Hurt/Comfort fantasy AU day 2, for unenthused squire week.
Longish story under the cut.
This got pretty long and I wanted to work on a little something for each day so it ends with a "to be continued".
I plan on releasing more chapters in the future. This AU was really fun to think about and plan out. It's just a little too short for AO3 but it'll make it there eventually.
Thaddeus rushed to the church.
Despite the late hour, he knew there would be a cleric available.
He expected his feet to burn when he crossed the gate onto the consecrated grounds but nothing happened.
It wouldn't have stopped him anyway.
Every day he learned that a lot of the things he was taught by the church were wrong, and this only drove that fact in harder.
Not everything was a lie, but he was living proof that his lessons were written in fear and ignorance.
There was no time to reflect on the church's failings right now, the man in his arms needed a healer and needed one yesterday.
"Hello!" Thaddeus called through the atrium of the church.
"Please! We need help!"
A tired looking cleric came quickly to his calls.
"What is..."
He stopped abruptly when he saw Thaddeus and his not quite skeletal appearance, a startled look crossed the old mans face.
Thaddeus nearly thrust Norm into the poor man's arms.
"Please. He..." instinctually the cleric backed away from him.
Thaddeus mind raced.
He turned his head down and kept his eyes to the ground.
Softer he spoke.
"My Master needs help."
That should do it. Focus on the human and let him think that Norm was in charge, that wasn't really a lie.
The old cleric took in the site of the wounded man in Thaddeus' arms, his demeanor changing quickly to concern when he saw the arrow and the amount of blood covering him.
He gestured as he turned away from them, suddenly all business.
"This way. Quickly now."
The clerics voice was warm and soft, like vellum pages of an old book, his body hunched slightly with age.
He reminded Thaddeus of the many lecturers and priests he had to listen to not so long ago.
He followed on the man's heels as he lead them to a small room with a tall table. A decent inventory of medical supplies and healing herbs lined the walls.
The familiar smells of the musty church were almost enough to make Thaddeus want to flee.
He knew the cleric would want to talk to him after Norm was stabilized, and he was dreading it.
He tried to focus on the present, not the confrontation that was sure to come.
Gently he set Norm down on the old sturdy table, it had obviously seen better days and was used for caring for anyone seriously wounded, if the old stains meant what he thought they meant.
Norm groaned with the movement, his breathing was shallow, his brow was pale and soaked with sweat.
Thaddeus stayed by his side as the cleric began to chant and pray.
The room filled with a warm light and Norms breathing began to calm.
He felt himself relax slightly but he wouldn't let his guard down until he knew for a fact Norm was fully healed.
The sweating made him think the arrow may have been poisoned, but he wasn't an expert. He'd let the cleric handle that.
The old man didn't hesitate.
Quickly he had Thaddeus hold the young man down while he placed a leather strip between Norms teeth.
His hands were strong and experienced as they firmly removed the arrow from Norm's body, even as the young man gasped and tried to move away. Thaddeus could see Norms skin knitting back together with a magical glow as soon as the arrow was pried free.
***********************
After much work from the old man, it felt like hours had passed but he knew it wasn't nearly that long before Norm was resting with his wounds fully healed and the poison purged from his body, he was right after all,
Thaddeus almost relaxed.
The tired cleric gestured for him to bring Norm and follow.
Again he gently lifted the small man, diligently doing as the cleric said.
They were lead to a even smaller room, sparse with a dusty bed, a single chair and one small window.
Laying Norm down on the bed with care a thought passed through his mind that he didn't want him to be uncomfortable, so he removed his vest and boots before covering him with the blanket. That was as far as he was willing to undress the unconscious man.
He could feel the cleric watching him as he tucked the smaller man in.
Norms lips were dry and cracked, the sweat from his fever had taken a lot from him.
Thaddeus grabbed the waterskin from his pack and delicately lifted him up to drink. Norms eyes fluttered open for the few moments it took for him to drink half the water down, he quietly sighed content before drifting gently back to sleep.
Thaddeus placed the waterskin and his pack on the chair next to the bed, turning it into a table, then elected to stand eerily in the corner of the room instead. If he was as off putting as possible then no one would mess with them...hopefully.
It's not like he needed to sit or rest anymore.
That's why he could make that journey from the dungeon to the church faster then the rest of the group. He could run through the night without stopping, unlike Max, Lucy and Claudia.
Even carrying Norm he hadn't needed to stop.
He hoped everyone else would arrive soon. Surely they were able to make it out shortly after him.
Those traps were tough but the way back out was clear, even with that construct appearing to fight Max.
He would have made short work of that thing.
Unless something else happened after he got Norm out.
He was so caught up in his anxious thoughts that he nearly jumped when the cleric spoke up from the doorway, almost ruining the air of mystery he was trying to affect.
He had hoped the old man would forget about him.
"You're master must be powerful indeed to have something as complex as you to serve him."
His soft voice failed to interupt Norms sleep.
"Or rich."
Thaddeus had noticed the old man eyeing up Norms signet ring when attending to his wounds. He doubted he would recognize it since they came so far from the west.
He bit his tongue hard. He wanted to tell him everything, maybe the cleric could even help him.
He wanted to tell anyone everything.
How he almost died and made a dubious deal with some entity he still didn't know anything about.
About Lucy and Norms' father, a lord with ambitions to curse their world, a world that had already survived one cataclysm.
What kind of asshole does that?
And finally, how they were bent on stopping him and dragged Max and him along with them to a dungeon near this desert town that may or may not hold answers.
But Lucy and Norm had warned them that anyone could be in league with their father.
So Thaddeus chose not to answer him.
He didn't dare say anything really, for fear of the flood gates opening up, spilling everything to the old man.
He stared intently at the bed in silence, letting it be known he would be watching Norm and not leaving the room.
He heard a soft sigh from the cleric.
"Children these days. Creating such rude constructs."
He closed the door as he turned, his footsteps echoed down the hall as he left the two men alone.
Thaddeus let out a long sigh himself, that could have been so much worse. Finally he could relax, at least a little bit.
He would stand watch until the others arrived.
This was the only town and the only church for the next several miles so they would have to come here. They would know this was were he took Norm.
Lucy's face when he promised to get her brother to the nearest healer would break anyone's heart.
Lucky for her he would have run through the night for Norm anyways.
Hell, he would run through the night for any of them at this point.
The light began to brighten in the room.
He looked out the window to see the faint line of crimson light starting to break at the horizon.
A storm must be coming.
The sunrise was welcoming after the long journey through the night, on top of the day spent underground working their way through traps.
He wasn't made to be underground, he missed the sky.
Even after just a few hours in that dungeon he found himself getting antsy.
Watching the sunrise through the stormclouds, he felt his heart lifting with the peaceful moment.
He took in a deep breath of the electrified air, blinking slowly, hoping the others didn't get caught in the thunderstorm.
A slight movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention. He turned his gaze back to the bed, only to see Norm watching him intently.
His dark eyes shining in the dim morning light.
The man quickly looked away, his eyes roamed about the small room. He didn't seem to be confused about their whereabouts.
Norm was always a fast thinker.
Thaddeus, unsure what else to do, reached for the waterskin and knelt by the low bed.
He offered it up almost with reverence to the other man.
"Um... good morning." He smiled at Norm.
"How are you feeling?"
Norm looked at the waterskin then at Thaddeus. He propped himself up on his elbows and winced.
"Take it easy now. Maybe you should...lay back down?"
Norm shook his head, "No. I want to sit up."
Thaddeus dropped the waterskin on the bed, moved his arm behind Norms' back and began to help him. The small man wasn't difficult to move around.
He nearly picked him up again so he wouldn't hurt himself, but Norm finally got to a comfortable sitting position.
Back against the wall for support, legs dangling off the bed, Thaddeus knelt soundly between his knees.
"Comfortable?" Thaddeus gave him a questioning look, his perpetual smile warming his eyes.
Norm was focused on his lap. Thaddeus followed his gaze to his own hands placed firmly on both of Norms thighs.
His mouth went a little dry.
Thaddeus wasn't upset at their position, but he didn't want to place Norm under any stress.
So he moved away, back to his corner.
Norms' gaze followed him.
The look on his face confused Thaddeus, he gestured at the waterskin to give him something to do.
"You should drink something."
Norm looked a little groggy still as he nodded and found the waterskin on the bed. He drank the rest of it down, thouroughly emptying it. Thaddeus tried not to stare at the bob of his adams apple as he swallowed.
"You should probably eat something too." Thaddeus started rummaging in his pack. That disappointed look on Norms face a moment ago must have been due to fatigue, maybe there was some leftover poison in his system.
He was thankfull he still had his pack slung over his shoulder when he ran out of the dungeon. He wouldn't have stopped to gather it up otherwise.
He didn't have to eat as much as the others, and he was pretty sure he could get away with not eating at all. But everyone else liked when he would eat with them, so he still kept food in his pack.
Mostly as a emergency if they started running really low in a place they couldn't get supplies.
"Here we go." He pulled out a satchel that contained some dried fruit.
"It's better then nothing."
He passed the bag to Norm who looked unimpressed at the offering, but took it anyways.
They can get a proper breakfast at an inn when everyone else gets there.
"We can get something better once everyone gets here."
Norm nodded at him then asked softly.
"What happened? Where is everyone?"
"They should be here any time now."
He tried to assure the recovering man.
"After you got hit by that trap, Lucy told me to get you to a healer. So I left, since I could get you here faster." He wasn't sure how much detail he needed to go into just yet. Norm was still pretty tired, but he could feel himself starting to ramble.
"Max got stuck fighting some construct, but that wouldn't be a problem for him. Nothing really to worry about. Just slowed them down." Yes he was definitely rambling now. But Norm didn't seem to mind.
"Those traps were starting to frustrate everyone, but they said they'd be right behind us. Ran all night to get you here. It's starting to rain now, glad it waited. Do you feel alright? I can get the cleric if you're not."
Norm shook his head. "I feel fine Thaddeus. Just sore."
"Good. Good. Um... the rest of the group should be here anytime."
Norm huffed amused, "You keep saying that."
Thaddeus shrugged and chuckled, he gazed back out the window even though he knew it didn't look towards where they would be coming from. It didn't even look over the town.
"Thank you." Came Norms' quiet voice from the bed.
Thaddeus turned back to him with a open look and a warm smile.
"Anytime. I'll have a better selection of rations soon."
Norm snorted at him.
"I meant for saving me."
"Oh." Thaddeus nodded. His smile grew,
"Like I said, anytime."
They fell back into a comfortable silence as they continued to wait for the others.
