[ That's very cute and at least Clive stays out of the way, hovering in the distance. ]

No apologies necessary!

[ He nods to the no tea or food, and instead moves to grab a notepad and pencil, and another chair for him to sit in. ]

Of course. Please, if I may have your symptoms?

[ And each one is written down quickly. Coughs, fever, bedridden. Eased as he grew, but still there. His scours his mind for the books he read here. Asthma? ]

Other than when you cough, any difficulty breathing? A tightness of the chest that does not ease? Does activity make your symptoms worse, or dust and the like?

[ Enjoy the fact as he writes, his eyes never open once, but a strange Staff with an eye does seem to be looking over his shoulder from where it is resting on a nearby wall. Squinting a little due to the distance, of course. ]

I see.

[ Taking a book to the desk with him, Pure Vanilla sets it down to lift the sample. Then hold it out to the Staff, light beginning to shine from it as he turns on the Golden Glasses to see if he can't discern the ingredients. It's moments like this he truly misses his Soul Jam.

No mucus or chest pressure. That crosses Asthma out. But just to make sure ]

I assume when you have your coughing fits, you do not have trouble breathing in a wheezing or gasping manner, like you cannot catch your breath? It is the coughing itself that debilitates you?

[ Energy sounds heart related. And yes, thank you, enchantment, he can see it's made up of plants. The insight is astounding. He hums softly and the glow on his Staff stops, and then he sets the vial down again. Picks up a book to begin flipping.

He's mumbling to himself, ignore him. ]

Cardiac cough? Explains the fatigue. No wheezing however, or shortness of breath. Early stages? Fever when younger. Hm. Blood but no mucus, so not fluids in the lungs. Not cardiac. [ Louder. ] Does your medicine work to stop an attack while it is happening or is it merely preventive?

Mmm.....

[ That book is set aside and another is taken down, and more notes are quickly scribbled on his paper. Fever during childhood- Flips pages, pauses to read, hum's softly before turning to Joshua. ]

Scarring from a case of childhood pneumonia? Other than fatigue, there is nothing to suggest issues with your heart, and the fatigue may simply be the scarring preventing you from inhaling as deep as you need and getting oxygen. Prolonged activity or sudden starts may cause it to flare up. The resulting inflammation would cause irritation that would cause a cough, and prolonged would cause bleeding. To act as a preventative but as emergency relief, your medicine may act as an anti-inflammatory. It may also have something to coat the throat and prevent further damage. Does the medicine soothe it instantly or slowly over time?

[ Clive shakes his head, he's just as lost. All he understood is scarring on the lungs and his expression has slowly fallen into a soft look of anguish. Scarring on the body is bad enough... ]

Ah, forgive me. Pneumonia is a disease of the lungs. It causes fever and a terrible wracking cough, and in severe cases - or in multiple cases - can cause scarring. It is... often fatal in children.

[ He will gently hand over the book he has in his hand so Joshua can read about it himself, settling himself back down in his chair as he thinks. ]

It should not be hard to duplicate your medicine, then. There are magical means we may employ to attempt to cure the scarring as well, but that will be far more complicated.

[ If Clive is reading over Joshua's shoulder, well, sue him. It's about his brother.

Pure Vanilla tilts his head, thoughtful, though his tail wiggles a tad bit to the idea Joshua can heal. ]

Then I am sure you understand in most cases, healing cannot remove scars that are oft left behind by healing, even by magical means.

[ He pulls his notepad over and flips it to a blank page, then begins to draw some magic circles, in thought. ]

But here we would be attempting to target the scars themselves. It would be less of a healing and more of an ... excising.

[ He raises his hand to his throat, the black scars there under the wool, thoughtful as he rubs. They would have to cut the scarring away without causing further injury OR heal as they cut to close the wounds.

Sounds like he has to experiment! ]

[ YEAH CLIVE SORT OF STOPPED TO STARE CAUSE EXCUSE HIM.

Vanilla smiles a little, lightly, his glancing at the circles he'd made. Precision, healing - which he cannot invoke anymore even with magic circles - while also cutting away the tissues that's clumped up. ]

It is not something I have personally attempted here. It is not unheard of, scars can be a fatal flaw in a warrior, after all, who needs to swing a sword but a scar has knitted his side too tight, and at home I would keep my husband quite healed free of scars....

[ ... Yeah, Clive understands that. ]

But... I know this may sound weird, but I was a Cookie once upon a time, and Cookie bodies are not human bodies. I have healed human bodies but never deeply as I have once Cookie bodies. Compared to a thousand or two years of Cookie experience, my time with human bodies has been less than a year.

Oh, not at all, it's not rude. I was unaware you knew! Yes, before coming here I was a "gingerbread" shaped Cookie. Exactly as you would imagine it.

[ He gently crosses his legs at the knee, settling his hands in his lap, mind already dissecting what plants may be used to duplicate the young mans medication. He needs to ease the pain of the cough, reduce inflammation, prevent it from reoccurring... ]

I would not say difficult. My magics work here much as they did back home. Different, oh yes. Blood compared to jam. Meat and flesh, rather than dough and yeast. Yet the principle is the same. Life to quicken in the injuries, to urge them to close. It has not been too hard to shift things around. And I am blessed to be in company of individuals who share the same passions, and [ A little laugh ] who are far more intelligent than I.

[ He can see the confusion because while Joshua is being so polite and frowning at the book, Clive is frowning openly with a head tilt. He beams in return and brings the notepad around to draw the gingerbread man shape. Then he very carefully draws his icing on. He's not the best artist in the world but it's good enough to look like him as a Cookie, then slides it over so they can see and be less confused. ]

I thank you for saying so, I would hope my long years would impart some wisdom into me.

[ His face crinkles up into a good-natured smile and his tail wiggle indicates he's pleased and not at all belittling himself so much as like... well, he's a Grandpa. He Grandpa's. ]

My friend, if I may ask, your healing. How does it work?

[ If Clive looks edgy he doesn't say anything about it. ]

Haha- ow....

[ He rubs his cheek but his tail wiggles.

Message heard loud and clear, dear. ]