Hard work was something that Fenix and Jewellyn were used to, but still, the harvesting of the potatoes proved to be quite the hard labor. Bailing hay was 'back breaking'. On this sunny morning late in the season the smell of dried hay and shucked corn was in the air. The sky at this time of year was as blue as it could be. They had gotten this job in the hopes of raising up some money and at least finding some temporary living quarters. It was time to branch out. On Aunt Tildy's recommendation they got the job at Master Hagstones farm in the village of Chapel Hill, quite near to the Holderlands which is not too far from Karse. It was a long hot journey via a horse drawn coach. It took about two days to get down there and it was a hot dusty journey to the middle of farm country.

The two of them were sitting on a bail of hay. Fenix yawned and stretched, trying to get rid of the stiffness and soreness from the previous day's labor before they began the new day of it. At relaxing times like this he was wont to let his mind wander. He visualized Aine now and then, something about her persisted in his thoughts. He thought of maybe trying to mindspeak with her at times but at present this skill of his needed developing. He had little control of what he said at times (so he had to be very careful with who and when to use it) and the distance seemed to be limited. He laid back and looked at the sky with a piece of straw in his mouth."I wonder how Aine is faring these days, if she got into the Collegium at Haven?"

"I bet she had a a swift, safe journey there and just walked right in and they accepted her, no problem. She is quite the lady and a good fighter too." She looked at Fenix to see if her words affected him at all. She could have used her empathic skills with him but was usually very careful when to do this. She didn't want to know what everyone was thinking all the time. She knew that would drive her insane, even if it went on for a brief period of time. She found herself wondering about Fenix's seeming ability to project his thoughts at her. She knew it was Fenix because it 'felt' like him. Also, it was almost as if she could really hear him at times, though he wasn't nearby. It startled her on more than one occasion.

"Why are you so quiet Jewellyn?" Fenix asked with a slightly annoyed look on his face.

"Oh it's nothing really," she looked at him and smiled. He was becoming more handsome everyday. He was also, thankfully, losing that odd poetic diction he had. There were times when she could just kiss him, yet he still semed so distant at times, unaware of her feelings for him. Probably because he's always thinking about Aine, she thought. When she thought about that she felt a little guilty inside...and a little jealous of Aine. She hadn't seen her a whole lot yet but saw enough to know that not only was Aine exceptionally beautiful, she was also quite the live wire. Excitement seemed to follow her wherever she went.

They both stood up realizing that they might even be a little late reporting for chores. "Oh, oh here comes Master Hagstone, I thought we could beat him to the punch," Fenix said sullenly, as if expecting the worst.

He came down the dirt path towards them, walking quite quickly. He gave off that certain aura people do when simmering emotions are brewing inside of them. You could feel the anger coming off of them in waves; it preceded them as an almost visible force. He was wearing his working clothes; he had on brown breeches with black workboots and a white shirt as yet unsoiled. He was a large man, quite muscular. He was bald on top with hair on the sides of his head. As he came near them you could see the sun reflect off the top of his shiny, waxy pate. His bushy eyebrows met at a descending angle, converging just right above the nose. He waved his hand in the air and exclaimed vociferously, "Why aren't you two already doing the chores! We have only two days to complete the harvest and the two of you were sitting there chatting!" He snapped his fingers in the air and continued shouting, "Hurry up! We have to go to work now!"

Fenix hated it when he snapped his fingers like that. He was overall a good man and treated them fairly, generously providing for their needs in exchange for their labors. At times like that though he could stir your anger up a bit...he was quite the taskmaster and was very vocal about it.

Master Hagstone turned around, and briskly walked back to the barn and the stables area.

When he was out of hearing distance Fenix held up his arm and snapped his fingers in the air and with a look of mock anger shouted at Jewellyn, "Well come on, those potatoes aren't going to pull themselves out of the ground, let's go, now!"

They both had a good laugh at that and Fenix thought of how sometimes your only defense against this crazy world was to laugh at it some, to have a sense of humor about all the craziness.