Let Me Take Away Your Pain -- Ability One Shot

[Ophelia Mae Teller]

Ophelia had been back at work almost two weeks now, and was finally starting to feel like she was back in the swing of things. She had eased herself back into the tasks of being the Welcome Witch, starting with the normal tasks of her job. She’d greet every patient, visitor and Healer that came through the department store window, first as politely as possible, then with more and more enthusiasm as she was reminded of the better parts of her job. She had been worried, if she was honest with herself, that she’d never be able to feel quite like herself again after what she had been through. But as the days went by, she began to believe in herself once more.

This week, she had gone back to doing routine rounds before and after she was needed at the front desk, bringing in flowers or candy to the patients to help cheer them up. Since she was no longer pregnant, she didn’t fear going into the Magical Bugs and Diseases level, but she did don a mask as a precautionary - her immune system was still building back up to strength, and she didn’t need to tempt fate.

Ophelia made her way into the ward where she knew several patients were suffering from Dragonpox. In her arms were four brightly colored bouquets of flowers; she knew it wouldn’t necessarily make them feel better, but she hoped that the bright colors would give them a little perk up. She had charmed them into changing colors daily so that there’d be something new every day. As she placed a bouquet next to a table with the curtains drawn, someone burst through them, sobbing hysterically. Concerned, Ophelia looked at the Healer who had followed the distraught woman out and shook his head sadly. A death, Ophelia looked down at her bouquet and sighed. “I’ll go after her,” she told the Healer; he had never been much at bedside manner, and though she was not a Healer Ophelia had the gift of knowing how to say the right thing. She handed the bouquet over to him and went out to find the woman.

She was easy to find; she was slumped down on the wall crying into her hands. Ophelia approached her carefully and crouched down next to her. “Hi there,” she said softly, and the woman looked up with bloodshot eyes. “My name is Ophelia, I’m so sorry for your loss,” she continued, and the woman sniffled. “She was my mother, she was my best friend. I don’t know how I’m going to go on without her,” she wailed sadly. Ophelia put her arm around the woman and she sank into her side. “I know how you feel; I lost my mother when I was fourteen, and I felt exactly as you do in this very moment,” she told her, gently rocking back and forth. “I believed that I could never go on without my mothers’ guidance and constant presence. She was my rock, my best friend. But...then I remembered. She wouldn’t want me to dive down into this dark hole that I couldn’t dig myself out of. She’d want me to live my life, remember her fondly, and keep in mind all the wisdom and advice she had doled out over the years.”

Ophelia squeezed the woman and took both of her hands in her own. “I know it’s hard to believe now, but you’ll get there too. Promise,” she told her. The woman nodded, and started to cry again, a sad song of loss. Ophelia recognized it, and she held the womans hands tightly, wishing she could take away this pain she was feeling. As soon as she finished her thought, her hands felt warm and that feeling of grief and sadness she hadn’t felt since her baby died came rushing through her. She felt like she was hallucinating, but was it possible to hallucinate emotions? A brief image flashed before her eyes of a woman who looked like the older version of the one sitting in front of her lying still on a hospital bed, and Ophelia gasped. Then, as suddenly as it began, it ended.

The woman looked up, no longer crying. “I don’t know what you did, but...thank you.  I think I can go on now,” she said, her voice so much stronger than it had been just moments ago. Ophelia just nodded twice, confused as to what she had actually done. The woman helped her up and gave her a hug before walking away. Ophie watched her go, rubbing her hands together, wondering what had just happened. Suddenly, a blinding pain jabbed at Ophelia’s temples and she cried out, clapping her hands over her head. She saw the Healer from the ward rush out as she fell to her knees and the world went dark.