Authors: Paulette Miller
Marcus wasn’t one to participate in silly challenges, but he knew they served an important purpose. Nathaniel’s role on this quest wasn’t just to heal physical injuries; also helped them remain mentally sound. The trail had been long, and they needed breaks to ease the ever-present tension and frustration. Although silly, these little challenges gave them a chance to laugh and think about something other than the quest.
They all sat restlessly in their saddles. Even the horses stamped their hooves in eagerness, appearing to be waiting for something. Then Marcus gave out a yell and they all kicked their horses into a full-out gallop. As they rode, they acted like children, trying to knock each other off their horses and laughing.
Marcus let Gabriel take the lead, but then came up from behind and pushed Nathaniel into the rear of Gabriel’s horse, causing both horses to get off-stride. Marcus took the advantage and raced ahead of them, easily winning the race, with Gabriel and Nathaniel close behind. Seth was the last to arrive. Nathaniel had given him a good shove earlier, and he had fallen off his horse. Tianna knew he wasn’t injured because he laughed, jumped quickly back on his horse, and sped to catch up with the others. He just wasn’t fast enough.
“Drinks are on Seth!” Nathaniel announced.
“As always,” Seth said with disgust in his voice.
Gabriel came up next to him and patted him on his back. “Ah, my young student. From adversity comes strength.”
Seth slid off his horse. “Then I’m going to be the strongest warrior of them all!”
They all laughed, including Tianna.
She showed them where they could put their horses. After the horses were fed, watered, and put in the barn for the night, they gathered inside Tianna’s home.
As they entered the main room, the men took in their surroundings. The room was almost as large as the entire structure. There were tables along the side that held many scrolls, stacks of books, and equipment for brewing potions. The other side of the room was where they cooked and ate their meals. Although clean and fairly tidy for a home of two wizards, this place wasn’t what they thought Tianna would call home. They expected to walk into a room full of nature and light, but this place was dark and colorless. There was nothing in this home that reflected Tianna’s personality.
Nathaniel thought to himself, “
No wonder Tianna lives in trees. She may live in this wooden box but it’s NOT her home.
”
Tianna picked up a note that she found on the table. As he somehow always did, Zarin knew that Tianna would be returning today. The note said that he was at a neighboring farm trying to help a sick animal.
Tianna put the note down. “My master isn’t here right now. You can meet him later.”
She kept using Zarin’s title because she wanted to make sure these men understood that, although she shared this house with Zarin, they weren’t lovers. She was just his apprentice, and it was customary for the apprentice to move in with their master. It was unheard of to have an apprentice be a woman.
She pointed out the other rooms within Zarin’s home. She walked over toward a small door saying, “This is where my master sleeps on the rare occasion when he doesn’t fall asleep on top of his books. He typically works at that table over by the window.” She pointed to the table and walked toward a second door. “This room is full of cots. We use it for sick or injured villagers, as we rarely get any visitors.”
She walked to the door on the far back right. “This room is where I sleep. It was added when I moved in to start my apprenticeship.”
For some reason Nathaniel needed to see where this beguiling woman slept. He walked over and peeked in. There was nothing but a cot and a small table with a few items scattered on it. It was also not what he expected.
“Where are your parents?” Nathaniel asked.
“They live up the road. I hope to introduce you to them when we go into the village.”
Scanning the room, Nathaniel wondered why parents would allow their small daughter to move in. “Didn’t it bother them to have you leave them and move in here?”
“It was hard at first, but I’ve known my master my entire life. He actually delivered me in that cot room. He’s been like a second father to me. When I was very young, I showed unique skills and wanted to train to be a wizard. So, when I turned eight and he finally agreed to train me, I moved in. I’ve been here ever since.”
She started to fidget a little. “It was quite the scandal given I was female, but I’ve never exactly fit in so it was just another one of many reasons people stare and whisper about me.”
Nathaniel could feel the pain behind her words. He realized that Tianna had never really known a home or a real family. He longed even more to uncover her secrets.
Tianna was uncomfortable talking about herself and she wanted to stop where this conversation was heading, so she walked to the front door. “Let’s walk into the village so I can pick up some supplies and show you around before it’s too dark.” Everyone agreed and they took a short walk to the village.
As they traveled down the main street, Tianna pointed out places of interest, including the blacksmith. They stepped inside so she could introduce the owner to her new friends.
Gabriel asked if he could use some of the smith’s equipment. The owner was startled by the hulking man now standing in front of him, and he hesitated before answering. Tianna, seeing his unease, placed her arms tightly around Gabriel’s waist. Gazing directly into the owner’s eyes, she said in a strangely intense voice, “It’s okay. He’s a friend.”
The shop owner’s eyes glossed over for a moment and he relaxed. He then invited Gabriel to use anything that was in his shop. Tianna told Gabriel that they would meet him back at her master’s home later for evening meal.
Gabriel was touched by her kindness, but Marcus stared sharply at Tianna. He was wondering how she had so easily shaped the conversation. He kept his thoughts to himself, and the remainder of the group left the shop, continuing their tour of the village.
After traveling a short distance, they saw a family standing across the road with a little girl. When the little girl spotted Tianna, she came running and leapt into Tianna’s arms. Nathaniel caught Tianna’s shoulders so she wouldn’t get knocked to the ground, but Tianna was giggling and didn’t seem to notice.
“Ty, you’re back!” she said with a death-grip hug around Tianna’s neck. After a moment, she released her hold but stayed in Tianna’s arms.
“How’s your brother’s leg, Sara?” Tianna asked.
“Okay, I guess, but he almost did it again and papa yelled and yelled and yelled. It hurt my ears.” She moved her hands to cover her ears.
Her father bellowed for Sara to come back to them. Tianna asked Sara for one more hug, which she gave enthusiastically. Sara’s parents yelled again, now with anger on their faces. Tianna put Sara down and watched her run back across the street.
Nathaniel could feel the pain the parents’ hatred caused Tianna. Marcus glanced over and saw that Tianna’s eyes were tense. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Tianna tried to smile but it was more of a grimace. She said, “I’m fine. Sara’s one of the only people in this village that will touch me voluntarily. Nobody else wants me near them unless I’m healing.” Watching Sara’s family quickly walk away, she sighed. “I guess it does bother me. I hate that people are afraid of me.”
As they continued down the road, they passed a young man with stark white hair. They heard him whisper angrily, “Witch.” When he saw the reaction in Tianna’s companion’s faces he took off at a limping run.
Seth started to go after him, but Tianna grabbed his arm. She shrugged saying, “That’s just Garrett.” She knew he was about to ask her for an explanation, so she added quickly, “It’s a long story to be told another day.”
She tried to treat it like it meant nothing, but Nathaniel knew differently. He felt the impact of the word on Tianna like a knife in his chest. He wondered why he kept feeling what Tianna was feeling.
The travelers approached a tavern with two scantily dressed women standing in front of the door. Tianna hadn’t approved when this tavern opened up a few years back but as the village grew larger, so did its appetites.
The two women caught a glimpse of Nathaniel and started to call him over. He stepped forward. “Sorry, my friends, but this is my stop.” He walked over to the women and instantly wrapped his arms around their shoulders. He turned back to his traveling group and called, “I’ll see you in the morning.”
As he turned back toward the tavern, he caught a glimpse of Tianna’s face. He hated to see that look in her eyes, so he tried to convince himself she was just a silly human that he liked to tease. Tianna knew he wasn’t doing anything he hadn’t talked about since the moment she met him. Seth, seeing her distress, grabbed her hand and pulled her forward. Tianna gave out a long sigh but continued down the road and didn’t look back.
Tianna found her parents outside their home talking to Zarin. They approached and Tianna introduced her parents, Beth and David, to Marcus and Seth. As Tianna began to introduce her wizard master, Marcus interrupted her.
“Zarin, you old goat! So you’re the one Tianna won’t stop talking about.” Marcus and Zarin greeted each other by grabbing each other’s arms just below the elbow in a ceremonial embrace Tianna had never seen before.
Zarin responded, “It’s good to see you, old friend. It’s been a long time.”
Tianna’s mouth gaped open in shock.
Seeing the expression on Tianna’s face, Marcus patted Zarin on his shoulder and said, “Zarin has come to my village many times over the years. He comes to converse with our Seer.” Even though Marcus towered over Zarin, Tianna noticed that her master didn’t flinch with Marcus’ strong grip. He always seemed surprisingly stronger than his elderly frame projected.
Tianna raised her eyebrows at Zarin. “I think you owe me some more stories, my dear master.”
“Maybe I do, but you, my dear apprentice, also owe me the story of how you came to be standing here with Marcus.” Zarin’s eyes gleamed with interest.
Marcus pointed toward Seth. “Zarin, I don’t think you’ve had the opportunity to meet Seth, the best tracker in Haven. The poor fellow has Gabriel as a mentor.”
Zarin laughed heartily and Tianna realized that her master must know Gabriel too. Tianna saw that Seth was embarrassed at the attention, so she told her father about Seth’s interest in maps and the stars. Within a few minutes, the two of them were busy in conversation and disappeared into the home to look at maps.
Tianna hugged her mother and asked. “Would you and father join us for the evening meal tonight?”
Her mother nodded enthusiastically and, to Tianna’s relief, volunteered to help prepare the meal. Tianna could cook fairly well, but her mother was a master, and Tianna wanted her new friends to feel welcome. Seth and Tianna’s father had vanished into the house. Her mother grinned and said she would bring them both to Zarin’s later. She hastily scribbled down a grocery list and handed it to Tianna.
Zarin said he had a few things to do before he could come home and headed down the road, leaving Marcus and Tianna to go get the supplies.
They went into her parent’s shop to grab the meat and then headed to some of the other shops in town for the rest of the list. Everywhere they went villagers stopped and stared at the large man beside Tianna. Marcus acted like he hadn’t even noticed and simply carried the growing pile of packages as they moved from store to store. Tianna asked if she could carry anything but Marcus waved her off, explaining how he carefully arranged the various packages.
Tianna realized he was holding twice what she could carry thanks to his organized system. “Do you plan everything so well?” She wondered aloud. Marcus simply bowed and smiled. When they had everything they needed, they headed back to Zarin’s home.
They arrived later than expected, so Tianna quickly started cutting up vegetables. Marcus helped without being asked and soon the house was filled with the aroma of stew and baking bread. Once Tianna’s mother arrived, she took Marcus’ spot as cook and sent him to join the other men that had now gathered and were having lively conversations.
Tianna could hear Gabriel’s voice so she knew he had arrived. She listened for Nathaniel’s voice, but to no avail. His absence was bothering her more than she wanted to admit.
The evening was a great success. The meal was well received and, afterwards, everyone sat back and relaxed. They chatted, laughed, and told stories of the town and their travels. Everything was going wonderfully until Seth asked about the white haired young man they had seen in the village. Zarin regretfully told a slightly modified version of the day when Garrett’s dark curls turned white, deemphasizing the exact circumstances of the event.