Kaitlyn ended up not trying to make her sleep potion that night. She roasted the pheasants with herbs, onions, and carrots stuffed inside. She then carefully peeled and chopped some potatoes and put them into her kettle of broth which was quite low. She added some more water, and herbs and let that boil.
While dinner was cooking she decided to begin working with the bolt of linen Master Garthis had brought to her. She had considered for days what she might want and finally decided to go with a tunic-like dress and trousers like men wore. If she was going to live alone, she was going to need to be able to do some things which were difficult in a dress and impossible to do modestly.
She used some of her twine and began by carefully measuring some knots out by using her hand as a measurement. With a series of knots, she was able to then carefully begin measuring herself. She stripped down and measured her waist and counted the knots. She counted just over of 8 knots in her string. She then measured the widest part of her hips and got almost exactly between 10 and 11 knots. She then measured the wides part of her thigh at almost 6 knots.
She put the string under her foot so the second knot just hit her ankle and pulled it tight along her inner leg. Almost 8 knots. She repeated it putting the string on the outside of her leg and measuring all the way up to her waist to get 12 knots. She carefully went to the linen and began plotting her pants using these measurements.
Kaitlyn ground charcoal against the hearth and used a spoon to drip some melted fat on it. She quickly mixed this together. She coated a stick’s tip with it and took this over to the bolt of linen cloth. Using this charcoal-mix as a pencil, she marked out the edges of her pants.
She then sat back and considered how she would cut the fabric. She only had a knife, not scissors. She pulled out the knife and went into the sunlight to consider whether it was sharp enough for the task she had for it. The knife’s edge was sharp except for that single knick near the tang. She went back inside and tested right on the edge of the linen. Immediately the threads of the cloth began to cut cleanly.
Kaitlyn sat back and took a deep breath. She worked slowly and carefully, barely cutting inches. When she had finally cut everything out, her bird was almost entirely roasted so she took a break. She shifted her flame to hover in front of her as she sat and ate, using the light from her flame to see.
After eating, Kaitlyn prepared the pants. There were several pieces for these simple pants. She made four panels, two for the front of her legs and two for the back. The hardest part had been creating shape for her hips and groin. She had given it a little extra space just in case. She then had cut out a band that would be for her waist. They were extremely simple pants, but she thought the would serve the purpose.
Kaitlyn went to bed that night and slept deeply. She woke up twice during the night sobbing from nightmares. The second time she got up and went outside to get some water. She looked up at the stars. She was incredibly worried about her family. She wishes fervently she had never left home. For a long moment she felt so angry at Claus for ever looking at her with his gentle brown eyes. She almost hated him.
She was still staring at the stars when she realized that she didn’t have her flame next to her. Almost thoughtlessly she began to invoke the exercise. She stopped. The stars were beautiful and she didn’t want the light from the flame. She wondered if she could make the flame create warmth without the light. She sat down on the ground and began experimenting.
It was hours later as the sun began to rise that Kaitlyn stopped. She felt like she had almost figured it out. There was something to the casting of the spell she felt like if she could just… concentrate it more then the spell would create heat without light. She went into the hut and ate some more from the roasted bird. She put some water in her kettle for tea. She then went into the garden and began to collect various herbs which she wanted to put in her tea. She got some fennel, anise, and sage flowers.
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She put the leaves on a scrap of the linen left and folded it to press a little. Water oozed out and she stopped. Part of her mind had never stopped thinking about the problem she was having with the potion. She unfolded the cloth and picked up a leaf. She grabbed a second scrap of cloth and put the ground herbs on it. She put it into her kettle and watched as the cloth grew moist. She slowly began feeding her magic into the water like she was stirring. She didn’t have any way to track ten minutes precisely except to count. So she counted.
When she reached ten minutes she poured the potion into one of the bottles Master Garthis had brought her. She frowned, how was she supposed to test whether it worked or not? She set it on the table and then filled the kettle back up.
She used the first scrap of cloth to make her tea. She was delighted with the way it worked to allow the flavors to work in the water and she didn’t have to fish them out when she was finished. Kaitlyn finished her breakfast, worked in the garden for a little bit to continue her efforts in weeding and shifting plants to spread them out.
During the afternoon Kaitlyn sat on her stool in the shade of the house while she sewed her pants. She was mostly finishing the legs when she noticed a small problem. Men’s trousers were essentially straight from waist down, but her hips were significantly wider than her waist. She looked at the pants and held them up, she needed a way to allow the pants over her hips but narrow again for her waist.
She finished most of the outseam and held them up again. She considered putting a draw string in the waist band, but she was worried how it would bunch and gather. She finally stood and stripped out of her dress and tried on the pants. They fit perfectly, except the problem she had already noticed.
She pulled them up and pinched the sides by her waist. She looked at it and considered. She just needed to be able to pull these two seams against each other. She folded the cloth over from hip to wait on one side and then the other. She used a pair of pins and looked at the results as best she could. She wished she had some buttons, that would definitely be a good solution.
She took off the pants and set them aside. She needed to spend some time meditating and practicing with her idea of heat without the flame. She held her flame in front of her nose and examined it. She put her finger inside the flame, and found that although it was warm, it didn’t burn her or set her on fire. She could however feel something about it.
It felt like sticking her finger into a pile of yarn but it moved. She closed her eyes and followed the “thread.” She lost her place several times, but continued exploring until she found herself tracing a “thread” back to her own chest. She opened her eyes, but didn’t see anything. Mentally she clipped this thread and the flame fizzled. As she invoked the flame this time she intentionally built it around her finger.
She felt as the threads formed and wrapped around her finger and although she couldn’t tell apart what she wanted, she could feel the movement was important. The thread from herself split into two and began an intricate weave and dance around until there was heat and flame.
She opened her eyes and looked at the flame, wishing she could see these fibers of magic instead of just feeling them. She would have to ask Master Garthis whether that was even possible. She went inside and took her hatchet to go and gather wood, her current pile was getting a little low.
When Kaitlyn got back to the hut, Fapallo was on the roof sunbathing. She called up, “Well? What did he say?”
Fapallo hopped off the roof with a fluff of feathers and led her inside. A piece of parchment, wrinkled and a little battered, sat on the table. Kaitlyn picked it up and read the message.
Kaitlyn,
Your concerns are valid and I understand them. I do not believe the unicorn will go after your family, it doesn’t make any kind of sense to spare your life, curse you, and kill your family. Your fiance was however the instigator of the deaths. I can’t go myself to protect your family, but I have sent a message to a fae who owes me a favor.
He is on his way to your family now with a message to explain to them you are alive but that Claus is not. He will then remain in the area for a year and a day. Should the black unicorn appear in the area, he will immediately send up the kind of alarms that can draw out even kings and gods.
I will come in a few days and we can talk more.
Master Garthis
This letter made her feel slightly better, but Kaitlyn stared into her flame, worried about her family and wondering if they were alright. The tightness in her chest didn’t disappear as she remembered learning to sew with her parents. Sitting up with her two older brothers as they began their apprenticeship with their father. Giggling as her little sister tried to refuse to learn at all… and then turning out to be some kind of genius with embroidery designs. Love and tears infused her stitches as she worked into the night.