Alright. She needs to do this. Deal with a fucking doctor. Answer shitty questions. 

It's not going to be a fun experience. 

She's going to do it anyway. 

Akira goes up to the door and lets herself in.

Inside is a small waiting room, with a few chairs, and behind a glass wall over a desk, a young-looking doctor with dark blue hair cut in a messy bob, a lab coat over a dark green dress, and a black choker with metal studs around her neck.

She looks up when Akira enters.

"How can I help you, Miss?"

... the doctor is kind of hot honestly. 

Okay, not having that thought right now. Hormone prescription. 

She lifts her voice, settles it back into the feminine range that used to come naturally to her. "I need a prescription for estrogen and an androgen blocker," she says. "I - well - I'm trans."

Her expression softens a bit. "Ah. We can handle that today, if you're up for getting your blood drawn. Come inside."

She gets up and heads toward the exam room. There's a door right next to the window.

A blood draw's not excellent, but she'll accept it. The doctor's got to get her levels somehow.

"Alright." She follows the doctor back.

Dr. Takemi steps into the exam room through a curtained doorway right next to the door into the waiting room. Now that Akira can see her standing up, it's clear the dress is rather short, stopping mid-thigh, and she's wearing strappy black platform heels.

There are two chairs, a desk, an exam bed, and various bits of equipment. Takemi heads for the chair by the desk and sits down, gesturing for Akira to sit in the other one.

"Have a seat. Who was your previous endocrinologist?"

She sits in the other chair. 

What to say to that.

When in doubt, go with the truth.

"I... didn't have one. I was DIYing. Due to... circumstances... it's been patchy, but I finally have an opportunity to get properly prescribed now. I haven't taken hormones in two months and my voice is starting to drop a bit and I - really really want to not have any more damage happen. I just moved here, you're one of the first things I'm doing." 

She takes a breath. "Sorry. I know you probably don't want my family history."

Takemi looks up from her paperwork and gives Akira a bit of a sly grin. "Not a problem. You're not the first trans person in Tokyo to self-medicate hormones, and you won't be the last."

She blinks.

"Wow, okay, I wasn't expecting that response. You have a lot of trans patients?"

The grin turns into a bit of a smirk. 

"No, I don't."

Her eyebrows rise again.

"Wait, you... Are you saying you're trans too?"

She nods. "I don't spread it around, but yeah. Nine years HRT, two post-op. I know it's hard to feel alone with this stuff."

"Oh wow." She smiles. "Congratulations."

I hope I can someday look as good as you do rises to her tongue and dies. She is not in fact that brave. But this is - really a big stroke of luck, honestly. It feels like the universe is looking out for her. 

"It really can be hard, yeah. My family wasn't supportive, and I don't really have any friends, period. But... today I got a temporary school ID with my proper name and gender marker on it and after this I'm going to try and get some feminine clothes that aren't a school uniform. I wish I had someone to shop with but, again, no friends..." 

She sighs and shakes her head. "Still, it's really really good to finally be making some actual progress. I wasn't presenting femme or anything before today, so suddenly making that social transition is... scary and big." 

Akira ducks her head. "Sorry. You're a doctor, not a therapist. I just - I've never had someone to talk to about this before."

"Thank you," she replies with a smile. "And yeah, it sounds like you've had a hard time of it, but you're making progress. Hopefully you can find a support system among your classmates, but... I'd rather you come bother me than try to do without anyone to talk to."

"Thank you, um..." She tilts her head. "Are you Ms. Takemi?"

She's practicing apparently alone, and it's the Takemi clinic, so...?

"Doctor Takemi, but yes," she replies with a wry smile.

"Right, yes, of course." Akira ducks her head. "I didn't mean to strip you of your education."

She wants to compliment Doctor Takemi on - her sense of care, she guesses, the fact that she helps people. Should she say it?

What's wrong with saying it. "I mean, you're going out of your way to help others - that deserves some respect, and all."

Takemi looks off to the side and huffs, then smiles a bit tiredly at Akira. "Thank you. I wish mor—"

Then she cuts herself off and shakes her head.

"Thank you."

Huh. Seems like she hit a nerve, there. 

She nods and gives Doctor Takemi her best smile back.

"Anyway. You wanted to do a blood draw?"

She nods and starts collecting equipment. "Have you ever had your blood drawn before?"

"Once or twice for routine tests. I'm familiar with the basic procedure - you find a vein in the elbow and draw a little blood from there. What you do with the blood I have no idea. I assume there's some spell you cast over it."

Tae snickers. "Yes, mass spectrometry is quite the magic spell. You've got the basic procedure correct, though."

She scoots her chair closer to Akira's. "Which arm would you prefer?"

"The right one." She offers her right arm.

It's a simple enough procedure. Takemi ties a strap around Akira's arm, takes a moment to find a vein, then there's a slight prick, then blood is flowing into a little vial. 

She hands her a little stress ball. "Squeeze this to help keep the blood flowing."