Basic Healing [Celeste|Private]

[Aesha]

Timestamp: Mid-Immanis, Era I of the Celestine Mandate, Era X Post-Fractum.

Janice had led Celeste to the building that would house her Healing Training, and then had departed back to her office in the Domicile. The actual building Celeste was standing in front of was located not far from Memorial Park, and it didn't look like a private residence. Too official-looking to be a house, it also looked a little too small to be any sort of government building.

A small patch of garden surrounded the building complete with a wrought-iron bench that was currently vacant. A tiny flower bed ran under the a window in the building, containing a splash of colour.

A large wooden sign afixed to two poles that had been hammered into the ground stated the building to be:

Abestatian School of Medical Science

The door had been left invitingly ajar to entice any prospective student inside to inquire about lessons, or to get to classes they had already been signed up to.

[Celeste Cian]

Celeste bit her lip nervously and lifted her trembling hands to her hair, trying to make herself look more presentable. I wish Janice or Lyria could be here to support me . . . She shook her head roughly and straightened her back. You can't rely on everyone your whole life, Celeste . . . now get a move on it!

The Abestatian School of Medical Science She read the prestigious name silently and a spark of excitement flashed through her. This would be the place where she would get her training. She looked around and smiled softly. At least, it looks welcoming . . . not to mention that it will be so convenient with it being so close to Memorial Park . . .

She heaved a loud sigh and rebuked herself silently. Stop lingering now . . . you can't put this off forever . . . She gathered up her resolve and entered the open door. Now if only she could find out where she was supposed to go . . .

[Aesha]

The open door led into what seemed to be a small-ish reception area designed for those wanting to sign up for classes or needing help in general with studies or tuition. Two people were milling about in the room besides the receptionist who was sat behind the desk. One was a male Katta, who was sitting in one of the provided chairs with his jet-black furred head buried in a book and the other was a young human girl, talking to the school's receptionist about something.

The room had quite a cosy feel to it, the magonany wood of the desk and chairs creating a warm and friendly atmosphere. The young girl at the desk nodded, and smiled and walked away on some unknown task.

Seeing Celeste standing in the entranceway to the building the receptionist beckoned the half-elf over in order to give some guidance. She was an elder woman, possibly in her late forties, though her hair was still a nice chestnut brown colour. She smiled at Celeste in a friendly manner. "Serale! Welcome to the Abestatian school of medical sciences. How can I help you?"

[Celeste Cian]

Celeste was admiring the cozy atmosphere of the room; few places had ever made her feel so much at home. She was glad that she had the chance to learn here.

Startled out of her reverie, she turned her attention to the elderly receptionist. She was immediately comforted by the motherly smile she received. She walked up to the desk and smiled back, "Serale! My name is Celeste Cian and I have a voucher here for discount training in healing." She rummaged through her bag and pulled out the slip. She placed the paper on the desk before the receptionist.

"Janice from the Aedile's Office sent me here. Might you be able to help me?"

[Aesha]

The kindly receptionist took the voucher and looked at it carefully for authenticity. The woman recognised the signature of the Aedile and place the small piece of paper on the desk. "Ah, you're here for basic healing then?"

Taking out a thin leather-bound book she opened it somewhere roughly in the middle and ran a slightly pudgy finger down the columns of text. "Ah, yes. We have a teacher available for you. Shishwan Tyaela will be in room four waiting for you."

Pausing, she added, "Oh, you do realise your voucher only halves the price? We need payment of 75 crowns before you can proceed."

[Celeste Cian]

Celeste smiled. Shishwan Tyaela . . . the name of her teacher. She hoped the trainer was nice . . . and patient. "Room four, got it."

When the woman mentioned payment, Celeste nodded quickly, "Oh! Of course, I understand." She counted out 75 crowns carefully before placing them on the desk's glossy surface. "Is that all or are there forms I need to fill out?"

[Aesha]

"No, no forms to fill out, I only need your name to write in the book, but that's already on the Aedile's voucher." Scribbling in the thin voloume laying on the desk, the receptionist got up and walked around the desk.

"I'll just escort you to your classroom. Should be alright to leave the reception for a moment."

Beckoning for Celeste to follow, the middle-ages secretary opened a door that was directly opposite the entrance and ushered Celeste through it. The pair were standing in a short hallway, with two doors on either side. At one end was a staircase, which led up to the second floor.

"Let's see... this door." The receptionist knocked on the door almost directing in front of and waited a moment for permission to enter.

"Come in!" answered a pleasant sounding voice, and the receptionist opened the door and waited for Celeste to go inside before closing it and making her way back to the foyer.

Celeste found herself in a pristine, cream coloured room, the wooden floor sweeped until it was clear of any spec of dust. A big work surface had been placed in the middle of the room, and a blackboard had been fixed to the rear wall.

A young woman of Baijani heritage was standing in the middle of the room, sorting some of the equipment that had been left on a table from a previous lesson. Her hair was raven black, tied back in a long braid that swung slightly as she moved around the table. Her eyes were dark and her skin the typical sun-kissed colour of her race. She wore a simple piece of cloth tied around her waist and neck as a top, in traditional Baijani fashion. She wore a long skirt with a slight split up the side, and on her feet were sandals.

She looked up at Celeste entered and smiled, "Serale, my latest student I presume? I'm Shishwan."

[Celeste Cian]

"Thank you," Celeste nodded at the receptionist before entering the room. The door had led into a room that looked just as cozy as the rest of the building. The color was soft and dreamy; it seemed like Celeste had just stepped into the center of a thick, white cloud.

She smiled shyly back at the beautiful Baijani woman named Shishwan and said, "Serale! Yes, I'm going to be your student. My name is Celeste Cian. It's very nice to meet you."

[Aesha]

Shishwan smiled, pleased her student seemed enthusiastic about learning the skills of healing. She reached behind her back and momentarily clutched her braid in her fingers to stop the swaying motion her reorganisation of the work table had caused. As she did the jangle of bracelet could be heard, and as her hand reappeared again Celeste could see the five or so multi-coloured metal bangles that hung loosely from her wrist.

"It's very nice to meet you too Celeste. I hope you didn't have any problems registering for a class?" Shishwan didn't really wait for an answer, she was merely making small talk to make her new student feel more at is. The Baijani was eager to get stuck into the class and teach Celeste what she wanted to know.

"Okay. I always assume my students know absolutely nothing about the art of healing when I start. If you do of course, it will only serve as a refresher." Shishwan smiled, and then began to teach.

"The very first thing I always teach is how to find the pulse on a patient. This is also the first thing you should if you chance upon someone who is unconcious, to determine whether they are... still of this plane or not."

Holding out her left wrist so Celeste could see it, she moved the bangles out of the way and held her arm so her palm was facing upwards. "One of the easiest places to feel for a pulse is on the wrist." She pointed to the veins in her wrist with the index finger of her left hand. "Now, these thin lines are called veins. These form part of the system that transports blood around the body. Each time the heart pumps blood around the body, it makes your veins pulsate, hence why you can feel a pulse here."

Lowering her wrist after the explaination, she smiled and said, "Celeste, see if you can find your own pulse."

[Celeste Cian]

Celeste grinned at Shishwan's enthusiasm for teaching. It was obvious she wasn't the kind of a person who dawdled around and loitered time away; Shishwan went straight to the main topic. Celeste was glad that her trainer was such a direct person.
I don't much care for people who bat around the bush . . .

She listened intently as Shishwan talked about veins and the pulse. The Baijani woman had lifted up her arm to demonstrate and the sparkling colored bangles jingled together melodiously, once again catching Celeste's attention. She admired the beautiful jewelry for a second before turning her attention back to her teacher.

She nodded slowly in response to Shishwan and lifted up her left arm to try to find her pulse. Holding it so the palm faced upwards like Shishwan's, she carefully felt along her wrist with the fingertips of her right hand. Pressing lightly, she furrowed her eyebrows in concentration as she continued to search for a light pulsing underneath her fingers.

[Aesha]

Successful in her Celeste could feel the veins under her fingers pulsate as the blood was pumped around her body. Shishwan nodded pleasently when she realised her pupil had succeeded in finding her pulse. She continued to explain. "Good. The place where you can feel a person's pulse is called a pulse point. The wrists aren't the only place that the pulse can be found. Another place where the pulse is strong is the side of the neck." Shishwan paused, and places her fingers on the side of her neck to demonstrate where the exact position was.

"You can also put your head near the person's chest, and listen for the heartbeat if you are having problems with the other positions."

"A very important thing to look out for is the speed of the pulse. Very fit people have a heart-rate that is lower than unfit people. On average, a human's heartrate is about 80 beats a minute, though this will vary in races such at Saurids and Dracons. If the rate is lower than about fifty beats a minute, then the person is in need of urgent medical attention."

Shishwan blinked slightly at Celeste, resting on tanned hand on the cool worksurface. "Do you have any questions before we move on?"

[Celeste Cian]

Celeste breathed in relief. The steady pulse underneath her fingertips nearly sent her into a state of euphoria. I found my pulse! I didn't fail my first task! Well . . . I will be a little worried for myself if I hadn't found one . . .

She gave Shishwan her full attention as the woman went on to discuss pulse points. When Shishwan explained that the neck also had a strong pulse, Celeste nodded and absentmindedly reached up to her own neck and pressed her fingers along the side.

She listened carefully as Shishwan talked about the speed of a pulse and tried to memorize all the facts regarding the subject. She wanted to make sure she got everything and wondered if she should start taking notes.

Celeste shook her head quickly and smiled gently. "No, no questions for now. Please continue."

[Aesha]

Shishwan smiled at Celeste. "Okay, good. Now, before we get into the actual process of healing, I am going to teach you some basic lore about the art."

"Now, I know this well probably be extremely boring and not what you were looking forward to learning, but it still has to be taught to understand what we will be doing next." The healer smiled faintly, remembering back to her first lesson, and how she had reacted to it in the way she had just described.

"First, I'm going to talk about fractures. A fracture, as you might already know, is when a bone, any bone in the body, has become cracked or broken. There are two different type of fracture however, one much easier to treat than the other."

The healer shifted her stance a little, accompanied by the gentle sweeping noise of her long skirt on the floor. "The first type is called a Closed Fracture. This means the break is clean, without any splintering of the bone around the break. The second type is a Compound Fracture." With a smile, the teacher asked, "Can you guess what a compound fracture is, Celeste?"

[Celeste Cian]

Celeste nodded every once in a while as Shishwan talked about fractures. The woman seemed to know every aspect about the medical field. Well, obviously . . . she wouldn't be a teacher if she wasn't . . . But Shishwan's clear enthusiasm for her subject was certainly unique and Celeste found it infectious. She listened more intently and seemed to, well, blink less . . . whatever that meant.

When she was little and went to those stuffy schools with the teachers droning on and on, class after class, Celeste couldn't help but drift off . . . heck, she wanted to bash her brains out rather than listen to them yap endlessly. Shishwan, on the other hand, seemed to have a knack for capturing the student's attention, which Celeste was immensely thankful for.

She chewed her lip and responded uncertainly, "Well, I'm guessing Compound Fracture would be the opposite of Closed Fracture then? So would it mean that the break is, uh, not clean and there is splintering of the bone?"

[Aesha]

Shishwan nodded, signifying that Celeste had answered the question correctly. "Good. A Compound Fracture, indeed means that the bone has splintered. This is much, much harder to treat than a close fracture and will sometimes actually need surgery."

Shishwan looked at the long worksurface for a moment, and then picked up a thin strip of fabric, and a wooden peg. She handed them to Celeste so the girl could get a better look at the simple pieces of equipment. Shishwan paused in her teaching momentarily so Celeste could examine the two items, before asking another question, though it was clear by the tone of her voice that she didn't expect her student to know the answer.

"These two pieces of equipment are essential items in a healers field medical bag. This is hard... rarely anyone gets the answer right, and then they've generally had previous training... do you know what piece of medic equipment these two items make?"