Chapter 4

"Ah, so you are awake. Good."

I opened my eyes, to see a face hovering over mine. It was an odd face – it would have been handsome, had the nose been left unbroken. He – for it was apparent that my rescuer was a he – had brown eyes – nice, but unremarkable – shoulder length black hair, and a strong jaw. And the nose. It looked as if it had met more than one fist in its lifetime. He also had a long, purple bruise across his face.

I rolled over and vomited, ridding my body of the smoke I had inhaled. As I rolled back over, I let myself remember the previous night.

Matthew. Susanne.

Dead.

The town would be a burnt out husk now, for it was morning. No-one would ever return to Lake's Edge – my village – for the ghosts of Susanne and Matthew would be roaming the streets, looking for revenge.

But how could the fire have started? It had been a warm day, so no-one would have lit their hearths. I myself had made sure mine was out before I left to visit Matthew, and I hadn't seen smoke rising from anyone else's chimneys…

A thought sparked into my brain. Murder.

After my rescuer had gone off to find game to roast for breakfast, I pushed myself up off the ground to look around the forest we were in. It certainly wasn't the Taethin – the trees were wrong. I figured we must have been at least four hours away from Lake's Edge, because it took that long to make your way (bash your way) through it. How long it took to do that whilst an unconscious person was draped across your shoulders was anyone's guess.

I shinned my way up one of the said trees, to see if there was anything I could recognise. Once I got to the top, however, there was nothing in my line of sight that I knew. Once I looked harder, however, I could see a smudge of dark green on the horizon that must have been the Taethin Forest.

We must have been at least ten hours' ride away from my village.

I climbed back down the tree, several times almost falling. When I was almost on the ground, I fell off the trunk and landed in a heap on the ground. As I tried to get up, my scar flared and I collapsed back down. I tried several times to get up, but my scar had reopened and was pulling at me.

I lay there for who knows how long before the man came back. He set down what he had acquired – several hares, ready to be roasted – and lifted an eyebrow at my position. I stared at him in disbelief, before speaking three words.

"Please…help me…"

He smirked. Of course. He couldn't see that my dress was saturated with blood down one side, from where he was standing.

"Are you really so weak as to be incapable of standing up?"

I narrowed my eyes.

"Scar…reopened."

The reaction was instantaneous. He darted round to my side, his eyes widening as he beheld the blood that was even then seeping out of my side. "Mercy…" he breathed.

"I shall have to straighten you out before I can dress the wound. It will be painful, unless you have brandy on yourself?"

I shook my head, and he groaned in frustration. Moving closer, he looked at my position, and then moved his arms around me.

"Ok. Now," he said while putting one arm under each shoulder, "On the count of three… one, two, three!" he cried whilst lifting me from my position. The pain was excruciating, and mercifully I blacked out.

I woke to darkness. A few stars dotted the sky, and the moon was a crescent. I felt at my side, interested – but not surprised – to find the rough cotton of a bandage wrapped around my waist. I began to sit up, preparing for the jolt of pain that would come at one point or another, but none came. I grunted in surprise. So, my rescuer was a healer.

Hearing the grunt, he looked over.

"You have joined us again. What is your name, girl, and how did you acquire that wound?"

I bristled. How dare he presume me as immature as to call me girl?

"My name is Ar… Areida Tanner. And I believe that you should at least tell me your name and why you were in Lake's Edge before I tell you of what befell me!"

He chuckled.

"Well met. My name is Mikael Doringsson, apprentice to the healer Doring. I was hunting in the Taethin Forest for some herbs that grow only there, when I saw your village was on fire. I ran to see if there was anything I could do to help, but I could do nothing. I was about to take refuge with the rest of your townsfolk by the lake when I saw you about to throw yourself into the fire." He touched his bruise. "I have this to thank you for. You kick like a mule."

I looked down at the ground, conscious of my blush.

"I just wanted to make sure nobody was left in there…" I mumbled.

He grinned again. Knowing he was about to ask what I had gotten my scar from, I quickly spoke.

"So… being an apprentice, you would be what, seventeen? Eighteen?"

His grin grew wider.

"That, Areida, is called trying to put off a question." His face grew serious. "Where did you get that scar from?"

I stared into the fire he had kindled.

"I fell down some stair when I was running from something, and the banister sliced open my side."

"And you would be running from…?"

My patience wore out. "A fire, ok? A miserable, stupid, evil fire that took the lives of several of my friends. Now I would really like it if we didn't talk about it."

He ignored my request. "This wouldn't be the great fire of four years ago, would it? The one at the palace?" He seemed uneasy.

"Yes, it would be. Now stop asking me about it."

"Ok. In an answer to your previous question, I'm twenty-two. I started my training late, and I'd rather not talk about that." He said, and then busied himself with the fire, skinning and gutting the rabbits. I moved to help, as I didn't want to seem completely helpless.

"Go and lie down. You need to rest."

"I need to stretch my scar, so that when it heals up it won't be as tight."

He grinned smugly. I was becoming thoroughly sick of that smirk.

"Yes, that would be the case if I hadn't already used my limited healing magik to knit the scar tissue and muscle together. So, go lie down and rest, and let your body finish healing."

I hated being told what to do, but I went and sat down by the fire nonetheless. When the rabbit was cooked, we feasted. It was fairly good, for something that had been cooked over coals, and seasoned only with what limited herbs Mikael had on him. After eating until I was satiated, I stretched out on the ground again, too tired to care that the ground was hard.

As I drifted off to sleep, my last view was of the velvet night sky.

After the first snore issued from Areida's mouth, Mikael sat staring into the fire.

"So," he muttered, "She says she is a maid from the royal household. But from my knowledge, there was no maid with the name Areida Tanner in employment there."

A/N – WOOO! END OF TERM! 3 weeks holidays! And a 3 page chapter! (yeah, it's short, but they're getting longer at least!) Life is good.

Now, replies to my (three) reviewers.

jubli pebble – gee. we only had to do projects for Geography, English, Science, Home Ec and Chinese. and as for the chapters being brief, I'm trying to make them longer, but the muse just isn't with me. hmm. but thanks again for the encouragement!

Captain Insomnia – thanks for thanking me! it's nice to be appreciated for the little things.

lolsies – jess. well, maybe next time make it a little more NORMAL ?nah… lol! Yes, this chapter is dedicated to you.

See ya

Ellie