The beginning

She sat in the grass, listening to the sound of loping hooves as they faded off into the distance.  She couldn’t contain the smile that graced the generous mouth.  A million thoughts ran through the Bree-girls mind, barely contained, and for once there was not one that weighed her down.   
 
It had only been a few weeks since she’d met the strange man on the road on her way out of Archet on an errand.  With his distinct way of speaking, just a little different every time, the dark skin and the scar that ran over his face.  She should have been scared, more cautious...but now she was glad she hadn’t been. 
 
Through Ryheric, she’d met others.  The two women from Rohan, Mildwynn and Cwenawynn.  The other girl from Bree, Clothilde.  And of course, the treasure hunter Silver.  All of them had intrigued her, drawn her out in some way.  Meeting and speaking to each had prodded at those ideas, those dreams that she’d kept at bay before then, hidden under the veneer of what was proper and good. 
 
She’d carried that feeling with her of being just a little off for a lifetime.  Not quite good enough to be what she should be; not quite brave enough to go the other way.  A good girl; proper, hard-working and helpful.  She’d done her best to hide the resentment of her circumstances, to be grateful for the chances she’d been given.  More than she could have expected, she knew. 
 
The chance to work with the horses, which she loved.  The companionship of the stable boys who, while rough, had formed some sort of family that didn’t need her but treated her like one of them.  And then, the offer of marriage.  It had been more than she deserved, she knew.  More than a girl like her could expect, and yet... 
 
She couldn’t help but break into a wider grin, her cheeks pinking and her eyes bright as she looked to the horizon again.  The sun was rising, light breaking along the tops of the hills.  A brand new day.  A day that belonged to her, and only her.   
 
A day she was free.