Fable - Ask A healing flame

[Thraah]

At five bells the monthly mail was delivered.
At half past the fifth hour of morning, Thraah was running full tilt down the halls of the Academy. To the office of the only Proctor she could think of.
The blue one was a creep.
The old witch was worse.
But still...
Her mind was bubbling with concepts.
Fear being the worst of it.
Fear of what she'd say, what she was about to do and what might happen as a result.
The letter was pain. A cold death that leeched up her arm from the crumpled piece of paper in her hand.
Her feet almost slid past the door as she arrived. Momentum threatening her to slow down but there was no slowing down. No catching her breath. Only the door and who lay beyond.
Does she knock?
Call out?
Cry?
She slumped her stupid head against the door and curled her fingers on the deaf wood.
For all her insistence on being there for others, even when she was not wanted, her body refused to move when she needed anything from anyone.
The thing that drove her arm to motion was the knowledge that the help she would be asking wasn't for her, not really.
There was a soft eternity between each clumsy thump of her hand.
"P... proctor... PROCTOR URAHIL?"
Oh shit.
She really was about to ask *her* for permission to go.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

There were few moments where she was awarded quiet reprieve from both her Healer and Proctor duties; a quiet she could take to work on her creative flow. Tonight, the canvas was washed in blues and greys, a face forming with the additions of browns and pinks, yellows and whites. No one was going to see this work, not when upon completion it would be wrapped and put away, complete and forgotten.

The nameless face she had been staring at for a while, now faced with the task of replicating his eyes.

Perrine drifted into her thoughts, her memories, when thuds came from her office door.

And then the call for her, for the Proctor, reached her ears.

"Thraah?" She whispered to herself, wondering if it truly was that late and she was dreaming this. But the hand thudded awkwardly again, rousing Perri to leave her stool and glide across the room to the door.

She cracked it open, peeking out to see the Initiate, flustered and... unsure of whether she had meant to knock on this door.

"Thraah, It is the middle of the night." A very wrong observation on her part, but all over her hands was paint, and a light smudge of blue at her cheek. Even her unbound, golden hair held some painted colour. "Are you ill?" She then asked, opening the door wider. Almost forgot many Initiates came to her instead of the medics most times.

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

Thraah's world became huge and also very small at the same time.
Perrine Urahil was... an Urahil and they were fuckers. The whole world knew this, she was certain but there was nobody else.
After skipping so much class and running about and picking fights (with assholes) Thraah had burned almost all good will at the Academy. Perrine was the only Proctor left who didn't sneer at the sight of her.
She took a deep breath...
and let it out, wiped her nose and eyes on her wrist before speaking.
"Uh, I need..."
Her eyes went everywhere and looked at nothing.
"I need to go!"
She closed her eyes. Wary of how little that explained anything.
"I mean, I gotta leave the Academy..."
She looked at the hem of Perrine's gown as it snuck through the crack in the door.
"Now... I... I gotta go and leave the Academy now, and go, home!"
Why was it so hard to talk, to think, to breathe?
Her chest was heaving with the strain of not wailing. The world was so slow, it moved as if underwater.
When she finally looked up at Perrine her brown eyes were red and sore from tears.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

Perrine opened her door some more, pulling Thraah in by the shoulder before closing the door again to keep the chill out. She ushered the Initiate to the settee that Leander had taken to lounging on when he came to visit his cousin, turning around to look for her enchanted teapot she was gifted from her birthday. It always stayed hot, allowing Perrine to have tea whenever she pleased by filling it with a water jug. Two cups of green tea were steaming, and Perri handed one to Thraah.

"Start again." She did not smile, nor did she frown. Perrine's experience as a Healer had instilled an expression of neutrality she often wore even in her classes.

"Why do you wish to leave the Academy? Has something happened here that made you upset?" Did Leander say something and that was why Thraah came to Perri? To get him in trouble?

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

Yes, damned plenty but none of that was her focus now.
Thraah held the cup of scalding tea in her hands not by the handle. Hot things didn't burn her since the gemstone, since leaving home.
The dark drink still had a few flecks of leaf that escaped the grid of the filter.
Thraah didn't look up. She was transfixed by the steady swirling, how all the little pieces were drawn up to the edge of the cup.
She took a haggard breath and suddenly wished she could be talking to Zaire or Maseno, or even Livia and Houri very much.
"I have to go home, it's a family thing and it's important."
Perrine could not know.
She must not know, an Urahil MUST NOT KNOW.
Her mind screamed at her, cursed herself for a fool. This was a terrible mistake.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

A family thing.

Perrine knew the pull of family well, and upon hearing it, she softened her face. Thraah did not need a Dreadlord Healer, nor did she need a Proctor telling her no. Thraah came to her... because many other Initiates did too. She was one of the younger Proctors at the Academy, cousin to the Urahil twins. A Fourth Rank Dreadlord, harmless. She was no traditional Proctor, but she always made time for any Initiates that sought her help.

"You only just got back from Vel Castere." She noted, thinking. "But I can always organise another mission, maybe even an errand... where is home, Thraah?" She leaned against her desk, taking a sip of her tea and lightly blowing at the surface to cool it. "I need to know how many days you need to travel... unless this is a plan for you to up and leave the Academy. That I cannot help with..."

She did not care for her position here, but she cared about being liable for an Initiate defecting. Whatever the circumstances.

"Can I ask what the emergency is?"

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

*No!*
"The Capital."
It was close enough. Urahils were known to be among the worst for Elf hating. Thraah had challenged Leander about it in the past. She had no reason to believe Perrine was any different. So her family living right next to an Elf slum outside the walls was not something she felt like sharing.
"No... I'm not LEAVING leaving."
Was she?
Did she think about coming back? Did she want to?
Vel Castere had pushed her hard and things with Zeph were, complicated in ways it would be easier to run from and the others... no she needed to think of her family, her sisters needed her.
"I..."
At the asking of the nature of her leaving Thraah froze. The letter was short and messy in her hand. Perrine was neither of these things. She felt bad as she looked at it, like she had ruined her dress all over again. Oh why was she thinking of herself?
"It's my, sisters."
She started to dry heave, the cup of undrunk tea rattled stop the saucer in her hand as she began to explain something so horribly unfair she had to force the words out.
"They're not well and..."
The tears had come afresh and her voice deepened in her upset.
"... and I don't know what I'm gonna do once I get there."
The last words all but disappeared as she spoke them. Crushed by the lump in her throat.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

Perrine frowned, putting down her cup of tea onto the desk before moving to kneel before Thraah. The Proctor too the cup and saucer from the Initiate and set it gently onto the floor. "I need to restock some things with the apothecary in Vel Anir... a day to travel there, and another to come back. I can give you three days..."

She chewed on the inside of her cheek, dropping her gaze as Thraah voiced her inability to figure out what to do with her sisters... and Perri sighed, needing more information to offer some suggestion. "Did you get a letter then? Did it say anything indicative of their illness? If I can be of assistance, then I will do so Thraah. I had to learn beyond my Healing magic, and can put together poultices or salves or prescribe herbs for you to take."

It was obvious how helpless Thraah felt in that moment, how stuck and frustrating it would be to be so far from home and unable to be there within an instant. Perri had that anxiety for a week after the murder of Amoux Urahil, her cousin. Had she been there, by his side, would she be able to heal him in time? What if anymore of her family were to fall to such a fate. Felix certainly ordered her here, but Perrine also had worn him down in putting her to use for the House.

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

Three days.
One for each of her sisters.
Thraah almost fell into a helpless blubber at the thought.
But Perrine said more and Thraah even in her semi frantic state could not help but key onto two very distinct words.
"Healing magic? I, I thought there was none here, at the Academy I mean."
Perrine might had said it in class or it may have been mentioned but Thraah desperately hated Urahils and did her level best to ignore and forget them.
Most of the time.
"Can, you help?"
Healing was totally lost on her. She could patch and that but the serious stuff, you may as well have asked her to lift the moon out of the sky.
Still, Perrine, even if she could help was an Urahil.
Thraah had to remember that. Had to remember to keep her away.
"If you give me something I can take it but..."
She looked at the crumpled letter.
What hope the revelation of Perrine's abilities held vanished like smoke into the air.
"I don't know what's wrong with them."
*I don't know anything!*

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

"Healing magic? I, I thought there was none here, at the Academy I mean."

Perrine did her best not to click her tongue, or roll her eyes. Instead, she adopted patience. "You ought to remember I am still an active Dreadlord of the Fourth Rank. Healer. Left the Academy at sixteen, if you can believe it or not." And she always glossed over her early graduation, adamant on being known as a Healer in the Revolution era.

"If you do not know the state of your sisters, then... I am afraid I do not know what to put together for you to take with them." Perrine lifted a brow, reading the face of the Initiate before her. Apprehension, guarded. Her words were carefully chosen, distrustful of Perri. No... not just because of her... but because of the family she was born into.

"Thraah." She stood up, returning to her desk to sip her tea. "There is an agreement medics and Healers promise, swear by really. No questions asked, only the health of a patient is the utmost patience... you would get no judgements from us. From me." It was not the first time she had been on the suspicions of many because of her family name. The Urahils had a reputation, but Perrine had survived horrors the twins had yet to see upon their departure of this Academy. "If you hire me to see to your sisters, I am under oath to speak nothing of the visit. Does that suit you? We can leave today. I think Fennec and Quinnick can continue the dance lessons the class will have to learn today." A small smile pulled at her lips, amused. What chaos would rein in that lesson later today... but she was confident Fennec could keep a class together and on task in her absence.

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

In essence, this was better than she could have asked for.
A healer, swooping in to make it all better again.
But...
Hire meant money and Thraah had none. Her family had less. There was only one thing she had that would be worth it.
"I'll pay, whatever it is but, this promise..."
Thraah looked right at Perrine, in the eyes, scanning for a lie, anything that would give her a reason not to trust her.
"... if it's bull I'll kill you!"
Her voice was suddenly still as lake water in winter and just as cold. No doubt Perrine had seen her share of danger and death but this was her family and Thraah would burn the capital to the ground to save them.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

Now Perrine rolled her eyes.

"You will have to get in line behind Ivan Skender I am afraid." Leander had mentioned his friend's grievance with his cousin, who merely shrugged at the time. It was the Academy after all, when had anyone not want to put a Proctor in place? "When you hire me, there is a contract. For filing with the offices. I break that, there is an investigation and I am not going to put myself through a headache. Not again, after what happened in the Bayou..." At least there had been one uplifting moment in the aftermath. Her head turned to look at the canvas she had been working on before Thraah announced herself.

Perrine sipped from her tea once more before placing it back down, turning back to see the Initiate seated on the settee. "Do not worry about the payment. I truly do not need to be paid... whatever I earn I put back into the orphanages and public health clinics. Allow me to make a donation to whichever organisation you wish." She did not mind taking money from the rich and mighty in Anirian society, but from an Initiate that worried after their family? No, they did not need to put themselves out of pocket.

"Keep that lethal energy once we make it to the gates leading out of the Academy. From here on out, there need not be any helplessness. This is now a sanctioned mission, paperwork pending." The guards at the gates owed her one for keeping quiet about their scrap fight the other week and will wave them on by.

"Well... are you prepared for the journey to Vel Anir?" She asked, sizing up the Initiate that previously had been sniffling.

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

Thraah's mind was full of *go* as soon as Perrine had asked if she was ready.
She stood and was halfway to the door before she stopped and turned back to her Proctor to give a short and unusually formal bow.
"Thank you, Proctor Perrine."
It was the best she could do.
Perrine was going to come and help and keep her secret and all that but even now Thraah could not thank the name of Urahil.
Not before Perrine knew, not before she saw what secrets she had already agreed to keep.
"I'm ready now."

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

Perrine liked the readiness Thraah had, and would commend her for it. A Dreadlord needed to be ready, no matter what.

"Give me five minutes. Finish your tea before we go."

Not only did she put away her paints, Perrine sat down at her desk and wrote a quick letter, and a list. The letter would be in place of a missive, detailing she had been hired for service by a private party, and a list to buy more time should they need it. The Proctor truly needed to visit the apothecary in Vel Anir to restock, not trusting the quality the medics here sourced on their own.

She tidied a few things into a travel satchel, before donning a lovely deep blue hooded cloak that would keep her warm. "We are to take the carriage. There are a few crates I need to return back to the Academy with... so it is best we have some comfort on the way."

Perrine ushered Thraah to the door, intending to lock up her door after they both exited. College magic, something she used for the minimal tasks, like locking her door.

"Last chance: do you require anything to take with you before we leave?"

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

Thraah thought.
"No, wait, yes. My bag is in my room it's packed already."
After Maz took her on his secret mission she had taken to keeping her bag packed with a change of clothes and essentials.
"I'll see you outside."
And she was off again, running like lightening down back towards her cramped room. Barely stopping as she swung in on the door and nabbed the bag she kept at the foot of her bed and her travelling cloak.
By the time she could see the entrance to the dark courtyard her breath was ragged.
But it was okay, things were going to be hard and tiring and she was sorry more than anything that she did not feel she had the time to tell anyone where she was going or why, but it would be okay. It had to be.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

By the time Thraah would meet the Proctor, she would be stationed by a horse-drawn carriage, a driver already seated and ready. The gates were beyond, just down this path from the stables, and Perrine wore an expression that was void of anything that would indicate just what the hell she was doing. Lately she had been making some choices, her need to fix or heal getting the better of her... but it was from those that sought her help, those that entrusted her for whatever reason they needed to ask her of anything.

But Thraah did not ask, did not mean to come to her. Perri knew this, but it spoke volumes that Thraah could accept Perrine's offer. She knew the Initiate was here to help give her family a better future, something she learned in the lessons that Thraah was in attendance for.

"Vel Anir is over a day's travel, are you sure you have what you need?" She asked with a raised brow. They will not make any stops, ride straight through the day and night until they reached their destination.

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

"I'm, *gasp* I'm good, let's go."
Thraah caught her breath as the entered the carriage. She had never taken one before though instantly she prefered it.
Horses were fine, she liked them enough but being on top of one for hours on end was painful. Getting to just sit and be taken, it was nice.
The inside was comfortable and cramped. She doubted more than six would fit in the carriage at a time and even then they would be shoulder to shoulder.
As it was she sat with her bag on her lap and as Perrine entered she became quite alive with interest in the Proctor.
"You said you learned eh, beyond your magic or something? Is that like being an apo... appa... apothat... one of them potion makers?"

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

Perrine settled comfortably in the seats opposite of where Thraah sat, hands brushing her cloak and skirts to a neat appearance. "Basic first aid... a little surgical theory... the types of medicinal healing medics study. Mixing potions, elixirs, and creating salves are part of that, yes." She brought her periwinkle stare to the Initiate, adopting the steely gaze she often wore outside of her classes.

"I would not wish to be inadequate if my magic was to be nulled. Certainly would make for an awful reputation amongst clients and patients." Humour glimmered in her eyes, moments before she flicked her stare to the window. The Guards waved them on through, and Perri relaxed her shoulders.

"What about you, Thraah? Without your magic, what can you offer? Being a Dreadlord is more than just the magic we are blessed to wield." The Proctor raised a brow. She might as well delve deeper in the education Thraah was recieving, other than her enthusiastic approach to her etiquette classes.

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

"I got these!"
Thraah held up her fists and smiled. Indicating her ability to fight, in fact there were few who did not know of her willingness to throw herself into a scrap.
"And I'm probably one of the best Anir-ball players at the Academy."
*Not that anyone cares about the best sport in the world*
Then she raised her fingers and started counting, since she had never been asked (expecially by a Proctor) to basically list off all the things she was good at.
"I can fence pretty good, I like cooking, I'm an amazing dancer and I can read and write pretty fast, I can count cards and pick locks, I know how to get about without being seen, I can spot bullshit a mile away and I'm way tougher than I look."
She wondered if that was enough. No doubt Perrine was very smart and knew all kinds of things but Thraah was pretty sure being a Dreadlord was mostly about being dangerous.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

Perrine found it difficult not to crack an amused smile.

"Fencing?" She lifted a brow. Interested."Have you thought about working on that? It is something that would set you apart from the other Initiates." Any advantage was needed when it came to graduation time. "Anirball also hones other abilities. Does the Academy have a team? Hm... no..." She answered for herself. Then shrugged, peering at Thraah once more. "I have connections with some players... one of them is an active Dreadlord. You know who I am talking about, do you?"

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

"Well yeah, I practice every other day. The magic is cool and all but like, what if it doesn't work or something? You need something to back you up."
Thraah's face lit up then at the mention of her favourite pass time.
Perrine knew honest to goodness Anir-ball players.
"Do you know Slick Beasley? Honda Henderson? What about Thessel Drum?"
Every name brought her closer to the edge of her seat.
She looked about to explode her radiant heat began to fill the carriage as the air became warm and stuffy.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

The Proctor snorted, caught off guard by how quickly Thraah changed her demeanour. Perrine found herself leaning back as far as she could as the Initiate leaned forward, intrigued.

"My father keeps an eye on the teams, it is how I got my first gig outside of Dreadlord duties healing them after the big games. That broken bone? Will not be a bother by the next game." She smiled, knowing her personal proximation would possibly set the girl on fire.

"Promise me you will work on your fencing and combat, and then I will get you a day of training with some of them. Fair?" Perrine had worked a miracle for Caddel, had agreed to Alistair Krixus to help mentor the newest Initiate, Vaughn, and was in the works to do other various things for other Initiates to give them incentive to work on themselves.

Something nice to reflect on once they graduate, are faced with the frontlines of horror.

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

Thraah squinted her eyes at this all too open offer.
Suspicion was the gift of poverty. It kept you sharp and helped you smell a trick when something seemed too good to be true.
She sat back in her chair again.
"I know you're trying to be nice and all but,"
Thraah did not want to seem ungrateful for what Perrine was offering but she was in debt enough to the Proctor already. This sounded like she was being bought.
"... let's fix my sisters first. You can ask me to do anything you want after."
Her gaze drifted to put the door. Worry filled her again as she had to remind herself she was about to let a noble into her life, an Urahil, Leander's cousin no less.

Perrine Urahil

 

[Perrine Urahil]

The smile on her face was amused, but Perrine nodded and kept quiet. In her own way she wanted to help Initiates, and Thraah had been someone she had wondered whether she would be ready by the time graduation came by in the next year. She would not say it to the Initiate, to none of them, but she wanted them all to do well, to get past one last test before they get to live a future free to themselves.

Many saw Perrine as weak, unfit to survive a life as a Dreadlord... and she had heard enough from her family about surviving and doing the Urahil name proud.

She did succeed, but her path towards becoming a Healer was met with disdain until they needed her expertise.

Hours passed with little conversation. By the time the sun noted mid morning, Perrine got herself comfortable in one corner and shut her eyes to sleep, catching up on what she could after not catching a wink all night.

By the time they drew closer to Vel Anir, it was nightfall. The driver stopped, lightly knocking against the carriage to direct a question of where he should go through the mesh screen. "Are we going straight to your home, Initiate, or is there somewhere you want to arrive at and go on foot?" Asked the driver. Perrine stirred from her light nap, opening her eyes to see it was definitely dark out now. She stretched her arms and roused her mind from the heavy sleep her body called for.

"It is all on your terms now, Thraah. You take the lead."

Thraah

 

[Thraah]

Thraah quickly weighed in her mind the likely hood of a carriage being followed against Perrine being recognised.
"Straight home. It's..."
Before giving the full location to the driver Thraah gave Perrine one last look that clearly said, *You promised*.
"It's in the Elf quarter. Knife Row. Fourth door on the right."
She fixed her gaze on Perrine one last time. This was it.
She had either saved her family or she was going to have to save them from the danger she herself had brought.

Perrine Urahil