Arien gasped for breath as Ronan pointed at the thing she held, “Is that a dog’s foot?” The boy held his nose, trying to stifle another gale that threatened to escape him. It succeeded in him making a loud snorting noise which only caused him to laugh louder.

“It is a foot of a swamp rat from Fullerk and it could save your lives,” Ula snapped and Arien doubled over with laughter. “It is nothing to laugh at.”

“She’s right.” Ronan forced a solemn expression. “If it can save us, let her continue without interruption.”

Ula’s frown deepened. “It must be done. I have a bad feeling about the journey.” She lifted the foot and swung her rock, continuing the ceremony, even when the two began to laugh again. She began to stomp her feet and chanted for nearly another hour before she finally ended the ritual.

“Now do that standing on your head and I shall be impressed,” Ronan challenged.

Ula’s lips pressed together in a thin line and she turned to stomp from the house, taking her rat foot and rock with her.

“Have you ever seen anything like that before?” Ronan looked at Arien as the boy shook his head and wiped tears on the back of his hand.

“She is an odd old creature,” Arien said.

“What kind of rock was that?” Ronan’s chuckled. “Looked like one she dug out of a river bank.”

“That was no rock.” Arien started to laugh again. “It is the same thing that I shovel out of the mule stable each morning. There were pieces breaking off and flying into her hair.”

Ronan stared at the boy for a moment and then begin to chuckle again.

Ronan knew very little about horses. His old mule was hardly any trouble and fat from being treated too well for too many years. There wasn’t an ounce of fat anywhere on any of the large beasts that Keegan arrived with the next morning. They were magnificent animals with muscles that rippled with every movement.