She had packed light. Two sets of clothing, vials and dried herbs, some old letters and her journals. The journals were of considerable weight, but they were far too important to be left behind. She was dressed in comfortable travelling clothes, a warm woolen dress, leather boots and a thick brown cloak around her neck. The backpack weight heavy on her shoulders, but she walked on. The walking stick in her hand had belonged to her father. In later days he had not stepped outside the house without it and now she just could not bare to part with it. It was something to remember him by and it could come in handy during her long walks. Yes, she expected long walks and lonely nights spent in the wild. That did not worry her much since she was used to wander the wild from her many expeditions in search of rare plants. Though what she feared was the many weeks she would have to spend on the ocean, on the ship that awaited her in the harbour.
It was a perilous journey, but it was her only option and she was desperate. Her world was slowly closing in on her, caging her and she wanted to run. Run away from her duties and the expectations from others upon taking the role as head of the houses of healing after her father. It was not that she didn't want the post, but she was afraid to fail, afraid to disappoint them all. Though in her head she had a different reason for her reckless journey - to hounor her father's last wish and his memory she would bring back the missing piece. The only regret her father had had in life she would restore and mend. She would find her brother and bring him back to Gondor. With him by her side the task would be less frightening and he was the only family she had left. Therefor her duty would also be his and she was hoping she could convince him of that. It was a minor problem nonetheless. The real challenge lay in the fact that she had to find him first.
In her absense she had given her trust to Beredur. Her father had loved him as a brother and she knew he had confided in him on many occasions. He was also highly respected amongst the other healers. He had promised to run the house untill she returned and to personally tend to her garden. Ever since she was little she had had a passion for gardening and she could bring up the most beautiful flowers and essential plants that were needed in the healing process. During summer the air around the house would be filled by the sweet smell of wild roses. Amids the flowers she had placed delicate statues of different age. Many of them had been gifts from her beloved Darion. The man she loved. The man who had been away for so long that she could no longer remember his scent. She stopped in her tracks as the image of him flashed before her. His dark hair that always was out of place, his kind eyes and pleasant smile. His strong hands grasping hers and his warm breath against her cheek as they lay in bed.
A crying seagull brought her back from her reminisce. It was time to board the ship.
The sun slowly rose as the ship set sail and glided out of the harbour with seagulls circling above. A soft morning breeze played through her hair as she watched Pelargir bathing in the morning sun. It was a beautiful sight and one she would remember forever. Little did she know at the time just how precious this memory would be. If she had known this was the last time she saw the city in it's present splendour, had she gazed a little longer upon it as it disappered in the distance? If she had known that the flowers in her little garden would burn and her statues crumble would she ever have left? If she had known the pain the people would suffer would she have stayed and tried to save them?
However important these questions seemed to her later in life, regardless of her actions Pelargir was doomed to it's fate and would not see salvation untill the walking dead arrived.
