Acolyte

Chapter Eleven

FEBRUARY

The snow still hangs heavy over the village moving into Solana's third month in the village. She's still in good spirits, finding her place at the hospital.

"I really do wish it would stop snowing," she says, peering out the window at the white landscape, "That's the one thing I miss about the temple. It only snowed when we wanted it to."

"Well, here, it snows more than you could ever possibly wish for!" I ask, putting on a cheery tone. Solana rolls her eyes at me. She does that often.

"Just wait for March," I say, "The snow will stop, and by April or May we'll have fields of beautiful flowers."

Solana nods, sitting back down on our cot, vision growing distant, "I'm going to fill the house with flowers," she says, "Wreaths, garlands. It's going to be beautiful."

"I know it will be," I say, sitting down next to her, rubbing her arm. She looks up, her blue eyes catching mine, and shakes her head, seeing what I'm thinking.

"Not right now," she says, lightly pushing me away, "We have to go to dinner."

"Aww," I say, "How dare you introduce me to sex and not let me do it constantly."

She laughs, a twinkle in her eye.

"Don't worry," she says, "There's always after dinner." She leans over and kisses me passionately, before pulling back and standing up.

"Come on, let's go. I'm hungry," she says, extending a hand and pulling me up off the bed.

"Okay," I groan, somewhat begrudgingly. We slip on our shoes and overcoats, bracing ourselves for the snowstorm. As soon as the door opens, the chilling wind hits me, nearly blowing me back. Flecks of snow fly into the hut, though they quickly melt from the heat of the fire.

Solana and I push our way out, shutting the door and huddling together as we trek to dinner, trying to conserve heat. It's a quick walk to the lodge, despite some slipping and sliding on the ice. We grip onto each other, holding on for stability.

Finally, we make it to the lodge, swinging open the large wooden doors and hustling inside. It's loud, compared to the snow-muffled environment outside. We make our way to our table, where Seamus already sits, sipping at a goblet of wine.

"Good evening!" he calls as we sit. While I normally try to sit between him and Sol to reduce his horrible flirting, unfortunately tonight that's not the case. Solana is on one side, with Seamus in between us. I curse the situation, digging my fingernails into my palms.

Everything is fine at first, though.

"Two of the goats had babies last night," he says, "But the stores of milk are still running low."

My eyes nearly glaze over from the boredom. All I can think of is Sol, and the touch of her fingers on my skin. I catch her glance but look away, afraid I'll ignite from just a look.

Seamus seems to sense my disinterest and turns his focus to his wine, gulping down whatever remains in his chalice. I look back down at my meal, wolfing down the meat scraps that were handed out somewhat sparingly tonight. Getting into the harsher days of winter, our stores of meat have grown low. A vast heap of potatoes remains though, as evidenced by the huge quantities of roast tubers on every plate in the room.

"The hospital is so lucky to have you as a healer," Seamus says. I wrinkle my nose. He always tries flattery- a vain attempt at winning Sol's heart.

"Oh no," says Solana, "I'm just one of many." Always so polite. I smile to myself. I don't dare look over, but I can see her shaking her head.