Chapter II, Reading 8

"You should stay in the house and we can get the rest done today," Leudh added.  "If any unfriendly eyes watch this clearing, we can hide the fact that you are leaving."

Flindra sighed.  "It's decided then.  I'll leave before dawn tomorrow."

"That would be wise," her brother agreed.

He stood and Brehwan joined him.  "We'll go outside and see to things," he said.

"All right," Flindra said with a nod.  "Thank you for the help."

Leudh smiled.  "Anytime, little sister."  He and Brehwan walked outside.

Dakra turned to look at the dough warming on the hearth.  She pulled back the towel covering the dough to see how far it had risen.  "It's doubled," she announced.  "I'll punch it down and get it ready for the second rise."

"Need any help?"

"No, my child.  Why don't you go through your things and see if there's anything you want to take?"

Flindra sighed as she stood.  "Call me if you need any help."

"I will, Flindra."

The cottage consisted of two rooms on the main floor with a loft across half the space above.  The main room was the living area of the family and included the kitchen space.  A small room off to the side of the kitchen had been Eghero and Dakra's bedroom.  Flindra's sleeping space was above, in the loft.

The first room in the loft had originally been Leudh's.  Now Dakra used this space to dry her herbs and Flindra always enjoyed smelling the aromatic herbs on her way to her room.  She walked through the crowded coziness of the drying racks and smiled at her mother's handiwork.  Pushing aside the curtain, which hung in the doorway, she entered the room she had always thought of as being her own.  It saddened her to know that tonight would be the last night she would spend here.

The bed was situated so she could look out the small, unglazed window and watch the stars until she fell asleep.  The bed was covered with a cozy and colorful quilt, which she and Dakra had made together so many years before.  With her quilt pulled up under her chin, she could curl up in comfort in her bed and still feel connected to the magic of the outdoors beyond the window.

Her clothes were hung along pegs lining the inside wall, which kept them in tidy order.  She ignored her clothes; most of them she would leave behind for she would be traveling light and only taking the necessary.  For the moment, she had some personal things to draw her attention.

Kneeling beside the bed, she pulled out a small wooden box from beneath it.  Carefully opening the lid, she looked at the small treasures she had collected through her life.  Here were her first samples of weaving and needlework, her favorite childhood toys, pressed leaves and flowers, and other small and simple mementos of happy times.