The Wand and The Scepter

Chapter Twenty-Three - Return to Cairo

"Ouch!" said Perri as Arati applied essence of dittany to her hand, which had been burned worse than the rest of her body. "Are you certain that will help, because it hurts terribly?" She had slept for most of her treatment, waking only a few moments ago, and now wished she hadn't.

The young Auror simply smiled and continued to gently rub the balm on Perri's hand. "I hear you were the hero once again."

Perri snorted. "I was no such thing. If anything, I was a hindrance, like so much baggage."

"That's not how I heard it. Thaddeus said you felt the trap before it was sprung. According to him, you put him on guard."

"Yet I stood there quaking in fear when I should have announced it, and insisted on caution."

"But you did. You made Thaddeus test every door for curses. The doctor and al-Moussa didn't listen to you, but that was their fault, not yours."

Perri shook her head. "I could have done more."

"Mr. al-Moussa said you saved his life. You risked your own for him."

"It's what anyone would do."

"No. It's what you would do. Most people would have run and let him die. What you did in that temple was heroic, and I believe none of them would have made it out alive if you had not accompanied them."

Perri didn't enjoy this conversation. The guilt of not voicing her concerns lay heavy on her, and although Arati's arguments made some sense, she just couldn't accept it. She looked around the medical tarp. Albion, Thaddeus, and Rafal were asleep on their beds.

"How are they?"

Arati afforded a glance at the others before returning to her work. She finished with her hand, and now dabbed dittany on a bite mark on her arm. The Inferius had bitten very hard and torn off a chunk of flesh. Perri cringed when she looked at it.

"Well, Albion and Thaddeus will be fine. Albion suffered some pretty bad bites and scratches, but there's no infection, and his injuries will heal. He's already been awake and trying to give orders. Thaddeus was the least hurt of you all, which he attributes to your warning."

"He was clever, and used the best defense against the Inferi that came at us in the Offering Hall."

"What was that?"

"A Shield Charm. They couldn't touch him."

Arati smiled grimly. "I bet they had him trapped. They pushed him and his shield into a corner or something."

"That's right."

"And you burned your enemies. Lit your wand on fire and set a couple aflame."

"Which caused the burn on my hand. Rather daft, I suppose."

"Not at all. You'd all be dead if you hadn't done that. Albion kept them at bay with his minor Firestorm, but because he was afraid to use too much, he would never have gotten out. Thaddeus' Shield Charm wouldn't protect him for long. And al-Moussa... If you hadn't risked injury from your own spell to get out, you would all have died."

"How's Rafal?"

"He was worse off, and almost didn't make it. His men watched as I worked on him. In the end, I think he'll recover. He'll be badly scarred, I'm afraid. He'll never fully heal. But he'll live and be strong again."

Arati set down the essence of dittany and smiled at Perri. "Now you get some rest. You were hurt, too. You'll make a full recovery—yes, even that bite will go away—as long as you take it easy. The mission's almost done. We'll all be going home soon."