Lilo Talei
I almost died today. I want to make light of it—maybe I can add “poison purveyor” to my list of titles, something dumb like that… but I’m struggling. If it weren’t for Thaddeus’ knowledge of herbs and his quick thinking, I wouldn’t be here.
I didn’t really think about it that much before this all started, that the place itself would be dangerous. I figured that most of the dying happened because people didn’t know how to fend for themselves, you know? Starvation and dehydration. Getting mauled. Stupid crap like falling off cliffs, I don’t know. I didn’t realize that the food itself would be the issue.
I suddenly feel very small and very scared. Mustn’t let the others know, though.
Thaddeus Diggory
The first brush with death came today. Far too soon for my comfort. It was dumb luck that saved her, and a half-remembered lesson from the old friars about emetics.
We followed Ariel’s hunch and did indeed find ourselves out of the darkness. The light was blinding at first. How long were we in the cave? And how did we get there?
Once my eyes adjusted, I saw that the place was a veritable Eden: a wild place, untended, but rich with herbs and fruits and nuts, many of them ripe for the taking. Lilo didn’t stop talking for what felt like an hour, although none of us has a watch or the requisite knowledge to fashion a makeshift sundial. Ariel and I foraged separately, doing our best to tune out Lilo’s babbling. Honestly, one would think she was three years old by the way she talks, but she’s old enough to be tried as an adult.
And then she was silent.
The silence was comforting, for a moment, but a feeling in my gut quickly took over. I remember the days when the children were small, when a long silence was the surest sign that something was amiss.
Lilo was bent over a clear, flowing stream, water dripping down her chin, her face pale. I tried to ask her what was wrong, but she seemed unable to speak, she just shoved something toward my face.
I felt my own face pale. My head spun.
I called to Ariel to help me find an emetic, and she began searching, but with no training, she didn’t know what she was looking for. I finally found something nearby and nearly forced it down Lilo’s throat. She retched for what felt like an age, but her color soon began returning.
She had misidentified the plant and knew as soon as symptoms began just how much trouble she was in, but by then she had been too sick to help herself.
After all that, Ariel was in a foul mood—fouler than usual—and started ranting about something. She stormed off in a huff shortly after, and I haven’t seen her since. Lilo has remained within a four foot radius of me all evening, and although I have given every signal I know how to give that I am not interested in a conversation, she persists in chattering away in the background.
The light is beginning to wane. I think it will be prudent to have a fire, and to set some traps overnight. Roots and nuts and berries will only last us so long.
Ariel Irene
I hate him, Esther. I hate him. Thaddeus is absolutely insufferable, and Lilo just follows him around with these big puppy eyes like he can do no wrong, and I couldn’t stand to be with them any longer. I’m on my own now. I don’t know how long I’ll last—or if staying with them would get me any farther—but I just can’t bring myself to be part of their little team.
Lilo almost died today, and big strong Thaddeus saved her, and he kept trying to tell me what to look for but he wasn’t being at all clear in his instructions, and then he found it and didn’t even bother to tell me until I noticed that he was helping Lilo up, and then he had the AUDACITY to blame me for Lilo having eaten whatever it was she ate, as if I had tried to kill her by finding the garden in the first place.
If I were trying to kill her, she wouldn’t have survived the day. He has no idea.
So I’m off on my own now. I’ve found a nice cozy place to sleep, not too far from the garden, just in case. Something in my heart says to keep going east, to follow the rising sun.
But that can wait until tomorrow.
You’re reading The Ravenswing Report, a rapid-fire, limited-run serial from Sara Dietz at Blinking Blue Line. To learn more and access the Table of Contents, click here.
I love how the perspective shifts just completely change the story. Poor Lilo. Also, I’m really curious what Ariel’s deal is!
Just passing through to revisit
> If I were trying to kill her, she wouldn’t have survived the day. He has no idea.