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PLUME'S CLINIC - LATE AFTERNOON
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Tarbin huffs, finally taking his weight off Nesseth as he sits on the edge of the exam table, almost immediately dropping to lie down and breathe. The wide patches of scales that had been shed during his fit left bare, tender underflesh exposed, though the insignificant amount of surface blood still seems like too much for the even more insignificant number of open sores.
Nesseth carefully sets Tarbin down after a bit of a laborious walk, doing what he could to make the journey as easy as possible for the somewhat injured Lizard. Once he's settled onto the exam table, he turns and goes to check where Plume might be while they get ready. "Any other information you might need, dear? He's settled on the table, already."
Doc Plume is just finishing washing their hands and gathering supplies. "How's his awareness? Delirious? Sensible?"
Nesseth casts a short glance over his shoulder. "Just exhausted, I think, and... maybe a little distressed, still." He pauses, then amends his statement, "...Maybe a fair bit distressed, still."
Tarbin doesn't respond to Plume's question but does look in their direction to acknowledge the familiar voice. He rolls a bit off his back, lifting a bare patch on his left shoulder off the padded table with a light groan.
Doc Plume puts the reflector on their head and walks over to the table, looking down at the lizard and reflecting the light off the reflector into his eyes to check for response. "Tarbin. Can you hear me? If so, please tell me who I am and where you are."
Tarbin turns his blind eyes towards Plume's voice, unable to tell what they're doing at the moment. "Ah mm yes? You're Doctor Doctor Plume and... I think the clinic? Nesseth, or did we not..." He trails off, head dipping as he threatens to fall asleep out of sheer exhaustion.
Nesseth reaches over and gives Tarbin's arm a gentle, but firm pat. "Hey, keep your eyes open a bit more, [brother]. Once Plume's done examining you, you can rest."
Tarbin snaps back awake, looking in Plume's general direction. "Sorry... My head feels heavy."
Doc Plume nods. "All right. Mind seems keen enough. Eye damage seems severe but is unrelated." They frown a bit and move down to look over Tarbin's body. "Nesseth, does this look like normal scale loss to you or something different?" They gently probe a hand over the lizard's body. "Tell me if I touch anywhere it hurts, Tarbin."
Tarbin nods, and will tend to flinch when the bare spots are probed, though he doesn't speak up to indicate anything more than mild discomfort.
Nesseth shakes his head and answers quite readily. "Not at all normal, no. It looked like the scales were getting almost... pushed off by Tarbin's magic. I gathered up the shed scales if you want to give them a look."
Doc Plume frowns a bit. "Oh, interesting... I'll look at them once the exam is done..." They take a piece of willow bark and gently presses it against Tarbin's lips. "Tarbin, can you chew this for me? Willow bark for the pain."
Tarbin bites on the bark, setting it into the back corner of his mouth, his lip scales shifting to orange as they had previously when using the bark at the clinic.
Doc Plume gives an approving nod and picks up the pot of iodine. "All right. I'm going to disinfect your wounds. It'll sting a bit, but try to keep still." They then proceed to start smearing the yellow-brown paste over the scale wounds carefully.
Tarbin squirms under the iodine, the willowbark doing its job very nicely. The prone lizard groans for the sheer amount of the paste needed, eyes watering.
Nesseth sighs quietly. "Sorry, Tarbin, but it's better that Plume does this than all of those spots get infected. Whatever happened did a number on your shoulder scales."
Doc Plume circles the table, looking for spots they missed. Once everything is checked over, she carefully sets gauze over the wounds on the back. "Right... so that's it for now. I'll look at the scales and try to figure out what's going on with your head. For now, let's get you to a bed in the ward where you can get some sleep."
Tarbin grumpily chomps on the bark, though his moment of attitude quickly wears off as he swings his legs down from the side of the table, not standing just yet. He stares at the floor, tired defeat clear in his expression as he follows Plume to the back. "Thank you, Doctor Plume, and you too [brother]. Maybe tomorrow will be a... better day."
Doc Plume moves to stand beside Tarbin and help guide him to the ward. "That's always the hope, friend. For now, get some rest. I'll be here if you need anything."
Tarbin nods, walking the somewhat familiar path to the bed he'd occupied for a long time, sighing as he lays down on the rather clinically unforgiving surface. At least this time, he can still feel a shadow of the Flow under the floor and just beyond the wall before quickly slipping into a difficult sleep.
Doc Plume tucks Tarbin in under the light blanket and looks over at Nesseth with a small frown. "So, those scales?"
Nesseth walks a bit behind Tarbin, ready to catch him if he should happen to stumble or topple over from exhaustion. Luckily, he doesn't, and it's with a small nod and a quiet word that he lets Tarbin drift off to sleep. After a moment, he looks towards Plume, then nods back towards the examination table. "I can show you over here... These scales are, honestly... kind of odd."