Chapter 52: The Road Upward

Joe learned what the Decennial Competition actually was because Simon made one careless observation several days later.

They were eating dinner with Daren in the guard dining hall when Simon said, almost casually, "If you had a Spiritual Root, you'd still be young enough for the next Decennial."

Joe stopped moving.

Simon continued eating.

Joe looked at him.

"What?"

"The Decennial."

"I heard that part."

Simon finally glanced up.

Joe waited.

Then understanding reached him.

"Oh."

"Yes. Oh."

"I said if."

"You inserted a fairly important condition very casually."

Simon shrugged. "You're the right age."

"The correct age does not spontaneously create a Spiritual Root."

"No, but—"

Joe suddenly thought of something.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"When I was born, did anything happen?"

Simon blinked.

Daren stopped eating.

Joe realized his mistake almost immediately.

Simon's mouth twitched.

Then he cracked.

He bent forward laughing hard enough that two guards at the next table looked over.

Joe picked up his spoon again.

"Forget it."

"No. Wait."

Simon tried unsuccessfully to control himself.

"You want to know if the heavens announced your birth?"

"I asked whether there was a vision."

"You were born."

"Useful."

"You screamed."

"Common."

"You ate."

"Simon."

"You were extremely small."

Daren lowered his head toward his bowl.

Joe was fairly certain he was hiding a smile.

"I'm asking seriously."

"That's what makes it better."

Eventually Simon recovered.

Joe tried again.

"Did Mother ever mention anything strange?"

"No."

"Father?"

"No."

"Grandmother?"

Simon stared at him.

Then another laugh escaped.

"Joe, if anything supernatural happened when you were born, Pam would have told the story until every person in Green Hollow knew which direction the light came from."

Unfortunately, that was persuasive.

Pam could preserve a neighbor's escaped chicken as family history.

A genuine birth vision would not have disappeared.

Simon became slightly more serious.

"There wasn't anything. At least nothing anyone remembered. No strange light. No flowers. No animals gathering outside."

"You were three."

"I lived in the same house."

"Edwin said rural signs can be missed."

"Yes."

Simon leaned closer.

"That doesn't mean yours was."

Joe immediately regretted providing him with the argument.

Simon's grin widened.

"You're hoping."

"I'm considering uncertainty."

"You want one candle to have flickered."

Joe resumed eating.

"I regret asking you."

"You should."

Daren finally rescued the conversation.

"He's right that cases get missed."

Joe looked at him.

"Often?"

"Not often. But villages don't always know what they're looking at. Something strange happens once, everyone blames weather or lamp oil, and fifteen years later nobody connects it to anything."

That sounded entirely plausible.

Green Hollow was good at the things Green Hollow needed to understand.

A phenomenon appearing once in several generations was another matter.

Simon said, "That's part of why the guard does screenings."

Joe remembered Edwin mentioning them.

"The magistrate's tests."

Daren nodded.

"Explain the Decennial first."