor again. "I will ask you a few questions about your own quirk."
The doctor seemed to have spoken some magic formula because the air in the room suddenly dropped. The two maids' posture stiffened and the Mother seemed furious. Collected, but furious. Discussing Ms Shinsou's quirk was almost taboo in the Imperial House. It wasn't a secret that it was a love spell. What no one was privy to was how her quirk worked.
"Or her father's quirk?" The doctor hurriedly asked, sensing the shift in the room.
"Her father was quirkless." Answered the Mother.
The audition was heading into a dead end. Ms Shinsou seemed to want to hide details surrounding her quirk. Quirk had a hereditary component. Intel on how the Mother's quirk operated would give indications on how the child's quirk operates. He had no option but to ask since the Mother's quirk and its description was a sensitive file that he wasn't privy to. He focused his gaze on the toddler.
"Could you use your quirk on me?" The toddler didn't answer.
Of course. She seemed unaware of her quirk. It had to be a natural response on her part. An automatic and immediate reaction. The episodes weren't regular. Meaning it wasn't a physical mutation. It had to be a mental ability. Probably an emitter one, since physical contact hadn't been needed for two of the episodes. And since it affected others in an invisible way, the channels left were sight, speech or mental projection. The sight channel was unlikely since one of the subjects was turning their back on the toddler.
"Do you remember-" He tried again before Ms Shinsou interrupted him.
"Everything has been reported to you."
"Madam, I'm trying to do my job. I know everything has been reported. I wanted to get your child's point of view."
The doctor could identify a lost battle when he saw one. Trying to get the Mother's cooperation was one of them. She had probably figured out parts of her daughter's quirk she wished to keep secret. Sight, speech or mental projection. The kid had discoloured eyes. Could it be a side effect of her quirk?
"Your daughter has discoloured pupils. Does it run in the family?"
"She has albinism. She's the first in the family to manifest it."
Yet another dead end. But at least, the woman answered. Maybe he could sneak important information. He tried again.
"Does she often have migraines? I suppose her eyes are light-sensitive."
"She doesn't. I don't let her play outside."
That answer meant the migraine the infant had had the previous day was linked to her quirk usage. She definitely had a mental quirk that affected people around her and put them in a daze until they were physically jostled. But how did she activate it? He had to find it. He wished he could use some of his mentor's perception quirk to get done with this audition.
"Alright, we will go through some tests." He said. "Can you close your eyes?" He asked the toddler who did as instructed.
"Try to focus on my voice. Do you hear me?"
The toddler nodded.
"Can you try to imagine me in your head? Without looking."
The toddler focused.
"Do you picture me in your head?"
Again, the toddler nodded.
"Now that I'm in your head, you can make me do anything you want. Even cartwheels."
The toddler smiled at the idea. She probably imagined the scene of the doctor doing cartwheels.
"Do I look real in your head? Do you think you can grab me in your head?" He inquired.
The toddler focused again.
"I think…" Came her reply.
The doctor had been holding his breath until she asked. "Can you talk again? I can imagine you better when you are talking."
Which meant the quirk relied on interactions and responses.
"Is my picture clearer now?" He asked.
"Yes! It is. And you are happy." The toddler was satisfied with herself. And so was the doctor. He felt something hover around his mind when the toddler voiced her answer. The quirk relied on voice-based interactions. The toddler was probably too young to provide consistent results.
"Very well. You can open your eyes." Said the doctor. Then, he faced the Mother. "From what I saw, she can put people who talk to her in a secondary state. It's a vocal response-based quirk that affects the mind. It's still developing and is bound to evolve as her brain matures. I will advise you to avoid stressing her. Also, you might want her monitored by no less than two people. Especially in hazardous places like the bathtub or the kitchen. She might drown or cut herself while her caretaker is in the daze. Speaking of the daze, it seems that jostling the subject helps. However, I would advise you against violent actions such as slapping the dazed subject. The quirk seems to connect your daughter to the subject. Any violent action might affect the toddler in one way or another."
Afterwards, the doctor was escorted toward the exit. The Mother picked up her child and exited the medical area. She walked back toward the women's area. Once inside, she headed straight for her suite and closed her door behind her. She had barely managed a few steps inside when someone knocked on the door. The person didn't attempt to open the door, meaning it wasn't a maid on duty. Ms Shinsou put one knee on the floor to let her daughter stand up. After standing back up, she turned back to the door and opened it with irritation on her face. On the other side, Ms Nobu greeted her before letting her know the Empress Dowager requested the toddler again. What could she want? She didn't have time to inquire as her daughter was rushing outside of the suite. Ms Nobu didn't wait for a single second before speed-walking behind the running child.
As soon as the middle-aged woman opened the door before the Empress Dowager's quarter, the toddler rushed to the bedroom where the elderly woman was still 'sleeping'.
"The doctor said that I can put people in a daze when they talk to me. The Empress Dowager looked dazed, in the salon. Maybe I can wake her up?"
Not waiting for an answer or permission, the toddler climbed on the bed.
"Please, talk to me." The elderly woman remained unresponsive.
"Please, say hello." The toddler tried again.
This time the woman reacted. She said "Hello." In a monotonous tone.
"I felt her in my head!" Exclaimed the toddler.
She focused on the feeling while Ms Nobu was holding her breath.
"Please, say hello again." Asked the toddler. The Empress Dowager did as requested.
Something flashed in the toddler's mind. The image of the Empress Dowager she tried to picture became clear. The intense focus was making the toddler sweat and her head was starting to hurt. In her mind, she was urging the Empress Dowager to wake up. That wasn't working. She felt the elderly woman was still asleep, unlike the doctor she pictured earlier. Maybe, she could try to imagine the Empress Dowager waking up. She focused on the sleeping form in her mind. There was a cover hovering above. Gently she tugged at the cover and removed it. Then, the Dowager Empress opened her eyes on her own.
Ms Nobu let the breath she was holding as she rushed to the edge of the bed. All the stress she had accumulated during the day was washed out of her system and her knees gave out. On the contrary, the Empress Dowager looked like she enjoyed the best night of her life. That's what the way she was deliberately stretching led Ms Nobu to think. She seemed, peaceful and rested. Then, the elderly woman looked around. The toddler was smiling at her from the bed. Ms Nobu looked like she had been on a roller coaster. Explanations were due. But not right now. Ms Nobu needed to organise her thoughts beforehand.
Silently agreeing, Ms Nobu addressed the toddler.
"I believe it's time for your evening routine. Let's bring you back to your Mother."
Once in front of Ms Shinsou's suit, Ms Nobu knocked on the door. The woman had never opened her door faster than at that moment. Ms Nobu would have laughed inside if she had the energy to do so. The Mother let her child inside and before closing the door on Ms Nobu's face, she announced.
"I would like to discuss with the Empress Dowager regarding my daughter's care. She will need at least two caretakers to watch her."
She didn't wait for her correspondent to answer and closed the door on her face. Heading back towards the Empress Dowager's quarters, Ms Nobu silently agreed that two people were required to watch the toddler.