I quietly opened the door to our room, and slipped inside.  The sun was just going down, and the last few rays of the sun were filtering into the room.  Jeff’s quiet snores wafted through the air.  I looked over at my best friend, still sleeping.  He looked so damn handsome, I ached.  I mean, he wasn’t handsome in a classical sense – but he was handsome to me, and his new HUD improved body was ripped.  Yay for stat picks!  I thought.  Damn.  You could bounce a quarter off his abs.  Jeff was stripped down to his boxers – and that’s all.

 

                Maybe you should stop perving on your sleeping friend, Rachel, I thought to myself, and shook my head.  I’d better stop.  He’d probably be grossed out I was staring at him.  I don’t want to drive him further away than I already have.

 

                “Jeff.”  I said, gently, giving him a shake.  “Jeff.  It’s time to get up for dinner.”

 

                “Huh?  Oh, hi Rachel.” He said, turning to face me.  His face had an odd look on it – like he was staring… Shit, it’s probably those disgusting whiskers on my face! 

 

                “Sorry,” I said, turning away.  “I know I’m gross with facial hair right now.”

 

                “No!  Rachel!  I wasn’t thinking that at all!” 

 

                “No?”

 

                He stood up, and wrapped me in a hug from behind.  “No.” Jeff whispered in my ear.  I couldn’t help it – I melted into his arms.  “I was thinking how pretty you looked in your new clothes.  You really look girlish in them.”

 

                I couldn’t help but smile.  “You’re the best, Jeff.”

 

                “So you keep telling me.”  He said, releasing the hug.  I turned to face him. “Thanks for waking me.  I’m starting to get hungry.”

 

                “Do you feel better after your nap?”

 

                “Yeah, I do.  What’s with the jars?”

 

                “Oh these?  One is a hair remover – sort of like an alchemical depilatory, so I can get rid of my unwanted facial and body hair.  The other is a tonic that should help my hair grow into some decent length without having to wait a year and a half.  Alyssa says she uses both of these, and claims they work great, so I thought I’d give them a try.”

 

                “Oh cool!  I was looking into trans issues on the internet after you came out to me, and I saw that getting rid of body hair and facial hair back on Earth can cost tens of thousands of dollars.  I assume this stuff is considerably cheaper?”

 

                I laughed.  “Yeah.  Six gold knights – about 600 dollars in local money.”

 

                “Dressed as a girl for less than one day, and you already find the sale of the century.”  Jeff joked, and I smirked too.

 

                “Doofus.”

 

                “Yeah, but I’m your doofus.”  He laughed.

 

                “Did you want to come down for dinner?”  I asked.

 

                “Yeah, sure.  I’ll be down in five.  I should get dressed first.”

 

                “Probably a good idea, Jeff.  I’ll see you downstairs.”  I headed downstairs, trying to remember the feel of his arms around me, and the feel of his breath on my neck.  I knew I had it bad, and I didn’t know what to do. 

 

 

*              *              *

 

 

                As Rachel left the room, I breathed a sigh of relief.  She’s really self conscious – and I totally get why.  She’s dressing as a girl for the first time, and she’s scared.  I hope she knows I wasn’t being weird about the stubble on her face.

                In fact, it was almost the opposite.  When I was laying on the bed, looking up into her face, it was illuminated by the setting sun.  With interplay of light and shadows and the sleep in my eyes, I saw Rachel as a girl for the first time.  She was gorgeous.  Maybe it was her girlish features, mixed with the clothes, or the light, or me being half awake, but in that moment I saw her as a girl, and it looked amazing.

 

                Which made it hard, when her first thought was she thinking she looked gross.  Her self esteem obviously needed a lot of help – and no wonder.  I did feel a bit strange – in a way I didn’t know how to explain - when she leaned into me during our hug, but it seemed to help her feel better.  It was far more intimate to me than other hugs I’d given… and to be honest I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.  Not bad – maybe confused was a better word.  Confused but positive.

 

                I got dressed in my clothes once more, and headed downstairs.  The common room would probably be fairly busy this time of night.  When I got downstairs, I wasn’t disappointed – the tavern was hopping, with all the drinkers and diners.  I had to crane my neck to see the table where Rachel was seated.  It wasn’t one of the booths tonight – they must have all been taken.  Instead she was at a circular table, sized for four or five, and was sitting alone. 

 

Sitting nearby her was another obvious stranger – a dangerous looking man in chain shirt armor, with a steel cap, and long leather trousers with steel plates on them for protection.  He also had bracers on his arms, and a shield and a spear rested next to his table.  I thought I saw a hint of a weapon on his belt, but I couldn’t identify it.  He looked old – maybe in his late forties or early fifties, with a lot of salt in his salt and pepper whiskers on his face, and his face was lined with creases from weather and age.  He looked like an old veteran.  His features were handsome for his age – my mom would have called him a silver fox – and he looked like age hadn’t robbed him of his strength or stamina yet.

 

For some strange reason, I felt a connection with him… and as I recognized that connection, he twitched – and looked up, directly at me.  He nodded, and took a pull from his flagon.  Was that an invitation?  I wasn’t sure.  I headed over. 

 

“Hello Ser…”

 

“Sir Fionn Ballantine, I think is the name you seek.”  He said, his voice rugged and deep.  “And who might you be?  You have a familiar look about you… perhaps too familiar.”

 

“I am Jeffrey Fowler, Sir Ballantine.  I couldn’t help but notice you nodded to me.”

 

“Aye.  Something tells me I’m here to help you, lad.  Tell me, have you talked to any angels lately?”

 

He must be the tutor the gods said they were sending!  “Yes… just this afternoon, actually.”

 

“Well that’s rather funny, because I got the feeling I needed to be in this town about a week ago.  Huh.  Funny one.”

 

“Are you supposed to be the tutor they said would come?”

 

“Probably.  You won’t be the first whelp I’ve trained, and you likely won’t be the last.”  He took another pull of his drink.  “Care to sit?”

 

Whelp?  Jerk!  “May I invite my friend?  She’s sitting nearby.”

 

“Sure.  The more the merrier.”  He chose that moment to belch loudly, and smirked.  “That is, if she doesn’t mind my manners.  I’m afraid I have no fucks left to give today, and I intend to drink far more than I should.”

 

I wondered what kind of Vigilant the Twins had sent me – he looked like a hardened veteran – but he was acting a bit like a drunkard!

 

“I’ll be right back, Sir Ballantine.”

 

“Call me Fionn, please.  This politeness is making me cringe.”

 

“Alright, Fionn, I’ll be right back.”  I went over to Rachel, who was watching us. 

 

“Who’s the guy in the armor?”  She asked.   

 

“I think he might be my Vigilant teacher.”

 

“Jesus…”

 

“Yeah, I know.  I hope he’s just having a bad day.  You want to join us?”

 

“Sure.  It beats sitting alone.”  She got up and came over with me, and sat next to me, across the table from Fionn.

 

“Welcome, Serra.”  Fionn greeted.  “It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.  I may be poor company tonight for I intend to get drunk, if possible.”

 

“Why?  Have you received bad news?  Oh – I’m Rachel Wilson, by the way.”

 

“Yes, Serra Wilson, I have.  One of my oldest friends died today, and I wasn’t there to help him.  He died in the dark, alone – and I saw his last moments.  He was my first student.  His name was Sir Brian Beckett, and he was a Vigilant of the third circle.  Another year and he might have advanced.  He was the best damn student with a sword I’d ever had – and he could ride like the wind.  He was amazing with his horse, the best rider I’d ever seen.  And now he’s dead, like all the others.  Sometimes, it sucks getting old.  It sucks the life out of you, watching all your friends die, while you continue on, alone.  Sometimes I wonder if death would be better.”

 

Rachel obviously didn’t know what to say… His forthright candor obviously surprised her, and myself too.  “I’m sorry for your loss, Fionn.  Sir Beckett must have been like a son to you.  Do you mind if I share a flagon with you to his memory?” I asked.

 

“Not at all, Geoffrey.   I think Brian would appreciate that.”  He waved over a server for more ale for the table, and took a pull of his drink.  “Tell me, boy.  Do you know how to fight?  How green are you?”

 

“I’ve been in a few fights before – I killed a giant spider.”

 

“Well, that’s not nothing, I’ll admit.  Good.  In case I don’t remember, you and I will be training for as long as it takes to whip you into shape.  You’re mine from nine bells, until supper time – no questions.  Is that understood?”

 

“Yes, Sir!”

 

“Good.  Now let’s raise a flagon to Sir Brian Beckett, my first student, my friend, and maybe in another lifetime, my chosen son, who died alone and in the dark.”  He raised his flagon, and drained it…  And I could see the pain and loss, and the despair, on his face. 

 

If all I could do was share in some camaraderie to ease his grief, I would do it.  I raised my mug and drank to the honor and memory of his friend – his chosen son.  “To Sir Beckett!”  I realized then I was probably going to have an epic hangover the next morning…

 

 

 

*              *              *

 

 

                I watched the boys drink for about an hour – I don’t think Jeff even had any dinner – but with all the liquid grain the two of them were imbibing, I figured he’d be fine.  I excused myself to get some dinner and soon felt it was time to go use the lotions and tonics I had bought earlier.  I made my excuses, and headed upstairs.

 

                One of the girls had heated some water in a tub for me, and I was eagerly waiting to see if it worked.  I stepped into the bathroom (and locked the door behind me) – which instead of being a place to go to the toilet, was a place to take baths – and stripped off my nice new clothes, until I was naked.  I sat on the edge of the tub, and opened the depilatory crème, and rubbed it everywhere I could on my face and body where I had unwanted hair.  It did sting, a little, and it reeked of chemicals – but fifteen minutes later, my hair had dissolved into a greasy slurry I was eager to wash off.

 

                Instead of washing it off immediately, I applied the hair tonic to my head, and sealed the partially used jars, then climbed into the hot water in the tub.  It was really hot, and I hissed as my skin felt the heat, but soon the heat was melting away my stress and soothing my muscles, and it was awesome.  I washed off all the goopy grunge with a bar of scented soap from home, and the bathwater soon became polluted with a grey froth mixed with scented suds that used to be my body hair… ick.

 

                A few minutes later, my scalp’s tingling changed to burning, and I dunked myself, holding my breath and scrubbing my scalp to get the tonic rinsed off.  A few moments later, I came up for air.  I felt a lot cleaner – and my skin was ridiculously sensitive now the hair was all gone… it felt sexy as hell, and I felt a little aroused.

 

                I washed my hair as best I could – the hand soap was very mild, so I lathered up and washed my hair and rinsed.  Probably not the best thing for my hair, but once shouldn’t kill me… I could find out what Alyssa uses tomorrow evening.

 

                After my bath, I felt a lot better.  I stepped out of the tub, wiping a little of the grey sudsy froth off my torso and legs, and dried off with a towel.  Even though it was summer, there was a bit of a chill in the air – with me being wet and naked, I wasn’t surprised I felt every errant breeze.  I got dressed, and once I was presentable, I headed out, and back to my room.  Jeff was probably going to be all evening.

 

                Normally I wouldn’t ditch him, but I really didn’t want to get drunk tonight, and Sir Ballantine told us what he planned.  I guess Jeff joined him to bond as his student or something.  I smirked.  I’d better go downstairs around bed time to see if he’s passed out drunk on the floor.  If he hasn’t, I might be able to help him up to bed.

 

                Inside our room, I stowed my bathing gear, and lit the oil lamp on our table.  I got comfortable, and settled down to read a story… I had brought two paperback novels to finish reading.  I guess they were the last one’s I’d ever read?  Any books from this point on would be hand written or made with a crude printing press, if they even had one yet.

 

                Eventually I realized I was getting tired, and put my book away.  Time to go see if Jeffrey was still conscious or not.  I went downstairs – and the taproom was much emptier.  Sir Fionn was still drinking – but Jeffrey’s head was lying on the table, and he wasn’t moving…  Dorkus.  Your head is going to kill you, tomorrow, I thought.

 

                I moved across the room, and put my hand on Jeffrey’s shoulder.  “Excuse me, Fionn, but I think Jeffrey has had more than enough to drink.  Do you mind if I try to get him upstairs and pour him into his bed?”

 

                “Not at all, Serra.  I’d offer to help, but I’m afraid if I try to stand, I’ll fall down.  He’s got a good heart, that lad – but he can’t hold his ale.  Take him, with my blessing.”

 

                “Thank you.”  I said, then tried shaking Jeff awake.  He did come too, a bit – and giggled. 

 

                “Hey Rachel.”

 

                “Hey sleepyhead.  Do you think you can walk enough to get upstairs?”

 

                “I don’t know.  I think I’m drunk.”

 

                “No kidding?  Well, lean on me doofus.  I’ll try and steady you, okay.”

 

                Jeffrey tried to stand, and slowly wobbled to his feet, and reached for my arm to support him. 

 

“I’ve got you.”  I grunted, as I crawled under his shoulder to support his weight better.  “C’mon, idiot.”

 

“I’m coming, I’m coming.”  Jeff took a few steps, then released a gassy burp that reeked of beer, right in my ear.  “Sorry.”

 

“You will be.”  I muttered, but my drunken friend didn’t hear me.

 

Together we walked across the room, and up the stairs, his strong arm around my shoulder for support.  I wish I could say it was romantic, but it was decidedly UN-romantic, and by the time we got to the room, I was more than a little fed up with Jeff.  I sat him down on the bed, and pulled off his boots.

 

“Are you un… undressing me, Rachel?”

 

“No Dumbass.  If I were, you’d know – and you wouldn’t be drunk!”  I sighed.  This isn’t how I imagined our evening would be going.  I helped him swivel over onto the bed and pulled a sheet over him – he was already unconscious and sleeping by the time I finished tucking him in.  God save me from drunks!  I sighed.  “Goodnight, Jeff… you doofus.”  I said aloud.  My only consolation was how much his head would hurt come morning. 

 

I stripped out of my new clothes, still marveling at how smooth and sensual my hairless skin felt, and slipped on my first nightgown.  It felt amazing, and sexy, and I felt… feminine.  I couldn’t help but feel happy, and headed off to bed, blowing out the lamp and laying my head on the soft feather pillow. 

 

Sleep was a while in coming… The memory of Jeff’s arms around me, and his warm breath on my neck was too intense.  If only it was for real, and… and he loved me too!  I sighed, and drifted off to sleep.

 

 

*              *              *

 

               

                I groaned as I woke, to feel someone shaking me gently, and then winced as they – loudly – called out “Good Morning!” in a far too chipper and upbeat voice for the hell I found myself in.

 

                “Rachel, what the hell?”  I groaned.  “Please, have mercy!”

 

                “Okay, Jeff… I’ll be nice – but you need to get up and get ready cause I don’t think that knight downstairs is going to take it easy on you today, the way he was talking.”  She stopped gently shaking me, and sat on her bed. 

 

I groaned again and opened my eyes. Rachel was wearing her pretty beaded and stitched nightgown.  It looked nice.  “You look nice in that, Rachel.  Do you like it?”

 

“Yeah, I do.  It’s surprisingly comfortable too.”

 

“Cool.  How did I get up here?  Did you help me up?”

 

“Yeah, and got belched on a few times for my trouble, doofus.  I pulled your boots off and tucked you in, or you’d have probably spent the night on the floor.”

 

“Thanks, Rachel.  You’re the best.”

 

“Me?  Hey!  Since when am I the best?  That’s MY line, by the way!”

 

“Since last night.  Are you saying turnabout isn’t fair play?”  I stood up, and rushed to the chamber pot to do my business.

 

“I am. I’m putting my foot down!”  Rachel made a little stomp, and I laughed.  “It’s not funny!”

 

“You are such a girl, Rachel.”  I laughed again.  “I can’t wait to see you on Harvest day… I’ll bet you’ll be smiling a mile wide for a whole month.”

 

Rachel gawked with her mouth open for a moment, and smiled.  “Thanks, Jeff.  I bet I will too.”

 

“Hey, no problem.  We’re besties – we have to take care of each other… Who else will?”

 

“I guess you’re right.” She said, smiling a little.

 

“I’d better get downstairs and get some food into me, or I’ll be training on an empty stomach.”  

 

                “Good luck, Jeff.  I think you’re going to need it.”

 

 

 

*              *              *

 

 

                When I got downstairs, I partially expected to find Sir Fionn unconscious, with his head on the table next to a dozen flagons – but when I got there, he was up, clean shaven, and looking like he was fairly chipper… meanwhile I had to assume I looked like I dragged my ass out of bed, unshaven, unkempt, and looked like crap.  It looked like he had breakfast for three or four people laid out in front of him.  My stomach roiled a bit at the smell of greasy bacon, but I knew it would help settle my stomach to have some food.

 

                “Good morning, Geoffrey.  I trust you eventually made it upstairs?  Your girl friend Rachel seemed quite concerned about you.”

 

                “Girlfriend?  Um… We’re not dating.”  I said, wondering if something else happened last night while I was drunk.

 

                “Well, perhaps not – but she did seem overly concerned about you.  You have the feel of long time friends.”

 

                “Yeah, I guess we do.  We’ve been friends for about eight years.”  I said fondly.  “Before she told me she was Twin souled, she was my best friend.  Now, I’m not sure what she is – besides my friend.”

 

                “Then she is ‘something’ besides your friend, by default, correct?”  He replied glibly.  “Maybe you had best work that out.”

 

                “I have been trying, Fionn.” 

 

                “Good.  Get some food – we have work to do.  Lesson one – eat when you can… You might not see your next meal for some time, especially in the field.”

 

                I sat, and ate – and soon we had polished off most of the food.  About halfway through breakfast, Rachel came down and joined us.  She ate with us too, after saying good morning to us both.   “Thank you for the breakfast, Sir Fionn.”

 

                “You’re welcome, Serra.”  Fionn turned to me.  “Let’s leave the rest for your lady friend – we have training to do.”

 

                “What kind of training, Fionn?  Vigilant abilities?”

 

                “Hah!  Putting the cart before the horse, aren’t you lad?  We’ll be working you out to see if you’re strong and fit and quick enough to do the job – and then we’ll be testing your skills with blade and bow, spear, shield and axe.  If you’re competent there, I might – MIGHT – be able to teach you to channel your faith before we part ways.  Faith is the hardest to learn – and the hardest to teach…  If you have it, learning it is relatively easy – but if you don’t, then finding it is one of the hardest things you’ll ever do.  Once you find it, never let it go – it will be your anchor in the storm.  Trust me on that.”

 

                “Um… The Twins said I didn’t have to worship them if they weren’t the gods of my heart.”  Jeff replied, a bit confused.

 

                “So?  You’re confusing worship with faith, lad.  Worship is an act of sacrifice intending to honor something you feel has value – and is usually directed at a being or beings whom you believe is worthy of that act, such as a god or goddess.  It is a gift to them, in thanks for what they do for you.  Faith is the belief in something stronger than yourself – a belief that can carry your through any tribulation.  Faith is when you know something so strongly, that it’s inscribed on your soul for those with the eyes to see it.  You don’t think about it… you just know.  Faith and worship often go together, but they aren’t the same thing by a long shot.”

 

                “I never thought about it like that before.”

 

                “Well, you should start.  Vigilants are as much priests and priestesses, as they are warriors.  Even if they have no religion, they need to be spiritual.  If they have no god, they must have an ethos – a set of beliefs, morals and ethics.  They need to seek wisdom, and learn to recognize it when they find it.  When you’re ready to pray, the gods will answer.”

 

                “Yes sir.”              

 

                “Good, now let’s get outside.” 

 

                I nodded, and we walked outside – where I found a large bulging canvas backpack on the ground. 

 

                “Pick it up, and put it on.”

 

                “Yes sir.”  I said, trying to lift it – and groaned!  It was bloody heavy!  “What’s in it?  Rocks?”

 

                “Nope.  Soaking wet rope, and lots of it.”  Fionn said with a smile.  “And we’re going to be doing a little jog while you wear it.  How does five or six times around the town sound?”

 

                “A little bit like hell on earth, but fuck it.”  I replied.  “Let’s do this.”  As I shouldered the pack, I realized that although it was heavy, it wasn’t nearly as heavy as I worried it would be… My new musculature and fitness from spending those stat picks made a huge difference.  I felt strong, and confident.  I could do this.

 

                Two hours later, I realized that maybe I couldn’t do this…  My shoulders and back were burning with fatigue, and my legs felt like burning wet noodles – stressed with pain and fatigue, but holding no strength.  I was nearing my uttermost limit – and Fionn, that jack-off was screaming in my ear to hurry the fuck up.

 

                “I can’t!”  I gasped, slowing my pace.  “I can’t.”

 

                “Is that what you say when the people who depend on you are waiting for you to save them?!  Is that what you say when lives are on the line?!  You say ‘I fucking can,’ and you pick yourself up and you keep going!”

 

                “How?!”  I cried, staggering.  “How do I keep going?” 

 

                “You reach down into your gut, and you find your strength.  Your conviction.  You grab hold, and you let it fill you.  Because if you can’t do what you need to do, then no one will do it for you.  People will be relying on you – and if you can’t do it, then people die.  Do you want to let innocent people die, because you said “I can’t do it?”

 

                “No, but…”

 

                “There is no but!  You reach down, and find the strength to do it – or you admit you will fail and those you care about will die.  There is no middle ground, Jeff!  Fight!  Find your strength.”

 

                I tried to reach down, like he said.  I felt queasy and sick, but I couldn’t feel it.  I was empty.  I fell to my knees, gasping.

 

                “Get up!”

 

                “I can’t.”  I gasped, feeling like I was close to passing out. 

 

                “You can!  I feel it!  Find what you need!  The strength is in you, Geoffrey!”

 

                I tried again – and again, I couldn’t feel it.  “I don’t know how!”

 

                “Find a way lad… Please, find a way.  If you can’t, you’ll end up losing everything you care about.  Your friends, your family, your children… even your life.  If you can’t find the strength within, then training you is useless.”

 

                No… I thought.  I wasn’t going to be a failure again.   I wasn’t going to fail before I even started.  “Feana, Hathor… Please.  Help me.  Give me the strength to keep going.”  I whispered.  I reached inside… I reached inside and this time, I felt something.  My strength – the strength I carried with me, since the day we spoke.  I could feel it, and I drew from it.

 

                I pulled myself up onto one knee, and then to standing.

 

                “Good!  Good!  Now keep going!  Run!  Once more around the village, and then you can rest!”  Fionn cried with glee.

 

                I started running… at first it was more a stagger – but soon, I was running again.  I didn’t know how – but the strength within me helped sustain me… the burning of my muscles and the weakness was still there – but oddly, it seemed fainter and less important, like I could ignore it.  I ran – once more around the village.  As I approached the finish line, where Fionn was waiting, he cheered me on – but my blood was pumping with such force I couldn’t hear him.  I staggered across the finish, and fell to the ground, laughing, simultaneously joyful – and utterly exhausted.  “I did it!  Fionn, I did it! Woooo!”

 

                Fionn looked down, with a happy, yet sad smile.  “Aye, lad. You did.  Now do it again.” 

 

                “What?”

 

                “Do. It. Again.”

 

                “You’re serious?”

 

                “Deadly.  Get up and do it once more.  If you can do that, I’ll let you rest.”

 

                “You said I could rest now.”  I replied, breathing hard from exertion.

 

                “I lied. People do that. Now get up and do it again. You need to learn to exceed your limits.”

 

                I nodded, and reached for my strength, whispering another prayer to the Twins.  Somehow, I stood.  “Once more, right?”

 

                “Aye, and then rest.”  Fionn may have said it – but I wasn’t sure I believed him this time.  Still, I had to try, otherwise, what was the point?

 

                I began to run.

 

*              *              *

 

 

                I looked at the demolished breakfast Jeffrey and Fionn had left at the table, and smirked.  I picked at their scraps, and had more than my fill, and soon one of the servers – Natalia – came to clear away the dishes.  That stupid idiot Jeff hadn’t even noticed my longer hair this morning!  It had grown from the short military style my father preferred to a messy tangle that reached down to my shoulders.  I’d brushed it out before coming downstairs, and tied it with one of my new ribbons – and the lout still hadn’t noticed! 

 

                Still, I hadn’t done it just for Jeff – I did it for me too, and I liked the way I felt. I chatted with Natalia and Kaylee for a while, since the tavern was pretty quiet, and we gossiped and yakked about life, stuff and things in general.  I learned Natalia fancied a young man working at a hoopers – a barrel makers – named Lastel, and Kaylee was fond of two gents, that seemed to be competing for her attention.  I admitted I was fond of Geoffrey, but admitted that until my transformation, nothing could happen between us – and I also didn’t know how he felt about me.

 

                The time whiled away for an hour or two, and Kaylee and Natalia headed back to their duties, so I headed over to Threads, and collected the rest of my clothing created by Ser Eldermoon.  I would have liked to talk with him, but he was engaged in a conversation with a gentleman I hadn’t met yet, and I didn’t want to be rude.

 

                I went back to the inn, and sat down, waiting until I felt a gentle whisker rub on my hand. 

 

                “Tika!  I didn’t see you come in!”

 

                “Sorry to startle you, Rachel, but you were so entranced you didn’t hear me the first time.  I love your hair!  Do you know how to braid it?”

 

                “Thanks, Tika.  Not yet, but I hope to learn.”

 

                “Well, if you need lessons Alyssa or I might be able to help!” 

 

                “Thanks, Tika.  Is it time to go visit your teacher?”

 

                “Yeah.  Her name is Cheerit Chis’it, and she’s a reechi sorceress.  She’s been teaching me and Alyssa for the last couple of years.  Alyssa is also studying herbalism, and sells a lot of stuff to Hammy, and Mabd at the general store.”

 

                “Well, then let’s go meet her!”  I put my book away in a little bag I had brought with, and got ready to have Tika show me where to go.  “C’mon Tika, climb aboard!”

 

                “Aye, aye, Serra!”  Tika climbed up my arm and sat on my shoulder.  She was pretty light – maybe 5 pounds at most – and we headed out into the morning sun.  It was the 30^th of Sunbright – just under two weeks before the end of the month.  The day was warm, and breezy.  A beautiful summer day. 

 

                Together, we headed through town, towards Tika’s teacher.  I was excited…  I wonder what learning magic will feel like?

I hoped it wouldn’t be too hard, or so expensive that I couldn’t afford it!  “Is learning magic hard, Tika?”

 

                “Yes and no.  Learning the words is easier than you might think – but learning how to use them – and simultaneously NOT draw too much energy or go over your threshold is where it’s a real challenge.  Don’t worry – Alyssa and I will help you learn!”

 

                “Great!  I’m a bit nervous.”

 

                “Don’t be!  Cheerit is great.  You’ll see!”

 

                “Thanks, Tika.” 

 

                A few moments later we came to a small house, nestled in a tree… It looked like a childs toy – until I realized that this was a reechi house built in the nest of a mess of tree branches, like the Swiss Family Robinson.  Cool!

 

                “Cheerit is going to teach us outside today, seeing as how you and Alyssa are too big to fit inside her house.”

 

                “Awesome.  Thank’s for helping me set this up, Tika.”

 

                “It’s fine.  I like helping, yup, yup yup, I do!” 

 

                I sat down on the grass with Tika to wait.