Her ridiculously small yurt had never been intended to receive guests. The large ones specifically. She was after all a tiny woman from a diminutive species, who was only able to get around high places and objects with her large staff with a base so sturdy she could climb it to gain height.

She had a pull string attached to a bell outside her store to notify her of customers. A large-printed sign told large-sized clients exactly what to do in order to be served. She'd meet them outside and conduct the transactions without question. This was clear-cut enough for the old medicine woman and everyone involved.

So imagine her surprise when a fully grown man came barreling inside her yurt, crawling on his belly like some tortoise with her uprooted yurt as the shell on its back. She screamed and threw a pot of succulents at his face.

"No! Please! Wait!" The man sputtered, his eyes large and imploring. "I require your assistance."

Because she was so cursedly tiny, he only had to reach out and grab her like a toy. Then, upturned her yurt completely like some dessert cone. After making sure all her possessions were contained inside, the lunatic man absconded with his hostage.

It was hours before the man finally slowed down. They had crossed two rivers and climbed a rocky mountain. Not once did he acknowledge her protests, too concentrated in whatever he had planned for her. He had stuffed her inside her yurt, sealing it, and carrying it like a knapsack. She had been jostled, knocked around and completely unhappy. So when he finally set her yurt down and unsealed the opening, she jumped out and whacked his head with her staff.

Regardless of her vocation, her wounded pride demanded blood. She was about to get another crack at him when she finally took in her surroundings. Dark and cavernous, the dying daylight provided little for investigation. But the fireglow at the end of the cave revealed all the answers she needed.

A woman laid on a pallet near the source of warmth. Her features ravaged as she weakly tried to fight off the bundles she was wrapped in. The medicine woman rushed over to her, leaving the man to suffer the effects of her beating.

Her tiny hand only touched the woman's face briefly before she snatched it back as though she had been burned. She let out a string of curses in her native tongue before turning back to her abductor. "Her temperature is abnormally high! What were you thinking, sonny?" She began peeling off the layers of blankets the poor woman was enshrouded in.

"Please…" The man said wearily, casting a shadow over them. "I only did that because I didn't want her to injure herself while I left to get help."

As though to reinforce the man's words, the woman began writhing uncontrollably as the last of the covers loosened around her. She almost smacked the medicine woman into the fire pit. The man laid himself across the thrashing woman's midsection to pin her down, his voice soft and gentle as he tried to calm her. His eyes swept over to the medicine woman. They were bloodshot and spoke of sleepless nights and desperation.

"She's been like this for days. I don't know what could have caused this. She is not the type of woman to succumb so easily to illness." He took a deep shuddering breath as he continued. "I've tried everything. Mugwort, gingko leaf, willow bark...I even tried snake oil and several plant roots. This." He hung his head. "This is beyond me."

The medicine woman said nothing, coming to his side to continue her observation. The man rambled on, promising adequate compensation and explaining the risks in taking her to a facility. He was a wanted man, so she gathered. Not that she cared. Well, she would have if not for her cursed compassion.

It didn't look good for her patient though. If they weren't able bring her temperature down, she would not last. It was a miracle how she'd even kept this long. Her mind raced through her years of medical experience for a possible solution. It was when she sought the patient's wrist for her pulse did she see it.

"What is that?" She pointed at a cluster of withered white flowers in the corner of the pallet. His forehead creased. "I'm not sure. This world is still very unfamiliar to me with its creatures and plants."

She ignored that, already knowing the answer. "When were these taken?"

"Sometime ago before she fell ill. She was repairing her dress."

The medicine woman was instantly on her feet. "I know what plagues her." She rushed to her yurt, rummaging through the sad remains as the man towered over in relieved shock. She tuned out his endless words of praise as she worked with the necessary ingredients, grinding them up into a fine paste with her mortar and pestle. The aromas wafted through the air, mingling with the spicy scent of burning firewood. "There." She said, swirling the contents of her concoction for good measure. "This should do it."

The man knelt down and received the small bowl from her hands as though it were a gift bestowed by the gods. It certainly felt that way. "Thank you!" He said, his jaw trembling with emotion. "With this, she will finally get better."

"Oh." The medicine woman blinked. "That's not for her, sonny."

He blinked back, confusion etching his features. "I don't understand...?"

"That's for you." She replied, tossing back her tools unceremoniously into the yurt. "It's pine pollen mixed with crushed deer antler and ginseng. You can add some hot water to make it easier to ingest."

Jack was still at a loss.

"But...I'm not sick. Why would you make medicine for me?"

"Sonny..." She went over to pat his hand or rather, his finger given her size. "You will need the energy to administer her treatment."

"Her...treatment?"

"I don't know how to tell you this…" She said, casting a sympathetic glance over to the patient who had now fallen into a lull. "She's a hair's breadth away from dying."

"WHAT?!"

"And only you can save her…"

"But I've done everything I can! What more can I do?!" He demanded.

"Not everything..." The woman sighed. "This is rather hard to say as a professional."

"Then please!" The man had finally lost his patience. "By all means! Just speak plainly!"

She lifted her chin and held his gaze in a long pause. Then, she opened her mouth and told him exactly what he needed to do in a way that could not be misconstrued.

"Have sex with her or she's dead."