Old Dort, the aging stablemaster of Duke Wodan's prized steeds, had dedicated his life to two indulgences - opium pipes and collecting abandoned children. By communal tolerance, the wrinkled caretaker had gathered five foundlings over the years: two boys and three girls.
Sixteen-year-old Frederra, affectionately called "Second Sister" as the earliest female adoptee, enjoyed her simple life in the rolling pastures. The brown-haired girl with peculiar starburst blue eyes was locally renowned as "Hay Maiden" for her talent in harvesting the juiciest fodder. Her daily routine involved gathering tender grasses before sneaking off to a secluded meadow corner for clandestine lessons with an unlikely tutor.
Beneath cerulean skies, the peasant girl sat cross-legged with her golden-haired mentor. Their checkered picnic blanket displayed incongruous elements - exquisite elven primers for children alongside rustic berry tarts.
"Anka, I swear this is all I remember!" Frederra groaned, thrusting her ink-smeared parchment at the luminous being. Her quill had massacred the Sunlight Elixir formula through multiple corrections.
Ancamelos maintained his beatific smile while scanning the submission. The girl shivered involuntarily.
"Missing mountain spring water. Eight drops of binding agent, not seven. Pitcher plant and globeflower leaves reversed." The elf prince marked errors with fluid strokes. "What distracted my star pupil last night?"
"The... elvish grammar..." Frederra mumbled, tracing ornate script. "Those conjugations kept... uh... conjugating in my dreams."
"Thirty transcriptions should solidify your memory." The six-century-old tutor patted her shoulder consolingly.
Frederra sighed. Elves truly were merciless perfectionists.
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Ancamelos was no ordinary elf. As crown prince of the Sylvan Realm, he'd embarked on a coming-of-age journey eight years prior that fatefully intersected with a gap-toothed child collecting fodder.
The eight-year-old Frederra had gaped in wonder at the melancholy figure surveying the plains, his braided gold hair cascading like liquid sunlight. When the elf knelt before her, murmuring poetic nonsense about "starlit orbs" and offering forest nectar for her eyes, the sensible child had screamed and kicked the royal groin before fleeing.
"Completely undignified," Ancamelos later admitted when their improbable student-mentor bond formed. The elf prince found her heterochromatic eyes fascinating enough to endure human stubbornness, while Frederra gradually accepted his eccentric tutelage.
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Shaking off the memory, Frederra adjusted her overgrown bangs - a precaution against royal scouts seeking Others like herself. Those bearing supernatural traits often vanished into palace dungeons under gilded promises.
"Imperial envoys approach Duke Wodan's territory," Ancamelos cautioned, brushing tart crumbs from his silken sleeves. "Four days' journey, perhaps less. Keep your eyes veiled."
Nodding, Frederra gathered her things. Playing sick seemed prudent during the royal visit.
The foundling family's dinner tableau unfolded as usual - doddering Dort fretting over portions, stoic eldest brother Menxile maintaining order, while adopted sisters Lin Boer and Vixamia exchanged competitive glances over roast lamb. Five-year-old Dink's enthusiastic plate-banging ceased under Menxile's quelling stare.
"I'm unwell," Frederra announced after pushing away her half-eaten meal. "Perhaps a fever..."
Dort nearly spilled his ale. "Youth today neglect their health! Tomorrow's envoy procession—"
"Rest early." Menxile's interruption carried finality. As true patriarch of their motley clan, the bespectacled youth with hypnotic azure eyes (another of Dort's "special acquisitions") saw through her ruse instantly.
Later, Frederra intercepted her brother at the stable loft. "Ocksai's Saintfire Festival! You're attending the mercenary city's rites!"
Menxile adjusted his glasses, the concentric rings in his irises swirling. "Dawn. East pasture. Convince Dort yourself."
As the loft door closed, Frederra grinned. Royal envoys meant nothing compared to Ocksai's legendary fireworks and the chance to glimpse real dragonriders. Let her sisters preen for noble suitors - adventure awaited beyond Wodan's pastures.