“Bird aviaries would be safe in a place like this,” she explained as she held up a finger as if using her hands with her words. “You have all the pretty stuff for killing intruders but a bird aviary would be good for keeping things like swallows. I see a lot of flowers used for poisons and other things here and you can use feathers, claws, and other things for potions and such too. So not only could a bird aviary be used for happy fun times! It can be a good resource too.”

–

Raine loved her new friend as she followed closely by his side in the library. “Afternoon is great! The tea roses love to bloom during that time and Lady Angela says that she thinks tea tastes better around noon. I don’t know why she says it but I heard her talking about how plants have different strengths depending on what time of day you pick them.” She was so very excited about the picnic. “I’ll make sure to ask her to pack some amaranth tea~ It’s one of my favorites.”

Once Angela had him at Elysia she stopped. Her eyes turned to him and they were angry for perhaps the first time he had seen recently. “Sometimes Maalik – death is a sweet release compared to what someone can do to you when you are alive.” It was a hint, a deadly one, that the re-education Angela had been talking about wasn’t at all pleasant. Finally, the death aura left her and she smiled calmly before letting him into the healing quarters.

“She always has been. Her mother was just like her. She loved to adventure and soar through the skies. It didn’t matter what skies including Railoch’s storms. Sevanah died trying to save a clutch of her eggs that had been stolen by a rogue clergy member I had. We only got one of them back and it was Raine. Their father died in pursuit but Sevanah carried the egg all the way back with an arrow in her heart. I wasn’t life at the time so I couldn’t help her but Raine is just like she was. I suppose that I couldn’t deny Raine because when I saw her I saw her mother who was strong, brave, and beautiful. However, Arcus has gone too far with all this.”

Angela was surprised by his show of emotions as she hadn’t known him to do so but she thought perhaps it was because he had been around her for so long, maybe he did care for his friend. Leaving him there with her Angela went out around the continent to pick up things to heal a phoenix with. The birds all flew in but not to close to each other as not to overcrowd. They listened as he read to her. There were many tilting heads but they were silent as almost listening to his words and her breathing sync.

“Maali–?” It was a soft noise that left her lips but it was almost riddled with pain as if it hurt to speak. The damage to her was pretty intense and from the hanging garnish above them, it would appear that Angela had her under a sleeping spell so that she wasn’t awake and in pain.

Angela returned after a good half hour and she set a crate down. “It’s hard not having a bird to help,” it was light-hearted. “But I did have a little help.” Wisteria was with her and was carrying a healing kit.

“Hi Lik!” Wisteria was cheerful towards him but once she saw Raine she frowned and ran over to the table to put the kit up. “Is she hurting Mama?”

“Yes Baby… She is really hurt and Mama has to heal her. Can you go play with Emmy?” Angela patted her head.

“Okay, but if she pulls my hair again–”

“You’ll tell your sister and have her tell Emmy no… Right?”

Wisteria looked like she was going to fight it but she nodded. “Yeahhh…” The little girl hugged Maalik’s leg before she ran out of the healing ward.

“She likes watching the phoenixes fly around. But Arcus never let Raine near her to actually talk to her so she just knows Raine’s name.” Angela put the crate down and pulled out a few herbs. “I’ll make a salve that will start her regenerative healing… The bones in her legs have been mended with a lot of magic which is why I don’t want to directly use my magic on her. They are creatures of pure magic after all and I’m not sure what it would do to her.”

Angela quietly used a mortar and pedestal as she grounded every up into a nice mush. Well, mush was the nice word for it as it had a rather pungent smell to it. “It took me a second to actually read up on what can be used on phoenixes… It’s pretty gross. Skunk cabbage is one of the ingredients you can use and I would have used Freesia but guess what isn’t in season right now?”

The goddess took the bowl of salve and set it down next to Raine. “Can you help me get all the bandages off?” She pulled off the blanket and for once the goddess hadn’t actually thought about the implications that the phoenix under the blanket was nude. She stopped and looked at Maalik. “I’m gonna trust that this doesn’t bother you in the slightest.”

Her pink hair was out of braids and stained with gobs of blood. “I haven’t had time to wash her hair out yet. I came to find you as soon as I stabilized her.” Once the bandages were off and the wounds were open to the air Angela gently coated the girl in the salve where she needed it. “Can you wash the salve off her face? There’s a cloth and bowl of water over there,” she gently pointed before going back to work. “Her face should be nice and healed up now. Luckily he missed her eyes.”

“…Lik…” Another groan left the girl’s mouth and Angela smiled a bit.

“She must be having a good dream by that look on her face.”

Maalik could see that even the ever cheerful Angela did have a dark side to her- he knew that it was eventually unwise to test her patience, no matter how endless it seemed. He understood the punishments and consequences that were far worse than simply killing the perpetrator, and he nodded towards the goddess’s way. He also understood that she had been holding back for as long as possible, likely because she didn’t want to interfere between the brother and sister. She returned to her normal demeanor and lead him inside the tent and from there he learned the fate of Raine’s parents. “I see… she told me that they were captured on a retrieving mission, but I see that it was her that they were saving…” It wasn’t difficult to know why Raine believed that; there were quite a few possibilities that could have when shew as relayed that news. He couldn’t help but look at Angela and ponder. “I take it that you or someone spared her the truth that the precious thing they were going after was her…?” Honestly, when he realized it, it didn’t matter much right now and went to read to her once her master left to gather more supplies. He could see that Raine’s friends were gathering closer in support but he didn’t stir from his reading up until he heard a small voice.

It seemed like ages since he heard Raine speak and he peeped up to see her stirring. “Shh,” He had placed a finger in front of his lips to get her to settle before he read again. It took a while before Angela got back and he could see that her little one was with her this time. He was rather familiar with Wis and she was especially fond of him. After all, she constantly sought him to be her living art canvas whenever he was charged with watching her. Fortunately, there were no paints around the area. Closing the book momentarily, Maalik slipped off the bed and allowed her the space needed to tend to her phoenix. “Is it alright to have Wis here? I suppose exposure to such things can help her while growing up.” He could see that the girl was smart, likely due to her mother than anything else.

He patted her head and saw her off before he studied the goddess at work. Healing and such was a field he wasn’t familiar with nor had he saw it in practice other than the natural healing that his family was bestowed with. So he watched on curiously as she ground up the herbs, only for the putrid scent to hit his nose and he covered it.

After a bit, he went over back to Raine and begin to undo the bandages just as he was asked. “No, living with a house of shifters, I have grown accustomed to seeing all of them, including Lady Celeste, in their natural skin. I recall hearing Nemesis giving Reaver a look when she had changed into her larger form. Despite what happened, I believe he was merely messing with him at the time.” He was not fazed as the bandages fell off and she was stark nude in front of him. “But I understand that most of the world tends to view it differently. I hope that she isn’t insulted by me doing so.” Maalik moved over to the cloth and dipped it into the cooling water before he started to carefully wipe her face of blood and grime. “Hopefully there won’t be any scarring.”

He continued on with this duty, stopping only when she called out something. It sounded like the nickname he was given by Wis earlier but he wasn’t certain that if she was actually conscious enough to hear what was going on or not. He pressed forward and cleaned up her face as Angela tended to her. “Dreams are sometimes the only escape one has from a grim reality. Though her physical injuries can be cured, no small thanks to you, it will be her mentality that will raise some concern.”

Angela nodded once he realized what the robbers had been after. “We’ve never actually told her. Rainbow phoenixes are rare creatures and for them to produce eggs is even rarer. So naturally, we were ecstatic when the nest was filled. Their eggs look like prismatic crystals almost but we never thought someone would have the balls to come into my realm to steal them. I was away when it happened to deal with an epidemic on the eastern shore of Canelux. I ran back home as soon as Raine’s father communicated to me what happened. Once I had gotten Raine’s egg I was the one who nurtured it and made sure it got hot enough to hatch. I asked my sister Toya to use her fire magic on it constantly. I needed Raine to survive after the loss of her mother and father. It would have been pointless if the egg never hatched and we lost all of them. I have always kept her near so I could raise her and I turned her over to Arcus once she could survive on her own.”

There was a sigh as she thought about it. “He loved her almost instantly. He was protective and a good educator but once their siblings from Arcus’s generation died it did something to him. They are highly sought after creatures because their magic is a bit more potent than a regular phoenix. At first, I believed he was doing the right thing. Raine naturally trusts anyone and everyone, something that I both admire and am terrified of. However, it got to the point where he didn’t trust people in my realm or my children and I knew it had gone too far. She’s always been good-natured about it and always told me not to worry. She just wanted Arcus happy. At the cost of her freedom though? I always disagreed.”

With that Angela left to get more supplies leaving Maalik to read to Raine until she returned. Angela looked down at Wisteria and patted her head as Maalik showed concern. “Life and death are natural here, she sees a lot and understands a lot more than she should at her age. I just don’t let her see the really violent stuff. Isn’t that right Wis?”

“People come here with bad boo-boos all the time~” Wis chimed up at Maalik with a toothy grin. “And Mama fixes them!” Ang patted her on the head again before Maalik greeted her much the same way before she left.

“I should have realized that when I asked,” Angela laughed as she felt silly for the question but it was always good to ask. “…That was my fault too. I didn’t realize it until too late when I was healing Reaver.” Musing on it Angela tilted her head. “I’m not sure she even knows naked is bad. I feel it’s natural and fine and I’ve always taught that. If anything I dress her up because she’s like a doll.” As Angela fixed up her wounds she thought about it. “I don’t think there will be but I have salves for that if there are. Most people just accept they have them but I don’t want Raine remembering what her brother did every time she sees herself in a mirror.” It was a thoughtful thing that Angela mused aloud.

“Aye, the herbs I put above us help with good dreams and stimulate the mind to keep the person at ease. It’s an old healer’s trick we use with babies to calm them when they are ill. When it comes to her mental state we can handle that as it goes. At least she has you now and that will be a massive help. My sister Toya was almost deranged from her son dying and we’ve spent many long years getting her to where she is… her husband has been a big part of that. So I feel that everyone should have someone they can depend on. Spouse or otherwise.”

Angela was musing a bit more and tilted her head. “I was going to start looking for a mate for her. She is at a good age and I thought it would do her good to have someone else. However, plans change~” It was thoughtful but she hushed down why she changed her mind.

Once she was all treated with the new salve Angela got out the bandages and handed some to Maalik. “And now we covered the salve so it doesn’t come off. We’re going to layer these herbs like this as packing before we cover it to promote healing and relief from pain.” Angela showed Maalik how to do it so they could change everything.

Once everything was done Angela covered her back up with a clean blanket. “And that is how you treat patients who can’t be treated with magic. It is a dying art I am afraid as our society moves towards a more heavy magic usage. I am glad some of my daughters have followed me down the path of being a traditional healer though.”

She came over with a little vial and gently poured it into Raine’s mouth before helping her swallow it. Before long Raine was murmuring more and her eyes gently fluttered as a yawn left her lips. However, Ang looked up at Maalik and signaled him quietly as the panic began to set in that she had been attacked.

Maalik listened to the sage that was Raine’s life and glanced over her way as he did so. Despite what was thrown at her in life, she always maintained that smile of hers. In a way, he did envy her some for her ability to not crumble apart like so many others would have. It was a miracle that she had made it this long without an incident occurring until now. Arcus, regardless of the reason why he had struck down his harmless sister was still in the wrong. Many have lost family, spouses and even children yet hadn’t become so oppressive as he had been, or as cruel as he had been recent. At least in Maalik’s mind, that was the case and perhaps now that Angela has had enough, perhaps he would be forced to see the error of his ways.

“Heaven knows if she will be as trusting again after being attacked by someone that close to her”, he sighed. He could only wonder how her psyche was going to handle it, and if they were equipped enough to assist her in that feat. Lady Life, he could at least trust to have a plan of sorts should things turn….ugly. “Such a price isn’t worth such a flimsy reward.” The typical bluntness of his tone was met with a slight edge, almost as if he was starting to grow angry, only to recover himself and watch over Raine until Angela’s return.

Maalik should have figured that Wis would be used to it, having grown up in Elysia and see what her mother’s responsibilities first handedly. He nodded at the little girl in approval as she understood well of the situation at hand. He saw her go off to play with another of the children that liked to paint him all sorts of designs with their finger paints. He shifted over and shook his head, “Everyone was caught up in the moment with Reaver. I have to admit, the blood feud that he and Nemesis had seemed like it would have never ended.” Maalik was free of any lewd thoughts as he tended to his friend, “Probably not. Only the fairer races seem to hold such standards as having to be appropriately dressed. It appears that shifters and rosenites are similar in going against that grain, my lady.”

He was still worried if her mind would be fractured when she regained consciousness but Angela was certain that she could control it, which he trusted. When she spoke of him aiding greatly into that, Maalik cocked his head. “Me? Help? I mean…” He didn’t know how to reply, nor did he when it was mentioned that she had been planning on arranging a mate for Raine. He shook the thought away from his mind and took hold of the fresh bandages and followed her instructions as he applied them onto her. “Never thought I would be in this position” He wasn’t one that could fit that profession, but he could see the appeal behind being a healer. He just simply preferred that of espionage. It was in his blood, after all.

He stood back and let her finish up, and was curious about what was in the contents of the vial as she drained it into Raine’s mouth. Before long, her eyes stirred and soon the rest of her did the same. He gave a sideways glance at the goddess and prepared for the worst to come.

“Raine…”