The Realm of the Sun

The Enlightening Edge

"Don't be back too late now!" Nessie called from the doorway as Tara secured the flannel wrap around her bodice and set off into the forest with her berry basket once more.

"I won't, I promise," she hollered back.

"And remember, Tara, your arm," Nessie added, nervously, in case she was to run into any strangers again. Tara rolled her eyes to herself a bit, purposefully covering up the distinct mark on her wrist with her sleeve. Seeing this, Nessie had to intervene.

"Wait, come back here," she said firmly, but with a smile.

"What?" Tara sighed, miserably.

"Come," Nessie repeated herself, reaching into her apron pocket as Tara dragged her feet back to the cottage. Nessie pulled a monogrammed handkerchief from her apron and took Tara's wrist gently in her hand.

"Remember this?" Nessie asked, as she rolled up Tara's sleeve and began to tie the handkerchief around her wrist to cover the mark. Of course Tara had remembered it. She had embroidered an "N" on it for "Nessie" when she was a little girl. The stitching of the letter was sloppy and very indicative of its unskilled creator and it embarrassed Tara every time Nessie used it.

"I can't believe you haven't burned it," Tara muttered, suppressing a laugh as she looked at her artless work.

"I love it," Nessie declared, her eyes intent and serious as she looked up at Tara briefly before finishing the knot. Once she fastened the soft cloth in its place, Tara brought her wrist closer to her face to observe her work. Young Tara had intended to write out 'Nessie', but when she realized she had no talent for embroidery and that just the first letter took what seemed like days, she pretended that solely stitching the single letter was her intention all along.

"I don't know why you do, Nessie," she laughed and rolled her sleeve over the handkerchief.

"It is my most prized possession," replied Nessie, beaming with pride.

"That's because it's your only possession," Tara remarked with a cynical grin. Nessie kissed her on the forehead and smiled. Shaking her head, Tara turned around. She flipped her curls off her shoulder and started her march into the woods once again.

"Don't stray too far!" Nessie cautioned her from the doorway.

"I know, Nessie, goodbye!" Tara called back, giving Nessie a whimsical wave as she skipped away from the cottage, hungry for an adventure. Nessie waited until Tara was nearly out of sight to begin coughing. She remained standing in the doorway with the help of her walking stick. As Tara disappeared into the wood that was just becoming green again after their sixteenth winter in hiding, Nessie's eyes filled as they had the night before. The gentle curl of Tara's long hair was distinctly her mother's, though it was notably redder and at times very light from exposure to the sun. As she swiftly weaved her path in and out of the trees, it shimmered when it caught a glimmer of mid-day light. She was no longer a girl, and though their exile had been long and lonely, at this moment it felt to Nessie as though it were just yesterday she brought that shivering infant to this abandoned cottage. Now, treading so gracefully through this forest rife with new leaves and flower buds and baby robins chirping in anticipation of their mother's return, Tara, for the first time, looked like a queen.

Tara walked straight ahead until she knew Nessie could no longer see her, and then turned due east. She was going to find out what the world was like no matter the cost. She could feel the blood pulsing in her veins as she finally neared the edge of the forest. Her ears were greeted with sounds of deep voices and swords clashing. A little ways away were circular cuts of wood lined up in a row, all with several arrows stuck in their centers. She thought this must be the training Cú Chulainn was referring to. When she reached the very edge of the last bit of trees, the narrow dirt path opened up to the flat, grassy field like a stream into the sea. She took a deep breath. Never had she set foot outside the forest before, and the moors beyond it looked so open and free and seemed to glisten in the morning light like a mirage.