Tiana: It had been an incredibly crazy day at Havers yet, skipping out on my time at Safe Place was not an option. There was a female there, that had been transferred over from the clinic last night and the need to check in on her had been twisting my stomach in knots all day. She had been severely beaten by her hellren for going out to the grocery store on her own, instead of letting one of her doggen go. She had been pretty much a prisoner in her own house since her mating and had decided, she was making a defiant stance. Unfortunately for her, her hellren was not the talk it out type.
I clocked out at the clinic, grabbed my belongings from my locker and met my own doggen in the parking lot. My family was allowing me the freedom of working at Havers’ but, they were not going to go as far as to allow me my own vehicle. It was a compromise.
Anyway, my doggen drove me over to Safe Place and dropped me off. The security was tight there and my doggen waited to make sure I was safely inside before driving off.
Mary greeted me just inside the door. I had grown rather fond of her in the time I had been spending at Safe Place. She was very kind to the females and children that came in and out of the establishment. She was also incredibly understanding of all their situations and the fact that any decisions they made about where they were going after Safe Place was their own, even if it landed them back in the same predicament that brought them there in the first place.
Worry washed over my features as I saw Mary. She didn’t generally meet me inside the door unless something wasn’t going well. My first thought was of the female I was there to see. I was terrified her vitals might have dropped during the day. She couldn’t afford to get any worse off than she was. “What’s wrong, Mary? Is it Catherine?” @MaryLTohrture
Mary: [I hear the car coming up the drive and knew that Tiana had arrived for her shift. I had hoped to have better news concerning Catherine. But #Jane confirmed that she needed to be moved to #Havers for additional care. She'd needed a hospital. We had one of their ambulances come pick her up a few minutes earlier. Tiana must have just missed them driving off.]
She’s fine, she had to be transported to #Havers after all. Her injuries were too severe. #Jane did all she could. [I explained quickly as I saw her anxious face. I decided to graze over her injuries, not wanting to upset her and give her hope on Catherine’s recovery when we had no idea the damage her idiot hellren rained on her. Poor female. I shake my head immediately of the thoughts and focused on the now.] Come in now, it's chilly out. We can go get a cup of hot chocolate while you tell me about your night at the clinic.
Tiana: As Mary explained to me that #Jane had decided Catherine needed more care than we were able to offer her here, I could see in her face what she wasn’t telling me. There was no guarantee that Catherine was going to make it at all. That was one of the things I hated about working here. There was no recourse against any of these males, aside from embarrassment if word got out. If a female went back to their hellren after recovery, there was nothing to stop him from beating her again. And Scribe forbid a female die at the hands of their hellren, there was no legal system in place to punish them.
There were some days I wished I had never seen this part of our society … and others where I wished I could go to law school and figure out some way to bring a legal system into our culture. But, those were thoughts that had nowhere to go.
Catherine was now at the forefront of my mind and I remembered seeing an ambulance drive past us on our way to Safe Place but, I did not realize it was one of our own. I had been too tired from my day. Now, I wished I had noticed. I might have called ahead and found out it was Catherine, had my doggen turn around, just so I could run back to Havers’ for a minute and check in on her. It was too late now, though. My doggen had already driven off. Besides, there were others at Safe Place that needed my attention.
I stepped past Mary so she could close the door and followed her down the hall to the kitchen, where there was a fresh pot of hot chocolate ready. I dropped my coat on a chair and poured myself a mug. Letting out a long sigh as I leaned against the counter, “The clinic was completely crazy today, actually. There was a house fire at a home that staffed a number of doggen. The family and all the doggen had to be shuttled in for care. Also, there was a female that was having a difficult delivery. Between all that, it kept us quite busy almost all day.” Walking over to one of the chairs, I sank into it for a moment, and Dearest Virgin Scribe did it feel so good to just sit. “I don’t think I’ve had a thing to eat since first meal.” I wiggled my feet around. Just getting off them for even a minute was like pure heaven. “Aside from what’s been going on with Catherine, how have things been here?”
Mary: [After pouring hot chocolate into two mugs, placing one in front of Tiana and upon hearing she had not eaten since first meal … I opened the refrigerator and started putting together some ingredients grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup.] Everything has been running like clockwork around here. The females have been helping out greatly around the home much to the chagrin of the doggen, I laughed. But she’ll get use to it. Many of the females are not part of the glymera and have always taken care of themselves without servant or others to help them out in their homes. So it's an adjustment.
[I start cutting the tomatoes and started to crush them and simmered the cream and butter on the stove while Tiana rested a bit. I thought maybe she would be a good fit for the manse to help @Warrior_MD in the clinic while #Jane was here at #SafePlace. We always need help with all the Brothers on rotation and the new trainees.] Have you ever gave any thought to do something more than what you do at #Havers? Or maybe getting more hands on experience?
Tiana: As I saw Mary pulling out food after my comment, I opened my mouth to protest, “You know you really don’t have to ... “ She just shook her head at me and continued. I reserved myself to allowing it, simply because I was exhausted, starving and Mary was a great cook.
I wrapped my fingers around the warm mug and took quiet sips as Mary went on to tell me about her day, here at Safe Place. I couldn’t stop my lip from quirking up in an amused grin at the description of the small battle that had been going on between the doggen and the females of the house. Having had doggen around me all my life, I knew the desire they had to care for everyone and their deep-seated craving to be needed. “I’m sure they will come to some sort of an agreement. It may take some time.” I chuckled softly. “But, I’m sure they will figure it out.”
My mind was drifting to Catherine again as Mary was preparing the food, until she turned and asked me about doing something more than Havers. My curiosity was piqued because I wasn’t quite sure what she was getting at. Where else would I get experience? I had been taking every online course I could but, as far as working on actual bodies, Havers was the only medical facility available to me. It’s not like I could go work at a human hospital. “I’m not sure what you mean. Where else would I get hands on experience? Isn’t Havers kind-of ... it? Or do you mean moving to a bigger area because, as far as our kind go, I was under the assumption that this was the most concentrated area around.” Mumbling under my breath, “Not that my mahmen and father would allow me to move far away, anyway.”
Mary: [Biting my lip, I argued with myself of mentioning the Brotherhood clinic … and decided against it. I would have to speak with Manny @Warrior_MD first and #Jane to see if it would Tiana would be needed. I knew she would be … Manny and #Jane were stretched to their limits between the Brothers, #SafePlace and the new trainees while trying to juggle their private lives. They needed a better work life balance but the only way to do that would be to hire more trained vampires for the Compound. Then there’s the security check I am sure @VishousBDB_ would want to perform on Tiana’s background. I wasn’t a vampire that could sense deception like @Wrath_BABBDB, but my gut feeling said she could be trusted and would be a great asset. Wrath would want a say as well, but I’ve been worried about him and @Beth_BABBDB … maybe they needed couples counseling. Internally I sighed at the thought … they just needed to really talk to each and be more open minded. I’m sure they would work it out eventually. Something has to give. I knew that the secret of the Brotherhood had to always be kept above anything else so I would wait and suggest it to the doctors first and go from there. I didn’t want to tell her yet and get her hopes up.]
No, I was wondering just that actually. I’m still sorta new to your world so I wasn’t sure if there were places outside of Caldwell nearby … not to say I want you to leave us but maybe there are workshops or internships you could experience for a determined amount of time. I can ask #Jane to see if she has any ideas about it. Perhaps her experience in the human hospital can give us some perspective of getting you more hands on experience. [I said as i finished up putting all the ingredients to cook on the stove for the soup and took a pan out to grill some cheese sandwiches.] How does that sounds to you?
Tiana: Mary had me incredibly curious now, and not just about getting more hands on experience. Her comment about being new to our world got me wondering. She had never really mentioned how she had become such an integral part of our world to begin with. I mean truly, how does a human end up working in a place like this for wayward female vampires? Not only that but, #Jane was human, too. As interested I was in those answers, I opted not to ask, for now. One day my curiosity might get the better of me but, today there were other things on my mind.
Shifting my thoughts back to more hands-on experience, I had never really thought much about options past Havers. I knew there were vampires that lived in other places but, as far as where most congregate, it’s here, in Caldwell, and I’ve always assumed Havers was the best in his field because of that. However, if there were more options out there, I would love to know about them. My desire for knowledge was never-ending.
Sitting forward in my seat and leaning on the table slightly, I looked back to Mary with excitement gleaming in my eyes. “Do you think it’s possible there are other options? I love working with Havers but, his staff is so set that it’s not the easiest thing in the world to move up in the ranks. I’d love the option to learn more.” Suddenly a thought popped into my head, “I wonder about the city? New York City I mean. I wonder if there are options there for further education. I know our kind lives there. Maybe, there are places there for internships or workshops?”
My mind was now on overdrive, working to think of options I might actually be able to look into. I wouldn’t be able to go too far. My parents would never stand for it but, the city just might be close enough, if I could find something there.
Mary: [I could literally see the wheels turning in Tiana’s head and smiled as she rambled on her thoughts. I really hope this might work out. But I needed to make the first few steps happen first before giving her any idea that there were other options outside of #Havers. I’m sure #Marissa and #Jane would agree with me. But the secret of the Brotherhood had to be maintained and protected. We had little ones and females inside the manse so @Wrath_BABBDB would need to approve if the docs showed any interest. I finished up and the soup and poured them into bowls and placed the sandwiches on plates and placed them on the table.]
Why don’t we eat up and we can make our rounds and check in with everyone. I’ll talk with #Jane and back to you on what options are out there, alright?
Tiana: Nodding, “That sounds like a great plan.” I smiled genuinely as Mary placed the dish in front of me. “And, thank you for this. I really needed something in my stomach.” As I dug in, thoughts were racing all over the place in my mind. I had always limited myself and my learning to what I could learn online and at Havers. I never really explored the possibility of other options. The problem with online courses was they were all about humans, and as much as our anatomy was similar to them, there was a lot that was different, too. That left so many things left to learn about that only Havers… or so I had been thinking, could teach me. It was as if a whole new world had suddenly been open up to me and I couldn’t wait for Mary to get back to me with some answers.
