Healthy Wife, Happy Life

[Fayane]

She must not have been out long, because when she woke up from the agony of moving, she was on a table, green mush being offered to her. Oh Changers, Elohim and anyone else listening... Fay prayed as the wretched scent had her gagging.

"Watered down... please..." Fay rasped, "I believe I would have trouble swallowing it otherwise." Her side was cool, where was Jerial? She looked around, panicking, only to see Kado carrying him over on shoulder with Cerion on the other. Seeing her look he smiled and nodded encouragingly. SHe smanaged a pained smiled back before looking to the cup that had been shoved in her face. She looked up into the doctor's face before swallowing and opening her mouth, too weak to drink the concoction herself.

Kado watched as the older man poured the liquid down Fay's throat, watched her swallow it and make a disgusted face. Apparently the medicine didn't taste great... not surprising considering half the plants he stuck in that mush all were wretched in taste. He turned to look to the doctor since Fay was busy hacking and trying not to throw the mess up.

"How long until that takes into effect? And how much more of that will she have to eat?" Fay sent him a grateful look before coughing more.

[Tanobi Durant]

Tanobi gave her a Gentle smile before reaching into his pack speaking in an uplifted tone

"The dosage should have been enough to destroy the amount of poison that ails you, however i fear the aftertaste will be with you plaguing your sense of taste unless we submit to it an offering." Tanobi took a more fatherly tone as from his rations he pulled a selection of berries before offering them to the Woman that he maintained a critical eye upon for any sudden change in her condition. "The medicine should work well within the hour" He begins to joke "Why i suspect that you will be disregarding my recommendations for bed-rest before the day is out!"

Tanobi felt a small pang of desire to retrieve his walking stick from off of the dirt road were it still no doubt lie, his only true partner throughout his travels it has stayed with him when all others left. When his patients regained their strength they had little reason to stay with him and those that had joined him in his travels had left when they had obtained what they needed of him. However the woman most recently placed in his care has proven to be a caring sort and experienced panic and discomfort from being or perceiving that she is alone. Leaving he decided would have to wait for when the adventurers had packed up and left like all the others before them. Tanobi slumped on one knee in the corner of the shop followed quickly be the rest of him resting against the hard wood of the shop wall.

Until they had no need of him he wouldn't leave them.

[Fayane]

Fay smiled at the doctor even as she gratefully took the berries.

"You have my thanks, sir. Is there anything I could do or give to repay your kindness?" She asked even as she nibbled on a sweet berry, humming in pleasure from the sweet juices. It had been awhile since she'd eaten anything, as she and the others had been wary of her losing what she ate to the poison.

Silently Kado watched as the old man sat down heavily, also waiting for his reply before remembering Cerion. Turning to the other man he watched him wake up again, passing him a skin of cold tea to help speed up the process. Jerial, unfortunately, remained unconscious.

"We need to find a place to stay if you are to remain in bed, resting, Fayane." The girl turned to Kado and nodded in agreement before gnawing her lip.

"I agree... there is an Inn here, the Red Chalice Inn... we may be able to rent rooms there... Also I must report to Saruna - alert her that I have made it here alive, thanks to you, Jerial, Cerion and this man here." She smiled at Tanobi before looking back to Kado.

"I would appreciate it if you were to tell Saruna I have arrived.. or leave her a note stating so should she not be home. Also, here are some bishani to pay for rooms at the Red Chalice... one for myself and Jerial, another for you and Cerion... and one for our good doctor as well should he require one." Kado looked to Tanobi for confirmation even as Fay gave him directions to both places.

[Tanobi Durant]

Taking a wager that the lady Fay's enthusiasm would end in disappointment with a refusal of their kind gesture, Tanobi instead opted to accept so that he may remain in ears reach of the patient should her condition revert to her 'ill state. He also briefly imagined what Jerial's reaction to that particular situation briefly, which was interrupted about the same time that he spun 'round like a top and punched him in the face for failing to successfully neutralize the poison with one dosage. That figment of his imagination having had its fun, Tanobi decided to respond before they began to suspect him of feigning sleep.

"While i do not desire to be a burden upon your finances" He starts, now taking the tone of a jokester "I must however admit my fear of a reprisal from madame Fay should i decline" Tanobi grasps the table that the woman in question lie upon, careful not to mistakenly pull or tear any of her long Silver hair in the process of slowly raising himself from his sitting position. "Lead and i shall follow" he states while grasping an end of the hand made stretcher holding his charge.

[Fayane]

Fay turned back to look at the doctor, smiling wryly even as he grasped the handles of the stretcher. She was about to comment when they heard a muffled groan. Fay's head whipped around even as she moved to go to the waking Jerial. Her limbs, however, wouldn't co-operate and she ended up on the floor. Sighing, she pushed herself up, grasped the table, and heaved herself up into a standing position, her legs shaking from the effort of standing.

She heard movement, then felt a familiar body press itself against her back and a relieved smile found its way to her face.

"Are you alright, Fay?" Jerial asked even as he shot the doctor a dirty look, his eyes still black from rage and fear from the nightmeres. He was exhasuted from the spell, the trip, everything, but still had neough energy to keep both himself and Fay standing. She was nodding however, leaning back against him and stroking his cheek.

"I am, but are you? You fell unconscious..." She gnawed her lip. "I am well, Fayane, do not worry yourself." She smiled weakly even as Jerial scooped her up, grunting quietly at the effort. uickly she wrapped her arms around his neck, helping support her weight across his shoulders instead of just his arms.

Kado shook his head and led the group out of the alchemists, after dropped a couple bishani on the table form which he took the makeshift stretcher. With the stretcher over his shoulder and Cerion hanging off his other arm in an effort to stay upright, Kado found himself slightly slowed. Thankfully Fay was able to give them directions to the Red Chalice Inn.

Making it there safely, and booking 3 rooms, Kado pointed Fay and Jerial to theirs, the doc to his and helped Cerion into his own. Leaving the mage to sleep off the rest of his post-healing exhaustion, Kado double checked on Fay, re-received instructions, and moved off to tell Lady Saruna of Fay's return.

A couple minutes later saw him in front of the door Fay claimed was Saruna's. Eyeing it up he knocked on the door, waited, and knocked again. Having received no response Kado pulled out the note he had written after depositing Cerion and gently tacked it to the door with a small metal pin. Turning away from the door he never noticed the people watching him, sizing him him, before turning away. He wasn't who they were after.

[Tanobi Durant]

Tanobi was relieved in some small way that his staff still lay in the street were it was dropped initially. On their trip to the Red Chalice Inn he spotted the stick and retrieved it with all the haste he could muster to get from it back to his small travel group. Taking the stretcher from Kado he went to his designated room and placed his heavy pack upon the ground as he took a long gaze at the hotel room. 'How long has it been since I've slept with the comfort of a mattress beneath my head'. His thoughts gave way to a long pause in his movements, a tired shoulder made its presence known as even the light weight of the sticks and sash became heavy under the stimuli of seeing a spacious bedroom almost as if for the first time.

Tanobi's mind darted from vision to vision that manifested itself in his subconscious. As he began Kneeling to open his pack his mind reminisced of the days of childhood and of what few teachings he could acquire from his small travels from his unnamed home settlement, ending when he wondered if the inhabitants have desired to call their small collection of huts and meager farms anything noteworthy instead of being the bunch of people from 'out of nowhere.' When his hands reached the sealed leather pouch his thoughts drifted to that of his most recent medical practices and how oddly the group had been behaving strangely since he had met them, 'I could not detect anything with my magic while attempting to heal her' he remembered Cerion stating plain as day 'Oh, Changers' Fay said in a rush. This was no ordinary batch of adventurers that came to him this day, they spoke of magic like the city of Marn and the social taboo of magic and the laws against it were non-existent. The word Changers and The woman Fay's use of the word gave way to a number of speculative possibility's.

Who were these 'Changers'? Tanobi speculated as he pulled a scalpel from the pouch, its leather laces untied and freeing the tools underneath this one in particular was the only one useful for the moment. His body seemed to sink into the mattress he lay upon, his thoughts briefly trying to coax him into rest as the makeshift stretcher in the perspective of one who normally sleeps upon the earth almost makes a fitting blanket. It would almost did just that as he draped it over himself so that he might work to free his sash from the confines of the strong thread.

Slowly his hands made their way to the lengths of thread that binded the sash to the former branches of the strong tree. Slower still did his handwork take place as he guided the scalpel to the exposed lengths sown into his clothing, he would not be denied however as his cuts were precise and meaningful. His sash would come out relatively unscathed from its time severing an unusual function for clothing, save for the minor strain the thread made upon the fabric from when Fay and Jerial were carried in its embrace. He raised his sash with both of his hands staring at the cloth in his hands as if it would yield some answers, it gave no response to him or his subconscious even as Tanobi's expression began to degrade into a tired frown.

He placed the artical of clothing in his lap as his head turned to the ceiling reaffirming his own thoughts, 'if these Changers are a group, then something is going to happen somewhere. This was most likely just a place to rest but the possibility that this was their destination was not far from the realm of likely, if these Changers are as much of a group as i speculate that they may be i must be wary.' Tanobi twirled his scalpel with a bit of unnecessary flair, a parlor trick he learned from a Troubadour before finishing his though. 'Because if the changers are a group like i suspect, they will have motives that i am in the dark about and i did not become this old by being a fool.'

[Fayane]

As Kado made his way back to the Red Chalice Inn, Fay lay resting on the comfortable bed, tired but unable to sleep. Instead, she watched Jerial strip to his trousers, just as he had assisted her in removing most of her own clothes. Dirt, sweat and grim coated his body, causing Fay to wince and force herself to sit up to examine herself. Just as bad, if not worse. Granted she was clean around the wounds now freshly re-bandaged, but that would not do. She looked up to see Jerial moving to her, cloth and bucket of steaming water in hand.

"Kado was kind enough to send for it as he went to Saruna's." Jerial explained even as he crouched before her, working on getting the worst of the grime off her. Fay closed her eyes, humiliated and touched. Here she was, a trained assassin, getting bathed because she was too weak to move. Father would have made me wash myself... But Father was dead, as was Mother, and both were avenged. Fay opened her eyes to look into Jerial's even as he moved to wash her back. But here he was, this man who cared for her even when he too was ill. Darkness was evident under his eyes and other various signs of strain made themselves obvious to her. Touched beyond words, Fay bent and grabbed the spare cloth, heaved herself up, and began to wipe the grime off her mate.

With that done, exhaustion set in and Fay lay back on the bed, Jerial moving next to her. Silently he cuddled her close to his chest even as they both dozed off, both keeping an ear out for the sound of arrival.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
Cerion now wandered down to the main floor and ordered a meal. Eating hungrily, he only grunted in acknowledgement as Kado walked by him, also to order a meal. Sitting side by side they ate silently, both of them in agreement: They'd gotten lucky.

Had the doctor not been there they would have lost the girl Fayane and Jerial in the process. While the two weren't exactly key pawns in this game, they were important enough that they needed to be kept alive and close. Fay because she knew Saruna, the lady who'd started stirring trouble. Jerial because of his connection to an important puradynist politician. Whether or not the elf knew of this was unknown to the pair, but they didn't care. Either way, there would be blood... and with blood, justice.

[Jerial]

Jerial thought that normally, Fay was alive. Normally, his father had not killed her. Normally, he was not chained to the floor and forced to watch. Normally, he did not enjoy watching.

Jerial awoke from his nightmare, panting, his blood cold, beads of sweat ambling down him. Cold sweat dripped into his eye; his hand automatically flew to his eye, wiping the salty sweat away. The startled reaction upset his balance, and he struggled and failed to regain it before finding himself on the oak floor, his back finding ample reason to act out in complaint. Jerial thought of Fay, his heart sinking as he remembered she had been killed by his father and sinking even further when he realized he wasn't supposed to care.

He looked anyway, and he almost passed out when he saw the gentle rise and fall of her chest. The horror of the nightmare had been overlooked by his subconscious reaction to pain in his sluggish state; it now swept over him, washing out all the other confused emotions filling his half-asleep consciousness. He sunk to the floor, his back against the bed, one hand over his face, the other massaging the back of his neck.

His father. He shuddered at the very thought of facing him again. Again. And again.

His father haunted his dreams every night.

[Tanobi Durant]

A Dull thud whispered the tale of an object felled. The sound coming briefly through the wall prompting Tanobi to action rather than to continue to plan his next move. Surfacing from his bed he grabs his walking stick and proceeded out the door to check upon the uncertain noise. Opening the door to find no bodies within the hallway, it was clear that the noise emanated from the next room over the room belonging to the pair he had become so familiar with in the past few hours, Jerial and Fay as they had been called within his earshot.

Tanobi gave the door a sound rapping with his knuckles as he stood a foot from the archway pausing briefly before speaking in a tone as to be herd from beyond the door.

"Master Jerial, are you and madame Fay alright? i heard a noise." Tanobi awaits a response focusing intently upon the door.

[Saruna]

Normal people were not paranoid. Saruna was not particularly paranoid, but then again the currently changing circumstances had brought into question her previously unquestioned level of normalcy. Not that Saruna doubted her state of paranoia, herself; in the flurry of activity that had more or less begun during a chance meeting in the marketplace she had never once entertained the idea that there might be someone watching her home, hoping to do nefarious things to those she cared about or kept under her wing. Nor did she spontaneously begin to develop a supernatural sense for detecting danger. Though she had her own fair share of motherly intuition, it had been tucked away securely as her best shawls the day she'd willingly gone out to pursue the dastardly sorts of things flamboyant villains tended to cackle over, though she did not actively perceive her activities as such. Still, the ghost of her own long dead mother sometimes nagged at her regarding choices made, and she had her own common sense.

The actual problem was that Saruna Rischett was not paranoid enough as she went about locking up her home and ushering her charge, Ran, outside as she performed these tasks as slowly as any tired old woman was wont to. That problem existed in the man who was, in this scenario, the actual villain watching her home and the young man she had begun to have ill-advised feelings about -- particularly after he'd expunged his own life's story, without prompting, in a soliloquy worthy of the best poets. Saruna was drawn to hurts. She was a mother. She couldn't help it.

So it was that she strolled towards the Red Chalice Inn, leaning heavily on Ran's arm, secure in the knowledge that while she was not exactly safe, there was no one out to specifically harm her or those she loved. Which was too bad considering there were, indeed, people out to get her and those she loved. Saruna had not yet adapted to the recommended lifestyles of rascals and scoundrels, and did not know that it was in her best interest to begin developing an acutely attuned sense of paranoia or, lacking that, women's intuition. She could have even unpacked her motherly intuition, but that was attached to baggage better left unexplored. Really, she could have -- at the very least -- wondered what had happened to Cal, and what influence Sindaria might have over her future; instead her mind had moved on to how Fayane was doing and whether or not she would get along nicely with Ran, or perhaps even like the young man. Other thoughts involved dowries and not-quite grandbabies, and should not be dignified with further attention.

Ran at her side, Saruna nervously exchanged pleasantries with Orin, barkeep of the Red Chalice, when they reached the Inn. She introduced Ran somewhat reluctantly, instead eager to introduce Fayane to Ran amidst her grandmotherly fantasies. The stilted conversation eventually gave her the information she needed, and she harried Ran up the stairs to the indicated room as quickly as her tired legs could move.

Saruna was met with the sight of Tanobi attending the door to what she believed was Fayane's room. Though her mood might not be excusable to all and sundry, in her defense she'd had a long day. The run in with Sindaria had not helped matters. She pursed her lips and swept her mother-hawk stare up and down Tanobi's body, every line of her own critical. While the man was not offensive, per se, he did not exhibit exact qualities Saruna expected from gentlemen attending upon Fayane, and he was certainly not the Nice Boy -- capitalization precisely attached to those words -- that Ran, in her esteemed opinion, was.

"Excuse me," she said in a voice that held less excuse and more demand, "may I ask if this is Miss Fayane's door that you happen to be staring at?"

[Tanobi Durant]

Tanobi's eyes blinked in both acknowledgement and minor surprise of the foreign noise coming from an unknown person. looking in her direction he notices the woman who spoke out as well as the adolescent that took to her side. Turning to face them Tanobi gave a small bow in response to her question, ignoring the tone as he had ignored the minor rudeness of others many times over, he knew they had their reasons and perhaps in time he could find out about the root of their ire but for now introductions and clarifications awaited his dutiful reprisal.

"You may-" he starts with a smile " this so happens to be the door that both master Jerial and Madame Fay reside in for the night, I however am their physician overlooking their conditions." He places his left hand tightened into a fist upon his right breast stoically "Tanobi Durant at your service Madame"

[Fayane]

Fay had been asleep, when movement and a racing heartbeat woke her. Startled she flew into a sitting position, only to grab her abdomen and hiss between her teeth. Ignoring the throbbing she turned to see Jerial on the floor looking grey. She flopped backward, breathing a little heavier than usual, not missing his terrified look. Something was amiss. She heard the doctor knock and was about to reply when she heard a familiar voice. Instantly she was sitting up again, sliding off the edge of her bed and staggering upright. The room spun and she leaned against the wall a moment, only to feel Jerial's hand.

"It's Saruna." Fay rasped before pushing herself away from the wall and opening the door to see Saruna, Tanobi and a young boy standing before her door. She tried not to lean too heavily on Jerial, who now stood by her side, but was forced too when a wave of relief hit her. She'd been concerned in her feverish state, thinking perhaps Saruna was ill or injured. Now to see the woman before her, strained but healthy, it eased Fay's mind some.

"It is good to see you again, Saruna. This is Jerial, my mate. Jerial this is Lady Saruna, my good friend and an old ally of sorts." In Fay's exhaustion she didn't notice her terrible manners or the state of her friends. All she knew was that all was well and that she was damn tired.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________

Kado and Cerion had seen the old woman and the kid go up the stairs, and decided to follow. For all they knew they could be enemies. Standing by the stairs they watched the scene unfold before them.

[Saruna]

Both -- ?

The door opened, revealing the two who had been contained in the room beyond.

Two -- ?

Fayane greeted her, and proceeded to introduce her mate.

Mate -- ?

Saruna's eyes affixed themselves to the indicated male, sweeping up and down the length of his body. Tanobi had been reduced to a minor suspicious irritation in the wake of such startling news, and she had no attention for him at all when confronted with the word mate, which was not at all an acceptable title for some strange boy ensconced in a room together with Fayane. He did not at all look the part of a Nice Boy, having several indicators that flagged him as Quite Potentially Dangerous. It should not have come as a surprise to anyone that Saruna's mind flew past the actual reason why she'd come to see Fayane, and went straight into protective mother goose territory.

A wooden smile curved Saruna's lips a moment before she spoke in an equally stiff voice. "Fayane, it has been. . .some time. . .how long have you known. . ." She gestured, rather than spoke the name of the violator of sacred procedures.

[Tanobi Durant]

Tanobi found some amusement from his current situation and lets a deep chuckle escape this throat. Interjecting with a steady and composed voice he attempts to maneuver his way into the conversation.
"I apologize for the interruption, however this does not seem the appropriate location for a conversation relating so close to ones privacy. Additionally madame fay while it would appear my suspicions for you disregarding my recommendations for bed-rest have struck home, I would ask that you return to your room while catching up with your friends."

The aged doctor gives a low bow to seemingly physically apologize for his manners before slumping against the wall and lowering his body with his walking stick slowly. "I will remain here until needed" ending in a resting position he awaits response.

[Fayane]

Now, having had her mother dying at a young age, Fayane was beyond baffled at Saruna's reaction to Jerial. She went from happy to see her to wooden all in a moment and Fay wasn't sure if she should be amused, upset or both. Considering the situation and the boy by Saruna's side Fay decided to lean towards amused.

"Jerial and I have known each other long enough, Mother." She gave a world-weary smile before directing her attention to the seated doctor. "I apologize, I was obeying your orders sir." She gave another weak smile before looking up to Jerial tiredly. Their eyes met and he nodded, easily taking most of her weight and leading her inside.

Seating the young shapeshifter down Jerial moved about to pull out a pair of chairs conveniently near-by. As he did that Fay managed to remain in a seated position as she smiled at Saruna.

"It is more than good to see you healthy and whole Saruna... though I would like to know why on earth you're... endeavoring in your... current activity...?" Fay raised an eyebrow, deciding to not get into specifics as her fathers training once more rose to the surface. Keep your friends close, your enemies closer and trust not a soul. She trusted Saruna and Jerial... it was this new boy... Fay kept her friendly demeanor but even still, she stayed close to her blades. She may not be able to move fast given her current state, but she'd be damned if she allowed anyone to harm Saruna or Jerial.