Emma, pt. 12

Want to start at the beginning? - Emma, pt 1

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The warm, heady smell of roasting meat filled the camp. Rilen and Emma worked together to set up the tent they would share. Rilen taught Emma the best way to pick a spot and the proper order for setting the stakes and hanging the cover. Though Rilen had never been as far as Blue Coast, she had traveled some with her brother, and learned a few things about being on the road.

When they finished they sat inside the tent and Emma told Rilen about her race with Lison. Rilen seemed nervous just hearing about it and quickly changed the topics to the journey ahead of them and what she expected Blue Coast to be like.

“Between here and there you must try riding Juniper. It is so amazing.”

“I’ll let you be the adventurous one Emma,” Rilen took off her hat as she spoke and did her hair up in a pin to keep it out of her eyes.

“You would be perfectly safe.” Emma insisted, quickly checking her own hair, which was not as much of a mess as she’d expected, still mostly in place in its braid.

“Maybe we should wait until you’ve figured out how to ride the thing before I try it. I don’t think one day of riding makes you an expert.”

“I feel like it’s what I was meant to do, like I’ve been waiting my whole life to ride.”

Emma let her hair out of its braid and it flowed over her shoulders and down her back, ripping slightly from a day in the tight braid.

“Oh yeah, is that why you can’t walk straight?”

Emma rolled her eyes, “Lison says I’ll get used to sitting on the saddle.”

“Lison says, does he?” Rilen said playfully, then both girls started laughing.

“I’m starving,” Emma said when she was done giggling, “we should go get some food.”

There was already a crowd circled around the fire, people laughing and talking, passing skins of some kind of wine around. Rilen went to sit next to her brother, who looked as serious and unamused as ever. Emma was about to follow her when Lison gestured her over.

He was sitting on the ground, leaning over, his elbow in the dirt and his head resting on his hand.

He patted the dirt in front of him, “Come sit with me.”

He pushed himself up off his arm and as Emma sat in the dirt he draped the arm over her shoulder. She felt a wave of glee spread through her chest, but her stomach also bubbled nervously.

She leaned back against him, exhaling and letting some of her weight rest against his chest. He brushed some of her hair off her shoulder with his hand, exposing her neck.

“It’s almost done cooking,” he said, “want some wine while we wait.” He handed her a leather skin and she took a drag from it. It was sweeter than dwin wine, lighter and fruitier. She took a longer drink than she’d first intended.

Parien was on the other side of the fire, talking in a loud, joking voice to one of the blonde human women. “Well I think it’s your turn to tell a story.”

“Alright, alright, I’ll tell a story.” The blonde stood, waving playfully at Parien.

She was tall, with straight hair that hung well past her shoulders, a small band holding some of it off her face. She had a long face, terminating in a pointy chin. Her dress was brown and yellow with overlarge sleeves.

“I think I’ll turn in now.” Emma almost started at the voice, she hadn’t seen Sil sitting next to them.

“Jori isn’t that bad a storyteller,” Lison said to him.

“She’s not that good a one either,” Sil reached for the skin in Emma’s hand, “Here, let me have some of that before I go.”

Lison snatched it from Emma, “The wine if for people at the feast Sil, if you want some, you’ll have to stay.” His tone was clearly playful and innocent, but Sil’s face was hard and annoyed.

Sil moved to stand and Lison jutted out a hand, grabbing him by the arm. “Come on Sil, you are the one who caught the deer, you might as well stay to enjoy it.”

The two men stared at each other for a moment, Emma couldn’t see Lison’s face, but she could see Sil’s, his expression still annoyed. Sil reached his free hand into his jacket and pulled out his large, bone-handled knife. The flickering light of the fire showed brightly on its shining blade. Emma swallowed heavily.

Sil shook his arm loose of Lison’s grasp and walked to the spit, carving out a large helping of meat, then returned to sit next to Lison. Others went after him, cutting off their own portion of meat.

Sil sliced the meat and handed a thin strip to Emma. She took it, looking into his small blue eyes, which seemed to carry no emotion but indifference. He then offered a piece to Lison, who took it and handed him the skin in return. Sil took without a word.

Emma shifted uncomfortably, not sure what exactly had just happened between the two men. Lison must have sensed her discomfort because she squeezed her shoulder supportively.

Across the fire Jori was taking requests for which story she should tell.

“Something about the Divide,” one man called.

Emma took a bite of the meat, it was warm and juicy. She’d had deer before, but it had always been formally prepared, covered in sauces and garnishes. This was another experience, it felt almost plump in her mouth.

Lison ran a rough finger against the exposed skin on her neck. A shiver ran down her back and she closed her eyes for a moment to fully enjoy the feeling.

 “No, something with a romance in it,” someone said to Jori.

“Just nothing sad, I can’t stand the sad ones,” Lison yelled, causing Emma’s eyes to snap open.

Jori looked at Lison and crumpled up her face in a girlish grin.

Sil offered Emma another slice of deer without looking at her. She took it and ate, following his gaze to Jori.

“Do you know any about dwin?” asked the young dwin boy, the one Emma had seen around the campfire, near the Velshin field.

Unlike that night, Emma now had a clear view of his face, and she saw just how young he ways, probably not even seventeen. She thought that he had to be related to one of the other dwin to be allowed to travel with them.

“Dwin aren’t really known for their campfire stories.” Jori said, pulling at a lock of her long hair, “but I know at least one story with a dwin hero, and it’s even about Blue Coast.”

“Well then you should definitively tell that one, to celebrate our latest contract.” Parien said, clasping a hand around Deem’s shoulder as he forced a smile.

Jori swept her hair over her shoulder and took a long drink of wine before starting the story.

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Continue to part 13