Evenfall

Chapter 8 - The Rose

Maria was almost finished preparing supper by the time Isa returned to the caravan. Isa noticed her mother had managed to pull together a few fayanite stones to make the campfire. The fire flickered white every now and then – most likely a side-effect of the fayanite once being covered by the same water that had been in the lake. Isa didn't know why it would catch fire, however, as there were no Tai'en tree leaves present. When she stepped closer, however, she saw that her mother was using the powdered leaves as a spice.

"Where have you been?" Her mother asked. There was no hard tone to her voice, no underlying recrimination to show that she was in a bad mood. This was the longest she'd been in a good mood in ages. Years, even. Isa smiled.

"You would never believe who I ran into," she said, coming to sit beside her mother as she began dishing the thin broth into bowls. Maria cocked an eyebrow. "Nikolas, from last night!" Isa chuckled.

She paused, however, when she saw her mother's expression darken. Her previously mirthful features turned hard and cold as a quiet anger filled the air around her.

"Mother?" Isa asked carefully. "Is something the matter?"

"Yes," her mother hissed, whipping her head towards her. "I don't want you seeing that boy again. Not now, not ever. I don't care if he stands right in front of you – you will act as if he isn't there. Am I understood?"

Isa frowned. Why was her mother suddenly acting like this? She knew her mother had harboured a blatant dislike for Nikolas ever since Isa had first brought him to their camp, but she could never imagine it escalating so quickly. Maria hardly knew him at all. Isa felt an anger akin to her mother's begin to build. Maria had no right to forbid her from meeting with Nikolas, and by Archen Isa would not bow to the unreasonable demand that she never see him again.

"No." She said quietly.

"No?" Maria looked taken aback. "Do I need to repeat myself?"

"No," Isa said, seething. "I refuse to obey such an imprudent demand."

A flame began burning in her mother's eyes. "Foolish girl. How dare you disrespect an elder – your mother – like that?"

"I will respect you once you regain your senses! You have no right to –"

Isa started when her mother's hand flew across her cheek, faster than she could comprehend. The sting came a second after, a sharp burn spreading across her left cheek and lingering, like a malevolent flame.

Her mother's anger turned quiet. "How dare you speak to me like that? How dare you disrespect me so as to blatantly deny obedience? I honestly believed I raised you so much better than that, Isabelle. But in the end, you are your father's daughter."

Isa's anger immediately diminished, and in its place grew confusion. Maria stood and began walking away.

"My father?" She frowned, holding a hand to her cheek. Her mother offered no reply, stalking silently towards the caravan and then up its steps. Isa watched quietly as her mother disappeared behind the walls of the caravan and then slammed the door.

"I wish you'd tell me who he was..." Isa whispered into the night. "Then maybe I'd understand why I disappoint you so..."

-

After her fight with Maria, Isa lost her appetite. She didn't fancy being in the caravan whilst her mother was likely still awake and seething, so she decided to go for a walk to clear her head. It was very late at night, and the stars were glittering above her head, guiding her footsteps.

Eventually she found herself in the village of Kova. Despite the late hour, the streets were bustling with activity. She had somehow found herself in the market hub of the town, surrounded by shouting merchants and throngs of eager customers cluttering the roads.