Allyndran, who was standing with her back to us over a hearth, upon which sat two boiling pots and a simmering pan which I could see vegetables upon. Upon first glance it struck me that Edgarory must have a different use of the word kin than I did, for she looked nothing like him, apart from being red.
The kitchen in which she was cooking was at the far end of the house, down a hall along which had several doors on either side. A faint light, as from a single candle, shown from each one of the rooms through the screens. All the walls were like the doors, merely thin white sliding screens. The frame was built of eight large beams of red Arbutus or giant Manzanita timber, four were pillars used to hold up the four beams upon which sat the roof of black shingles. The house was indeed a work of art much like the rest of the village.
Beside the hearth where Allyndran was cooking over a sliding door was open and I could see out into a garden as the twilight sun shafts faded with the end of the work day in the village. Beyond the garden's farthest gate was lane of black and grey cobble stone, though this one was larger than the one I had come into the town upon, perhaps it was the main road? Along the lane went a steady numbers elves and a their kin, as Edgarory called them, they were coming up from the lower terrace where the blacksmith and other shops were.
My attention came back into the house as Allyndran addressed Edgarory over her shoulder. 'You're both just in time, Edgar please set the table with the dishes on the counter there,' her voice was fair, almost young though she was immortal, cheerful and modest of tone, yet she had spoken with an enchanting authority. She had short auburn hair which didn't even fall below her ears, I couldn't make out her face in the firelight as it shown off her neck and arms. She wore a black tunic and a long thick kilt, much like the hakama some of the other villagers wore. Edgarory entered the kitchen picked up the chop sticks and plates which were upon the counter next to the hearth and disappeared out of sight into the next room.
As soon as Edgarory had left Allyndran turned to address me, though what exactly she said was lost to my ears for I was spell bound by what stood before me, for surely she was no elf, but an obsidian demon, whose skin flashed with shades of deep eggplant purple; why hadn't I noticed her form before, had I been blind, truly under some spell or had her features been hidden by the red hearth. What I had originally thought to be ears protruding high above her head upon second glance I could now see were horns. While her ears rose about four inches above her head her horns rose another four, they began their accent not from her forehead, but just in front of her ears upon the top of her head. They were sleek and rose at a slight angle leaning out just as her ears. Her face was beautiful, eternally young, cheerful and wise, she looked much like an elf, fair and noble. Her face was thin, much like her slender body though not overly so, which made her high cheek bones all the more a dominant feature, she had thin pouty lips set magnificently underneath the most radiant eyes I had ever seen. They were not so unlike a human eye save that they no true pupil. The iris was no single shade of at a time, they changed from various shades of grey to almost white as the light reflected upon them.
I was woken out of the spell of Allyndran's mesmerizing beauty of her voice, 'It is your first time seeing a demon,' she asked. Looking down in shame I noticed her tail then, which hung loosely up against her Hakama pants, which looked much like a long dress, but was more like a kilt, yet they were pants. As my eyes followed down to the end of her tail I noticed that her calves were like those of a ram and her feet were black cloven hooves.
'Yes, mam,' I said shyly for I could not recall how long I had been staring at her, 'though I would not call you a demon.' Though I had said that at the time, she was surely a demon, as men of old called them. She was red, had a tail, the legs of a ram, horns, long ears, fangs hidden behind her lips only half seen as she spoke. I realized then, that all the knowledge of the immortals I once held from the days I could not longer remember must fade away, perception was key and mine was jaded by a time out of mind.
In all hopes of returning,
Charles with Edgarory
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