Comfort

Annaliese stared at her image in the full mirror, the darkness of the bedroom not keeping her from seeing the scars curving up her jaw. She winced at the sight of it as she opened the scarf off of what she‘d been hiding. At least her husband’s salve had soothed the pain of the burns, miraculous as the cream was. The Medic was the king of miracles. Seated upon his throne of bandages. The amusing image of it all filled her with a smitten feeling that momentarily staved off the pain of her sister’s betrayal.

Being loved by a medic with necromantic talents had many perks.

The medicine, at best, made the reddish marks lighten into veins…or fine vines that ran up the skin below her collar. They were turning violet now with the aid of the shadow-infused salve, and they had not received nearly enough attention as she should give. She opened the high collar, tucking it down to spy upon her sister’s handiwork. Gently, she slathered her throat and shoulder with the salve, the twisted look of hatred on Charlette’s face gleaming through her mind. No words, no explanation, only the cold taste of betrayal delivered by fire.

Anna flinched, jumping back slightly from the mirror as the bedroom door opened. The light of the hall pooled in from the dining area to chase away the soft darkness that surrounded her.

“Why are you standing alone in the darkness, beloved?” The Medic’s voice came, soft and tender, glowing eyes watching her from the doorway. She looked down and away, hearing the sound of his robes rustle as he stepped in.

“Just…taking care of things.” She felt him slip his arms around her from behind, taking the jar of salve from her fingers. Her body reacted appropriately, seeking a small comfort from his embrace, but she halted herself. He had been working hard, and she was tired of being an incessant burden on him when he needed to be resting for another day. Too often, she felt like she strapped herself around him like a satchel, unable to do anything for herself without his consent, or his advice. When she reached for the jar of salve however, he pulled it from her reach, and held her hands at bay.

“You should be letting me apply it, love,” he whispered into her ear, turning her back around gently to face the full mirror. The door was half-closed, the quiet light from the hall setting a warm glow about their reflections. It was something he wanted her to see, clearly, sensing her depression.

She was beyond beautiful in his eyes, no matter what the scar.

“I…I’m almost done. I should be tending to Laelah,” Anna answered, trying to pull up the collar of her robes. His hands came again for hers again, pushing them down with light touches. She felt his fingers trek up her sleeves, flattening the collar around the length of her shoulder to eye the scars. Yet another time he took it upon himself to fix her wounds.

“….asleep. What about the rest of you?” She tensed as his hands investigated her. The doctor was in. “Let me help you.” His urging words were complimented by tender little kisses, decked against her scarred throat.

“You don’t have to do that. You’ve been working all day…hh…” Her voice halted as his fingers quested beneath cloth with different intentions. The door was closed completely with a slight push of his boot, sending them both back into soft darkness.

“And you have been thinking all day. I can tell. Let me ease your mind. Let me…”

“Nn…wh…where did you put the papers Charlette sent me? ….zam…”

“Shhh…let me take care of you.”