Doctor doctor, gimme the news

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

After the meeting, and after some bickering with the Emergency Medical Hologram, down at the bottom of the Hub, Brainy is arranging the MedBay to his liking and familiarizing himself with the medical equipment and its functions.

Right now, for instance, as anyone walks in the door, he's wearing some sort of scanning goggles and a rather sinister-looking surgical glove with micro-scalpels, little lasers and surgical saws on the fingertips.

This makes him look like a green-faced Freddy Krueger with mad scientist goggles. For anyone that walks in like he instructed him to at the meeting, this is the first thing they see.

"Hmmmm."

Comments

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

He stops, his hands hovering above the equipment.

For a moment he tenses. A moment passes, and his posture relaxes, though his hands are still poised over the machinery.

"Obstruction of reparation of useful and potentially necessary medical technology can be construed as a violation of the Hippocratic oath. There's no logical reason to allow anger over mistreatment and un-solicited attempts at socialization to obstruct progress."

His voice is suddenly computorial in its lack of emotional tone.

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"It's not a vital piece of equipment, and I will repair it as soon as I'm done repairing the damage to my face. You're not injured. You're not a medical doctor. Leave."

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"As a medical mechanic, I feel obligated to remind you that you can't claim this part of the ship just because you're the first, or most knowledgeable doctor, to find it."

Allen turns around again to look at him. He considers Brainy impassively before framing his response.

"If you're angry and want some time alone, I can respect that. However, I'm no more amenable to somebody obstructing my directive than you are, and I expect you to respect that."

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"I am not angry."

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"Are you not?"

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"I'm simply...occupied."

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"Too much so to tolerate another person in your space."

He pauses, before adding, "It's all right to be upset. I would be."

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"I am not upset!" he finally yells. "Now get out of my MedLab before I forcibly remove you!"

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"Or I could stay, and we could talk about your feelings."

A wry, if thin, grin has crept back onto his face. His voice has begun to go back to sounding human.

"Unmasculine it might be, but a bad idea? Actually no."

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"I don't have feelings."

A completely ridiculous assertion, and he knows it, but for the sake of his argument, he pretends he believes that, as he puts the tissue regenerator back on the equipment table, and proceeds to start fixing up some of the damage.

"Not like most humanoids do, at any rate."

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"All the more reason why we should talk about them, so that I can assess your emotional needs based on more accurate data. There's no information in my world regarding Coluans." Allen raises his eyebrows. "You're going to have to teach me."

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"I have no emotional needs," he says as he works on the scanner.

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"Does your body produce chemical responses to external stimuli, which affect your behavior and mood?"

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

A slight scowl as he works, goggles now over his face.

"I have complete control over my emotional impulses. Therefore, I have no emotional needs."

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"That's a dangerous philosophy to live by. And I say this as someone who has just as much, if not more, control over his emotional impulses as you do."

Allen has stopped working, in accordance with Brainy's force-fieldy wishes. He leans against a table with his arms folded.

"It's not my place to pry into your personal life. But based on personal reasons of my own, I wonder why anyone would voluntarily and regularly suppress their ability to feel, given the choice not to."

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

His face is turned away, as he focuses on his work, and he briefly grits his teeth, but then stops, and goes on calmly.

"You continue to presume you're welcome to make conjectures about my personal life."

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"No, I don't presume that at all. In fact, I'm pretty sure you hate my guts right now for prying."

He continues his leaning, waiting for confirmation.

"I'm pretty much banking on your ability to control yourself, actually. If you weren't so good at controlling your emotions, you'dve probably decked me good with that forcefield of yours already, am I right?"

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"If you're not going to cease talking, I'm going to simply ignore you."

[twelvevoltman.livejournal.com]

"Why? I mean that. I don't wanna say anything that will put you off being friends with me more, because you're a cool guy and I respect your mind like nobody's business. If you asked me outright to stop, I would. But the more I talk to you, the more I get the feeling that you've been really, really hurt. More than you have faith in people around you to understand."

He pauses.

"I wanna help you out. No one would block out their feelings if they didn't hurt."

I hate to see things broken.

[cabbage-butt.livejournal.com]

"You. Presume. Too much."

And then silence. And that's all he's going to get. Brainy misses the Legion, but he also has his comfort zone, and his boundaries are not being respected. Therefore, he's re-establishing them by force.