Unquiet Slumber Read Free Page A

who liked Tianna hesitantly believed her but most thought she was lying and added this to the list of reasons to stay away from her.
     
    The damage was done. That was her first kiss as well as her first and last date. She was approached for healing but never for anything more personal. Marriage was out of the question. She learned to accept her fate, but it caused a constant ache in her heart.
     
    Tianna awoke and stared into the dark, miserably wondering about life. Why was she so different? Was she always going to be alone? She was 24 and already far beyond typical marrying age.
     
    Hours passed before dawn recalled her to the present.
     
    Tianna rose and, as promised, went to check on Garrett. He was in the shop working with his father and his leg was healing well, his white hair shining in the sun. With nothing left to do, Tianna spent the rest of the day walking around the village watching people going through their normal routines.
     
    Next to the village blacksmith, she past some reflective steel and stopped to adjust her clothes. She stood barely to the shoulders of most adult men, shorter than any woman her age. The dresses designed for her height were made for younger girls without adult curves, which she had in plenty. Also, the women in Trille were convinced that she was trying to use her figure and magical skills in an attempt to seduce their men. These facts caused her to design clothes that hid her figure and were unflattering, making them very uncomfortable to wear.
     
    As she continued to scan her reflection, she noticed just how different she was from anyone she had ever met. Her eyes were the color of the deep summer sky; so blue she had been told that they almost glowed. Her hair was so lightly colored that it appeared to shimmer like strands of pure silver in the sunlight. It also hung long enough that when she sat down, she had to move it out of the way so she wouldn’t sit on it. She knew that she should probably cut it, but for some reason, she just couldn’t do it. Instead she pulled it back in long, elaborate braids.
     
    Nobody, including her parents, resembled her. Villagers called her ‘the ghost with glowing eyes’.
     
    Although she had moved in with her wizard master when she began her apprenticeship, she still visited her parents regularly. She occasionally asked her parents why she was so different from them, but they always responded the same way. “You are the way you are because that’s the way you were given to us. This is the way you’re meant to be and we love you. You’re beautiful.” They also told her that she was special and to ignore the unkind villagers. She tried, but it was difficult.
     
    Besides her appearance and healing skills, she also had other characteristics that she had tried to keep secret from everyone in the village, including her parents and Zarin. Only men were allowed to use weapons and hunt but, in secrecy, she crafted a bow and arrows. She liked to sneak out into the neighboring woods to practice archery, becoming extremely skilled over the years.
     
    Tianna continued down the street, chuckling as she overheard some of the women complaining about animals getting into their gardens and digging out plants. Tianna knew what animal they were referring to, as it was the same one tormenting her garden. She continued her walk and thought about the many ways she could cook that pig. Pork was one of her favorite meats and her stomach started to growl. Although she was quite capable of killing animals for food, she didn’t do it lightly, because she didn’t like to kill. She felt a strong connection to nature, and it upset her whenever any life was taken. She wondered if that was one of the reasons why she was so eager to learn the art of healing.
     
    Tianna loved to be close to nature and spent a lot of time in the trees of Hartwood Forest. She could climb with the ease and grace of a big cat, thanks to her small, nimble build. Sitting in a tree was