Swiftcurrent Creek King rat on the streets in another life

Eventually Mae woke, and dragged herself through the painful climb out of the mountains. She slept in the Emberwood, and took a wrong turn into the marsh. The mud had dried on her legs by the time she found her way back to Swiftcurrent Creek, turning the wound on her hind leg red and itchy and swollen.

She limped across the borders with a tired howl to her packmates, hoping that @Eshe or @Arlette would hear. Mae knew enough about wounds by now to know that she needed one of their healers. But she was just too tired to seek them out herself. So she flopped down on her side just within the borders of Swiftcurrent Creek, looking every bit as pathetic as she felt.

She bolted towards the borders the moment she heard the howl. There was no time for her to stop for supplies—she could get those later, once she assessed the situation.

When she spotted the crumpled figure in the distance, her heart dropped. She had thought that the call had sounded weak, but she hadn’t expected to find Mae collapsed on the ground.

She arrived at her side, eyes quickly assessing the damage. There were about a million questions she wanted to ask, but none of them mattered right now—

What happened? Where did she go? Was she going to be okay? Was she attacked? Will she believe what you say? After that last outburst she got to witness? Does she trust you? Was she attacked? Did she attack? What was that smell on her? Another pack?

—what was most important was: ”It’s going to be alright,” she’d make sure of it, ”Is the wound on your leg the only injury you have?” As gnarly as it looked, it seemed like the only cut she had. ”Or is the mud covering anything?” In contrast to their last interaction, her voice was calm and strong; a promise that what she said was true.

Eshe was there in moments; Mae struggled to make sense of her words. She groaned and rolled over. No, Her head was pounding, so she flopped it back dramatically. I fell.

Ughhhh, Mae complained further, then stopped to add, He ran away. I won. Even battered from her fall, she'd managed to come out on top, at least in her eyes. She hoped that Akavir would be proud of her for once, rather than angry, but knew at least that Uncle @Arric would congratulate her on her ass kicking skills.

She offered tidbits, but not enough information to tell the entire story. Eshe frowned, watching as Mae began to complain. Although it was promising that she’d been able to roll over and throw her head back, Eshe hated seeing her like this.

”Do you think you can make it to my den?” she asked. ”Its not too far from here, and you can lean on me.”

”And it’s okay if that’s too much for you,” she added with a shadow of a smile, realizing how tired she looked, ”I can go and get everything you need, and you rest up until I come back.”

I'm sore, Mae said stubbornly, finding herself fiercely opposed to any further use of her battered legs. Legs hurt. Head hurts. Bastard bit my leg.

The memory of it caused her lips to pull back in the silent beginnings of a snarl. Shoulda killed him. I coulda. Had him by the throat, Some of the adrenaline from earlier returned, and contrary to her protests, Mae struggled to her feet. The more she thought of the golden boy and the way he'd attacked her, the less she felt her pain. In its place, hate burned in her throat and her chest.

Eshe understood why Mae didn’t want to walk—her leg and head hurt. She nodded, listening and watching as a fire ignited within the adolescent. Whatever had happened was motivating enough for Mae to dismiss her pain and stand. This gave Eshe an opportunity she couldn’t pass up.

Although Eshe didn’t want to encourage conversations about “bastards” and  how Mae “shoulda killed him”, she knew she could use the subject matter to their advantage.

”Yeah?” she replied, taking a few steps into the forest. ”Tell me what you could’ve done to him.” If successful, Eshe would begin to lead them further into the territory.

We can fade here or continue for Eshe's trade if you want! Sorry for the wait!

What she could've done to him? Mae frowned, unexpectedly a little off-put by the imagined violence when put into such a clinical context. Coulda taught him a lesson about attacking random people, She grumbled after a moment, deflating a little.

Who even does that? Mae said next, more a rhetorical question than a bid for answers. Didn't do shit to him. He just came out of nowhere. Ugh. She followed Eshe quite slowly, legs protesting each movement. But she knew the woman likely had something to help, to make it better; in spite of her resentment for Eshe, Mae knew the usefulness of medicine. She thought sometimes that she might learn it herself, but... well, it was as boring as it was useful, in her opinion.

Eshe nodded, allowing Mae the space to vent however she needed. It was concerning to hear that somebody had attacked her at random, and she wondered if there were parts of the story that were missing. But getting to the bottom of it wasn't her concern now. She had to help alleviate the pain.

Alright, so I'm going to give you two herbs: celandine and chamomile. They'll help with your pain and help settle your nerves, she began. She wasn't comfortable giving someone so young some poppy seeds, especially since they had addictive natures, so she wanted to err on the side of caution. And then from there, I'll work on pinpointing where you hurt most to help you heal. She paused then, grinning to herself. I'll stop talking, too. I just like to let my patients know how I plan to treat them. Does all of that seem alright with you?

Celandine. Chamomile. Mae didn't really care, as long as it made her feel better. She did perk up a little when Eshe mentioned she would stop talking, though. A little more silence was always welcome in her life.

Sometimes she could almost forget that this was the woman her father had chosen over his own children. Sure, She said, only half pretending to pay attention. Another temporary truce, then; Mae could live with that. Eshe, after all, was actually here, helping. It was more than Mae could say about her own father.

Thanks for the thread!

Alright, Eshe said. Silence it is.

She went to work, assessing Mae, grinding herbs, making pastes, and administering the medicines. There was so much she could say to explain the process, but she remained quiet for the child's sake, doing anything she could to keep their temporary truce. She worked until she was satisfied with the work; it’d taken a lot, but Mae was patched up and would been fine in a few weeks time.