Ellie showed back up with Shreya's father's gourd, ending their little conversation. She shook it. Something sloshed inside, an odd grape-like drink. "I brought you a present. This is something that they give to really important people as a gift. It's home-made."

"Important people like you?"

"Yep. It's a classy and amazing gesture. Consider yourself lucky."

"I take it you're showered in gifts, then, since you're so important." Shreya said, amused by the thought of it.

"Heh, more like my family is."

"Ellie's at the top of the food chain," Marietta clarified. "You can think of her as elite, which makes the two of us elite by extension. Only, Sunflower's not as elite as me seeing how she's a dog and all."

Elite. Literature had created a different image of the elite for Shreya. Elegant dresses. Ball gowns. Grand displays. Wealth pouring out of pockets. Stunning castles and banquet halls. Poise, and a refined way of speaking and carrying one's self. Ellie seemed too down-home for that, especially considering who she kept as friends and all of her forest-wandering. Shouldn't elite people stay in the company of the elite?

Maybe this was all a clever ruse, some type of game a farmer girl liked to play. It could be one big joke, a fantasy for them to all play into so they could keep their minds off of the realities of their life.

Shreya undid the cork and sniffed the drink. The sweet, fruity aroma hit her. "What's this called?"

"Riesling. It's a white wine." Ellie said, smiling. "Go ahead and try some. We usually have it with dinner."

To her surprise, it was refreshingly light-tasting. She expected more of a grape taste, but it reminded her much more of sweet pear juice. A mild kick followed on the way down. "It's nice. Thank you."

Marietta cleared her throat. She'd finished her jerky and was working on her porridge. Shreya passed the gourd along. She took a gulp of it then passed it back.

"Is it okay if she has some?" Shreya asked.

"Yeah."

Shreya passed Sunflower the gourd. Sunflower accepted it warily, then took a small swallow of it. She gave it back to Shreya, her glare relaxing into neutrality. There was an unspoken respect in that exchange, an agreement that neither of them would harm the other.

She tipped her head back, pouring some of the porridge into her mouth. "This is nice, too." Sugar, some kind of spice-blend for added flavor. "What's in it?"

"It's bulgur wheat porridge. I added cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. Isn't it great?"

It could've just been because Shreya hadn't eaten in some time, but everything tasted wonderful. The Riesling wine bursted with fruity flavor. The porridge had the right amount of sweetness to it to keep it from being bland.

"Is this the kind of thing you have for breakfast?" Ellie asked.

"No, nothing like this." Shreya said. She took a long drink out of the gourd. "We're more plain. Most spice is expensive or hard to find."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. We've got to import it. Do you guys have a trading network or anything like that?"

"It's small. I'm not involved in it so I can't tell you about it." She handed the gourd over to Marietta. Marietta took another swig of it, and passed it to Ellie.

"It must be hard living in the woods without a village, huh?"

"It's so-so." Shreya shrugged. "I wouldn't say I live without a village. It's a village, yeah..."

"Sorry, I wasn't sure what you'd call it." Ellie took a long sip from the gourd. Sunflower turned down another turn with it, so it went to Shreya next.

"Home."

"Clever," Ellie said. She looked up at the sky. "We're going to have to get going soon. Sorry about all that drama with the gourd, by the way. I wanted to get to know you better and I didn't know how else to guarantee that I'd see you again." She smiled softly. "But now that you've got it back, I guess this'll be some weird thing we can both look back on. You and me, and our tiny adventure."

"Don't forget about us." Marietta said. "Your tiny adventure almost got us killed."

"It doesn't have to be like that. We can see each other again." Shreya said. "It might not be tomorrow but it'll happen." She capped the gourd. The rest of it would go to Shanti.

"Next time, if there ever is a next time, we're following my directions, instead." Marietta chimed in.

Ellie clapped her hands together. "Let's make it three days from now! Because you know, if we leave without setting a real day it'll be like we're never gonna meet again." Ellie helped Sunflower to her feet. She got the stick for her, letting her lean against it for support.

"Okay, I'm fine with that." Shreya said. "Three days."

"Try not to miss us too much." Ellie laughed.

"I won't. Marietta, can you get them back safely?"

"Of course I can. Leave it to me. See you later, friend."

"Bye. It was nice meeting you." Shreya waved them goodbye.

She watched them go, letting them get a good distance away before she headed in the other direction.

Maybe she would miss them, too.

Just a little.

Maybe.

-------------

A/N: This is an interactive fantasy serial. Voting takes place on Thursdays through Sundays on the story's main site. The most up-to-date chapters can also be found there, but uploading will happen in parts on RRL as well.

The next post will be Chapter 6.

Chapter 11 is out now on the main site. This week, voting will end Monday at 11:59 PM EST due to special circumstances.