[IC] Magician's Operation for Magic and Maladies

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

The hospital was buzzing as it usually did, with people coming and going for various reasons. People would arrive for various reasons: Injuries, sickness, check-ups, just like any other hospital. Unlike most hospitals, though, this one had a separate wing specifically for the study and treatment of magical phenomenon. Humans, non-humans, mythical beasts and even those with unexplainable abilities were admitted for most anything from common sicknesses to powerful curses. From fairies to human wizards and everything in between, the establishment had to have many different kinds of people to deal with the needs of many different kinds of patients. Over time, the hospital grew more successful, and people of all kinds flocked to it for research, employment, or help. With the community growing so quickly, though, it was eventually decided that perhaps more could be done to help the emotional state of many of the people who would wake up or return there every day for their own reasons. Therefore, at the request and backing of a certain magician, a trial program was started for a young crowd of patients. Today, all patients would be called to room A3-214 for the first meeting of the NEST Program. The room would consist of a fairly open space with plenty of windows for a calming view of the outside greenery and the sea off in the distance as well as a few tables and chairs for activities. On the wall at the front of the room sat a whiteboard with a note written in blue: "Please take a seat, I shall return shortly. No fighting or mischief until then. ^_^"

[The15thSpycrab]

Spook was enjoying himself here at the hospital. His malady was less painful than most, and he received a large amount of extra attention from the staff and nurses. He was given a small room with a large window and a soft carpet to nap on, and there was always plenty to eat. It was almost better than at home. There was not much information available about the new NEST program. At least, none of the staff he often communicated with knew what it was. He was slightly curious about it, and today would be the day to find out. The summonses arrived in the form of a fancy invitation, handwritten by what appeared to be a fountain pen. The stationery smelled slightly of lavender and old leather, with a hint of something that made Spook's stomach crawl. He made his way to room A3-214 in his usual roundabout way, stopping every 20 feet or so to visit a nurse or patient. He wasn't worried about getting sick; one of the benefits of working for a magician is amazing health coverage. Spook was immune to most of the common physical diseases, and he was in a hospital, in case something more serious did affect him. The room, once he arrived, was empty. The few tables and chairs seemed to be haphazardly spread across the room, with their only organization in that they were mostly contained to the left side of the room. There was plenty of open space on the right half, Spook assumed that would be used for activities in the future. As he made his way to the front of the room, he noted the lack of wear on the chairs and tables. A large whiteboard at the front of the room gave him a greeting in blue letters. It politely asked him to take a seat and wait for their mysterious host, as well as to avoid trouble with the other students. Not deigning to sit in one of the provided chairs, Spook jumped lightly onto a windowsill near the front of the room to wait in the sunlight.

[XxLyraxX]

Slow steps sounded down the hallway as Autumn carefully made her way towards the room she was told about. One of the nurses had been kind enough to show her the way ahead of time. Her usual black silk blindfold was tied around her eyes, no light seeping to her dangerous iris's. However, she was not entirely robbed of sight. She just saw differently than other people. Much like the echo-location a bat used, Autumn had similar abilities. However, she lacked the bat's talent of producing its own echo and so she had to make due with remembering the number of steps it took to get places. She was rather good at it now. As she moved forward her steps created blue and purple ripples in the darkness, items in a foot radius of the ripples appearing and so it helped aide her in her journey. One slender hand resting on the wall also provided assistance. The nurses had told her that something was being worked on that would emit a high-frequency sound that would use the bat's form of location and create a funnel of sound so she would be able to see a few feet in front of her. However, this was still long from being completed but she couldn't wait until it was. As she walked she had been counting in her head and when she came to the correct number she paused and felt around until she found the plate next to the door. Luckily, she had learned braille and so as she ran her small fingers over the raised bumps she smiled as A3-214 appeared until her touch. She then fumbled around for the doorknob, found it then twisted it and stepped inside. She hovered in the doorway, unsure of her surroundings. She didn't know if anyone was in the room thought she wasn't able to hear anything. "Hello?" She called, ripples appearing and allowing her to see a few chairs next to her. Still no people though. Was she the only one there?

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

Wearing his usual scowl and the light blue smock given to the volunteers here, Felice walked purposefully down the hall with a large cardboard box in hand. It wasn't much different from any other day so far, but that group meeting was supposed to happen soon and he had to be there. True, it was an open enrollment type of thing as he had been told, but his...supervisor had requested his presence there as one of the attendees. So now, that was where he was currently headed with a box of who-knew-what as instructed that morning. The short boy let out a small puff of air as he neared the room, thinking about how odd his supervisor was. The box full of unknowns actually wasn't that strange, since he actually had run a bunch of errands like that since arriving here, but he didn't fully understand why the rest of this had been announced to him out of the blue like it had been. When he finally entered the room, he noticed that it was still mostly empty, with only a young girl and...a cat? Well, there was probably as much of an explanation for that as there was for anything else here. Unbothered by it, he placed the box in his hands on the desk at the front before turning to get another look at those who were already there. The girl appeared to be blindfolded, though, so he assumed that she probably didn't know about the note on the board. "...take a seat anywhere. There are some chairs right next to you."

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

After a few more minutes, the door opened again and an oddly cheerful-looking blonde stepped in. "Good day, everyone! I apologize for being late, I had to take care of a few things before I could get here. I hope that I haven't kept you waiting for long~!" Walking over to the whiteboard, the tall male dressed in the black and white robes of the magic ward supervisors picked up an eraser and wiped off the message he had left before turning back to the others. "Now, is everyone here for the support group? If there's anyone who believes that they may be in the wrong place, now is a good time to speak up. Oh, and please take a seat, they're all right there. I even managed to get the comfortable ones for this."

[XxLyraxX]

Autumn jumped at the sudden voice that rang around the room, causing more ripples. Her head turned this way and that, trying to figure out from where in the room the voice originated from. She guessed they were across the room. Upon hearing his words she said a quiet "thank you" as she reached down, fingers bumping into the seat of the chair. She carefully sat down, folding her hands in her lap. She knew one person was in the room but if anybody else was they were being really quiet. She wondered who all would come. She didn't know many of the other patients in the hospital, preferring to be by herself. And besides, people were safer when they stayed away from her. She heard the door open again and turned her head towards the noise, the voice that followed causing ripples. She heard the steps walk by her then head away, towards where she had guessed the other voice had come from. Autumn then sat there quietly waiting for whatever is was she had been called there for to begin.

[The15thSpycrab]

Spook started at the sudden voice from the entrance to the room. He was usually aware when people approached, but the room had a quiet, drowsy feel, much like a library, and it seemed he had dozed off. As the teacher, or so he assumed, made his way to the front of the room, Spook looked back at the other newcomers. Most people would be somewhat surprised to see a living puppet, but it certainly wasn't the strangest thing Spook had seen in this hospital. The cat was more interested in the human girl with the blindfold. She moved strangely, advancing only when someone was speaking. Perhaps some form of echolocation, but without the clicking noise bats and dolphins made. He leapt lightly down from the windowsill and crossed to a chair on the front row. He didn't want to get in trouble with their new teacher. Not yet, anyway.

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

Felice quietly moved to a chair of his own at least a seat away from the rest when the tall blonde entered the room. He noticed the cat that had also jumped into a seat, not thinking too much about it. That was probably just another one of the patients, and he didn't doubt for a second that magic cats could probably be found seeking treatment here alongside the numerous other creatures he saw he day to day. ---------------------------- "Well, then, shall we begin? Everyone should be here for the support group meeting, so hopefully nobody's lost. I'm actually not too surprised that it's a small group today, since this was just announced, but this just means that we'll all have to get to know each other very well, won't we? That's not really a bad thing considering the goal here~." The cheerful man nodded before speaking again. "So, let's start with introductions then, shall we? We'll go around the group in order and everyone is to say...hmm...how about your name, a hobby of yours, and why you're here if you feel comfortable with sharing. The sharing of this information is voluntary, except for your name, so don't be scared if you're not comfortable with telling us yet; we won't force you to." "I'll start: My name is Topias Valtonen, but please feel free to call me Val. My hobby is baking, and I'm here as a researcher and practitioner of magic arts as well as the advisor for this group for the time being~!" He clapped his hands together happily as he looked around the room at the others briefly. "Now let's see...young miss with the blindfold, why don't you go next? Remember: Your name, one hobby, and your reason for being here if you're comfortable with sharing."

[XxLyraxX]

Autumn straightened slightly when she heard someone start talking. She recognized as the person that had walked in behind her. Ripples went around the room, allowing her to see briefly that there were four people in the room including herself. Well, three people and a cat. As the ripples faded she listened quietly as the man explained how the introductions would work and then beginning himself. She had already assumed he had worked there from the way he had talked when he came into the room. After he finished saying his name and what he did, it took her a few moments to realize he had directed his attention to her. She folded her hands in her lap, staring in the direction she had heard his voice coming from. "My name is Autumn and I like listening to music." She said in a quiet voice. She fidgeted slightly before taking a deep breath. "A-And the reason I'm here is because my mo..because my mother cursed me." She said, hand subconsciously raising to touch her blindfold. Yes, the witch had been horrible to her but she was still Autumn's maker, her mother. In a way Autumn still loved the woman because she had given Autumn life.

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

The odd man nodded to the girl, despite the fact that she was blindfolded. "Thank you, Autumn, I know that probably isn't the easiest thing to say. Who's next?" He turned to the cat sitting on another of the chairs. "Young sir, would you like to introduce yourself now?"

[The15thSpycrab]

Spook looked up at the adviser and blinked. An image of a young, middle-eastern man appeared in the minds of those gathered nearby, accompanied by a heavily-accented voice. <My name is Felitz, but you may call me Spook now. My favorite hobby was playing football, but now I no longer have the energy for it. I am here at the hospital because of a magical accident caused by my former employer.> The young man in the mental image changed into Spook's form now, a plump, black cat with amber eyes, then disappeared from view.

[Dreamcaster]

Luna woke up after a nap. She'd been sleeping a lot these days. The doctors said something about her body being tired and needing to recover her strength, but she still didn't quite understand why she had to take so many naps in a day. She found a note left for her, saying she needed to go to her NEST club meeting. She sat up and pushed the blankets off. She smoothed out her summer dress and pulled her wheelchair closer. Technically, Luna should be calling a nurse for this, but now that there were several things Luna was no longer able to do on her own, she was determined to be able to do as many things as she could by herself, including this. She reached to arrange her bed to its height was level with the chair. She braced herself and moved her body in the chair, and then grabbed a hold of her legs and swung them onto the footrests. All this done, she wheeled herself to the mirror and fingered through her hair to make it look less bedhead before exiting the room. She wheeled down the hall, ignoring the sympathetic and pitying looks. A few nurses offered to push her to wherever she needed to go, but Luna smiled and told them she could make it on her own. She would make it on her own. At last, she wheeled into room A3-214. "Oh, am I late? I'm sorry."

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

"Thank you, young sir. We shall call you Spook, as requested." Val nodded to the cat before the sound at the door caught his attention. "Hello, young miss. There's nothing to worry about, we've just started introductions is all, so please feel free to situate yourself wherever is most comfortable for you." Turning back to the others seated in the chairs, he nodded toward the boy near the end of the semicircle of chairs. "Felice, your introduction, please? And then the young miss who just arrived. Remember: Name, hobby, and the reason you're here, if you don't feel uncomfortable saying it." The amber-eyed boy looked over at the others from his seat, still scowling slightly. "Felice. I can juggle. I was requested to be here." After his short reply, he settled back in his seat and continued observing. He honesty wasn't really sure what he would be getting out of these sessions, but he doubted that he would be getting out of them anytime soon. Even if he left as an attendee, he didn't doubt that he could still be dragged back as an assistant.

[Dreamcaster]

Luna rolled herself over to where there was a gap between the chairs, not bothering to switch between her wheelchair to a regular chair. She listened politely to the boy, Felice, as he spoke. She knew they were staring at her, especially after Felice stopped speaking. Well, maybe not outright staring, but it was like the nurses in the hallway - people couldn't not look at pitiful scenes, it was part of the human instinct, the whole at-least-that-isn't-me sort of thing. She shifted in her chair and cleared her voice. "My name is Luna, and I" she paused for a moment, searching for a hobby that she hadn't started because her mother told her to. "I like to sing. I've never sang in front of other people though." She thought back to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything. Oh yes, her reason for being here. "Well, it should be pretty obvious why I'm here," she said, resting her hand on one of her wheels, "but, for the sake of doing so, my legs have been paralyzed. All the docs say I'll never walk again, unless some miracle happens. So I'm here for rehab."

[Cyndyr]

It was all Rory and Oliver's fault that they were here. Well, also Jordan's, since it was his brilliant idea to visit the asylum as a surprise birthday present for Dakota that had gone horribly wrong (when he should have just gone home instead like everyone and their mother at least commented on once). Instead of it being any sort of "fun", Rory and Oliver took it out of their schedule to startle Raven's ghost and lock them in there. Honestly, if it weren't for Officer Pratt and Bentley arriving half-drunk, they could all be dead right about now. Instead, Raven was ever determined to become whole with his other half and landed them in here. It was a good choice, honestly, and it was recommended by Ezana, so Raven knew there would be little spooks and scares along the way, but definitely some hardships. It was basically the spiritual world's equivalent of a mental illness, wasn't it? So on the day of the introduction for the NEST program, Raven did everything in his power to try to avoid it. Dakota made it much easier as he ranted on and on about the experiments that he and Rory made in the closet of their dorm, something about KFC communists plotting to take over the world and how the Wendy's empire would come out victorious in the end. Oh, and something about how Raven lacked "discipline". Raven just nodded his head absentmindedly and stared out the window. What was his obsession with fast food, anyway? What was more annoying, dealing with Dakota's incessant ranting or dealing with a few other ill individuals? Sighing, Raven was forced to make up his mind. "Dakota, we're late," he remarked with little emotion or concern. "Oh, ok," his other self sat up on the bed before getting up, "Where are we going?" "To room A3-214. Now walk quickly, we're late."

---

It only took them about six or seven minutes to arrive there, but it was mostly due to Dakota's distractions and one-track mind. When they finally arrived, the two "brothers" stepped into the room where there was a crowd of others sitting, "...Uhm.. this wouldn't happen to be for the NEST program, would it be?" Everyone in the room looked fairly normal, so there was some doubt -- was that a cat? And a doll? Was this some sort of sick mental picture out of someone's strange mind? Oh boy, this would be definitely be interesting.

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

Felice raised an eyebrow as he watched the newcomer enter the room. Had everybody been giving those weird eyes the entire day? He didn't think his current condition was that well known or even that strange, but word had apparently gotten around or something. Val must have blabbed the details to someone. Or maybe it was the odd movements. He had been feeling a little off since he renewed his primary link lately. Straightening out the blue smock he wore, he leaned back a little lazily into his chair and continued watching, almost daring the boy to say something. Val, on the other hand, smiled cheerfully as always at the boy. "Another one? Please come on in and take a seat, if you please. We're just getting introductions out of the way, so if you could tell us a name, hobby, and reason for being here as long as you don't mind sharing, we can continue."