The engagement will be held in a fortnight. It was too late now.
She dove into the blue lake, collecting queer items that caught her fancy. When she could not hold anymore, she put them in a pouch made of grass that rested by the pebbled shore.
She sat beside the brimming pouch, browsing through the items, wary of the presence of a stranger who sat a distance from her. She threw some items back into the lake. They had lost their lustre once stolen from the freshwater. Their beauty was for the lake alone, she thought. Just like herself. She shines only for the lake. Even her short boyish hair looks beautiful under the clear water.
But back in the village, she was rough and plain, unlike her elegant mother. Her mother was 16 years older, and yet her features were more youthful and softer. They had had a beautiful bond, almost like siblings. It had been special. But not anymore. There will soon be a wedding. She wished it was her instead.
The stranger with the bow and arrows who had been quietly watching her, spoke. With a low voice, he suggested that she forget about her deepest desire. It's impossible, he said. She frowned. How could she forget Ivar? Who was he to say that? Why was she bothered by his words? The stranger cannot have known about Ivar.
She was angry now. "Impossible"?! It wasn't her fault that she was unattractive. It wasn't her fault that her mother was better suited for him.
She wanted to yell at him, but the Forest was unusually quiet. The stranger said out loud what she had been trying hard to deny herself. She might never lay hands on what she wanted the most.
But desires change.
The stranger turned back into the Forest. He seemed to be travelling northeast. That's where it was. She berated herself for hoping that the stranger was on his way to kill the Arolied and that things will go well for her.
YOU ARE READING
The Children Of Sins
FantasyArolied is notorious for its black magic. This book contains the stories of the lives of the people who were influenced by it.
