Freya Singer was baking pumpkin cookies again, and all of Cloud Mountain knew. The little cottage overflowed with the fragrance, and it began to float out of the open windows, luring a famished group of children and adults alike into the small front yard. Even the camping soldiers down on the plateau could smell the autumn-ish scent wafting out of the village. Everyone knew that when Freya Singer was baking, it was time for a potluck. The mothers and children who lived in the village began whipping up their own concoctions, soups, loaves of bread, salads, cakes, dips, every single kind of food they could think of. Over in the Savory Den, Gort was ordering the biggest cooking pot to be taken down, and the outdoor kitchen to be prepped. Now the air was buzzing with excitement. The village green was filling with tables and chairs, paper lanterns being hung, and bonfires started. Across the field, the door to Cloud Mountain's theatre guild burst open, bringing a tidal wave of jugglers, tightrope walkers, and fire eaters, along with Freya's daughter Maya, who was eleven years old and feeling pleased with the world in general, because the part in the new play was hers, fall was coming, and her birthday was next month. She dropped her satchel in the door of her bedroom, not bothering with changing out of her theatre tunic. She nicked a cookie off one of the fresh pans, just as her mother slid in three more. Freya ignored the theft, and glanced at Maya: One of her ears was bent sideways from a breeze coming in the window, her tunic read IF YOU'RE CLOSE ENOUGH TO READ THIS, THAT'S TO CLOSE, and there was dirt on her nose. Freya nodded approvingly.

"You've been busy."

"Yup."

"You know what I'm going to ask, don't you?"

"Yup."

"So I don't need to tell you to run down to the plateau and invite all those half-starved soldiers to dinner?"

"Yup."

"Change first, alright?"

Maya groaned. "Really, Mum?"

"Just change your tunic. How about the Full Time Fire-Eater one?"

"Okay." Maya disappeared for a moment, and came back in a clean tunic.

Freya smiled. "Stopwatch starts in five, four, three, two," But Maya was already gone.

As Maya jogged across the field to the plateau, she sighted about everyone she knew. She waved a hello to June, one of Gort's apprentices and her very best friend, shot finger guns toward Nico and Carlos, twin bucks in her theatre class, and high fived Georgia, whom everyone called Pancake. The soldiers on the plateau were all heading for the Savory Den, and dinner. She spotted Lord Victor Blackstar, whom she had already been introduced to and didn't feel too shy to approach, and tapped him on the shoulder.

"Excuse me, Lord Blackstar,"

Lord Blackstar glanced up from the map he was reading and smiled at her. "What can I do for you, Miss Singer?"

"If it doesn't bother you too much, everyone is eating on the village green tonight, and The Lords and their soldiers are invited."

"That sounds lovely," Replied Lord Blackstar. "It doesn't bother me a bit. I'll spread the word."

Maya grinned. "Thank you," She waved, and disappeared, sprinting back through the caves at top speed, because it just felt like the right thing to do on such a perfect, crisp afternoon. And speaking of crisp, she thought she could smell some, the apple kind. She stopped to assist Eefaw Potter with some trays of mugs, and when she finally reached the green, she was breathless. The bonfire on one end was burning high in the air, and on the other end dozens of tables were lined up end to end, six to a row and seven rows total. The outdoor kitchen off to the side was bustling, and you didn't have to listen hard to hear Gort's shouts. The wooden stage next to the kitchen was astir with musicians tuning violins, guitars, and trumpets. Maya waved to Elizabeth, or El, as most people called her, who was humming into a large wooden cone, which amplified the voices of singers and sounds of instruments. She turned around, heading for home to see if her mother needed any help, and slammed straight into a tall, brown buck with the Halfwind crest on his tunic.

"Sorry!" She tried not to laugh, but failed. "I wasn't watching where I was going." She was glad she didn't have to worry about being rude, because the Halfwind Soldier was laughing as well.

"Don't worry about it," He replied, reaching a hand down to her. "I do it all the time."

"Really? You must be pretty clumsy."

"I'm Jo Shanks," Said the buck. "My friends and I are just looking for a place to sit."

Maya glanced past Jo Shanks, and noticed about eight other Halfwind Bucks, all of their tunics featuring a patch with a furry forearm, clutching two arrows. "I'm Maya Singer," She replied, smiling. "You can sit on the ground and nobody will judge you, but the tables are over–"

"Watch out!"

She stepped backward just in time, snagged a frisbee out of the air, and sent it flying back towards the shouter.

"You killed anybody with that yet, Jack?" She fake-glared at the thrower.

"Not yet," Called back the black buck on the other end of the field. "But I'm aiming for Daniel over there!"

"Anyway," Maya continued. "The tables are over there, try not to get hit with a frisbee."

"Thanks," Replied Jo Shanks, "Come sit with us later, if you'd like,"

"Sure," She grinned mischieviously. "But I've got to go make sure nobody gets mauled, first."

"Good luck," He grinned back. "Those deadly frisbee throwers will be the death of us all, for sure. Good to meet you!"

"May your feet find the next stone," She replied, and then dashed toward the end of the field where people were playing games of bouncer, cornhole, frisbee, ladderball, and all manner of other games. She loved it when this sort of thing happened, it was just perfect. Nobody could ruin these types of festivities, and no one wanted to. That was just how it worked. The swinging door on the outdoor kitchen opened, and the entire green let out a collective sigh of longing. The people playing games and those who hadn't been on the green already began to drift towards the tables, and Maya waved to let her mother know where she was before heading towards a table where the bucks from Halfwind were mingling with the residents of Cloud Mountain. She noticed an empty seat next to Jo Shanks, and veered that way.

"Can I sit here?" She asked as she neared, and Jo Shanks grinned at her.

"I don't know, can you sit here?"

Maya laughed, and squashed onto the bench, smiling and nodding to the people Jo had begun naming. Suddenly, steaming platters of delicious food were being placed in front of them, and everyone paused their conversation to eat. This was one of those times when the secret citadels felt much closer together, and no one cared about anger or tension or traitors. She wished it could be like this all the time, and she smiled, remembering that it had all started with a smell.