Though he takes a breath as if to protest, Barrow just sighs it out and nods, his brow furrowing morosely. He can't live with pain like this much longer, as much as he's trying to soldier through it.
A gentle, relieved smile. "I'd like to get started here so you don't have to walk to the infirmary in so much pain. Just a moment."
He settles his hands like butterflies on Barrow's shoulders, resting no weight on them, only touching. After a moment, there is the gentle blue glow of the spirit's magic, channeled through Colin and encompassing Barrow's body. The lessening of pain is drastic and noticeable almost immediately. He can't expend too much of his energy all at once now, since they still have to make it to the infirmary.
"All right. Let's get you to where I can take a look at those ol' joints." He stands, ready to offer aid if Barrow feels unsteady, but he should be able to walk with a great deal less pain now.
The relief of it is so instant that it's dizzying. Inhaling deeply, Barrow's breath shakes as he blows it back out again, and he turns his head slightly to press at his eyes, concealing the dampness that has formed in them.
"Give me a moment," he mutters, not daring to raise his voice above a near whisper for fear of it breaking.
This is the sort of reason Colin knows he's in the right place. Cooking is his art, his passion, something that makes people feel good. This? This is less of a passion and more of a calling, a need more than an art. As a healer, he helps in a very real way, relieving very real pain. Cooking got him through the hardest times of his life, but healing has changed him into something else entirely, and he likes the change.
When he's certain he won't lose his composure, Barrow nods once more and stands, much more easily than he would have before Colin's visit. He even flashes him a sheepish, apologetic smirk, though this is more out of habit than any actual amusement: when in doubt, ensure that you're not a bother, that you're being a good sport.
Once they make it to the infirmary, Colin has him sit on a cot and remove his shirt. He gives a thorough but careful examination involving the shoulders and surrounding tissues, the feeling and movement in the hands, fingers, feet, and toes, and checks for any bone breaks.
"Did your hips dislocate as well, or only your shoulders?"
The welts have gone down at least, but the cuts, burns, and bruises all over Barrow's upper body make themselves known with the removal of his shirt, which he does with some reluctance. He gazes flatly at the ground while Colin looks him over, hands folded between his knees.
"They did," he confirms in that same low, barely audible voice, with another nod. "Derrica took care of it most of the way." She'd done her best in the time they had, with a spell to right his legs from ankle to hip, but obviously couldn't be too thorough.
Colin doesn't make Barrow take off his trousers, just checks the movement and sensation.
"She did a good job," he comments as he helps him put his shirt back on. "And you deserve the very best of care, especially after what you've done for us all. I want you on bedrest for a week. Meals will be sent to you, and a healer to be by at least once a day to check you and give you medicine. After the week is over, you'll be guided through gentle exercises for eight weeks after."
He hesitates. "It's...likely you will find your joints prone to rheumatism from here on out."
This is the loudest Barrow has spoken since the conversation started, and even then it's not by a lot-- he's just alarmed, perhaps even a little offended, not that he would ever raise his voice to someone as gentle as Colin.
"Maker, I'm not an invalid." He laughs, but it's a bitter sound, and directed mostly at one of his hands, which he's flexing uncomfortably. "I hardly did a damn thing, anyway." Bedrest. It's not fair, when he practically had to be carried like a damsel through the enemy castle, such a burden to so many and ultimately of so little use.
"You're not an invalid," Colin agrees pleasantly, "you are simply unwell, which is temporary. And the less you cooperate, the longer you will be unwell and the less you'll be likely to get your full range of motion back. You can have visitors. I'll bring you books to read, whatever you need. But we need to give your body its best chance to heal, and this is how we do that."
Though he's grumpy about his words getting turned back on him by a quicker-- and kinder-- mind, Barrow lets it be, giving a heavy sigh and letting his head drop forward to run his fingers through his hair.
"If you're in pain, always contact me over the crystal and someone will get you some relief. Probably me. And when I say you've earned it, I mean it. I'm not trying to make you uncomfortable, but you endured more than I ever could and it hasn't broken you. Though you might...think that, sometimes. When I start to think that way, I talk to a friend. That gets me through."
He considers that for a moment, and nods his understanding.
"I've never--" he begins, and clearly feels ashamed, by the way he ducks his head and rubs the back of his neck. "...I've never felt powerless before." It's the kind of experience that rattles one to the core even when they aren't an unflappable wall of person. "Now I'm not certain I ever won't."
Colin bobs his head. He gets it. They sit in companionable silence for a moment as he collects his thoughts on the matter.
"I used to think it would just take time. Time heals, time will tell, that rot. Then seven or eight years on, I wondered why nothing was changing. I realized I still saw the world as a place that was out to hurt me at every turn, and in order to get better, I had to train myself to think differently. Though that might be putting the horse before the cart, for you. You have to...digest. Maybe even grieve. Take it in little steps, and don't be afraid to ask for help. People sincerely want to help you. You've helped me so much."
He nods. "When you first Silenced me, in battle, I went...back there. I wasn't even in the battle anymore. Everything I saw, heard, smelled, it was just..."
A little shake of his head. "And as hard as it's been, sticking with our exercises, you've never asked questions. You've never pushed me further than I was willing. You've been respectful and kind, and I've improved a lot. I still hate being Silenced, it still makes me think of what happened, but maybe I won't be a liability in battle anymore."
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 01:49 am (UTC)"Can I sit?"
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Date: 2020-07-27 01:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 01:58 am (UTC)"The infirmary's quiet now," he whispers after a minute or two.
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Date: 2020-07-27 02:01 am (UTC)Polite engagement; he doesn't see what it has to do with him, or at least has decided he doesn't.
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Date: 2020-07-27 02:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 05:32 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 05:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 05:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 05:59 am (UTC)He settles his hands like butterflies on Barrow's shoulders, resting no weight on them, only touching. After a moment, there is the gentle blue glow of the spirit's magic, channeled through Colin and encompassing Barrow's body. The lessening of pain is drastic and noticeable almost immediately. He can't expend too much of his energy all at once now, since they still have to make it to the infirmary.
"All right. Let's get you to where I can take a look at those ol' joints." He stands, ready to offer aid if Barrow feels unsteady, but he should be able to walk with a great deal less pain now.
no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 06:03 am (UTC)"Give me a moment," he mutters, not daring to raise his voice above a near whisper for fear of it breaking.
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:10 am (UTC)"Take all the time you need."
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:12 am (UTC)"Go on then," he murmurs, prepared to follow.
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:22 am (UTC)"Did your hips dislocate as well, or only your shoulders?"
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:28 am (UTC)"They did," he confirms in that same low, barely audible voice, with another nod. "Derrica took care of it most of the way." She'd done her best in the time they had, with a spell to right his legs from ankle to hip, but obviously couldn't be too thorough.
no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 06:45 am (UTC)"She did a good job," he comments as he helps him put his shirt back on. "And you deserve the very best of care, especially after what you've done for us all. I want you on bedrest for a week. Meals will be sent to you, and a healer to be by at least once a day to check you and give you medicine. After the week is over, you'll be guided through gentle exercises for eight weeks after."
He hesitates. "It's...likely you will find your joints prone to rheumatism from here on out."
no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 06:50 am (UTC)This is the loudest Barrow has spoken since the conversation started, and even then it's not by a lot-- he's just alarmed, perhaps even a little offended, not that he would ever raise his voice to someone as gentle as Colin.
"Maker, I'm not an invalid." He laughs, but it's a bitter sound, and directed mostly at one of his hands, which he's flexing uncomfortably.
"I hardly did a damn thing, anyway." Bedrest. It's not fair, when he practically had to be carried like a damsel through the enemy castle, such a burden to so many and ultimately of so little use.
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 07:36 am (UTC)"Right. Right."
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Date: 2020-07-27 05:55 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 05:59 pm (UTC)"...more than you?" he asks, angling his head to raise an eyebrow at Colin, "that seems unlikely."
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:05 pm (UTC)"Apples and oranges," he sighs. "And I was never in a position where giving information would make it stop, or I would have."
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:14 pm (UTC)"I've never--" he begins, and clearly feels ashamed, by the way he ducks his head and rubs the back of his neck.
"...I've never felt powerless before." It's the kind of experience that rattles one to the core even when they aren't an unflappable wall of person. "Now I'm not certain I ever won't."
no subject
Date: 2020-07-27 06:32 pm (UTC)"I used to think it would just take time. Time heals, time will tell, that rot. Then seven or eight years on, I wondered why nothing was changing. I realized I still saw the world as a place that was out to hurt me at every turn, and in order to get better, I had to train myself to think differently. Though that might be putting the horse before the cart, for you. You have to...digest. Maybe even grieve. Take it in little steps, and don't be afraid to ask for help. People sincerely want to help you. You've helped me so much."
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:40 pm (UTC)"Really?"
It's easy to feel like a bit of a bastard, throwing mages off their game on purpose.
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Date: 2020-07-27 06:48 pm (UTC)A little shake of his head. "And as hard as it's been, sticking with our exercises, you've never asked questions. You've never pushed me further than I was willing. You've been respectful and kind, and I've improved a lot. I still hate being Silenced, it still makes me think of what happened, but maybe I won't be a liability in battle anymore."
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