Dear Linden...

“Dear Linden”,
 
Nita stares at the page for several minutes. It was always Linden who liked to write stories and poetry; Nita’s writing was almost always focused on her studies.
 
So much has happened, Linden. I don’t know where to start.
 
Tears well up in her eyes and spill over, catching the edge of the page on which she wrote. Bracken got up from his rug at the foot of her bed and gave a quiet whine as he moved to her side. She reached down to rub the base of the wolfhound’s ear as she gave him a gentle smile.
 
“Everything is running smoothly at home…” Except you’re not here. “Please tell Mama and Tata that I’ve been keeping up with the deliveries to our clients and the offerings to the temples.”
 
“I’ve been continuing my studies – both academic and on the Green Path. Mama and Tata wanted me to find a Master to take me as an apprentice. Well, I found one, but it’s not either of the ones they’d expected.” Nita paused, trying to think of how best to word the next part. “While I could take a second apprenticeship with a Master from the Empirical Department of Alchemists as Mama wanted, I am now an apprentice in the Union of Naturalist Professionals as Tata wanted. Master Thom Whillacre, the Guild Administrator, has done wonderful work on the study of decay, which aligns very much with my desired path of study and my research on mushrooms. He agreed to take me on as an apprentice after reading my notes and seeing the research I’d set up in the greenhouse.” Nita’s eyes begin to tear up. “I hope they will both be happy to know that I’ve tried my best to follow through with my studies while you’ve been away.”
 
“I’ve also been learning more about using the magic of the Green. I’ve taken some jobs to help practice, and I’ve even obtained membership in the Grand Society of Adventures and Explorers. As my connection to the Green has grown, it’s become evident that I’m not attuned to it in the same way that all of you are. My connection is like Babcia’s – to the part of the cycle that helps prepare the way for life to begin anew. Given my affection for mushrooms, I suppose that’s no surprise.” She manages a small chuckle. “Babcia didn’t explain exactly how her connection felt, but she did say that once she attuned, she was never really alone again.”
 
As soon as she wrote those last words, the emotions flood through her. The emptiness of the rooms in the house where her family should be quietly sleeping, the comforting sound of Josaiah murmuring in his sleep from his new room, of Erasmus shuffling things around to get comfortable in his new room, and the warmth in her heart that came from knowing Muse was there.
 
The rest of the letter would have to wait. For now, she embraced Bracken, and then climbed into her bed, where she was soon joined by Daphne, who curled up on her pillow.