“Outrageous! Absolutely unacceptable!”
Evander’s mother pulled Amara along by her wrist, hurrying her through the wheat towards her home on the west end of the village. Evander’s parents had tried to question her once the surprise had worn off, but she’d been too upset to say much of anything. Still, it hadn’t taken them long to discover she’d eaten their bread, and after they’d searched her pockets the anger had truly begun.
“I can’t believe this! We’re going to see what your mother has to say for you, young lady!”
“Try to calm down, dear,” Evander’s father said, keeping pace behind them.
“How can I possibly be calm, Tye?! We discovered a thief in our home! A thief!!!”
“At least we found her before she could take anything important. Oh….”
The yellow-orange glow of a lantern appeared amidst the houses beyond the wheat field. Evander’s mother halted for a moment to stare in its direction before changing course towards it. Whoever was holding the lantern seemed to have noticed them as well, and the two parties began to converge towards the edge of the wheat field.
The wheat was too tall and they were moving too quickly for Amara to get a good look at whoever was holding the lantern, but once they’d left the field she could easily see who it was, and her heart leapt into her throat. Demetria stood a few yards beyond the wheat, lantern in hand and sporting the most concerned look on her face Amara had ever seen. When she spotted Amara she gasped and began to trot towards her. Amara wrenched herself free from Evander’s mother and ran to meet her own. She leapt into Demetria’s arms, sobbing. Demetria knelt down to return Amara’s embrace, setting her lantern on the ground beside them and giving Amara’s head a few reassuring pets for good measure.
“Where have you been all day?” Demetria asked urgently.
“She’s been in our house!” Evander’s mother shrieked. “Stealing from us!”
Demetria released Amara from the hug and began to search her up and down. She quickly noticed the bruises on her arms, and after staring at them for a moment she lifted her gaze to cast a furious glare at Evander’s parents.
“She didn’t get those from us,” Tye said defensively. “We don’t know where she got them. After we caught her she was bawling too hard to make much sense.”
Demetria’s gaze returned to Amara. “Where did you get these, honey?”
“E-evander…,” came Amara’s tearful reply. “He m-made me drop my bread, so I, um….”
“What—” Tye began before being interrupted by a shout from Evander’s mother.
“She’s lying!!! Our son would never do that! She broke into our home and ate an entire loaf of bread, and would’ve stolen more from us if Tye hadn’t heard her sneaking about! She’s a burglar!”
Demetria responded without looking up from Amara. “Aliza. If you say anything else about my daughter I won’t be responsible for my actions.”
“How dare you—”
“I was just at the chief’s house,” Demetria continued coolly. “He promised to raise a search party for Amara once I told him how long she’s been missing. How do you think people will feel about you and your boy once they see these bruises?”
“How do you think they’ll feel once they find out she invaded our home?!”
Amara continued to sob, clinging tightly to Demetria's dress. She felt absolutely terrible that her mother had to face Evander’s parents alone on top of being the cause of all the trouble. She’d always been aware that the village looked down on them both because her mother wasn’t married, though she didn’t understand why that was a bad thing. There was so much incomprehensible unfairness in their lives, and now Amara had done something that was sure to make it worse.
“Liza,” Tye told Aliza evenly. “Can you please go find the chief and explain to him that there’s no need to raise a search party?”
Aliza’s mouth fell open with silent outrage. For a moment she looked ready to tear into him, but after casting a nervous glance at Demetria she reluctantly gave in.
“You’re raising a thief, Demi,” she spat out before marching away.
“And you’re raising a bully,” came Demetria’s sharp reply.
Silence fell as Demetria and Tye watched Aliza storm off. Once she’d passed out of sight beyond one of the nearby houses, Tye reached a hand up to bashfully scratch the back of his neck.
“...Forgive her, please. She’s never had to wake up to an intruder in her home before.”
Demetria stared at him warily as he knelt down to speak to Amara.
“Was this the only time he’s done something like that to you?” he asked.
Amara nestled her face into Demetria’s chest and shook her head, too afraid to look at him.
Tye let out a frustrated sigh. “...That damn boy. I expect he fancies her is the reason for it.”
“The reason isn't important,” Demetria said coldly. “If you don’t put a stop to it, I will.”
He stood back up. “Oh, I’ll put an end to it. Certainly won’t do to have him gain a reputation for hurting little girls. But that doesn’t mean she gets off scot free.”
Demetria stood up as well, pulling Amara up to her feet. Once they were both standing Demetria reached down to hold Amara’s hand.
“I’m listening.”
“Well, if she’s so interested in our home then she’s more than welcome to come around and do some chores for us. Say for about a month or so.”
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Amara looked up at Demetria, sniffling. Gears seemed to be turning in her head.
“Not a month,” Demetria eventually said. “One week.”
“That loaf she ate wasn’t cheap—”
“One week. And you feed her while she’s working for you.”
A deep scowl crossed Tye’s face.
“Or I can tell the chief what really happened.”
His frustration was obvious, but after a few moments of irritated silence his scowl finally broke. Another sigh left him, this time one that signaled defeat.
“...Oh, fine. But she brings her own tools. She’s not gonna wear down ours making up for what she did.”
“Fine.”
He nodded, frowning. “Alright, then. The stables need a good mucking out, so send her up with a shovel. She better be there tomorrow morning at the crack of dawn.”
“She’ll be there. Good night.”
“Yeah. ‘Night, Demi. We’ll see you again in the morning, Amara.”
Amara looked up at Demetria, still reluctant to look at Tye. Demetria squeezed her hand, prompting her to respond to him by nodding upwards in his direction. Amara finally turned to face him, giving him a quick, anxious nod of her own without making eye contact. Relief poured through her when he took it as his cue to leave, setting off after Aliza.
Demetria turned about and reached down for the lantern, holding it and Amara’s hand as they finally set off for home. Amara’s tears slowly began to subside now that Evander’s parents had gone and the security of home loomed. The shadowy two-story silhouette of their house rose against the backdrop of the stars once they’d crested the small hill which obscured it from the rest of town.
Demetria’s silence weighed heavily on Amara as they walked, and she began to work up the courage to say what she knew she needed to say.
“I’m sorry, mom,” Amara finally murmured.
“I forgive you, honey. I’m just glad you’re safe.”
“...Aren’t you mad at me? I was bad.”
“No, I don’t feel mad. Maybe I should be, but I’m not. I guess it's because I know what it feels like to mess up at your age. I was ten years old once, too.”
She gave Amara’s hand a gentle squeeze, which she returned. A complicated mixture of love and shame crashed through Amara as they neared the front door. Demetria had never failed to be there for Amara when she truly needed her. After the day's events, Amara couldn’t say the same for herself.
The house was completely dark when they entered. Demetria led Amara by the hand up the stairs to the second floor, and the creaking of the floorboards as they climbed seemed welcoming instead of annoying, for once. They continued into Amara’s room, and once they reached her bed Demetria placed the lantern on Amara’s night stand and sat down, gesturing for Amara to do the same beside her. Amara complied, fending off a sudden wave of exhaustion caused by the bed's softness.
“Tell me everything that happened, honey. Don’t leave a single thing out.”
Amara complied to the letter, starting with when Evander threw the pebble at her in temple and ending when Aliza dragged her out of their house. She even included the strange incident with the raven for good measure.
Demetria was mostly silent during the story, and she looked to be deep in thought once it was finally finished. There was pain in her voice when she finally spoke.
“Why didn’t you tell me what was happening, Mara? Don’t you know I would’ve straightened them out in an instant?”
Despair clawed at Amara’s heart. “I didn’t want to embarrass you….”
“Oh honey, that isn’t important! I would take on hell itself for you. Do you know why?”
Amara shook her head, and Demetria pulled her up into her lap, wrapping her in a snug embrace.
“It’s because I love you! I’m your mom! Nothing in the world could ever harm what’s between us. It’s totally invincible.”
Emotion overwhelmed Amara, and she began to cry once again. She’d been crying so much ever since she was caught and she desperately wished she could just stop, but the tears came nonetheless. Everything that’d happened since temple had been so exhausting.
“I’m glad you didn’t scare Evander,” Demetria said. “You did the right thing.”
“Really?” Amara asked, her voice wavering.
“Of course. He did something awful to you, but that doesn’t mean you should’ve been awful back.” She paused, thinking. “If doing the right thing was easy, no one would ever do anything bad.”
Amara rested her head against Demetria’s chest, nodding. She let out a quiet yawn, and her eyelids began to droop.
“Boys his age tend to be easily confused by their own feelings. Especially if their parents aren’t doing a great job with them. Even Evander deserves our compassion, Mara.”
“But they have so much more than we do.”
“Even so. You should try your best to forgive him, for your own sake. If you hold anger in your heart for long enough it becomes a crutch you can’t ever do without.”
“...Okay,” Amara said, yawning.
“You’ve had a long day,” Demetria said with a smile in her voice. “And you’ve got a long one coming up tomorrow. Time for bed.”
Amara wiped the tears off her cheeks and shifted herself out of Demetria’s lap. She crawled under the covers, and Demetria leaned down to tuck her in.
“I’ll wake you up at dawn. I’m not pleased that you stole from them, Mara, but that’s why you’re going to work and make up for it. That’s how to make it right.”
“Okay.”
“Okay. Good night, honey.”
Demetria planted a loud kiss on Amara’s forehead, causing a few sleepy giggles to escape from her. She pulled the blankets up to her chin, and fell asleep before Demetria had even left the room.
----------------------------------------
Amara awoke to a loud tapping sound emanating from somewhere nearby. It was just before dawn, and a slender band of pink morning sunlight was present on the horizon through the bedroom window.
She sat up in bed, rubbing sleep out of her eyes. The tapping sounded again, and this time Amara located it at the window. When she looked up, a large black bird was perched on the outside windowsill, staring directly at her. Once she made eye contact with it the bird began to peck insistently at the glass. Realization soon occurred to Amara’s sleep-addled mind.
“...Are you the same bird from before?” she asked.
The raven let out a single caw, and looked towards something beside her. Amara followed its gaze and saw a large string of jerky sitting atop her nightstand. Her mother must have left it there for her after she’d fallen asleep.
She picked it up, and looked back at the raven. It puffed out the feathers on its head, a clear gesture of excitement, and made the same odd gulping noise from the first time she’d seen it.
“You want some of this?”
It began to hurriedly prance back and forth on the windowsill, flapping its wings for good measure. Amara tore off a raven-sized piece from the strand and approached the window. The raven could hardly seem to wait for Amara to crack it before bursting into the room. It flew over towards Amara’s bed, sending a strong gust of wind into her face which made her gasp, and perched itself atop the headboard.
Amara approached it cautiously, holding out the jerky.
“Here, um…ah!”
The raven swiftly snatched the piece out of her fingers, causing her a moment’s fright. It greedily swallowed the jerky, and Amara felt a strong sense of satisfaction from seeing it eat her gift so readily.
“You don’t seem very wild,” she said, smiling. “Will you be my friend? I’ve never had one before.”
It made no reply, but once it had finished eating it hopped down to her blanket, pulling here and there at loose fibers with it's beak. She then remembered once hearing a rumor going around of people in Lucyra who could train pet ravens to speak.
“Can you talk?” she asked. “What’s your name?”
The raven responded so quickly and so clearly that for a split second Amara thought someone else was in her room.
“Mattias!”
She was stunned speechless for a full five seconds, during which time the raven acted like nothing had happened. It began to strut across the bed, extending its claws out to walk in such a pronounced way that it almost seemed cute.
Just when she was about to ask it another question it abruptly took off, flying back towards the window. It ducked into the crack, steadying itself on the outside windowsill. It then looked back at Amara, holding eye contact with her through the glass for a long moment before taking flight. It flew off towards the town square, and the sheer speed with which it disappeared over the crest of the hill took her by surprise.
She lifted the window all the way up, and stuck her head out of it.
“Bye, Mattias!” she called out, then added in a whisper: “Come back soon.”