“You don’t have to carry both,” said Annabelle. “We can share the load.”
“Don’t worry about it,” he replied. “I need the exercise.”
Tracy Tanner spotted him and called out to him as they walked back to Annabelle’s house. “Come by after you finish!” she said loudly. “We have a gift for you.”
Will nodded, and then noticed Annabelle looking at him from the side of her eyes. “What?” he asked.
“She’s been talking about you for months,” said the girl. “She tells everyone how you saved Joey.”
“That’s crazy,” said Will, feeling uncomfortable. “I just made a poultice for him.”
“She thinks you used magic to heal him,” said Annabelle. “You’ll probably make a great doctor.”
“Doctors don’t use magic,” argued Will.
“You don’t have to hide it from me, Will,” she replied. “Everyone knows that sorcerer stopped at your house last year.”
“He just wanted some herbs.”
“I think he was there looking for a new apprentice,” she opined.
Will laughed. “Sorcerers don’t take apprentices. They pass their elementals to their heirs.”
Annabelle gave him an odd look. “You seem to know a lot about how they work.”
He put the buckets down in front of her door as he searched for an answer. “My master is pretty knowledgeable. He’s taught me about a lot of things.”
She gave him a sly look. “Mm hmm.”
Will glanced around. “I’d better get going.”
Annabelle put a hand on his arm. “Will you be coming back for the Festival of Elthas?”
He stopped dead in his tracks and his heart went cold. He hadn’t thought about the name of the fae lord in connection with the holiday. Were they one and the same? It was held near the end of May, and from what he knew it was a holiday particular to Barrowden. Like most such events, there would be a lot of drinking and dancing and some of the village men would wear antlers on their heads in honor of the pagan god.
“What’s wrong?” asked Annabelle. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
“Nothing,” he answered, forcing himself to focus on the girl once more. “I was just remembering something I forgot to do. I’ll be in trouble later.”
Annabelle returned to her original topic, ignoring his remark. “I only mentioned it because Eric’s been asking me if I would accompany him to the dance, but I haven’t decided how to answer him.”
He wasn’t paying attention and he replied hastily, “That’s wonderful, Anna. I really need to go.”
The girl flinched, and he knew instantly that he’d said something wrong. Replaying her words in his mind, he felt like a fool. Apologizing, he backed away. “I have to hurry. Sorry!”
He crossed the lane and headed down it toward the Tanners’, and when he looked back Annabelle had already gone inside. She must think I’m an idiot, he decided. And I’m inclined to agree with her.
Joseph Tanner opened the door to their home as soon as Will came into view; apparently, he had been watching for him. He offered his hand and Will shook it, feeling strange at the older man’s show of respect.
“I wanted to thank you for what you did for us, and to apologize for how I spoke to you that day,” said Joseph.
Will dipped his head. “You were just worried. You shouldn’t apologize.”
“I feel better doing it,” said Mr. Tanner. “Come inside.” He stepped back, holding the door wide.
Feeling embarrassed, Will did, trying not to wrinkle his nose at the smell. While he loved the smell of leather, going to the source of such goods was a pungent education. Since they operated a tannery behind their home, it was inevitable that some of the acrid smell from the tanning pits found its way inside.
He fervently hoped he wouldn’t be offered food, for his appetite had all but vanished.
Tracy Tanner smiled as he came in and motioned toward her son, who was now over three. “He hardly even has a scar. I can’t thank you enough.”
“I really didn’t do much,” said Will humbly.
“Don’t be so modest,” countered Joseph Tanner. “Your mother tries to play it down, but we know you worked a miracle to save our boy.”
Tracy held up a leather satchel in her hands, pushing it toward him. “I made this for you.”
Remembering his weeks of cutting wood, Will felt a momentary panic. The old man will work me to death if I accept this. “I don’t deserve something like that,” he protested.
Joseph took the bag from her and pressed it into his hands. “It’s made from one of my best hides. Tracy spent half the summer stitching it for you.”
The leather felt soft, almost buttery in his hands, similar to doehide, though it was made of more durable cowhide. It was a wide satchel, with a sturdy flap closing it and a long strap for his shoulder. Feeling guilty, he looked inside and was amazed to find that it was divided down the center, with one side forming a large space while the other was subdivided into multiple compartments. Both sides of the interior had been carefully lined with linen. Will closed it again and then noticed that the outside flap was tooled and decorated with a pattern of oak leaves.
“I can’t afford this,” he stammered, still thinking of his grandfather.
Tracy clucked. “It isn’t a matter of affording. We owe you a debt and this is the only way we have to repay you.”
When he still looked hesitant, her husband chimed in, “It would be rude to refuse a gift like this.”
Will bowed his head in defeat. “Thank you. I’ll treasure it.”
“I thought all the compartments might be useful for herbs or whatnot,” said Tracy. “When you’re out gathering.”
That wasn’t really true. If he was gathering wild herbs, he generally tied them into bundles and hung them over his shoulder; putting them into a bag would bruise them, but the satchel would still be useful for any number of other things. “It’s very thoughtful of you,” said Will.
By the time he left a few minutes later, Will was beginning to experience a burning pain all over his body. He ran all the way to Eric’s house, hoping to use up more energy, but he was still itching when he got there. To his disappointment, neither Eric nor his father were home.
“It’s been forever since I’ve had a chance to look at you, Will!” said his Aunt Doreen as she invited him in. She held him out at arm’s length and studied him from head to toe, while Sammy smirked at him from behind her mother. “Are you eating enough? Why are you so skinny?”
“Well…”
“I can’t believe your mother is letting you live with that old man,” declared his aunt before he could respond. “It’s shameful. She could do a lot better for you if she’d get over that willful pride of hers.”
He had no idea what she meant by that, and the expression on her face when she saw his questioning look told him that she had said more than she meant to. She quickly tried to cover up her slip. “I just meant she could find you a proper apprenticeship in Cerria, if she just put a little effort into it.”