damned_institute | Dayshift 32: Doctor's Office 8 [Dr. Disraeli]

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Dayshift 32: Doctor's Office 8 [Dr. Disraeli]

So there would be two patients passing through this door this morning? Nothing Dr. Disraeli couldn't handle, but it did seem a bit odd for such an establishment to require double booking. Were they short on staff, or perhaps Dr. Landel just wanted to see how he, most likely they, would cope. Jizabel certainly would have done the same had he held the position of power here. Making underlings earn their pay was only half the fun. Unfortunately, being one of those underlings (for now) left no room for Dr. Disraeli to argue. He'd just have to deal with Misters Federline and Chen both before being allowed his break – an adult and a teenager should not be too difficult.

Though both their files had made mentions of fire and ~~brimstone~~ explosions.

Speaking of, it looked as though something had tried to explode in his left hand drawer. Closer inspection proved that it had instead been forced open from the outside. Far better than an explosive mishap resulting from an incorrectly labeled toxin he may have tossed in there before leaving. He knew he would not have been that careless.

But who had forced the drawer open? A colleague perhaps? Oh, but that would have been a bold move after only the first day. Of course, having seeing Professor Washu's lunchtime outburst, he wasn’t beyond speculating as to certain things. That the drawer had been pushed back was another point of consideration. Someone didn't want to get in trouble and had tried to hide their snooping. A spiteful co-worker would have preferred to decimate the office as a far clearer statement of contempt. Or that was at the very least how messages were conveyed in Delilah. No blood on the floor in this instance either. Pity.

He'd have to sort out a culprit later; the knock on the door indicated it was time to begin. Again calling for entrance - nothing in either patients' files had warranted a greeting at the door - he readied himself for another busy day.

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"Yes," he nodded,

Jizabel almost found this boy cute by temperament alone. So demanding when it was Dr. Disraeli who was supposed to be presenting the questions. Maybe he could have some reward for that. Jizabel would have granted Cain some amount of humor given the same situation. It was only fair.

"And in this case, they indeed were responsible," he provided, "Even that mother whom you've not seen in a while. She must be so concerned over her little boy."

"This is a joke." Zuko gave a derisive snort, trying to hide his increasing agitation over the conversation. Disraeli could talk about his father or sister all he wanted, Zuko didn't care what he had to say about them. But no one from this place had any right to talk about her.

"She wouldn't, and if you had any idea what you were talking about, you'd know that," he replied slowly, an imitation of calm.

"Do I seem to be joking, Mr. Chen?" Dr. Disraeli asked, tone amazingly stern, "I've better things to do with my time than that."

Really, this child had no idea what he was really up to. If he did, then yes, it might have been considered as a "joke", but Jizabel's business was never for mere fun. This was research, and however much fun he had as a result of that research was only that, a result. Nothing more.

He leaned back in his chair slightly, noting the defensive tone Mr. Chen had taken. "For how long it has been since you've seen her, you appear to know a lot about your mother then," he commented, "But I suppose that would only be natural. Seeing your parents split as they did would have been a traumatic thing for one so young."

"However, unless you believe your mother has changed from when your parents separated, then tell me: what part of this would she not have done when she only thought it best for you?" he asked, focusing on the mother. Speaking on her had gotten the boy to talk more than he had before now, so it stood that he felt the need to speak in defensive of the woman. A boy who loved his mother, and who was truly loved in return.

"Placing you here was out of love - a parental concern for one's child, you see. To deny something like that would be the same as denying her love for you," he smiled slightly, "would you not agree?"

"Separated?" Zuko let out a bitter laugh at the doctor's claim. "That's a strange way to put it..." Yes of course his parents were separated-- because his father was a power hungry tyrant who had no problem sacrificing his own family to get what he wanted, including his wife. At least Zuko knew that she was alive, but his blood still boiled at the thought of his father's actions and how his mother had paid for them. She didn't have to do what she did-- he wasn't even totally sure of the truth in his father's lies about that night, but she told him that everything she did was for him.

"So my mother protected me from being killed, just to send me to a place that tries to kill me every night? Gee, that makes sense..." Zuko retorted, but his hand was gripping the arm of his chair, forcing him to stay in his seat. If he really wanted this nutjob to shut up he could jump across the table and take him out before anyone outside realized what was going on, but risking another night of sedation wasn't worth it. He needed to get his rage under control, back to where he was before he got here.

"How would you like me to put it, then?" he asked, curious. Mr. Chen apparently had his own thoughts on the matter, protesting the doctor's words as he had.

But then something else was said that drew Dr. Disraeli's attention away from the subject of family. "Someone has tried to kill you here?" His expression turned to one of surprise. Mental Hospitals may not have been the safest of places considering those it housed, but saying that there was an attempt made on his life each night was a bit much. Perhaps he was merely exaggerating the reason behind his injured leg. And aside from that, patients were supposed to be in their rooms at night. Not that there were not some clever enough to get out of their rooms for some reason or another, but this boy would not fall into that "some" for Jizabel. Young Mr. Malloy however...

Dr. Disraeli gave his left desk drawer a passing glance. Maybe that was it.

"If you honestly believe your life is being threatened here," he looked back up, "please let me know, Mr. Chen. It is the job of the staff to ensure every patient's safety within these walls." It wasn't necessarily his job to ensure so, but the therapist was there to draw out information for the rest of the staff also. These meetings had more than a few reasons for being conducted, after all.

"It's his fault that she left, but if your file can't tell you the real reason, why should I? You're no help, you're in on this."

Zuko paused at the doctor's second question. "You don't know about that?" He could be lying-- after all, the nurses denied it too, but Zuko would rather talk about monsters and get off the subject of his family.

"You should stay here one night and see what happens. Or maybe try talking to that lunatic you work for. I guess he doesn't tell you all everything."

Dr. Disraeli sighed, "Your file is about you, Mr. Chen, not them," he presented no defense, "I've no details other than the fact that your parents are no longer together." A fact that, by now, could not be disproved if Mr. Chen tried to step back.

"It is only my second day as a Doctor here," he explained since apparently he was supposed to know something about this patient that he did not. "Therefore I'm not as well informed as some others of the staff, I'm afraid. Besides that, I've been instructed that therapists are not permitted to stay during the evening shifts." The part about Dr. Landel he chose to ignore. It wasn't professional to speak about one's employer no matter what the situation. "If there is something I should know about the night, then either you will have to tell me, or I'll need to speak with your nurse instead."

This wasn't just aggravating Zuko, now it was giving him a headache. Fine, he might as well just say it, maybe it would get him kicked out of the office. That would be nice.

"All of our doors open at night. Monsters attack people in the hallways." He jabbed a finger at his leg. "Something that looked like a giant cat did this to me."

"Really?"

Dr. Disraeli placed a hand to his chin, eying the boy in contemplation. He knew better than to completely trust the words of an insane child, but ignoring them was not something he'd do either. There was always something that could be gleaned from what even the psychotic said, and this was no different.

But for there to be "monsters" in the hallways... but no, Jizabel had yet to attempt anything here. All of his experiments were on hold as well. Was it possible that the Organization already had a hand on this place? Or was he just giving the words far too much credit? The latter, he decided. Really, what purpose would Delilah have had for a mental institution? Unless, of course, they had finally decided that every last member needed admittance. What an amusing thought.

"And this happens every night, does it?" he decided it would do well for him to pry into such an area. Really, he had nothing to lose. If it was merely a fantasy of the boy's, then there was no harm, but if there was more to it, then Jizabel wanted to know. What dark secrets did this place hold, if any, and could he use them to his advantage?

"Yes, every night," Zuko answered suspiciously. He couldn't tell if the doctor was humoring him or actually believed his words, but seeing as how he hadn't been thrown out he didn't have much of a choice but to continue.

"What I ran into isn't even the worst of the things that are out there..."

"You've met other things than cats, then, on these other nights?" he asked. The boy clearly had more he was not telling, and since Jizabel was interested, he would not be letting Mr. Chen go until he was satisfied. Or until the hour was up, whichever came first.

He tried to recall if he'd seen anything hinting towards monsters or even normal household animals in the patient file, but could not think that there was anything. So this story was probably based out of here then. To his knowledge, the only animals on the grounds would be the birds and perhaps squirrels that came and went in the outdoor areas. Maybe a stray cat had climbed in over a fence.

"One other," Zuko admitted, talking more to himself than the doctor as he slowly recalled what happened. "The first night I was brought here, I saw a man attacking people in the Sun Room... but he was taller than any human-- he wasn't a patient."

He'd almost forgotten about that encounter, which wasn't too surprising since his group didn't actually engage the creature before they found themselves back in their beds. That was probably a good thing...

He considered a moment before reaching for a bottom drawer again, the same one he'd gone for during Mr. Federline's session, and for the same reason. This time though, there was an actual subject aside from intricate blood and gore - a tall human in the Sun Room, was it?

"Do you think you could draw this man for me? Or the giant cat, perhaps?" he asked, setting a new binder and a pencil towards the far edge of his desk. "It doesn't have to be perfect since you may not be the best at drawing, but I'm curious." And he was. Mr. Chen did not seem to be lying, so that naturally meant he believed the strange words coming out of his mouth. There had to be pictures to go along with them. What did this boy think he'd seen attacking him during the evening hours?

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Dayshift 32: Doctor's Office 8 [Dr. Disraeli]

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