“What. Are you doing?” I snarled, not at all happy. The man stuttered, mumbling incoherently. “Speak properly, or I will make you.”
He swallowed audibly. I wondered if he was more scared of the fact that I was not human, or the fact that I was female. Either way, his dismay was strangely satisfying at the moment.
“Well, see,” he was talking very fast and nervously. “I heard fauns,” he gestured at me as if I was not aware of my own race, “had sort of… healing abilities.” He waved his long fingers around.
“And you thought they would be in my bag?” I looked at the man, quite hoping he was not stupid.
“Well, um, yes.” The innkeeper looked away sheepishly.
I pressed my palm to my forehead. “Some fauns do, indeed, have the gift of healing. But you won’t find it in a sack of old clothes.”
He suddenly looked at me, very hopeful. “Are you one that can do that? Heal, I mean?”
I stared at him for a moment, not sure how to answer. “What on earth do you need a healer for?”
Taking that for a yes, even though it had not been, he jumped to his feet. “Come with me!” He burst out of the room, and I heard him run down the hall.
I rolled my eyes, but followed. The door of Levent’s room crept open as I entered the corridor. His eyes, luminescent in the lamplight, peered through the crack.
I just wove my hand at him. “Go back to bed,” I murmured tiredly. It was what I wanted to do right now, and if he were smart, he would do it. The door inched shut, and I followed the hall in the direction the innkeeper had gone.
One of the doors had been opened to a steep downward staircase, and I could see the light of the innkeeper’s lamp bobbing as he descended. I followed, quickly, a little concerned about being in a dark enclosed space. His lamp had better have enough oil.
“You see, it’s sort of like this: I haven’t the control over myself that a skilled healer has, so I won’t be able to concentrate as easily. The magic won't be as precise, and might spread more than intended. That is,” there was no way to say this without sounding strange, “I’ll be able to read her body, sort of. I’ll see everything she has been through if I’m not careful.”