Undetermined amount of time
Things came in bits and pieces. The feeling of a cool cloth against my forehead, different voices talking softly, a hand holding mine. Things that moved in and out of the painful darkness that surrounded me. I felt like I was in a deep abyss, one that washed pain over me in heated waves. It ebbed and flowed but never stopped. I felt lost inside of it and wondered what was wrong, what happened to me. My memory was spotty at best and there were moments when I wasn't aware of anything at all. As if I had moved far far away from my body. As if I was somewhere else, somewhere safe from the pain and the worry and the hurt.
There were moments I seemed to flow into a body that felt heavy, so heavy, and confining. It felt overly hot and uncomfortable and those were the moments when the pain was the worse. When it washed over me so brutally I wanted to scream with a mouth and throat that had no voice but they were blessedly far and few between. I knew there was something I needed to cling to but I couldn't grasp it. I knew it was there but I couldn't figure it out.
So I floated, in and out, near and far, waves of pain and heat crashing over me again and again, like the ebb and flow of the ocean that Mene controlled from her spot in the heavens. I wondered if she could see me, if she saw me lost in the dark, stuck in the ebb and flow of the pain and heat that swallowed me, pulling me down. I wondered if she cared or if I wasn't enough. It wouldn't be anything new. I had never been enough for anyone in my life. Why would the goddess find me enough for her attention?
I felt myself sliding downward, pulling down into that heavy and hot feeling, flowing into a body that was so unbearable to exist inside but this felt different. I seemed to settle underneath my skin, the pain a faint beat against my nerves, nothing like it had been where it was a discordant beat that pulled me in and shoved me away again and again.
Awareness filtered in and I became I aware I was breathing, a cool stream of air flowing up my nose, entering my lungs in smooth waves as I inhaled and exhaled slow and easy. I then became aware of my heartbeat. It was regular and soft, a far cry from what I remembered, the sluggish beat that struggled in a fight again an enemy I couldn't see or hear. Sounds slowly filtered into my ears as if cotton had been pulled from them, a soft and familiar voice murmured beside me before a cool cloth was brushed against my forehead.
I was awake even though my eyelids felt like they weighed a hundred pounds and I could open them. I was awake and an awareness of what I had been trying to cling to came back to me. "Maeve." It was a broken and cracked breath of air that made my throat and chest hurt. Tears burned my eyes as I realized we had been lost and I had fallen and couldn't get back up, my body giving up despite the shoving and urging that had happened. I had held her but she wasn't in my arms now, I didn't know where she was.
I felt panic rise up inside me before that soft voice came back. "It's okay, halfling. It's okay." There was an aching familiarity to the voice right before a weight was settled beside me and someone grasped my hand and placed it on a tiny back. "She's right here." Maeve burbled and babbled gently, patting at me and a painful sob ripped through my chest and I cried, trying with shaking and weak arms the refused to move to pull Maeve up to my chest.
She was safe. She was okay and she was safe.
Relief cracked me own the middle and I couldn't stop the painful and cracked sobs that escaped me. There was a soft shushing before someone shifted my arm, moving Maeve closer to me, wrapping my left arm around her as her little head rested on my chest as she gave a shuddering exhale. I tried to hold her close, tried to hold her tight. I sniffled, prying my eyes open, not willing to believe in the miracle I was given unless I could see her.
And there she was.
Her strawberry blond head resting on my chest, a yellow onesie on as she patted at my arm, babbling. "Maeve." I croaked it out and she wiggled around before she was able to look up at me. Her sweet face, her cute little nose. She was safe. It was enough to make my nose run and the tears make my vision blurry. She was safe.
"There there. It's okay." That soft voice was followed by a cool cloth that wiped away the tears. I turned my head, the motion taking so much of my strength with me. A female with black hair and brilliantly blue eyes that seemed to faintly swirl with black smiled at me as she held the cloth. "You gave us quite the scare." She bent over and kissed my forehead. It was strange and unfamiliar but there was such a sweet kindness that emanated from her that I couldn't help but relax.
"You did." The new voice had me glancing over. A tall, greying haired male walked to stand at the foot of the small cot I was in. "We nearly lost you to that nasty infection that caused you to go septic. We had to pump you full of six different antibiotics, two of which were magically enhanced and trial use only. I do think that is what did it though. You definitely perked up after those two. Plus we had Jason spend more than enough time here keeping you stable when your vitals crashed." The male reached down and squeezed my covered foot with a smile. "Pretty decent considering the fact he couldn't really help you. Could keep you from crossing Mene's threshold but not heal you."
"We kept baby and you safe." The sweet female smoothed Maeve's hair down and then grasped my hand, giving it a familiar and gentle squeeze.
"Isn't that the truth? Protected them both like the ferocious mother wolf you are." The male smiled at the smaller female and she beamed, her entire face glowing with pride. "Now. I understand you are probably really confused and really tired but I hope you can be patient with me for a moment." He came around the bed and I wanted to lean away from him but my body was so heavy and I was so, so tired. "I'm Doc Howard and I'm going to check your eyes okay?" He sounded so nice but I didn't know who he was. I didn't know who either of them were.
He looked at me expectantly and I gave a tiny nod, unable to do more than that and he quickly pulled out a small light and checked my eyes before humming. "Great reaction to see." He tucked the flash light into his pocket before he looked down at me. "I'm going to change your bandage next, okay?" Again I doubted he was actually asking and was more telling me what he was going to do so I gave him that same nod.
He reached for the blanket to flip it down and that little female reached out, grabbing his wrist quickly, a faint growl in her chest. "No. Not like that." Her voiced had a heavy warning but I was more focused on the big pregnant belly she had pressed against my arm as she leaned over me slightly.
"Okay, Lilith. You do it how you want to." The doctor's voice was even, low, and soothing and the female let him go.
She stood straighter, rubbing at her back with a faint grimace. "Okay. Good." She nodded and I watched as she moved around the bed. She swayed slightly, her big belly leading the way, one hand cupping the bottom of it and the other pressed against her lower back. Maeve babbled at me a bit sleepily and yawned wide. I wanted to reach over and trace that delicate curve of her nose but I couldn't find the strength in me to move my arm to do it. "Like this." The female was on the other side now and she moved the blanket carefully, keeping my breasts covered while exposing my side for the doctor. "Not all females want you to see their breasts, Doc Howard." There was a faint chiding to her voice and doctor gave a small chuckle as he watched her.
"I'll keep that in mind." He shook his head with clear amusement as he watched her walk back around the bed before turning back to me. I watched him carefully as he moved closer and then bent down. "I'm going to lift the cover okay?" He glanced at me and I gave a small nod and he pulled back what looked like a soft gauze cover. "It's looking really good. A lot of healthy pink tissue growing. Which is what we want to see." He gave a small hum. "We didn't stitch it closed at all. With the infection we had to leave the wound open to drain and to ensure that when you healed, we didn't create any pockets of infection. So these scars aren't going to be pretty." The words seemed to be a warning and I let out a small sigh.
"Doesn't matter." My voice felt dry and it was a rather soundless croak and the female beside me gave a small chirp.
"Water! You need water!" She hurried away from me, as much as such a heavily pregnant female could hurry.
"Ice chips, Lilith. She needs ice chips." He stressed the words and I watched as she waved him off, leaving the room. "She has actually be a very invaluable helper with you. I doubt anyone willed you back to the land of the living more than she did." He sounded so proud of her and I blinked slowly as Maeve grabbed one of my fingers and seemed to snuggle into me as she laid her head against my shoulder. I stared down at her, so relieved she was okay and safe. I had been so worried. "Don't worry about the little one." At the doctor's words I rolled my head to look at him.
He gestured to Maeve. "She was dehydrated, very hungry, and had a bit of a bug from the river water but she was in good shape. I don't know what happened to you two but you did good with making sure she was taken care of." He grasped my hand and squeezed it. "You did so well." His words were enough to have tears filling my eyes as my bottom lip trembled.
"I got them! Hey! Don't make her cry!" The female's voice was sharp and I glanced towards the door and she was already coming over, her face a little bit like a thundercloud.
"I was telling her how good she did with the baby." At the soft statement from the doctor the dark little thundercloud on her face cleared up and she beamed.
She came over to my side, a plastic cup in her hand. "You did so well! We helped her not be sick and kept her happy. It was hard because she missed you lots." The female, Lilith, smiled down at me and her words made my breath stutter in my chest slightly. "Oh no! Don't cry! That's a good thing!" She looked so forlorn and I sniffled.
"I was so scared." I was only really able to mouth the word, my throat dry and my voice gone.
"Shhh, I know." She brushed some hair from my forehead before she reached into the cup and pull out a sliver of ice. "Come now, have some ice." She held it to my mouth and I let her slip it in. The ice had me giving a small sigh of relief as I closed my eyes. It melted slowly and I swallowed the water, my throat nearly crying out from relief at the moisture. "Come on, another one." She fed me another one and I hummed my thanks, closing my eyes and relaxed a fraction. Maeve was safe and even though I didn't know where I was, it was okay.
"I'm going to put some more numbing salve and healing enhancer salve on your wounds, okay?" At the doctor's soft voice I nodded. I felt like sleeping but another ice chip was held to my lips and I took it. Lilith patted my head gently when I did. I could hear the doctor moving away and Lilith giggled.
"I let baby sleep with you when no one was around. It stopped you both from fussing to know you were together." She whispered the words in a rather conspiratorial tone and the thought that she had done such a small kindness, letting me hold Maeve even when I wasn't aware of it, had tears flooding my eyes and leaking out from underneath them. "Shhh, have another one." Another ice chip was pressed to my mouth and I took it gratefully, trying hard to focus on that and not on the urge to cry.
Time passed slowly as the doctor came back over and he worked on the wounds on my chest, underneath my right breast and towards the center of my chest. It was odd, I could feel the coolness of the salve but there was no pain but a faint thrum that let me know I was hurting but there was no actual pain, not like I could remember. Lilith continued to feed me ice chips and each one soothed my throat, hydrating parched cells and making my breathing feel less pained in my chest.
My nose felt weird and that steady stream of air had my making a slight face and I struggled to reach up to touch it but someone grasped my hand as I managed to raise it off the bed. "No, no. Leave you oxygen line there. I know it's uncomfortable but you are still recovering and need the oxygen." The doctor's voice was soft and almost a whisper before the strange thing under my nose was adjusted and I cracked my eyes open. "You need it and you need some sleep. Doctor's order." The doctor said it almost a touch stern and I blinked at him before nodding.
My eyes fluttered closed and I was pulled once more into sleep.