WHO: Nina Deforest → Tauriel WHEN: Very wee hours of January 3 → mid-Desolation of Smaug times WHERE: Dunhaven General Hospital → Bard's house in Lake-town SUMMARY: Nina is called into the hospital in the middle of the night to deliver a baby, but is waylaid while prepping for the delivery with memories of healing Kili. WARNINGS: None!
Despite that she was breaking the will of her king, who had favored her and helped in raising her to be who she now was, despite that she was in this poorly lit home in Lake-town, despite that Kili's shouts of pain were filling the room and inspiring panic within the dwarves and humans alike, Tauriel appeared calm. She had seen injuries like this before. The Orcs had been pushing further into Mirkwood and she had used her training, skills, and fiery hatred of the beasts due to what they had done to her family hundreds of years before to lead her guard against them and while they were fierce, there was always the chance of injury and death.
And she knew that, if Kili's wound was not tended to, his injury would lead to death.
"Hold him down," Tauriel instructed the dwarves as Kili thrashed against the table, struggling to get free against the pain. In her hands she held a pot that one of the human girls had given her, wherein she'd created a salve from the athelas that one of the dwarves had collected on her instruction. Circling the table, she held down Kili's leg, peering at the injury. Her feelings betrayed her, a hint of shock and worry crossing her face as she looked up to the pain etched into Kili's face. She had to act quickly.
Taking the salve, which would soon enough become a poultice if all went to plan, into her hands, Tauriel began to chant the ancient Sindarin words. She pressed the athelas to Kili's leg, his bellow of pain nearly drowning her out, but she persisted.
"Menno o nin na hon i eliad annen annin, hon leitho o ngurth."
Again and again, she spoke the words, summoning the healing magic she had grown familiar with over her years. On the table, Kili quieted and Tauriel allowed her gaze to meet his, but didn't allow her concentration to falter. Though she couldn't quite understand why, she knew that she wouldn't be able to stand it if he were to die; not simply because it would mean her defiance against Thranduil would have meant nothing, but because something within her heart told her as much. There was no other option -- the dwarf must live.
"...hon leitho o ngurth."
The words were murmured under Nina's breath, but they were said out loud nonetheless. She froze, her hands under the running faucet of nearly scalding water. She was standing in a prep room, about to go and deliver a baby. She was wearing scrubs, plain and dark green in color, with her long hair pulled back and her glasses low on her nose as she peered into the sink. It was late, past midnight, but babies rarely saw fit to adhere to office hours, a habit they continued well after delivery.
There had been something about the moment that had triggered one of those damn memories that she'd grown far too accustomed to. They had become too frequent, jumping around and impossible for her to string together in any sort of clear way. A year ago, Nina would have blamed them on stress, but she was the least stressed in the sleepy town of Dunhaven than she had ever been before. Her life seemed to have found an ease. Rather than honking horns and sirens, she lived somewhere that let her hear the leaves rustle in the wind and give her relative quiet when she went to bed. She had a boyfriend that she was becoming increasingly sure that she was falling in love with, even if she wasn't sure if she would ever summon the courage to admit as much to him. She had friends that weren't only Lennox, though even their friendship seemed to have entered into a new, more comfortable and steady place. Her career was stable and she felt a true connection with her patients.
And yet, she thought as she returned to methodically washing her hands, the dreams and visions persisted. What more, this one had featured the dwarf that she knew was Rupert and this time he had been hurt. No, not hurt -- dying.
Nina felt her heart squeeze in her chest, her breath hitching at the realization. She was reminded of the dream where she'd immediately worried that something had happened to her parents and felt the same impulse that she'd had then, wondering if she should check on Rupert. Would that be strange? Would he even be awake at this hour?
Before she could make a move to find her phone, cancelling out her efforts in sanitizing her hands, her thoughts were interrupted by a nurse. "Dr. Deforest? We're ready."
Nodding, Nina finished her preparations, drying her hands and then slipping her gloves on after. The worry hadn't magically dissipated, but the distraction of her job, the job that she loved so much, was enough to push it to the back of her mind, at least for now. It would return, she knew that much, but for now she could focus on tending to Mrs. Johnson and the bundle of joy that she was about to welcome into the world. The thought brought a smile to her face.
"All right, Kelly," Nina said to the nurse, her smile warming further. "Let's go deliver a baby."