Hey, Blue

6 - Mirror [Continued]

To his surprise, Cerys did not so much as 'walk' as she did 'roll' in. Her arms pushed the wheels of her chair forward as she and her parents entered the room.

Cerys was a very small, brunette girl with big blue eyes. Certainly not the brightest he'd seen, but oddly observant. Her legs seemed to work, but every movement she made with them, intentional or not, caused a crease form in her brow.

"Welcome, get comfortable wherever." He instructed softly, before turning to her parents, and gesturing to a couple of 'guest' chairs bumped up against the wall by the door. They sit in the chairs, but Marley notices that Mrs Sinclair pulls her chair off of the wall and closer to where Cerys has sat herself.

"You don't want me to sit on the table?" She asks, her voice lower in pitch than he had imagined. "Usually doctors want me to sit on the table."

She says it matter of factly, as if she's giving Marley the instruction to give to her.

He raises a brow.

"Do you want to sit on the table? This isn't a check-up, I'm just discussing things with you and your parents before I give you your medication." So. He may be a little out of practice. Sue him– this wasn't a typical clinic anyhoo.

She thinks about it, thin eyebrows crinkling up in thought. "I don't think so."

Marley smiles. "Then you don't have to." He moved his chair so he's facing her, not quite eye to eye, but a better approach to it.

"Do you have any questions before we start? Any concerns you want to go over before I start asking you questions?"

Cerys crosses her arms. She's inspecting him. In the corner of his eye, Marley can tell that her parents are carefully watching his reactions, interesting.

She looks at him and squints her eyes, before slowly shaking her head 'no'.

Letting out a breath, he turned to her parents.

He began with the formalities, walking them through the details of Cerys' condition and the treatments she had received so far, essentially a recap of the things he's been told and read thus far. Marley kept his tone measured, discussing potion dosages and effects, and although he could see her father paying close attention, he could tell Cerys' mother was more concerned about how her daughter was holding up emotionally.

He gestured toward Cerys, who was seated comfortably on the examination table, her legs swinging slightly as she waited. "Of course," Marley said gently, "Cerys is the one who knows best how she's feeling."

Cerys looked up at him, her eyes bright and alert. Marley turned his attention to her, softening his voice. "How have you been feeling lately, Cerys? The potions—are they helping?"

She nodded, gripping the handle of her cane as she spoke. "Yeah, they help, but sometimes... it still hurts," she admitted, her voice small but honest.

Marley smiled at her, his eyes full of understanding. "I know what that's like," he said quietly. "And it's okay to feel like that. We'll make sure the potions are working as best they can. And if anything changes, you let me know, alright?"

Mr Sinclair cleared his throat, glancing between Marley and his wife, interrupting as politely as the man thought he could. "I thought this was just a typical pick-up," he said, his voice gruff but not unkind. There was a hint of confusion there, and maybe a touch of frustration. "We've done these runs a dozen times before."

Marley nodded, understanding the concern in his tone. "Normally, it would be," he said, his voice calm and reassuring. "But Cerys' care was transferred to me regarding her medication– I'm sure that was included somewhere in your last appointment?"