Lady Hawk
By: LadyHawk225
Chapter 2
Pain. His very core was radiating with pain. Whether up or down or in darkness or in light, Rowen knew nothing but pain. He could move, his mouth wouldn't even allow him to utter a moan to release the tension building inside him. He wanted to scream. He wanted to cry; yet his body would allow no such relief.
Confusion racked his fevered brain as he slowly became aware of his senses. He could hear the sound of birdsong and the gentle hum of insects. Slowly, the memory of his haphazard fall came flooding back to him, and he bit back a cry at his fury. He had not died. His story had not ended. How could the gods be so cruel?
Vaguely he was aware that he was moving, but he didn't know how. He could hear the sound of crackling leaves as he was moved through the forest. He decided that someone must be carrying him, for he couldn't feel the ground beneath his own feet and he didn't know where he was going.
The pain in his head grew as he thought, and he vaguely wondered if his friends had come to rescue him after all. But his thought quickly subsided as the pain overthrew his consciousness and he fell into blackness once more.
Her face was stern as she walked through the forest--her cold complexion mixing with her gentle eyes. She carried him through the brush, careful not to injury him worse than he already was. Blood soaked his clothes and hers, mixing with the dirt on her pants and leaving a trail behind them. His body was broken, so she held him like a child, his head upon her shoulder and his body, gently curled in her arms.
He whimpered slightly in his fevered dreams, and she wondered if he would survive. She looked down upon him again and smiled slightly. He was beautiful...but broken, she reminded herself, harshly. There was no time for ideal thoughts. She quickened her pace, hoping to reach her home before it was too late, before death took him.
He was warm. His body had been broken and hurt again and again, but for now, he was warm and safe. She looked down at his pained expression in his sleep, his creased forehead, his frown, his clenched eyes and she was almost sorry that she had saved him from death. Almost.
Reaching over across him, she grabbed a basin of water and a cloth, soaking the cloth in the mixture of warm water and herbs and began to wipe the blood from his face; he groaned in pain as she cleaned his head wounds. A nasty gash cutting across the side of his head where he had struck a stone. Blood poured out of the wound and she cleaned it quickly. Pulling thread from her pocket, she threaded a thin needle in the dim light and went to work stitching the gash closed.
He whimpered in his sleep, turning his head slightly to the side in an effort to escape the pain, but she took a gentle yet firm hold on his chin and held him stationary.
Her stitches were small, almost invisible to the naked eye, very neat and orderly, carefully created so as not to leave a scar.
Finishing, she applied some herbs to the wounds and dressed it, satisfied that he would not die from that wound this day.
Rowen's fevered mind was vaugly aware of his naked chest and the slight chill he felt there. He gasped in surprise as a cool cloth came in contact with his skin, the slight pressure causing waves of nauseous pain to wash over his body.
He cried out and flinched back, but the movement only sent more waves of sharp pain down his body and he couldn't stop the sob from escaping his cracked lips.
Gentle hands held his shoulders as the tears ran down his face, his sobs of pain and horror causing his chest to tighten in agony.
His racing heart slowly calmed down as he heard the distinct sound of a woman, humming a soft tune in his ear. In his pain, he had not even noticed the arms, encircling him gently, and the cool cloth, rubbing away the aches in his chest.
Suddenly, horror swept over him again and he cried out in confusion. He couldn't see.
"I-I can't s-see!" He croaked out through his raw throat. Panic gripped him and he tried to lift a hand to his face, convinced that there was some sort of object obstructing his vision.
He couldn't move his arm, however, and the pain cause fresh sobs to wrench from his throat. He wanted to scream, but the pain wouldn't allow it. His tears did nothing for his agony as he cried.
"Shhhhhh." A gently voice whispered. Those arms, encircling him, gently pulled away and Rowen felt a cool had wiping the tears from his eyes.
"You're eyesight will return in time. It is a side-affect of your fall." She said, quietly.
Rowen nodded slightly and immediately regretted the action as his head throbbed in pain once more.
"W-who are you?" He groaned. He was scared. He was in pain and he couldn't see or move and there was a strange woman with him.
"Relax. I am a friend. You are safe with me." She said, calmly. "What is your name?"
"Rowen." He responded quietly. "Where are we?"
"My home." She replied, wiping his shoulders with the cloth. Rowen could smell the healing herbs she had mixed in the water, and suddenly he felt very drowsy.
"What can I call you?" He asked, his mind drifting off slowly into blackness.
"Lady Hawk." She responded softly. But Rowen didn't hear her, he was already gone.