Chapter Three
Mairi woke in a dimly-lit, pale green room with a headache pounding at her temples and ribs sore from Roskyter's kick. A slightly disoriented face looked down on her, and as her vision cleared she saw a woman, her brown hair going slightly gray, hovering over her and pressing a cup to her lips. As she drank the warm liquid, the pounding in her temples shrank until she could barely feel it.
"Better?" the woman asked. Mairi started to nod, but only managed a slight inclination of her head before the hammering at her temples threatened to start again. The woman smiled, and turned away. "Okay, she's awake and you can talk to her now," she said, apparently to no one at all. But a shadow detached itself from the wall and suddenly and hard, scarred face looked down on her. "Your hand in my pocket, why again?" Suddenly the events of what happened before crowded into her mind and she was sure that she would hang for trying to steal from a Herald. Her mind cried her fear and she tried desperately to get away. She saw a window and pressed towards it, hoping dreadfully to get away, but he caught her again and grabbed her as she beat her hands upon him in an attempt to get away. "Don't kill me, please!" she cried, hardly realizing she was speaking. "Not again, never again!" Outside, lightening struck a tree as the storm came back, in full fury. She cried out to it to help her, strike her even if it got her way from this hard Herald. But suddenly a peaceful light filled her mind, chasing away her fears and dimly she heard a trumpeting neigh. Automatically, she turned towards the sound and looked into blue pools of complete love. A voice, like the light that had chased away the shadows and fears, filled her mind and said:I Choose you, Mairi. I am Aranya and I love you and I will never leave you.: An outpouring of love so complete filled Mairi up and she bathed and floated in the rich softness of it. Through it she barely heard, "Well. Something not expected, that was." And Mairi gave herself up to the bliss that was enfolding her. :Chosen: the voice in her mind said, tinged slightly with regret. :It's time to return.:
When Mairi came to, she was leaning against the soft white coat of her Companion. My Companion? Wow, talk about a life turned upside-down. First, I think they're going to hang me and then a Companion Chooses me. They don't hurt people with Companions, do they? :Chosen: a pure voice said. :They will not hurt you now. They are Heralds, just like you will be soon. They don't hurt people: Mairi puzzled over the voice in her head. :It is me, Aranya, your Companion. Just think what you want to tell me and I will answer..: Okay, thought Mairi. She thought hard at Aranya:Like this:Ouch, not so hard. There is no need to shout. Think normally and I will answer. I will always hear you. Now, there are some people wanting to talk to you. The one who caught you is called Herald Alberich, and the other is Healer Seba.:
"Well," said the one with the scarred face who was called Alberich. "Not expecting this, I was. Changes things, this does. Your name Mairi is, your Companion says. Says also frightened you are of me. Sorry, I am. Hurt you not, I promise." He paused and turned to the Healer. "Ready to go, is she?"
The Healer, Seba, gave Mairi a piercing look, and Mairi felt as though she was under intense scrutiny. The Healer had opened her mouth to say something when another Healer whose lack of beard made him seem young, rushed in, his green robes flying behind him. "What was that?" he gasped. "Gods, that fear, it just made my head ache." He looked around, then saw the Companion sitting at Mairi's side. "A Companion? What in Windrider's name happened here?"
Healer Seba took the other Healer aside and whispered a few sentences into his ear, while the hard Alberich gazed at Mairi and Aranya. :Who is he: She asked Aranya. :He is Devan, a MindHealer. He felt your fear. You Projected it far, before I came in:I'm sorry, I didn't mean it.: Mairi said, amazed and regretful that she was able to hurt this man with just her emotions. :Don't worry, Chosen. He is there to help people deal with mind trouble. Talk to him if need be.:
Healer Seba and Healer Devan had stopped their whispered conversation, and Healer Seba beckoned to Alberich. They left the room, leaving Mairi with the strange Devan. He looked at her gently. "So you're at the center of this, little one? I see that, thanks to your Companion you are alright now, but why were you so afraid before?"
Mairi remembered what Aranya had said and took a deep breath. "I thought they were going to hang me," she said, her soft voice barely above a whisper as Devan strained to hear. "I tried to steal Herald Alberich's belt-purse, and he caught me. I was sure he was going to beat me or throw me in gaol. I've heard stories about gaol, terrible stories. Then he called me something and seemed distracted so I tried to get away, but he grabbed me and took me with him. Then I saw his Companion, and I thought certainly they would hang me for stealing from a Herald. Then the storm started and I think I blacked out. I woke here, and he was standing near me and asked me why I had my hand in his purse. I got so scared and tried to escape, but then a light came and chased away my fears and Aranya Chose me." Mairi turned her head into Aranya's coat and started to weep great silent tears. :Hush, Chosen. It's alright. He won't turn you in or do anything to you.:
"Well," Devan said. "It's okay. What you did before has no meaning now. I'm not going to take you away, and nobody cares that you were a thief. I think you should meet Skif." Mairi looked at the Healer curiously. She felt a little more reassured after he had told her the same thing that Aranya did. "Skif is a Herald-Trainee here. I'll let him tell you his story himself." He turned and opened the door and beckoned to Alberich and Healer Seba. "She's okay. I told her that she should meet Skif. He'd be the best person to convince her that nobody's going to haul her off to gaol for sticking her hand in a couple of people's purses. But get her trained. I don't like all that Projection, and if she's starting to show this early, I would definitely do something about it. You can take her to your Dean now, and get her settled in."
Mairi had lost what the Healer had said after about the third sentence, but she got that the Herald was going to take her somewhere and it was only Aranya's presence and reassurance that kept her from fearing him. Having just now realized that she wore only her shift, she looked around to see her skirt lying across a chair and she pulled it on, not wanting to let up her touch on Aranya for even that one, brief second. Afterwards, she followed the Herald out the door, with Aranya walking beside her.