On June 18th, after the recent mission, Nash has been very busy balancing his healing heka to the prisoners and Owen. Out of everyone, he keeps a close eye on Rue specifically.
“Hey, you’re finally awake,” Nash walks over to her bed and takes a seat.
“Huh?” She wakes up very exhaustedly. “How long was I out?” Rue sits up in the hospital bed.
“It’s been about two days now,” he says, grabbing some equipment.
“Two days?!”
“Yep, you had some serious internal injuries, but don’t worry, everything’s looking more stable now.”
Just then, two men from the Great Council walk in.
“Excuse us,” man one says.
“You guys aren’t supposed to be in here,” Nash says, annoyed. He stands up and walks toward them.
“We just have a few questions for the young lady,” man two says impatiently.
“She just woke up. Give her some time,” Nash glares. The room tenses up.
“Excuse me!” The three men look over at Rue. “It’s ok. I'd rather get this part done and over with.” She says, moving to the edge of the hospital bed.
“Are you sure? I need to do a check-up first before anything.” Nash walks over to Rue.
The two Councilmen wait outside until Nash finishes the check-up. While checking her knee reflexes, he tells Rue,
“I apologize for everything you went through. It must’ve been tough to live in that environment.”
Rue begins to tear up. “You don’t need to say sorry… you guys…” she thinks of Zeke, “...saved me,” she whips her tears. “I never got your name,” she smiles. Nash moves back in a chair and writes something down.
“My name is Nash Lawson. I’m a healer in this association.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m Rue Elinora.” She says happily.
Elinora? Nash thinks to himself and finishes writing down Rue’s checkup.
“Everything is looking good so far. But I need to keep an eye on you. You’ll need to stay here for at least two weeks before you can leave. Is that alright, Ms. Elinora?”
“I have nowhere else to go, so I think it’s alright. But does it have to be in this hospital room?” she asks, looking around the room worried.
“No, no, we’ll give you a private room with a cozy bed and a private bathroom, don’t worry,” Nash responds, chuckling. The two councilmen come into the room and approach Rue.
“It’s time,” man one says seriously.
“Okay, what do you wanna know?” She replies. Nash leaves the room and goes to check up on Owen. He walks into Owen’s room to see it filled with flowers and get well soon cards.
“Captain Owen, how are you feeling?” Nash sits beside his bed.
“I’m feeling great, kid! Look at all this love I’m getting!” Owen says, laughing and showing off the flowers.
“I’m glad you’re feeling better. You should be able to go on missions again soon.”
“How’s the girl doing?” Owen asks while eating his lunch.
“The girl's name is Rue Elinora,” Nash says seriously.
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“She says she's feeling better. But-”
“Elinora?” Owen cuts him off. “I’ve heard that name before. What was it again?” he asks, munchkin on his food.
“As I was saying, my concern is-”
“ELINORA!” Owen yells out loud, interrupting Nash again. “That’s the-”
“CAPTAIN!” Nash yells back. “I would like to ask if you’d stop interrupting me!”
“Haha. Sorry, kid. Well, this is gonna be very interesting.”
The two Councilmen walk into Owen’s room with no warning.
“We got all the information we need,” man one says.
“But we’re taking the girl in under the Great Council's care,” man two continues.
“Wait, what?” Nash asks, confused. He gets up from his chair and walks over to the Councilmen. “You can’t do that! We’re the ones who saved her and all the other prisoners! They’re under Lost Haven protection.”
“Yep, interesting indeed.” Owen swallows his food and gets up from his bed. He walks toward the two men. “Why not let the girl make the decision? She’s been imprisoned all her life. It’ll be wrong to take away her decision-making, right?”
The two men stare at each other and think over what Owen said.
“I suppose you’re right,” man one says.
“Nash, you stay here. I’ll be right back,” Owen and the two men leave and head toward Rue's room. Nash follows and waits outside, pacing back and forth.
Zeke walks by, holding a basket of herbs for his potions. Nash bumps into him, and the basket falls with the herbs scattering on the floor.
“Watch where you’re going!”
“Zeke! I’m so sorry!” Nash sincerely says and helps pick up the herbs. “I’ve been a little stressed about Rue.”
“I don’t care- wait, who?” Zeke stops and looks at Nash. Nash is sweating, picking up Zeke's herbs.
“She’s the red-haired girl you’ve been making potions for.”
“How did you know that?” Zeke's face gets hot. Nash pauses and continues to pick up the herbs.
So that’s her name, Rue. Zeke thinks to himself.
“It won’t matter for long anyways. The council is trying to take her away,” Nash hands Zeke back his basket of herbs.
“What? Why?”
Nash stays silent and starts pacing again.
“I'll find out myself then,” Zeke walks towards Rue’s door. Right before he can touch the doorknob, the two men burst open the door and quickly pass Zeke and Nash.
“Captain Owen! What Happened?” Nash asks impatiently. Zeke and Nash stand there waiting for Owen's answer.
“Zeke! Perfect timing! Why don’t you show our new member around the association?” Owen smiles. Zeke’s and Nash's mouths drop in shock!
“NEW MEMBER!” They both yell. Rue walks up to Owen. He pats her head and rubs it like a puppy.
“That’s right!”
“Why do I have to be the one to show her around?” Zeke complains.
“Well, you’ve been here the longest, and you two have some common interests. Plus, she asked for you specifically.”
“Well, that’s a relief. Who knows what the council would’ve done to her,” Nash says, walking up to Rue. “Welcome to the Lost Haven association,” he shakes her hand and smiles.
“As I said, I don’t have anywhere else to go. So Mr. Owen offered to let me stay here!” She responds excitingly.
“With that said, kid, I’m putting you in charge of her. Show her around town and explain to her how our association works.”
“What’s in it for me?” Zeke asks, not wanting to be a babysitter.
“I’m giving her 10,000 Gems. That should be enough for her to get food, clothes, and other necessary equipment. Zeke, you’ll be rewarded 5,000 Gems.” Owen hands them both the money.
“This is it? This is how much I make making a single potion,” Zeke pouts.
“Um, thank you, sir!” Rue says gratefully to Owen.
“No problem, kid, you’ll be a great asset to our team. Zeke, show her to her room. It's room B-12,” Owen turns to Rue,
“That’s where you’ll be staying.”
“He’s just gonna ignore me, huh?” Zeke says to himself, crossing his arms.
“Captain! I don’t mind showing Rue around. Let me do it.”
“Nash, I need you here focusing on treating other patients. You need to build up your healing skills,” Nash gives in and leaves to check on his patients.
“I’ll see you later for your check-up Rue. Till then!” Nash waves bye. Rue waves back, smiling.
“Let’s go, Red! Your room is this way,” Zeke yells to Rue. He walks upstairs, leaving her behind.
“I have a name!” Rue yells, running after him. “Thank you so much for everything, sir,” she tells Owen.
“No problem, kid!” Owen waves goodbye. “You’ll certainly give us the advantage,” he says quietly.