He grinned in response to her smile, then took her offered hand without hesitation, his thumb working gentle circles over the top of her hand. "Yeah, I'd like to stop tasting blood. Nasty stuff, I tell you. Leaves a bad aftertaste," he joked before moving back to her side to start walking.
She glanced down at their hands, his movement bringing back the fluttery feelings as they started for the doors once again. "Sadly, I can't help with that, either. Beyond the handkerchief I gave you. And no, it really doesn't taste to good, does it?"
He shook his head and pouted his lips dramatically. "No, it doesn't. But I've been pretty distracted, so I didn't really notice it for a while," he added, his lips twitching in an attempt to smile. "I appreciate you trying to help, though. Better than I really expected, considering everyone's usual response."
She shook her head with a soft laugh, squeezing his hand. "I hope the distractions were appreciated. As for that, I think we've established my soft spot, and tendency to worry when people I care about are hurt." She didn't even notice the admission, spoken out loud for the first time. Sure, it had been obvious, but she had never said it.
He darted his eyes over to her in a quick, slightly surprised glance. People I care about. It was so strange to him for someone other than his siblings to actually care about him. "Yeah, it's been established a while ago—but I'm not complaining," he quickly added.
"Well, I'm glad you're aware of it, at least." She said, shooting him a smile, that same mix of warmth and softness that was saved for him. And she was, because it was obvious he didn't hear it enough.
He just hummed in response, returning her smile just as they reached the doors to the healers. He knocked a specific pattern against the wood, then went in without further ceremony. A disappointed and slightly amused healer with graying hair and hands on her hips greeted them. Rhydar ducked his head when he saw her. "Mama, I swear I didn't mean to," he said by greeting. She just tsked and gestured for him to sit on the table and Lily in a nearby chair.
Lily tilted her head, releasing Rhydar's hand with obvious reluctance as she quietly sat down in the chair. She twisted the ring on her finger, missing the warmth of Rhydar's hand already as she studied the woman curiously for a moment, before looking to Rhydar.
Rhydar hopped up onto the table, and the woman gestured for him to take off his shirt. He did so while trying to explain to her that it wasn't what she thought. She effectively shut him up with a stern look and proceeded to start healing him. With just a light touch to his bruises, they slowly lost their discoloration and disappeared entirely. Rhydar kept his gaze on a random spot on the wall to the side.
Lily looked away as Rhydar took off his shirt, the ghost of an amused smile playing on her lips at the woman's obvious disapproval of his injuries, and likely how he received them. It was interesting, the obvious relationship the two had. Like a mother and son, for sure.
When she got to his ribs, however, he received more than a stern look.
The old woman reared back when she touched the bruise, feeling the internal damage as well. She went off on him in a foreign tongue, and he winced as he received his tongue lashing. She finally switched to their language and said, her words heavily accented, "You fracture two ribs and say it not what I think? You stupid if you think you fool me!" She smacked him upside the head, though it was light and only stung some. Rhydar looked like a child being scolded.
Lily winced, her amusement gone as she flickered between worry for Rhydar, and shoving away the panic the sound of the smack brought up. However light, memories still clung to certain sounds and things. Trying to focus instead on the worry, she looked back at them, her brows drawn down in a frown. Part of her wanted to speak up, and ask the woman if he really would be okay, but she also wasn't sure she could handle the anger turned on her. So she stayed quiet, shoulders hunched slightly.
"I said I'm sorry, mama," Rhydar said, then sighed when he realized the answer she wanted. "It won't happen again, and I promise to make up for your troubles." She huffed and pressed her palm against the biggest bruise, healing the ribs before the bruise itself. His eyes flickered over to Lily and he nodded slightly to her, saying that he was okay and everything was fine. Most of the message shone in his eyes.
Lily let out a relieved sigh, some, but not all, of the tension leaving her shoulders. She gave him a weak smile, sliding the ring off her finger to once again hold it in her fist. She was incredibly glad the woman knew what she was doing, and still seemed willing to help, despite her scolding.
After a few minutes, Rhydar was as good as new. He hopped off the counter and kissed the woman's cheek. She accepted it with her fair share of grumbling, but kissed his cheek as well and made him promise to stay away from men twice his size. He assured her that he wasn't planning on doing it again, and she took that with a nod before head into the back room.
Lily slipped the ring back on, standing slowly as she watched the woman leave the room. Her eyes landed on Rhydar as she gave him a quick once over, managing a stronger smile as she confirmed in her mind that he wasn't hurt. Well, beyond the beating his pride had taken.
He slid off the counter and looked down at Lily, spreading his arms out wide. "See? Good as new. Mama knows her stuff, thanks to me being a constant form of practice." He needed a new shirt, as the discarded one was slightly bloody and dirty from his tussle.
"You know, half of the things you say are worrying." She commented, shaking her head. She reached up, brushing her hair back from her face, and raised an eyebrow at him. "She cares about you."
"I'm sorry if I make you worry," he said, leaning against the table. He then looked behind him at the door the old healer had gone through. "In her own, special way. But yeah, I know she does."
"She…almost reminds me of my mother. The memories I have, at least. Whenever my sisters or I came back to the house with scrapes and such from falling out of trees, she would fix us up as she threatened to not do it next time." She said, tilting her head as her eyes grew slightly unfocused with the memories. After a moment, she shook her head, looking back at Rhydar. "How long has she been healing you after things like this?"
He quietly listened to her as she spoke, his head tilted in curiosity. When she was done and asked him that question, he sighed and ran a hand over his face. "Ooooooohhh boy. Uh, Mama Tia was in charge of raising and tutoring me when I was a child, as Mother was too busy being Queen. I was a troublesome child, so…pretty much ever since I could run away from my nannies."
She nodded, tucking her hands into her pockets to keep from fiddling. "Quite a while, then. She sounds like a nice woman." And she did. Lily's fear stemmed from the anger, not the woman herself.
"She really is," Rhydar agreed, nodding. He stayed silent for a while as he darted his gaze around her face, trying to gauge her thoughts. Well, better luck asking than guessing. "Hey…You alright?" he asked softly.
Lily blinked, tilting her head slightly. "Yes, I am. Just…feeling a lot, I guess. A mix of good and not-so-good." She gave him a small and soft smile, nodding.
He offered a small smile of his own and nodded as well. "Alright, but I hope the good is more than the not-so-good," he said, striding over to a closet to find a spare shirt.