Chapter 9: A Walk In The Woods

ALIAH

Aliah's feet hurt. Her arms hurt. Her back hurt. It was not even noon and her body was giving up. If this was how the short walk to the Tangled Woods affected her, how would she ever make it over the mountains? Let alone all the way back to Bannock? Spending a six-days on the boat had definitely left her out of condition.

Amelia had stopped them briefly for a water break and snack of some kind of oat and seed cakes not that long ago, saying that should keep them going until they reached her house. Once there, she would prepare a main meal for them all. Aliah's body had protested when they started out again and had been complaining ever since. As they walked through the wood she caught occasional glimpses of the rolling hills on the other side, but they never seemed to get any closer. Neither Amelia nor Seamus were inclined to talk as they walked, which left Aliah alone with her own thoughts.

She spent most of the morning trying to remember what she could about the Isle of Hand where Seamus must come from. If she remembered her history lessons correctly the island was mostly inhabited by what were now called the old blood, who had fled there as a result of the Natari Invasion. Their King had finally asked what the price for peace was and the Natari King leading the invasion had agreed terms with him.

It was at that time the Southern Duchy was created, which included The Isle of Hand and Port Marden. As a show of good faith, the Natari Emperor had married his granddaughter to the King - now Duke - of Hand's eldest son. Since that time, the Duke of Hand and his people had reluctantly paid homage to whoever ruled Aria.

As time progressed the new nation of Aria had pulled away from the constraints of the Natari Emperor, and the Archduke had become King in his own right. The king was supported by the five dukes, who were meant to be his closest advisors. In reality only four of the five dukes attended Court, or sent their representatives. The Southern Duchy of Hand had preferred to keep to itself.

She also remembered vaguely the old blood were formed into family units and affiliations and that the family of the Hand was the ruling clan. From the conversation last night, Aliah assumed Seamus was a son of the Duke of Hand, who was still known as King by his own people. Aliah tried to assess whether or not that made a difference to how she viewed Seamus. If she were honest, it did not really change anything. She was grateful he had saved her at the markets, and sad that he had to leave his family, but she had known him such a short time it did not really matter who he was. Although it did explain his arrogance, and the name Seamus suited him a little better than Sean had.

After their short break she had tried to fathom out Amelia, which was a little harder. Although she tried to act like a traditional farmer's wife, there was something about her that was a little different. She seemed to "know" or "feel" a lot about them, and it was odd she had come prepared on her journey to meet visitors with extra plates and mugs in her pack. Aliah was sure she also knew rather more about Seamus than she was letting on.

Bored with walking and her own thoughts Aliah decided maybe it was time to find out a little more about the person who seemed so keen to help them. Tucking a stray hair behind her ear, she shuffled up so she could walk beside Amelia, careful not to leave the track as it was now closely bordered by trees and under growth, and she did not want to twist an ankle.

'Ah. Amelia,' she started. 'I was wondering how you knew to bring three sets of eating utensils with you to market?'

Amelia raised an eyebrow. 'Were you just? You are the observant one, aren't you? Perhaps I just had an inkling I may have a need of them if I went to this market.'

'Do you not go to every market?' Aliah fished for more information.

'No, I do not. I only go if I have a need for something, or if I feel I need to go there.'

'So, this market trip was for a feeling?' Aliah prompted.

Amelia laughed. 'You are a sharp one, aren't you! Yes, I had a feeling. I often get them when someone needs to see me. Mostly they know to find me in the market as it is a long way to come out to the Tangled Woods. But this time there was no one there, so I am thinking maybe the feeling was for meeting the two of you. There you go, young one, that is enough for you to be getting on with? We are here and we need to get sorted for the evening.'

Without Aliah noticing they had arrived at a paved path leading to a cottage set behind a late-flowering herb garden. The cottage was thatched roofed, as she expected, but it was much larger than she had imagined the cottage of a market gardener to be. It was two storied, and had what looked like a stable behind although she could see no horse, and a paddock beside with a couple of sheep and a cow. On the far side there was a large garden patch, with fruit trees in behind, which ran nearly to the edge of the woods. In between the garden and the house was a water well and a chopping block. It was not the average cottage of a woman who was subsisting on what she grew and sold at market.

'Quit gawking! We have plenty to do before we eat our meal. There is a barn behind the house - beside the stable there - you can put both the baskets in it. I need to go and find Molly.' Amelia put her basket down and headed behind the stables towards the woods, alternating between whistling and calling out, 'Molly!'

Seamus and Aliah looked at each other, then Seamus took the handle from her. 'You take that one.' He pointed to Amelia's basket then took off with the one they had been carrying, her sword still perched on the top. Frowning, she picked up the other basket and followed. By the time she had reached the shed, Seamus had stowed his basket and had her sword out of its sheath, trying a few moves with it.

'Excuse me,' Aliah said in her iciest voice. 'Here I was thinking you were the son of a duke, not a common thief. I will have my sword back.'

'This is no mere sword. It is a work of art and belongs to nobility.' Seamus held the sword up showing its gleaming metal with scrollwork up the shaft and the jewel in the handle. On the blade were the runes her father's blacksmith had carved into it to make the blade strong. 'No common boy sold to work on a ship could have come by a sword like this honestly.' He hefted the sword and tried a couple of moves, getting the balance of it.

Furious, Aliah looked around. There was an old broom handle beside her. She grabbed it, felt its weight, and adjusted her stance. Then with three swipes of the broom, Seamus was on the floor rubbing his arm, the sword no longer in his grasp. Aliah picked up her sword and put it back in its leather scabbard. She placed the broom where she had found it.

'Some people have swords because they deserve them, others because they are given them.'