Fic: Spin Recovery, Part Thirteen
Dec. 26th, 2007 12:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jeriendhalAnother short bit. Next section will feature more Hazel and less Angst-Ru, I promise.
After the interview with his mother, Rufus had shot off an e-mail to Doctor Redfur, simply noting that he had backslid a bit. Her response was to offer him an early appointment to discuss the matter, so two days later he returned to the clinic to confess his sins.
Redfur listened quietly as he unburdened himself. When he’d finally run down, after giving an edited version of the discussion with his mother, she simply said, “And your friends who allowed you to get drunk, knowing you had been injured and were on medication, how do you feel about them?”
He scratched his muzzle thoughtfully. “I’m not sure I’d call them friends. They’re of the same social circle that I used to orbit, but I’ve been out of touch with them for nearly ten years. I don’t think there was anything malicious in them letting me drink, though. They were just a bit careless.”
“And how do you feel about how you handled the incident?”
“I was a bit careless too. More than a bit.”
She nodded. “Well, I don’t see any need to berate you myself. You know what you did and were confronted by the consequences. I would recommend you keep this incident in the forefront of your mind the next time temptation passes your way though. If you had taken your most recent scheduled dose and mixed it with alcohol, the consequences could have been very bad.”
“Quite,” he agreed.
“Just one more question, Mr. Shorttail. Do you have anyone, besides your family, that you can count on in crisis?” Doctor Redfur asked, as he stood up and was turning to go.
He stopped, his hand halfway through reaching out to touch the door’s open/close pad, trying to process the question. There was Whitebrow of course, but he was a servant, watching out for Rufus was the man’s job. The same went for the rest of the House’s staff. There had been a handful of mates he’d met during his years in the Disputed Territories, wingmen and mechanics he’d learned to trust in the course of business, but they had fallen to the wayside as he became unreliable and as much a danger to them as he was to himself. “No, not really,” he admitted. “I don’t think there’s anyone at all.”
“Think about why that is, Mr. Shorttail, and what you may do to find some. Studies have shown that we Vulpine have a greater need for personal interaction in comparison to other races. Personal connections keep us mentally healthy and in balance with our environment. At the moment, I would judge your need for them is greater than most.”
“Are you ordering me to make friends?” he asked.
“I can’t do that, Mr. Shorttail,” she said with a smile. “I can only make recommendations.”
“Recommendation noted, Madame Physician,” he said with a sigh. “I’ll see what I can do.”
TBC
After the interview with his mother, Rufus had shot off an e-mail to Doctor Redfur, simply noting that he had backslid a bit. Her response was to offer him an early appointment to discuss the matter, so two days later he returned to the clinic to confess his sins.
Redfur listened quietly as he unburdened himself. When he’d finally run down, after giving an edited version of the discussion with his mother, she simply said, “And your friends who allowed you to get drunk, knowing you had been injured and were on medication, how do you feel about them?”
He scratched his muzzle thoughtfully. “I’m not sure I’d call them friends. They’re of the same social circle that I used to orbit, but I’ve been out of touch with them for nearly ten years. I don’t think there was anything malicious in them letting me drink, though. They were just a bit careless.”
“And how do you feel about how you handled the incident?”
“I was a bit careless too. More than a bit.”
She nodded. “Well, I don’t see any need to berate you myself. You know what you did and were confronted by the consequences. I would recommend you keep this incident in the forefront of your mind the next time temptation passes your way though. If you had taken your most recent scheduled dose and mixed it with alcohol, the consequences could have been very bad.”
“Quite,” he agreed.
“Just one more question, Mr. Shorttail. Do you have anyone, besides your family, that you can count on in crisis?” Doctor Redfur asked, as he stood up and was turning to go.
He stopped, his hand halfway through reaching out to touch the door’s open/close pad, trying to process the question. There was Whitebrow of course, but he was a servant, watching out for Rufus was the man’s job. The same went for the rest of the House’s staff. There had been a handful of mates he’d met during his years in the Disputed Territories, wingmen and mechanics he’d learned to trust in the course of business, but they had fallen to the wayside as he became unreliable and as much a danger to them as he was to himself. “No, not really,” he admitted. “I don’t think there’s anyone at all.”
“Think about why that is, Mr. Shorttail, and what you may do to find some. Studies have shown that we Vulpine have a greater need for personal interaction in comparison to other races. Personal connections keep us mentally healthy and in balance with our environment. At the moment, I would judge your need for them is greater than most.”
“Are you ordering me to make friends?” he asked.
“I can’t do that, Mr. Shorttail,” she said with a smile. “I can only make recommendations.”
“Recommendation noted, Madame Physician,” he said with a sigh. “I’ll see what I can do.”
TBC
