That was no problem. Quickly and effortlessly weaving together a complicated tangle of flows of Water, Earth, and Divine power, the flows of healing, Tarrin snapped it down and then released it into her. The healing attacked the mangled scar tissue inside her, breaking it down, puzzling out the body's original condition and then reknitting together tissue and organs to make it just as it had been before. The jagged scar and skin surrounding it on Mist's side turned red, then the redness faded, taking the scar with it. Smooth unmarred skin was all that remained.
Mist finally managed to suck in her breath as the icy blast of Sorcerer's Healing worked its way through the warm sensation of the probe. She grabbed his paw with both of hers, yet seemed completely incapable of moving it even a hair's breadth, locking onto it and threatening to crush his wrist in a powerful grip as the Healing worked into her, through her, eradicating the scar tissue, and the condition it caused in her.
"Tarrin!" Triana said angrily as he blew out his breath and pulled his paw away, feeling the cold numbness of using up most of his energy. "You stupid cub! If I hadn't been here to choke that off, you would have fried yourself! What in the furies did you just do?"
He looked right in Mist's eyes, which were staring at him with a mixture of anger, confusion, and a strange fear. "What should have been done a long time ago," he said in a weary voice, more to her than anyone else. That had drained him of just about every ounce of energy he had, and he fought not to wilt onto the table.
"What does that mean?"
"There was a scar inside her that wouldn't let her conceive. I removed it. Mist isn't barren anymore."
Those simple words hit the other Were-cats like a sledgehammer. Shirazi gaped at him in shock, and Singer, who was in the act of standing, flopped back into her seat heavily. But Rahnee gave him a single startled look, then began to laugh. Kimmie smiled broadly, a look of sublime happiness on her face. But Mist stared at him with that same furious look, but now a twinge of disbelief rippled through her eyes. "You're lying," she accused in a desperate tone. "You couldn't have done that! Every Druid in Fae-da'Nar has tried to heal me!"
"Tarrin's not a Druid, Mist," Triana said bluntly, staring at her. "He's a Sorcerer, and Sorcerers can make a body heal in ways that aren't natural. And if he said he did it, then he did it. If you want, I'll check and make sure, but I don't think I have to."
"Check," she said instantly, still refusing to let go of his wrist. "If he's lying, I'm going to-"
"You watch your mouth, woman," Triana snapped, her eyes blazing. That immediately cowed the feral Were-cat, with a speed that surprised Tarrin, given Mist's powerful will. "Threaten my cub again, and you'll deal with me. Is that understood?"
"Yes, Triana," Mist said with shocking submission.
"Now shut up and stay still," she ordered, coming around Tarrin and putting a paw on Mist's belly. Mist still had Tarrin's paw gripped in both of hers, and she merely moved them out of Triana's way. Triana closed her eyes for a moment, and Tarrin could feel something, something that seemed to dance just outside the fringes of his consciousness. When she opened her eyes again, there was no change in her stoic expression. She stared at Mist, and then she gave her the slightest of smiles. "He did a good job," she announced. "Very clean, very neat. He totally removed the scar, and repaired your ovaries."
"I… I can bear children?" Mist asked in a tiny voice.
"Yes," Triana announced in a powerful voice.
Tarrin was looking in her eyes as Triana made that announcement, and he distinctly saw that tension in them that marked her as different from the others melt away, if only for the moment. She looked into Tarrin's eyes in dumbfounded shock, and then she burst into tears. She let go of his paw and covered her face with hers as Kimmie stood up and put her paws on her bond-mother's shoulders gently, her thankful look and teary eyes communicating her gratitude to him in ways that no words could.
Tarrin winced and rubbed his wrist gingerly. She'd almost wrung his paw off with that grip. Mist was a powerful Were-cat, probably stronger than he was. Rahnee was giving Tarrin a broad smile, and then Shirazi laughed delightedly. Singer managed to come out of it, smiling at him. "I'm glad I was here to see that," she finally said. "Now I won't have to worry about Mist killing me."
For some reason, everyone else thought that was very funny. Everyone but Mist and him was laughing.
"Uh, Triana, I really think I need to go lie down now," he said weakly. "That took everything I had."
"I should say so," Triana said. "I can't take you anywhere without you causing a scene, do you know that, cub?" she said with a laugh as she reached down and scooped him up. Being carried hadn't been what he had in mind, but he was in no position to argue. Then again, he wasn't sure if he could stand up, and being carried certainly beat being dragged back up to his room by his hair.
As she carried him up the stairs, Triana spoke to him softly. "That was a fool thing to do, cub. The Weave just about jumped out of its skin when you touched it. If I hadn't been there to throttle that, it would have fried you to ash."
"I'm sorry. When I realized what made Mist react that way, I just had to help. I did it without thinking."
"I'll say you weren't thinking," she snorted. "But, I can't say I can be too mad at you. Mist's barren condition is alot of what makes her so contrary. She blames the humans for it, and that was what's kept her from opening up more. She has alot of anger built up inside."
"What do you mean?"
"Well, everyone her age but her has children," she said as she used her tail to open the door to his room. "She's always felt alienated from the rest of us, hasn't felt like she belongs, because all her life, all she's wanted was to have one child of her own. The others treating her like she's a cripple didn't help," she grunted as she laid him down in his bed. "That's why she took Kimmie as a bond-child. Kimmie helped fill a void in her, but it wasn't enough. I told you before that Kimmie was the only reason that Mist isn't as bad off as she used to be. Now you understand why."
"Do you think Mist is going to be alright?"
"I think she will," she answered with a warm smile. "She's already feral, cub. She'll never be anything but that. But I think now she won't be quite so feral. With luck, a child of her own will mellow her out a bit. Maybe even enough to trust her own kind."
"I hope so. I just want her to be happy. I know how it feels to lose a part of your life, and never have anything be the same again."
Triana looked into his eyes, her gaze unwavering. "I guess you do at that, cub," she agreed as she pulled the blankets up for him. "I guess you do." She leaned down and kissed him on the forehead. "Now get some rest, and no more unannounced stunts like that. You'll make me old before my time."
"Yes, mother," he said with a weary smile.
"You," she smiled, tapping him on the nose with the tip of a finger, "are as much a pain in my butt as Jesmind ever was."
"But you love me anyway, don't you, mother?" he challenged in a tired voice, but he managed to smile.
"Gods help me, yes," she laughed. "I wonder which god I offended to have them keep throwing children like you in my lap."
"Maybe it's because you're the only one that can handle us," he said in a voice that took on a listless quality. The warm bed was working its magic on him, and he was drifting very close to the edge of sleep. "And I love you too."