If he were inclined to be dishonest about his remedies, Etienne probably could manage to drug Nate into stupor. Once. Only once. And thereafter even the most mundane offerings of remedy would be met with abject suspicion, if not outright refusal. There might come a day when it was called for... if so the fates could only hope Etienne chose that moment wisely.

For now, Nate remained blissfully unaware of the very notion, and even managed to make it a fair distance before mortality outpaced mulishness. Okay. Whew. Right. I'm fine, really. What a dead horse that was starting to sound like. Lemme just, catch my breath. For a minute.

Panting, he tilted his head at Etienne, smiling through a faintly masked wince. Where'd you learn your trade, anyway? Might as well pass the time getting to know his savior, right? Sounds like you been telling idiots like me to sit down and take their medicine for a while, hah.