Until I Leave II

After collapsing in the field, Carolyn woke up on her bed with the sun still high in the sky. Right as she sat up, Teri entered with excellent timing.

"So you're up, missie. I was starting to think that when you asked to learn medicine, you meant from the patient's perspective."

"I'm sorry..."

"Ah, it's fine. I'm only pulling your leg. How yah feeling?"

"My fever might be slightly worse. I also have a slight headache and muscle pain."

"Sounds about right after that reckless stunt you pulled. You know most people wouldn't be so stubborn about taking a break."

"Uh, that's..."

"Well, it worked against you in this case, but that was a compliment. You need to know your limits, but you'll never improve if you can't surpass them. What you have to keep in mind at all times is your patient. Can your current self save them? Can they be saved if you surpass your limits? What are your chances of success? How will it affect the patient in the case of failure? All these questions must be considered, but as long as you know the patient and know yourself, the path forward should be clear."

"Thank you, Mr. Teri. I'll keep that in mind. By the way, where's Atla?"

"Gone. She wanted to stay, but I ran her off since I figured you needed time to rest."

"I see. I'll have to thank her tomorrow."

"You better. Now as for training, since you won't be able to move much, you'll have to make do with going through the basics. I don't have a lot of books here, so you'll have to listen to this old man talk. You better not fall asleep."

"Okay! I'm ready."

Teri's first lesson was on the topic of general biology, where he explained the similarities and differences among living creatures. Her mother had given her lessons on this topic before, but not only was Teri's teaching easy to understand, she also gained new insights as she listened to him. She wished she had some paper to take note of his words, but with the exception of her mother's book, such supplies hadn't been considered essential when her family was fleeing, so she could only remain as focused as possible.

While Carolyn was recovering, she would study her mother's book in the morning, talk with Atla in the afternoon, and learn from Teri in the evening. At times, Teri would bring samples or drawings to serve as visible aids for his lesson. With every lesson, Carolyn wished she could go out and experience his teachings in the way he intended, but it was her own fault that she was bedridden, so she could only blame herself.

After almost a week, Carolyn started helping Teri with the field and following him to the forest to observe wildlife and harvest herbs. While not intending it to be a complaint, Carolyn once asked him if all doctors were required to know so much about creatures other than human beings. Teri's response was that all life belonged to the same ecosystem and that a problem in one entity could almost always be traced back to another.

Days turned into weeks and then months, until eventually a year had passed since Carolyn was brought into the village. Having gotten Teri's seal of approval, Carolyn was allowed to provide simple treatment to the villagers. After hearing that one of the villagers had injured themself while working on their farm, Carolyn made a house visit.

"And there! I know you're worried about your crops, but you have to take it easy and leave some work for your son, Mr. Andrews. You don't want to give your wife more work, do you?"

After wrapping a bandage around Andrews' sprained ankle, Carolyn gave him a warning to make sure he didn't aggravate the injury. He was in his late forties with three kids, all old enough for farm work, but he was infamous for doing most of the work himself despite his advanced age.

"Ah guess there's not much I can do with this leg. But I really don't know if I can trust those kids with my precious farm."

"I understand that you feel worried, but why don't you give them a chance? They might even surprise you."

"Ah sure hope so. Thanks for the help, Miss Doc. I hope it wasn't too much trouble."

"No, I'm just glad I could help."

Like her teacher, Carolyn refused to be called a doctor, but few villagers respected their wishes, so Carolyn also learned to ignore it. Leaving Andrews to get used to his situation, Carolyn left the house and found his second son and daughter, Larry and Calia, waiting for her.

"How's Dad?" asked the daughter.

"He won't be able to walk properly for a few weeks, but otherwise he'll be fine. I hope you siblings can handle the farm work well so that he doesn't do anything reckless and worsen his injury. If you need a few extra hands, I can find time to help."

"No, we'll be fine. It's a shame what happened to Pa, but Bro and I have always wanted to try our hands at managing the farm. But, um, I wouldn't mind if you wanted to check in from time to time, you know, on Pa, and the farm and all."

The slight blush on his face told his disappointed sister everything she needed to know. Now 15 years old, Carolyn's charm had increased along with her height. The older villagers weren't significantly affected, but if you randomly asked a young man in the village if he had a crush on her, then you would likely get a positive answer. Carolyn's kind personality and work as Teri's assistant kept her reputation from lowering, but it was still hard for her to make friends with other young women. She considered using makeup to solve the problem, but it would be odd if her appearance suddenly changed, so she stuck to hoping they would get used to her presence. After treating Andrews, Carolyn was about to return to Teri's house, but she heard someone calling for her.

"Lyn!"

When she turned towards the voice, she found Atla running towards her. She had undergone her own growth spurt, so the gap in their heights had decreased.

"Oh, Atla. What's wrong? Shouldn't you be studying at this time?"

As Carolyn was being trained by Teri, Atla was inspired by her and asked her parents to let her join the weekly class held by Hanson. Atla was a diligent child who never skimped on her chores, so her parents agreed on the condition that it didn't interfere with her work. Hanson was usually the teacher, but at times Carolyn would substitute for him in Teri's stead.

"I finished the assignment early, so I wanted to read a book I borrowed from the chief, but there are some words I can't understand. Could you read it for me?"

While writing instruments such as paper and parchment were rare inside the village and saw little use since most of the villagers were illiterate, Hanson was generous enough to loan books from his personal library to the children. The books he lent to the children were always suited to their level and interest, but sometimes they would contain topics and words not covered in class, so the children would seek either Hanson or Carolyn to elaborate in such cases.

"Hmm. Well, I suppose I have some free time, so sure."

There was no urgent need for her to return to Teri's house, so Carolyn held Atla's hand, and the two went to their favourite reading spot. A short distance from the village square, there was a tall tree that could be seen from all the village fields. The tree's shadow could provide shade for anyone who stayed by its trunk, and the location was privy to cool breeze, so Atla would often read here. The spot wasn't hidden, so everyone knew about it, but by some unspoken rule, only the children and Carolyn used it.

Thanks to her experience teaching the children, Carolyn found it simple to figure out what was causing Atla trouble and how to help her understand. She hadn't thought much of the education her mother gave her, but since living in the village, she realised how advanced her teachings were. Even Teri would sometimes express his surprise at how much she knew when it came to matters outside of medicine. The realisation made her wonder if her mother had always planned to make her explore the outside world, but even after a year, she still hadn't made up her mind to leave. However, she never forgot about the burden she carried.

While Carolyn was reading the book to Atla under the tree, she heard a clamour from the village square, and then a shout reached her ears.

"Help! The village chief fainted!"