The Apartment Above the Photo Hut - Friday Morning

[flamesburned]

The last week had been a lot since she had discovered that she was pregnant. First she had called Dr. Lecter to let him know and then she had talked to both Marcand Summer.

Finally Liz had let Professor Broom and Hellboy know that she was pregnant. She hadn’t even gotten the words out before Hellboy had immediately started insisting that she not go back to Fandom, that she could stay at the BPRD, especially if they couldn’t reach Prompto and it had taken a lot of convincing but finally Liz had managed to convince them that she would be fine in Fandom and she did have support and friends who would look after her.

As Liz had promised, she and Rain had gotten back into Fandom early Friday morning. It felt weird being back at her apartment and the store and she didn’t want to think about how much work she now had to finish both in terms of the paperwork and all of the necessary plans she still had to make regarding her pregnancy but she was slowly learning that she could only do one thing at a time and to focus on what she could.

So now that she was back she had to make a few calls and the first one was to Steven, since she had promised Marc that she would tell Steven as soon as she got back to Fandom and then she figured she should leave Marc a voice mail as well to let him know that she was back and would be talking to Steven in case he was concerned she wouldn’t tell him.

She hesitated a moment and then sent a quick text message to Summer to let her know that she had arrived back in Fandom.

The last call was to Dr. Lecter so that he would know she was back in Fandom and then once those calls had been done, she went about unpacking as she nervously waited to see if Steven would stop by.

[Liz is expecting a visit from Steven but the post can also be open! The details of her conversation with Steven is NFB please!]

Comments

[sharp_man]

Uncoincidentally close to lunch time, Hannibal showed up with an insulated bag, a medical bag, and a large file folder.

Had you wanted a determined middle-aged cannibal caretaker for your pregnancy, Liz? Because crying on the phone was how you got a determined middle-aged cannibal caretaker.

[flamesburned]

Liz definitely needed all the help she could at this point.

Rain, sensing that Liz had another visitor twice in one day so soon bounded over to the door excitedly and meowed.

Liz walked over to the door and picked up Rain again before she could bolt outside when she opened the door.

“Hi Dr. Lecter,” she said softly, suddenly feeling a bit self conscious, “um …please come in,” she said as she stepped back to let him in.

[sharp_man]

"Thank you." Hannibal came in and offered his hand to Rain. "Welcome back. No problems with the portals, I trust?"

[flamesburned]

Rain eagerly leaned over to sniff Hannibal’s hand, purring contently with approval and tried to see if she could get any more pets,

“Thank you,” Liz said softly, “there wasn’t any issues with the portals, I was able to get back okay,” she told him.

[sharp_man]

Hannibal would absolutely give a few pets, but he was focused on the human here; sorry, Rain.

"I'm glad." Hannibal looked her over and nodded. "Have you had lunch?"

[flamesburned]

Rain would be content with a few pets, she purred loudly.

“No, I - um I haven’t …um really eaten much today,” Liz admitted quietly.

[sharp_man]

Hannibal nodded. "In that case, I have brought lunch." He set his bag down on the counter and started pulling out dishes. "Nothing heavy," he promised. "Baked sweet potato with honey yogurt and walnuts, and if you're still hungry, salmon chowder." That was a sizeable bowl. "It will keep for later, too, and reheat well." Even if you used a microwave like a heathen.

[flamesburned]

Liz definitely used the microwave a lot, sorry Hannibal.

She was also going to blame the hormones as to why she started tearing up as he started taking out the dishes. She was apparently going to be doing that a lot.

“Thank you,” she said quietly, wiping away some of those tears, “um…” she wasn’t sure what else to say, “thank you,” she said again.

[sharp_man]

"You're quite welcome." Hannibal handed her a fork. "Come, eat. I have things to go over with you, but you can get something in you at the same time."

[flamesburned]

"Okay, I can do that," Liz told him quietly as she tried to wipe away her tears and then took the fork Dr. Lecter gave her before she went to sit down at the table.

She looked at the dishes on the table , "um ... what kind of things do you need to go over?" she paused, remembering their conversation from last week "is this about the medication?" she asked.

[sharp_man]

"Partly, yes." Hannibal sat across from her. "I'd like to examine you when you're done, but I believe we may need to change your medication entirely. Have you previously had anyone suggest to you that you might have a bipolar disorder?"

[flamesburned]

"Oh," Liz said softly, looking down at her food, "I ... no, no one's said anything about me having bipolar ... what's ... I'm not entirely sure what this is," she admitted.

[sharp_man]

"It means that in addition to your depression, you may also have times where you are irritable, have difficulty focusing, and are unable to sleep," Hannibal said. "It can also mean feelings of elation and god-like self-esteem, but that doesn't seem to be the case for you."

He opened his file folder and took out a list of the symptoms, sliding it over to her. "I would like for you to look this over. I am confident in the diagnosis, but you should be as well."

[flamesburned]

Liz took the list of symptoms and read it over, "could ... could it explain my behaviour with how I've been with Steven? Why it was like nothing else seemed to matter?" she asked quietly, "I ... I do seem to have a lot of the symptoms, especially not being able to sleep and difficulty focusing," she admitted. "I just thought it was the pregnancy," she added.

[sharp_man]

"The changing hormones may not be helping any, but this is beyond what I would normally expect."

He opened his medical bag next and took out a medication. "You can't switch directly from your current medication to one for bipolar symptoms. I'd like to taper you off using this one; I've written out the dosages. Once that is done, we can start you on the new medication."

He laced his fingers together and looked at her seriously. "You may have a rather difficult few weeks, even if this new medication works well."

[flamesburned]

“Will - will…” Liz took a deep breath, “what about the baby? Will any of this hurt her? Changing the medications I mean?”

[sharp_man]

"Not directly, no," Hannibal said. "These drugs are safe during pregnancy for both of you. We may have to revisit them if you plan to breastfeed, but not before then. The danger is in your stress if we can't manage it."

He watched her for a moment. "I would prefer to be able to monitor you closely until we know we've found a medication that works and it has begun to do its job. There are also dietary rules you should follow - things to eat, things to avoid. And you shouldn't handle cat litter. Tell me, does all of that sound like something you are presently capable of? Truthfully, please."

[flamesburned]

“I …” Liz took a deep breath, feeling dizzy for a moment as she took in the news and she looked over at Rain, “I …no,” she admitted and looked back at Dr. Lecter, “I - I don’t think I I am currently capable,”

[sharp_man]

Hannibal nodded. "I would like to propose something, then. A solution for you." He smiled. "Keep breathing, for a start. You're doing very well, and I'm proud of you for knowing your limits. You remember you are not alone?"

[flamesburned]

Liz nodded and took several deep breaths as she did, “okay,” she focused on keeping her breathing steady , “I - I remember,” she said softly.

[sharp_man]

"My house has a number of guest suites," Hannibal said. "I would suggest that you move into one. Consider it a form of in-patient therapy. I will be able to monitor your medication and ensure your diet, and you will not have to be alone. And I have automatic litterboxes," he added wryly.

[flamesburned]

“I - “ Liz hesitated and then after a few moments she nodded, realising that mentally or physically she wasn’t capable of looking after herself properly, “I would like that, if it isn’t too much trouble,”

There was a pause then, “What about work?” she asked quietly, “would I still be able to keep working?”

[sharp_man]

"Of course," Hannibal answered. "I think you enjoy your work, and it's good for you. I won't be locking you up; I simply think having a bit of extra support is warranted at the moment.

"You can come and go as you please, or your friends can visit. I will expect you to be present for meals or to take something with you to eat, and I will expect to speak with you daily to ascertain your mood. I will supervise your medications. And I will be right there should you need anything."

He shrugged. "It will be more comfortable and less stressful than a hospital, and more supportive than being on your own. It will not be a prison."

[flamesburned]

Liz nodded as she took all of that in, “okay, … I wouldn’t want to go to a hospital,” she said softly, “I - that’s what I was planning originally before I moved back to Fandom,” she admitted, “but I - I can do all of those tasks, I … I’d like the extra support,” and there was another pause, “I need the extra support,” she added softly, “I’m … I know I’m not capable of supporting myself at this point,” she hesitated, “when … when would I move in?” there was another pause as she looked back over at Rain, "and Rain ... when would we move in?"

[sharp_man]

"As soon as is convenient for you," Hannibal answered. "I would suggest we introduce Rain gradually to the others, but Beethoven is unlikely to bother her if she leaves him alone, and Joni...well, I hope Rain is used to kittens."

She would get her tail pounced so much.