Earth's Requiem(28)
“Of course we do,” Rune answered. “We see these things more clearly sometimes.”
“I didn’t ask you,” she told the wolf. Aislinn shifted her attention to Fionn. “Maybe you could tell me what happened.”
“Later,” he snapped, jaw tight. A small muscle twitched beneath one eye.
Aislinn understood that he was still angry. Angry enough to throttle his bird. Glad I’m not the only one who gets out of control.
“So, uh, how long have you lived here?” she asked, trying for a neutral topic.
“Since the beginning.”
“And before that?”
He blew out a tense-sounding breath, sucked down air, and exhaled again.
Sensing he was too tightly wound to sit back down, she came to her feet. “How about if we go hunting? It’s about time for supper, and I’m hungry.” And it’s okay by me if we put off the “I’ll show you mine if you’ll show me yours” conversation. Makes me just as uncomfortable as it makes you.
“Good idea.” He slammed a hand over her eyes and ushered them out of his house. She felt his magic at work. Once they were outside, he chanted, resetting the wards to render his dwelling invisible. The familiar tasks seemed to relax him.
Looks like the animals aren’t the only temperamental ones. She chuckled inwardly. What a pack of oddballs they were. “How about rabbits and greens?” she suggested a shade too brightly.
“Ever eaten marmot?”
“Yeah, I like them, too.”
“We’ll get the meat,” Rune volunteered.
“Excellent.” Bella’s wings pumped air. “Two each,” she called back. Apparently feeling challenged, Rune took off at a lope and disappeared into thick timber.
“I’m surprised she left us alone,” Fionn commented dryly.
Seems like a good lead-in. Maybe if I keep quiet, he’ll tell me more. She followed him back toward the lake, plucking edible greens she recognized along the way. By the time they reached the water’s edge, her hands were already full.
“Can’t carry any more.”
He turned toward her, taking in the mixture of growing things draped over both arms. “I’ve always just gotten watercress or onions. What are all those things?”
“Well.” She pointed with her nose. “These are Fairy Bells. This one is False Mermaid. Here’s Burdock. And these are Mariposa Lilies.” She plucked a couple of bunches from underneath the others. “Mint.”
“Even I know that one, but not the others. How’d you learn about them?”
“My father. He was interested in things like that and took me into the backcountry with him—a lot.” Fionn seemed relaxed, so she took a chance, infusing a smidgeon of calming magic into her next words. “What did you mean about being surprised your bird left us to ourselves?”
He shifted from foot to foot, but held her gaze. “Oh, that. Ah, I’ve had a couple of female partners. She didn’t like either of them.”
“What’d she do?”
He bent and pulled a bunch of wild onions out of the ground. “Why do you want to know?”
“So I can be ready if she tries the same thing with me.”
“She likes you.”
“How can you tell?”
“She wouldn’t have left us otherwise. And she likes your wolf.” He spoke matter-of-factly. “The other problem was she hated the wolverine and the owl.”
“How could anyone hate an owl?” Aislinn was mystified. “They’re so beautiful.”
He shrugged. “If you ask Bella, I’m sure she’ll tell you her reasons. I think we have enough. Let’s head back.”
Curiosity burned a hole in her guts. He still hadn’t told her very much. What the hell could a bird do that would run a human woman off?
“She has a sharp beak. And a sharper tongue,” Fionn muttered.
“You can read my thoughts?” Aislinn stopped walking, thunderstruck.
He nodded. “Uh-huh. It’s my second gift. A variant of the Healer magic. It’s why I knew how, uh…never mind.”
She understood. It was why he’d known how desperate her body was earlier. “It’s okay.” Walking close, she stood on tiptoe and kissed his stubble-covered cheek. “When Rune told me he knew my mind, it was a shock. Like my privacy had been violated. Guess I’ve had a chance to get used to the idea.” Stepping back, she turned and headed the way they’d come. He fell in next to her.
“Both my Hunter partners really tried to make peace with Bella, but that bird is intransigent. Once she makes up her mind, there’s no reasoning with her. And…” He paused for a second. “I suppose they weren’t all that important to me. Bella knows me better than I know myself sometimes.”