The Odd Learned

I have officially done it – I am now the town odd ball. It has taken twenty years since moving here, leaving me a young woman of twenty-seven, but I have finally managed it. 

Granted, this was not a title I initially welcomed, but it seemed fitting. 

Known now as the Orion's daughter and the most unlady-like woman in town, I – Terrilyn Lun – was known around town for my various "odd behaviors." Sure, I often wore my combination of pants and skirt into town. Yes, I did keep my blades on hand, often wearing one or the other on my hip as well as a dagger on my thigh or by my ankle. I absolutely was seen around town reading under trees or by fence posts, chatting with anyone and everyone nearby if they wanted to talk. 

I didn't feel odd, but, in a weird way, I could see their point. Some of the things I did were a bit unusual, but it was no different than some of the men in the town. Perhaps it was because it was uncommon for a young woman to do these things. 

In the end, I didn't care about their opinions. I lived by my momma's phrase and Steele's encouragement to live life how I wanted and to pursue the things that made me happy.

I was friends with beggars and gypsies, nomads and traveling scholars who started to come and visit Steele. They were interested in his culture and opinions on certain issues. One wanted to write about his life imprisoned as an innocent man. Others were curious about his perspective as an Orion living in our land. Some even wanted to learn Steele's language because, for us, it was almost impossible to find someone who understood it in its entirety. 

I involuntarily became some kind of liaison between these scholars and Steele. Initially, they kind of brushed me off. It seemed like they couldn't believe that I could speak Steele's native language and that I could manage answering many of the base questions they had about Steele and his culture. 

Eventually, word seemed to get around to all of these university students and scholars seeking a topic to study and eventually publish on. They started to come and find me, or I would find them talking to Steele while he was out in the fields or by the ocean working or enjoying the breath of the day. 

Each person I talked to said the same thing – you are very well learned. 

My guess was that they meant that I was well learned for a woman, but I didn't mind. I knew my worth, and I was going to prove it to them. The first opportunity came when one of the scholars asked me if I came from an affluent family, to which I laughed and told him no. He gave me some notes as well as a list of names of people to write to if I was interested in attending university, and he was not the only one. 

There were several scholars who gave me names of professionals and scholars who, according to them, would be very interested in teaching me and learning from me based on my extensive knowledge, specifically about the Orion. 

To me, this was one of the greatest opportunities I had ever had in my entire life. Steele had done so well teaching me, and now I had the chance of pursuing something I had a true passion for – learning. 

The universities on the continent were far away, and it took several convincing conversations to both my mother and to Steele, which surprised me, to let me possibly attend. Their main concern was me being out in the world on my own so far away where no one would possibly be able to assist me, but I wasn't worried. I knew how to handle myself and how to solve a plethora of problems. 

Eventually, Steele came around and agreed that there was little he could teach me now and that if it was my passion that I should consider it. He spoke of his land and how our cultures were different in this way. Steele told me that it was expected in his land for both men and women to attend university and further their studies to begin a professional career. 

Here, in our land, it was almost unheard of for a woman to attend university and to become a scholar of any sort. Tutored and educated, yes, but not at the well-known schools. 

All of the scholars who came to visit Steele were men. Only one of these young minds brought his wife with him and, even then, she wasn't exactly a conversationalist. She kept her conversation to gossip she had heard on the road and rumors she heard about Steele. 

Boring.

Dull.

The guy, Glif Tian, was much more entertaining to talk to. 

The more I interacted with the intellectuals from far off universities, the more I wanted to attend. 

So, late one evening, I used an entire ink well and most of my lantern light to compose letters to all of the universities where I received names from. I wrote to them about my skills in the Orion's language as well as herbs, stones, strategies, and histories I knew. I included a list of books I had studied, which was far less than what I had actually read and asked for their favor in letting me attend university. 

It might have been a long shot, but it was worth taking. I wanted this, more than anything. This was how my adventure began. This was how it all started for me. I just needed one "yes," and then I had my ticket to the lands and worlds beyond this small town of Creewood. 

Just one chance was all I needed. The real question was who was going to give me that chance.