3 roots

     A town is nesstled between the roots of one of the famous trees, a small town, a silent little thing where it seems as though only good things could happen. It has been raining all day, the sky dark, it has been coming down in buckets, making the road very muddy and travel difficult, but after the season of fire the plants are happy for it. But just outside of town on a small hill a man kneels in the mud. He wears the clothes of one of the common folk, someone who works hard and lives honestly. He kneels as though hes praying, every once in a while he gives a cough, sounds like hes starting to catch ill...

     Its large, its pink, it is filly, and its twirling. With her kamono rolled up, her sandals slung over her back, Clans has mud splattered up to her knees as she trots down the muddy path. A large pink umbrella in one hand spinning it watching the water spin off of it. Jumping forward landing in a puddle sending a wave of mud in ever direction. Giggling she looks back to her friends with a smile. "I love the rain!" calling this out, stretching her arms out to receive the rain, forgoing the big pink umbrella for a moment. spinning on her heal she sees the poor sick man. "Hey Mr. are you Ok?"

    Walking in his green tunic and silver tabard, Dreamer has no umbrella in the rain, but doesn't mind at all. He is quite comfortable in the rain. He chuckles a little bit as Clan jumps around, the mud splattering him, but getting rinsed off within moments in the hard rain. "It is nice weather. Gonna be getting cold soon enough, though. Winter is just around the corner now." He wraps the gossamer scarf closer, hiding the lower half of his face.

The closer Winter draws, the happier Aza is bound to be. The mud however is something she's not too great at and the little no-moon trails a little behind, trying not to get stuck, her charcoal breeches splattered with mud and wearing a simple black blouse done up with tiny pearl buttons all up the mandarin collar. From her ear the carven feather earing she always wears dangles and catches the light as she pauses a bit behind to inspect something by the side of the road.

     As you get closer you notice that the man is shivering slightly, despite it not being too cold out. The man coughs a bit and looks up at Clan. Hes completly soaked through but you can still see tears running down his face, he looks like hes been crying for hours. Based on the dirt under his fingernails, his large rough hands and smell you can tell hes a farmer. He holds his hands on front of him as if praying, kneeling in the mud, his pants splattered in the mud. He looks up and can see his large sad blue eyes, his lower lip trembles slightly "N-n-no..." he manages with a cough. He then tightly closes his eyes again and mumbles a prayer under his breath, coughing every few moments.

     Wishing Azami could dress nice at the Castle is one thing, can't she wear something so she can have fun in the rain too? Maybe Clan is just asking too much of her No Moon sister. Ears dropping she feels silly thinking such things with the poor farmer sobbing so. Squatting down and holding her umbrella over the poor guy. Leaning in she hugs the farmer. "It will be ok." her voice is sothing and protective. Like a mother reassuring their child. "Tell us about it"

    Dreamer walks up slowly to the sobbing man and Clan, looking down curiously. It might be nothing they can help with, but then again... He moves to the bottom of the hill, placing a small flask there and then returning to his previous place, seemingly for no apparent reason at all. "Yes, what is troubling you so much, sir? We would love to help in any way we can, even if just to lend a listening ear and a reassuring shoulder."

What is this? Azami kneels down on the side of the road and runs a hand lightly over something imprinted there. Rain bounces off of her and drizzles down her face and arms. Something is plucked up and she rises, tucking it away into her pocket before she rejoins the other two, looking curiously at the sobbing man. Seeing that Clan has wrapped her arms around him she comes and puts her hands on her knees, kneeling down to be more on his level. "Can you speak, farmer?" She asks, gently.

     The man grabs Clan in a hug and sobs on her shoulder, getting snot and tears on it as he gives another cough "I...I...*sniff*.. was in town to get... get some supplies..*sniff*. and.. and my wife... shes gonna die..*sniff* shes gonna die if I dont pray... pray for the gods to....*sniff*... safe her" he manages as he starts to sob all over again, holding Clan tight.

     "Shhh Shhh" Pulling the man close she consoles him. "Heaven hears you, its ok now. Can you you walk? Please take us to her. If she is sick too we can help her." Clan doesn't know much more than a few hearable remedies but heal the average mortal ailment. "Dreamer can you pic him up I'll hold the umbrella." earging the man to lead on. Time seems to be of the essence, for his life and his wife's.

    Dreamer crouches down, wrapping an arm under the guy's shoulder. "Alright, just point us in the direction and we will see what we can do." He sighs a little bit as he stands up, lifting the man to help him up as well. "What is your name, farmer?" He asks carefully.

Azami walks along quietly with the other two, glancing up at the man in some concern but letting them question him. Wordlessly, she reaches out and takes Clan's arm, drawing close to her sister as they go.

     As Dreamer helps him up he seems a little better, a little, " Karl, My..*sniff* wife, shes pregnant, and not due for a week or two..*sniff* I was getting some supplies to get ready... *sniff* for our first kid...and...and.. " the man begins sobbing uncontrolably again, it takes him a mometent to gather himself again "Shes gonna.. *cough* die if I dont pray..." he says struggeling weakly, despite being a fairly big man, against Dreamer to get back to his praying, but is interupted by a viscious coughing fit...doesnt sound good.

     Looking at Azami Clan squeezes her arm with a worried look. "Karl, I need you to take a deep breath" she does so her self to help him along "Now its very important, Karl listen." petting the man's hair to clam him down as sobs. "Tell us what happened to your wife, is the baby ok? We need to know what your dealing with." nodding at Dreamer erging him to move a bit quicker

-

    Dreamer steps the pace up a bit as Clan urges him faster. "Yes, please tell us. If it puts your mind at ease, as soon as we get there, I will go back to that spot and pray in your place." He offers, hoping it will get the man to relax a little bit more.

     The man sniffs a bit more "My wife... shes alright right now... but if I dont pray... she will die giving birth... the mystic man said so...if I dont pray for her..." he says sobbing all the while, the man seems to barely have the strength to walk along. Once you get to town you can see what is most likely his wagon in the middle of the muddy road, the rain starts to let up. Its quiet, everyone must be inside, but still, its very quiet, except for a squeek... squeek... squeek...

     Clan Clan give the man a warm smile. There is a beauty in father hood, it drove him to near death to protect his mother and newborn. With a reasuing nod to the farmer she runs as fast as she can to the wagon jumping inside to see what can be done. She has never witnessed someone giving birth, this will be a important moment moment for the young Serenity.

    Dreamer smiles a little bit as well, although more that they might be able to help this guy out. He sets him down in the wagon and smiles. "Alright, I will get to praying for her in your place for now. You rest here and let her help you, cause you sound gosh awful. No gonna help anyone if you pass out during praying." He smiles and instantly goes to praying outside the wagon.

"Where is your wife?" Azami asks the man, her warm, pleasantly rough voice calm.

Something catches at Azami's ears and under her hood they twitch, flickering back. Though it's likely lost on the suffering mortal in any case, for the Tell is near impossible to see. But then the man breaks into another fit of coughing and she kneels to help Clan however she can, getting out some dry towels and reaching into her satchel for restorative herbs.

     The man coughs some more as Clan pulls him into the wagon and covers him up, trying to get him dry, "Th-th-thank you.. shes back home... with my sister... a half of a day north" he says with a weak smile and a sniff, he already seems to look a little better, emotionally if not physically. In the distance the squeeks stop, as you hear the splash.. splash.. of foot steps as a lithe figure approaches that Azami and Dreamer recognize, twirling his cane in one hand he approaches the back of the wagon and looks at the four with his wicked rotten smile, a blue flower in his lapel this time, its good old Lord Flowers...

     as he approaches the man looks up and coughs "Did..did I pray enough.." he says to Flowers, who starts to chuckle a little

     "Now you can't go near them as sick as you are. For safeties sake I can't have you making the baby sick." Clan lets the man know before they get to this home. smiling at the mans gratitude "We were on our way north as luck would have it." pulling out some erbs from her side pouch and grinding them up for him. A little something to ease his sickness. Looking up at the new man. The smile disappears, something smells off on this one. He smells like Aza does when she goes to the shadow thing. "Who are you?" she asks, her voice is still soft and calm for the poor sick man if for no one else.

    Dreamer looks up from prayer and makes an ugh noise. Not this guy. He breathes in deep and continues to pray for this random stranger's wife, praying to Mars to spare this man the pains of knowing such a conflicting emotion as becoming a father and losing a wife at the same time, something the man shouldn't have to deal with. He doesn't say anything to Lord Flowers.

Azami puts her hand on Clan's shoulder. "<Tend to him,>" she says gently and reassuringly, then rises and drops down into the mud off of the back of the covered wagon, landing with a splash. "You! You told this man to walk out into the rain to pray when he might care for his wife instead?" She strides forward, mud splashing up about the knees of her breeches. Short as she is, the mud could very well swallow her if she's not careful.

     FLowers looks down at the shattered pieces and frown "Oh my... well if you insist" he says as he takes the blue flower out of his lapel and sniffs is with a grin and turns around to leave, grinning again. But after a few steps he turns his head for a moment "Dont worry about getting back, your wife isnt expecting you" he says over his shoulder as starts laughing meniacly. He then jumps up and clicks his heels and keeps on going, still laughing.

     Kharl sits up and reaches out with a hand, shaking and shivering "No...you...but I prayed" he says as he falls back and breathes heavily because of his exertion.

     Clan wont have it nd forces Karl back down. "Don't let him rattle you he is lying." looking back at the others "Can someone get a fire started I know its a lot to ask but these herbs need to be made into a tea to work." finding a pot in the wagon. Shaking her head as the man walks walks away. The fact is she isn't sure he is lying, just can't have Karl knowing that. "Dreamer we need to get moving forget the tea for now I guess."

-

Azami turns round as Dreamer strides forward purposefully and climbs back up into the wagon, still too angry to make sense of what she wants to do but with enough control to know when to walk away from the source of it. She gets some matches out of her pocket and starts a fire in the tin stove of the wagon atop which a thin camp kettle rests.

     As Flowers get punched he snickers and coughs up a bit of blood "tisk tisk" he manages as he doubles over. But at the same time Dreamers fists seems to get covered with painfull frost as he punches, a gem on a chain falls out from under his shirt. After he coughs some more he stands up and tips his hat before leaving, a wicked grin on his face...

     Kharl shifts a little under the blankets, sleep startin gto come over him with the heat of the small stove "...thank you" he manages before falling asleep, it seems liek just maybe this guy will be ok...