The sun was high in the sky as the child battled with the greatest foe of her young life… boredom. She sat in the middle of a field covered in dirt, a bucket beside her. With every plucked weed the pile in her bucket grew along with the impatience for the task to be over.

  She shared these feelings with the tiny flame in her heart. It gently flickered in sympathy, but could do nothing to help. That was fine, little flame’s companionship was enough for her.

  “Willow! Stop daydreaming and work faster!” her brother scolded next to her, a bucket filled to the brim beside him. “We were supposed to be done before noon, but you keep slacking off!” The older boy’s tanned face was set in a scowl and his short curly hair was matted to his head from sweat.

  Stupid Yew, she thought, but did pick up her pace for a moment. While yanking weeds and shuffling around her mind began wandering again. She had expected more adventure and excitement in the months following her binding to little flame, but things had largely stayed the same.

  There was some mild hostility from one element of the small community surrounding them, but that was annoying rather than exciting.

  “Fire is not proper for a girl of the Vale.” Old Ping had said when she heard the news. Willow had never liked Old Ping, her qi felt rotten to the young girl's senses, so that was tolerable if disappointing. It was her family's reaction that elicited more complicated emotions.

  After the initial confusion of how she even knew how to bind a spirit at seven winters wore off, there was a mix of emotions among the family. Her older brother Yew was jealous she had bound a spirit before him, but was equally smug and dismissive that she had bound only a small candle flame. Her eldest sister Maple was more focused on scolding Willow for using candles unsupervised in the night again.

  Her father’s reaction had hurt the most.

  With the binding of a fire spirit it meant the qi in her core would slowly become fire aligned. Which according to common wisdom meant she would be unable to bind the wood, earth, or water spirits more helpful to farming endeavors.

  Her father asked her to break the binding with the little flame. Willow refused.

  He tried gently explaining why she should find a wood or earth spirit to bind to instead. Willow refused.

  He grew angry and began demanding she break the binding. Willow began to cry, but still she refused.

  All the while the flame in her heart had flickered in fear at the thought of being abandoned.

  She snapped back to the present at the realization that there were no more weeds to pluck. She looked around and realized Yew had already left. He either hadn’t said anything, or more likely had said something, but Willow was too lost in her thoughts to hear him.

  She trudged slowly with her overflowing weed bucket to the large form of her father’s spirit beast at the edge of the field. It looked vaguely like a large tortoise made of soil with a bare tree growing from its back and roots suffusing its being. It was the spirit beast’s qi that enveloped the field and promoted the growth of all things within its boundary. She saw her brother's bucket next to it, its contents already consumed by the beast.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Heya Bough.” Willow grunted on her approach. “Got some more food for you, sorry is so late.”

  The spirit groaned like an old home, but affectionately bumped her shoulder and pulsed its qi as she placed the bucket of weeds next to it. One of its “feet” was placed in the bucket and the roots within grew outward and consumed the weeds with surprising speed. Willow never grew tired of seeing the old spirit beast eat, but wished the daily chore of weeding wasn’t required for her to see it.

  She started making her way back to the house, eager to report the completion of her chores. Not wanting to incur the wrath of her sister she made use of the bucket and washcloth left by the door to get the worst of the dirt off before she stepped inside.

  The smell of stew and herbs greeted her as she entered the main room of her home. A hand carved table was the centerpiece of the room, with matching chairs surrounding it. Bundles of herbs were strung around the room, and the stone floor was well swept and clear of any debris. There were three doorways that led to the different family members' rooms, and a ladder by the front door led to the loft that her brother had insisted on moving to early last year. The move had suited Willow and Maple just fine, since they could each get their own rooms now.

  Her sister stood by the fireplace at the far wall, contemplating the stew bubbling away in the pot within. The firelight danced on her tanned olive skin, and her usual nimbus of curls was tied back as she cooked. The child always associated the feeling of her sister’s qi to the feeling of home.

  “Hiya sissy.” Willow called as she headed for the curtain leading to her small room.

  “Heya little gnome.” Maple called back as she looked up from the pot. “Have you seen Yew around? I was going to ask him to fetch more kindling for the fire.”

  “He was gone when I finished.” Willow said with a shrug. “Prolly went to go play with Bai and Rom again.”

  Maple frowned at the news. “He didn’t even check with me first!” She then began muttering to herself “And Da’ll be in that meeting for the rest of the day if it’s like last time. Can’t have Willow watching the pot or the house’ll burn down.”

  “It would not!” Said girl squeaked in protest. She thought for a moment, “I’ll fetch the kindling then since you seem so troubled by it… And since you don’t trust me to watch the house.” She said the last bit with a pout.

  Her sister still seemed worried. “Thank you for offering, but are you sure you’re up for it? You just finished your chores and you tend to be a little… scatterbrained. In the woods that can be dangerous.”

  “I am not scatterbrained!” Willow protested, “I just have a lot to think about!”

  Maple looked at her skeptically.

  “Besides, I have little flame to help keep a lookout!” Willow said as she summoned said flame to the palm of her hand. “They’ll be sure to keep me safe!”

  A frown still marked her face, but she slowly nodded. “I suppose that would help, but you still have to promise me that you’ll stay alert and careful. Not all spirits and beasts in the area follow the agreement we’ve made with the Emerald Bloom.”

  “I promise!” Willow said as she started putting her harvest basket on her back to help carry the kindling when she found it, little flame hovering on her shoulder.

  “And remember to stick to the trails! It’s very easy to get lost if you don’t.” Her sister continued, worry clear on her face.

  “I will!” the girl replied, and with small, purposeful strides the child exited the house and began walking to the game trail behind their home.

  This could be the start of an adventure! The child thought as she was swallowed by the ocean of trees before her.