"Hi.We've got an iron-sick prince,please.Can you help us ma'am?" He said,a little shocked but not daring be impolite.

"Iron-sick? Oh dear." The gnome peered past him, staring at the two fey boys in the yard, and her eyes got wide behind her glasses. "That...is that...Prince Ash?" she gasped, as the blood drained from her face. "Mabs son? You expect me to help a prince of Winter? Have you gone mad? I...no!" She backed through the door, shaking her head. "No, absolutely not!" She began to slam the door.

Jason stopped the door from closing with a wing. "Please,I fixed him best I could but I can't help with the iron situation.Please,help us?" He begged.

"I dont make a habit of aiding the Unseelie." The nurse sniffed and struggled to close the door. "Let his own take care of him. Im sure the Winter Court has its share of healers."

"We dont have time!" Anger flared. Ash was getting weaker. He could be dying, and with every second, the scepter got farther away.

"This won't be part of a habit,just him.That's all,just help him.Please." He said,keeping the door open and now begging begging. "Please,we can't lose him!"

"All right, all right!" She raised her hands. "Ill get no peace otherwise, I see that now. Bring in the Winter prince." She turned and shook a finger at him.

He looked back and nodded to Puck.

Puck dragged Ash up the stairs. The prince seemed more wraith than flesh now, his skin a sickly gray. In some spots, the skin seemed to be peeling off the bones.

"Put him in here," the nurse ordered, directing Puck to a small side room with a low-lying bed. Puck complied, laying Ash down on the sheets before collapsing into a chair that looked like an enormous mushroom.

The nurse sniffed. "I see the princess has you in on this, too, Robin."

"Dont look at me." Puck smirked and wiped a hand across his face. "I did my best to kill the guy, but when Jason wants something, theres no changing his mind."

Jason had followed close,not sitting but only standing by Puck and he smiled faintly,rolling his eyes. "I'm not that stubborn,I just do what I can if I feel it's right.Besides,for once I didn't just stand there.Give me that!" he said,waving a hand in the air a bit.

Puck laughed at Jason.

"Ugh, he doesnt just smell of iron, he reeks of it," the nurse muttered, examining the wounds on his face and arms. "These burns arent normal--theyve erupted from the inside out. Its almost like he had something metal inside him."