It was dark now. Daran thought about what his mother said. It seemed like she had just touched his cheek and kissed him good-bye. But it seemed like days ago that she gave Daran her instructions. Daran knew he wasn’t supposed to come out from hiding until it had been dark for a while: but for how long? He couldn’t remember. Daran shifted to his side. It hurt to lie on his stomach. He hadn’t eaten or drank since hiding in the log, but his bladder hurt lying in this position. He couldn’t hold it much longer. Daran didn’t want to go in the log. He knew that would be uncomfortable and besides he had to be a gentleman. Gentlemen don’t wet their pants. He was twelve now. It had been a long time since he wet his pants. The last time was when he was six, but that wasn’t his fault. Daran remembered how embarrassed he was. When he thought about it, Daran could still see the boar’s eyes and feel its breath. The boar nearly fell on him when his father killed it with magic.
Carefully, Daran moved the leaves in front of him blocking the log. He listened quietly for any sound he couldn’t identify. When he was sure it was safe, Daran slowly inched forward. He stopped and decided he should have a plan. Maybe he would take ten cock’s-crows to move forward the sword length to the opening in the log. Then he would poke his head out just enough to look around. If everything were clear, he would slowly get up but stay crouched. Then he would silently creep into the bushes far away from the log and relieve himself. He could take the water skin and jerky with him and have a quick meal. Then he would silently creep back to his hiding place. He wouldn’t rustle a leaf or break a twig. He was Daran the warrior; wood’s guide and best tracker in all of Ruadan. Daran hunched himself up and shifted forward about a hand width. That’s when his plan fell apart.
“Middens.” Daran scrambled out of the log and ran for the brush. He fell twice: once tripping over a stick and a second time fumbling with the drawstring on his long pants. Daran barely got the strings undone before he closed his eyes and let out a long sigh of relief.
“Whew... ah ... so much for a great plan and Daran the woods guide and great warrior. You almost didn’t make it. Oops! Better keep quiet.” Still relieving himself, Daran glanced over his shoulder afraid someone may have heard him. He decided it was better not to speak aloud. “Well if they didn’t hear me in all that ruckus,” he thought, “they can’t be close by. It took me so long to pee that they could have fletched the arrows to shoot at me. If no one heard me then mother isn’t waiting in ambush close by. At least she had time to get away or set up a trap someplace else. I hope father is all right too.”
Daran decided to have a quick look around. It was dark, but there was enough light from Delos, the moon, to see fairly well. His eyes were well-adjusted to the dark from hiding in the log all day. Daran went to his hiding place and sat down to have some jerky and water.
“Whew ... what the ... oh middens. Sorry mother.” Daran slid far to the end of the log and laughed to himself. “Oh wise woods guide and fierce warrior. Not two men, a horse and a stag. It was two men and two horses. ‘Watering your stag’ means taking a pee. The man peed on my log.”
Daran smiled as he thought about it. “It’s like one of those jokes.” His father and friends would drink ale and tell jokes around the fire. They’d laugh and then Daran would ask his mother what was so funny. Darasha would usually just say, ‘That means it’s time for bed Daran,’ then take his hand and walk with him to the pallet room. When Darasha passed the men she would give them a funny look, raise her eyebrows and say goodnight ‘gentlemen’ in a funny way. He knew the men were telling jokes he wasn’t supposed to know. “Just like watering your stag.” Daran thought and smiled again. “Well now I’ll be able to laugh too,” he chuckled silently.
Daran spent the rest of that night and all the next day hiding in the log. It was uncomfortable but he felt safe. It was his little cocoon. It was a little damp and musty, but it felt safe. By sunset, he began to worry about his mother. Daran was sure she would be back by now. He remembered her saying she wouldn’t be able to find this spot in the dark, so he knew he would be spending another night in the log.
Another day and night passed and still his mother had not returned. Daran finished the last of the water and jerky the day before and woke up hungry. By noon, Daran had spent most of the day out of the log looking nearby for berries. He found a few but no water. By high sun, Daran knew he had a decision to make. If his mother didn’t come by that evening, the next morning, he would start for Reyas with the sunrise in his face.
Daran woke just before dawn, hungry, thirsty and worried about his mother. He wondered if he should wait just one more day, then decided that it was time to think about plans again. His mother and father were good at plans. They said good plans could keep people alive. His mother would expect him to follow her plan. She wouldn’t come here to look for him. She would expect Daran to be making his way to Reyas. She would either look for him there or try to find him while he traveled.
Daran slung the empty water skin over his shoulder and walked east. He knew he must add to his mother’s plan. Daran thought about what he should do. “Should I walk in the open to make better time or keep to the shadows and brush to keep hidden? If I hear a sound, should I call out in case it’s mother or keep quiet in case it’s the bad men or the rest of their troop?” He decided it was best to make time, but stay close to cover so he could hide quickly. He should keep quiet. His mother was smart enough to think of a good plan and find a safe place for him to hide. The two men were too stupid to find him even when one ‘watered his stag’ on his hiding log. His mother could find him even if he stayed in the brush all the way to Reyas.
Daran found water and berries along the way. He wasn’t starving but he couldn’t remember being this hungry before. Daran stopped to rest and thought again about his mother’s instructions. He couldn’t remember if his mother told him how long it would him to walk to Reyas. He knew he could make it however far it was. If his mother knew he could make it, then he didn’t have to worry about that.
Late in the second day, he reached the edge of the forest. In front of him was rolling grassland. Daran could see small stands of aspen and larch but most of the way would be in open country. The grass came up to about his knees. Daran laid flat in the grass and looked up trying to imagine how far away a man on a horse could be and still see him hiding. Daran was worried about leaving a path through the grass too. He remembered, from playing in the meadow by his home, how you could follow a trail in the grass for several hours. After that, the grass straightened up again and you couldn’t see the trail. Daran stood and looked at the impression in the grass and decided it was time to use Ilias as his guide and travel at night. He walked back to the tree line and tried to sleep until dark.
Daran dosed on and off until he felt it was dark enough both for safety and to see Ilias. He started walking with Ilias over his left shoulder. He remembered sitting in the meadow at night with his father. Darshon would tell him about how the stars would change with the seasons and the land you were in. But, Ilias the guide, would always be in the same place. The other stars circle around her. His father said Ilias is the maiden of the stars and one of the brightest. The brighter stars are women and the brighter they are, the prettier they are. The stars that have color and seem to twinkle more are her suitors. All the stars circle around the maiden Ilias. The men wish to court her; the women wish to be like her. Daran remembered Darshon telling him that if Darasha were a star, she would be the brightest star of all; and Darshon would be the most colorful. Once Darshon pointed out a shooting star and said it was as Daran would be some day—streaking across the sky to find his own Ilias. People would look at Daran in wonder, just as they look at a shooting star.
Right now, Daran didn’t feel like a shooting star or Daran the woods guide. He felt like a boy and wanted his mother to tuck him into his pallet. He wanted to fall asleep to the muffled sounds of his father and friends telling stories by the fire in the great hall. But right now, he knew he needed to find a stand of larch to spend the day in and hopefully something to eat. Within an hour, Daran had found his trees and slept curled under a pile of dead branches. When he woke the next day, he thought it must be about half between high sun and sunset. He waited until darkness settled in and then headed east at a brisk walk.
It ws nearly dawn when Daran decided he needed to find shelter for the day. He climbed a small rise to scan ahead for a stand of trees. In the distance, he could see plumes of smoke curling softly up to join a haze hanging over what must be Reyas. Daran started running toward the haze. He was close now –no need to travel by night. He could be in Reyas by high sun and would probably be telling his mother about his adventure by sunset.