Raine had come back with tears in her eyes. She had looked for over an hour, hoping to find Haelith, but to no avail. She wasn't the only doctor who was helping the wounded, but she was her friend. She didn't want to give up, but she had to. Richard went and consoled her, but they still worked to clean Edinmire. Keiren had been coordinating the building of a wooden barricade to fix the wall, Keith was talking with Trace and Natani, wondering why the wolves had attacked. Zen had started helping collect the fallen soldiers and move them outside the wall, where they were set to be burned or buried based on custom. It was evening, and Trace left the town, heading back toward the estate, saying "If I don't tell Flora what's going on, she'll kill me. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Raine was covered in blood and dirt, kneeling down to help however she could. She couldn't shake the feeling of shame, knowing that Haelith trusted her, that she hadn't told her the truth. She was going to, but she just couldn't find the courage to actually tell her. She betrayed her, she wasn't a good friend. And now, she was gone. She worked in silence, hoping that she wouldn't have to talk about it to anyone for a while. But out of the corner of her eye, she saw scales. Not purple, but black. Standing up tall, she watched him walk over to Keith, and leaned on his bow. She was distraced by the second one, and didn't even notice the first one had returned.

"Are you going to just stand there, or are we going to get this splint on?" Haelith's voice said, causing Raine to flip around.

"Haelith!" She rushed over and hugged her. "I'm so sorry!"

"It's alright, we both will need to clean up." Raine let go and looked down. They were both covered in muck and fur now, and she blushed.

"I wasn't even thinking about-"

"Never mind that. Right now, hand me the rope." She worked until dusk, and even then the cries of the wounded filled the air. Groans and moaning could be heard across the whole city. The fires had been extinguished, leaving everyone in a fugue state, almost waiting for another assault to come crashing right back down on therm. Haelith and the rest of the doctors eventually began taking breaks, and actually eating food. Many of the civilians who had hidden during the fighting came out with any food they could, thanking all the defenders for their service, and checking on loved ones who were wounded in battle. One particular young snow leopard came up to Haelith and gave her some rags to clean off her scales, watching her with wide eyes.

Raine walked over to Haelith, who was still cleaning off her apron and surgical knives. "I'm sorry."

"You're going to have to be more specific." Haelith growled, hand moving over to a freshly sharpened knife.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. Please, let me explain, then you can be as mad at me as you want." Raine backed up a step, afraid that she would be the next one getting stitches. Her friend turned, and glared over her shoulder, but seemed to be listening. "I should have told you sooner. It was our plan to come here, because Lynn and Madelyn have a friend here. His name is Keith, and he is a close friend of Trace Legacy. I was skeptical myself, when I found out who he was, but he lost his memory. He knows nothing of his past, and he knows nothing of you. I promise, he won't hurt you. He's been dealing with demons of his past, literal demons. And he was willing to give up his first wife to protect the Keidran he loves now. He's saved lives. He's dangerous, but he was in the battle today. I saw him. He put himself on the line, he didn't even use magic, but he helped turn the tide of battle. Please, you have to believe me." Haelith let go of the knife, and leaned on the table. Raine took a step closer, and then without warning, Haelith turned and punched her across the jaw. "AH! Haelith I'm sor-"

"That's for lying to me!" She shouted. Then, she grabbed a numbing salve from her apron, knelt down, and offered it to Raine. "And… I'm sorry. I ran away from you. You lied to me, but… I understand why. I never would have come this far." She knelt down, and picked Raine up. "I want you to promise me something."

"Anything."

"No more lies. No more tricks. None." Haelith stared directly into Raine's eyes, and spoke with anger.

"I promise." Haelith pulled her over, and hugged her.

"Sorry about your jaw."

"You two OK over here?" Richard said, jogging over, but stopping just out of arm's reach. "That looked like a nasty punch."

"I deserved it." Raine said.

"Get over here so I can get you too." Haelith growled. "Who else knew? Did everyone know?"

"Yeah. We did. Raine asked us to not say anything." She looked down at Raine, who chuckled sheepishly. "Look, what's done is done. And there's not much more we can do. Keiren just told me the wolves have retreated deep into the woods. There won't be any more fighting today."

"Good." the second Ishtaer walked over with two bowls of stew, and Keith in tow. "I'm still sore from earlier. I don't believe we've met. My name is Barret." He handed one of the bowls to Haelith. "What brings you to Edinmire?"

Richard looked up at the giant scaled creature. "We're here visiting a friend. Trace Legacy." Haelith scoffed, but he continued "I saw you talking with him earlier. How do you know him?"

"We've been traveling together for a few months. We should eat, and head up to the estate. Flora will want to see you lot, and she'll be enamored with you. I'm the only Ishtaer she's ever met, so she'll probably ask you a lot of questions."

"Thanks, I'll be prepared." Barret smiled, and turned away from her. Soon, Zen and Natani joined the small gathering, and then Maren, Karen, and Sythe walked over too. Lastly, Lynn strolled over with Keith, and Madelyn appeared out of nowhere like usual.

"We should go. I am looking forward to spending the night in a bed." Lynn said, smiling.

…

The twelve approached the doors of the estate. The group was mostly quiet, save a bit of light chatter, as Keith asked what they had been up to. Since it would be easier to just tell everyone once they were all together, they didn't say much. It was well after dark when the doors swung open, and Eric let them inside. He was surprised, and a bit shocked that they showed up covered in blood, but he let them in regardless. "Please go wash yourselves before going too far. I'd rather not have to scrub blood out of the carpets for the next few weeks."

Haelith walked in, admiring the grand entryway. "This is where he lives?"

"What did you expect?" Raine asked.

"You know how I feel about him. I expected a fiery castle, maybe a lava moat, big wooden bridges you could duel on, axes swinging around, gargoyles that shoot poison darts. Maybe some spike traps in the walls, demons guarding a giant entrance, you know, the works."

"He's a human, not a monster." Sythe said with a chuckle. Haelith raised her scales (Again, as Ishtaer do not have any hair, including eyebrows). "Well, he's not a monster anymore."

"And I hope to never have to deal with that again." Trace's voice echoed from the balcony. Flora stood by his side, smiling, wide-eyed, staring at Haelith. He held out his arms wide, and smiled, saying "Welcome to my home!"