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Tina woke first the next morning, getting up and stretching out carefully, grimacing when her leg smarted. She groaned and rolled over onto her stomach to cover her head.
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When she woke up, Gold went over and nudged her.
"How are you feeling?" he asked softly. |
"Still tired," Tina admitted quietly, rolling back over so she could look up at him. Now she just had to not let on that her leg was still sore.
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"We can keep the pace slow today," Gold said. "In fact, an easy pace is a good idea until the forest thins a bit."
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"Agreed." Tina sighed. "It'll take an extra day or so to get back to the castle, probably. But as long as you don't mind..."
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"I don't mind," Gold replied. "I would rather we make it back in one piece."
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Tina snorted at that. "Yeah, I'd rather not have any more mishaps on the way back," she agreed, getting to her feet with only a little wince.
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Gold held out a hand to help her to her feet. He'd seen that wince.
"I can see about taking care of the pain for you," he offered. "I have several spells for that sort of thing." |
"It's fine, don't worry about it," Tina said, waving it off. "I can deal with it. It's a reminder not to be so stupid next time and watch where I'm running."
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"I don't want you to be in pain, Tina," Gold said. "If I can help, then I want to."
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Tina shook her head a bit, smiling faintly at him. "Really, it's okay. It'll work itself out while we walk."
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Gold was quiet for a moment.
"Let me know if you change your mind," he finally said. |
"I will." Tina smiled a bit.
Bae got up as well, since he'd been awake for a little bit. But now he figured it was time for them to get going again. |
Gold glanced at them both before gesturing for Tina to go ahead. He would follow her and make sure she was alright.
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Tina led the way, heading back towards the castle. Her limping evened out slowly, though the pain didn't go away. She ignored it, thinking it would take a few days to fully reconnect, even with the boost magic had given her.
Bae stayed in the back of the group, just following both of them. |
The trip back to the castle was very slow going, but Gold didn't mind. The slower pace was easier on his bad leg, and it gave him a chance to keep an eye on Tina.
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By the time they finally got back to the castle, the trip had gone on an extra day and a half. And Tina was very glad to be back. She rubbed at her thigh where the cut had been absently as she moved inside.
Bae hesitated at the door. He wouldn't stay there, but he could go in and look, he figured. |
Gold paused for a moment, torn between following Tina and staying with Baelfire. Finally, he looked at his son.
"Feel free to stay as long as you like," he said. |
Bae nodded and moved inside, starting to look around. He didn't touch anything, though.
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Gold went over to Tina, moving her to the couch so she could sit for a moment.
"Let me see your leg," he said softly. |
"I'm sure it's fine," Tina protested, sitting on the couch anyway.
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"I'd like to take a look anyways," Gold said. "It's much easier here than in the other world for infections to set in, and they can be far more deadly."
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Tina was about to protest that an infection hadn't had a chance to set in before she realized that yes, there had been a chance. Then she grumbled and cut her pants more (since there was already a slice out from the original cut) to show the puckered red line where the cut had been.
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Gold nodded. He had expected that.
"Come with me," he said, holding out a hand to help her up. "I can clean and wrap that for you properly, and then you should rest." |
Tina heaved a long-suffering sigh but took his hand and got up, following him. She knew by now that there would be no arguing with him.
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