58 A sweet day

They crossed the town of parting and went south. Fern looked down from the horse and hugged Osmond tightly. She knew then how much smaller he was.

"How old are you?" Fern asked softly.

Osmond was still not confident in his riding, so he did not turn back. "I am eight," he said.

"So that means you can't use chants!" She exclaimed.

Osmond knew about chants from his lessons. Everyone undergoes two cleansings at the temples they worship; first at the age of ten and the other at the age of twelve.

"No," Osmond replied.

"Why are you doing this now? You can be an adventurer after your first cleansing."

"I want to get stronger as fast as possible," Fern felt Osmond's heat flowing out.

'What did this boy see in his life?' Fern wondered.

It was past noon when they reached the village of Bakersville. They saw rows of sugarcane and bushes of berries; red, blue and black as they moved.

"There are a lot of bakers in this place," Riley said from ahead.