After hearing the voice in his head at the bonfire, Thal had gone to see Elowin the next day. He found her sitting in her garden, writing notes in a worn almanac and sorting piles of seeds for various vegetables. Every few moments, she would mumble to herself and wave smoke from an incense candle over the seeds as if she was blessing them.
Worried that he would frighten her if he tapped her shoulder or spoke loudly, Thal sat on a rocky outcrop where he would watch for her to notice him. He was not eager to start a conversation about hearing voices since he'd heard that elders who began that pursuit were often sent away into the forest and never heard from again.
His mind strayed to what Kael had told them about being held prisoner at the end of the Earth, where the ocean tides rose up to the edge of the forest, and how a human, Alexander, had been planning on selling him to others.
He'd been unable to give them any data about the location of where he had been held, only that he had arrived there after the attack of the gnolls when he had been running for his life and then escaped the same way without any sense of direction or plans.
But there had been something different about Kael when he returned, something that Thal couldn't quite put his finger on. He seemed smaller, but without having changed in height. As if he had shrunk into himself. Lyri had even been surprised when Kael complimented her on her pearly opalescent dress that she had worn to the bonfire, but she'd only raised her eyebrows and looked at Kael. He had shrugged but said nothing, his mind still wondering where the voice had come from.
His mind strayed to what Kael had told them about being held prisoner at the end of the Earth, where the ocean tides rose up to the edge of the forest, and how a human, Alexander, had been planning on selling him to others.
He'd been unable to give them any data about the location of where he had been held, only that he had arrived there after the attack of the gnolls when he had been running for his life and then escaped the same way without any sense of direction or plans.
But there had been something different about Kael when he returned, something that Thal couldn't quite put his finger on. He seemed smaller, but without having changed in height. As if he had shrunk into himself. Lyri had even been surprised when Kael complimented her on her pearly opalescent dress that she had worn to the bonfire, but she'd only raised her eyebrows and looked at Kael. He had shrugged but said nothing, his mind still wondering where the voice had come from.
Elowin raised her head and waved at Thal, and he went over to where she was standing on a block of stone, reaching deep into a hedge.
"Help me here, boy. Can you reach that nest that is deep in the hedge? I need one of those eggs for my supper."
A very different tone this week. As always I look forward to seeing where the prompts take you, and us, next week.
ReplyDeleteHi Cindi - well done on including the words so cleverly into your story ... the tale looks to be interesting ... I'll enjoy reading more - cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteI need to catch up on a few chapters but this part makes me wonder. Good use of the wfw prompts.
ReplyDeleteHave a lovely day.
I'm sure Elowin won't send him away and your story is very enjoyable.
ReplyDelete