Page 19 of The Ashpaw: Part One

“Don’t you have a specific rag you use for all your dirtiest messes? Since you don’t want all your towels to be stained?”

Fern thought for a second, then dipped her chin in agreement.

“So you have one rag you reserve for the worst of it, thereby keeping the rest of your things clean.” Then she looked over her shoulder before coming closer. “The Ashpaw is the clan’s dish rag. They need her to be the one absorbing their dirt so it doesn’t spread around to everyone else. Make sense?”

Fern chewed on her lip. “I suppose…”

Vedia nodded once. “Good. So get out of here now and hope everyone has already forgotten your face.”

Then she walked back into the dining hall, kicking another of the plates that had fallen further under a table.

The Ashpaw simply crawled under to grab it, without saying a word.

Fern’s heart ached for the woman, and then felt a heavy gaze on her once again.

She dared to look up, catching Darion’s eye. He shook his head once, slowly, and then turned back around.

Fern heeded the warning and left, feeling less prepared for tomorrow than she had before coming upstairs.

Chapter 6

Fern

Fern woke with the sound of shifting bodies, her own limbs still heavy with sleep. The room was dark, save for the dying embers in the hearth, and she blinked slowly from where she lay.

Today was the start of it, then.

Before she could even wonder if there was more time to rest, the door opened and Marin entered, ringing a bell and dashing all of her hopes that it wasn’t as late as she feared it might be.

“Breakfast in ten!” she cried loudly, rousing those who still had not stirred.

Some women moaned, turning away from the sound for the precious few moments they still could, while others stretched and yawned as they sat up. A few were already making their beds.

Fern rose and went first to the bathing room. She had washed herself after coming back downstairs last night, scrubbing the oily shame of her first misstep off her skin, but felt some cold water on her face might help prepare her.

Once refreshed and dressed, she shuffled up to the kitchen in the middle of the line of women, all red-eyed and grumbling. Fern already wanted to cry, not knowing if she could really do this for the rest of her life.

And all she’d done so far was wake up.

The Solvekh collected bowls of plain porridge from one of the cooks, but before her despair over the tasteless meal could spiral into something deeper, she spied small jars of honey on the tables the others were gathering around.

The weight on her chest lessened slightly as she poured some over her breakfast.

At least there was this.

She joined the others and as she ate, listened to their conversations.

“Apparently, Lady Kyntha is looking for attendants…”

“Oh, I would kill for such a position…”

“Did you hear Una’s pregnant?”

“But she was only petitioned a month ago!”

“Are you Fern?”

She looked up to see a man with tousled blonde hair and brown eyes smiling at her. “I’m Hyde. Marin told me I would lead you today.”