Orn looked down at the bow slowly taking shape in his lap. This is taking forever.

“It is not that bad, considering it was just a quarter of a tree a few weeks ago.” Kao’s shoes appeared at the edge of his vision.

“Sure, but you are not the one scraping it into a useful shape.” Orn held up the metal blade he had been working with before setting it aside. Looking up at the goddess he smiled, “I have not seen you since I got here. What have you been up to? More secret stuff you will not tell me about?”

“Even if I am not allowed near the loom, I still have the other tasks mother gave me. I still need to do them I am a very dutiful person.” Then in a mocking tone she added, “Why did you miss me?”

“I do not know.” He scrunched up his face in exaggerated concentration, “Honestly, I assumed you were always invisibly following me around.”

She crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. “I have better things to do, than follow you around. Besides you have barely been alone in the time you have been here. So it is not as if we could talk.”

Orn grinned predatorily, “So you have been following m…” His words died as he heard footsteps approaching.

“Do not project your clingy-ness on me,” Kao stuck her tongue out, “and talk to your aunt.”

Kao disappeared and Orn turned to see Aunty come around the corner, into the garden. She looked across the garden as if searching for something.

Apparently not finding what she was looking for, her attention focused on Orn. “I could have sworn I heard talking. What have you been doing back here all alone. Honestly you spend more time back here than I do.”

Orn lifted the rough bow from his lap. “Working on my bow.”

Aunty looked Orn’s bow up and down before nodding. “You are making good progress at it, but the boys are getting worried. You have been holing yourself up back here alone for too long. Leave it alone for the afternoon and go play with your cousins. Your bow will still be here when you come back.”

Orn nodded and shouldered the half finished bow. As he followed Aunty away, he struggled not to turn back to where the goddess had been standing. I wish we could talk more. I miss spending time with you.

Unwilling to risk the goddess’s mocking by admitting it, he carried the bow to his room. Placing the bow against a corner he saw his sword lying against his bed. Maybe if I can finish this bow, I can use practicing as an excuse to see her. The garden is the only place where there is not someone watching you at all times.

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…

[Kao’s POV]

She watched as Orn followed his aunt around the corner, with a growing since of loneliness. “Fine. Maybe I do spend a lot of time following you around.” Kao’s words hung in the air unheard by the mortals walking around the corner. “It is boring without you to talk to. I cannot exactly talk to my sisters, and after having someone to talk to. She looked around at the empty garden, It all seems so quite now.

Kao shook her head to chase the thought away. You are losing your mind Kao. Feeling bad because you cannot talk to single mortal? You have gone centuries without talking to anyone.

Her internal debate continued in this way until two sets of hurried foot steps could be heard. Kao resisted the urge to groan as she watched a pair of teens rush around the corner, holding hands.

“Do you think they saw us?” the girl asked staring at the boy starry eyed.

Smiling back at her he shook his head. “If they had, they would have called out. We are safe. Now we are finally alone, just the two of us.”

“But what if we get caught?” She stepped closer to him.

Kao rolled her eyes and tried not to gag, as he made up an excuse of looking for headache grass in the garden. “That is some of the worst acting I have ever seen, and you are an idiot for not noticing it. You did not need to come up with an excuse. She pointed a the girl as if they could see her, That girl spent half of last night coming up with thirty in case you blanked on one.”

They carried on as Kao randomly interjected her thoughts on the matter completely unheard by the pair.

“I do not know what father would think.” She started…

“The only person wrapped around your finger as much as this fool is your father.” Kao turned to the boy, “And you know that. You used to laugh about how spoiled she was. Now she bats her brown eyes and your mind stops working.”

“Then I will just show him I can take care of you.” He put on a brave front. “I know you want the best so..”

“She could care less. She decided on you when you did not make fun of her lisp years ago.” Kao shook her head. “And you. The best? You can barely hit the targets better than two boys several years younger than you. You only think you are decent, because you best friend is also a bad shot.

Unable to stand the couple any longer, she walked through the wall of the building. Climbing an invisible staircase, she approached Orn’s aunt sitting in a chair by the wall. The woman smiled slightly as she silently worked pain powder and bloodstop into bandages.

“How can you listen to that drivel without laughing?”Kao asked as the teen’s conversation carried clearly into the small upstairs room. “I know you are doing this so they do not do more than talk, but did you really chase Orn off so you could listen to this?”