Souls of Aredyrah 3 - The Taking of the Dawn (9 page)

Dayn sighed, then nodded. Eyan grabbed a
towel and lifted the tea kettle off the spit. “Mother knows lots o’
things,” he said. “Like what herbs can cure a fever, or help ye
sleep, or ease the aches.” Eyan poured the brew into a mug. “Here,”
he said, holding it out to Dayn. “It’ll make ye feel better.”

Dayn accepted the tea and drank it down. It
hadn’t been over the fire long enough to get hot, but it sent a
flood of warmth to his bones nonetheless.

Eyan took the mug and refilled it. “Where do
ye hurt? Is it your head?”

Dayn forced a laugh. “My heart.”

“Your heart? Hmmm…I don’t know anythin’ about
that,” Eyan said quietly. “Father says I should avoid the affairs
o’ the heart. I don’t know what that means though.”

“It means love,” Alicine said.

“Love?” Eyan fixed her in a bewildered
stare.

“Yes,” Alicine said. “You know, like when you
love someone.”

“Ye mean like for a mother and a father?”

“No. It’s more like
between
a mother
and a father.”

“Oh.” Eyan paused for a long moment. “Is that
kind o’ love better?”

“No. It’s just different. Right, Dayn?”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Dayn
said.

“Why?” Eyan asked cautiously. “Is it
bad?”

“Yes,” Dayn replied.

Alicine slapped Dayn on the arm. “Is not,”
she said.

“No? Tell us how it’s good then.”

“You know how it feels. Don’t you dare put me
on the spot.”

“Well Eyan doesn’t know how it feels. Why
don’t you explain it to him.”

Alicine glanced toward their mother’s bed
across the way. Morna’s steady breathing indicated she was fast
asleep, but Alicine lowered her voice, just in case. “It’s like you
love someone special, someone you want to touch or—” Alicine
blushed. “—or kiss on the mouth. You know.”

Eyan looked away awkwardly. “I haven’t been
around enough people to feel that way about any of ‘em.”

“Be glad of that,” Dayn said.

Alicine slapped his arm again. “Don’t say
that!”

Dayn laughed.

“Is that kind o’ love…funny…like a joke?”
Eyan asked.

“Sometimes,” Alicine replied.

“Never,” Dayn added.

Eyan shook his head. “I don’t
understand.”

“Didn’t your parents ever talk to you about
love?” Alicine asked. “I mean, you do know what happens when a man
and woman have special feelings for each other, right?”

“They get married. But I won’t be allowed to,
so I guess that’s why my parents never told me much about it.”

Dayn rose abruptly from the chair, then
realized his body was screaming to lie down. “I can’t talk about
this anymore,” he said, and moved toward the pallet. He curled up
on the patchwork pile and yanked a quilt over his head.

Alicine stood over him. “Don’t you want to
get out of your damp clothes first?”

“No.”

“I’ll leave the room if you want me to.”

“No.”

“Ye really should put on somethin’ dry, ye
know,” Eyan said. “Mother says that if ye stay wet, ye’ll catch a
chill, and if ye catch a chill, ye’ll catch the fever, and if ye
catch the fever—”

Dayn threw off the covers. “All
right—
fine
. But I don’t have anything else to wear.”

“Your mother packed up your and Alicine’s
clothes when she left and came here, but right now they’re all in a
trunk in the barn. I’ve got plenty o’ stuff, though,” Eyan said.
“Here, let me find ye somethin’.” He walked over to a cedar chest
at the foot of his bed and lifted the lid. “How about this one? No,
wait…this one’d be better.” He held up a wool sleeping gown in one
hand and a large faded work shirt in the other. “Which one do ye
want? This one’s the softest, but this one—”

“I—don’t—care,” Dayn said between gritted
teeth. He sat up and thrust out a hand. “Just give me
something.”

Eyan handed him the gown, while Alicine
secured the drape to their mother’s sleeping area and walked toward
the door. “We’ll wait outside. You coming, Eyan?” she asked.

Eyan looked at Dayn as though requesting
permission. “Can I stay? I can help ye if ye want.”

“I don’t care,” Dayn replied.

Alicine sniggered. “You wouldn’t have said
that a few months ago. You used to hide your body like it was the
biggest secret in Aredyrah.”

“You’re one to talk. Who just said the words
‘kiss on the mouth’?”

Alicine’s face grew noticeably red.

“Besides, it’s just Eyan, and he’s a boy,”
Dayn said. “Trapped in a cave with Reiv forced me to adapt.”

“What do you mean?” Alicine asked.

Dayn chortled. “The cave wasn’t exactly
designed for privacy, and you know how Reiv is.”

“Oh,” Alicine said. For a moment her
attentions seemed to drift, but then she hastily added, “Well, Eyan
can stay if he wants, but I’m sure not.” She turned and slipped out
the door.

Dayn tried to pry off his damp tunic, but the
thing was glued to his skin. Eyan reached out and grabbed hold of
it, helping to pull it up and over Dayn’s shoulders. Dayn then rose
and peeled off his pants. Stripped down to nothing, he yanked the
nightshirt over his head. When he looked up, Eyan was staring at
him like he’d seen a ghost.

“What’s the matter?” Dayn asked.

“Nothin’…I…nothin’.” Eyan gathered up Dayn’s
wet clothes and hurried to the door. “I’ll hang ‘em on the porch
rail ‘til mornin’. Mother’ll want to wash ‘em. They’re very dirty
and…” His voice trailed off as he hurriedly exited the room.

Back to ToC

Chapter 8: Great
Expectations

I
t was late morning
when Dayn finally awoke. He knew by the angle of the light beaming
in through the open windows and the warming breeze rustling the
curtains. He threw off the covers and sat up, rolling the stiffness
from his neck and shoulders. The pallet had not been comfortable,
but at least it was better than the rocky ground he and his sister
had been forced to sleep on for the past two weeks. But it was not
the pallet that had him feeling less than rested; it was the
thickness behind his eyeballs.

He scanned the room. No one was there. Even
Alicine, who had surely required as much rest as he had, appeared
to be up and about. He rose and looked down at the night shirt that
hung to his knees, trying to recall where he had put his
trousers.

The door burst open. “Mornin’ dear,” Vania
chirped as she made her way to the table and lifted a cloth napkin
from a plate of food. “Saved ye a bit o’ lunch—too late for
breakfast. Hope ye don’t mind that it isn’t warm.”

“It’s fine, auntie,” Dayn said as he trudged
to the bench.

Vania filled a mug from a nearby crock.
“Here’s some milk to give your body a go.”

Dayn took a swig, then dug his fork and knife
into a slice of meat, wild pig by the looks of it, and sawed it
into a more manageable piece. He shoved it into his mouth and
chewed it down. It was tough and had a gamey taste, but he was
half-starved and couldn’t seem to fill his stomach fast enough.

“Lands, boy. Ye’ll choke if ye don’t slow
down a mite.”

“Sorry,” Dayn mumbled through a mouthful. He
gulped down the rest of the milk, then held out the mug for
more.

Vania scampered to refill it.

“Where’s Alicine?” Dayn asked, his eyes still
focused on the plate.

“Gone to help Eyan with the horses.”

Dayn crammed a chunk of bread into his mouth
and sawed another piece of meat. “Wha ‘bout Mother?”

“She’s in the root cellar; won’t be long, and
your uncle’s gone to meet with the clans.”

Dayn’s jaw stopped mid-chew. “The clans?”

“Aye, went to give ‘em an invite.”

“An invite?” Dayn forced down the bread that
had lodged in his throat. “What kind of invite?”

“A Gatherin’, here, in two weeks time.”

Dayn set down his eating utensils, his
appetite all but vanished. “So we’re here alone? I mean…”

“Now don’t ye go worryin’ yourself about it,”
Vania said, bustling over to pour the last of the milk into his
mug. “It would take a calamity to tempt the Vestry to venture this
far. Besides, Eyan’s well skilled with a bow.”

“Why is Haskel calling a Gathering? I mean,
he said he intended to meet with some of the members, but a full
Gathering?”

“All the mountain clans will be needin’ to
know you and your sister are back. The Aerie clan, bein’ our own,
should know first, o’ course. But we figured might as well tell
everyone, before any rumors filtered up from Kiradyn.”

“But why here? You and Haskel never had the
clans meet
here
before.”

Vania set the crock aside, then pulled out
the bench from the other side of the table and sat facing him. “We
never had ‘em here before because of Eyan.”

“So how is it different now?”

Vania folded her hands on the tabletop and
lifted her chin. “We’ve decided to introduce him to the clans,” she
said. Her expression, though somewhat pinched, showed signs of a
hard-won victory. “It’s been a long time comin’, Dayn. We can no
longer deny our son his rights as a member o’ the clan. Besides,
after what ye told Haskel—”

“I thought he didn’t believe me,” Dayn
said.

“He didn’t, until Alicine confirmed it this
mornin’.”

“So he believed her, but not me?”

Vania patted Dayn’s hand. “It’s not like
that, dear. It’s just that she told him the same thing you did, and
he figured there wasn’t likely a conspiracy between ye.”

Dayn slanted his eyes toward the door,
worried that his altercation with Lorcan was just the sort of
calamity the Vestry needed to make their presence known. “How long
will uncle be gone?” he asked.

“Oh, ten days, no more.”

“Ten
days
?” Dayn nearly choked.

“He’s got several homesteads to visit, Dayn,
so he can get the message movin’ down the line. Then he’s headin’
down to tell Eileis. She’ll be wantin’ to come, too, I expect.”

“Eileis? The Spirit Keeper? But she lives
near Kiradyn!” Dayn’s voice began to rise. “What if Haskel’s seen
there? What if—”

Vania cocked her head. “What’s driven such
fear into ye, child?”

“Didn’t uncle tell you?”

“You mean about Lorcan?”

“Of course I mean about Lorcan!”

Vania patted his hand again. “He’s an evil
man, there’s no denyin’ it. But I don’t think he’ll be wantin’
everyone knowin’ about the treatment of his children. Haskel could
easily use that bit of information against him. And he knows
it.”

“So Haskel is going to keep it secret just so
Lorcan will leave us alone? And what about Falyn and her brother?
What happens to them?”

“No worries, dear. Haskel intends to tell
Eileis. Figures she can help without involvin’ the rest of us. I’m
sure she’ll figure somethin’ out.”

The door opened and Morna swept into the
room, her arms loaded with tubers, jars of spiced meats, and a
strand of dried onions. Vania rose to help her. They set the items
on the table and sorted through them.

“Well, it’s enough for a stew and a couple o’
mince pies,” Vania said. “But it won’t be enough to feed all the
folks that’ll likely be comin’. We’ll have to do some gatherin’.
There should still be some blackberries on the vine, and there’s a
spot where we always find fine mushrooms. I’ll send Eyan out
later.”

“There’s plenty of preserves in the cellar,”
Morna assured her, “but before we pull any more out, I guess we’d
best wait to see what Haskel says when he returns. There’s always a
chance some of the clans won’t come.”

“Why wouldn’t they come?” Dayn asked.

“Some aren’t so forgiving,” Morna said.
“They’ll be more concerned with what your return means to the
Vestry than what it means to your family.”

“Maybe this isn’t such a good idea,” Dayn
said. “I don’t want to cause anyone any more trouble.”

“What isn’t a good idea?” Alicine asked as
she entered the doorway. Eyan followed at her heels.

“Vania said Haskel has gone to invite the
clans here for a Gathering,” Dayn said.

“I know,” Alicine said cheerfully. “Isn’t
that exciting?”

“Well,” Dayn said, “what if the clans aren’t
happy about us coming back and telling what we learned?”

“Oh, pooh. They’ll be fine once we explain
it. Besides, it’s a chance for everyone to meet Eyan.”

“And how well do you expect
that
to go
over?” Dayn said.

“It will be fine, won’t it Eyan?” Alicine
smiled at Eyan assuringly.

“I…um…guess it’ll be fine,” Eyan said.

“Of course it will, dear,” Vania added.
“It’ll be a celebration of Dayn’s and Alicine’s return, and your
comin’ out.”

“I’m not so sure I want a celebration,” Dayn
said.

“This isn’t just about
you
,” Alicine
said haughtily.

“Well, maybe you like being the center of
attention,” Dayn shot back, “but that doesn’t mean Eyan and I
do.”

“Since when are you Eyan’s spokesperson?”
Alicine placed her hands on her hips and turned her eyes to Eyan.
“You don’t mind a celebration, do you, Eyan?”

Eyan glanced back and forth between the
bickering siblings. “Um…well…I’ve never been to anythin’, so I
guess it’ll be all right.” Dayn threw him a glare. “I mean…maybe
Dayn’s right. Maybe it’s not such a good idea.”

“All right, enough,” Morna scolded. “The
clans are invited for the Gathering and that’s that. As for a
celebration…Dayn, if you don’t want to be included in it, fine, but
at some point you’re going to have to show your face and verify
what you told your uncle. As for Eyan, how his introduction to the
clans is handled is for him and his parents to figure out. And if
Alicine wants to be the center of attention, she’d best find
something decent to wear.” She turned her eyes to Alicine’s
startled face. “Don’t look to me for help on that, daughter. I’ve
enough to do.”