Act One: Materia Prima - Chapter 8

The man was back at the house. Its entrance. Entered through the heavy wooden door. The entrance area was empty. He checked the living room. No one there. The glass door was closed. No one on the terrace either. He heard voices from the dining room. Crossed the crocheted rug.

The girls were sitting around the dark wooden table. Hlout at the head. To her left Gward and then Falsk. To her right Hrain and the last one. The one he did not meet yet. Not face to face. Scild. One chair left. Opposite Hlout. All eyes on him. Silence. He greeted them gently. Moved to claim the empty seat.

“Welcome back and thank you for returning Hrain. I hope Falsk did not bother you too much.”

Hlout smiled at him. It was faint. Her emotions more difficult to interpret. More than the other girls’.

“Actually, I was a great help to them! Hrain, tell them!”

Falsk wrinkled her nose. Her head up high. Eyes closed. Arms crossed.

“Hmm, I don’t really remember. Didn’t you just splash around the pond while we were pondering the most profound questions of life? Out there in the grueling gray parts.”

Hrain struck a thoughtful pose. Scratched her head. His gaze wandered to Falsk. She had opened her left eye. Peered in his direction. He realized that he had not paid much attention to her appearance until now. Her clothing was no different from Hrain's. Hair tied back relatively low and untidy. Fell over her left shoulder.

He recounted how Falsk had helped him in a conciliatory manner. Falsk and Hrain laughed. Gward sighed and Scild looked bashfully at the floor. Hlout rolled her eyes.

“Oh, don't take those two madcaps too seriously. They always play little games. Especially the tiny gremlin over there.”

She tilter her head. Looked at Falsk. Her smile growing wider. Attentive. The little girl blushed.

“Whatever, let’s get started!”

Hlout shook her head. Looked at Scild. Gave her a different smile. Encouraging. Then looked at him.

“There is still one in our midst who wants to become familiar with you. Scild, do you want to introduce yourself?”

He eyed the shyest of the bunch. Cautiously. She was the smallest among them. Around ten years old. Clothed like Hrain and Falsk. Her hair neatly tied back into long pigtails. Scild glanced up briefly. In his direction. Noticed that his attention was all hers. Head dropping again in a flash.

“I… I am pleased to make your acquaintance. I am Scild, and I am Scild, and I hope that we will get along politely and courteously and with consideration and mindfully and, and...”

Scild’s voice was just a faint whisper. Trailing off as she noticed the many ands. He had nodded along. Introduced himself. Thanked her for her kind words. Smiled. Warmly. As if she were a flower that another facial expression would cause to wilt.

Gward cleared her throat.

“Ready to proceed? I could eat a horse.”

Hrain drummed her fingers on the table. He examined the lavishly set table. White chinaware. The edges richly decorated with violets. Unadorned silver cutlery. Small bowls with herbs. With salt. With butter. Two large milk jugs. Seared meat on a platter. Sliced. Red. Rare. A bigger bowl with vegetables. Probably from the garden. Like the herbs

The sight and smell made his mouth water. Not because he had grown hungry by now. It just tickled his senses. Hlout gently tapped the table with her flat hands. The girls folded their hands. He did as they did.

“Beloved mother, who is us dear. We bloomed once feeble, frail, full of fear.”

He lost himself in thought. Their voices a soothing chant. Maybe it would not be so bad to just stay with the girls.

“We gathered strength thanks to the light. Spoke up and out, went far, took flight.”

This world had made him feel it. They had. Still children. He could help them with their troubles. Protect them. Satisfy Hrain's curiosity. Tease Falsk a little more. Boost Scild's self-confidence. Help the other two somehow too. Having an eye on the smaller ones would probably be enough for Hlout and Gward.

“With glowing bright at our backs. Love claimed our hearts and changed our tracks”

Who cared if this was a dream or nightmare. If he forgot something. It could not be that imported. Could it? No. No. No. The darkness tried to suffocate him when he tried to remember. He should just live. Should he? Maybe. For a little while.

“Pain, hurt and tears kept us not down. Alone we wandered, no shine, no gown.”

He wondered if the food would agree with him. Without hunger. His gaze wandered over the girls. Each one deep in prayer. How long would this prelude take?

“Found back to spring, to fire, to light. Two, one, five, six, shattered in spite.”

They finished their prayer. The feast began. Finally. Gward, Hrain, and Falsk immediately dug into the food. Scild timidly loaded her plate with a small portion of vegetables. Little butter. Some of the herbs.

Hlout held back. Watched the smallest one. Stroked her shoulder. Falsk questioned the affection with her eyes. Hlout picked up a piece of meat with her fork. Placed it on Scild's plate. Gave her an insistent look. No resistance. She began her meal.

Only now Hlout took some for herself. Looked at him invitingly. Hrain gave him an ecstatic smile. Probably because of the food. Gward eyed him. Still suspiciously. Chewing on a piece of red meat. Scild's gaze kept darting from her food to the others and back. Only Falsk was completely absorbed in herself and her food.

He felt the time had come to give his stomach something to work with too. Took meat. Vegetables. Butter. Herbs. What a feast! He savored the taste. The aroma. The texture. More and more. How long had it been since he had eaten anything decent? He did not know. Bad memories. All together. Even the good ones.

This way they passed the seconds. Minutes. Maybe even an hour. And finally. Everyone sank down. Stuffed to the gills. Onto the cushioned chairs. Imbued with slivers of contentment. Even he. He sighed. All eyes on him. Again. But different. He smiled. Did not perform.

“Thank you.”