[England] Wandering Doctor (Imperial Eagle)

[Roderich Edelstein]

Roderich waved over a passing waitress. "I hope you don't mind my taking the liberty," he smiled, "I've been here before. Please get us three bowls of stew, a loaf of the crusty bread. Oh, and an apple cider for me and hot toddies for my companions, here. They're new in town." He and the waitress shared a smile like two sharing an inside joke before she left and the Austrian returned his attention to the others at his table.

Two questions assaulted him at the same time. The blond - Ludwig's question seemed the easiest to address first. "I believe I picked up on it earlier on, when you told me he was insane? At any rate it seems you rarely find two men close in age who quarrel so much yet stay together who are not brothers."

The albino's question was more complicated. "You might say that. I've been toying with the idea of seeing a little more of the world and was considering signing on with a ship."

[Königreich Preußen]

“We’re not so close in age, as you might think,” Gilbert blurted out, immediately wanting to set the record straight. “Nein, nein, nein. Ludwig is about … six?” He turned his head toward the younger, and arched a pale eyebrow at him, unsure how old Ludwig was now. “Seven years younger than I am?” He sniffed, before giving a shrug of his shoulder. It would come to him, eventually.

At Roderich’s mention of a ship, Gilbert broke out into the first smile he had given all day. Scratching the corner of his mouth, and giving the Austrian another look over, the albino decided, quite suddenly, that having a doctor on board might not be such a bad idea. The crew -- or rather, he, Ludwig and the couple of miscreants that Ludwig had felt were “safe” enough to have onboard -- were a hearty bunch of men, but did occasionally receive injuries from their work. At least with a physician, (and one that spoke German, no less), he would be able to keep his crewmembers in tiptop shape.

Gilbert tapped the table with a finger, mulling it all over quickly. “Well, lucky for you,” he stated, tilting his head with a rather odd sort of grin. “I happen to have a ship. And, how fortuitous that it also so happens to be fresh out of doctors.” His ruby eyes flashed over at Roderich, the wheels behind them turning.
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[Deutschland]

[....I......I....PASS! I HAVE NOTHING PROGRESSIVE TO CONTRIBUTE RODDY GO AHEAD 8(]

[Roderich Edelstein]

The fact that the albino had picked up he was a doctor did not surprise Roderich. He was carrying around a medical bag and people often told him he had the bearing in one. A few minutes ago he'd been diagnosing the man in front of him for mental illness, after all!"That's an interesting proposition," he said. "I'm going to hope that you are 'fresh out of doctors' because you chose to never employ one and now find yourself in need, rather than because you lost one?"

The waitress came back with drinks. Hot tea with honey and whiskey for the other men.

"You'll want to drink that while it's hot. The steam will open your head, the honey soothe the throat, and the whiskey will dry up your sinuses."

Yes, it was rather obvious he was a doctor, come to think of it. And a didactic one at that.

"What sort of ship do you run? I'd like to know what I'm getting into before I just say yes to someone I've just met. I'm looking at several ships, you know."

And it wouldn't hurt to keep him on the edge.

[Deutschland]

"Ah. Trust me sir, we absolutely do not have any doctors on our ship, and never did." A slight snort of disapproval rumbled in his throat. "None at all."

The memories of his injuries and Gilbert's unsuccessful attempts to help remained as a reminder that Gilbert had no common sense when it came to the sort. He was the kind of helper that accidentally dropped a person when they had a severe back injury. Hospitals, beware.

He nodded politely to the waitress, who wasn't sure whether he was being polite or intimidating, and took a small sip of the drink. It was amazingly soothing and relaxing, and for someone who has stress like he did, the recipe should probably be learned. His furrowed brow lessened, his muscles were no longer as tense. Ah, bliss.

At Roderich's question, he butted in before Gilbert had time to say anything ridiculous like, "It's awesome" or something along those lines. "Ah. I think you'll find our ship to be very desirable to be a part of. We work hard at keeping it organized, with higher living standards than many other ships. I honestly can't think of better crew mates to be around than ours. And, I think you'll find that you will get a lot of valuable experience. Our medical bay is...unused as of yet." He didn't include that there will be times where the captain drags them on some ridiculous adventure that will probably be dangerous, but well. Hopefully by the time that happens, Roderich will not care.

[Königreich Preußen]

(Note: So, for a certain cross-eyed -- not to mention, unawesome -- Austrian, who shall not be named, I will be using the larger font size for the remainder of this thread. Apparently, not all of us can have perfekt eyesight, and that's a shame. A shame for you. >D Fact: Germans can see in the dark.)

Gilbert half-listened to everything Ludwig said, his mind racing with twenty new ideas, while mindlessly tilting the glass of whiskey in his hand. He briefly heard something about it opening up his sinuses, but didn't catch the rest. He was too preoccupied; too distracted. That, and, he just didn't trust anything that he hadn't poured himself, or didn't come from a beer tap. People might call it paranoia. Gilbert called it self-preservation.

"If you need a tour," he cut in swiftly, not caring if he interrupted Ludwig or not."I'd be more than happy to take you there." He placed the snifter glass back down on the chestnut table, silently resigning to not drink the amber liquid inside it, as he gave another sniffle.

[Roderich Edelstein]

At that moment, the waitress reappeared with three steaming bowls of hot beef stew - the deeply warming, rib-sticking kind that seemed unique to England and it's beastly climate. It was accompanied by a loaf of bread, still faintly steaming from the oven as Roderich cut and passed around slices.

Under this guise of hospitality, however, the doctor's keen eyes had been observing Gilbert's manner.

"I would be interested in a tour," he replied coolly, "Provided you drink that. I've found that it makes a doctor-patient relationship unnecessarily complex when the patient refuses to follow good advice. There needs to be more than a little trust present when you are in full position of your faculties if you are offering me permission to treat you when you are grievously ill or injured."

Perhaps he was assuming too much, to think that Gilbert would be a problem patient. But somehow Roderich found that hard to believe.

[Königreich Preußen]

Gilbert raised an eyebrow, his features completely blank otherwise, as he stared at the Austrian. He disliked being told what to do, and the present situation was no exception. Taking a breath through his nose (though still a bit stuffed), and straightening his back, Gilbert suddenly felt an immense dislike for the articulate brunette; the words "aristocrat", "pompous", and "adversary", all coming to mind as he glanced at him, eyes narrowing.

"And why should I trust you?" He asked, not bothering to hide his sudden tonal switch from pleasant to discourteous, as he slung his arm over the back of the chair. "Moreover, I'm the one offering you a job. Shouldn't you be listening to what I have to say, rather than the other way around?"

Gilbert had half a mind to get up and walk away, right then and there, but something kept him glued to his seat. No matter what he thought about the arrogant young man, Gilbert couldn’t shake the feeling that he needed to have him on his ship. His team. He belonged there, and no one else was allowed to have him.

He’s German speaking … he belongs to Germany … under German rule …

Gilbert reached out and turned the snifter glass slowly, waiting for the Austrian’s response. His head tilted as he studied his face, preparing for an argument that he was determined to win. He had gotten Ludwig on his side, he would get Roderich, too.

[Roderich Edelstein]

The Austrian kept his face carefully blank. It was of no use to let the insufferable, stuck-up, stupid boor see any reaction. Roderich wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

"I'm afraid you're mistaken. You are but one captain. There are dozens of ships here, even more if I take a train to Southampton in the morning. Most understand the value of a diploma and residency, even if you do not. And why would I not board a ship whose crew would listen to my advice?"

His voice changed from ambivalent to somewhat exasperated.

"And if you won't even drink a simple hot toddy exactly what am I supposed to do when you catch a flu or break a leg? Shoving medicine down your throat is not my idea of a fulfilling mode of employment."

His eyes darted to the blond German. He knew the value of being prepared. Was he willing to risk losing the best shot at decent medical care these two had to his brother's foolish pride?

[Deutschland]

Ludwig face-palmed. After listening to Gilbert's...attempt to hire the good doctor, and failing utterly at it, he decided from then on that it would be himself that does the converting. It must have been luck that they did have a few men, but they were not enough. He shot Gilbert a 'what the hell are you doing' look, and promptly stomped on his foot. "Christ Gil, are you trying to alienate every potential crew mate? Now drink that tea before I shove it down your throat."

He turned to Roderich. "You'll have to excuse my brother. I'm afraid he doesn't know how to act normally." He sighed and ran his fingers through his short blond hair, making sure to keep it orderly as usual. "He's also too proud to admit when he needs something." He shook his head. "But I'm not. You're right, we do need you." He rubbed his back, still remembering the pain of when he met Lily and his injury. "In many ways. We have a small crew, and they are good men. But everyday I worry that something will go wrong, that someone will get hurt and I won't be able to help them. But you can."

"And I'm willing to do what it takes to get you on board."