The Year Of The Bear - Ep.17
(Start at the beginning)
Carmel flexed his arms, stretching them before himself to pull at the fabric hugging his shoulders. His previous outfit may have looked like some creature well past dead and dragged down the side of a mountain, but at least it fit his frame with a mite more comfort. The local taste in attire seemed less concerned about function and more concerned with form, which wasn't to Carmel’s liking. He understood there was a time and a place for everything, but having been north of the mountain his whole life, he felt firmly rooted in another world.
Julia had insisted on a few changes, the clothes being one of them. Tidying up hair, trimming beards, and having a good wash were also all non-negotiable if the Bears wanted to meet with Lady Fareamay. More importantly, Carmel had been met with a lecture on the correct spelling and proper pronunciation of her name, least he lack in understanding of her position and importance, at least in so far as Julia was concerned. To his chagrin he endured the demand, along with Kodiak and Dolev, but not before putting Julia through her paces to ensure sure it was worth the concern. Despite her best efforts, Kodiak in particular managed to maintain a wholly rugged veneer with a mockery of hair he would only agree to have tied back, and the scrub of meager fuzz he managed about his face left untrimmed. Worst of all were the barbaric tattoos that covered his chest, ever visible at the base of his neck and collar where they were rarely covered. Old habits die hard, and as much as Julia might wanted to dress up a Bear, Kodiak was a Bear right down to his heart.
Now the group were making their way through the busy streets of Torethorn, their eyes drawn every which way at the bustle, and overabundant detail the culture of the Southerners had built. ‘Southerners’ was an incorrect term however as the people of Torethorn were truly Midlanders, and the term ‘southerner’ to them seemed meant for some other far off people bound to some other far off land. Such distinctions were hard placed on Carmel and a couple of Bears who viewed everyone outside of their rocky realm in the most simple of terms. Traveling to Torethorn was quickly becoming an informative experience in which life was full of hard and fast lessons.
All of the roads they’d seen within the city were cobble stoned, every structure seemed two structures built one atop another, and the storefronts stretched on and on, then on again around every corner, up each hill, and down every staircase. Each peddled their wares of a specific nature or another and those that shared competed in both quality and price. How it all worked was a madness to the casual observer, and the mystery felt mind numbing to untangle, but worked it did as the whole thing appeared to totter along on the high side of the descent into chaos.
Dolev, Kodiak, and Carmel were uncharacteristically quiet as they soaked it all in from their perch on top their horses. Kass was equally distracted from her usual fascination with disdain. This left Julia free to prattle, waxing the words of a thousand stories, pointing out related bits of knowledge, and divulging sprawling threads of history that all related to the city proper as it stood. Its people and its periods forming a fascinating weave of endurance, ripe with a flourish that seemed fitting for a realtor in desperate need for investors. For all her expressions of fondness for the place while they’d been at a distance, the true life giving vitality of her passion had not been realised until they had stepped foot inside its walls. Like a warrior away at war, returning home to find their lover.
For Kodiak the enthusiasm from which the details sprang was nauseating, for Dolev it was fascinating, for Carmel it was becoming irritating.
“How much further?” Carmel asked, cutting Julia off mid sentence.
“Hmm? Oh, not far.” She answered, then continued on, pointing out a smithy who occupied a large corner store at a wide intersection with an ancient well at its center. She began to delve deep into the history of the owners family, quite literally down to the nails and tacks they’d produced.
Dolev trotted up beside Carmel, the two horses carving an unimpeded path through the traffic as both people and beast flowed naturally around them. She leaned over as if to impart some controversial message “If times were different, I’d very much like to explore this city.”
Carmel looked around at all the faces staring up in their direction. Despite Julia’s best efforts, they still held the distinct appearance of Northerners, if only for their size and markings. For someone like Carmel, prone to keeping an eye out for dangers, it got a little unnerving having every man, woman, and child in the foreseeable distance demanding the attention of his eyes.
“If you’re willing to be stared at endlessly while you’re here, sure, sounds like a hoot.” Carmel jibed.
“You sound bothered by it,” said Dolev.
“You’re not?”
Dolev smiled, a cheeky little smile. “Maybe- if I were you. I’d want to avoid attention too.”
“Hey!” Carmel frowned, “what’s that’s supposed to mean?”
Dolev chuckled. “Nothing, but I think men and women are different in this regard. Once you’ve crossed the wilderness with a maul of mostly male Bears a few times, you get used to a few stares.”
Carmel gave that a thought and let go a grunt, “Fair point,” he said, digressing, then turned to look once again at the staring faces. “These aren't the same stares though.” He added, finally.
Dolev shrugged, “It’s not so different,” and they left it at that.
Kass spoke next from her seat on Carmel’s horse, an oddly chipper tone to her voice. “Julia, you grew up here?”
The blonde Chronicler stopped amidst her speech, surprised entirely by the foreign nature of the girls voice. Dolev and Carmel exchanged a look, an unspoken query passing between them to see if each heard what the other had. For all the leagues they’d traveled they’d heard nothing but scorn out of Kass, if they’d heard anything at all.
“For the most part,” Julia answered. “I came here as a babe, before I could really remember, why?”
Kass shrugged, made a dismissive humming noise, and shook the question away with her head. She went back to watching the sights as they rolled past. Carmel looked at Julia who looked at Dolev, who modeled Kass’s shrug with a wide look in her eye. Then, for the first time since they’d entered the city, the group moved along in contented silence, no-one wishing to dispel whatever it was they’d just experienced.
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