Savia's Heart [Sequel to Bastian's Song] [HIATUS]

[ 2 ]

[ Savia ]

Sweat dripped from Savia's forehead and stung her eyes, but she did not stop her work to wipe her brow. In front of her, a young girl lay upon a bed of dried grass and rough linen. Her sweat-slicked hair stuck to her pale skin, and her chest rose with a rattle that was painful to listen to. A red flush lit her face and her brown eyes were scrunched in agony. Her cracked lips parted to moan in pain.

Movement in the corner of the small hut drew Savia's attention. "Auron, have you brought the blood root?"

He emerged from the shadows, his long dark hair pulled back from his face. Firelight flickered over the scarred flesh of his left side. "Aye, my lady. Prepared in a tonic, as you requested."

The words, said so gently, grated against Savia's ears like the girl's cough. Her eyes drifted down to his hands, where the red liquid glittered in a glass vial. She watched him kneel beside the young girl, and then his eyes were on hers. Though he did not speak, she knew what he waited for.

Savia bit her lip, and then she nodded. Auron uncorked the vial and lifted the girl's head. With great care, he poured the tonic into her mouth and then rubbed at her throat until she swallowed it. He set her back down and stood back, tense and still. Rather than watching the girl, all of his attention was on the woman who tended her.

As the tonic worked its way into the girl's blood stream, Savia's eyes unfocused. She stared at the blurred image of the girl, lit by fire and shadow, until she could see what she really needed to. Red mist surrounded the girl, pulsing in a sporadic way. The sickness was rooted deep within her, allowed to fester and grow by a mother who thought her lazy child was only seeking relief from her chores.

The question now remained whether she could be saved, or if she were beyond the power of herbs and an attentive healer with a sharp eye. Savia ran her hands along the veins over the girl's arms, up over her shoulders and finally, her dark fingers rested over her heart. Against the pale backdrop of the sick child, Savia's fingers were even more vibrantly brown.

There. The pulsing of the heart beneath her fingers was drumming a song for her. A quiet hum lifted through her hands, and Savia knew that the young girl still held fast to life. Savia sighed.

Young as she was, the child was stubborn enough that she had a good chance of recovering completely. Savia lifted a damp cloth from the bowl of cool water beside her and ran it over her patient's forehead. "Thank you, Auron, for bringing the tonic. We will need more before this is done, but for now you should return home. There's not much else you can do here."

The dark haired man made a point of looking her over. His sharp eyes sent chills down her spine. Unconsciously, Savia gritted her teeth. Sometimes, she felt that Auron could see too much.

"Won't you need something to eat, my lady?" His raspy voice held no hint of judgement.

Savia closed her eyes and did her best not to shift on her knees. Her stomach grumbled loudly, because it was a traitor to her own dignity. "How do you always do that?"

He smiled. "It's not hard to do when you never take the time to feed properly. When was the last time you had a full meal?"

She wiped an arm over her brow and managed not to roll her eyes at him. He hovered like a mother hen, and completely ignored the fact that she was essentially immortal. "I have difficulty keeping track of time. That's not so unusual."

"It is for a vampyre. Or so I'm told." Auron shook his head and glanced out of the window near them, lifting the linen that draped over it. When he spoke again, his voice was lowered. He had no doubt she would hear him. "The mother is waiting outside the house. Shall I address her on your behalf?"

"What on earth is she doing waiting outside the house?" Savia dipped the cloth back into the cold water and ran it over the girl's flushed skin. Silence greeted her question until she paused her work and looked back up. Auron's featured were set in a stony mask, and she felt her shoulders grow heavier. She knew what was coming, though it never got any easier.

"She is afraid to enter, my lady. I think she fears catching the illness." A logical fear, in any normal circumstance. But Auron's words were a kindness to her, and they both knew it. The girl's mother waited outside of her own home, not because she was afraid of the sickness, but because she was afraid of the healer.

Savia bared her teeth, and then immediately chided herself for the lack of restraint. Weariness had made her too emotional, and that was a dangerous thing. "Very well. Let her wait outside, in the fresh salt air. It will do her good to stay out of this heavy heat."

Auron bowed at the waist, his movements practiced and formal beyond what Savia had seen in most of her years. Graceful, and just a bit showy, his bow was a thing of beauty, and he performed it so easily and naturally that it had taken her a long time to realize it was not the kind of bow that the locals used.

Another oddity to add to her growing list when it came to the mysterious Auron.

"You should eat, Auron. And when you return, I'd like a cup of tea. Please."

"Your...special blend, Savia?"

"If you don't mind." It would not do to think about what would happen if she did not eat soon.

"For you, anything." He straightened up and smiled at her. In the shadow of the fire, she could almost see how he had looked before his accident. Handsome, but more than that. There was something about him that seemed familiar in a way. A wildness to him that she wondered about often.

"I shall return shortly, my lady. And I shall bring more blood root tonic with me."

And then he was gone, his long stride carrying him out into the night. Savia returned her attention to the girl, her mind setting aside the puzzles of people for the time being. Already, the girl's chest rose more evenly.

Her face was relaxed, and her mouth slack with the deep sleep that indicated her body was well on the way to healing itself. Savia smiled and wet her cloth again, but stopped when she turned back to the girl.

Her eyes were open and trained on Savia. "Thank...you." She closed her eyes again and slept.

All of the bitterness inside of Savia melted away. "You're very welcome, sweet child. Let's get you better, so you can play with your friends again."

Savia the healer set to work.

Dun dun duuuuun. We meet the mysterious Savia! Mwuahahaha.

Also Auron, who is one of my personal faves. I have done terrible things to that precious baby. ;-;

Thanks for reading, as always. You make my days so much brighter. <3