Laris Obscura's Story

As the doors opened Linde was greeted by her friend Aleiva.

"You were out all night again... weren't you?" She asked softly.

Linde smiled, somewhat sheepishly and nodded to her as she walked forward a few paces.

"I wish you would at least get more rest." Aleiva said upon her approach.

Linde looked Aleiva in the eyes and placed her hand on Aleiva's shoulder.

"I'm fine Aleiva." She said gently.

No sooner had she removed her hand from Aleiva's shoulder than Laris suddenly entered the room. She watched him as he scratched his head, no doubt a subconscious reprimand for not coming up with a reason for his being here. Her suspicion was confirmed by his stammering as he came forward to talk to the two of them.

"H-hello, Aleiva, Linde. I..uh..thought you might be running low on some things..s-so I scavenged a bit last night."

Linde almost shook her head but she smothered the thought and resisted the urge. The boy was so obvious that it was almost painful. No doubt, being as innocent as she was, Aleiva didn't realize what was going on and thought that Laris was just shy like her.

"Are you a-alright, Linde?" Laris asked suddenly.

Linde's left eyebrow rose slightly and she looked down at herself, checking her armor and clothing for any signs of injury that she was otherwise unaware of. After a semi thorough search, she regarded Laris with an expression that was treading the line between suspicion and irritation. Despite this, when she spoke, her voice was calm and even.

"I am fine Laris. I don't know what gave you the impression that I was injured, but thank you for your concern. Now, if the two of you will excuse me I have to freshen up. It has been a long night and I need some time by myself."

She smiled at Aleiva one last time and gave her a slight nod of her head before turning away from her. As she started to walk away she suddenly came to a stop and turned back to look at Laris over her shoulder. The expression on her face was unreadable, but never the less she kept direct eye contact with Laris for well over ten full seconds before turning away again. She walked through the door ahead and into the hallway where she wandered for a moment before finding her room. She unlocked the door and walked inside, setting her armor down before grabbing a few accessories as she started to clean and polish it. Nobody liked dull armor, and Linde was no exception. She cleaned her armor and her spear for a good ten minutes before replacing them on their racks and removing her damp and dirty clothing.

She stepped into the small bathroom that used to be a closet and into the tub to wash herself and relax. Aleiva was good about keeping the waters heated while she was away, even through the nights and the days when she was not present at the Apothecary. Linde appreciated her friends determination to take care of her, even if it was somewhat unnecessary. It had been a long morning, and she leaned her head back as she let the warmth of the water calm her soul and ease the tension that had built up within her muscles and joints from her hard night of training.

The Hospice

Aleiva smiled despite herself when Linde said she was fine. Some part of the young healer knew she worried too much, but Aleiva couldn't help but want to take care of others, especially her friends. the young Apothecary was going to say something more, but the opening door caught her attention once more, causing her to look over at the entering Laris. He was so nice, always trying to help out. Though, he seemed as nervous as she was about talking to people. In Aleiva's case, it was worse around people she didn't know, or didn't know well. That meant there was little talking between them.Though they had spent some time together, Aleiva didn't know all that much about the white hared man.

"Oh.. Laris.. Th-thank you very much.. I was running low on-on St. jon's wart and... myrrh." She said softly. "Did you.. happen to-to find ether..?" Usually Linde supplied her herbs, but Aleiva wouldn't turn down Laris's attempts to help. He was treated like an outcast by so many and, while Aleiva didn't understand why he was treated so, it made her want to be all the nicer to the poor thing.

When Linde excused herself, Aleiva returned her friend's smile with a sheepish smile of her own. "Alright.." She said in that usual, soft tone that barely lifted above a whisper. "There are fresh towels... on a stool neat the tub." She added when Linde paused to stare at Laris. The girl tilted her head slightly to the side and looked between the two in mild confusion until Linde went on her way to freshen up. Of course she was curious about the odd interaction between the two, but Aleiva was a bit too timid to ask Laris. Maybe she could ask Linde later, if they didn't get too busy.

With her friend gone to freshen up, Aleiva turned her full attention to Laris. The apothecary's gaze drifted to the floor as she folded her hands behind her back and shifted her weight from foot to foot nervously. It took nearly a full minuet for the girl to speak again. "Uh.. so.. may I see what you-What you brought?" She finally asked. Unless there was some sort of medical problem that needed solving, Aleiva found it awkward trying to speak to nearly everyone outside of her family.

The Hospice

Laris was a bit unnerved when Linde seemed to answer a bit coldly towards him, and he became more so when she stared at him before leaving. What was her problem? He had just been trying to be nice...Laris let out a small sigh. It didn't matter, he was used to such reactions, in fact, he was surprised she hadn't straight up threatened him.

As Aleiva began to speak to him, Laris almost stumbled backwards with surprise. "A-are you talking to m-me?" He seemed to forget that he was the one who had come inside in the first place. "O-oh, r-right. S-s-sorry, I'm not used to people addressing me. U-uh St. Jon's Wart and myrrh, w-was it? Sorry, A-Aleiva, I don't know the plants well, but i-if it's in the forest, I-I probably grabbed it." He shuffled a bit and twiddled his thumbs, embarrassed that he didn't know what she was talking about at all. "S-sorry I-I couldn't be more help. I'm m-m-more used to r-recognizing if i-it's edible or not."

When Aleiva started talking to Linde right as she left to...freshen up, was it..?.. Laris allowed himself to zone out. He tried to think of a way to calm himself down, after all, he wasn't sure why he was being particularly awkward with Aleiva. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, the effect of which was negated as soon as he heard her again. "U-uh what? O-oh, y-yeah, please take a look." He ruffled his hair a bit, brushing it out of his eyes and wiped off his hands before quietly stepping closer. He offered her the basket, making it a point to look at the wall to his right.

Hospice (Apothecary's)

Laris's reaction to being spoken to made the young Apothecary smile warmly at him. The poor thing was so nervous, he needed all of the support he could get. Once the man stepped forward with the basket, Aleiva gently took it and started looking through it as Laris spoke. "It's-It's okay. Laris." She said gently. "It was nice of you to... help." Laris lack of knowledge on herbs meant some of the plants he brought were useless, but Aleiva couldn't bring herself to say so. Instead, she focused on the useful plants.

"Oh.. this is... kava kava.. It's good for-for head aches and m-muscle tension..." Aleiva commented, almost to herself. "You found some, some arjuna too.." While she wasn't low on ether, Aleiva could always dry the herbs for later use. For now, Aleiva set the basket on the front desk. "I-if you don't mind.. could I.. keep the basket and-and give it back after I hang the herbs to dry?" After asking, the girl instantly felt guilty and opened her mouth to say she would find another basket, but paused when the door opened...

Instead of someone from the village, it was a stranger. Once more it was a stranger dragging ANOTHER stranger! He was obviously a Delerian from the look of him, but Aleiva was more concerned by the fact that he seemed to be barely conscious than anything. He got a quick once over right there before the young apothecary spoke. "Oh! Uh.. S-sir?" Aleiva stammered at the stranger for a moment, but the fact that some one was in need of help forced her into being a little more decisive. Though, she spoke in the same, soft voice as before. "Please... put him on the table i-in the exam room." She requested hopefully as she pushed the door open. "L-Laris.. please.. help him."

Whether the men did as she asked or not, Aleiva would hurry into the exam room ahead of them to get things ready. Her quick assessment made Aleiva think the man was more exhausted, and possibly dehydrated, than anything. She would give him a closer inspection in a moment, but she wanted to get a glass and a bowl of water, along with a few choice herbs, out and ready beforehand.

Glass of water in hand, Aleiva returned to the Delerian's side, kneeling on the floor if the men didn't move him for her, and thanking them if they did. First things first, Aleiva had to try getting him to drink if he was able. "Here, drink this.." She offered, hopeful he could do so in his slightly delirious state. That state suggested stage two dehydration. To confirm her assumption, Alieva would first test the Delerian's skin turgor, if he allowed it, by gently pinching a small bit and lifting it with her free hand. Usually skin will snap right back into place, but the more dehydrated one is the longer it takes. She would also check his pulse to see how high it was if he let her, then put her hand to his forehead to check for the fever that can come with Dehydration.

Apothecary

The merchant had been relieved when he no longer felt the strain on his arms from dragging the Delerian about that was until the apothecary requested that he move the Delerian—again—to the exam room. His eyes narrowed as a long frown stretched his lips. Did she know how heavy he was? When she then requested for her friend to help him, the merchant shot Laris a teasing grin. Good, so he didn’t have to move him alone. He grabbed the warrior’s ankles, and if the other man grabbed him beneath his arms—which his upper body he felt was the heaviest—they could haul the warrior together, carrying him over to the hospital bed. Once there, the merchant released him and stepped back to give the young girl some space while she worked.

He ran the back of his hand across his forehead, drying a sheet of sweat before he smiled and informed, “I found him face down in the woods. He’s covered in desert dust, so I assumed he had been crossing the desert and must have run out of supplies. I can’t imagine someone making such a journey without a horse. It’s ludicrous; he’s lucky to be alive.”

The voices that surrounded the Delerian were very quiet as though his head was packed full of cotton balls. His eyes were half-lidded and were focused on the ceiling as a glass of water hovered over his face. The first few drops had dripped upon his lips, and the Delerian’s pupils dilated as his tongue swept over his dry and cracked lips to take in the remnants of water.

The merchant ran his fingers back through his long blonde hair as he saw the warrior was coming out of his condition. It made him uncomfortable to linger. Who knew when he would realize what he had done? He needed to leave while he had yet to see his face.

“Welp; he’s in good hands now. I’ll just be on my way. I got things to sell, you know. Goodbye!” the merchant bade before he briskly took his leave.

The Delerian raised his hand to grasp the glass and he dumped the water into his mouth, gulping it greedily until a sickness churned in his stomach. He paused in his drinking, turning his head to the side as a wave of nausea passed through him. His stomach had only needed a moment to adjust before he was able to swallow the water tucked away in his cheeks. Gasping softly, the Delerian closed his eyes and sighed in relief.

What village is this? the language that left his lips was native to Delère (Delerian). The warrior assumed that he was still within his country’s borders and within one of the conquered burgs.

The steam filling the room was heaven to her skin, and the warmth of the water melted away the soreness in her muscles. The wonderful effects of the special herbs she added to it before entering were helping all the more as the sweet scent of the plants mixed in with her skin and hair before she finally opened her eyes again and looked up at the ceiling of her little bathroom.

She inhaled deeply, letting it off on a sigh of content as she leaned her head from one side to the other, gently cracking it at both ends before leaning back once more.

"At times like this I almost wish that I weren't so engrossed in my training... It does get rather lonely around here since Aleiva's always working."

She closed her eyes as her mind began to wander to her days before training became important. She remembered vividly times where she would rely on others for comfort, especially her mother. Before the accident, she was always looking for her mother and hiding behind her, all the while hoping that things would work out. When they didn't, she would turn to her father. Today, however, things were very different.

Her eyes opened and she felt a single tear roll down her cheek.

At first it was almost surreal. Surely that tear wasn't really there, was it? She reached up and picked it up on the tip of her finger, staring at it for a long while as more began to fall.

"Wh-.... What is this?" She asked to nobody in particular in between small gasps of breath as her tears began to flow like a pair of rivers down her face.

She gripped her shoulders, hard, and her fingers dug into her skin causing small rivulets of blood to ooze forth from the now open wounds. There was no recognition of the pain through the memories and flowing thoughts which now cascaded through her mind, and her grip only tightened until she finally opened her eyes and saw what she was doing to herself. She released her grip and gently stroked her shoulders, smearing the blood over them before allowing her body to sink below the surface of the water. The blood began to wash off of her skin, but in the process it began to stick to the minerals and herbal liquids she had placed in the tub, staining the water red around her shoulders.

"That won't do... Aleiva's really going to let me have it this time." She said, a small and somewhat pained smile on her face.

Linde rose out of her tub and stepped over to a small cloth on the floor as she reached for her towel. Her blood was flowing slower, and it didn't stain her towel very much, but none the less it did stain it. Once she was done she got dressed into a small outfit resembling a nightgown which Aleiva had bought for her last year as a birthday present. It was a light material and looked almost like a one piece dress were it not for the small white frills on the collar and the lapels, not to mention that it stopped just above her knees which is where she liked it to be.

Aside from this small gown from Aleiva, she was wearing only her undergarments. Her arms and legs were bare, which was a sight not many had seen from her. She looked in the mirror and a glint of depression crossed her eyes. She turned from one side to the other, looking her body up and down while she wondered if she actually looked feminine anymore. When she was young she had big dreams of marriage and a family, but after the accident that all vanished in favor of becoming stronger. She continued to pose in front of the mirror as the memories of her childhood dreams came rushing back into her head.

"Am I... still a woman to these people?" She asked herself quietly.

She opened the door to her room from the bathroom and sat down on the edge of her bed, wondering if she should talk to Aleiva about getting her shoulders bandaged before a thought occurred to her. Aleiva had always been there for her and was always working hard to watch out for her despite how distant she always was, and Linde had to admire the girl's dedication to such an absent friend. Linde had done little to repay her, save for giving her the batches of herbs that she could not find for herself in the wilderness beyond her comfort zone, which was where Linde did most of her training.

"... I'll make her something..." She said softly as her eyes lit up and her face brightened.

"Yes! Something nice and something practical... But what to make?" She asked herself as she stood up and approached the door.

A thousand and one ideas began to rush through her head before a single thought finally occurred to her. Aleiva gathered her own herbs even though she let Linde find others that she could not reach in the wilderness, and she mostly used a basket for such an effort and would get the herbs mixed up and have to organize them upon her return.

"Yes, I'll make her a belt with pouches for different herbal ingredients!" She said aloud to herself as she opened the door.

"Aleiva!" She called out.

She was about to call again but suddenly cut it off as she saw the event unfolding before her as she rounded the corner of the hallway into the main room. On the floor before her was Aleiva and a new face. A quick examination of his feature confirmed him as Delerian and Linde came forward to Aleiva's side, watching as the man quickly downed the water and started speaking in Delerian. She understood his words, her father being a Delerian himself, and so she chose to answer the man's question since nobody else around her was doing so. She spoke softly and evenly in Delerian for him, supporting his head as she slowly lifted him to a more seated position.

"This is the village of Lian, on the border between Delère and Caelum. Who are you sir, and why have you come into such bad fortune as to be in such a state?" She asked.

Hospice (Apothecary's)

The merchant's words fell upon death ears. Aleiva was too engrossed in taking care of her new patient to notice his somewhat suspicious departure, and may not have picked up on it even if she had been paying attention. It was a relife that the man was able to drink on his own, that meant he would probably be fine with fluids and rest. Though the speed that the Delerian drank the water was cause for concern. For a moment, she was sure he would throw the water back up. It was only after the man spoke that the young Apothecary reached out to gently take the empty glass. "Please... you must drink m-more slowly or-or you'll make yourself sick." She said softly. Now that she knew the man wasn't in mortal danger, Aleiva's timid nature returned with a vengeance.

Aleiva wasn't sure when she had come out of the back, but she heard Lindie's voice. Suddenly the woman was at her side, helping the Delerian sit up and answering his question. Aleiva also noticed her friend was wearing the dress she had gotten for her... and that her bare arms had small wounds in them. While this made her frown, the girl could only tend one patient at a time.. she would have to examine the wounds later. It was still a relief to have Linde there, she was a great source of moral support and spoke Delère much better than the young apothecary. Thanks to her father, Aleiva did speak some Delère; enough to get by at least. However, Aleiva was not fluent.

As Linde spoke with the Delerian, Aleiva walked back to the barrel and refilled the glass. This time Aleiva added a couple of herbs, a little pellitory and barberry, to the water before returning to offer the glass to the Delarian once more. "It may taste bitter, but it will support your kidneys." She said softly. Sever dehydration could cause the Kidneys to shut down. Aleiva didn't see any yellowing to say they were damaged, but the herbs wouldn't hurt him, better safe than sorry.

It occured to Aleiva that the stranger may not understand her, so she spoke once more in Delère. "Taste... bad. For you... good." She managed. Though, knowing how choppy her words were made her wince. Aleiva could only hope that the Delerian would understand what she meant. If nothing else, Linde could probably explain it better should he not understand.

Laris' face turned red with embarrassment as she thanked him. He himself did not know, and was only aware of a warm feeling in his cheeks. However, he ignored the heat, and tried to get out a reply to her. "Y-y-you're w-welcome, Aleiva. S-s-sorry I couldn't h-h-help m-more." He wondered to himself why he had said her name just then, as it wasn't exactly necessary. He felt as though he simply enjoyed saying her name. As she began to mutter to herself about the herbs, he continued with his thoughts, unintentionally mouthing them out. "Wonder why I did that...and sheesh, why did I come in for no reason.." However, his pondering was again interrupted by Aleiva. Not that it mattered much, he felt joy at hearing her speak, on the rare few times that she did to him. She had asked him for the basket, and his response would have been to give it to her without regret. However, as it seemed they were both about to speak, the door creaked open and someone came in.

Make that two someones. Which was panicky. Laris didn't like people, especially outsiders. Perhaps dislike was the wrong word; Laris didn't like interacting with others in general. Except Aleiva, for whatever reason. But these two strange men were not her, obviously. But, when she asked him to help carry the dehydrated-looking man over to the exam room, he could not refuse. As the man who wasn't dying shot him a grin, Laris tried to smile back, knowing it probably looked a bit strange. He wasn't used that particular facial expression. After the he moved the man, he stepped back to let Aleiva do her work. He gently tapped her on the shoulder, saying "I-I'll just b-b-b-be o-over there...c-c-call m-me if y-y-you need s-s-some h-help." Laris decided that she might need something, hence why he said his statement. He then proceeded to step back and tried to blend into the background until he was called. He noticed the man get up and say something in a language that he didn't understand. He also watched Linde re-enter the room, and say something, again, in the language he didn't understand. Though, from the sound of it, it was probably Delerian. He only managed to pick up a few words here and there.

Within the wee hours of morning light, as haunting dusk breeze gave way to golden forest skies, a little less than a dozen tired minds scrambled awake from the clutches of a midsummer nights' dream. Watching as a timid moon become its' brilliant, beseeching counterpart, it came as an inconvenient reminder to one particular, already alert mind that her world had not been lovingly enchanted by a dream; that the otherwise charming midsummer night had only graced her eyes with --or what had been-- a bleak, wholly uneventful stretch of darkness. It had been, after all, an evening where not a thieving soul had stirred save the natural, ethereal residents of the forest. And, although a guard should be glad for inactivity, suffice it to say that she could've very well been vigorously waving a sign saying 'Please eat me, mosquitoes!' and gotten no less but the same amount of action; just kind of sitting there like a ripe, plump tomato.

But a guard is a guard, and nobody asks to get robbed. So, with only a dispirited sigh to tell the tale, Ilene hopped from her perch as the last shift of night watch ended; eyes warmly welcoming the change from shades of black to gold. Because, although it wasn't entirely obvious (if at all), her sight was never the sharpest in the shadows. No matter how bad, though, her lack thereof was never enough to shirk sentry duty; and, being the ever competent high-class waitress, Ilene didn't really have the option to say no. Not that, of course, she ever would; when work and getting paid was just as --if not more-- important. In any case, amongst the hustle and bustle among the newly awakened travelling party, these depressing thoughts pushed to the corners and recesses of her mind; to be dwelled on the next, equally depressing night. What fun.

Or, well, perhaps not. For the past couple days, one of her charges had been caught in excessive bouts of coughing; and, from what Ilene had seen, was now snared in some sort of dim, increasingly severe fever. It was only a matter of time before the decision came to get a check-up at the border mountain village of Lian; the only available pit-stop within a couple dozen miles. We were going to replenish our supplies, anyway. And, after a few weeks of weary travelling, no sane person would reject the idea of a clean bath; or the prospect of, you know, not being attacked one night. An intermission between mosquito bites, like the calm before the swarm, yes? Ilene, of course, had absolutely no idea how right she was. Really, blood-sucking insects in an inn? But, in any case, within an hour and a half of back-breaking swerves to avoid overhanging branches on top of a slightly disfigured horse, the answer to the entire party's prayers shone between the edges of the Twisted Woods.

That is to say, Lian came into view in much the spectacular fashion; with, in their eyes, a heavenly glow of sunlight illuminating the scene. Which simultaneously triggered nine or so relaxed, pent-up sighs; although most entirely for completely different reasons. Personally, there had been an unrelenting itch on Ilene's back she hadn't been able to get, for fear of a vicious tree causing an equally vicious concussion. So, perhaps two hours after dawn and all with rather sore muscles from days and days of riding; these nine travelers checked into the local inn, three with quite lavish rooms while the rest took significantly less expensive posts all around. Happy horses went into happy stables, and weary guards were dismissed for most of the day. The tavern was the first hit for the vast majority of these people and, as Ilene had been the lone sheep heading back to her room, unknowingly passed the young adult to a wolf wrapped on a bright, silver platter.

The cause for the wreckage of her entire afternoon, evening, and perhaps days thereafter was initiated by two, very simple words. "Apothecary. Now." What am I, a dog? It wouldn't be such a source of agitation for the future Ilene if the previously frantic pair of rich parents had bothered to be even the least sincere for their child; which, in all fairness, they weren't. And who was it again that wanted to get halfway across the country in less than a month? The duo had complained all throughout the journey, and by their parenting it wasn't very difficult to imagine them causing the declining health of their child. All of the hired help had thought, at more than one point, that life was really just unfair; that it really was a shame that the miraculously sweet Gilbert Junior had been born to a bad set of parents. But, well, that's how it goes.

In any case, it was with an altogether mixed sense of disgust, accompanied by the beginnings of morning exhaustion, that made Ilene's daily, inwardly annoyed attitude; unknowingly brought to delightfully add to the congregated crowd's already-stiff mood in the Apothecary. And, although she was hit with a wave of 'life is just about to get a little more difficult! Don't go in!' just before opening the door, the kid was never one to back away from someone in need; no matter the client a bitch. So, throwing all caution into the wind, Ilene quietly slipped in to be part of the busy clinic; instantly regretting her decision when the parting noise of the Delerian language welcomed her. She inwardly winced, of course, but stayed put with a friendly face for the sake of a job to do.

Right. They're not all murderers. I'm not supposed to judge-- Damn it. From a quick, five-second survey of the scene, it seemed as if the Delerian in question had somehow been dehydrated and brought there; revived by copious amounts of water. The others, most likely of mixed heritage (as she wasn't able to discern it upon a glance), were crowded around; and she could only assume that the two women worked for the apothecary, while the man just a regular villager. The only impressions her mind enforced was the unjustified, immediate disliking of the Delerian; as she always had. But nothing changed among a still, calm face; and it took a few moments before she deemed it polite to approach for the sake of a child. Seeing that the taller woman was busy helping the downed man, Ilene chanced her bearings on the shorter; approaching by the front and staying a respective distance away. After all, being that she was armed, it was always better not to startle when pitching a request.

Without wasting time on introductions (and a little on edge as Gilbert Junior had been steadily getting worse), Ilene gave a detailed as much explanation of her own situation; her tone of voice a tad urgent, but calm enough. "A child just arrived at the inn with a bad case of fever, and he's getting worse. He's been coughing for days, but we don't know what caused it, or why. Please, can we have a moment of your time?" Practiced, a little pleading, she waited for a response; fully having thought that the taller woman, Linde, was also a healer. Her eyes casually danced from face to face, although determinedly ignoring the Delerian, but the fact that she only asked for one only meant that she hadn't ignored his sickness. Just, you know, bypassing the person in question. (Well, you can't expect better treatment from one grown in Caelum, can you?)

The Apothecary

The Delerian’s eyes cracked open when he felt a hand slide behind his head. It had been rough and calloused that he thought it had been a man’s at first until he heard the language of his people being woven on feminine lips. Grey hues travelled up Linde’s outstretched arm, but hadn’t exactly reached her face before they met two, massive roadblocks that made the warrior’s brows knit in astonishment. Her breasts were enormous. If she hadn’t been helping him sit up, he might have lost his strength in his awe. Once he was sitting up, he gazed at Linde’s face, observing some Delerian features as well as Caelum. There was no way she would have jugs that huge if she was pure Delerian. He would know. He had seen female Delerian warriors. They were as flat as a board, lacking the proper nourishment since the land around them was a desert. He didn’t know much about Caelum women, but it made his brain ache to think that women with knockers that size would come from the enemy nation. It couldn’t be true! He wouldn’t be able to stomach it if it was.

The Delerian was looking frustrated, confused, or even constipated. There was a dumbfounded frown on his face, and it wasn’t until Aleiva returned to hand him a glass of herbal water that he awoke from his condition. He blinked a few times, and then took the glass, listening to her broken Delerian. He looked her over, and she appeared more Caelum with hints of Delerian. These women were hot! But wait, what was going on here? Had the rack queen said that the village was on the borders of Caelum and Delère? Then who claimed it?

The Delerian raised his hand, resting his palm against his forehead. It was too much for his brain to take. Before responding to Linde, he took a drink from the glass the herbalist had offered to him, believing that it would cure his headache, but instead put a bad taste in his mouth. His nose wrinkled as he lowered the glass and forced the liquid down his throat.

I don’t understand… The warrior began. He scowled down at the glass in his hands as he thought over what he’s seen so far. If King Rodul ever discovered this village, he would have his soldiers slaughter everyone here. Delerians were forbidden to lay with the enemy. It disturbed him to think how lucky this village was to have survived this long. It could have been the cover of the mountains that had kept them hidden from those that would do them harm. Closing his eyes, the Delerian decided to rid those thoughts from his mind. I am Daerio Vardin. I hail from Gunnimead, a village in Delère. I was crossing the desert when I wound up here. That is all you need to know.

The accent of Caelum then filled his ears. It hadn’t been an accent similar to the hybrids that stood around him. There was no mistaking that accent. It was pure-breed Caelum. Daerio gazed past Linde at the blonde woman that was speaking with the platinum-haired beauty. His eyes lowered to her chest and his lips parted as a disgusted hiss streamed through his teeth. Gods…he had been missing out. On a positive note, his journey was given meaning. He had found prettier women, and there had bound to be more in the village.

Daerio finished his glass of herbal water and reached a hand behind his back, brushing over the empty leather holsters that had once carried his axes. His eyes widened in disbelief. No wonder the weight on his shoulders was lighter. They hadn’t been there!

What! Daerio exclaimed. He abruptly rose to his feet, dropping the glass that shattered upon the floor at his feet. His hands went behind his back and he began frantically patting around as though he were trying to scratch what he couldn’t reach. He then accusingly glanced to Linde, Laris, Ilene, and Aleiva before a memory cue flashed before his eyes. The nice axes he had seen on the merchant’s cart had been his.

Daerio’s hands lowered and he felt around his pockets. What else did that man steal? His money was gone. The Delerian’s face flushed red with anger before he roared, THIEVES! SCOUNDRELS! SWINDLERS!

His hands clenched into shaking fists. You let him escape with my money and gear!

---

The Smithy

The door to The Smithy opened as a blonde man backed into the shop, dragging a large pair of battleaxes. His face was tense with his struggles as he gazed over his shoulder at the young woman and blacksmith within. He flashed them a brilliant smile before he greeted merrily, “Hello, hello! What a wonderful…” He rasped. “Morning.”

Once he was close enough, he leaned the weapons against the wall and bent over, resting his hands upon his knees as he softly panted. As soon as he caught his breath, he straightened and faced the two beings with sweat lightly glistening on his face. The Smithy wasn’t at all refreshing in temperature.

“Allow me to introduce myself, I am Ivan, a traveling merchant and do I have a sale for you, Sir! Or perhaps ma’am,” he said, eying Nimuae like a gold-snatching crow. “What I have here are two axes composed of Delerian steel. Yes! Inspect them yourself, Sir. This is no sham. I found them off a dead man in the desert—lucky me! They are in exquisite shape, and there’s enough steel there to be melted down into swords or…”

His eyes narrowed impishly as he eyed the Nimuae’s bow. “Arrowheads.”

The merchant then glanced innocently to the ceiling.

"I don't understand..." He said quietly to himself.

A few moment's later, "I am Daerio Vardin. I hail from Gunnimead, a village in Delère. I was crossing the desert when I wound up here. That is all you need to know."

Linde was a bit unsure of this man. She had seen him eyeing her breasts before he spoke, which didn't bother her as she was used to men staring at her. The dress she had on didn't help as it did show a fair amount of cleavage so it was only natural that his eyes would wander.

At least he hadn't looked farther down. She thought to herself.

Linde's dress was short and fell to just above her knees. That being said, she was currently kneeling on her right leg and had his eyes wandered lower there was a chance for him to see her underwear. Luckily that didn't seem to be the case and Linde decided that it was best that way.

A few seconds later he rose to his feet quite abruptly, and Linde stood up with him, standing somewhat defensively in front of Aleiva as the man searched himself for something.

"THIEVES. SCOUNDRELS. SWINDLERS." He shouted as he turned to face them.

"You let him escape with my money and gear!" He yelled.

Linde came forward and placed her hand on his shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. One again, she spoke in a clam voice as she once again spoke his native Delerian language.

"Calm yourself. There is only one place that someone could go in this village to sell weapons or equipment of this nature. The blacksmith is not far from here, and if you will calm yourself and allow me to, I will lead you there. The one you speak of could not have gotten far and will not likely sell your belongings before we reach him."

With that she let go of his shoulder and walked to the door past the young blonde woman from before. She looked over her shoulder to Aleiva and gave her an apologetic smile.

"Sorry Aleiva, but I have to get this sorted out before it turns into a massive scene in the village. You take care of the boy that girl was talking about and I'll help this one find his belongings."

She looked back towards the Delerian and jerked her head towards the door, "Come!", she ordered in Delerian to him as she walked out the door.

Hospice (Apothecary's)

Aleiva felt a little guilty that poor Laris was just standing awkwardly in the corner, but she had to make sure her new patient would be okay before allowing herself to get distracted. He drank the herbal water a little more slowly, which was good, but she did notice his hand go to his head. Ah, she should have figured he would have a head ache, that he would be be sore in general really, and added something for the pain as well... The young Apothecary's mistake made her frown, but it wasn't too late to rectify it. She would just have to try and remember the right words...

As she tried to think of the right words, letting her gaze drift to the floor as she did so, Aleiva listened to Linde speak to the Delerian. While she didn't understand every word, the girl did get the gist of what he was saying. He was basically answering Linde's questions. Aleiva felt even more out of place than normal, seeing as she barely understood what was being said, and rubbed her arm awkwardly. "I sorry. If you.. head hurt I-" She started sheepishly, but never got to finish.

A new voice drew the young Apothecary's attention from the Linde and the Delerian to yet another stranger. This one a Caelum woman. "A-A sick child?" She asked. Her tone was urgent but not loud or panicked. Aleiva turned and went to her cupboards without waiting for conformation to grab a few things. With children, ever second counted. "I-Is it just a fever and cough...? Any other-other symptoms?" She asked softly. The more she knew about the child's illness, the more prepared she could be before hand.

Aleiva was stuffing her supplies into a large, brown, leather sack with a single strap when the shattering of the delarian's glass and his sudden yelling made her freeze. Something about thieves... taking his money and his gear? The young Apothecary turned her head to look at Daerio, but Linde was already on top of it. It was times like this that Aleiva was especially grateful to have her there. Linde was strong, bold, and brave... everything Aleiva wasn't. Her friend's words, however, quickly brought her out of her hero warship. Aleiva had a child to take care of. "R-right." Came aleiva's answer. It was quiet but firm.

Aleiva returned her attention to her supplies. "Uh.. Laris.. I may need an-an extra par of hands. I-if you don't mind.." She said softly before heading for the door. the girl wanted to reach the Inn as quickly as possible. Aleiva would normally have been more timid around a stranger like the Caelum woman, but she had to push herself outside of her comfort zone when a child's health was on the line. "Lets-Lets go quickly...uh.. Okay?" Was all Aleiva said to.. well, asked the woman before hurrying out the door. She assumed the Caelum would join her, and Laris would follow if he decided to help. Hopefully she wasn't asking too much of the timid man. The blond would surly know the room the boy was in and be able to take her to him, but first they had to get to the Inn! In her hurry to get to her new patient, Aleiva was all but running.

The Hospice

Laris observed the man from the corner as he seemed to rage abut something. Of course, he couldn't understand what was being said, but he was glad that for once that Linde was there, even if she had given him that look earlier. Which he still wasn't sure what it meant. 

However, what drew his attention was the woman who had entered. Her look was vaguely reminiscent of a Caelum, but her words were more important than her looks. Did she just mention a sick child? As Laris stepped forward to answer the call, Aleiva beat him to the punch. He wad content to let her ask the questions, after all, he wasn't the apothecary. 

As she finished packing her bags, h was surprised when she asked for his help. "M-me? A-a-alright, sure." He jogged after Aleiva, pausing only to throw a short word to the Caelum woman. "The inn, r-right? P-please hurry and help her find the room when we get there. The only thing that makes her go this quickly is a person who needs help." With that, he ran off after Aleiva, trailing behind her. Just to be thoughtful, he decided he would try to help out a bit more. "D-do you w-w-want me t-to t-take your bag, Aleiva?" There it was. He had said her name again for no reason. Strange. 

---

A white haired young man came stumbling out of the only inn in Lian quickly followed by a much larger, stronger looking man with quite the ferocious look on his face, landing on his knees as he tripped down the last stair and into the road. "Alright boy, this is your last chance to...apologize. But simple words aren't going to be enough. I'll be expecting a good shoe shine to get your blood off my boots after I'm done kicking you around a bit." The man cracked his knuckles with an evil grin on his face. "If you apologize now though I'll let you live and we can laugh about this later on."

The young man slowly got up and dusted himself off before turning to look the older man in the eyes. "Sir, I don't know what I have done to offend you. I simply pointed out that the Delèreian government is horribly misguided in its attempts at maintaining control. You don't rule with an iron fist a people you could simply rule with sound judgement and reasoning."

The man bristled at the last bit and quickly retorted "Oh, so now our people are unintelligent huh? You calling us stupid, boy?" he asked, reveling himself to be either a true Delèreian or a close descendent.

The young man quickly lifted his hands with open palms in defense of his words, "Not at all sir! I simply called your government leaders stupid." The look on his face showed he immediately regretted his poor choice of words but before he had the chance to attempt to take them back the Delèreian exploded and lunged for the white haired boy.

The boy sidestepped out of the way as the large man stumbled a few steps into the road, surprised that he didn't have a human body ready to be pummeled in his grasp. With a roar of rage the man turned and swung a beefy fist towards where the boy was but was again met with no resistance as his target sidestepped and stepped up behind him with his back to him. The large man took two steps back in surprise before he pulled a large knife from his belt and snarled, watching the boy who still hadn't turned to face him.

"You don't want to do that my good sir. Weapons shouldn't be in the hands of those unable to use them properly," the boy said calmly and without any mocking tone. The Delèreian snarled again and leaped forwards to drive the blade into the boy's back when the boy suddenly turned and ducked under the incoming blade before reaching up with his left hand to grasp his opponent's wrist, swinging his right hand in an arc to connect with the pressure point on the inside of the man's wrist causing his hand to open and release the grasped blade. The boy picked the knife up mid-flight with his left hand and flipped it over to his right as he took a step back, recovering his balance. The man looked up at the white haired boy with a startled look on his face but before the boy could follow up the older man stepped forward and he had to dance out of the way to avoid being grabbed and probably ended. He kept dancing around, trying to get in close but the swings of the much larger man kept him at bay, unable to get close enough to strike back.

The boy's earlier over confidence got the better of him as his dancing eventually lead to him finding a rock on the unfamiliar territory and almost toppling over, stumbling once again. The Delèreian took his chance and closed the distance but the boy managed to duck inside his reach, ending up on the older man's left side with the knife grasped by the hilt but pointing the opposite direction. He sent several quick, precise strikes with the knife, one across the shoulders, one down the belt and one across the back seam of the man's pants before he returned to his passive standing position, his arms folded into the sleeve of the opposite a few feet behind the man's back.

The crowd that had gathered burst into laughter as the Delèreian's outer clothing fell away from his body, revealing his undergarments. The man quickly bent down to pull what was left of his pants up in a semblance of coverage but with the belt sliced clean through and the back seam completely gone it didn't do much and simply caused him to look more foolish. "Now sir, I did warn you about not drawing a blade you were unfamiliar with did I not? Maybe you should listen to a monk in the future."

Neal Songburrow could barely contain his inner laughter as he turned to look at the man he had just exposed to the crowd, the man who was now attempting to cover as much of himself as he could with two torn garments and cursing at the top of his lungs. His training had taught him to not use his abilities in aggression or for enjoyment and as such he had given the man several warnings both in and outside the Inn before he had reacted. One should have better manners then to interrupt one who was enjoying a private conversation with another about a matter that truly didn't concern them. Neal gave a slight bow to the Delèreian before he turned to continue his visit to the town with a short stop at the local Hospice to sell the herbs he had gathered near his camp on Green Peak.

He had just turned the last corner before he reached the Hospice when he had to take a step to the side to avoid a sprinting girl followed closely by a sprinting boy. He was about to intervene, falsely assuming the girl was being chased until he recognized her from his previous visits to the town as the one who maintained the Hospice. Neal heard the boy ask if he could carry her bag for her and he realized that the boy must be assisting the girl on whatever errand she was running and so Neal let the pair run off as he headed on towards the building. Even if she was gone she had to return at some point and he was sure there would be something interesting to do or someone to talk to while he waited.

---

---

As Neal approached the Hospice he was almost struck in the face when the door came flying open as one of the occupants exited the building. He was saved simply by the fact that he hadn't quite reached the door and had only just begun to lean in to grasp the door handle before quickly leaning back out of the way with the door whistling past, inches away from his nose.

He blinked a few times before he fully realized he still had his nose attached to his face and took a few steps back and out of the way of the red eyed woman who came through the doorway. He bowed an apology for being in the way and said, "Pardon me for being in the way, my fair lady. Might I ask if you know when the kind Apothecary will be returning? I have certain herbs that I would like to sell if she has need of them." he quickly raised his hands before she could object to him charging, "I promise it won't be the exorbitant price of a merchant. I merely need a few items from the Grocer myself and unfortunately he doesn't work on the barter system as I have first hand knowledge with."

Well. That's mighty representative of Delerian nature. I'm judging again, aren't I? From the angry tones of a certain incomprehensible jumble of a tongue, Ilene could only gather that the previous patient before her was --for lack of a better phrase-- still under the mighty delusions formed by dehydration. Or, something she'd much rather believe, taken under a peculiar mental condition that all from his race seemed to have; one easily explained by the example 'Who're you lookin' at, Wall? You lookin' for a fight? Yeah? Don't you just stand there, bitch. Askin' for a go?', followed by a pissed off guy punching said wall. In other words, a disease called stupidity: when it magically seems perfectly logical to beat up anyone and anything, even biting the hand that feeds you. Yes, because violence is always the answer. But, in any case, as Ilene's beautiful impression of the young, enraged man suddenly planned suicide and jumped off a cliff, her nonchalant expression remained much the same; allowing only a raised, sarcastic eyebrow to express her thoughts. Because what kind of person is able to keep a good image of a (sadly to say) already prejudiced adult, when said person bursts out yelling in a language you simply don't understand? And those accusing looks? Not helping in the least.

But I digress. Brunette, on the other hand, seems pretty level. Which, coming from such a grounded person already, was as good a compliment as a stranger could get. Ilene, having caught the parting comment this girl made to.. Aleiva, was it?, couldn't help but give to a momentary drop of disappointment. Because, unfortunately, she couldn't paint a Delerian's impression worse. Put a damper on someone's day, why don't you? Anyhow, as one occupant quickly filed out the door, it soon became very apparent her next course of action. Which, thankfully, took her far, far away from a pissed off, prehistoric barbarian. Needless to say, she was wholly agreeable when Aleiva and Laris, stuttering all the while, gathered their wits and requested a quick leave; bringing back the previous sense of urgency that had only been pushed away by disgust. It was from such a rush that Ilene wholeheartedly ignored their words to hurry up, as she was effortlessly keeping pace anyway.

Then, just as she began to think of ways to help, the kid finally remembered that directed question: "I-Is it just a fever and cough...? Any other-other symptoms?", unanswered since she'd been busy trying to recall the past days. Then, when she did have an intelligent response, a rampant viking had went ahead and announced pretty loudly to the world that he had anger management issues. Well, it's better late then never, right? So, with the least further ado (but after Aleiva had responded to Laris, mind), Ilene set to rectifying her earlier lapse in memory. "Aleiva, was it? I couldn't say before, but I think Gilbert Junior --the child-- might have eaten something. We've been travelling hard for about two weeks now, it'd be even more surprising if he hadn't." Or, if what I think is right, then it's his parents' fault and not his own. They've never treated him well. But what can I do? "But since this morning he hasn't been able to keep anything down, not even water."

The look on Ilene's face remained a tad troubled, while her tone mildly urgent; akin to the times when she had to give a report. Her pace was kept in a brisk, fast walk; fluid though any warrior's would be. No lines of extreme worry were etched into her face, although the fact that she was was quite evident; and just a great a feat for a usual untouchable, secluded person as she. Rare, no doubt. But he's a good kid. Nevertheless, this temporary reprieve of depressed sadness only lasted until the inn came to view just a couple moments later; along with her fellow Caelum bodyguard standing impatiently just by the entrance. Seeing him, Ilene gave a quick, almost distracted "Excuse me, looks like there's news." to her companions before dashing across the clearing to meet him; upon reaching speaking in a series of rapid Caelum. Such brisk words would've otherwise been too swift for the unaccustomed ear to decipher completely, although strays could be picked out.

In the end, the gist of their conversation came as something like "What took you so long? Junior won't stop shaking, and he started coughing blood; which only made the fever worse. It only began when Lana (the mother) tried feeding him again. The severity of Junior's sickness is only hitting them just now. Damn it, the hell did they do to make him like this?!" Sparing no moments, Ilene relayed this information (with much teeth clenching) back to Aleiva, this time including various references to Junior's irresponsible parents; coming surprisingly bitter in those parts. It didn't take long to guide the duo to the child's room in the inn as she did so, which was quite the contradictory place; with lavish furnishings but with the smell of the sick and vomit infesting the air. A crying set of parents, along with several concerned guards, stood around or some distance away from an occupied bed; none of them minding the possibility of catching the same disease.

Ilene's explanations conveniently ended the moment the door opened, from then calmly and efficiently alerting her fellow travelers of the presence of Lian's very own doctor. Speaking in Caelum, the hired help nodded and evacuated for work's privacy; leaving behind two distraught guardians. Not knowing whether or not to escort them out, lest Aleiva want to question whatever it was that they might have fed Junior, Ilene left them promptly --and comfortably-- seated a little ways away. It was only then that she allowed herself to look down and finally let Junior's condition sink in; gaze immediately hardening at the deprived situation. He was sweating and violently shivering, surrounded by small splotches of blood soaked into the blanket on top of him; barely conscious, if at all. Had it not been for Ilene's vigorous lifestyle, she might have gathered into a rage or broken down; but as it was, only a cold, blank sheet could be seen.

Thinking to help, she laid out her swords on a free table behind her and, rolling up sleeves, turned to the only person who could possibly cure Junior now. "What do you think? How can I help?"

The road in front of the hospice.

Aleiva looked back to Laris when the timid young man asked if he could carry her bag. "A-alright." She said softly. He seemed so timid and unsure of himself that it was hard for the girl to say no. That would be so mean. He was only trying to help after all. The young apothecary didn't stop moving as she handed her bag over though, and nearly missed seeing the white haired Caelum altogether in the process. Aleiva recognized him as the man who lived outside the village on the Green peek mountain. He occasionally sold her herbs. Linde usually supplied most of what Aleiva needed, but it was hard for her to turn anyone down. It wan't as if she could have too many herbs anyway.. right? "S-sorry.." She called softly, likely too softly to hear, as she ran past. It always bothered Aleiva when she had to leave the Alothecary unattended, especially when she saw someone may need her, but some times it was unavoidable.

When Aleiva saw she hadn't needed to hurry the Caelum lady along in the least, she realized how insensitive it had been. No doubt this woman wanted to help the child just as badly as she did, if not more so. The girl made a mental note to apologies later. "I see... W-what did you see that makes you suspect he ate something bad?" She asked softly after the armored woman explained her suspicions. Any clue could be helpful. Fever and coughing could be caused by any number of illnesses or poisonous plants. Though the cough could narrow it down a little if it truly was a poisoning.

outside The Inn

Ignoring the small crowed that was dispersing around the Inn as the trio approached, Aleiva was more focused on blond as she excused herself and ran ahead. Aleiva hesitated for a moment, not sure if she should be ease dropping on the soldiers conversation. However, her worry for the child quickly had Aleiva pushing her uncertainties to the back of her mind as she ran after the blond, stopping just a couple of feet behind her to give the two a little room. The young Apothecary's mother was Caelum. Aleiva enjoyed the language and often spoke it with her mother, leading her to be quiet fluent. However, the blond spoke so low and so quickly with the other guard that she had a hard time following most of it. What she did hear caused the girl to frown. Aleiva's first thought, from what the blond had said, was that It was a possible case of accidental poisoning. That Gilbert Junior had eaten some bad mushrooms or berries. However, hearing the way the guard spoke... No. she shouldn't jump to conclusions before seeing the boy. Only after the blond Caelum repeated the whole conversation did Aleiva have a better picture of what was happening.

Inside the Inn

Aleiva followed right on Ilene's heels as they made their way to the boy's room. The moment Aleiva saw the young boy suffering, something shifted inside the girl. Her insecurities were pushed aside as she strode to the boy's bed with purpose and gently took his hand. "Gilbert?" She cooed softly in Caelum. "I've come to help you." Aleiva tried to reasure the barely conscious boy before looking at the blond Caelum and Laris. "I'll need towels and two large bowls of clean, barely warm water. Have someone draw him a bath too. Tell them not to heat the water." She answered Ilene, calm but assertive. Aleiva was so focused that she didn't even stutter. Her only thoughts were for the sick boy. They needed to bring his fever down now. A cool, but not freezing, bath would help without throwing him into shock. "Laris, Stack pillows up behind the boy so he's sitting up a bit more." She didn't want him choking on his own blood.

The young apothecary had to take a few moments to check the boys pules and respiration, but she also took this time to speak to the two they had left in the room, assuming them to be the parents. Not knowing if they spoke Lian's common language, she spoke to them in Caelum. "Are you Gilbert's parents? What has he been eating?" It came out as more of a demand than a question, but there was no time for kid gloves if she was going to save the child. "Exactly how long has he been sick?" Aleiva waited a moment for an answer before using a clean part of the blanket to wipe most of the blood off the boy's chest so she could put her ear to his chest and listen to his heart and lungs.

Aleiva frowned as she listened to the boy's chest. His symptoms were common for most accidental food poisoning.. except for the coughing blood. Ether they stumbled upon a rare poisonous plant by mistake, or something more was going on. As she filtered through the possibilities, Aleiva took her bag and set it on the table, then dug out a bowl and a few herbs. "Yarrow for the bleeding and fever, Coltsfoot for the cough.." Aleiva listed out loud in Caelum. Many patients, and parents of patients, liked to know exactly what she was giving them, so it was a bit of a habit. "...cayenne for pain and nausea, and..." The girl paused here to look pointedly at the parents before continuing. "milk thistle with ginger for poisoning." The girl finished. Aleiva could only hope it wasn't too late for the detoxifying and, liver healing herbs to do their jobs against any poisoning.. accidental or otherwise. Once everything was in the bowl, the girl began smashing the dried herbs into a fine powder. "He may have an easier time taking this it with a little sugar or honey... Laris, please ask for some when your done with the pillows."

As she crushed the herbs and waited for the water, Aleiva returned to the boy's bedside. "Don't give up, Gilbert. You'll be okay." She said in a soft, hopeful voice in Caelum. He may have been too dilierious to really understand, but a friendly, encouraging voice was usually welcome.-}

The Road to the Inn

Laris wanted to say something to the man they passed by, but it seemed they were in a rush. It probably wouldn’t have turned out well anyway. People from around the village usually didn’t take well to him. He followed Ilene with a brisk jog, barely making a sound. It was daylight, the time when he was most obvious with the sun reflecting off of his white hair. He wanted to get there as soon as possible, so he let out a sigh of relief as the inn came into sight. He watched as Ilene spoke to a man at the door, guessing she was probably speaking Caelum, though not understanding any of. Until she relayed the information to Aleiva, that was. He managed to catch most of it, though it was useless to him.

The Inn

As they entered the room that Junior was in, Laris winced. Rarely did a room ever look so wonderful and terrible at the same time. He stepped back to let Aleiva do her work, noticing the immediate change in personality when she was caring for a patient. “A-alright, p-pillows. Got it.” He moved forward again, gently bringing the boy’s head up while piling up the pillows, before laying him back down. With her other commands he nodded. “I-I’ll get the h-honey and tell t-them to draw a bath.” He figured that he couldn’t do it all, and decided to let Ilene get the bowls of water and towels. Besides, she was probably very tense, and letting her do something would hopefully help.

Laris ran back to the main bar, ignoring the fact that he wasn’t inconspicuous. Now wasn’t the time to be worried about that. “B-bartender? C-could I get s-some honey, p-please? A-and could I also a-ask for someone to d-draw a bath - c-cold, unheated? T-t-there’s a sick c-child...” The bartender nodded, handing Laris a small jar of honey. “Sure. I’ll have someone get a tub of water filled. You'll have to bring him to it, though.” Laris nodded his thanks, fishing into his pocket for some coins and tossing them down on the counter. He then hurried back to Aleiva, Junior and Ilene. He slipped into the room quietly, holding out the jar to Aleiva. “H-here’s the honey...And t-they're preparing t-t-the bath now. T-though we will h-h-have to bring the k-kid to it.”

Oh? So she can speak Caelum! Certainly makes life easier. The brief moment of satisfaction couldn't last, however, as Ilene was once again drawn back to the dire situation at hand; this time given something to do. Which, although she's never the type to admit it, that feeling of doing something made quite the stress release. Or, well, something like that. "I'll need towels and two large bowls of clean, barely warm water. Have someone draw him a bath too. Tell them not to heat the water." Ilene made an involuntary sharp, quick nod before coming to a kind of mutual agreement with the other citizen of Lian, Laris. She bolted out the door a heartbeat after her fellow helper and, after a couple minutes' worth of finding --as well as explaining to-- an innkeeper, made several trips to Gilbert Junior's room; one with towels and for each respective container of water. Soon becoming so relatively engrossed that she forgot entirely to care for the few repercussions of the panic caused by a sick child; simple little errands that hadn't been done. Which will inevitably come back to bite her again later, but anyway.

Meanwhile, of course, Junior's parents were in the process of being lightly interrogated. "Are you Gilbert's parents? What has he been eating? Exactly how long has he been sick?" And, seeing as their light frame of mind was only beginning to come back together, it took several long moments before either could make it to reply. Or, well, to make up an excuse so whatever that had happened to Gilbert seemed less than what it really was. In the end, it was the child's father that replied; having not been the one to instigate the violent, bloody coughs. So, with a tone as (falsely) brave as he could, he made best to answer Aleiva's questions; in the same language she had used to ask. "I'm Gil's father. We've been traveling for a few weeks already, but I guess he started acting off maybe.. a week ago?" From then, a brief moment passed as he seemed to try to recall. "On the road, there's a lot of things he could've accidentally eaten. We really don't know." And he probably would've left it at that, had a small voice piped up after a defeated sigh.

"It's.. Well, we found these funny looking berries a little while back; just around the time Gil got sick. They.. really didn't seem like anything bad. I mean, we both tried some and it's not like we're ill or anything. Gil probably snuck and ate some. But it's been a week!" At that, Junior's mother collapsed into tears again; spurring another round of consoling and hugs from the father (who had been glaring at her for speaking since the beginning, but got over it). Which, in other interpretations, pretty much means 'Yeah, we're done. Nothing else you'll get out of us.' But that, as conveniently as it was, came to an end just as Ilene herself returned from her third trip back to the room; with all things asked accounted for. And, as just another simple coincidence, she had easily overheard the last bits of their confession; kicking up another round of rage-turned calm.

If you're in the process, why don't you just give her the whole picture already? Fess up. But then, well, she came to realize that saying as much herself was probably more productive. And so that was, with a casual voice not in the least condescending unfortunately. "Actually, that's not right. They've been feeding those berries to Gilbert like a bribe. I, myself, tried them and thought they were harmless enough. But it's true, those things are the only bits of food they found themselves. Otherwise, we're very careful." As she spoke, Ilene strolled across the room to the opposite side of the bed (from Aleiva); rummaging through a pack of bags presumably belonging to the sick child. Every kid hoards their food.. Now where in the where did he-- Evidently, the berries were pretty obvious.

Slightly larger than the average blackberry, these little pockets of disease were dull black in colour; with several spots of red littering it's bumpy surface. Plump but smooth, a perhaps a dozen could fit easily in a hand. Or that was what it seemed to be, as Ilene carefully grabbed a handful from a small stash; placing them among a small decorative plate for Aleiva to see. And then, well, the two parents recovered from their states of shock and decided to take some form of revenge; immediately laying down a few monotonous errands for her to run. Feeding the horses? Seriously? Isn't that what stable boys are supposed to do? It's high time to look for another job, isn't it? Halfway through their small, idiotic tantrum, Ilene promptly rolled her eyes and stood; cutting them off as she grabbed her swords and spoke to Aleiva instead.

"Sorry about this. Looks like I've got to go. I'll entrust Junior to you, so take good care of him, okay?" Nearing the door, she looked back and added an afterthought: "Right. If you need me, ask for Ilene da Silva. Any of my Caelum travelers will know where to find me." That done, without waiting for a response, the kid walked straight out the door; much depressed at the prospect of fulfilling mindless tasks for the next long stretch of her morning. Been kind of hectic, hasn't it?

The Inn

Aleiva continued to work on grinding the herbs into a fine powder as she listened to the parents, until Laris and the the in keeper started coming in with the items she had requested. "Thank you." She said softly to them. The girl quickly took the honey from Laris and went back to the table where her bag, along with the bowls of water and towels, had been set down. "La-" She started, but her next instructions would have to wait.

As the young apothecary had started to dissolve the herbal powder into a bowl of water, the blond caelum girl had returned and, apparently, the couple hadn't been fully honest. I was quite obvious from the parents reactions that they had been caught, if not in an outright lie, certainly not telling the full truth. Though a little vexed at the two, Aleiva calmly continued to dissolve the herbal powder into the water then add the honey as she watched the guard, who seemed more concerned than his own parents, dig out the berries and show them to her. "They look like they have lief blight.." She commented darkly. The red spots were certainly indicative of a fungal infection, one that made human's quite sick when they ate it. Linde would know the effects on the plants and how it spread, all Aleiva knew was how it effected those who ate it. If the others only tried a few of them to see if they were safe and the boy was eating them like candy, it was easy to see why they were fine while Gilbert Jr. was on death's door. Especially since children are more suseptable to practically any disease to start with. Aleiva would have liked to ask the blond a few more questions, but she was being banished for her help by the parents. At least she had a name. Ilene probably saved Gilbert's life.

In fact, as she ground some Myrrh into a powder to add to the herbs she was already using, Aleiva spoke to the caelum parents in their native tongue. "You're choice not to tell me the truth could have cost Junior his life. You are lucky Ilene was here." She scolded, perhaps not as harshly as she should have. It wasn't in Aleiva to be outright cruel. Hopefully the two had learned their lesson and Ilene could catch a break. Of course that would only happen if the parents realized how foolish holding back information had been. How could anyone put a child's life in danger to keep others from knowing they made a mistake? Whatever their reasons for hiding it , Aleiva wanted to be sure they understood at least one thing for the future. "Don't eat berries with spots like this.. ever." She spoke gently but seriously. Surely the couple was upset enough, but they had to know how their actions effected their son. "You should never eat what you don't know. You could easily have killed him" She spoke in Caelum once more to be sure there was no misunderstanding.

After adding the myrrh, the young apothecary also pulled some grapefruit seed extract from her bag. The two new ingredients were great for fighting fungal infections, the likely source of Gilbert junior's bloody cough. Combined with the detoxifying herbs to help flush everything out of his system, this -should- do the trick. If they weren't too late. "Laris?" Aleiva asked softly in Lian. "Please take the other bowl of water and get the towels wet. We need one towel behind his neck and one on his forehead. Then take one more wet towel and pull the covers back so you can wipe the boy down while I feed him." The evaporating, warm water would start the process of lowering Gilbert Jr.'s body temperature slowly, helping to prevent shock from a sudden drop when they put him in the bath.

Trusting Laris to do his part, Aleiva finished mixing the medicine and took a special cup, shaped like an egg to make pouring easier, from her bag before returning to the boy's side. After setting the bowl on the night stand, Aleiva gently supported the boy's head with one hand, and held a cup of the liquid with the other. "Drink this Gilbert. It will help you feel better." She said softly in Caelum before raising the cup to the boy's lips and tilting it. Aleiva poured slowly, letting his natural instinct to swallow things in the back of the throat take over. This was to prevent junior from choking on, or aspirating the liquid. Aleiva paused whenever a fit of coughing hit. As much as she might have liked to get the medicine into him faster, the girl knew better than to rush this part.. no matter how painfully slow it seemed to be going.

As she fed Gilbert, Aleiva took a moment to speak to the nearest guard in caelum, though she didn't look up at him. "We'll need to move him to the bath downstairs soon. Will you help us carry him?" She asked. Once his fever was down the boy would, hopefully, be more lucid. Then she could ask him if his parents gave him anything else... just in case. It seemed like this was all a mistake that the prideful parents tried to hide, but better safe than sorry for the child's sake. "You two should wait here, we'll need room to work." She added to the parents, still speaking in their native tongue. Aleiva couldn't ask questions with them hovering over Junior to stop her.

The Inn

With Laris giving the boy a cooling wipe down, Aleiva spoke soothingly to Gilbert Jr. as she fed him the herbal potion. It took some time, but eventually, the boy drank the whole bowl. "Alright, wrap him in a blanket and lets get him down to the tub." She said softly. Hopefully by the time the bath was over, the medicine would be starting to kick in. If not... things didn't bode well for the child.

The guard had agreed to help, so he and Laris carefully lifted the young boy from his sick bed and carried him down the stairs to place him in the tub. "Be careful.." Aleiva whispered, not that it was necessary. Both men were gental as they unwrapped Gilbert Jr. and placed him in the cold bath. He gave a whimper, a fairly mild reaction considering the sudden change in temperature. "Thank you both..." came the apothecary's soft voice again before she knelt next to the boy and started next to the boy and started cupping water then pooring it over his head. "Please help me clean him up Laris." The boy would be more comfortable if nothing else.

Laris was a big help in getting Gilbert Jr clean. He helped to lift and turn the boy, who was dead weight at the moment. Once Gilbert was clean, Alieva told Laris to rest, then she sat next to the tub. The girl just spoke to Junior for a while, letting the evaporating water lower the boy's temperature. He would likely still have a fever for a few days, but it would be a lower, non-life threatening fever if all went to plan.

The young Apothecary was just about to have the boy taken upstairs when he opened his eyes and looked at her. "Who are you?" He asked dully. "I'm the apothecary... You have been sick for a while." Aleiva said softly. "I think the barries you have been eating made you sick.. but I have to be sure. I have to know what you ate to make you sick so that no one else eats it." Aleiva explained slowly. Gilbert nodded to show he understood. Weak as he was, Aleiva wasn't going to push him too hard. "You wont be in trouble, no one will be, but I need to know if you ate anything -anything- that no one else ate. Even if someone gave it to you. They could have given you something bad by mistake." It felt like forever before Gilbert answered, but it was only a few moments. "Just the berries... No one gave me anything else.." The boy whispered, his voice horse from coughing.

That answer filled Aleiva with relief. There was no reason to suspect the boy had eaten anything else. He had no reason to lie. The parents, though deceitful, had seemed truly concerned there son was sick too, so she had no reason to suspect an intentional poisoning from what she had seen so far. After a few more minuets, Aleiva asked for Laris and the guards to take Gilbert Jr. back upstairs, which they agreed to do. When the group arrived back upstairs, Aleiva was happy to see the maids had cleaned the room while they were gone, and the parents were happy to see their 'baby' was feeling better.

After the tearful reunion and once the boy was back in bed, Aleiva spoke to the parents in Caelum. She explained that Gilbert junior should rest, drink lots of fluids, and not eat anything for at least two days. The Apothecary also told the two he would need to continue taking medicine for about ten days, and they could ether come by the hospice later, or send someone to pick it up and pay for it. Now that the boy was taken care of, it was time for them to let the family spend some time together alone.

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The streets of Lian on the way to the Hospice.

With Laris taking her bag once more, Aleiva walked slowly back to the hospice. She had several batches of medicine to make for the Caelum boy, would have to ask Linde for more herbs, and she had to see if anyone needed her at the hospice. First, however, Aleiva also needed to be sure Linde was okay. The herbalist was a great fighter, but that Delarian man had been big and angry... and the healer couldn't help but worry for her friend. The hospice was the best place to start the search and she could see if anyone needed her while she was at it. From there, she could check the smithy. The Delarian had said something about his weapons being stolen after all. Who else in town would buy them?