Jack woke up with a start, the searing pain from his shoulder and head chasing him from the dream world to the waking world.
Judging by the angle of green-tinted daylight that shone through the Alchemist's bedroom, it was late morning. He tried to pull himself to sit up, his body screaming as it made him extremely aware of every injury it had endured in the past 36 hours.
"Good morning. Oh, don't try to get up." His lovely host appeared in the doorway. She wore the same oversized tunic as last night, showing off her shapely legs, and her freshly combed, wine-colored hair cascaded around her curved horns to frame her soft, lavender face. She strode over to grasp him by the hand, guiding him to sit up. "How are you feeling?"
"Been better, been worse. Thanks." He replied, accepting a cup of mysterious liquid she had gently placed in his hand. "What time is it?"
"Half past ten." Marina sat next to him on the bed.
Jack coughed up his bitter drink in surprise. "That late?!" By his estimation, he had slept for nearly twelve hours. "Gods, I'm sorry if I kept you." There was still one more day of Alyssim's Annual Fuck Festival, and Marina had emphasized how busy this time was for the village's healers.
She shrugged. "You needed the rest. And really, I should be thanking you for giving me an excuse to avoid work right now." He was half-listening, distracted by his horrifying reflection in the floor-length mirror at the foot of the bed.
He still couldn't see out of his right eye. The globe was still an orb of blood, however, the flesh around it was now blackened and swollen, creating a monstrous, asymmetrical visage cascading down from the base of his right horn. His right shoulder was still well-bandaged from the previous evening, but a ring of dark bruising decorated around and down his arm. Every spot that hinted at discomfort yesterday, was now visibly marred with swelling, sores, or scuffs across his rust-colored skin.
"It will look worse for a bit before it looks better." Marina touched his arm reassuringly. "That tea will help with the pain." She nodded to the mug in his other hand. "Just some ginger, mint, poppy, and a few other proprietary herbs." She said proudly.
"Thank you." Jack managed to choke down the rest of the strong, spicy liquid. "For... everything." He said quietly, letting his eyes wander about the curiosities of personal and professional décor that covered his host's bedroom walls. "I honestly don't know why you're doing all of this for me..."
"All of what?"
"Well, the care, opening up your home, everything last night..."
"Jack." She spoke calmly but firmly, in a way that drew his eye to meet hers. "First off, I am Alyssim's Alchemist. A healer. I am morally obligated to tend the wounded to the best of my abilities and in the least painful way possible. Secondly, upon finding out who you were, I did feel somewhat guilty on behalf of my sister, seeing as she left you too penniless to even afford a room at the inn. I think offering you a place to sleep was the least I could do. Even if it was the couch. Third," Marina said, cutting off Jack's attempt to protest. "Like I said last night: I find you intriguing and attractive and I enjoy your company. Is that really so hard to believe?" She rested her head on his good shoulder and looked at him through the mirror.
Jack looked at the Tiefling who awaited his answer. She looked even more beautiful than she did last night, as certain small details were now visible in the muted rays of sunshine. Her lavender cheeks and nose were dotted with soft, adorable freckles that emphasized anytime she barely crinkled her nose. Her silver eyes were actually streaks of white, pale blue, and black, which caused them to slightly change color whenever she glanced in a different direction. She had an aura of warmth, and trust, about her.
"I mean, yes." Jack finally replied and continued before Marina could argue. "But thanks for the reassurance. And patience." He sighed. He lifted her hand and gently kissed to tops of her fingers, the way he'd seen noble gentlemen greet their ladies. Marina giggled at the chivalrous gesture, cuddling in tighter under his arm.
"So, what were your plans today?" She asked, after some time.
"I didn't really have any." He shrugged, happy to find the pain-relieving tea had kicked in. "You?"
"Well, I would love to just stay here in bed with you." Marina bit her lip as her fingers danced above the quilt, slowly tracing the curvature of his lower abdomen.
"Oh really?" Jack answered coyly.
"Yeah," She sighed, softly bringing her lips to his. "But unfortunately, I do have to get to work now." She pouted as she pulled away from the brief kiss.
"Well, shit." Jack said, less playfully than he intended. He laid back against the headboard to catch his breath.
"You are welcome to join me, if you'd like. The clinic could really use the extra hand, even if it's just for basic tasks. Of course, you'd be paid too, and the after party can be a lot of fun. Oh, but please don't feel obligated, if you wanted to go out and enjoy the Festival."
Jack was sure the festivities were in full swing back at the village square. Although feeling worlds better than yesterday, opting to go back into the Fuck Festival still bruised and nearly penniless seemed... horrifying.
"You had me at 'paid.'" He said, squeezing her hand and hoping his excitement to spend the day together wasn't too obvious.
***
The two made their way over to the clinic. Although Alyssim was quieter than the previous afternoon, there was still plenty of ale and public fornication scattered across the village square. Marina insisted they dart between the stand-alone buildings that lined the plaza, lest she be recognized and swarmed with requests to remedy whatever problems that may plague one three days into a non-stop orgy.
Marina led Jack into the rear entrance of the stout, stone building, avoiding the handful of Tieflings milling about the front.
Upon entering, it was clear Alyssim's infirmary was not a religious organization, as it had only a mural of Ilmater's hands painted on the stone doors, the universal sigil for any house of medicine, regardless of the menders' spiritual beliefs.
They snuck in through a cramped hallway and grabbed Jack an extra black worker's robe from one of the supply cupboards. Turning onto a wider and rug-lined walkway, Marina immediately gave away their position as she saw her Apothecary door dotted with bits of scrawled parchment.
"What in the hells is all this?!" She snapped, ripping one of the notes off of its tack.
A door opened from the far end of the hall. A silhouette of a man finished wringing his hands with a handkerchief before crossing the threshold. From a distance, he could easily be mistaken for a Human, as he had no evidence of horns poking from under his salt-and-pepper hair, nor tail trailing behind him. However, once closer, it was clear he had the same sharp fangs and whiteless eyes as any other Tiefling. "Oh, there she is! Bright eyed and bushy tailed at the early hour of eleven A.M! Long night, Chippy?" The man said with a half smirk and brief glance towards Jack.
"Are these... delivery requests?!" Marina gasped, frantically pulling down the dozens of notes off her door.
"Yes. You weren't here, and no one knew when you would be back. This seemed like an elegant solution that got the people off our backs." He rubbed the stress lines under his eyes.
"Can't stay hard... Vaginal soreness... Jaw cramps..." Marina read the notes as she robotically handed them off to Jack. "Zander, I made a back stock for all these. You could have just passed them out as they came in."
"No one had time to vet them for you. You know how it is during The Festival: no staff and just so many patients. I just had two show up with a bottle stuck up their ass this morning. Like the same bottle. At the same time. Like two dogs fighting over a bone. But with rectums, and extreme risk of perforation. Amazingly Silas and I got everything apart in one piece. I have the bottle in my office if you want to see it, might get a little placard for it." Zander said, almost dreamily.
Marina had finished clearing her door. "I really, really don't. Look, please just send people right in. No more damn notes." She said before ushering Jack into her office and closing the door behind them.
It was a comfortable, but purposeful room, lined with shelves nearly overflowing with bottles and ingredients collected from every corner of the world. An examination chair upholstered in padded leather served as the chamber's centerpiece. Marina spread the bits of paper across one of the several worktables that jutted out from the shelves and pressed her weight into her hands as she stared down at the orders.
"Are you okay?" Jack asked, seeing her lower lip quiver.
"What am I going to do?" She shook her head, surveying each slip. "More patients are going to come knocking any minute now. How am I supposed to get these all delivered all over the village? Not to mention the ongoing brews, and forget the people who are actually sick..."
"You said you had a back stock of most of these?" Jack flipped through his short stack of parchment slips, each one noted with a name, ailment, and likely delivery location.
"Yes! Which is why it's so maddening that no one could grab them as people came in! I swear they're just punishing me for taking a morning off..."
"Okay, so I'll just deliver them." Jack said calmly, grabbing an empty satchel he spotted under a work bench. "It'll be fine."
"Don't be ridiculous. I couldn't possibly ask that of you." She swiveled towards him. "You're injured! Never mind trying to navigate this big village you hardly know."
"Marina, with all due respect, I've made a career out of tracking people down who didn't want to be found. This is nothing." He half smiled and boastfully thumbed the papers. "Plus I offered to help today, didn't I?"
Marina eyed him skeptically, as if searching for a reason to protest. "Very well." She finally submitted. "But keep in mind, people are probably expecting
