FTEC, (4/21)

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Her finals all done, Scully was concentrating on her medical investigations now, trying to find more possibilities for treating Triela. The timeline they'd established in early March said there was less than a month left-- maybe only a few weeks.

A breakthrough could happen any time now, really.

[open and OCD-free]

Comments

[glacial_queen]

Their plans for the weekend having been postponed by an unexpected bout of weetininess, Karla poked her head in through the clinic door, hoping to spot Scully. Maybe they could figure out something today?

After getting Katniss's news yesterday, Karla was itching to find something she could do.

"Hello?"

Her usual greeting just didn't sound right.

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"Hello," Scully called in response, then backed her wheeled chair into view. "Oh, Karla. Hi, come on in. I was just going over some of Triela's results."

[glacial_queen]

Karla nodded, coming around to Scully's desk. "I was just thinking that we didn't get to do anything this weekend besides ride elephants and things--" okay, she was feeling solemn today, but that didn't mean she couldn't joke a little "--and was hoping there was something I could do today, maybe?"

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully's answering, rueful smile said she was remembering that too, and she answered, "Triela said she'd be in later-- I may call her though, to remind her. I hate to do that, but..." It was starting to become necessary. Even if Triela didn't want to admit it. Scully handed over part of a file to Karla. "I did very much enjoy your party, by the way. Happy Birthday, early or late."

[glacial_queen]

"Very early," Karla said with a chuckle that quickly faded. "You know, rather than calling her as a reminder, you could call her to tell her I'm here and would like a chance to work with her? Maybe that will be enough."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"That would probably be simpler," Scully agreed, reaching for the phone, and leaving a message (http://sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com/1005.html?thread=472557#t472557). She sat back, and laced her fingers behind her head. "Did you have any new ideas? Potions, or... something else?"

[glacial_queen]

Karla shook her head. "I'm not ruling anything out until I examine her," she explained. "I don't want to get locked into one way of thinking until I have a better idea of what I'm looking at."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"Okay," Scully said, rubbing at her eyes. "I need to double-check her progress, and hope that Raven's help slowed down the deterioration a little. It was too soon to tell when I last examined her."

[glacial_queen]

Karla nodded. "Do you want to do her examination first?" she suggested. "Before I do mine? This way you'll have a baseline to figure out what I've influenced afterwards."

[sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com]

Triela arrived sometime in the afternoon. The fact that it wasn't precisely on an hour said something considering her usual punctuality.

"Hey. I'm here."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"Glad you could make it," Scully said, not about to comment on that. "How are you feeling? Have you noticed any new symptoms?"

[glacial_queen]

"Kiss kiss, Triela," Karla said, with a small wave from Scully's desk. It still jarred her nerves to sound so cheerful right now, but she wanted Triela to be at ease. "Hope you don't mind me sitting in."

[sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com]

Triela flashed Karla a quick grin. "Not at all."

Then she turned back to Scully and reached into her jacket pocket, pulling out a slender notebook which she flipped through with a thoughtful frown.

"The most significant thing I have noted is a blackout over the weekend. I appear to have lost several hours."

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Scully rubbed at her lips to hide an embarrassed smile. "That might be due to the Island. I was turned into a five-year-old, and so were several other people." She sobered. "I didn't see a tiny Italian blond around, though, so..."

[glacial_queen]

"I'll have you know, I was seven," Karla said with lofty arrogance. "So there."

It was possible that seventeen year old Karla wasn't all that removed from her seven year old self.

For all that she was teasing, however, her eyes were serious and worried as she looked at Triela. "When did you come to? Where were you?"

[sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com]

"Saturday evening in the fifth floor common room." She shook her head. "It... wasn't an island thing." Triela knew how those felt.

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"So you're missing most of Saturday?" Scully asked, biting her lip, concerned. "Let's do the standard checks. And I'm going to call Raven. Then we can see about advancing more treatment today."

[trigons_child]

After getting Dana's message, Raven headed to the clinic to check in on Triela. Getting Karla's opinion would be very helpful as well.

"Hello," she greeted everyone pleasantly. "How is everyone doing today?"

[sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com]

"As well as can be expected," Triela answered.

Which... well. Yeah.

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

Having done the EEG and PET scans by now, Scully wasn't any more sanguine.

"Thank you for coming, Raven," she said, voice quiet. "Triela's condition is worsening." She slid the brain scans so all three of the other girls could see them. "I'm afraid some of the damage to her neurons has gotten dangerously close to her limbic system in the last two weeks." In case the terminology was confusing, she added, pointing to the dark spots, "Closer to her spinal cord, and automatic nervous systems."

That's how this would kill Triela; automatic systems would shut down, and, well... a ventilator and heart pump might keep her alive. But it wouldn't be able to fix the damage.

[glacial_queen]

Karla sent Raven the equivalent of a hug over a psychic link, but turned to look at the scans. "This is bad," she murmured. "Very bad. I should be able to fix some of the newer damage, but the older stuff?" She shook her head. "We're talking years of damage here. Maybe if I wore something darker than the Sapphire, but right now? I can't."

[trigons_child]

"I am certainly willing to try," Raven said. The scans still didn't make much sense to her, but she took Dana's word on it, and she could feel the damage to Triela's body, and she was certain she could do something about it.

[sorella-vecchia.livejournal.com]

Triela eyed Raven a bit warily. "I don't want you hurting yourself," she declared. She remembered what had happened last time.

[showmetheproof.livejournal.com]

"I can't approve of that either," Scully admitted. "Not permanent damage. If Triela's willing, short-term pain would be--" Bad. But in a very good cause. "Something we could monitor. But healing her brain tissue, no." She added for Karla's benefit, "I don't want Raven to risk the same kind of brain damage Triela is experiencing, when we don't know how long it would last, or if she wouldn't be able to heal herself."

[glacial_queen]

"I agree," Karla said, willing to use her Queen voice if that's what it took to overrule Raven. "You know there are things beyond your capacity to heal." The look she gave Raven was sympathetic, but unyielding. "This is dangerous Raven."

On a thread that only Raven could hear, she added, *I can't lose you, too.*