Chapter 5
Five
As soon as Oaklin set foot outside the village border, some of the pressure receded, and the sky began to clear along with it. Fewer watchful eyes. Fewer people to perform the normal human act for. And a few warm summer rays breaking through the gray cloud cover to nudge that feeling along.
Of course, there was still Lior walking in step beside them.
Paladin of the Three. But…maybe not a typical paladin?
It felt like a special sort of madness for Oaklin to let her walk them home, but they clearly had a bit of a daredevil streak in them somewhere.
They had joined a cult as a teenager, after all.
It helped that Lior had insisted on walking back to the bakery with Ryn on the way out of the village to buy Oaklin a Muffin of Fortitude (Not a Replacement for Sleep).
Oaklin had protested, at first—magical cake, then a healing spell, and then more magical baked goods?
Too much magic, far more than Oaklin wanted in their life.
But good grains, attempting to resist Ryn’s baking was an exercise in futility.
A single fluffy, cinnamon-filled bite had Oaklin feeling more stable.
The whole muffin disappeared before long, and the magical effect was subtle but noticeable: an undercurrent of energy, a spring in their step, a clearing of mental fatigue and muscle aches.
Like a great cup of tea, but magnified to some degree.
It was…nice. It didn’t feel gross, or invasive, or violating.
It was like Lior’s healing magic, another thing Oaklin had never expected to appreciate.
Before Oaklin and Lior got too far down the road, Lior snapped her fingers and halted.
“You never did get anything from the library,” she said, looking stricken. “I’m sorry, I was so excited to get out of there I forgot to ask. Do you want to swing back by before we get too far out?”
Oaklin’s stomach turned at the idea. Lior may not have seen through to Oaklin’s past, but Sister Talla seemed like the type who could peer straight through their skin and bone into their corrupted soul.
“No, no, definitely not,” they said. “I just…need to go lie down for a while. I can go back tomorrow.”
Lior shrugged. “Okay, well, I’ll be there tomorrow working the desk, so I’ll be happy to help you find what you need.”
Oaklin chewed their lip for a moment and studied Lior from the corner of their eye, drawn to the rich blue cape draped over her broad, strong shoulders and the fine golden embroidery on her white doublet.
She wore black breeches with a wide leather belt…
and, of course, a paladin’s signature sword hanging in its sheath.
Ready for battle even in the library? Curiosity ate at Oaklin until they finally blurted out: “I’ve never heard of a paladin librarian before. Don’t paladins normally…”
“Swing swords and smite enemies in the name of their god?” Lior said with a wry grin. “Yeah. Usually.”
“But not you?”
Oaklin held their breath as a strange look crossed Lior’s face.
“No. I had some…moral objections during the Enchantrix War. Most of the Order is about as thrilled with me as Sister Talla is. There are a few kind folks in the local temple, but on the whole, I am on the Order’s shit list.”
Well, that was…interesting. Maybe this particular paladin wasn’t so bad. Oaklin was dying to delve deeper, ask questions, but the subject was quickly changed.
“Anyway, talk to me about how you ended up in Mossley’s Rest!” Lior said, brightening. “Normally the only new folks are related to someone already here, though we do get the occasional war refugees.”
“Yeah, that’s me too,” they said, latching onto Lior’s ready-made excuse. “Looking for a fresh start after the war. The house was cheap, and I like the quiet. I grew up on a farm, so it felt right. What about you? Have you been here long?”
“Oh, the church assigned me here as punishment after I…misbehaved,” Lior said, kicking up a small cloud of dust as the two of them crossed onto the dirt road curving back toward the farm.
“But joke’s on the church because I really like it here.
And then there was someone I wanted to stay for.
That ended badly, but I’ve got Ryn and Jules, and the library really is great, so it’s fine. ”
“Ah, sorry it didn’t work out,” Oaklin said with sympathy. “But hey, their loss is my gain.”
After a beat of awkward silence, they played the words back in their head…and their eyes went wide in horror.
“I MEANT THE HEALING. Because you did your hands thing earlier. The lay-on-hands thing. The spell?”
Oaklin dropped their burning face into their own hands, wanting desperately to fly into the sun.
Mortifying. Way to make friends, Oaklin, really, well done all around.
Lior laughed so hard she had to stop and catch her breath, doubled over in the middle of the road with her hands braced on her knees.
Her laugh was big and unselfconscious, shoulder-shaking and loud in a way that would have absolutely delighted Oaklin, had they not been wishing for an errant meteor to fall from the heavens and crush them.
“Let’s just pretend I said none of those things,” Oaklin said miserably.
“You’re fine, it’s fine,” Lior said, waving the words away as she wiped mirthful tears from her eyes. “I appreciate the laugh. I really needed that.”
She paused, an odd look crossing her face, and Oaklin’s stomach did a worried lurch.
Was she finally realizing she’d never asked what triggered the whole episode at the library?
Was she putting the pieces together? She met Oaklin’s eyes for a long moment, the breeze pulling a few wild strands from her braid.
Then she glanced away and started back down the road toward the farm.
“You should probably know…” Lior began hesitantly, then winced. “Look, there’s no non-awkward way to say this. Like I said, we don’t get many new people around here, and…”
Gods and grains, where was this going?
“Yeah?” Oaklin prompted, muscles tensing to run.
Lior was silent for another beat, then hesitantly continued. “Well…everyone’s probably playing it cool right now, letting you get settled in. But you should know that every unattached person in Moss is going to make a pass at you eventually. The courtship market’s a little thin, you know?”
Oaklin blinked. That was…extremely not where they were expecting that sentence to go. What did they even say to that?
Lior rescued them by continuing.
“That said, if you aren’t into relationships or need time to recover from whatever you went through, just say the word and Ryn, Jules, and I will make sure people stay off your back,” she said, then grimaced again. “Three Above, this is so awkward.”
“Yeah, I…don’t think I’m in any shape to be thinking about other people right now,” Oaklin said, stumbling through the words. “I have a lot to sort out in my own head first. Plus, I have to learn how to run a farm, somehow.”
“Completely understandable,” Lior said. “Ryn, Jules, and I are on it. People will leave you be until you signal otherwise. You have to take care of yourself right now. And let the village care for you too! You’re part of our community now, and we’re all here to help.”
On that incredibly sweet note, Lior changed the subject, spending the rest of the walk to the farm chatting about idle village gossip, while Oaklin told her about all the animals they’d inherited on the farm.
Lior dodged any topics that got too close to the Order, but was otherwise charming and kind, with an easy and infectious laugh.
It was…nice. Surprisingly, Lior made for great company. Despite the paladin thing, Oaklin thoroughly enjoyed themself. And no matter what, it was probably good to have the local paladin on their side.
The house came into view, the late morning sun alighting on scratching chickens and grazing cows. Grumpy Horse was thankfully not hovering by the front door to welcome them home, but to Oaklin’s delight, Daffodil came trotting up as soon as they crested the final ridge.
“Ba-ROOF!” Daffodil barked by way of greeting, demanding affection like Oaklin had been gone for two weeks. They happily obliged.
“You’re a good girl, Dilly, yes you are!”
That fully settled it: Oaklin was a dog person now. At least one thing was going right in their life.
“Hello!” Lior said, lighting up at the dog’s appearance. “Well, aren’t you perfect!”
Daffodil flopped at Lior’s feet and rolled over for belly rubs, only emphasizing the point.
Lior crouched down and obliged with murmured sweet words and gentle tussling that Daffodil absolutely bathed in.
It was only with great reluctance that Lior stepped back, brushing a few dog hairs off her breeches.
“Well, I suppose I should go take my lashing from Sister Talla now,” she said with heavy reluctance. “I think it was worth it, though. I’m glad to know you’re home safe.”
“Thanks for taking on this escort quest despite my protesting,” Oaklin said. “Turned out pretty well, actually.”
Lior smiled shyly, scuffing her toe in the dirt. “I’m glad you think so. See you soon?”
“Yeah,” Oaklin said, returning the smile. “See you soon.”
Sometimes it was nice to be wrong about people.
***
The ghost pounced on Oaklin the second they walked in the door.
“You didn’t make it inside the library, did you?” she asked, shifting restlessly in the shadowy corner of the kitchen.
“Oh! Um, yeah, they wouldn’t…no food allowed inside, you know?” Oaklin said, hoisting the bag of cake with a weak smile. “My mistake.”
The ghost sighed. Okay, Oaklin probably should have thought up a better excuse ahead of time, but it wasn’t bad for thinking on their feet.
They set the cake down on the beastly strong table, got a fire going in the hearth to heat some water, and opened the cabinet for tea…
only to find three tins waiting for them this time.
“Wow, thank you!” Oaklin said, genuinely touched.
“Hmph. Not like you earned it.”
What a grump.