“Cautious.”
“Does calling it that make it easier to sleep at night?”
“Look, I watched how she reacted when another guy at school expressed interest.”
“Perhaps she wasn’t interested in return.”
“She wasn’t, but I don’t know if she wasn’t interested in him specifically or in starting a relationship with anyone.”
“Hence the chicken reference.”
“Hence the caution,” asserted Justin. “Every time I start to take anything from teasing to serious, she backs away. I’m not going to push her,” he reiterated.
“You don’t generally have a fear of rejection,” said Taran trying to think this through.
“I haven’t known her for that long, and she has enough to deal with exploring her magical abilities.”
“I see.” Taran narrowed his eyes and frowned. “You like her, but you also need her. If you didn’t need her, you could express your interest and see where things went from there. However, you need her so you avoid expressing interest because you don’t want her reaction to that interest to interfere with your other needs.”
“That pretty much sums it up. I can wait.”
“So can Kleth.”
“What are you implying?” asked Justin.
“Nothing, yet. I’m merely advising that you be both careful and certain when it comes to defining things as wants and needs. Much of life is about priorities and priorities can change.”
“You’re sounding very wise these days.”
“That comes from spending too much time alone with my thoughts. It’s a dangerous pastime.”
“Yes, it is,” agreed Justin.
Chapter 40
They awoke early the next morning. After breakfast, Taran helped them saddle their horses and wished them luck. He watched as they rode off to the south. Justin had asked him to come with, but Taran had refused. He did not regret that decision. It was already years ago that he had made his own peace with Kleth, and now it was Justin’s turn. Taran had been on this journey before. He did not care to do so again, and he knew he would not be any help to Justin. Justin did not need any more distractions. Between Lucy and Kleth, he would have his hands full. Taran walked back to his cottage. He wished he had had more of a chance to get to know Lucy. Any girl his brother was interested in was worth knowing. When he got to his cottage he found Quinn waiting for him.
“I wondered if you would show up,” said Taran.
“I wondered if you would come back to the cottage or go with them.”
“My place is here.”
“Regretfully?”
“Peacefully and decisively.”
“It is always helpful in life to know where one’s place is,” said Quinn with a sigh.
“Do they have a chance at succeeding?”
“As much as many, and more than most.”
“You think he’ll find Kleth?” asked Taran.
“I think he’ll find Kleth, but I’m not sure that he will find that Kleth is all he’s been looking for.”
“Perhaps, but still a search he has to make for himself.”
“True.”
“Have you had breakfast yet?” asked Taran.
“Yes, but I do have time to join you for a cup of tea before I return to the school,” responded Quinn with a smile.
Taran served tea.
Maya, Gavin, Justin, and Lucy journeyed south. Maya had not been able to find anything of immediate use from Taran’s collections of maps and scrolls. Maya wanted information that was not based on certain assumptions, and she decided that the best place to find this was in one of the oldest libraries on Kinowenn. That meant going to Kennemt. Lucy’s knowledge of Kennemt was limited to what Maya had told her during the trying on of the green almost dress fiasco. It was in the south, very warm, and lacked a certain propriety that made Lucy apprehensive about going there. Maya insisted it was necessary, especially considering their time limit. She wanted to look at some of the source material, including the first appearances of the Kleth myth and all the legends that surround it. Thus said, south they went with Maya leading the way.
Maya led, not due to any tracking skills, but due to her amazing ability to memorize maps and translate them to the three-dimensional world. If they were tracking something or someone in particular, Gavin would have been the one in the lead. Maya was not a tracker. However, simply getting from one location to another, provided both places were on the map, was something Maya excelled at. She had an excellent sense of direction. Gavin watched for any trouble from the rear, which left Lucy and Justin free to talk or not between them.
“At least we aren’t traveling east,” said Lucy.
“Why’s that? I didn’t know you had directional preferences,” replied Justin with a smile.
“It’s morning. Morning can be a rather jarring experience all on its own without the assistance of having to travel into the sun,” said Lucy with a yawn.
“Does that mean you also dislike traveling west at sunset?”
“No, I find that enjoyable. Sunsets are pretty and relaxing.”
“I’m not sure I completely understand the difference.”
“It’s something to feel, not understand.”
“I thought you avoided feelings,” teased Justin.
“I wouldn’t say that. I occasionally avoid dealing with feelings, but I don’t avoid feelings in and of themselves,” replied Lucy, yawning again.
Justin smiled and shook his head. Sometimes Lucy perplexed him.
They stopped when the sun was overhead and hot. They found some shade and watered the horses as they took a break to stretch some muscles and eat. After a brief respite, they climbed back on the horses and continued south. Lucy could feel sweat running down her back and was glad she had her book of traveling comforts. She would be finding a way to take a bath tonight whether they stayed at an inn or not.
It turned out they did not stay in an inn. Maya was shooting for the most direct route to Kennemt, rather than detouring to the towns along the way. This led to some discussion as they were setting up camp.
“I want to get there and look at some of the original records concerning the Kleth myth,” said Maya. “I didn’t think you had problems camping.”
“I don’t, but I don’t see any reason to avoid towns at this juncture, and you never know what we might miss,” said Justin.
“Buying a few drinks for locals might let us in on some information we wouldn’t otherwise get,” suggested Lucy.
“How long would the money last then?” asked Maya. “I assume your purse is not bottomless, and we don’t know how expensive this quest could get. Some libraries do charge an entrance fee. Let me get some information to start us in a direction first. Then, we can stay in some inns when we are closer to where I think it should be and listen to the locals. If that fails, we can always start town hopping after that or try another large town’s library.”
They agreed they might as well try it Maya’s way first. If they were going to argue about something every night, it was going to be a very long journey. Besides, they were dealing with a myth, so some research was probably a good idea. Gavin picketed the horses and put up the tent. Maya started to boil some water to make some soup for dinner. Justin and Lucy surrounded the tent setting up different kinds of wards. They didn’t mind running into another traveler and would have been more than happy to share their soup, however they did not want anyone sneaking up on them. Lucy set up a barrier around their campsite that would alert her the moment a person or animal larger than a squirrel walked through it. She did not know what kind of wildlife there was in the area, but it would not do to have the horses scared away by a wolf or other large predator.
Maya’s soup was delicious. Lucy wasn’t sure if being a good cook and an expert at potions commonly went together, but in Maya’s case they did. Lucy was glad, because she was not the best cook in a modern kitchen and was sure that trying to accomplish anything over a campfire cou
ld only end in disaster. They huddled around the fire while they ate and afterwards. It was not particularly cold, although there was a significant temperature drop from the hot afternoon. It was more that the fire was comforting. Lucy had never slept outside before. Their challenge at the school had lasted all night, but they hadn’t slept. Tent or not, she wasn’t sure if she would be able to sleep at all. She had not taken her bath yet, and as the night grew darker she felt less and less inclined to find a way to take a bath. There was a sliver of a moon, but it did not give off much light and not all of what it did give off penetrated the trees. She had walked far enough away from camp to relieve herself and decided she had no desire to stay away from the others long enough to take a bath until she became more comfortable with being outside by herself in the dark.
Eventually, they all decided it was time to try to sleep. They discussed setting a guard and decided against it. The wards they had set were farther out than anyone could see in the absolute darkness, and it was better to put out their fire rather than attract anyone or anything else that might be out there. A guard might be able to hear something and warn the rest of them. Then, Lucy and Justin came up with another idea. They set a ward that would pick up human whispers or voices and alert the group. Also, they created the illusion of a guard. He was tall and sat leaning against a tree next to the tent. They decided that should be enough to deter petty crooks. If someone were after them personally, then they would take turns standing watch.
This decided, Lucy grabbed her bag and bedroll and followed Maya into the tent. There was a moonstone glowing in the center of the tent. Lucy and Maya looked at each other and knew at once that there were going to have to be some changes made if they were going to make a habit of this. The tent was small to look at and had been enlarged slightly by magic so that the interior was big enough to sleep the four of them comfortably. That was all. Lucy wasn’t about to ask for the interior to turn into a fabulous inn with four poster beds, plumbing, and a fireplace. However, she did think making it tall enough that they could stand up straight and large enough to warrant a dividing curtain so that Lucy and Maya could change into something else to sleep in without the guys in the tent was reasonable.
Maya turned to the entrance of the tent and asked the guys to wait while they set up their bed areas and changed. Lucy was glad of that. Her clothes were comfortable, but there was no way she was sleeping in them all if she didn’t have to. If Maya wasn’t going to be self conscious about changing, it would look silly if Lucy was so she was relieved when Maya was the one to ask. Maya winked at Lucy and rolled out her blankets. Then she stripped off her cloak, boots, socks, tunic, pants, and shirt and changed into cotton sleeping pants and a matching tee shirt. Lucy followed suit. They climbed into their bedding and then Maya called the guys in. They tramped in, set up their bedrolls and stripped down to the pants they were wearing. Maya volunteered that she and Lucy would close their eyes if they cared to change, but Gavin assured her he was comfortable the way he was. He wouldn’t want to be caught sleeping in anything less if they were attacked during the night. Once everyone was ready, Gavin turned off the moonstone.
It had been a long day of traveling, and Lucy was tired. She thought she might fall fast asleep, but she didn’t. Part of it was sleeping outdoors in a tent. At least they had the tent. It gave her the illusion of a line of defense between herself and anything out there. There were noises that made her jump even though there was nothing malicious about them. Added to that was the fact that she was sleeping in a tent with other people. She was less scared about what might be outside with other people there, but she was never good at sharing a room. It became quickly apparent that Gavin snored. On her left, Maya was breathing heavily, obviously asleep so the snoring didn’t bother her, but it grinded on Lucy’s nerves. Tired of staring at the ceiling, she rolled onto her right side, coming face to face with Justin who smiled. She smiled back.
“What did you think of your first day?” he asked.
“Not bad. I liked the traveling. I like horses. It’s the night I’m finding I’m not fond of,” replied Lucy, glad they could talk and not disturb anyone, although she was getting the impression that Maya could sleep though almost anything.
“Why’s that?”
“I’m not used to sleeping with other people in the room, and Gavin snores loudly.”
“Yes, he does. I could muffle my ability to hear, but that seems like a dangerous idea in unknown territory.”
“I suggest we take turns. I’ll muffle my ears tonight, and you muffle yours tomorrow.”
Justin quietly laughed at her.
“What about you?” asked Lucy, “You seem at ease.”
“I am. Taran and I spent lots of time camping together while we were growing up. However, I should point out, Taran doesn’t snore.”
“I suppose we’ll have to get used to it or we’ll never get any sleep.”
“Don’t worry, some nights we’ll be in inns. Also, I think we are going to have to make some changes to this tent. Not so many that it’s obvious to someone else, but enough to make things more reasonable. If we section it off so you girls can have some privacy, you could make that curtain sound proof,” suggested Justin.
“Good idea. I’m interested to see what the inns are like here. You can read about places, but you don’t really get an idea of something unless you experience it.”
“True, the books I’ve read generally work under the assumption that your travel companions don’t snore.”
They both smiled at this.
“Tomorrow is going to be another long day of traveling. You should try to get some sleep,” said Justin.
“You too.”
“Goodnight, Lucy.”
“Goodnight, Justin.”
Lucy closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on anything other than Gavin’s snoring. When she finally did fall asleep, she slept fitfully and dreamed of being chased by really fast tortoises. Justin watched Lucy for a few moments longer. Then he too closed his eyes and fell asleep. He did not dream of tortoises. He dreamt of Kleth.
Chapter 41
Lucy awoke the next morning shortly after the sun rose. Between the light and Gavin’s snores, there was no way she was getting any more sleep. She supposed it was for the best. That way they could all get an early start to the day, but she was tired and could have used the extra sleep. Gavin had no problems snoring away while Lucy got dressed and went outside. She left the illusion of the guard against his tree. It didn’t hurt anything for him to be there, and it gave Lucy the illusion of company. The small pond nearby was only a couple of feet deep and so dirty that Lucy felt she could start the day without a bath. She did consult her book to see what other ideas it had about cleanliness. There was a spell that made dirt fall off clothing. She tried that, and even though her clothes didn’t seem that dirty in the first place there was a small pile of dirt when she was done, which made her feel better. She decided it couldn’t hurt to try the spell on her body as well. Since she was already wearing her clothes, to get the full effect she had to use the spell on her clothes again because all the dirt from her body fell off her and right onto her clothes. Feeling much cleaner, she reached into her pack and took out a piece of travel bread for breakfast as Justin walked out of the tent.
“Morning,” said Justin looking more refreshed than Lucy felt he should.
“Morning,” she replied with a smile.
“How much longer do you think we should let them sleep?”
“How much longer do you think they will sleep if we let them?”
“Maya will probably roll out of bed shortly, but Gavin would sleep longer than we want to wait for him. Morning is not his best time of the day.”
“You’d think with how deeply he sleeps, he would need less.”
Justin shrugged in response and went to check on the horses. Since Justin was awake, Lucy decided she could let her illusionary guard evaporate. Maya came out of the tent shortly after Justin returne
d from checking the horses.
“I’m amazed he can sleep though his own snoring,” said Maya.
“You slept through it too, he’s been doing that all night,” replied Lucy, offering her a piece of travel bread.
“You’re kidding. I slept through that? I must have been more tired than I thought I was. We’ll have to set a steady pace today to make sure I’m just as tired tonight,” Maya said with a smile.
“That, or find an inn where we can get him his own room,” suggested Justin.
Since three out of four were awake, they voted to wake up Gavin as well. As soon as Gavin ate some travel bread and fruit, they packed up, saddled up, and left. Lucy and Justin took down their wards as they left. Certain myths that started about places were caused by wards that wizards had forgotten to take down when they left a spot. Nothing strange or mysterious had ever happened there, but a small oasis that you couldn’t see unless you were in the middle of it was something that could cause stories to start.
Maya continued to lead them south. It progressively got warmer. Lucy made sure she drank enough water to stay hydrated. The last thing she needed to do was fall off her horse with sunstroke. The wind picked up, too. It was a warm wind and steady. It wasn’t enough to make forward progress difficult or blow them off course, but it was enough to dry the sweat on Lucy’s face. Lucy reached up to push an errant lock of hair out of her face and realized she was brushing salt as well. She made sure she ate some of the salted jerky when they stopped for lunch to replenish the salt her body was losing. They didn’t talk much during the day. Lucy wasn’t sure if they were all tired, or they simply didn’t have anything to say. She was content to ride and watch the surroundings.
This time when they stopped for the night, they decided not to build a fire. Their travel rations of bread, cheese, jerky, and dried fruit would suffice for dinner. They did not need the heat, and the less obvious they were about their current position, the better. Lucy set wards while Justin made some adjustments to the tent. When he was done, things were much better. He made it so that it looked the same size, but you could walk through the back wall into a second room that was about the same size as the first. It was enough to make Maya and Lucy happy for the time being.
The Eye of Elicion: The Kinowenn Chronicles Vol 1 Page 32