Dr. Valenti. It's Dorian Gray. We haven't spoken before, but we met-- well, technically met. You stared down at my sleeping body and threaded tubes into it.
[Dorian laughs awkwardly. Smooth. He's clearly not on his game with the memories of the pit so fresh and still fucking with him. It all feels like yesterday, no matter how many times it's been reinforced to him by different people that he's been asleep for a month.]
Anyway. Thanks are in order. My coma might have been one of the city's typical ones, but it's appreciated. I know Toby's grateful, too. Neither of us had experience with the comas people have here, so the assistance and reassurance were helpful.
[Christ only knows what kind of state he might have found Toby in were it not for the help different LIERs had offered along the way. Dorian knows this, because it's how he would have reacted if the same had happened to Toby, too.]
Mr. Gray. I'm so glad to hear you're awake, though I won't say I'm glad you're back with is. I know not everyone appreciates that sentiment.
You are most welcome. If it was one of the typical ones, you should be fine now but if there's any lingering side effects, anything doesn't feel quite right, don't hesitate to contact me.
I hope Toby's doing okay. I hope I did my best to reassure him, but the truth is the things they do to us are sometimes terrifying. Which I think is their goal sometimes, but that is a few years of being here and the bitterness that can come with it.
Thank you. [Kyle's earnestness is instantly noted. By nature, he's not prone to returning the favor.]
No side effects yet. Unless you're counting the extra glass of gin at night to forget the griminess of that pit and being power-washed like a speedboat. [A cynical chuckle. Kyle knows what he's referring to, he's sure. He saw the man there, even if they didn't interact.]
He's fine, thank you. You helped a great deal by giving him that blood. [The edge and irreverence in his tone softens ever so slightly.] He's-- he wouldn't have fed otherwise.
If we were faulting people an extra drink or two after that, it would include most of the city. I haven't found a way to get past it yet, and my whiskey supply is showing the price paid for that.
[ He's done so well avoiding alcohol for his problems but right now he can't find another way to get past it. ]
I'm glad he did then. You are both going through enough stress without adding that as well. If you ever wanted to, we could collect your blood and keep it just for him in case this happens again. I've done it for others as well.
As long as we're indulging the same vice lately, perhaps we ought to do it together? If you're interested, I'd be pleased to treat you sometime. A better way of saying thanks than with words, and it'll spare your supply.
[Needless to say, there won't be much help here on the sobriety front. There is, however, a certain settled feeling in knowing that he's not the only one still thinking about the pit by virtue of his coma making it feel like it happened yesterday.]
I'll ask, thank you. He's told me before that bagged and preserved blood lacks a certain umami that straight from the source has. But if it were up to me, I'd rather have it on hand so isn't a chance he goes without.
I think that is a brilliant idea. I'm always interested in getting to know others in the city. Even without them having been patients.
[ Then as well he's glad to get to know someone not in a coma. ]
I can't argue that. We combat some of that using magic to preserve it, and that does help. Least to my tastes. I agree with you though. It's better to be prepared, especially the way this place does things.
Excellent. How about this Friday after dusk, or whenever you've finished up work? Your choice of venue, casual or something more stimulating.
[He has plenty of suggestions if needed, but after laying flat on his back for a month, just getting out and socializing is in itself a way to start feeling more like himself again. New people offer promise, and he needs some of that right now.]
Really? So something like a magic to prevent ... decay? Or an aging of the blood? [Curious.]
That works perfectly. Does the Gray Room work for you? At least it seems a bit more quiet and not the frenzy of Scratch. Even if I adore their parties.
[Kyle has adjusted well to a life of science and magic and he's always excited to share about it. ]
Exactly like that and to keep it from coagulating. Traditionally collecting blood means adding things to it so it doesn't congeal and then keeping it cold to save it. We don't always have the luxury of the latter here, and the former is pretty nasty. Heightened senses means being even more aware of the differences and it's awful.
So I worked with the local witch community to find a way to preserve the blood in its optimal state without aftertaste or chemicals.
The Gray Room always works for me. [There's a smile in his tone as he answers. People asking him if a club made by another Dorian Gray suits him will always be entertaining.]
Fascinating. [Genuinely.] Leave it to a city that's half-vampire to figure out something that's vexed the scientists of Earth for decades, I suppose. [And since Kyle's opened up the topic...] Are you working on any other medical projects recently?
Capital. In that case, I'll meet you there with bells on.
Not personally, [he admits.] I was just curious. The idea of science intersecting with magic is unheard of where I was from before Duplicity. But if you're looking for projects, if you're familiar with a vampire named Grayson Frost, I do know that he usually has one or a few things he's working on at a time. He's a mage, but a trained physician as well. As long as what he's working on isn't private, I'm sure he wouldn't mind collaborating. [Especially with a fellow vampire.]
I do know Grayson and I'll be sure to check with him. I admit, I want to get more hands on with things now that I'm working on getting more comfortable with who and what I am. So I'll definitely check with him.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
(Forward-dated to 11/6) voice; @Gray
[Dorian laughs awkwardly. Smooth. He's clearly not on his game with the memories of the pit so fresh and still fucking with him. It all feels like yesterday, no matter how many times it's been reinforced to him by different people that he's been asleep for a month.]
Anyway. Thanks are in order. My coma might have been one of the city's typical ones, but it's appreciated. I know Toby's grateful, too. Neither of us had experience with the comas people have here, so the assistance and reassurance were helpful.
[Christ only knows what kind of state he might have found Toby in were it not for the help different LIERs had offered along the way. Dorian knows this, because it's how he would have reacted if the same had happened to Toby, too.]
voice
You are most welcome. If it was one of the typical ones, you should be fine now but if there's any lingering side effects, anything doesn't feel quite right, don't hesitate to contact me.
I hope Toby's doing okay. I hope I did my best to reassure him, but the truth is the things they do to us are sometimes terrifying. Which I think is their goal sometimes, but that is a few years of being here and the bitterness that can come with it.
no subject
No side effects yet. Unless you're counting the extra glass of gin at night to forget the griminess of that pit and being power-washed like a speedboat. [A cynical chuckle. Kyle knows what he's referring to, he's sure. He saw the man there, even if they didn't interact.]
He's fine, thank you. You helped a great deal by giving him that blood. [The edge and irreverence in his tone softens ever so slightly.] He's-- he wouldn't have fed otherwise.
no subject
[ He's done so well avoiding alcohol for his problems but right now he can't find another way to get past it. ]
I'm glad he did then. You are both going through enough stress without adding that as well. If you ever wanted to, we could collect your blood and keep it just for him in case this happens again. I've done it for others as well.
no subject
[Needless to say, there won't be much help here on the sobriety front. There is, however, a certain settled feeling in knowing that he's not the only one still thinking about the pit by virtue of his coma making it feel like it happened yesterday.]
I'll ask, thank you. He's told me before that bagged and preserved blood lacks a certain umami that straight from the source has. But if it were up to me, I'd rather have it on hand so isn't a chance he goes without.
no subject
[ Then as well he's glad to get to know someone not in a coma. ]
I can't argue that. We combat some of that using magic to preserve it, and that does help. Least to my tastes. I agree with you though. It's better to be prepared, especially the way this place does things.
no subject
[He has plenty of suggestions if needed, but after laying flat on his back for a month, just getting out and socializing is in itself a way to start feeling more like himself again. New people offer promise, and he needs some of that right now.]
Really? So something like a magic to prevent ... decay? Or an aging of the blood? [Curious.]
no subject
[Kyle has adjusted well to a life of science and magic and he's always excited to share about it. ]
Exactly like that and to keep it from coagulating. Traditionally collecting blood means adding things to it so it doesn't congeal and then keeping it cold to save it. We don't always have the luxury of the latter here, and the former is pretty nasty. Heightened senses means being even more aware of the differences and it's awful.
So I worked with the local witch community to find a way to preserve the blood in its optimal state without aftertaste or chemicals.
no subject
Fascinating. [Genuinely.] Leave it to a city that's half-vampire to figure out something that's vexed the scientists of Earth for decades, I suppose. [And since Kyle's opened up the topic...] Are you working on any other medical projects recently?
no subject
I should have known, but I prefer the atmosphere there myself.
Currently, I haven't been but for my own sanity in this place I should look into some ideas. Any you have need of assistance for?
no subject
Not personally, [he admits.] I was just curious. The idea of science intersecting with magic is unheard of where I was from before Duplicity. But if you're looking for projects, if you're familiar with a vampire named Grayson Frost, I do know that he usually has one or a few things he's working on at a time. He's a mage, but a trained physician as well. As long as what he's working on isn't private, I'm sure he wouldn't mind collaborating. [Especially with a fellow vampire.]
no subject
And I'll see you at the Gray Room.