World of the Family

Oh, hey there. Long time no see. Yeah, it’s me again, here to tell you another random story about something incredible that happened to me. Actually, I kind of missed talking about my life. Like, for the most part it was kind of boring but something really incredible happened, even more than last time. Oh, and for those of you who are tuning in for the first time ever, let’s have a quick review.

So, I’ve always known that I was special, right? Every parent says their kid is special(at least the good mommies and daddies do), but in my case, it’s a little more literal. I’m what’s called a Sylvari. That means I’m only half human, the other half is Fae. There are other half-breeds out there, like Saevren and Merpeople and Shifters and Nephilim. Being only half human gives us various magical abilities, which kind of makes us the target of certain full-blooded humans, we just call them Hunters.

Why are they hunting us? Well, I’ve been told that they want to breed us, which is absolutely icky and I don’t support it at all. Honestly, I kind of feel like they see us as either pets or pests, and either way that’s just kind of insulting.

Anyway, I think that’s enough explanation, time to get caught up on things. So, I graduated college with a decent grade and went on to take the RN exam, which I feel like I only barely passed. It’s still a passing grade, so I went on to apply to various clinics and hospitals. Turns out, I got hired at the big metro hospital and I’m delighted to finally be doing the kind of work I’d dreamed of doing my entire life.

I gotta tell you, reality is sooo disappointing.

I mean, I love my job, honestly. However, it’s nowhere near as enjoyable as I had imagined when I was still a kid. Since I work in the geriatric part of the hospital, I end up seeing a lot of elderly people and there’s quite a number of stories there, but nothing I’m really going to get into here. Old people are either rude, or have absolutely no filter.

Anyway, let’s start this big adventure properly, shall we?

So, after waking up and getting dressed, I make a quick stop at my favorite coffee shop on my way to work and then proceed down into the subway. I used to duck and weave my way through the crowds, but ever since college I’ve adapted. I just merge along with the rest of traffic and ride the train downtown. Getting out of subway, I walk down the street, sipping on my coffee as I enter the hospital and enter the elevator, pressing the button for my floor and waiting to reach my floor.

When the doors open, I exit with a smile on my face and a bounce in my step. “Morning, Carla.” I greet the middle aged nurse manning the nurses station. She’s got a tired smile on her face and glow about her that can only come from several hours of work.

“Ah, Buenos Dias. Did you bring me any coffee?”

I smile and hand over the extra cup of coffee I picked up on my way in. “I’d never leave you hanging, Carla. They had one inspired by horchata and forgive me if it seems like a stereotype, but I thought you’d like it.” She smiles back at me as she takes a sip and I walk around to drop off my purse under the counter.

“I’m not offended, don’t you worry.”

“Glad to hear it. Anything interesting happen overnight?”

“Actually, something did happen while you were out, thanks for reminding me. Mr Henderson had trouble sleeping. Poor man was having nightmares. But the more interesting thing is that we had someone admitted who was rather particular.”

I take a seat next to her, sipping on my own mocha. “Really? More particular than that one woman who wanted the water in her pitcher to come from an artisanal well? That’s hard to imagine.”

Carla laughs with me at the ridiculousness of some of the patients. “Oh, Dios Mio, no. This gentleman came in about a half hour ago, complaining of pain and kind of hunched over. Said that he heard of a young red-haired nurse who works miracles and he wanted to see if she could help. He’s over in room 304 right now, in fact.”

I pause, and place my coffee on the counter. “Did he now?” It’s been a while since I had to deal with anyone like this, at least a week, I guess they’ve been watching me.

“Oh, yes. He refused to even let the doctor see him until the nurse he was looking for helped him out.”

I sigh and get up from my chair, preparing myself for the inevitable. “Alright, Carla. I’ll go see to this patient.” I grab the documentation that we have on him thus far, but it’s almost nothing. He gave his name as ‘Bob Smith’, quite possibly the least original fake name I’ve ever heard and walk over to room 304, knocking lightly on the door before entering. I make sure that the door is closed behind me, there’s no reason for anyone else to see this.

“Hello, Mr. Smith. My name is Jennifer and it’s come to my attention that you requested a certain someone to help you out.” My suspicions are answered the moment I walk into the room. Whoever this is, he’s clearly a hunter. There’s a very large hunk of iron in his jacket pocket, it’s radiating it’s painful energy toward me and already I’m starting to get a headache.

He smiles wanly at me as I enter, clearly determined to keep up the act. “Ah, yes. I’ve been told you work here. You’d really be helping me out if you can check out this pain I’ve been feeling in my back. I think there’s a lump there.”

I cross my arms and stare at him, frowning. “Alright, who sent you? There’s no way you’re really frail and don’t give me crap about it, I can feel the iron. How much are you looking to get by hunting me? Whatever it is, you should just give up. I’ve dealt with a lot worse than you.”

The painful look on his face vanishes, as well as his little act of being hurt. “Well, if you’re going to be like that about it…” He then reaches back and pulls out what looks like a toy gun, all plastic. “In case you’re wondering, it’s a ghost gun. Yeah, it’s only going to fire one shot, but one is all I need to drop you.”

“Really? No kidding,” I retort back at him. I’m already preparing for a fight and I create an illusion to make it look like I’m still standing near the door. In fact, I’ve already walked closer, but at least he’s not aiming directly at me anymore. “And how were you expecting to get me out of here, grandpa? If something were to happen, they’d keep me here and arrest you. You must me trying to get some retirement money, because you obviously have no idea what you’re doing or what you’re up against.”

My retort has clearly hit a nerve because he was starting to smirk at me(actually the illusion of me), but his face falls at my words. It’s clear that he hasn’t thought all the way through this and he probably wasn’t expecting me to give him attitude. He growls and lunges toward me, trying to grab my illusion. Instead, he grabs a whole lot of air and, off balance, ends up face planting into the door. My illusion fades away the moment he tries to grab me and I ‘pop’ back into existence a couple of feet away. There’s a large thud as he hits the door before he legitimately crumples.

I sigh as I watch the hunter basically knock himself out. “Oh, eek. Hellp me,” I speak sarcastically as I grab his pants legs and drag him back far enough that I can get the door opened again and leave the room. Am I going to tell Carla about this? Hell, no. I’m going to call security and tell them where he’s located so they can take care of it. I won’t deny it, though. It was nice to get in the practice again of learning how to deal with hunters again. Even a pathetic one like….crap, I never got his actual name. Oh, well. Like I said, I call security and then settle in for eight hours of helping people feel better and dealing with medical emergencies. I couldn’t be happier.