CHAPTER 2

Ryn slowly closed the door to his sister's room and walked quietly down the hallway, pausing in the doorway to the small sitting room. He watched Dartel pace between their old, green, moth-eaten armchair and the broken rocker for a few moments, his furrowed brows flickering in the firelight. He closed his eyes, remembering Kairi as a young girl, reading a book on the hearth, her hair flickering gold in the light from the fire while father nodded off in the chair, a smile on his lips. Even then Kairi was different from the rest of them, eager to learn, devouring books by the dozens. She was the only one in the family who could read with any proficiency, the only one who dreamed of bigger things beyond the farmhouse. Ryn sighed, he had never imagined she wasn’t his own flesh and blood, but now it made a kind of sense. Where the rest of them were tanned and dark haired, Kairi was forever pale, and her hair a colour that was shared by no one in the village or nearby towns. 

How could they not have seen it? But that was a silly question. He had been thrilled to have a sister, and Dartel had been overjoyed to have a daughter. No, none of them would have even considered she wasn’t of their blood.

Ryn watched his father pace for a few moments more, thinking about the legends of the Mages. The tales portrayed them as ruthless, power-hungry and evil-minded, casting spells to ensnare unsuspecting people. Ryn couldn’t think of a single story where the Mage wasn’t the villain. He shook his head, that wasn’t Kairi.

"Father?" Ryn finally entered the room, cautiously approaching his father. Dartel shook his head and muttered to himself.

"Father, what are we going to do?" The concern in Ryn's voice seemed to break through his father’s thoughts.

"How could she have lied to me?" He passed a hand across his eyes. When he withdrew his hand, Ryn saw a faint wetness on his father's cheeks.

"I don't think she did." Ryn said softly.

"Of course she did. She let us think—," he paused. "She let me think that Kairi was my daughter."

"But she is your daughter, even if not by blood," Ryn said pointedly. Dartel turned to look at him, and after a few seconds his shoulders sagged, and he sank into the armchair, burying his face in his hands.

"I know you’re right, yet I fear— I fear what will become of her. She cannot stay here.” 

Ryn's eyes widened. "You can't just send her away! Where will she go? She’s never known any place but this her entire life!" Now Ryn began to pace in front of the dark fireplace.

"If anyone discovers she is a Mage, she will be killed! Why do you think the Mages became extinct in the first place? We can only hide her here for so long. How soon will it be before strange things begin happening?” Dartel rose and began pacing the room once more, muttering under his breath.

Ryn sat in silence for a moment, head in his hands, contemplating their situation. His father was clearly right, they would never be able to hide Kairi, but where would she go? Finally, Dartel stopped pacing the room as the moonlight traveled across the wooden floor. “I don’t see any other option at the moment. We’ll have to keep it hidden until we can find somewhere to send her.”

Ryn sighed with relief. He didn’t want to have to send his only sister into exile, yet he knew that eventually they would have no other option. Ryn stared into the dying embers of the fire as the dim moonlight faded into a clear dawn.

***

A while later, as the morning light filtered into the house, Ryn got up and walked into the kitchen, where he was surprised to find his father hurrying to pack a small, leather satchel, his lips pressed in a tight line. Ryn realised with trepidation that today was Market Day at Selemean. Kairi was expected to deliver goods from the baker and his wife to their customers, as she did every fifth day. 

Ryn began to protest to his father, when Kairi, her eyes downcast, walked, stone-faced, into the room. She wore a worn, leather tunic and leggings, which Ryn had made for her the previous spring. Her leather boots padded along the wooden floorboards with barely a sound. A small dagger hung in the leather sheath at her side, a necessity for the Market at its busiest. Her hair was bound with a green ribbon in a glistening braid at the nape of her neck.

“No!” Ryn exclaimed.

Kairi stepped closer to Ryn and spoke softly, “You know I have to, Ryn. I’ve never missed a Market Day. It’ll draw attention if I don’t go.”

“I’ll go instead, I’ll tell everyone you’re sick,” He turned his attention to Dartel “Are you really going to let her go to Market?” Ryn almost pleaded, his heart sinking as Dartel nodded solemnly.

“You can’t go, Ryn, you’re due at Farmer Grey’s this morning, and it'll create more talk in the village if she doesn’t go.”

“I’ll be careful.” Seeing the steely look of determination written in Kairi’s gold eyes, he nodded slowly, frowning. She hugged him and went over to Dartel who, after a slight hesitation, drew her into a firm bear-hug before handing her the satchel. Kairi removed her cloak from the hook near the door. Inhaling deeply, she left the house, throwing the woollen cloak over her shoulders and raising the hood, shielding her from the crisp, spring air and wandering eyes. Ryn watched with a deep sense of dread as she disappeared down the forest path, praying with all his might that she would pass unnoticed in the Selemean Market.

***

Kairi’s heart quickened as she neared Selemean. She was determined to show her father and Ryn that she could avoid suspicion and stay out of trouble. As she reached the stone bridge that separated the forest from the village, Kairi paused and took a deep breath. She made sure her hood was keeping her face in shadow before she crossed the bridge, her golden eyes furtively darting back and forth beneath her long lashes.

The smell of freshly-baked bread wafted through the crowded marketplace, drawing a sad smile from Kairi’s taut lips. She savoured the flavour, knowing that whatever happened, this would be her last Market Day. 

Every five days, on Market Day, since she was seven years old, Kairi had helped the elderly bakers deliver their goods to the villagers. For her services she was given loaves of bread to bring home to her father, and an occasional trinket on the side for her own. And here she was, ten years later, never having missed one Market Day.

Her memories carried her to the door of the bakery, which opened with a soft creak, allowing a rush of warm air to envelop her, saturated with the thick smells of baking and sugar. The bell above the door signalled her entrance and brought a bustle of activity to the small shop. Kiryona, a wrinkled but still lovely old woman wearing an apron covered in flour and butter stains hurried over and began to fuss over Kairi, who was like a granddaughter to her.

“Kairi, dear! How are you?” When she smiled the corners of her gray eyes crinkled and her dimples became pronounced, giving her a warm and amiable aura.

Kairi smiled and gave Kiryona a warm hug, careful to keep her eyes lowered. “I’m well, thank you. How are you and Stafke doing?” She glanced around the shop, looking for Kiryona’s husband.

Kiryona laughed. “Oh, you know him, he’ll be out chatting away to half the village. Anyway, come now. I’ve got a bunch of orders to fill; in particular, Tevel wants his purchases before noon.” Kairi grinned, her mood lightening; she always enjoyed visiting Tevel. He ran a rather eclectic bookshop in the middle of the village, and whenever she delivered his baked goods he would let her take a look at his books. In this way she had learned to read at a very young age, rare for anyone in Selemean, let alone a girl.

Kiryona handed Kairi the list of orders and a basket-full of bread and pastries and bustled her out the door. “Now, hurry back; I’ve got a surprise for you for your troubles.” Kiryona gave Kairi a wink, and Kairi nodded, keeping her eyes down under the pretence of looking over the list. She gave a small wave as she headed out the door, the musical tinkling of the bells following her down the cobblestone street. Looking over the list, she again noticed the tingling in her ears, worse than before. Annoyed, she rubbed them as she headed toward the first customer’s residence.

***

Kairi hurried through her deliveries, avoiding the people she usually delighted in talking to, instead only stopping to talk only in an effort to create an air of normality around her. With only Tevel left to go and the sun not yet at its high point, Kairi was filled with a great sense of relief that no one had seemed to take any notice that she avoided eye-contact with them. Her spirits lifted hopefully as she drew nearer to the bookstore; it was almost over.

Kairi breathed in the familiar, musty smell of the bookshop as the heavy, oaken door swung open. Tiny motes of dust floated over the piles of volumes that lay on the table within, glistening as they passed through the rays of light filtering through the shuttered windows. 

Long ago, when she had complained of the dark, frightened of the shadows, Tevel had explained to her that the windows must be shuttered to prevent the books from being damaged by the harsh sunlight. Determined not to let this deter her from exploring the bookshop, Kairi had quickly gotten over her fear of the dark as she sat, week after week, poring over Tevel’s vast collection, letting the books take her to places far beyond her meagre experience. 

The silence in the store hung almost as thick as the dust, and Kairi’s footsteps sounded loud on the hard, wood floor as she made her way through the rows of shelves and tables.  As she neared the back room she began to wonder at the silence. Usually Tevel was bustling about in the front, shelving books. She wondered if he hadn’t gone away on one of his frequent travels again. Sometimes he would take off with no notice, for months on end, and on these occasions Kairi was consumed with curiosity for where he went. He always returned with new books. 

She knocked softly on the door to the back room, and hearing no answer began to push the door open, when it suddenly swung inward, catching her off guard. Tevel caught her as she stumbled and helped her up. She struggled to keep her eyes averted without looking suspicious. Tevel gave her a curious look as she again rubbed her ears, the tingling starting to bother her, but said nothing.

“Tevel! I was just beginning to think you had gone away again.” Kairi placed the basked on top of a small cupboard, looking around the back room, which contained a table covered with manuscripts and scrolls, and numerous ancient-looking books. One, in particular, caught her attention. On its leather-bound cover were gold runes that glistened and seemed to come alive in the flickering light of the oil lamp that lay next to it. Tevel followed her gaze, and he raised his eyebrow.

Kairi looked up at him. “What is it? I haven’t seen that one before.” Tevel glanced at her, and she quickly looked back at the book, flushed at her carelessness. She did not see how his eyes widened as he caught the fleeting sparkle of her golden eyes. She stepped towards the table to get a closer look, as Tevel composed himself, deciding, for the moment, to say nothing. He stepped around Kairi and picked up the book, gingerly opening it, revealing elegantly flowing script.

“I got this book about a week ago. It’s written by one of the Gayrr’jiin, one of the Ancient Races. I believe by an Elf Mage.” 

Kairi’s eyes widened. “By a Mage?” Tevel nodded and placed the book back down on the table, open to a page somewhere in the middle. His face was oddly calculating as Kairi bent over it. She read a few lines before exclaiming breathlessly, “An account of the mages!” She kept reading down the page, and gasped. “I wonder what it was like, being a Mage in those days.” Kairi rubbed her ears subconsciously, excitedly gazing at the book, as if she could take in the whole book at once if she stared hard enough at it. 

Tevel was now looking at her even more strangely. His gaze intensified, and his lips moved slightly, as if he were speaking to himself. A sudden tension momentarily filled the room, like the withheld breath of the air just before a storm, and Tevel’s eyes widened. The hairs rose on the back of Kairi’s neck and her ears were filled with a strange ringing, distracting her momentarily from the book. She sat on a small stool and shook her head to try and dispel the sound, feeling slightly nausous, focusing her attention on her hands in front of her, until eventually the ringing faded away into nothing, leaving a tangible silence in the empty room.

Empty? Kairi looked around her, startled back to reality, surprised to find that Tevel had left the room. Where has he gone? She rose from the stool and stopped as out of the corner of her eye she saw her reflection in a polished piece of glass on the wall. Something was different, but she couldn’t quite place it. She shook her shoulders slightly, frowning; undoubtedly she just wasn’t used to the way she looked with gold eyes. Unnerved, she turned from the mirror, jumping as Tevel spoke from where he was watching her from the doorway.

“I’m right here, sorry to startle you,” Tevel spoke softly. He tilted his head in the direction of the front room. “Customer.”

“Oh. I didn’t hear the door open,” awkwardly, Kairi looked back at the table, where the book lay open. She longed to pore through its many pages, but the longer she stayed here, the more risk there was of Tevel noticing how her eyes practically glowed when the slightest bit of light reflected off of them.

Fortunately, Tevel saved her the trouble of having to come up with an excuse to leave. “Well, now, I’m sure that Kiryona would want you to hurry back; I believe she has something special for you on this particular market day.” Tevel’s eyes crinkled at the corners, however his smile looked concerned, and Kairi was immediately troubled. Had he noticed something? He picked up Kairi’s satchel and handed it to her, slipping a small, chestnut-sized, package inside while her attention was drawn back toward the book one last time.

Kairi gave Tevel a ginger hug, pulling away quickly. She shouldered her satchel, blinking as she stepped out into the bright street. 

***

Tevel stood on the doorstep until Kairi turned the corner at the end of the street. Quickly, he retreated into the back room of the bookshop, frowning at the book on the table that lay open to the page that Kairi had read, the same one which he had been struggling to translate for the entire morning, his notes hastily stashed underneath the table when he had heard Kairi enter the shop. He picked up the book and began to pack a small sac, and from the ponderous look on his face it was clear an intense inner struggle was taking place. He sighed and shook his head.

This changes everything.

***

Kairi hurried back to the bakery with a strange feeling, as if she was being watched or followed, or perhaps both. She suddenly felt vulnerable, as if something that had been with her, protecting her, for her entire life had been taken away. She vowed to leave for the comfort and safety of home as soon as she could.

The bell above the door of the bakery broke into her thoughts. Kiryona, hearing her, came out of the back room, looking excited. In one hand she held a loaf of bread and an apple, both carefully wrapped in a cream-coloured handkerchief. In the other she held a small pouch that caught the light and shimmered with iridescent colour. Kairi handed her the basket along with the money she had collected throughout the day, gazing with curiosity at what Kiryona held.

“Here is a little something for your father, for letting you help me, and an apple for the walk home,” Kiryona placed the bread and apple in Kairi’s satchel, “and this… This is something special. Your dear mother asked me to hold onto this until you were old enough. I thought of it this morning, and I believe now you are old enough to look after it.” Kiryona slowly opened the pouch and gingerly pulled out a pendant on a gold chain, which she held up for Kairi to see.

Kairi gasped as the teardrop-shaped stone glistened, held by a delicate gold wire. She hesitantly reached up and took it in her hands, feeling the smooth, creamy iridescent surface. It was the most perfect stone she had ever seen; there were no visible flaws marring its surface, and Kairi guessed that this was a rare jewel indeed. She wondered where her mother had gotten it. Kairi stammered out her thanks as Kiryona, grinning, helped her clasp it around her neck.

“You should ask Tevel about it,” Kiryona’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts, “‘tis called a moonstone, if I remember correctly. I hear there’s a legend attached to it, but my old memory can’t keep up nowadays. I’m sure it would be an interesting tale to hear.”

Kairi nodded, still at a loss for words. She forced herself not to burst into tears and tell the old woman everything. She hugged Kiryona and bade her goodbye, wondering if she would ever see her again.

She stepped out into the street, which was swiftly emptying, as the Market Day came to a close. She breathed a sigh of relief and walked toward the forest path, the late afternoon sun dappling the path.

Gradually Kairi again became aware of the feeling that she was being followed. She glanced from side to side, seeing no one. Tucking her new necklace, the only object of value she had, under her cloak, and keeping her hand near the hilt of her dagger, she began to walk faster, clutching her satchel and pulling her hood back up over her head.

“Oi Kairi!” A gruff voice hailed her as she turned out of a small side street. 

Horse shit! Kairi swore inwardly. She recognized that voice, and had no desire to confront its owner. The drawling voice belonged to Wybren, the butcher’s grandson of a few years older than she. 

She quickened her pace and tried to pretend she hadn’t heard, but he strode toward her and called to her loudly, “That’s not very ladylike, now is it? What would yer dear father say if he heard you swearing?” 

Kairi stopped abruptly, forgetting her feigned deafness in her surprise. She had convinced herself that the earlier responses to her thoughts were mere coincidence, or that she had spoken aloud without intending to, but this time she was positive that she had not sworn aloud at Wybren. She turned hesitantly, surprised to find him so close, keeping her eyes fixed on the ground in front of her.

“Wybren, now is not a good time, I’m in a hurry,” Kairi explained curtly.

“Aw, but, Ri, I haven’t seen you in so long,” Wybren whined, slurring his words, and Kairi cringed. She hated it when he called her ‘Ri’; her father and brother were the only ones who used that nickname.

“Wybren, I’m sorry, but I really have to go,” Kairi began to turn around but Wybren caught her by the arm, digging his pudgy fingers into the flesh of her forearm. She tried to pull away, gasping in pain as he yanked her towards him. He undid her braid with his free hand, fingering her hair as it fell in soft curls about her shoulders, and Kairi shuddered.

Wybren traced her left ear with his index finger, licking his lips. He sneered at the disgusted look on Kairi’s face, “What’s wrong, Ri? Why are you acting so—,” He stopped suddenly, staring dumbly at the side of her face. Kairi tried again to pull away, sensing his distraction, but before she could he grabbed her chin and turned her face toward him. She struggled to keep her eyes down, but by this time Wybren knew something was up; even he wasn’t that stupid.

“Well, well, well. What have we here? Care to share something with me, Elf?” Kairi, surprised, stopped struggling and forgot to hide her eyes. Fortunately Wybren was still preoccupied with looking over the rest of her that he didn’t notice.

“What did you call me?” 

Wybren raised a dark, bushy eyebrow and licked his lips, a look of lust and a certain evil satisfaction behind his expression. “I called you Elf. That is what you are, isn’t it?” Wybren sneered. “I mean, look at those ears, what else would have ears like that?”

Confused, Kairi reached up with her free hand and felt her ears, which had a distinctly different shape than she remembered. She realised what she had noticed in Tevel’s mirror earlier; her ears had, indeed, become pointed.

Kairi’s eyes grew wide as she felt the tips of her ears. What was happening to her? “An Elf?” Wybren twisted her arm, forcing her to take a step closer to him. 

“Why do you sound so surprised, Ri? It’s not like you just one day wake up an Elf.” He frowned, his face taking on an almost comical expression of confusion. “Funny I didn’t notice before now though.”

She tried to use her free hand to push him away, but he grabbed it and pinned both her arms behind her with one of his large hands. He brought his face right up to her own until she could smell his breath, hot and nauseating. She turned her face as far away as she could, but his grip on her wrists restricted her movement.

“I don’t know how you’ve hidden this for so long, Ri, but of course, now that I know you’re an Elf, you’ll have to be a good little girl, won’t you?” He lifted his free hand up and caressed her breast, squeezing hard, smiling as she winced. He brought his face down to her own, and pressed his lips over hers, forcing her mouth open with his tongue, nearly making her gag. Kairi shut her eyes tight and tried to cry out, but she couldn’t make a sound. Her eyes burned and her hands clenched in fists, so tightly that her fingernails began to dig into her palms. 

Suddenly everything exploded into gold fire, blinding her for a moment even through her closed eyelids, and she was immediately released from Wybren’s suffocating grip. She blinked as her sight slowly returned and shook her arms, trying to restore the circulation Wybren had denied to her fingers. When her vision cleared she frantically looked around, waiting for Wybren to jump out from behind her to resume his advances. Kairi gasped as she saw a foot sticking up from a pile of destroyed crates a short distance away, the whole scene scattered with dirt and the potatoes the crates had once contained. Everything seemed to shimmer, and Kairi felt slightly nauseated, wondering if she was experiencing some kind of after-effect from the strange light. 

She moved slowly towards Wybren, ready to bolt at the first sign of movement. She crept over just near enough to see that his chest was slowly moving up and down; if he wasn’t lying in that awkward position she might have thought he was sleeping. Afraid of someone seeing her there, she quickly fled, her heart still pounding from the encounter and the confusion of what had just happened.

Kairi’s thoughts raced as she hurried toward the forest path and her home. An Elf? How can I be an Elf? Kairi frowned, realising that everything she had been living was a lie. She no longer knew who she was or where she came from.

All she knew for certain was that she could no longer stay in this town. Wybren would surely tell everyone that he had seen her newly-pointed ears, and most likely her golden eyes as well. She had heard the tales of what had been done to Elves and Mages in the past, and while she knew that she was well-liked by nearly everyone in the town she knew things could never be the same. Kairi had no desire to be burned at the stake.

Kairi pulled up her hood and hurried to the forest path, knowing for certain that by tomorrow she would have to say goodbye to the home and family she had known her entire life.

***

Tevel was just about to leave his bookshop when he was suddenly overtaken by a wave of nausea. The air was filled with a tension so great that Tevel’s chest felt constricted, and he gripped the doorframe of the back room until the wave passed. He was filled with a sense of apprehension; such an energy burst could mean only one thing: a Mage quake. After Kairi’s visit he had a good idea of where it came from. What worried him was the magnitude of this energy burst. He was sensitive to magic, so he was not unused to feeling Mage quakes. Usually, however, they were small—merely a slight quivering of the air—when a small magic was used. Never before had he felt such a lurch that was as much physical as it was magical. His entire body and mind had been overcome for those few seconds, and he could be sure others—even those with no sensitivity to magic—would have felt it as well. 

His lips pressed in a tight line as he slung his satchel over his shoulder and headed towards the forest path that would take him to Kairi’s house, even more confident that she needed protection; as her Mage abilities grew, wild and unharnessed, she would begin to attract dangerous attention. And the last thing Kairi needs right now is attention. Tevel’s frown deepened and he quickened his pace.