Too Late (Oliver)

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Rory was exhausted. He'd just finished helping out with a major ... well they were ruling it an accident, but he had his doubts. Tensions had been high for the past few years and more and more injuries seemed to be happening constantly. He wasn't quite sure if there was anything he could do about it, other than try to help the people who were affected, but he wished there was something he could do. He wanted to help people, sure, but he'd rather people didn't get needlessly injured.

At least all the people involved in the latest accident were improving. He and his team arrived just in time to keep two of them from leaving this world, and the rest were injured in various ways. As he walked out of their unit, and down the halls of St. Mungo's Rory rubbed his jaw. What he really wanted to do right now was go home, but he was still on duty for another two hours. Maybe he'd be able to find something to do to keep him awake while he waited. He turned a corner, rubbing his eyes now, stopping when he ran into something hard. Someone? He looked up. "Sorry man," he muttered, shaking his head. Great. Now he was running into patients or their visitors. That wasn't good.

@archibald

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As his research progressed, Oliver found himself at St Mungo's visiting the werewolf patients nearly every other weekend. But it was more than just for research purposes, as he remembered his own loneliness and hopelessness when he had first been bitten. It had turned him into a bitter recluse, something he was only just now attempting to shed almost two decades later. These visits were doubly beneficial as a result, and made Oliver confident he would get to the bottom of his problem at some point in the near future. There was just one thing missing, he had realised, one thing missing from the wolfsbane potion. That ingredient would be key in the slow but successful cure for lycanthropy.

Lost in his thoughts, it took Oliver a few moments to realise that someone had walked into him. He looked round, and came face to face with one of the mediwizards. He seemed to have a knack for bumping into people in this hospital. "No worries, mate. You alright?" asked Oliver. Part of his self-prescribed regiment to heal his bitterness was to actually talk to people. His students infuriated him for the most part, only doing what they had to to pass. He wanted them to be passionate. But so few were.

tag: @rory

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Rory nodded when the man he ran into said it was no problem and asked if he was alright. "Yes, I'm fine. Just a bit tired," he chuckled, "I'm sure almost everyone living has felt that at one time or another so it's not a big deal, I just should get some rest some time soon, you know?" Glancing at the man, Rory realized he wasn't a healer, which meant he was probably a visitor since nothing seemed to be wrong with him. It also meant that talking about how tired he was probably wasn't the right thing to do at the moment. Not when he could offer to do something to help the man. Helping him was the more proper thing to do. "Can I help you find anything or do you know where you're going?" That was probably the least Rory could ask, after running into him. 

@archibald

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Oliver appraised the mediwizard skeptically. He was rambling on, much like he did himself when his mind was in completely a different place. Or in a million places at once. He couldn't really imagine the life of a healer being very easy. Working in the apothecary at least had set hours, and now at Hogwarts he was doing what he had always dreamed (even if the results were less than satisfying). "Oh yeah, I know," Oliver replied, running his fingers through his already mussed hair. He knew the feeling of fatigue all to well, seeping into his bones especially after a full moon.

Looking a bit more closely, Oliver noted that this mediwizard looked vaguely familiar. He didn't speak to many people at Hogwarts after the incident. He had buried his nose in his books and tried his best to be ignored. That was better than receiving hatred from all sides if people found out he was a werewolf. "No, I actually know this place rather well, unfortunately." The floorplan had been burned into his memory on his very first visit when he was twelve. "But er, honestly you look like you could use a cuppa. How about it?" asked Oliver, searching his memory to place who the mediwizard was.

tag: @rory

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Rory didn't even notice the other man looking at him strangely. He was too distracted talking, and a bit by how tired he was. It was strange, because he was used to being tired but something about today was a bit more overwhelming than other things had been. He couldn't put his finger on what it was though. He smiled and nodded when the man said that he understood. Truly, he assumed that most adults knew what it was like to be exhausted, but then again there was no way for him to know that for sure. 

The other man said that he didn't need help, that he actually knew the place quite well and Rory grimaced. "A blessing, but mostly a curse right? It's nice to know where you're going, but sad that you actually do." Rory still felt that way, even though he worked here. He shrugged and was about to apologize again for knocking into the man before letting him go on his way, when he spoke instead. Rory paused for a moment and then smiled and nodded, "I think I could. We could go to the cafeteria if you want ..?" Honestly, Rory would like nothing more than to be able to leave the hospital to get a drink, but if he could do that then he might as well go home. "Let's go," he suggested with a smile. After walking a few paces he asked, "If you don't mind me asking, do you come here often? You look really familiar." He hadn't noticed it upon initially running into the guy, but now that he thought about it, he felt as though he should know him. Somehow.

@archibald

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Oliver chuckled, feeling at ease for the first time in a long time. "Mostly a curse. Means I've been spending too much time here, and I don't even work here." Neither was necessarily true or untrue. Oliver spent some time visiting the werewolf patients when they came in, but the floorplan had been burned in his memory from his first fateful visit. And occasionally he brewed potions or assisted brews with the poisoning department as a freelance. However, Oliver did not see it fit to elaborate.

Instead of rushing away, Oliver's curiosity won out. He knew that this mediwizard looked familiar, but couldn't place exactly where. "Yeah, canteen sounds good," Oliver replied, and let the mediwizard lead the way. It seemed that he had the same sense of familiarity, as he asked if he knew Oliver. Grinning sheepishly, Oliver shrugged. "Not really too often. But did you go to Hogwarts? I graduated in 2014, I just thought..." he trailed off, feeling a bit unsure. At one point, he had thought most people had gone to Hogwarts. Then he read about other wizarding schools while he was busy ignoring everyone, and later on even he started meeting from people all over the world. Why they always came to England, he had no clue. He had travelled, and loved being abroad. But he would always come back for Hogwarts. He couldn't say the same for other schools alumni.

tag: @rory

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Rory nodded, glad that the guy seemed to be loosening up a little bit. "I understand that, though my problem is almost the opposite. I do work here, so I definitely spend too much time here." He shrugged and smiled easily. He did love his job, but after long shifts like this all Rory really wanted was to go home and collapse on his bed. Ugh, that sounded so appealing right now. Still, he had to stay here until his shift was officially over.

Unless he got called, however, he could go wherever he wanted, which was why he suggested the cafeteria. He started leading the way when the other guy agreed, glancing over at his as they talked with one another. He mentioned that he didn't come often, but that he graduated from Hogwarts in 2014. "That's got to be it then. I graduated that year too, though I was in Hufflepuff. What house were you?" He smiled, glad that they were making sense of this a bit now. "My name is Rory, by the way. Rory Williams." 

@archibald