(A/n) Thanks for the review Harvest! I promise you next chapter will be the journey to Mineral Town. Annie and Jay will be appearing, yay for sequels!
As a side note, the original story SW was based on a self insert and I took a few truths to work with that story. The character Aunt Liz is based on a real aunt of mine who is really dying of cancer now. I love my aunt so much and I wanted her character to be play an important role in this series. When you have the chance, after reading this chapter, be sure to go to your family members and let them know how much they mean to you and how much you love them. You never know when something might happen...
Where the Heart Leads...
"So, how long have you been living on this island?"
Kurt glanced over at his companion, noting the distant look that appeared on her face. They had finished eating dinner and were relaxing on the beach. Kurt had been surprised that she had lived in a place like this and yet it suited her. A mysterious woman living out on a small island off the shores of the village. He knew this island and he knew that from the perspective of the village that there was no forest, no cottage, and no pond. There was only a rocky bit of land that bore a dock, where on occasion Ray the fisherman would take his boat and row out to do some fishing.
Li was silent for a moment before the distant look gave way to something more sad. "Almost three months now? I came here the beginning of spring so that sounds about right."
Three months? Had she been running around the island that long? He caught her gaze and he held it, his deep brown eyes studying her. "You're sad... Are you thinking about your family?"
She blinked in surprise before a small smile appeared and she gave a nod. "It's scary how well you can read me." She laughed and turned her gaze back to the ocean. "I was thinking about my mother actually. I haven't been in contact with her the entire time I've been here and I know she must be beside herself with worry." Her smile faded a little as she heaved a sigh. "I promised her before I left that I would always let her know I was all right but there's no way I can reach her right now..." She leaned forward from her relaxed position, brushing the sand off of her hands. "I was also thinking about my cousins. I know they're here somewhere but I have no idea what town they're in let alone how to find them..." She brought her hands up and rested her chin upon them. "I want to see them. It's been over a year..."
"Well," Kurt kept his gaze on her, watching the way the light from the setting sun played on her copper brown hair. "When we're done visiting Gotz, we can try and find your cousins. They can't be too hard to find if they're as unique as you are..."
For some reason a deep blush had risen into her light tan cheeks and she kept her gaze firmly on the ocean, though a smile appeared on her lips. "You might be right... I'd know Annie and Jay anywhere and I have an acquaintance who knows where to find them for sure..." She trailed off at that, a thoughtful look appearing on her face. Kurt was wondering what she was thinking of when she suddenly let out a gasp and got to her feet. "I almost forgot about Robin! She must be so annoyed with me!"
Before Kurt could say anything, she was dashing back to her cottage and disappearing inside. Kurt stared after her for a moment before he chuckled and shook his head. He got to his feet, brushing the sand from his pants and gloves. He made his way back to the cottage just she emerged with a covered dish in hand. She glanced at him and an apologetic smile appeared. "I'm sorry to keep you stuck here Kurt, thanks for having dinner with me."
Kurt only smiled in that quiet way of his as he reached out to take the dish from her. "I had fun and you were right, this place is relaxing." He glanced around at the surrounding forest and the small cottage before looking back at her. "You don't mind if I come over again do you? It feels nice being in a place away from everyone and everything..."
Li smiled as she started to walk the way toward the pond, a faint blush in her cheeks. "You're always welcome here Kurt, just ask me anytime."
"I'll hold you to that," he said as they stopped beside the banks of the pond. The moment her soft fingers wrapped around his bare arm, he couldn't ignore the warmth that spread from the contact. It was a warmth that had nothing to do with the magic that she was about to cast...
…
Summer began with a festival at the beach. It consisted of various members swimming to different colored buoys in a space enclosed by fishing nets in the ocean. It looked like it was difficult to maneuver the undercurrents but Li honestly could not say since she was sitting on the sidelines. Robin, Kurt, Jamie and Joe were the ones competing in the festival this year and Li was torn between cheering for her friend and cheering for her... well, other friend.
Of course, the only ones who could hear her were too far in the water so she supposed that they couldn't make out her voice over the cheers of the others. It was still a fun time though and it turned out that all of Kurt's hard work at chopping wood had payed off. After a close call between Jamie and him, he wound up winning the swimming contest. Robin wasn't too happy with that but then again Jamie hadn't won either so at least she didn't have to feel so bad.
It was funny seeing the deep blush on Kurt's face when Li had gone to congratulate him but Li didn't seem to notice as she turned her attention to Robin, who had come to join them. It was a good thing too, since Joe had been watching his brother from afar and had a thoughtful look on his face. From his perspective, Kurt had been talking to himself again and it was beginning to wear down on him. He was afraid to go to his brother directly to ask what was going on. Kurt had been looking a good deal happier for some reason and Robin would often talk to him, though she too tended to look as if she spoke with herself sometimes...
Joe had no idea what to do regarding those two but they seemed ok and Kurt's work wasn't lacking as it had been back in spring. He would just keep an eye out on him and hope that nothing was seriously wrong...
…
The days passed in a haze of bright heat, thunderstorms, and some humid nights. The construction of the new bar was well underway and was expected to be finished within a week. During that time, a couple of new people had moved to the village, two young women to be exact. One was the daughter of the local midwife Martha, her name was Gina and she was going to be looking over the day to day running of the Sanatorium. The second was actually a young woman who had come to the village to recover from a recent sickness and surgery. Her name was Dia and she was a very quiet young woman who appeared to be no more than eighteen or nineteen years of age. The first day she had come to the village, Kurt had been on his way to the Moonlight Cave, on one of his rare days off.
Alex, the dark haired doctor, had been helping Gina move the many belongings of Dia into her new home. Dia was standing outside, taking in the early afternoon sun. She was dressed in a deep green, tailored dress and much of her short dark hair was held away from her ivory face by a deep green headband. She had large green eyes that were staring off into the distance. It was as Kurt was making his way down the road that those green eyes had suddenly flicked toward him.
He had slowed in surprise, his deep brown eyes taking in the sight of those emerald depths. There was such sadness there but as quickly as he had seen it, it was gone. Instead, a slight frown appeared on her cherubic lips and she turned away, disappearing into the Sanatorium. It had been a very strange encounter and Kurt had found it odd that those eyes had continued to haunt him the rest of the day...
A few weeks after the Beach Festival, there was another festival that was buzzing with the local young adults. The Star Festival was a local tradition in which a little bamboo boat was released into a river, carrying your wishes out to see. It was a tradition set mostly to share with close friends and loved ones. Kurt found himself wondering if he should even bother... He wasn't the type to believe just wishing for things. Hard work was what achieved your wishes to become a reality.
Yet, whenever he saw Li running around the village in her hurried manner to help Robin, he found himself believing. Whenever he witnessed the small bit of magic that she was able to cast on the local plant life to help them grow stronger, he would believe. When he would hear the different kinds of music that played on the wind, in the trees, from the flowers, from every sound of life in the village, he would believe even more. All these little things meant something wonderful and he couldn't help but find himself wanting to make a wish, just once...
Which was how he had found himself walking up the mountain path in search of her, his hands tucked deep in the pockets of his pants. He was nervous, he could admit that. How was one supposed to ask a magical person out to a festival? Only he and a couple of others could see her so at least he now knew he wasn't crazy. Maybe he was crazy for even thinking of asking her...
As he crossed the bridge toward the Forest of Streams, he kept his ear out for the sound of Li, she was usually down here around the main road picking herbs and flowers. He followed the path through the forest toward the Goddess Spring, his deep brown eyes keeping an eye out for a familiar head of copper brown hair. His searching gaze found her a little off the main path, she was on her hands and knees with her basket beside her. She was pulling out a few herbs and singing to them while planting some seeds in their place. It looked as if they were the seeds to the herbs, though he couldn't be sure.
As he walked toward her, her singing was actually in tune with the soft music he could hear from the nearby stream. He stopped behind her and folded his arms across his chest, his quiet smile growing at the sight and sound of her. When she finally took notice of him, she didn't jump or nearly scream. She simply smiled and sat back on her heels. "Hey."
"Hey..." He continued to watch her as she turned her attention back to planting herb seeds. Her jeans were smeared with stains of dirt and grass, her hands were caked with soil. She looked so happy as she moved the soil back over the the seeds she had planted and got to her feet. She looked over at him as she bent down to grab her basket and set it against her hip.
"You look like something's on your mind," she said, walking over greet him. "What's up?" The words failed him, she was staring up at him expectantly and those lavender eyes had caught him off guard. He remained silent for a few moments before she tilted her head to the side and quirked a dark brow. "Kurt?"
He blinked and cleared his throat, feeling very nervous all of a sudden. "Um..."
Her laugh broke through his nervousness as she moved the basket to her other hip and then bumped up against him. "C'mon Kurt, it's only me."
Yes, it was only her... that was why he was so nervous. He reached up to rub the back of his head, his fingers disappearing into his spiked up, brown hair. "Well... there's this festival coming up. They call it the Star Festival." He started to glance around at anything but her, not wanting to see the reaction on her face for what he was about to ask. "It happens at sunset by a river. We release these little bamboo boats into the water with our wishes. It's a silly tradition... I don't really believe in just wishing for things but..." He cleared his throat again and felt the faint blush rise into his cheeks. "I know how much it would mean to the village and the Goddess if we started the tradition again. I... Did you want to come with me?" He took in a breath and held it, his deep brown eyes staring up at the canopy of the forest. A heartbeat passed before he heard her reply and his breath slowly eased out past his lips.
"Yes, I would love to."
He glanced down at her and smiled, a real smile changed his entire demeanor and reached his eyes. "Really?"
Li was smiling herself and a deep blush played on her cheeks as she gave a nod. "Yes..."
"A-all right then..." He rubbed his head again as they stood there, an awkward but strangely happy silence falling between them. It took him a moment to regain his senses and he quickly composed himself as he reached out to gently take the basket from her. "Here, let me help with that..."
"My hero," she said in a joking manner as she smiled at him before walking off to lead the way back down the main path. Kurt followed behind her, his own smile not quite leaving from his face.
…
A few days later...
I stood with my arms folded beneath my breasts, eying the entrance to the Moonlight Cave with growing unease. Robin stood a few feet ahead of me, her brown pigtails bobbing up and down as she bounced on the balls of her feet.
"C'mon Li! It's not so bad!" She had her hammer in hand, her brown eyes growing wide as her lower lip began to tremble. "I've been in there loads of times and so has Kurt! There's nothing to be afraid of, I promise!"
That didn't reassure me. Regardless of Robin's promises of our safety, my claustrophobia was something that would always haunt me. I had learned to accept it when I was a child and, going through therapy, I had learned long ago to try to avoid situations in which the fear would consume me. Sure, the caves weren't exactly an enclosed space but it was the fact that I would be underground. There would be no air, no sunlight... Already I could feel my lungs tightening in response to that image and I quickly cast my gaze to the cloudy sky above. Not exactly a great view but it definitely helped...
"Dahlia, I need your help on this one. I need some silver ores to upgrade my tools and Tai is much cheaper than the junk shop." She placed her hammer down and clasped her hands, now looking like a twelve year old girl. I couldn't ignore that face and, though I had a bad feeling about this, I sighed heavily and gave a nod.
"All right... fine... Just please let me hold the lantern. I don't want to be cast in shadows. You're absolutely sure you know your way around these caves and mines?"
Robin clapped her hands happily and she quickly nodded as she dug in her rucksack and handed me her lantern. "Yes, I've been down to the 20th level now and there's still more to go." She picked up her hammer and started to hum happily as I began to follow her into the cave. Goddess help me, I just had a bad feeling about this...
I followed Robin through the first level, seeing only a couple of the villagers who liked this area digging around. Kurt normally came here for his breaks but he was busy with building the new bar that he hadn't been here recently. I sighed as my thoughts drifted to the carpenter's apprentice, what was wrong with me? I knew I had feelings for Kurt, I knew it from the moment he had spoken with me that first time. I had hoped that it would pass as nothing more than a silly phase and yet... I sighed again as I thought about our last encounter. He had asked me to a festival with him, did that mean something? Were my feelings more than I was willing to acknowledge?
"Here we are!" Robin cried with excitement, bringing me back to the present as she located a set of stairs that led down to the second level. "This level is easy so just follow me, you'll be ok." She glanced back at me as I quickly turned on the lantern. I caught her gaze and gave a firm nod. Robin had a basic idea of my fear but she didn't truly understand it. Still, I didn't want to let her down when she needed me...
I followed the rancher down to the second level, where she struck a several places of dark stone revealing a few pieces of copper ore. Disappointed, she moved on to the next stairwell and continued on. I followed close behind her with the lantern held high as we moved down several levels of caves and mines. I tried not to think of the the earth above me nor of the darkness that lay beyond the light of this lantern. I focused my gaze on Robin's pink vest and concentrated on the sight of her hammer as she struck each dark stone. The further we moved down in levels, the more I noticed the strange structures that seemed to surround us.
They looked to be columns of some sort but they appeared to be very old. If I concentrated enough, I thought I could hear a muffled song coming from them but it was hard to tell when I was surrounded by nothing but earth. It took awhile but Robin finally found several pieces of silver ore and she quickly went to work on digging them out of the rough stone. I took in a breath, ignoring the taste of stale air as I moved aside a couple of steps to give Robin some room to work.
Without warning, a quiet vibration shuddered around my feet and before I knew it my scream was all that was heard as I fell down into the earth. I fell for just a heartbeat and landed in a painful heap to the level below. A sharp pain shot up from my right leg from the impact and I cried out, feeling and hearing something snap in two. The back of my head cracked against a hard ground and I winced, the pain from my head now matching that from what felt like my ankle. The lantern had slipped from my grasp and shattered into tiny pieces, its wonderful light going out with it.
I whimpered as I remained where I was, staring up at nothing but darkness. I heard a muffled cry from somewhere above me and a tiny light was shining down on me. I winced at the sharp brightness, knowing that Robin was using her tiny flashlight to find me.
"Dahlia!" Robin focused the light on me but I couldn't see her beyond that point of light. "Dahlia, are you ok?"
I lifted my head, opening my mouth to speak, but all that came out a cry of pain as a sharp twinge made itself known at the back of my skull. Great, a broken leg and a head injury...
The beam of light focused on me again and I heard Robin tear filled voice. "Li, I'm so sorry! Hold on, I'm getting help!" She was gone and with it she took the only light I had.
"Don't... Don't leave me alone..." A gentle sob escaped me as I tried to sit up but all that greeted me was pain. I laid back where I was and closed my eyes against the pressing darkness. Of course, it didn't matter since there was nothing but darkness behind my eyes as well. I tried to ignore the pressure that was bearing down on me, tried to ignore the growing panic that I felt at the unknown force that seemed to wish to harm me from all sides. "Please..."
I continued to plead over and over as my breathing hitched, I needed fresh air... I needed open space... I felt the tears slipping past my cheeks as the darkness pressed even further down upon me. I continued to cry before the darkness overtook me and swallowed me whole...
…
"Kurt!"
He was raising his small hammer, about to set in a nail for the slates of the bar's roof when the scream had sailed across the humid air. He paused and glanced around, trying to catch sight of the person who called him. Joe was on the other side of the roof and hammering slates down as well. He paused and looked toward the main road along with his brother. The sight of Robin running toward the building was not what they were expecting and Kurt set his hammer back in his satchel as he stood up. "Robin? What's wrong?"
Robin stopped just short of the ladder and started pointing frantically back the way she had came. "You have to hurry! Dahlia's hurt!"
Joe stared at the rancher, a look of confusion on his face. Dahlia? Who in the world was Dahlia? He glanced at his brother, about to question the identity of said person, but nearly paled at the sudden fierce look on Kurt's face.
"What do you mean she's hurt!" He demanded, ignoring the fact that Robin was now shedding a few tears.
"We were down in the mines looking for silver ores. She wasn't looking where she was stepping and went down through a pitfall. She hurt herself really badly."
Without a word, Kurt had rushed to the ladder and slid down with practiced ease. He ran past the rancher and toward the Moonlight Cave, not sparing the woman a second glance. Robin rushed after him, her brown pigtails flopping about as they took a shortcut through the nearby trees. Joe stared after them, the shock on his face a telling sign. Without hesitation, he put his hammer away and moved to slide down the ladder as his brother had. He rushed toward the Moonlight Cave, his own heart pounding with worry. Who was Dahlia? How come he had never heard of her before now? He swallowed back the unease and ran even faster, hoping that this person, whoever she was, was all right...
…
Kurt had been the one rushing toward the caves but it was Robin who led the way in. He followed after her as they ran past a few other villagers and made their way down the first set of stairs. Kurt had reached into his hip bag to pull out his own small lantern, the light chasing off the darkness. They descended each level while being careful to avoid any potential pitfalls. "Where is she?"
"We're close," said Robin, her voice thick with tears as they made it to the level where several pieces of silver ore lay abandoned. Nearby there was a gaping hole surrounded by a series of cracks. Kurt rushed past the rancher and was careful to avoid the weak areas as he held his lamp over the opening. A familiar head of copper brown hair greeted his vision in the level below but there was no movement. "Dahlia!"
There was no response and the panic grew as he tried to catch some sign of life. She was as still as stone and his heart clenched at the sight of it. He glanced at Robin, who had made her way over to him, and he held out the lantern to her. "Take this. I'm going down there."
"Kurt, be careful!"
He didn't look at the rancher as he bent down at the sturdy edge of the pitfall. "I need you to locate the staircase when I get to her. She looks seriously hurt so we'll need to get her out of here fast."
"Right." Robin gave a firm nod in compliance as she held the lantern out further, watching as Kurt's hoisted himself carefully down along the edge. He eased himself slowly down until he only dangled by his fingers. With a final grunt, he let go of the edge and jumped down to the level below. He knew these mines and caves well and there had been plenty of times when he had been nearly caught off guard by a pitfall. He knew the proper way of landing at such a height and the impact did little save for jarring his bones a bit.
The light from the lantern above indicated that Robin was still along the edge. He could see that the lantern Dahlia had been holding had shattered not too far from her. He quickly rushed to her side and kneeled down beside her. "Li?" He reached out very carefully to brush the hair from her face. He felt for her pulse against her neck and found that it beat steadily. He felt the the back of her head and nearly winced when his fingers brushed over a nice sized bump on the back of her skull. He looked over her limbs to make sure nothing looked broken. Her right foot was bent at an odd angle, it looked to be sprained or broken. His heart sank as he moved closer to her and very carefully gathered her in his arms. "Damn you woman... Just when I thought you couldn't possibly get in trouble..."
"Kurt, do you have her? I'm going to find the stairs!"
Kurt glanced up at the opening and gave a nod. "Go! I got her!"
The light disappeared then and darkness surrounded them. He kept a firm hold on her as he waited for Robin, all the while his heart was hammering a mile a minute. What would they do about her injuries? They couldn't take her to the doctor, he wouldn't see her. No one in the village really could... He cursed and focused on the feel of her heartbeat instead...
…
Joe was pacing the first level of the mines, his hands clenched tightly as he stared at the stairs that led down to the second level. By the time he had reached the caves, Kurt and Robin had already descended to the lower depths. Joe would have gone after them but he didn't know the caves as well as his brother and would've gotten himself hurt as well. So, he waited for them, not sure if he might be losing himself just a bit as well...
The other villagers in the mine had questioned him about what was happening. Joe didn't have a real answer to give so he simply shrugged and continued to pace. It was about a half an hour before a familiar pair of pigtails emerged from the staircase. She was covered in dirt and she was holding Kurt's lantern as she glanced back down the stairs. Kurt emerged a moment later, also covered in dirt and carrying an unconscious woman, piggy back style. Joe blinked in surprise at the sight of the woman, he had definitely never seen her before...
He rushed forward to his brother and the rancher, his brown eyes focused on the strange woman. "Guys, what's going on? Who is this lady? Is she ok?"
Silence greeted his questions glanced at the two of them to see that they were staring at him as if he had grown a second head. A heartbeat passed before Kurt opened his mouth, nothing came out and he closed it. Robin glanced at Joe then at the woman and then back to Joe, her brown eyes wide.
"What is it? Is she hurt really badly?" Joe was beginning to worry now and was beginning to grow uncomfortable beneath their puzzled gaze. "We need to take her to the doc."
Kurt blinked and glanced back at the woman, whose copper brown waves blocked her face from view. Her head was slumped against his shoulder and her breathing was shallow. Kurt glanced back at him and stared at his brother as if he were seeing him for the first time. "Y-you can see her?"
Joe felt his heart drop, not liking the eeriness that question brought with it. "What? Of course I can see her! She's right there in front me!"
Robin glanced up at Kurt and her mouth remained open for just a second before her expression cleared. "If Joe can see her then Alex might be able to. We have to try and take her to the doctor."
A deep frown appeared on his face at the thought that Li might not get the help she needed. "You're right... I don't know what's happening but we can worry about it later." He glanced at his brother and gave a nod. "C'mon Joe, you can help us."
Joe was wondering what they were even talking about. They still didn't explain who she was and the unease grew even worse as they turned and rushed for the exit. "H-hey! Wait!" He cried and rushed out after them...
…
"Huh? What's going on here?"
Alex, the town doctor, was a young man with dark hair and equally dark eyes. He was always dressed in a white coat, even on his day off. It seemed it was a good idea that he stayed in the clinic today because the moment Robin burst through the front door she was crying for the doctor. Kurt had followed in after her, carrying an unconscious woman on his back. His brother came in a moment later behind them, looking confused but equally as worried.
The moment Alex saw the strange woman, a deep frown appeared. "Who is this? What happened to her?" He went over to meet them and quickly beckoned Kurt to the patient's area around the blue privacy curtains. Robin almost looked as if she would cry in relief as she and Joe trailed after the doctor. Kurt had passed the doctor and, with Alex's help, very carefully laid the woman down upon the bed. He took a small step back as Alex got to work on examining her.
"This is my friend Dahlia. She helps me on the ranch a lot." Robin stood at the foot of the bed and had taken off her red bandana. She was wringing it between her hands, her white gloves covered in dirt. "She was helping me in the mines and she fell through a pitfall."
"She has a nasty bump on the back of her head and she might have broken her ankle." Kurt looked very worried and he was keeping a very close and protective stance over her.
Silence followed this statement as Alex continued to examine his new patient. He felt for her pulse before his fingers carefully moved toward the back of her skull. The slight frown on his face indicated that she had definitely sustained a head injury. He continued to examine the rest of her before his practiced fingers settled over her right ankle. It looked swollen and was beginning to darken with bruising.
Alex sighed heavily as he rolled up the sleeves to his white coat and gave a nod. "It looks like a fracture but I will need to take a couple of x-rays to be sure. The injury on her head is a bit worrisome." He looked at the rancher, the thoughtful frown on his face revealing none of what he was thinking. "She'll need to stay here for a few days so I can run a some tests. How long has she been out?"
Robin looked over at Kurt, who glanced at her in question. Joe stood behind the other two, his brown eyes on the injured woman. He must have been seeing things but he could have sworn that a glimpse of something purple was appearing on her forehead...
"I'd say about an hour..." Robin replied, glancing up at the clock that hung on the wall. "We didn't go down too far..." She trailed off as the tears started filling in her eyes, the guilt on her face was a bit too much for Kurt. He knew that the rancher wouldn't have let anything intentionally bad happened to her friend.
Alex gave a nod, the silence that followed meaning that was all he was going to get from the emotional young woman. "Robin you should go home and get some rest. I'll send a message along the moment she wakes up."
Robin glanced up in surprise, her eyes wide as a look of panic flickered across. "I-I couldn't! She needs me to be here when she wakes up!"
Alex looked confused at this statement but the moment Robin turned her pleading gaze to Kurt, he understood well enough. If she woke up, whatever it was that she did to keep herself invisible to the villagers might just kick in again. If neither of them were there, she might panic as to what might have happened...
"I'll stay with her," said Kurt, his deep brown eyes meeting the doctor's gaze. "Dahlia doesn't speak with anyone aside from the two of us. She's wary of strangers and it would be best if she had a familiar face around."
Alex frowned at that but conceded that the carpenter had a point. "All right then. I don't know when she'll awaken but you're welcome to stay as long as you like."
Kurt sighed heavily and gave a nod, not liking the situation at hand but Robin was too emotional right now and it would be best if she went home to rest as well. Of course what would he tell Woody about needing to stay at the clinic?
"Take care of your friend Kurt. I'll finish up the work for today and let Grandpa know what's happened." All eyes focused on Joe, his usual cheerful manner replaced with something that was slightly more serious. He looked at his brother and gave a small smile. "No worries, ya?"
Kurt blinked in surprise but a quiet smile appeared on his lips as he nodded in return. Of course, he would have to explain to Joe exactly who Li was but that could wait. Robin let out a shaky sigh as she moved to the bedside and leaned down to give Li's forehead a kiss. "Sorry Li Li... I'm sorry..."
She straightened and looked at the doctor, the deep frown on her face speaking measures. "She will be all right, won't she Alex?"
The look on the doctor's face softened and he nodded in reply. "The human body is a wonderful thing, capable of healing itself of many things. She hurt herself but it's nothing life threatening. She'll just need time to heal."
Robin nodded and turned away from the doctor and gave a grateful smile to Kurt before she walked away. Joe rubbed the back of his head, an uncertain look playing on his face. He glanced at his brother and Kurt understood the look. "I'll tell you, I promise."
The look cleared from Joe's face and he glanced at Dahlia before turning and leaving the clinic. Kurt heard the door slam and he sighed heavily, wondering exactly how this was going to play out...
"Well Kurt, why don't you head on over to the Sanatorium? There's a nice selection of books in the waiting area there to occupy your time. I have to get started on taking care of... Dahlia, correct?" Alex looked at the carpenter, who gave a nod in confirmation. The doctor nodded, more to himself as he focused his gaze on his new patient. "Has she always been here? I don't remember seeing her around the village before..."
A slight smirk appeared before Kurt nodded. "Yeah doc, she has. She's just not a very social person so she doesn't come around the main part of the village..."
"Hm..." Alex said nothing more on that though he that thoughtful frown appeared again.
A moment of silence passed before Kurt reached up to rub the back of his head. "If... if it's all right with you doc... You mind if I just stay here?"
Alex glanced over at the younger man and his frown eased slightly, seeing the deep worry on Kurt's face. Oh, so that's what it was... Alex couldn't help but smile as he turned and started to walk toward the back of the clinic. "Sure Kurt, I could use an extra pair of hands anyway since Martha is off today. If you don't mind?" He glanced back at the carpenter, who quickly conceded to the request though his gaze was focused on Dahlia. "Great. There's a chair there so just keep an eye on her while I get some clippers. I have to cut off that sneaker before I can treat her ankle..." He disappeared around the privacy curtain after that statement.
Kurt stood there for just a moment before moving over to grab the chair that was settled in the corner of the room. He picked it up, vaguely recognizing it to be of Woody's handiwork, before setting it down beside the head of the bed. He sat down, the old wood creaking beneath his weight as he focused his gaze on his friend. His friend...
A light frown twitched at that as he studied Li's face, noting the smudges of dirt on her cheeks and forehead. Without thinking, he reached out to wipe the dirt away from her cheeks and forehead. He paused in the middle of that act in surprise. Friend... It didn't feel that way, not truly. He sighed heavily and pulled his hand away. He had feelings for her, he knew that quite some time ago. It wasn't until she had accepted his request to go to the festival that he finally realized that she just might feel the same way... Was he losing it? She wasn't even truly human, at lease she didn't seem so... He supposed it really didn't matter now, he already knew where his heart was leading him.
He sighed again and reached out to tuck a frazzled, copper wave away from her face. "...would it work?" He closed his eyes and leaned forward to press a firm kiss upon her brow. He could feel the warmth of that strange mark that sometimes appeared on her forehead, a teardrop and swirling knots the same shade of lavender as her eyes. It wasn't always there, only when she was feeling particularly happy or when she was casting her spells. She never spoke of it and so he didn't bring it up. She would share what it meant on her own good time. He hoped she would trust him completely one day to share all of herself with him...
Yes, he knew where his heart was leading him and, after this incident, he realized that he was willing to follow it now. He just hoped that she would accept it when the time came. He sat back against his chair and continued to watch her, not noticing that a particular set of deep emerald eyes were watching him from around the corner of the privacy curtain.