Alnarra waited patiently in the wooden waiting room of the Doctor’s Office in Darnassus, her satchel sat at her side as she tapped her fingers together nervously. She had rehearsed what she was going to say 1,000 times over but it did not make the words any easier. The calm and collected druid looked at the satchel on the ground, hoping that perhaps it could provide her with some answers. She reached in to look over her collections of paperwork, her stomach grumbling slightly, not having eaten recently.
She looked around the room, a collection of Humans, Kaldorei, Worgen couples all sitting conversing with each other, all of them looked so happy, some of the women with bellies filled to the brim with the young creatures growing inside. It was not a location that Alnarra was distinctly unfamiliar with, in fact she had made trips to a similar office many time, and especially so when she was pregnant with her 3 previous children, in fact it had only been two weeks ago since she had set foot in it last.
She knew the doctors and the nurses all by name, and they had all of her files on record. Today though, Veraldan didn’t sit by her side, a dumbfounded smile on his face like he had just found the newest pie. Instead she sat alone, her arms on folded over her leg as she tapped against the floor mindlessly with her foot, watching the happy couples walk in and out of the small doors that lead to the back. She watched them, giving the best smile she could manage as they passed through the doors.
She picked a small book from her satchel hoping it could distract her if she read from it, but it could not. Each page seemed to fail further and further at pulling her in as she stared blankly, the words pouring into her mind like oil on water, nothing holding.
Alnarra finally sighed heavily setting the book back in her satchel and looking towards the roof and then to the small gnomish clock on the wall, the terrible ticking noise it made rang in her ears with each stroke, each little gear moving repetitively, a tiny click, followed by another, and another until finally the ticking was broken.
“Alnarra Ebonash” a nurse called, standing at the doorway with a large flowing dress, symbols of the Goddess Elune decorating her attire. Alnarra stood weakly throwing her bag over her shoulder as she walked towards the doorway, her eyes searched for Veraldan, but he was not there, not now.
Alnarra nodded slightly as she trotted forward, time seeming to slow down around her, the druids mind screaming out to her to walk away from the conversation she was about to have, her feet dragging against the floor. She brushed the hair nervously from her face as she stepped forward, “Yeah,” she said quietly biting her lip.
The nurse, with a no hint of malice or kindness simply nodded to her, “If you’d step back here Ms. Ebonash we need to get some more measurements”.
Alnarra gulped a bit before setting her satchel down once more, “Oh… yeah,” she said stepping up onto another one of the small gnomish devices,
The nurse quickly beginning to write down on her pad, “Little Weight Gain,” the woman dressed in white murmured flipping the page, “Same height as always,” she said looking over Alnarra’s charts and graphs, “If you’ll step into this room the doctor will be with you shortly”.
Alnarra gave a small and polite nod before going into the cramped room, filled with all manner of strange object even to her. She had been a Field Medic for many years, and seen a variety of wounds, but it seemed that the office was collecting all manner of objects from the other cultures the Kaldorei had encountered. In the corner a small human pocket watch sat, next to it a dwarven tool of unknown function.
It was not as… soothing as she remembered it, her previous visits being attended by druids or priest who called upon their Magics to heal and diagnose, no need for tools and gadgets. She shook her head a bit finally finding a small chair to sit on. She sat on the chair for what seemed like hours, her stomach feeling more and more quesy, though if it was the morning sickness or simply being in this office she could not say.
Alnarra breathed heavily, her eyes wondering around the room endlessly before a small knock came and a tall Kaldorei woman walked in, “ ‘Narra”, the woman said with a warm smile on her face, pulling out and beginning to flip through the paperwork in her hands, “So… I got your letter a few days ago,” she went to close the small and thin fabric curtain that separated the makeshift room from the rest of the surprisingly expansive complex.
The Druidess eyes wondered to the skirt of the curtain as her feet tapped lightly on the ground, her hands clasped together tightly, “Yeah,” she said.
“In your letter you said that this had nothing to do with our discussion two weeks ago, correct?” the woman questioned, flipping through several more papers.
“That’s correct,” Alnarra said, looking down at the floor.
The doctor dropped the paperwork on a small table before walking over and taking Alnarra’s hands, “We discussed this. Hafu is Half Worgen, Half Draenei, continuing to carry this out would have continued to increase the risk to you, and even with the best of odds the damage done by carrying such a thing to—“
Alnarra interrupted her, “That’s… that’s not why,” she said quietly her eyes never pulling away from the floor.
“ ‘Narra I’ve known you since you were still a little girl whose mother brought you in covered in bramblebush prickles. You don’t need to explain this to me,” the Doctor said looking around the room noticing that something was absent, “As a Doctor of the Kaldorei people, the choices that you make here today are confidential and will only be disclosed to those that you wish to tell,”
“I…. I’ll tell him, on my own,” Alnarra responded bringing her fingers to her mouth, beginning to bite at them.
The Doctor sat quietly next to Alnarra petting her hair, “How’s your apprentice doing ‘Narra?”
Alnarra quietly shook her head; cupping her hands tightly together, “Not well…” she bit her lip, “Not well at all. I’m still finding wounds that the Orcs left trying to get information from her, and she’s not been outside of the den since the night I found her”
The Doctor simply nodded standing up, “I want you to understand Ms. Ebonash, no matter what choice you make here, based on my suggestions or your own personal feelings that this is your choice and your choice alone. I can and will not force you into a decision. I’m only here to provide options,”
Alnarra gave a slight nod, “Yeah, I know,” she breathed in deeply.
The doctor pulled out a small pill bottle handing it to Alnarra, “You can take this at any time within the next two weeks. It is a single dose and will be effective in 24 hours.”
Alnarra’s hands shook as she took the bottle, looking at it for what seemed like the eons, her eyes reading over the small instructions again and again, “And… that’ll?”
The doctor simply nodded turning to her, “If you do wish to continue this, just send me another letter, let me know and I will work with you to try and make this happen, but Alnarra I want to stre—“
“I know Doctor; you said it two weeks ago… it’s… “She sighed.
“I can keep you safe and healthy right here and right now and your druidic magic’s would likely be able to carry you through the second trimester at great cost. By the third trimester, though, it would be up to Elune. I’m so sorry Alnarra”
Alnarra’s face contorted as she tried to fight back the tears, she began to choke on her words, “You were a priestess for some time right?”
The Doctor simply nodded.
“Will you…”
Another polite nod came from the doctor as she stepped in front of Alnarra holding her hands, “Goddess of the Night, we your humble people ask for your guidance. Please guide your children in their path, light the darkness with your wisdom. We ask you to guide Alnarra this night, show her the path that you have laid out for her; she seeks your guidance now more than ever.”
Alnarra began to shake, as she gripped tightly at the doctors hands, “Her name was going to be Elslora,” she said biting her lip as tears began to stream down her face.
The doctor simply nodded, continuing to pray with Alnarra, both huddle together until Alnarra was ready to leave.
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