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Post by Matthias on Jul 4, 2017 8:30:57 GMT
Pontius was heavy, a fact that Matthias brought up regularly as he carried the shifter through the woods. He was heavy and cumbersome and wouldn’t stop his squirming even after Matthias said he would drop him on a stump if he got an elbow to the back of the neck one more time.
He had tried shifting but his true form was so small that the ugly break was even worse and he was losing too much blood too quickly. Matthias had tried to give him blood since dragon blood healed wounds but Pontius had stuck the foot of his good leg on Matthias’ chest and held it fully extended until his bleeding wound healed over. He didn’t want lizard blood in him, much less reptile human blood and he kicked Matthias when the human threatened to heal him anyway.
So, given the fact that the best the miner he had been escorting could do was sloppily set the leg then wrap it up to a stick, Matthias decided they were going to get actual medical help. And the only healer he had ever trusted in his life happened to have a house not terribly far away.
They lost the horse, after the pretty half dragon had attacked, and it had been a long and miserable trudge. Before they even got to the woods the boys were sunburned, even Pontius with his dark skin. They didn’t have enough water and really had no food but Matthias kept walking.
It was pure dumb luck that they didn’t run into any hungry creatures or bandits, especially since Pontius’ leg was dripping blood every few yards and leaving a scent trail that stretched out for miles behind them. Matthias might look tough now, but his training was minimal and outside of his healing factor he didn’t have a lot to go on. He could have cried with relief when he finally saw the healer’s small hut in the woods and he started power walking to the door.
“I’ll be fine, you know. It’s not the first I haven’t had medical treatment.”
“Yeah, well I want you to meet Rosalind anyway.”
Pontius rolled his eyes. Matthias didn’t see it but he could tell. “Look, trust me. She saw my brand and didn’t turn me over to the hounds so she won’t do anything to sell you out. Besides, you haven’t even broken any laws! That was all me and you know it.”
Pontius leaned forward and rested his chin on the humans shoulder so his breath tickled Matthias’ ear. “Why are you so sure?”
“Because I trust her,” he said simply.
Pontius was silent after that, and he didn’t resist as Matthias set him on one of the chairs on the porch. Gods, for a walking stick Pontius was heavy and Matthias rolled his shoulders a few times before they popped and cracked loudly. He raised his hand to knock but before he could Pontius said, “nobody’s in there.”
He was in his half form, ears perked up and small nose twitching as he leaned back into the chair. “I can smell dust from out here, no one’s been in there for a few months at least.”
“Oh.” Matthias looked down at Pontius before he looked back at the door. “Guess I have to break in, then.”
“Wh-!? NO!” Pontius winced as he moved to stand, falling back into the chair bonelessly but no less indignant. “You’ve been singing this lady’s praises for hours we aren’t breaking into her home areyouinsane!?”
“Naw, she’ll be cool with it. Besides-” Matthias leaned back and looked at the sky, “-It's almost night and she'd be angrier if we crashed on the porch instead of inside.” Rather than knocking Matthias reached for the door and, much to his delight and surprise, it opened. He looked at Pontius but the shifter had his face in his hands. He didn't even look up as Matthias swept him up and brought him inside, flicking the door shut with his tail as he walked past.
It was much like any of her other homes and Matthias set Pontius down on a couch before he lay down next to him and curled his arms around the shifter's waist. It was too hot for a blanket and gods he was exhausted.
“I wanna be big spoon.”
“Mm,” Matthias buried his face against the back of Pontius' neck.
“No, really you fucking gods damn lizard. Let me be big spoon.”
Matthias grumbled and ignored the complaint as he snuggled closer, falling asleep despite his friend's ire.
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Post by Rosalind on Jul 7, 2017 8:06:23 GMT
For most people, finding a trail of blood leading to their home would be a deeply unsettling occurrence. For Rosalind, though, it was just another day at the office. She picked up the trail a good half an hour away from her house, and considering it led like an arrow right to her front door, there was a pretty good chance that in her case it was someone looking for her healing services rather than a deranged axe murderer.
The Shifter woman had been on her way to the Tangle house when she stumbled on the blood. Or rather Suhail did - the four year old Daemon child had scented it first and been immediately distracted with his lengthening claws and fangs, while the four Human children stared down at it with only vague interest. The siblings had been living with Rosalind for over a year now and were used to her profession - finding blood near her house wasn't new to them either - and they all knew it meant there would be no more relaxed meandering towards home, gathering food on the way. Rosalind needed to get home quickly to help the person she presumed was now bleeding all over her veranda, so she handed the eldest child the basket full of mushrooms and bits and pieces of other plants they had collected on their way, and hauled the youngest - a two year old - into the sling she wore that held the child pressed to her chest.
"Come on, you lot. Home!" Still laughing and jostling, chattering away, the five children fell in behind Rosalind and followed her back through the woods.
Rosalind was momentarily confused when her small, strange family arrived on the tiny sliver of lawn that surrounded the Tangle house and found an empty porch. She left the place unlocked when she wasn't there - locking it only led people to think there might be valuables inside, which there wasn't, and she'd grown tired of replacing the lock - but most people didn't even try the door if they came for healing. They waited for her on the rocking chair outside, put there for exactly that purpose. A suspicion quickly dawned - a few people who she knew might go right inside - and the healer headed inside quickly, Dart clinging to her neck. The marsh children followed close on her heels, in order with Hamza closest behind her and tiny Ramla at the back, with only Suhail out of order as he hurried to clamber past her. Sure enough, curled on her couch lay a familiar form cuddling with the reason for the blood trail that had led her here. A delighted grin broke out over the healer's face, while Suhail climbed cat-like onto the back of the couch, crouching with his wings flared for balance to peer down at the two young men.
"Another crocodile! Rosalind, look!"
"Suhail, don't poke him, it's rude. He's a dragon, darling, not a crocodile like you and your aunt."
"He's all scaly though."
"Yes. Yes, that he is. Matthias?" Rosalind lifted Dart out of the sling and set the baby on the rug in front of the couch, unwinding herself from the material as she did so. Hamza, Zayn, Amira and Ramla had arranged themselves in a line in front of the same couch where the two boys lay, and were all staring intently at the newcomers. Hamza, Zayn and Amira remembered Matthias from the last time he'd visited, but they were still curious, and probably deeply unsettling to wake up to find staring at you with their pale green eyes.
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Post by Matthias on Jul 7, 2017 9:59:18 GMT
Matthias' eyebrow twitched and he glanced up blearily as the door opened, surprised that it was already morning. He blinked hard before he saw Rosalind and his head fell again as he pressed his forehead against Pontius' neck again. He felt relaxed and at ease, inside the house was a comfortable break from the broiling heat of summer and just knowing the house belonged to Rosalind was enough to make him feel safe. His screwed up his face as he sensed the approach of the dreaded children but he determinedly pretended to sleep until Rosalind spoke. “It's Ezer,” Matthias corrected her as he finally blinked his gray eyes open for real.
One of his legs had hooked around the knee of Pontius' unbroken leg and while the arm under him was supporting his head his other was flung across the shifter's stomach. Well. That was probably not the best way for Rosalin to meet Pontius but he could work with this. Matthias propped himself up on his arm, dodging around Suhail as the child tried to grab at his striped arm.
He shifted around, careful not to knock Pontius off the narrow couch before he started prodding at the side of the shifter's neck with a claw. “Hey, Russ. Wake up,” he said.
Pontius scrunched up his own face and turned his head, starting to roll over before a throb of pain in his leg made his eyes snap open.
“Ow! Fuc-MPH!?” Pontius' words were cut off as Matthias clamped a hand down over his mouth. The shifter squirmed and looked around and saw he was surrounded by children. “HWT HMP MMPH!! ERR MPH AHHGAM!” He sat up quickly, too confused and momentarily afraid to care about the shock of pain.
“Okay. Hi Rosalind,” Matthias said, “this is Russ. Russ, this is Rosalind. And her kids.” He didn't remember their names and was secretly hoping Rosalind would introduce them so he could play it off.
At long last Pontius stopped trying to scream and Matthias took his hand from the shifter's mouth. He looked wary, despite everything he did not trust Rosalind and that was clear from his expression alone. He looked better than he had, evidence of abuse and starvation faded after so many months but his hair had the same white streaks as Matthais' did, he still had a brand hidden by his shirt, his wrists and ankles were scared from being bound too tightly again and again for years... He knew he still looked like a slave and he was terrified, no matter how many times he had been told she was a good woman.
“Hello ma'am,” he said, his voice suddenly soft and meek.
“Russ' leg got broken, can you set it?” Matthias asked, getting straight to the point if Pontius wouldn't. “Also do you have any ink you don't need?”
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Post by Rosalind on Jul 8, 2017 2:34:35 GMT
The Tangle house had been closed up for a while, and while Rosalind's homes could sometimes be re-purposed as way stations for travellers when she wasn't there she didn't think anyone had stopped by for a while before Matthias and his friend. The place wanted dusting, everything needed airing out. But she ignored this, gaze drawn at once to the injury in the room, a professional eye assessing the break. She was gratified that Matthias had brought his friend to her, but it was lucky he had. That kind of break screamed infection.
"Stop staring, you lot. My apologies Ezer...Hamza, can you organise your brothers and sisters for me? Dusting, open the windows, turn over the beds, you know the drill." Rosalind was not a strict parent but the children were familiar with chores and, though there was grumbling from Zayn in particular, the children filed off to prepare the house.
"Suhail, you too."
"But I want to talk to Ezer about crocodiles!"
"Later. And stop poking him!" Sighing, Suhail jumped off the back of the couch and followed his siblings out, tail trailing along the ground and leaving a trail in the light layer of dust.
Alone with the two boys except for the baby gurgling on the mat, Rosalind smiled as she knelt in front of the couch, squeezing Matthias' shoulder briefly in greeting. She was looking mostly at Russ though, curious about where Matthias had found the boy and how they'd come to be travelling together.
"It's a pleasure, Russ. Any friend of Ezer's is welcome in my home any time. The children will leave us be for a while, but you can get to know them later." Gentle hands reached out to straighten Russ' broken leg, inspecting it with a practised eye and assessing the injury carefully. There was an easy confidence in her movements; she caused as little pain as possible while obtaining as much information as she needed.
"I can treat this, yes. It's a bad break though, Ezer. What happened? If we can keep it from getting infected he'll make a full recovery, but these kinds of open fractures can be hard to keep sterile." Rosalind did not have magic for this kind of injury, but she didn't bother suggesting they find someone else. Magical healers in Litharia were few, far between, and cripplingly expensive.
Rosalind rocked back on her heels then stood, scooping D'artagnen up in her arms in the same fluid movement.
"Bring him through to the other room, Ezer, and we'll get started right away. Longer we leave it the more likely it is to turn bad. There's ink in the study upstairs." Another itch of curiosity and she glanced at the half-dragon boy when he asked this, but didn't pry. She knew from experience Matthias would share what he felt comfortable sharing and nothing more. She cared deeply for the boy who'd been a tiny, scrawny blonde child when she first met him, who she still remembered that way despite him now being much taller than her and brawny to go with it.
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Post by Matthias on Jul 8, 2017 11:17:40 GMT
Matthias didn't really understand how he was supposed to act around children, so he stayed rigid and ignored the young daemon prodding at the part of his forearm where scales gave way to soft flesh. “I do not know anything about crocodiles, I'm a dragon,” he said flatly, squirming a little as the child dropped off the back of the couch and followed the rest of the pack.
He let out a relieved breath as they vanished and leaned back.
“Um,” Pontius glanced nervously at Matthias but he just shrugged. “Thank you ma'am.” It took every once of willpower he had not to jerk his leg out of her hands as the splinters of his legs rolled together. He didn't grimace, he just reached out and grabbed Matthias' hand, clutching it so tight his knuckles turned white.
“Oh, someone kicked him in the knee and it sort of. Broke.” Matthias said. He wasn't actually sure how much detail he wanted to give her, since he was pretty sure she wouldn't like the fact that he was acting as a mercenary now. There was a way to sugarcoat that, probably, he just hadn't thought of it yet. “I did the best I could,” he said in reference to the rough, bloody bandages on Pontius' leg. “Lucky you were on your way here, I guess.”
He was hoping they could stay until Pontius could walk again, too, but he didn't actually know how to ask. He'd always just left after a few hours and had stayed the night at her place only once before. Hells, he didn't even know how long it took for a broken leg to heal!
He nodded quickly when she asked him to take Pontius to the other room and, before Pontius could argue, he scooped him up and carried him bridal style. Pontius couldn't help hissing as his broken leg moved awkwardly and his free leg kicked at Matthias' side. “Oh cut it out you baby,” Matthias grumbled as he carted him into the next room and set him down on the bed.
“Why the hell didn't we sleep in here?” Pontius hissed and Matthias shrugged.
“Because this is where people have surgery done and I don't want to sleep on that.”
“Oh.” Pontius grimaced.
Matthias started to move away from the bed but Pontius grabbed his forearm with both hands and whispered furiously, “Oh no you don't! You aren't going anywhere!”
“Relax, I'm just getting a chair. Roll up your pants leg, by the way.” Matthias leaned down and kissed Pontius' temple before he sat down in the window ledge next to the bed with his knees tucked up to his chest and his tail curled around his feet. Pontius glared at him, then looked nervously at Rosalind and tried to force a smile before he reached down to start undoing his bandages, letting them pile clumsily on the bed under his calf.
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Post by Rosalind on Jul 9, 2017 7:09:07 GMT
Rosalind beamed at Russ.
"You have beautiful manners, but you can call me Rosalind if you like. Everyone else does, even the kids." She frowned though, at Matthias' explanation of the injury.
"Was that someone a horse? Because it took a lot of force to accomplish this." She peered around the back of his leg and grimaced at the bone clearly sticking out the back of Russ' calf, creating a nauseating lump in the bandages. If they were lucky it was only snapped in the one place, but she'd need to get in and have a look to make sure and then set it so it would heal right. Dark bruising on the front of the leg was another clue at how hard he'd been kicked, and she didn't like the colour of the rest of the skin. There might be a low grade infection already, she just hoped it was in the wound and not the bone.
In the surgery room Rosalind put Dart on a rug in the corner, a wooden ring clutched in one chubby fist to gnaw on. The baby was extraordinarily placid and good-natured, which was lucky given Rosalind's profession. She also lit the small fire in the grate - not for warmth, but to heat water, which she fetched through a small door that led outside. That done all her attention turned to Russ and Matthias - Hamza was the only one of the elder children allowed in the healing room when she was with a patient, and Rosalind trusted the oldest shaman child to be responsible enough to interrupt her if anyone needed her. Otherwise, she knew, the children would be racing through their chores before heading out to the stream out the back to play.
It had been a few months since Rosalind had last had a proper surgery case, but this looked like one. With Russ stretched out on the bed and the injury unbandaged is was obvious the fracture was complex; that meant damage to the bone, the surroundings muscles, and the skin it had pierced.
"Alright, Russ. Would you like to be unconscious for this? I can give you a drink that will make you sleep for a few hours. It's your choice but I strongly recommend it, the pain will be very severe otherwise." As she spoke Rosalind prepared, fetching two knives - one very small, the other about the size of a hunting knife, and both scrupulously clean and wickedly sharp. She also fetched several pots of mysterious looking lotions, fresh bandages, suturing supplies, and other bits and pieces she might want. Matthias' and Russ' obvious closeness might have been enough to distract her had she not been the consummate professional in this type of situation, but privately Rosalind was thrilled. Matthias had been so, so wary and broken when she'd first met him, but his connection with Russ was painfully clear and she couldn't have been happier that the ill-treated boy had found someone to rely on.
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Post by Matthias on Jul 10, 2017 7:18:00 GMT
“U-uhm, I, um,” Pontius glanced nervously at Matthias who shrugged unhelpfully. He squirmed a little before saying weakly, “uh, alright. Rosalind.” He was good at keeping his expression measured, nearly as good as Matthias himself was, but he had been told he was supposed to be more chill and damn if he wasn't trying his best.
“N-no it wasn't a horse it . . . was a pretty girl?”
“She was a half-dragon,” Matthias said around the hand over his chin, “she had a war hammer. And some giant knives. We're probably lucky she only broke his leg.” He looked at Pontius for a second before he raised his head and looked at Rosalind. He'd been looking for more of his kind for years and he'd told her about it. Figures that was how he'd meet another halfie.
When Rosalind asked if he'd like to be conscious Pontius blinked and squirmed nervously before he looked at Matthias, who read between the lines.
“Yeah, I'm not going anywhere.”
Pontius looked back at Rosalind and said, “I would love to be unconscious, Mrs. Rosalind.” He gave her a thumbs up.
Matthias cleared his throat and said, “he's a type of raccoon shifter so he can digest about anything, I guess, but he hasn't had medical treatment before so we don't know his allergies.” He pressed his cheek into his open palm and flicked the end of his tail like a cat. “I dunno if you need to know that or not.”
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Post by Rosalind on Jul 12, 2017 6:12:56 GMT
“A girl huh?” Rosalind glanced at Matthias when Pontius said this and almost smiled to herself. Neither of the boys sounded particularly mad with her. In fact, they sounded quite awed, which she supposed was a fair reaction to a girl who had the power to snap a person’s leg clean in two with a kick.
“Wait, a half-dragon? Like you? You found them!” At this Rosalind really did smile. Matthias had been looking for how he fit into the world for as long as she’d known him. He’d never had a real home or family, and though Rosalind tried to give him everything she could she felt like he’d still been looking even after choosing to become a half-dragon. Matthias had sought out that power for himself very deliberately and she’d watch him take to it like a duck to water. If he could find some kind of social connection with others of the same type, she thought he might finally feel like he’d found home. Maybe, anyway. A shot worth taking.
It also explained Pontius’ leg. Rosalind was not in the least bit afraid of Matthias, in whom she still saw that tiny angry child she’d first met, but if she met someone like him without knowing them first she might be terrified.
Rosalind fetched a small glass of a clear liquid from a cupboard under one of the benches lining the room, and handed it to Pontius. It was a draft she made herself from a rare fungus mostly found in the marshes, and steeped in strong alcohol.
“Good choice, and drink this, then. It will knock you out for a good few hours and you’ll not feel the surgery. You’ll be a little groggy when you do come around and I should warn you, it can cause strange dreams. Not necessarily frightening, though they can be sometimes, but definitely odd.” While she waited for the draft to take effect Rosalind retrieved the pot of water from the stove, where it was boiling rapidly, and set it alongside the bed to start it cooling.
“I’ve not had someone have an allergic reaction to that mixture yet,” she reassured Matthias, sterilising her instruments in the fire now it was free of the water pot.
“And I have magic that can fix it if he does have one. The surgery will be the old-fashioned kind, though, I’m afraid. Don’t fight the tiredness, Russ, when it comes. Next time you wake up I’ll be able to give you something for the pain, so for you the worst is already over.” She brushed his hair out of his eyes, an instinctive motherly gesture, and sat next to the bed to wait for him to drift off.
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Post by Matthias on Jul 17, 2017 1:17:50 GMT
“Yeah,” Matthias said with a small smile. Even his voice had an upward lilt in a rare and subtle expression of emotion. "She said she was from a village too, I think there’s an entire village of Half Dragons hidden in the cliffs. She took off flying, though, so I don’t know where she went.”
He fell silent again, all eyes on an increasingly uncomfortable Pontius. It was almost a relief when she handed him some drink that smelled so strong it almost made his eyes water. He took a deep breath before he turned his head up and drank it in one go, trying to taste as little as possible and just get it down all in one go, but he couldn’t help the wet trail that ran from the corner of his mouth down his chin. “Blegh!” He spat. Pontius wrinkles his whole face and stuck out his tongue before he shook his head. “Seven thrice damned fucking hells, that tastes like-”
“Russ!”
“What? Oh. Right.” He smiled nervously at Rosalind and said, “I, uh, meant … um. Gee darn, that tastes ... not … good.”
Pontius could see Matthias pinching the bridge of his nose out of the corner of his eye and his smile grew almost painfully forced. Please, whatever god's got my back knock me out, Pontius prayed silently. And his prayer was answered quickly. In a matter of seconds a wave of nausea his him and his vision seemed to fuzz around the edges. “Ooohh,” He groaned as he leaned back on the bed until his head was resting on the pillow. He really had never been given any sort of medication before and it hit him hard and fast. It felt like it was leaking out of his stomach and into every limb, making them feel leaden and it curled around his head and made it feel like his brain was sinking into the back of his skull. He groaned and made a weak sort of gurgling noise before he slumped entirely into a drug enhanced sleep.
Matthias peered at Pontius for a moment before he got to his scaly feet and darted out of the room. There was the loud sound of talons clicking over wood that gave away his location as he went up the stair, dug around on the second floor, came back down, and returned to the room with a bottle of ink in hand. He didn't say anything as he settled back down in his window ledge, intent only to stay in the same room but not interrupt Rosalind's work as he went about his own.
Grrashka had broken his shield in half when they fought, and he needed to fix it if he ever wanted to use it again. He shifted the two broken halves of the shield to the front of his bare stomach before he peeled his artifact off his wrist. He didn't want to get in Rosalind's way any and he was more likely not to hover if he gave himself something to do. So while she patched Pontius' leg he drew on his stomach, filling in the crack with ink and settling it into part of the tattoo. The seal didn't look exactly right, but when he pulled it off his stomach the shield was whole and durable, and when he tossed it between his clawed hands it gave no indication of fragility.
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Post by Rosalind on Jul 21, 2017 9:56:19 GMT
Rosalind was already slipping into a more professional demeanour as she prepared to fix Russ' leg, serious and focused. Her world was shrinking from one of motherhood and love and laughter and meeting new people all the time to one of muscles, bones, sinew and blood. Still, from where she was leaning over the Shifter's leg and inspecting the ragged edges of the wound she glanced up at Matthias for a moment, attention captured by the hint of warmth in his voice. Anyone else might, if they'd been really paying attention, think he was mildly interested. Rosalind knew better and the feeling of realising Matthias was finding things to care about, maybe even to love, was brilliant relief. She only smiled a little, though.
"Russ is going to need a few weeks to heal before he'll be able to travel any distance on this leg, unless you're planning on carrying him. You have gotten very tall, I suppose, but it'd be better that he take some time and let the bone set. Maybe after that you can try tracking her...them...down?"
Unperturbed by Russ' swearing, though appreciative that Matthias was considerate of her sensibilities - luckily the baby was too young to pick up anything yet - Rosalind only patted his shoulder and waited for unconsciousness to claim him. When the draft worked it worked quickly, and the healer was quick to start her work. It was bloody and coarse - it took physical effort to wrestle the bone back into place, even though Russ wasn't a large person, and blood soon welled between her fingers and trickled gorily down her forearms. She cleaned as thoroughly as possible as she went, using a syringe to repeatedly flush the wound and sending cascades of pale red water off the side of the bed. Rosalind had some magic that could help ward off infection but it wasn't particularly powerful, and considering Matthias and Russ had been tramping through the wilderness with an open wound in tow, the cleaning was almost as important as the setting.
"That's what you wanted ink for, huh?" Once the bone was in place the hard part of the work was over. Rosalind sat to do the next part - as tidier a repair as she could manage given the messy nature of the wound. Trimming the edges with a knife was a necessary but delicate procedure - remove too much, and she wouldn't be able to stitch. The wound would have to be covered and allowed to granulate to fill the missing flesh in, a process that took months and months and was usually horribly painful, requiring the removal of proud flesh and ending in a taut, shiny scar which could restrict movement if it spanned a joint.
"Tell me about this magic of yours. You can tattoo yourself with your weapons and summon them to a physical state?"
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Post by Matthias on Jul 23, 2017 7:25:40 GMT
Matthias kept his head down and eyes locked on the golden talons on his feet. He was still as he listened to her as she spoke and he thought. He wanted to stay. Probably for the first time in his life he actually wanted to stay and he felt a nervous energy he wasn't used to as he psyched himself up to ask, “A-about that, actually . . . would it be okay if we stayed here? Until Russ can walk again?” He squirmed a little but managed to resist his old nervous ticks.
He resisted trying to peek at what Rosalind was doing as she started her work on Pontius' leg. The sound was unsettling enough, he didn't need a visual to go with it.
“Yeah. The half-dragon that broke his leg had a huge hammer. She hit my shield in half with one swing. I don't know how my art compares to actual wood though, so it could break again if I set it down too hard.” He didn't understand how Rosalind could talk while she did this, but she could so he would. “I don't tattoo these, I just take things and turn them into tattoos. I can make my drawings real too, but I haven't figured out how to control the texture very well. And it's not just weapons, it can be anything I don't want to carry. I had a waterskin on my arm before I got that scratched off. I can grow skin back fine, but ink? Not so much. I have to draw in missing parts before I can make them real again.”
He let his artifact melt back into the skin of his arm before he folded his arms and peeked up at Rosalind under a gold mane.
“I think scholars are supposed to be good at reading and learning, but drawing was always easier for me. I guess that doesn't really matter since outside of my dragon-y abilities none of it's actually mine.” He didn't fully understand how that worked, but he knew the powers he use had once belonged to a Fae. Lucky him the Fae's magic happened to align with his own talents, he supposed. Not so lucky for the Fae. Elf? Yeah, probably an elf. Maybe? Matthias didn't know any fae to ask, not since the blue scaredy cat had upped and vanished on him.
“What . . . what abut you, Rosalind? I've never seen you use magic to heal so what does yours do?” It wasn't the same as Pontius', he was certain.
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Post by Rosalind on Jul 24, 2017 8:00:00 GMT
She felt the energy in the room shift, just a little. She might have glanced up, had she not been peering closely at the wound she was working on, to get the stitching as neat as possible. When Matthias asked his question though she was glad she hadn't - she could feel his nerves, and schooled her voice to be calm, soothing...though still brimming with warmth. That much she couldn't help.
"Ezer, you know you're welcome in any of my homes, any time. And your friends too. I'd love it if you stayed for a while." A row of neat black stitches blossomed under her clever fingers as she spoke, zigzagging across the back of Russ' leg. She didn't look up even once, her focus complete, though chatting was indeed possible. She was used to talking as she worked as she so often multi-tasked, even more so now she had the kids. The swamp children kept themselves out of the way when she was doing this kind of work because it was bloody and gory and she didn't need small-person germs around open wounds, but during more minor procedures they were often around and showing varying degrees of interest.
"That's fascinating magic. I've never heard of anything quite like it." She didn't pretend to understand how Human magic worked - the idea of artifacts made her feel slightly nauseous - but his or not, she thought it was great that Matthias was exploring his creativity. She was impressed, actually, with what he'd come up with so far - he seemed a natural at it, his ideas for ink-work thoughtful and interesting and useful.
"Hmm? Oh, my magic is all over the place. A little of it is healing, just minor stuff like infections, colds or the flu, or warts and things like that. A lot of it is about reading people. Some of it lets me bestow gifts on others. Oh, and people can't die around me. That's a new one, so Russ here is in better hands than ever." She smiled - not that Russ was in any kind of imminent danger of dying, but it was reassuring nonetheless to think her patients weren't going to crash on her. Not while she was near them, anyway.
"I mean, it's not forever. I still have to figure out a way to fix them and if I can't, if it's impossible or I fail, they'll die when I leave. But it gives me time, more than I would have had, to sort them out. There we go!" With a flourish she tied off her sutures and admired her handiwork. Russ was going to have a decent scar, but it wouldn't bother him when he was healed, and there were lotions and salves she could use to try and lessen it as much as possible. More important than stopping scarring though, at least right now, was warding off infection, so the green goop she spread over Russ' repaired leg, under a tidy white bandage, was aimed at doing just that.
"He'll be out for a little while longer, maybe an hour. Are you hungry? The kids will want something to eat. You can either stay here with Russ or come through to the kitchen with me, up to you."
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Post by Matthias on Jul 26, 2017 11:11:39 GMT
Matthias rested his chin on his bent knee. “Thanks, Mum.”
Then, after a moment, he realized what he said and turned scarlet. “UH. Rosalind. I-I said thanks Rosalind.” He hadn't. Oh gods that was such a bad lie. Matthias covered his face with his claws as his gold and white hair fell around is face. Okay, at least the only other person who had heard it was the baby who wouldn't be able to tell Pontius.
Talk about anything else. Magic! That would work.
“It's all ink based,” Matthias said weakly, “I don't know if I could do anything with writing – it's not like slaves are taught how to read and I never had the chance to learn.” He knew the alphabet. He knew, roughly, how to spell simple words. But that was it.
Ha, an illiterate scholar. What a fucking mess.
“I like what I can do with what I have. I can turn my skin to ink, too, which I guess is pretty cool too.” He thought it was extremely cool and he wanted to show it off very badly. When Rosalind wasn't setting a broken leg, obviously. “Being a drawing is kind of strange. Everything looks flat when I look up and when I look to the side all I can see is paper. And I think I would probably die if someone spilled water on me.” He was rambling, mostly because he hoped Rosalind would forget the fact he called her mum.
“What do you mean by reading people?” Matthias asked, “is that more than body language and emotions?” He was curious about what she could do. Genuinely curious, which was weird for him. “And what kind of gifts can you give people?” He turned his tail up around his legs like a at and he mused aloud, “I have a healing factor – so long as I can survive long enough my body can heal anything. I guess if I'm around you I could even survive getting beheaded.” If he recalled, that was how he was supposed to be executed. Was that warrant even still active? Not that it mattered, the man he was now looked nothing like the child who killed his master years ago. The only one who would probably recognize him now would be his dear father since Matthias' face resembled his so closely.
Matthias almost bolted off his perch at the mere mention of food, but he managed to hold himself back. He was hungry, he was always hungry. His body constantly repairing itself burned through energy and he craved as much food as an actual dragon would need most of the time. But . . . “I told Russ I would stay here.” Matthias said after a pause. He sank back against the window ledge and studied the sleeping shifter. “Is it okay if I wait until he wakes up? We can eat whatever's left.”
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Post by Rosalind on Jul 27, 2017 7:12:34 GMT
Mum?
Rosalind wanted to hug him, she really did, but he was turning scarlet and looking mortified, and she thought he might just grab Russ off the table and do a runner if she wasn't careful. So, working very hard not to beam from ear to ear, she made sure her smile was a normal one when she said "Any time, remember. I worry if you go too long between visits." And she did, too; Matthias might have grown tall, and handy with a sword, but he was still so young, and as embarrassed as he was about his slip of the tongue she did consider him one of her own. Had done for years.
"You've been working hard," she observed, going along with his change of subject for the sake of his dignity.
"Can you show me later? Also, I know the kids are a lot, but you'd fascinate them if you felt like practicing some of it while you're here." Six children were a lot for anyone to handle so Rosalind wasn't surprised nor at all bothered by anyone, Matthias included, finding them daunting to be around. But they were also a very real and constant factor in her life, and would be in the house while Russ and Matthias stayed. It was hard for anyone under ten to not find a dragon-person the most interesting thing they'd ever laid eyes on, but a dragon-person who could also bring pictures to life would blow their minds.
It wasn't often Matthias was around like this - relaxed, chatty, looking anything other than on edge. Rosalind glanced at him for a moment, wordlessly happy to see the changes time were bringing him. She'd worried when Derrek disappeared, fretted he might never trust anyone again, but Russ appeared to have made an impression. Rosalind was looking forward to getting to know the other boy too, when he awoke, but for now the best thing for him was to sleep, to heal.
"I can tell, just from being around people, whether they have good or bad intentions. Sometimes I can divine a little of who they are, but that's harder because most people aren't so black and white, they change moment to moment or depending on the situation. And I can give magic to babies or young kids, or change people's fortunes for a little while. I could give Russ good fortune now, if you want? It's nebulous, what actually happens, I don't control that part. But it might help the healing, who knows." Because it was so vague and uncertain, and because there were limits to how often she could use the magic, Rosalind didn't do this for every person she healed. Maybe sometimes it would improve their odds of recovery, or maybe it would make the weather nice for them the next day. She never really knew, it was very random, though she did know it never hurt. She knew this because she could curse people with bad fortune too, and that was a whole different kettle of fish.
"Ezer, it does my heart good to know you can heal. I will worry about you a lot less, though I hope it doesn't make you reckless. But let's not test the beheading theory, okay?" She smiled, washing the blood from her hands with rosemary scented soap.
"I have to cook anyway, it'll take a little while. Take him through to the lounge as soon as he wakes. This room doesn't do anyone's soul any good, and he'll be more comfortable on the couch. I'll bring the food through soon."
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Post by Matthias on Jul 30, 2017 10:35:12 GMT
“Yeah. . .” he said slowly, incredibly happy she didn't press his flub, “kids always want me to animate their drawings. And, uh, that daemon one? I can introduce him to Anoki, if you like. He's got . . . scales.” Since that seemed important to the kid. What was is name? Hazhail? Sumza? Matthias didn't even recall if she had told him their names.
He looked up a little so he could see her feet as sh explained how her magic worked and after a pause Matthias nodded. “Sounds nice,” he said softly. He usually was just wary of everyone all the time. It had taken years before he warmed up to Rosalind, before he was convinced he could trust her completely. She could just tell right away who would hurt her, who she could trust. Seemed nice.
“Yeah, if – I – yeah, it'd be great if you wanted to give Russ good luck.” He didn't really know what he needed luck for, she had healed him hadn't she? But he wouldn't say no.
“. . . Okay. I won't be reckless.” He had been reckless from the moment he realized it took mere seconds to heal from a broken leg. He sure as shit wasn't going to tell Rosalind that, though. Not if she was going to take it upon herself to be worried about his health.
As soon as she was away from Pontius, Matthias was sitting on the corner of the bed, close to but not touching the shifter. Physical closeness was comforting, even if Pontius wasn't aware of it. The feel of warmth, the familiar scent . . . there was something about the gentle presence of a lover that was fundamentally soothing.
“How long will it take for him to be better?” Matthias asked after a minute.”I can help you out around here if you want. Not with healing or anything but . . . I mean I was a household slave.”
He nodded briskly when he was asked to take Pontius out of the operation room. He hopped off the bed and turned to face the bed before he hooked an arm under the shifter's knees and neck and picked him up with relative ease, and he waited until Rosalind left before he followed her out and went to the lounge.
He went back to the couch they had spent the night on and laid Pontius out carefully, making sure his legs were lined up straight before he sat down on the couch himself and rested the shifter's head on his lap before he set a hand on Pontius' head and gently started to work out knots from his wild curls of brown and white.
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