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Rideten, Five Years Before

Rideten, like Havermouth, was a historic town, and many of the original houses remained along the tree-lined streets. The house which Bianca led Aislen to held shadows of the same architecture as the river house in the ramshackle roofline with dormer windows peeking out, the wrap around veranda with intricate and ornate ironwork like lace edging, and sandstone brickwork.

It was set behind a hedge that had to be as old as the house from its height and denseness. The garden was framed by roses, within which was arranged what seemed from a distance to be a vegetable garden, however, close up, Aislen realized that the plants were not vegetables, but rather herbs and weeds that were planted with deliberation and careful labelling.

“I know it looks weird to people, but you have to understand that many weeds aren’t actually weeds,” Bianca told her. “We are taught here that as the role of women in the home and community changed, women’s knowledge and magic was str