by Robin Roseau
"Father once beat Dannick with a belt," I said. "Like that?"
"What did Dannick do to earn a beating?" Omie asked.
"He took Chandor out in a skiff. That would have been okay, but they left the cove. A squall came up."
"Who is Chandor?"
"My little brother. He was six at the time."
"It was dangerous?"
"The boat swamped from the waves, and the only reason they didn't both die is because Nathano told Mama where they had gone, and Mama and Maya had to go out in the storm and save them."
"Where was your father?"
"Out at sea, riding out the storm. It wasn't a big storm."
"Your big brother foolishly risked your little brother's life. Did you think the beating was unfair?"
I thought about it. "I don't know," I admitted eventually. "I've never seen Father so angry. Dannick was screaming he was sorry. But when it was over, Father and Mother both pulled both of them into hugs, and I saw they were both crying."
"It isn't usually good to administer punishment when you're that angry," Omie said. "Anger clouds the judgment. But if you ever did something as dangerous, the punishment would be about as severe, maybe worse."
"What if it's an accident?"
"Like what?"
"Spilling a glass of milk."
"We don't have milk," she replied. "No cows. But if it were truly an accident, then you would be expected to clean it up. If you damaged anything, you would be expected to either fix it or in some other way make up for it. That's not punishment; that is taking responsibility for your own mistake. Do you want to know the things you're most likely to be punished for? Or perhaps the things I have been punished for?"
"Sure," I said. I smiled. "Were you naughty?"
"Sometimes," she admitted. "Offenses are of three basic types. The first is just not doing your best, especially during training. For those, there isn't punishment so much as more training. It's all designed to make you a better warrior."
"That doesn't sound so bad."
"Don't get me wrong," she explained. "I love training. Most Amazons do. But sometimes it's really hard, and we do a lot of things we do because we know it's necessary, not because we like it."
"Like math problems."
"Yes," she said. "Like math problems. The second type of offense comes from being disrespectful."
"Talking back?"
"Yes."
"Would you hit me?"
"No, although if you are sufficiently disrespectful to Queen Malora, her punishments can be severe. No, I wouldn't hit you. I would volunteer you for particularly unpleasant chores. If the behavior continued, the chores would become even more unpleasant. If you were disrespectful to Nori, she would punish you on the training ground. If you were disrespectful to your sister, she would load you with duties you wouldn't like."
"I don't like Nori," I said.
"I didn't realize you knew her," Omie said.
"We sort of met last year." My tone was frosty.
"Last year?" Omie said. "Oh. We were desperate. Malora and Nori had admitted to your sister that was done poorly and have both apologized. You should ask Maya about it, but she has forgiven both of them. And you can see, she is now running recruitment. Maya and Nori have become very close.
I thought about it but didn't answer immediately.
"You should talk to your sister," Omie said. "You got a skewed view of Nori. She's tough, but she's fair and deeply respected."
I thought about the other things Omie had said. "Sometimes I fight with Maya."
"There is fighting with her as a sister and there is fighting with her as the senior companion. Did you fight with her at school?"
"No!" I said. "I don't want to think what she would have done to me if I had."
"So you understand the difference?"
"I guess."
I thought about it some more. It didn't sound any different than at home. There was always some adult telling the kids what to do, and if we didn't do it, we got into trouble.
"There's one more type of offense, Beria," Omie said. "There is willful disobedience."
"What does that mean?"
"Deciding to be naughty."
"Oh."
"But you wouldn't be intentionally naughty, would you?"
It was a serious question. It was tempting to just say, "No," but I realized that probably wasn't entirely true. Instead, I said, "Not very often."
Omie laughed. "Yeah, me too," she said. "Beria, you will get caught, and you will get punished. You won't like it."
"I suppose not," I said after a moment. But I decided that wasn't very different than here, either. I admitted that.
"Would you obey me?" she asked.
"Yes, Omie."
She turned to me and smiled. "I would train you very hard. You wouldn't always like it."
"But it's important."
"Very important, and I'd try to make it as fun as I could. Maya hates it though."
"If she could learn it from a book, she would like it more."
"And you? Do you like learning from books?"
"It's okay," I said. "I think I'd like to learn to fight." I grinned. "I'm taller than Maya."
"Yes, and taller than me. Don't get too cocky about it."
Just then, I yawned, immediately covering it up.
"It's late," she said. "I should take you home."
"I thought you were going to show me what it's like to be an Amazon."
She cocked her head. "Your parents are going to worry about you."
"Maya said she would talk to them."
"Well then, did you want to camp out with us tonight?"
"Yes!" I said. Jumping to my feet. "Will there be a bonfire?"
"I don't know," she replied. "Maybe a small fire, but everyone was at the dance, so they may all go straight to their beds. And I suspect you'd be ready to sleep, too." She stood up, and together we turned back to shore. We walked to the square, and we could see the dance was winding down, but there were still a number of Amazons around as well as a few of the townspeople. I didn't see anyone of my family. Omie led me to the paddock next to the stable. She turned to me. "Can you ride in your dress?"
"I've never been on a horse."
"We'll go slowly, and I'll set my cloak across the horse for you, to protect your clothing."
I smiled and nodded.
"Wait here," she said. "In the future, this would be one of your duties, but perhaps not while wearing your best clothing." She turned away from me and entered the stable, then a moment later I saw her enter the paddock carrying a saddle and blanket. She sorted through the horses, finding the one she wanted. I watched as she prepared the horse then led him to the gate. Making sure the other horses didn't get loose, she pulled her horse through the gate and over to me. She handed me the reins then slipped out of her cloak and spread it across the back of the horse so it hung down one side.
"You'll need to ride side-saddle," she said. "It's not going to be very comfortable, but it's not a long ride. I'll climb up first then pull you up."
I nodded. She climbed onto the horse and took the reins from me, laying them over the horse's neck. I stepped to the side of the horse, and Omie leaned over, hooking me with an arm. She lifted, and I realized she was a lot stronger than I would have expected someone of her size, as she set me right in the saddle in front of her, sitting with both my legs hanging off the left side of the horse. She wrapped her arms around me and said, "Get as comfortable as you can."
I squirmed around and leaned against her, wrapping an arm around her neck to hang on.
"Ready."
She clucked to the horse then pulled him in a circle. A moment later, we were walking down the road heading east, out of town.
* * * *
Omie had been right. There weren't any fires, but I heard women talking quietly from inside their tents. Omie let me down, then she climbed from her horse and saw to his needs before turning to me. We hooked arms, and she pulled
me through the camp, arriving at one of the tents.
"This is mine," she said. "I share this with my sister. There is room for up to four, if they're a little friendly."
"All the tents look alike," I said, "except that one." I pointed to one tent, much bigger than the others."
"That's Queen Malora's," she said.
"And Maya's?"
"Yes, and your sister's. Did you want to see if they're awake?"
I shook my head.
"Vorine?" Omie said. "Are you here?"
From inside the tent, someone said, "Yes."
"Are you alone?"
"No, but come on in. We were talking."
Omie stepped to the front of the tent and opened the door. "Climb in and sit down," she said. "Take your shoes off and leave them near the door. It will be very dark inside. Vorine, can Beria borrow one of your shifts to sleep in? Mine are too small for her."
Vorine chuckled. "Maya has been by. There's a change of clothes for her sister in here, including some sort of pajamas and a pair of boots."
Omie gestured. It was awkward, but I slipped into the tent, being careful of my clothes, then turned around. The tent had a floor, and it felt clean, so I sat down and took my shoes off, searching around with my hands until I found other pairs. I set mine with the others.
"If you face me," said Vorine, "You're on the right side. Your clothing is on the middle of the bedding. Do you need help?"
"I can't reach the laces in back," I said.
"I'll help," said another voice, and I recognized Careen's voice. Careen was a couple of years older than I was. We didn't have much to do with each other. I was surprised to find her here, but realized it sort of made sense.
I heard rustling, then an arm bumped against me. "Here," Careen said, clasping my arm and tugging. I followed where she led me, and then I found a small pile of clothing. I sorted through it, finding my pajamas from home. "Turn around, and I'll help you out of your dress."
It took a lot of squirming around, but Careen helped me out of my clothes, and then I squirmed into my pajamas. "What do I do with the dress?"
"Hand it to me," Omie said. "I'll take it to Maya. They'll have someplace to hang it up."
"That's what we did with mine," Careen said. She took my dress from me and I saw, barely, as she handed it out to Omie.
"You can set the rest of your clothes just past the pillows," Vorine said. "Sometimes I sleep with mine inside the bed."
"In your clothes?"
"Next to me," she said. "So they're warm in the morning."
I put my clothes where Vorine told me, finding a pack to set them on so they weren't on the ground. Then I fumbled to crawl under the blankets. It was chilly.
"If you hurry before Omie gets back," said Vorine, "You can decide if you want the inside or the outside. The inside is warmer, but it's also cozier."
"Warmer sounds good," I said with a grin, settling in. I could feel Careen just a few inches away from me, bundled under her covers with Vorine.
"Following in your sister's footsteps?" Careen asked me.
"Hopefully not quite," I said. Vorine barked laughter.
A moment later, Omie was at the tent door, slipping in. She was far more graceful than I was, slipping out of her boots and setting them with the shoes, then closing up the tent door. She crawled up the bedding, and began crawling over me before she said, "Oops, sorry," and moved to the side. I heard her fumbling through the pack above my head, and then she squirmed out of her clothing and into something else. She slipped into the bed and turned to face me.
"Slumber party," she said.
"Yes," said Vorine.
"Do you always sleep in tents?" I asked.
"When we're in the field," Vorine replied. "But we have huts at home."
"Huts?"
"A one room house," Omie explained. "Normally each warrior gets a hut to share with her companion, but Queen's Town is overfull. Vorine and I are sharing a hut, and our old warriors are sharing a hut."
"I think we're going to build some new huts this summer," Vorine said. "Maya is trying to get us the materials we need?"
"Maya is?" I asked.
"Yes," said Vorine. "Do you understand about the tithe?"
"That's when we send you food."
"That's when the villages send us food," Omie said. "At least for tonight, you're an Amazon, Beria."
I thought about it, and my heart swelled. "Really?"
"Yes," she said. "Isn't she, Vorine?"
"Tonight, everyone in this tent is an Amazon," Vorine declared. "After tonight, we'll see."
"All right," I said, "The tithe is when the villages send us," and I stressed that word, "food."
"They also send us other things."
"Like the materials to build huts?"
"Yes, sometimes, if we ask," Vorine said. "Or something. You know, I don't know. But Maya said she'd get us materials, so she'll get us materials. She didn't explain how, and it didn't even occur to me to ask."
"So, to answer your question," explained Omie, "at home we sleep in beds in our huts. When we're traveling or on patrol, we sleep in tents. When there are a lot of us, Queen Malora has that pavilion you saw, but when she is on patrol or when she and Maya are traveling without the rest of us, she sleeps in a tent just like this one."
I tried to envision my bookish sister sleeping on the ground in a tent, but I realized my sister had changed quite a bit in the last year.
"Vorine," said Omie, "I heard another voice here. You've met Beria, but I'm not sure who else is in here with us."
"Oh, I'm sorry," said Vorine. "Careen, you know Beria."
"Yes."
"And this is my sister, Omie. Omie, this is Careen."
"Pleased to meet you," Omie said. "Are you and Beria friends?"
"Um," said Careen. "I'm a little older than her."
"We're in school together," I explained, "but she is two grades ahead of me, and we don't really play together or anything."
"Two years make such a difference?" Vorine asked.
"Um," said Careen again. "Beria is my old teacher's sister."
"So?"
"Some of the other kids don't like to play with me," I explained. "They're afraid I'll tattle on them."
No one said anything for a minute, and it felt awkward.
"Maybe I should go," I said quietly.
"No!" Omie and Vorine both said at the same time, and Omie put a hand on my shoulder, pressing me into the bedding. "Please don't go, Beria," Omie said, and there was a great deal of emotion in her voice.
"Do you two fight?" Vorine asked quietly.
"No," said Careen. "I hang out with my friends. I don't have anything against Beria."
I didn't care for Careen that much. She'd been a troublemaker for Maya. I didn't say anything.
"Beria?" Omie asked.
"What?"
"Do you and Careen fight?"
"No." But I didn't elaborate.
The tent was silent for a good ten seconds, and then Omie said, "This is where we're all going to act like Amazons. As your warrior, Beria, if I ask a question, I expect an answer."
"I answered," I said. "We don't fight."
"And yet, there is something you aren't saying."
I didn't know what to do, except I suddenly felt a great need to flee. The evening had been going really well, and I was excited at the thought of camping out, but I felt like I was on the spot, and I didn't like it.
"She doesn't want to bad mouth me," Careen finally said. "I used to pick on her."
"That was a long time ago," I said.
"And cause trouble for her sister," Careen added.
I didn't respond to that. That was far more current.
"How much trouble?" Vorine asked.
"Not a lot," Careen said. "I didn't mean it."
I felt Omie next to me, shifting position, and then her mouth was over my ear. "Is she lying?" she asked quietly.
I thought about it. Maya had never complained
, but I knew Careen had been one of the girls most likely to cause her consternation.
Yes, Maya taught me that word, too, but it had been directed towards me at the time.
I answered Omie's question with a couple of nods.
"If I ask a question," Omie whispered to me, "I expect an honest answer. Do you understand?" And I nodded. She leaned away. "Vorine and I are together a lot, which means the two of you would be together a lot. Initially, we would be sharing a hut, and it isn't that large a hut. Furthermore, you are both companions at the same point in your training, and you would need to train together and do other duties together. If there is a problem, we need to know."
"I'd be the youngest," I said. "Does that mean I'd get all the crappy jobs?"
"No," Vorine said firmly. "You would get Omie's crappy jobs, and Careen would get mine."
I laughed. I thought that was funny, then I sobered. "What if Careen tells me to do something?"
"You answer to me," Omie said, "Not Careen. Now, if Vorine tells you to do something, you will want to think long and hard before ignoring it."
"But I wouldn't tell you to do the things Careen is supposed to do for me," Vorine said. "However, the two of you may find that you prefer trading duties."
"Like what?" Careen asked.
"One of you may be better at mending," Vorine said. "For instance. Or perhaps you would trade because one of you wants an afternoon off for something else, so you might do your duties and the other's one day, then the next day, she would do yours."
"So I don't answer to her," I said, "And I don't have to clean up her messes."
"Right," Omie said.
"What if we have a fight anyway?"
"It would depend upon the nature of the fight," Vorine said. "Disputes should first be directed to your warrior or settled in a supervised fashion on the training ground. If you fall outside the rules, there are consequences. There is a low tolerance for physical altercations."
"It's important to remember the real enemy are the demons," Omie said. "You need to know you can trust the woman next to you."
"If the two of you cannot live in the same hut," Vorine explained, "that's temporary and will be resolved. But if you can't live in the same town, that is a bigger deal."
"I don't have a problem," I said.
"Neither do I," responded Careen.
Omie whispered into my ear, and I felt her take my hand under the covers. "Squeeze my hand if you're being completely honest."