Lovers in the Woods (17 page)

Rayenne leaned back against
a
fallen
trunk that worked as a backrest. The easy-going nature about the
village warmed her heart. She still did not understand how these
people had gotten here in the first place and not even Thannis
wanted to talk about his arrival in Emerald Green, but the loving
cooperation got to her in a unique way. The people had few things
and they shared them without any tendency to possessions. They
worked as a team and spent their free time together like one big
family.

And yet her thoughts returned to Sajitar
frequently, no matter how friendly the company was. Every now and
again the unbidden threat to leave this place and return to Belson
Park to confess her failure came to her mind and she knew that
sooner rather than later she would have to be on her way.

She took a sip from the sweet wine and,
looking up, found Thannis reaching out to her.

“Do you want to dance, milady?”

“
How could I resist?”
Rayenne took his hand and was pulled up. Thannis’ strength was
astonishing as well as his ability to dance to the music the women
and the flute made. She found the rhythm easily and floated with
it.
How long since I’ve danced?
He grinned at her, then whirled her
around, so that she gave a yelp of surprise, causing the audience
to laugh and whistle with appreciation. Back in his arms, Rayenne
read in Thannis’ eyes much more than just happiness about dancing.
And though she was not out for a partner, the older man’s approach
was honest and touching.

When the music ended, he squeezed her hand
and let go. She told him with a smile that she had understood
before she turned around to sit down again. Out of the corner of
her eye she saw movement outside the gathering and turned
around.

Sajitar stumbled toward the group, his light
skin color a stark contrast to the surrounding darkness. He fell on
his knees and came up again like a drunkard on his last steps
toward his home.

“Saji!” Rayenne ran before thinking of it and
reached her companion to help and guide him to the others. “Bring a
blanket! A cover! Something! He is shaking with cold! Saji, hey,
can you hear me?”

“
Here!” Tari was already handing her a
large blanket, which Rayenne threw around Sajitar’s
shoulders.

“
Thanks. Saji, are you all right? Come, sit
down.” She supported him to the center and accepted another blanket
to cover his legs when he slumped on the ground to lean heavily
against the trunk. His eyes were sunken, his face haggard and he
had lost so much weight that his ribs and hipbones stood out. She
flinched. “Speak to me, Saji. Please.”

He lifted his head and looked at the
villagers and Rayenne as if he had to collect enough information
for a proper answer. He had grown a wild beard and the unkempt mess
of hair completed an appearance she had feared to see. He licked
his lips and nodded thanks when someone handed him a goblet with
water. He drank and cleared his throat, turning toward Rayenne. The
shadow of a smile crept across his face.

“I’m…I’m fine. Still in one piece.”

“Let me see.” Rayenne pulled down the blanket
to check the wound. Only pinkish scar tissue remained where the
hole had been below his ribcage. She was surprised how fast the
wound had healed. “The Horlyns took care of you.”

“Apparently.”

She kissed his cheek. He smelled of grass and
soil and a musty note she did not want to interpret. She smiled at
him and, sighing, admitted, “I’m glad to have you back. I can’t
tell you how much I missed you. Are you hungry?”

“I’ll get him something to wear,” Nassaly
said in her practical mother tone. “It’ll do him no good sitting
here naked.”

“Hungry?” Sajitar let out air that sounded
like coughing, rattling deep in his throat. He held fast to the
goblet as if he hadn’t seen one in his lifetime. “No, I guess, I’m
not hungry, but…some other food than mash would be nice.”

Before Rayenne reacted, Bajan brought a small
bowl with the rest of the soup the settlers had for dinner.

“Here, eat.”

“Thank you.” Sajitar took a few sips while
the men and women around waited patiently and quietly for him to
tell about his time with the Color-changers. He looked around
wearily.

Rayenne read his confused expression, but
instead of an explanation she pulled him close, too relieved for
words. She kissed his bearded cheek and neck again, content to see
him alive and well. She had not conceded to herself how much she
had missed him until the moment of his return. All of her worries
abated. She was lightheaded, even happy.

“How do you feel?”

Sajitar emptied the bowl and put it down.

“Alive. Safe.” He laughed a little, helpless
laugh. “Suddenly in a company I had not expected.”

“I’ll tell you about them later,” she
whispered. “It’s a long story.”

From under the blanket Sajitar reached around
Rayenne’s waist and rubbed his nose against her cheek.

“
Guess I’m the lucky guy who returned from
the supposed dead.”

“Don’t joke, please.”

“Hmm, you sound like you really missed me.”
He looked around, then kissed Rayenne on her lips. The settlers
were in amused agreement that a man should kiss and hug his woman
for all to see. There were cheers and whistles and some clapped
their hands. “Better now?”

“For a moment I thought the encounter with
the Horlyns had changed you.”

“And now you’re glad I’m my old arrogant
self.”

“Maybe.” He was so close she squinted. “I
don’t mind you being nice.”

“I am nice.”

Nassaly arrived with one of the men’s
outfits and a belt. Together, they helped Sajitar through the
holes. When the belt was in place and a blanket around his
shoulders, Sajitar took a deep breath.

“Is there a place I could sleep? I’m dead on
my feet, no pun intended.”

“You can have my hut,” Thannis offered
spontaneously. “I’ll move in with Grenkyl.” He laughed and shook
his head when Rayenne thanked him. “It’s a good reason for making a
new abode, isn’t it? Our family is growing.” He stood and
stretched. “It’s bedtime anyway. You all move and get yourself to
sleep. Leave him some air to breathe. Sajitar will tell us his
story tomorrow.” He turned to Sajitar and helped him up. The young
man swayed and would have fallen without the strong hands keeping
him upright. “You will tell them, won’t you? After all, you would
not have become a new settler if it weren’t for the saving of the
Color-changers.” His look wandered to Rayenne. “That’s not often
heard, even here.”

“I understand.” Sajitar stood on weak legs,
eyes closed. “I was up in a tree and still feel kind of seasick
just standing.”

“That’ll pass.” Thannis held him fast under
his right armpit while Rayenne took the left. “No one fully
understands the greatness of the Color-changers. We are all but
students of their wisdom and generosity.”

“Don’t need a lecture about that right now,”
Sajitar moaned. “Is it far?”

“The next hut, my friend.” Thannis guided him
through the flap and gently lowered Sajitar on his pallet. “Go,
Ray, and fetch your belongings. I’m sure you want to move in with
him.”

Rayenne knew by his pained glance how much it
cost Thannis to accept that his chances of sharing her bed were
gone. She pitied him even though she had not been tempted to take
his offer.

“I’ll be back in a minute.”

“That I don’t doubt.”

When Rayenne returned, the older man was
standing in front of his former hut, watching the
tree-tops.

“
It’s a beautiful night,” he said quietly.
“Warm, pleasant, peaceful. If we could see them, there are stars
far above us, telling of other planets, other worlds turning around
the same sun.” He sighed and smiled at her, sadly. “But from
tonight on you’ll be the star of Sajitar’s life again. He told me
how much he missed you. I’m glad for both of you. Good
night.”

“Good night, Thannis, and thank you.”

“Your coming to our village was a great
fortune. I thank you for that.”

“I thank you for your hospitality.”

He opened his arms wide as if to embrace her,
but instead bowed and left.

Rayenne slipped into the hut. She had
expected Sajitar to sleep, but he looked at her wide-eyed.

“
How come there’s a village here? And how
did you manage to bring these people to your side? How did they get
here, anyway? I thought the Horlyns would eat everyone getting too
close to the heart of their woods.”

She sat beside the pallet and put down
their belongings and sleeping bags. Around her, the shelves were
full of little useful things, artifacts, plants in stones and
pieces of wood with black drawings. The eerie light from a lantern
danced across a small table with even more pieces of Thannis’
strange collection. She wondered where the man had come from.
Without thinking about it, her hand knitted with
Sajitar’s.

“
All of them claim to have lived here since
they can remember, even Thannis. He’s the one I think was brought
here first. And if I’m not mistaken he knows all about his past,
but doesn’t want to share. No one admits he was brought here. I
think they don’t want to remember their old lives. They live
totally undisturbed here. No stress, no other obligations but to
feed their family and stay warm and dry.” She shrugged. “Some might
say it’s back to nature. Some might say there’s no better way to
live.”

“You like it here.”

Rayenne wanted to give him a smart reply when
she saw him grinning, but stopped, frowning. The lantern intrigued
her. Upon closer look, the outer hull was made of a Horlyn wing.
Inside were some orange stones that glowed without any visible
source. She put it down again and turned back to Sajitar.

“Yeah, it’s hard not to like these people.
They took me in as if they had waited for me.”

“They expect us to stay.” Sajitar’s mockery
made way for a more serious expression. “Did you tell them
anything?”

“No.” Rayenne made sure no one listened in
front of the hut. The place lay quiet and undisturbed. If anyone
was afraid of predators the guards were well out of sight. “They
don’t know of our journey. I said that we got lost in Emerald
Green.” She shook her head, remembering. “Imagine, they don’t even
know that there are other settlements. They think they are alone
around here.”

“And in spite of that they took you in
without questions?”

“Less than we would ask any stranger coming
to a village. They want the village to grow. No matter how.”

Sajitar stretched and pulled the cover high
over his chest. He reached out to her and she sat down again,
taking his calloused hand in hers.

“They want us to make children, right?”

“The more the merrier.”

He laughed quietly and pulled her close,
looking her in the eyes.

“Could you imagine staying in the wilderness
with me at your side and three or four little Hajus or, pardon,
Whiteclaws playing around us?”

“
I’m so not answering that question.” She
caressed his cheek. “Tell me how the Horlyns healed
you.”

Sajitar closed his eyes.

“Do you really want to know?”

“I was so afraid they’d taken you away for
good. It’s just…”

“I see.”

She watched him attempt a smile, but it
was short-lived.

His voice was low and without
emotion. “I don’t remember anything from the moment I fell
unconscious to how I was carried away. When I woke up, I found out
that I lay high up on a tree. I couldn’t move around. Not that I
would have in the first days, but even if I wanted
to, there was no
way. Do you remember the stuff the Horlyn put on my chest? It got
hard and totally inflexible.”

“So you couldn’t get up.”

He smiled sadly.

“No. One of the flying Horlyns fed me and
kept me clean, but it made me wait until a few hours ago to loosen
the stuff and carry me down. I shook like a leaf the whole time. It
was so impossibly high! And I thought—well, I was afraid they’d
take me someplace else for—” He broke off, exhaling.

Rayenne gave him time to recollect. She
caressed his shoulders, gently touching his collar-bone and
realizing that he would need time to gain weight before they could
ride on.

“There were some examinations in between. I
don’t know what they found out or what they wanted to know about
me. I touched one of the heads and the beast stayed quite cool. The
skin’s hard as stone, slick in some parts. I don’t think any bullet
we have around here could penetrate it. Only the eyes look…moist.
But even they are covered with a kind of transparent shell so that
branches won’t hurt them. And I saw crevasses along their bodies. I
don’t know of their functions, but it looks as if they produce more
than just this sticky grease they used on me.” He opened his eyes.
The raw pain made Rayenne gasp.

“Did they hurt you?”

“No, not by ripping my bones apart. But lying
immobilized and helpless—that was hard to bear. I didn’t know what
they had in mind and what would happen next. There was no guarantee
they’d let me go again. Every time one of them came up, I wanted to
run away screaming and could not. Even the images they sent me
couldn’t make me trust them. I could’ve become some kind of guinea
pig. That’s what I feared all of the time. That they’d heal me to
keep me somewhere for reasons men don’t understand.”

“I’m so sorry this happened to you.” She
stroked his hair, carefully nestling beside him. “Do you mind?”

“
Having you close? No. I wouldn’t even mind
you stripping off your clothes and cuddle with me.”