Yuila demonstrates her mind-reading skills, much to Mina’s dismay.
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That night as they made camp, Mina wished she had handled the conversation of that afternoon differently. She shook out their blankets as Yuila pushed pine needles into a bundle for their bed. Edvard had roped the horses nearby, within reach of a thicket of fernlike plants that were as tall as Yuila. He rubbed the horses' and mule's backs, each in turn, speaking lowly to them, and scratching behind their ears.
Mina put the copper pot of water over the fire he had made in a clearing of the needles. The bare ground was dark and rich where little sunlight ventured in the canopy of tall conifers. And very rooty, she had noticed, when she and Yuila had foraged for mushrooms a short distance away. Edvard had to go half an hour away to find water, and in the time she and the Crone had discovered mushrooms she knew to be safe to eat.
Mina smiled at the knowledge. Her mother had shown her the mushroom type a few times, and she was pleased to have the memory. If she could recall instances like that, she felt maybe she wouldn't forget entirely, maybe she could get home again.
She wiped the dark brown, velvety caps of the mushrooms, impressed with their size. Well, they would certainly make a good companion to the dried pork Edvard had brought from the village. She looked up as Yuila joined her with a handful of celery stalks.
"Where did you get those?"
Yuila pointed to where the horses were eating the ferns. "There's celery, too. But not any more. The mule ate all but these. He wanted these, too."
"Thanks for saving them, Yuila." Mina decided the celery would need a good washing before use, especially since one stalk looked like the girl had pulled it out of the mule's mouth.
"What's it like where you're from, Sapo?"
Mina shrugged as Yuila sat beside her, sniffing a mushroom. "Cold in the winter. Hot in the summer."
"Is that all you can remember? That's so boring." She handed the mushrooms back to the older girl. "We can't eat these. They're just corks."
"They're not corks." Mina used the knife Edvard had left her to cut up the mushrooms and add them to the pot over the fire. "We had snow in the winter. Long, humid, and hot summers." She knew she was talking about Chicago now, not that small place they had moved to. She couldn't recall the weather there. "And lots of wind."
"I don't like wind."
"You must have a lot of wind on the coast."
"Well, in the spring, but only for a few weeks. And it's just wet, not cold." Yuila frowned at the copper pot. "I can read your mind, Sapo. Just today you were thinking about when Edvard ran the horse with you, and you liked it."
Mina dropped the last of the mushrooms into the pot. "It was fun." She looked to Edvard as he made his way across the needle-padded forest. "You like to ride fast."
"But I'm not afraid of horses." The girl tilted her head, eyes dropping to the celery Mina was washing. "You are, but you weren't with him."
Mina watched Yuila steadily. "He's a good rider. He said he trained both of the horses since they were young. Why shouldn't I trust him?"
"I was just saying that I know what you were thinking, Sapo."
Mina added the celery to the pot and leaned closer to the Crone, who leaned away. "You wouldn't have to read my mind to know that I liked that ride, Yuila."
Yuila's eyes grew larger, and she nodded hastily. "I didn't actually read your mind about that, Sapo. I could just tell by . . . " The girl's attention turned to Edvard, who had knelt at the fire. "She wants to go riding with you again."
He nodded, stirring the pot with the wooden spoon. "Okay. Tomorrow."
Mina glared at the girl. "Yuila, what I said was—"
"No, not like you do every day," the girl said to him despite Mina's proximity. "She wants to run Neito again."
Edvard looked to Mina. "Sure. Once we get to an open road again."
"That's not what I said, Yuila." Mina felt her cheeks heat. "What I meant, Edvard, was that . . . Well, I wasn't as scared as I thought I would be."
"Good." He looked to Yuila, who was inching away from Mina. "We'll go for another run." He grinned, shaking his head. "Maybe Mina will get good enough to ride Sova by herself and you can have the mule."
"No!" Yuila cried.
He shrugged and stood. "I'm going to get more water for the horses."
The girls watched him leave, and then Mina turned to Yuila, who by now was several feet away. "Yuila, you cannot read my mind," she said in a very controlled tone. "You might think you can, but I can block you." She let her gaze settle on the girl for a moment. "And so can he."
Yuila nodded slowly.
Supper that night was the pork and mushroom soup and braided bread they had brought from the village. Yuila went to her meditation, straying a little farther than usual because of the clear night and spacing of the large trees. Edvard watched her go, disliking the distance, but still able to see her well enough.
He unrolled two maps on the needle strewn ground, flattening the edges as Mina looked on. Firelight made the lines on the parchment seem to dance, making the countries and borders misshapen.
"We're here," he said, pointing at one map. She nodded, and he indicated a spot on the other map. "And these are the northern countries. Here's Tarsia and Morenia. Phodehi is farther up, but it's not on this map."
Mina looked closer at the maps, sighing. "I'm sorry, Edvard. Nothing looks even vaguely familiar."
He nodded, unrolling a smaller map of papyrus. "This is a group of islands off the coast of Tarsia. Not all of them are listed, so I don't know all the names. Is Japanese an island?"
For a moment she appeared hesitant, and he couldn't understand if she couldn't recall or if she just didn't want to tell him. She looked up at the moons hanging in the skies, then to the heavens laden with stars. When she turned back to him, her voice was timid.
"Japan, that's what we call it, is an island, but it's not any of those." She indicated the map. "We moved shortly before I got lost, and I can't remember the name of our new town."
"Well, it's a start. Maybe it's a smaller island." He rolled the maps and tied them with their cords. "At least we've eliminated these."
She nodded, not meeting his eyes.
"We don't have to find it now, Mina. We'll get Yuila back home and then figure this out. You'll remember something by then." He looked to where Yuila was still sitting on her knees near a thicket meditating. "I made a mistake. We're going to be in the mountains for three or four days, not two."
"Will we be all right? I mean, we took supplies for the two."
He shook his head. "No, we didn't. We packed for five. I'm not worried about that part. I just don't know how long it will be until we meet up with a family who'll take boarders, so it may get cold at night."
"Okay." She took a deep breath. "Why are you taking Yuila home?"
He frowned, wondering why she would ask, considering he'd already answered it several times. "She can't go alone. She'll just get more lost than she already is."
She nodded, still not satisfied with the reply. "I mean, why you? Why did your father send you and not Elian?"
He shrugged, packing the maps in a bag. "I found her. Elian is receiving tribute this month."
"Will you be back in time for his birthday?"
"Yes, even after taking you home, if we find it. The birthday celebration isn't for another six weeks."
She stood and looked to where Yuila was finishing her meditation. "Won't they worry about you? You'll be gone for over a month, Edvard."
So that was it, he decided. Yuila must have said something to her. "I've hunted for nearly as long before. I'm not a child, Mina."
"I know that. I just . . . " she paused, shrugging. She watched him carefully for a long moment as realization set in. "They don't know you're gone, do they? You didn't tell anyone. Where do they think you are?"
"Hunting. It's nothing to worry about, Mina. I'm not lost. I know the way."
"I believe you. I've just never known anyone at your age to go so far from home before."
"You have. You're probably farther from home than I am." He hadn't said it harshly, but the look of despair that leased her face made him sorry he'd said it.
She looked to Yuila as the girl returned. "I guess I am."
"I just meant you're younger than me, and . . . " And what? he thought. Farther away from home? He wished Yuila had spent another five minutes in meditation. "I don't care where you're from, Mina. I'll take her home, and then us."
She smiled, nodding.
PG13, saga; teen, fantasy, fantasy world travel, teen romance, clean romance, realm, magical realism, shadow world, school/new school, high school, fiction, serial. #ReadFree with free signup. ♫♪
Thanks to P.G. Waters for the use of her story!