Finding Heathcliff

Twenty-Seven

The world outside was flooded with sunshine when Rigel led Astrid and Orion out of his parents' cottage and towards the town.

Vega was more of a village, Astrid decided as they reached the first unpaved lane, after they walked across the vast meadow on whose very edge Rigel's home sat, huddled to the small copse. All the houses that Astrid could see were similar to Rigel's-- small, white cottages, built much farther apart than those which Astrid had seen in Starling, or in the other towns they had passed through on their way here. The air around them was redolent of the multitude of wildflowers growing around the cottages in unkempt lawns and something else that Astrid had never smelled before and could not name, a fascinating, complex scent...

"It's the sea, Astrid," Rigel said, and Astrid turned to him, finding him observing her with a smile. "We're not far from the coast, a few hours' ride, no more."

Astrid felt excited about the proximity of the sea; she had only seen it in pictures in geography books and imagined it from descriptions in her novels. She wanted to ask Rigel if they would reach the shore tomorrow, but Orion, who had been silent since they left the house, spoke before she could open her mouth.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing at a man appearing on the lane far in front of them, riding... an object...

Astrid knew what it was. She had read about it, but she couldn't recall its name. She looked curiously at Rigel, expecting his answer like Orion.

"Bicycle, my lord," Rigel said. "Some people make them from wood; others manage to scavenge parts of old bicycles made of metal and put them back together. Not everyone can afford a horse, and bicycles help those who can't move faster. See, many families live off fishing, and reaching the shore on foot takes too long..."

Astrid tuned out the men's chatter about industry and technology, her attention distracted by the beauty of the world around her. Flowers swayed in the gentle breeze, birds fluttered in the sun-lit sky above their heads and, when she turned around, back towards Rigel's house, she could see the burned tree far in the copse, hit by lightning the previous day. It was incredible how fast the weather had changed; there was no sign of yesterday's downpour... or the angels she heard whispering... Where were they now... where was... he?

That's why you are here; to find out, she reminded herself of her mission. She still didn't know how she would approach the angels about the treaty once she found them. But maybe she would meet him again, and he might help her, she mused, forcing herself to focus on her surroundings.

Vega did not seem to have many inhabitants, but its scores of white cottages were spread out wide, scattered randomly, and it took Astrid and her two companions a good while to reach its centre-- a tiny square dominated by a ruined church turned into the only Vega's inn-- and continue into the other part of the village, where they finally stopped in front of one of the very last dwellings.

"Here we are..." Rigel said, letting his voice trail into a sort of insecurity that surprised Astrid.

"Is this where your friend lives?" she asked, observing him as he took a deep breath and knocked.

"Father's friend," Rigel explained, knocking again even as the door opened.

Orion pulled Astrid closer to his side, his arm coming around her waist protectively at the sight of the tall, imposing man who appeared in the doorway.