[ Report I ] Hearts and Stars

[plotdeviceturk]

Tseng smiled thinly as he watched the surprisingly large group gathered in one of Shin-Ra's ballrooms, he'd never realized quite how many people considered him family whether they were actually related or not. There was a smattering of brothers and sisters along with their kids, people he couldn't remember seeing but were somehow actually related

Comments

[waterfell]

"Congratulations." There wasn't much warmth to her smile, but that seemed to just be her way; there was no lurking resentment, either. No, what mattered here tonight was the pride of the family - and retiring honorably after a long, full career counted towards that pride.

She was one of the faceless relatives, a distant cousin or something (it always seemed to take awhile to work out how those relationships went). Though young, perhaps late teens or early twenties, she was dressed professionally and carried herself as such.

[plotdeviceturk]

"Thank you." Tseng nodded, returning her lukewarm smile, "I'm sorry I didn't catch your name earlier, Miss...?"

He had a feeling they hadn't been completely informed as to what his job had actually entailed, they probably wouldn't have come if they had.

[waterfell]

He might be surprised. She hadn't always been a doctor; and it's not all she is even now.

"Mizuno Ami," she introduces herself. "Doctor Mizuno." The correction is more a statement of formality and reserve than pride in the title, but of course she's also proud of the results of her own hard work.

[plotdeviceturk]

"I'm glad I have one in the family, Doctor." He said conversationally, slipping a hand in to his pocket. "Do you enjoy your work?"

He could probably put more than a few good words in for her in places if she wanted to move to another location. Something to make up for not being around her entire life.

[waterfell]

Not being around is exactly what can't be made up.

"It's satisfying," she answers, and that much is true from any perspective: the challenge of defeating the illness, the quick weapon of her scalpel against the problem in surgery. The success.

And perhaps the healing.

[plotdeviceturk]

It didn't answer his question, but he supposed he would suffice.

"I'm glad to hear it, am I allowed to know which hospital you work at or is that a family secret?" He asked, making an attempt at a joke.

[waterfell]

"It's not a secret," Ami answers easily, "I'm proud of working there. It's Meiwa University Hospital." The position hadn't been easy to obtain. But her academic records speak for themselves, and she'd been given a chance. She hasn't been slow to work towards proving herself.

[plotdeviceturk]

"I've heard of it, congratulations." He nodded, "I'd considered it once for some surgery after a work-related mishap but there wasn't time to get out there."

[waterfell]

"Sometimes expediency takes priority," Ami acknowledges. "However, for skill and the latest technology, Meiwa University Hospital can no longer be beat." Ego says this is because the genius Doctor Mizuno is there, daughter of the famous Doctor Mizuno the hospital already had on staff.

[plotdeviceturk]

"I'll keep you in mind if I need something replaced again." He smiled, "I have a bad habit of breaking things." He added by way of explanation. It was easier than saying he'd been crushed more than once.

"Is this your first time in Midgar?"

[waterfell]

The dream fills in the times she's been here in other dreams as prior visits, and Ami shakes her head. "I've been here before. However, with one thing and another, I've never seen much of the city."

[plotdeviceturk]

"I'd be happy to take you on a tour tomorrow afternoon if you're staying that long." He offered, "It's quite an interesting city even from an engineering standpoint, you can get some souvenirs to bring home."

He knew of a few hundred little shops that sold thousands of different little things that would please even the pickiest of friends or family.

[waterfell]

Oh, she's picky. She wants the unusual, the remarkable, and the brilliant.

"Thank you." Unfailingly polite; must be something in the air keeping her on her best behavior. She rarely keeps herself within these bounds now. After all, they'd gotten her nowhere but forgotten, sidelined, overlooked.

"What would you recommend before I leave here?"

[plotdeviceturk]

"That depends on what you're looking for, there are a number of boutiques that are popular with young ladies and there are others that would have things more appropriate for parents or children." He shrugged, "I've had to shop for other people's gifts, but you would know people better than myself."

[waterfell]

Christmas is coming up, very soon in fact. And while she isn't exactly in the holiday spirit, she plans to make it special for Mama, at least. Something to help her relax when she has the rare opportunity to.

"What sort of things?" Aromatherapy, maybe. A massaging chair? Something like that.

[plotdeviceturk]

"I was most often asked to get flowers or jewelry, the occasional watch." He replied casually, "Apology gifts."

He frowned a little, "I suppose I should get something for everyone as well, shouldn't I?"