Birds chirped in the distance. It was another warm day, presumably a Saturday, and birds were singing to each other like broken records. Occasionally even screeching like a skidding needle.
It's been a long time since I've had this much free time.
Well, technically I've had nothing but free time since I left home, but I was always on the move. I had to get to my next destination before a deadline. Before dark, before I got hungry, before a farmer decides to look for who took a shortcut through his garden. This time I had to wait before I could move to my next destination. Makes me wonder about whether there are different levels to "free time" and which ones may be more important?
Whatever.
In boredom, I even began resorting to childhood games. I'd been poking at a line of ants behind Tremarch's house for at least 15 minutes. I had already made myself a lovely tiara out of some flexible branches from a berry bush. The local terrain had made my shoes almost as muddy as Tremarch's boots.
Geez, old man. It wouldn't take a month to get ready if you would actually leave your shed and get some work done.
A light bubbling in the air came from the river, a few meters behind the bushes. I could hear a fish jump every once in a while. There wasn't much for a breeze that day, but the shadows of the trees kept the ground cool and moist. On the back of my hands, I could see mud prints curling up from my palms. I really don't like the gritty feeling of dirt, but unless I locked myself indoors, it was getting impossible to stay clean. Springing up from my knees, my dress swayed itself straight, and I trudged through the bushes to the river.
The river wasn't really big, hardly even river size. It bent behind clumps of trees, so I couldn't see how far it went, but it was only a couple strides across, and only got about waist deep. Which was plenty deep for Tremarch, I supposed. I knelt down at its side and tucked my dress back behind my ankles. The cool water flowed like liquid steel against my hands as I scrubbed the dirt away. A cluster of small yellow berries hung down from my tiara and bounced in the corner of my left eye.
Sigh.
Staring into the water, a long face with skinny whiskers was staring back at me.
A what?
"Eeeeeeeeeeek!" A pale green streak had launched out of the water and was viciously rubbing against my face! Between several high pitched yelps I shook my head back and forth.
What is it?! What is it?! It doesn't matter! Just get off!
Cold wet slime was splattering against the sides of my face and a burning shot through my back as I threw my head as hard as I could towards the ground. A slight snap and my tiara flung out in front of me. A catfish about as long as my forearm bounced towards the river. My eyes were wide and the tips of my hair defied gravity, rolled over itself and tilting awkwardly to the left. I panted to catch my breath.
I could of sworn that was a real face!
Through a huff I whipped my blouse up and rubbed my slime coated face in it. The rough material burned over my skin as it scantly absorbed the slippery film. I forced myself up and stomped over to my limp lieing tiara. Not only did I feel violated, but I had the strangest notion that that fish had tried to mug me. Which I guess it did, since it was after the berries of my tiara. The point, I mean, is that even though it was an animal, I felt strangely offended. I scooped up the green twist of branches and dropped them in a pocket along the hip of my blouse. Stumbling a step, I went back to the house.
Tremarch was sitting on the house porch, staring solemnly into the forest. A smile floated over his face when he noticed me aproaching.
"Are you still sitting around?" I asked, hesitating at first, not wanting to sound arrogant. The ground, I noticed, in front of the house, was more chewed up than normal. Like something heavier than me and Tremarch had scuffled across it. "Was something here?"
"Aye. My client was just here. Chariotted in from town. Says that he'll be needing double the order this coming shipment."
"Oh?" There was still something rather hollow about Tremarch's expression. "Is that a bad thing?"
"Not at all, m'dear. I was just worried that my client might not take kindly to the idea of me having a guest staying with me at the cabin. Thought I was right found out when you screamed back there, but luckily the horse heard before the man. Decided it best to turn round and go home to calm 'im down. Very lucky." I wasn't aware that this was such a big deal. What could these people who hired Tremarch have against him lending his house? I guess Tremarch did say that these people specificly chose this location for him to work, but what reason would they have to isolate him?
The trees waved in the breeze.
"Sally?"
"Uh huh?" I'd gotten used to that name now. How the heck would I break to him that it's not my real one?
"If you don' mind me askin', where have you come from? Who might your parents be?"
