the bleeding?’ he snapped, shooting a withering glare around the group. From the pouch strapped to his belt, he pulled out a clean piece of cloth and a large bandage. The dragon was just about to say it wasn’t necessary and that he could manage on his own, but Noah’s gaze made it clear there would be no discussion.
So the dragon gave in and calmly accepted the offered help. Parthir knew what he was doing, or so it seemed. He quickly examined the wound thoroughly and removed the small stones from it that Draco hadn’t noticed, then rinsed the injured hand with water from his canteen and wrapped it in a proper dressing.
‘Thanks for your help,’ said the dragon when Noah had finished.
‘Don’t thank me just yet.’ Parthir turned towards Cedric, who had been checking on Warren in the meantime. The goblin seemed to be slowly coming round, and even the sounds of his retching had stopped. ‘We should get moving. I didn’t bring anything with me apart from some basic dressings, but I remember there were a few herbs with coagulant properties growing near the spring.’
‘That looks bad.’ Retfield approached them and looked the dragon in the eye. ‘Perhaps it would be better if you stepped back and let the healer deal with this?’ he asked rather quietly.
‘It’s not that bad; I can’t even feel it,’ Draco dismissed the group leader’s suggestion. Fortunately, he bit his tongue and didn’t start listing all the times he’d wandered around Dagos with far more serious and painful injuries. ‘After class, I’ll find an alchemist or a healer…’
‘You won’t be looking,’ Eric cut him off. ‘Straight after class, I’ll take you to the Tower of Water so someone can have a proper look at it. And don’t even think about wriggling out of it.’
‘Finally, someone’s said something sensible.’ Noah glared at everyone in turn, as if to make it clear he wasn’t in the mood for any arguments. ‘Will someone now explain to me why no one tried to stop the bleeding?’ he snapped rather sharply.
