Chasing Sparks

Chapter 20.1

There was no sign telling Celie she had arrived in the Forest Quarter but the fact that the people were pretty much all Foresters, meant she was probably in the right place. The stores had changed too, they were closed now but she could tell from the signs that the wares being sold were forest related.

She had just passed a herbal store, an apothecary, a dried fruit store and a furniture shop. The last was clearly owned by a dryad affine, as the facade was a beautifully shaped willow tree, with the branches encouraged to form the door arch and windows. It looked quite beautiful.

Celie was beginning to wonder how large this Quarter was and whether she would need to ask someone where the Waterfall was, when she saw the sign on the Inn across the way. A waterfall. The place was crowded, with Foresters spilling out of the front door onto the street. The banter here seemed a little more good natured than other inns she had visited and didn’t immediately feel the need to be on her guard, though she was anyway.

She pushed her way through the throng and settled herself against the wall inside the common room, as was her want. She relaxed a bit and allowed her mind to wander to the events of earlier today. Why would a Sneak from House Dwain be following her? It was almost certainly not good news but still the question hung there. Why?

“Follow me,” a voice said.

Celie tensed in surprise, and felt herself reflexively reaching for her bow.

The characteristic long sigh followed. “You really need to work on how you react to being spoken to. You would make a terrible Sneak,” the voice said.

Celie, shook her head. “I’d make a terrible baker too. But fortunately, I don’t care about cakes.”

“Oooh. Tetchy. Now follow me.”

The little Forester appeared from behind the person to her left and headed out the door at the back of the room. Celie followed.

Behind the door was a large storeroom with barrels and crates stacked high on each side. It wasn’t particularly clean, yet it was mostly clear of dust from frequent use. The little man leaped lithely over one crate, ducked under a second, before stopping and remaining completely motionless in front of a third. When he seemed satisfied, he moved the third crate to the side, revealing a hole in the floor underneath.

The Forester was not young anymore but she had to marvel at the light footed way he jumped down the hole. Celie was slightly more circumspect as she slid down on her backside. The hole was narrow and anyone much larger than herself would have had trouble squeezing through. At the bottom of the short slope, she stood up, her head a finger’s width from the ceiling and followed the little Forester.

The little guy seemed to be as at home here as she was sure he would be in the woods. They went down a narrow passage in which she found herself having to duck repeatedly to avoid rocks and other man-made obstacles like spikes sticking out from the ceiling and sides.

“Easy enough for me and you to avoid. Not so easy for our larger friends,” the Forester said by way of explanation.

The Forester paused at a small door and knocked four times in rapid succession, followed by a further three quick knocks. A crack of light appeared and the door swung inwards.

It revealed a surprisingly large room with a much higher ceiling, thankfully. She immediately took in the small table and chair on the right-hand side and the bedroll laid out next to it. Other than that, the only other items in the room seemed to be crates and barrels, making the room some kind of holding or storage area.

There was one other thing in the spacious room, however, the stranger holding the door open. He closed the door as Celie and her guide entered.

“Celie,” the Sneak said, “This is Edge.”