But Aelfric’s mind seemed to be occupied by other thoughts. He paid close attention to everything she did, watching how she did things, and why. At first the scrutiny had been a little nerve-racking, but once she had become accustomed to it, and determined that he had no interest in criticizing the way she did things, Demi learned to let it drift into the background, still somewhere in her conscious awareness but not preoccupied by it.
She did try to engage him in conversation repeatedly, but he rarely spoke. So Demi learned to carry on one-sided conversations with him. She was a very chatty girl and talked to excess by most people’s metrics. She liked grumpy and taciturn people, so she was accustomed to having these sorts of one-sided conversations.
And she discovered that the more she talked to him, the more he slowly began to open up, answering her more regularly when she asked him questions or speculated on his opinions.
After a week and a half, they were having what Demi classified as ordinary conversations. He sometimes even spoke to her first.
She had been somewhat conflicted over what to call him at first, whether to use his true name or his assumed name, whether or not she ought to call him by his last name as a way of being respectful, whether or not she ought to call him sensei because he was both an Archmage and a Great Sage...
And a doctor?
She couldn’t just call him “handsome old man.”
(Even if her brain supplied the phrase readily.)
But then the name “Aelfric” just slipped out of her on the second day. Fortunately, no one besides the two of them (and Glimmer and Dollop) had been at the farm that day. Everyone was busy with their work: preparing the trees and plants at the location of the new fox settlement, surveying and marking out the ground around the proposed water lock, keeping track of the progress of the Rosebrook, making sure the whole area was safe from disturbances...
Demi and Aelfric spent most of their time alone and in one another’s company as he convalesced.
(With the exception of Glimmer, who was of course, always on hand to “keep an eye on things,” and Dollop, who seemed likewise occupied.)
The first time Demi called Aelfric by his true name, he had looked over at her sharply, with narrowed eyes and an intense gaze. Although he was still confined to bed, the force of his stare was enough to make her feel as if he had pushed her against a wall and was menacing her.
“How do you know that name?” he demanded, his voice low and dark.
“Ahhh,” she panicked, fluttering her hands. “You mentioned it in your sleep,” she fibbed. It was not a very good lie, but Demi was not very good at lying to people she genuinely liked.
She did not like to do it even when she felt that it was necessary. Lying to Aelfric made her feel uncomfortable, so she avoided thinking about it, which made her lies that much worse.
Demi was not yet certain that she ought to reveal her identity as a goddess to him, despite the fact that he was tagged as the Hero. Duncan Oakroot had warned her to be careful, and she didn’t know much about the Shadowstep Alchemist, the real Shadowstep Alchemist. Most of what she did know came from what she had read about him in books, and not all of that had been favorable.
Not everyone liked the Shadowstep Alchemist. He had done a lot of good, but there were other things that people called him.
Warmonger
Doombringer
Death’s Horseman
Poisoncrow
Dirgefisher
Stormshrike
Poisoner, profiteer, kinslayer, kingslayer.
(Although, like Hollyhope, Demi remained his devoted fan. She wanted to believe in him.)
Fortunately, he had accepted her questionable lie, or at least she assumed so.
“Don’t mention that name to anyone,” he warned with narrowed eyes. Then as if recognizing how intense he was being, he relaxed slightly and said, “That’s not my name. Call me Alt.”
“All right,” she said shyly, ducking her head slightly. “Alt.”
He seemed satisfied by this, and let the issue pass.
The biggest reason that Demi was reluctant to reveal her identity as a goddess to Aelfric was his association with the royal family of Prystir. The official annals of the nation recorded the Shadowstep Alchemist as one of the founders of the kingdom, along with the first king, the Hero-King Conri, and the Unicorn Queen. Even after the death of the first king, when the Shadowstep Alchemist had gradually faded into legend, rumors persisted of a mysterious advisor to the royal family, a vague and ageless person who never showed themselves in public, but who was rumored to have the ear of the current ruler of Prystir, the young Princess-King.
The Shadow Councillor. The Shadow of Prystir.
If Aelfric reported her identity to the crown, then Demi knew she would immediately be thrust into the world of politics and intrigue. That was not a place that she wanted to be. She had had enough experience with that as the heir to the Seat of Serraffield.
She just wanted to enjoy her idyllic farm life: reading books, caring for chickens, walking in the forest, reading books, growing flowers, cooking delicious food, practicing alchemy, petting pink sheep, and reading books.
If the royal family caught wind of her, she knew she’d have no peace at all.
Even if Aelfric did not wish to betray her trust, he likely already had obligations to the crown that he felt called to uphold. That was one way the fictionalized Grey Thornwood and the flesh-and-blood Aelfric Pwyll Farrant were the same. They both took their responsibilities very seriously.
And so, Demi waited cautiously, thinking carefully about what she ought to do, and doing her best to appear to be nothing more than a very ordinary farm girl.