Free Soul Fire by Aprille Legacy Page B

horses and set off on foot into town. I reached
into the pocket of my breeches to make sure that the little
money bag Jett had handed me was still in there; despite
the lesson yesterday, I tended to bounce around a lot.
“Where to first?” Dena asked, excitement gleaming in
her bright blue eyes.
“Fancy a drink?” Petre asked, nodding towards a
building that was obviously some kind of pub or tavern.
Inside we found that it was packed with other students,
the smoky interior contrasting badly with the clear blue
skies outside. Petre insisted on buying us all drinks, and
we sat at a table outside, sipping the sweet lemonade.
“Has everyone finished that assignment for Watt?”
Ispin asked, and everyone launched into complaints about
the large amount of homework she’d been setting us.
I sipped lemonade from my tankard, looking around
the village, still in disbelief that a place like this actually
existed.
A main street ran through the village, paved with
cobblestones. Neat little houses with thatched roofs
stretched back further than I could see, a clock tower
presiding over it all. A few chickens were being chased by
a little boy and his younger sister.
“Sky?”
“Huh?” I turned back and noticed them all looking at
me.
“I said, ‘what are you looking at?’” Petre repeated.
“Just everything,” I said, looking around again. “I can’t
believe I’m here, sometimes. It’s a bit of a culture shock.”
“This is only Keyes,” Rain said, leaning forwards
eagerly. “Wait until you see Castor, and Riverdoor, and
Thurin.”
”We’ve got a lot to see in three years then,” Theresa
said.
“Why only three years?” Ispin asked, confused.
“Because then we finish our education,” Yasmin said
slowly.
“But you don’t go home,” Petre said.
“We don’t?” I asked.
“No. You stay here for the rest of your lives.”
I felt like I’d drunk molten lead instead of lemonade.
“So you’re saying we can never go back?” Dena asked
quietly.
“That’s right,” Rain said, watching us closely.
I lifted the tankard to my face even though it was
empty. As much as I loved it here, could I really stay in
this realm forever? Never seeing my mother again?
“How about we go shopping?” Rain asked, eager to
cheer us up, for Dena, Theresa and Yasmin were looking
upset as well.
We agreed and headed to the market district, and then
set about poking about all of the little stalls. I got lost in a
book stall, and when I looked up, realised they’d left.
I hurried out onto the street, searching for their
coloured tunics, but I couldn’t spy them in the crowd of
people. Dejected, I shoved my hands in my pockets and
drifted along with the villagers. I was just about to head
back to the horses when I spied a little statue standing on
a table full of antique devices.
“Afternoon, miss,” the man at the stall said brightly as I
approached. “Anything I can help with?”
“Uh,” I pointed at the statue sitting on a dusty pedestal.
“I was just wondering who that is.”
The statue was of a beautiful woman, dressed in a long,
sweeping gown. I bent closer, and noticed she was
wearing a circlet around her forehead.
“That would be Queen Fleur,” the stall owner came
over to stand with me, adjusting his glasses on his nose.
“Queen of the Second Age.”
“She’s beautiful,” I said reverently. “Why does she look
so sad?”
“I’m not too sure to be honest,” he said. “The Second
Age was long before my time.”
I picked the statue up, brushing a bit of dust off of her
face with my thumb.
“Is there a current Queen?” I asked.
“No, miss. No need for one. The country is at peace.”
I ended up buying the statue from him, drawn to the
beautiful woman and her sad, mysterious gaze. I headed
back to the horses and found the others there waiting for
me.
“I lost you,” I told them, cradling my statue in its
hessian bag. “I looked everywhere.”
“Sorry!” Dena hurried over to me