Solo [Job Thread]The Offering

[Claire Lexi'lya]

10th Bell | 51st of Spring

“Miss Lexi?” A timid voice filtered into Claire’s concentration, pulling her attention from the table in front of her. She had spent the better part of her day in the small, quiet room, mixing various simple tonics she knew for the medical center, infusing what she could of her gnosis mark into the small vials for later use. It probably seemed like a mundane task to most, but Claire had been thankful for quiet days just as much as the busy ones.

Spread out before her on the table was various herbs, some dry and some in their original states when picked. All of them wielded some sort of effect against headaches, but Claire was currently focusing on one that would be useful up on the second floor for the Nakivaks. Headaches were a common issue with pregnancy, and it made nausea for some even worse. Across the table were several small vials ready to be filled, but Claire hadn’t had the chance to finish them.

Ginger root was probably her least favorite herb to work with raw. It had taken nearly a bell to grate it down into small enough pieces to proper lay in a piece of cheesecloth, another fifteen chimes just to squeeze the root of its juices into a bowl. Her fingers ached from the effort and smelled heavily of ginger. It would take a week at least just to fully get the scent off of her—or maybe the root had infused into her senses to the extent that was all she could smell. Both had a fairly strong possibility.

Claire’s fingers had been just finished wrapping several cut lemons into another cheesecloth as the nurse interrupted her. While the woman had her attention, the Kelvic refused to stop working. Shooting the nurse a glance over her shoulder to let her know she was listening, she tied the cloth closed with a piece of string and lifted it over an empty bowl. Next to it was a bowl of the same size that held the ginger root. Despite the cramping in her fingers Claire used one hand to hold the cloth and the other to gently squeeze the lemons. Silently she was thankful that lemons were nowhere near as tough as the root was.

Eyeing the two liquids closely, the raptor squeezed the juice of the lemons until it matched the level of the ginger. It wasn’t an exact calculation, but it wasn’t required to be. Carefully, Claire poured the lemon juice into the bowl with the ginger and swirled it around as the nurse stepped up next to her. “We need you in another room. There seems to have been an accident while two gentlemen were sparring and we’re quite busy.” Giving a small nod, the Kelvic placed the bowl on the table. She would have to finish later—luckily the liquid would hold until then. She quickly rinsed her fingers in a bucket near the door. She could still smell the combination of the ginger and lemon, but there wasn’t anything to be done about it. With a sigh, Claire motioned for the woman to lead the way.

Word count :

523

Common | Isur

[Claire Lexi'lya]

The accident was rather gruesome to look at. Two Akalak had been training when one of the weapons broke, splintering right down the middle. The force must have been impressive because between the two gentlemen they had several pieces of wood embedded in their skin. One of them, an Akalak with a shade of red to his skin, even had a piece of the weapon thrust into his side. It looked rather painful even though he seemed to manage composure well. Two healers were already fretting over him, discussing the best way to remove the foreign object.

Claire, however, was directed to the less injured of the two—just barely. His blue skin was covered with various splinters, with a rather large one embedded in his right arm near his shoulder. He was fairly young and friendly looking, giving her a smile despite the blood that still seemed to trickle from his wound. The Kelvic returned the smile best she could as her eyes continued to scan the various injuries to his person.

“We can move him to a more quiet space, that way we aren't in the way.” The nurse that had brought her to room touched the raptor’s shoulder before giving her head a slight jerk towards the door. Nodding slightly, Claire looked to her patient who beat her to the punch before the question could even leave her mouth. “I'm more than fine to walk. Lead the way.” He hopped off the exam table as if he wasn't about to have wood ripped from his skin.

The nurse led the two of them to the room adjacent, and Claire didn’t even have to ask as the Akalak seated himself up on the exam table. It took several ticks as Claire went over all the things she might need before mumbling the list to the nurse. Tweezers, a small knife, several cloths and clean hot water, and most certainly a sewing kit. She could easily disinfect the wound with her gnosis and heal several of the smaller splinter wounds, but his shoulder would need to be looked after for at least a fortnight.

“How are you feeling?” It was a simple question as the nurse left and the Kelvic approached the man waiting patiently on the table. It probably wasn’t the first time he had received such an injury and knew protocol well enough. He shrugged his uninjured shoulder with a half grin. “Decent enough all things considered actually. My shoulder is irritating me though.” It took a moment for Claire to realize he was joking with her. Giving a small chuckle she rolled her eyes and sighed lightly. “Well, this should take a bit of time, mostly because it’s time-consuming to pick out the splinters. I’ll be tending to that shoulder first. Are there any other injuries I need to address though?”

The Akalak pursed his lips slightly in thought for a moment before attempting to shrug again. The motion wasn’t meant to jostle his injured shoulder, but it moved none the less and the wound bled further. “Oh try not to move too much.” It was a gentle scolding that came from her mouth without thinking, but it caused the man to grin at her once again. “I did manage to hit the ground pretty hard. My back and head hurt a bit.”

Word count :

556

Common | Isur

[Claire Lexi'lya]

While waiting for the nurse to return with the necessary items, Claire gently pressed her fingers into the back of the Akalak’s skull. Whatever the man had hit his head off of must have been large enough to leave a tennis ball sized lump on the back of his head. The man winced as she prodded gently, but remained silent otherwise. Her fingers felt no other sign of injury besides the lump, however. No blood or sign that the injury would get larger. She wished there was something cool she could apply to his skull, but it being spring and the entire winter season having gone absent, Claire knew she had no luck on that end.

“Well your skull took a good knock, but I don’t think there is anything else to worry about there. Are you having any kind of symptoms? Blurry vision, confusion, maybe a sensitivity to light?” The Kelvic pointed over her shoulder to the light flooding through the windows. The Akalak glanced at the window, squinting slightly before he shook his head and looked back to her. “No. I mean it’s bright, but it doesn’t hurt to look at.” Claire nodded slightly before moving back to his right shoulder. She sensed his eyes and face moving to follow her as if he had something to ask, but he didn’t make a sound. He just watched her much like she would have watched prey on a hunt.

“Well if you get a headache or neck pain that won’t fade or even nausea let me know. Whatever spill you took to your head might have caused some damage other than the impressive knot decorating your skull. They might become present later on.” The Akalak just hummed in agreement, eyes still locked on her form. Claire purposely avoided his stare, though she could feel it as if it was a physical expression pressed onto her skin. Instead, she let her fingers linger along the intrusion on his arm. The splinter looked deep, however, it did not simply press straight down into his arm towards the bone. It veered to the right and embedded itself deep into the muscle. It would require a bit of work to get the splinter out of his arm, probably a cut or two, but the raptor was fairly confident she could get the wood out of his skin cleanly.

“You’re not from Riverfall.” The man’s voice jolted Claire out of her head. Blinking, the girl looked up at the face of the man under her care, but his eyes were no longer on hers. Rather he was looking at her wrists. Frowning slightly, Claire examined them before tilting her head in confusion. “No Kuvan tattoo.” He reached out with his left hand, gently tapping her clean skin before looking back to her face.

“Oh. No, I’m not. I just moved here actually.” The Akalak smiled at her again. It held charm, but Claire was used to such smiles. They often meant someone was about to ask something of her, and the man had certainly been doing some thinking while she inspected him. But the words that came out of his mouth next wasn’t something she was expecting. “I”m Korin. You are?” The Kelvic gaped at the man for a moment before she realized she had never bothered to introduce herself.

“Oh! I’m so sorry. Claire. You may call me Claire.” She nodded decisively, and the Akalak moved to open his mouth again, but the nurse returned in that moment. The door swung open and the woman ushered in a small cart with her containing all the items Claire had requested—and then some. The Kelvic spotted extra bandages in a pile on the cart, something she would need to wrap the wound once she sewed it shut. She shot the woman a grateful smile before turning to Korin. “Let’s begin.”

Word count :

645

Common | Isur

[Claire Lexi'lya]

“Lie back and roll onto your left side so that I might have decent access to your arm please?” While it was a request, Claire made sure her voice held enough firmness to ensure that it was more of an order than anything. Korin, who had not stopped grinning at her even once the nurse had returned, nodded gently and did as he was told. The girl gently gripped his arm by the wrist and adjusted his arm so that his forearm rested across his waist. The nurse stepped up next to her, passing the Kelvic a piece of leather that Claire began to wrap around his bicep just above the wound. “This will help with the pain and bleeding.” She explained though Korin didn’t seem to care either way.

The Kelvic pulled the material tight as she could, quickly tying a knot to hold the fabric fast to his skin and muscles. Korin seemed to wince at the tightness, which Claire took to be a good sign. It wasn’t meant to be the most comfortable setting—it was about blood loss. The nurse handed Claire the knife as she leaned over the wound again, gently pulling on the end of the splinter in an attempt to truly see how deep the piece went. The splinter was resistant to the tugging backward it seemed and wasn’t going to come free as easily as the Kelvic hopped. Sighing slightly, she lifted the knife to the skin of the Akalak and took a deep breath. Claire was the farthest thing from squeamish but causing pain even for the good of it later never settled with her.

“So are you human?” The words hung in the air out of nowhere just as she neared with the knife. She took a moment, debating if it was wise to speak of her race. The Kelvic already knew how the people here viewed her race, but at times it was easier to distract someone from pain with words rather than silence. Pursing her lips for a moment, she glanced down at his face—which seemed intent on staring at the wall now—before letting the knife pierce his skin just inches above where the splinter emerged from under his skin. Korin pulled a deep breath that seemed to echo around the small room, but Claire kept her eyes on the knife.

“I’m Kelvic actually.” The raptor let the words slip off her tongue as she meticulously drew the knife downward in a straight line. Blood welled beneath the blade, but the nurse was there with a wet cloth to carefully wipe the blood away and press pressure across the new cut until Claire could return to it. Setting the knife down, Claire carefully gripped the splinter, and gently tried to wiggle the wood from side to side. It still resisted her and Claire motioned for the nurse to move her hand so that the new cut would open and help allow the offending object to move.

“A Kelvic huh? Have you been requested as a Nakivak yet?” The word was not unfamiliar to her, though she was surprised he chose now to ask such a question. She knew of their purpose in Riverfall—to carry the children to the all-male race that ruled the city. Normally such a question would have caused the Kelvic to pause, but she was in the midst of leaving a man bleeding if she stopped to address the question. Instead, the Kelvic huffed softly, lifting the splinter towards the newly opened skin. The wood gave less resistance at first, before suddenly sliding backward in a clean movement.

Word count :

602

Common | Isur

[Claire Lexi'lya]

Korin released a hiss of pain as the wood unlodged itself from his muscle. Once again blood began to well up slowly, filling the empty space that the wood had taken. The nurse was quick to apply pressure to the wound as Claire moved to the cart to pick up the several strings of catgut and needle waiting for her. The Kelvic also snagged another handful of cloths and scooped a bowl of water from the bucket and lined them up next to her as she turned back to the Akalak. Technically the hard part was over, but now it was a matter of sewing the wound closed and picking out whatever splinters were left that marred his skin.

“You didn’t answer me.” The girl couldn’t help but grin and roll her eyes. Glancing at the nurse, she leaned over and whispered for the woman to fetch her a few fresh poppy seeds. His arm would undoubtedly bother him after she was done and the seeds would help with the pain—if they were fresh enough. Given spring had just come into full swing the Kelvic was fairly sure they wouldn’t have much problem with stock however. As the nurse left Claire carefully held one clean cloth beneath Korin’s bicep and carefully poured a little water over the wound to flush out some of the fresh blood that had built up.

“Well I’ve heard of the position, yes, but no I haven’t had any offers.” Yet. The word echoed in the back of her mind. There would be a time someone asked her, and the Kelvic had never truly bothered to think about what her reaction might be… and now was not the time to think about it either. Tabbing the wound gently with the now wet cloth, the raptor’s sharp gaze focused on the jaggedly ripped skin of the wound. It was easiest to start from one end to the other, but the wound was now slightly T-shaped because of her cut. “This will probably bite a little, but the nurse is getting something for the pain now.”

“I think I’ll manage just fine Claire.” She smiled slightly at the use of her name before bringing the needle to the far left of the injury. Korin carefully leaned closer to her body to allow her to see the wound better. Using her right hand, the Kelvic did her best to bring the skin closer together and her left pressed the needle downward at an angle towards the wound until the pointed object broke through the skin. The Akalak let out a small grunt but remained quiet otherwise as Claire pushed the needle through the torn muscle until she could reach the skin on the other side. The girl carefully pressed through the skin once again and released the needle so she could use both hands to gently pull the catgut together and loop the ends into a knot. With the knife still in reach, she carefully cut through the access and leaned back a little to inspect the first stitch.

It looked better than her first ever attempt on leather that was for certain. The issue was figuring out just how many stitches the man would need in order to seal the wound shut. Too many would make it difficult to remove them later, and too few—well the wound wouldn’t heal of course. Given the length of the wound, of several inches at least when the skin would be pulled together, she figured at least four more across the expanse of the wound, and another two would hold the cut she had inflicted earlier.

“So if I asked you to take up consideration for Nakivak, you might say?”

Word count :

618

Common | Isur

[Claire Lexi'lya]

Claire was sure the look of shock on her face must have been hilarious judging by the grin that split across Korin’s. It didn’t seem to bother him at all that she was busy trying to close his wound and that such a question might actually distract her from the task. He didn’t press the question further—just kept his gaze on her face even after the girl blinked several times and forced her eyes back to the wound in front of her rather than the handsome Akalak. She reached around to the cart and retrieved another strand of catgut and managed to rethread the needle without her fingers shaking.

Sucking in a sharp breath, the Kelvic forced his question to the back of her mind so that she might at least finish sealing his wound before considering just how to turn the man down. She repeated the process of using the fingers of her right hand to bring the ends of his wound closer together and her left to push the intrusive needle into the blue skin. It seemed easier than the first time—perhaps because she knew just how much resistance his skin would give this time. The needle moved through the muscle in nearly the straight line she was aiming for and pressed through his skin the second time. Releasing the needle, the Kelvic twisted the catgut with ease and knotted the thread back to his skin.

Despite her best efforts, however, the question echoed in the back of her head. As the raptor lifted the third string of catgut, the Kelvic couldn’t help but wonder if being a Nakivak might do her some good. Given her status within the city, bearing a child to a man here would certainly lift her out of being a ‘pet’. In Alvadas the fact of being a Kelvic never seemed to bother anyone who knew—save for one. It wasn’t as though she was treated badly here, and she had to question even if she did bring a child to the Akalak if they would ever truly see beyond her race.

And there was the question of giving up the child entirely. It wasn’t something the bird saw herself doing easily. She had grown up very loved by her mother despite the fact that she had been suffering from a broken bond. To make an agreement to have a child with someone and not be there to raise them… it didn’t settle well with the Kelvic. Bearing children for status just didn’t fit into her idea of life—but then she supposed in some ways she needed to adjust her views. Her mother had been a sheltering force in her life. Something to cling to and focus solely on and Claire was just beginning to realize just how naive she could be.

And probably most importantly—there was the hanging bond over her head. The Eypharian had been lingering constantly at the edge of her memory since her last encounter with him. She had fled from him like a coward because she hadn’t been sure she could trust him, but really she hadn’t been sure if she could trust herself. While there were things she questioned about how the brute acted towards her, it was more worrying that she reacted so easily to him. If she hadn’t felt so guilty about his lack of knowledge over the bond…

“Claire?” The girl’s eyes shot up to Korin before she looked back down at his arm. Somewhere in the middle of her thoughts, she finished stitching up his arm. The distraction hadn’t done any real damage—the wound would heal just fine—but the Kelvic was also sure that it would scar. She didn’t have much finesse with sutures yet, but they would hold so long as he didn’t strain them. Sighing the girl put the needle down, purposely ignoring his use of her name, and lifted the tweezers from the cart this time. “Keep your arm towards the light. I’m going to get the wood out of your skin and then I’ll heal the indents left by the splinters and make sure to purify your sutures to make sure infection doesn’t set in.”

Word count :

694

Common | Isur

[Claire Lexi'lya]

The needle that had pulled the sutures had additional purposes. The Kelvic had brought one of the small stools in the back of the room up next to the exam table. The stool was much shorter than the table which made it easy for Claire to get up close to his arm and pick out the individual splinters that littered his arm. Her eyes were sharp, but made for more distance—it was easier to nearly be on top of his arm than straining her eyes. The needle was currently hovering above a section of skin that had several tiny splinters—all of them without an edge to grip with the tweezers.

The Kelvic was slow in this aspect. Leaving any traces of wood under the skin could eventually lead to infection, so she was focused on ensuring clean ends were made. The tip of the needle would press into the blue tint just enough to catch the skin and draw it downwards so that she could expose more of the wood beneath without leading to drawing blood. Once enough of the wood was exposed she placed the needle down and let the tweezers do their work. Gently prying the offensive pieces from the muscle into a small bowl that was littered with several different sized remnants of the accident.

The entire time Korin remained silent. She wasn’t sure if he was musing over his question or just waiting for an answer from her, but either way, she was glad for the silence. The simple words had caused her entire being to stir with uncertainty and Claire was uneasy with the feeling. As she pulled another shard out of Korin’s skin, however, her eyes flit along the expanse just looking for anything left beneath. She took his wrist and carefully twisted his arm to expose more of his skin to the light but it appeared as if she had finally cleared him of the wood.

”I believe that might be it.” Claire hummed in satisfaction, putting the tweezers and needle back onto the cart so that they might be cleaned later. Lifting her hands, she placed her left hand on his forearm and the right over the newly stitched wound. Closing her eyes the Kelvic focused on her gnosis, letting the tingling warmth spread through her hands into a soft glow as she pushed the healing properties from herself to his skin. It took only moments, but the girl could feel the slight drain from the use of the gnosis almost immediately. Pulling her hands away, she finally fetched the clean bandages and stood up.

”Make sure you keep this clean but don’t submerge it. In a fortnight you can come back and someone will remove the stitches for you. If it becomes hot to the touch or you begin to run a fever you need to return immediately.” Korin rolled his eyes with a dramatic sigh before turning himself to face her. Claire leveled him with a stern gaze as she grabbed his arm and began to wrap the stitches loosely. ”No heavy lifting either.” His voice drifted to her and the raptor glanced sideways at him. The Akalak was grinning again—obviously mocking the fact that he had already informed her this wasn’t the first time he had received an injury. As she stepped back, however, Korin’s good hand lifted and snagged a few locks of her hair. The Kelvic instantly went stiff as her eyes shot back and forth between his hand and his face.

”You don’t have to answer my question right now. Just think on it, would you? When I return to get my stitches out you can give me your answer then.” Claire gaped at the man for a moment, jaw slightly unhinged as his grin shifted into a soft smile. ”Thank you for the attention, Claire. I’ll be sure to take good care of my injury so that I don’t have to face your ire later.” With the teasing words he let his hand drop her hair. The girl felt rooted to her spot as he stepped around her and out of the room.

For nearly a chime the Kelvic stared at the spot where the Akalak had stood, her mind trying to decide just what kind of offer she had just landed without knowing the price. Tilting her head back she heaved a puff of breath, eyeing the ceiling for a moment before moving to the cart. She needed to clean up before the room could be used again. There was nothing she could do about the offer now, and really she had more important things to focus on first.

Like dealing with the Eypharian, and just how she was going to find and confront him with the truth.

Word count :

793

Common | Isur

[Grim Ravenwood]

Your Grades

Skills:
Medicine: 4
Observation: 3
Socialization: 2
Sewing: 2
Herbalism: 1

Lores:
With pregnancy come headaches
Medicine: Wrapping leather above wound lowers bleeding
Self: Wouldn’t give up child

Grader's Comments:
Don't forget to delete your request from the request thread. If there is any issue regarding your grades, drop dead to my graveyard and bury me a pm. Enjoy your grades while you can, they are to die for.

As always, Death guide you healer~
Grim