A/N: Today I saw something called a 'beach wave crimper' in action. Oh. My. Word. I hadn't been that mesmerized by something hair-related since curling wands came out. My hair doesn't really 'do' styling (neither does my patience), but watching someone else is mesmerizing.
TheRanger'sDaughter: Lots and lots of action happening indeed. Will is going to be Maggie's main source of support through this. He understands what she's going through more than the others. Russ is the age he and Kane can be friends rather than just father/son.
Raider: Lots of rapid chapters :) I don't think anyone in the fanfiction world will judge you too harshly for being a bit insane. I LOVE Drake and Josh! Especially Josh. When the Red Dawn remake came out everyone around me wanted to go see the Hemsworth. I went along and sat in the seat just obsessing over Josh Peck. Consider this opium in Hibernia a medieval GMO...that's the route I was hoping to take with it.
Aubrey: Okay. I won't.
Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan.
The next morning, Elizabet stood with her parents for the announcement that Princess Mara had been found by one of the search parties and was now resting in the privacy of her own rooms. They moved Maggie to Mara's bedroom to add to the show and let her cousins Max and Jasmine come to help with her care, providing the illusion Mara was getting visits only from her closest friends. Russ assigned himself to being his mother's helper, as he had been growing up. He could effectively guide her between the medical wing where Kane continued his recovery and Maggie. Neither needed to be under constant watch and this way the Hibernian medical staff wouldn't be interrupted.
Elizabet returned to her room after the announcement. She stirred Noah and helped him get ready for the day. Neither had slept well the night before. She went to check on him just before midnight and they ended up sitting together in his window until morning. Neil never returned. It was Elizabet's first night without him since she married. She used to hear of married couples having trouble sleeping apart but never understood it until now. The search parties that returned from looking for Maggie would be sent right back out to look for Neil, only his absence wouldn't be a great announcement. They needed the people to feel safe and there was still a chance Neil had fled in the confusion and wasn't sure if it was safe to return. No one had really gotten around to going over that procedure with him since his move to Roscrea.
"Have you heard from Neil?" Noah asked while Elizabet fixed his shirt. She shook her head, biting down on her lip. Noah pouted.
"Maggie's been found," Elizabet reminded him. "He'll probably make his way back by bedtime tonight."
Noah looked up at Elizabet. "I'm too old for bedtime, Elizabet."
Elizabet sighed. "I know," she assured him. She knelt down so they'd be closer to the same height. "Noah, I know you're scared."
"No I'm not."
Sure, Elizabet thought. "Alright, you're not. But if you were, you do trust that I wouldn't let anything bad happen to you right?"
Noah nodded. Elizabet hugged him tightly. The main door to Elizabet's apartment opened. She looked up to greet Tammy and the guard who had escorted her.
"Guard?" Elizabet said quickly. "Would you escort Noah to his tutor please?"
"No!" Noah protested. "I want to stay with you!"
"Noah, you're going to be safe with your tutors. I need to know where you are and that you're safe so when Neil comes back we can find you, understood?"
It was a line her mother had fed her when she insisted Elizabet go with her tutors during the aftermath of catastrophic events. It'd worked back then and it seemed to be working again now. Noah collected his books and cloak in a huff and went with the guard outside. Elizabet sighed as she stood up to face Tammy.
"You're looking better," Elizabet complimented her as she took an apple from the bowl on the table.
"Your mother has a medicine that helped with the bruises," Tammy said uneasily. "She's been more generous than I deserve."
Elizabet offered her aunt an apple. Tammy took it. "Were you and Dad able to finish out the divorce?"
Tammy shook her head. "It's almost done. Calvin will have to sign it. I…" Tammy set the apple down and squeezed her eyes shut. Elizabet stepped closer to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Elizabet guided her to sit on a bench near the door, where Neil usually sat to pull on his boots before leaving.
"You know we're going to help you," Elizabet whispered. "You aren't alone."
Tammy shook her head. "He's a good man, Lizzie."
"He's good compared to your first husband. That doesn't mean…"
"No. He just wants what other people want. He wanted a wife who loves him…and I do. He wanted you…your second family has been kind enough to allow you in our lives. He and I are both proud of you, by the way. He may not have shown it, but he was happy at your wedding. He just…he sees what your second parents have given you and he knows we could have never done the same. That frustrated him."
"That's not a reason to take it out on you," Elizabet assured her. "Or anyone, for that matter. He left me. My parents didn't take me kicking and screaming from that orphanage. I went willingly. Mum asked if I wanted to join their family and I did. I didn't know about their titles at the time. I just knew I'd have parents to read me stories and a cousin who lived with us too."
Tammy chuckled. She held in her apple in her lap, a tear rolling down her cheek as she stared at it. "He wanted a child, Lizzie."
"He could have adopted."
Tammy shook her head. "No. He wanted one of his own. If he couldn't have you he wanted us to have one, and…"
"He's not fit for a child," Elizabet pointed out. "Besides, look what he did to you. He could have done that to his own son or daughter too if he got angry enough. My parents struggled with that for years before the adopted me and my father never once struck my mother. Well…they have this story where he did hit her once, but they were sparring and it was by accident. It was part of a training, not out of anger. She got him back ten times over."
Tammy laughed. "I'm glad they raised you, Lizzie. They did a good job."
Elizabet finished her apple and tossed the core into a bucket a maid would collect later for compost. "I'm going to the briefing. Would you care to join?"
Tammy nodded. "I'm glad to have something to do."
Elizabet and Tammy walked down to Mason and Scout's rooms, where the briefing was set to take place. The large common space connecting several of the main rooms could easily hold the family, as they proved at Samhain every year, and it was more private than other spaces. Maggie was still masquerading as Mara, whether she realized it or not, and Mason and Scout's personal staff had been handpicked from the Academy for secrecy. Even their maids could wield knives and withstand torture before telling their employers' business.
The moment the two women walked in Alyss came to them. Alyss took Tammy's hand into her firm grip. "Sean told us what you did for Maggie," she said breathlessly. "Thank you."
Tammy wasn't used to being the center of attention. She could only nod to Alyss in response.
"Who is with Maggie now?" Elizabet asked, knowing her aunt wouldn't have the confidence to speak herself.
"Will," Alyss answered as she released Tammy's hand. "He…understands her pain a little better than the rest of us."
Elizabet raised an eyebrow. Tammy glanced to her nervously.
"Not in that way," Alyss assured them. "During his apprenticeship he was caught up in this…horrible mission that went wrong. He and Cassandra were taken captive and…made slaves…they crushed his spirit and then a man trying to help him get through it gave him warmweed. He was able to kick the habit with some help once he was out of that situation, but…he understands what Maggie's going through." Alyss studied Tammy again. "Do you know how long she's been off it? Gabby says because she's a child the withdrawals will be worse, but it all depends on how long she was on it and how long she's been off. Opium…"
"Opium?" Tammy repeated. "You think she's been given opium?"
Alyss nodded. "We found her in a child labor camp for an opium farm. We assumed…"
"No. The man we traveled with gave her warmweed."
Alyss frowned. "Warmweed?"
"Alyss?" Gabby's voice called out. All three women had to search for her. Gabby stood clear on the other side of the room, holding Russ' arm. Russ whispered to her a few moments and then looked around until he found them. He led his mother towards their small circle. Clearly she'd been listening in to their conversation.
"What is it?" Alyss asked once Gabby was close.
"How often was she given warmweed?" Gabby asked, ignoring Alyss. Elizabet mentally kicked herself. They should have had Tammy in the room when Gabby was plotting Maggie's recovery. She would have better insight to Maggie's time away from Roscrea.
"Often," Tammy answered. "He put a dose inside her cheek every meal and spiked her water with it. I swapped out the water and got her to wake up long enough to escape, but…I'm sure she still had the taste for it when she left."
"She's just a child," Alyss sighed, bringing her hands to her face. "She wouldn't have known what it was. She wouldn't know why she had those urges and…"
"And she stumbled into that poppy candy bastard who takes advantage of desperate children," Russ said angrily.
"That doesn't matter right now," Gabby said.
"What?" Alyss demanded.
"It doesn't matter right now," Gabby repeated. "Russ, take me to Maggie."
"Why?" Alyss asked as she fell in step with them. Elizabet and Tammy followed too, unable to put the pieces together.
"I've been taking warmweed-based tablets for my pain," Gabby answered. "Maggie can have one to hold her over until I figure something else out."
"Gabby, what are you saying?" Alyss pleaded. Elizabet rushed to open the door for them. Will sat with Maggie on Mara's bed inside, holding her while she continued to shake. Maggie sweat so much her sleeping gown was soaked, as was most of Will's clothing.
"Russ?" Gabby prompted. "Do you have my tablets?"
Russ produced a gray-green tablet and pushed it into his mother's hand, clearly just as confused as Alyss.
"What's that?" Will asked.
"It needs to go under her tongue and kept there until it dissolves," Gabby instructed.
"That's for an adult. Shouldn't it be…halved or something?" Alyss asked.
"What she takes after this one, yes. This one will give her what she needs to rest."
Without another word, Will took the tablet from Gabby. He slid it under Maggie's tongue and held his hand over her mouth. Maggie wasn't conscious enough to spit it out on purpose, but her reflexes made the attempt. Gabby found Will's arm and traced it to Maggie's face. She held her hand on her head. Everyone watched the child closely. Will removed his hand from her mouth once she stopped gagging and slowly her body relaxed. Soon it was just her chest that fell up and down evenly. Her eyes opened just for a moment. They were too clouded to make sense of those around her. Maggie rolled over, hugged the toy rabbit Mara kept on her bed, and went to sleep.
"Why didn't the opium-based medicines to this?" Alyss whispered softly while Will stood up.
"That wasn't opium-based?" Will asked. "What was it?"
"It has warmweed in it," Gabby answered Will.
"You just made me give my granddaughter warmweed?"
"Let Mum talk," Russ insisted. Gabby kept her good hand on Maggie, leaning over to check vitals as she spoke.
"Tammy's the one who found her first," Gabby whispered. "When Maggie was with her kidnapper, he controlled her with warmweed. Tammy lessened her doses but couldn't eliminate them. It's good you didn't, Tammy. That would have killed her."
"Killed her?" Tammy repeated. Elizabet took Tammy's arm and squeezed her hand.
"What we're doing would have killed her," Gabby continued, moving her hand to stroke her short hair. "Maggie's craved warmweed all this time. She probably thought she was sick and needed medicine. The opium must have been presented to her as medicine."
"Maggie's not that dim," Will protested.
"No," Gabby agreed. "But she would have been too desperate to care."
To that Will nodded understanding. Gabby continued.
"Opium comes with its own side effects. We use it to control pain because it makes patients less aware. It takes away your ability to realize you feel pain. That property would also take away the immediate urge for warmweed, but increase it long term."
"You're saying we should start giving her warmweed?" Alyss asked.
"Doses of warmweed-based tablets yes," Gabby answered. "She's been off it so long a pure dose could do more harm than good. The shaking and restlessness came from the warmweed, not the opium. The opium controlled it in short bouts but the fits would have grown more intense until she got warmweed."
"Wouldn't it just exit her system after a while?" Alyss asked. "I mean, can't we just stop giving all this to her altogether and she'll be good as new in a few days?"
"It's not that simple," Will sighed before Gabby could answer. He put his hand on top of Gabby's, letting her know where his attention was. "Tell me what she needs and I'll get it."
"Will…" Alyss began but Will cut her off.
"Look, Alyss. She's not shaking anymore."
Alyss sighed. "So we solve this by giving her more of what would slowly ruin her?"
"Her body wouldn't withstand the shock of going without much longer," Gabby explained gently. "I know it doesn't make much sense, but this is what has to be done."
"What do we need to do for her?" Will asked. Elizabet couldn't tell if it was a plea for help or a demand, but either way it didn't matter.
"I'll get you enough tablets to start her at five doses a day," Gabby answered. "Her body's too weak to push too hard right way. After a couple of weeks you can bring her down to four, two more weeks three, and so on. I'll give you set times to give them to her, but try to wait until she asks for it. Just don't give her more than one dose within a set time and she'll be alright. She'll be tired, probably irritable, but those doses should do a lot for her."
"Thank you Gabby," Will said, releasing her hand and setting to pulling a blanket over his sleeping granddaughter. "I know you hear that a lot."
"Not as often as you'd think," Gabby replied, slipping her good arm away to cradle her injured one.
"We should get to the briefing," Elizabet pointed out, hearing her father's voice outside. They all filed out aside from Will, who pulled a chair up to the bed to sit with Maggie. Everyone important had gathered, crowding the space. Every seat had already been taken. Elizabet thought about finding someone to give theirs up for Gabby, but the physician clearly didn't mind standing with her son.
The briefing included a summary of reports, from Warden's units to the Academy agents who interrogated the three Elizabet subdued with lye to the report Elizabet herself wrote up. Sean included Lorelei's condition, which had stabilized once she went back under the chloroform-induced sleep as well as the conditions of Kane, Maggie, and a dozen others who had been injured. Hibernia saw no casualties. The total number of assailants, which began as ten, capped at thirteen. Roscrea was no longer under lockdown and the three who survived were being held under heavy guard. They'd received medical care but were being given nothing to ease their pain. The Head Physician had already provided the guards with tablets and administration instruction to use as an incentive during the second round of questioning.
Sean moved on to delegating tasks. Elizabet sighed with dismay when no update on Neil was given.
Kineta took charge of the search parties while Sean would become the lead for those tasked with getting the castle back in order. Warden promised to overhaul castle security, again, while Carissa would remain in charge of the children. Kineta passed off the duty of heading staff to Carissa as well, leaving her to manage castle servants. Carissa was more than capable. The duty once belonged to Kineta's lady-in-waiting, but Kineta took it on as something to do after her lady retired from service.
Gabe put in charge of day-to-day operations of the castle, obviously meant to keep him busy in a place his lungs couldn't bother him. He could manage the duties from Lorelei's recovery room. Elizabet was ordered to manage the city, which required a bit more hands-on work than the castle but still would keep her close. Roscrea had an elected mayor she'd have to communicate with. The people would take their concerns to him before they bothered the crown and what he couldn't manage he'd pass on to Elizabet. He usually passed them on to Hazen, who was being trained to handle such affairs. Liam would leave to collect Mara from the Academy at noon and return with her the next day.
Russ, now that Maggie had been found, would wait for Daniel and Julia and then get his orders from Daniel. Sean planned to recommend Russ and Reese return to Araluen together. Life post-attack would continue so the Hibernian family could clean up the mess. Before that could happen they needed to know more about the three surviving assailants.