season avatars 03 - chaos season by sandra ulbrich almazan Page B

strange plants until the end.
    “Oh, and the weeds this year are growing so fast, you’d think the Summer Avatar was growing them on purpose.”
    Charles suffered an acute coughing fit.
    “What do they look like?” Jenna asked.
    Before he could answer, the train let out a warning whistle.
    “Send a sample to the One Oak!” she called before boarding the train.
    As they pulled away, the farmer waved his hat at her, a puzzled look on his face.
    They stopped for luncheon at a larger town called Apple Valley. The inn overlooked the Chikasi and featured a large balcony with tables. Jenna leaned on the railing and admired the view. The sun’s warmth faded as someone joined her. She turned her head and saw Kron.
    “I almost think I recognize this turn of the river,” he said. “There were more trees here in my time, but they were oak and birch, not apple. I think the bend was sharper then too.”
    She nodded, unsure of how to respond.
    He gave her a wry grin. “So, I hear you’re the one to talk to about romance.”
    Her face heated up from inside. “I’m not the Avatar of Love.”
    He laughed, not unkindly. “No, Summer is too shy to woo anyone. He must have chosen you for your boldness.”
    “Me?” she said, flattered.
    “Well, you are still very much like Janno, though I doubt you chase women the way he did.”
    “Of course I can’t do that anymore!” The idea sparked images in her mind of her wooing Gwen the way Lex had wooed her. She couldn’t take it as far as Lex had, however.
    “And I bet Gwen would disapprove as much as she did when she was your mother.”
    “My mother? By All Four, I don’t need more details from that life.” She tilted her head back to the table, where Ysabel sat watching them. “What about Bel? Has she changed since she was your Bella?”
    “More than I imagined.” He pressed a protruding nail into the railing with a finger. “She…she doesn’t want to listen to me the way Bella did. She seems more confident now, even after all of the trouble with her family.” He sighed. “One thing that hasn’t changed is her desire for a family.”
    “Most people are reborn with no memories of their previous lives,” Jenna said. “We keep some, particularly those dealing with magic. But we remember personal details too. Most of us have been both men and women, but Ysabel has always been a woman in every life.”
    Kron nodded. “Not surprising. Fall has been hostile to me every time I’ve seen Her. I wouldn’t want to meet Her alone, without Spring to temper Her.” He hesitated. “She must have a reason to hate men so much.”
    “Only the Four know what that is.” Jenna made the sign of the Four over her heart. “Anyway, Kron, we don’t remember as much about our early lives as we do more recent ones. I hate to say it, but…Ysabel doesn’t remember the life you had together however long ago it was.”
    “I suspected as much.” His voice developed a dangerous edge. “And I wonder why.”
    By All Four, did he think Fall Herself was blocking Ysabel’s memories of him? Jenna shivered. He could be right, but she wouldn’t want to oppose any of the Four. Time to move away from potentially blasphemous territory and onto the advice she wanted to give him.
    “You have to start over with her,” she said. “Pretend you’re two strangers who have just met.”
    “I don’t know if I can do that, Jenna.”
    “You have to.” She met his gaze head on. “You’re a stranger to her, and to us. If you want the chance to win her heart again, then restrain yourself.”
    He stood straight. “By All Four, do you think I would force myself on her? I don’t need you or a child goddess to teach me how to behave decently. I knew that hundreds of years ago. If your Challen men must be punished before they learn good manners, then I pity the rest of you when you wed.” He turned to go back inside the restaurant, then faced Jenna again. “Or perhaps I should pity the man foolish