"However, I have enchanted the carts to return to me if I lose them. As unlikely as it may be, I hope that my belongings will find their way back to me," the goblin continued, throwing Ominis' last hope overboard. He knew that Hazel's heart was too big to keep this goblin waiting for long. He had lost everything, after all, and she knew how that felt.
"I am tougher than you think. If I find out anything, I'll see what I can do," she said with a smile, and the goblin thanked her for it by kindly shaking her hand and wishing her well. As Hazel and Ominis walked hand in hand towards the village she sighed. "That he would do that to his own people. Ominis, Ranrok is about more than equality. He's about power and domination. If I follow a couple of his people, maybe I can find out something and help a poor friendly goblin" she explained herself to him. He did not like it. Hell, no, he didn't like it at all.
"You don't have to explain yourself to me. You know my opinion about putting yourself in danger. But I also know that we need to get rid of Ranrok before he gets too powerful. The sooner you know something about him and his plans the better, but you can't face that all alone. None of that, Hazel. It would kill me to know you are in danger and not be with you" he said fervently. Hazel stopped and put a hand to his cheek, at which he gasped in surprise. "I know. I would feel the same way. But it's even more dangerous for you. Spells can come silently, but they are never completely invisible. Ranrok wants to get at my magic. It's my fight," Hazel said lovingly. "Your battles are mine, too. And I am willing to fight any battle for you, blindness or not. Spells are rarely completely silent for me" Ominis explained his point grimly.
Hazel sighed. He was right, and she would react the same way he just did. "There's no class tomorrow. If we don't leave soon, it may already be too late. Let's go back to the castle and get ready before curfew starts. Before that, we have to be back outside. And in the morning, if all goes well, we'll sneak back" Hazel said to him as she sighed and dropped her hand, defeated by his arguments.
"What about Sebastian?" Ominis asked suddenly, when they were almost at the castle. "What about... no! It's way too suspicious when we're all gone. It's enough that he had detention again the other day for being in the restricted Section. He can cover for us," she said, shaking her head. If they got caught, it would be their first detention, so that wouldn't be so bad. But she knew that Sebastian could start to get into serious trouble.
"I guess you're right. Even if I would feel a little more comfortable with him. What we're going to do is dangerous. I-I can manage without my wand by now, but-" he continued, but Hazel squeaked excitedly.
"Really?! Have you been secretly practicing? Why didn't you say anything?!" she shot off, bouncing up and down joyfully in front of him. "Yes, Yes and because I wanted to surprise you...I messed up" he moaned unhappily. Actually, he had intended to show her that... more romantically. At least he was able to look her in the face for a short time. He still practiced diligently. He had found that the better he mastered it, the clearer this magical vision became. He would still have to practice a lot, but at least he was already able to see outlines clearly and sense colors quite darkly. He hoped he would eventually be able to actually see properly, one way or another. He would already be happy if he could see funny blurry color spots.
Magical seeing, however, worked differently than real seeing. It was more something he saw in his mind than with his eyes. Which only served as a medium to direct the whole thing, much like his wand. "Oh, but that's great news! Does that mean I don't have to worry quite so much when it comes to duels anymore?" she asked seriously. He shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "Well, I can't keep it up permanently yet, unfortunately. But if we finish the duels quickly, you won't have to worry about me" he said smiling.
She took his hand and pulled him along. "I'm glad of that. We'll just kick their asses, see what we find, and then head back. We should change clothes and take potions with us." "Healing potions and your medicine. Just in case," he said. She nodded.
When she came out of her room, she wore what in the common tongue would probably rather be called an "adventurer's outfit". She wore a white tunic that went to her just above the knee, over it a dark green underbust corset, which was closed in front with hooks and buttons. In addition, she wore tighter-fitting black cloth pants, dark boots with thick soles and her black travel cape. She also carried the dark shoulder bag, filled with various small violas. She had healing potions, energy potions and two strengthening potions.
Ominis was already waiting for her when she entered the common room. Her breath almost caught in her throat. He looked stunningly handsome in this predominantly black ensemble. Usually, he often just wore the uniform. "What is it?" Ominis asked, frowning as he heard the hitch in her breathing and the quickening of her heartbeat.
"Nothing.... You just look damn handsome," Hazel muttered, embarrassed that he could hear her reaction so clearly. He smirked and, after making sure no one was watching, let his eyes light up. They glowed softly in the same light as his wand. He let his gaze wander slowly from top to bottom, taking in everything his magic let him see, burning it into his memory. What he could see was beautiful. Only her hair was still loose and a bit wild. "You should at least tie your hair up" he smiled and turned her around and reached into her hair to tidy it up a bit.
She laughed softly and handed him her hair bow and the clip. " I see, you want it professionally styled" Ominis laughed back in response. He carefully combed through her hair with his fingers, then braided a few strands from front to back, but left the rest unbraided. When it was all tied back in a high ponytail with the bow, he turned her back around. She wore the necklace he had given her under her tunic so it wouldn't accidentally twinkle. He loosened the necklace and attached her clip to it, like a pendant, and put it back on her, letting it disappear under the tunic.
"I know you're not going anywhere without it, but if the moonlight reflects on it, it might give us away" he whispered in her ear before kissing her on the cheek. She nodded sheepishly.
"Where are you going so late?" they heard a voice behind them and turned around in surprise. Sebastian. "w-we were just-" she started stuttering, but he interrupted her. "Don't lie to me! I smell trouble a hundred yards upwind!" he rumbled, his eyebrows drawn together. Ominis groaned. "Not here" he said and pulled them both into Hazel's room. Once they were all inside, he closed the door and Sebastian snorted and crossed his arms. "So you guys are up to something. Tell me" he demanded.
Hazel's eyebrows drew together. "We were back in Lower Hogsfield tonight. We ran into-" Hazel began, but Ominis interrupted her. "Someone who needs help. Ranrok's people stole his art supplies and paintings, sort of his livelihood. Two carts full of art supplies and paintings," he concluded.
Hazel nodded and furrowed her brow again. Why had he interrupted her? "Anyway, we thought if we could get the carts back for him, we might have a chance to find out something about Ranrok's or Rookwood's plans. Any papers or maps or talk. And you" she poked Sebastian in the chest, "we wanted to keep out of this because you just got detention! You have to cover for us if anything comes up. We'll hurry and get back as soon as we can" Hazel finished her sentence.
She watched how Sebastian reacted. He frowned, then looked unhappy, then worried. "Are you sure you can do this?" was all he asked, "Absolutely. The camp isn't too far, and according to rumors, it's not very big. We'll make it" Hazel said confidently. Sebastian nodded and looked back and forth between Hazel and Ominis again.
"Good... but be careful! If you're not back by the end of curfew at 5:30, I'll be looking for you!" he admonished unhappily, scratching his neck. Hazel gave him a short hug. "Of course! We'll take care. See you later" the two said goodbye and slipped out of the castle.
Arriving in Lower Hogsfield, the way had been clear, fortunately, they left the village south, behind the market stall. "According to the map, it's about...500 meters, I think. The goblin meant that way" Hazel muttered thoughtfully as she looked at the map in the moonlight. "I can't see the map, but I know that the ruins should be south of the village and not far away. So it could be there," Ominis said with a faint smile.
His tone made Hazel listen and she looked at him, then smiled reassuringly and kissed him on the cheek. "Don't worry about it. We'll eavesdrop a bit, clear the carts and if we don't have a chance to get any papers without getting caught, we'll leave. Quick in, quick out" she said. Ominis sighed and just nodded. He was nervous. Visually more nervous than she was. Hazel would prefer to keep Ominis out of it, then she would have a calmer mind, but he hadn't let her talk him into it....
Following the map, they continued along the southern path. Actually, it was quite beautiful. The night was a bit cool, the breath of autumn was gradually in the air. The moon shone, casting soft light on everything, and the leaves rustled softly in the wind. It would have been romantic if they were not on a mission, so to speak.
"When it comes to the fight..." she began, but he interrupted her. "I will stand behind you. I know you'll fight better if you don't have to worry so much about me. But I can take care of myself too, little snake. Thanks to your... tip with magic... I've gotten significantly stronger. So don't worry. If it comes to that, I've got your back. But you have to promise me something, little snake," he said, grabbing her shoulder and forcing her to stop.
"What?" she asked hesitantly. "I-I... I sensed what this other magic was doing to you. Please don't use it unless it's absolutely necessary, okay?" he asked her, his brow furrowed in concern. She put her hand on his and nodded. "I'm not eager for the consequences either. I promise you, my blind serpent. I love you" she replied and he smiled. "I love you too" he replied as they continued walking.
"Maybe in the end it will be nice to go on adventures like this together. I have a feeling that's going to happen more often than we'd like" Hazel laughed softly. Ominis shrugged and grinned at her. "Only practice makes perfect" he said softly. Their path was leading them uphill when he suddenly looked around in concentration, his head swaying from side to side, his ears pricked up. He stretched out an arm in front of her so that she would stop.
"What is it?" she whispered, wand at the ready. "There's something there. To our right, in the woods. From the sounds, it's bigger than a deer. It sounds like an insect" he described and Hazel stiffened.
"Please tell me there are no giant spiders in the Magical World" she whispered, her eyes wide. His were getting big now, too. He nodded. That was it, "There's at least one on the loose here. Maybe two. Usually there are more, though, and in denser forests than this one. Most live in the Forbidden Forest" he explained. He pointed in the direction the sound was coming from.
"Is it heading towards us?" she asked in a whisper, and shuddered when she heard some kind of click or growl very close by. Then it was dead silent again. Hazel reacted faster than Ominis did.
Hearing a noise behind them, she threw herself in front of Ominis and she caught the poison herself, which the eight-legged ugliness tried to spit at him. She hit mostly the traveling cloak, on which the poison fortunately mostly rolled off. But where it hit her, it burned like hell. She screamed out and fired the fire spell at the arachnid that was far too close. It ran away screaming and burning before stopping dead in the distance.
" Fuck, my hand" Hazel grumbled, trying to wipe the poison off on her cloak. Ominis pulled a water bottle from his pocket and carefully took her hand in his. "Wait, hold still" he muttered and poured some of the cool water over it. The burning subsided somewhat and Hazel sighed with relief. When she looked at the skin, however, she groaned.
"If this goes on, I'll be the ugliest woman on earth. I didn't know their poison could be so acidic," she muttered unhappily. Ominis laughed softly. " You will always be the most beautiful creature on earth for me, Hazel." he cheered her up and kissed her on the forehead after he put the bottle away again. She grumbled.
"Yeah, but you can't see me either. Which sometimes I'm really grateful for" she sighed the last part. "Scars tell your life story, Hazel. They show how STRONG you were to get through what caused them and still be standing here. See it as a sign of strength and not as something that disfigures you, because it doesn't and it never will" he said and carefully ran his always cool fingers over the sore skin of her hand and stopped short when he felt that her skin had even developed blisters in one place.
"That must hurt terribly" he muttered anxiously. "It's considerably less bad than Seraph's poison or the torture curse. Can you reach into my bag and find a healing potion? It should help with that, right?" she muttered. Her bag was hanging to the left, and with her injured hand, she didn't want to reach in. "I think so. That should also reduce scarring." he said as he reached in and fished out a small vial of bright green liquid.
Hazel put away her wand after looking around once more and accepted the uncorked potion. When she had drunk it, they waited in silence for a few minutes while Ominis felt the blisters on the spot disappear and the spot only seemed warm and somewhat inflamed or sore. "How is it now? The hand still feels hot, but the blisters are gone" Ominis said, releasing her hand. She opened and closed it a few times and she made a sound that made it clear it wasn't ideal. "Much better. The area feels scalded and the skin feels a little tight, but it's bearable. I can use it normally again without it hurting too much. It's all good," she said. Ominis nodded and listened for a few silent minutes into the forest, but couldn't hear anything.
"Okay. Let's keep going then. The sooner we get it over with, the better" he grumbled softly and put his hand to her back, careful not to irritate her sensitive scar. A few minutes later they heard the howling of wolves in the distance, but it was far away.
"I like the sound of wolves singing. If you listen very carefully, you can hear that it has many different meanings," Hazel sighed happily when she heard the sound. Ominis made a questioning noise. "Oh it can sound quite aggressive and initiate a fight between two packs. It can sound like it's retreating. It can deliver messages, from pack to pack and clan to clan. Or they may simply sing to the moon. When I was at home in the distant forest, I often listened to them" Hazel mused as they saw distant flares and fires glowing before them. "That must be it" Hazel then murmured softly and motioned Ominis to move off the path with her and stay crouched. Hazel focused on the camp glowing in the distance in the ruins, as did Ominis.
He was about to warn her when there was a loud "Moo!" behind them and Hazel was pushed around by a wet snout. "What..." escaped her lips and Ominis suppressed a laugh. Hazel stood up crouching and pushed the bullock's head away from her. "We don't have time to play Millie," she grumbled.
"Millie?" laughed Ominis softly behind her. "Everything that Moos is called Millie. Basta!" she growled. The ox seemed eager to be noticed by Hazel, so she quickly scratched its ears to get it to be quiet. "I guess almost all animals like you, don't they?" ominis muttered. He reached his hand carefully to the ox's fur and petted the animal. "It's a curse," Hazel groaned.
She picked a flower and held it out to the animal. Again it made a soft "moo" sound, ate the flower, and finally turned around. Hazel sighed with relief when the animal finally disappeared and ducked back into the bushes, next to Ominis.
"We should see how big the camp is first. After that, we'll observe their movements and how many there are and locate our target" Hazel explained quietly. Ominis heard that she, without noticing it herself, had sealed off any feeling. Now she wanted to think tactically. Not to make any mistakes and not to endanger Ominis more than necessary. So Ominis gave in and followed her. He was of little use to her, unfortunately.
The camp had been set in old ruins. It had 2 watchtowers made of rickety wood. It all looked a bit makeshift, but there was only one real entrance. Further back in the camp were the two carts that bumped against the locked iron gates with a soft >clang< as they tried to follow the enchantment the owner had put on them and past the gates, there was a mound where several tents were, including one that was more striking with golden decorations. Visible at that time were only a few goblins.
"Arn will regret not joining us. If he doesn't come to his senses, he will have to suffer even more than just losing his weird art" laughed one of the guards so loud that Hazel and Ominis could hear everything clearly. In the meantime, they had cast the invisibility spell on themselves and crept close to the fence.
"Careful," Ominis breathed behind her as he noticed a guard behind them. Through his wand he could also perceive them invisibly, but he had to keep his wand low and therefore did not see as much as he would like. The red glow was also dimly perceptible in the darkness.
As the guard walked past them, it brushed Hazel. They hadn't been able to move, standing very close to the compound's makeshift fence, and one movement could have given them right away. "Petrifficus Totalus" Ominis whispered, aiming at the goblin who was about to turn to face them. He fell into the bushes with a soft sound, motionless. "Clinch curse. He's out of action for several hours" Ominis murmured softly to her.
Since there was only one entrance, they had to go through there whether they liked it or not. "Can you do the same with the others if I get you close to them?" Hazel asked him quietly. He made an approving sound and held himself very close to her as she began to creep toward the entrance. "We should have killed that traitor right away" grumbled the guard on the little tower above them. Apparently still in response to the other goblin earlier. Hazel felt anger join the other feelings behind her mental fortress. They quickly slipped through the makeshift fence opening and left toward a staircase that led to the first small tower. Hazel stood behind the goblin and Ominis beside it as it looked out at the forest. "Petrifficus Totalus," Ominis muttered, and Hazel quietly caught the goblin and laid it just as quietly on the ground. They went back down the stairs and sneaked past the entrance to the right side to also eliminate the goblin in the tower in the same way. >Everything is still going perfectly< Hazel thought. If they managed to eliminate all of them without being seen, everything would be ideal.
The other Two Guards they could see were by the tents, not paying attention to the main courtyard where Hazel and Ominis were sneaking around. "Let's free the carts as quietly as we can. Maybe that will distract them enough for us to grab some papers" Hazel breathed to Ominis. He gently grabbed her sleeve.
"That's too dangerous. What if they notice us?" he interjected. Hazel put her hand on his and squeezed it gently. "Don't worry. We'll open the gate and take cover" she breathed. Arriving at the gate, she saw that it was not particularly well locked. Only some kind of a bar made of metal prevented the carts from opening the gate. It squeaked softly as Hazel quickly pulled it away upwards, and when the gates opened with another >clang<, Hazel and Ominis hustled behind the stairs that led up the hill next to the gates.
"Something is wrong here!" shouted one of the goblins on the hill, looking up searchingly at the two towers as he saw the carts moving freely around, which began to make their way out. He ran down the stairs and they just managed to dodge him as he ran past them, but the invisibility spell was not perfect. They were invisible, but their movements could not fool the eye if someone got too close.
The goblin drew his axe just as fast as Hazel hurled him to the other side of the camp with "Depulso!". With that, the invisibility spells vanished into thin air and a fight broke out. There were more goblins than they had thought. Some came rushing out of the tents when they heard the sounds of battle.
Most of the goblins didn't know any real spells and could only actually use a few. But their armor was enchanted and some spells bounced off them. Ominis kept his word and had retreated to the entrance, his eyes now glowing red. Instead of using his wand, he now took in his surroundings with his eyes, as he usually did with his wand. He kept an eye on Hazel and protected her and himself with various defensive spells, taking advantage of the goblins being distracted by Hazel's sheer attacking fury to knock out the goblins closest to him with the Clutching Curse.
It wasn't an easy fight. Hazel had little to counter the sharp weapons of the goblins. More and more goblins came out of their hiding places and Hazel also started to take a few hits. In between, Hazel had to lure one or the other goblin away from Ominis again, who kept trying to knock out those close to him with the curse and gave Hazel one new shield after another. But so the goblins came closer and closer to Hazel and she was not always fast enough with her shield.
"Ouch!" she cried out as one sliced along her arm with his dagger before she could fling him away with a spell. She felt the blood trickle down her hand, but she ignored it.
One cut into her upper arm, once one of the goblins stabbed his boot knife into her side, one managed to give her a cut on her cheek. When she realized that she didn't have enough to counter them - Ominis was trying his best to protect them both, but he was also getting into trouble and demanding too much of her attention - she yelled at Ominis.
" Take cover!" was all she yelled. He knew exactly what that meant. She wouldn't be able to pay attention to him when she unleashed her Ancient Magic. He took advantage of the fact that the goblins with him were distracted by this shout and slipped out of the camp behind a pile of rocks.
Ancient magic was wild and untamed. It burned in her veins and mercilessly made its way. It was the most primal magic that existed in this world. And she had some command over it, but no unfailing control. She did not know how her wish embedded itself in the whispered words that surrounded her when the magic awoke. Her wish was easy: the fighting would stop, the goblins would disappear. But what she unleashed was so much more.
A bluish white glow arose around them. It spread in waves, enveloping each of the goblins with an electric buzz. The goblins cried out as the magic swept them off their feet and through the air like a hurricane. Lightning shot from one, to the other goblin, until the web of lightning was completely around them. She was barely aware of it all. Her vision became blurry as this unbridled magic rushed through her. She felt the electric buzzing take hold of her as well, the magic burning painfully inside her and raging out.
As a familiar pain shot through her body, the magic broke apart, the dead goblins fell to the ground, the storm and the electric magic faded, as did the glow in the night. Left behind was Hazel, who fell to the ground unconscious. Ancient magic.... came with a price.
"HAZEL!" Ominis screamed as he realized what had happened. When he was sure that this wild magic had disappeared, he navigated to her with his wand. "Hazel, wake up! Please wake up!" he called to her, examining her body frantically. He found a few bleeding spots, but many of the wounds - as much as they bled - seemed to be more superficial in nature.
He hurriedly rummaged through her bag and drained her one of the healing potions and looked closely at the wounds he had found with his wand. Scratches and cuts were closing, but he had to turn her sideways. He had noticed that her nose was bleeding incessantly. It did not stop even with the potion. But the stitch in her side and the cut on her left arm also worried him a bit, although the bleeding on the side had stopped. The goblin had managed to pierce the reinforced corsage and he wasn't sure how deep the knife had gone.
Without further ado, after covering the cut in the arm with a bandage wrapped crookedly - just to be on the safe side - he decided to open the underbust corset to get at the stab wound. As soon as the slight pressure, caused by the corset, had subsided, a small stream of blood seeped out of it.
"Damn" he muttered. He could feel that the wound was not deep and hoped that maybe he could close it with another potion. Maybe then her nose would finally stop bleeding too.
He turned Hazel onto her back again and poured her another healing potion, then put a provisional bandage around her waist, glad that he had thought of some bandages, and pulled the tunic back down. He stuffed the corsage into her bag, hung it around himself and lifted Hazel up in his arms, setting her down by the fence so that she was sitting upright.
"Hazel, wake the fuck up!" he whispered desperately, feeling her forehead. She was warm. Not feverish. More like how her body was always overheated after she'd had a seizure from the curse, before she'd always get cold. The power of the magic must have triggered a seizure in the end. That's why the magic had ended so abruptly and she had fainted, he mentally counted one and one together.
>clang< sounded behind him again, and he winced. Those damn carts, he thought. He hurled a spell at the obstacle the cart had bumped into and leaned back towards Hazel as the carts slowly made their way again. Ominis searched the bag for her medicine and poured her that potion as well. He listened to her heartbeat and her breathing, the heartbeat rapid, the breaths steady and deep. Now and then a twitch went through her body, but otherwise nothing seemed to be wrong with her, except her bleeding nose and the almost healed wound on her side or the cut in her arm.
When she almost tipped sideways, he put his robe under her head and laid her sideways to the fence so she couldn't turn around and swallow or inhale all the blood dripping from her nose. Then he listened to his surroundings and quickly made his way to the main tent. Hazel would blame him forever if the camp was already empty and none of them had looked for any clues about Rookwood or Ranrok. With his wand, he just roughly scanned the rows.
He found inventory lists, lists of place names, maps. He stuffed everything he could grab into his pocket and went back to Hazel. It wouldn't be long before anyone would be checking on the people here. He pulled his robe back on and hoisted Hazel onto one of the carts he had been chasing. They were quite slow, but they wandered in exactly the direction they needed to go.
When Hazel opened her eyes with a groan, she saw the starry sky above her. "Wh-what-" she began in a whisper, but her voice broke and she coughed. "SHIT!" she moaned, holding her right side before groaning again as her left arm hurt.
"Hazel!" Ominis exclaimed in relief. He was sitting next to her on the cart and had been paying attention to the surroundings and her heartbeat the whole time. He carefully helped her up and handed her his handkerchief when he saw that her nose was still dripping.
"I'm glad the nosebleed has subsided a bit. Five minutes ago it was a real torrent. You really need to learn how to use this magic, little snake," Ominis said in a quivering voice. He had been really worried about Hazel. Hazel nodded dazedly and carefully pulled up her tunic to inspect the bandage. She looked under it and groaned. Separating the bandage hurt, but the wound was no longer bleeding. It was almost healed, but it burned and stung painfully.
"I guess it was naive to think this could be easy, wasn't it?" she asked bitterly. "Probably," was all Ominis replied. "How are you?" he then asked, concerned. He let his eyes light up with the Seeing Magic again and looked at her closely. He noticed that she was having trouble balancing the swaying of the cart, and so he pressed her against his side so that she would lean against him.
"Next time, take Sebastian with you. I was a fool to think I could help you. I'm sorry, Hazel," he whispered in her ear. She shook her head. "Let's practice together. You teach me more about defensive magic, and I'll figure out how to make you fight better. That way we both minimize our weak spots" she muttered exhaustedly.
"Maybe the people from the Crossed Wands can help us with that, first of all Sebastian of course" Ominis said smiling at that. "Sebastian will like that. He can put on that face that says: I told you you needed my help. And then grin smugly. Yeah, he'll definitely like that" Hazel replied with a suppressed laugh that ended in a groan. She sat up shakily again and inspected her arm. The bandage was relatively loose and not wrapped very neatly, although it was slowly turning reddish.
Hazel groaned as she instinctively held onto Ominis with her injured arm as the cart ran over something and nearly threw her off with it. Ominis quickly held her and continued to look at her with concern. "What is it?" he asked. "You're going to have to redo that bandage. On my arm... It's too loose and bleeding through," she muttered through clenched teeth.
"Damn, it had stopped bleeding a moment ago. Here, lie down and you won't have to struggle so much with your balance. I'll...make you a new one around" he directed as he searched the bag for the bandages. Groaning, Hazel slid backwards in the cart so that she was leaning against one of the boxes inside. Leaning carefully against the side of the cart now... It hadn't been her best idea, she realized. Suppressing a groan of pain, she shifted slightly to separate her side a bit from the cart wall.
She didn't know what to do. Her nose was still bleeding, her right side stung uncomfortably when something touched it, and she could barely lift her left arm. She propped her right elbow a little against the side of the cart while holding the handkerchief to her nose with her hand and just let her left arm dangle.
As Ominis slid back to her, she almost forgot about the handkerchief and helped him free her arm. The sleeve of the tunic had been completely cut open, so it was easy to knock her cloak aside and just flip the sleeve back.
Carefully, Ominis tried to stretch her arm forward. "Your nose..." he reminded her softly as he did so, and she held the handkerchief to it again. He noticed how much she was gritting her teeth right now as he took care of her arm.
"Does it hurt much? Can you stretch your arm like that on your own?" he asked her, letting go of her arm. She made a pained sound, but held her arm up as best as she could, even if it made her shake a little. "This will probably hurt, darling, but see how you can move it. If any tendons are injured, we'll have to go to Noreen with it, too," he said quietly.
She first moved the fingers before testing first the wrist and then the elbow. The cut went once from the upper arm down to the wrist and had only just missed the arteries, Ominis realized in shock. He had had a narrow view of the cut, since it had stopped bleeding. Hazel grumbled and whimpered with every movement, but the movements were possible and that was what was important.
"Okay, hold still" Ominis then said to her intently as he began to clean the wound a bit with water before finally wrapping the bandage tightly around her arm. "Wait" she muttered as she noticed how numb her arm felt. "What is it?" Ominis asked her worriedly, glancing at her.
The concentration he needed to let the vision spell pass over his eyes was straining him. She saw that clearly. "Sorry... maybe it's nothing. I can move everything and all but... My arm feels funny. It feels kind of numb, sort of. M-Maybe we'll go see Noreen after all" she murmured softly. She raised her eyes when she felt something on her arm. Faintly but noticeably.
When Ominis saw that she had lifted her head in surprise, he smiled sadly and continued wrapping the bandage. "It's probably just the cut and the blood you lost today. But you're right, even though she'll want an explanation. The nosebleed could have easily been explained by a fall or something, but a cut that long... Guess we'll have to make use of the oath of silence Fig took from her. But either way, we have to sneak into the common room and change first. Then we can go to the hospital wing unhindered if we hide your arm a bit. After all, you just bumped your head when you fell out of bed because of a nightmare and just barely caught me in the common room to help you" he said mischievously and winked at her. Hazel smiled weakly and slumped down a bit, exhausted. "Are you okay?" Ominis asked when he was done.
Hazel found the bandage uncomfortable because it pressed on the cut, but she knew that this pressure was necessary to stop the bleeding. He had bandaged her arm at a slight angle, so she could just lay it along her stomach so it wouldn't interfere. "Need to," she said. Her voice trembled a little as she tried not to let the pain get to her so much and halfway hide it behind her wall. "No, my little snake. You don't have to hide anything from me" he murmured sadly when he heard that. She had averted her eyes and he noticed that she was staring blankly into the dark forest.
He gently put a hand to her cheek and forced her to look at him. One last time he concentrated to look into her face. He kissed her gently on the forehead as he felt a tear drip onto his hand. Lovingly, he took the handkerchief from her and examined her nose. "Does it hurt somehow?" he asked her gently, trying to find the reason for the bleeding, which still hadn't really stopped. He gently pressed on the bridge of her nose and under her eyes on the bones, but everything was okay there. He frowned worriedly.
"It has to be the Ancient Magic. It raced through my veins like raging fire. It'll stop," Hazel muttered under her breath. Ominis held out a folded bandage to her, instead of the already completely bled through handkerchief. The last one he had found in his pocket. She sniffled softly and accepted the bandage with thanks. He sat down close to her and pulled her head to his shoulder so that she could relax a bit while he closed his eyes.
Letting his vision pass over his eyes gave him a headache at some point, so he simply enjoyed the quiet darkness with their closeness as the carts slowly rocked and bumped toward Lower Hogsfield. If they were walking, they would have been there 3 times already, Ominis thought. But he couldn't do that to her right now, she had just fainted.
A bit clumsy with her bandaged arm, she shivered and slid closer to him. He spread his robe along his arm, so that she could warm herself a little better against him and made a worried sound. That she was shivering now could be the normal side effect of the curse and her magic. However, he had no idea how much blood she had lost today. She was steadily losing some through her nose as well.
"It's all right, my love. I'm just tired and a little cold. Nothing I can't handle," she murmured. Then she was asleep. "Oh Hazel" he murmured worriedly into her hair. In a few minutes he would have to wake her again. Unfortunately, to get into the castle unseen, she would have to be able to walk herself.
"Hazel, darling. We're almost there" he gently woke her five minutes later. "i'mawake" she mumbled sleepily and exhaustedly as she opened her eyes and looked around in confusion, then tried to rub her injured arm over her eyes, but let it stay right there. She made a frustrated sound as she became aware of all her injuries and pressed the bandage to her dripping nose with her healthy hand in frustration. Ominis smiled good-naturedly as the carts finally stopped. They were now standing near the shore, at the edge of the little village.
"Come here, I'll help you" Ominis said softly as Hazel struggled to get off the cart. She practically fell into his arms, having trouble keeping herself upright. "Careful" he murmured good-naturedly and wrapped her tightly in his arms. She leaned completely against him for a short while to get used to standing without getting dizzy, which was anything but easy at that moment. She was glad that the village slept at night.
Alerted by the sounds, Arn - the artistic goblin - got up in surprise from the shore where he had been sitting and came running to them. "For heaven's sake! Who did that to you?" the goblin asked, frantic when he saw what Hazel looked like. Pale as a ghost, a weary shadow lying on her face, her posture, more than poor, straight. He noticed the bandage on her arm, the rips in her clothes, and how she clung to Ominis for support. But she smiled bravely.
"That's nothing to talk about. I-I will go to the castle to see the nurse. It will be... all right" she said. Her voice sounded merely tired, otherwise strong, except for the slight tremor. The goblin's gaze went from Hazel to the two carts, which he seemed to have just noticed. His face showed first joy, then almost anger.
"Heavens, you really did it! Why did you risk your life for this?" the goblin grumbled, not knowing whether to be grateful or angry. These students had sacrificed their lives for a few paintings, brushes and colors. For him. And they didn't even know each other.
"Because sometimes we have to be the change ourselves. You needed help. So we helped. I help people with things all the time. Why not you?" Hazel said, trying hard to make her voice sound firm. The goblin shook his head.
"Because these people are dangerous. Homework can't hurt you" the goblin replied, stunned. Ominis laughed softly. "Then you don't know our greenhouse" Ominis replied. His voice sounded slightly bitter at that. Again the goblin shook his head. Then he looked at Ominis. "I thank you both. Really. But you better get your girlfriend to a healer quickly. I hope she'll be all right. Honestly," Arn said. He gave Hazel another grateful but critical look before jumping on one of the carts and taking a look at his belongings.
"Come," Ominis murmured, lifting her carefully in his arms. "You can rest a little longer until we reach the castle. You need your strength to sneak in" he grumbled and marched off.