Trouble and comfort

Breelands Weather

The midnight autumn air is cool but pleasant around you. The dark sky is overcast and dreary. The moon is above the horizon and in its full phase.

Infirmary

The Infirmary is an area of clean floorboards and white walls. Not a speck of dust or dirt can be found here. Three beds are available for patient\'s use, each one with a small trunk at its foot for the patient\'s personal items and a place where a medical chart can be hung. Between the three beds, two curtains have been hung on poles creating a sense of privacy for each invalid, yet allowing the healer\'s an easy view in. A cabinet with bottles, pouches and scrolls can be seen toward the back of the room. A small chair rests beside it. A set of wooden shelves holds a wash basin, towels and extra blankets. The single window in the infirmary looks out over the front rose garden.

Contents:

Thari

Ovor

Kellan

Obvious exits:

Curtain to Main Room

[Thari(#31038)]

Morning is coming. The infirmary is still quiet, the candle burned down long ago, but grey-tinged light is seeping into the room. The rain has stopped, but only just, and the air feels fresh still.

Thari is awake, has been for some time. She watches nothing in the window, but her lips are parted as she breathes shallowly, as if every breath hurts. Despite this, her wide-parted eyes reveal no pain.

[Frarin] Unlike his fellow, Frarin sleeps at this hour. Resting in the bed beside the healer, his breaths too are shallow and restricted and his face is drained of colour in a way that the grey pre-dawn light makes appear almost white. His right hand is tucked gently behind his head and he has been propped up slightly on several pillows, but otherwise he has moved very little from his usual position. Shallow though his breathing is, it is not fitful, and the peaceful rustle of cloth as his chest rises and falls is the only sound the silver merchant makes this early morning.

[Thari(#31038)]

Thari\'s head turns, a shushing noise of cloth, and looks at Frarin as he sleeps. Her eyes are intent while perusing his whitening face, her hair wild from being slept on for weeks now. Her breath catches painfully and she looks away again.

[Frarin] Frarin\'s head rolls lazily to the left as he sleeps and his mouth opens and closes. Another moment and some dream bids him shift slightly. His shoulders move and a small grimace passes over his face as the bandaged left shoulder is shaken. Gradually, the barb of momentary pain eases Frarin into wakefulness. His head rolls back towards the ceiling and the eyelids slowly pull apart, fighting back the sleep there and forcing focus into the dark gaze.

Blinking several times, Frarin yawns, simultaneously pressing his good hand against his chest as if the intake of air pains him. Propped up as he is, he can survey the little infirmary moderately well and his eyes drift to Thari, though he says nothing in the darkness, perhaps mistaking the turned away gaze as one indicating slumber.

[Thari(#31038)]

The tiny shifting noises of his motion and breath seem loud in the quiet room. Thari\'s head turns again, glancing left with just a quick, darting sidelong gaze that lands so briefly on Frarin\'s eyes, and she looks out the window again without saying anything.

[Frarin] \"Awake again?\" Frarin\'s voice cracks across the darkness as the glimmer of Thari\'s brief glance towards him catches the grey light of the coming morning. He pulls his good arm out from beneath his head and grasps one of the pillows behind him, tugging it up to support his propped up position more. Then the right arm falls gently to his side. He winces slightly.

Following Thari\'s gaze to the window, the silver merchant gives a small cough to clear the sleep from his throat. Then, looking again at the healer, he rumbles quietly, \"Do you not sleep well, Thari?\"

[Thari(#31038)]

\"Not during the night.\" Thari\'s whisper is rough but not quite as rough as it would be upon first waking. A pause lingers, and at last her head shifts so that her face is toward him. She studies the wall over his shoulder. \"I sleep more during the day. I like how quiet it is at night. It is sometimes easier to face and conquer pain that way.\"

[Frarin] Observing Thari in silence for awhile, Frarin nods at her last words, his gaze falling groggily to his lap. His right hand rubs the sleep from his eyes. \"Aye, that is true. It is not so hot at night either, though that is what helps me sleep during the dark hours rather than the light.\" He falls into silence again for a time, yawning a second time and blinking as the last vestages of sleep retreat from his mind.

Then Frarin looks up again to behold Thari. His face is set as always, a natural frown buried beneath his beard and the eyes thoughtful, but there is a gentle curiosity in his expression as well. \"Thari,\" he begins quietly, voice a gentle rumbling hum in the pale light, \"are you feeling well? Only, you do not seem to sleep well and speak even less. And I have thought about your words from the other night, when we were both awake.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

There is a quick shift in her eyes. Thari looks instead to Frarin\'s face, a measuring gaze. \"Which words?\" she asks. Her whisper has dropped even softer, more guarded. \"And what did you think of them?\"

[Frarin] Frarin\'s eyes meet Thari\'s as the healer looks up and he looks concerned as her voice turns more guarded, as if something were confirmed in his mind. His brow wrinkles and his frown deepens, apparently considering how to proceed. At first he shrugs, just the right shoulder, answering Thari\'s first question. \"All of them, I suppose. It made me think for a time.\"

He takes a shallow breath, more shadows slipping in around his eyes and mouth, though his brow relaxes. He looks also, for lack of better words, unsure, uncomfortable. \"It\'s only...Well, you\'re not alone in your feelings. Do you understand? I felt that exact sentiment when I was confined to Bree before and I was not content until I was gone from the town to seek our company. And there are others, most everyone of our number still here at the Healing House, feels the same. You are not alone in your discontent. You need not shun the company of others in thinking yourself alone.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

Thari\'s eyes widen as he speaks, her brows lift. For a moment she even seems frightened in reaction, her head drawing back on the pillow and her breath quickening. But as she finishes, her brows descend in confusion mid-cringe (a cringe! She who has met darkness in battle with an eager cry!). \"What?\" She draws out the word. \"Everyone?\"

[Frarin] \"Yes, of course,\" Frarin doggedly continues, tone still as if prodding unknown territory, but now tinged by the old confidence, as if another thought of his has been confirmed. \"Are you surprised? You tend to the wounded and crippled more than most, and should know the nature of our people in this respect. None are content to remain confined to a house of healing for long, not even when there is nothing pressing to command our attentions.\"

Fading into silence as if preparing to await a reply from Thari, Frarin observes the healer for a moment, but his brow wrinkles again, realising now in the half-darkness how she has shrunken into her pillow. His expression begins to harden again, as if a return to his usual confidence is the best manner in which he can deal with Thari\'s unexpected reaction. \"Well you should not be surprised, that is my meaning. Sometimes it takes a friend to point out what we cannot see ourselves. And I say to you that sleeping during the day and lying awake at night, avoiding others, is no road to recovery. I like this immobility no more than you, but it is unavoidable, and better to endure it with as much cheer as possible, rather than sulking the hours away.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

Thari\'s head lifts a little and shifts closer to the left side of the bed. Her brows have furrowed in concentration. \"And this all has... what? ...to do with what I was talking about yesterday...\" Suddenly her face relaxes a little. \"Oh! Oh yes!\" she gives a quiet, almost nervous laugh. \"I was talking about confinement yesterday! That\'s right.\"

Just as quick, she goes back to scrutinizing his face as if hunting for something. A sigh, and her glance turns away. \"You are being kind.\"

[Frarin] Shadows appear across Frarin\'s brow again as Thari speaks and his gaze narrows as he watches her. His frown deepens further still at the nervous laugh, but the concerned look reappears as the healer sighs and turns away. \"Do you fault me for that?\" he rumbles quietly. \"I do not aim to pity you, Thari, but I would not see you wiling away the days here in Bree in depression. You have not been yourself since coming here. I do not blame you for that, for I am no optimist myself, but still...\"

The merchant\'s voice drifts away and falls into nothingness for a time, seemingly at a loss for words. Then he shakes his head in the darkness, still watching Thari. \"Something else there is upon your mind, I sense, other than your confinement. Is it the prospect of another winter abroad? That is understandable. Another winter beyond Erebor will bring our travels into their second year.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

Again Thari\'s eyes dart back to the old merchant. Her brows are lifted, her mouth open a little. \"You don\'t know?\" she whispers, nearly only breathing the words. Her strong hand is shaking almost as she absent-mindedly combs fingers through her wild hair.

\"I think,\" she confesses, just as quietly, \"I would like to tell you, to have your counsel, but I can\'t do it when so many can overhear. Perhaps after we are well.\" She gives a sort of half-smile that does not touch her eyes.

[Frarin] Frarin\'s mouth opens in question and his brows come together. His face oddly contorts, at once attempting to retain the neutral hardness while the concern deepens in his expression. Dark eyes fall to his lap, then lift to the window, then weave back towards Thari. In the silence following the healer\'s half smile, Frarin tugs at the ends of his beard. \"No, I\'m sorry, I do not know, Thari. I have sensed something amiss, but I cannot read minds.\"

Sensing the private nature of whatever troubles her, Frarin nods gently and gives a small smile, another attempt at comfort. \"Of course,\" he rumbles quietly. \"Of course. If I can help, I will. I would not have you as down as you have been. You have accomplished many great feats this past season, and deserve happiness and content for your part.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

\"It has been growing and preying on my mind at all hours,\" Thari whispers. Her hands are shaking as she lifts them to rub at her face, a much greater mobility seen still with her left. \"I will be glad to tell you, for-- for the help. You\'ve always been a sensible dwarf.\"

[Frarin] Even in the darkness, especially as it begins to pale with the dawn, Frarin can see the shake in Thari\'s hands as she lifts them to rub at her face. Again the silver merchant\'s face is a paradox of hardness and concern, as if unsure how to proceed in the face of such outward emotion, such a foreign issue for Frarin. But foreign or no, Thari\'s troubled words do not fail to touch him. His gaze softens as if sensing the trouble is very great indeed. And then, silently and abruptly, his right hand reaches out, gently touching the edge of the healer\'s bed.

\"Take heart, Thari,\" he says, forcefully displacing his own natural pessimism in an effort to bring peace to his friend. \"The day approaches, after all, and then you can return to sleep, and banish your troubles to dreams. That is not worthless.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

Thari takes a deep breath, flinching when her ribs widen too far, then drops her hands. She looks down at Frarin\'s hand and half-smiles a little, her fingers just touching for a moment the back of his. \"Your words have already helped, Forli\'s son.\"

She lifts her head restlessly and sweeps her unbound hair from behind her head then to allow it to waterfall over the head of the bed. The bed shakes when she drops her head down again and she gives a teeth-gritting groan as her leg swings in its sling. Her eyes are screwed shut. \"Oo! I\'m daft!\" she grates out.

[Frarin] Frarin pulls his hand back and sets it on the bed beside him, just as Thari moves and sets her leg to swinging. He squints, as if inwardly cringing at the thought of what pain she must feel, but he says nothing. Outward pain, it seems, is easier for the sombre silver merchant to deal with than that within. \"You will be gone from here in a week or two, mm?\" he quietly rumbles, a hint of humour creeping into his hitherto concerned tone. It is not amusement at the other\'s pain, to be sure, but rather an odd effort to draw her attention elsewhere.

[Thari(#31038)]

\"\'n then!\" Thari gasps, sweat beading on her brow. She draws her right leg in to try to steady the left. \"I\'m runnin\' off to the Blue Mountains to drown in a vat of ale!\" She gives a tight little laugh and brushes a hand ever-so-slightly over the bulge at her hip.

[Frarin] At last a small smile creeps into Frarin\'s beard as Thari returns to something of her old self. He gives a silent chuckle and turns to look towards the ceiling, now grey with the growing light. His eyes close, though his breathing does not slow as one preparing for sleep. \"I believe you will, Thari,\" he rumbles. \"I do believe you will. But before then, perhaps our captors might allow us a visit to the Pony. Oh how I should like a pipe and a pint of Butterbur\'s beer. Perhaps if we jingle our money purses enough, someone will be good enough to fetch us a pint tomorrow.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

\"Ooh, and you know then we\'ll spill it and have sticky beards.\" Thari\'s pain seems to have eased, for she only gasps a little while speaking. She releases a fisthold on her sheets. \"I\'d not fancy a human lass trying to properly clean a beard. Now that reminds me.\"

She lifts her head, her hair wild around her, and looks at the silversmith. \"Do you help to keep the humans off of my bandages when I\'m sleeping? That dwarven healer has done a fine enough job for me, as you can imagine.\"

[Frarin] Frarin\'s eyes flick to the curtain dividing the infirmary from the main room. \"The house\'s healers have been told,\" he replies quietly after looking back at Thari, \"that you prefer one of our company to Bree\'s own. With their assumptions about dwarves, they do not argue. One of the younger healers confessed she was surprised any of our wounded were accepting the Breelanders\' aid in the first place. I suppose rumour of our having spent weeks recovering in the wild has not gone amiss.\"

He subtly forms the explanation passively, omitting any part of his own in warding away unwelcome eyes from Thari, if indeed he has played any. \"Zhi has done a fine job, certainly. Bree\'s healers are not unworthy though, if irritatingly persistent.\"

[Thari(#31038)]

\"Good! Good.\" Thari smothers a bit of a yawn with her fist, head dropping to the pillow again. \"I\'d completely forgotten about Zhi when I first awoke. Always glad you\'re looking out, Frarin.\" Her eyes drift shut and she ever-so-gingerly tugs her sheet up higher.

\"I think I\'m going to sleep again after all.\" She tucks a hand under her left cheek, face towards him. Her breathing begins to slow. With time, a faint ruddy tinge grows on her cheeks. She then turns her head away and stills.

[Frarin] Another very small smile works its way into Frarin\'s mouth and cheeks as he shuts his eyes again, face turned towards the ceiling. There is none of the insistence on correcting Thari about his \'looking out\'. One eye opens, then the other, as the healer readies herself for a return to slumber, and Frarin glances over at her. His smile fades very slowly, disappearing entirely once she has turned away. It is replaced with a sad, deeply thoughtful frown.

But as with several nights before, he says only \"Sleep well, Thari\" as she grows still. Then his gaze rolls back towards the ceiling and his eyes close again. Sleep gradually steals over him as well. And thus, as the healers in the main room begin to awake and prepare for the coming dawn, their patients in the adjourning room drift back into unconsciousness amid a grey dawn and the prospect of another hot day.