Autumn's Fire

Autumn's Fire: Chapter 1

When I was a little girl, my Mum loved to tell me the story of my birth. She would wrap me up in my favorite blanket, and sitting next to the fireplace, she would hold me close as she spoke. "One night years ago, I started to have a baby," she began, and every time I giggled and squirmed as I knew she was talking about me. "Yes. That's right my love. This baby's name was Autumn. And would be the pride and joy of my life. But things didn't go so well at first. You see, your daddy was in the neighboring village that night, and I was all alone. So, for the first few hours I yelled and screamed and tried to wait, but you didn't want to wait any longer. So, even though I was in a world of pain, I walked to the Nalleths' Farm just across the way, and they helped me deliver you."

"Everything was going well, and your daddy even managed to make it back in time. But I was so scared when I saw you, because the first time I held your small body in my hands, you were so frail. In that moment, I was afraid for your life. Oh, but then a miracle happened. You opened your eyes, and in them I saw a fire so bright and strong and flickering with the colors of Autumn, that I knew no matter how the world scorned you, that your fire would always burn bright."

I loved to hear the story, but as I grew older I would look at my reflection in the glassy waters of the lake, and not once did I see anything remarkable. But Mum continued tell the story, so I kept looking. Thankfully, I eventually grew past the age of bedtime stories, and was no longer forced to confront what I had then decided were only lies. Yet still, I often found myself looking for that fire, only to find the familiar sting of disappointment as I stared at my painfully normal brown eyes.

***

My favorite reading spot had always been the hill in the center of our farming village where a large weeping willow tree sat. It was a cherished piece of our village's history as, with the help of some ages old magic, it never molted, nor wilted, nor felt the force of the seasons. I spent my days under that tree, a book from my parents' shop always in my hands. My parents ran the only non-farm goods shop in the village which meant that we got supplies from all across Aethos. My parents sold everything from magical charms to clothes to (of course) books; meaning I had a never ending stream of books and an unhealthy obsession with reading any new book before my parents could sell it.

Today, I had just gotten a new book from the shop's inventory and hadn't waited a moment longer than necessary to take my spot atop the hill. I had even forgotten to change out of the dress I had worn for chores that morning. Not that it mattered much to me, as my day was spent in total solitude, lost among the book's pages. But many peaceful hours of reading later, as the gentle heat of the evening sun caressed my face, a voice called out to me, breaking my trance.

"Autumn! Autumn! Come on! We'll be late for our picnic with the Ormiel boys!" Thali called out, panting, as she ran up the hill towards me.

As she came close, I glanced up from my book, peeved to be interrupted with only a few chapters left till the end of the book. Raising an eyebrow, I asked in an unamused tone, "Who?"

She pouted and snatched the book from my hands.

"Hey-!" I began to protest, but she cut me off.

"Oh you know who I'm talking about. The twins from the neighboring village."

I knew who she meant, but for the sake of my stolen book and a bit of entertainment, I stared up at her quizzically.

She huffed, waving my book about dramatically as she tried to explain, "The wood elves? The ones that invited us out last week?"

I shrugged and raised my hands, showing my apparent cluelessness.

She sighed sourly and plopped down on the ground next to me. Thali then started the story dejectedly, explaining the previous day and how the Ormiel twins had invited us for a double date in the meadow. I struggled to hold back a laugh as she continued, but she saw my face out of the corner of her eye.