Maura perched lightly, ready to sprint up and hurry away as soon as possible if the situation required it. This was all new territory for her.
"I hope you don't mind, I don't really need to talk to you," Jane said, staring at her gauze-bandaged hands in her lap.
A lump formed in Maura's throat and she was sure that if it was possible for a person's heart to drop in their chest, that's exactly what was happening to her. "Oh."
Jane looked up at the hopeless tone of voice. "I mean, I'd still like to talk to you, but my family was hovering and it was just really overwhelming and you're not like that," she hesitated. "You have like, this calming presence or something, I don't really know, but I automatically relax around you and I don't know why because that's never happened to me before, but that's why I asked you here."
Maura was a little lost. "Okay?" She agreed, completely unsure.
"Thanks for fixing me, by the way. They were telling me about it."
Maura nodded stiffly, "You're welcome."
They crashed through the door, hollering all holy hell like every demon in existence was nipping at their heels. They stormed up the stairs, Korsak in the lead, a body hanging limply from his straining arms. She rushed out from the infirmary, where she'd been sitting beside Frankie, watching over his recuperating body. He had woken as she'd darted out the door, but she only said she'd be back as soon as she could.
It was sooner than she anticipated. They surged past her, straight into the hospital room, straight past Frankie, and deposited the body on the make-shift operating table. She analysed the crowd and realised with a surge of dread just who had to be lying on the table. Pushing through the audience, her fear was confirmed.
It was Jane. Scalpels were sticking out of her palms and Maura swallowed dryly. Her mind whirred through all of the nerves and bones which were destroyed when the blades were thrust through her flesh. She almost shied away from the sight, but this was what she did. Despite her last operation, despite her personally enforced sabbatical, she could still fix this, she could still fix Jane.
"Everybody out, except Frost," Maura ordered, mentally organising how she'd have to go about this. Arguments and outrage flared up around her, particularly from Angela and Korsak.
"Out," she stated firmly, glaring at them all. "Unless someone else here has a doctorate in medicine and can tell me every single nerve which was severed in each hand, then you can all get the hell out while I save her hands."
"Go." Frost said, adding his voice to hers. "Let the Doc do her thing. I'll be right here with her the entire time."
Sean coaxed Angela out of the room while Giovanni had to physically drag Korsak away. Tessa and Jem left quietly, chatting softly to Angela and Korsak, comforting them. Jem closed the door behind them with one last long look at Jane's body on the table.
"Maura? What's happening? What's wrong with Janie?" Frankie asked from his own bed, and Maura suddenly realised she'd forgotten he was even in the room. She looked over just in time to see him valiantly attempt to sit up.
"Don't even, Frankie!" She snapped, then immediately felt bad about it. "Your sister's injured, but she's going to be fine. Frost and I will patch her up." She dug a needle from a drawer and walked over to him. "You can see her when you wake up," she promised, and then stuck the point into his neck. She ignored his weak indignant reply and walked back over to Jane.
"Barry, I need gloves and gauze, bandages, tape, and you're going to need your stele." She glanced up at the ceiling. "And if you could find a way to get me some better light, that would be much appreciated."
She tied her hair back as Frost pulled a pile of stones from a cupboard. "Witchlights," he said, as if that explained everything. He stuck them on the chandelier above their head and they glowed brightly.
Maura thanked him and he nodded tightly, withdrawing his stele from his boot.
"I'm going to take these out. If you could toss them in the sink back there, that'd be great."
She was diligent. Cleaning the wound with some antiseptic she'd found in a drawer. She pulled one blade out, and Jane whimpered on the table. Peering into the wound, she saw that no bones had been severed; a blessing within a curse. She applied an ointment, yet another thing she'd scavenged from the cabinets behind her.
Tenderly, she wrapped the hand in gauze and applied a secure, but not suffocating band of tape.
She treated the next hand just as delicately, Frost watching her every move. "Alright, Barry, I'm not quite sure how exactly your iratzes work…"
"They help to eliminate pain, so that we can continue to fight even if we're injured in the midst of battle, and they also help speed the healing process along so that we aren't confined to the sidelines for too long. Shadowhunters get cagey real easy, Doc."
She nodded. "Okay. Apply an iratze to each hand, or wrist, and we'll see how far that takes us."
He did as she asked, the black markings dissolving into the skin almost immediately. They repeated the process over and over again, each time the runes taking just a few extra seconds to sink down and fade to silvery tracings.
Finally, they stopped. Barry's hand was cramping from the repetitive motions, and Maura had changed the bandaged twice already.
Technically speaking, Jane should sleep for another couple of days. Maybe more, maybe less.
They clapped each other on the back, tidied up their appearances, and went out to talk to the rest.
"So they're transferring him tonight?" Jane took a stab at small talk.
"That's what I hear. I believe Sean said they would be moving him by portal in an hour or two."
Jane settled back onto her pillows. "Good."
"How are your hands?" Maura asked, the doctor in her unable to contain herself.
Jane grimaced. "I can't really do anything with them. They feel weak. I'm weak. We're useless."
Maura took Jane's hand in hers. "You're not useless. With some rehabilitation exercises, you should regain full use of both of your appendages," Maura assured her.
Snorting, Jane just said, "Sure," in a 'yeah, right' tone.
"When can I start them?"
Maura glanced down at the hand in her grip. "Once the scabs are gone and the scar tissue isn't in danger of being broken, I see no reason as to why you can't begin. I can put you in touch with a highly recommended physiotherapist professional, if you like. I know a few."
Jane shook her head. She looked vulnerable, almost shy as she asked, "If you're still on sabbatical, and I mean, if you still wanted to hang around here, do you – would you – I mean-"
Maura squeezed Jane's wrist gently. "I'd be honoured."
Jane exhaled loudly with relief. She half-smiled, "Okay."
Without any warning, Jane started hyperventilating. Maura placed her hand on her chest, "Jane, Jane, focus on me okay, focus on my eyes." Frightened brown eyes wavered as they met hers. "Good, okay, now just breathe. Relax. Nothing's happening. It's okay." She spoke softly for a few minutes until Jane's breathing returned to her usual heart rate. "What happened?"
"I just – dinner tonight, Maura, how am I supposed to hold a fork? There is no way in hell I am going to accept any baby treatment, but my hand doesn't curl that way anymore and I can't pick up a fucking fork." She sounded so lost and miserable, Maura wasn't sure how to respond.
"Well let's just see. Can you move any of your fingers?"
Jane gritted her teeth in determination and tried. She could move her thumb decently. Her index finger made her jawline slightly more pronounced, but it was bearable. She couldn't move her middle or ring fingers at all, and the attempt brought noticeable tears to her eyes. Her pinky gave her the same result as her index.
"Thumb and index. Pinky. But I don't know how that helps me."
Maura thought for a moment. "Can you squeeze your thumb and index fingers together? Like a clamp almost?"
Jane gave her an odd look but attempted the movement anyway. She grinned at her success.
Maura felt the urge to clap, but only nodded happily instead. "Excellent. We can just tuck a fork in there and you can eat almost exactly as normal."
Jane's face fell swiftly, shattering the pride that had been there not moments before. "I don't want to do it. They're all going to be looking at me. I can feel the pity already, hear the thoughts whistling around in their heads that I'm weak; that I'm not good enough to be a Shadowhunter. How could I have been so stupid?" Jane muttered angrily at herself.
Maura's mouth dropped open in a gasp. "Jane!"
"What, Maura?!" Jane snapped, then paled. "Shit, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bite at you I just-"
"You're frustrated. And that's understandable. But no one is going to think less of you for this. No one will look at you and think you're weak. You're incredibly strong. You survived. That isn't something to merely dismiss." Maura stated. "And yes, they'll be looking at you. They almost lost you, but they didn't and they're trying to figure that out within their own heads right now."
"Still," Jane murmured. "Do you think you could use your doctor voice and persuade them that it's best if I eat in here tonight, without everyone? You can claim it's for the good of my recovery if you like, I don't care, make up any lie you like."
Maura blushed. "I can't, Jane, I'm sorry."