Run, the witness was ordered. She ran, pursued by both mounted warriors and by arrows that flew from the citadel's walls. Those who seek your life will not stop at the edge of the city, the witness was warned. Go now, and do not return save at My bidding.

"Yes, Master," the witness panted in answer as she obeyed.

Father, He corrected. I will be your Father and you, my beloved daughter, for I am pleased by your obedience and your trust in Me.

Father, she agreed silently as she sobbed for breath. Despite her exertion, a warm affection for her God filled her. I am tired, Father. Strengthen me, for my steps slow. Accustomed to the strength that came from the dark arts of the paladin way, the witness knew she would need to rely on only her own, physical strength and on her God to fulfill the tasks required of her.

A low bush caught her attention. Hide; rest now, she was told.

Gratefully, the witness complied, trusting her God to keep her hidden from view. The bush wasn't much, nor the grass around it very high, but the witness's pursuers thundered by as if the witness's bright yellow ceremonial robe wasn't there at all, in the slushy whiteness of the early-winter landscape. A rush of love filled the witness as she lay in a ball, shivering in the gently falling snow.

Though the snow melted as soon as it landed, the witness was dressed only in flowing silk that did little to block the biting wind. Finally, when her God indicated that it was safe, the witness was finally allowed to follow her brethren across the stream and into the mountains.

The pool was cold enough to steal her breath away but the frigid temperatures couldn't stop the joy that filled the witness's heart as she walked down into the pool and washed herself as the others had done, in ritual cleansing. As she ducked her head under, her Master spoke to her heart. A new name I give you this day. No longer are you to be called after an evil spirit, but you shall henceforth be called as you are; Faith Witness.

Standing in the icy pool of water, Faith stripped off her clothes and boots, then threw them onto the bank, away from the mountains. "Father," she explained unnecessarily, "I will not keep even that vestige of the life You have called me out of!"

You will have no clothes at all, then, warned the Father.

Teeth chattering, Faith left the water and clambered up the bank. By the time she reached the top, she was covered in mud and scratches from the briars that grew there. Though the cold had deadened the pain of them, Faith knew that, once she warmed, her skin was going to ache from her labors. "You will provide what I need, Father," she told Him in complete confidence.

Warm affection answered her. I have prepared a place for you. Come, and I will show you where you are to rest for now, until you are completely clothed. Trusting Him, Faith went where He suggested, willingly obeying even if it meant being shamed by her lack of clothing.

Teech

Lonely though never actually alone, Teech worked hard from dawn until it was too dark to see at whatever his hands found to do. His supply of firewood increased to the point that he could have kept two fires burning until the following mid-summer. His stock of drying leather outgrew his ability to properly care for it, as did his supply of meat, until merely to prevent waste, he brought his excess to a neighbor that knew of another in need.

With the garden taken in, Teech did his fall plowing and then cleared out a bit more land to add to his dooryard. Someone gifted Teech with a few goats, so he built a secure barn for them, then went about gathering fodder for them against winter, until the small barn's mow was full of whatever he saw them eating. To his surprise and delight, they ate the leaves off of many of the trees he felled for firewood, preventing the need to deal with those same leaves.

The snow fell, keeping the goats in their snug little barn and turning Teech's attention mostly inside, except for hauling water for both his home and his critters, carrying firewood and a few other, mundane chores. Bored and confined by the weather, Teech had to admit how much he missed his Valley friend. After that and upon further self-reflection, Teech also had to admit that he wanted his God to provide a wife . . . in God's time, of course!

"Might be that a wife would distract me from thinking about her so much," Teech dared to hope. "Everything I do seems to make me think of her!"

Frustrated, he pictured how he'd shared his life with the paladin. Even the goats, whom she'd had nothing to do with, nor ever seen, made him wonder what she'd think of them. Teech's loneliness grew when his dog went out one day and failed to return.

Though he missed his companion of many years, Teech didn't go to look for her. The Lord had sent her, he reasoned, so it was his God's prerogative to take her back at His leisure. Several times, she'd borne puppies, then disappeared with the entire litter after several months, only to return without them.

One of those times, a neighbor had one of the pups, which allowed Teech to understand that the dog had always taken it upon herself to find homes for them. Since the dog clearly belonged to the God of the Mountains the way Teech himself did, Teech took this as God's leading of her and never questioned her goings out or her comings in. Still, he missed her in her absence and trusted his God to provide for his needs.

The goats, he found, were as companionable as the dog, just not inclined to share the house. Left to wander in or out of their barn at will, they chose to do their business outside, preventing Teech from needing to do more for them than provide food, shelter, water and the occasional attention to injury. He grew to love the stubborn, intelligent creatures even though he really had no idea why, beyond companionship, his Lord had provided them. Still though, they kept him amused and occupied, for which Teech was grateful.

Faith

Following her Lord's lead, Faith found a narrow little cave that appeared to be an abandoned bear's den. The floor was littered with an odd assortment of dry leaves, old bear fur and the dried-out skins and bones of former prey. Faith had but to discard the bones and dried scats from the litter of bedding, then pile the rest into a mat of sorts before she could burrow into the pile for rest and warmth.

When she awoke, Faith was warm. The smell of dog's breath preceded a damp nose on her cheek. Faith opened her eyes to see a familiar, canine face. "

Girl!" she exclaimed happily. "What are you doing here?" She hugged the dog close and received a sloppy 'kiss' in answer. "Thank You, Father!" Faith sighed in relief when the dog retrieved a dead rabbit, and then another, to drop beside Faith.

There is enough leather for a pair of shoes. The Father's explanation had Faith hurrying to light a fire just outside her little cave, where the pile of refuse provided the only dry fuel she had, just then. Teech, My son, taught you much last winter, reminded the Father. Now, you must do as he taught you.

"Yes, Father." Faith's answer was immediate.

As soon as the fire was started, Faith spent some time finding sticks in the forest to add to the burning dung, lest the fire die before she could get some wood to burn. Finally, after a hot meal, Faith laid out the remaining meat to dry on stones near the fire so it could begin to dry while she gathered more wood and ate some snow for a drink. Progress was slow because Faith had no protection from the elements, which meant that she had to return to her tiny fire in order to warm herself repeatedly.

The dog, whom Faith dubbed 'Girl', brought back numerous rabbits, squirrels and even a couple of beavers to aid Faith in her task of clothing herself. The progress was slow but eventually, Faith's rabbit-hide boots were reinforced with the waterproof beaver and joined by pants and a shirt, hat and even a pair of mittens. Though crude in construction, the clothing kept Faith warm and well-fed.

In order to keep her tiny fire from being smothered by the snow, Faith had to bring it just inside the cave, then hang a leather curtain beside her bed against the smoke. Stacked strategically outside, her firewood pile served to block some of the wind that swirled around her door. Eventually, spring finally allowed Faith to be outside longer than merely for water, gathering firewood or tending her trapline.

She often found herself comparing her miniscule dwelling to Teech's tidy homestead, especially as a change in the seasons or something else reminded her of him. As he had, she found herself carrying her end of a running conversation with her Father, out loud.

"I expect Teech is planting his trays of seedlings, Father," Faith smiled one morning, when the snow was mostly disappeared.

Days ago, He responded, allowing Faith to sense a smile in the answer.

"Should I be thinking about that?" she asked Him in a slightly anxious way. "I could trade some of these extra furs . . ."

He brought a mental image of her cave to mind. It was only meant to be temporary, remember? her Lord reminded her. It has been no more than a place to rest and find shelter while We clothed you. Now, you are ready to move on. Tidy your bed, douse your fire and move your wood inside for another. Use your curtain for a blanket and come.

"Where are we headed?" she asked after the little cave was packed in and her blanket was draped neatly around her shoulders as a shawl. The bundle of extra furs was a small one, easily carried.

You speak of Teech often and he misses you.

"Oh, may I?" Faith was delighted with the idea of visiting her friend.

Do you wish to remain? He longs also for a wife.

Faith didn't answer for long moments. Her first impulse was to agree immediately but marriage, and the choice of one's life-mate, is a serious decision, so she paused to consider it. She tried to picture what she wanted, what life would look like with someone else, but her thoughts always returned to Teech, to his cabin and his daily life.

"I think I do," she finally answered after a couple of miles. "But . . . doesn't the final say of any girl's husband belong to her father, Father?" Even as she asked, Faith could feel her Lord's amusement.

Why else would I have asked? Only follow Girl. Faith walked faster. The dog, Girl, bounded ahead.

Teech

It had been a long winter for Teech, made seemingly longer by the lack of any physical companionship. Though the weather was beginning to warm up, it wasn't yet time to do much more than deal with the mud caused by snowmelt. Protesting the mud, the goats sulked in their barn most of the time.

Teech filled his days with as many chores as he could find to do and occasionally found himself apologizing for complaining about his lack of company, given that his Lord was an ever-present Presence in Teech's life. (4) It was, however, becoming a struggle to accept this solitude that was obviously his God's will for Teech's life. Teech figured that he was needing to return to a complete dependence on his God, being as how he'd learned to depend on his dog and guest for company. Daily at first, he had to repent of his attitude until he once again turned by habit to the unseen Presence of the Father for company.