It was the young blond woman and I could think of only one reason why shed be out in the middle of the night. Perhaps I should have stayed with my tree and my thoughts. But I was curious. She had so pointedly ignored Egan all afternoon and evening. I followed her. It wasnt easy. The moons light rarely found its way through to the ground in front of my feet. But the ground was so thick with wet leaves and moss that only once did my foot snap a small twig. The woman ahead of me paused and looked around nervously. I stood very still, glad just this once for my dark hair, grey skin and drab clothes. After a moment of hesitation she continued. I saw a yellow light through the trees in front of us. She saw it, too, and moved faster. I moved even more slowly, worried she might look around again. As I crept up behind a tree I heard them talking. Their words werent clear but the tone of their voices gave me an idea of what was going on. His tone was persuasive. Hers was angry. He said something I couldnt hear. She was louder, Stop it! Stop all of it. Dont come here with staring eyes, pretty words, stolen kisses and endless promises. My husband is suspicious and it hurts him. It hurts me. If you truly loved me you would not make me suffer this way. He said something else in a low voice. Another promise. I dont believe you, she said. I have to get back. He might awaken and find me gone. Tamary, oh sweetest of flowers, stay with me, he grabbed her hand as she turned away. She should have pulled it free. I would have. But I didnt love him. I saw her start to melt as he raised her hand to his lips and whispered all those words that lovers whisper to each other. I saw a smile soften her face. I saw her weaken. Hes won, I thought. I lowered my eyes, feeling unreasonably angry, and walked quietly back to the inn and my room. My skin was grey. My blood was black, and Hugo said I was sister to a sorceress. Even so, I did not foresee poor Egans fate, which did not come by the hand of Tamarys husband. It was the Medruzz.
actually meant forgetful... about how much he irritated her. but lynet solved that problem by having andy fall asleep counting his faults.
I wrote three more chapters last night. I wanted to post them this morning but I was already so late for work. I WILL get them up tonight when I get home. I'm going back to California for another visit, leaving tomorrow. I'll be gone a week. Did you ever want to be in two places at the same time, 3000 miles apart? And thank you for asking about it, Michelle. I always worry whether I've gotten too weird for the audience.
well have a wonder time with your grandbaby... I'm getting anxious for one too, except I know they can totally not afford it right now for several more years...
I always get surprised when I hear about people going on a trip during the school year. It's like, "Wow, how can you miss that much?" :ashamed:
I left the door to my room open, lay down on the bed without taking my shoes off, and closed my eyes. I needed to get out of here, and there was no better time to leave than right now. But I continued to lie there, dreading the long walk through the woods to the farmers market in Brydia. Finally, however, I forced myself to my feet and went out to the main hall to get my cape from its peg. The cape was still damp, like my dress. It was later than I thought. One look at the windows told me the sun was already up. I could hear movement on the floor over my head and in the rooms down the hall. I headed for the front door and met Tamary coming in. Ah! I said. I should have left earlier while she and Egan were still busy in the woods. What are you doing? You were going to help me serve breakfast. She was between me and the door, arms crossed. Yes, of course. I forgot. Resigned to it, I started to untie my cape. Well, at least the two of them were not together. We were all probably safe for a little while longer. Dont, she said. Hold on to your cloak. Idona has already started breakfast, by the smell of it, and will not need help with the table yet. I have a dress for you. If youll wait in your room Ill bring it. Then she turned and disappeared through a door in the corner before I could say anything. A dress? Dry clothes! Id gladly serve a meal in exchange for dry clothes.
I dropped my sack and cape on the bed and was just beginning to wonder how I had come to deserve clean clothes when Tamary showed up. She helped me change. You have unusual skin, she said. I think Ive heard something Best to distract her from that line of thought. So you want me to wear this while I help serve the meal? Longer than that, because I want you to throw that other thing into the fire. I suppose you cant tell, but it smells really bad. She smiled a little at the expression on my face. Its mostly the odor of rotting vegetation from the woods, which youve become accustomed to by walking through it. Its because of the snowmelt, and the smell is all over your clothes. Your dress is too threadbare to salvage, so you can keep mine. My husband doesnt like it. Too much black, he says. It wasnt all black. It had some red material and white embroidery and was very tight around the middle. I would have preferred something with more breathing room but at least the skirt was short and wouldnt drag in the mud. Walking would be easier. We were ready to go help Idona with breakfast, but Tamary hesitated. I had the feeling she was working herself up toward discussing something with me. It could only be about Egan. I really did not want to talk to her about Egan, but I suppose I owed it to her. So just to get it over with, I started things off by asking her an innocent question. The innkeeper is your husband, then? Yes. Mikolai is a good man. He works hard and takes care of me. But he is so much older than you. I would have thought you had many handsome young suitors. Her eyes lowered, No suitors. Theres only Mikolai I think, I said, that there is also Egan.
Her face got very red. There is nothing Tamary, I saw you two in the woods. I took a walk last night, and there you were. What do you see in that clown? I spent one day with him and he never shuts up. And has he ever combed his hair? What a rats nest. She was chewing hard on her lip, her eyes full of sad tears. And his clothes, she said, smell as bad as yours. Worse, I think. I should go wash and change before Mikolai comes in from the vegetable garden. Dont worry about it, you look perfect. Leads me to think that Egan had enough confidence in himself, or you, to be ready with blankets spread over the ground. Am I right? She looked appalled and I assured her I had left them alone when he first kissed her hand. I said, Hes an arrogant idiot. You must know that hes wooing lonely women in every village. She shook her head angrily, No! Youve only just met him. You dont know him at all. He wouldnt do that, because he loves me. He says beautiful things to me. And he keeps coming back, hoping Ill leave with him. Hoping for a free meal and a good time, more likely. I examined my grey fingers. But we cant help who we love, can we? Theres no sense or reason to it. I straightened my shoulders and looked up at her unhappy face. What will you do if he never comes back? I told him never to come back. I always tell him that. But he always comes back anyway, every spring. If ever he doesnt, Ill die. Why dont you go with him? Her eyes got wide and frightened. He sleeps in the woods.
She was getting emotional and dramatic. I was handling the whole thing very badly, so I changed the subject. Do you have any family around here? Are they farmers? Only Mikolai. Hes a good man. Yes, yes, I believe you. How did you meet him? I was still very curious about where shed come from and I suspected that she had led a sheltered and protected life, even here. Id watched Mikolai around her. Fortunately, he was so in love with her that he hadnt seemed to notice Egans brazen behavior. Of course, the other two travelers had stared at her, too. So had I, come to think of it. He took care of me. I know. You told me. Were you orphaned? I dont know. I dont remember much before he found me in the woods. He said that someone had left me there, that I had beenhurt. I was sick for a long time. Hes a good man. He took care of me. There they were again, those same two sentences. I was wrong about her sheltered and protected life. There was something horrible and deeply buried behind those beautiful eyes and I did not want to be the one who dug it up again. Is Idona waiting for us? I said. She is probably throwing spoons in the kitchen, which is what she does when I am late to come down in the morning. You dont need to bring your sack. Yes, I do. I promised Id help you, and I will, then Im leaving. I want to go alone, without Egan. Then take your time. Hes already gone.
I actually took a lot of pictures but they're mostly different views of the same event. Not much to see, anyway. Two sim women talking about some guy. What can I say? No interesting action, just a picture of Andy's new dress (and hairdo.) They talked so much, in fact, that breakfast was over and it was lunchtime, so they are also serving the ubiquitous vegetable platter to the Inn guests. As for Egan's destiny--I'm afraid it will have to wait for my return from California. Sorry, but I wanted Andy to talk to Tamary a little bit.
Argh, Andy is ruining the story. I want to know what happened to Tamary! But I love Andy's character, anyway.
Can't get away with anything, can I? So maybe that self-absorbed Egan knows something. Maybe Andy will have to ask him, if they meet up again. What I'm wondering is, does Egan really love Tamary, or not? And I think that Tamary sounds a little strange, as in, the elevator doesn't go all the way to the top floor. Or the lights are on, but nobody's home. Oh, well, you know what I mean.
I think maybe Tamary has secrets even she doesn't know. And who knows what happened to Egan? Sounds to me like he was Medruzz chow, but maybe the Medruzz doesn't actually eat people ... I like Andy. I don't think she's ruining anything. I just think she's a stranger in a strange land and has no idea what's really going on. (Neither do I, but I'm dying to find out.)
I think I agree sbw, still I'm not even sure if shes just dreaming the story or if it's really happening...
The food served at Tamarys Inn is edible and may even provide all the necessary vitamins and protein, but its not very good. I ate it anyway. Salt would have helped. Pepper, too. Anything. Even so, I ate a plate full of boiled vegetables followed by a bowl of cheese soup, stuffing myself because I had no idea where my next meal would be, or when. Theres no ceremony here, either. After handing out the food, the servers sit down with the guests and catch up on the news. I took advantage of that and asked the traveler beside me about Brydias market. Looking for my mothers cousin, I told him. His name is Cecil. He married a girl named Donata. The guy shrugged at my question, Never met him, but all the farmers go to Brydia. Hes bound to be there. Later on, after helping her clean up, I said goodbye to Tamary and thanked her for the dress and the chance to sleep in a bed. I also thanked her for the food, including the extra bread and cheese shed given me for the road. Ill see you again, she said. Youll come back this way, I know. If I can. In the meantime, take my advice and stay out of the woods, especially at night. Keep a candle burning in the window for Egan, if you must, but dont meet him out there. Promise me that, will you? She nodded and smiled, but didnt say anything. How far to Brydia? I said, wondering if Egan had told me the truth. Follow the road and youll be there by the evening of the second day. Tonight you should be as far as Ittas place, where you can rest under a roof. Another inn? No, its just an empty shack. Itta has been dead for many years but travelers use his hut. Some claim to have seen his very angry ghost.
Ghosts? I should not have been surprised. Sorcerers and demons prowled the land, after all, so why not ghosts? And no need to stop there. How about werewolves and zombies and vampires and every other form of non-life from the netherworld? I suspected that if I asked Tamary where I could find the entrance to Hades shed be able to point the way. Chaos. Thats what this world is. And thats the name I give it. Tamary gave me a quick hug and followed me to the front door. I wished her well and started off down the road, anxious to get as far as possible before it got dark again. Bread and cheese and the mysterious knife were a comforting weight in the sack over my shoulder. I scanned the muddy road and gloomy woods carefully as I walked, thinking of Tamarys haunted eyes, and wondering if Id meet Egan again. I did. And by the middle of the day, when I found him sitting on a stump, I was tired, hungry, hot, and in a seriously bad mood. Before he could say a word I was yelling at him. What kind of a man are you to take advantage of that poor woman? Whats the matter with you? You sleep in their house, eat their food, seduce that unhappy girl and then sneak off before dawn, leaving her with your empty promises. You wretched, thieving my language got worse. I have no idea where the ugly words came from but I knew them from somewhere and I used them all. Then with one final rude gesture I turned my back on him and walked away. I heard him follow me. Aye, Andromeda, let me walk with you and tell you the story of Egan and Tamary. It is a story of love and longing that will melt your heart and soften your eye. Dont waste your breath, I snapped. My sweet Tamary is more shapely than swan by the strand, more radiant than grass after dew, more fair than the stars where they stand. Tis my grief that her ever I knew. I ignored him.
