The Warded Man

Arlen took a moment to admire his work. “Even a rock demon won’t get through that,” he said proudly. He turned, and found Renna staring at him. “What?” he asked.

“You’re taller than I remember,” the girl said, looking down and smiling shyly.

“Well, it’s been a couple of years,” Arlen replied, not knowing what else to say. When they finished their sweep, Harl called his daughter over. He and Renna spoke softly to one another, and Arlen caught her looking at him once or twice, but he couldn’t hear what was said.

Dinner was a tough stew of parsnip and corn with a meat Arlen couldn’t identify, but it was filling enough. While they ate, they told their tale.

“Wish you’da come to us first,” Harl said when they finished. “We been t’Old Mey Friman plenty times. Closer’n going all the way to Town Square t’see Trigg. If it took you two hours of cracking the whip t’get back to us, you’da reached Mack Pasture’s farm soon, you pressed on. Old Mey, she’s only an hour-so past that. She never did cotton to living in town. You’d really whipped that mare, you mighta made it tonight.”

Arlen slammed down his spoon. All eyes at the table turned to him, but he didn’t even notice, so focused was he on his father.

Jeph could not weather that glare for long. He hung his head. “There was no way to know,” he said miserably.

Ilain touched his shoulder. “Don’t blame yourself for being cautious,” she said. She looked at Arlen, reprimand in her eyes. “You’ll understand when you’re older,” she told him.

Arlen rose sharply and stomped away from the table. He went through the curtain and curled up by a window, watching the demons through a broken slat in the shutters. Again and again they tried and failed to pierce the wards, but Arlen didn’t feel protected by the magic. He felt imprisoned by it.

“Take Arlen into the barn and play,” Harl ordered his younger daughters after the rest had finished eating. “Ilain will take the bowls. Let’cher elders talk.”

Beni and Renna rose as one, bouncing out of the curtain. Arlen was in no mood to play, but the girls didn’t let him speak, yanking him to his feet and out the door into the barn.

Beni lit a cracked lantern, casting the barn in a dull glow. Harl had two old cows, four goats, a pig with eight sucklings, and six chickens. All were gaunt and bony; underfed. Even the pig’s ribs showed. The stock seemed barely enough to feed Harl and the girls.

The barn itself was no better. Half the shutters were broken, and the hay on the floor was rotted. The goats had eaten through the wall of their stall, and were pulling the cow’s hay. Mud, slop, and feces had churned into a single muck in the pig stall.

Renna dragged Arlen to each stall in turn. “Da doesn’t like us naming the animals,” she confessed, “so we do it secret. This one’s Hoofy.” She pointed to a cow. “Her milk tastes sour, but Da says it’s fine. Next to her is Grouchy. She kicks, but only if you milk too hard, or not soon enough. The goats are …”

“Arlen doesn’t care about the animals,” Beni scolded her sister. She grabbed his arm and pulled him away. Beni was taller than her sister, and older, but Arlen thought Renna was prettier. They climbed into the hayloft, plopping down on the clean hay.

“Let’s play succor,” Beni said. She pulled a tiny leather pouch from her pocket, rolling four wooden dice onto the floor of the loft. The dice were painted with symbols: flame, rock, water, wind, wood, and ward. There were many ways to play, but most rules agreed you needed to throw three wards before rolling four of any other kind.

They played at the dice for a while. Renna and Beni had their own rules, many of which Arlen suspected were made up to let them win.

“Two wards three times in a row counts as three wards,” Beni announced, after throwing just that. “We win.” Arlen disagreed, but he didn’t see much point in arguing.

“Since we won, you have to do what we say,” Beni declared.

“Do not,” Arlen said.

“Do too!” Beni insisted. Again, Arlen felt as if arguing would get him nowhere.

“What would I have to do?” he asked suspiciously.

“Make him play kissy!” Renna clapped.

Beni swatted her sister on the head. “I know, dumbs!”

“What’s kissy?” Arlen asked, afraid he already knew the answer.

“Oh, you’ll see,” Beni said, and both girls laughed. “It’s a grown-up game. Da plays it with Ilain sometimes. You practice being married.”

“What, like saying your promises?” Arlen asked, wary.

“No, dumbs, like this,” Beni said. She put her arms around Arlen’s shoulders, and pressed her mouth to his.

Arlen had never kissed a girl before. She opened her mouth to him, and so he did the same. Their teeth clicked, and both of them recoiled. “Ow!” Arlen said.

“You do it too hard, Beni,” Renna complained. “It’s my turn.”

Indeed, Renna’s kiss was much softer. Arlen found it rather pleasant. Like being near the fire when it was cold.

“There,” Renna said, when their lips parted. “That’s how you do it.”

“We have to share the bed tonight,” Beni said. “We can practice later.”

“I’m sorry you had to give up your bed on account of my mam,” Arlen said.

“It’s okay,” Renna said. “We used to have to share a bed every night, until Mam died. But now Ilain sleeps with Da.”

“Why?” Arlen asked.

“We’re not supposed to talk about it,” Beni hissed at Renna.

Renna ignored her, but she kept her voice low. “Ilain says that now that Mam’s gone, Da told her it’s her duty to keep him happy the way a wife is supposed to.”

“Like cooking and sewing and stuff?” Arlen asked.

“No, it’s a game like kissy,” Beni said. “But you need a boy to play it.” She tugged on his overalls. “If you show us your thingie, we’ll teach you.”

“I am not showing you my thingie!” Arlen said, backing away.

“Why not?” Renna asked. “Beni showed Lucik Boggin, and now he wants to play all the time.”

“Da and Lucik’s father said we’re promised,” Beni bragged. “So that makes it okay. Since you’re going to be promised to Renna, you should show her yours.” Renna bit her finger and looked away, but she watched Arlen out of the corner of her eye.

“That’s not true!” Arlen said. “I’m not promised to anyone!”

“What do you think the elders are talking about inside, dumbs?” Beni asked.

“Are not!” Arlen said.

“Go see!” Beni challenged.

Arlen looked at both girls, then climbed down the ladder, slipping into the house as quietly as he could. He could hear voices from behind the curtain, and crept closer.

“I wanted Lucik right away,” Harl was saying, “but Fernan wants him makin’ mash for another season. Without an extra back around the farm, it’s hard keepin’ our bellies full, ’specially since them chickens quit layin’ and one of the milk cows soured.”

“We’ll take Renna on our way back from Mey,” Jeph said.