Chapter Eight: One Curse Lifted, Another Laid
Celina rose. Her work was nearly done. The Glens were worried enough to be sufficient for her plan. As soon as Sunni got better, it would be at least a week before they let her out with Cubbi. But those Barbics were far more stubborn. In fact, if she knew them, they would wait a day. They did not generally give into weakness. But after what she did to that cub of theirs, they would tie him to their waists to make sure he was safe.
She took a gaze through her mirror.
She could see Buddi through the mirror in the hall. He was asleep, but still
obviously in pain. But those herbs did it. It kept him locked in sleep. The
herbs they'd given him were milder than those they gave their leader.
Ursa had been out for several hours,
in fact, more than a day. Buddi had been given a second doze when night came,
to help him sleep. He had been okay without Ursa although he did miss her being
there. Grubbi was kind enough and Gritty did what he could for him. That
generally meant coming in occasionally, checking his temperature and then
replacing the compress on his forehead.
The Barbics thought the child's
fever was falling, his sickness vanishing. But Celina had one last trick to
play, one more ace up her sleeve. She looked at the cub and smirked.
"Take this into yourself, Buddi
Barbic."
She let her power cut loose and then
retreated back into the shadows, her dress fluttering around her legs.
* * *
Ursa opened her eyes slowly, vision
slowly clearing. She sat up slowly, an aching in her head. Sheets fell around
her and her hair trailed down into her eyes. It was ragged and sweaty as if she
hadn't bathed for a few days. She looked at herself. She had tousled hair and
clothing.
Suddenly, she remembered and all her
past rage came shooting back through her blood.
"Gritty!"
She swung her feet down, yanked her
sandals onto her feet and hastily brushed through her hair.
The Barbic leader stormed out into
the hall. The other Barbics saw the signs of a raging and barely contained
temper and quickly made themselves scarce.
Ursa's first thought was to go to
Gritty and give him a piece of her mind and maybe a few of her fists. But she
dismissed that. For starters, for all her skill and strength, Gritty had
strength that greatly outweighed her own. Secondly, Barbics didn't swing at
each other, even in livid anger. And finally:
She wanted to check on her baby.
She knocked on his door and got no
reply. Opening it, she found her child tossed on his bed, sheets on the floor.
And he was breathing hard, heaving. Her heart hit her throat. She ran over to
him and shook him awake.
"Baby? Baby? It's me, Ursa. Come on
Buddi, look at me."
Buddi did, he knew her voice. But he
was confused. This room was different…spinning. He felt terrible. He'd been
feeling better but now suddenly, he felt beyond terrible again. He clutched her
around the waist and fought to sit up. She tried to push him down but he tried
to push from her.
That turned out to be a bad idea.
Buddi fell from the bed and landed
in a heap on the floor. He heard his name being called. But he couldn't even
open his eyes, he was so weak. Why him? He thought this was over with. But now,
those past days of pain seemed to be haven. He would have given anything to
feel as bad as he'd felt then as opposed to how he felt now.
"Buddi?"
Buddi felt someone pick him up. He
felt a terrible pain his throat. He reached out to Ursa, saying desperately, in
Barbic,
"Mama Ursa, water. Can you get me
some water?"
Ursa's heart became a hammer. She
set the cub down on his bed and poured some water from the pitcher by his bed.
She scooped the cub up so she supported his head and put the glass to his lips.
He sipped like a dying Gummi. He drained the glass and then stretched his hands
out, indicating more. Ursa refilled the glass. He drained it quickly and then
asked for more.
"Baby?"
Buddi looked at her, begging. She,
although it was against her better judgment, refilled his glass a third time.
And then trice more.
Only then, did Buddi stop begging
for water.
He leaned against his 'mama Ursa.'
She pulled the strip from the counter and slapped it onto his forehead. It
turned that terrible black shade again, stopping Ursa's heart. It had never
been this high. But it had been only a low fever a few days ago. How could it
have shot up six degrees in so little time?
"Come on Buddi." She took Buddi in
her arms, cradled him tightly, motherly. "You're going to Grubbi, right now."
He didn't protest, just leaned
against her. She carried him out until she reached Grubbi's room. Switching
Buddi's weight to one arm, she knocked. Barely waiting, she opened the door.
Grubbi turned, surprised to see her awake. Those herbs he gave her had kept her
locked in sleep for two whole days but should have lasted for three. But Ursa's
eyes were panicked. He met her eyes.
"What's wrong Ursa?"
She looked down at Buddi. Grubbi
followed, and immediately panicked as well. The cub had begun to recover but
now, he looked twice as worse as he had before. Grubbi felt his forehead, found
it drenched in sweat. His eyes were glassy, clouded. He looked at the Barbic
healer, pleading and begging without even saying one word.
Ursa cut into Grubbi's
concentration.
"Grubbi! Please, give him something!
Anything! Help my Buddi!"
Grubbi sighed. "I can't Ursa. Not
yet. Anymore this soon and we risk an overdose of drugs."
Ursa's heart felt heavier than
stones. She locked eyes with the older Barbic. "Then what do I do? Tell me
Grubbi. I have to help him!"
Grubbi smiled at her with sympathy.
The woman loved the child with all her heart. He told her,
"Use your mother instincts, Ursa.
What does the mother in you say?"
Ursa thought and said, "A cool bath
to help his pain and heat, and keep him still."
Grubbi nodded. "A trained Barbic
physician would have said the same."
Ursa nodded but asked, "Grubbi? When
it's safe can…"
"I'll send you some herbs for him
when I know it's safe."
Ursa thanked him, in Barbic. Then,
cradling Buddi closer she walked out and back to Buddi's room. He was so hot.
No normal fever would have climbed like that. Celina, no doubt. Ursa's anger
grew; she drew her hands into tight fists. Buddi stirred. Fighting the pain, he
said,
"Mama Ursa. Make it stop…please!"
Ursa put her finger against his
lips, "Hush Buddi!"
Buddi fell silent. He closed his
eyes, but didn't sleep. He just lay in her arms, eyes resting as she stripped
him down again and gave him a small bath in the cool water. He opened his eyes
then and said,
"Mama Ursa…that feels good."
She smiled and dumped a small bucket
of water over his head, sending his hair trailing into his eyes. She scrubbed
his hair, to get the sweat and dirt out before dumping the bucket again,
getting the soap out. Just as before, the bath went quickly and soon the cub
was sitting in Ursa's lap, nude and having his fur dried. But Ursa combed it
this time, to make it smooth.
"Buddi?" Ursa laid him back in bed,
after changing the sheets, while Buddi sat still. He was still hot, terribly
hot. Ursa knew this had to be Celina and she felt a terrible and aching urge to
grab whomever this demon was and pulverize her.
"Hmm?"
"Sleep."
It was not a request and Buddi knew
it. He also knew that he couldn't, not with this pain. He shook his head.
"No, Ursa."
"It wasn't a suggestion Buddi
Barbic. That was a direct order. Sleep."
"I…I can't, Ursa. It hurts too
much."
Ursa started to smooth his hair.
Buddi practically begged her,
"At least let me read!"
Ursa shook her head but took his
book from the shelf, the one on legends. She looked at her 'baby.'
Normally too mature to be worthy of
that nickname, this child was every bit her baby. He was the same cub that was
the mature trainee she taught but also a sick child, wanting his 'mama.'
"Buddi? Which legend? I want you
resting but I'll read to you."
Buddi stared. "You…will?"
She smiled. "You're sick, little
one. Of course I will."
Buddi snuggled close to her and
said,
"The second chapter."
Ursa nodded. Flipping the pages, she
started to read.
The two Barbics remained like that
for a while. When she finished the chapter, she read another. Occasionally,
she'd take sips of water, to wet her throat. Normally, she would not have done
such a thing as she only read to him occasionally and only individual words.
Buddi came to her sometimes, always asking,
"Ursa? What's this mean?" or "What
do they mean by this?"
But now as she read to him and he
leaned into her, she felt no embarrassment. She was glad she could help her cub
forget the pain, if just temporarily. But even as she did, and even as she felt
his fever fall by the hour, her motherly protection did not fall.
And with good reason.
Celina was behind this.
And that woman was cruel and
heartless….but
She could plan.
* * *
Celina flicked her fingers,
convinced that her spell had run its course. The adults would shield their
children for a while now. Enough to drive the children up the wall. That was
what she needed. She had her second part to attack with now, mainly on the
Barbics. They were not as easy to cripple as the Glens.
She smiled. Buddi and Sunni would
recover form the sickness soon.
"But Gummies," she hissed. "This is
one curse lifted. I'm more than ready to lay down another."