Anethra inclined her head to Asrin and Don’Elysa once the door had closed behind her. “Friend Asrin, I was wondering…” she stopped short as she realized that Asrin and Don’Elysa were up to their elbows in boar. “Oh!” she exclaimed.
Asrin looked up from his skinning, “Hmm? You were wondering…?”
Anethra blinked. She was not sure if she was about to sick up or pass out. Don’Elysa looked up at her and smiled, boar blood on her face. “Teacher Asrin is showing me how to dress a boar!” She said proudly.
Anethra was certain. She was going to sick up. She turned away from them and emptied her stomach on the floor. Don’Elysa put down her skinning knife and grabbed a mug of water for Anethra. Without looking at Don’Elysa, Anethra took the mug and downed the water. “Forgive me,” her voice raspy and strained. “I was wondering how long til the feast?”
Asrin’s eyes widened and slowly blinked as he watched the precision of the dance the two Starbound women performed. He had never considered how it may look to a relatively newborn adult to see a man and a woman cheerily chattering while they used precision blade strokes to sever skin from flesh. “I apologize, Anethra,” he began.
Anethra did not turn to look at him. Instead, she held her hand to the side of her face, shielding her periphery from the blood-soaked horror. “It is quite alright, Friend Asrin,” she stated, her voice tight. “It appears I simply have a weak stomach for such things.”
Asrin chuckled a little. “It would seem. As for the feast, once Don’Elysa and I have finished skinning the boar, it will take approximately four hours to roast. I can provide some fresh bread, cured meats, a variety of cheeses, and a few other small nibbles, if you are hungry?”
Anethra thought she would sick up again at the mention of food. She managed to keep her composure enough to simply say, “That would be fine for the others. Is there warm spiced wine available?”
Don’Elysa wiped her hands on her apron and grabbed a flagon from the hearth. “Here. This has been warming since this morning, I was told.” Anethra glanced at Don’Elysa long enough to see where the flagon was, take it, and clutch it to her stomach.
“Thank you. I will send someone else for the mugs…” and without waiting for a response, she fled the kitchen with less grace than when she entered.
“I wonder what caused that reaction,” Don’Elysa mused, reclaiming her blade and resuming her work.
“Some people are ill-constitutioned for the sight or smell of blood. I think it was just a momentary sensory overload,” Asrin stated.
Don’Elysa simply nodded as she worked. A moment later, Threnar came into the kitchen, looked at Asrin and Don’Elysa with the boar, blinked twice, then said, “Ah. I see,” and set about to find several mugs. Once found, he gathered them in his arms and hands and exited the kitchen with nothing more to say.
—From Chapter 2: Druth Cael in “A World Reborn: Book 1 of The Hearthlight Cycle”
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