The Chronicles of Harold the Healer Ch. 02

"I'm not a carnival attraction!" grumbled the attraction. "And I can't see!" With a grin and a wave, Harold conjured a reflective surface that Martin was able to hold and position so he could see too. Harold zoomed in through the pants, flesh and muscle to the bone.

"That's really cool!" exclaimed Joe as Harold moved the Window down towards the knee. "That's a crack in the bone, isn't it?" he said, pointing to the injury, which was about six inches above the knee.

"How on Earth are you even able to walk? That must be really painful!" Harold exclaimed. There was a lot of swelling around the injury as well. "Whoa, what's this?" He'd spotted a suspicious shadow in a blood vessel that ran down the back of the leg, and changed the focus to look at it.

"That's a blood clot," said Jane flatly. Harold quickly placed his right index finger on the spot and said something. There was a brief flare of reddish-orange light and the spot disappeared. "Dad, that could have killed you if it had gotten loose!" Martin's face had turned very pale and they had to quickly lay him down on the ground before he fainted.

"I have to put you to sleep for a few minutes while I fix the bone." A moisture-laden southerly breeze blew through the courtyard, rustling the leaves on nearby trees, and other noises from various livestock were audible in the distance. Martin nodded and Harold made two passes over his forehead and tapped it with his left middle finger. "I need one of you to take control of the spell for me. It will drain a bit of energy, but will help me to concentrate on the Healing."

"I'll do it," Jane volunteered, with no objection from her brother. Harold placed his index fingers on Martin's temples, then moved to touch Jane's, leaving a pair of turquoise glowing lines in the air that faded. "Oh, this feels strange," she said, looking around. "I feel like I'm walking."

"Let's do this," said the Healer. The leg glowed yellow and turquoise and they all watched the bone fuse together and the crack fade away. "The swelling will go down on its own in a day or two," he said after Martin had woken up and was sitting with his back against Lydia. "Please take it easy for a day or so. Your system is going to feel a bit wonky until it adjusts." He helped Martin and then Lydia to their feet. "And if I could trouble you for a bite to eat and something to drink, I'd be most grateful. All this Healing takes its toll on a guy."

"There's no way you will leave here without being fed!" Lydia announced determinedly, herding the clearly tired Healer and her limping husband up the steps to the porch and inside. They removed their boots and migrated past the parlour and dining room to the kitchen at the back of the house, which was large, open, and the focal point of seemingly every farmhouse in the Kingdom.

"It looks like we got in just in time," said Jane, looking out one of the windows at the rain that was just starting. "You're going to have a wet ride back to town, Healer Harold." Said Healer had been guided to one of the wooden chairs at the table and had leaned his staff in the nearby corner.

"Oh, I can keep myself dry, thank you," he replied as a mug of water was placed in front of him and he drank it down. After adding some wood to the stove and poking it around to get it heating, Martin had been ordered to sit by Lydia, to which he had meekly acquiesced. The brandishing of the long knife that she'd been using to slice a loaf of bread may have had something to do with it. "And it's not that long a walk back to town."

"We'll give you a ride back, it's the least we can do," said Joe, pulling a half-dozen eggs from the icebox and handing them to his mother. Jane was toasting some bread slices on the top of the stove as she and Lydia, who was now working on the eggs and some bacon, worked around each other. "Besides, we have to go to the General Store for more supplies anyway, so it will be no trouble."

"Thank you very much! It is much appreciated," said the Healer warmly, "and I speak from much experience as a professional ride moocher." That got the desired chuckles. He also noted Martin's checking out Lydia's rear as she was working at the stove. "Still admiring the scenery?"

"There's nothing I'd rather look at," he replied with a glint in his eye as he exchanged a look with his wife. "Even after all these years. Suddenly realizing that you were having a brush with death makes me appreciate it all the more." It didn't take a genius to guess what would happen soon after they were alone. As Joe cut two potatoes into thin slices on a cutting board on the counter a safe distance from the cooks, who were doing a well-choreographed dance around the stove, he asked,

"Healer Harold, how is it that you become a Mage?" As this was a frequently-asked question, he had a well-rehearsed reply.

"The ability is something you're born with. Some of us refer to it as a birth defect," he replied dryly, getting some smiles. "It's something in our brains that allows us to access and manipulate the field of energy that is around us. Despite centuries of study, we still have no idea where it comes from or exactly what it is. It seems to be a fundamental property like gravity. Oh, thank you!" he said as Joe, having handed the sliced potato to Lydia for frying in a deep pan of cooking oil, brought him and his father mugs of water fresh from the pump. "The ability seems to be hereditary, though sometimes it can skip a generation or two. The child of two Mages, like my daughter Marcie, is almost guaranteed to be one. The ability usually starts to manifest itself in force at around age 15, but there are often clues well before, usually in things related to nature, like reading the weather, gardening, and animals."

"And you have to go to school to learn how to use it, I presume?" asked Jane, looking over her shoulder as she stirred the frying potato chips.

"Ten years minimum, more if you choose to do more advanced post-graduate studies," Harold replied. "You learn all the stuff you would learn in a regular school, plus how to use Magic, and also martial arts." At Martin's raised eyebrows, he elaborated. "Like with any other skill, the use of Magic requires the ability to concentrate on what you're doing. A mistake can have serious consequences, especially for Healing, as you can imagine. Martial arts give a practical self-defence ability and also teach you how to clear your mind and focus. Though I can't provide too many details for confidentiality reasons, the first exam in Magic that you have to pass is to light a candle." They both looked hopeful as food was being assembled on plates. "It's not as easy as you'd think, especially if you're a hormone-sodden teenager in a strange environment trying to deal with abilities and sensations that you'd never felt before."

"So, what's your relationship with non-mage physicians and veterinarians?" Lydia asked as plates were delivered to the table and everyone sat down. There were seats for six, with Harold sitting on one of the long sides by himself, facing Jane and Joe, with Lydia and Martin at either end.

"Definitely love-hate," he replied, putting some of the egg on a corner of toast and taking a bite. "Oh, that's so good," he mumbled, "thank you." After swallowing it and some more water, he continued.

"Mages make up a very small percentage of the population, and Healers a small percentage of that. In order to Heal with Magic, we have to know what the physicians and veterinarians know about how the body works, as well as how to apply Magic to fix its problems. It annoys them that we can achieve the same or better results, but a lot faster, and can cure some things that they can't, like cancers and some poisonings if we're fast enough. On the other hand, we work together to figure out exactly what we are doing when Healing so that they can apply it in a non-Magical way. The invention and refinement of the Window I was using earlier has allowed us to make progress in leaps and bounds. You know of the folk remedy about using moldy bread to help treat illnesses?"

"It's helped us in the past," said Joe thoughtfully, munching some bacon. "Though it's not been very consistent."

"One of the varieties of mold generates a chemical that's toxic to bacteria, and we've isolated which one it is and Magical and non-Magical chemists are apparently really close to synthesizing it." More eggs and toast vanished from his plate.

"Can you regrow a lost arm or leg?" asked Jane. Harold shook his head.

"We can fix limbs that are too short due to birth defects by tricking the brain into thinking that they have to grow some more, and arms and legs that have been lost below the knee or elbow can usually be regenerated, but we can't regrow something that's been totally lost. I've served on a few battlefields in my time," he added, his eyes growing clouded and distant as he replayed some horrible memories, "and I've saved the lives of many men and women who would have bled to death by sealing off the ends of severed limbs. And, Goddess help me, I never want to do that again." His eyes suddenly snapped into focus on his mug, which was shaking noticeably as he was trying to drink from it. After taking the drink, he added, "Sorry, a little post-traumatic stress reaction there. It's been eighteen years, and I remember it as if it were yesterday."

They finished the meal in a somewhat uncomfortable silence. Even though the Healer was forcibly returning the memories to the box from which they'd been unleashed, he was noticing Joe's increasing level of discomfort. Something was clearly bothering him but he didn't want to say. "What's eating you, Joe?" he asked kindly. "You look like a man watching his executioner sharpening his axe." He looked at his parents and sister, and they nodded. Red-faced, he finally blurted,

"I ... I have a small penis. Hearing what you said and having you here makes me think that you can help me." The sense of relief he felt when he finished was clearly visible.

"I thought it might be something like that. Believe it or not, because it's such a frequent request, there is a special class devoted to it, and there is never any shortage of volunteers for the students to practice on." He was surprised and touched at how they all visibly relaxed and perked up. "If you wish, we can do it in private, or you can be the star of the show."

"We might as well do it here," Joe replied, standing up, unbuttoning and pulling down his pants. Harold stood, moved around the table, and sat in the chair that Jane hastily vacated. Even when stroked into full erection, it was only the size of the Healer's index finger, but it was otherwise healthy as a quick inspection with a small Window showed. His testicles were a normal size and his scrotum was hairy.

"You're a perfect candidate for the enlargement spell," said the Healer cheerfully. "I've had to Heal a few that had been suffering some damage due to ill-advised mechanical procedures." He sat up in the chair, closed his eyes and cleared his mind, focusing on extracting the spell from its mental compartment. When he opened his eyes again, his fingertips were glowing faintly red in the little fingers, light brown in the ring fingers, a stronger light blue in the middle fingers, and a darker blue in the index fingers, as they had been when he had Healed Bessie. "Fire, Earth, Air, and Water all have their parts to contribute," he continued in a standard bedside patter as he wove a pattern around the penis.

"That's very interesting," said Martin as the glowing colours merged and formed the shape of an erect penis that was about seven inches long and two fingers wide.

"I'd fuck that," murmured Jane, getting some surprised looks from the others and blushing. Lydia was also scrutinizing it closely.

"This is what it will look like. The 'standard cock', which is just the right size to fill a vagina and give a woman the pleasure she deserves." Harold snapped his fingers and the glow snapped onto the actual penis with a pop. Joe started giggling uncontrollably.

"It tickles!" he exclaimed. The sensation quickly faded, as did the glow around his cock, and he pulled up his pants and buttoned them again.

"How long will it take?" Lydia asked, diverting her gaze to her husband's eyes.

"Two weeks," replied the Healer, standing up. "The Principle of Minimal Intervention that we employ has the brain and body doing all the work and the Magic just giving it a push in the right direction. You will experience some discomfort, like an itchy feeling or some mild pain and increased sensitivity, but nothing that can't be helped with the usual painkillers. You'll also be a bit hungrier than usual." He was not going to mention that the description of the side effects was from personal experience, or that he never refused a request for penis enlargement. After the dishes had been cleared from the table to the counter to prepare for washing, he added, "Let me do that. Is that your privy out there?" He pointed out the window to a small structure painted in a cheerful red and blue pattern. Jane nodded, looking puzzled. With a couple of gestures and words, he hit the dishes with the Clean spell and the sudden loud rattle and clatter made the Russells jump. "The Clean spell doesn't destroy the grime; it just transports it somewhere else. The privy is the logical destination."

"I really wish that I could learn that spell," said Lydia ruefully.

"Tell me about it," Joe and Jane chorused, laughing. "That barn would be the cleanest in the country," Joe continued as the younger Russells got their hats and waterproof coats on. "I'll get Howard hitched up to the buggy and we'll get you back to town. It's the least that we can do for all that you've done for us." The horse had conveniently returned to the pasture fence and didn't seem to mind the gentle rain.

"Good-bye, Healer Harold," said Martin, warmly shaking his hand and then embracing him. Lydia followed suit. "If there's anything we can do for you, please let us know."

"There's probably nothing more than the delicious meal you can do for me, but please go and do something good for someone else who needs your help. Spread the good around and it will come back ten-fold." They had to return to the front door to collect their boots, which they carried back to the kitchen before putting them on. He took his staff from the corner and with a wave, he, Joe, and Jane stepped through the kitchen door and closed it behind them.

"How long before they're going at it like rabbits?" Jane inquired with a smirk as they walked to the pasture gate. "Hey, why aren't we wet?"

"My Ward spell is keeping the rain off," Harold replied. "My independent research project in Year 9 led me to find a modification to the original spell that uses the kinetic energy of the raindrops to sustain it, so there's no cost to me after I cast it. It got me a nice prize, too, and even a couple of awards from outside the Kingdom once the news got out." Those had been a big surprise to everyone when they had arrived in the mail two months after he had presented it to the Examiners in the Open Session, he mused as Howard was led by Jane to the shed, whose doors had been opened by Joe. Both humans and the horse had had Wards cast on them to keep them dry as they worked, and Howard seemed bemused by it. As the Russells worked with the efficiency of long practice, Harold gave the horse a quick but thorough exam, pronouncing him in great shape. As they were about ready to mount the buggy, Joe got a puzzled expression that rapidly changed to desperation. He hurried outside, unbuttoned his pants and pulled down his underwear, revealing his fully hard, small cock. With a grunt, he ejaculated three large squirts of cum, followed by several smaller ones, until there was nothing left.

"Is that from the increased sensitivity you were talking about, Healer Harold?" he asked as he squeezed out the last of it, ignoring Jane's frank stare, and buttoned himself up again with a grimace.

"Unfortunately, yes," was the reply as they got on, with Jane driving, Joe riding shotgun, and Harold on a seat in the back. "That particular side effect will diminish in a couple of days, and it will help if you wrap it in a handkerchief or old rag to keep it from rubbing on your underwear."

"Everything comes with a price," Joe sighed, "but this price is one I'm willing to pay." Just before they got started, he got an annoyed expression. "Damn it, I forgot the shopping bags! Give me a moment and I'll get them!" He carefully dismounted from the buggy and walked out the door, bracing for getting wet. Since the Ward was still active, he didn't. Sheepishly, he grinned at them and then headed for the house's back door.

"I didn't want to say this while he was here," said Jane, standing up and turning around to face her passenger, "but I have a problem with my vagina." She stepped between the seats, stood beside him, and began unbuttoning her jeans.

"What would that be?" Harold asked, raising his eyebrows as the jeans and underwear were quickly pulled down, revealing a full triangle of curly brown hair at face level.

"It doesn't have your cock in it," she replied with a cheeky grin, easily hauling him from his seat like a sack of grain. "Which we can easily change," she added, feeling his crotch with a strong, capable hand and finding signs of life. "We don't have much time, so it will have to be quick," she continued, rapidly unbuttoning his pants, pulling them and his underwear down, revealing his already half erect cock. She turned a bit awkwardly and bent over, putting a hand on each of the front seats, exposing her swollen pussy, which she opened with two fingers as she reached between her legs.

"I'm not going to knock you up?" he inquired cautiously as he handled his suddenly hard erection, rubbing the tip along her labia and feeling the heat and moisture.

"I'm just about to start my period and haven't had a fuck all month, and I really need it!" Harold looked down and saw a pad sitting in her underwear.

"Who am I to refuse a lady in need?" he asked with a grin, shuffling forward a step and pushing all the way into her depths in one thrust. She moaned as his hard cock pushed her open and rubbed against her sensitive clitoris as it slid into her needy depths. "Wow, you really were ready," he added, thrusting in and out.

"Harder! Faster!" she commanded, turning away to face forwards. He quickly picked up the pace, thrusting faster and harder as her vagina squeezed him more and more strongly. All of her nerve endings were sending stampedes of pleasure and fire into her brain. He somehow seemed to know exactly how to thrust to drive her brain past the red line. After about a minute, she could take no more and clamped down hard, muffled her groan in her right forearm, and came. Despite his earlier encounter with Leila, Harold managed two squirts of cum that filled her with its warmth as he was unable to contain it any longer. The horse turned his head to look at them, clearly amused by the antics of the humans. "What are you looking at?" Jane demanded, shakily standing up and pulling up her underwear, making sure the pad was in place, then her jeans, as her speed lover quickly Cleaned his cock and pulled up and buttoned his pants. They then got back into their seats and did their best to get their heavy breathing back to some semblance of normal.

Two minutes later, Joe reappeared with a handful of cloth bags with handles, himself out of breath as if he had been running to and from the house to get them. From past experience, he knew what Jane would be up to, so he had retrieved the bags from their peg by the back door, while ignoring the noises coming from upstairs, and done a fast march around the perimeter of the house to kill time and get himself out of breath. The dim light made it hard to tell that they had been doing anything at all. A sudden blast of "exhaust" from the horse as he mounted the buggy and sat down overwhelmed any incriminating aromas.