Chapter One

She'd had a rough time of it lately. Ever since that damned boar things had been getting more and more complicated. No, scratch that, ever since her father had taken on Pollux things had been complicated. It wasn't that she didn't like Pollux well enough, but it was a bit intimidating to be told that you are going to marry this certain person you do not really know - especially when you already have a boyfriend.

Life in Solace was generally quiet, so you had to find diversions wherever you could. Devla and the rest of the troupe of local children around her age had recently abandoned the "battlegrounds" around the crabapple trees to younger, newer warriors of the perpetual Crabapple Wars – they were nearly adults now and had more interesting things to occupy their time. For example, the old game of hide-and-go-seek had of late turned into hide-and-go-kiss. The massive trees in which the townsfolk suspended their homes, a relic from days long past when goblins used to often come raiding, also contained many romantic hidden nooks where one could steal a kiss or two without being seen.

She always thought herself very mature and knowledgeable about the world. She did have responsibilities, did she not? Ever since she could remember she had been helping her father take care their home, the tannery, and herself. And she knew what loss was. Until Pollux came, it had always been just her and her father. Her mother had died only six months after Devla had been born. She had been a stranger to Solace, the daughter of a traveling tinkerer and purveyor of needful things. The family's small caravan had been the first through since winter had ended, traveling in the cold, wet rains of Spring Dawning. The rumor was that it had been love at first sight between Sefla and the young tanner Davvel. When the tinkerers had moved on towards the plains they had left behind more than just odds-and-ends; the parting between Sefla and her family had been very bitter. That was the first and last time that the tinkerer family was seen in Devla's hometown.

The couple was very much in love and spent nearly all moments with each other, to the point of virtually removing themselves from the flow of town life. It was not long before dark murmurings started between the women of Solace. Sefla was different looking: she was small and delicate, with deep black hair that fell like a sheet of satin and pale, bright blue eyes. No one knew anything about her family or heritage. The way Davvel had fallen for her was so sudden and complete that it seemed almost sinister.

Sefla had gone missing while gathering herbs one day in early Spring Blossom, just over a year since arriving in Solace. A search near the edges of the swamps turned up some tattered clothing that was similar to the dress she'd been wearing, but no body had been ever found. It was assumed that she'd been attacked by some wild animal like a wolf or bear, and all the women shook their heads and clicked their tongues saying that this was why decent women did not go wandering off by themselves.

Davvel was left alone with the baby. The loss was devastating to him. He had once been a gregarious fellow and, before Sefla, he had been known to frequently drop in at the tavern for a brew or two with the rest of the men. Even when he'd been with Sefla he would be talkative with his customers at the tannery. After her death, Davvel withdrew from the social life of Solace completely. He worked and dealt with people because he must, and no one ever saw a smile on his lips.

It's not to say that he became a cold man entirely, at least not where Devla was concerned, but he was never able to look at her without being reminded of what he'd lost. A sadness always lingered in his eyes. He was a dutiful and supportive father, but their home life was a quiet one. Although around town Devla was known for being very talkative, energetic, and outgoing, at home silence ruled.

Devla had very little of her mother to hold on to. She did not even look like her. She had her father's taller build and his fire-kissed curly hair. All she had of her mother was her blue eyes, a necklace with a small purple stone pendant, and the rumors.

If her mother had been mysterious before her death, the uncertain nature of her disappearance made her almost a legend of Solace.

"I heard goblins were scouting the area, getting ready to attack again! Sefla was their goblin princess that they disguised magic-like as a human so she could spy on us! When they found out she'd gone and got hitched to a human they killed her for treason!"

"Naw, I heard 'twas the lizard folk that got Davvel's lady. Took her back to their lair in the swamps and ate her raw!"

"You both are wrong! She isn't dead at all. She was a changeling and after ensorcelling our good Davvel in order to use him to have a child, she turned back into her original form and flew away. Keep an eye on that Devla - she looks sensible enough, but I've seen a wildness behind those eyes!"

Devla had heard all of the rumors, even the darker ones that she was not supposed to know about, but she knew better than to ask her father for the truth. Instead, when she was old enough she took to exploring the woods, hoping to find some sort of answer on her own. As she wandered she would daydream about what her mother had been like and who her family was. Did she have grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins? A sickness years back, long before Devla was born, had taken all of her father's family, but who knew how big of a family she might have on her mother's side? How grand it must have been to travel all over the world, seeing everything there was to see. Maybe someday that tinkerer caravan would come back to Solace and take her with them.

Her early exploits into the woods were not unnoticed by her father. His first reaction was to forbid her from wandering away from Solace, but Devla was as stubborn as four mules combined, and being told "no" only furthered her resolve to continue. Being unable to bear the thought of losing Devla like he'd lost her mother, Davvel sought out Forden Holt, the woodsman of Solace. If he could not keep Devla safe inside, then he would give her the tools to protect herself outside. And so it was that at the age of ten Devla became Forden's apprentice, a woman of the woods.

As the years went by, Devla gained skill and confidence with the bow. Her prey were those beasts that were dangerous to the people who lived in the outlying areas. She would stalk wild cats from the trees, raining her darts of death before they even knew they were being hunted. No one else would lose a loved one to such beasts if she could help it. As she hunted, Devla never ceased her hopeless search for clues about her mother. No signs were ever found, no bones ever uncovered; she began to wonder if some of the rumors might be true. Perhaps her mother was alive. Perhaps she was a changeling. Some days she would sit high up in a tree and stare off into the distance where the horizon melded with the sky, wondering where her mother and family were, wishing she could somehow go out into the great wide world and find them. She would imagine herself just going, climbing down out of the tree and walking away towards the unknown, but somehow her feet always took her home.

During the summer just before she turned thirteen everything at home changed. A boy about her age had come to town looking for work. He was a farmer's son from the outlying areas of Solace. She had seen him around at times, but did not really know him. The boy had left home after a dispute with his father and went to Solace to seek out a new life. He'd ended up at the tannery, asking if there was aught he could do to help out in return for some money or maybe a place to stay the night.

Davvel surveyed the boy with his grim eyes. He was tall for his age with wide shoulders and a farmhand's muscle. He noted his kind face, but troubled gaze. The two stood regarding each other for a long, quiet moment.

"What are you called, son?" Davvel asked, breaking the lingering silence following the boy's request.

"Pollux, sir," he replied quietly, eyes dropping to the ground to study the cracks in the wooden floor.

Davvel decided almost instantly that he liked him. There was a kinship between them, he felt. Their eyes both held measures of loss, hurt, and distance. He had to admit to himself that he was not getting any younger. The tannery required hard work, and it was wearing on him. He had been thinking of trying to find an apprentice, maybe of sending to his colleague in Haven to see if he had a younger son to spare. He needed someone to pass the family business on to. He had Devla, but she was a girl and running a tannery was a man's work. And Devla, well, she'd need someone when he was gone. A plan was forming in Davvel's mind, and he gave Pollux another critical, appraising look. Yes, this just might work.

"Well, Pollux, I have some stacks of leather in the back room that need to be taken over to Jack. He is in the red house, two trees over from the inn. Deliver them for me, come back here, and I'll show you around the place. It's not a glamorous job, son, and it's liable to slowly turn your own skin into leather, but if you think you are up to it you're welcome to learn." That was a long speech, and no further words were forthcoming. Davvel dismissed the boy with a nod and then went back to the task he had been working on. Relief washed over Pollux's visage and he hurried into the back to get the leather.

When Devla came home that evening with a rabbit slung over her shoulder, she was shocked to see a stranger sitting at the table drinking a mug of beer with her father in silence. "Uh, father?" she hesitated in the doorway, her face a question mark. The last time she remembered someone visiting had been a couple years back when the local healer had come by when she'd come down with an awful cold.

Davvel looked back at her as if nothing was amiss, set down his mug, and then walked over to her. Taking the rabbit from her hands, he nodded towards the boy. "This is Pollux. He'll be helping out at the tannery. Go make some room in the storage closet for him for the night. We'll get a proper bed for him tomorrow."

Pollux stared down at the tabletop shyly.

Devla blinked once, twice, bit her lip to hold back any sort of retort, and then went to sorting out a space for the new member of their household, leaving her father to clean and spit the rabbit. And that was that.

In some ways at first this major change to their home had little effect. Pollux was as quiet and reserved as her father, and Devla would often come home to them sitting in companionable silence. He was polite and always did everything that was asked of him. A couple months later, and it seemed as if Pollux had always been a part of their lives.

This initial peace wasn't to last. One evening, Davvel broke the silence of their normally quiet evening meal, "Pollux doesn't have any family he can claim anymore, and neither do we Devla. Several years from now, after he's gotten good at the business I mean to pass it on to him and retire. I'm too old to keep doing this every day and I want the tannery to stay in the family."

Devla watched her father warily. It wasn't like her father to talk like this. And what did he mean by giving Pollux the tannery and still keeping it in the family? Her face fell as she pieced it together.

"If Pollux doesn't have any objections, I want to announce an official betrothal. Obviously, the actual marriage will need to wait until you are older," Davvel finished his pronouncement in a calm and reasonable tone, with a look that clearly stated that the topic was closed.

Pollux went red all the way up to his hair and nearly choked on a swallow of beer, but did not sputter any objections.

Devla stared at her father in disbelief and then slammed down her fork and stormed out of the house. An arranged marriage! Without even asking her about it! Without even giving her a choice! She knew her father had issues when it came to love and marriage, but that did not mean she had suffer because of it!

Devla was growling under her breath as she slipped down the tree and began to stalk angrily around Solace, heading towards one of her normal haunts on the outskirts of town, trying to calm herself. The nerve of that man! She aimed a frustrated kick at a nearby trunk and neatly smashed her toes. "Ow! Fuck! Ow!" She sunk down to the ground, holding her foot and crying both in pain and anger.

"Hey there cutie, what're you doing down there on the ground?"

Devla opened her eyes and wiped at them, revealing the figure of Brannon, a ward of the innkeeper and her boyfriend. Not that her father knew that, of course.

Brannon hunkered down next to her and started poking at her shoulder. "C'mon, don't be crying. You're such a girl! Crying makes your face all puffy and red. It's not very cute, so stop, yeah?"

She swatted him away irritably. "Shut up, jerk. I happen to know that I am always cute, regardless of whether I am crying or not. And I'm not crying," she objected, "I am just really mad. My dad is such a –! He's so –! Arg! I could just kick him!" She glared at her throbbing foot.

"Well, I've got the cure for that problem," Brannon said with a sly grin as he pulled out a flask from a pocket in his jacket and gave it a little shake. He took a swig and passed it to Devla. She sniffed at it dubiously, but feeling rebellious she shrugged and took a deep gulp. Coughing at the burning in her throat, she passed it back to him.

"Oh, you're such a girl! I told you, you can't even drink without being all girly!"

"Well, if you don't like girls so much, why don't you go find some boy to kiss," Devla replied, pouting.

"Because I like kissing girls, one girl in particular," he replied grinning and kissed her.

After kissing for a little while Devla felt much better, and confessed the reason for why she was so upset. "Just like that! He didn't even ask! It's not fair! I don't like Pollux at all, not like that. Hell, I barely even know him – he never talks! He is almost quieter than dad."

"Well," pondered Brannon, sitting back on his heels to think, "it's not like you are actually married yet. It's just a betrothal; the actual thing is years down the road, who knows what could happen before then, eh? Perhaps by then you'll think of something. In the meanwhile, I don't see why we can't still be together. It's not like you have to kiss him or anything between now and then. We'll just keep this a bit more low-key and let your dad think he's won for the moment."

"Maybe you're right," Devla agreed, feeling much better.

And so Devla, Pollux, and Davvel simply did not mention the topic to each other again, although somehow word of the betrothal had managed to spread throughout Solace. Things between Devla and Pollux were awkward for a long while, but with routine things calmed down and settled into a comfortable pattern. She began to think of Pollux kind of like the brother she'd never had. It also seemed to Devla that her father was more at peace than she could ever recall, almost sort of bordering on happiness.

Something else happened that year that, although having less of a potential impact on her life, proved to be something highly irritating that would pester her for many years to follow: a teacher had moved to town. Initially, Devla had been curious about this new person. His name was Harris Hewitt from the nearby city of Haven. He gained familiarity throughout the town at first by taking care of the various accounting and lettering that people around Solace had a need for. He became fast friends with Forden, as Harris had a strong desire to explore the land, especially any remnants of the pre-Cataclysm era that were rotting in the woods.

So, yes, Devla was at first pleased by this supplement to Solace. He was someone new who had weird, interesting stories to tell. However, soon his nefarious secret purpose made itself clear. As he had gone around town being useful, balancing ledgers, writing letters, and generally ingratiating himself with the various adults, he had planted the seeds for his evil plot. One day in late autumn, Devla's father announced that she and Pollux would be spending several hours each week in "class" with many of the other local children. She had thought that this meant they would all sit around whilst Harris spun them tales from long ago about princes and queens and dragons and knights.

The true purpose was no such thing: the wicked man thought to force them to learn to read and write! Books and letters were such useless knowledge. Devla had lived nearly thirteen years without ever knowing a single letter, and she had done just fine. Why try to fix something if it was not broken? What a waste of time! She could be doing something actually useful like catching a rabbit for dinner or kissing her boyfriend.

She watched distrustfully as the other kids got excited and began to study the arts of reading and writing. Even Pollux tried very hard at first. Devla took no small measure of satisfaction that Pollux made no headway. At least she wouldn't be alone in her rejection of that silly nonsense.

Perhaps the worst part was that all of the adults would not give up on trying to force her to participate in such idiocy. If she skipped a class Harris would tattle to her father the next time they saw each other, and then her father would make his displeasure known. If she snuck out into the woods to avoid class she had to be very careful not to come across Forden, who would not only chastise her himself, but also tell her Father and Harris. It didn't help that winter was soon upon them, which made hiding out in the woods increasingly less pleasant. Often, just to not incur the wrath of all the adults she knew, she would give in and attend class. However, attending and learning were not the same things, much to Harris' despair. Devla did not even pretend to try. She spent most of this forced imprisonment thumbing through books looking for pictures, distracting the other students, and making her displeasure and disdain clearly felt.