The village looked calm but Emily could feel the tension under it like fever hiding under skin

Days after the hearing everything seemed still The well water was clean again People boiled every drop before drinking Lila checked it every morning like a ritual Hart stayed near the clinic most hours guarding without saying it aloud The sick children were running again their laughter sharp in the air like a promise Life looked normal on the surface but it was not

Emily woke early each morning to wash her hands in cold water and start the routine check She still counted heartbeats with her fingers and listened for breath sounds She still checked wounds changed cloths boiled pots Yet now every small sound outside made her turn her head fast She knew eyes watched her from the hill Riders had not returned but word would travel Men like that never gave up power easily

One morning Lila brought her a piece of bread and said quiet People say the men will come again Emily nodded I know

The girl frowned Why they hate you You save us

Emily looked at her small serious face and thought of how to explain It is not hate she said It is fear People fear what they cannot explain If they do not understand they fill the empty space with stories Stories about witches stories about curses But we will fill that space first with truth

Truth was the only medicine that could outlive rumor

So she began again to teach

She took the children first They were easy to reach curious never too proud She gathered them outside the hut and made lessons into games She showed them how dirt under nails carried sickness She mixed colored herbs in bowls and said one is clean one is dirty They guessed which would make water safe They laughed when she made mistakes on purpose They clapped when they got it right They carried the new rules home to their mothers like treasure

Then she taught the women They learned how to dress wounds with boiled cloth how to press bleeding how to cool fevers She taught them to listen for breathing changes to tell the difference between cough from dust and cough from sickness She taught them not to fear blood but to fear stillness

At night she wrote in her burned notebook Her handwriting uneven from fatigue but steady enough to read She listed what she had done Each line short almost like prayer Boiled ten pots Taught three mothers Washed six wounds Clean water seven buckets Safe for now

She did not write feelings She wrote actions It was how she kept order inside her own head

One evening Hart came to the clinic as the sky turned orange He looked at her scribbling and raised one eyebrow She smiled tired This is record she said I keep so we do not forget Hart nodded and watched the children outside playing near the line she had drawn in the dirt between fever and well He pointed at it and said Law Emily laughed a small laugh Yes Law

That night the wind changed It came down from the hills cold sharp smelling like metal Emily could not sleep She kept hearing something in the distance not quite thunder not quite hooves just pressure in the air She went outside wrapped in her thin blanket and sat on the bench looking at the dark She whispered to herself Stay calm breathe like you tell them to breathe

Next morning the pressure broke

Two villagers came running shouting Hart Hart Riders Hart came out fast from his house still buttoning his coat Emily froze halfway through cleaning a wound The air went quiet except for the footsteps pounding from the road

They came again but slower this time Five riders not three All wore leather dark brown none in silver thread Their faces were hard not the same as before but cut from same stone They stopped at the square The lead man dismounted held out a rolled paper and spoke loud Official

Hart took it opened it read slow His mouth tightened He handed it to Emily

She could not read the language but she understood tone Law

She looked up at him What

He said slow They take you to hill again New man New rule

Emily felt her heart drop but she kept her face still

She had expected it sooner or later She looked around the square at faces that once only watched her work Now those same faces moved forward forming a wall without command Women stood shoulder to shoulder Men behind them Children clung to legs The man from the mill lifted his chin first and said one word Healer

The crowd echoed it Healer Healer The sound rolled like a wave

The riders hesitated

The lead man frowned He said something sharp Hart answered calm steady The man turned his horse slightly restless

Emily stepped forward She did not shout She spoke level loud enough for all to hear

I do not hide she said I go if they want but I go with witness not alone I go with Hart and Lila

Hart’s eyes widened but he nodded The crowd murmured in agreement The riders looked uneasy but they could not refuse that many eyes watching

So she packed her small cloth bag took her notebook her scissors her gauze her penlight the things she still had from her own world They were her weapons now

On the cart ride up the hill she felt the road shake under wheels The forest on both sides was thick shadows between trees Lila held her hand tight Hart sat silent across from them eyes hard like stone The lead rider said nothing

When they reached the brick house she saw banners she had not seen before Flags of darker color Men with documents and seals This was not just investigation This was something higher

Inside they led her not to the same room but to a larger hall There were more men behind the table Three this time and one woman in fine robes The tall man from before stood off to the side like he had brought her gift wrapped

The woman in robes spoke first Voice clear strong You are Emily from no family no city no record You work with sickness You say you heal but people whisper you control life and death She paused then said You must prove your claim before law of this land

Prove

Emily exhaled through her nose slow She looked around for something to use a test something that would show what she meant

Then the sound came from outside a cough sharp followed by a groan One guard rushed in whispering fast to the woman She frowned said Bring him

Moments later they carried in a man red faced sweating gasping every breath rattled The smell was bad infection inside lungs pneumonia She knew it at once She moved without thinking clearing space She pointed to the table Lay him flat She grabbed her cloth boiled water shouted for air open window no smoke She pressed her ear to his chest wet and heavy She knew that sound

The officials watched in confusion

She tore strips of her clean cloth placed them under his neck lifted his head slightly She motioned for someone to fan air She mixed salt honey water and pressed it to his lips not for cure but to soothe She rubbed his chest firm circular to loosen mucus She whispered Breathe Deep Slow again Come on Breathe

After long minutes his breathing eased a little still rough but not fading Emily wiped her hands on her skirt looked up and said Simple infection no curse no magic Just lungs drowning in fluid

The woman in robes stared Her eyes moved from the gasping man to Emily’s calm face

Emily spoke slow for all to hear This is what I do I do not summon sickness I fight it If I do nothing he dies If I help he lives If you want proof watch him breathe

The hall was silent except for that breathing Sound of life returning

The woman finally nodded small almost respectful

She said something to her aides They left fast returning with a different paper not sealed in red but blue The tall man’s face darkened He tried to argue The woman cut him off with one hand The sound of authority final

She turned to Emily and said You stay under watch but you work You help under name of village The law sees you now not as curse but as craft

Emily blinked She was not free but she was recognized That was enough for now

When she walked out of the hall Lila ran up hugging her waist Hart exhaled like he had held breath all day

On the ride down the hill the air felt warmer Sun breaking through trees

Hart finally said one word Law Emily nodded Yes Law

Back in the village the people were waiting again not shouting this time but smiling quiet relief The man from the mill lifted his son to show her healthy strong Emily waved weak too tired to speak

That night she sat outside the clinic notebook on her knees She wrote new line under her list Recognition by law Partial freedom Allowed to work Under watch Still alive

She stared at the page long and whispered soft into the dark I can live with that For now

The wind was gentle through the fields The stars bright again And in that quiet she felt something she had not felt since she woke in this strange world

Hope