Days were shorter. Nights were longer. The air was colder, and Bree had just begun to feel the first chills of winter. Things were bleak outside, and though the frost had begun to fall, this time it seemed to stay away from both hope and his heart.
It had been a few months since he had promised Daphnee that he would remain in town and manage the Company from behind the desk. Leave the dangerous missions to those who had the skill and ability to venture out. He needed to sort out his home and his business, especially in times such as these, and he could no longer to afford to gallivant out into the blue.
Giving her his sword was more than just an insurance policy or a convincer for her that he was sincere, but also that he had officially decided to close that chapter on his life. A warrior he was no more.
Perhaps that was the reason she'd had to go for a time. Put her skill set to good use as he no longer needed protecting. Perhaps. All he knew was that she had told him she had to go away for a while, and that she couldn't tell him why. She'd looked at him with those eyes that meant he knew she had to do it, and without a word against he had understood.
And with that, she'd parted with him. For a time, Daphne had departed. Furley didn't usually handle loss too well. Lord knew he'd had some knee-jerk reactions before, and almost all of them had nearly gotten him killed in their own way.
But this was different, and he felt unusually calm. He'd promised to stay in Bree, and he was going to do just that. He'd stand by her despite not knowing where she was or how she was doing. Perhaps she'd return to him someday, perhaps she wouldn't.
He'd be here, though. Waiting. Should she ever need him. And he knew that note burned in her pocket, and it'd remind her where he is should she choose to come back, and whether she could read or not, he knew it'd remind her of how much she meant to him.
Looking up from his desk out the window, the waning fire fizzing down as the cold chill seeped in through the windows once more, he smiled as he thought about the person whom had become such a huge part of his life.
"You may be thousands of leagues away from here" he smiled, muttering to himself. "But you know where I am should you ever need to find your way home".
