A/N: Hurrah! School is done! I know it's a short chapter, but hopefully it conveys all that it was meant to.
Chapter 9
It had been a few days since the broken limbs incident. Jarlaxle had managed to heal all four limbs, though with considerable effort. To avoid another such situation, Artemis had been confined to bed rest while the drow searched for some sort of cure. Each time Jarlaxle had returned, he had felt the human's eyes on him, and each time he'd simply shaken his head silently in response. He'd found nothing, not one hint or even a partial hint of anything that could even just stop this. He'd ordered Kimmuriel and all his mercenaries out on a search for the answer, not caring about costs or appearances at the moment. For every day that passed without an answer, or a hint, it felt like a little more of his friend was slipping away.
He watched the man with his peripheral. He looks even more miserable today. The drow rubbed at his temples, wracking his brain for anything that could even marginally help. The worst part of this stalemate of information; he could swear he could see Artemis' memory fading along with the shade's influence. A few times he'd caught an almost blank look directed at him, though so far a spark of recognition still seemed to be present. It was worrying, immensely.
Silence reigned for the day, as it had taken to doing these last few days. Jarlaxle had been thinking he should check in with Kimmuirel, to see if there had been any progress yet. It would be the latest of many such calls to his lieutenant. As he reached for the whistle, however, he hesitated. The last time Kimmuriel had been irate, claiming that if he wanted the psionic drow to assist, then he needed to stop interrupting said lieutenant every few hours.
He let his hand fall to his lap again, wringing his hands together. He glanced at his friend again, checking in on him as frequently as he dared. Artemis was looking back, his eyes tired, his expression drawn. Then the man shifted his gaze back to the ceiling, before letting his eyes drift shut.
The rest of the day passed without a word.
