Gadolor

Wind and Sunlight

Entressa woke slowly. She noticed two things, and they both confused her. First, there was a loud trilling noise. Second, she was painfully stiff. She opened her eyes. Golden sunlight filtered through green leaves, all of them swaying in a warm breeze. Just above her face, a bush’s bright foliage nodded up and down. Birds were trilling merrily, and a root was poking her back.

I’ve done it, she thought. I’ve really, really done it. She felt scared and excited at the same time. Something was tickling her ankle, and then the tickle moved up her shin. She looked down. It was an ant! She almost squealed and slapped it, but stopped to watch. Its tiny legs moved a pair at a time, climbing up her like she might climb a hill. She wondered what it would be like to climb something so big and strange. When it reached her knee, she brushed it off.

She rubbed her face sleepily. It was greasy from the hot nighttime trek through the woods. Something was in her hair. Dirt. She turned her head, pointing one eye at the ground. Dirt. She was lying on it; in fact, it was everywhere. Entressa grinned.

She sat up then, pushing her face through the bush’s soft leaves. Her sore muscles hurt but she forced her body up. She noticed her clothes then, her new clothes. A beige cotton skirt that would fall below her knees when she stood, and a loose-fitting tunic, the color of red clay. That was all, except her cloak. It had been her pillow but now lay crumpled in some dead leaves. She touched a scrape on her knee from a fall last night. She hadn’t often seen her own blood; it was surprisingly sticky.

More bushes surrounded the spot. They made a low canopy, almost hiding the higher canopy of trees. Their leaves were brighter and smaller than most trees’, and many had little red berries. I wonder if they’re good to eat. The trickling, plunking, smacking sound of water was nearby. It made her thirsty.

Sebastian wasn’t there. Entressa was alone in the woods. “I’ll get us food in the morning,” he had said, “Stay here unless you want to be caught.” Entressa wondered what was happening at the castle right now. The sun was up. They had missed her by now, without a doubt. They would be looking for her. She glanced nervously up the slope, where she thought the path was. A new emotion mixed with her excitement. What if they caught her, wearing these clothes, sleeping in the dirt, running with a gypsy? What would Father say? What would Andel do? She pushed those thoughts away and listened. There was no sound but the trickling stream and singing birds.

Tired of sitting still, she decided to go see the stream. She thought sometimes fun things could be seen at streams. As it turned out, standing up was harder work than she expected, given her sore muscles and the thick bush-branches. She swayed back and forth, grasping at the flimsy wood, trying to catch her balance. It made her giggle.

It was then she remembered her bare feet. What did he do with my shoes? Her soles were sore and swollen from a night of traipsing along behind Sebastian. When she stepped on a knobby twig, she winced. But, persevering, she made her way gingerly toward the stream.

It was a delightful affair of clear water running over gray stones into one little pool after another, with tiny waterfalls in between. As Entressa approached, something jumped off the bank and plopped into the water. She stopped, mouth hanging open. That was a frog! Where is it now? It had disappeared. She came close and squatted by the pool, searching. She saw nothing but clear water, with a floor of mud. Then she saw a little swirl of muddy water in one corner. “Ah ha,” she said aloud, “That’s where he landed.” Clever frog.

Sebastian soon came into sight, hopping from rock to rock as he made his way up the stream, holding a burlap sack in one fist. “Hi there,” he said, “Good morn, sleepyhead.”

“Sleepyhead? I’ve been waiting hours for you.”

“I haven’t been gone for hours,” he protested, winking. “Come up and eat.” They went up the slope and ate from the sack—a loaf of bread, three hard apples, and a few walnut shells that rolled around the bottom. Entressa thought it was the most delicious meal she’d ever had.

She drew herself up royally. “Now then, Sebastian,” she said, “Take me to the caves of Torris.”

He laughed. “Those caverns are far away. Let’s begin by getting away from your capital. You don’t want to be found and dragged back to Andel, do you?”

She wrinkled her nose. “Don’t talk about him. I’m glad I have you.”

He hugged her. “I’m glad too.”

“Where will we go?”

“I think it’s best if we move at night. Try to rest now.”

“How can I sleep when it’s so bright and beautiful all around?”

“Wrap your cloak around your eyes and pretend the moon is out.” She did, and they lay down to rest.

“Sebastian, there’s a bug crawling on me.”

“Ignore it.”

“Sebastian?”

“Yes?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too. Go to sleep.”

Why was all this excitement mixed with so much waiting? No matter—it gave her time to soak it all in. She counted her heartbeats, losing count around four hundred, then counted all the reasons this life was going to be wonderful. The birds and cicadas were loud; no cloak wrapping her head could shut them out. Sebastian’s steady breathing encouraged her to sleep, but all she could manage was a doze that came and went. The cloak still smelled of onions. Every hour she would push it off her eyes and look at the sky, hoping dusk had come. But it was a long time before it finally came.

Sebastian encouraged her that sore muscles felt better after a mile or two of walking, and sore feet are easily forgotten when walking with one’s best friend. He gave her strips of cloth with which to wrap her feet, saying it was more fitting for a commoner than shoes. She would have to manage until her feet grew used to walking barefoot. “Also, you should carry this,” he tied up the burlap sack with string and slung it over her shoulder. “Soon we’ll get you a proper traveler’s bag, like mine. But you can carry our leftover food in this.”

Entressa felt like a grand adventurer carrying her store into the wild. “All I’m missing is a walking stick,” she smiled. Sebastian stopped and nodded. Going into the woods a few paces, he came back with a dry stick that stood as high as her shoulder. Leaning on it relieved her sore feet. They set off through the dark woods with only moonlight and crickets to keep them company.

— § —

They walked most of the night on rocky paths that Entressa had never seen. The second day, when they rested in a little cave, Sebastian lit a small fire. Entressa watched with fascination as he gathered dry grass into a big bundle, then struck a rock with his knife until the sparks set it aflame. She had seen squires start fires at the castle, but never thought much of it. “Can you teach me to do that?” she begged.

“That’s a good idea,” he said. “I can’t do all the work forever. Here,” he showed her the knife and flint, “Hold them like this and strike so the sparks go into the tinder.” She was quite clumsy, and it took her awhile to hold the pieces correctly. Also, holding the knife made her nervous because it would easily cut her. Still, Sebastian was a good teacher.

One day later, he came back to camp from a village, looking grim. “There’s talk of us,” he said, “People are saying the princess ran off with an adventurer. The crown is out looking for you.”

“Oh! Will they find us?”

He sat down, smiling slyly. “Don’t worry, I’ve been chased a few times, but I’ve never been caught. Besides, they’re too proud to hunt you like a criminal. We’ll have no trouble slipping away.” She sighed with relief. He became thoughtful again. “But I can’t hide you forever. You’ll need to stay disguised. You can’t be Entressa anymore.”

The thought surprised her. Of course, she couldn’t run into towns saying, “My name is Entressa,” or they would send her back home.

“I think I’ll call you Romni,” Sebastian said decisively.

“Romni?” she said, not quite liking the name.

“That was my mother’s name. She was beautiful, nearly as beautiful as you.”

“Oh. Where is your mother now?”

Sebastian looked sad. “She died, several years ago. It was winter, and she caught a bad cold.”

“I’m sorry.” They paused a moment, thinking about their losses. “My mother died when I was young. My father has a portrait of her, but I can barely remember what she looked like. I’ve tried so hard to remember.”

Sebastian nodded. After a moment, he hugged her and said, “Maybe we won’t miss our mothers as much while we’re together. You remember yours a little, and I remember mine a little. Together it won’t be so bad. What do you think, Romni?”

She thought a moment, smiled, and kissed him.