The new day teaches Redmane a new lesson about her unusual friend ... he doesn't seem to tire. Ever. Hour after hour passes and Thomas pushes onward through the wilderness. There are no sighs of any sort of civilization and the only sounds that greet their ears are the crunching of snow beneath their feet and the call of birds and animals unseen the the shadows. As the sun begins to dip once more, the forest becomes cast in long shadows. "How are you holding up?" Thomas calls over his shoulder, "We are nearing the border to the Lands of November. You can tell by the snow levels diminishing and the temperatures slowly climbing."
"I'm fine," Redmane replies from horseback. "So we're almost to your old home then?"
"Not quite. We have to walk along the edge of November for another day before we will reach that. We can try to find a place here to set up camp, or ... we can push onward for a couple more hours. There should be an old friend ahead that will offer us shelter," Thomas calls back. "Your choice."
"I'd rather not camp in the snow if it can be avoided," Redmane admits, and brushes some tree-deposited powder from her mare's back. "And I'm curious to meet an old friend of yours now."
"You are too civilized. Nothing is as wonderful as sleeping beneath the stars," Thomas chides in a good natured tone. "I hope her house is still there. It has been some time since we last spoke," he remarks absently as he presses on through the wilderness.
"She, eh?" Redmane comments, grinning. "Old flame?"
"Does it matter?" Thomas remarks, not reallt answering the question.
"Sure it does!" the knight insists.
"Why?" Thomas asks.
"It just is," Redmane says, rolling her eyes. "It gives us something to talk about."
"Well, sorry to disappoint you then. No, she isn't," Thomas remarks. He flashes a grin back towards the mounted woman, then presses on once more.
"So what was she to you?" Redmane follows up with, leaning forward in her saddle. "A fellow adventurer? Someone who took you in? Former damsel in distress?" After a moment, she adds, "Drinking buddy?"
"Her mother was the sister of someone who was dear to me. After ... well, it isn't important what, I made a point of looking after them for a time," Thomas explains with a small shrug. "I saw her grow up and I saw her marry. I've told stories to her children and to even her grandchildren. I'm ... like their strange uncle, if you need something to relate it to."
"Odd," Redmane notes. "You have so many connections to people, yet spend most of your time alone," she points out. "I wonder if I'll ever have more than a handful myself."
"I don't like saying goodbye," Thomas says with a rather somber tone to his words. "And if you stay around long enough, you will be surprised how many people you will meet."
"Meet, sure," Redmane says. "But make connections that span generations?"
"If you want to make a difference, you will," Thomas remarks.
The sun has long set when the odd pair spot a trail of smoke in the sky and a flicker of light ahead through the trees. The forest breaks into a clearing and nestled in the center is a weatherworn stone cottage with a thatch roof. The windows glow brightly from firelight and this close there is the scent of pastries in the air. "Well, I think we're just in time for dessert," Thomas quips as he jobs towards the cabin.
"She'll have an extra bed right?" Redmane asks, and looks for a good place to put her horse for the night.
As Redmane follows, she spots a three-sided animal-shed to the side of the house. It looks just tall enough that her horse won't bang its head and the three walls are long enough to catch most of the cool wind that rolls through. "Even if she doesn't, I can sleep on the floor," Thomas calls back. "Quit being so ... soft!"
"Nobody has ever accused me of being too civilized or soft before, you know," Redmane grumbles, and dismounts Rhiannon before they get to the cabin. "Just go make sure we're welcome."
"You want a bed. That is being soft!" Thomas calls back, grinning. He adjusts his coat and even quickly brushes back his hair as he approaches the door. He unleashes a quick series of raps on the wooden door with his knuckles, then calls out, "November collections agent. We're here collecting the fairest women in the world to represent the true beauty of the people of November at the next faire!" he announces deeply.
"I guess she doesn't have a crossbow," Redmane mutters after that performance.
"Then you've come to the wrong place," comes a rather cranky sounding elderly woman's voice. "And thank you so much for reminding me I'm old. Why don't you peel off my toenails while you're at it?" The door is thrown open and Redmane can see a thin elderly fey with long white hair. She still stands tall, with bright, sharp, blue eyes and angular features. Even with the lines of age that cross them, she still has an air of beauty about her. "And furthermore, you can tell the Lord to quit both..." she continues on and thrusts a finger out, poking Thomas' nose tip. There's a series of blinks, then she seems at a loss for words.
"Hello beautiful," Thomas says, lips curling back in an impish smile. "It is good to see you again Myrrden. I'm sorry it's been so long but ..."
"My goddess, she didn't know it was you?" Redmane asks Thomas. "There are others in November who say stuff like that?"
The elderly woman's lips purse, then she smacks Thomas and draws her hand back. Huffing, she says, "You're a bit late to be calling me beautiful, Thomas." She stands for a moment, looking angry ... but the expression melts and she smiles, then grabs Thomas and draws him into a hug. "But being late is better than never returning," she says.
"The do have beauty contests at faires," Thomas says muffledly to Redmane as he hugs Myrrden back. After he extracts himself from her arms he says, "Myrrden, this is Knight Redmane of May. I don't like to impose, but could we stay here tonight. We are returning to the Court."
"How long has it been since you last visited her?" Redmane asks, her eyes narrowed. And then she's all smiles for the older woman. "Pleased to meet you, Myrrden."
"Returning by the scenic route, you mean," Myrrden comments, eyes crinkled in amusement. She bows her head slightly to Redmane, saying to her, "May I hazard a guess he's taking you on some adventure along the way? Thomas is known for his many side trips and deviations. If you don't keep him on path, why, you could end up in the unknown lands."
"Well," Thomas says as he rubs the back of his neck, "Her grandchildren might be grown now. They were knee height last I saw her."
"Most of the lands here are unknown to me," Redmane admits, and then shakes her head at Thomas. "I expect you to visit me more often, Thomas. You know I can hunt you down if you don't."
"And I have half a mind to refuse you, Thomas, and sit by the fire and enjoy my muffins alone," Myrrden comments as she crosses her arms.
Thomas looks stricken as he places his hand over his heart. "Forgive me," he pleads just before he drops to one knee. "Let this unworthy traveler and his pet knight in for the night and I promise to make it up to you!"
"Pet?" Redmane growls.
"No, you're still terrible at fake apologies, Thomas," Myrrden says as she smiles. "I will let your friend in. But you, well, you have to atone. Go split me some firewood. A dozen cords should do. Then you can come in. If you hurry, perhaps there will even be a few muffins left." She even pats him on top of his head.
"You can get Rhiannon settled in the shed too," Redmane tells Thomas, smiling her 'ooo, you're in trouble' smile. "She likes you, after all."
Grinning, Thomas hops to his feet. He flourishes a bow, saying, "Your compassion is infinite. Far more so than Knight Redmane and her evil ways." As he rises, he tells Rhiannon, "Come on. Bedtime for you. If you bite me, no food."
The over-sized horse manages to grin at Thomas.
"Remember, I'll have an axe," Thomas remarks as he tries to lead the horse off. Myrrden, for her part, just shakes her head. "He never changes, does he? Come in. You might as well get warm," she tells Redmane as she steps out of the doorway.
Redmane shakes the snow from her boots before entering the cottage. "I haven't known Thomas long enough to tell, to be honest," she comments. "So I'll take your word for it. I guess you go way back?"
"I've known him all my life," Myrrden answers as she closes the door behind Redmane. The inside of the cabin can be best described as cozy. It's brightly lit by candles and a crackling fireplace. Knitted quilts that depict various presumably famous events cover the stone walls to ward off the cold. Over the fireplace hangs what appears to be a family portrait. A young girl sits before a man and a woman in elegant pose and beautiful clothing. There is definite resemblance between the girl, the woman, and Myrrden. "Would you like some food or perhaps tea?" Myrrden asks.
"Yes, please and thank you," Redmane replies, glancing from the portrait to the old woman. "Thomas mentioned that he knew your aunt."
"Did he now?" Myrrden asks as she goes into the kitchen. She's gone for aonly a minute and when she returns, she's carrying a tray piled with fresh muffins, a steaming teapot, and three cups. As she sets the tray down, she asks, "What did he say about her?"
"Err, nothing beyond that he cared about her and sort of stuck to the family like a stray cat that's been fed too often," Redmane notes.
Myrrden chuckles quietly as she pours a cup of tea for Redmane. "Care is ... well, he still doesn't like to talk much about it. He loved her, perhaps more than anything else in this world," she notes as she sets the cup on a table near the knight along with a small plate of muffins. She pours herself a cup as well, then settles down into a well-worn chair near the fireplace and motions with her hand for Redmane to do the same.
The knight takes a seat at the fire and pours herself a cup. Once she's cozy, she asks, "His first love? He seems.. ah.. reluctant to risk losing something like that again."
"I do not know if it was his first love, truth be told, but Elynor may have be the only woman who ever tamed him," Myrrden says before she takes a small sip from her cup. "There was a time he even gave up travel so he could be with her."
Redmane's jaw drops at that revelation. "T-tamed him? HOW?" she asks. "Or is that why he's so aversive to any sort of domestication now? I barely got him to stop being a wolf!"
At that, Myrrden's brow arches ever so slightly. "Why the interest in taming him?" she asks as she peers over the top of her tea cup. She might be hiding a smile behind that cup, but from her current chair, it's hard to tell.
"I like a challenge," Redmane says, and sips her tea to hide her blush.
"Well, I do not know how, I am afraid," Myrrden admits. "They were even to be wed under the autumn sky ... so long ago now. But, it was not to be. He received a summons from the Court to look into a matter for them. He didn't want to go, but ... he felt his duty required it of him. He promised Elynor he would return, that it wasn't a permanent goodbye. But ... fate cruelly decided it was. Elynor was killed in a raid less than half a day before he returned."
"Ouch," Redmane says. "Who did the raiding?"
"The dwarves did. I was young, but I still remember the screaming. My mother and I hid in a well and Elynor, bless her soul, lead away the dwarves that were getting to close to us. She learned some things from Thomas on luring and feinting, but," Myrrdan says quietly as she lowers her tea cup and looks into it. "But it wasn't enough to escape herself. They raped her, and killed her. Thomas found her ... what was left of her, when he made it back. The town was still burning .... but he didn't care. I remember hearing him calling out her name. His voice tried to sound hopeful ... and yet something in his voice betrayed he knew she was already dead."
"Oh, so that's what set him off on the dwarves," Redmane says quietly, shaking her head. "Afterwards, he started coming back around?"
"Our home was gone, as was our family. He promised to help us recover. Helped us build a new home, taught my husband how to hunt and track so we could catch food. Even when he would go on explorations for the Crown he would return after each one and bring us news or trinkets. But as time passed, visits became further and further apart. The last time he came was the day my mother died. He never left her side during those last few hours; he just sat there and held her hand," Myrrden says as he continues to look in her tea cup. "I still remember when my mother told him goodbye. He ... he refused to say it at first, as if not saying goodbye meant she wouldn't die. But, bless her soul, she somehow made him say it in the end. She passed peacefully ... but for Thomas, it was like watching part of him die with her. It was the second time I've ever known him to cry."
EDIT: Taught my mother's husband, that is. Forgot a word!
"He does seem stubborn, but I have to wonder how much is an act now," Redmane says with a sigh, and looks towards the cottage door. "He didn't seem the sort who would have trouble saying goodbye."
At that Myrrden sighs and finally sets her cup down. "I think it's because he wants to believe he will see the person again; that it is not final. I don't think he would admit it, but ... I don't think he wants to be left behind again," she says. "He is one of the kindest people I have ever known ... but he is also guarded. After Elynor ... he only lets someone so close to his heart."
"Well, I think I've gotten past some of his armor," Redmane notes. "He brought me here, after all, and told me some of what he's been through. Doesn't seem to judge me for my own past either. But right now, I'm just like him. Won't always be that way, though."
"It may be he doesn't want you to end up like him," Myrrden says.
"Old and alone," comes an unusually quiet voice from Thomas asthe front door opens and he carries in a stack of wood for the fire.
"Well, I don't intend on being alone in my old age," Redmane notes. "I'm promised that I'll have happiness, if I do things right."
"No one intends for everything that happens," Thomas explains as he stockes the fireplace with a few logs. He sighs briefly, suddenly looking tired as he adds, "If it is all right with you, Myrrden, I think I'll get some sleep now. Can we talk in the morning?"
"Of course," Myrrden says as she stands, "I'll show you where the extra blankets are in the spare room. Your friend can sleep in my room."
"Oh, I can share with Thomas," Redmane says, getting up. "I don't want to put you out of your bed. Besides, he promised me I wouldn't have to sleep alone during this journey." And, she thinks to herself, no need for him to be alone and let his thoughts return to what he's lost.