RP:Is this real?

This is a Healer's Guild RP.

Ranok rescued Emilia from Gevurah’s hands in the underdark and now returns the Genasi to the care of Sabrina who put a reward out for her safe return.

Ranok braved the arduous trek out of the Underdark thanks to, in part, his preparation. Utilizing the dye he'd splashed the walls with and the memory of the intelligence of his armor, the trek out was, more or less, unremarkable. A small hitch in the passing of a bugbear, but an applied flash of sunlight from the palm of his hand proved enough discouragement to avoid bloodshed. There'd been enough of that, lately. But rather then parting ways on the surface, Ranok had decided to fulfill the promise the whole way. He was to haul Emilia to Sabrina herself. Firstly, because he'd said he'd do it. And secondly, he suspected that all was not well. Drow being what and who they were, he would not have been surprised at some slow acting, long lasting venom as a solid middle finger. Deal or not. So, it was with or without Emilia's blessing that she'd be hauled to the house of Ara by a cigar smoking Ranok, who was clad not in his typical affair of duster and hat, but armed to the teeth in additional plating and strapped with all sorts of interesting and deadly armaments. The rucksack containing bunches of fun was ditched at some point, hopefully for later retrieval, as its contribution was done. Once arrived, without ceremony, Ranok just opens the door, "I've returned, and I bring Emilia." Not much of a heroic speech, but he was irritable, as he hadn't really sunken into his smoke yet and he'd been without too long.

Sabrina turns her head to an abrupt swing of door followed by an equally sudden announcement. It took a moment before she could gather his words and as she digested his message her eyes catch sight of his tow. “Emi?” a pause of disbelief before she nearly screams her name across the main floor. “Emilia!” Immediately dropping what she is doing, which involves no more than a transfer of some particularly gooey viscous liquid from one container to a much smaller one, the elfess is in no time at the door. She reaches out a hand towards the Genasi as if testing the reality of her presence- all temperatures and temperaments aside she would pull Emi close in a tight hug, refusing to let go, be it cringe or cry from her newly adopted victim of public emotional display. Some things just couldn’t be held back.

Emilia had not set foot on the surface in some number of days, she’d lost count and was about to give up on ever being topside again. The Genasi was surprisingly ever glad to find that it was darker out when the daring Ranok guided her back onto familiar grounds. With a lack of sunlight in the passing months the woman had suffered ill effects. No, she didn’t turn paler as she was still snow-white as ever, but those eyes of hers had changed where once white was now pink. Should the lady find herself in any light above a very dim glow in near full darkness she was squinting to see. The light of Ara was enough to make the woman all squinty eyed as she stared beyond the cigar smoking man into the room beyond. A voice, ever familiar, ringing in her ears, Sabrina her closet most dear friend, sister from another mother if you asked some. Real? Yes! She was real this time. The hug was embraced, only less tight because she was rather tired and weak, but she’d hold on to her as if she would vanish if Em let her go. Luckily for Sabrina the anklet that binded her powers was still present keeping that frozen chill from being over bearing, more like hugging a rather stiff-bony cold human. Oh, yes, those bones that already tended to reveal themselves on an ordinary day were ever more present with the added loss of weight from being captive, even with being feed twice daily by the drow. A voice, raspy and dry, whispered, “Sabrina...I love you...don’t disappear, please”

Ranok mostly opts to sit this one out. He'd done his duty, and fulfilled the promise. Emilia is back on the surface. Perhaps a bit poorer, but it was better that she was alive. So he stand, smoking his cigar, and mostly being the awkward third wheel. Lacking anything much, he decides to tidy up the spilled contents of the various liquids. He was careful not to touch it, however, as he had no idea just what the hell any of it was.

Sabrina was overwhelmed. One might even swear the Healer was brought to tears, though it would be denied outright. “I’m not going anywhere. Promise.” She releases some of the pressure so as not to harm the fragile lass and guides her more inward toward the plush couch so she may sit. A wave of hand implies Ranok should shut the door, if he were smart to lock it too. For the first time in its short history, Ara was closed to the public. She turns to Ranok to thank him, overjoyed as she reaches out to him and at that last moment stops short. It was an awkward gesture, though no more awkward than she used to be, before the absent gift he gave her. Turning back to Emilia for full visual assessment she speaks to her rescuer with frigid politeness. “Thank you for my Healer’s return.” All business with that tone as hands poke and prod all parts of Emi looking for damage. She crosses the woman’s hands in her own lap and stands, speaking smoothly to calm her nerves. “I am going to the kitchen to fetch some food. Stay here, Ara will protect you.” Despite any argument the Genasi might have of her brief leave Sabrina tends to her duty regardless. She is gone but a moment with a rustle of pans and plate alike, returning with a plate of fruit and nut things as well as a small satchel that is tossed on the counter towards Ranok with only a passing glance.

Emilia was alive and in one piece if that counted for anything as a passing judgment for Sabrina. Sitting on the soft couch the ice woman sunk into it, eyes mostly closed as the lights of Ara bothered her. Even being poked and propped at would prove almost no reaction from the more so underweight woman. Sabrina would find that she was whole, no signs of poison or damage from the drow, however, her natural frozen temperature was wrong. Something was just not right there. No frost formed in her presence like normal, not even a drop in the air around her. Watching Ranok became the current entertainment as he cleaned the spilled liquids while Sabrina was making noise in gathering food. She’d eaten twice daily below ground, strange foods that she didn’t like and that did nothing for her figure. Sabrina knew her best, especially her choices for food. Berries and nuts that would be gone before the Genasi had the plate for five minutes. “You are real, right?” She’d finally question, still a bit in shock that she was freed.

Ranok gives the offered reward the same expression he would have if she'd slapped down a used pile of bandages. "I," and a nudge with an offended finger prod, pushing the gold away, "Did not do it for money." That was all that he said, and the money is not touched any further. He also wouldn't prove much of a source of entertainment. With the mess cleaned up, he had nothing further to do. So, he began to strip. The strapped on armaments, that was. They were uncomfortable, not meant for long term adornment or wear. A neat little pile of various pointy things, a few explody things, and one or two veritable doodads and he was much the lighter for it. Transporting them back was a problem until he decided that he'd steal a blanket to make a makeshift rucksack when Sabrina wasn't looking.

Sabrina cracks a warm smile. “Last I checked.” He eyes scan the area around Emi, a mildy concerned squint of disapproval that she dismisses. For now. “Are you feverish? How does one tell?” She turns to Ranok as if he should have the answer having spent as much time around her as any. “Have you informed her husband? He has been looking.” Her eyes lingered on him as he refuses the reward, maybe a little too long- so much that she catches herself staring briefly. She is almost good at pretending she doesn’t notice. She’d ask him why he did it after all, but then his answer might not be something she wished others to hear. With her attention back on Emilia she takes the emptied plate and places it on the table before leaning towards her, already fiddling with her messy curls. This rats nest would need more than a brush to pilfer through. And there was stuff. She begins picking rather motheringly through her locks. “You need a bath.” It wouldn’t have been the first time Sabrina had helped her with this, nor would it likely be the last. More food would come after a refreshing wash and Emi was seen to her room; no longer a frozen tundra like she left it, everything seemed a tad weepy in her absence.

Emilia gave a weak chuckle as Sabina comment on her crazed mess and then some of curls. Yes, they would need much more than comb to fix them at this rate, but Sabrina had the kindest of fingers. A bath, what was that..oh, right water and soap. “I might not do well in a tub,” she answered, half afraid she’d drown in the thing. That fear of water has yet to find itself conquered. However, Sabrina is one of three people she’d trust to put her into a bath. Then those eyes would land on Ranok, how silly he looked from between those partly opened eyes, “If you won’t take her reward and you are not known to me, tell me why you would risk your life to save mine and bring it back to Sabrina?” Sluggish, but still observant.

Ranok gains a curl of the lip, "Oh, you mean the man who, with terrible power, decided that blustering on the most pointless of postings on a tavern board was the most surefire way to find her back?" A snort, "Maybe I'll post something on the board, as he's more infatutated with it then seeking out his wife." His deadly arsenal was removed from himself, and he flexes a shoulder. It didn't seem like much, but a few pounds in unfamiliar places began to wear. "I said I would do it." A pause, then, "And frankly, no one else seemed to be bothered. Nothing more or less." The man seemed to be sidling to the door slowly, his dues done and paid for. Plus, he was filling up the house with the smell of his smoke.

Sabrina’s fingers are midway through a particularly stubborn knot when Emilia demands her answer. Her eyes grow ever slightly wider and her digits freeze in the midst of conquering their struggle. She is quick to start in “You don’t have to answer that.” With a huffy look at Emilia over her manners. She half anticipates his diplomatic response in what felt like an eternity of silence between that moment and the next. But it wasn’t enough. “And you enlisted the help of Xzavior to do it? By threatening Leifa?” She might have actually been scowling at him, and without the bangles to cool her wits her frustration darkens in her eyes. She would have been fine with leaving the bodily harm to the Naga. What she couldn’t grasp was the need to threaten a harmless wyvern. She didn’t -want- to be ungrateful at Emilia’s return, but there was a handful of things she was dying to address and it was eating her up inside.

Emilia closed her eyes fully as she relaxed back into the couch, listening. It was a conversation with answers she didn’t have...it was a real moment. Life was still confusing as the darkness still seemed to be all around her, yet it was no longer playing crazed tricks on her, but realizing the truth of reality was a tough bite. Leaning her head back she barely opened her eyes, “Can I sleep with you tonight?” a half whisper as she totally turned the subject once more.

Ranok looked tired. But only briefly. Another inhale of the cigar, the cherry red end burning brightly, and then a jet of smoke. When it clears, he was his perfectly normal, which was to say, grumpy, self, "I could have pummeled Xzavior into the ground as much as I wanted. It would have been a pleasure. But that did not mean he would give me the information that I needed." There was no shame in his expression. Merely an implacable reality, "I needed him full and fit, as I had information sources on her being in the Underdark. But the drow are not exactly forthcoming with guides or maps down there. So he was needed to take me. The wyvern is fine. An unfortunate would be casualty, but." A shrug, "Every man's price is not always gold. Besides. I suspect him to be up to something. If he truly wanted to keep that irritating lizard safe, he'd not be venturing into dark deals with the moron lycan or the bitch drowess." Ash is tapped onto the floor to punctuate his point. "It's only a matter of time before his number is pulled. The matter is out of my hands. Only my execution, perhaps."

Sabrina is snapped back to reality, the shift in her glare was instantaneous at the soft words falling from Emilia’s lips. Ranok would have to wait, More pressing matters needed tending to, like nursing the poor girl back to health and making sure she got the rest she required. “Of course.” Her voice was kind again compared to the accusatory tone she took with the Rynvalian. “Lycan? you mean Desparrow.” A heavy exhale parts her lips as she bends to take up the drifting Emilia. Bones or no the Elfess was not built to carry such things so the struggle was apparent. It was as if the mere mention of the meddling dog and Xzaviors current secret associations with him answered more questions than she had to present. And he was right, Leifa was fine. Which was what she told Xzavior in his defense- that the Wyvern did not suffer any real harm to which she could have quite easily. More to the point, it brought her Emi back. But it posed one variable unnoticed until now. “So what agreement allowed you to leave with her? If held captive by the likes of that dog there has to be some end game in them allowing you to leave unscathed.”

Emilia was luckier than any other soul in hollow to have Sabrina’s love, especially in a moment like this. Yet again an oddity, something wrong. Normal circumstance the ice-bones of the woman left her weighing more than she looked, even if she was about the same size as the other woman. Today, she was nearly weightless, almost throw-able by the other if she wasn’t careful. The couch itself sport no signs that the Genasi had been sitting there. It was not cold to the touch and there was no frost at all to be found. In fact, Sabrina would find no transfer of Frost over onto herself as she held the light as snow woman that was not nearly as cold as she normally is. “Desparrow...his face is a nightmare...he brought me books...berries from the surface...and something else...he told me something, but I cannot remember it...” more whispers.

Ranok would have assisted Sabrina, but it seemed that Emilia weighed nothing at all. It was all well in hand, and Emilia's steadily downturning mental state was outside of his expertise. It rather was why he'd brought her here, after all. "The exchange of some stone. It was a woman named Gevurah, not Desparrow, masterminding this...ordeal. The details are unimportant now. You have her now, and that is what matters." A frown, seeing Emilia weaken. He certainly didn't wish to see all the work undone by her wasting away, but it was scarely like he could do much of anything. "I think my contribution is done here. I doubt you need me mucking around while you nurse Emilia back with..." fingers flex slightly, seeking the proper word for whatever it was the women shared, "Well, call it tender care. If there is nothing else." He's gathering his things in the yoinked blanket so he could leave the two women to their privacy. He truly doubted they wanted him present for the bath. Sabrina knew Emilia before the Genasi made its presence known, this reversion could have simply been some survival instinct but it weighed heavier on her thoughts than she let on. “Something else? Emi, what else?” The thing was, with that creep, he had a way about getting into people’s heads. He had done it to Sabs and personally she thought herself of stronger mind than the Human Emilia. But the Genasi, was this a reaction to something he did? To suppress a power like that… there was a plethora of things that could come of it. Emilia felt too weak to endure a traditional bath, and so would be escorted to Sabrina’s room to take up what little space she could on the oversized bed. With a clatter of Ranok gathering his things Sabrina gave her best goodbye. “I would like to speak with you later. If you have the time.” She looked like she wanted to say so much to him right now, but it was not appropriate given the patient and her current condition. Healing always came first. Whether he had something immediate to say or not she was off to the washroom to gather the customary bucket of cold water, a sponge, and an array of healing botanicals along with some vials from the Spring of Vitality. Emilia’s road to recovery would be a calm and soothing one.

Emilia flashed what might be called a half-smile at Ranok for whatever the reason it was unknown. Closing her eyes she rested her head on the shoulder of the other woman, taking in a slow inhale. She smelled so real, it couldn’t be another trick on her brain from the dark. Half opening one eye she stared at Sabrina, “I don’t remember...” and for the current life of her she couldn’t remember a darn thing about it. The garb worn by the woman was an oversized black robe, almost like a set of robes worn by a mage, but they were of drow origin. It was this cloth that kept the extent of the protruding bones from being visible, and to that the thin golden anklet worn about her right ankle. In the skuttle and exchange of things it never got removed. Looking around the room she closed her eye again, snuggling into the elf woman with what strength she had for that moment. Real. This is real. She had to keep reminding herself.

Sabrina sported a frown to see Ranok had left as she passed through the main room to care for Emi beyond her own door. Odd as it was she was partly reminiscent of the last person she had in here and it distracted her somewhat while she tended Emilia’s frail form. The robes would have been removed, and while the Elfess had been privy to malnourished individuals before it would have hurt her to physically see a loved one in this state. It did not slow her progress, but that bit of shimmer struck her as odd. The only adornment left with her aside from the stinking robes of the underdark which would be at some point discarded if not burned for the sake of utterly hating them and all they stood for. She came back to tuck Emi in, taking up the chair after pulling it close to the tiny sleepy female. She wasn’t wearing the bangles he gave her, she did not require sleep in this state, but she would watch Emilia and wake her often for a plate of tasty things now and again.

Emilia would sleep, if only in a rough state of tossing and turning more so than one would expect. In part, she the genasi slumbered for no more than ten minutes before waking. Each time she would sit upright in a panic with those curls all over the place, heart racing, and yet still not a single trace of cold in the room. No, she couldn’t sleep, yet would eat all the food pushed at her by the elf.