And when Talia took the blanket and held it between Jane and the rest of the platform, she relaxed just a little bit. But her skin still quivered a bit as Arthur's hand gently touched her exposed midsection.

"Okay, let me know if something really starts to hurt. I'm checking to see how your ribs are doing." Arthur gently ran his fingers up her sides, carefully responding to any painful noises his patient made.

Jane wasn't in nearly as much pain as she had been just a few days earlier, but she could tell she still had a long way to go. And she also realized that she wasn't as nervous about Arthur touching her anymore.

“Are . . . are you a doctor?"

He smiled. He appeared to be in his early thirties, and had that rugged Marlboro Man kind of look to him. And his face held no malice that Jane could detect, which was something she just wasn't used to.

“No. I used to be, but now I'm a healer."

"A healer?"

“Yes. It's my Talent." He looked at her quite seriously.

"Do you want to see?"

Jane looked quizzical and then nodded. She saw his hands start to shimmer and glow, then felt her side begin to grow warm. Her skin seemed to tighten, and she could actually feel her ribs shifting just a little bit. She started to gasp, but the sensation began to dissipate. The pain was less than before.

"What was. . ."

"That was magic," Arthur explained softly.

"It's not a miracle cure.

I just help your body fix itself at an accelerated rate. When you first got here, I couldn't push too much since I need my patient to tell me if it's working. Now that you're awake, we can probably go a little faster. But you can't go too fast . . . the body just can't handle it."

As he began to feel her sides again, Jane realized that there were a number of spots that were much less tender than before. She pointed out what still hurt, and he redirected his magic towards those places. After the second round of healing, she noticed that he had broken out into a sweat. Apparently, magic took its toll on the practitioner.

“That's enough for now," he muttered. He looked at her face.

"Well, all the cuts have healed, and that busted lip looks good as new," he added. As he moved to brush some hair from her face, her fear returned and she shrunk back. So he pulled his hand away.

“I'm going to go take a bit of a nap. I'd like to work with you some more this evening. Would that be okay?"

Jane nodded as Talia lay the blanket down on top of her body.

"I... I'm sorry," she said.

"I don't want to be a bother."

Arthur looked her in the eyes.

“It's not a bother. It's giving help to someone who needs it. Just like you did back in that alley." Then he wandered off.

Talia knelt beside the chair.