324/Burns and Mermaid "Allergies"

Burns and Mermaid "Allergies"
Date of Scene:	29 August 2023
Location:	Plot Room 1
Synopsis:	Nurse Meiou gives Coco some treatment for burns the mermaid got from a Witch. Her "allergy" is also addressed.
Cast of Characters:	Coco Kiumi, Setsuna Meiou

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Coco Kiumi has posed:
Despite her own magical song slowly helping with healing, Coco figures she should probably see the school nurse about the burns the train witch gave her, if only for the fact that going around hiding them from others' attention with just her winter clothes and trousers sort of hurts with the chafing.

Which means it's actually a constant distraction and she needs some help.

So here she is knocking at the infirmary door, hoping she could get something to help her. "Hello", she says, poking in with her face. "Could I come in?" She is a bit nervous about showing up with no forewarning.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Ah, the school infirmary. A staple of the high school experience...where students go to deal with the various cuts, scrapes, strains and the like common amongts a building full of 1000 or so hormone-soaked adolescents. Not to mention all the ones trying to scam the nurse to let them skive off of class.

Generally, the infirmary's a fairly small office for the nurse and some equipment. At least, that's the general rule. Given the budget Radiant Heart boasts, the infirmary's a bit bigger and more well appointed than most. There are several beds (which are currently not in use) and to an eye familiar with the medical world, there's enough well-laid-out kit that it's quite likely that, in extremis, one could actually do surgery here.

Still, most of the room is broken up with little rolling-wall medical dividers, with the bulk of the area set up for the kind of service one would need for a typical average assortment of students. Reasonably nice chairs, little triage areas, that kind of thing. The walls have various posters one might see in a doctor's office, though most of them are a bit more aimed at student-level things like common adolescent illnesses and the like. One particular poster, however, probably catches the eye:

It's a picture of an actual heart on a plain white background and underneath the text reads:

Quickest Way To A Man's Heart?

A Bilateral Incision On The Upper Left Region Of The Sternum

In the office, leaning against one of the counters and reading a book with a white cover is Nurse Meiou. In her offhand, she's absently spinning a pen between her fingers. The moment Coco touches the door, it swings slightly open, as it's apparently very well balanced, "Of course you can, Miss Coco. The infirmary is always open."

The pen in her offhand disappears abruptly to be replaced by a black bookmark with a stylized capital P with which she marks her place before snapping her book shut (which reveals the title of the book to be 'White Knight' in English).

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"Thank you, Nurse Meiou", Coco says entering the room, looking at the woman present in the infirmary, having checked her name with some classmates. "I was hoping you could have things for some burns", she states the purpose for her presence a bit more calmly now that the nurse has confirmed it's alright to come in.

She looks around the office as she makes her way to the nurse, a short laugh escaping her lips once she reads the picture on the wall.

"I scalded myself with some water when I lost my balance while I was trying to cook", she says, her smile replaced by a nervous grin for the lie she is trying to tell. Still, it's a good enough excuse, she figures, since there is no way she can start talking about Witches and there wouldn't be many ways she could get burnt on so many places.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou lets out a short 'hrm' as Coco mentions why she's here. She waves the younger woman over towards one of the beds, "Go over there and have a seat, I just need to grab a few things."

That said, she moves over to one side of the room and retrieves some supplies for burns, then comes over with a tray carrying a few rolls of bandages and several tubes of some kind of cream or ointment, "Now, then. Show me where you got yourself burned at."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco takes off her school jacket and trousers, uncovering the burns on her arms and legs, wincing here and there as she proceeds slowly at that.

Once she has done that, she sits down on one of the bed as instructed, waiting nervously for the nurse to come back as she hopes there isn't much questioning from the woman.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Said nurse comes back, sets her tray down on the bed next to Coco, then looks over the pattern of burns, "Just these? None on your torso?"

As she waits for an answer, she gently takes hold of one of Coco's legs and starts examining one of the burns, checking to see if they're healing properly. Absently, she reaches over and gets ahold of some of the burn cream, "Do you have any particular allergies I should know about?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco relunctantly rolls up her shirt once Nurse Meiou asks whether she has burns on her torso. She really wanted to avoid stretching the credibility of her lie, but the odd thing would be not bringing it up now the professional asked. "Yes, this one here", she says, unveiling one more burn to the left of her navel.

The mermaid flinches at the nurse's touch as she examines the burns, but tries to ignore that, dedicating her attention to the sudden question. 'Should I say that?' she thinks, wondering how much could information spread. After 10 seconds or so, she figures it would be better to risk it and surrenders the information. "Yes, I am allergic to soda."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou starts gently applying some anti-burn ointment on each of the burns on Coco's legs, then wrapping them up with the rolled bandages, "So you're going to want to change these about two to three times a day. I'll give you some tubes of ointment and rolls of bandages. Feel free to come back for more if you run out."

She then goes on to getting the burns on the other leg before Coco mentions her allergy.

This causes Nurse Meiou to pause and straighten up for a moment, blinking before she looks over, "...just colored soda, or clear soda, too? What about coffee or tea?"

Apparently, it's a rather STRANGE allergy.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco listens intently as the nurse explains the treatment for the burns. "Thank you a lot, Nurse Meiou", she comments, making a mental note to take the bandages and ointment before leaving the infirmary.

Coco gets a bit more nervous under the woman's blinking gaze, but she goes on to address the question. "Hmm, it's all kinds of soda. Sparkling water too. Coffee and tea are fine though." She does have an adverse reaction to those, so it's not like she is lying, but the exact kind of adverse reaction leaves her a bit unsure over the redacted version.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou finishes the other leg, then starts working on Coco's left arm. The clarification gets her to pause for a moment, and you can see her working through that list, "...that...means you're reacting to carbonic acid..."

She frowns, gives a look at Coco for a few moments before finally shrugging and going back to bandaging, "...okay, I can't say as I've ever heard of anyone having THAT particular allergy..." She trails off for a few moments, then there's another little shrug, "...but it's far from the strangest allergy anyone's ever had. Some poor souls are allergic to their own sweat."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
"Must be that", the mermaid agrees. "Unfortunately, they are really common drinks just about anywhere, so I have to bring that up constantly. There is even a student who has a side gig about exclusively selling soda", she complains a bit.

"Yeah, being allergic to your own sweat sounds really troubling", Coco agrees, relaxing once the professional doesn't seem to be intent on questioning her about how exactly the allergy manifests. She didn't think that far. Her medical knowledge on how an allergy should manifest is pretty much nonexistent.

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou easily moves from burn to burn, apply cream, bandage, next. Finished with the left arm, she moves to the right, "So...I PROBABLY should be telling you right about now that students aren't supposed to have any kind of cooking appliances in their rooms for just this kind of reason..."

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco gets flustered when she gets reprimanded by Nurse Meiou. 'Y-yes, sorry about that, I learnt my lesson. I will make sure to try staying away from fire as much as possible." Not her own fire, but still.

She waits patiently as the nurse finishes applying the ointment and bandages, only the burn on her torso left now. "Can... Can I go after this or is there some special procedure to be dismissed?" She says to herself 'I hope I am not being punished for the supposed use of cooking appliances.'

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Another long look is given to Coco from the nurse...one that seems to weigh Coco...before she moves on to the final burn on the younger woman's torso.

She's quiet for the whole time, then she starts cleaning up after herself, disposing of the various packages she'd used.

Finally, she turns around and leans against the bed across from Coco and folds her arms, "...a few things for your edification, Miss Coco."

A finger is raised, "For one, a source of open flame would be detected almost immediately in the dorms. I'm well aware that students sneak electrical appliances, but as long as they're discreet, we generally leave well enough alone."

A second finger is raised, "For two, if you had gotten those from a spill, the pattern is all wrong...all of the droplets would have spread in a single direction."

She then pins Coco with an intense stare, "...so therefore I have to ask, is whatever gave you these burns likely to burn anyone else?"

Coco Kiumi has posed:
Coco starts looking away and stammering once Nurse Meiou lists the flaw in her cover story. "Uh... Is... Is t-that so?" she can only say as the woman awaits an answer from the mermaid.

"There was a gas explosion on a street off-campus...?", she changes her version, a bit closer to the reality of what happened in a way. "B-but, it's alright, people intervened and the -s-source is gone."

Setsuna Meiou has posed:
Nurse Meiou gives a long, intense stare, "...a gas explosion...?"

The look on her face says she's DEFINITELY not buying it...but after Coco goes on, her eyes narrow a little, "...did they? And it won't be hurting anyone else?"

Another long stare, then a nod, "Good."

She then turns and starts gathering together some various supplies...a small jar of burn cream, more bandages, and a small roll of medical tape. She puts them all into a bag and walks over, "Alright, you're good to go. You should clean the burns with soap and water two or three times a day. Apply a little of the burn cream, then wrap them in clean bandages. Come back here for more if you need them. At the rate you're going, you should be able to stop treating them in a few days."

She hands the bag over, then says, "Oh, and if you ever hear of another of these 'gas leaks', let me know. I take the job of safeguarding your health VERY seriously."

And yes, she does the fingerquotes around 'gas leaks'.

Coco Kiumi has posed:
The mermaid princess keeps squirming under Nurse Meiou's gaze, trying to understand if she was hinting exactly at what she thought. She puts on her clothes, making sure not to ruin the bandages in the process, then Coco grabs the bag the nurse is giving her. "Thank you a lot for your help, Nurse Meiou. And thanks for those instructions", she looks back at the professional once she is done.

"Ok, I guess I will do that, since you seem to understand" she adds, wondering how much of the whole matter she knew. With that, she finally excuses herself from Nurse Meiou's presence, going back to her dorm room with the bag of medications.