The Doctor Can See You Now - OPEN

[DR AARON SHUTT]

Aaron looked around at his new temporary living quarters. To be honest, it was too… nice. The bed was huge for a start. Aaron didn’t trust it. He’d rather sleep in the chair, or the floor. For now though, he just placed his briefcase on the desk and took out his files and his laptop. He hunched over the desk, typing away for hours.

He was aware that he’d have to come out of his room eventually, if only to see some of the Praxian refugees that he wanted to evaluate. The one he came here to see initially was missing, and Aaron wasn’t sure he could keep his big mouth shut if he was asked what he knew about it. Why would anybody ask him though? He’d just gotten there.

Aaron’s suitcase contained a few unhealthy snacks that could keep him going. The energy drinks would keep him awake long enough to maybe do all his research and consultations in one stretch. With any luck, Aaron could be back on a plane to New York in a matter of days.

Computers were awesome things. Aaron was able to send a memo to the staff at Old City Sanctuary, extending his services to the staff members as well as the refuges. Aaron was able to co-ordinate with Henry Foss via IM, allowing him to organise his schedule most efficiently, categorizing the Praxians, and arranging consultations which limited his interaction with others i.e.: Helen Magnus. It was all refreshingly productive, really.

Aaron deserved a break, but he didn’t want one. His plan wasn’t set to start until the next day, so Aaron had some downtime to kill. His mind wandered back to Adam and Michael, making it a more than a little hard to focus. Aaron sat at his desk, trying to work the kinks out of his back, hoping that someone would knock on his door to distract him.

[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Kathryn was tired and frustrated, she hated that she had put herself in this position. The last few hours had been something she had hoped to forget very quickly with a lot of sleep but angering Helen would be almost impossible to shake from her mind. She slowly headed back to her room, hopeful in the thought that maybe some vodka would still be in one of the bottles that had been left behind but knowing Helen they probably would have been taken away already.
Kathryn slowly opened the door and walked inside only to get the shock of her life as she saw a man sitting at his desk. Kathryn realised quickly she had walked into the wrong room, she had been so zoned out that she had not even bothered to double check. She quickly put her hands over her face in embarrassment “Oh my lord, I must apologise. I must have walked into the wrong room!”
Kathryn removed her hands from her face; she was now bright red from it all. She knew she would not have reacted so badly had she not been so emotional earlier in the day. She studied the man for a moment; she had not seen him before and could only gather that he must be another staff member possibly from another Sanctuary. Either way Kathryn wasn’t sure what to do and felt awkward trying to leave in such a hurry.
“Again I apologise I have had a rough few hours and it didn’t even register when I opened your door by mistake.”
Kathryn had a habit of meeting people in the strangest of ways, and this was no exception.

[DR AARON SHUTT]

Aaron had been busy thinking about Adam, he never even noticed the beautiful woman who had wandered into her room, not until she apologised. Repeatedly. Aaron turned his chair to face her, studying her as she continued to talk and apologize.

The woman looked very young and attractive, yet her eyes were extraordinarily wise. She was also clearly frazzled, but despite this, she was still taking the time out to look at him, just as he was looking at her. It was very difficult for Aaron not to turn away, but he managed it, especially as the woman seemed in such a hurry to leave.

“It’s okay.” Aaron called out after the woman, trying to reassure her. “I really don’t mind.” Aaron even rose up out of his chair, still staying behind his desk though. “My name is Aaron. Aaron Shutt.” Aaron held out his hand, hoping she would return to shake it. He couldn’t hide the concern and curiosity that seemed to pour from his brown eyes.

[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

As Kathryn was about to leave she turned back around. She was surprised that he didn’t mind her intrusion; maybe he was keen for a distraction just as much as she was. “I seem to have a habit of doing this in recent weeks” she smiled at him, her refined Victorian poise mixed with her modern attitude had slowly returned and she started to feel more at ease with herself. This was what she needed, with a clear head and twelve hours sleep then she might be able to have a proper conversation with Helen later on. She shook her thoughts away for a moment and focused on the man, he was holding out his hand introducing himself. Kathryn gently took his hand shaking it before doing the right thing and replying. “It’s lovely to meet you Aaron. My name is Kathryn, Kathryn Lawson”.
Kathryn wasn’t sure why but she felt comfortable in his presence, maybe staying here for a bit would do her more good than sleeping. She knew that the nightmares of recent events would cloud her mind and make it impossible to have a proper night’s sleep, even with a clear head Kathryn’s flawless memory meant that even her dreams felt like a hellish reality. Kathryn brushed the hair from her eyes and looked at Aaron for a brief moment again; he seemed concerned and rightly so. If someone had wandered into her room without thinking she would want to make sure the person was alright. She wasn’t sure if she should tell him everything but at the very least she should say something before leaving again. “I haven’t had a decent night’s sleep in a very long time, I guess because of that, things happen.”
What she said was cagey at best but that is what Kathryn had been like for almost a century. A long time ago Kathryn may have been able to give a straight answer but now she found it almost impossible. The emotional walls she had built up could only be brought down with time.

[DR AARON SHUTT]

Aaron smiled at hearing Kathryn Lawson’s name. It rang a vague bell, he probably read it somewhere, but mostly, he just liked the name. He resisted the temptation to run a search on his laptop. Aaron’s thirst for knowledge could be satiated another time. People were much more than the words used to describe them. Hopefully, Aaron would be able to convince her to stay so he could learn more.

“Yes, sleep deprivation can be detrimental.” Aaron agreed, before finishing off the can of Red Bull sitting on his desk. It was warm and rather disgusting. Aaron grimaced, before pulling an apologetic face. “Sorry. It’s a vice of mine. I like the caffeine. It keeps the mind sharper for longer. It encourages more oxygen to the brain. It lets us mortal men study for just that tiny bit more.” Aaron smiled, a little sadly. All he meant to do was open up in the hopes that she would feel safe enough to do the same. Now he feared he may have scared her off.

“It certainly was nice meeting you Ms Lawson.” Aaron smiled, and this time it reached his eyes. It genuinely was a pleasure for him, encountering new people and new minds. “And I hope you find some peace of mind soon. If I can help in any way, at any time…” Aaron gave her a copy of his card, “Don’t hesitate to ask.”

[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Kathryn took the card from Aaron and turned it over before looking at it. When she noticed he was a doctor a psychologist to be exact she smiled, Kathryn had always had a genuine appreciation for those who studied the mind, she thought though out of all the sciences that psychology was one of the hardest. After all the toughest subject in the world was the ones we knew the most about, ourselves. “You know I have always admired doctors like yourself, tough job trying to help people when they don’t want to be helped. I guess that’s why I chose a different set of professions”
Kathryn wasn’t sure why but she felt a need to at least talk to someone who would listen, she had hoped that this conversation would have been with Helen but Aaron seemed like a decent guy. She walked over to a large leather chair sitting near Aaron’s desk and sat down before slowly talking about some of the day’s earlier events. “I’m from Praxis, well not exactly, but I guess you could class me as a refugee from there since it’s where I came from.”

She trailed off for a moment trying her best to string a coherent sentence together. Aaron wasn’t stupid, it would have been obvious to anyone she wasn’t originally from Praxis her thick Australian accent was proof of that. She shifted in her chair trying to get comfortable in her surrounds; she wished she had some of that vodka near her after all. “Helen and I kind of got into a disagreement earlier, I guess she couldn’t see that what I did was a snap decision and I could have died if I didn’t do it. I guess she thought I was hiding information when in reality I had no ability to say anything.” To anyone hearing this it would have been confusing but inside the Sanctuary anything involving Magnus suddenly made perfect sense. “Helen and I have a very lengthy history”
Kathryn stopped talking for a moment and felt slightly better, maybe this was doing her the world of good after all.

[DR AARON SHUTT]

“I’m sorry to hear about Praxis.” Aaron truly was, yet there was a part of his which refused to believe that Adam was the cause, at least intentionally. “That’s the reason I’m here. I can’t imagine suddenly losing your home like that.” Aaron never recalled having a home, except with Gina, but his empathy skills were still intact. He could imagine it, and it was painful. Praxis may not have been Kathryn’s birthplace, yet it was her home nevertheless.

“I’m sorry to hear about your argument with Doctor Magnus. She’s greatly respected around here, I’ve noticed that.” Aaron was careful to keep his tone even. He tried to keep his feelings about her neutral, but he disagreed with her practices greatly. “She carries the weight of the Sanctuary on her shoulders. She’s been a pioneer for so long, I sometimes wonder if she’s lost the ability to see things from another person’s perspective. It must be difficult enough being her, without adding the thoughts of other people into the mix.” Aaron tried to empathize, but he found it very difficult to do with Magnus. All he could see was the cruelty she inadvertently caused.

“I don’t doubt that you did what you had to do, and I wish that I could make Doctor Magnus realize that. However, the only one who needs to truly accept the situation is you. You do, don’t you?” Aaron looked at her hopefully, but not expectantly. She didn’t need to answer, but Aaron wished she would trust him enough to let him help her talk through what was clearly troubling her mind.

[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Kathryn looked away for a moment trying to think how she should best tell Aaron about herself without revealing too much. She always found it hard to trust people, there had only been two people in her life she had ever truly trusted and at the moment one of them didn’t want to talk to her. “Aaron, I know full well about Helen’s history. When I first met Helen she was a very different person, pain, suffering and true tragedy had yet to strike her. I guess in some ways I was the first piece of suffering Helen had to face.”

Kathryn gave a heavy sigh; she too had the weight of the world on her shoulders but for a very different reason. Helen and herself were so much alike it sometimes scared Kathryn and yet neither of them could get past their issues no matter how hard Kathryn wanted too. “Praxis became a part of my life not by choice but I lived there until its end, the reason I came here is because I wanted to help Helen. And now that I have a clear head I am more willing to help but it’s hard after what happened earlier.”

Kathryn wasn’t sure if she should continue, she had said enough to make Aaron curious about a number of things. A part of her just wanted to open the flood gates and let it all out but she wasn’t sure Aaron could understand, she had over 3 lifetimes worth of problems that only a person in a similar situation could understand.

[DR AARON SHUTT]

“Okay. If you do have a clear head, that’s good. I admire your desire to help. However, it shouldn’t be at the expense of your own health. I may not understand the relationship between you and Doctor Magnus, I may not understand the life you have led, but I’m willing to try.” Aaron took a deep breath, mulling things over.

“In the end, it doesn’t matter what I think, all that matters is what you need. If you need to scream and yell or rant or talk… it doesn’t do good to keep things bottled up. I may not understand everything you have to say, but a lot of people feel better just for getting things off their chest.”

“It seems as though you’ve reached the decision you have to come to, to agree to help. You’ve also acknowledged that it will be difficult.” Aaron smiled a proud, encouraging smile. “Sounds like you know what you have to do. At least you have that in your favor. And if there’s anything I can do to help make it easier, well, you know the drill.” Aaron was self-conscious of sounding like a broken record, but he really did just want to help. He didn’t want to push, though. Aaron spent his life living on eggshells. Too old to change now.

[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Aaron seemed like someone Kathryn could get to like, such a rare thought these days. He seemed like he wanted to understand no matter how complicated her situation actually was. Her mind might have been clear but her thought process was clouded she needed to talk about it. “My relationship with Helen is complicated yes. To put it bluntly I have known Helen longer than you have been alive, I might look like I am in my early 30s Aaron but in fact I am well over 160 years old.” She shifted in her chair again, revealing her age wasn’t something she did often but to put her situation in context she needed too.
“Aaron like you I am also a doctor but my fields of study are History and science both passions of mine. Helen and I became friends but we had very different opinions about things. Helen and I had an argument and I ended up leaving, but an incident with my abnormality which I still didn’t fully understand at the time led me to Praxis. From what I understand my arrival in Praxis was quite similar to that swine Adam Worth”
Kathryn stopped for a moment, just mentioning Adam’s name made her blood run cold, he had caused so much of her pain in recent times that it was hard to get passed it.
“An accident while in Praxis virtually stopped my ageing and I stayed and made a home there. When Praxis was destroyed I came here hoping Helen would understand. I know she wouldn’t turn me away but in some small part I am regretting coming here.” A few tears began to roll down her face, Kathryn didn’t enjoy talking about this but it all helped.
“In Praxis I had to have these injections to stop my abnormality from happening too quickly, when Praxis was destroyed I had none and I felt like a prisoner in my own mind. I was doing things but really had no control”
Kathryn decided to skip the irrelevant part of what happened earlier and go to what she considered the important part.
“I was on the verge of death earlier; in a moment of brief clarity I knew how to save myself and had to act. Helen though was angry and I understood why but she thought I was hiding information when I wasn’t”
Kathryn thought about Helen’s words it wasn’t the incident that Helen was truly angry about it was the fact she had never bothered to make contact, even after the Old city team had gone to Hollow Earth.
“I was afraid I guess, I had not spoken to Helen in over a century and she is angry that I never made contact? I guess I never understood how much impact I really had made on her. She and I both have trust issues it seems”
She briefly looked at Aaron, even though this was his job she didn’t mean to throw everything on him at once. She felt better for getting it out and even if Aaron didn’t quite understand she was glad he had offered to listen. She got up from her chair and leaned over to shake Aaron’s hand, she appreciated the time he had taken.

[DR AARON SHUTT]

Aaron had listened carefully. He nodded, acknowledging her age whilst trying to seem appropriately surprised. In truth, he had his suspicions. Her eyes seemed wise, a little weary and yet full of life. A lot of people in the Sanctuary had that look. It took a lot to surprise Aaron nowadays.

He was shocked to hear her mention Adam’s name. Thankfully Kathryn had been so busy controlling her own severely negative reactions that Aaron had been able to cover up his recognition. Was he the only one who saw Adam’s sweeter side, the one with a sharp mind and good soul? Aaron refused to believe that Adam was beyond saving. His submissive personality did not deserve to be written off just because he also shared his body with a pained and insane soul.

Then Kathryn had started to cry. Aaron was no stranger to the sight of tears, so he wasn’t fazed. Instead, he was rather fascinated. For all his medical and psychological studies, he never understood tears. He had witnessed its cathartic effects though. It was probably a good thing that Kathryn was crying. Aaron admired her.

Aaron watched as Kathryn reached the conclusion that Helen’s reaction was that of a forgotten friend. He felt a pang of guilt as he thought of all his old friends back in Chicago. He never kept in touch with them, even before his life at the Sanctuary began. Aaron was glad that Kathryn realized she was amongst friends. Everybody deserved at least one friend.

Aaron was shaken out of his reverie by Kathryn standing, offering him her hand. Aaron shook it, professionally. “Well, I’m honored that you trusted me enough to tell me all this. Hopefully, you’ll be able to sleep a little easier now.” Aaron smiled, satisfied that she might just be able to do that. It was a small victory, and Aaron barely played a part in it, but it was a victory none the less.

[DR KATHRYN LAWSON]

Kathryn smiled, happy in the knowledge that some of her issues had come out. Praxis had been her home but the city had in itself become her barrier, she had been unable to talk to anyone in the dying days of the city and even after it had been destroyed Kathryn still found it hard to talk. She shook Aarons hand and gave him a warm smile, she couldn’t quite understand why but he seemed almost as troubled as she was, maybe Aaron needed someone to talk too. Although she was curious Kathryn decided not to pry, it was not in her nature to do so but she decided to at least let Aaron know she was there if he felt like having a chat himself. “I have decided I am going to take some time out in the library, I’ll be there if you feel like talking at all.”
It seemed strange for her to be offering to hear his problems but she had found in her lifetime that psychologists often were so preoccupied with other people’s problems that they did not deal with their own. “You seem like a good guy Aaron; hopefully you and I can get to know each other better in the future. I don’t have many friends on the surface yet, maybe I can consider you one soon.”
And with that Kathryn turned and walked out heading towards the library a place where she never had to think about the outside world.