Chapter One Thousand Three Hundred Ten
16th February 1959
Tempelhof, Berlin
Kiki was already feeling rotten when she met Doctor Berg for their usual lunch. She had woken up late with her whole body was aching from when she had woken up and she had a scratchy throat. Kiki had also discovered that her face had broken out with a number of fresh pimples on her forehead and chin that stood out lividly against how pale she was. She knew she should have been washing her face but hadn’t been. After barely making it through her morning classes, she walked in to the hospital cafeteria. The smell of food only served to make her feel nauseous even though she had skipped breakfast.
Kiki was already anticipating what Berg would have to say about her appearance. While Berg herself could care less about what she looked like. A white lab coat over clothes that leaned more towards practical was how Berg almost always dressed. She did however use how Kiki was dressed as a barometer of how well Kiki was taking care of herself and today, Berg would probably say that it was obvious that she hadn’t been. Whenever Kiki wore the red coat with the word Sanitätsdienst across the back in white letters and the word Schülerin just below, denoting that she was a trainee in the Medical Service when she didn’t need to, it was seen as a red flag by Berg. Especially today when it was worn over a wrinkled field uniform of the Heer and Joint Medical Service.
There was also the mortifying aspect that Berg wasn’t alone, she had another Doctor with her who Kiki instantly recognized as Zella’s uncle Peter. He was in his mid-fifties, dignified looking and he was wearing the pin of the Medical Service on the collar of his lab coat which was the only thing to suggest that he was the General in charge of training and recruitment for the entire Medical Service. The way that Berg spoke to him suggested long friendship. As Kiki set her satchel bag on the table and sat down Berg looked at her with a slight look of distaste. It was clear that she wanted to say something unfavorable about her but was holding off due to the presence of the other Doctor. Kiki also couldn’t help but noticing that Peter Holz was looking at her like if she were a specimen in a lab.
“I understand that you already know Doctor Holz” Berg said, “He wanted to see how you were progressing.”
“Really?” Kiki asked, she had no idea why he would take an interest in her if she were anyone else. Part of the annoyance of having an Emperor for a father.
“Yes” Peter replied, “I’ve talked with a few of your professors as well as Doctor Berg, Obersoldat von Preussen or is it Fischer, they are saying that you are a good student.” It was clear that he found her use of various pseudonyms a bit amusing, but her volunteering to be a field medic as opposed to taking a direct commission in a few years was something that he approved of.
“Oh” Kiki replied, she really wished that people would leave her alone. Recently, she had learned that some of the tabloids were speculating that she was feuding with her stepmother and that it had been a factor in driving her to join the Medical Service. That was total garbage. While Kiki had certainly had difficulty accepting Charlotte. She had resigned herself to Charlotte’s presence in her life, especially now that Kiki would have a new half-brother or sister due in June.
“She has worked hard to get where she is” Berg said, “Getting her to take better care of herself however has been a bit more of a challenge. Today for example, she has clearly been neglecting herself again.”
“I remember what it was like to be a student” Peter said, “Hard work, late nights and finally the sense of accomplishment when I got my degree. I would say that you can probably forgive Kristina’s appearance at this moment.”
“Are you certain?” Berg asked, “Because over the last couple years I’ve seen how she avoids eating and sleeping. The exhaustion and vitamin deficiency are obvious, depending on her cycle she gets anemic as well.”
Kiki was finding it annoying that they were talking about her as if she were a patient who wasn’t really there.
“Perhaps” Peter said, “But I would check her temperature as well as her lymph nodes, because to me Kristina looks like she is coming down with influenza.”
“Interesting if you could tell all that just by looking at her” Berg said, “And what would the rest of your prognosis be?”
“She'll be ill for the next week or so. The typical treatment involves rest and fluids” Peter said, “Dietary supplements and referring her to a Dermatologist about that acne when she gets better wouldn’t hurt.”
“Wait” Kiki said, not liking any of that. “I don’t have time to be sick, there’s too much to do.”
“If you land yourself in the hospital due to complications of the flu then you could find yourself having nothing to do at all for weeks” Berg said sharply.
“That is not the right tact to take Nora” Peter said, “In my educated guess, by this time tomorrow Kristina will hardly be able to get out of bed. Have you heard anything regarding illnesses among the others in the dormitory that she lives in?”
“There are three hundred young women who live in that building” Berg answered, “Someone is always coming down with something.”
“Just stop” Kiki said, “I don’t want to hear this.”
“It’s a bit late for that” Berg said. Kiki got the impression that it was something that she said a lot.
