{Evening, Day 12)
**Tilharnon, Healer Corra's home/office**

The older woman adjusted the round spectacles on her nose, as she read
the letter that the courier presented her with. "My... my..." she
murmured to herself, her demeanor quietly serious. 

The young woman grinding herbs with mortar and pestle looked up from
her work, "Something wrong, Healer Corra?"

"Looks like you are in charge here for a while, Lily. Xanni's needing
me."

The younger healer looked aghast. "You're leaving???"

"What's the matter? You've been trained well enough. It's about time
you spread your wings a bit Just take care not to burn the place down
and you'll be fine." A smile graced her lips for a brief moment, but
was clouded by the worry in her dark brown eyes. The concern was not
for the young Lily's competence though, but for the health of her
former ward and student, Xanthia. From the tone of the letter, the
girl was deathly ill and the older healer wanted to be by her side,
just in case.

"But... but... How long?" The insecure intern sputtered.

"As long as I'm needed, dear." Corra replied. She folded up her
glasses, put them in her pocket, and turned her attention to the still
waiting dragon rider, "Can you wait for me to pack my bags? I'd like
to get there tonight if possible."

***

**WhiteRiver Warren, on the green outside the med center**

Corra was wide eyed as she dismounted the giant beast. Never before
had she been to WhiteRiver Warren, let alone flown on dragon back.
They were there in what seemed like a blink of an eye.

"My, my, my..." she mused quietly, looking about in awe. "You say this
is the med center?" she looked to the courier for verification. 

"Yes, it is. Our head healer is Th'rin."

Corra wrinkled her nose, she never got used to hearing those darned
infernal contracted dragon names. Still, the man deserved her respect
as a healer after all. "Very well then. Thank you very much for the
ride. It was... quite an experience." And with that the independent
older woman took her bags and strode into the med center with an aire
of authority

She saw a tawny haired youth filling out paperwork at the front
counter and approached him. "Excuse me, son, but could you tell me
where to find your boss?"

Th'rin looked up from his work, "You want Trinale?"

"Ach, no! Healer Th'rin of course!" the name still felt foreign to her
tongue. She hoped she pronounced it correctly.

[NRPG: Tag Kris! ;> ]

***

**Med Center, Xanthia's room**

Corra bent forward and kissed Xanthia tenderly on the forehead. She
rose and looked Th'rin in the eyes. "She's burning up with fever. How
did you say she got the wound?" She studied his face carefully as she
waited for his answer.

"I... I didn't." Th'rin evaded.

"Let me see the wound."

Corra placed her glasses on her nose and carefully examined the leg,
tsktsking to herself as she did. It was every bit as bad as she
imagined, if not worse. "Mmm-hmmm..." she looked up at Th'rin over her
round spectacles, deep brown eyes divining the truth with a mother's
wit, "This is her handiwork, isn't it?"

"I... how did you know?"

"For sixteen years she was my child, well in every way that matters
anyway. I think I know a thing or two about my Xanni, whether she
knows it or not. See this here," she pointed to a fine white line,
barely noticeable, on the girl's calf. "And here," she pointed to a
similar scar on the inside of Xanthia's right forearm. "This one was
her first day of school. And the first one I showed you, that was her
first period. She thought she was good at hiding it, but I always
knew... most of the time. She got more clever about it as time went
on, and as she learned to treat her own wounds. Strange she let it get
this bad... doesn't appear she tended to it at all. What was it this
time?"

***

NRPG: Well, Corra Burdock has just arrived in WhiteRiver. Watch out,
Th'rin, it's hard to put anything past her! ;) Tag again, Kris! Have
fun!

  
                \=/,         _-===-_-===-_-===-_-=======-_-===-_
                |  @___oo   (    Submitted by:                  )
      /\  /\   / (___,,,}_--=    Jacqueline "Morgan" Allgood    )
     ) /^\) ^\/ _)        =__    morgie@iquest.net               )
     )   /^\/   _)          (_                                   )
     )   _ /  / _)            (   The heart and soul of:          )
 /\  )/\/ ||  | )_)            (_  Xanthia/Maxima of Whiteriver   )
<  >      |(,,) )__)             ( Kattibrie/Calishandra of Telnor )
 ||      /    \)___)\             (_                              )
 | \____(      )___) )___           -==-_____-====-_____-===-___==
  \______(_______;;; __;;;

Morgan's World http://members.xoom.com/Morgie/

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