Welcome to the Arztenritter

[baldrshand]

Who: Ethlyn + anyone interested in healing + anyone else
Where: A clinic near the edge of town
What: Arztenritter healing brigade training! Feel free to put up your own toplevels too.
Warnings: None


The Willow Clinic wasn't the one nearest the center of town in Aldrip--more towards the fields, and crucially, near a horse paddock as well. It was where Ethlyn had found employment as one of the clinic's standing healers and where she'd first proposed the idea of what she now liked to call the Arztenritter--"doctor-knight" in old Jugdrali--who could ride out all over town and beyond it in case of emergency medical needs.

After starting on the idea with people she already knew and putting up flyers around town for a general interest-and-training day, Ethlyn made her way to the clinic bright and early in the morning to get things set up for a day of medical and horsemanship training combined.

Comments

Ethlyn | Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War

[baldrshand]

I. Healing for on dummies

[Ethlyn's borrowed training dummies--interspersed with a few ordinary mannequins and hatstands--from various places around town to assist her in teaching people, along with bandages and splints and other first-aid supplies she can use to show people. Even if they're not interested in being one of the brigade, she'll teach anyone who wants to learn--it's a useful skill for anyone to have.

The clinic's lunchroom has been donated for the day, with the tables holding various mock-patients and Ethlyn looking eager in the middle of it.]

So, how much do you know already? That will give me an idea of where we should start.

II. Hi-o, Silver!

[A horseback brigade needs horses and people to ride them, so Ethlyn is out in a paddock, ready to help anyone who needs a hand up or a hand with anything else. There are several riding horses, as well as a few ponies, and she's relied on the head of this stable to pick out ones that have a suitable temperament for the inexperienced.]

Don't be shy. [Ethlyn will be there to offer anyone inexperienced the requisite treats: chopped up apples, carrots, and even a few sugar cubes. She gives a conspiratorial wink.] It always helps to start with a bribe.

[For the more experienced--or simply bolder--Ethlyn will trot alongside on her horse, enjoying the pleasure of horseback riding but also keeping an eye on them to make sure that they're doing all right.]

How are you two getting along?

[She gives a significant glance from you to the horse as she asks.]

III. Contemplations
[As the shadows grow long and the afternoon winds down, Ethlyn brushes down her horse, gives him a good going-over with the brushes and rewarding him for the hard day's work when she leads him back to his stall... but she doesn't head back home to her boarding house just yet. Instead she can be found leaning against the fence of the paddock as the evening stars begin to appear, looking up at the sky. She wonders where, out there, her home is. Her whole life, she thought that the only thing bigger than the world was the sky. People haven't even discovered everywhere there is outside of the continent of Jugdral--a place she had once thought vast.

What is happening there now? What happened to Quan--what happened to Altena? Ethlyn once again grapples with the fact that her own killer is the best hope for her daughter's survival. Surely he would preserve such a valuable hostage....

She can't do anything about it. If she lets herself dwell on it, it will drive her mad. She shakes her head--and in doing so, she realizes she isn't the only one who's lingered.]

Ah! Hello there. [time to put on a smile] What can I help you with?

IV: Wildcard!

[If you want to do something else with Ethlyn that's not quite these, hmu!]

I

[menancia]

[The flyers posted around town had been quick to grab his attention; healing through artes was a skill he already knew, but was one he was always willing to hone and expand, in addition to finding new applications for. The idea of becoming more proficient with riding in the process was also appealing, a skill that would undoubtedly be of great use here— he certainly knows the basics, but it wasn't until recently that he had left Autelina Palace, and he and his companions largely traveled by foot.

He crooks a finger against his chin as he examines a nearby training dummy, then turns his attention to Ethlyn with a faint smile.]

I already know some healing artes— spells, others might call them— but my more practical skills are lacking. I imagine the combination of first aid and healing artes would be far more effective than simply one or the other.

[baldrshand]

[Ethlyn smiles, pleased to see Dohalim here. She's quite keen to witness the artes he speaks of--always interested in the methods of other worlds--but she nods in firm agreement to his statement on practical skills.]

I have to admit--I had a great deal to learn about the practical skills when I first began working here. I knew how to splint a broken arm or remove an arrow from a person's thigh--but I didn't know about local anesthetics, or antiseptics. [She gestures towards a bottle of iodine on the table.] Is it battle injuries that you've dealt with before?

I blinked and the whole hiatus and month were gone :c

[menancia]

[He nods his confirmation, letting a hand come to rest casually against his hip.]

Indeed— while I am not a dedicated healer by trade, my artes have seen a great deal of use among my companions in combat. I am not as skilled as Shionne, if the two of you have had the chance to meet, but I wish to further develop my abilities and put them to good use. There is no such thing as having too many healers on hand.

[He has a feeling they're going to need a good number of capable healers in this place, as well.]

I appreciate your putting this together, Ethlyn.

god yeah WHERE DID APRIL GO!!

[baldrshand]

[Ethlyn beams. She can't not, to hear someone be so effusive over the cause of healing. And a part of her is also whispering very loudly, though still not out loud, that bad rulers don't take an interest in healing. And she should know--the erstwhile King Chagall had a powerful staff in his possession that he never once used on the men he asked to die for him.]

That's wonderful. And I definitely can't disagree with that. What with people monster-hunting, and that expedition through the woods... I think it will be helpful to people here to know that they can call for help and someone will be riding out to save them.

I've been quite curious about these 'artes' from your world. How do they work?

[menancia]

[Her enthusiasm is quite catching, it turns out, and Dohalim has never been sorry for an opportunity to discuss either the theory or practice of astral artes— just as he finds himself curious to learn about similar abilities or even magic as it exists in other worlds, now that he has the opportunity. Though their presence here is against their will, he cannot help but take interest in some of the opportunities it has made available.]

They are not unlike what other cultures might refer to as magic— though rather than come from within, they are performed by manipulating the ambient energy in one's surroundings. Each practitioner will have an affinity for certain elements, or may be more inclined towards healing or offensive artes.

contemplations

[snowslip]

Ah, I just wanted to say hello. You've been busy.

[ Marianne has also stayed on late, out of choice to spend more time with the horses and spoil them with a bit of grooming. She's glad the troupe has attracted members and the clinic is bustling. What a wonderful idea Ethlyn has come up with.

It must be a lot of work though. She finds the troupe leader lost in thought, looking pensive. Marianne doesn't know what to make of it before Ethyln is smiling again, but she ventures to ask. ]

Is there more I can do to help?

[baldrshand]

[Ah... it's Marianne. Ethlyn relaxes a little. She doesn't like thinking of her history as a secret, because then it sounds like deception--but if it was one, Marianne knows it already.]

Oh, no... I'm just taking a moment to look at the stars before heading home. [She glances back towards the heavens again.] Actually, I was thinking about which of those stars is the one I should be looking at if I wanted to look towards Jugdral.

[snowslip]

[ Ah. Marianne's head turns to look at the sky above. It's a beautiful night to stargaze. The constellations shimmer overhead and in the vastness beyond, the goddess dwells. At least, she wants to think that the goddess is still watching over them from above. If she were to mount a horse and ride to the ends of the earth, would she find a way home? ]

Do you think your friends and family are gazing at the same night sky? That would be nice.

[baldrshand]

[Her friends... her family. Ethlyn thinks of her brother, who had been on the other side of the Aed Desert, making his way back to the homeland that had turned on him. Of the likely and unlikely allies he had by his side, Noish and Lachesis and Ayra and the rest. She thinks of Quan, using the Gáe Bolg to strike down a dracoknight ad a dozen more swooped around him and his fallen men.

Of Altena, screaming in Ethlyn's arms as she tried to push her horse through the stifling sands.]

I don't know. [She passes a hand over her eyes. It always comes back easier in the dark.] I don't know what's happened to them all.

[snowslip]

[ One look at Ethlyn's face tells Marianne that something is wrong. She thinks back to their first meeting and what Ethyln shared with her of her fate. Could it be...that whatever cruel designs had befallen her had also put her family in danger? ]

Ethlyn...What happened back in your world?

[ To Marianne, Ethlyn has always appeared calm and certain, facing the circumstances with grace. Has she been carrying this weight all along? ]

[wishupona]

[Fortunately, the extreme basics were already covered. She's familiar enough with animals that approaching them isn't hard. Or even feeding them. Thankfully, Rinoa's read enough and already met enough horses to know all of that.

Which leaves the actual riding part. Which no amount of book reading can truly prepare you for. At Ethlyn's question, Rinoa manages a smile.]

Pretty sure he's managing a lot better than I am.

[True to word, the bay she's riding seems to be doing just fine.]

I know you said I'll find the rhythm eventually, but it still feels really weird.

[baldrshand]

[Ethlyn giggles. It is a lot to get used to--it's not at all like a cart, which only bumps when the road does.]

It will for a while. Right now you still have to think about all the ways that your muscles have to work so that you can keep in time with someone who already has the rhythm and doesn't need to think about it. [Meaning the horse, as Ethlyn indicates with a little gesture.] And you have to use a lot of muscles to do it.

[She remembers when she first started learning on ponies as a little girl and woke up the next day not just with a sore behind, but all of her abdomen and leg muscles too.]

[wishupona]

Yeah, I can kind of tell already. You make it look so smooth and easy!

[But there's... So. Many. Bumps. She's going to be feeling bumps when she's trying to sleep tonight.]

This is going to be one of those "I hurt in places I didn't know I had" situations isn't it?

[This isn't the first new physical skill she's picked up in her life, after all. What with all the combat and stuff she's seen, even ranged like she is you learn things. Have to adapt physically to different things in a way that's not like you normally would.]

[baldrshand]

Well, I have been doing it since I was six. That helps a little.

...But unfortunately, it is. [It's said cheerfully, but not unsympathetically--the manner of someone who knows exactly how it'll feel because she's been through it already, albeit quite some time ago.] Taken in that light, it's going to be quite useful knowledge for a healer to have. But I also recommend a hot bath, and some aspirin.

[wishupona]

I guess you're right...

[Ugh. This is another one of those situations where she's woefully behind everyone else because they've been doing it for ages. Just like how she'd been tagging along behind the members of SeeD in combat ability. Gross.]


Ugh, I knew it. [She makes a face, but laughs very shortly after.] Oh yeah. A nice, long soak is definitely in my future tonight.

Healing

[killtohero]

[Kazutora steps up to the table looking embarrassed as he'd rub the top of his arm and wave awkwardly. He was normally confident, even if that confidence was made up, but in this case, he really didn't know where to turn.. He hoped this clinic could help.]

Hi-! Um-- I dunno if this is something you do, but I'm actually looking for... a therapist. Do you have anyone around that can do that?

[baldrshand]

[A... therapist? At first, Ethlyn thinks it might just be a slightly different type of healing, but one of the clinic workers whispers something in her ear.

It's not familiar to her at all. which explains a lot about fire emblem in general A doctor for the way people feel about themselves?]

Ah--you mean someone to talk to about your troubles--[She puts her knuckles to her chin thoughtfully.] To be honest, we don't have special people for that we're I'm from. But I can do my best to help.

[killtohero]

[He frowns a little. She seems nice, this woman. He's not so sure he should subject her to his particular brand of deep psychosis if she wasn't an expert, but he wasn't sure where else to go. He felt his mind slipping with every day that he skipped his therapy, and he couldn't let himself fall back down to rock bottom.]

Mm, well.. okay. If you don't mind? I usually meet with someone everyday, but we wouldn't have to go that far. And I'd.. [He rubs his neck uncomfortably, thinking of which words to choose.] -- be talking about a lot of murder and trauma and death and violence. Is that.. is that okay?

[baldrshand]

[Oh, my... and he looks so young, too. Still, Azelle is young, and Finn is young, and even her own brother Sigurd is young, even if he's her elder. Ethlyn knew so many people at home who were too young to bear the burdens that they had and were forced to do so anyway.

Since the conversation seems to be getting personal now, Ethlyn gives over the table to the same clinician who had given her the quick explanation so she can talk to this young man a few steps away, a little more private.]

I came from a world at war, so I've seen a good deal of death and violence myself. It wouldn't be too much for me. [Being a healer, she sees a lot of the worst things very closely indeed.] What's your name?

iii

[oracledriven]

[After his disastrous attempt at horseback riding, Noel gave a whole lot of thought to just packing it in until someone could find a chocobo for him to ride. No such luck yet, though...and unfortunately, he's too committed to trying to help to give in just yet. So he gave it another shot. And another. And he's got the bruises to show for it, so it took him a little while to put everything back and clean up. He's just leaving the barn when he spots Ethlyn, and when he does, he hangs back for a second. Seems like she needs a moment to herself, and he doesn't want to interrupt, so instead he follows her gaze to the sky.

It...it's a big sky. Something he took for granted back home, even loathed, in a way. The skies of Pulse were always blanketed in heavy clouds, a sickening off-gray color that radiated the same feeling of unrightness as the rest of that dying world. Luxerion, too, was under constant cloud cover. But the few puffy clouds in the sky here are a silvery white, and the moon is huge, and the stars are coming out, and--]

--Huh? Oh. No, I don't... Sorry. I was just heading back. [Get it together, Noel. He shakes his head, briefly gesturing upward.] It's a big sky, huh? Guess I got lost in it, for a second.

[The smile is put on so dutifully that he wants to ask what's on her mind, but he holds off, for now.]

Re: iii

[baldrshand]

[Oh, Noel. Ethlyn's been witness to his misadventures today and done her best to help, but one thing she can say, is that he's a young man who isn't willing to give up. That's a good thing.]

Yes--you can get lost in looking at it. [That's easy to talk about.] It's strangely reassuring to see that the sky here isn't so different from the one back home... sunsets, and stars and the moon going from shadow to light and back again.

[She's assuming, at least, that Noel is familiar with such sights himself.]

[oracledriven]

[It all sounds so...so ordinary, when she says it that way. Like it's no big deal. Maybe it's not, for some people: the sun rises, it sets. The sky changes, the seasons change. He saw plenty of that when he was traveling with Serah, but-- that didn't make it any easier to get used to. He nods softly, a little noncommittally.]

I think I see what you mean. Like some places aren't so different, even if they're different worlds.

[baldrshand]

[She nods. She knows that the sky of this world, Expiation as the mysterious parchment-writers call it, is not the same as the sky over Jugdral. But it's blue, it has clouds that rain and sun that shines.]

I was so shocked when people started calling this place a different world than theirs, as though it was the only thing to think. For all I know, they come from places with two suns or purple seas, so perhaps it makes sense to them, but it didn't to me.

What about your world--do you see the same sort of sights when you look at the sky?

[oracledriven]

I can't blame you, there. It seems like it'd be pretty hard for most people to believe. If I didn't know so much of my own world, I would've doubted it, too.

[But the difference between this place and Pulse is like night and day. And as for Nova Chrysalia? He's had plenty of time to explore the whole world. Plenty of time to watch it crumble, one rock at a time. Another world is the only explanation that would make any sense.]

Where I come from, the sky is usually too gray to see the stars. But I've seen other places that don't look too different. No purple seas, though. [He shoots her a brief flash of grin.]