Tabitha hated that spoon, as it was as likely to tap her hand when she was going to make an error. She turned her attention back to the bowl and gave the mixture three quick stirs, whereupon the whole thing turned black and congealed into a lump as hard as stone, hopelessly locking her spoon inside its rigid mass.
Logan chuckled quietly from his seat, but when Tabitha looked sharply in his direction, he seemed to be staring absently out the window, and not paying the slightest attention to her at all.
She sighed and looked back at the sad mess before her. “What did I do wrong?”
“You stirred three times instead of two, of course,” Meeshe said. She whisked the bowl away and tossed the whole thing into the fire where it went up in a flash of green smoke.
“Well, if you knew it was going to do that, why didn’t you stop me?” Tabitha said with a flustered huff.
“Because you said you were telling me. You seemed so certain—who was I to question you?” Meeshe was already wiping down the counter and putting the supplies away, letting Tabitha know that the day’s lessons were at an end.
“But…but you knew it was wrong.”
“Tabitha, you must learn to ask for help when you need it. If you are unsure of how to proceed, would it not be better to ask? Pride has its place, but it can also be dangerous.”
“Pride?” Tabitha was stung by the woman’s words. Was she really prideful?
“Now, now. Do not get upset. I tell you these things to help you, not hurt you. You have a strange combination of pride and insecurity within yourself. Those are two personality traits that will not coexist well together, but if you are wise, you will temper them both until they are something new, and you will be better for it.
"Enough for today. The three of you need to go outside and get some air. It is not good to stay indoors so much.”
“Grandmother, I do not think—” Logan started to say before she cut him off.
“I know, dear, but that is what grandmothers are for. You do as I say. Show Holly and Tabitha around a little. They must be getting the Great Tree ready for the festival. That is always interesting to watch.”
Logan stood reluctantly and motioned for the girls to follow. Holly leaped to her feet, followed by Tabitha, who looked longingly at the cupboard where Meeshe kept her plants, tonics, and supplies.
Meeshe shooed them out the door with a flick of her hands before returning to her kitchen to begin supper.
“What would you like to see?” Logan asked them.
Holly’s eyes darted around briefly before settling on the Great Tree in the distance. “What was Meeshe saying about a festival?”
“It is midsummer festival. We honor the Great Tree at that time, although there are many who believe the tree was actually born during the winter. It is not until next week, but they will already be making preparations.”
“That sounds interesting. Let’s go see that.” Holly smiled at Logan.
“Is that what you would like to see, Tabitha?”
“Huh?” Tabitha had been looking into the shadowy recesses of the forest. “Oh, I don’t care. Whatever you want is fine.”
“Maybe we could go see the Great Tree first and then go for a nice walk in the woods. I like the woods, too, Tabitha.”
His voice was wistful, and he even smiled a bit, which Tabby noticed did not happen often, but when it did, it transformed his features entirely. “Yes, the forest is restful, isn’t it? Even though the trees here are different, they still remind me of home,” she said.
“Trees!” Holly laughed. “Don’t you ever get tired of trees, Tabby? I swear, you spend more time roaming the woods than anything else. If you’re not poking about in the keep with your healing plants and concoctions, you're in the woods, searching for more plants to take back with you.”
Tabitha couldn’t deny what she'd said, and though she loved her plants, she didn’t really like that she was seen as so one-dimensional. She looked down at her shoes, unsure how to brush aside Holly’s teasing without showing that it had hit the mark.
“I do not think there is anything wrong with that,” Logan said. “My grandmother says there is nothing nobler than the healing arts, as they take dedication and skill to master.” His words came out clipped.
Holly’s smile faltered and then evaporated. “I…I didn’t mean anything by it. No one on Maj has more natural ability with healing than Tabby. She might even be one of the best in all of Mirin Tor.”
Logan nodded, accepting Holly’s words as an apology of sorts, and he turned and headed toward the Great Tree.
Etrafarians strung garlands of dried flowers over and through the branches. Dozens of them floated high above. Some of them were singing while they worked. There was a small group of youngsters gathered at the base of the tree, working together to make additional garlands of flowers and leaves of purple, yellow, and blue. Their hands fairly flew as they worked, and they seemed to be competing amongst themselves to see who could finish their strand first.
These were the first Etrafarian children Tabitha had seen since she'd arrived. She'd wondered where they were, for she knew there must be some somewhere, but she'd been hesitant to ask about them, not wanting to bring up what might be a sensitive topic. They were adorable, of course, and except for their size and their eyes, they looked like any other child.
“Oh, how pretty,” Holly said, reaching her hand out to examine one of the completed strands.
“No, Holly! Wait!” Logan called out, but before she had time to pause, the ground beneath her lifted suddenly and dumped her backwards.
“Cine measctha!” a male voice hissed, using the derogatory term they'd already heard far too often. He stepped forward and glared at Holly.
“That was not necessary, Kellen.” Logan offered his hand to Holly who beamed up at his kind gesture.
“If she would have defiled it, we would have had to start over. Nothing tainted can touch the Great Tree, as you well know.”
“Tainted?” Logan said, rolling his eyes. “She is just a girl, Kellen. Do you honestly think the touch of her hand will do anything to make the Great Tree less than it is? If Rah’s creation could be lessened by the mere touch of her hand, would not that call into question everything we believe about Him?”
“Now you speak sacrilege, Logan, although I do not expect better from one such as you. Disgusting mixed breeds, the two of you. Meeshe should have returned your mother to Rah the instant she was born and cleansed herself of the stain she brought to our community. And as for this other one,” Kellen added, looking at Holly, “she should never have been allowed to come here. Her mother is a freak, and she is worse; a freak with little power, a sure sign of Rah’s disfavor.”
Several Etrafarians had joined Kellen. Two of them nodded in agreement, but the rest merely looked on without comment.
Tabitha had been struggling to control her temper since she'd arrived on Etrafa. She was forever finding herself one step away from biting straight through her own tongue. There were two people she was used to bending for: one was her brother, whom she loved, and who had a way of calming her, and the other was her mother, who would wear you down to the point where you wondered why you'd bothered to fight her in the first place. For some reason, hearing Kellen attack Logan and Holly had pushed her over the edge, and she didn’t even know why. She'd never been close to Holly, and she didn’t much care for Logan. He was so aloof, and he always seemed to be laughing at her. Maybe it was what he said about liking the forest. Whatever the case, she had reached the end of her patience.
“Shut up, Kellen. Why do you say such ugly things? Is it because your heart is as black as your words?” Tabitha moved to stand in front of Holly, who seemed as surprised to be receiving Tabitha’s support as she was to be giving it.
“Ah, the sister of Darach Croi. Do not interfere in things you know nothing about. I have no quarrel with you.”
“Well, the sister of Darach Croi has a problem with you. You don’t even know us! Ho
lly’s parents are two of the finest people I have ever known, and Holly is…well, Holly is Maj, which makes her family, and I don’t let people speak badly about my family.”
“Claim her if you wish, but she will never be one of us, and she is not wanted here,” Kellen said, wrinkling his nose in abhorrence. “But you are correct. I do not know you. Perhaps we could do something about that.” He stepped closer to her, and his eyes scanned her from head to toe. “Maybe I should reserve judgement until I have had a chance to know you better.”
The way Kellen leered at Tabitha made her sick to her stomach. She noticed Logan had stiffened his posture, and his eyes had narrowed into a dangerous glare.
Tabitha shrugged her shoulders and tried to keep her expression calm. “That’s an interesting offer, Kellen, but I prefer men who are tall enough to sit at the grown-up table.”
It happened so fast, Tabitha hardly registered movement at all. Kellen’s face contorted into a mask of rage, and his hands were before him where an orb of spinning earth rotated between his splayed fingers, gathering momentum and size. Logan had shoved her none too gently backward, and he now stood before her, his own hands cradling a mass of flames that blazed orange.
The two Etrafarian men stood no more than eight feet apart, each of them holding their hands at the ready.
“If you harm her, Kellen,” Logan warned, “I will teach you the meaning of the words scorched earth.”
Tabitha saw her brother, who had arrived in time to hear his sister’s words and see Kellen’s response to them. He approached the two men cautiously, so as not to startle them into unintended action. His sword was drawn, but it was held low at his side. “Logan!” he called out in a hearty voice. “There you are! I’ve been looking for you everywhere! Aunt Aesri sent me to find you. She said she needs your help with the orbs. I'm not exactly sure what that means, but it’s best not to ask too many questions with Aesri, right?”
Logan lowered his hands, and the flames flickered and died.
Kellen lowered his hands as well, the earth spinning between them dropping to his feet.
“Hello, Kellen,” Brint said, greeting the man with a friendly voice.
“Darach Croi,” Kellen answered with a curt nod.
“Beautiful day, isn’t it?” Brint said, looking up at the nearly cloudless sky. “Perfect day for a walk in the woods. I’ve been telling Tabby we should go exploring. Do you have any suggestions as to where we should start? This being your home, no one would know better.”
Kellen looked over his shoulder at his comrades, but none of them seemed eager to challenge the giant Maj holding a vicious-looking sword.
“The waterfall to the west is always nice in the afternoon,” he answered grudgingly.
“Wonderful!” Brint replied. “Tabby, you'd like to see the falls, wouldn’t you?”
“I—” Tabitha said, unsure as to how she should respond.
“Excellent!” Brint interrupted her. “Of course I'll go with you, Tabby.” At this, Brint looked directly into Kellen’s eyes before speaking again. “You see, Kellen, I'm an impossibly protective brother. Poor Tabitha has to put up with me, I’m afraid, but she manages. I’m a fairly calm individual, but if anything were to ever happen to my sister, I don’t know what I'd do. Probably lose myself in some kind of murderous rage, I expect,” he said, grinning broadly. He laughed aloud at his own exaggeration. Some of the other fairies joined him, but Kellen was not one of them.
“Come on, Logan,” Holly said. “Let’s go find Aunt Aesri and then we can all go for that walk.”
“Good idea, Holly,” Brint added. “Come now, Tabby.” He hooked his sister’s arm with his own and led her from the clearing.
“Brint, I could have handled that obnoxious, rude, sawed off piece of—”
“Of course you could have, Tabitha,” Brint said, stopping abruptly. “I was only worried for him, dear sister. He really had no idea who he was messing with.”
“No, he did not!” she said. “He still might want to watch what he eats and drinks for a while,” Tabitha added under her breath.
“I simply thought that since you'd left your sword on Maj, you don’t know any magic, you didn’t happen to have any of your potions handy, and even if you had, you might have had trouble getting him to swallow them willingly, well, you know, I just figured I'd lend a hand.”
Logan stifled a laugh behind Tabby, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of turning to look at him. “Brint, you really are a pain in my—”
“I know, sister. It must be exceedingly difficult for you.”
“Humph!” she responded.
Brint laughed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Come, now. If you don’t forgive me, you know I'll be forced to do something drastic.”
Unable to help herself, she grinned back at her brother and wrapped her arm about his waist as they made their way to Aesri’s home.
Chapter 8
Tabitha lay in bed, unsure of what had woken her. A look out the open window of her bedroom told her that it was still the middle of the night. A soft scuffing noise from the front room had her sitting part way up in her bed, propped on her elbows, head cocked. The noise came again, this time even more quietly than the last.
She crawled from her bed, quickly yanked a skirt over her hips, and slipped out of her nightgown and into her soft, short-sleeved blouse. She pulled the door open just wide enough for her to peer into the main room. Her heart was beating rapidly, but slowed when she recognized Logan in the soft glow given off by the wooden walls. He was shouldering a small-sized pack, and he grabbed a piece of fruit from the counter with his other hand, before he eased the front door open and disappeared into the night. Tabitha looked over her shoulder to assure herself Holly was still sleeping soundly and followed after him.
It was clear from the way he moved that he knew where he was going. He walked with long, purposeful strides, looking neither right nor left as he went. He took no special precautions to be quiet, though he was naturally light of foot, and did not overly disturb the surroundings on his way. Tabitha could not say the same about herself, and though she tried to be careful, she tripped twice, kicked several stones, and even splashed into an unseen puddle on one occasion. Logan continued, never slowing or turning, so she concluded she was far enough behind him that he didn't hear her clumsy pursuit.
The forest thickened around her, the only light from the strange trees that glowed in the dark. The hum of insects, which she had mostly grown used to, was louder in the forest. She hoped their constant buzz and chirp would help to cover the sound of her steps and the snapping of branches as she made her way onward. She had fallen farther and farther behind him, and she was no longer able to catch even a brief glimpse of the flutter of his cloak in the distance. She stopped and listened intently, trying to pick up the sound of his movements, but all she heard was the panting of her own labored breathing. Somewhere to her left, a squirrel scampered through the ground clutter. At least, she hoped it was a squirrel. She remembered that when Brin had told her Meeshe’s story, as recounted by Aesri, there had been some mention of wolves.
She was suddenly yanked backwards by a strong arm about her waist. A hand clamped tightly over her mouth, preventing the scream welling up in her throat. “Do not move!” came an insistent whisper close to her right ear.
Logan loosened his hold around her waist enough so that she could turn and see who restrained her. Once she stopped struggling, he removed his hand from her mouth and pointed to something in the distance, but Tabby saw nothing in the dim light. They stood frozen like that for several minutes until she felt Logan relax.
“It is gone,” he said simply, and he began to walk again.
Tabitha fought her way through a tangle of vines and brush that didn’t seem to slow him at all as she tried to keep pace. “What’s gone? What was it? I didn’t see anything at all.”
“I do not know.” He stopped so suddenly that she ran into him, but other than turning
and placing a hand on her elbow to steady her, he didn’t comment on their collision. He only shook his head and repeated, “I do not know.” He looked into her eyes. “Why are you following me, Tabitha? You do not belong out here so late at night. You could get lost. Had I not been keeping an eye on you and going slowly, you would have been lost.”
“That was slow? You could have fooled me!”
Logan quirked a grin, but let it slip away as quickly. “I will ask again. Why are you following me?”
It was a fair question, one Tabitha discovered she had no answer for. Why was she following him? “I’m not sure,” she whispered, suddenly very uncomfortable with the whole situation.
“Well, you are here now, and I am not yet ready to return, so I suppose I must take you with me.”
“With you where?” Tabitha asked as they began to walk again.
“Does it matter?”
“No, I guess it doesn’t.” Tabitha laughed.
“You do not do that enough,” Logan said. He held a branch to the side so she could pass more easily.
“What? Laugh? I used to. It’s just that here…”
“Here what?”
“Here I have to be more careful. I have a bit of a temper. Not as bad as some people, but bad enough, and I find it’s easier to keep it under control if I stay focused, more serious.”
Logan nodded. “Here, this is the place.”
“At first, Tabitha thought she was facing a wall of solid rock, and she wasn’t sure what he expected her to do, but then she noticed a gap that was mostly hidden by hanging vines that were covered in large, pale blossoms. She moved the plants out of the way. She saw a gap which was wide enough to allow her to pass, but she had to turn sideways to do so. Logan followed behind her; she heard the fabric of his cloak as it scraped against the stone. His frame was larger than hers, but he still managed to get through without too much difficulty.
The rock walls ended abruptly and she found herself in a clearing, surrounded on all sides by the rocky walls, but open at the top. Moonlight streamed down into the unobstructed glade bathing the whole area in an otherworldly luminosity of silver. There was a spring-fed pool that reflected the stars above, and the ground was covered in a thick moss that felt spongey beneath her feet.
Prophecy (The Destiny Series Book 4) Page 6
