Early the next morning, Ravenna awoke to a knock on the cottage door. Stretching, she dressed, and went to see which of Canden's people needed her and her grandmother this morning.
Much to Ravenna's chagrin, it was Peter Jones, holding a bouquet of mostly-dead flowers. "Good morning, Miss Ravenna!", Peter chimed. "What a beautiful morning it is to see such a beautiful woman!"
Ravenna blinked. She wanted to shut the door on this man's face. But she remembered her grandmother's words, that the whispers around Canden about Peter beating his wife to death were simply rumors. Ravenna sighed, and held the door open. "Good morning, Mr Jones, I was about to make tea for the family. Would you care to join?"
Eager for the invite, Peter stepped inside the small cottage, the flowers dangling loosely at his side. "What time will the maids be bringing us the tea? I would love to sit and chat with you while we wait", Peter said, obviously not listening to Ravenna.
"We do not have maids. We are far too humble for that. Please sit at the kitchen table, I will have the tea up in a moment." Ravenna wished the man would leave her and her family alone. But a rude woman has no place in society, and her family had raised her to be gracious.
The man watched Ravenna prepare the kettle, and prepare the teacups and some small biscuits for alongside. He was wealthier, and was used to having maids wait on his every whim. "Why is this woman living the life of a maid, when she should be living a lavish lifestyle as my wife", Peter thought, as he waited for Ravenna to work. "She cannot possibly be happy in this meager lifestyle, when I am offering so much more!" Peter continued to think about how important and wealthy he was, and how much better off Ravenna would be as his wife, rather than a poor healer.
The tea prepared, Ravenna first served Anne and Elijah in the infirmary. The pair were happily chatting and laughing about a story Elijah was telling Anne about his father's blunders in the forge. Elijah had been at the cottage for half a week now, and was almost reluctant to think about leaving when his injuries healed. He had come to think of Anne as another grandmother, and Ravenna as an older sister. He was happy in the peaceful cottage, but knew eventually his father would need him at home, and the healer family would need this room for other Canden villagers. Happy to see her grandmother so content, Ravenna closed the door to the patient room. She turned around and jumped a little; in the serene scene in the patient room, she had forgotten all about the unpleasant suitor impatiently waiting in her kitchen.
Peter Jones had never had to wait on anything in his life, and was not accustomed to being put second to an old woman and someone else's child. The flowers he carried had dropped to the floor in his impatience, which Ravenna stopped to sweep up off the floor. She threw the dead flowers into the compost. "Would you like your tea, Mr Jones?" Ravenna politely mustered up a smile.
"I would have liked it ten minutes ago when it was made, but I suppose it would still be acceptable now", Peter grumbled. He could not believe the woman found it appropriate to make him wait. "If this is how she treats her suitors, she is lucky to have me here", Peter thought to himself, not noticing that his behavior was the one that was unwelcome. Arrogant men never noticed any problems in their behaviors. Ravenna coughed a little at Peter's words. She was always taught to serve her elders first, and her attention would not be divided once she sat down.
Blinking back tears of anger at how the man spoke to her, Ravenna began to serve Mr Jones and herself the slightly cooled tea. Peter began to speak mostly about himself, about his expansive estate, his wealth, and the vast number of reasons he thought himself to be perfect, as a man first and as a suitor second. Ravenna tried to speak about her love of her work with Anne, but was swiftly interrupted by Peter time and time again. After a few attempts to speak, Ravenna simply stopped, and tried to hide her disappointment at how her morning had turned out behind her teacup.
After time had crawled to a stop, and Peter Jones had spoken about himself until he had no words left to say, the man finally stood up. Relieved at the reprieve from the man's verbal assault on her ears, Ravenna stood up to open the door for him.
"This has been a near-perfect morning, Miss Ravenna, and once you finally realize you are meant to be my wife, we can have mornings like this every day for the rest of your life", proclaimed the heavy man. Unable to fathom how the morning was "near-perfect" as the man claimed, Ravenna simply told him "I am glad you had a wonderful time at my home."
Satisfied with her answer without realizing its intent, Mr Jones ordered his sleeping coachman awake, and heaved himself into the carriage. Exhausted, Ravenna watched the carriage pull away, before stepping back into the cottage.
Anne was at the counter, preparing medicines for Elijah's burns. "Praise the Ruler, that man sure can talk!", the older woman said. "I thought for sure he was going to be here all day!"
"He is exhausting and can speak only of himself. How does one call himself a suitor and not ask a single question about the woman he is apparently interested in?" Ravenna paused. "I hope he does not make a habit of these visits."
Anne took a look at her granddaughter. She loved the child, and wanted the best for her. "If you would like some peace from your morning, we could use some danewort, our supply is running low".
Ravenna quickly excused herself and went to her room to change into her gathering dress and apron. Her grandmother knew that Ravenna loved the forest, and knew that after the arrogant man's long speech, the young woman could use the peace of her forest sanctuary.
Before Ravenna could escape to the forest, another knock rapped on the cottage door. A young man of twenty was on the other side, and bleeding profusely from his arm. "Dear Ruler!" cried Ravenna, taking the man into her home. "How did this happen?" Before the scuffed-up man could respond, Mr Jones invited himself back into the small cottage.
"My blundering coachman went and fell from his seat, landing on the ground and ruining our trip. I can't believe I hired such incompetence." Peter huffed. "How much is it to fix him?"
Ravenna held the coachman's bleeding arm in her hands, mouth agape at the wealthier man's words. He showed no empathy for his coachman.
"We do not charge to help the wounded or sick, Mr Jones" Ravenna informed him. "There is more to life than money and wealth. We care about our villagers, and know that when we need them, they will care for us in time."
The young healer ushered the coachman into the infirmary room where Elijah sat. Before Peter could follow her, Ravenna slammed the door shut behind her. She couldn't work with that man's arrogant babbling.
Ravenna poured clean water over the coachman's bleeding arm. Seeing the source, she noticed a sharp rock had cut the man, and the wound was deep. "Have you fallen before?" asked Ravenna. The coachman shuffled uncomfortably, and then quietly confided that the seat on the carriage had been broken for a month now, and Mr Jones refused to fix it, stating that the man was just a bumbling fool, and there was nothing wrong with his carriage. Ravenna did not speak her mind, knowing Peter was likely outside the door, listening to everything that was said.
Ravenna applied ice and lemon balm to the area around the wound. "Lemon balm is soothing to the nerves, so it will help". The man winced, knowing what was next. Ravenna dipped a needle into alcohol, and allowed it to dry. "We need to stitch your wound, sir. I promise to be quick. Is this okay with you?"
The man turned white- he hated needles. But he knew the family of healers would never do anything unnecessary to him, so he took a sharp inhale and nodded. Ravenna cleaned the man's arm again, and offered him a tiny knitted toy. He took it and looked at it. It was a tiny angel. "What is this for, Miss?", asked the coachman.
"It is to hold and bring you comfort as I work. It has always worked for me when I need comfort", Ravenna told him. He held the angel tightly in his hand, and Ravenna swiftly stitched the man's wound. She selected a clean bandage, and covered her work. "Please come back in a few days so I can see how you are healing, sir", Ravenna instructed the young man. She knew this was inviting the man's employer back to her home, but her job as a healer came first to her comfort. The young man shuffled his feet and looked at the floor. "I don't have much to pay you, Miss, but would you accept my sincere gratitude, and my promise to bring you something on my return?"
Ravenna put her hand on the coachman's shoulder. "We do not care about wealth here, sir. You are cared for, and that is enough for me. Please be sure to come back in a few days. Grandmother won't rest until she knows our patients are well on their way to recovery."
The young man smiled, grateful, and left the small room. Mr Jones was waiting in the kitchen, and immediately began barking at the coachman about taking better care during his work. Ravenna guided the two men out of her home, and could not believe the behavior of the man who was attempting to court her.