There was much to be said about staying put where one was placed in life, even if that location were a busy farmstead with a gaggle of children, a couple of farmhands, a score or more of animals, and a large tract of farmland where crops had failed several seasons in a row. There was always a meal to be had, albeit the portions had grown smaller to compensate for the loss of income. The warm glow from the hearth lit familiar faces of friends and family alike, and despite growling tummies or bleak prospects, a well spun tale or an ancestral tune could distract dark thoughts and lift heavy hearts. Your bed was shared with a couple of warm bodies and the sonorous snore that rumbled from your parent’s sleeping room did much to provide a sense of security as you began to dream.
Rhawnwyn stared up at foreign stars as she considered her decision to move from the world she had known in Westemnet. The young woman had not yet grown accustomed to life on the road. Many a night was spent feeding the campfire and staring wide-eyed at the darkness past the scope of her circle of amber light. Madness and the impulse to run home were kept at bay by Rhawnwyn’s gift of communicating with various creatures in the natural world. At present, the journey was shared by a persnickety raven that did not seem to mind that his human companion called him Baldrick. At times, a fat-bottomed bear Rhawnwyn had dubbed Cadoc would find the light of her fire and listen quietly as the girl shared stories she had learned in her youth. On those nights, the young Rohirric feared less and dreamed well.
Aside from feeling lonely, sometimes lost, and often afraid, Rhawnwyn missed her mother’s cooking. Dry travel rations left much to be desired. She often contemplated if she could coax the large bear into bringing her a coney to roast at one of their campfire socials, but had little confidence in her ability to relay what she thought was a complicated request. But, hope dawned on the horizon of the days spent existing on bland hardtack, seeds, and dried fruit. By word of the last caravan she passed not more than two days ago, the city of Bree should be just another half-day’s walk. The very idea of sleeping in a bed and eating a bowl of hot stew with a mug of ale gave rise to Rhawnwyn nearly putting out the fire and walking the rest of the way in the dark. Wisdom and a sudden, yet distant, howl reminded her that the impulsive urge would best be ignored entirely.
A glance over to Baldrick with his face buried in a nest of puffed, black feathers on his back made Rhawnwyn realize that life would drastically change when she walked into Bree. What would they say about a girl with a raven in her wake? Certainly, Cadoc would not be tolerated. Thought of the big bear made her look around vainly in the dark, hoping to see her large friend join the camp, but only the song of night birds and bugs greeted her senses. Since she had decided to journey from her home in Rohan, Baldrick and Cadoc had been the only friends she knew. The prospect of life without either of them filled her a sense of sadness and panic. Taking a long breath to calm her rising anxiety, Rhawnwyn convinced herself that all would be well. Life had a way of working out as it should. Perhaps, she would make a new friend or two.
Giving one last look at Baldrick and stoking her fire with a long stick, Rhawnwyn managed to convince herself that a bit of sleep would make the morrow less troublesome and her mind clearer. She pulled her long, ginger hair behind her head to make stuffing it into her cowl easier, wrapped her oiled cloak around her body, and then hunkered down for what she hoped was a time of peaceful dreaming.
