“But as we walked into the light out from under the maze of dark roofs, Mi’hal’e gasped and stopped to gaze around, her hand pulling from mine to point. ‘Look at all the red!’
I nodded, leaning down to rub my knees in relief.  ‘This is Bri’en, the red city; the sacred city.’
   ‘Is this where I come from? Is this why F’ala sent me here? I must belong here,’ Mi’hal’e pulled at her now tattered and faded red skirt hopefully, pointing to soiled red banners, rooftops, temples, lanterns and streamers hanging from poles.
    Choosing to ignore her question, I answered her instead, ‘It is fitting for the city to be red, the colour of blood and life and holiness. This is the largest city in Ebuda, the place of all knowledge and study; of the first temples of the andhou.’” –Ee’shi

They were beautiful days, wonderful, exciting times when I learned that there was an entirely separate world running right alongside the one I knew made all for dhana (children) and I could catch a glimpse of it through the game called play.
I would soon discover that though I was content with rising every morning and doing my chores, oiling my shoes, learning my lessons and helping with A-do and F’ala’s tasks in the evening, I longed to join in Anshe and Raca’s world of laughter and colour and sound.
Raca and her little doll in its yellow dress diverted many hours for us as we took the little thing in and out of its gourd-shell bed and covered it with a scrap of cloth and made food for it from sticks and grass. Raca could make little houses for the doll and her figures from mud and grass and every day I saw my friends, we picked up the running story of De’ua’te’s large asama (family) and all their comings and goings in and out of the little hut which was rebuilt every time. Sometimes she allowed me to fix De’ua’te’s ears like hers, wrapped up in yellow ribbon and she showed me how to pull them up like other hema (girls) she knew.
Once Raca even brought a tiny set of cups painted purple and green which we used to have imaginary tea in. How wonderful it was to be small! I had never thought of it before, for all of my belongings were things of F’ala and A-do’s that they had cut down to my size, dull and used.

“See, here is how we make the dala-ang for my name. Here is the beginning of it: An–”  he made some squiggles on the ground in our little circle. “And the last bit- SHEE!”  With a flourish he dotted the squiggles and sat down pointing to me. “There, it’s easy. You have a go Mi’hal’e.”
I had been casually laying on my back with my knees up but i pulled myself up and quickly scratched out “Anshe-Raca–Mi’hal’e.” at my feet, knowing full well that he had written nothing at all. “Anshe- a-n-s-h-e. Raca- r-a-c-a. Mi’hal’e- m-i-lat-h-a-lat-e. You don’t know how to write, do you? Is that why your book just has pictures in it?”
Quickly I could see I had said the wrong thing.  —Mi’hal’e

We’ll continue to bring you occasional little snippets of the final draft but the end is nearing! Final illustrations are being fine-tuned and a final draft is being revised. If you were a beta-reader for the original draft you’re going to be surprised!

After quite some time watching the low moon above us in silence, I looked over to her huddled beside me under the blanket. “Are you allright?”
Her eyes did not move from their fixed gaze and after a time i decided she wouldn’t answer so I tucked the cover’s edge up better over her shoulders when Mi’hal’es quiet voice interrupted me. “Every night I close my eyes, and every morning they open again. No matter what happens to us, they keep opening.”
I nodded in exhaustion, quietly enjoying what was left of our fire’s warmth on my face before I would have to drag myself out into the chill air and feed the flames a little. “Ee’shi?”
“Mmm?”
“How do you know there’s going to be anything when we get to Bri’en? Weren’t…weren’t all those andhou we’ve seen going away from there?”
I don’t. Dying to tell the truth, dying to confide that I had no better assurance than her own curiosity since being re-birthed out into this foreign world, I shook myself out from under the blanket and winced as the air hit my bare legs. But I wouldn’t say that; I would do better than that and lie to us both for courage, because we had to be close now and if we could just make it a bit longer… so I said instead, “Every night we close our eyes, and every morning they open again. So I know we must be meant to go on then.”  –Ee’shi

“I pulled my robes close against me, carefully moving over to give Sa’uu room to walk down the hall without brushing up against the deep red cloth I had changed into for the evening ceremony I would be attending. In recent times I had made it a point to walk with Sa’uu at least once a week through the gardens and if I was honest I would admit to myself that I changed into a red-lined robe which was soft and golden on the outside not only for fashion’s sake but so that I would be free to move closer to those around me without the chance of the forbidden fabric brushing up against them.” –Ra-alta

“Don’t act as though you were the first to be put to the test. No guardian was ever born knowing their position in this world. It was only at their time of awakening that they were given the chance to decide the next guardian’s fate. I am your shino (brother); as such when I learned of myself I had to choose to take my identity or not; to choose if your future would come! It was so long ago…but here you are now thinking the same thoughts I did.” —Lan

   “I slouched my head onto my fist and sighed, catching a glimpse of Sa’uu settling down outside the doorway. What could have Anan thought as he held me in the forest those years ago? I wondered, blushing involuntarily as the lines of relationships threaded out before me and whispered of choises made and needing to be made. Before I could stop myself, I’d stood and crossed the room, opening the door to Sa’uu in his usual position in the hallway. “I think it is time for tea, Sa’uu,” I mentioned.
    He bowed his head quickly and rose. “I will let the servants know to ready it then asa,” he said.
“I will let them know,” I interrupted him just as quickly, gathering my sleeves around me. “You will join me of course.”
Sa’uu’s face dropped in slight shock. “Asa, it is…it would not be common to do this…” he stuttered.” —Ra-alta