Written in a clumsy, childish scrawl, this letter will be sent along with Lumina's letter to Blid to be tucked in with the letters to Leoffrith's family previously entrusted to the company of Dwarves on their journey east, with directions for it to be sent to Brynleigh in Snowbourn.
To Miss Brinley:
Miss Adri did bring up your letter but since a few days after she arrived, I ain't seen her. But I hear she's been about. I reckon she got a lot of things for to do after being away so long. I can't say as she were well rested or nothing but the day I seen her she were just arriving, and had five horses of the Mark and a Dunlending girl in tow she'd been taking care of, so I reckon she got all manner of reason for to have been tired out. She also carried bad news, some what's hers and maybe you know and maybe you don't, but if you don't I don't know as it's my place to say it. If she ain't told you yet maybe she'll write a letter. If I see her I'll ask.
A lot happened since you left. I do gots to admit the way you left hurt and I were sure for long time as I must done something real bad to make you feel as you had to turn away my every attempt for to help when you was in hurt. There were a while you were keeping in your old house in Hookworth with some feller were helping you, and I kept coming by for to see if there were anything I could do without you having to know I were there. More than a few times I left some firewood so you or he could find it and not got to go get none. But when you put all the furnishings out on the grass I couldn't do that no more. Can't say as I true understand why you felt you had to leave, nor to do it in the way you done, but I do believe you that it was something you felt you needed. I reckon everyone has to find their own way to get through hurt. That's on my mind a lot my own self, but I best tell you the good things first.
My work in the stables goes on fair well. I spent most of a year with Éogar, but for all I can handle the keeping and care of horses, I just don't got the wits it takes for to learn what he does about how they's bred to particular traits. I tried and tried and tried, but I couldn't make no sense of it. Then I spent a few seasons up Trestlebridge way as journeyman to Master Fincham. He didn't got much for to teach me and mostly just let me run the stable on my own for a while, which were good teaching in a way. Now I'm journeyman to Master Rosewood at the west gate stable, and he's great. He teaches me all manner of things not just about the keeping of horses -- thing is, there's not much to learn about how they're kept and took care of that you didn't teach me fine back in Hookworth -- but in the keeping of the stable itself. Making arrangements with folk to trade what we got too much of (like manure) for what we need (there's so many more things than I would ever have realized!), and all you gots to do to keep in the good graces of the Mayor and the town clerks and with the other stable-keepers and suchlike. I'm overseeing the work of a stablehand, a Dunlending girl called Malhufel, and I do almost all the work of keeping the ledger and making arrangements with folk for supplies we need. Master Rosewood says I'm like to be ready to be made a master of the guild in a year or two and I think he might even sell me his stable when that day come.
Other things in my life is going good, real good. Was sad for a long while on account Miss Beoda and her whole family picked up and moved east, all sudden-like. Never did find out why; they'd been having troubles with the farm of some sort, and she told me they were going for to be gone and freed me my promises to her. Was so dark a time but it seems so long ago now. Near to two year later I met a wonderful lass called Lumina and we got married just more than a month ago. She's smart and reads books and knows all manner of things. Probably she won't let me send this letter until she writes it more proper and so it's probably her writing to you right now, not me. We got a big house in Napgrove (we moved out of Hookworth for to get a bigger house -- Hookworth is real sleepy now) with lots of room for when we have littles. We got a dog I named Hathgar after my family's horse and a cat too. You would laugh to look at me, dressed in fine clothes and living in a house as big and fancified as that of any fat merchant. We had a wonderful wedding what half of Bree come to and was all manner of merry, and, well, if I go on too telling you all the good things about Lumina I'll run out of parchment. Wish as you could meet her.
I've made some friends too. Most the folk I knew when I knew you has moved on, but there's other good folk about. A whole flock of Dwarves, well, most of them left for a long journey few week ago but there's some still around (one is not so nice, he were mean to Lumina on account her dark skin making him think she were a spy, but I don't see him much no more). And a bunch of other nice folk what I wish I could introduce you do.
I wish I'd done read your letter earlier. Miss Adri forgot to give it me right away so left it with Butterbur and by time I got it the Dwarves had already left. I sent some letters with them to family and could done sent one to you with as well. And I guess I been putting off telling about the bad news I mentioned, what those letters were about. Reckon down there in Snowbourn though you might already know. There were some manner of war or fighting come into the Westfold, Adri didn't know too much about it on account it were getting dangersome for to stay so she high-tailed it out double quick, but most my family in Marton were caught up in it. From what she says, Marton got burned to cinders. I still got, or did when she left, my brothers Leofdan, what serves in the soldiering in the Hornburg, and Leoffweard, what's a scout, and my sister Lithiva what lived in Brockbridge, and the aunts in Woodhurst, and probably some cousins and suchlike I don't even know about, but my ma and pa, Aelfwyn and her whole family, the other brothers and their families, and my younger sisters, they all were killed, and the farm is gone.
It's been a few week now since I heard, and I try to think about what's ahead instead of what's been lost: my home here, my new life with Lumina, the family we're going for to start. But sometimes it all comes down on me like cold rain falling when the sky were clear a minute afore. That's what I mean about how I don't know why you had to go and cut folk off, because I feel the opposite, I want to hold folk even closer to me. But I reckon maybe I do know, because I feel bad for folk what are around me and got to hear such terrible things and see me being glum. If I go telling someone, it's like everything else there was in the world, all the good and merry, is pushed away and there ain't no air left for anything else. And poor Lumina, I been such a strain on her (and she got her own hurts too), just when we was first wed and still having our honey-moon. I wish I could protect them all from my own hurt, and maybe that's like what it felt for you to have to be shut away and not let anyone help you.
Kestrel is doing well. He barely got anything for to do, taking me from Napgrove to Bree and back, which for a horse of his stature ain't nothing. His coat's getting a little bit silver in places, and I reckon the years will start counting up for him afore too long, but with such an easy life I don't expect it's going for to bother him for a long time. I do take him out for a hard gallop every week or so just because he loves to run, even if he don't got much reason for to do it. I wonder if he stayed with me because he knew what were going for to happen to Marton; if he'd been there, the Thane would like to have been riding him when he went to defend the Gap and died in glory.
It's sure as I miss the Mark, but same time, it's sure as I know this is my home now, and hearing of the Mark being touched by war, I'm glad of how much more peaceful it is here. We still got the occasional goblin or some misguided feller thinking banditry's a wise idea, but Bree is Bree, like it were always and means to always be. I hope as Snowbourn's safe with its walls and being so far from the Gap and all, but if you and Syaven and suchlike ever need for a safer place to be, I'll be ready for to try to help you make your life up here again. I know it'd like to be hard for you but there's places to be won't be so touched by the hurtful memories and in any case there's always room to start a new life. Thank you for writing and explaining. Keep safe.
- Leoffrith
