"You should consider having an allergy test. If you're going to experiment with potion ingredients it's good to know if you're allergic to any." The healer took out the parchment and quill and made another note on it before putting it away.

Once Flynn swallowed the bezoar Joy for a moment was sure he would spit it back out, and drew her wand. Though he never did, she pointed it and him. "Vomito Confuto. There you go, now it can't come back up." The witch put the wand back into her uniform.

Joy knew that why Flynn wanted to know more about her for psychological benefits. Just like she used the spell pretty much only because if he knew that he couldn't throw up he wouldn't feel nervous about throwing up or feel like he had to. She sat down next to Flynn on the bed so they would seem like equals, not like a healer and a patient. "Yes. I have a husband named Edward. He works as a member of Wizenmagot. I also have a daughter named Zoe. She attends Hogwarts. She's in her fourth year and a Ravenclaw, like I was." The witch smiled as she said the last part.

"Our family also has a free elf named Lily. She's sort of like a daughter who will do all the housework for you. Lily's been part of our family ever since Zoe was born." Joy paused, thinking of how she'd word the next part. "I would say that she is given a much more humane life. We provide her with fitting clothes, her own room, care, and love. I really would trust Lily with my life." Joy really meant it when she said it. She'd trust Lily with anything, anything in the world.

The witch thought of what to explain to him next. "I suppose if you want to know more about myself I can tell you that I live in Simonstone, which is a muggle village. Our house is on School Lane, which is the street where the only muggle school is in the village, but it's hidden back where no muggles can see it." Joy thought some more. "I have three younger brothers, Edwin, Simon, and Peter going oldest to youngest. Edwin's a crup breeder, Simon is a dragon tamer, and Peter has a small broom shop. I was born and raised in Hogsmeade and my mum and dad still own the exact same house I grew up in."

"That's all of the more basic information, is there anything else you'd like to know?" Joy hoped it have taken his mind off of the bezoar. She wanted to engage him so he was actively thinking about what she said.

He nodded in agreement. “My parents don’t have allergies, so I never got tested. There was never a need.” He shrugged. Well, maybe after all of this was figured out, he’d need to get an allergy test. Flynn was grateful that Joy made every effort to make sure that he wouldn’t vomit. Although he could handle bodily fluids when they came out of other people, it was an entirely different story when it came from his own body.

“You were a Ravenclaw, too?” Flynn gave her a weak smile, “So was I. My dad was a Gryffindor, though. My mom’s a veela, she didn’t go to Hogwarts.” His parents were his only family, but he loved them dearly. “My only babies are my pets. I have a dog named Henry and a cat named Mildred. I love them so much.” He couldn’t imagine himself having human babies, they sounded like a lot of responsibility. Plus, Henry had a tendency to get jealous of anybody that Flynn pays attention to.

The healer coughed a little bit more. Some of the muscle aches were starting to disappear, but his lungs did not feel right, and the rash was still all over, with it’s weird tingling sensation. He hoped that it was go away, and that he wasn’t having some weird allergic reaction to something. “Does Zoe like it at school so far?”

It didn't surprise Joy that Flynn was Ravenclaw. To be a healer you have to be intelligent, creative even, and Ravenclaw was the house for those traits. A smile came on her face when Flynn mentioned Henry. It seemed amusing that someone would cry out that they wanted their dog, but at the same time the healer understood it as Flynn had no children or spouse.

Joy turned to look Flynn over. He didn't look any better, if the rash didn't go away soon Joy would probably have to take him for allergy treatment. "Yes, Zoe loves the school. She enjoys her classes and always learns a lot. Her favorite class is Muggle Studies, but her favorite core class is Charms. She has made friends, but she does dislike one boy in particular. Casey O'Doherty. She tells me no one in school likes him. Edward went to school and works with his father and he says that he's no better, so I guess it runs in the family."

The healer once again looked Flynn over, then asked, "Do you feel any better?"

“Ah, we all have people we disliked when we went to school.” Flynn shrugged. “It’s a bit sad that no one likes this Casey guy. He must be a real prick. And from what you said, sounds like he got his prick-ness from his dear ol’ dad.” He stretched, “Me? I’m a bit more like my dad than my mum. Mum’s a bit strict, throws fireballs when she’s angry, you know. Usual veela stuff. Gotta love her temper.” He laughed, “My dad’s good at diffusing tension, you can always count on him for a good joke.” What Flynn thought was a good joke was usually a horrendous pun.

Flynn shook his head. “My muscles are feeling better, I don’t feel feverish.” He replied, “But my rash is still tingling.” He furrowed his eyebrows. What could he possibly be allergic to? He thought about the ingredients that he had used, and many of them were common. He had also ingested many of them from time to time without having an allergic reaction. Perhaps it was a combination of two that he was having an allergic reaction to? Or perhaps there was only one allergy, and had grown worse over the years, like some allergies do.

“Can you read the list off for me?” He asked. Flynn remembered vaguely what he put in, but he was feeling tired and cranky, and he had a feeling that his mind was not working at it’s sharpest. He did not want to miss a single detail. 

"I might have to turn you over to someone who is more experienced with allergies. The rash is seeming more and more like an allergic reaction." At least his muscles were feeling better. Anything healed is a good thing, and some of the poisons could take longer than others. Joy just hoped that anything he had wasn't a complex poison he'd created that she'd have to mix up an antidote for. It could take days or even weeks to create an antidote.

Joy took out the list and began to read off of it. "Pomegranite juice, moonstone, belladonna, peppermint, hellebore, ginger root, Venomous Tentacula root, red baneberry, wiggentree twigs, castor bean, and frozen ashwinder egg." It was odd that he not only had a recipe that around a third of was poisoness, but also that he had the ingredients here for full love potion. Not only that, but he had some of the ingredients here for an antidote to a love potion.

"May I ask why you included all the ingredients to a common love potion?"

None of them seemed like anything he would have been allergic to. All of these plants had been used in the past in different potions without poisoning him. Though, this was the first time he had used ginger root in a large amount. He hoped it wasn’t that, since it was a very useful ingredient. But chances were, out of all of the items on the list, ginger was the one he was allergic to.  Sadly, ginger was something that he loved the smell of, and it tasted the way it smelled. It’d totally suck if it was the ginger, and it probably was.

He knew that Joy was going to ask why he included love potion ingredients, and was surprised that she didn’t ask it sooner. His face flushed a rather blotchy shade of red and he looked down.

“My mom has veela charm. I don’t.” He hope that was a simple enough explanation for the fellow healer.

Joy didn't laugh or give Flynn an odd look. "Ah," was the only thing she said at first, then sat down next to Flynn. Her tone then became soft and quiet, like how it did when she was going to give a patient news that their poisoning was quite bad. "Flynn, I really don't mean to crush your spirits, but I am unsure you will ever be able to ever give yourself the veela charm. A special ability like that is from birth only, if it is lost it is lost. Potions have limits. I will not and cannot prevent you from continuing to try, but I can assure you that you will not accomplish your goal through potions."

Quickly, she changed the subject before Flynn could respond, so as to not give him much time to take in her words or try to fight her. "Have you become fairly certain that an ingredient in it is your allergen? If you have some knowledge of it I can give you allergy treatment right here. You're not the first person to think that they have been poisoned when it's really an allergy, I know basic treatments."

As Flynn listened to Joy, he knew that what she was saying was true. He’d never unlock it in himself, even if it was in his genes. Maybe his future children (if he ever had children) would have veela charm, but Flynn himself never would be so lucky. He nodded his head, to show that he agreed—but something inside of him wanted to keep trying. Maybe it wouldn’t be accomplished through potions, but maybe there were other means, ways that did not involve potions at all. Or maybe it would take a combination of certain spells and potions to make it work. Flynn knew that it would be dangerous for him to do experimental spellwork, so he pushed that thought aside.

Potions were safe. Experimental spells were a whole different realm. He worked around people who had sustained permanent damage from risky spellwork, and he was not going to end up like them. Flynn was reckless, but he wasn’t that reckless.

He was thankful for the subject change, and gave Joy a weak smile. “I think it’s ginger.” He said, and then frowned, “The other ingredients haven’t had this reaction with me, and I used a lot of ginger in the potion. More than I ever have ingested before. The other ingredients, in their same amounts, have never made me react like this.” Flynn was careful when it came to measurements.

It was a good thing that Flynn didn't try to fight Joy. The healer didn't want to have to get into more detail, or attempt to deal with a distressed patient while trying to treat them. It was always harder and more time consuming and, given that she had already stayed three hours past when she usually went home, Joy wasn't in the mood to have something take a lot of time.

"Ginger would explain it," Joy replied. "Allergic reactions to ginger usually are rashes. It's a good thing you think that it isn't one of your magical ingredients, muggle allergies are much easier to treat." She went over to where antidotes were kept and grabbed a bottle. "This should nullify any allergic reactions, and it shouldn't interfere with the bezoar. This specific allergy potion is for plant allergies, like ginger."

Bottle in hand, Joy walked back over to Flynn, and held it out to him. "The effect shouldn't take longer than ten seconds. If this does work I will schedule an allergy test for you tomorrow of all of the muggle plants that you put in the potion so we can make sure you are allergic to ginger." When it came to allergies, Joy liked to make sure patients were fully aware and had medication that could be used.

He hadn’t been here for too awfully long, and already he had swallowed an antidote for uncommon poisons and a bezoar. Now it was a plant allergy potion. He wasn’t sure if it would work though, since it was an allergy due to the fact that he had consumed the ginger, not because he had smelled it. It didn’t make his nose itch or anything, it just caused a rash. Either way, he didn’t feel like protesting any longer. Flynn accepted the bottle and swished the liquid around a bit before swallowing it as quickly as possible. The taste wasn’t unpleasant, though it wasn’t one that he wanted to savor.

Flynn waited ten seconds. The tingling was beginning to fade, and the rash was as well—though it wasn’t completely gone. That was a good sign; it meant that they had tackled the main problem. “I think it’s working.” He said. As he spoke, he noticed that the effects were working rather quickly, and he was curious as to how muggles dealt with allergies. He was positive that magical methods were more effective and efficient that whatever it was that muggles used. “It looks like you’ll finally be able to head home.” He laughed quietly, knowing how awful it sometimes was to stay up late working with a patient.

Watching the rash fade made Joy smile. It was true she had probably given Flynn one antidote too many. It was because he was too distressed at the beginning for a bezoar, and the antidotes to common and uncommon poisons was made not to interfere with a bezoar. "Good. I'm glad you're not allergic to any fur or dander, we would have had to wait for the bezoar to fully work before giving you an allergy potion for that."

The healer took the bottle away, laughing lightly at his joke. "As will you, once everything seems neutralized. After the rash disappears I'll test to see how much poison is in your blood. If it is trace amounts or none, you can leave. If it's more, I'm afraid I'll have to keep you here during the night and try to construct an antidote of specifically the potion you made."

Switching to a more hopeful subject, the witch asked, "Are all of your other symptoms gone by now?"

He nodded, “My muscles don’t hurt as much.” Flynn replied. He still felt tired, but it wasn’t unusual for people to feel fatigued after putting their bodies through stresses. He closed his eyes and tried to think of how else he felt. He certainly didn’t feel as feverish any more, and he definitely felt healthy enough to head home.  “I can breathe easier too.” In a few minutes, the rash had completely disappeared, and the tingling sensation was gone.

“Are you going to test my blood now?” Flynn was starting to get anxious to be back home. He was sure that Henry, his dog, was anxiously awaiting his return. Mildred, on the other hand, was probably glad that Flynn was gone. But that cat was not exactly social in the first place, and was probably tormenting Henry while she could. Usually, the healer was able to break up their little fights, but not if he wasn't around.

Nodding, the healer went over to where the antidotes were kept and took out a labeled bottle. The potion inside was as clear as water. Joy took out a shallow dish, and put ten drops of the potion into the dish, bringing it over to Flynn along with a needle. "Yes, just hold still while I prick you. This won't hurt much."

Taking Flynn's right arm with her left hand to steady it, she turned it so that his hand faced down. Carefully, she stuck the needle into his fingertip, before withdrawing it and pinching the sides of the finger. A drop of blood fell into the dish. Joy then turned his arm back over and took out her wand. "Episkey." The pricked place healed instantly.

The potion in the dish turned a faint pink. "Only trace amounts of poison. You can leave Flynn," Joy annouced as she put the needle and the dish in the corner where the bucket was. "Have a good night."

Flynn gulped dramatically when she mentioned him being pricked. It wasn’t as bad as he expected, and he appreciated that she healed the minor wound instantly-- minimal suffering was always best. He held his breath while he waited for the results, and when he discovered that he could leave, he let out a loud cheer. “YES!” He exclaimed, thrusting his fists in the air. He jumped and gave Joy a giant bear hug and released her. “We can finally go home! I’ll see you at work later.” He grinned. He would be sure to buy her a box of chocolates or some other sweet as a thanks.

The healer then made his way out of the hospital room, very ready to go home and get some sleep.

End thread