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The Year Of The Bear - Ep.16

ButonflyNov 12, 2018, 9:21:14 AM

(Start at the beginning)

She had traveled north with a head full of ideas, dreams really, from stories read of wilder times, where men, beasts, and clans struggled for dominance. Where heroes rose from ashes, and whose names became commonplace amidst bedtime stories. Legends beyond belief, particularly for those whose role it was to travel the world in search of facts. Julia didn't know what it was she’d become a part of, but it was the last thing she’d dare dream.

Leaving Mathias and the town behind hadn't felt good but Julia was glad to be clear of the danger. The Yos were previously unknown to her and yet she had no trouble determining them as enemy. She couldn't imagine anything like what she’d witnessed in the North happening in her home city of Torethorn. The Kingdom of Landon was settled under the Kings peace and she imagined similar unrest would be met swiftly with the Kings justice. While she loved being away exploring the world and fulfilling her duty, now more than ever she longed for the familiar ways of home.

The Bears traveled hard after Mathias town, turning what Julia knew to be a slow drawn out amble up the north bound rode into a wild descent back down that left her saddle sore. It was a welcome relief to see the land transition from untamed wild, with its rocky terrain and sprawling forest, into the more level fields worked into vast yields of crop. The settlements and small towns with their simple folk greeted them in an accent that distinguished them from the grizzled men of the north.

Life was not so different here from there, but the subtle distinctions helped set the worlds apart. The reception to Carmel and the Bears was certainly noted on the faces of those they rode by- a cautious optimism from the few who’d dealt with Northmen in the past, and a vagrant dissociation from everyone else who had not. In fact the further from the borders of Landon they got, the more prevalent the latter became.

By the time the walled city of Torethorn came into view, built as it was up the side of a vast hill so that it spread itself out for an approaching traveler to marvel upon, Julia had resolved herself to enlightening her companions to exactly what they should expect given their current appearance.

“I’m not trying to dissuade you from entering, I’m simply trying to warn you- you’re going to draw a lot of unwanted attention in your current state.” Julia explained.

“What state?” Kodiak twisted around from atop his horse, looking confused at the notion. The procession of horses walked slowly along the road as the conversation continued.

“You’re Bears; you look like you’ve just crawled out of a cave- no offence. Heck, I could do with a bath, but at least I’m dressed appropriately.” Julia regarded the sleeves of her blouse, now filthy with the road, and realised just how torn and frayed they’d become.

“So what, nobody rough ever entered the halls of heaven? They only shit outside the gates of your city or something?” Kodiak challenged.

“No, it’s not that.” Julia huffed. She had been singled out as the ‘southerner’ all the way from Ipswitch which had slowly but surely grated her nerves. Kodiak was the worst offender. “It’s the fact you’re riding in with a young girl bound and gagged, looking like she’s been dragged through the mud.”

“Heh, she has,” Kodiak chuckled nonchalant at the memory, missing the point.

Julia groaned out of frustration. “Carmel! They’ll stop you at the gates with questions. Maybe even arrest you. They’ll want to question her too at that point. You’re not exactly.. common place.” That seemed the most diplomatic way to put it.

“It’s your home, can’t you just put in a good word?” Carmel queried, seemingly reasonable.

“With who exactly?” The ignorance was so apparent, Julia couldn't help but drip with condescension. She held out one hand to the distant landscape of Torethorn. “Have you seen what’s over there on that hill? It’s got to be twenty times the size of Ipswitch, and that’s just the side of the city you can see. Maybe in the North you can get to know a town, this is a totally different situation.”

The group fell silent at the thought, broken only by the beaten sound of horse hooves on the road.

“What about your Mistress? That Lady Fara-way? You made her sound pretty important.” Carmel asked.

“The Lady Fareamay,” Julia corrected, “And she is, but there’s no way you’re associating her to the authorities with all of this,” and Julia circled her finger around the group, encapsulating Kass along with the rest of them.

Carmel stared over at her with a frown, “Then what do you propose?” He asked, incredulous.

Julia had already considered the answer, in part because she had no desire to appear before her Mistress in such a state. “There’s a roadside Inn just outside the city. We could stop there, spend a night, freshen up. New clothes, new hair?” Her voice traveled into a high, suggestive octave on that last point. It didn't seem particularly well received but she could be hopeful. “We clean Kass up, which I’m sure she’d appreciate,” Julia spared her a smile despite the past hostilities. Kass stared back with less of a frown than usual, Julia thought. “Then tomorrow we ride in to Lady Fareamay’s estate, Kass without her binds, doubling in your arms so you can keep her under control.” Julia nodded, pleased at the image.

Carmel looked at Dolev, “Dolev?”

Dolev mused. “It might be wise to appear before our host in a fitting state.” She agreed. “Bathing also wouldn't hurt, on principle.”