Leading Elouan back to town was simple enough. Unlike yesterday, I didn’t encounter any dangerous creatures.

To be honest though, I thought they were all slowing down for winter. I had just been incredibly unlucky.

As we walked back to the village, Elouan let me chatter. Unlike everyone else, he didn’t tell me to be quiet. In fact, he hadn’t looked bothered at all. It was strange, but I appreciated it. I grew increasingly impatient for nighttime when he would play, though I knew we were lucky to even get music.

Still, I wondered what he would do for us.

Over the years I had seen Bards summon rain or waves, make flames leap and dance around them, or do various other things. It was strange, though. I knew there had to be someone who had deathly powers, right? It was an important element to balance out Life. And yet, I had never seen anything like that. Perhaps it was too dangerous.

But then again, there apparently hadn’t been a Bard who used Life magic before me, so I supposed that it was the same for Death. It made enough sense that I didn’t dwell on it for too long.

It was only a few minutes before we reached the village. It had felt like so much longer, coming inside of the dense wood. But perhaps that was just my nerves. Yes, that was probably it.

“Thank you for getting me here,” Elouan said, bowing slightly. I giggled at the dramatic display of gratitude that was similar to my own behavior at times. I curtsied back at him. As I turned to go back home, though, he caught my shoulder.

“Wait. I don’t suppose you know where the tavern is?” He had a strange grin on his face.

I giggled again. “You can’t be serious. Of course I do. Here, I’ll show you.”

The Bard began following me, and I heard him murmuring to his bird who had kept strangely silent on the way back. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a flash of dark pink and purple. I turned to look, puzzled, but it was gone.

I must be going mad, I thought. I’m quite sure I saw the same thing just yesterday. Perhaps I should ask Mother about it.

No, I don’t think she’d appreciate me bothering her like that. I’ll just keep it to myself.

As we came to a more populated portion of the town, I saw people stop and stare. They must have thought it was strange, that I was accompanying a Bard. They usually walked in on their own, or at least, that’s what I had heard of them.

Suddenly, a little boy dashed in front of me. Lorcan was his name, if I was remembering correctly.

“Calli, who’s that with you?” he asked. I leaned down and ruffled his hair.

“Oh, just a friend. Don’t worry about it. Run along, now.” Just then, his mother came running.

“Come, Lorcan. You know how she gets.” She started to tug him away. Still, he turned his head to look at me.

“But Mama, she’s nice to me. Why can’t I talk to her?”

“Because then she won’t stop.” At this, she sent me a critical glare. I shrunk, but tried to look unphased. This happened nearly daily, but it still cut me like a hot knife. Instead of arguing with the woman, though, I started walking again. Elouan kept close behind me, and I could almost feel his quiet gaze burning into my neck.

“What was that back there?” He finally asked.

“Oh. Nothing,” I replied. He stopped me and I turned around to look at his disbelieving face.

“That didn’t look like nothing,” he told me. I shook my head.

“It wasn’t anything special. That happens a lot. Don’t worry about it, please.” I turned around again and started walking to the tavern, which was thankfully close.

He didn’t ask any more questions, for which I was grateful. I didn’t like talking about my personal problems, since they were so small and insignificant. Besides, nobody liked to hear me talk about anything, let alone complain.

It was only a couple of minutes before I finally stopped outside of the inn.

“Thank you for tolerating my presence,” Elouan said as he bowed again.

“Oh, I should be telling you the same. It was my pleasure,” I told him lightly. As we parted ways, though, I dreaded going back home. I would have to get through each street without getting harassed about leading a Bard through town. And now that he wasn’t with me, nobody would mind making a scene.

Still, I couldn’t just stand here all day. Once I got home I could cool off and ease my anxiety.

But I had to get through the crowd before I could do that.

The first few minutes of walking were fine. Luckily enough, I got through most of town without trouble. When I started nearing the outskirts, however, things started to change. There were plenty who merely asked who I had been with before accepting my short answer and leaving.

There were many who didn’t have that same idea, though. Including one I didn’t particularly like.

“Calliope,” the voice said.

I internally groaned and turned around, plastering a small smile on my face.

“Darragh, I have to get home. Go bother someone else, please.”

He snorted. “Me, bother people? You say that like you’re one to talk. Who was that you were with? Niamh saw you talking his ear off as you came into town. You weren’t pestering him, were you?”

I gritted my teeth. “I’ve already asked you to leave.”

He ignored me. “If my eyes haven’t deceived me, I could have sworn he had a lute slung over his shoulder. That wasn’t our next Bard, was it?”

“It was the next Bard, but he didn’t tell me to be quiet. If he had, I would have listened.” I started walking away.

Instead, the pest stepped in front of me, blocking my path. “Ha! So if we seem like a terrible village, it sounds like you’re to blame! You’re shameful to us all, you know. How about next time you just shut your mouth for once in your life?”

I stepped around him. “You’re the one who isn’t shutting his mouth.”

“Am I often one to do that?”

“Yes, actually. To me quite often, and I’m getting tired of your antics.”

“Well, the rest of us are tired of yours.”

Suddenly, a third voice joined ours.

“Both of you, stop it.”

Stolen novel; please report.

Clodagh, the only one in the village who tolerated me somewhat, stepped in front of me.

“Darragh, stop bothering Calliope. She’s not worth your time and you’ll only end up messing with your own reputation if you keep talking to her. Just let her go home before you seem like you’re stalking her.”

His face flushed and he mumbled a tiny apology to me before practically scurrying off.

“Thank you, Clodagh.”

She looked at me harshly. “Mention I did this and you’ll regret it. I just don’t like arguing, so forget it ever happened. Now go bother someone else.” I gave her a small nod. I quickly walked back home, and when I got inside, I felt like crawling into a hole and staying there for a long time.

Sometimes people just hurt each other.

And sometimes I felt like that was all they knew.

—

Night didn’t seem to come quick enough, and when it did, the stars were bright. As I looked to the sky with its scattered dots of light, I felt a sense of calm come over me. It seemed as though the stars had decided to protect us tonight, which was good. Otherwise, terrible creatures would come from the woods.

I remembered a time when a girl my age had wandered after a strange, handsome man who came from the forest. He had the strangest way of walking, almost like he wasn’t completely human.

Still, that hadn’t stopped her, and we hadn’t seen her since.

I’d been warned against following handsome men since then, as had all the other girls. Not that I was going to risk myself like that.

But enough of dark thoughts. Usually we had Bards play in the tavern, but tonight was clear and beautiful. Besides, it was an excuse to build a bonfire. Everybody loved them.

As we gathered around to hear Elouan play, I watched him intently. I had tried so very hard to discover what his powers were, but nothing had revealed them to me. I didn’t feel comfortable asking him, though.

Instead of asserting himself or making us settle down like every other Bard had, he just began playing when we were quiet.

“There once was a wolf and there once was a hare,

They chased each other to and fro,

And they ended up everywhere.”

As he sung in a lively tone, he started to glitter and a couple of familiar animals materialized in the air. They began to run around the fire, leaving trails of bright dust in their wake. The stars even seemed to glow brighter in the presence of the Bard’s magic.

"Once the wolf said to the hare,

“Why won’t you let me catch you?”

But then the hare said “I wouldn’t dare,

“For you would only eat me!”

The wolf thought he was quite clever,

And he said, “But listen, you see,

“What if I just want a friend?”

The hare stopped and reconsidered,

Then he said, “I fear you would be my end!”

I giggled as the ridiculous song kept going and the wolf and hare began a comical interaction. The wolf lunged for the hare, who stayed out of his reach, and the hare merely hopped away in response. I saw several mothers trying to keep their children quiet while holding back their own laughter. Fortunately, they had been successful so far, but I feared they would lose their composure the further the song went on.

"Now, the wolf was displeased,

For he’d thought that would work.

Instead, the hare stayed from his reach,

"And he was growing quite hungry.

But still, he had no meal,

For he was growing angry.

"Yet, the hare was smart and stayed away,

So in the end, the hare was safe,

From the wolf who couldn’t get his way."

As the song ended, the two magical apparitions disappeared and Elouan’s bird squawked merrily, mimicking the song. He smiled faintly at his pet and reached up to play with the feathers on it’s neck.

The night went on in a delicate manner, filled with songs both melancholy and joyful. In each one, the stars seemed to grow brighter, lighting up the night, and the world looked as though it were glittering. I had never seen anything like it before.

In the end, I decided I would just have to ask him.

When he finally ended and the townspeople began heading back home, I stepped forward. He looked at me and smiled.

“Hello, again.”

I dipped my head before speaking. “What kind of magic do you have? It was so different from anything I’ve seen before.” His look darkened somewhat, and he looked as though he regretted something. I hoped it wasn’t me, but the beautiful bird on his shoulder nipped his ear. He quietly thanked it, though I wasn’t sure why.

“I am one of the few with Astral magic, powers from the stars. I suppose we’re uncommon enough that almost nobody has seen one of us. I get this question a lot, actually.” He was back to smiling in an instant, though his eyes still looked a little empty.

Still, though, his explanation made sense. The stars had dimmed somewhat now, but they were still quite bright. Come to think of it, most of the Bards I’d seen had some pet of some sort, and Elouan was no different. I wondered what that was like.

“Would you mind showing me to your home? Since you’ve been blessed, I suppose I have to ask your parents before taking you to the Elders.” I gasped lightly. I had been so caught up in the excitement of the day that I had almost forgotten, really.

I curtsied quickly. “Of course. But . . . I’ve never actually left home. Is it safe? Won’t I get hurt?” I shut my mouth before any more questions could come tumbling out, though my head was filled with them.

He chuckled. “Of course, it’s not completely safe. But I know what I’m doing, and soon enough you will too. Nothing bad will happen.” I breathed a sigh of relief. My head was still spinning with worries and excuses.

Still, we both had places to be. I began leading him home, since my parents had both left much quicker than I had.

—

A few minutes later, I let him in and introduced him to my parents. They looked at me, surprised, confused, and flustered. Mother immediately left the room under the excuse that she needed to prepare tea, while Father sent me a suspicious glance.

“I hope I am not intruding,” Elouan told him. His bird crooned.

“Of course you aren’t,” Father told him. “But what did my daughter do to make you come here? I hope she hasn’t disappointed you. We’ll take care of it immediately if she has, just say the word.” I looked at him, wounded, but he pointedly ignored me.

Elouan looked startled. “I wouldn’t be here if she was any trouble. I think she’s quite funny, really. I came to ask if I could take her off your hands for a while.”

Father practically fell from his seat. Mother still wasn’t back, though I knew she must be listening from the kitchen. The house wasn’t big, and I knew there was plenty of eavesdropping to be had from the different rooms.

‘Wh-what?” he spluttered, struggling to regain his composure. “Explain what you mean by that, please.”

The Bard smiled thinly, though he had a harsh look in his eyes. “I mean exactly what I said. Apparently, Calliope has been found to have a pure heart and has been gifted. I need to take her where she can learn my profession, and she won’t be back for quite some time.”

Just then, Mother came out and she and Father shared the strangest look. I tried to discern what they were thinking, but they kept both of their faces passive. I couldn’t read them, no matter how hard I tried.

“Alright,” Father said. “Just keep her safe and don’t . . . do anything to her.” He walked forward to stiffly shake hands with Elouan, and both had hard looks in their eyes. My legs felt very wobbly as I realized what this meant.

Shakily, I finally spoke up. “I suppose you must need to be going. I’ll lead you out.” Elouan nodded.

We both left the house and he suddenly pulled me into a hug. I stiffened, knowing that this must look quite scandalous.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured before stepping away. His vibrant bird began preening his hair and he gestured to it.

“If we’re going to be traveling together for the time being, I suppose I should introduce you two. Calliope, this is Estel, my familiar. Don’t mind her whenever she starts singing, she just loves to mimic the songs I play.” I gently reached out to touch Estel’s wing and she crooned softly as I began stroking her velvety feathers.

Stars, she was soft. I wondered if Elouan ever got used to petting her, because I didn’t think I would.

“Thank you for doing this for me,” I told him. “I feel as though you could have chosen to just leave, instead of bringing me to these ‘Elders’.” He dipped his head.

“We leave early tomorrow, so I suggest you pack tonight. Also, don’t take too much. It wouldn’t be good if you didn’t travel light enough and had to stop often.” I nodded in response.

“I suppose we’ll see each other tomorrow. Thank you for doing this, again.”

“It was my pleasure. Good day, then.” He took off down the path and I watched as he left.

That had been quite strange. Why had he hugged me? I was quite sure that nobility were taught good manners, and he wasn’t familiar with me. Still, I couldn’t recall the last time I’d gotten one, and it had been nice.

The rest of the night seemed to pass by in a flash. I could hardly sleep, knowing what was happening tomorrow, though I knew I should try.

It took a while before I managed to close my eyes for longer than a few seconds, but I finally succeeded and fell into a deep slumber.