Chapter 25
The rest of the summer passed much like the one the year before, and without further calamity. Neeve and I rescued two more hobnies—one with his beard trapped in a rabbit snare of his own making, one with it hopelessly tangled in a briar bush—with the same, insult-laden results. Thorne did not invite me on any more excursions deeper into the Darkwood, and I was relieved by it, content to stay safely on the outskirts of the forest.
Much as I loved the forest, and the promise of magic it held, it clearly was dangerous to me, a foreigner to Raine. Thorne had made that clear enough.
I continued to the play the harp on my own, and became a proficient spinner. Mistress Ainya was patient, Miss Groves forced me to improve my mathematical skills, and Neeve seemed to be warming toward
