Aelric didn’t want to go. He didn’t want to see Feyna again so soon, and certainly not see her dance with the other boys from the Village Aldin and whomever may be visiting from the other villages, each vying for attentions around the bonfire.

But one did not skip the Harvest Festival. It wasn’t just because it was bad luck, or frowned upon, or that it would hurt his family's reputation. It just wasn't done.

He and his parents loaded the wagon with the provisions they’d donate to the festival. There was an unspoken rule—a family must donate more than what they would take from the festival. That guaranteed that there was always more than what could be depleted and that there would be something that could be offered to the temples of the gods.

His family’s donation was little more than a normal serving of dinner at some of the other families’ tables, but it was more than any of them had seen at their own tables. And Aelric knew his parents would make up for it by taking less at the festival.

His mother was still acting strangely, averting her gaze whenever he looked at her.

“I can carry that,” he said, holding his hands out for the pie she had made from the garden's apple tree.

She shook her head. “I’ve got it. Thank you.”

His father had baked two large loafs of bread using the village’s communal oven. Though their day at the market had been a failure, they could still not spare much of the fine flour, and his father had baked the bread with some of the home’s coarse flour mixed in. And that was all they could give. It was in fact, more they could give. And he knew it was nothing compared to what some of the other families would bring.

It was on the walk there that he decided he’d take nothing from the festival. Nothing more than a slice of bread and a serving of his mother's apple pie.

When they reached the village square where the Harvest Festival was always held, most of the village had already arrived.

Villagers wore their best clothing, cleaned and well-twined for the occasion. Children darted between the adults, their faces already sticky with honey and fruits. Smoke from cooking fires drifted lazily overhead, carrying the rich aroma of roasting meats and baking bread.

Everywhere Aelric looked, people seemed in high spirits. The weight of their daily struggles seemed lifted, if only for this one evening. Even the air seemed charged with excitement and anticipation of the feast to come. And to Aelric's surprise, he found a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

As his eyes scanned the crowds, he found he was searching for Feyna despite not meaning too. He did not see her, but there were likely more than four hundred people present, and he did not find her in the crowds.

Aelric and his parents set their donations on the nearest feasting table. His mouth watered at the sight of the other offerings. Platters of roasted chicken glistened. Massive wheels of cheese, some pale, others deep yellow with visible herb veins, sat next to baskets of fresh-baked, steaming bread. A massive copper pot steamed with a hearty stew, chunks of meat and root vegetables visible through the rich broth.

A honey-glazed ham sat centerpiece, its surface caramelized and crackling. Aelric guessed this was Brant's offering, likely from a wild boar that he had shot. It was surrounded by wooden bowls overflowed with late-summer vegetables.

Then there were all manner of cakes and pies and delicate pastries with crimped edges promised sweet apple and berry fillings.

Smaller clay jugs of strong village ale and cider sat ready to be distributed on another table away from the food so that the lines would be separated.

And that was all of it. A grand display, but Aelric knew greater Harvest Festivals from his youth. When the food tables were twice as many. It was not only his family that had struggled in recent years.

"Come, let's go find our seats," Aelric's mother said, likely not wanting to linger near the food for too long.

In fact Elder Keen and Elder Calm had already begun beckoning people to sit down as the ceremony was soon to start.

Aelric's father chose a row of benches near the front of the square. Aelric felt uncomfortable sitting there, knowing his family had contributed so little. He could feel the stares from the other boys, and he noticed that even his mother seemed unsettled, sitting so close to the front of the square.

But he knew what his father would say if he voiced his fears: "We have worked as hard as anyone in this village. We have the right to sit as equals among them."

At least it wasn’t at the very front, where the wealthiest families sat. And beyond them the village elders and their guests from the other villages were taking their seats at the high tables that faced the benches. Aelric just hoped Brint wouldn't spot him so near the front. He didn't want to give the boy any reasons to rib him on this day.

Soon everyone had found their seats and the square quieted with anticipation. Chief Clarity walked to the front of the elder's table and raised her hands to address the crowd. She was tall and strong, built like a farmer who worked the fields with her hands and back after the day’s arcana had been spent. Her eyes carried the weight of many difficult seasons. They were amber and sharp as a hawk’s, missing little as she surveyed her gathered audience.

Usually Aelric would be drawn to her strong presence with an eager anticipation for her words, but that moment, he had noticed the hooded figure seated between Elder Keen and Elder Calm.

"Farmers of Village Alden," Chief Clarity began, her voice rich and resonant, "we gather today not just as brothers and sisters, but as stewards of the earth that sustains us."

The hooded figure was a woman, Aelric could tell that much. And there was something about her fine, subtly shining cloak that held his eyes to her figure.

"We gather here togther to celebrate all that which is holy, nurturing, and good," Chief Clarity continued. "We praise God Heleric, for his light and his glory. We give thanks to Goddess Gaivana, for her winds and her rain."

The stranger’s hood was pulled low, casting deep shadows that completely obscured her features. Aelric wondered if she was a guest of the elder's from another village. Her attire looked nothing like a farmer's.

"We bow to Emperor Astraditya, for his benevolence and protection from those that would do us harm."

Then everyone was standing from their seats, for the harvest oath always came next. Legionnaire Kallow had not sent anyone this year to attend the village’s harvest festival and so no words of thanks were spoken for his benefit.

Aelric rose from his seat, his eyes still fixated on the cloaked feminine figure.

"And we make our oath to the heaves in return for bountiful harvest!" Chief Clarity exclaimed, spreading raising her arms to the sky. "Let us join together now, Village Aldin, in the oath of harvest."

Only then did the woman begin to rise as everyone else now stood. But rise she did, and in that motion, her hood fell back a little, and Aelric saw her.

And she saw him.

Chief Clarity closed her eyes and began the oath, and the gathered villagers joined her, the words spoken softly, their voices melding together in the ancient proclamaition that had been passed down through the village's generations. All that were present spoke the oath, all except Aelric and the hooded woman.

“For gods’ given yields,

Of our golden fields–”

He couldn't look away. He felt completely drawn to her gaze, as if a secret lied in that beautiful face of hers. Then her lips quirked up in a smile that Aelric was certain he had seen before. A smile that was somehow both playful and dangerous.

“We shall steadfastly toil,

We, who work sacred soil.”

Someone was laughing. A high-pitched wailing laugh that rang out over the voices of the oath.

“Until the Dawnmere’s light,

Frees us from mortal plight-”

The laughter grew louder, it was uncontrolled. It was familiar.

“To this land we are sworn,

We, who are the Earthborn.”

The laughter didn’t belong to anyone in the square.

It was not human.

And then, Aelric began to remember what he had lost.

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✣✣✣ END OF EPISODE TWO ✣✣✣

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