| The light brings many secrets. Things that cannot be seen in the dark manifest themselves in the light. Hidden privacies of the night can no longer be hidden during the day. So morning itself brings much news, and much realization. Such it was with Denne. A midnight birth, with only a single candle to light, revealed a mother dead and a �boy� cast aside. The boy was, for lack of something else, called Danan. Through the early morning darkness it was thought the boy would die. But morning light, with its usual accuracy, revealed not a boy, but a girl. The family had been full of boys, not another was needed, but there were no girls, so she was immediately cared for, and renamed Denne. The girl grew up well cared for by a foster mother, and lacked for nothing. She had brothers to play with, to chase and beat up, to tease her, and to watch out for her with brotherly protectiveness. She also was the daughter of a Holder, not a Lord Holder, but a very prosperous Holder, so she had rank to give her kindness she would not otherwise know. She grew up happy and cared for, and even though she was a girl, she was well educated. Her want of learning was not unnoticed by those around her, and most thought it was improper for the girl to know so much. After all, she would only grow up and be married, and there was no need there for knowledge. But as the years passed, it became evident that life might not find her well placed in marriage, and so they condescended to let her have her reading and learning. As the years passed, her features became less and less desirable. She was well figured. She was an active girl, so with a naturally well-shaped chest and hips, she appeared slender and lithesome. Her hair shone auburn, and was long and unruly, and her eyes gave off feelings of peace and serenity to whoever looked into them long enough to notice. But those were the only good things that could be said about her looks. For all their serenity, her eyes were also spaced too far spaced on her high brow. Her nose, while not large, appeared a bit too strong for female features. Her cheekbones were nowhere to be seen, giving her face a childlike roundness, and her chin was to sharp to appear graceful. She was considered an ugly girl. This bothered her not much, for she was not naturally very self-conscious. She spent her time mostly in the beast pens and stables, enjoying the presence of the animals. People would whisper and say that she didn�t feel so judged around the dumb beasts, for what did beasts care for appearances? But in truth she was attracted to the animals in a way she could not explain. She admired their quiet intelligence, and the way they felt no inhibitions about natural things. They knew about life and death, and accepted both with an acceptance that no human could emulate. Danne loved them for this. She wasn�t shy, but she didn�t say much. But nobody ever noticed because she was marked with a flaring characteristic presence that said more about her than words ever could. To people who just met her, that presence gave off a feeling off defiance and will, but as one got to know her, they quickly disregarded this because all she ever did was accept herself and her future with no complaints. People began to think of her as a compliant young woman, ugly, slightly odd, but well behaved and proper. Until the day she quietly told her father, in private, that she wanted to join the BeastCraft Hall, to work with the animals. All over Summerhill Hold people could hear his roars of anger and refusal. When the roars died down everyone knew what the commotion was about, but instead of thinking she would accept it with her usual compliance, they were reminded of that feeling of will she gave off when they first met her. Quickly shaking off that eerie feeling, they all decided the girl would accept her fate as she usually did, with acceptance, as was proper. They thought this all through the night, in the darkness. But morning�s light revealed their first premonitions were correct. The girl had vanished, leaving behind all her decent clothing, taking only working attire, and a young runnerbeast she had trained from a colt. |