[Mkguild] First Steps (12/?)

[Nathan Pfaunmiller]

	Paula sat in Coe’s office.  She could hardly remember how she got
there, or for that matter what exactly had happened in the missing
time between when she had returned home and where she was right now.
She knew the horrors of the night before, but she had fallen back on
the one thing that could save her from the horror of that time.  She
tried to hide it, and that effort left her precious little time to
remember anything else.

	Coe was saying something, but she didn’t acknowledge him.  Again he
spoke, but her eyes stared forward in a stunned silence.

	“Paula?”

	He gently lifted her head with a clawed hand, lifting a magic light
before her and shining it into her eyes.  He set it down, lifting a
clawed finger in front of her eyes and moving it back and forth.

	“Paula, are you hearing me?”

	“Yes, master Coe, I’m sorry.  I’m just distracted.”  Her own voice
sounded hollow, far away as though it came from somewhere else
entirely.

	“You’re worrying me, Paula.  You’ve not said a word to me since you
entered, and your eyes are barely tracking.  You look like you’re in
shock, or perhaps concussed.”

	“I’m extremely tired, sir.  I had a long night.”

	He looked at her for a moment, and then returned to checking her
wounds.  He frowned as he looked over the bruises and scratches
visible on her arms.

	“You’re leaving something out, Paula.  I’ve seen a lot of injuries in
my time; these look like they were caused by a struggle.  How did they
happen?”  The raccoon healer spoke softly, but his concern was
evident.

	“I fell,” Paula lied.

	Coe turned back and grabbed a few things to start treating the
injuries, but talked as he turned away.  “These injuries make no sense
for a fall, unless you somehow fell with your arms in the wrong
direction.”  He dabbed at one of the scratches with an ointment that
stung for a moment before fading to a cool, soothing sensation.  Paula
flinched and nearly cried out at the touch, but managed to control
herself.  “Please, Paula, I need you to tell me what happened so that
I can help you.  Was there foul play?”

	“No!  I was just sparring.”  She looked into his eyes and immediately
realized that he sudden burst of passion had given her away.  The
healer’s gaze remained constant, but it still made her feel horrible
to lie to the man.  Tears began to run down her face, and she turned
away roughly, nearly hurting herself on his claws.

	“Paula…”  The healer’s voice was soft, reassuring.  She wanted to be
able to tell him what had happened, but she couldn’t.  Her father had
hurt her, but he was still her father, and she didn’t want to think of
what they might do to him if what he had done came to light.  “Paula,
did someone hurt you?  If someone attacked you, we need to go tell the
Watch.  I know it’s hard to talk about things like this, but we need
to bring the culprit to justice.”

	“They raped me.”  Paula couldn’t believe she had said it, but she
knew what she had to say.  “I was out late last night, later than I
should have been, and some thugs met me on the street.  There was no
one there, and they took me down a dark alley.  I…  I tried to fight,
but…”

	Her words were lies, but they still brought back the sting of the
truth, and she could go no further.  She burst into uncontrollable
tears, and left the healer sitting motionless beside her.  He hardly
moved for several minutes, the ointment-soaked rag in his hand held a
few inches away from a wound, unmoving.  His dark eyes conveyed a
depth of sorrow that his stoic face would not.  After a few moments of
silence, he withdrew.  The scratches and bruises could heal safely by
themselves, and he knew that touching her now was the worst thing he
could possibly do.  Instead, he opened a cupboard, drawing out a small
vial of liquid and setting it on a counter beside the examination
table.  Paula continued sobbing on the table, and Co let her finish
before saying anything more.

	“I’m sorry about this.  Things like this should not happen to anyone,
but they’re a horrible reality.  The Watch will need to know about
this as soon as possible, but I think the safest thing for now would
be for you to return home and stay there for a while.”  He moved the
vial closer to her, although he did not attempt to give it to her
directly.  “This was created by Pascal.  It should prevent any
further… complications.  Drink it whenever you feel able.”  Paula said
nothing, and Coe felt a little hopeless sitting across from her.  How
much she even heard of his words was impossible to tell.  He just
hoped she could recover.  He stood and stepped out to find one of his
assistants.  When he returned, a young woman followed him.

	“Paula, I have brought one of my assistants to see you home.”  Paula
looked up slowly to look at the young woman who stood with Coe, and
managed to nod and smile weakly.  The raccoon handed the vial to his
assistant before turning back to Paula.  “You should return home to
get some rest.  You need some time to recover.”

	The two women left at a slow pace a few moments later, and Coe
watched them go from the door.  He frowned, dark thoughts racing
through his mind about the cruel men who had done this.  How anyone
could be so monstrous baffled him.  He just hoped that they would be
brought to justice before they could cause any further harm.