The walk home was quieter.
Not because I had suddenly become well behaved.
Mother simply refused to speak to me after my encounter with Aston.
I walked beside her carrying baskets of herbs while humming softly to myself, occasionally swinging our joined hands just to annoy her further.
It worked.
"Ruby." She sighed tiredly.
"Ma?" I asked innocently.
"You shouldn't have embarrassed him that way."
"He embarrasses himself naturally. I simply help the process along."
Mother didn't seem too pleased so I kept my mouth shut.
The path to our home curved away from the crowded marketplace and toward the quieter side of the village where fishermen, healers and craftsmen mostly lived.
Small homes lined the road with herbs hanging from windows and smoke curling from chimneys.
The further we walked, the cooler the air became from the sea breeze.
Our little house sat near the edge of the forest.
It wasn't large.
