Tristianna and Isador

Tristianna did not care a whit for her stepmother’s admonitions. She would toss off her ragged foot wrappings and walk barefoot instead. She would wear Koviri lace and batik knickers under her rough hairshirt. And when dusk fell and the other novices dutifully went to offer their evening prayers, she would slip off quietly and run down to the bay, where Isador awaited her. This merry devil was thick as a barn and had hooves instead of feet – but Tristianna like him all the same, more than anyone else in the world. For him, she broke off her betrothal and defied her family’s will. She knew that if their bond was ever discovered both she and Isador would be burned at the stake, and so in the dark hours of night she planned their escape.