Kellen shuddered, feeling queasy. Idalia put a gentle hand on his shoulder.
'Those memories that are gone—can they be put back?' he asked urgently, looking up into her face, and hoping he could regain this much, at least. Something more precious than things—something lost, something taken from him, something that was his by right. Something he wanted back.
Idalia met his gaze, and now there was pity in her eyes. 'Oh, Kellen, no,' she said softly. 'What is cut away by Magecraft is gone forever. It can never be regained. But come on, let's get you dressed,' she added briskly, ending the discussion. 'You'll feel better, trust me.'
Kellen, still stunned by what she had just told him, made no further complaint as Idalia helped him into the snug buckskin trousers that laced up the sides, and the long, soft leather shirt that fell nearly to his knees. Both were as soft as the finest velvet, and supple as silk, of a warm, golden color, the only ornamentation being the fancy stitching over the seams. They were beautifully, if simply, made.
'You'll need boots, too, of course. I'm working on a pair. They'll be ready soon, but you won't be needing them today. Now lean on me, and let's see if you can walk a few steps,' Idalia said. She put an arm around his shoulders and lifted him to his feet with surprising strength.
The floor underfoot was wide pine planks, sanded smooth. Standing made Kellen feel dizzy and light-headed, but with Idalia's firm support he was able to make his way by slow steps into the other room of the cabin.
The outer room was even smaller than the sleeping room, and windowless, but a narrow doorway stood open into the spring sunshine. Most of one wall was taken up with a fireplace made of smooth grey river stones, and a small pine table, a ladderback chair, and a stool filled the rest of the compact space. The room reminded Kellen a bit of what he imagined a ship's cabin must look like, with everything carefully built-in and tucked away to conserve valuable space.
'That fireplace took me all of one summer to build, but it gets cold up here in the winter,' Idalia said, nodding at the fireplace as she lowered Kellen into the chair. 'When the snows come, you'll be glad of it, believe me.'
Kellen was breathing hard, even after walking only a few steps, but he thought he could already feel his strength returning. In a day or two, he was pretty sure he'd be fully recovered. Surrounded by so much newness, he barely even registered Idalia's calm assumption that he'd be here—still here—when the snows came.
From his seat, Kellen could look out the door into the world outside the cabin. The area immediately around the cabin was packed earth, scrubbed clean even of grass. Farther away the ground was covered with scrub and bushes, and then the trees began. The cabin seemed to be set in the center of a woodland clearing, without any other cabins—or for that matter, a road—anywhere in sight. In the center of the cleared area, Kellen saw a ring of large stones with an iron brace built over it. Hanging on the brace was a large copper kettle, its sides blackened with soot. Near to where the trees began there was a large flat tree stump with an axe stuck in it, and some neatly stacked firewood—far more, it seemed to Kellen, than anyone could possibly use.
The whole arrangement seemed neat and orderly and well thought out. Everything he had seen so far impressed him with Idalia's competence, even expertise, in living out here beyond City walls. She would be a good mentor to have.
He'd known her… before. He'd been six when she disappeared. He remembered being six. But he didn't remember Idalia.
Don't think about it now, an inner voice warned him. Now is not the time. Later, when you're stronger. Not now.
Kellen heeded the inner warning, and carefully turned his mind away from the new wound he'd just been given. Idalia was here now, after all. And there were plenty of things around him to concentrate on.
Without thinking about what Lycaelon had done to him. What eke Lycaelon had done to him—and all these years, he'd never suspected…
As he gazed out at the trees, he saw a flash of white moving through them. Shalkan stepped out of the trees into the clearing, head held high as if scenting the air. He saw Kellen and tossed his head, locking eyes with him to be sure Kellen saw him as well, then trotted back into the trees, tufted tail held high.
'I saw Shalkan!' Kellen exclaimed, nearly losing his balance on the chair. And he's all right. A knot of tension Kellen hadn't known he was holding within himself eased. Idalia had said Shalkan was all right, but hearing it wasn't the same thing as seeing it.
'Your unicorn friend? Is that his name? I guess he's sticking around to keep an eye on you, then,' Idalia said, unsurprised. She'd gone over to the hearth and filled two wooden mugs, adding a generous dollop of honey to each and stirring briskly. She returned to the table, setting one of the mugs in front of Kellen and sitting down on the stool. 'Friendly enough, but won't have much to do with me.' She flashed him a smile. 'And if you think about it, you'll realize that there's an obvious reason for that.'
Kellen stared at her uncomprehendingly. Idalia shook her head, dismissing the subject.
'Now. Suppose you tell me what you're doing here,' she said. 'The long version, this time. You might as well start at the beginning, even though the beginning is obvious.'
'I was Banished,' Kellen said, picking up his mug. He was very thirsty, despite what he'd already had to drink,
