Opal Wings

Chapter Eight - Windthrow

With broad, severe strokes, Saki painted a very clear warning across the parchment and attached it to the topmost log with a dagger stabbed through the top to keep it pinned down.

Thieves will be given one warning-shot. If said thieves persist to steal what they did not even bother to clean themselves from the natural world, please do expect an arrow to the knee. You have been given fair warning, and your mentor won't doubt that when I drag your limping bodies back to to the mill by force.

Sincerely, an unpleasant and severely irate woman.

By the time Saki had dusted her hands off and deposited her quill and ink-pot back onto her kitchen table, approaching voices could be heard carrying on the breeze.

Without so much as a thought, Saki dashed right up the trunk of the oak tree and threw herself up atop the thatched roof of her house. Her form skimmed easily across the roof to land behind the rickety chimney, with a hand reaching up to tug her black scarf up to cover all of her face aside her eyes.

Saki quickly drew her bow and nocked an arrow as she awaited the arrival of her practice targets.

In the distance were, as Saki had expected, two teenage boys of appearingly thirteen years of age were walking up the dirt trail with a makeshift cart in tow, presumably so they could transport any lumber they found. Dressed in linen pants, moleskin boots and rough, brown tunic shirts, the two boys of blond and brown locks respectively laughed as they spotted the new stack of cleaned branches sitting right at the makeshift bridge leading onto the island inlet.

'I told you there would be more!' The blond boy cheered as his companion picked up the pace to approach the wood pile. 'Whoever left all this here clearly are too addled to realize their lumber is going missing!'

'Actually... I don't think so.' The mousy boy hedged as he tore the parchment from the lumber pile. 'They left us a warning...'

'Eh?!' The blond scoffed as he jogged over to inspect the note.

'Say, shouldn't we just go? I think they know who we are--'

'It's just an empty threat.' The blond boy dismissed as he snatched the parchment up and tore it up into pieces. 'They haven't even seen us to know it's us.'

'But, what if it's that "Omen" Frederic warned us about?' The mousy-featured boy questioned cautiously. 'Didn't he say she lives out this way and to steer clear of a house on an island?'

'Do you think I care about some bad-luck witch?'

'But isn't that her house, right there?'

'It's just some abandoned hovel. Have you ever seen anyone there after sundown?'

'Well, no. But--'

'Just help me load this, otherwise we're never going to finish before sundown!' The blond snapped as he started lifting the cleaned branch lumber and tossing it onto their makeshift cart.

Saki's brow furrowed as she pulled her bow taut and took careful aim.

However, just as she was about to let her arrow fly, a glimpse of colour showed through the trees and brought her to a halt.

Scarlet hair ablaze in a simple cropped cut to her chin, and green eyes brought Saki to immediate recognition, and she held back as she watched who she knew to be Shirayuki come down the travelled path. The glimpse of a less-welcome male walking at her side brought Saki to practically swear beneath her breath.