Fallen Stars : The Beginning

Chapter 5

CATHERA

I just woke from my drowsiness. The light coming from the window of my room became weaker and made me stare at it. I realized that the orange horizon was already gone. I wonder why even though I am 20 I still sleep like I'm 9. Also, I wonder why I am a lady who has already reached 20 but still has no man offering my hand and wanting to marry me. Everyone my age has a child or simply just a husband.

Look at Kingston's wife, Shayne, who once had twenty suitors before finally choosing Kingston as she withdrew from her family just to be with him. If Kingston and Tygron are friends, then so are Shayne and I.

I stood up from lying and sat on the bedside slowly waking up my sleeping body. I stood and went downstairs as soon as I felt my feet were wide awake. It is already nightfall and I haven't prepared for dinner yet.

"The nightscape shone by the moon-"-I was singing the song mom used to when making me sleep-"...The night sky shone by the stars"

Setting up the fire, boiling the water, and placing all the jars containing everything I need on the table, I am occupied making our favourite dinner, The Silverheart Hot Porridge. Being one of our mother's specialities, it will be the first dish on her menu I have been trying to cook to perfection for a while. Why am I terrible at cooking? It's been four years yet I still can't reach how she does it.

Someone knocked at the door making me stop singing, I turned around to the door in a second and looked back at the pot.

"Come in," I yelled and there it was, Tygron, home from work. "I'm home!" He shouted scanning the place, searching for me.

"What is smelling good?" He said, sniffing the aroma of the porridge wafting around the house. "Mother's dish," I replied, flattered by the compliment to my cooking.

"Why couldn't it be your dish?" He said, approaching me in the kitchen.

"It is far from being the best of it, yet," I muttered.

"Why don't we just consider it yours, then." He said, shaking his head and grinning at the food.

"So, do you mind telling me what happened out there?" I asked while mixing the porridge.

"I am set out on my first ever postal, in a search and rescue... tonight." I turned around to look at him. Tonight?

"With Kingston," he added.

I returned my gaze to the bubbling porridge I was mixing. With that word, it makes me feel comfortable because of how reliable Kingston is, his friend.

That man does not deserve the hate he gets because of his skin colour. I hate this country.

"You should have dinner before you leave." I plainly said.

"You sound bare. I am of marriageable age, why do you still think that I'd die just because of going outside in the middle of the night?" He asked jokingly. I looked at him.

Where's your wife? At Sergei's unpicked nose?

That statement made me feel very conscious of myself. Am I overstepping on his personal life with what I just said?

"All right, all right. You can have this night as much as you want." I said, shrugging off the topic.

TYGRON

Cathera had no idea that I wouldn't be with Kingston. I'll be going with Sergei, with whom she didn't have an agreement. If I tell her about Sergei, she would babble.