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With the bandits taking care of her father's troublemaking team, but Hogsden Hold now high on her mind, she wondered. Had the old man died yet? It'd been time enough for the Holders to bicker about the dividing up of things... What had happened with Polldyn? Had she been forced into a marrige? Perhaps even with the man that Landry had tried to sell Fara off to?

It was possible. It was even likely, knowing that now the menfolk as well as Polly's stepmother would be talking about it. It seemed to Faralona that the world was cursed to have unpleasant people making far too many decisions for those below them. And, that those people were cruel, hard, undeserving of such an honor.

She stalked around Spiral Hold from top to center, having put Backy up carefully as ever in her rented stall with Carson's runners. Even when she was distracted and angry, Faralona never quite lost her ability to focus on a task. It simply got done: she cleaned the stall, fed and watered and briefly cleaned Backy, got herself a bit spruced up... All on automatic, while she thought of her home Hold.

Fortunately, the locals had gotten used to her by now, and the scowl on her face told even the worst of the bunch that they should stay clear of her today.

Now, truth be told, even though she would consistantly swear that she despised men and everything they stood for, she also had grown to like many of them. The gate guards, Carson, some of the younger kids, even one of the Harpers that came drifting through and wound up remaining - drunk as he usually was - at the nearby inn. It was there that she wound up, and it was to that Harper that she came to sit beside.

"The looks of you say you're in need of more than advice," he said gently, his voice was probably what Fara liked most about him. It was kind, soft, and he could sing so much better than other Harpers she'd heard. "Though I'm not sure what to offer you besides an open ear and a strong shoulder to lean on."

Fara gave off a pfff-noise, "your shoulders are so round and soft it's a wonder you're not in use as a pillow for some Lady or other."

"Been there, have to say it wasn't as great as anyone might make it out to be," Journeyman Kebev swished his ale around in its mug, "It's a lady you're thinking of, I would put a Mark on."

"You'd win that bet," Fara admitted, accepting a drink even though she knew she wouldn't be in a good mood later from it. "How could I just leave her like that... with those people. Hogsden Hold is a miserable place."

"You could send her word, or -"

"Anyone from here would be questioned if they rode with Spiral colors," Faralona said.

"I was going to say," Kebev restated, "or you could find a flitter and get that to her with a private letter."

"Well I..." Fara started to say, and then tilted her head. "A flitter... well they didn't have many, or maybe even any when I was there, it'd be a bit strange, but if it could get in without being seen I might think..."

Kebev patted her shoulder, "now we need to find you one."

***

That wasn't all that hard, really, because there was always someone breezing through Spiral Hold on their way to or from another location, and while flit eggs weren't common inland, there were some number of them being used as trade. Fara had plenty of Marks to spend on them, she wanted to make sure to get one that could be trained to head where it was needed. She briefly considered finding two, but again could not figure out a way to get one to Polly.

Eventually Fara headed back to her cot, paying for her way now that she did have a reasonably regular hunting job. The fire place would be best for the little jar filled with foreign sand, and very shortly it began to come to life.

Just enough of a little blue nose came peeking out of its shell to make Fara laugh.

She offered him food to come all the way out of his shell, and when he crept up her fingers and nibbled at it, she got such a wonderful sensation of adoration in her mind that she wondered how she'd lived without it.

"Nibble, you're called." Faralona spent the next few days intensely training the little flitter, Nibble was receptive to her commands and hardly ever forgot what he was doing. She was very focused, that helped. After two weeks, it was time, she felt, to put him to the test.

She imagined the gate guard Roynan, the big bearded man, and told Nibble, "to Roy, now - bring him this." She tucked a little moss flower into Nibble's waiting hands. He didn't try eating it, which was good. Then, he flapped up, and vanished between.

A few minutes later, Faralona went up the path toward the city gate. Perplexed words were coming from Roynan, until he saw Faralona striding up the path.

"Is this yours?" He said, bursting out laughing, and holding up the tiny (slightly chewed) flower.

***

 

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