CACKLE- Book 1

Chapter Thirteen

"Stop squirming." Kynthia placed her hand firmly on top of Remi's head, yanking a brush through her tangled, wet hair.

"Your brush is too spiky." Remi complained.

"It's boar."

"No, not a bore. It hurts." Remi winced as Kynthia ran the brush through her matted hair over and over. She felt like the woman was about to yank her scalp off her head.

Kynthia laughed. "No child, it's made of boar bristles. From a pig."

Remi cringed. 'What kind of people made brushes from pigs?' She thought.

Back in the cave, Anna had a comb, wide toothed and made from some kind of bone that she had whittled down. The people here used the hair of other animals to brush their own? What a ridiculous concept.

Remi saw Kynthia's face in the mirror above the tub as she worked.

Kynthia tilted her head and asked; "Where are you from?"

Remi had rehearsed this so many times. "Prilani. It's about four to five days from Adinna. They're known for fishing and aquaculture. They produce products for trade with the villages of Eloricia, Drilis and soon hope to sail across the ocean to find other lands who are interested in their goods. My father was a fisherman, my mother raised me. She died recently. I am looking for my Aunt, Annabella Vikroth." She finished. The truth was she didn't know how far her volcano was from Adinna. A trip that normally took a week back home, likely took much longer than that in this time. What with all the trees and vibrant plants that cluttered the once dry and rocky terrain.

Kynthia's lips pursed together in an attempt suppress a smile.

"Well done. I'd imagine that it took some time to memorise that speech." She continued brushing Remi's hair. It hurts less now with most of the knots yanked out.

Remi flushed. This woman was smart. She wondered if all humans were as smart as Kynthia. She would have to be more careful, more cunning. If she was to keep to the plan, she would have to learn to be a better liar.

"It's the truth." Remi said, mustering up as much confidence as she could. Her voice sounded borderline angry.

"Or some version of it." Kynthia sighed and shook Remi's hair out. She didn't seem to be interested in prying any further. Or perhaps she knew she wouldn't be successful if she tried.

She waddled off to the cupboard across the room. Remi stayed seated in the silky bath water, watching Kynthia through the mirror on the woman's boudoir. She opened the cupboard and filtered through some hanging clothes.

The creamy white of Remi's bath had started to turn a muddy brown. She scrubbed at the skin between her toes with a wash cloth and flicked the dirt out from beneath her nails.

"None of these will do." Kynthia sighed.

"Oh, perhaps..." She left the room, returning a moment later with a powder blue dress.

"This should fit you." She said, laying it out and pulling at the wrinkles.

"It was my sister's, bless her soul. I was planning on saving it for my daughter, Roya. But we can't have you walking around in my bed sheets. I'll leave you to get dressed." She walked out of the room leaving Remi alone, the only sound that remained was the drip, drip, drip of water falling off her chin.

Remi stood and walked to the chair Kynthia had left the gown on. The dress was simple, but more intact than anything Remi had ever worn. The clothing she used to wear were mainly pants and a shirt. 'Men's clothing.' Anna had called them. Though Remi had always felt they were more practical than women's clothing. You can't outrun a demon in a dress. Remi scoffed at the thought, smiling to herself as she pulled the thing on. She buttoned up the back as far as she could and reviewed her reflection in the mirror.

She was no longer the image of a wild girl with hair sticking out at odd angles, a dirty face and fiery gold eyes. Well, the eyes were the same. Her rich red hair was now glistening clean and wet as it hung straight around her face. She untucked the hair from behind her ears and pressed them down flat to cover their pointed tips. She wasn't interested in fielding more questions. Surely Kynthia had seen them but Remi was grateful she was kind enough to not inquire. Anna hadn't discussed hair much back in the cave. For what they needed, It was always to be tied up and out of her face.

The soft blue dress complimented her golden skin. This was not an autumn colour, but she didn't really care what colour of dress she wore. She only cared about getting to Anna. She knew she would be taken care of from there.

A soft knock and the bathroom door opened just a crack.

"All covered up?" Kynthia's voice asked from the other side.

"Yes, but I do need help with the buttons." Remi said and Kynthia let herself in.

She brushed Remi's hair to the front and completed the buttons all the way up to Remi's neck. The neckline immediately became too tight, and Remi pulled at it.

"Don't fuss, you'll rip the lace around the collar." Kynthia said, pushing Remi's hands down and off of the fabric. She pulled Remi's hair back and let it drape down over the buttons on her back.

Remi turned to look in the mirror again. She felt like her neck looked entirely too long with the tight, frilly fabric fluttering around her jawline. "Can you take me to Anna now, please?" She asked.

"One last thing." Kynthia waddled back out of the room and returned with a pair of flat black shoes. "For your feet." She tossed them to Remi who caught them clumsily against her chest.

"Hey!" Remi snapped and Kynthia laughed.

"Lighten up." She said, Remi's brows creased. Anna too loved to tease her, always saying that Remi was too serious. But she always thought it was hard not to be. This woman on the other hand felt a bit more comforting. At least she had, until she stepped closer, her eyes scrutinizing Remi's face.

"I've never seen pointed ears like yours and your eyes are so... unusual." She said. Remi flushed and dropped her gaze to the floor.

"Birth defect." She lied. "Sensitive topic."

Kynthia nodded but Remi could see a crooked smile pinching the sides of her lips as she peaked up at the woman through dark lashes. "Well, now that you're looking more presentable, let's get a move on."

Remi definitely had to get better at lying. She slipped on the shoes before walking to the door, keeping her gaze low to the ground. Kynthia followed her out of the house and yelled to her children to sit still and behave while she was out.

Roya ran to the door where Remi stood and smiled a toothless grin up at her. "You!" She pointed at Remi. "You were dressed in our bed sheets." She giggled.

"Hush!" Kynthia snapped.

The girl laughed and pulled at Remi's dress. "Where are you going?" She asked. Her accent was accentuated by her lack of teeth. She couldn't have been more than 5 or 6.

"I'm going to find my family." Remi said, giving the girl a sweet smile.

"You're tall. Is your family tall like you?" Roya asked.

"No." Remi said, bursting into laughter at the thought. Anna wasn't even five feet in height and Remi had outgrown that height by the time she was ten.

The little girl laughed, pulling on Remi's hand. "Are you coming back? Will you stay for dinner?"

Remi bent down and gave the girls hand a little squeeze. "Maybe next time." She smiled. "Oh! I almost forgot!" Remi plucked the little red ball from her dress pocket. She had carried it in with her from the yard. She handed it to Roya, whose eyes went wide with excitement.

"My ball!" She squealed. "Carney!" She called to her brother who emerged sheepishly from the next room.

His big brown eyes didn't meet Remi's as he looked to his sister. His eyes lit up and he ran towards her. Roya squealed and ran away from him.

"Behave!" Kynthia called after them. "Thank you for finding that. It would have been the fourth ball they lost this month. Now, shall we go?"

Remi nodded and followed Kynthia through the door, looking back at the little brick house as they made their way through the fence gates and up a dirt road, towards the heart of Adinna.