The Violet Thread (Part One: Portal Rods)

Chapter Eleven

From any outside perspective the three had a lovely time of dancing, and eating, and chatting with the villagers. Several of the girls had invited Sawyer and Wyeth to walk them home, but they boys had politely declined always citing the other as their reason for abstaining. Violet had stayed on the outskirts of the festivities for the most part, declining the majority of invitations. She had been coerced to dance by a young boy, whom she wouldn't put as a day over eleven. He had come with flushed cheeks and a bouquet of wildflowers. She simply couldn't bring herself to say no. She had forced a smile and even gave him a kiss on the cheek when the song ended. He skidded off to his friend in the corner of the square and was greeted with high fives, wide eyes, and open mouths. She could hear his friends explaining their disbelief, both that he had asked and that she had accepted. The kiss was just the icing on the cake. It was her only honest smile of the evening. Even the lanterns soaring into the sky only brought her painful reminiscence of home. She had never experienced such a display, but there was something about the simple beauty of the occasion that brought her back to the place that she missed so much, even if she didn't allow herself to think of it often. Her hand went back to her mother's necklace. How long had it been since she had fingered the pendant and thought of her parents and how they must miss her...how they must worry? It had been her suggestion to attend the evening's festivities, and yet, for her, it seemed to make everything worse. But she was determined not to let the others know. They needed this evening too. Katia had been right and she would not be the reason Sawyer and Wyeth didn't get to relax and enjoy this magnificent display.

She flashed a smile in their direction and they returned her grin. But it didn't entirely reach their eyes and she wondered, could any of them truly let go, even for an evening?

The next morning over breakfast they regaled Mama Kat with stories from the evening. They were overzealous with their descriptions of "how much fun they had" and Katia let them ramble, each story reassuring her of their disappointment in the celebrations. It was a tricky game they played, each trying to please and persuade the others. None actually falling for the ruse, yet all playing along. As if, in trying to convince the others they could convince themselves. Katia let them be for the day. Occasionally, she would call them for help with Arach below or send them to conference with another boat. But she added no extraneous work. She was determined to give them the respite they needed and so desperately deserved.

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"And what are you perusing this evening, my dear?" Wyeth asked plopping himself on the ground next to Violet's bed, the back of his head being brushed by the light rock of the hammock. It had been hung in the corner of the boat across from his own since Arach was on the couch down below. She had been reading since mid afternoon and was in the second chapter into second book of the day.

Violet put one leg out to steady the hammock and dropped the cover in front of his eyes. He had to pull it back to see the title clearly.

"A History of Conflict, so you opted for a little light reading, I see. Excellent choice. Some might say it's a little too playful for the current state of things, but I applaud your ability to keep your humor through it all." He tilted his head back and beamed a grin at her. She lightly tapped him on the head with the book before pulling back in.

"You'd think I'd start to see those coming," Wyeth said, rubbing his head.

She laid it on her chest and closed her eye. "I don't know how you do it, make everything a joke." Wyeth's smiled faltered. "I just want to learn...to understand. He has a big advantage over us. He has, literally, thousands of years worth of practice and experience. We have a couple weeks in a cave. It's not exactly the best odds. And we have no clue what to do next. A vision that leads us nowhere..."