Clara and I quickly descended down the hill heading back towards the crossroads. It seemed like Clara didn’t want to say anything, so it fell upon me to bring up the subject.

  “So, what is she sick with? Tuberculosis?” I asked quietly.

  My green cloaked companion flinched. “Probably, that’s our best guess,” Clara said softly. “She tries to hide how bad it is from everyone, but we all know.” She paused just for a second, glancing my way, “It’s like you said, she’s a terrible actor.”

  She continued down the path, talking to me over her shoulder. “She insists on doing everything herself, and hates when people hover around her, so all we can do is provide the herbs she needs and watch from afar.”

  “Dakota said she and Cheyanne went out to gather materials for her medicine, it seems like she’s well stocked, what was it they were looking for?”

  “Lizard tails,” Clara sighed. “They’re probably not even that useful, but the girls found some line in one of the grimoires about how they’re good for the lungs. Dakota was desperate, so they believed it.”

  “It must be tough for her,” I said quietly. “Witches can promote the growth of plants, heal wounds nearly instantly, and live exceptionally long lives due to their magic, but when we become sick that incredible power gets turned against us. Trying to treat an illness only makes it worse.”

  Clara nodded quietly, but didn’t say any more.

  Kaylee nudged me gently with her head. “Meep.”

  “I know, we’ll talk later,” I whispered to the cat.

  When we finally arrived back at the crossroads Clara immediately stepped out into the valley, and started following the path back to the village. I followed, but at a much more cautious pace.

  Since the village was nestled into the western side of the valley, and it was still fairly early in the day, the entire place was lit up by the morning sun when we arrived. Since I wasn’t here for a tribunal this time I stopped at the top of the ridge to take it all in.

  It was rustic, but that gave it a certain charm. A lot of people were out, sitting in front of their houses doing chores, or visiting with neighbors. It felt more natural, genuine, and alive than Gravewater, which is probably because it was. Gravewater was a place built and run by the company, this was a place built by the people.

  After I was done taking it in I jogged down the hill to catch up to Clara.

  When I stepped into town this time the people didn’t immediately flee into their houses. They gave me an exceptionally wide berth, and looked at me suspiciously, but they didn’t run away. An improvement.

  The roofs and doorsteps were also full of animals this time, the other familiars. They followed our every movement, stalking our steps, probably taking note of everything I did to report to their witches later. Kaylee bristled when one particularly large, and fierce dog wandered too close. The two animals locked eyes for several seconds before my cat hissed, sending the dog running.

  “Gotta show them who’s the boss, huh?” I laughed quietly.

  Even though the village was only about three streets wide, we had to weave around to get to our final location. Clara led me to one of the larger, central buildings in town. We had to go all the way around, since the entrance was in the north east, and we came in on the south west, but that gave me a little more time to take in the village.

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  I was surprised when she didn’t bother knocking at the door, just stepping right inside, so I hesitated a second before following her.

  We stepped into what appeared to be a large dining hall. There was a massive central fireplace, open on all sides to warm the various tables arrayed around it. On my left there was a small, rough stage, with a handful of worn down and handmade instruments, and on my right there was a large open kitchen. There were a handful of stoves, prep stations, and dozens of pots and pans hanging from hooks along the wall and ceiling. At the end of the kitchen there were a couple shelves with various spices, and at the top of the tallest one was a massive ginger cat, sleeping.

  In the middle of the kitchen, humming to herself, was a woman with long auburn hair tied back with a handkerchief. Her rosy cheeks practically glowed as she violently beat a lump of dough into shape. Extremely violently. The entire kitchen shook with every blow. The cat didn’t even twitch.

  Once she finished beating the dough she finally looked up, and noticed us. “Well I’ll be, Clara! You never picked up your loaf this morning. And who is this? She wouldn’t happen to be our mysterious visitor, would she?”

  I smiled at the woman, and held out my hand, “Zoey Claiborne, nice to meet you.”

  She reached out and grabbed my hand, crushing it with her powerful grip. “It’s nice to meetcha. I’m Harmony Hudson, chef for this little burg.”

  I resisted the urge to check if my hand was broken as I retracted it. “You cook for everyone around here?”

  “Oh no, not all the time anyways. I cook during special events, festivals and the like, and I feed everyone working in the fields during harvest season, but usually I just bake for the community. Save everyone else the time and effort. During most of the year we just use the space to host weekly potluck and talent show,” she explained in a cheerful manner. Once she was done explaining she looked me up and down. “You’re the one that saved my little girl, aren’tcha?”

  “I am…” I admitted.

  That was about all I managed to get out, because the woman swept me into a bone crushing hug. “Thank you! I don’t know what I would have done without her. Her pa and I were worried sick!”

  “No problem,” I barely managed to wheeze out before she released me.

  “Bless you Zoey Claiborne. If you ever need anything, you come see me, and I’ll do my best to help yah.” The woman brushed the tears out of her eyes and stood up straight. “I wish my husband was here to meet you, but unfortunately he’s out hunting with Cheyanne.”

  “Not lizard tails I hope,” I muttered under my breath. I didn’t mean for Harmony to hear me, but apparently she did.

  “Don’t get me started on lizard tails!” Harmony growled. “Those foolish girls almost disappeared forever over some nonsense they found in some random book.”

  I won’t lie, Harmony’s strength scared me a little bit, so when she clenched her fists and stomped on the ground, I backed up a little.

  “Right, I won’t mention it again,” I promised before straightening up again.

  “If you really wanted to help me, you could let me know what work I could do around the coven. I might stay awhile, but I know most of the people around here don’t trust me so it should probably be something I can do solo.” I glanced over at Clara, who was nodding at my question. “Maybe as a pair.”

  Clara narrowed her eyes, but Harmony didn’t seem to notice. “What didja do before?”

  “Coven guardian,” I replied casually. That caused both women’s eyebrows to shoot up. “That’s not an option though, my magic was crippled and I’m not allowed my weapons around the coven.”

  “How about hunting?” Harmony suggested.

  “I’ve only tracked people, with magic, and that would still require my weapons,” I replied cautiously.

  Harmony turned towards Clara. Even though she was just standing normally, with a smile on her face, it almost felt like a predator standing over a small animal. “I’m sure Clara here can teach you. She’s been hunting around here since she was just a tiny pup. It’ll be a good way for you to learn the lay of the land around the coven, and it’ll probably be fine as long as she holds onto your weapons until you step outside the coven boundaries. Right Clara?”

  The redhead sighed. “I’ll talk to Thyra, and see if that’s acceptable.”

  “Wonderful! Then it’s settled.” Harmony smiled, and that previous pressure just melted away. “I wasn’t planning on making a big lunch today, since the family is out, but now that you’re here I could definitely make a go of it. It’s the least I could do for you.”

  “I appreciate it, but I wouldn’t want you to go out of your way,” I replied graciously. “How about Clara and I stop by for dinner later this week instead?”

  “Then I’ll prepare a feast!” Harmony declared with a massive grin. “But I can’t let you leave empty handed. Take some bread!” Grabbing a massive wooden tool off the wall she rushed to the oven and pulled out a fresh loaf of bread. She expertly wrapped it in a handkerchief before placing it in my hands.

  Kaylee sniffed at it for a moment, before sticking out her tongue. Harmony giggled, reached into her apron, and pulled out a piece of jerky. “You should enjoy this, Sunbeam’s favorite.”

  My cat gently took the treat out of Harmony’s fingers, and nodded her thanks.

  “Now, as much as I’d love to sit around and gab all day, the latest batch of bread is done and I need to get it out to the people that are waiting. I’ll talk to you girls later, we’ll figure out when to have dinner then!”

  Seeing Harmony sprinting over to the stoves, and preparing nearly a dozen loaves of bread Clara and I awkwardly left, leaving her to it.

  Once we stepped outside the two of us glanced around, trying what to do next. After a couple moments I flipped open the handkerchief and held it out to my companion. “Bread?”

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