Aisha: Second Session

"It's more common then you'd expect," Valli said. "For small, isolated communities, their options are sadly limited. Surrounded on all sides by human, most invoke veil-like systems largely out of self-protection. Drawing the attention of so many humans is a poor survival strategy. But at the same time, humans have so many things that small communities couldn't manage to produce."

He smiled despite himself when she hastily added that she didn't want to do anything 'super' illegal.

"You speak to a professional. To an expert on the matter. The school has resources, and there's no shame in asking for help."

Aisha had a lot of strikes against her hypothetical, the most important of which that Valli would have sawed his own arm off before he'd dated a patient. It was approximately fifty kinds of inappropriate, and he was very careful with his professional boundaries. Even friendships were more or less out of line, because it violated that fundamental patient-doctor boundary that he worked so hard to enforce. It had left him with a sorely lacking social circle once upon a time, but since then he'd adjusted. Gotten out more. Met new people.

"I think it's possible," Valli said. "The island does have outreach programs for small groups and communities that have unsustainable living situations. From what you've said, it sounds like the entire group is in serious danger of breaking the veil, and that it's only a matter of time before they're discovered. It's something you could talk to the scouts about, and see what could be done. While it's important to handle your own issues first, it might be a productive way to spend your time. Helping others can help you feel good in turn."

He'd been worried about her for a bit, but it seemed like she was quick to bounce back. She had plans and goals in mind, and he nodded after a moment.

"You'd speak to the school counselors," he said. "They'll have resources for learning to manage money, and they'll also be able to help you get... things in order, as far as housing goes." To get her moved into the dorms, most likely, but also to get her out of whatever contract she might have signed without realizing it.

"I think this is probably a good place to stop for the day. You've got a lot ahead of you, and I think we've made some good progress." He always had to be wary about overloading people with things, burying them under all the stuff they had to do until they felt overwhelmed. Breaking it up into bite sized chunks took longer, but it kept things more consistent as well.

"I look forward to it," Valli said with a smile, pushing himself upright. "Hopefully everything goes well with both parties." The scouts and the school. At least one of them he was confident would do just fine, but the scouts...

Well, that might be harder.

"Check in when you're ready for another session, and we can talk about how things went."

He tidied things up before seeing her out, returning to his desk to note down what had happened and what they'd discussed for next time.