Julian slowly sat down in a chair next to his fire, watching the flames roar as a silence fell over the house, a change to just a short time ago where a man came to his door raving. He found himself scribbling on parchment as he always did, but this time about the life of a lower peasant of the kingdom. Their income, their spending – he was curious to know how much he would be paid for treating Dove.
"My God," He uttered as he sat back studying his calculations. "They don't earn much, this payment may run them aground…Dove," He spoke to himself as he looked back to the curtain. "I do hope I can get you well." With that thought he stood, placing his writings aside as he began to fill up more bottles with his new purple concoction, ready for them to be sold to families of the ill in the market tomorrow morning. As soon as he was done although, he began to brew yet another medicine, something once again new, something for Dove to be the tester for. He put everything he could think of in. Antiseptics, anti-inflammatories and things to help her sleep as she needed sleep to heal – he just hoped that perhaps it would work. By the end the mixture was a fiery red and he bottled it like the others, only making enough for one bottle in case it didn't work. He tried to keep working, but his attempts were futile, and exhausted, he fell asleep in his chair by the fire, mask still secured to his face.
Dove awoke slowly at what seemed to be dawn as light slowly flooded through the opened window, the red mesh curtain dying the room a light red as she slowly sat up, looking around the room for any sign as to where exactly she was, but as the night before came back to her she sighed in both relief and worry – today she was to start her treatment, and as if on cue, the curtain of the room was pulled back as Julian walked in, still wearing his plague doctor mask.
"Good morning, I'm shocked to see you awake so early," He said in a muffled tone. "Mhmn," He crouched down to Dove's level, placing a gloved finger under her chin to lift her face as he studied her through large glass eyes. "It seems you haven't bled anymore, which is what I hope to be a good sigh, please, drink this," Reaching into his jacket he pulled out a small glass bottle which held a red liquid, taking off the cap and handing it do Dove whom did as he said and drank it down quickly, only to start coughing as he took the bottle back and put it aside. "Be careful, please, you're ill enough." He pleaded with the sickly girl as he patted her back gently, almost frightened to touch her too much as she was already so frail.
"What I have given to you is a medicine that should help stop this disease from attacking your body at the alarming rate it likely already is, but even so, I cannot quite figure out why you still look so healthy physically. Maybe pale, but, there is colour in your face, it's…curious." He found himself drawing a finger down her cheek in curiosity, suddenly realizing what he was doing and retracting, standing as he did so.
"I'm afraid you'll have to now excuse me, that is all the treatment of that form I can afford today for you. I must take my leave and go to the plague house to treat the less fortunate. I will be back before sundown to check on you once more, farewell Dove." If it wasn't for the medicine she had been given she would've thanked him, but it seemed to stop her from talking as the liquid clung to her throat like tar – it was revolting to her, making her almost want to retch.
The Doctor took no time in keeping to his word and before Dove could even notice, the door was slammed shut and he was gone, walking down the streets silently, observing the way of life of the people who were still healthy – they did not understand their privilege. Leaving the bottles of the medicine he had made the night before at a market stall to be sold he then turned his attention to the work day at hand. He took the route he always did to the plague house, the less walked one as he knew that to some the sight of a plague doctor, mostly due to the mask, could disturb the young or those who were just easily spooked, plus, he took this time to think for himself as it was the only time he could, the plague house was too loud to even hear his own thoughts. Screams, coughing, vomiting – everything to make any regular man fall to his knees and cry that he could not handle it, that there was no cure, but Julian wouldn't fall, no matter how many people piled on top of each other in those hell houses.
He pressed his hand to the door of the plague house, a sigh escaping him as he mentally prepared himself for what the day may bring upon him. The building itself was far off from general housing, it was basically a large wooden shed that was falling apart by the sea front – it was a last resort for the ill. As he entered the same terror inducing image struck him, but this time it was worse, there was so much more dead just lying in one of the corners in plain view of the other patients. Julian quickly ran through the rows of bed to get to another doctor who was treating someone at the end, and as he reached him, he quickly grasped the arm of the other doctor.
"What in God's name has happened here merely overnight!?" Julian snapped in a stern tone to the man as he shrugged casually, pulling his arm from Julian's grasp.
"Dunno sir! Came in this morn' and most of our patients were dead! I think the illness is advancing, or someone is startin' to kill off these people." The other doctor answered as he moved through the building once more as people used brooms to roll the bodies down the isles to meet the large stack of corpses in the corner. He thought of what the doctor said, could someone truly be killing off these people even before they got taken to the island? It was a horrific sight, but still, he managed to find himself once more and get to his duties, starting at the first person of a row of beds. He treated person after person all he could, some even passing away in front of his eyes to his dismay. His head fell into his hands, it seemed nearly all hope was lost.
"Is our medicine doing anything?!" A doctor next to him cried out in defeat only to have Julian whip around and grasp him by his shoulders, giving him a firm shake.
"Pull yourself together!" He yelled at him as the man stood frozen in place., clearly somewhat spooked by the head doctor. As Julian lingered for a second, as if awaiting a response, he looked down to see blood escaping the bottom of the other man's mask, making Julian let go and step back.
"My God, you have it too! How could this be?! Did you take off your mask in front of patients?!" He cried out in horror as the man screamed in defeat and fell to his knees in a pool of blood that had gathered at his feet, running all down his white coat. He almost reached out to Julian, his hand only slight raised before being dragged off by other masked doctors, his mask before ripped from his face and thrown aside, the glass eyes shattering on impact. Julian gasped at the sight before him, a fellow doctor dragged by the back of his shirt as his eyes were bleeding, as his nose and mouth – it was something from a horror novel, a nightmare. Would this disaster ever come to an end?
After many more hours of trying to cure those around him, he left the building and began to walk back through the city at dusk, only taking this time to remove his mask – he felt as if he never had it off, he couldn't even take it off in his own home now, plus, he knew he'd have to burn that table he had Dove lay down on. He returned to the stall where he left the medicine, the vendor giving him a small bag of coins before he moved back to his home, pressing his hand against the door as he did so. He sighed, with the advances he had seen at the plague house he could only hope that Dove was still alive. He re-secured his mask and entered his home, his attention immediately being drawn to a handful of gold coins on the table. Had Misha perhaps stopped by to start an early payment? Even so, he walked to the corner of the room and pulled back the curtain to see Dove sitting up with her back against the wall, her giving Julian a weak smile on seeing him. He was relieved.
"I know it's not much, it's all I had on me." She said in her soft voice as Julian's eyes opened wide, the realization of what she really meant hitting him.
"Wait a moment, did you…did you put those coins there?" He asked, knowing he had to hear it himself to hear it.
"Yes, I'm sorry I know it's not much but I-"
"No, no Dove. Are you telling me that you…that you are able to walk?" He said in a confused tone as Dove nodded, seemingly not understanding what the problem was. Any victim he had seen at the bleeding stage could hardly even sit up, never-mind walk. This was an entrancing advancement.
"Please, stand, walk. I need you to show me for me to believe you." He said as Dove once again nodded, using her hands against the wall to slowly push herself to her feet to Julian's disbelief. Her long white gown traced the floor gently as she took steps towards him as if a ghost gliding, making him step back in shock, this was something he had never seen before and her gentle expression only made the whole experience more haunting to him. Dove only drew closer and closer to him with every small step she took, but seemingly exhausted once more she abruptly collapsed into Julian's arms.
"Forgive me," She muttered. "I seem to not be as steady as I once was." Her frail arms wrapped around Julian's body as he held her up with his arms around her waist, he took no time in quickly changing his position and lifting her up into his arms again so she wouldn't have to take another step if she was too weak, he imagined that walk to the table and back was enough to take it out of her for one day. Moving back to the main part of the home he sat her down in the chair by the fire, the same one he had fallen asleep in the night before and then pulling up a chair for himself.
He reached up to the mantle just above the fire and took several things into his lap, once again ready to make a new concoction. He wasn't sure if it was wise with a plague victim this close, but for some reason he couldn't understand he wanted to just watch her, observe her – he wanted to capture every minute. Her eyes were shut gently, and Julian couldn't help but feel selfish for making her walk after she clearly had enough for one day, and furthermore, the fire was still well lit – she had done that too, but he knew he had to see it for himself or he never would've believed it even although the proof was right in front of him.
Absentmindedly he began to throw things into the pot, doing his daily routine of making something new to be sold, so much so that he hadn't noticed that Dove was now happily watching him, a small smile on her lips as she watched him throwing things into the pot. He could tell from her expression that she was analyzing his every movement, everything he put in and when he looked down he noticed she was even slowly tapping her fingers against her leg – she was even keeping count.
"Are you watching me for mistakes?" Julian suddenly spoke up, making Dove jump in her seat, tearing her from her deep concentration. She looked to him with a slightly panicked face as if she believed he was angry at her, but from just a moment in looking at the doctor, she lowered her face as her cheeks went red.
"No, I was just… I used to help make mixtures for an old woman in the city before I got ill, she taught me everything she knew and-… I'm sorry, the more awake and alert I am the more I realize how much your mask frightens me." She said in a very honest tone as Julian sat back in his seat, watching her as her head was downwards and her hands were clasped on her lap, a very uptight position. It hadn't fazed him that she might've found him frightening for she always acted so calm, but perhaps it was under the case that she was so ill and didn't always understand what was going on.
"Just imagine the face underneath it, it's the easiest thing to do." Julian replied as he went back to throwing things into his mixture. He waited for a response from Dove for a few moments before he glanced around to her and her position hadn't changed. He realized that if Dove lived outside the city her whole life then maybe she had never seen him without his mask, he understood then why that's so much more frightening, just a faceless mask looking down to you with no idea what the person looks like underneath.
"I'm sorry, I didn't realize you'd never seen me before, and I'm afraid I can't quite show you, especially in this proximity. Perhaps one day when you're better," He reassured her as he turned his whole attention towards her, moving himself to face her as she slowly glanced up to him with her dark eyes, making Julian's cheeks burn slightly – but he quickly shook off this feeling. He took her hands in his own gloved ones. "All will be well, Dove. Do not be frightened." He spoke in a soft voice as she lightly nodded her head, clearly not quite believing him but taking his word anyway.
"Tomorrow I am going to the market in the morning to leave off these medicines. Since I can walk around with no mask there, and since you can walk, perhaps you should join me and you will be able to see the city and myself without a mask, but, you will need to wear a cloak and keep your head down. I'm sure word has spread that you have this disease and if you're seen you will simply be carted off by city guards to the plague house and I will not be able to help you, do you understand?" He proposed to her, and with a gentle nod and smile, Dove agreed.
"Thank you Doctor Devorak," She said in her soft tone as she leaned forwards and kissed the tip of his mask's beak, making him once again flush with colour – he was glad she couldn't see him. "Thank you."