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The Lark and the Rose
Minee
Lark froze, the gloves she'd been pouring protective spells into forgotten. "What...what did you say?" she asked her student Sandry, the words had to work past the lump in her throat and her hands shook.
"Rosethorn's indicator turned white, she has the pox."
Lark looked at Sandry whose lips trembled and bright blue eyes filled with tears. Lark took a moment to steady herself; she had to be strong for everyone.
"Tell�" Lark's voice came out as dry as sandpaper so she cleared her throat. "Tell Rosethorn to wait until I get there, we're going to see if Moonstream will let her come home."
While Sandry contacted Tris, Lark took a few deep breaths and made herself stop thinking about all of the horrible things that this meant, Rosethorn wasn't going to die, she was going to come home and get better and that was that. She told Sandry the same thing and put her hands in her pockets so Sandry couldn't see them shake.
"Is Dedicate Superior Moonstream in?" Lark asked the Dedicate outside of Moonstream's office.
"She is," the Dedicate said standing up. "Be quick, she's very busy," he said opening the door for them.
They walked in as Moonstream looked up from studying the most recent reports Crane had sent to her.
"Lark, hello, can you believe this woman Pearldrop? I have nine novices and fourteen dedicates infected with the blue pox," Moonstream said tiredly and Lark realized she looked ten years older.
"Fifteen dedicates,� Lark said softly, �we just found out that Rosethorn has been infected.
Moonstream drew the Gods' Circle on her chest. "I'll have a bed for her prepared in the infirmary immediately."
"That's the reason for my visit, I would like to take Rosethorn home and care for her myself."
"Lark, I'm sorry but that's impossible, you have four charges to protect."
"She needs to be home, around her plants and the people who love her. Sandry and I can charm her room and keep the sickness in and we will all take the necessary precautions. You know the pox isn't carried through the air and isn't easily passed from person to person by physical contact."
Moonstream was quiet for a few moments and then she spoke, "This is completely unorthodox and against procedure, but I'll make an exception this once. Though if anyone at Discipline contracts the pox they both go to the infirmary, understood?" she asked and Lark nodded.
Moonstream pulled out several pieces of parchment and began writing. "These are the passes you'll need, if you require anything else come to me." Moonstream signed the papers and then stamped them with her seal. "Give Rosethorn my best," she said as she handed the papers to Lark. "If you'll excuse me I have to visit the infirmary," she laid a hand on Lark's shoulder. "I have every faith that Crane will soon find a cure."
That night, after they had brought Rosethorn home, Lark walked to the doorway that gleamed with protective spells and runes. She'd seen the children off to bed and now she was going to check on Rosie. Lark opened the door and Rosethorn looked up from her notes and smiled, a smile few people saw on a regular basis.
�I brought you some tea, don�t worry, it�s not willowbark, just chamomile.�
�Thank you,� said Rosethorn accepting the cup.
Lark sat down beside her. �No more notes, Briar has plenty to give Crane in the morning and you have all day tomorrow to make more notes.� Lark waited while Rosethorn reluctantly finished a few more lines of her notes and then she put the notes in her nightstand drawer and Lark put her lap desk under the bed.
�How�s Briar? I worry about that boy, after what happened to his friend Flick��
�He�s as well as can be expected under the circumstances, he�s determined to make sure you get better and you know how he is when he makes up his mind about something.�
Rosethorn dryly chuckled and then said, �How are the girls?�
�They�re all trying not to worry, but they love you, so they worry anyway.� Lark got up and extinguished the lamps in the room leaving a single candle burning on the bedside table. She sat back down and held Rosethorn�s hand.
�Rosie?�
�Yes?�
�Do you ever regret not marrying Crane?�
�Of course not, after I realized I could never feel for him the way I felt for you there was never anything to regret,� she said softly.
�But you could have had a family, the greenhouse, you would have been somewhere else, safe, instead of stuck in the Mire when the pox started,� Lark protested bitterly.
�Lark, what has you talking like this? I have no regrets about my life. My time with you, with the children, has been the happiest in my life, you five are my family, and I could never want anything more.�
�Rosie�� Lark whispered squeezing the other woman�s hand; she tried to keep her tears at bay and failed.
�Everything is going to turn out for the best, my love. Now I need my rest, don�t stay up too late watching over me.�
�I won�t,� said Lark kissing Rosethorn�s hand through her face mask, she stayed there the rest of the night watching the woman she loved sleep.
The next two days went slowly for Lark, she watched over Rosethorn as much as she could without shirking her other responsibilities. The fact that no more keys to unlock the pox had been found, lay like a weight on her soul. Rosethorn had been fine the day before, just tired with only a shadow of a fever, but now her eyes were becoming glassy and her lips were dry and peeling, and worst of all her fever was rising. Lark was sitting by the window in her workroom trying not to look at the empty garden where she wished Rosethorn was, when she heard the hub bell ring. Lark listened numbly; it was ringing in the pattern that meant a Dedicate had died. She looked in on Sandry and Daja who were sitting with Rosethorn. They had heard it too.
Rosethorn looked anxiously up at Lark, �Who�.�
�I don�t know, Daja, will you help me make us some tea?�
�Sure,� Daja said getting up. Once by the door she discarded her gloves, mask and lab coat in a spelled container. Outside of the door was a basin of water that was spelled to stay hot and filled with herbs for purification. Daja washed her hands and then went into the kitchen. Lark started the water while Daja got out the cups and sat them on the table. As Lark took the tea from the cupboard she cold feel Rosethorn�s power in the herbs and she closed her eyes to stop an onslaught of tears, now was not the time for crying. She served Rosie and Sandry their tea and then she went back to the kitchen and sat with Daja. Lark told Daja a few stories about Traders she met and then Daja told Lark about a letter from the Tenth Caravan Idaram. When she had free time Daja was going to try to make a small plant out of metal as she had done with the vine. Lark smiled, Daja was so different from when she had first arrived, she no longer looked lost and alone, she now had a real family, even though they weren�t Traders.
�Lark�� Daja began, biting her lip.
�Yes?�
�Rosethorn�do you think she�ll be okay, honestly?�
Lark smiled, Daja always wanted the truth, �Honestly I don�t know, but we have to have faith that everything will work out. Crane, Briar, and Tris are working on a cure and with three minds as stubborn as theirs I wager they will have a cure very soon.�
A little while later Daja decided to go to the forge and Lark was left alone as the day wore on.
After lunch Lark sat with Rosethorn and watched her fall into an uneasy sleep. Her life in the last few years had been wonderful, never boring, that was for sure, she�d survived earthquakes, pirates, wildfires, and rearing four very different children that had been easy for her to love�no, life was never boring at Discipline Cottage. Before the children came they had had other wards, children with discipline problems, those that had been abused, any child who hadn�t fit in at the dorms or who had needed one-on-one care, but never in her ten years of teaching, had four children so entirely stolen her heart, and she knew Rosethorn loved them just as much. Lark couldn�t imagine not having Rosethorn to share the rest of her life, the rest of the children�s lives with. Someone had to be there to watch Briar grow into a strong handsome man, to watch the girls fall in love, to watch them all make their places in the world, and she couldn�t do it alone.
Early that evening word came that Henna had been the one to succumb to the pox.
Daja was still with Frostpine and Lark sent Sandry to the Water Temple to check on their supplies, it was then that she told Rosethorn that Henna had died. Neither bothered to hold back tears as they reminisced about the Water Temple Dedicate, in their younger days the three had been friends, but then Lark and Rosethorn moved into Discipline and Henna began to travel and they grew apart, and now she was dead. That night Lark stayed with Rosethorn the whole night, giving her water when she woke in the middle of the night gasping for it, and as she sat there she drifted off to sleep every now and then but she never ceased her vigil.
Lark rose the next morning and checked on Rosethorn, who for the moment, was sleeping peacefully. Lark went to wake the children when she and found all four of them asleep in the main room instead of their beds, she would have to get cots for them if they wanted to sleep down there from now on, she couldn�t blame them. She woke Briar and Tris so they could eat breakfast and go to the lab and a little while later she woke Sandry and Daja, when they started eating Lark made a tray for Rosethorn, put on her protective gear and then went in, what she saw almost made her drop her tray, in the forty minutes that she had been gone Rosethorn had broken out in blue spots.
�Oh, Rosie��
�Don�t I look beautiful?� she replied with a bitter smile as she raised a blue spotted hand.
This made it so much more real, to actually see the blue spots, how could it have happened so quickly?
Lark steeled herself, everything was going to be okay, she just had to believe that. �I�ll go get a healer,� she sat the tray on the bedside table and then asked Sandry and Daja to sit with her while she was away.
A few hours later the healer left, leaving detailed instructions for Rosethorn�s care. Lark had just finished rubbing yarrow balm over Rosethorn�s skin and now she was knitting while Rosethorn slept. The news that eight more keys had been found that morning was a small comfort to her. She was worried and�scared. Rosethorn had taken her under her wing when she had first arrived at Winding Circle, reluctantly of course. Lark had felt so out of place, all of a sudden she had magic and she was rooted to one place after having spent her whole life traveling but after a month of knowing Rosethorn they had become good friends and the next Lark knew she was in love. She�d kept it a secret from Rosie who was involved with Crane at the time. Two years later Rosethorn and Crane had broken up and still Lark had remained silent. She�d had small brief affairs, even one with Henna, but no one could measure up to Rosethorn, in all of her travels there had never been anyone like Rosethorn. Lark�s life had changed for the better, one rainy night ten years ago.
Lark and Rosethorn took frequent evening walks together around Winding Circle, both had busy schedules during the day and their walks were a chance for them to talk. One night they had been caught far from the Earth Temple dormitories when it had begun to rain. It had been summer and the warm rain fell in big fat droplets, Rosethorn always loved the rain, it seemed to nourish her as much as it did her plants. Lark had watched laughing as Rosethorn danced around, her arms wide open, welcoming it. She had grabbed Lark�s hands and they had spun around laughing as the rain soaked through their green habits. Lark had never seen Rosethorn so carefree and her smile had been�radiant. They had stopped, out of breath and Rosethorn had kissed her full on the mouth and Lark had responded eagerly. It seemed like they kissed for hours, Lark was the first to pull away and look into Rosethorn�s big brown eyes. �Rosie�� she said breathlessly, the name almost a whisper.
�Lark, tell me I�m not imagining things, that you might care for me as more than a friend.�
Lark held tight to Rosethorn�s hand, could it be that this was real and not a dream from the depths of her imagination.
�I love you, Rosie. I�I didn�t think you liked�women,� Lark spoke softly, sure that this wonderful dream was going to vanish at any moment.
�I didn�t think I did either, not until I met you.�
Lark put down her knitting and looked at Rosethorn, she was going to get well, their life together wasn�t over yet.
That evening Lark could hardly bear to leave Rosethorn and look after the children but she made herself. She fed them, talked to them, and soothed their worries as best she could. She wanted that cure so badly, and she was helpless to do anything to help. She barely slept that night, always ready to get Rosethorn willowbark tea, or rub yarrow balm on her fevered skin. The next day dawned gray and rainy; it seemed to bring with it a sense of foreboding. As Lark looked out the window and the dreary landscape she wondered if it would be the last morning Rosethorn would ever see. The day wore slowly on and then Rosethorn began to hallucinate. Lark sat her gloved hand on Rosethorn�s as she whispered soothing endearments trying to calm the other woman down but it didn�t help. Ten more keys had been found that day but Lark didn�t care, she didn�t care about how many keys they had, she wanted the cure now. She knew her impatience was childish so she blamed it on her lack of sleep and made herself a cup of chamomile tea.
Late at night she was at her post by Rosethorn�s bed when an idea struck her. She had shown a small aptitude for healing when she had first come to Winding Circle, not much but maybe if she tried she might be able to help hold off the progression of the pox until they found a cure. Lark grabbed Rosethorn�s hand and closing her eyes she pushed everything out of her mind. She felt her power course through her body and she gathered some of that power and slowly let it flow from her body into Rosethorn�s. A few minutes later Lark opened her eyes and saw Rosethorn staring up at her, a frown on her face.
�Stop that you�need to keep your magic all�of it. Stay healthy for the children�don�t waste it on me.� Rosethorn drifted back to sleep before Lark could reply. Lark stopped herself from weeping bitterly, she wasn�t wasting her magic, she had enough to fight off the pox until a cure could be found, but what use was her magic if Rosethorn was dead by then? She wasn�t sure she could live without Rosie.
The next day Rosethorn was no better and no worse. Briar, through Sandry, informed Lark that Crane believed all the keys had been found and they were now trying to formulate a cure. For the first time in days, Lark felt optimistic as the first seeds of hope planted themselves in her heart.
Lark woke up the next day and looked out to see the day was bright and sunny. She opened the curtains more and let the sunlight flood the room. It had been another near sleepless night, Rosethorn had begun to hallucinate more frequently during the night and Lark had stayed with her, a part of her wondered how much longer she could keep this up, sleeping whenever she had a few spare minutes, she couldn�t even remember the last time she�d had a full meal. If Rosethorn knew Lark was sure she�d never hear the end of it. She resolved herself to eat a hearty meal as soon as she could. She gently touched Rosethorn�s cheek, in the process giving Rosethorn more of her magic. Lark reasoned that there was only a small chance she had been exposed to the pox and even if she had been her small reserve of magic would keep it at bay for a few more days, and by then they�d have a cure�hopefully. Deciding it was worth the risk she added more magic to Rosethorn�s reserves. As soon as she had fed everyone she finally sat down and ate something. By the end of the day she was disappointed to hear that they hadn�t found a cure yet but Rosethorn�s spots had begun to disappear and Lark hoped that this nightmare was finally beginning to end.
The day after was much the same and Lark went around the house cleaning and keeping busy while Sandry and Daja took turns sitting with the sleeping Rosethorn. That night Lark sat in the chair asleep, when, several hours before dawn she heard a knock at the door, the messenger of hope had arrived, Crane had a cure. Lark anxiously watched as Crane administered a dose of the cure to Rosie. He told her he didn�t know how long it would take to have an effect but throughout that day Lark was convinced that now everything was going to be okay. Rosethorn�s sleep was now peaceful and her breathing, regular, her fever had gone down immensely and the hallucinations had stopped. Lark had allowed Rosethorn to sleep without a guardian that afternoon. She, Frostpine, Crane and the children were all sitting at the kitchen table, talking about Rosethorn, stories that made them laugh, even if there was an undertone of fear and uncertainty. Frostpine had just finished telling them how he and Rosethorn had first met.
�So she really began yelling at you because you went within one foot of her garden?� asked Tris smiling.
�Yes, I had come looking for Lark and I went around back and saw Rosethorn so I walked towards her and she just bolted up and ordered me to stop, no �big lug� was going to step on her precious plants. I thought she was Shurri Firesword come down to smite me.�
Briar laughed, �That�s Rosethorn.�
�I�m going to go check on her,� said Daja getting up, she went to Rosethorn�s room and stuck her head in, at that moment they all heard a raspy voice. Lark had never felt so much relief as she heard Rosethorn�s voice drifting to her ears. Before she knew what she was doing, Lark ran into her room, while everyone else went to see Rosethorn, and burst into tears the moment she shut the door. Rosethorn was going to be all right, she was awake, and talking, and from what Lark had heard, still the same Rosethorn. Lark collapsed on her bed and let herself cry tears of relief, this horrible nightmare that had been her life for the last week was finally over. She then realized she was laughing and crying at the same time. Taking a deep breath she found a handkerchief on her dresser and she dried her tears. Crane knocked on her door and told her that Rosethorn wanted to see her. Lark walked across the hall to Rosethorn�s room, everyone else had left and Lark shut the door behind her not bothering to put on any of the protective gear. Rosethorn was sitting up, pillows propped behind her, with a cup of tea in her hands. Lark was immediately at her side, �Beloved, I can�t tell you how glad I am that you�re awake,� said Lark kissing her hand.
�I suppose I can say I missed seeing your beautiful face if you don�t let it got to your head,� said Rosethorn softly with a smile. Lark laughed, nothing could change her Rosie.
Rosethorn gave her a severe look, �I think I remember telling you not to use magic on me, but you did, I can feel it. What were you going to do if you would have gotten sick?�
�What was I going to do if you were to die?� Lark retorted, �I love those children but I can�t picture my life without you, I�ve been spoiled for too many years.�
Rosethorn�s expression softened, �You look exhausted, and you should take a nap.�
�I�m fine now that you�re awake, I should have known you were too stubborn to die on me.�
Lark still didn�t get a decent amount of sleep over the next few days, Rosethorn was still mending but her cough still persisted and was starting to get worse, on the fourth day after they had given her the cure, her cough got even worse and she was having trouble breathing. Rosethorn woke up from a nap unable to breathe lying down so Lark helped her sit up while she propped more pillows behind her. As Lark sat her hand on Rosethorn�s back she was surprised to feel how light and skinny she had become over the last week and a half. She prepared some tea to help soothe the cough. As the day progressed the tea stopped working.
�Rosie, I�m going to send for a healer, your cough isn�t getting any better and you�re starting to get a fever again.�
�Alright,� said Rosethorn meekly and Lark was surprised and alarmed by her acquiescence. Lark sent Daja for a healer and then she sat with Rosethorn and wiped sweat off of her brow with a cool cloth.
Dedicate Grapewell came and listened to Rosie�s chest and frowned he asked her a few questions and then he went out in the hall where Lark waited.
�I�m very worried about that cough, I listened to her lungs and I don�t like what I hear there either, I think she may have pneumonia. I want you to give her some Capchen chestnut and syrup of poppies in her tea when ever she has a fit coughing.�
�Is poppy syrup really necessary?� asked Lark knowing that it could have detrimental effects.
�I�m afraid so, I�ll try to come back in a day or two and check on her progress.�
�Thank you,� said Lark seeing him to the door.
Throughout the night Rosethorn steadily got worse, willowbark tea ceased to work and her fever rose higher. When dawn arrived Rosethorn was no better and when she opened her eyes they were glassy with fever. Lark listened to her chest and was dismayed to hear a crackling sound.
She helped Sandry prepare breakfast and then she made Rosethorn a warm soup to help soothe her throat. She sat next to Rosethorn and fed her the soup, stopping when she coughed. This was breaking her heart, watching the woman she loved go through so much. Rosethorn drifted off to sleep and Lark straightened up the room, she knew Rosethorn was very sick but she refused to believe that Rosethorn would ever leave her.
She sat back down and Rosethorn opened her eyes and weakly smiled as she took Lark�s hand and clasped it.
�Lark, you know that I love you, that I�ve loved you since the day that I meant you, even if I don�t say it enough,� her declaration was cut short by a coughing fit but after a sip of tea she continued, �I was a resentful girl but you broke through all of those walls and planted yourself here,� she said putting a hand to her heart, �and I�m grateful that I found you because you saved my life by filling it with love and never forget that I wouldn�t have changed a thing and I�m content with the life I have had. I want you to take care of the children, especially my boy, you know he�ll blame himself. I love you, Lark.�
Lark had sat silently listening and trying not to cry.
�Stop talking like that,� she said trying to sound stern but failing. �You are not going to die, you�d be too lost without me,� she said lightly but a tear slipped out of the corner of her eye.
�I�m going to go try and get some work done,� she said briskly as she got up.
�I love you too, Rosie,� she whispered but she was already back asleep.
Lark went into her workroom and shut the door behind her, sat on a stool and began crying. Yesterday she had poured nearly the rest of her power into charms to help Rosethorn get better but when she had woken up this morning the charms had fallen to pieces. Looking at them she began to cry harder, her shoulders shook and her breath caught in her throat, she felt so helpless, she couldn�t do anything to help. She heard the door open and looked up to see Sandry. �I�I�m sorry, I�ll come back later,� she said quickly and she shut the door.
Lark took a deep breath and wiped her face with the sleeve of her habit.
�This won�t do, I have to get myself under control, Rosie is going to get through this.�
That morning Briar and Tris came home from spending the night working at Crane�s lab and Lark had to tell him how Rosethorn�s condition had worsened. He took it as well as she had expected and he went off to check on her and charge the willowbark, which had ceased to work, with more power.
A little while ago she had sent Sandry to find a stronger healer, one that would do something more than prescribe Poppy syrup and tell them to wait and see if she got worse. Briar was still with Rosethorn when Sandry came back and told her that no healers would come and anyone powerful enough to actually help was in Summersea. This news hit her like a blow to the stomach; they were running out of time, she knew it. Briar had said that Rosethorn was dying and Lark trusted his judgment more than anyone�s. There was only one mage with the training who wouldn�t be drained by working in the infirmary, Moonstream. Making up her mind to find the Dedicate Superior she told Sandry, Tris, Daja and Briar where she was going and that if Rosie got any worse they should get a healer immediately, no matter what they had to do. Before she left she warned them that if Rosethorn started to leave them not to put their magic into her under any circumstances. If there was one thing that she wouldn�t be able to stand it would be if the children died trying to save Rosethorn.
Mounting her horse, Lark rode to the main temple at a full gallop, she kept wondering what she was going to do if Rosethorn�if she was gone by the time she got back. She dashed into the temple, her green habit billowing out behind her and up to Moonstream�s office. Her assistant was sitting at his desk.
�I need to see Dedicate Moonstream immediately, it is very important.�
�I�m sorry, she traveled to the city a few hours ago.�
�Where? Do you know exactly where she is?� Lark tried to keep the panic from her voice, this couldn�t be happening.
�She had a meeting with the Duke but that�s probably over by now, she planned on staying in the city and visiting the different infirmaries until evening.�
�I want you to send a messenger bird to the Duke�s Citadel just in case she�s there. Tell Moonstream that she is needed immediately at Discipline Cottage.�
After she had made sure the assistant was going to do what she asked, Lark traveled down to the main infirmary in search of any healer who might help until she could find Moonstream. The only one she could find was Dedicate Sealwort.
�Dedicate Rosethorn is deathly ill, will you please go to Discipline Cottage and look after her until I can find Dedicate Superior Moonstream?�
�I�m in the middle of doing paperwork,� he said shuffling his papers importantly. �Find someone else.�
Lark�s temper snapped and she leaned menacingly over the Dedicate, she was emotionally and physically drained and she was tired of being patient. �You made a vow to help those in need when you became a Dedicate, I require your services to help a dying woman and if you refuse I will have to report you.�
The man glared at her, �I have to finish this report, it will only take a minute more and then I�ll go.�
�Thank you,� she said quickly. She went and found Crane and then she went to the forge and asked Frostpine and Kirel also, to aide her in searching the city for Moonstream, they readily agreed. She stopped at Discipline and told the children where she was going and then they rode off toward the Mire.
When they got to the Mire, Frostpine stayed to search while the others rode on. When they got to the East District, Crane took the lower East District and Kirel the upper. Lark rode on towards Copper Triangle and Market Square. She wondered how long it had been since she�d left, one hour, two? She had checked all of the temporary hospital tents, and she�d stood in the middle of Market Square looking for the blue robes with gold trimming, and still she hadn�t found Moonstream. Lark was beginning to get frantic and she could hear her heart pounding in her ears, how much more time did she have? Was Rosie already dead, had one of the others found Moonstream and not found her to tell her yet? She rode on towards the Duke�s Citadel when she saw the Summersea Water Temple. She cursed herself for not looking there earlier.
As soon as her horse came to a stop she tied it and the extra horse to a post and went inside. She grabbed the first person she saw. �Is Dedicate Superior Moonstream here?� she asked breathlessly and a bit hysterically. The girl nodded and pointed down the hall, a horrible feeling was developing in the pit of Larks stomach, something was wrong. She ignored if and pressed on, finally she found Moonstream in the infirmary talking to some blue-robed Dedicates.
�Excuse me,� said Lark hurriedly and turned to Moonstream. �Rosethorn is dying and she needs to be healed, will you please come and save her?� she pleaded, this was their last chance.
�Of course, I need a horse saddled�"
�I have one outside,� Lark interrupted.
She and Moonstream rode through Market Square as fast as they could, when they entered the East District she found Kirel and told him to find Crane and Frostpine and tell them she had found Moonstream. As they rode out of the Mire it felt as if an icy hand was slowly squeezing her heart, something was horribly wrong but she refused to acknowledge the truth, Rosie wasn�t gone. It seemed as if that ride to Discipline lasted years. She dismounted, Moonstream right behind her, and she entered the cottage to find silence. �No, please,� she whispered in a desperate plea for any god who was listening. She made herself walk to Rosie�s room and when she saw them she put her fist to her mouth to stop a moan of anguish. Briar was sprawled out on the floor next to the toppled chair clutching Rosethorn�s hand, Sandry held his other hand and Daja and Tris hung on to Sandry�s arms.
�No, no, no, no! I told them�they didn�t�wake up!� she pleaded shaking Daja and Sandry, they hadn�t followed her, this couldn�t be happening.
All of a sudden Daja spoke, she sounded so far away, �If you break the rope you�ll lose us all.�
Horrified Lark stopped and looked helplessly at Moonstream who had turned pale herself.
Lark sat crumpled on the floor waiting for them to wake up. At some point Niko arrived and saw what had happened, Lark was still sitting on the floor looking lost, and as if she wished she could go plunging in after them.
Her legs had fallen asleep but she didn�t move, they had to wake up, she watched each one in turn as their chests continued to rise and fall, what was happening? Hours had passed and everything was so quiet. This was all her fault, she should have known Briar wouldn�t let go, that he wouldn�t give up, if only she had been there.
All of a sudden the silence was broken all at once by a loud yawn and Rosethorn�s coughing. Lark watched in wonder as the girls began to stir. �Don�t you ever do that again!� she shouted as she threw herself at them, hugging them, making sure they were all unharmed. The next few minutes were filled with tears and the most profuse joy Lark had ever felt.
Moonstream told everyone that Rosethorn�s lungs were clear but when she had the seizure a small part of her brain had died and she would need to learn to speak again, Lark was just grateful that she was alive. That night after everyone had left Lark went in and sat by Rosethorn who was sitting up and sipping tea. Already her strength had begun to come back and her fever was gone, seeing this change, when only that morning she had been so close to death made Lark break out in renewed sobs. She laid her head on the bed and through her tears she managed to say, �I was afraid I had lost you all.�
Rosethorn placed her hand on Lark�s tear-stained cheek and Lark grabbed her hand and kissed it over and over again. Finally she stopped crying and was content to lay there knowing everything was really going to be all right.
�I don�t think I�m ever going to let any of you out of my sight again,� she said with a watery smile, �You get into too much mischief.�
Rosethorn snorted and Lark managed a chuckle, she kissed Rosie full on the lips and looked into those brown eyes that could see right into her heart. That night Lark slept peacefully secure in the fact that all of those that she loved were safe and not even death had kept them apart for long.
The End
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