When would everything stop taking a turn for the worst? Ever since the Storm, nothing had been the same; the city was still on edge, though everyone pretended that they weren’t. There was hardly anyone stopping to chat loudly with their friends, the Courtyard was never really filled to brimming anymore. Even Market Days were a only a fraction of what they had been.
They had managed to pick themselves up after the Djed Storm, rallied and banded together to survive. Spirits were high despite the mighty blow that had been delivered to the Inartan people. Ivak’s appearance had been met with mixed emotion, and though there was still some pockets of anger most of Wind Reach had accepted him back into the world. The first egg laid after the Storm had been the high point… until it was stolen.
“Aidara?” Miquel spoke gently from behind the woman, lowering his voice and making it hard for anyone to eavesdrop. “Are you alright, Addy?”
Standing with her head bowed and resting upon the hand that clasped the doorframe to her office, the little healer nodded and sighed. “Yeah, I’m just tired. I think I fell asleep there for a moment.” Straightening and giving the older man a weak smile, Addy ran an idle hand through the curls of her hair. Her face was drawn and her eyes sunken, dark smudges of color bruising the sensitive skin beneath them. She looked paler than normal and her mouth were constantly pressed into a thin line that spoke of fatigue and pain.
“You need to stop spreading yourself so thin, woman.” There was a paternal sort of disapproval in Miquel’s voice, the creases around his eyes and mouth deepening as he watched Addy attempt to pull herself together as best she could. He didn’t miss the small, fleeting smile that danced across her lips when she looked up at him, his found deepening in response. “No, Addy, I’m serious! You’re going to kill yourself at this rate.”
“Now you just sound like Sira… and everyone else.” Placing a placating hand on his arm, Addy squeezed gently and crooked a finger at him to move closer. Standing on her tiptoes when he bent towards her, the little healer pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. “I’m going to be alright. I’ve dealt with worse before.”
Blushing furiously, Miquel turned away and busied himself with the preparation of some salve he had been working on, muttering under his breath. Addy caught the words “delusional” and “ only a matter of time” before he was out of earshot. Stifling her smile, unable to ignore the warm fuzzies that had erupted in her stomach (because it was always nice to know someone cared), Addy spent another tick or two rearranging her hair into something presentable before she moved back out into the Infirmary Sick Bay.
Sure, her patients came to her because they were in need of healing and not because she dressed nice or had beautiful hair, but that didn’t mean that it hurt them any further if their healer looked put together and healthy herself; it would do little good for her to calm someone down when she looked ready to drop. Especially when her patients were children.
Curling her lips into a smile, Addy approached the first little form curled beneath the white bed sheets. Only a handful of days ago a group of Yasi had gone missing and wasn’t found until the following morning. According to the Chiet in charge of the little ones, a few of them still had to be found. The ones that were brought back to Wind Reach had suffered from exposure and shock; the weather hadn’t gotten cold enough for hypothermia, which was lucky for them. Many of them were covered in scrapes and bruises, some with more serious gashes but all of them were alive, if scared.
The little girl jerked awake when Addy placed a hand on her shoulder, crying out weakly as her eyes immediately began to fill with tears. “Shhhhh, shhhh little one. It’s alright. You’re safe back home.” Through the Gnosis mark on her wrist, Addy could feel the sharp, intense pain of the girls fear. She couldn’t have been more than five, and a night out in the Unforgiving at that age? The thought gave Addy shivers, even now.
Wide blue eyes, bright with unshed tears, gazed up at her with a longing sort of sadness. Reaching down, Addy felt the little girls head for a fever, pressing her fingers to her cheeks and forehead both. While on the warm side, she was in no danger. “You’re going to be fine, Sweetheart. Why don’t you try to get some more rest? I am sorry to have woken you.” But the little girl violently shook her head, reaching for Addy’s hand before she could draw it away; those little fingers trembled something fierce despite the tight grip.
“I d-don’t w-want you t-to leave.”
The fear was plain in the girls trembling voice and it struck home in the little healers heart. She drew up a stool and sat down next to the sick bed. “But you’re safe here. You’re home, right?” Though she nodded in conformation, Addy didn’t sense any of the tension leaving the child. “So what is wrong then, sweetie?”
“Th-the bad woman will get us.” The girls free hand snatched the edge of the blanket, pulling the fabric up and over her head.
Frowning, Addy pulled the sheet down just enough to see a forehead and a pair of eyes. “What bad woman?”
“With the egg. She’s stealing babies!” Addy oculd feel the panic rising sharply within the little girl and she stood, laying a soothing hand on her cheek and her chest, but the shushing noises she made did nothing to calm her. “She’s going to come for US next!”
As soon as these words left her mouth, the children in the nearby beds let out terrified little whimpers. Addy sat, stupefied into silence as the little girl’s words washed over her. “No one is coming for you, sweetie.” Managing to choke out the words in little more than a whisper, she shook herself of the shock and did what she could to calm the children though her head still reeled.
It was a couple bells later that Addy actually managed to make it back to her Aerie. Sira was waiting patiently in the common room, glancing up when the healer entered and giving her a small smile. Her head tilted towards Natalie’s room before Addy could even ask, mouthing “Asleep” before putting her finger to her lips. Nodding and returning a strained smile, Addy slipped past her sleeping daughters room and into the one she and Sira shared.
Addy spent only a moment or two changing out of her healing clothes and into more durable, warmer flying garments; they were mostly the same, only lined with fur and a warm cloak she could wrap completely around her. The colors were muted as well, boots lacing up to her knee and protecting the skin of her leg from chafing against the saddle and Sira’s feathers.
It was a ritual spanning too many nights to keep track now, Sira standing when Addy reappeared, both women pacing silently to where the aerie opened to the night sky. Sira changed and was saddled without hassle and waited for the little woman to settle safely in the saddle before she took off. The flight was usually a somber one, the reason why the two women flew out nightly was not really the happiest of reasons.
For one, duty told them too. The Inarta that stole the Wind Eagle egg hadn’t yet been caught, but was spotted once or twice in The Unforgiving; it was enough to keep the Wind Eagles, infuriated by the whole ordeal, searching endlessly for justice. Addy had never really asked how Sira felt about it all, her emotions hard to read these days anyway thanks to the myriad of nightmares and other hardships that had befallen the pair. Sira had been collared as a result of her outburst in the Inclement Weather, whenever she was inside the city. It couldn’t be comfortable and Addy hated putting the damned thing onto her lover as much as the Kelvic herself hated the restriction to her changing.
The second reason was more personal. Though neither Addy nor Sira wanted to believe the rumors, it was said that the Avora who’d committed the crime was Aela, a mild mannered young woman that had befriended both Endal in a short amount of time. It had been a blow, to be sure, and neither of the women found themselves able to talk about it. They went out every night as their duty, but Addy secretly hoped to find Aela before the others did. She would be otherwise killed on sight and Addy… well, she wanted Aela to tell her she was innocent.
She had to be innocent. No Inarta would do that!
A sharp dip threw Addy from her reverie with a small yelp, clutching wildly at the pommel of the saddle and whatever feathers she could reach before she realized that Sira had jolted her intentionally. Her lover was in a playful mood tonight, a stark contrast to the sober one Addy had fallen into, thanks to the fear she had felt from the children. The Storm, Sai, The murder… and now her friend, terrifying children? It wouldn’t be long until the story of the Villainous Avora was told to scare disobedient children straight; her stomach roiled at the very thought.
Clamping her legs down and sitting her weight down into the saddle, Addy tried to shake the pessimistic thoughts and enjoy the ride that Sira was giving her. The eagle banked and Addy tilted with her, leaning into the turn as they spiraled lazily on a thermal; it had been a while since they had simply enjoyed flying, to be sure. Sira dipped again and Addy felt herself rise off the saddle before the strength of her legs held her back down. It was hard to hold on when her mount suddenly fell out from under her, a very different feeling from riding a horse- not that Addy could know from first hand experience, never having done so herself. But word travels.
Sira was in the process of zig-zagging back and forth, up and down, tossing her rider around in her seat as Addy attempted to keep up with the constant shifting of balance when Sira cried out. It was only the Seasons of experience in the saddle and her knowledge of her bondmate that kept Addy on Sira’s back; When she flipped and dove, Addy couldn’t help that scream that shattered the silence of the night, gripping hard at the pommel and pulling herself back down so she could hunch against Sira’s neck and hold on tight, reducing the pull of the wind as it whipped back into her face. Had she stayed sitting upright, the little woman would have eventually been ripped right off Sira’s back.
Partially closing her eyes as the wind whipped tears into them, further obscuring her vision, Addy tried and failed to see anything below them. Be careful, Sira! We don’t know who it is! But their decent continued at the same rapid pace, the Kelvic woman shouting something about boobs. Please, Sira… If…if it is her… Addy paused, swallowing. She didn’t want to say it, but she had too. Sira, if it is her, and she did do it… she’ll be waiting for the Endals to come for her. She can’t run for ever…
Her voice was soft and pleading, though she knew Sira could hear it clearly over the sound of their decent. I don’t want her to hurt you too…