The Things We Want

CHAPTER 3 "RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME"

"What the..." a young woman looked in the direction the screams came from, taking the rope that tied her horse to a tree and undoing it quickly. She mounted and rode at a fast pace, but never heard the scream again. She wandered for only a minute more before finding the clearing.

She discovered the girl who had screamed, her red hair framing her pale face, a long coat wrapped around her. She got off her horse, rushing to the girl, immediately seeing the arrow in her stomach. The woman's heart pounded, panicking for only a second before inspecting the girl closely.

She was unconscious but still breathing. It was shallow, barely there, but she was still alive. Her stomach was covered in blood, a tear in what looked like a royal dress, covered in a flower that matched her rose hair. Her face looked peaceful, though pale.

"C-Can you hear me?" The woman said questioningly, not knowing exactly what to do yet. But it would be better to have her awake and know she is getting help before leaving her all alone. The woman touched her shoulder gently, then her face, "I-I'm going to get help... alright? I promise I'll return as fast as I can with the doctor..." The woman said desperately, hoping the girl could hear her. She pulled herself away from the girl, rushed back to her horse, saddled up fast and sped off towards the town.

Every minute felt like hours as she rode, though it took her seconds to find a doctor when she came to the town screaming for help. 20 minutes later they arrived at the clearing, finding the girl barely breathing, still unconscious.

"Oh my god," the woman breathed, rushing to her, the doctor close behind. They held a large bag, setting it down next to Ava as they kneeled to inspect the damage.

"Not good, she could bleed out if we don't handle this quickly after the arrow is removed," he takes a deep breath. "Alright," he starts, pulling supplies from his bag, spreading a sheet so nothing touched the ground. It was an assortment of bottles, bandages, and things the woman hasn't seen at the doctor's home before even though she had been there countless times for injuries of her own. "Hold her shoulders down, the movement will only make this more painful," he said solemnly, gently wrapping his hand around the base of the arrow. The woman nodded, leaning over the girl, pressing down softly on her shoulders.

"One," he tightened his grip slowly, "two," placed a second hand on the arrow, "three," the woman pressed down harder on the girl's shoulders.

The doctor pulled up as straight as he could, the arrow ripping from her stomach quickly, leaving her awake and screaming.

"Talk to her to calm her down," the doctor said loudly over her screams as he placed the arrow on the ground and quickly got to work.

"A-Alright-" the woman stuttered, not really knowing what to say to the girl she was fighting to keep still, "Shh, hey," she started, looking down at the girl's fearful tear-filled eyes, darting around, "Look at me," she put a hand on her cheek. "What's your name?" She asked calmly.

"A-Ava," she managed, clenching her teeth, clearly writhing in pain. She blinks hazily, black dots continuing to spot her vision.

"I'm Iris," the young woman said clearly, her long blonde braids hanging forward. The doctor does something behind Iris that causes Ava to wince, and she grabs Iris's wrist. "S-Sorry... we came back as quickly as we could. When I found you, you weren't conscious, I tried to tell you help was coming-"

"D-Don't apologize, y-you-" she lets out a groan, trying to grab at her stomach.

"Shh, it's alright," Iris took her hands, looking down at her, trying not to look so scared. Ava stares at her, probably seeing right through her fake smile.

"B-but y-y-you saved me-" Ava's voice got quieter as she blinks again, attempting to remove the darkness clouding her view of Iris. She looked heavenly, a halo of light behind her bright blond hair. Blinking only seemed to make it worse, the pain taking over her mind again.

Ava's eyes roll back, her grip on Iris's hands disappearing completely, "Ava? Ava!"

"It's the pain, I have no remedy for it, but she will be alright," the doctor spoke up, looking at Iris confidently, only a hint of concern in his eyes. "We need to take her to town. I've finished cleaning and wrapping her wound but it's all I can do here. She needs to rest."

"How will we get her there without injuring her further?" Iris asked, grateful for his work, yet skeptical of this solution.

"You'll ride carefully. I'll lead her horse, you'll carry her, I have too many supplies to ride smoothly with another person."

"M-Me? And Mara? She isn't the most steady in the world..." Iris looks to her horse, now extremely nervous to have someone's life in her hands.

"It'll be alright, you just have to go slow. I've stabilized her as much as I can, she should be fine," the doctor speculates, pulling on the loose ropes to get Clarence moving along with them. Then after Iris mounts her horse, he carefully lifts Ava off the ground, slowly transferring her to Iris's arms. Mara shifted a bit at the weight. She hadn't carried two people in a long time. But she stayed alert and calm.