* * *
The next day brought sunshine and frigid winds. It was Suns' Day, which meant he had the day off from tutoring, so Soryn went to Fanndis’ cottage after breakfast. He and Stigg worked for hours on the addition to the cottage that would become Arna’s room. Before they worked more on the structure, they had to create a putty-like mortar that Soryn abhorred. It smelled like vomit and the boy was not so sure it was mortar at all. He was of the opinion that it came from some unfortunate animal. Soryn mentioned his suspicions to Stigg. The man scowled at this suggestion. They slapped the mortar over their first layer of stones and put the next layer down. They continued with another layer of mortar, another layer of rocks…for hours.
When they ran out of stones, they went back to the creek, broke open the ice, and carried more back to the cottage clearing. Fanndis approved of their progress. She saw it from her brief treks to the barn for straw or to visit with Eira. Arna was thrilled that she would soon have her own space in which to sleep and work. In two days, Arna had learned to summon fire in more creative ways. She had also learned to summon water, and make the most useful health poultices and salves. Fanndis was an excellent teacher and Arna already knew the names of the herbs they used and where they grew. She could not have been more excited about her apprenticeship. She and Fanndis got along much like grandmother and grandchild. It was an exciting time—made even more so by Soryn’s presence, though she really only saw him at mealtimes.
Stigg seemed shy around her, though she wasn’t sure why. Arna's attempts to make conversation had proved fruitless and he usually grunted or mumbled unintelligible replies to her questions. Still, he helped her with any heavy lifting when he was inside and he made sure to set out warm blankets for her by the fire before he carried his own to the barn to sleep. She felt a sisterly affection building for Stigg. It made her glad, considering she was an only child and her parents had passed away some time ago.
By the time the suns set, Lord Maslyn was far worse than the day before, as far as aches and pains went. The little room was only about four stone levels high. They had begun to leave a space for the door, which helped the boy picture the end result. Stigg finally went into the cottage for dinner and Soryn sighed. Exhaustion slithered underneath his skin. He thought he would have at least built up a few small muscles the day before, but he slumped into the house like a rickety old man and the women put warm compresses on his shoulders again.
Lord Maslyn returned to the castle later on and asked to go down to the spring again. Jori obeyed his master’s request and took the boy down to the warm water below. Ulla met him there after the manservant had gone and the two of them talked about the goings on at the cottage and so forth. By the time Lord Maslyn had gone up to the great hall and had a second dinner (his appetite had grown exponentially), he was nearly falling asleep in his chair. Father Kimbli chuckled at the boy’s behavior and asked Jori to take him off to bed.
Another roaring fire met him when he returned to his room. He fell into the covers without even undressing. The manservant simply covered Lord Maslyn with the numerous blankets and went about the rest of his nightly duties. That night, Soryn dreamed of Arna and how she might look in the summertime. He saw her short hair blown by the wind and they laughed over some shared joke his mind was too tired to remember. They watched the suns set together and held hands, enjoying the warmth the summer suns exuded.