Bancross

The days wore on with the quiet rhythm I had grown to trust , the creak of leather straps, the ring of axe on wood, the whisper of wind through the high grass. Eomen stayed. That, in itself, told me more than his words ever could.

Ethel came to me one merry morn in spring, as many flowers had started blossoming, and the golden sun gently warmed the frosted grass. Tall tales she had heard from Thilwend, the esteemed sergeant of the guard, and to me Ethel asked if I would gather more stories from those that still remembered, as she had always loved listening to my tales of yore. 

The brushing soothed the horse more than it soothed me, though I suppose I pretended it did both. His coat, dark as a thundercloud, gleamed beneath my hand. He was a good creature. Strong. Still young, still restless. Much like another soul I’d been expecting. I heard the boots before the voice, quick, clipped steps that hadn’t yet learned to walk with patience. Then came the greeting, sharp with youthful pride.

Our days seem to grow ever darker, even as winter has finally left us and the sun rises up earlier each morn, and stays up until later in the eve. Yet there is still that crude feeling of unrest in the air, paired with the smell of distant black smoke and an ominous mist rolling down the mountains. The worried whispers and watchful eyes among the guardsmen keep speaking of a shared fear, and Denholm does all he can to keep the morale up in these times of turmoil.

I am home. At least, that is what I tell myself as I cross the threshold of Bancross once more. The familiar sight of the village should feel comforting, but there is a weight in the air, subtle, yet unmistakable. The land has changed, or perhaps it is I who has changed. The streets are a little busier, the buildings a little taller, but there is no denying the quiet stillness that lingers here. Perhaps that is what makes it home.

Swords. What strange things they can be. I mean not the way they can deal death, rather, that some seem to have a life of their own.