Izmina

K'zhumi let the channel flicker and die out, her chin dropping to her chest, eyes closing in weariness. Heaving a deep sigh, she opened her eyes and inspected her work, well pleased with what she saw. The swelling had been greatly reduced and much of K'luha's skin was it's natural color. Her eyes fell on K'tahjha and she smiled. The youngster had sat curled in that tiny space by her aunt for a couple of bells without complaint. Zhumi gestured at Tahj,"Step carefully around to her head, mind the lines, and take hold under Luha's arms." As the child did as she was told, Zhumi carefully palpated the hip with a frown. The bone had been out of place for too long and was trying to knit there. She thought briefly at calling for her sister for the extra strength, but decided her patient's dignity had been offended enough. Taking hold of the leg just above the knee, Zhumi began twisting slightly listening and feeling for the crunching noise that told her the minute connections were broken, then twisted out and forward viciously snapping the bones back into place.

Relief washed over K'tahjha from two directions. The most obvious was the release of the death grip of her hand by her aunt. Tahj wriggled it around to regain circulation but retained her hold on Luha's now relaxed hand. Secondly was the release from the blinding pain offered by the medicine K'zhumi gave to K'luha. Tahj grinned as her aunt began to giggle uncontrollably, the urge to laugh with the giddy woman was very strong, but sneaking a look at the shaman deep in a healing trance, Tahj bit her lower lip and remained silent. On her part, K'zhumi was wholly unaware of the effect the medicine was having on her patient. Although she did feel the release of tension coming from Luha. She continued to concentrate on the aether, focused from the book to the hip. Where she attempted to flush the poisons and infections out of the area. Sending them down to the symbol on the ground.

K'tahjha didn't have long to contemplate K'nahli's response, as the pain spiked in her hand and she returned her focus to her aunt. There was a small amount of blood trickling down her hand as the digging nails split the skin, but Tahj did not complain. She returned to murmuring comfortingly to the injured woman and using her free hand to stroke hair and ears, soothingly. Tahj looked up from K'luha and paid close attention to the shaman as she gave instructions not to move, carefully tucking her tail under one leg so as not to break any of the carefully drawn lines. Tahj's eyes widened as Zhumi began to channel her aether into the symbols and a feeling of static flowed over Tahj making her fur stand on end.

K'zhumi took a deep breath, finally satisfied that all was in readiness. Going to the tent flap and sticking her head out she saw K'rahto,"Brother I need to concentrate. No one is to come in without good reason please." Withdrawing back inside Zhumi gave a stern warning to the youngster kneeling by K'luha's head not to move as the lines she was about to draw could not be disturbed. Taking up a small knife, Zhumi began to draw an elaborate symbol in the sand around her patient, completely encircling her. Nearly a bell later Zhumi was finally satisfied by her work. Kneeling on Luha's injured side, she used the knife to cut free the dirty clothing, exposing the injured hip. Air sucked through the healer's teeth in a hiss as she saw the injury for the first time, and she gave a brief prayer to Thaliak for the wisdom to complete this healing. Picking up a small, soft bristled brush Zhumi dipped it in ceremonial paints and began drawing a second symbol on the injured hip. Wielding the brush lightly, barely making contact with the skin so as to not cause any more pain. Completing the symbols, Zhumi reached for a small vial,holding it to K'luha's lips, "Drink this, it is very strong medicine. Don't fight it and it will help you be outside the pain. It will feel like you are floating." Picking up her tome, Zhumi concentrated and formed a link between the symbols on the pages, the hip, and lastly, the ground. Then, as she shaped her aether and became unaware of anything happening around her, the three symbols began to glow.

Concern for her aunt grew as K'tahjha followed K'nahli and K'rahto back, carrying the healing supplies. Ears drooping Tahj wished she could take even a small part of the pain, but there was nothing she could do but offer support to K'luha. She slipped inside the medical tent relieved to have finally gotten there, seeing how much pain her aunt was in she carefully deposited the supplies within reach of the healer and knelt beside K'luha. Tahj took one of the searching hands in her own, and murmuring soothing sounds began to smooth back her aunt's hair and gently touching her face, anything to distract the woman from the extreme pain she was experiencing. Noticing K'nahli was still near, Tahj looked up and offered a warm smile, concern still large in her eyes, "Thanks for getting her here so carefully." K'zhumi paused in sorting the supplies she would need to nod approvingly at K'tahjha soothing K'luha, Zhumi decided she could stay, she would be of help comforting her patient. Focusing on her patient and preparations, Zhumi had not noticed K'nahli lingering until she spoke. Turning to her, she gave the girl an appreciative nod, her eyes gentle,"Yes, thank you for your assistance. If you have a task you may certainly go."

K'tahjha held her breath as she watched K'nahli and K'rahto pick up K'luha and lower her out of the wagon, releasing the breath as they made it to solid ground without any missteps. She was torn between following them and doing as she was told. In the end she turned her attention to the healer's supplies carefully picking them up and placing them in the bags, careful not to spill anything. As the first bag became full Tahj passed it back to K'zhumi and ensuring nothing was left behind, she picked up the second bag to carry herself. Trusting her brother and K'nahli to move her patient carefully, K'zhumi turned her attention to the young one at her feet. Noting how carefully she handled the supplies, checking each container before placing them in the bag. Taking the first bag from Tahj, she turned and passed it to K'iara with a smile. Glancing back to Tahj she noted all the supplies were packed and nodded in satisfaction. Her leg seemed a little stiff after kneeling on the hard floor of the wagon for so long, and it gave slightly as she stepped down from the wagon to the ground, but she caught herself with a frown and began heading to the medical tent.

"That is quite enough!" if Zhumi's voice had been any louder it might have scared off the area wildlife. Ears flat and eyes flashing angrily, she spun to stare at the small gathering. "At least one of my siblings is capable of thinking." she smiled briefly at K'iara. "You may both help. Use the board so K'luha stays flat and her weight doesn't shift. " Glancing back at K'tahjha who was still cradeling her aunt's head, "You can help carry my things back to the medical tent.' Zhumi knelt by K'luha and placed a small leaf in her mouth,"Keep this under your tongue, no matter how careful those two are it will hurt. This herb will help." K'tahjha sat quietly while everyone around her argued over who would carry her aunt, jumping as Zhumi began to yell. Finally it seemed settled and Tahj relaxed, slipping carefully out from under K'luha, she began to gather the supplies as Zhumi asked her.

K'zhumi took the second bag from her brother and favored him with a small smile of gratitude, the expression was rare, as were the times she actually noticed her sullen brother unless they were argueing, but she quickly returned her attention to her patient. Zhumi's ears flattened as she heard the yelling and her mood turned dark as she saw it's effect on her patient. Idiots! Stupid male posturing. she thought angrily,K'luha did not need the extra stress as sick as she was. Observing K'tahjha try to calm her aunt somewhat mollified Zhumi as well, perhaps the outsider wasn't useless after all. Catching K'luha's panicked gaze she smiled reasurringly and patted her arm, before reaching for the vial Tahj was holding. The liquid it contained was thick and unappetizing looking but as she held it for K'luha to drink she spoke sternly,"This will not taste good, but you must drink it all and keep it down. It will help absorb some of the toxins your body has been building up." Turning her attention to the second bag of supplies K'rahto had brought, she began sorting through the herbs and powders, when a sudden twinge in her leg protested the long kneeling on the hard floor of the wagon. Annoyed Zhumi raised her voice to any who could hear, now that it had fallen silent outside. "How am I supposed to work in this contraption? I need someone to carry this woman to the medical tent!"

K'tahjha's ears flattened at the sound of her very angry father outside, she hoped no one else would be hurt, but could not look out to see with her aunt's head cradled in her lap. She frowned as she caught a few words of the conversation drifting on the wind and hoped K'luha had not heard them. The immediate look of panic on the woman's face however told her the hope was futile. Quickly shifting the vial of thick, noxious liquid she was stirring for the healer to her opposite hand, Tahj grasped her aunt's searching hand with her own and gave it a firm squeeze. "K'ailia was well and whole when she left camp."

K'tahjha winced in sympathy as her aunt cried out from the pain in her hip. Slicing the last binds she carefully moved to lift K'luha's head and shoulders the small amount it took for her to slip under her aunt so she could cradle K'luha's head in her lap and help steady her hip. Her ears drooping apologetically Tahj murmured soothingly and stroked K'luha's hair and worked through a few of the tangles with her fingers. K'zhumi sighed in relief as she finally reached the back of the wagon without incident. Climbing into the back with some effort due to her weak leg, Zhumi's ears flattened as she saw her patient for the first time, her sense of smell telling her more than her eyes that she must hurry. Kneeling beside K'luha, Zhumi frowned heavily as she noted the woman was heavily dehydrated. Setting her book aside, she began pulling various herbs and powders from her bag and mixing them together. Taking note of K'tahjha for the first time, she handed the girl the vial ordering her to mix the contents thoroughly and looked back for her brother and the other bag of supplies.

K'zhumi's ears twitched back in irritation as her sister placed a hand on her to stop her from pushing through the crowd. Her mood soured further as she was passed off to their brother like a small child, she needed to see to her patient. Meeting her brother's unfriendly gaze with an equally displeased glare of her own, Zhumi wondered how long the males would posture out there and keep her from K'luha. A slightly unsettling grin crossed Zhumi's face as she thought over her sister's orders to K'rahto. Watch me? He can watch me heal my patient. she grinned to her self and began working around behind the crowd of curious onlookers, not even looking around to see if her brother had noticed her move, assuming her would follow K'iara's instructions and come with her. ---------- Furious at the percieved mistreatment of her aunt, K'tahjha reached for her right boot and pulled out her knife. Tail lashing and ears flattened, she began cutting K'luha loose from the board.

"K'luha looks really injured. And K'yohko looks like he's out for a fight." K'zhumi's ears flattened and her lips thinned as her sister's words rang in her mind. She recalled having seen K'luha when she came home with the child and thinking she needed treatment then. "This is a very old injury sister, I hope it is not too late to fully heal it." Then, thinking about the nunh, Zhumi grabbed extra powder and bandages to stop bleeding and giving K'iara a worried glance, she hurried out of the tent. K'tahjha peered anxiously out of the wagon for what seemed like the one-hundreth time. What is taking so long? she wondered. Sighing she poured a small amount of the water from the canteen onto a cloth and began gently cleansing the grime from her aunt's face keeping up a stream of chatter to keep the woman engaged. "I've been practicing really hard with my bow, and I can stalk through the sand almost as well as any huntress, getting better at skinning and prepping the food the huntresses bring back." finally pausing to take breath the girl pulls the blanket the rest of the way off K'luha and freezes as she notices that her aunt was tied down. Ears flattening and her eyes sparking with the temper her mother and aunt were famous for, Tahj demanded, "Who did this to you?"

K'zhumi blinked sleepily at her sister K'iara's sudden appearance in her tent, no words were needed as Zhumi knew what her sister's attitude meant. Rising immediately, she grabbed her bag and moved with a slight limp towards the medicine table and began stuffing healing supplies in it. K'tahjha allowed her aunt to pull her into a hug feeling how weak K'luha was and Tahj's mind was racing. Should she tell her aunt about her daughter? Tahj feared any upset could negatively effect her aunt's condition, and decided to appear as if she hadn't heard the hopeful questions. Pulling back, Tahj's eyes glistening with tears and more than a little worry and fear, peered anxiously for any signs of the tribe's healers, not seeing any movement through the gathering crowd of curious family, she forced a smile and looked back to the woman. "It'll be ok, Zhumi is coming and you'll be fine." Tahj's voice had a slight pitch of panic to it even though she tried to hide it from K'luha. Glancing around she spotted a mostly empty skin of water and snatched it up, "Can you drink a little? It might make you feel better."

K'tahjha was studying her reflection in a piece of polished metal in her aunt's tent, thinking on the changes she'd undergone in the time she'd been with the tribe. Her skin was slightly darker due to exposure to the sun, her hair had grown out quite a bit, and she noticed her arms were muscling up slightly due to constant practise with the bow. Here she frowned, she'd definatly grown slightly gaunt,although she'd become used to the lighter meals. Suddenly she became aware of a commotion in camp and she grabbed her bow and quiver and ducked outside to investigate. She saw some of the huntresses with a strange migo'te and a carriage. As she wandered closer, a familiar smell hit her nose, it was faint there was something else.. sickness? But she defintly recognised it. An excited grin spread across her lips as she sprinted for the back of the wagon., AUNT LUHA! she shouted as she dove more than climbed in the back. Seeing her aunt , however the smile dropped from her lips, even she could see that her aunt wasn't well. Moving carefully closer Tahj reached gently out to stroke the tangled hair and long ear closest to her.

" />

K'tahjha smiled and nodded to her, she surely wasn't letting K'mih wander about the desert alone, K'nahli definately would kill her if anything happened to their sister. Tahj retrieved her bow and quiver and tucked her skinning knife in her boot, then rejoined the pink haired miqo'te for the trip to meet K'ailia.

K'tahjha sighed, no wonder K'nahli had been upset. If only she hadn't lost her temper with the older girl when she was all ready stressed, things would be so much better. Tahj's ears perked as she heard K'mih ask about telling their father. Ears canted back uncertainly Tahj wondered what would happen if they were caught talking to K'ailia. If nothing else she was certain her pearl would be confiscated.

Sitting in the shade of the tent, idly listening to her sister's chat, Tahj's mind wandered to Her aunt hoping she was ok and would be home soon. The thought partially returning her earlier homesickness. Until her sharp ears picked up on K'mih's question about their older sister. Mind fully returning to the here and now she waited K'ailia's answer eagerly.

K'tahjha grinned at K'mih's excitement, pleased she'd managed to cheer the girl up. She passed the pearl to her sister, still smiling happily. She could talk to K'ailia anytime. Seating herself in the shade of a nearby tent, Tahj settled in to listen to her sisters chat.

K'tahjha smiled happily at her sister's excitement, pleased at having distracted her for the moment at least. Peering uncertainly at the pearl, How does this thing work exactly? she brought it to her lips and pressed it lightly, speaking in a slightly uncertain voice,"K'ailia? Can you hear me? "

Tahj sighed lightly as her attempt at cheering her sister up didn't go as well as she hoped. A mischievious grin slid across her face and she reached a hand out to draw a finger quickly across K'mih's side in an attempt to at least tease a smile. "Cheer up!" she fished in her pocket and produced a small round object,"K'ailia gave it me when she visited me in Gridania. I can call her on it and we can talk to her. If you'd like?"the last spoke with a hopeful lilt to her voice.

The defeated tone in the pink- haired miqo'te's voice made Tahj's ears sink in sympathy, and she pulled her sister into a firm hug. "I'ts ok, thank you for trying to help. Give her time, she can't stay mad forever?" Tahj threw K'mih an encouraging smile hoping to lift the girl's spirits.

Having failed to reconcile the argument with her older sister, K'tahjha was very out of sorts, moping around camp and feeling sorry for herself. She found herself thinking how much simpler her life had been in Gridania, where all she really had to do was help treat skinned knees and stop arguments between the other kids. Suddenly, she thought, Other kids! K'mih tried to help me with K'nahli and she probably feels kinda lousy too. Feeling badly that she was thinking of her self and not her sister, Tahj wondered what she could do to cheer her up. A smile crossed her face as she thought of the pearl she carried on her at all times, and she headed through the camp to find K'mih.

" /> K'tahjha and her sister K'mih, picture taken and made pretty by Clover.

K'tahjha's hopes sunk further with each exchange between her sisters until there was a lump in throat that threatened to choke her. She wanted to run and just not stop, but as K'mih's body language changed Tahj's eyes flashed angrily. She wasn't going to let the pink haired miqo'te take a mental beating on her account. Tahj would speak for herself and if K'nahli refused to hear, at least she had tried. Her body held tall and strong, eyes and ears alert, Tahj portrayed her inner conviction as she took a step forward and sought K'nahli's eyes. As she spoke her voice was strong and clear although soft. "A long time ago mama told me never to loose your temper with family no matter who you felt was right." here her ears drooped slightly and a sheen of tears formed in her eyes. " Cause mama fought with her sister K'luha and they never saw each other again. She said being right wasn't worth losing family over, and they were more important than anything." Tahj's head dropped towards the sand in self-reflection for a brief moment, and when she looked up again tears were streaming down her face, which she made no movement to wipe. "I broke that rule, and it was my fault. I can't make that right but I am sorry." she spoke the last on a small sob and turned away from K'nahli towards camp. In voice almost inaudible to anyone without sharp ears, she whispered,"I'm sorry mama but I tried."