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We watch in silence as the sun continues its journey but before it goes completely out of sight Duncan shifts. He squeezes my hand and smiles.
“We best be getting back. It’s nae safe to be out here after dark.”
“Are there animals?” I ask as he leads the way back.
“Some,” he says but it’s obvious he has more on his mind than animals.
“What else?”
He frowns but doesn’t look over, all his attention on picking his way down the hill.
“Duncan? What else?”
“You would nae believe me,” he says. “Trust me though, it’s best to nae be out after the fullness of dark settles.”
I want to argue more but we’re close to Alesoun’s house already. If I do argue there is no doubt in my mind that our voices will carry on the clear night air to the other homes of the village. They’re already looking askance at me so it’s better if I don’t stir more trouble. As we approach her house, the door opens. The warm orange of her fire spilling out and pushing back the darkness is welcoming.
“Ach, come on, lass,” she says. “Best to nae be out after dusk.”
“Good night, m’lady,” Duncan says, bowing over my hand still in his.
He kisses the back of my hand. Tingles race up my arm and create a thrill in my chest and my lady bits too.
“Good night, Duncan,” I mumble, attempting a partial curtsy. “Thank you for saving me today.”
“It was my honor,” he says, backing away.
“Off with ya now, Duncan,” Alesoun says. “It’s unseemly for ya to be with a lady after night’s fallen.”
Duncan grins mischievously. “We would nae want any unseemliness, now would we?”
His smile and the sparkle in his eyes give the lie to his words. I’m definitely having unseemly feelings and thoughts as Alesoun all but pushes me into her house and firmly shuts the door behind us.
“I’ve made some supper. You’re welcome to a share,” she says, pointing to a pot that hangs over the fire.
“Thank you,” I say.
There are dishes on the small table, and I go to take a bowl. Alesoun takes up two small bowls, so tiny they look more like they belong in a toy tea set than in use for people. She goes to the pot of boiling stew and carefully fills each of the tiny bowls.
They don’t hold more than a couple of dollops in each. She sets each one down on the table after she fills it then takes a cloth and wipes the sides where some of the stew spilled over. After she is done with that, she blows on each one to cool it.
I watch her work in fascination. When she’s satisfied with the temperature of the stews, she picks up the two bowls, balancing one on her arm and the other in her hand. She opens the door and sets the bowls outside next to the door on a small flat rock. She stands up, leans out far enough that she can look up the hill towards the highlands, and mutters something under her breath. Then she retreats inside and reseals the door.
“What was that?” I ask.
“Ach? Do you nae care for the fair folk when you’re from?”
“Uhm, no?” A surge of guilt twists my guts. I’ve never even heard of this as a practice. How was I to know it was a thing? “I’m afraid I don’t know much about the fair folk or the practices of, uhm, taking care of them.”
“Ach, what does the world come to that it spawns the likes of that?”
I don’t have an answer for her, so I dip some stew and take a seat at the table. Alesoun joins me and we eat in an uncomfortable silence.
“I didn’t mean to offend,” I say.
“Offend? Isn’t I you needs worry about offending,” she says.
“I don’t understand.”
