Aila, Thogrim, and Kiren Sketches

Aila looked at the carrots suspiciously. Unnaturally orange under the dirt, they defied her idea of a proper root. Potatoes, parsnips, turnips, onions: all were meek, quiet things. But this simply defied reason.

Finally, she turned to her companion, asking, "What god would hide this color?

Kiren laughed and gently pushed Aila to the side. "That question assumes they don't do things to confuse us," she replied as she began to clean the vegetables. "Carrots are eaten raw, boiled & mashed, roasted, in pies—easy and tasty, too." So saying, she broke off a piece and offered it to the skeptical Dwarf, who chewed it slowly.

"Well, what do you want to do with them?" The two women talked over the chopping and mixing and firing of the oven. As they waited on their pie to bake, they sat at the table and compared their favorite recipes. Aila smiled, trying to remember how long it had been since she'd enjoyed such pleasant female company. The Twosummers child is a good girl, she thought, but can be so thoughtless.

"I'm glad you're here," she said, patting the younger woman's hand.

Kiren stiffened, then looked down and murmured, "Thank you."
—————