* 71 * 1/14/13

Darkness.

I...I couldn't save him...

"BEVIL!" Lily screamed.

She woke up to a cold room. A castle room. Right? No. It wasn't cold. Or was it?

A blanket. She had a blanket on. Room cold, blanket not. Room was not warm, the blanket was.

Where am I?

The Keep. The Keep where? The Keep basement? Where was this room? Was this even a room?

It was more like a sauna. It's so hot in here, Lily thought. So hot that she needed more blankets. Need to put another blanket on. Don't want to catch a cold. Don't want to catch a...

A knock at the door. A person came in. Who were they? Lily looked, but saw nothing. She heard nothing.

Then a voice: "Are you okay, Lily?"

Fine. Perfect and fine. Fine line. Fine line between perfect and fine...

She looked around the room and panicked. "Where's my bow?"

"Your bow?"

"I'm gonna go on an adventure. I need a bow," she insisted.

"But why would you go on an adventure now, Lily?"

"Yes. An adventure. I need my bow."

Another knock. Another person. Who was there? Did they have a bow?

"How is she?" Frantic.

That voice.

"Fine. Fine line between perfect and fine."

"She's having an episode."

"Fine line, swine. There's a fine line between perfect and...just let me get my bow."

"Chills and mental confusion is what I would call it."

"Don't call me that; only he can call me that. Called me 'ladyship' on an adventure, in fact."

"Adventure? She seems to be on an adventure. Was she ever on an adventure?"

"Adventure! Yes! I have to get up, have to get dressed, have to get my bow."

"Oh, I don't know." A pause. "A few days ago she went out into the woods with Bishop. That's the only adventure I know of. In the ones with us, she never uses a bow. But I have one."

"Have a bow take the bow need the bow give the bow."

Suddenly, she felt an object in her hands.

"Got my bow... But I don't want an adventure anymore." She resorted to simply stroking it gently.

"This is turning into complete disorientation. What happened out there?"

"Rain...lots of it. And from what I'd guess, a strong breeze, too." The voice sighed. The wonderful voice sighed.

"You see this here?" the other voice said. Lily felt a pressure on her arm. "The coloration is obviously not normal. I believe this indicates something called pneumonia. Her mental disorientation isn't a symptom; that seems to be something separate."

Disorientation... The word sounded funny in her mind. What did disorientation mean again?

Lily shook her head. Snap out of it!

"It'll go away...right?"

"We'll have to give it time, but there's no reason to believe it wouldn't."

"That's great!"

Another knock, another voice.

"She has awoken!" it said with tremendous relief. Relieved voice in the room with frantic voice and calm voice.

"Give her a little time; she'll be back to normal then."

"Thank you for your help, doctor."

Absence of calm voice. No calmness. Panic.

"Has she spoken?" Worry. Dreadful worry.

"A little, but she's not really being herself right now. I wouldn't start a conversation with her, unless you just pretend you're talking to me. Then you won't be disappointed!"

Another voice, unrelated to the others. The door must've been left open.

"The lass's awake!" Deep, strong voice.

"Yes. Well, kind of. She makes as much sense as I do," the familiar voice repeated.

Leader voice. Updated everyone who came in. Caring voice. The beautiful music in her ears could only be from one person. They'd been here for awhile.

"Grobnar?" Lily ventured. Her mind's eyes began clearing out the noise. She could see again.

"Lily!" the small owner of the voice exclaimed, throwing his arms around her shoulders. "How do you feel?"

"I..." She felt her mind slipping again for a brief moment, then caught sight of Casavir, as well as the dreadfully concerned expression shaping the hard lines of the paladin's face. His expression told her to hold on, to grasp hold of her sanity. "I feel...okay," was all she could answer for now. She didn't really know how she felt. She didn't really feel anything, except hot and cold at the same time. Her temperature was pulling her in several different directions.

Regaining some of herself, Lily hugged Grobnar back, setting the bow off to the side of her bed. She held onto the little gnome like he was a lifesaver, and he was. If a bout of torrential rain had gotten her mind and body this unsettled, she didn't even want to think about what staying outside of the cover he suggested and getting struck by lightning would've done.

Thinking about it, Lily's hand suddenly shot up to her newly-throbbing forehead. She was starting to get some feeling back. But with this amount of pain, she almost preferred to be numb.

"How did I...get back here?"

"I carried you," the rock gnome said simply.

"How on earth?" The elf asked incredulously. "No, don't tell me. I don't think I could take more fantasy right now." Lily could do nothing but smile and hug him tighter. As she did so, she got a good look at the skin on her arms. It had become a little...blue?

"Yes, Grobnar was an irreplaceable help in returning you to safety," Casavir chimed in fervently, his own complexion having turned completely pale with worry.

Grobnar let go of Lily reluctantly, letting her lie back down. She did, and felt a little better afterward. Casavir then immediately pulled up a chair to her right of the bed; he was obviously planning on staying with her awhile. Touched by this, Lily reached over and cupped his hand in both of hers. At her touch, Casavir gasped. Not for the contact this time, but for the fact that Lily's hands were covered in burns.

"What happened to your hands?" he asked, considerable worry in his deep voice.

"I burned them," she said nonchalantly, lifting one of them into the air and looking at it with a blank stare. Casavir's lips formed a strict line at her naive and disinterested reply.

Grobnar, looking surprised, rushed over to look at it. "Lily, the fire arrow burned you! I didn't see your hands before." The gnome now looked sad, turning his gaze shamefully to the ground. "You saved me."

"It's okay, Grobnar." She wanted to sound convincing because she really wasn't upset, but her voice came out devoid of emotion.

"That was admirable of you, my lady," Casavir commented, looking all around her sickened complexion with furrowed brows. "Perhaps we should allow you more time to rest."

"After I eat. I don't really feel hungry, but I probably should eat."

Grobnar rushed off to the kitchen to tell the cooks to prepare something right away.