CHAPTER 2

—--Day 8

The next morning she was ready to leave for Uiscebhealach. She woke up, went to the privy, washed her face, got dressed, re braided her long hair and put it down her shirt. She put on all her weapons and cloak. She had all her bags packed up. She went down to have breakfast with tea and get her horse and bring him up to the inn. She said goodbye to each person. She kissed Gavin on the cheek and told him how much she appreciated his help. He blushed and wished her well. She kissed Bernie on the cheek and put her sandwiches in her saddlebag.

She mounted Nathrach and waved goodbye. She rode northeast for half a day and came to Uiscebhealach. She went to the ferry and paid passage for herself and her horse. It got a little choppy out in the middle of the river but she got to the other side safely. She mounted Nathrach and went northeast to the town of Áilleacht in the Fairy Kingdom to stay the night.

She rode into Áilleacht at dusk and unloaded her horse and carried in her belongings into the inn. She asked the thirty year old human woman behind the counter for a room. She paid five silver. She locked her stuff in her room and asked the woman innkeeper where the stables were. She boarded Nathrach and returned to her room. She took off her cloak and went to the bathroom and laid on the bed for a little while.

She got hungry and put on her gloves and cloak and went down to get a meal and a wine. She sat at the counter and said in her low practiced voice, "Please, can I get dinner and wine?"

The woman said, "Six coppers." She poured her wine and went to the back to get her a plate. Someone reached over and went to grab her money other than the woman on the other side of the counter.

She firmly grabbed the person's arm and said threateningly, "That's not for you." The person tried to yank his arm free. The woman came back and saw what was going on.

She angrily said, "Micky, ye tried to steal me money when I'm busy. Ye thievin' coward. Ye'll not be comin' inta me inn again!" Sarah flung his hand away and let the local people deal with the guy.

A big burly man said, "Ye stealin' out of her children's mouths ye vile uncarin' thief!" He grabbed him and took him outside.

The innkeeper said to Sarah, "I be appreciatin' ye stoppin' him from stealin', young fella." She gave Sarah back two coppers. "I be buyin' yer wine." Sarah nodded in acknowledgement. When she finished her meal and drank her wine.

Sarah stood up and grabbed the woman's hand and put four gold in it and closed her palm. Sarah whispered looking exclusively in her eyes so she could see she was a woman too, "Tell no one I'm a woman, please. For you and your children. Blessed be." Sarah patted her hand, let go, walked up to her room and locked the door. She covered the keyhole, got undressed, washed herself and her hair, then washed her clothes she wore afterwards. She hung the clothes up to dry and stoked the fire. She put the screen up in front of the fire and got in bed. She slept hard.

—--Day 9

The next morning she folded her clothes and put on a dark blue tunic, black leggings, black leather pants and her boots. She had her bags ready to go. The temperature dropped overnight. She put all her weapons on and her cloak and went down to get breakfast. She got a steak, eggs, toast, potato cakes and tea. She saw what other people got and it wasn't as nice as her breakfast was. She smiled and enjoyed every bite.

The innkeeper said, "You're welcome back anytime, stranger, anytime. Be safe." The lady patted her arm.

Sarah nodded and said, "You be safe too." She went and brought Nathrach up, saddled and ready to pack up. She put on her bow and arrows on her back, brought down all her belongings, turned in the key to the innkeeper and tied all her baggage down. She mounted up and headed north to Cumhrán. She was told it was a two day ride, so she'll have to camp.

Later that day, she was scouting for a good place to camp and found a stream running by a rock outcropping. She found it to be the best place and close to the woods. She set up her tent and got her horse unloaded. She foraged firewood, kindling, rocks for banking the fire and after she was all set up she got out her fishing kit and made a few dough balls. She caught a nice size trout. She beheaded it, gutted it and fileted it. In a tiny frying pan she bought, which was perfect for her, with a dash of salt, pepper and garlic on her fish was perfect with a boiled potato and part of a carrot. She took all the scraps and carcass and tossed them in the woods. She stoked the fire and washed out the pans in the stream. She boiled her loose leaf tea and put a teaspoon of honey in the cup and drank a hot cup of tea. She heard a ruckus out in the woods. It sounded like a man and a wolf fighting. She wasn't going out in the dark to find out. She would wait until morning.

—--Day 10

When morning came Sarah went into the woods and went to the bathroom. She looked around the area and saw a poor dead female black wolf laying on the ground. It had stab wounds in its ribcage. She saw a trail of blood walking away from the scene. She followed and found a man lying dead. She rolled him over and saw two crushed dead wolf pups under his body. Off a little ways she heard grunting and whimpers. She found one lone little male pup calling out for a mother that would never come for him. Sarah picked him up and took him back to camp to keep him warm and tried to wash the blood from his fur. It was too cold for the little pup to handle cold water and being wet, so she wrapped him in a towel. She tried making meat broth from some of her dried meat to feed him. It was slow and daunting of a task. She did get some broth down in him and wiped his genitals with a few leaves to get him to potty. He did. She wrapped him up and put him inside her cloak. She needed to get to the town and try feeding the pup milk somehow. She packed up the horse and mounted him. The pup was inside her cloak and the meat broth was in there too to keep the chill off of it.

When she finally got to Cumhrán, it was nightfall. She unloaded the horse and took her stuff in and paid a thirty looking, fae innkeeper for a room for three nights. She took her horse to the stable. The human blacksmith, about thirty five years old, heard the pup whimper. Sarah tried calming it.

The blacksmith said, "Whatcha got thar?"

Sarah said, "A black wolf pup. I was camping and I heard a fight in the woods between a man and a wolf. I went to look in the morning and found a female wolf stabbed to death and a blood trail off further. I followed it and there was a man who had died and landed crushing two wolf pups. It seems this one must have got clear. I tried feeding it meat broth, because I didn't have anything else to feed it. I got some down inside him, but I just kept him warm and got him to go to the privy."

The man shook his head and said, "Tha dumb bastard probably thought he coulda kill tha ma and just take tha pups ta sell, like it's easy. Black wolves be expensive fer a reason, they be super smart. Sorry ta say, thar be a market fer it. This one ain't even old enough to be away from his ma. He be like a only a week old. Ya need milk fer em'?"

Sarah nodded and the blacksmith said, "Wait right here." When he came back, he had a quart of milk and a little bottle with a leather spout on it.

He handed her a bag with both bottles in it. He asked, "How long ye in town, lass?"

She said, "For three nights."

He said, "Ask, tha innkeeper, Malik, ta put a stasis spell on tha bottle so it won't spoil. Tell em', I Darwin be askin'. It be goat's milk and a bit of unicorn milk." Sarah pulled out five gold coins and put it in his hand with 1 silver and two coppers for boarding her horse.

He smiled and said, "I see, yer a quite honest, lass."

Sarah blushed and said, "I try to always be fair. Thank you, Darwin." The blacksmith took her horse unsaddled it and hung it up on the peg on the wall in the stall. He came back and patted her shoulder. Sarah walked back to the inn.

Sarah walked up to Malik and asked, "Darwin asked me, to ask you, if you could put a stasis spell on this bottle so the milk won't spoil, please?" Sarah pulled out a gold coin.

Malik looked at her through the hood of her cloak and saw her pretty face. She pressed a gold coin in his hand and smiled softly. Malik was going to bitch and complain about Darwin wanting him to do little magical chores, but when the girl put a gold coin in his hand without a word. He was not so upset anymore because she was a nice and generous girl who just did it because she didn't want anything for free from him. It made him respect her. He didn't even know she was a woman until that moment.

Malik asked nicely, "What's it for?"

Sarah frowned and said, "A wolf pup I found starving in the woods after a man killed his mother and two other litter mates. The man must have died himself afterwards. I was camping and heard it in the woods, but waited until light to go see what happened."

Malik looked disgusted. He said, "They just kill the mother if she puts up a fight. Can I see him?" Sarah nodded and showed him. He said, "Oh my, he is much too young. Dumb bastard!" Malik cast a spell on the bottle and gave it back to Sarah.

She said, "Thank you. My name is Sar."

He smiled at her and said, "My name is Malik. Nice to meet you Sar. Come back down for a meal in a bit. I'll make sure there is a plate for you." He shook her hand. She smiled and he swore her eyes smiled too.

She said, "Thank you, Malik." He watched her leave to go to her room. He thought, 'What could cause such a beautiful girl to be traveling all alone dressed as a boy?' He had a feeling it wasn't a simple answer.

Sarah took off her cloak, started a fire and took off her weapons. She sat in front of the fire feeding the pup. He ate ravenously until he was full. She took a bit of moss from the privy bucket and rubbed gently until he was done going to the bathroom. Sarah washed the pup in warm water and wrapped him in the towel drying him in front of the fire. It got the blood out of his fur and any dirt too. When he was dry, she wrapped him up in a clean towel and put on her cloak with the hood up. She went down and ate a roasted mutton dinner with a glass of wine for six coppers. She sat listening to gossip.

Suddenly, a big burly man sat down next to her. He elbowed her trying to knock her out of her seat. She got up to leave and the man grabbed her hard in the upper arm digging his fingers in hard. She reared back and elbowed the animal off the stool backwards onto the floor. Malik came running and Sarah was holding her arm. The guy peeled himself off the floor, roaring mad and wanting to punch a hole into Sarah. Malik stood in front of Sarah.

He told the guy, "Ren, get your arse out of my inn!"

Ren screamed in a booming voice, "Not without a piece of him!" His nose was gushing blood.

Sarah had her knife ready in her hand and stood up to him. She said in her low voice, "You elbowed me almost out of my seat and grabbed my arm trying to break it! I'll carve your ass up with a knife if you try to come near me again!" The guy Ren lunged at her, squishing Malik between them. She got around Malik and shoved the beast back by kicking his feet out from under him, sending him to the floor again. Ren tried to grab her foot. Sarah did a hop and kicked him in the face with her other booted foot. Ren was out like a light.

Sarah turned to Malik on the floor and kept saying over and over caressing his face, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry."

Malik reached up and pressed his lips to Sarah's and said, "Quit saying your sorry, beautiful." The whole room gasped. Sarah took her hood down looking around the room.

She looked at Malik and said, "I guess the cat is out of the bag and there's no point putting it back in again. I hope when this is over with, you know a healing spell or two. My arm is in excruciating pain. You owe that much for blowing my cover as a man and stealing a kiss." He looked at her and she started laughing and he did too.

Ren sat up and said, "Where did that runt go?"

Sarah gave her pup to Malik and said hatefully, "Here I am, you want some more?"

Ren said confusedly, "But, you're a girl."

Sarah said, "That's right and once a month I can hit your ass even harder than any man can!" The room burst out laughing. Malik was laughing too. Ren got up and walked out of the inn in shame. Sarah turned to Malik and gave him a hand up. He grinned at her. He got his kitchen cook to watch the counter and walked Sarah up to her room.

She took off her cloak and laid it on the bed. She put the pup on the bed in her cloak, being that it's still warm.

Malik said, "Let me see your arm." Sarah took off her belt and took her arm out of the sleeve of her tunic wincing in pain. She held the tunic closer to her breasts and let Malik look at her arm. He was more interested in what else was under that tunic, but he needed to be a good samaritan right now. He did a diagnostic and looked pissed off.

He said, "That brute almost broke your upper arm. It's a deep bone bruise and so is the other tissue." He cast a spell on a crystal and pushed it into her arm. It tingled and startled Sarah and she jumped.

He caressed her face and said, "Don't be afraid. Never be afraid of me, Sar. I'll never hurt you." Her arm was feeling better, so she put it back into her tunic sleeve. He leaned forward and started kissing her again. The pup started crying. Sarah broke the kiss and filled up the bottle at the amount he eats. She reached back and kissed the pup's head and put him on his back and started feeding him rubbing his belly. She was humming while doing all of this. Malik just watched her nurturing the little wolf.

When he got full she cuddled him to her neck and went to the privy moss bucket and started rubbing the wolf's genitalia with the moss. When he was done she tossed it in the fire. She sat down on the bed next to Malik. She leaned over and kissed his cheek.

She smiled and said, "Thank you, Malik. I very much appreciate you fixing my injury. It was quite painful and it feels much better now. It's still a bit sore." She rotated her shoulder.

He said softly, "I wish you were staying longer Sar."

She smiled at him and said, "That's very nice of you to say that. We all must follow our paths, wherever they must lead us."

Malik said, "I do understand that." He kissed her cheek and said, "If you need me for anything you just let me know."

Sarah said, "Will you have breakfast with me in the morning?" He smiled.

He said, "Of course, I will." He got up and said, "I'll see you in the morning, Sar. Sleep well." She smiled as he left.

She locked the door and covered the keyhole. She made herself a bath, tossed the water, washed her hair and tossed the water. She dried her hair by the fire. She couldn't believe she was living in the Underground. It is an amazing and dangerous world. Thank goodness she has met nice people so far. She brushed out her hair and laid out her black skirt, green long sleeve peasant blouse, and black corset. She was going to be a girl for a couple days. Sarah put her two blankets from her tent on the bed. She took the pup and cuddled up with him after feeding him. She tucked him under her chin and pulled the blankets around them. She woke up and fed him twice during the night.