The mentioned waystation stood in the heart of a clearing and had nothing to envy to a city inn. Composed with elements of various kinds, its complex structure yet contrasted with the scenery, plain and simple. Named "The Court of Sylvan", it served mainly as a stopover for travelers, offering them a safe place to rest before hitting the road again. Groups of adventurers, peddlers, and bards flocked from all over Narnia, loaded with stories, memories and quests, each more unusual than the other to share over a drink.
When the place finally came into view, Alena felt a cold shiver run down her spine. It spread throughout her entire being in an almost tangible way. The sight of the bustling waystation made her dizzy: it was the first time she had spot so many people gathered in the same place, laughing and drinking. If Ordophean noticed, he had the delicacy not to show it. As they approached, he showed the young girl the open-air tavern counter. It was a huge stone that gave the illusion of adapting to the number of customers to be served, located in the center of a sinuosity of tiny streams that served as choirs when the rhapsodes started to sing. In its core shimmered the ten thousand colors of a mermaid's dreams. The secret of its origin was jealously guarded by the owner who invented fanciful stories to discourage customers from getting one too. Ordophean continued his explanation by saying that the owner was Chaline, his younger sister.
"She's also the one who took care of finding you a place to stay", he explained to Alena. "You'll be sharing your room with other Narnians in a dormitory located under the big tree of the main artery. From tomorrow on, you will assist Chaline in her service. This will also allow us to find out if there are... strange things happening when you're not paying attention", he concluded.
Alena refrained from saying that her attentiveness had no bearing on the occurrence or non-occurrence of a catastrophe. She had never been consciously accountable for any event, whatever it might be. Her gaze wandered from one spot to another, looking at travelers that came and went to the counter to partake of beverages and meals before rejoining their fellowmen. Badgers, nymphs, and satyrs mingled with trackers and peddlers. Face with this diversity, Alena realized that the world around her was so vast that she probably knew only an infinitesimal fraction of it. She, who had never ventured beyond the doors of her village, felt at that moment very tiny.
"Ah, it's you again, Ordophean !" Chaline exclaimed, waving a damp cloth in her brother's direction and interrupting Alena's train of thought. "I suppose you're the new arrival we're welcoming ? Alena, isn't it? I'm Chaline. Come with me and I'll show you where you'll be staying. As for you, (she wagged her finger under Ordophean's nose), you'll be keeping an eye on the counter as if it were a military fortification, understood? And no mischief like last time !"
"I had nothing to do with it !" the centaur protested, offended. "You shouldn't have let them drink that much in the first place ! Besides, I already told you it was a bad idea to use something as fragile as coral for decoration."
"As if you know anything about decoration", the centauress replied with a smirk. "You look too much like Dad for that."
Ordophean tried to say something in response, but Chaline quickly threw her cloth at his face and grabbed Alena's arm before he had a chance to speak. She led the girl to the back of the counter and both of them disappeared into the forest, accompanied by the angry muttering of the centaur left behind.
"Tee hee hee, still holding a grudge, I see", Chaline chuckled mischievously. "But you'll see, he really has no sense of decoration. Unless it's martial. Our father was like that too ; he passed it all on to him."
"Is your father here with you ?" Alena asked, feeling her heart tighten at the thought of her own father.
"No, he's in our former colony, in the mountains further north", Chaline replied, waving her hand vaguely to the said direction. "He's always preferred pinetrees to oaks and birches. As for me, I've always had a sense of business and adventure: opening a waystation in the forest seemed like the wisest choice to make my dreams come true", she continued with a smile. "You might not think so, but Ordophean and I are very close: when I told him about my decision to leave the colony and open this place, he immediately wanted to come with me. Our father didn't really agree on it ; it was our mother who had to intervene in our favor."
Chaline then led Alena to the foot of a tree with branches so thick that it seemed like two trees side by side. The young girl had never seen anything so imposing and majestic.
"This is where you're gonna stay, girl. I know that it might not be as well as your own place but I'm positive about you getting comfortable enough in here."
The space between the roots was large enough to slide into without too much effort; a staircase carved into the ground allowed one to descend beneath the tree where there was a structure designed to accommodate semi-permanent residents. The dwelling contained four sleeping berths, globes containing fireflies to cast light, storage spaces, and the necessities for rudimentary hygiene.
"If needed, there's also a small river with water holes a bit further in the forest but I don't recommand you to go alone. The place might be dangerous if you make...bad encounters," she explained, rubbing her head, as Alena slipped inside the dwelling to settle in. "I let you getting setteled properly, I'm heading back to the bar. Come see me as soon as you feel ready so I can answer your questions. I assume you must have many."
Alena waited until she could no longer hear the sound of Chaline's trotting before exhaling all her fatigue. She collapsed onto the nearest bed, without bothering to check if it was occupied. The beings with whom she had to cohabit seemed to be absent. Good. She needed calm to regain her composure. She had done nothing but deflect her thoughts throughout the journey, so she would not have to think on the consequences of her departure. Now that nothing could distract her no more, the thoughts threatened to assail her again. She didn't want to unpack her belongings for the moment: it would only remind her that she had been forced to leave. She scratched her neck then her head, trying to -
"Excuse-me but this is my bed, girl !" a small voice exclaimed, a bit angry. "I kindly request that you put your belongings somewhere else !"
Feeling embarrassed, Alena gazed at a small weasel who had stealthily infiltrated the dwelling and positioned itself before her, evidently discontented.
"You must be the new one, I presume ? I do not recognize you. That explains why you have taken my bed without any consideration for my privacy. Yours is over there, by the window. We animals prefer the darkness, hence why we have forsaken it."
"I'm sorry," Alena responded promptly, grabbing her bag and moving it to the designated spot. "I didn't mean to be impolite. However, may I ask why you require such a large bed when..."
She almost added "when you are so small," but thought better of it at the last moment.
"I move a lot at night," the weasel simply replied. "What's your name, little one?"
"Alena, Mr. Weasel," she said.
"Don't call me 'Mr. Weasel' !" the small creature snapped, visibly hot-headed. "My name is -"
"Oh but please, stop yelling at her ! Can't you see that this little one looks completely scared !" a new voice exclaimed, belonging to a badger. "Excuse him, he said more softly to Alena, he's always like that. Don't take it personally. I am Sylvion, and this is Tondel. Konda must be sleeping on a shelf somewhere... He's a hedgehog you see, and he doesn't particularly like the daylight."
"Actually I'm not sleeping... for once," the hedgehog said. "You're way too noisy for that. So this is her ? (he looked up at Alena) As it has been said already, I'm Konda. We're happy to welcome you among us. What brings you to the waystation, young lady ?"
Alena hesitated. Was it wise to discuss the reasons for her presence here ? When she tried to answer, a sob caught in her throat. She realized then that she had started to cry. Sylvion approached her and gently touched her forearm:
"Come now, little one, you don't have to tell us if you don't want to", he reassured her.
But it was necessary. So Alena gathered up her courage and told them everything.
Alena integrated well into the relay despite her quiet nature.
It had been several weeks now that she had been working for Chaline. The centauress often teased the young girl by telling her that her presence was remarkable by her impression of absence as she carried out her tasks with ease and discretion. Agile, Alena moved quickly, silently, and never asked customers to repeat their orders. Noise or agitation no longer seem to bother her. She blended into the decor and unsettled those who were not used to silence with the delicacy of her breath.
Unlike the villagers, no one felt afraid of her, as the creatures of the forest themselves carried their own peculiarities specific to their species. But Alena was looked upon for what she was, namely a Daughter of Eve chased out of her village for obscure reasons. Many inquired with her about the real reasons underlying her sudden and unconventional departure. Each time, Alena gave them the same simple answer: "I was chased out because I am sick." But this imprecise and embarrassing answer was never sufficient and only called for more unanswered questions.
When the wise centaurs, griffins, and dwarves decided it was time to take a closer look at the case of the young girl, they didn't know where to start. Their passive observations, carried out during Alena's service hours, had revealed nothing peculiar. The centaurs and dwarves, who shared physiological and physical similarities with her, were tasked with identifying the unusual characteristics of her body. But apart from this lack of bleeding, nothing seemed to alarm the discerning eye of the centauress healer or deviate significantly from a normally constituted dwarf organism. However, Artemissia was the only one to assert that she perceived something strange about Alena: a small flickering light inside her body, a little glow submerged amid thick shadows. One day, she questioned Alena about her birth.
"We don't know when I was born," she replied in a flat voice." It is said that I just appeared, like a gust of wind", she concluded by snapping her fingers in front of the centauress's face to illustrate her point.
"Have there been any strange occurrences since your birth ? Things that others might not have seen, perhaps? Do you ever hear voices or see things that seem invisible to others ?"
"No, I have no visions, and I receive no calls", the young girl said after some thinking time. "But it is said that nature dies around me and that time fades away but I'm not responsible for it."
"How can you be so sure ?"
"Because I asked the plants to start growing again, and they didn't", she confessed, blushing. "I asked my body to start bleeding, and it didn't either. Thus, I know that it's not my words that have sealed the earth and my body. I've practiced the rituals of my father's father, drank the potions of my mother's mother, and nothing has happened. Thus, I know that it's not my actions that have condemned my body and the earth."
"You seem to believe that you alone can influence the world, child. What do you think Aslan would say if he heard you speak ?"
"If he's the one responsible for what's happening to me", Alena replied convincingly, "he would tell me that I'm right to believe that it's not my fault... Do you think I'm wrong to believe that my mere presence can influence the world ?" she carried on with after a moment, lifting her head. "If what you say is true then why everyone thinks I'm guilty ?"
