Hit the reset button

Only once Irilyth was certain her life wasn't in immediate danger did she begin to let her guard down even a bit near the giant feline. The gargantuan cat actually seemed relieved when she confirmed that not only was she a healer, but she would come assist the injured wolf. Something in the lion's eyes was gentle enough for Iri to believe she meant no harm. The lion asked her to follow, then led her across the ice-encrusted grounds in the direction of her would-be patient. Irilyth moved as fast as she could, which wasn't much over the ice. She wasn't built for these northern climates, but sometimes sacrifices had to be made. Thankfully, her leonine guide didn't seem to mind, and slowed her gait to match pace with her until the two were moving as one.

Following the large paw prints in the snow and ice back the way the lion had come, the pair soon arrived on a spot of disturbed snow and earth, the pristine surfaces marred with dark splotches of blood. Irilyth gazed curiously around for her patient, equally as confused as her guide seemed to be. The lion confirmed the obvious as well as her suspicions: the patient had wandered off, apparently not in agreement that treatment was required. He was going to be a tough case, she could tell. Thankfully, the bleeding wolf left a fairly obvious trail in the ice for them to follow, and not more than a few minutes in the direction of the blood, they found the young male collapsed and curled in on himself amongst the snow. He was an obvious clash of colors against the otherwise pallid arctic world, easy for her to spot, even without the feline's help.

Even before she got too close, Irilyth could smell the stench of decay and fresh blood, wrinkling her nose up at the putrid smell combination. It smelled of violence and death. The gigantic cat chided the brute for his recklessness, then sighed and stepped aside to allow Irilyth to begin her work. The fae had taken no more than a couple steps towards her patient when he suddenly lifted his head, gazing at her with a look bred of curiosity and anger. It froze the sandy blonde woman on the spot. Raspberry red eyes widened and blinked in surprise. He spoke words that made no sense to her, but clearly held some meaning to him. Was he hallucinating something she was involuntarily a part of? If his wounds had begun to seep an infection into his blood it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility. "I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about," she replied in gentle, velvety lyrics.

She never got any clarification though, as the brute laid his head on the snow and gave it a little shake, the meaning lost on the clueless fae. Swallowing back a tight nervousness in her throat, Irilyth continued to close the distance between them with a touch more hesitation now that he seemed to be a bit out of it. The last thing she wanted was for him to snap in a feverish fit and attack her point blank. As she drew near the wolf, the smell of blood grew even stronger, and he whispered a quiet question to her. Was she afraid of him? Iri fixed soft purple-red eyes on the young brute and shook her head. "No, I'm not." Irilyth had no inkling the thoughts dancing in the dark-furred brute's mind, and as such felt no fear being near him. She unslung her satchel of supplies from around her neck and set it in the snow beside her patient, then began to inspect his body. He was well-built, toned and athletic. His coat was thick and well cared for—save for the sticky blood matting it in places around his chest.

"I'm going to have to lift your leg so I can get to the wound," she instructed her as-of-yet nameless patient. She needed to see just what sort of damage she was dealing with before she could begin to treat him properly. "If I do anything that hurts too much... well, just remember I'm trying to save your life." With that, Irilyth began, reaching for the brute's closest foreleg in an attempt to lift and manipulate it enough to see how far the wound extended from and how deep it was.

"Irilyth"