Another day of inactivity comes and goes.
Complaining about no one coming through, Stone welcomed the peace as he caught up on sleep.
With the beast lady resting and recovering, Chelsea came and went around the shop, cleaning and organizing things to help pass the time.
Her gas mask hung on her belt, for whenever something happened with her or Stone needing to go into her room to check up on her.
As the warm orange sunlight filtered into the room, Chelsea locked up the shop and finished the closing duties.
Turning around, she noticed Stone shifting in his seat as he continued snoozing without worry.
Shaking her head, she gently shook Stone awake.
"Silly doc, time to wake up, otherwise you will just flip your sleep schedule, that wouldn't be good for the shop…"
"Hmm-?" Stone slowly woke up, stretching his stiff body from sleeping in an improper position.
As Stone was gathering his bearings. A noise could be heard from the patient room where the beast lady was resting in.
"Silly doc." Chelsea spoke as she put on her gas mask. "It's time for you to check up on our patient. I'll wait outside just in case you need some help."
Stone nodded to her as he straightened his clothes before knocking on the door.
"Hello? Are you awake?" Stone softly announced his presence before entering the room. Only to be greeted by a very agitated patient, who has ripped out her IV and was currently in the corner, glaring and snarling at Stone as he entered the room.
Before he could flinch at her reaction, another strange feeling of calmness came over him and he gently spoke to the patient.
"Now now." Stone softly spoke as he stood in the doorway. "It's good to see you awake and moving, but moving too much would be very bad for your babies right now."
Flinching with shock that he knew about the life within her, she shuffled even further back into the corner of the room, glaring at Stone.
However, something within her is saying that the man standing in front of her, who was blocking the only entrance and exit to the room, was someone that could help her with her current situation.
Seeing that the situation was headed to a stalemate, Stone decided to slowly exit the room and give her some space to collect her thoughts.
In the hallway, Stone glanced at Chelsea who was standing next to the door armed with a broom.
"And exactly what are you trying to do with that broom?"
"It's the only thing with reach just in case the patient inside becomes hostile and you needed someone to rescue you." She curtly replied as she put down the broom.
"Put away the broom. Even though she is a little hostile at the moment, there is no need to hit her with a broom." Stone reprimanded, as he lightly tapped her forehead with his knuckles. "Also what kind of hospitality shop are we if we smack around our patients the moment they wake up?"
"Auw-!" Holding her forehead in pain, Chelsea accepted her punishment and went to put away the broom.
As Stone watched her shamble away, he went into the kitchen to whip up something simple to feed the beast lady.
"Light in seasoning, but nutritious at the same time…" As Stone moved around the kitchen mulling about what to make for the beast lady. Said beast lady was getting slightly restless in the patient room.
—
(Where am I?) The fox lady thought as she slowly opened her eyes. (Why do I feel so comfortable?)
Surprised at the softness around her, she couldn't help recalling what she went through before passing out.
(I only remember running away from those humans. Just how exactly did they find me?) She continued to think about her pursuers as she took in the weird environment around her. (No one other than that fox should know about my babies. But he was killed trying to get me to safety.)
(It's so bright.) She covered her eyes as they tried to adapt to the lights Stone left on when he came to administer the tonics.
She then noticed the bandages wrapped around her hand and on parts of her body, and the strange tube inserted into her arm.
(What is this?)
As she continued observing the strange room she was in, the scent of humans then hit her in the face.
(Human scent!) She snarled at the scent and jumped off the bed, ripping the tube out of her arm.
With her hair and tail standing on edge, she scrutinized the room once more. It was then the door opened and a strange looking man stepped in.
Letting out a low growl as a warning, the strange man stopped in place and started speaking to her.
As the man spoke, her subconscious feeling told her to relax and that he was not an enemy. The scent he carried also reinforced this feeling, to a certain degree. His scent was undeniably human, a race that was a mortal enemy to her kind. But it also carried a scent that declared him and friend/ally.
Thinking back to this encounter, the fox lady became super confused as she slowly settled down in the patient room.
—
"That should do it." Stone mumbled, washing his hands after he finished making a recovery meal for the beast lady. A bowl of porridge with some stewed rabbit meat and a blended up berry drink.
Still in the weird trance where everything was in control and falling into place, Stone had much more awareness this time.
(This feels weird. Why did it not activate before when the beast lady first arrived?) Stone thought to himself as he carried the tray over to the patient room. (The first time I entered this state was when Wu Meirong first arrived, and vanished as soon as she left. And this time, it only came over me when the beast lady woke up, just what exactly is this feeling? I also have much more awareness than before as well.)
Stone reached the patient room, pausing outside the door to listen if anything wrong was going on inside.
Hearing nothing but silence, Stone shook off his unnecessary thoughts and prepared to enter with food in hand.
*Knock knock*
"Hello? I'm coming in." Stone announced before opening the door.
To his surprise, the beast lady inside just gave him a weird look from her seat on the bed.
However, it was just a momentary glance before her focus shifted to the tray he was holding.
Seeing her stare at the food, Stone chuckled as he placed it on the counter.
"How are you feeling?" Stone began, trying to engage in conversation in order to get to know her a little bit. "Do you have a name I can call you by?"
Silence, the beast lady was still staring at the food, ignoring Stone.
What soon followed was a strained silence as Stone tried to find another topic that wasn't related to her health. He felt that those topics should be discussed after she had a full meal and was a bit more cooperative.
*Gurgle*
What broke the silence was the stomach growling in the presence of food.
Followed by a bright red flush appearing on the beast lady, Stone chuckled a little and decided that she might prefer privacy, and left the room.
"Go ahead and eat up, it won't be the best since you are still recovering from the injuries you sustained from who knows what. Just ring this bell when you are ready to talk."
Stone then left with the door slightly ajar.
Seeing the man leave and hearing his footsteps fade away, the beast lady slowly got up and picked up the tray of food.
As she settled on top of the bed, she sniffed the food to see if anything was laced in it. After several minutes of sniffing and observation, she gingerly took a small bite.
After being out for such a long time, the bowl of porridge has become lukewarm, but that didn't stop the beast lady from devouring the bowl.
Something about it hit every checkbox she had.
It was as the man said, it wasn't the best thing she has ever eaten, but it was one of the warmest meals she has ever experienced.
With tears of joy and sorrow sliding down her face, she finished her meal and settled back into the bed.
Taking some time to recollect herself, she decided it was time to have a conversation with the man who had saved her.
She got up and pulled open the door, following the lingering scent of the man into the lobby.
"Welcome! To the fertility shop. While it is after hours, seeing your situation, we have much to discuss."
There, she found the man sitting on the low sofa, waiting for her.
"Indeed we do, stranger."