Closed Check ups

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx was really starting to feel like his life was starting to get back together. He had Jamie, he had a good place to live. He felt like his memories had mostly come back. He stepped out of St. Mungo's, feeling better after his latest check up had gone well. He found a nice bench, sitting down in the sun. He pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pockets, taking one out and lighting it. He was a light smoker, but he was just in too good of a mood right now and he liked the way it felt when he inhaled. He knew it was bad for him, so he tried to not do it much, but every now and then it was good. He sat back, leaving the cigarette between his lips as he watched the clouds floating slowly across the sky.

 

[Clementine Pratt]

With her healing training coming to an end soon, Clementine had been spending a lot more time at St. Mungo's in Obsidian Harbor as she weighed her transfer options. It was down to two different cities that she could transfer to if she chose not to continue her Healing in Scotland, but she had to admit that she was definitely biased towards New Zealand. Today she had taken a sort of unofficial tour of the hospital in Obsidian Harbor as the Healers walked her through each floor to show her the benefits of choosing this branch of St. Mungo's. The hospital was full of various patients and their maladies, some of which she had yet to come across during her training, and she didn't know whether to be excited or nervous about that.

After the tour was over, Clementine headed outside to wait for her sister as they had plans together. But as she walked over to sit on a bench and wait, she spotted a wizard that she'd seen inside during her tour. If she was not mistaken he had been a patient inside, but she didn't know for what exactly as they didn't disclose that to her. Still, she saw him smoking and she couldn't help but frown in concern. "Those are so harmful for you," Clementine said softly, not judging, just worried for him. Although they probably didn't affect many magical afflictions, she knew from her studies that smoking still affected your bodily health and no amount of magical blood would prevent its effects. "Aren't you worried the Healers will catch you?" she wondered since he was still within the hospital bounds.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx lowered his gaze, straightening as he heard someone speak up. He took the cigarette from his lips and gave her a shy smile. "I know it isn't the best, I promise I don't do it often," he reassured her, his Irish accent seeping through a little stronger. "I hadn't thought of the Healers... I'm sure they wouldn't approve, but I'm not sure they'd scold me, either. I've made good progress, they seemed pleased enough with my check up," he ran a hand through his hair, putting the cigarette out on the bench and sticking it back in his pocket.

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementine was relieved when the boy didn't seem to be upset at her overstepping and telling him that smoking was bad for him. It probably wasn't as if he hadn't heard it before, but she still felt it her duty as a future healer to let him know just in case. She smiled brightly as he mentioned making good progress on whatever it was he visited the hospital for. "That's good! All the more reason not to hinder your recovery process though!" she pointed out with a chuckle. Then she realized his visit might not have anything to do with anything internal. For all she knew he had been treated for a broken bone after a broom crash or something. "Sorry just ignore me," she said waving herself off as she sat on the outdoor bench.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx chuckled softly. "You're very nice," he told her, sitting up and holding out his hands. "I'm Onyx," he introduced himself. "Do you work here?" He asked, curious. He'd been in here a few times but he didn't remember seeing her. Of course, he hadn't been looking either.

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementine smiled when the boy said she was nice, glad that he hadn't been offended by anything she had said so far. "Hi Onyx, I'm Clementine," she said shaking the hand he offered. She shook her head at his question and said, "No, I'm a healer-in-training for St. Mungo's in Scotland, that's where I live right now, but I was just popping in here for a tour to see if it'll be a good fit for me." She was still torn on where she could transfer to because each location had a bit of the same so she was really looking for something to distinguish one location from the others and make her decision for her. "Do you like it here?" she asked, gesturing towards the hospital. Maybe it would be a good idea to get a patient's perspective.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx scooted over a bit, patting the spot next to him in an offer for her to sit. "Well, they're good in an emergency," he joked. He chuckled, brushing his hair back. "Seriously, they're friendly. I lost my memories a while back, had my head busted open," he ran his fingers over his scar, though thankfully his hair had grown out properly. "Ten stitches. I've been in for appointments, check ups. No one likes a doctor visit, but for the most part I think I've regained all my memories. Everyone here has been super nice and I don't feel like anyone has been pitying me." He chuckled, looking to Clementine. "It would be a good environment, I think, if you did choose to work here."

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementine smiled and took the seat he offered next to him. Initially she didn't know if her question would be too intrusive but she was glad he didn't seem to mind answering her. She listened attentively as he explained his experience here and how he ended up as a patient there in the first place. She smiled brightly as he said it was a good environment. "Thank you! You didn't have to answer that, but I'm grateful you did," she answered. It was good to hear that patients could tell whether a hospital had a good environment or not. Everyone had bad days or long, grueling shifts but that didn't mean bedside manner could be forgotten which wasn't always the case. Especially at a location she had visited once and promptly removed from her transfer consideration. She wanted to ask him so many more questions, like why did he choose this hospital instead of any of the other St. Mungo's they could've just apparated to, but her sisters had often told her she had no filter so she was working on restraint. Besides, she didn't want this conversation to sound like a Healer interview. "So now that you've got your memories back, what is it you do?" she asked instead with interest.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx chuckled softly. "Anytime," he ran his hand through his hair, draping an arm lazily over the back of the bench and stretching out his legs, before crossing his ankles. He briefly admired how nice his legs looked in the well fitting dark denim, glad he'd thought to brush off his buckled boots before coming out for the day. He wasn't really out to impress anyone, exactly, he just had an aesthetic he liked to keep. He looked to her, laughing shyly and rubbing the back of his neck. "I, ah... I guess I'm a musician of sorts. I play piano, guitar, and drums fairly well, and I'm performing as a lounge singer in Paris," he told her, smiling shyly. "You're a healer, then?" He asked, returning the question back to her.

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementine raised her eyebrows in surprise as he said he was a musician. He fit the description with the way he was dressed, but she was mostly thinking of the injury he had just said he suffered from. "Wow it's a good thing your memory loss didn't affect that. Imagine forgetting how to play an instrument or how to read music?" she said. But it was a relief to know that he seemed to be okay now, otherwise Clementine would've been really concerned for his profession. "Oh my sister lives in Paris!" she said at the mention of the city he performed in. But as he assumed she was a healer, Clem shook her head. "Still training," she clarified. "I'm almost done though, so I'm thinking of transferring to this hospital," she gestured to the building. "Hence why I asked if you liked this place," she chuckled. "I went to school here, in New Zealand, so I like this location," she added, though her smile hinted that school probably wasn't the reason she wanted to move back.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx smiled softly, a little sadly. "I don't have to. I lost it all for a while." He ran a hand through his hair. "It's come back, in bits and pieces... I... think? I've regained most of it," he looked a little forlorn. "I'm not sure what I've lost. And it's always hard trying to sift through it all. Memories and dreams tend to blur sometimes, but I think I have it all straight," he murmured, before shaking his head. He smiled, chuckling softly. "I love France," he sighed softly, though his mind immediately went somewhere else. France was beautiful, but Onyx had been all over the world. Everywhere was beautiful. He knew where his heart was, and right now it sat soundly at a flat in Marseille.

He turned his attention back to the woman though, not wanting to be rude. He looked a little surprised when she said she had gone to school here. "Oh, really? I did too," he chuckled. "How old are you?" He asked, curious about his current company.

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementine frowned apologetically as he told her he had actually forgotten how to play for a while, regretting that she said it. "You don't have family members to remind you what you used to play?" she wondered softly. She knew asking about family was risky for anyone, regardless of whether they had suffered a major injury like Onyx had, but she was curious anyway and he seemed to take all of her other questions in stride so she hoped this one wasn't going too far.

She raised her eyebrows in surprise when he mentioned going to school in New Zealand too and smiled excitedly. "I'm twenty-three," she answered, "I was a Hufflepuff, but it's okay if you don't remember me, most people don't," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "I transferred to Hogwarts Scotland for my seventh year because my family moved so I didn't graduate from here unfortunately," Clementine added, feeling sad that her last year hadn't been at the school she'd spent the most time in. "What about you?" she asked Onyx, curious how old he was too.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx chuckled softly. "I have plenty of family. And they answered plenty of questions. But it's different, knowing that you used to do something but not remembering how you did." He shrugged. He smiled as she told him how old she was. "I'm twenty," he told her brightly. "I was pulled out of school, actually, I was injured during the break between sixth and seventh year. Between the trips here and all the therapists, I wouldn't have been able to go back. Especially since I forgot all my previous schooling," he laughed lightly. "On the bright side, getting pulled out kept me away from my toxic ex so," Onyx shrugged. "My cousin went to Hogwarts Scotland. I think she might have been in your class," He thought about it. "Did you know Ember and her friends? Um.... all I can think of is Atkin gravy-something," His brow furrowed as he tried to chase down a memory.

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementined nodded in understanding as he explained the difference between knowing that you could play something and knowing how to play it. She couldn't imagine how frustrating and disorienting that could be but she was glad all that seemed to be in the past, and that he didn't seem jaded by it as far as she could tell. She smiled as he revealed he was a few years younger than her so they had probably been at school at the same time. "What house were you in?" she asked. She didn't know many people from school, especially those in the years below her, but she was still curious nonetheless. She smiled ruefully as he mentioned being pulled out of school, but as he made the comment about getting away from a toxic ex, she concluded that he was definitely the type to look at the bright side of things. She had been suspecting that throughout the conversation but that just cemented it for it. "And unfortunately for me, I got pulled from school as soon as my long-time crush and I admitted we liked each other," she said with a playful roll of her eyes, sharing her own misfortune to contrast his when he got pulled from school.

As he asked if she knew of his cousin or her friends, Clementine tilted her head to the side in thought. "Their names sound familiar but I was the new girl in our last year, so I didn't really make many friends," she said with a small shrug. "Plus my older sister was the Divination professor, I think befriending someone related to a professor was off-putting to some," she laughed, thinking of her younger sister who had struggled with the association to Kennedy at first. Clementine didn't mind not having many friends, it allowed her to focus on her NEWTs when she needed to most.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx smiled. "Gryffindor. You?" He asked, though he couldn't help but think she looked like a Hufflepuff. She seemed sweet enough for that. He groaned in sympathy when she spoke of her long time crush. "Oh, cherie, I'm sorry." He gave her his best smile. "Here, here," Onyx sat up quickly, reaching into his jacket. "I got away from my toxic ex, right? Well, I found something so much better," He told her, unable to keep the warm smile off his face. He pulled the ring box from his pocket and opened it for the girl. "I don't know how yet, but I'm going to figure out something," he laughed, before slipping the box back in his pocket. "You should go looking for that long time crush again. See if they want some coffee," He told her, trying to be encouraging. He shook his head as she said she hadn't had time for any friends. "Well, you and I can be friends now, cherie," He told her.

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementine smiled as he revealed he was a Gryffindor, he seemed just like one. "Hufflepuff," she replied with a smile. She chuckled a little as he empathized with her but watched with interest as he reached in his pocket for something. Clementine audibly gasped and then, "Oooh,"ed as she saw the ring, grinning brightly at the thought of him finding new love that would make him want to propose. "Wow!" she said incredulously. "This is not just finding someone new after a toxic ex, this is like finding your happily ever after!" she exclaimed, feeling giddy for him. She bit her lip as he suggested meeting up with her long time crush. "We've sort of kept in touch over the years, and I can tell there's something still there, but I think we're both too afraid to do anything about it," she said with a little laugh, half embarrassed half frustrated. "But I think you just gave me the courage to finally do something about it!" she said with a determined smile, glad that he had called them friends since she was very grateful for his advice and his positive outlook on life.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx chuckled shyly, slipping the ring back in his pocket. "I like to think so. But I have to figure out how to ask. Then of course he still has to say yes," Onyx shook his head. "We've been taking it slow, we aren't technically dating. He knows my history and he's been so patient," Onyx smiled warmly, his heart fluttering as he thought of his love. "He's absolutely perfect." He chuckled. He listened as she talked about her crush. He nudged her leg with his. "Go for it! I'm sure it will go well," he encouraged. "We'll have to meet for lunch later, trade stories," he winked playfully. "Next time we see each other we'll be out of the single game," he laughed lightly, offering out his hand. "Deal?"

 

[Clementine Pratt]

Clementine was giddy with the excitement of the ring and the idea of potentially making a move so to speak with her crush. She laughed as he explained the nature of their relationship and shook her head lightly. "So you're not technically dating but you're ready to propose? That's wild," she said with a small laugh, "but you wouldn't think of doing something that bold if you didn't know he'd say yes so it must be right!" she smiled. As he proposed that the next time they meet they won't be single, Clementine grinned and said, "Deal!" She had no doubt Onyx would follow through on his plans, so now she just had to make sure she wouldn't chicken out herself. "I'm glad I met you today," she told Onyx. She had come to New Zealand to try and sort out her future in regards to her career and received a push towards another aspect of her future as well.

 

[Onyx Derouin]

Onyx smiled warmly, laughing softly. "I hope he says yes. He's been so patient, he's been so much help with my.... condition." He laughed wryly, running a hand through his hair. "If things go well, maybe I can have you over for dinner," he mused. He smiled broadly as she agreed, and couldn't help but chuckle as she said she was glad they met. He stood, and held open his arms slightly for a hug. "It's been great to meet you, too, Miss Clementine." He told her, giving her a wry smile and flipping his lip ring idly.