You must wonder what we're doing here in your part of the world.

[bestsir]

Who: Harry Goodsir and anyone who promised him some stuff, or hell, if you just want to bug him in the coroner's office in the hospital, so literally anyone.
What: Dr. Goodsir's office hours. Bring him things, come to chat, or tell him to clean his overgrown curiosity cabinet out of the hospital posthaste.
Where: Harry's office and impromptu lab in the basement of the Riverview hospital.
When: Anytime in July.
Warnings: Harry's doing an autopsy with Victor Frankenstein. Potential for grossness having to do with critters.

The truth is, there isn't that much for the Riverview coroner to do on a good week. There was a brief increase in activity after the business with the cult, but otherwise Harry is very much left to his own devices.

Hence letting his naturalist's instincts out to play. He now has a pet eyeball-eating lizard (he is still trying to work out a system of nomenclature and is hoping someone might have some ideas) and a couple of moths in a jar, a lot of botanical specimens, and some assorted feathers, bones, and other items that he's collected or that have been brought to him by friends.

When he's not attending his classes at the university, you'll probably find him here, working or studying. He does go back to the communal housing on a nightly basis, but he keeps very late hours. Come see.

Comments

[jolting]

Victor did promise to drop by Harry's office, and once things seemed to finally be calm he did just that. Just because he didn't try reviving corpses anymore didn't mean Victor wasn't still interested in them. Especially if Harry got to examine any of the ones from the cult. That one with the multiple arms was probably very interesting. So it was with some eagerness that Victor popped by the coroner's office.

"Hello, Doctor Goodsir. I'm not interrupting your work, am I?"

[bestsir]

Harry is actually filling out paperwork on the last of the reports from the cult business when Victor arrives. He was given a bit of slack to complete it, seeing as how he'd been one of the abductees and all, so it's taken a little longer than he normally would.

He doesn't mind paperwork, but he greets Victor with some relief.

"Dr. Frankenstein. Not at all; I believe I have reached a stopping-place." He sets down the paperwork and rises to greet Victor.

In the background, Phoebe the lizard is snoozing in her cage on top of a denuded fish-skull.

[jolting]

He gave the other man a smile. With that assurance, he moved a little farther into the room.

"I think we can be a little less formal with each other, don't you? I'd like you to call me Victor."

[bestsir]

"Harry, then." He extends his hand in greeting. "What can I do for you today?"

[jolting]

"Well... I was hoping I could join you on an autopsy. Some of the cult members had unique anatomy, and I've been wanting to get a closer look. If you don't mind," Victor quickly added.

[bestsir]

"Not at all—indeed, I should welcome another set of eyes, for I expect that there are interesting features that I might miss, or of which I might fail to grasp the importance. Particularly as I am still bringing my education up-to-date." He gestures toward the textbooks on his desk.

[jolting]

Victor felt a bit more excited now. He hadn't really examined a body with anyone other than Igor. It would be nice working with someone again. He gave the textbook a passing glance.

"Sometimes I take it for granted that I was given all my modern-day knowledge," he commented. "I can try helping you out."

[thisisamazing]

Hiccup drops by when he manages to figure out the photocopier at the University, and when he's had the chance to copy all the pages of his sketchbooks between classes. They had balked at letting Toothless inside the hospital, even just to go down to the basement, so he's hanging around outside and Hiccup is alone when he makes his way down, a cardboard box in his arms, and a stuffed-full leather messenger bag on his shoulder.

He's made good on his offer - inside the box are a dozen different plants and flowers from beyond the fences, carefully transplanted into small pots, and packed with some newspaper between to keep them from jostling. Botany was always Fishlegs' thing, not Hiccup's, but keeping the little potted plants has been a nice way to imagine his friend is there with him. Still, if someone else can do something useful with them, it's better to give them away.

"Ah, hello, hi- It's Hiccup, the surveyor, from the network? I was bringing over some, uh- some plants, and some sketches."

[bestsir]

Harry looks up from his work and his face lights up with delight. "Ah! How wonderful—thank you for bringing them. You can place that box here—" he indicates an empty work table. "I am extremely grateful for this."

[thisisamazing]

"It's no problem at all, they're better off- you know, with someone who can do something with them, maybe. I'm not, uh. A plant specialist. They've just been sitting in my loft and-" He sets down the laden box carefully, checking over the little plants inside, frowning slightly as he touches his fingers to some slightly wilting blue leaves. "I think this one might be dying. I'm- not exactly home enough to water them every day."

But then he casts his gaze around the room, blinking at the array of curiosities. "You've got some, uh, really interesting stuff here."

[bestsir]

Harry starts taking the plants out and putting them on the windowsill, setting aside the ones that look like they need a little extra attention.

"It is a start, no more," Harry says modestly, "in my research here." Just then, there's a trilling chirp from the corner—Phoebe the lizard wondering if there's food.

[thisisamazing]

Hiccup is looking around, distracted, at least until Harry gets to one of the plants in particular. "Oh! Be careful handling that purple one, it uh, it's carnivorous. Just a sprout right now. I saw a bigger version swallow this rat thing whole." So why in the world did Hiccup bring one home? Who knows. It seemed like a good idea at the time. He's never seen Little Shop of Horrors.

"So you're a- a what, a naturalist? I-" The chirp catches his attention, and he brightens, taking a few slow steps toward the lizard. "Oh, hey there. You're a neat little thing."

[bestsir]

Harry jerks his fingers away from the purple one and carefully sets it down away from the others. Phoebe, meanwhile, climbs up the bars of her cage, chirping more loudly. She's wondering if Hiccup has brought food.

"Be careful of her—she may nip if she thinks you have something she would like to eat. My formal training is that of a surgeon and anatomist, hence the administration's decision to post me as Riverview's coroner, but yes, I am also a naturalist, and I have found quite a lot to do in that regard here."

Monster Encounter with Billy Rocks

[billyrocks]

Billy had done his fair share of adventuring in America, but he would never have considered them "expeditions," so this was a first. Meeting Harry at the agreed time and location--Saturday morning at the river near the southwest wall--to guide him to the spot where he and Peter encountered those crab-like creatures during the River Spirit procession months ago. Truth be told, Billy wasn't even sure if there were any more of the creatures left, but it had been dark during his first encounter and they seemed to favor burying themselves underground, so there was still a possibility.

He'd greeted Harry cordially, tipping his hat at the other man, and once all pleasantries had been exchanged, he took the lead. He made sure to warn Harry early into their trek about watching his feet in case some of the crab creatures popped up. Much to Billy's surprise, though, nothing happened, but that only made him more wary than relaxed. It seemed too easy. He was even more surprised to find a bunch of eggs clustered together in groups within mounds of dirt, like nests. He lets out a low whistle at how many there are.

"Damn... Didn't think there'd be this many," he comments.

[bestsir]

Harry has acquired a digital camera—a device more compact than his old daguerrotype camera and capable of producing infinitely more detailed images, and now that he knows how to use it and retrieve and print the images, he's a little bit in love with the thing. He's been taking pictures as they've gone, and when they reach the nests, he exclaims in pleasure and bends down to take more pictures.

"Perhaps there are changes leading to an increase in the population." He reaches out towards one of the eggs to pick it up, then pauses. "Do you think it prudent to pick one of these up? I should like to take one for study, but not if it will draw the creatures' attention."

[billyrocks]

"Maybe the Perimeter Guard doesn't see them as a threat since they don't seem to attack people unless provoked." Billy moves behind Harry to watch his back, arms resting at his sides but ready to whip out his revolver or knife should he need to. There's no sight of any of the parents yet, and Billy doesn't see any subtle shifting in the dirt around them. At the same time, he can't help but notice how awfully quiet it is around this particular area--no birds chirping, or other animals drinking from the river, except for some flying insects hovering over the water. They'd seen some nonthreatening wildlife while they were walking along the river earlier, so why was only this area silent?

"I wouldn't recommend it. Most mothers will fight to the death to protect their young. I don't see her around, but she can't be too far. She wouldn't just leave all these eggs unprotected. Then if she did leave, she won't be gone for long."

Billy's eyes flick in the direction of the river, but there's no disturbances on the water's surface.

"And have you noticed how quiet it is here compared to the places we passed through earlier?"

[bestsir]

Harry bends down to get a closer look at the eggs anyway. Billy's argument that they should be left alone is well-taken, but surely a closer look can't hurt. Very gently, he touches one, just to get an idea of what the shell is made of.

Then he looks up. "Now that you mention it—yes. Not even a bird."

He stands up quickly, an old sense of rising panic that he'd hoped to never feel again coming over him.

[billyrocks]

The egg touched by Harry begins to quiver shortly after the man stands up. Once, twice, and then there's a cracking sound as the creature within stirs. That same sound is what gets Billy to notice it's hatching.

"Hey, look." He points to it.

As more cracks spread across the shell's surface like a spiderweb, hissing can be heard from within, reminding Billy of the sounds the adults made.

"Watch it, it doesn't friendly," he warns.

[bestsir]

Torn between safety and curiosity, Harry stands as close as he dares, watching the egg as it hatches.

"Did I do that? Or is it simply luck of timing?"

so I hear Harry wants to take his life in his hands and try to get to know Nat...

[unmakeme]

Natasha arrives at the hospital straight from her impromptu hunting, still in her gear and looking like she’s been in a fight. She has been in a fight, of course, she just generally grabs a shower at some point in between kicking ass and meeting new people. Time is a factor now, though, so she’s fresh off her acquisition and driving a truck with a few cages in the back, borrowed from the animal shelter. It’s hardly proper containment for the creatures that are inside them, but the creatures inside them are also unconscious. Alive, yes, but drugged to the gills. One would have to watch them quite closely to see the subtle movement as they breathe in order to be certain they aren’t dead. The cages are mostly for ease of transport, for stacking them on a hand cart and wheeling them down to Harry’s office.

Except for the crab dog thing. That’s much more difficult to tranq, by simple virtue of not having any soft spot to shoot with a dart. Like she said - easy to kill, tough to catch. That thing is in a plastic bin with a couple of holes drilled in the lid and thick nylon straps keeping said lid on the container. Getting it out and contained properly, that’s Harry’s problem.

She stacks the sleeping foxes on top of the crab dog. Crog? Dag? Whatever. Foxes go on Mister Snips, the cage with the rats goes on top of the foxes, and the cage with the lizard goes on top of the rat. The moths are in a couple of jars in a tote bag on her shoulder. There are no holes in those containers. He’s going to have to find them some new homes quickly before they suffocate. If he wants them to stay alive, that is. She wheels the whole stack carefully into an elevator, and then down to the coroner’s office. When she gets there, she knocks on the door with the back of her hand, the heavy metal reinforcements in her gloves making an incredibly loud clanking sound that echoes in the empty hallway.

[bestsir]

Harry has been head-down on paperwork today, and at the knock on the door he starts, and Phoebe the lizard squeaks noisily. He gets up, opens the office door.

"Ah, good aftern—oh my." He stares past Natasha at the stacks of cages. "Well, that is—my goodness. Thank you."

[unmakeme]

"I answered your inquiry on the network earlier." Which, all right, that's probably pretty obvious given the stack of her acquisitions on the cart behind her. "You did say you wanted a pair of each, and the one lizard and... giant land crab thing."

She takes hold of the handles again and starts to drag the whole lot past him into the room. "I'm Nat." Since he can't recognize her by face and voice the way she can with him. "We should probably get them all somewhere more secure. I only borrowed the cages, and they aren't really meant for this sort of thing. You'll be in for it when they wake up if we don't get a move on." Not to mention the moths slowly suffocating in their jars. She can get to them in a moment, though. The cages are the greater concern. No longer her concern, but still.

He looks awfully put together, in a chaotic kind of way, and the side burns are... well, they're certainly something else. They're not a surprise, but still, seeing them in person is a different matter.

[bestsir]

"Yes—of course—I have a space prepared. Please, follow me."

He leads her to the formerly empty storage room, now outfitted with a variety of cages and tanks. The giant crab gives him pause; it will strain the boundaries of even the largest cage. Well, there is another storage room, that one with a Dutch door, and perhaps that will suffice.

Immediately he unlocks the cages and tanks and starts taking Nat's temporary containers, gently transferring each creature one at a time.

[unmakeme]

Natasha follows him through to his prepared store room. She's not sure what his plan is when the foxes start spitting fire and the rats start screaming, but that's no longer her concern. "They'll all be thirsty when they wake up. Given that the rats scream for damn near anything, you might want to be prepared."

She collapses the cages as he empties each one, and when they're down to the crab dog, growing increasingly furious in its plastic prison, throwing itself against the walls, she sits on top of it. It needs some sort of weight to keep it from forcing its temporary prison across the room, and she's heavier than she looks.

Before she brings up the matter of the moths, or what exactly his plan is for the irate crustacean, she opens the financial app on her device and brings up a screen so that he can pay her with his tap card. "Speaking of. Perhaps we should get the business angle of this wrapped up before any of that happens. You might find yourself suddenly extremely busy." She's also charging him for the plastic tub. He's free to make a case against paying for it, of course, but it's down there in the memo section.

[bestsir]

"Ah—yes, of course." He digs the card out of his pocket (he will never get used to this thing, or the sneaking suspicion that one day it will simply stop working) and taps it to her device, delivering the payment as promised.

He checks the cages to make sure that the water bottles have been topped up and steps out into the hall again. He goes to the storage room with the Dutch door and unlocks the top and bottom halves. There's still some random odds and ends of furniture piled up in this one, but needs must and all.

"Here—you can release the crab into this room, and I will shut the door behind it."