Young Writers Society

"Of course, of course!" Tomhas nodded quickly. "Certainly. Take a couple days, discuss it with Tadaaki and his family. I'll have to talk to Anneke as well as Gaius and Sara about the idea, anyway. Best to take some time."

Ky nodded. “That makes sense.”

Gods, look at the mess she’d created for this entire wonderful family. She hated herself for it. Even if they wouldn’t hate her; she certainly did.

They reached a sitting room with the fire unlit, and Tomhas helped her to sit down on the couch before bustling about lighting the fireplace. "Wait here; I'll be back in a few minutes with some tea and medicine."

“Thank you,” she murmured, settling back into the chair. Her body felt so heavy — had she been a burden for him to help her here? Probably. “I appreciate it.”

Tomhas offered a deep bow in return that ended up feeling childish rather than comical, then hurried out of the room and down the hall to the stairs. He hoped Gaius was awake by now; his brother was usually an early riser so he ought to be.

She let herself deflate the moment she was alone. Her exhaustion was catching up to her. She probably should have just stayed in her room. It’d been nice to talk to Tomhas; to get confirmation that he didn’t hate her guts, even though he should. But now he was waiting on her and she didn’t like that but she physically had no other choice but to let it happen.

When Tomhas reached the infirmary he found Gaius exactly where he'd been when he left, sipping woozily at some tea.
"Morning," Gaius said, looking up at his brother.
"Morning." Tomhas looked around for Laura and spotted her at the hearth. "Hey Laura, could I get something to help with Ky's arm? She's in a lot of pain. And some tea, too, if you don't mind."
"Certainly." Laura nodded. "I've just made a pot. How much pain is she in?"
"A lot."
"Right." She set the teapot and a couple teacups on a tray, then put together an herbal poultice and poured some milk of the poppy into a little wooden cup. "Have her rub the poultice very gently on her arm to numb the area, then tell her to drink this. The tea can come after."
"Thank you." Tomhas dipped his head. "Er, Gaius, can I talk to you real quick?"
Gaius blinked hard; he was still sleepy from the meds. "Yes, quickly."
"Would you be alright with Ky, Tadaaki and his family, and the other kiddos coming to stay with you for a few months while we look for info on Aleth's assassins and whether there are more coming? I feel like they'd be safer behind your walls with all those guards."
Gaius sipped his tea again. "I'll have to talk to Sara about it," he mused. "And it's dangerous just journeying back there. You're sure about this?"
"Only if Ky and Tadaaki are willing. I just want them somewhere secure, among friends. You've got a bunch of guards with you here, and I can send some soldiers along for extra support so there's no funny business on the way back."
"Perhaps. I'll talk to Sara."

Gods, she was in a lot of pain. She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, unwilling to let herself fall completely to pieces. Tomhas would be coming back sooner or later and she couldn’t let him see her weakness. She had to be strong for him. For everyone. She wiped at the few tears that had leaked from under her eyelids and then left her hand on her eyes.

"Thank you." Tomhas nodded to him. "Thank you, Gaius." He picked up the tray of tea and medicine. "Er, do you want breakfast brought to you?"
Gaius shook his head. "No."
"Right." Tomhas left, returning to the sitting room.

Her breaths were coming out as shudders now. She’d pushed herself too hard. She should have known better. Should have just waited until someone had come to collect her. She felt even worse than she had when she woke up after the night scare.

Tomhas entered the room, setting the tea tray down and offering her the poultice first. "Laura said to rub this on the wound; it'll numb the area a little."

Ky inhaled sharply as the door opened, pulling herself together in an instant. She sat further up in the chair and took it from him, setting the dish in her lap as she pulled her left sleeve up and revealed the slightly-bloody bandage. Unwrapping it was going to be awkward with only a single hand, but she was going to try it.

Tomhas took in a breath to offer to help, then turned toward the fire instead, stacking more logs on busily. He didn't want to look.

Ky managed it after a few more moments of fumbling. It was scabbed over now and no longer bleeding. She wiped the clean edge of the bandage around the wound to gently knock off some of the dried blood. There was a large bruise stretching out in all directions that covered most of her forearm.

No wonder it hurt so bad. It looked like it hurt.

She gently rubbed the poultice on the stitches and the area immediately around it. It burned gently at first, then it turned into a tingle of warmth that crept across her arm. She set the dish to the side and used a clean edge of her bandage to wipe her hand. It felt gross to put it back on. So instead she balled it up — being sure the bloodied part was in the inside of the ball and not visible — then tucked the ball under her thigh.

Tomhas didn't turn around, choosing instead to pace over to one of the hefty cabinets containing board games and run his fingers over the sturdy wood. "It's weird," he mused. "I'm not very hungry. That never happens."