Fiachra

  The next moment he knew, he felt a heavy weight pressing on his chest and hot breath ruffling his hair. He didn’t recall falling asleep and had a few groggy minutes trying to orient himself all while being pinned under one of Caomh’s paws.

  “I’m awake,” he croaked trying to brush Caomh away. The beast remained for a moment longer before releasing his paw and allowing him to sit up. He scratched behind Caomh’s ear, taking a few more minutes to become functional before a quick breakfast and preparing for the last leg of travel. Reaffixing the harness and pack went quickly and they set off at their usual rapid pace.

  The bright light filtering down through the leaves darkened quickly, telling him roughly how long he had slept. It was disorienting disrupting his schedule to such an extreme degree so quickly. Unwittingly falling asleep in the day to wake to daylight only to see it set soon after. He tried to mentally brush it off and held to Caomh breathing in his musky scent, scanning the scenery rushing past as well as possible. He began to notice the trees thinning and it signaled that they were close to Aerona’s field. He nudged Caomh to slow down before they breached the tree line and find another spot for a break. It was still near black in the utter stillness of night, but morning was sure to be close.

  He wasted as little time as possible and rested until the sun rose, feeling more capable to deal with the day this time. He found a nearby stream to quickly rinse before changing to fresh clothes and fixing his hair. He felt refreshed enough to be suitable company. Afterward, the two set out at a less tiring pace, arriving as planned around midmorning when Aerona was well awake.

  They emerged into open space, revealing a remarkable and expansive field of flowers and fruit trees spanning all the way to the back of Aerona’s house. Some distance away, in-between them and the house was stationed a series of hives like a small city, which Caomh avoided with a wide berth. He scanned the area searching for Aerona as they approached her house, there was no one to ask, but he knew her well enough over the years to know she would be home at this hour.

  When they reached her house he dismounted Caomh and carried his search on foot, passing through patches of color on the ground cast by single-paned stained glass windows inset in the house. There were a few buildings stationed around, all of them small and more compact in design and space than his grounds. One of the buildings had wide doors propped open with none other than Aerona inside. Her back was turned to him, long chestnut hair pulled into a high ponytail trailing down, long vests and tunics of yellows shifted with her movements as she drew a long blade down a slat of honeycomb.

  “Good morrow, Aerona.” He called to alert her to his presence as he entered the doorway. She paused her task, turning gracefully, her face brightening into a warm smile with teeth flashing.

  “Fiachra dear, it’s a pleasure to see you after a season’s absence. You look splendid this morning.”

  “It’s a pleasure to see you as always.” He smiled in return; her warmth was infectious.

  “I’m delighted you’ve come by. I’ll break here and prepare some refreshments for us.” Aerona’s hazel eyes shone brightly as she looked at him.

  “I would love nothing more. I value the time you’ve taken to host me.” He inclined his head graciously and she led him back to her house welcoming him into the parlor.

  It was something of a ritual to take tea here whenever they met and it was a perfect room to do so, bright from a colorful mosaic window with clear pieces of panes to peek at the flower field. He picked a plush sofa and made himself comfortable while she disappeared from the room to prepare tea and snacks. When she returned, she carried a gilded tray laden with simple pastries, a large ornately painted teapot, and matching cups. She set the tray on a table in front of him and sat across from him on another sofa.

  “I picked a blend of hibiscus, rose, and a few types of wildflowers at their peak this season. I haven’t tried this one yet but I have a good feeling about it. Let me know what you think.”

  “It has a pleasingly strong floral scent already; I look forward to trying it. While waiting, it’s occurred to me that I haven’t had any of your teas since autumn and it is long past time.” He sighed softly, making a mental note to visit more frequently.

  Aerona filled both cups and they waited a moment to let them cool enough to drink. Fiachra held the cup close to his lips and let the fragrance fill his senses fully before taking a sip. The taste of fruit and floral was gentler than its scent promised but it was wonderfully sweet with a tart tinge. He savored the lingering warmth and flavor before speaking and Aerona looked to be doing the same.

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  “It’s a perfect accompaniment to summer, light and sweet. It stands on its own without the need for anything to be added.”

  “Wonderful! I’m so happy you enjoy it; your praise is no small compliment.”

  They paused further conversation to drink the tea while it was still hot and test its pairing with the sweet pastries. Aerona never let either of their cups become fully empty.

  “Well, Fiachra, you’re not one for purposeless visits, am I right to say you have called upon me because you are low on honey?”

  “Quite close, I just ran out this week and I want to see what more you may have at your disposal for trading.”

  “Oh, you’ve waited longer than usual. Fortunately, I have a full order already bottled that will hold you over well and I will only ask for your usual payment. As for what else I have you are welcome to take a look and we can negotiate.”

  “I wouldn’t come here without being prepared.” He smiled and Aerona returned it with a smile of her own.

  “Once our tea is finished, we can go back outside to trade. But, enough of that for now, it’s very rare for you to seek trade beyond our usual. What news do you have? It’s been dull here since after spring.”

  He paused, obscuring part of his face with the teacup while his mind raced on how much to share. Foremost on his mind was the peculiar incident of meeting Belenus. The sudden and brash intimate touch when Belenus studied his eyes. Worst of all the confrontation before parting. His thoughts rooted in that sense of guilt and he stalled further. “What happened in the spring?”

  “Nothing terrible, but a minor illness spread through one of the villages and they required my care. It caused me to run low on my apothecary and your coming here solves any problem I might have encountered if another illness strikes.”

  “Your human villages certainly keep you busy, always running into problems, and you say your life is dull?”

  “You’re too hard on them Fiachra, they aren’t so bad, rather on the quiet side actually.”

  “If you insist,” he laughed. “I’m content letting you deal with them all. I’ll happily supply you with anything you need, but that is as close as I get.”

  “I’ll grant you that at least, you have always been good at keeping me well-stocked.” Her smile transformed into a speculative look as she eyed him shrewdly. “Which leads me back to my previous question, don’t think I haven’t noticed that you didn’t answer. Have you been misdirecting the conversation?”

  He set his cup down and spread his hands out palm up in a show of nothing to hide. “Misdirecting? No, merely making good conversation.” Aerona’s expression held and his lips quirked into a playful smile. “I’m teasing of course. I do have some news for you, I recently caught an elven alchemist lurking on my grounds in the dead of night.”

  “What? Of all the things to happen, that’s incredibly unusual.” Aerona’s shrewd expression was replaced with wide eyes as she leaned forward. “Tell me, what were they doing and what did you do?”

  “I grazed him with an arrow upon discovering him sneaking about and attempting to steal from Enaid’s garden. We worked out a deal instead, for everything he has of mine, he will repay in alchemy.”

  Aerona arched her brows inquisitively and he shrugged dismissively in response, not elaborating on how that came about. “That is a clever deal to work out or a foolish one.”

  “Let’s stay with clever.”

  “Right, clever then. I’m curious what you will get out of the deal and I would love for you to visit afterward. Keep me up to date on this one, write a letter if you must.” She stood and prodded him accusingly with a finger.

  “Alright, alright, no need to guilt trip. I’ll keep you informed. If I didn’t know better, I’d accuse you of seeking gossip.” He took hold of her hand looking up at her amused before standing.

  “You know well I don’t share secrets. I’ll hold you to your promise.” She gave a small laugh and separated to collect the tea tray. “I’m ready to see what you’ve brought with you this time if you are.”

  “That I am. I’ll set everything out in your apothecary.”

  He took the liberty of leading himself outside and found Caomh laying under a tree nearby looking up at him with observant yellow eyes and tongue lolling. He took the pack from him and carted it to the small building dedicated as an apothecary, unpacking all of the contents for Aerona, and setting every jar nicely on a free table. Salves for burns and numbing pain in one group separated from a tidy line of elixirs, each tailored to a common illness that humans tended to contract. When Aerona entered, her arms were encumbered with glass jars of amber honey. He jumped to help, taking jars as he could and placing them on the opposite side of the table.

  “Thanks-”

  Aerona’s words were drowned out by a commotion outside and Caomh’s chuffed bark. A frantic call rose over the muffled noise. “Someone! …Anyone here?”

  Aerona looked at him, as startled as he by the unfamiliar voice. They set down the remaining jars in a rush and moved simultaneously to step outside, finding a thin human with short black hair on a horse near the house. The human was gasping for breath, trying and failing to speak. They clamored off of the horse with hands on their knees and taking deep breaths. Aerona and Fiachra rushed to the figure.

  “What’s wrong?” Aerona prompted in common, coming to the stranger’s side.

  “Need help… cave… nearby… ambush.”

  “Where did you find this cave?” Aerona was visibly tense, a tight edge in her voice, but she waited for the human to explain.

  “Across a ridge… there was a hill with an entrance…” The human’s eyes were panicked, flicking between the two of them.

  “I know the location you are talking about,” Fiachra said. He watched Aerona look about for stored weaponry while he adjusted his and spared a glance to Caomh.

  “We must hurry.” The human straightened and patted their horse trying to soothe it out of prancing impatiently.

  “Fiachra,” Aerona looked to him, eyes level and meaningful, understanding flashed between them.

  “I’m readily equipped. No worries Aerona, I can handle this on my own.” He called to Caomh who was at his side in a moment forcing the horse to rear and whinny, the human struggled but kept the horse from panicking completely. He strung his bow and slung it over his shoulder, mounting the wolf without effort. “Follow if you wish.” He directed to the stranger before Caomh broke into a full run.