Starling Rise

Chapter 3 Part 1: Punished

After getting home Eris was sent straight up the ladder to bed. She'd sort of expected that under the circumstances. What she hadn't expected was Father's reaction when he got home and heard what she'd done; he laughed. Full on knee-slapping belly laughter. She had never heard him do that before.

"She said that to his face?" he chortled. "Priceless!"

Mother didn't share his amusement. "Our daughter insulted a Celestulus!" She sounded both angry and afraid. "And not just any Celestulus either. He had white hair. They all did."

Father grunted. "White, huh. Royalty or high level aristocrats. Wonder what they're doing so far from their precious city in the clouds."

Eris heard the frustration in her mother's voice. "This is serious, Billis! He could have crushed her skull with just two fingers! We need to make Eris realize she can't confront their kind like that."

"What do you want me to do? I'm in the fields all day."

"What if they come back looking for her?" Eris could hear Mother pacing. "One slip-up and everything could be ruined--"

"Magda." Father cut in sharply. Then suddenly they were quiet. A few minutes later she heard their door close. She peered down the ladder to see Willet sitting cross-legged on the hearth, playing with his wooden toy animals.

"Willet," she whispered loudly. "Willet!"

He turned his back to her and continued playing silently.

"Hey! Listen to me!"

"Why." His voice was flat and sullen. "You never listen to me."

Eris winced. "Look I'm sorry I didn't stay in the cart, okay? You were right. I'm a terrible sister."

After a moment he turned back halfway around, but didn't look at her.

"Will, c'mon. I said I'm sorry. Get me some bread and butter won't you? I'm starving."

"Didn't you hear what Mother said?" Willet finally looked up at her. "They might come back. They might take you away." He sniffed, rubbing his eye. "Why can't you just be good?"

With a sigh, Eris crawled back to the straw mattress and lay down, curling into a ball to await her punishment. The next morning no one spoke to her. It was torture, nibbling at a small plate of scrambled eggs in silence. Finally as she was about to go outside to do chores Mother announced, "When you're done out there we will color your hair. Then you will do Willet's chores as well."

Eris hung her head. "Okay." At least Mother hadn't fed her crusts.

"There will be no more stories from my book."

Eris jerked her head up, aghast. "No! Mother, please! I'll do anything--"

Mother's stern glare silenced her immediately. "Bad choices always lead to bad consequences, Eris. You need to accept them." She turned back to her stove. "There will be no more playing outside. No archery, no creek, no woods. When you are not working you will be in the house. Is that understood?"

"For how long!?" Eris's eyes were wide with horror.

"Until Father and I feel you have learned your lesson."

Eris closed her eyes in dismay and left the house, dragging her water bucket. She was sorry she had caused so much trouble. But she was also angry and confused. If the Celestulus were bad and did things like steal planets and bottles of perry, why was she supposed to respect them? Why shouldn't she be mean right back? It didn't make sense.

The day slowly crawled by, as did the next. And the next. Her body ached from nonstop farmwork. Each night Eris barely had the energy to chew her food. She became quiet, doing her work in silence. No more singing, daydreaming, or chattering, and only looking forward to meals and sleep. Sometimes she saw Mother giving her worried glances, but the punishment continued. Painting fences, cleaning out the shed, organizing Father's tools, washing the horses, trimming the animals' hooves; the tasks never ended.

Then one evening, nearly two months after the town incident, Eris was out until dark collecting wood chips for garden mulch and kindling. When she finally staggered into the house to the table, everyone had already eaten and was sitting around the hearth.

Willet, who had long since forgiven her, sprang to his feet and ushered Eris to the table. "I saved you some bread and stew," he murmured, leaning close. "Eat it real quiet; Father is in a bad mood."

Eris nodded, too tired to reply. Her hair, recently colored dark brown, was sweaty and falling out of her braid in chunks. Her feet ached even more than her back and arms, and her head pounded as if someone were on the inside swinging away with a mallet. Her brother sat next to her the entire time she ate, talking quietly. At first Eris barely paid attention to what he was saying; it was a struggle just staying awake. But then she realized he was telling her something important.

"Huh?"

He leaned closer and whispered, "I said, tomorrow is my birthday and I told Mother the only thing I wanted was for you to stop being punished, at least for a day. It's boring having nothing to do and no one to play with."

"What did Mother say?"

"She said she'd talk to Father about it."

Eris sighed as she scooped up the last bit of stew with her chunk of bread. "I'm never going to stop being punished. It's my lot in life."

"Don't be such a drip."

She got up to rinse out her bowl in the water basin.

"Eris." Father glanced over at her.

She froze in place, waiting. Willet stepped up close beside her, holding his breath.

Father looked at her from his chair by the fireplace, his face still streaked with dirt from the fields. "I need to go hunting tomorrow, and since Will is turning seven, I will be taking him along." He paused, glancing at Mother, who gave him a look. "You can come too, but you will not be hunting."

Eris felt like jumping up and down with joy, but could only manage a wide grin. "Thank you, Father." She reached out and squeezed Willet's hand. He squeezed back, beaming.

"You so much as swing a slingshot at a mouse," Father added sharply, "you will be sent back here. Is that clear?"

"Yes Father. Thank you. Thank you, Mother." Eris turned to her brother and mouthed 'thank you'. He winked.

*to be cont*