Willow's End - Jera Skyspear
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Willow's End

The exterior of Jera's home and the way to it are described in "Light on the Path". The nature of it is truly Nature. Unless one is aware that a dwelling exists behind the waterfall pond and under the willow, it is virtually undetectable. This small knoll is at the foot of a much larger hill which sweeps back and upwards into the woods. None would be the wiser about Jera living here, unless she shares her secret.

Here are some other details:

Door
She doesn't really think she needs one and would rather not have one but it does help keep out most woodland creatures who would otherwise be quite pleased to burrow with her. A door is simply a prudent thing. In this case, the door is made of elm, both tree and wood believed to store ancient wisdom. Additionally important for Jera is elm's reported ward against lightning. Living so close to a body of water and being who/what she is, Jera conceded that the elm door was a wise measure. She uses a simple key spell to keep the curious from nosing into her home. The door opens to her touch or words, although she can 'introduce' others who would be allowed to pass even without her.

Alas, the opening in the rock which serves for a doorway is considerably shorter than the elf who must use it. So, Jera knows to bend before attempting to enter her abode. She tries to remember to warn any visitors she has, but there have been few.

Room(s)
There is truly only one large room except that it is very irregular in shape and almost makes two rooms. The rock formation which is on the water side of Jera's home was thankfully something of a hollowed out cave to begin with. Entering through the door, the stone is mostly on the left and curls up and over to form a ceiling. On the right is the earthen side of the underhill. Only a little bit of digging rounded out the room nicely. A reasonable growth of planted moss and ivy holds the earthen walls in place and makes a nice vertical carpet of soft greeness by sight and scent.

Jera is grateful that the height of the vault (other than the entrance) is more than sufficient for her, although in a few places the unwary could find a new bump on their head. The ceiling is roughly an elongated dome, so, near the walls, there may be a shortage of head room. The largest and most open portion of the hollow is all-purpose. It's approximately 15ft wide and the whole space is just a bit over twice that deep. It narrows at the back then opens again, which makes a nice space for Jera's bedchamber of sorts. This part is buried back into the hill more and is always quiet and dark, without candlelight or other.

Hearth
A hearth is inset on the earthen wall. It's built from loose stones worked into a dug out cavity, holding open a small space for a firepit. The chimney is rather narrow, being mostly a hole running up and outward to the air but packed hard over the years. It's angled enough to keep the rain out. Being essentially underground, Jera's home is a fairly constant temperature but that is often chilled and damp. So, she generally keeps at least embers going in the hearth, even if she uses it only for smudging her favorite leaves and bark. It also makes a nice welcome for her when she comes home.

Light
Jera could not live in a cave with no natural light. Fortunately, there are a few places in the rock overhang which have been worn through by water. In two cases, the water stream no longer passes through them, but light does, allowing it to fall gently into Jera's home. Also fortunate is that they are not strictly vertical holes, that is, rainfall doesn't drop through them as easily as light. However, she does have to keep crockery under them in the event of heavy rains which do create little waterfalls.

The largest opening in the rock is actually a reasonably wide and deep vertical fissure in the stone wall. It channels water and sunshine into a hollowed stone bowl of sorts, much like the formation outside which feeds the pond. It's on a much smaller scale of course and Jera spent quite a bit of work grinding out a notch to give the flow an outlet. What resulted was a small basin of perpetually fresh water, except during an extremely dry season. There's also the soothing sound of water trickling into and back out of her home. The sunlight in the water also serves as a mirror, albeit rippling and dependent on the weather and time of day. Not surprisingly, it makes a fine scrying bowl.

Other Details
The floor of Jera's home is mostly rock but there's a bit of packed dirt as well which is freshly covered from time to time with thatch to keep down the dust or the dampness. Because of the openings in the stone, the sounds of the forest can filter through, especially to elven ears, except for the relative seclusion of the bed area, as noted. A very important point is that the approach to Jera's home includes a slight incline under the willow branches. Thus the floor of her abode is reasonably higher than the pond level such that it would be a rare thing for the place to flood. At least, it has not happened yet, in the many years that Jera has lived there.

Furniture
There is very little, for it is mostly unneeded. There are no chairs. The stone floor stretches across to meet the hearth and so Jera has placed large pillows there for sitting or lounging. There is one table but it's for work and always loaded as such. She eats her meals from one bowl or dish while sitting before the hearth. She has a flat plank of oak she uses on her lap as a desk when she has need of a writing or drawing surface. It is smooth and glossy, partly from use, but it was much that way when she acquired it because it was a gift from Sandaeren and he'd finished it beautifully. She has several boxes, crocks, jars, plus a few... very few... merely decorative items. These are scattered about on different natural shelves protruding from the stone. Her cherished tome of herb lore and record of her life is kept on a small hollowed stump to one side of the hearth, handy for reference or additions.

She has acquired a rocking chair (quite a unique item in this era and only vaguely resembling a rocker we'd know today). She finds the motion of it a comfort at times or the rhythm good for meditation.

The work table was a purchase made too many seasons back to recall. How strange it was to arrange delivery, but she did for she could not carry it herself, and so far she is not aware of either of the lads breaking their promise of secrecy. It seemed imprudent to put a geas on the young fellows for only the remote possibilities. The worktable is very utilitarian and it's organized, but only to Jera's eye. To another it might look like a stacked and cluttered mess. However, she knows precisely what is there and the uses for all of it. Then again, she has also labeled most of her containers with strips of parchment tied on with string. Beneath the table are more stacks and stashes of the fruits of her labor, waiting for use or sale.

Near the water basin is a narrow stack of wooden shelves used for the few dishes and other functional items. In the area she'd call her bedchamber, Jera has one small set of shelves where she stores her limited wardrobe and spare linens, being few.

Her bed is a large thick mattress of straw and feathers. It takes up most of the floor space in the smaller 'room'. There is no bed platform or frame for it rests mostly on stone. She has feather pillows as well. One of the few luxuries she has allowed was the covering of the mattress and pillows in expensive well-spun linen, even over the ticking. She wanted to feel no pricks from straw or pin feathers. Besides other muslin sheets and pillow casings, Jera hired the making of two special blankets and oft lies between them. Their plush forest green velvet reminds her of laying upon a cool patch of moss, as when she was a carefree child. In this current cave-like home, the velvet is usually welcome and needed. It is most certainly a soothing wrap for her while she dreams.

DHP © 2002