"Push!" Chloe held her patient's ankles and helped her bear down. She had been monitoring this labour for the last few days and it was finally coming to an end. The mother was exhausted which made the pushing more difficult, but it wouldn't be long now, just a few more.

Chloe's assistant, Elise, hung some clean towels to warm by the fire in wait for the baby. Elise was a midwife in training who Chloe had taken in this past year. She had proved herself time and again when it came to monitoring patients; Elise seemed to have a knack for picking up potential problems and finding the right remedies.

"One more! Push!" With another long grunt, another babe was brought into Bolster City. Chloe placed the little girl on her mother's chest and she was soon nursing strong. Elise placed the warm towels over the newborn and gave the mother some blankets while she and Chloe got to work cleaning the birthing room.

A few moments later, Elise stepped out of the room and quickly returned with a small satchel.  It was her medicine pouch. Chloe watched as she rummaged through it and finally pulled out what she was looking for; was it Moon Daisy? It must have been, it was a common remedy for after birth. Knowing Elise, she had probably already made the capsules from the plant's roots days ago and stuffed them with its petals.

"Here, Miss Mae, you take these each morning until you're feeling strong enough to walk around holding your little one." 

This new mother had a long labour which could lead to a painful recovery. Elise also gave her a small amount salve made from Wolf's Bane. She must have noticed the small lump on the new born's head which most likely developed from being partially in the birth canal for so many days. The salve would lessen the swelling of both their injuries and would make the healing process a bit quicker.

Chloe watched as Elise explained and delved out her concoctions. She was impressed at how professional, yet personal Elise was with each patient. It was almost as if she could sense what they needed with a look. She even gave the mother some chamomile tea which was not something given regularly. What was that for? Cramps? Depression? Chloe wasn't sure, though she felt a stab of jealousy that knowing what remedies to give did not come so natural to her. Perhaps she should have been trying to learn more from Elise rather than the other way around.

"Don't look so glum Chloe, you were great, as always!" Elise praised her boss as they left the mother and her new child alone for the first time.

"Glum? No! I was just wondering what the chamomile was for?"

"Ah, she was always praying under her breath. A woman praying so much has got to be a worrier, just thought it would help ease her mind, especially now when she needs it the most." She smiled and gave Chloe a little wink.

"You do know people, Elise, very well. It has been a pleasure having you work for me." And in that instant, she knew she could sign off on her. Elise was ready to have her own patients and run her own ward. What a gift she would be to any carehouse that snatched her up.

She had a selfish thought then. Perhaps before Elise found work somewhere else, she would have time to visit home again. She wanted to see how her younger brother, Caldwell, his wife, Kaja, and her neice, Avosa, faired at her old farm. She missed them terribly. She couldn't believe it had been almost seven years since she'd last seen them.

While she lived on the farm, she was proud to be one of the most well known midwives in the South. Word had carried here of her talents, but it wasn't until her husband died in the war that she accepted the offer to move and work up here in the carehouse. How could she turn down such an offer? And in Bolster, one of the High Cities, with its rich history and great population. Carehouses were still a new concept and Chloe had been tasked with planning the day to day operations; a place where women could go to birth their children, but also where the sick were brought in to be cared for - all under the same roof! She felt as though she was a part of something grand and worthwhile. Of course there were still times when emergencies took her outside these walls, but in most instances people came to them. 

But leaving her family had been hard, just when Caldwell and Kaja needed her most. Though losing her husband made it easier to say goodbye to the farm, she did visit as often as she could. She made sure she got to know her niece as well as possible, and she absolutely adored her. The poor child would get so sad when she had to leave after her visits. Chloe always had the ability to make Avosa laugh and took great care to deliver her happiness, so it broke Chloe's heart to see her tears. Thinking of Avosa's smile had gotten her through many hard days. She felt giddy thinking about returning there to see it once again. She was ready for a long holiday.

She was confident Elise could take over her patients now, at least until she returned, so a long hiatus to her old home was finally a possibility. Perhaps she would retire completely? 

"Another day, another cabbage." Elise joked as they left the ward.

That girl has no idea what's in store for her does she? Chloe would tell her tomorrow. Let her enjoy the rest of her day. Though she may appreciate graduating, it does come with its own set of anxieties and responsibilities. No need to throw it at her after such a long haul. Perhaps her trip could wait a week or two as well.

"Come by the office tomorrow, Elise, before you head down to the ward. I have something I want to go over with you."

"Sure thing boss lady! Sweet dreams tonight, I know I could use some." She smiled and made her way back to her quarters.

The student quarters were located in a building across from the carehouse. The street between the two had become a common resting place for people seeking refuge or care in hard times. Even travelers without family in town, or enough money to buy a night at an inn, would lay their blankets here for rest. Elise always took some time after her long day to make sure they were comfortable. If someone needed something special concocted, she would go up to her room and brew it and then bring it back down to them.

Today, among the usual crowd, she saw a young boy alone. He was reading as he sat up against the wall of her building, far away from any of the other folk resting in the gutters. Curious, a lad reading at such a young age. He must have learned to some place, by someone. Where were they now? She looked around for any other new faces but no one stood out to her.

She looked back and the boy was staring up at her with half a grin. He had shut and placed his book down beside him on the ground. Meddling of a Pauper, the title read. Curious indeed.

"Hello... boy?" Elise was no longer sure. She realized now that he was not as young as she first thought. His eyes held some age to them, but his petite figure confused her. He wore breeches and high boots, and the emerald hooded cloak covering most of his hair was too fine, although caked with in dirt, to make him a beggar. A few loose blonde strands of hair peeked out enough to know he wore it long, longer than her red locks. Perhaps he was a highborn thief? 

He looked away. For a moment it seemed as though he was going to ignore her, but then he held up a bandaged, bleeding hand and said "tell me, witch, do you have what I need?"

Elise jolted and a tingle worked its way up her spine. What had he just called her? Her temper flared and she rushed him. Grabbing him roughly, she jerked him up by the arm as he let out a howl, when he stood, his frame grew to that the size of a man. Surely he had just been smaller?

"Let's go." She pulled him as he grunted, groaned and staggered into the building's closest door. She kept her eyes down, afraid to have any of her regular patients notice her bringing someone inside. Her room was at the end of the hall on the first floor, so she didn't have to drag him very far. She leaned him up on the wall as she fetched her key and unlocked her door. 

She helped him up into her quarters with a scowl. Though she could tell he was in immense pain, she noticed him smirking, smirking! The nerve of this man-boy. She led him into her kitchen and over to a chair. Once she had him comfortable seated, she spun around on him and interrogated.

"Who are you? Why did you seek me out?" Elise hissed. 

"Should you not know, seer?" He mocked.

"By all the gods, how do you know me? Tell me now or I will scream for the Watch."

Faeron's answer was to pull back his hood, revealing his long blonde braid and sharp pointy ears.

An elf! Well, that was unexpected.

"I felt you, daughter of the moon," he explained. "I sought you out simply for help with this most tedious wound I've developed on my palm, oh and here on my side, and perhaps too on my back." He squirmed as if having an itch in a place he couldn't scratch, then glanced at his hand looking truly aggravated.

"But you're an elf!" Elise exclaimed, as if this trumped any help she could offer.

"My powers won't heal it. My magic salves dry at its touch, and my knowledge in brewing is limited." He shrugged. Elise walked over and grabbed the elf's hand. Any anger or fear she had been feeling seemed to be suddenly replaced by awe and now, curiosity. She began unraveling his bandage.

"What happened?"

"It may be better you not know, exactly. But it is from a blade."

"A foe?" She asked. The elf nodded as she continued to examine the now uncovered wound. "Poison maybe?"

"Or just a dream," was all he said. Is he lucid?

His palm was swollen and red. She lifted his shirt and saw three or four other lacerations along his side and back. Elise had seen plenty of infected cuts and his bore all the signs. Even the yellow tinge around the edge of the scabs were present. Though what confused her were the tiny blue capillary marks starting to jet out from them as well. A poison all right, perhaps an otherworldly one.

She traced her finger along the deepest of them and images suddenly began appearing in her mind. A ghost. No, a man. A man with a blade. White eyes. Empty eyes. Breath as black as night. Black mist. All encompassing. 

She jerked her hand back and the images stopped. The elf seemed unaware of what transpired.

"I think I might be able to help you with this," she sheepishly confessed as she turned and started looking for her Old Man's Beard. But should I be helping with this?