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RESPITE CLINIC - AFTERNOON
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Tarbin is sitting up in the bed of the clinic, staring at the tips of his tail as they swipe around near his feet. The constant aching pain in his hips hasn't lessened much since he woke up, but he's only given the bark in the bowl next to him the occasional glance.
Nesseth peeks around the curtain, having finished with his duties for the day. He smiles when he sees Tarbin sitting up, and he knocks on the wooden post nearby to catch his attention as he enters. "{Good afternoon, Tarbin. How are you feeling today?}"
Tarbin looks up as the curtain moves, nodding to Nesseth with a slight smile. "[{Greetings, Nesseth!}] I am feeling good. Can sit." He pauses for a moment, struggling somewhat. "No walking with not... err... [By the spirits... {walking sticks.}" He shakes his head, looking slightly defeated for a moment.
Nesseth hums and nods as he steps into the partitioned area. "[{Small improvements at a time. Your legs will}] take time to [{heal.}]" He smiles a little more brightly, taking a seat near the bed, "You heal fast compared to most."
Tarbin smiles as Nesseth joins him, nodding. "[{I have a good bond with nature and} the spirits. {Favored from birth...}]." He looks down between his feet, at the twin tips of his tail. "[{The}] magic, [{you called it? Is a} blessing and... {inconvenient.}]."
Nesseth takes a little longer than usual while trying to parse the conversation as it veers between Yurettan and Trade Common. After a moment, he tilts his head. "[{Inconvenient? Why's that?}]"
Tarbin shakes his head slightly, looking back to Nesseth. "Hunter. Magic user is hunter... No hunted. [{For the last} decade {or so}]." He holds up his fingers to indicate 10 years. He shakes his head again, giving Nesseth a serious look. "[{You said not here, right?}]"
Nesseth nods. "[{No magic hunters here. You're safe.}] So you've been... traveling to avoid hunters?"
Tarbin takes a moment to piece together the Common phrase before a slight grin appears. He shakes his head very slowly. "Not on purpose. Was caught." He chuckles quietly. "[The spirits {didn't like that. A lot of nature on a ship and in the sea. A lot of}] magic in a Magitech [{ship.}]"
Nesseth rubs his chin thoughtfully. "[{Then the ship sinking was...}]" He pauses, scratching his head at the unknown word, "[{It was... something helping you escape?}]"
Tarbin nods, adjusting his sitting position slightly. "[{Yes. I tried to cause damage, but they caught me before I could do too much. Then they steered into} a bay to fix {what I did manage and hit rocks.} Next thing I knew, {I woke up here.}]" He pauses for a bit, then looks toward Nesseth again. "Where am I? What country near?"
Nesseth sits, listening for a short bit, then shakes his head slightly. "[{Whoever caught you decided to take a} less-traveled route.]" He sighs as he runs a hand over his frills, "Aephix is... newly settled. The nearest country is... Sarn, I think, a bit far to the north."
Tarbin blinks. "Sarn? I am know where Sarn is... Very far East and North. But I do not care. Eephex can be new home."
Nesseth looks a bit surprised. "So you're from the West?" He pauses for a moment, "And... uh... [{I thought you said you had to leave quickly?}]"
Tarbin pauses, looking away for a few moments before turning back to Nesseth. "[{Has anyone else come from the shipwreck?}]"
Nesseth shakes his head again. "No, no one else yet. [{Were there others like you on the ship?}]"
Tarbin sighs quietly, taking a moment. "[{I could be safe, then... There were two, but I did not trust them. Did not know them before the ship.}] Am worried about hunters, not other magic users." He doesn't express any sadness not knowing the fate of the others.
Nesseth hums, nodding. "Well, no signs of anyone." He shrugs a little, "[{Most likely, no one but you survived. Call it a hunter's intuition.]}"
Tarbin takes a moment, then slowly turns to side-eye look at Nesseth. "Animal hunter... Correct?"
Nesseth nods once more. "Yes. Supplies, meat, furs, things like that. Not a mage hunter."
Tarbin laughs, nodding. "Is good, I know who I ask for food and hide, then. Need good clothes for winter, yes?"
Nesseth chuckles. "Mostly at night. The days are still warm even in winter."
Tarbin nods, turning back to watching the blur of his tail moving. "Is good to know. You hunt, and what else? [{Apologies if you said already, my mind has been...} Occupied.]"
Nesseth: "It's fine, I understand. [{I'm also one of the town's guards} and a scout.]"
Tarbin nods, smiling to Nesseth. "[{A busy man, you are. I appreciate you making time for me, in that case.}] Thank you, Nesseth."
Nesseth laughs a bit. "[{Not too busy, really, but I'm happy to help where I can.}]" He dips his head low for a moment, "You're welcome, Tarbin."
Tarbin grins, looking to the side of his bed for a moment before fishing the willow bark, still in curiously good condition, and pops it into his mouth. He looks to the side Nesseth is on next, squinting for a moment for the crutches that are leaning against the bed. "Plume tells me get pra... ctitch? Practitch? With sticks."
Nesseth smiles and nods. "Yes, well... 'practice'." He puts a bit of emphasis on the last syllable so Tarbin can learn it phonetically, "If you practice, you get better, and can walks around some more."
Tarbin chuckles for a moment. "Practice. Thank you again." His hand bumps a crutch, gripping it and finding the other a few moments later. "Much like magic or hunting." He moves the crutches out of the way, trying to swing his legs over the side of the bed. "I never learn hunting."
Nesseth reaches over and rests a hand against Tarbin's arm as he stands up from the chair, in order to keep the other lizard steady as he climbs down from the bed. "Just until your legs heal fully. Plume doesn't want your leg muscles to get too weak."
Tarbin leans on the crutches as he puts his weight forward off the bed, nodding in appreciation of his help. He slips from the bed as quickly as he dares, grunting. "[{I am faithful in Doctor Plume's methods, honestly. They have been a great help. My magic doesn't work so well on my own body...}]"
Nesseth supports Tarbin as he slides off of the bed and lands on the floor of the clinic, making sure the lizard doesn't fall over from the sudden weight shift. He keeps a gentle grip on his arm as he just kind of follows alongside Tarbin wherever he decides to go. "[{Plume's an extremely good doctor, yeah. Respite Falls is lucky to have them. Hopefully your magic combined with their medical treatments will heal you up nicely, though.}]"
Tarbin manages to get his feet under him, wincing as his weight settles on his hips. He remains well hunched over the crutches, putting more weight on them than his legs. He looks up toward Nesseth, smiling. "[{I can feel more than just respect, my friend. I will not pry though, that is your business.}]" The scales on his arm under Nesseth's touch have shifted, warming under his fingers as magic hums from his scales to Nesseth's.
Nesseth chuckles as he helps Tarbin walk, though his fingers shift a little against his scales as the sensation of magic flows across that point of contact. "[{Well, it's not a secret. Plume and I are a couple. Also...}]" He looks down at Tarbin's arm, noting the color change, "[{Uh... I'm not doing anything bad, right? Like... siphoning magic or something?}]"
Tarbin looks toward his arm, shaking his head slightly as he takes some shaky steps, keeping the wandering to a slow circle. "No, nothing like this. Is... Hm. [{You are a living being, my magic is simply taking stock of you. I can feel... Something that left you bruised for some time recently?}]"
Nesseth blinks, then nods as he patiently follows Tarbin around. "[{Oh, that. Yeah, I, uh... got body-slammed by a bear a bit over a month ago.}] I was stuck in bed for... about a few days afterwards, healing."
Tarbin stops for a moment, looking to Nesseth before he lets out a light laugh before continuing his laps of the room. "[{A long story, I take it? My friend, I could use the distraction from the pain, if you'd tell it!}]"
Nesseth laughs and nods. "[{Gladly. So, let's see... where to start... Oh, right, we can start with...}]" He quickly begins to tell Tarbin about the whole situation, without mentioning names, of how a couple of guards who were out on an expedition to search for others ended up vanishing a while back, and the events that lead up to him getting tackled by a bear. Overall, it probably sounds far more adventurous than it was in reality, since he skims over the bits such as "and then we spent hours just walking in heavy gear" in order to get to the interesting parts.