Ancient Things We Hold

Chapter 25

The Hope in Light

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Despite her estrangement to Aldwyn, they both still smiled when a messenger boy arrived at their doorstep with a letter from the printers saying that the writings will be printed if a certain Hoday A Elisentev would come for a meeting to receive the notes on the changes required. Once this man made the changes, then the men at the printers would begin to write it out into the proper format.

This was a true victory. The hope had become worthwhile and, for just a single moment, the animosity between Aldwyn and Hodaya slipped away as they gazed at the letter in wonder. The joy she had experienced with the hope was nothing compared to that which took her spirit in that moment.

She was to be a true theologian! A printed one with writings that could be read by people all over the known world. Oh, to be a scholar! Her papa had always wished she would marry a scholar. In fact, she had done so herself several times when faced with the prospect of marrying uneducated bores instead. Now, could either of them ever have hoped that she would become one herself?

"Will you go in my place?" she asked Aldwyn when all three of them had finished reading the letter.

He looked at her. Even though they hadn't spoken properly for at least a fortnight now, he still knew how much this meant to her. The fact that she was receiving this opportunity was a miracle. For somebody like her, hard work in scholarship rarely happened and when it did, it seldom got noticed. Yet there she stood with the letter in her trembling hand, all the while knowing that all she had worked on for so long- even amongst the adversity- was to be shared.

"Of course," he replied, as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

She nodded at him in thanks, then the two returned to the coldness they had both adopted. Poor Tamar was in the middle of it, trying to act as the peacemaker but to no use. They just felt too differently at that moment in time to be as they once had. To avoid the sideways comments and the angry bickering, it was best for everyone if the distance continued.

When he returned from the meeting and gave her all the requirements, she started work immediately. It was difficult to lean over a desk whilst carrying her child within her (particularly seeing as how unexpectedly large she had grown), but she sat to the side and scribbled for as much time as the other responsibilities would permit her, not caring how it made her back ache.

Some of the changes she was unwilling to make. When it came to certain words, tone and form, she understood why it was necessary to perfect her still somewhat amateur writing. As Holy Men who had been reading and printing for many years after being educated in that change, they knew best. However, when it came to leaving out certain critical information that perhaps showed other faiths to be more than their stereotypes and the faith of the Kingdom to be distorted by the people, her honesty would not permit it.

By the time she had finished rewriting, she was just a week away from when she was supposed to be giving birth. Even then, she walked into the town centre and deposited the changed works. Aldwyn looked up at her with hidden concern when she went, but said nothing.

"My husband couldn't heed some of your requests. He deemed some of them to be...a distortion of facts, I believe he said. However, most was changed. He will not compromise on any of the remaining requests, your holiness," she said.

The Holy Man looked at her in an exasperated fashion. He placed his elbows on the desk and carefully rested his chin in his hands, never once moving his eyes off of her. Perhaps he didn't want to argue with her while she was so far along in the family way. However, his mannerisms made her quite uncomfortable even if he was unwilling to argue.