Hospitals were usually a depressing place to be in. If you weren't in there for your own injury, you were likely sensitive to someone else's, and even with those reasons there was always the lingering feeling that there were people inside that were much, much worse off than you currently were. For this hospital, that atmosphere of sadness was lined with a layer of hope, because it was likely that those inside were the ones that had survived something too terrible to picture.
Suzume saw almost none of this. As she entered into the waiting room for her examination there were certainly other soon-to-be patients, but this girl just sat down on a chair that was a little too high for her and swung her legs without much of a care in the world. After all she wasn't sick, this was just another routine exam, so there was no reason to worry, right?
"Hum hum hum..." The minutes went by pretty slowly as Suzume dug in her pockets for a quick snack-- though in what was a rare occurrence there was no sweet treat to entertain her stomach until dinner time. She pouted, then looked around the room until her eyes landed on a vending machine being a vending machine. With a spring in her step, the genin hopped off her seat and walked over to it...
...or she would have, if a grey-haired lady hadn't approached it first. Suzume stopped close by and watched what the woman was doing, every slow action she took, every mild shake of her hands as she inserted a coin... she didn't look crippled or incapable, naturally, and actually seemed fairly healthy for someone of her apparent age. Once she was done, she noticed Suzume's interest in her and cocked an eyebrow.
"Oh? Did you want one too, dear? I'm sorry, I'll move out now." Her raspy but calm voice snapped the genin out of her focus and had her nod with a big smile. The woman moved out of the way, but she stuck around to observe for some reason or another. "My my, you're a spry young woman. Are you visiting someone?"
"Nnnnope, just a checkup." Suzume reached down to retrieve an energy bar from the deposit, then quickly opened it up and took a bit.
"Aha, I see, I see." She nodded slowly as if satisfied.
"What about you, ma'am?" The genin paused for another bite, then asked with her mouth full. "Whata hee fou?" The old woman's reaction was just to chuckle and shake her head. Anyone else might have seen a bit of a wryness in her smile, but Suzume just tilted her head.
"Aaah... it's nothing bad, don't worry. I'm just visiting someone." Both of them nodded, the woman before Suzume, before she spoke again. "Now now, I suppose I must be going. Visiting hours are nearly over, after all. Take care, little one." With that, she patted the genin's shoulder and began turning away.
"Yokay, I will! Bye bye, granny!" The old woman chuckled a bit, then walked off towards the back rooms. Suzume for her part just returned to her seat and resumed her leg-swinging, this time with a proper snack. "That was a nice lady." She took another bite, and waited to be called in...
Suzume saw almost none of this. As she entered into the waiting room for her examination there were certainly other soon-to-be patients, but this girl just sat down on a chair that was a little too high for her and swung her legs without much of a care in the world. After all she wasn't sick, this was just another routine exam, so there was no reason to worry, right?
"Hum hum hum..." The minutes went by pretty slowly as Suzume dug in her pockets for a quick snack-- though in what was a rare occurrence there was no sweet treat to entertain her stomach until dinner time. She pouted, then looked around the room until her eyes landed on a vending machine being a vending machine. With a spring in her step, the genin hopped off her seat and walked over to it...
...or she would have, if a grey-haired lady hadn't approached it first. Suzume stopped close by and watched what the woman was doing, every slow action she took, every mild shake of her hands as she inserted a coin... she didn't look crippled or incapable, naturally, and actually seemed fairly healthy for someone of her apparent age. Once she was done, she noticed Suzume's interest in her and cocked an eyebrow.
"Oh? Did you want one too, dear? I'm sorry, I'll move out now." Her raspy but calm voice snapped the genin out of her focus and had her nod with a big smile. The woman moved out of the way, but she stuck around to observe for some reason or another. "My my, you're a spry young woman. Are you visiting someone?"
"Nnnnope, just a checkup." Suzume reached down to retrieve an energy bar from the deposit, then quickly opened it up and took a bit.
"Aha, I see, I see." She nodded slowly as if satisfied.
"What about you, ma'am?" The genin paused for another bite, then asked with her mouth full. "Whata hee fou?" The old woman's reaction was just to chuckle and shake her head. Anyone else might have seen a bit of a wryness in her smile, but Suzume just tilted her head.
"Aaah... it's nothing bad, don't worry. I'm just visiting someone." Both of them nodded, the woman before Suzume, before she spoke again. "Now now, I suppose I must be going. Visiting hours are nearly over, after all. Take care, little one." With that, she patted the genin's shoulder and began turning away.
"Yokay, I will! Bye bye, granny!" The old woman chuckled a bit, then walked off towards the back rooms. Suzume for her part just returned to her seat and resumed her leg-swinging, this time with a proper snack. "That was a nice lady." She took another bite, and waited to be called in...