Stella rereads paragraph nine, “Oh yes, I don’t know how I missed that. I’ve been doing so much reading lately… my brain is so full there’s standing room only.” She smiles as she signs and hands the agreement back. “Thank you Dr Thorne, that all makes sense to me.”
There’s nothing else Stella wants to ask.
Dr. Thorne thanks you, and asks for one of the staff to show you to the common room where everyone in the study will be congregating. As you exit, you see Mr. Wellerby arrive with three more people.
“Would you wish to see Dr. Thorne together, or should I show you in one at a time?” he asks, hand poised to knock.
Antonella examines the contract and sighs softly to herself, having never particularly enjoyed paperwork. She considers trusting her gut that everything looks relatively straightforward overconfidence check 12 or less to resist:: 2+6+4 = 12 success! but despite her tiredness, she taps to point day 2 and how sporific drugs could possibly mean possible trauma (most likely with a worried look in here eyes…) Happy to continue whatever the answer!
“A reasonable question, miss de la Cavallería. Anything of that nature could muddle the results of our research here, you see. It becomes hard to distinguish the influence of our own treatments on sleep from that of, say, a large brandy before bed.” He half turns, and taps a volume on his bookshelf - you can see the title, The Influence of Diet on Sleep. “A lot of my work has been with military men, who have a reputation for hard drinking at the best of times. I’m sure you’re familiar with the image of retired colonels with a bottle of Cognac always at hand, so so on.”
“In fact, the hypnotic treatment itself depends on lulling the brain into a specific state of semi-consciousness where memories and associations are more susceptible to change. Any form of soporific or stimulant could disrupt that, and prevent the treatment from working.”
When Mr Howard is seated he glances over the contract, frowning but making no vocalisation until the end.
“These experimental treatments, the soporifics and the like, do you have papers on them? I’m assuming we aren’t the first ever test right?”
@EliScrubbs Thorne gives you a smile and an especially firm handshake as you join him, but he takes a cue from you and sticks to professional matters for now. He repeats much the same summary and hands over the agreement for you to review.
At your question, he raises an eyebrow slightly. "No, certainly not. The usual suspects… " and he reels off a list of familiar drugs. It all seems in accordance with the current medical consensus; one or two you might be dubious about for long-term use, but a mild dose on this sort of timescale doesn’t ring any alarm bells.
“The hypnotic treatment is based on Laudner and Hale’s work - I can dig out a paper or two if you’d like. There’s a solid body of evidence for its application in obsessive disorders, so the novelty of our study is in applying those same methodologies to traumatic insomnia. You’ll be our third cohort since the study began, so the staff are nicely familiar with our protocols now and it should all run smoothly. We plan to study five cohorts in all, and with any luck, the findings will support a large-scale study. But you know how these things go, mustn’t count any chickens.”
He can confirm that they wrote up a preliminary study of two patients, which was used to establish the protocol, and is happy to share that with you.
@RogerBW @Suz @EliScrubbs @Naith @Asydic Anything else you want to do, other than sign the agreement and head to the common rooms?
@EliScrubbs if you want to talk to Dr Thorne, you can do it now or catch him later on, either works.
McQueen is happy to sign.
[ I think Stella has already been shown the way to the common room? So I guess that is where she is hanging out just now ]
Stella will be completely absorbed in scribbling in her notebook with a stub-sized pencil, sharpened at both ends. She’s been itching to get her first impressions of the hospital on to paper ever since she got here.
Someone able to decipher shorthand would read things like: "…Dr T sounds like he knows his stuff… Need a story angle that fits this study into the bigger picture (what the heck is the bigger picture???)… Staff cheerful… McQ more normal than I expected… Saw other fellow participants in passing… an eclectic bunch, I’m intrigued already [Stella is a real nosy parker!] "
Aurore moans gently after seeing the commitment about no alcohol but will eventually unhappily sign after having a flashback to one of her dreams.
Antonella is still a smidge sceptical but will still sign and move to the common rooms, whistling as she goes.
After clarifying your various concerns and signing the paperwork, you’re all shown the way up to the common room. Mr Wellerby and his colleagues carry your luggage to the rooms that have been set aside for you.
It’s a spacious, pleasant room with plenty of light. From the looks of it, this was a parlour or something similar, and needed little alteration. It’s probably a little more austere nowadays, but still eminently comfortable. Five people are standing or sitting around the room, some already engaged in conversation. There’s a definite waiting atmosphere here.
A young man and woman with a scholarly appearance are sitting on the sidelines with notebooks. They move to greet you as you enter the room.
“Good morning, sir, madam,” says the woman. “Please take a seat wherever you feel comfortable. I’m May Leiter, one of Dr. Thorne’s students, like Mr. Jacobs here. Would you care for something to drink?”
“W-we have coffee, tea, sarsap-p-arilla, chicory, sodas, and some herbal t-teas,” offers Jacobs.
he has a notable stutter which I will not keep typing out because it’ll get annoying
McQueen: “Coffee would be welcome, thanks. Well, we’re a motley bunch. I suppose soon enough we’ll be passing the time by telling each other stories…”
“If it comes to that, you should be the one to get the ball rolling, Mr McQueen! You’re certainly the most qualified in that department. I don’t know about you, but I’m more used to telling other people’s stories rather than my own.”
At this point Stella looks slightly embarrassed and pockets her journalist’s notebook and pencil, aware that it’s not a good look under the current confidentiality agreement.
“Thank you Mr Jacobs, I’ll have plain old chicory if you don’t mind.”
"Whan that Aprille with his shoures sote
The droghte of Marche hath perced to the rote…
“But you’ve heard that one. And we all know why we’re here. So instead let me tell you about the time that Scotty came back to visit New York and got it into his head to burn down his publisher for not promoting Gatsby well enough, and instead of stopping him Zelda got a load of firecrackers, don’t ask me where, and so there we were in the Speed Six…”
Stella hasn’t heard any Chaucer before, but she has heard of the Fitzgeralds and nods with encouragement as she quietly recalibrates her initial assessment of Mr McQueen.
By the way @Naith, now that we’re all in the same room together, would Aurore’s face be familiar to Stella from reporting on local public events where high society might be present? (exhibition openings? charity concerts?) Is that the sort of thing the Courbet family are into? Or does Aurore prefer private parties?
“I’ll take some coffee if it wouldn’t be any trouble for you,” Aurore replies to Jacobs and May.
She settles into listening to McQueen recanting his tale with a measure of curiosity.
@Suz I would say yes. Her family has a public persona as a patron of the arts and sciences and she partially shoulders that burden.
When McQueen’s story (and unashamed name-dropping!) comes to a close…
“Mr McQueen, if all your anecdotes are as engrossing as that one, this week is going to whizz by.” Stella says with absolute sincerity (she seldom does sarcasm).
Throughout, Stella has been aware of Aurore’s presence nearby.
“Ms Courbet? I’m Stella. You won’t remember me, but as it happens we were at the same recital last September at the Bennington Opera House… the benefit performance for the Library Book Fund? Your family tends to stand out in a crowd!” Stella takes a breath and gets straight to the point, “I just want to say how very sorry I am about your fiance.”
I know I’m not in here much lately - in the middle of buying a house, shortly to be followed by moving house, which doesn’t leave a lot of time or brain 
hope to be back on it soon
Aurore looks at Stella for a moment maintaining her composure, “Thank you very much for the kind words, Cameron was a great man. It is very nice to meet you here, I do remember your piece about the performance was beautiful to read.”
Similarish to Shim, life has been unfriendly recently, had meant to respond sooner but game cuts close to home right now.