“Ha ha, very funny. Can we go home now?” asked Keither.
“Go home?” Legon said, surprised. “We’ve shot three arrows! No, we can’t go home. Come on, Kovos.”
They continued shooting the targets for awhile, and after an hour or so they decided to go home. They would have stayed a bit longer, but Keither had managed to lose most of the arrows they brought, and Legon and Kovos were forced to walk down the field to get their arrows every five or six shots. The arrows Keither shot were gone forever. They were on the field somewhere, but the field was large and people were starting to show up to practice, and Legon and Kovos were not excited about becoming a human quiver while trying to find the arrows.
They made it back to Kovos’ house in time for lunch and they spent much of the afternoon there talking and having a good time. After a few hours Legon and Sasha decided to start for home. They walked out of the house and headed toward the edge of town. They would often skirt around the town to take more time getting home and to give them a chance to talk. It felt good to walk after sitting on a wood bench all afternoon. The sun was starting to set and the sky was beginning to turn a variety of colors, the grey clouds taking on hues of pink and lavender. The valley was soon covered in shadows and they could hear crickets starting to chirp. Legon noticed that Sasha wasn’t talking much.
“Why so quiet, sis?”
“I don’t know. I guess there’s a lot on my mind,” she said softly.
“Well, like what?”
“Like, what’s going to happen when you leave? I’ve spent my whole life with you and I’m not sure what it will be like when you’re gone.”
“I’ll visit, you know. I’m going to try to go to a town within a few weeks of here. But I suppose it won’t be like it is now. I’m going to miss you, too.”
That was a lie. In truth he wasn’t entirely sure how he was going to live without her. It was like they were linked.
“That can’t be all that’s on your mind Sash. What else is bothering you?”
She took her time answering him. “It’s your tattoo. I noticed yesterday that it’s changed from that dark green to purple. Why would it do that?” There was a hint of concern in her voice, and even a bit of fear.
“It’s what? Sash, tattoos don’t change color,” he said confidently.
“I know they don’t, but yours has… I saw it just last night.” Now the concern was evident in her voice and face. “If it has changed colors then that mean that it must be…”
“Magic,” Legon finished. He felt his blood turn to ice and his heart beat faster.
Magic was rare in humans, which scared Legon, because magic was treated with great fear and respect. Iumenta and Elves could use it, but he didn’t know of any Elves in their area.
“Do you think it was put there by an Iumenta?” he asked Sasha quietly.
“I don’t know. I hope not, but it may not be much better if it was put there by an Elf. The queen hates them. And if it was a human, then who knows what it means.”
They walked silently, neither wanting to talk about Legon’s tattoo. They opened the distance between them and the town and soon they couldn’t hear the town at all. The only sound was that of two sets of feet stepping on the soft ground. The town was surrounded by farms and fields, all green with spring’s life. The sun was almost below the mountain’s high peaks, and sat above them like a crown of gold and fire. They both felt themselves relaxing as the air started to grow cool. Legon looked over at Sasha. Her face seemed to glow in the orange light and the last shafts of the sun’s rays danced in her hair. She still looked a bit worried; he could see it in her eyes. He could tell that there was more she wasn’t telling him.
Sasha broke the silence. Her voice was conversational. “So, have you given any thought to where you are going to go when you leave?”
He took his time answering. “Yeah, I’m thinking Salkay. It’s just a bit south of here. The town is growing and they don’t have a butcher. Also, they’re still under Regent Kooth’s control, so it should make it simpler.”
“Hmmm. Salkay, huh? That’s only about four days from here, isn’t it?”
“Yep, that’s the idea. I want to be close, and Salkay is about as good as I’m going to get.”
Sasha looked like she was thinking. “But it’s still a small town. You won’t make a huge amount of money, or at least not enough to start a family. Speaking of which, do you think you will be able to find a wife there? Wouldn’t Salez be better?”
Legon stumbled over his words a bit. “Well, Salez is a big city, and as far as Salkay goes, I will make a decent amount of money. I’m not worried about it.”
Sasha didn’t pursue the subject any more. They got home just after dark. When they got in Edis greeted them. “Your mother had to go. Arkin cut himself or something like that.” He saw worry instantly cross Legon and Sasha’s faces. “Oh, it’s nothing bad, he’s fine. I think he got a small cut today. He didn’t even want her to come over, but you know your mother.”
Sasha gave a deep sigh and said, “We know her.” She looked around the kitchen. Something was off. “There’s no smell of food cooking. She must not have made dinner,” she thought. Edis was smiling politely at her, that kind of smile you give to your daughter to tell her she’s the most wonderful thing in the world or…
“Sash, dinner!” Legon said in a commanding voice and snapped his fingers.
She turned and scowled at both of them. Legon winced, but Edis, having gotten many of these looks from his wife over the years, kept smiling as if this act would somehow make her feel better. “What, you two aren’t capable of making dinner?” she spat.
“Puddin,’ it’s not tha…,” began Edis, whose smile was beginning to fade.
“Don’t you give me that! Why do I have to cook?”
Legon spoke, “Dad, Sasha is right. Why should she do it?”
“Thank you,” she said.
“We can make dinner. Come on, we do it all the time when we go hunting,” Legon said to Edis.
At this something clicked in Sasha’s head.
“Oh… well… that’s ok, I really don’t mind,” she said in a much calmer and placating voice.
“No Sash, Legon’s right. We’ll cook. I’m sorry, that was pig-headed of me.” Edis gestured for her to sit down.
“No, no I insist. I can do it. You two set the table and sit down, I don’t mind.” She swept over to the counter and began putting on her blue apron.
“Are you sure?” asked Legon one last time.
“Yes, I’m sure,” she said as she began to get out pots and pans. As Legon sat down, Edis mouthed to him, “Good one, son,” and gave him a thumbs up. The fact of the matter was that both Legon and Edis could cook. They were not as good as Sasha or Laura, but they weren’t bad. Sasha didn’t know this, of course, since she had never let them cook on the two occasions when she had gone hunting with them. Legon had thought the for sure that she wouldn’t fall for his trick, but she had, and this bothered him. It meant that there was a lot on Sasha’s mind that she was not telling him.
Chapter Four
“Life is a series of decisions, each moving us along the ropes of fate. How to make the right decision? This is a question that all ask yet few understand. As options are weighed and consequences revealed we see bondage, but in reality we are free. Look up the rope of fate and choose your place, then go to it. Let that guide your decisions today.”
The day after Legon and Sasha had gone over to see Kovos, Legon found himself walking into his house after an uneventful morning. There was almost nothing to do in the shop; it was one of the famine days as far as work went. The only thing that Edis could find to keep himself busy was making sausage, and for that he liked to have Sasha’s help. Legon didn’t mind; he hated to make sausage and it was a great opportunity for Legon and Sasha to switch roles. He would help his mother if she needed it, and Sasha got some time with Edis.