Chapter 3
Aly came back into the store with a
firm grip around the woolen cover that was wrapped around her after taking a
bath in the garden springs. The warmness of the lake behind her pappai’s hut helped
calmed her nerves a little, and she knew she could handle the draft. She had no
other choice but to handle the draft. Besides, there were still exams before
war. An odd way to think, but such was the way on Gooliun.
The mastra’s tents were still slippery
and dripping water onto the store floor when she walked inside. She made sure
the front portal was fully closed so dust from the outdoors wouldn’t slip in.
After blowing off all the candles in the kitchen, she strolled down to the room
that was calling, and the bed that was waiting.
Aly’s room was a very small resting
board placed right behind the kitchen. The only thing that separated the two
rooms was a thin curtain set between the kitchen tub and a piece of green oak
wood that served as a hanger for the few robes she had. It was basic, but
served its purpose.
Aly’s toes, even though they were short
in length, seemed to clutch onto the furriness of her bedroom floor. The carpet
was warmer than the plastic-like material of the kitchen floor. She bent over
to take off an anklet she had woven, and let the useless fie cover drop onto
the floor.
After placing her anklet onto the small
table by her bed, Aly picked up the woolen cover and threw it over the wooden
bar of the ceiling so it could dry. The exhausted Goolian finally fell into the
furs of her bed since all of her night routines were completed. Sleep was her
second favorite event of the day next to singing, sparring, and daydreaming.
