Three meals in the weeks he'd been back might well seem like an accomplishment to Ben, and in a way it was, but it was nowhere near enough to mitigate any significant damage, as the doctor would have said, had she know. It had been just enough to keep going; to keep others from becoming too suspicious of him so he could keep on starving himself. Obviously that had gone out the airlock at this point, but it had obviously worked, right up until it didn't.
At the very least the doctor could tell that he was keeping himself well hydrated. Dehydration was often an unintended side effect of prolonged fasting, and she suspected that he was doing better on that front now than he had while with the First Order; she couldn't put his increase in weight down to anything else but water, as everything else was gradually wasting away.
Doctor Kalonia's gaze was compassionate, but her tone was firm. "I can help mend fractures to; that doesn't mean I encourage them," she said. "I'm sorry, Ben, but this isn't open for debate. Rey can practice with Finn, if she needs someone experienced in First Order tactics and fighting styles; since you yourself told us that you were the only trained Force user that the First Order had, she's far more likely to face stormtroopers than saber wielders anyway for at least a few years. I'll be informing Rey of your ban from training as well, just so there's no miscommunication." In other words, so he wouldn't be able to claim to Rey he wasn't banned from it in order to get around the doctor's orders.
Leia, meanwhile, had taken Ben's glance in her direction as a cue to come over. She could sense the way his mind was racing, though catching any of those thoughts to read it would require being more intrusive than she liked. It would no doubt be an uphill battle, but she didn't want him to despair of his chances before they'd even really begun. She rested a gentle hand on his shoulder, a solid reminder that he wasn't alone in this. He was no longer just he; he was part of they. And what he might not be able to accomplish alone, they could do together.
Doctor Kalonia didn't comment on the General's move to Ben's bedside, but it did hearten her a bit. With his formidable mother and likely soon to be his equally formidable father solidly on his side, she felt better about his chances. "I will be giving you some vitamin and mineral supplements," she continued to Ben, "but that's all they are; supplements. They're not meant as replacement for food, and they won't work as one. Your body still needs actual fuel to work, and if it's not provided in the form of food, it will just keep burning through muscle until there's not enough left to sustain you."
no subject
At the very least the doctor could tell that he was keeping himself well hydrated. Dehydration was often an unintended side effect of prolonged fasting, and she suspected that he was doing better on that front now than he had while with the First Order; she couldn't put his increase in weight down to anything else but water, as everything else was gradually wasting away.
Doctor Kalonia's gaze was compassionate, but her tone was firm. "I can help mend fractures to; that doesn't mean I encourage them," she said. "I'm sorry, Ben, but this isn't open for debate. Rey can practice with Finn, if she needs someone experienced in First Order tactics and fighting styles; since you yourself told us that you were the only trained Force user that the First Order had, she's far more likely to face stormtroopers than saber wielders anyway for at least a few years. I'll be informing Rey of your ban from training as well, just so there's no miscommunication." In other words, so he wouldn't be able to claim to Rey he wasn't banned from it in order to get around the doctor's orders.
Leia, meanwhile, had taken Ben's glance in her direction as a cue to come over. She could sense the way his mind was racing, though catching any of those thoughts to read it would require being more intrusive than she liked. It would no doubt be an uphill battle, but she didn't want him to despair of his chances before they'd even really begun. She rested a gentle hand on his shoulder, a solid reminder that he wasn't alone in this. He was no longer just he; he was part of they. And what he might not be able to accomplish alone, they could do together.
Doctor Kalonia didn't comment on the General's move to Ben's bedside, but it did hearten her a bit. With his formidable mother and likely soon to be his equally formidable father solidly on his side, she felt better about his chances. "I will be giving you some vitamin and mineral supplements," she continued to Ben, "but that's all they are; supplements. They're not meant as replacement for food, and they won't work as one. Your body still needs actual fuel to work, and if it's not provided in the form of food, it will just keep burning through muscle until there's not enough left to sustain you."