Rosaling shifted, whimpering. in her dreams she kept seeing her mother end her life in every way. She had known the woman died by her own hand, but was never told how. Seeing her mother again, the same empty look in her eyes, she cried to her.

As she slept, Rosalina shed tears as she whimpered "Mommy." over and over. her hand weakly reaching out from the blankets. "Don't leave Mommy." she whimpered again.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Calista frowned as she heard Rosalina call out for her mother and then reach out weakly from the blankets. Not knowing any of the woman's history, she figured that the fever was making her delusional, which meant she was growing worse.
Taking to pacing several minutes ago, Darius prowled the room as would a beast as Calista sat at the edge of Rosalina's bed.
"Where is he?!" Darius thundered. "What is taking him so long? Has he not the wind to aid him?" he cursed. Darius was not sure how long the mage had been gone but to him it already felt like hours.
"He will be here soon," Calista replied meekly, inwardly flinching at the man's anger.
Growling, Darius turn hard blue eyes upon the terrified woman and stomped over to her. Grabbing her roughly by her bandaged wrist, he yanked her to her feet, causing Calista to cry out in pain as she just looked up at Darius with fear-filled eyes.
"Where does this plant grow?" Darius questioned her as he squeezed her wrist hard.
Wincing in pain, Calista felt her eyes well with tears as a few slipped down her pale cheeks.
"Leagues away..." she whispered. "Please, let me go. You're hurting me..." she whimpered. Growling at her answer, Darius released her wrist and turned away, running his hand angrily through his hair as Calista brought her wounded wrist close to her body and began rubbing it with her right hand.
Turning back to Calista, Darius marched over to the young woman, causing her to back away in fear. "What other herb can be used to treat a high fever?" he snarled at her.
"I--I--I don't know," Calista stammered, feeling more tears of fear come to her eyes.
"You do know, you little wench!" Darius thundered at her. "Now, tell me this instant!" he demanded.
"I'm sorry. I don't.." Calista protested, her voice shaking as she trembled visibly in fright.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!

Rosalina opened her eyes. "Darius." she called to him. "Don't, its ok. don't get mad at her." she said Defending Calista. "She's been through enough. Please, just calm." she said closing her eyes. "Don't be mad at her." she said again. "Don't hurt her."

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

"No it isn't all right," Darius remarked to Rosalina, but did not turn his withering glance from Calista. "I know you know of other herbs. What other plants can be used to help Rosalina?" he demanded, this time grabbing the scared woman by her shoulders and shaking her rather roughly. "At the speed your mage is taking, she could be dead before he returns. And I will not have that!" he yelled at her, as the woman closed her eyes and turned her face away.
"Gareth told me you are among the best at herbal lore," Darius growled at her as she opened her eyes again and he placed his face near hers so that she could feel his hot breath on her cheek.
"There must be something else beside this agueba plant or whatever you call it...and I want to know what it is!" he demanded.
"I don't remember!" Calista wailed, tears streaming down her pale face as her heart beat rapidly in her chest.
"Then think girl!" Darius yelled in her ear as the woman just began to cry harder.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!

Rosalina opened her eyes and sat up taking hold of Darius's arm. "Darius, please. Your scaring her. Please." She begged. "I will be ok. Please."

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Glancing down at Rosalina when she took his arm, Darius only sighed. "I'm sorry Ro. But I will have help for you, one way or another," he remarked softening his voice when he addressed her before turning to look over at Calista again. Feeling his gaze upon her, Calista backed away so quickly that she tripped on the hem of her gown and landed hard on the ground. Sighing softly, Darius approached Calista again, intent on being gentler this time.
"The agoras!" Calista shouted out, the name of the plant finally snapping in her frazzled mind. "Please...just stay away from me!" she shouted as she scooted back on her hands.
"Do you know where to find it?" Darius asked her softer.
Calista nodded vehemently. "A-a short distance from here..." she whispered as she gazed up at him with terror-filled eyes.
"Well..." Darius responded, looking at her expectantly. Finally comprehending that he wanted her to get the plant, Calista climbed to her feet and bolted from the room, just needing to get away from this man. After she left, Darius turned to Rosalina and put a hand on her forehead. "You should be in bed..." he whispered to her.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!

"Darius, I had to stop you. You were making her worse." she said. 'And its just a small fever." she said giving him a small smile before falling againest him. "Don't be so harsh on her." She said weakly.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Catching Rosalina as she fell against him, Darius could only sigh softly. What a special woman he had! Here she was sick with a fever and still managing to look out for another. "Ro, your fever is worse than you think. I had to find help for you, one way or another," he whispered softly as he carried her back to bed and gently laid her down.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Racing to the woods just outside their home, Calista tripped and fell a few times on the roots that stuck out of the earth. Trembling, she just glanced around nervously before climbing nervously to her feet and going deeper along the path until she found the plant. Picking a bunch of them, she raced back to her own home, frightened by the howling wind that seemed to laugh at her. Gasping for breath as she arrived back to the room, she set the plant down on the table and leaning against it for support, closed her eyes for a brief moment as she placed her hand on her stomach feeling a slight pain from running too hard and too soon. After a few minutes, she opened her eyes and grabbing the pot began to prepare the plant to make the brew.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!

Rosalina didn't respond. She was asleep again, shivering with cold.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

After crushing the leaves into the pot, Calista squeezed the berry juice onto the pulp of green leaves before adding water. Once she had mixed everything together, she carried the pot back over to the fireplace where a small fire still roared from the time Gareth had kindled the blaze.
"How's it coming?" Darius asked, coming up behind her, nearly causing Calista to jump out of her skin and knock the pot and contents over in her fright.
"It's almost finished..." she added meekly as she continued to mix everything with the ladle. When she was finished, she poured the contents into a cup and handed it to Darius to have Rosalina drink before retreating into a corner of the room.
Walking over to the bed, Darius sat beside her and gently shook her, hoping to rouse the woman. "Dearest Ro, I need you to drink this..." he whispered to her as he placed the cup against her lips.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!

Rosalina stirred, and moaning she started to drink.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

"That's it, love" Darius whispered to her as Rosalina started to drink, keeping the cup near her lips until she finished.
Huddling herself into a corner in the room, Calista tried to make herself as small as possible. She didn't want to be here. All she wanted was for Gareth to come back and make things right as he usually did.
------------------------------------------------------------
Finally finding the plant which grew five leagues away, Gareth knelt down and began to gather some of the herbs before rising and summoning the wind to take him back home.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!

Rosalina drank until the cup was empty. He fever went down a bit, but not enough. she still needed the other herb to make her fever break.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Setting the cup on the side, Darius was a bit relieved that Rosalina's fever dropped some but knew that until Gareth returned with the other herb, her fever would not be broken.
Sitting in the corner with her chin her knees, Calista said nothing. She did not want to be alone with Darius any longer. As the seconds ticked by she could feel her fear mount, dreading that if Gareth did not return soon, Darius would take to beating her to get another remedy.
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About ten minutes later, Gareth finally arrived at the abode and quickly raced to Rosalina's room. Seeing him walk into the room, Calista darted off the floor and raced up to him before flinging herself against him as she clung to him tightly, trembling violently. Catching Gareth off-guard, Calista nearly tackled him to the ground with the intensity of her fear and he barely was able to recover his balance in time. "Love, what's wrong?" Gareth whispered as he quickly put his arms around her.
"Don't leave me again..." she whimpered.
Sensing that Darius had done something to terrify her, Gareth shot him a withering glare before gently pulling Calista off of him and kissing her lightly on her forehead. "I'm here now and no one will threaten or lay a hand on you again," he whispered to her before walking over to the pot to prepare the herbs as Calista just watched him with anxious eyes. Once finished with the potion, he poured it in the cup before walking over to Rosalina and placing the cup to her lips. "Rosalina, I am going to need you to drink this. It will break your fever..." the mage whispered softly to her. The sooner Rosalina recovered, the sooner he would be able to tend to his own lady and settle things with Darius.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!

Rosalina drank again the drink, her fever breaking as she finsihed.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Once she finished drinking, Gareth set the cup on the side and turned to face Darius. "You and I need to talk," he told the man coldly, his anger pushed beyond his limits.
"So be it," Darius remarked as he stared the mage down. Without another word, Gareth walked out of the room with Darius following a step behind. Watching the mage leave, Calista nearly ran after him but stopped herself instead, hanging her head as the two men headed to the main room.

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AWESOME set by the AMAZING Lembas!!!