That got the attention of the other children, who all gathered closer to listen.
‘But there’s no treasure here,’ a boy said, his voice laced with scepticism.
‘What do you mean?’ Aisha gestured to their surroundings. ‘Nature has treasure everywhere. Any beautiful thing you come across.’ She stopped walking. ‘But there are rules. You’re only allowed to collect things you find on the ground.’
‘That’s not treasure,’ Yara complained.
Aisha scooped her up and placed her on her hip. ‘Maybe not yet, but it will be when we’re finished.’
‘How?’ Sadiq called to her.
Aisha glanced in his direction. ‘We’re going to create masterpieces for the exclusive viewing of those of us present today.’
‘Out of things on the ground?’ one girl asked.
Aisha nodded. ‘You need to trust your inner artist.’
Yara was all in at that point, wriggling down from Aisha’s grip and running off to begin her search.
‘Are you going to do it?’ Sadiq asked Tariq as he was placed on the ground.
‘I’m going to try.’
Aisha’s insides warmed when he said that. She had assumed he would only watch.
They spent some time collecting items, then Aisha showed them all how to start arranging them into familiar things. The children pressed in around her, tossing bright petals and smooth stones, eager to see what she would create with them. Tariq had to keep gently pulling the children off Aisha so she wouldn’t get crushed by their enthusiasm.
Eventually, everyone settled down to create their own.
‘Yours isn’t very good,’ Sadiq told Tariq when he was done.
Tariq feigned offence. ‘Are you saying I’m not skilled in the art of bark-and-petal pictures?’
‘Yes,’ Sadiq replied simply.
The older children laughed, and Aisha joined them. For the first time since arriving in Gruisea, the heaviness in her chest eased just a bit.
When the sand was covered in makeshift butterflies, trees, animals, and various kinds of suns, the children raced off to splash around in the shallow water. Aisha brushed sand from her hands and looked over at Tariq.
‘They adore you,’ she told him.
Tariq watched the children play for a moment. ‘Not as much as they adore you, apparently.’ His gaze travelled back to hers. ‘Thank you for this, by the way. I’m sure they’ll talk about it for years to come.’
She shrugged. ‘This is what childhood is supposed to be.’
He dropped his gaze when she said that. It was guilt. Guilt for all the boys whose childhood ended at ten years old.
‘Do you want to have a look around?’ Tariq asked, looking up again.
She nodded.
Tariq went to fetch his saddlebag and told Kaidon to keep an eye on the children in the water. Then the two of them set off along the faint trail along the water’s edge.
The air was cooler in the shade, and the tranquillity was unmatched.
‘I’ve seen oases in Avanid,’ Aisha said, ‘when I was younger. But nothing like this.’
Tariq looked up at the canopy of trees above them. ‘My father first brought me here when I was six or seven. He told me this place is a reminder of how even in the harshest conditions, life finds a way to flourish.’
