Oh, deary, it was so long ago I can’t seem to remember all the parts,” said Martuka.
The village wise woman sat before the fire with her child and grandchild. They had come for tea and cakes and to share stories from their lives.
“It’s okay, Nana. Tell us what you remember,” offered Trillion, the youngest of the three.
“Well, let me see. It was the winter of the great freeze. I told you about the storm that snapped trees in half. It killed your great uncle. He foolishly went after a ewe that had broken out of her pin,” continued the woman.
“Wasn’t that the same year your sister married that northern man and moved to a log hut among the reindeer?” asked her daughter.
“You’re right, Comfrey; I had forgotten. After Abigail moved away, Thomas showed his affection toward me,” replied the crone.
“Did he ask for your hand right away?” inquired the maiden.
“Ha, ha, things were different. Even your father waited a whole year before proposing to me,” said the mother.
“No, Thomas was a shy man. I proposed to him. We both knew the time was right to settle down and start a family,” remarked Martuka.
“So, did you get down on one knee and ask for his hand in marriage,” teased Trillion.
“I was on my knees gathering ground nuts. I looked at Thomas and said we should get hitched in the spring. He smiled and replied that it would make things easier,” said the woman.
So what about the stranger you started telling us about? I want to know more about this mysterious man you called the dark mage,” interrupted Comfrey.
“Sorry, love. I got off track talking about your father. Let’s see. It was during that winter when the stranger appeared asking for lodging,” said Martuka.
“Was he handsome,” asked Trillion.
“Stunning was more like it. The stranger took a room at the inn. One day, while buying flour in the village, I bumped into him. He looked at me and smiled. That’s when he said I had the sight. He instructed me to come with my mother to see him that evening,” Martuka explained.
“Was grandma scared when you told her what happened,” asked the daughter.
“Not in the least, she was from a family of wise women and was delighted to hear the proclamation. That evening, we walked to the inn, drank tea, and listened to his words. After an hour, Mother placed a single silver in his hand. She then grabbed me and pulled me out into the night,” said the crone.
“What did he say?” asked the girl.
“Mother sat me down the next day and gave me an object wrapped in cloth. After opening it, I found an old, dried finger attached to a green stone. Mother told me it was her family’s seeing stone and was handed down each generation,” replied Martuka.
“Do you still have it?” asked Comfrey.
Martuka reached inside her vest, retrieved an object, and showed it to them.
“My mother explained to me how to use the stone. She instructed me to keep it secret. Others would envy it and try to steal it for its power,” remarked Martuka.
“That’s why people come to you with cakes and talk here by the fire. I always figured that you being a wise woman meant they wanted to hear your thoughts,” said Comfrey.
“Over the years, folks have come to rely on my visions to find lost items. They also seek out lovers and cure unknown illnesses. The stone lets me see the answers to their questions,” remarked the crone.
“Why are you telling us this now, Nana?” asked the maiden.
“Time I pass the stone on to the next seer. That being you, Trillion,” replied Martuka.
“Ha, ha. I always wondered why I felt and saw things others didn’t. I’m sure glad to know I’m not crazy,” the girl remarked.
“What is it, Comfrey? Why are you tearing up so?” asked her mother.
“I’m so pleased Trillion can carry on the family’s work. I suspected your powers but knew I had none. I worried there would be no seer after you had passed over,” the woman explained.
“Well, deary, that won’t be a problem. Trillion is twice the seer I ever was. Here, child, take the stone and hold it. Feel its power. Use it to seek answers for all who ask,” Martuka said, handing Trillion the stone.
Trillion’s hand shook as she received the stone, but the object’s power soon claimed her. “I feel its strength, Nana, and I’m beginning to see things far from here,” said the maiden.
“Well, Comfrey, it looks like we are in good hands. Now, what about that apple tart you brought? I’m feeling a little peckish after all that tale-telling,” Martuka said with a wry smile.
Trillion smiled, having been given her family’s greatest gift—the power to help others and ease worried hearts and minds.
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