Luminescent (Inheritance Cycle and Beyond)

Chapter Seventy-One: Blinding

Murtagh and I had finally grown accustomed to life in Du Weldonvrangr and appreciated the solitude. Out here we were alone, unaffected by society, though not wholly cut off.

Osilon was a short hop by dragon, and the older she elves of the city loved to fuss over Selene. Babies were rare among the city's population despite the peacefulness that resulted from the war coming to an end.

Then again, full-blooded elves carried their children for two years before giving birth. We were closing in on a full year since the war ended, so by next winter, I expected to see a boom in the infantile community.

I was currently cutting vegetables up for tonight's dinner. A mushroom and vegetable soup paired with freshly baked elvan bread. The knife in my hand sliced through the carrots in front of me with ease as I listened to Selene babble and Fen hum as she drew.

Reaching the end of the carrot, I cut off the top and threw it into a bowl with other unwanted vegetable parts before grabbing the next vegetable. A potato. Cutting the potato in half, I continued to chop it up until the pieces were decent sized.

I scooped them into the bowl next to me before reaching for the bunch of mushrooms I had painstakingly cleaned just hours ago. Carefully, I plucked the spores from the bunch into bite-sized pieces and set them aside, they would go in the soup last.

"Fen, love, can you hand me a pot?" I asked as I started to pull out the seasoning mixes I had bought from the market. Fen popped up from her seat and retrieved a pot before trotting over to me with a beaming smile. "Thanks, love."

Fen trotted back to the kitchen table and continued to draw as I conjured water to fill the pot. Once half full, I dumped the raw vegetables into the pot and hung it over one of the many hearths the kitchen had.

With a flick of my hand, a fire lit underneath the pot, heating the contents inside. Now that I had the soup on, I could focus on the bread dough I had made earlier today. Stretching across the countertop, I grabbed the cloth-covered bowl I had placed by a window and dragged it towards me.

The smell of active yeast hit my nose as I removed the cloth and checked the rise. It was ready. Bringing the jar of flour over from the panty, I grabbed a handful of the white powder and threw it on the counter before looking up at Fen.

"Wash your hands, and you can help me," I said to her. Fen darted across the kitchen to the sink where she promptly washed her hands with the homemade soap from the market. She dried her hands before running up to my side with a big smile.

Dumping the dough from the bowl, I tore off a section and handed it to Fen to play with. As she stuck her fingers into the dough, I split the remaining dough into two portions before I began to knead one of them on the countertop.

One I had formed both mounds of dough into proper loaves, I dragged out a loaf pan and set them down on it. Beside me, Fen was concentrating on making her loaf into a perfectly round shape. It wasn't going too well.

"Need some help, Fen?" I asked her. As usual, Fen shook her head with a determined gleam in her eye.

"I will do this myself!" Fen announced loudly. Upon heard Fen's voice, Selene let out a squeal from her penned in area by the kitchen table and threw the toy she had been knawing on, out of reach.

"Oh, Selene," I sighed as her dove-grey eyes started to fill with tears.

"Don't worry Moony!" Fen called to her sister. "I am almost done."