control, as well as Earth.
I hadn’t even tried anything with that element. Knowing my luck, I’d cause a
massive earthquake and widespread destruction. No, if there was one thing I
knew how to do by now, it was heal.
The
baby that had been crying when she first came in had yet to fully settle. Her
mother paced the back of the room, bouncing her over her shoulder while patting
the baby’s small back. Nothing she did could get her to calm down. Nodding decisively,
I made my way down the outside aisle. The mother seemed surprised when I
stopped in front of her.
“Do you
mind?” I held out my arms for the baby. Tufts of black hair and eyes the color
of nutmeg peeked out from under a knitted beanie. The mother, who appeared to
be not a whole lot older than I was, looked to Charley for guidance.
“It’s
okay, Nova. Sarah won’t harm your daughter.” Without a word, Nova turned back
to me and placed the squirming baby in my arms.
“What’s
her name?” I asked as I tried to get a better grip on the little girl. I’d
never held a baby before.
“Starla.”
I
smiled and cooed at the baby, but she seemed to grow even more restless and agitated.
She drew up her knees and curled her toes, and her pinched face grew redder the
harder she cried. Even without touching it, I knew the problem was the girl’s
small tummy.
“What’s
wrong with her?” I asked anyway, just to be sure.
Nova
shook her head. Lines of exhaustion carved her young face. “The doctor says
colic. It started a few weeks ago. When she starts crying, she doesn’t stop for
hours.” Nova’s chin quivered as she turned her eyes on me. “I’m just so tired.”
I
offered Nova a small, reassuring smile. “Let’s see if I can help.”
Cradling
Starla in my left arm against my chest, I put my right hand on her stomach.
Then I closed my eyes and swayed gently from side to side, blotting the rest of
the crowd from my mind. I wasn’t thinking about proving anything to the tribe
at that moment; my entire focus was on helping this one little girl and her
mother.
Breathing
in deeply through my nose, I concentrated on making the baby feel better. The
tingling started in the center of my chest, right where my heart was, and then
a bud of warmth blossomed into a full-headed heat. The warm feeling circulated
through my body and then flowed down my arm and out through my fingers.
Almost
immediately, the baby stopped crying.
I
slowly opened my eyes and found Starla gazing up at me, her nutmeg eyes open
wide. “There, now,” I whispered. “All better?”
Starla’s
pert little mouth formed an O and then broke out in a gummy smile. I handed the
baby back to her mother, whose own mouth and eyes were as wide as her
daughter’s.
“Thank
you,” Nova breathed, her eyes glassy with tears.
I
bobbed my head, all of a sudden very aware of the attention on me now that I
didn’t have Starla in my arms anymore. I returned to the front of the room and
headed for my chair, but not before Charley snagged my arm and pulled me to her
side.
“Brothers
and Sisters,” Charley called, “come lay your hands on our newest Spirit Keeper.
Those standing, please come forward first. Then we will begin at the back of
the room in an orderly fashion.”
Oh, the
humiliation! It was one thing to demonstrate my knack for healing, but this laying
of the hands was a little too much for me. I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking
out all light, and simply endured the next few moments that followed.
One by
one I felt hands touching my head or my elbow. Some members whispered a
muttered blessing, or what I hoped was a blessing, in some native language I
couldn’t understand.
I’d
been standing still for so long that my legs began to go numb, when a zing of
electricity shot through my body. I opened my eyes to see Caleb standing in front
of me, his hand on my shoulder.
“Welcome,”
he said, seemingly just as surprised as I was.
Without
warning, he grimaced and shuddered. His knees
I hadn’t even tried anything with that element. Knowing my luck, I’d cause a
massive earthquake and widespread destruction. No, if there was one thing I
knew how to do by now, it was heal.
The
baby that had been crying when she first came in had yet to fully settle. Her
mother paced the back of the room, bouncing her over her shoulder while patting
the baby’s small back. Nothing she did could get her to calm down. Nodding decisively,
I made my way down the outside aisle. The mother seemed surprised when I
stopped in front of her.
“Do you
mind?” I held out my arms for the baby. Tufts of black hair and eyes the color
of nutmeg peeked out from under a knitted beanie. The mother, who appeared to
be not a whole lot older than I was, looked to Charley for guidance.
“It’s
okay, Nova. Sarah won’t harm your daughter.” Without a word, Nova turned back
to me and placed the squirming baby in my arms.
“What’s
her name?” I asked as I tried to get a better grip on the little girl. I’d
never held a baby before.
“Starla.”
I
smiled and cooed at the baby, but she seemed to grow even more restless and agitated.
She drew up her knees and curled her toes, and her pinched face grew redder the
harder she cried. Even without touching it, I knew the problem was the girl’s
small tummy.
“What’s
wrong with her?” I asked anyway, just to be sure.
Nova
shook her head. Lines of exhaustion carved her young face. “The doctor says
colic. It started a few weeks ago. When she starts crying, she doesn’t stop for
hours.” Nova’s chin quivered as she turned her eyes on me. “I’m just so tired.”
I
offered Nova a small, reassuring smile. “Let’s see if I can help.”
Cradling
Starla in my left arm against my chest, I put my right hand on her stomach.
Then I closed my eyes and swayed gently from side to side, blotting the rest of
the crowd from my mind. I wasn’t thinking about proving anything to the tribe
at that moment; my entire focus was on helping this one little girl and her
mother.
Breathing
in deeply through my nose, I concentrated on making the baby feel better. The
tingling started in the center of my chest, right where my heart was, and then
a bud of warmth blossomed into a full-headed heat. The warm feeling circulated
through my body and then flowed down my arm and out through my fingers.
Almost
immediately, the baby stopped crying.
I
slowly opened my eyes and found Starla gazing up at me, her nutmeg eyes open
wide. “There, now,” I whispered. “All better?”
Starla’s
pert little mouth formed an O and then broke out in a gummy smile. I handed the
baby back to her mother, whose own mouth and eyes were as wide as her
daughter’s.
“Thank
you,” Nova breathed, her eyes glassy with tears.
I
bobbed my head, all of a sudden very aware of the attention on me now that I
didn’t have Starla in my arms anymore. I returned to the front of the room and
headed for my chair, but not before Charley snagged my arm and pulled me to her
side.
“Brothers
and Sisters,” Charley called, “come lay your hands on our newest Spirit Keeper.
Those standing, please come forward first. Then we will begin at the back of
the room in an orderly fashion.”
Oh, the
humiliation! It was one thing to demonstrate my knack for healing, but this laying
of the hands was a little too much for me. I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking
out all light, and simply endured the next few moments that followed.
One by
one I felt hands touching my head or my elbow. Some members whispered a
muttered blessing, or what I hoped was a blessing, in some native language I
couldn’t understand.
I’d
been standing still for so long that my legs began to go numb, when a zing of
electricity shot through my body. I opened my eyes to see Caleb standing in front
of me, his hand on my shoulder.
“Welcome,”
he said, seemingly just as surprised as I was.
Without
warning, he grimaced and shuddered. His knees
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