When A Life Is Lost (NaNoWriMo 2013)

Chapter 11

Chapter 11

The woman looked as if she was about eighteen years old, but was short – much shorter than Ania. Her hair – a bright auburn – was tied into a tight plait on the right side of her head. She was dressed in a pale green tunic and long skirt in a darker green. As she walked towards them, Ania could see a pair of brown sandals emerging from below the skirt.

When she finally reached them, she grabbed Malus and pulled him into a brief hug. When she pulled back, she smiled widely, looking towards Ania.

“Hello!” she said chirpily, “I’m Alykana, a friend of Malus.”

She held out her hand for Ania to shake, but withdrew it when Ania just stared at it. Her smile did not falter, and Ania felt a little uncomfortable.

“Uh...” she stumbled, stuttering slightly as she fought on what to say, “I’m Ania...”

Alykana blew off her introduction with a wave of her hand.

“Don’t worry Ania, Malus told me who you are.” She started, scaring Ania a little, “And who else would he come here with, after I said this place was safer than Geramina?”

Ania looked at the fragile looking cottage – which was raised on stilts – and raised an eyebrow.

Alykana gave a look of mock anger, before replying quickly.

“This place is more secure than you think,” She assured Ania, “And it’s very hard to find if you don’t know the way.”

Ania was a bit more reassured – although she still wasn’t sure about the little place. She was more concerned on the fact that Malus was talking to Alykana about her – she was a stranger to Malus. It was like telling her parents that she had fallen in love with a man three minutes after she met him – a little creepy.

Ania shook her head, moving towards the shack. Malus followed her forward for a moment, before stepping quickly over to Alykana and whispering something in her ear. She looked concerned about what he had said, but her expression turned back into a smile once she saw that Ania was watching her.

“Can you do me a favour?” she asked, continuing when Ania nodded, “I need some help packing the flowers in the cart for the market tomorrow. Would you mind starting, as I need to talk to Malus?”

Ania nodded quickly, moving towards the back of the house when Alykana told her where the cart was. It was something for her to do – she had become a little bored and tired, but did not want to go to sleep.

She walked around the other side of the house to see the cart. The cart was very simple – a wooden cart with some cushions and a bar separated the goods from the driver. A horse was grazing nearby to the cart and was not tethered, but did not seem interested in the forest behind him.

Ania picked up bunches of flowers for the huge pile on the side of the property, examining them for a while. They were wildflowers, but they were cared for so carefully that they were extremely fresh. They would have had to have been cut in the last few hours, but as Ania looked around, she could still see patches of wildflowers dotted everywhere amongst the trees. Where had Alykana gotten all these flowers?