Kijani had the grace to blush as Feather called her beautiful. She'd heard those words before, but never had they been said with such gentleness. Feather said it like beautiful was a good thing.

"Thank you, Feather.." She settled at the table, trying to ignore the churn in her belly at the sight and scent of so much food. The food was set in front of her, and she smiled warmly. "You're so... prompt." She would have said more, but Mr. Croil entered. For a long moment, the three of them simply looked at each other. He carried a scent of wood and sweat, both of those pleasing, oddly enough. She nodded politely to him, not trusting her mouth to say anything.

His prayer stunned her, for lack of a better word. She'd gone to church before, in the city, but it was a social gathering rather than any sort of religious meeting. Honestly, she had never really thought any sort of god existed. Evidently, Mr. Croil thought differently. She found herself dropping her gaze and bowing her head in imitation of him. Once he was done, she peeked up.

At Mr. Croil's listing of Feather's chores, Kijani's eyebrows rose more and more. The girl had done all that since dawn? Impressive. Or, was it? Perhaps she worked that hard all the time, and this was simply another day's work. She couldn't have missed Mr. Croil's meaningful glance, and wondered what he meant by it.

Finally, she had the chance to speak. What was she going to do today? "I..." She found her voice weaker than it should have been. She cleared her throat slightly and tried again. "I thought I might take a walk in the orchard. Perhaps eat an apple or two." She meant to smile, but couldn't make her mouth follow her command. "I... I just need some fresh air." She hoped she didn't look as awful as she felt.