Color

for dVerse

Rising from the clearness

of glass and water

green stalks and leaves

intermingle. And bloom

into white roses

white and whiter.

Color kaleidoscopes again

above the roses, red.

Red encircling black

encircling yellow.

Tulips and roses

together.

The Other Side of the Story

for dVerse

Rina and Her Stepmother: Table of Contents

1. Grieving, Lucretia vows to husband to protect his daughter

    Rina’s beloved father dies leaving her sadder.

2. Lucretia instructs Rina in the Fine Art of Being a Lady

    Rina is subjected to torture daily.

3. Lucretia travels to oversee her estates

    Rina takes the opportunity and escapes.

4. Lucretia must recover errant charge and so plans

    Rina joins Green Crescent Hero Band.

5. Lucretia sends out a call for heroes

   Rina and Band deal a dragon a deathblow.

6. Lucretia enjoys the quiet and waits

    The Band has a missing girl to locate.

7. Lucretia receives spiteful girl back

    The Band rescues Rina and heads off-track.

8. Lucretia tries once more to save Rina from her ways

    Rina outwits her stepmother for always.

9. Lucretia casts off her ungrateful stepdaughter

    Rina lives happily ever after.

For Rina's adventures mentioned here check out: To the Rescue and Gold and Silver.

Christmas Rush

for dVerse

Christmas carols are floating through the air

Cinnamon and peppermint wafting by

Scraps of green wrapping paper everywhere

So many presents stacked and piled high.

Ties for dad; for Lizzie a cat, meow!

Earrings for mom; nuts for all our neighbors.

Check that list twice; what did we forget now?

Keep rushing fast. Buy just one present more.

Can there be a prefect gift that’s stress free?

Not another “some assembly” horror.

Liberate us from this shopping melee

Finish the madness and come to anchor.

Yes, there’s an end in sight to the gauntlet.

Everybody loves a gift of chocolate.

Storyteller

for dVerse

Roses grow around the tower

Speckled wrens sing in the flowers

Crickets begin their chorus bright

As the sun purples into night

Rest here children in this bower

Listen I’ll tell tales of power

Magic to show you rich delights

As the sun purples into night

Listen and forget the hours

Under my voice and star showers

Close your eyes you’ll see fairy sights

As the sun purples into night

My tales are my gift; my dower

As the sun purples into night

Return

Jasunr leaned against the doorway and looked out at the valley. He could remember when it was a beautiful place; a magical place. Farms had produced food in abundance, the river had been filled with fish, and bees had hummed among the flowers.

Then three years ago the river had turned brackish. Now, the land was barren and brown. Wearily he rubbed his face and looked to the road. Many families had left and he wondered if he should follow. Suddenly, he started. Was there someone walking into the valley? No one came into the valley these days.

“Hello there!” he called when the figure was close enough. He could see now it was a woman. “Where are you going?”

“To the head of the river.” she answered.

Jasunr stared at her. Why would she want to go there? “That’s a three day hike. There’s nothing to see.”

She had been going to pass him, but now she turned with interest. “You know the way?”

“Well, yes. But it’s the same up there as it is down here,” he gestured to the polluted river.

“My name is Elethia. I left the valley two years ago to find a way to save the river. And I can.” she hesitated. “Will you take me there?”

He almost refused. But she was so sure of herself that he agreed. Elethia told him about her journey to save the river during the hike. It was a tale of magic, but he still wasn’t prepared for what she did when they reached the head of the river. Kneeling down she pulled out, what at first he thought was a small statue of a unicorn, then he saw it was a bottle. It was made of crystal, or maybe glass and filled with liquid that glowed silver. Elethia poured it into the river. “Heal,” she whispered.

The Adventures of A Second-Rate Cook

Magpie Tale 148
 

Fern Inman tasted the soup. Liese hovered at her shoulder nervously. There was a long silence while Fern rolled the soup over her tongue before swallowing. She looked at Liese and her eyes were full of apology. Liese felt her shoulders slump. “It’s still second-rate isn’t it?”

“I’m sorry Liese,” Fern sighed and patted her shoulder.

Liese looked glumly at the soup. She was the best second-rate cook in the province, and everyone knew it. When the Bronze Salamander Inn had been a second-rate inn, her meals had been legendary. They hit the fine line between tasteless and inedible perfectly. Her second-rate cooking was so bad it had once killed a dragon. But now that the Salamander was a first-rate inn, Liese’s cooking just wasn’t up to starch. “What will I do?” she moaned.

Before Fern could answer, her husband Finn, came bustling into the kitchen. “The Green Crescent Hero Band is coming for the week,” he announced. “That’s fifteen more people to feed tonight.” Then he caught a look at their faces. “Still no luck?” he asked.

Liese shook his head.

“Don’t worry, we’ll figure something out,” said Finn reassuringly, but Liese wasn’t so sure.

The next day Liese was helping Meg wash sheets at the back of the inn. The weather was beautiful and she and Meg where splashing each other and laughing when Finn came running out. “I’ve got it!” he called.

“Got what?” asked Meg while Liese tried to stop laughing.

“The Green Crescent Heroes! They can take you with them.” Finn said to Liese and looking very pleased with himself.

“Take me where?” asked Liese, all laughter gone.

“Anywhere. They range all over the province. They know where all the inns are. They could help you find a new job.”

Liese thought about it. He was right. And as much as she loved the Bronze Salamander, it was clear her talents needed to stay with a second-rate inn. But – “Someone would have to file a quest at the Quest Office. And I don’t have the money for that.”

Finn brushed off this objection with a wave of his hand. “Fern and I will file the quest. It’s the least we can do. After all,” he looked at her fondly and suddenly sad. “You’re like family. We’ll miss you of course, but it seems like this is the best option.”

So at the end of the week, Liese packed a bag, hugged the Inmans and Meg goodbye and headed off with the heroes. After three weeks they had been to twenty-two second-rate inns, and while they all agreed that Liese’s cooking was horrible, none of them were in need of a cook. As they rode out from the last inn the clouds darkened above them and it began to rain, which reflected Liese’s mood. If only she could cook something to cheer herself up, but the band wouldn’t let her cook. They already had a cook, who was also their healer and could even use a sword if necessary. Liese felt very inadequate. At the end of the day the rain had let up some, but it was still drizzling. They camped in a forest clearing and she went to sit by herself a little away from the band. She managed to find a dry spot under a tree. Rina, the youngest member of the band and about Liese’s age, tried to talk to her, but Liese insisted she wanted to be alone. After giving her a sympathetic look, Rina had gone to practice her swordplay.

Leaning against the tree, Liese was lost in her own thoughts when the bandits attacked. At first she wasn’t sure what was happening. One minute she was staring off into the darkness, and the next there was a lot of yelling and clashing of swords. Liese jumped up and found a man pointing his sword at her. She gulped. “Move,” the man growled, jerking his head towards the forest. Liese was a cook, not a warrior, so she went. She stumbled across tree roots trying not to think about what would happen to her. By the time she thought of trying to memorize her way back to the band’s camp, she was already lost; and anyways it was too dark. Eventually they came to another clearing where the bandits’ camp was. Liese shivered and they waited.

“What’d you bring that girl back for?” another bandit asked as he came into camp.

“Anyone rich enough to travel with a hero band will pay a nice ransom,” answered her captor.

“I’m not rich,” protested Liese, sick at the thought of Finn and Fern paying a ransom. They had already done enough for her. “I’m just a cook.”

The men looked at each other and Liese couldn’t see their expressions. “Then cook something,” the second man ordered. He lit the fire and directed her to the food packs. What have I gotten myself into? Liese wondered. But at least she could cook. More bandits wondered into camp while she was cooking. Liese concentrated on cooking, glad to be doing something so familiar. She was sorry when she was done and started handing out wooden bowls that the men snatched from her.

For a moment there was the sound of chewing. Only for a moment though. “What is this?” roared one of the men spitting his food out. The rest quickly followed. They all looked angrily at Liese. “Who brought her here?” Liese’s heart pounded as the men argued about what to do with her. She backed away, glad they weren’t paying attention to her, but fearful that they would do something with her soon.

“How’d you do it?” someone whispered in her ear.

Liese jumped and turned. One of the bandits was standing next to her. “Do what?” she asked.

“The food. How’d you make it so bad? I’ve never seen uncle Rob refuse food before. Could you teach me?”

Liese couldn’t help but feel slightly flattered. While she was wondering if it would be possible to teach someone all the secrets of second-rate food, a sharp whistle sounded on the other side of the camp. Liese and all of the bandits looked towards it. A few bandits went to investigate. Liese considered making a run for it, but then remembered one bandit was standing right next to her. “Shouldn’t you go see what’s going on?”

He took a step forward then turned back, “Now wait a minute - ”

Suddenly he toppled over. Liese gasped, what was going on?

“Come on Liese, let’s go!” Relief flooded through her as she recognized Rina’s voice. Rina tossed her club away and they ran. “Gold did the whistling,” Rina explained. “He’s good at distractions. We have the camp all packed up. Once we get there, get on a horse and we ride!”

“What about the bandits?” gasped Liese.

“We’ll tell the authorities at the next town about them.”

Liese didn’t know how Rina knew where they were going, but she was happy to follow. It seemed to take longer getting back to the band’s clearing than it had to get to bandits’. Liese tried not to trip and had to keep ducking branches. At last they arrived. Rina helped Liese on to a horse then swung up behind her. Liese held on for dear life as they galloped away.

“Well, that was a great adventure!” said Rina when they finally stopped galloping. Liese decided that she didn’t like adventures. She wished Finn hadn’t thought to send her off with the heroes. When they reached the next town she knew she was the most glad to see the inn, even though it was first-rate and she couldn’t possibly get a job there.

The heroes spent the next day consulting with the local authorities how best to catch the bandits. Liese was happy to just hang around the inn. She talked with the cook, who tried to teach her how to cook first-rate, and even though she knew she couldn’t do it, Liese was delighted to be in a kitchen again.  As the cook tried to teach her, Liese thought about the bandit’s question from the night before. If I where trying to teach someone, how would I do it? She wondered. Slowly an idea began to form. When the heroes came back that night, she had it all fleshed out.

“Teach second-rate cooking?” Rina grinned. “Anyone who wants to learn would fall over themselves to have you as their teacher.”

Liese flushed at Rina’s praise. But she was pleased. Maybe this would work.

“But where will you teach?” asked Gold.

“The Inn and Tavern Guild in Gibbous City,” Liese answered promptly. “All inns have to be approved by them. It’s the perfect place for me.”

So they headed out the next morning. It was raining again, but Liese was happy. Soon she would have a new job, and if she was lucky they wouldn’t run into another adventure before they reached Gibbous City.


To find out how Liese's cooking killed a dragon check out The Bronze Salamander. 

Cake

Amber had promised herself cake. Mouth-watering chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. Eagerly she opened the fridge. No cake. The seven year old said, “No one was eating it, so I threw it away.”

Waiting for Santa

for dVerese

Watching the snow fall down

You pressed to the cold window

Your sister beside you

Counting snowflakes

While she asks

Can you hear sleigh bells?

How do reindeer fly?

Are there enough cookies for Santa?

And you tell her

With the authority of a big brother

You’ll stay awake all night

And find out.

What Happened With the Witch

“I didn’t have any anticipation of what was going to happen. One minute the stranger was eating soup; the next I found myself trying to fend off six men.” Rina told Gervas after everything was over.

“We guessed that.” Gervas nodded. “They overpowered and kidnapped you. Where did they take you?”

“There’s some caves up on the west side of the mountain – we should probably go clean them out later. But anyway, that witch was there. My stepmother’s sister.”

He roared into laughter. “When will you stop making people mad?”

Rina groaned. “I think it’s settled now. I wasn’t tied up very well, but she watched me at first, and said she wouldn’t make any deals with me, and went on about her plans for me,” she shuddered.

“Turn you into a slug or something?” Gervas asked.

“Imprison me in a crystal. I’d be stuck. If I was a slug, at least I could move. There was a long table with vials and rocks waiting to do the job. So when I got the ropes undone, I knocked them over.”

Stunned, Gervas gaped at her. “Don’t you know how stupid that was? Breaking all those magical things – you should have ended up as a slug.”

Shrugging she grinned. “I already said a slug would be better than a rock. There were some terrific explosions, but it worked out all right. Here,” she handed him something.

Gervas inspected the rock. Something inside it moved and gave off faint purple sparks. “The witch?”

Rina nodded. “I think she got turned into a moose, or maybe a gazelle, before she ended up in the crystal. Once everything settled down, I hiked back. When’s our next quest?”

Gervas could only shake his head and laugh.


For more of Rina's adventures check out Silver and Gold. 

Santa

for dVerse

Christmas toys I make

for the children’s holiday joy.

I find joy myself.

Under the tree they’ll

play and laugh. While I will smile

and plan for next year.

Vampire

dVerse

She is the fairest in the land

with dead white skin and blood smeared lips;

lovely beneath the coffin’s span.

Guarded lest she rise and walk again.

A Princess with a thirst for blood

she is the fairest in the land

who tricked men and stole their lives.

She is the terror of the land.

Who dared to face the Princess grand;

save a kingdom from her power?

She is the fairest in the land.

Eight men tried and eight men died.

A Queen tried next and made the tomb;

trapping the Princess behind the glass

and setting guards about the one

who is the fairest in the land.

Thwack!

for Magpie Tale 146
 

Thwack! Whack, thwacktiy, thwack!

The sound gave a distinct impression of gleeful justice with just a touch of wild abandon. Ellen dropped the bread knife and ran for the piano room.

Her son Carter, looked up in sudden guilt. In his hand: the hammer. On the floor before him: the metronome. Splintered; pounded; conquered.

I think I always knew he wanted to crush the metronome. Perhaps thought Ellen we should rethink the music lessons.

Metronome Hunt

Magpie Tale 146

The band of heroes crept into the music store. It seemed quite ordinary. Stacks of music lined the walls while displays of various instruments – trumpets, fiddles, harps – took up most of the room.

“What are we looking for again?” Rina whispered to Gervas.

Gervas consulted his notes for this particular quest. “A metronome. Six inches high, wood. Has an eye. Delights in tormenting music students.”

Rina scanned the musical merchandise. Metronomes had been one of her stepmother’s favorite tools when she had tried to teach Rina music. Rina hated the metronomes. She wasn’t surprised that one had gone evil.

They quickly found seventeen metronomes in the store that fit the description. Well, except that none of them had any eyes. “I think we should destroy them all just in case. What if it’s sleeping and the eye is closed?” Rina asked.

Silver laughed while Gervas smiled and shook his head. “I think we’ll know it when we find it. We’ll just have to search every nook and cranny.”

And they did. Four hours later the store was a wreck. All the sheet music was on the floor. They had started out in stacks, but with everyone moving around and bumping into them, the floor was now a black and white swamp. Instruments where tilting precariously in their display stands, or shoved rudely onto the shelves. And a pile of metronomes was in the middle of it all. They had only found three more. Rina still thought they should burn them all. When Gervas moved a drum and lost his grip and it fell on him, he declared a break. Everyone sat down with groans and sighs of relief, or stretched stiff muscles.

Rina sat down at one of the harps that had been practically smashed into a shelf. She had never liked her stepmother’s music lessons, but she had liked the harp. She pulled it back and began playing one of the songs her stepmother had hated, which was consequently one of Rina's favorites. After a few bars something fell from the top on the self and crashed into her hands. “Ow!” cried Rina, letting go of the strings.

“You all right?” asked Gervas.

Before Rina could respond, the thing began rhythmically beating her hands. Jumping up from the harp, Rina finally saw what the thing was. A wooden ticking metronome with an eye on the pendulum which glared at her as it swung back and forth. “That’s it!”

Just as Rina dived for it, the band surged into action and leaped too. Rina didn’t think to brace herself until the band slammed into her. The harp broke with a deafening bang. Rina lay stunned at the bottom of the pile, trying to breath. Eventually she heard Gervas and Silver getting the band into order. Once they got up, the remains of the harp fell on her. Rina didn’t really care; she was still worried about breathing.

“Are you all right?” Gervas asked her for the second time his hand on her shoulders.

Rina finally groaned. “Yeah?”

“We missed the metronome,” said Silver. “The rest of the band will keep looking. We’ll make sure you’re okay.”

“Nobody has to look anywhere,” Rina sat up, revealing the metronome clutched in her hands, the eye still glaring and trying to swing against her fingers.

Once Rina got her breath back they took it outside and burned it. Gervas had offered to let Rina light the fire, but her fingers weren’t up to it. She assured him that she was content to watch the evil thing burn. They eye kept glaring at them and Rina had to concentrate hard not to shiver. The flames danced merrily along the wooden body in orange and yellow patterns, and Rina grinned at it while the band’s healer made sure her injuries would heal. Slowly the wood charred the pendulum blackened. At last even the eye succumbed as the flames surrounded it. The metronome was no more.

Missing Childhood

for dVerse

Just a toy
Just a princess
Whose hands fall out
And in the wrong skirt.
And just a witch
With a missing leg,
But somehow I still have the foot.
The prince and the king
Still in mint condition.
Just a bit of Lego’s history
And mine.
History that brings the child-cry
Into my heart again and wishes
Just to play
And dream
With those toys
Forever.

Cinderella

Stepmother, “There is a social order. You are the bottom; ash.”
So in jewels and gold they left for the ball. Not knowing.
Before the night finished the Ash Girl would be queen.

Home Sweet Home

Magpie Tale 145

Rina curled up in the red chair and surveyed the room. ‘Nondescript,’ would best describe it; the red chair was the lone bit of color there. But the floor was sound, the walls weren’t about to fall over, and since it was raining outside, she knew the roof didn’t leak. Those were the only good things she could come up with about her new lodgings. The little house held a bedroom, a kitchen and the small front room she was in. It certainly wasn’t much, but she needed a place to live during the off-hero season and this shack was the only thing she could afford. As it was, the house had taken out a large chunk of her earnings from adventuring with the Green Crescent Hero Band. The next eight months would require very frugal living. Still she smiled at her beat up walls and bare surroundings. It was all she had.

After the next hero season she would have some more gold and she could start making improvements. A proper bed instead of her adventure’s bedroll was on the top of her list. Although, a table for her kitchen so that she wouldn’t be cooking on the floor, was a close contender. Then she would whitewash the walls and probably the floor as well. The outside of the house could use some whitewash too. And then perhaps some rugs for the floor and some curtains for the windows. Or more likely, a bookshelf and books. Rina sighed contently as she planned. Tomorrow she would clean. She could probably clean for the next eight months. Rina fell asleep in the chair dreaming of what her house would be.

Eight months later when the hero season started and the Green Crescent Hero Band came to collect Rina, they were not as enamored with the year-by-year house improvement plan as Rina was. They promptly developed a plan behind her back.

Throughout the hero season, a few members of the band would slip off on a private quest. Rina knew the band was up to something, but as they were all determined to keep her in the dark, she had very little success in finding out what they were doing. When the hero season ended, the entire band insisted on accompanying her home. Rina had a deep suspicion that she would find her house demolished and would wind up staying with one of the band members for the next eight months. While she wouldn’t mind being with the band, she really liked her house. When she finally saw her house, she couldn’t believe the transformation it had undergone. Instead of being a rundown wreck, it was neat and prim. The inside was immaculate and comfortable. The walls were painted, rugs were on the floor, there was an abundance of furniture, and the band had carved scenes of their exploits on the headboard of the bed. Rina was delighted, and the band was smug.

For more of Rina's adventures check out To the Rescue.

Tomorrow

for dVerse

Today I set out
for tomorrow. Each day I bring
something for the next.

Thanksgiving

for dVerse
An acrostic poem.

Together round a fragrant turkey
heaping a feast upon our plates
and laughing and smiling with those
numbered as our friends and family
knowing that safety and love
surrounds; for this give thanks.



Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

Silver and Gold

Magpie Tale 144

Rina was miserable. She was miserable partly because she and Gold were riding through a thunderstorm. And she was worried sick about Silver, Gold’s sister. They were on a quest to save her life. Rina shivered and urged her horse forward. Up ahead through the dim light she could barely make out Gold’s back and her heart ached. He must be even more worried than she was.

“Gold,” she called out to him. “How much longer do you think?”

Gold’s tired voice came back to her, “Just keep going.”

Rina tried not to pay attention to the darkening sky. They had left the Bronze Salamander Inn that morning at a gallop. Now their horses were too worn out to do more than walk. The enchanted road they were traveling on was taking them far away indeed, and Rina wished it was one of those enchanted roads that made traveling faster. According to the instructions the fourth-order wizard had given Gervas, they would reach the witch’s hut soon. The day before the band been excited to reach the Bronze Salamander, although Gervas had complained that the prices had gone up now that it was a first-rate inn. But Rina suspected he was just as glad as the rest of the band to have clean sheets and a delicious first-rate meal. The band had been enjoying themselves until the fourth-order wizard showed up. Apparently on one of Silver’s first quests she had stolen a magic necklace from him and he wanted revenge.

Silver pointed out that the fourth-order wizard had stolen the necklace first and she had returned it to its proper owner. The fourth-order wizard didn’t care and he cursed her. He wanted to curse the rest of the band as well, but Finn Inman, the innkeeper, reminded him that only second and first order wizards could curse people with no connection to a feud and he would incur a hefty fee if cursed anyone else. Rina tried not to think about how Silver had looked, so still and pale on the floor of the Salamander’s great room. She had crouched over Silver, trying to revive her, while the rest of the band drew their swords and menaced the fourth-order wizard. Rina was surprised he had gotten away. She was also surprised that he had told them how to lift the curse.

If they could find the witch who lived at the end of the enchanted rode she would give them an elixir, if they traded her something for it. The wizard had also said that only Rina and Gold could go. Rina frowned. There was something about this quest that just didn’t ring right. But the wizard had said Silver would die in three days if they didn’t get the elixir, so there hadn’t been time to question what he had told them. Rina strained her eyes ahead. The rain was picking up and she could hear a roaring up ahead. “Gold, what’s that noise?”

“It’s the ocean we must be close.” There was new life in Gold’s voice, and Rina felt her own hope pick up. The wizard had said the witch’s hut was by the sea. Suddenly she saw a dark shape looming just beyond them.

“There it is!” They guided their horses into the meager shelter the hut gave from the squall. They dismounted and Gold pushed the door open. The inside of the hut was surprisingly dry. Bare wooden boards made up the floors and the walls and it was clean, and well lit. It was not at all what Rina had expected. Water dripped from their clocks, making puddles on the floor. The witch stood in the middle of the room wearing a red dress and a long black cape. Beside her stood Rina’s evil stepmother. Rina stiffened. This was not good.

“We’ve come for an elixir for my sister.” Gold said glaring at the witch.

The witch smiled. “Is that so? What will you give for it?”

“Anything.” Gold answered.

Rina groaned. No wonder the fourth-order wizard had wanted Gold to come. He was so concerned for his sister that he wasn’t thinking straight. Everyone knew not to offer anything as a price, and most certainly not to a witch. The witch’s smile grew wider. She snapped her fingers and Gold turned into a golden statue. Then she turned to Rina. “And what will give me for this elixir?”

Rina gulped, but before she could answer her stepmother spoke. “Sister, this ungrateful girl ought to make an unbreakable promise to come back home with me forever if she wants your elixir.”

The witch was her stepmother's sister? Rina’s eyes narrowed. “This was all your idea! You got that wizard to curse Silver to lure me here for the cure so that you could force me go with you. I won’t do it.”

Her stepmother shrugged. “Then this friend of yours dies.”

Rina glared at her stepmother. This couldn’t be. She had always thought it was her Stepmother’s sense of duty that made her try to raise her properly. But she had been sure that after she had run away twice her stepmother would give up and be content running her beloved estate. Rina wouldn’t go back with her stepmother. But even as she thought about marching out the door, Silver’s face, not pale as it had been when the wizard cursed her; but laughing and full of life danced before her. Rina wouldn’t let Silver die, even if she couldn’t be happy in a life of fancy dresses and running a castle. But I’ll tear up every dress Stepmother tries to make me wear.

Rina sighed. “Turn Gold back into himself and give me the elixir. Then I promise to come back with you.”

“Forever,” her stepmother prompted.

“Forever.” Rina agreed.

The witch snapped her fingers again. Gold shook himself and looked around. The witch pulled a small green bottle from her dress pocket and handed it to Rina. As their hands touched, violet light flashed. Rina took the vial and said, “I also promise to be as unladylike as possible. I will cut up every dress you try to make me wear. I will throw every corset into the fire, I will wear my swords, and destroy every single to-do list that you make and any other sort of mischief I can come up with.”

Her stepmother looked aghast. “You can’t do that.”

It was Rina’s turn to smile. “I just made an unbreakable promise to do so didn’t I?”

Her stepmother turned to the witch, who shrugged. Gold looked between them confused. Her stepmother turned back, “But that would destroy the estate.”

“You’re the one who cares about the estate. But if you’re so worried, you could let me out of the unbreakable promise and not force me to go back with you.”

The stepmother reluctantly nodded and the witch reached for the elixir. Rina held it out of her reach. “I’ll keep this, too. And you can promise not to try and force me to go back with you anymore.”

There was nothing else they could do. Rina’s stepmother wouldn’t let her estate be destroyed and Rina wouldn’t give up the elixir. The witch took Rina’s other hand and another flash of violet light filled the room. Rina was free. “Get out,” the witch hissed.

Gold and Rina were only too happy to comply. The enchanted road was much shorter on their return trip. Rina suspected the witch wanted to get rid of them faster and had re-enchanted the road to take them away quickly. The Bronze Salamander was a welcome sight and the band greeted them enthusiastically. They were hurried up the stairs to Silver’s room, where she laid listlessly on the bed. Within moments of receiving the elixir she opened her eyes, much to the band’s relief.

When Rina and Gold told their story, Gervas shook his head and asked Rina if she had any other people in her past who would try to make trouble. Rina didn’t know and Silver pointed out that most, if not all, of the band had made enemies during their adventures that they didn’t know about. In a few days Silver was well enough to complain loudly about being treated like an invalid. After two weeks she was begging to go on a quest, and the band promptly begged with her. Gervas laughed at them, but a few days later he came back to the Bronze Salamander with a quest to slay a dragon. With great excitement the band packed and rode out. Rina grinned from the top of her horse. Ahead of her Silver and Gold rode side by side making jokes and Gervas was at the front. Rina was perfectly content.


Check out The Bronze Salamander and To The Rescue for more magical adventures.

End and Start

for dVerse

Lily pad faded
from deep green to purple pink.
Summer ends; snow comes.

Forward

Magpie Tale 143

for dVerse

Forget this nightmare
take hands at last in peace and
walk forward with hope.

Winter Fire

for dVerse

Winter falls white
shinning bright in
moonlight. On fair
pond; glassware smooth
child stares sleepy.
And happy by
lazy fire; warm.

To the Rescue

Magpie Tale 142

Rina slumped against the outcropping of rock and looked up at the circle of people around her who were waiting for an explanation. She was relieved that they didn’t seem mad. Silver looked like she was going to start laughing even, but Gervas. Gervas was their leader and Rina hoped he wasn’t mad.

Sighing she began, “Stepmother and I never really got along. I wouldn’t say we hated each other – well not most of the time. And Father always kept us from really squabbling. Father liked it when I did weird things anyways. So he was fine with me learning to sword fight and eventually joining a band of heroes. But Stepmother - ”

“She thought more lady-like pursuits would be a better way to spend your time?” Silver asked helpfully.

Rina nodded. “So after Father died, it didn’t take long for me to runaway. I thought Stepmother would be expecting it. I knew I would join a hero band, so, well you guys know that part.” Rina looked at the heroes who had been her family for the last two months. Silver was defiantly trying not to laugh and everyone else looked amused, but Gervas was still unreadable. “And it’s the best thing I’ve ever done!” she added fiercely. “I just never thought when we took this quest to find that missing girl she’d end up being me.”

Rina looked down at her shoes. She could only suppose it was her Stepmother’s sense of duty that had made her look for her. She looked up at the band hopefully. Surely they wouldn’t make her go back.

Gervas shook his head sternly. “It would be against our honor to not fulfill our quest. We’ll have to take you to your Stepmother.”

Rina groaned. She tried to enjoy the three-day ride to her Stepmother’s knowing it would be her last bit of her freedom. She contemplated running away, but she knew the band too well. They’d simply find her again. Stepmother made a fuss when the band brought her back, but Rina wouldn't acknowledge her.

Stepmother locked her in her room in an attempt to make Rina see the error of her ways. For her part Rina refused to change out of her tunic and leggings and promptly cut up all the dresses in her wardrobe so that she wouldn't have to wear them. She also contemplated how to escape again. She barely paid attention to the darkening sky outside her window until she heard a tap.

Surprised, she turned and found Silver grinning through the window at her. Rina flew to the window and signaled to Silver that it was locked. Nodding, Silver smashed it with a hammer she had brought for that purpose.

“What are you doing here?” cried Rina.

“It’s our next quest. We have to rescue this girl who’s locked up in a tower.” Silver jumped into the room and began unwinding a rope she had around her shoulders.

Rina watched with mounting excitement. “What about Gervas? Does he know?”

Silver threw the rope out the window. “Gervas? This was all his idea.”

Rina laughed in delight and quickly followed Silver down the rope. Their horses were waiting for them and before sunrise, Rina was back where she belonged.

And I have to say thanks to Hedgi for giving me this idea. Check out Hedgi's Magpie, it's awesome.

Halloween Night

for dVerse

Forest
Black night on All Hallows’ Eve
Blighted creatures; wretched spirits
Loose this night with all mankind
Rustle of leaves behind me.
It is the wind.

The journey is not long
I’ve made it in safe daylight, yet
Never at dead midnight have I walked
Who else roams here this night?
No one but myself alone.

My lantern is bright
But outside its glow I have no eyes
What is that beyond my light?
Fingers reaching from the trees.
Only branches dancing for the breeze.

And what noise was that?
More than zephyr in the leaves
A step, most surely
Of man or beast
I quick step, pause
Slow walk.
I’m not afraid.

Why dared I venture out this night?
My lantern flickers, falters, fails
Too frightened to go forward
Yet I fear to turn back
What will become of me?
Alone on All Hallows’ Eve.

Picture Perfect

Magpie Tale 141

Jessie sat in the car and glared at the rain. When she had agreed to come with her brother to pick up his fiancé Crystal, she’d been excited. Jessie had been dreaming of winning the Annual Holden Photo contest since she was seven and Crystal’s parent’s house was picturesque. The perfect place to snap a prize-winning photo. But now the rain was messing up her perfect picture plans, which meant she’d spent four hours in a car driving up and had a another four hours back all for nothing.

The rain hurtled down uncaring; as her brother, Ethan, carefully drove up the long drive to the house. Jessie gazed longingly at the old turrets covered in ivy, almost impossible to see in the rain. Ethan jumped out, as oblivious to the rain as the rain was to Jessie’s plans. Crawling into the back seat, she had to smile. Ethan would make a good husband. Crystal came flying out of the house and into Ethan’s arms. She at least had brought an umbrella, but somehow it slipped from her grasp. They kissed, and suddenly Jessie couldn’t move fast enough.

Out came her camera and she nearly dropped it in her haste as she started snapping pictures. Ethan and Crystal were indignant when they realized what was going on, but Jessie didn’t care. She had her prize-winning photo after all.

The Dragon's Treasure

Magpie Tale 140

The sleeping dragon stirred, blowing out faint whispers of flame. For a moment they lighted up the cave, causing the stalactites to cast brief shadows. The waters in the pool glinted once. Then the flames rolled on; over the gold coins from different ages and to the part of the cave the dragon had dubbed the New Section.

The dragon was not overly fond of the treasure in the New Section. The flames found soft white and green leaf-like rectangles, soft and flimsy. Burnable. With a delighted flicker the fire took hold and burned. A blaze sprung up, showering the cavern with light. The cave was small; the dragon took up most of the room with his tail dipping into the pond. The pool shone deep blue-green in the center, yellowing at the edges and smelling of rotted eggs. The fire happily blackened the cave wall causing painted deer, the work of men thousands of years before to disappear. Smoke drifted among the stalactites, painting the ceiling, then curled down around the dragon’s nose.

The dragon snorted and finally woke. With a hiss of annoyance he peered about the cave. The treasure of the New Section was destroyed. The dragon growled in disgust. These modern humans were crazy. Burnable money. What would they think of next? He watched awhile as the light danced along his gold. Then swishing his tail, the dragon swatted the glowing treasure into the pool. The light vanished, and the dragon resumed his sleep. There was nothing left to be seen.

The Bronze Salamander

Magpie Tale 139

Meg polished the gold sign of the Bronze Salamander, second-rate inn, vigorously. Meg had never seen the inn so clean. Second-rate inns were expected to be dirty with questionable sanitation. She didn’t mind not having to clean the inn more, but she hated gathering lice for the guest beds. But hopefully that would change. The inn had been preparing all week for the arrival of the master evaluators from the Inn and Tavern Guild all the way in Gibbous City. If they were lucky they could raise the Bronze Salamander from a second-rate to a first-rate inn. Meg grinned. Sure there’d be more cleaning, but no more lice! She took her rags and reported to Finn Inman, the innkeeper. “I think we’re ready. The Bronze Salamander is going to be a first-rate inn!”

Finn shook his head. “I don’t know-”

“We got dragon-proof rights last year. They may as well have made us first-rate then,” Meg argued.

“Yes, but that was an exception. If the mayor hadn’t insisted that the Salamander was the only place large enough for town meetings, it would have been denied.”

Finn’s wife came out from the kitchen followed by Liese and overheard them. “Don’t worry,” she ordered. “We’ve done our best. I’m just glad we were able to apply for first-rate status during the off-season. We wouldn’t have been able to prove we’re first-rate with heroes crawling around, starting fights and sneaking out the back way.”

They nodded in agreement. Business was good during hero season, but it was a relief not to fix up the inn after every batch of heroes came through. Finn rubbed his hands together and sighed. First-rate inns could charge more and cope better with hero damages.

“The kitchen’s all stocked.” Liese said. “We have a small selection of first-rate food for the evaluators and all of the second-rate food is organized.”

Meg grinned. Liese was the youngest cook in Green Crescent Province. She had to renew her license every year, because no official could or would believe she had the skills to run an inn kitchen. But no one could deny Liese was the best second-rate cook once they tasted her cooking. She could burn a stew just enough to destroy the flavor, while at the same time keeping it edible enough to serve. She even kept a separate dish to overcook select bits of meat and veggies for the heroes. After all, heroes didn’t sign up at second-rate inns for the food. Liese’s stews where known for turning a hero’s bad day into full blown misery. Proud as she was of Liese, Meg was always glad Finn’s wife cooked the staff food. That was properly edible.

Finn looked around at his empty clean room. Few people stayed at the inn in the off-season. The tables and benches were lined up straight like school children waiting for inspection. “I guess we wait now.”

They waited. The evaluators didn’t show up until just before suppertime.

Meg gulped when she saw them. There was a tall skinny woman and two short fat men. They wore long dark robes, which Meg knew were the regulation brown, but looked black in the dim light. The Inn and Tavern Guild crest – an inn with a dragon perched on top – was sewn onto the fronts of their robes. Dark cloths were pulled across their faces, with only slits for the eyes. Meg never could understand why the Inn and Tavern Guild insisted on masking its evaluators. Innkeepers didn’t retaliate if things didn’t go their way.

They all tried not to fidget as the evaluators went over every part of the inn. They tasted the food and prodded the beds and ran their fingers along the railings checking for dust. They asked questions about how to spot a hero, mislead evil henchmen and keep mobs from breaking out. They crawled through the secret tunnel that led into the woods and muttered to each other. Finally they gathered in the great room. One of the short fat men started, “We have decided-”

“Master Inman!” The doors to the inn flew open and a man dressed in furs and skins stumbled in. “Dragon!” he gasped and fell against a table.

“Nonsense,” snorted the evaluator. “It isn’t the season.”

The man looked up and Meg recognized him as Jed the fur trapper. He stayed up in the mountains during the off-season and came into town when hero season started to sell the heroes his furs. Sometimes he even led heroes over the mountains. Meg couldn’t remember ever seeing him during the off-season at all.

“I don’t tell tales,” Jed gasped. Meg frowned. Like all trappers Jed talked up his time in the mountains, but he never brought false reports about dangerous creatures and that she felt was what he meant.

“What can we do?” She asked deciding to take him seriously. “Can we get a hero here in time?”

That question promptly sparked a discussion that bordered on argument and ended up with everyone seated around the table eating Liese’s second-rate stew. There wasn’t enough first-rate food for everyone. There were several grimaces and everyone tried to eat as quickly as possible. Liese’s second-rate stew was truly terrible. The evaluators took off their masks to eat and Meg was surprised to see that they actually looked quite pleasant.

Finn pounded the table. “We can’t let the dragon into the village. It would burn all the buildings down.”

“Not the Bronze Salamander. It’s dragon-proof,” said Liese mopping up her stew with stale bread. She alone didn’t seem to mind the taste of the stew. But then, she made it.

The woman evaluator frowned, “That’s not the point-”

“Do you suppose we could lock the dragon up in here?” Meg mused. “Since it’s dragon-proof, it couldn’t get out.”

After some discussion, Meg’s plan was adopted. The Bronze Salamander was the closest building to the mountains, which was why it was popular with heroes, and the reason Jed had come there first. It would therefore be the first place the dragon would come. Meg went with the evaluators down to the local hero supply store to buy some dragon poison, while Jed and the others went to get a goat to lure the dragon into the inn. It was very dark by this time and the owner of the hero supply store was not happy to have to keep his store open. The hero season had cleaned him out so he was all out of dragon poison and the only dragon spears he had were the cheap kind that were really only good for deer. The owner didn’t believe them about the dragon until flames shot through the night and the Bronze Salamander glowed red. Then the storeowner promised to special order some dragon poison first thing in the morning, but as it was the off-season, he couldn’t guarantee how fast it would come. He sold them some tents so they would have somewhere to sleep while the dragon occupied the inn.

It was a long miserable week in the tent. Meg was sharing with Liese and the woman evaluator. The woman was named Rye and she was nicer than she had seemed at first. Rye had lots of stories to tell about city life and the best ways to sneak heroes out of inns and how to stall evil henchmen. But Meg knew they had failed the evaluations, and she couldn’t bring herself to like Rye. The Bronze Salamander would still be a second-rate inn.

At the beginning of the week, the dragon bellowed and flamed, but the dragon-proof walls stayed firm. Eventually the noise and the fire stopped and Liese wondered out loud if the dragon had starved to death. Rye promptly squashed this hope by pointing out that dragons slept on their gold for centuries without eating; a few days could hardly harm one.

At last the dragon poison arrived, delivered by a hero eager to grab some glory in the off-season. A crowd gathered to watch as he climbed in through the window. They waited for screams and flames, but nothing happened. Presently the hero opened the door and showed them all in.

The dragon was laid out in the kitchen where it had obviously been eating the inn’s food. It was dead.

“I found it like this,” said the hero, obviously disappointed.

Meg frowned. “So, the second-rate food killed it?”

Everyone had their own conjectures, but no one could come up with any better theories. The dragon was given to the Bronze Salamander and the sale of its skin, talon, wings, etc. would help repair the damage the dragon had done. The crowd broke up, and Meg saw the evaluators had put their masks back on. She sighed. Couldn’t they just say they’d failed the evaluations and get it over with?

“Finn Inman,” began one of the men. Meg still couldn’t tell them apart. “After completing our inspection of the Bronze Salamander, and witnessing the events of this week we duly award your inn the status of first-rate.”

“What!” gasped Meg, along with the Inmans and Liese.

Rye took her mask off and laughed. “Well, the Bronze Salamander is good enough to kill a dragon. That’s pretty first-rate in our book.”

New Shoes

for dVerse

Day one: me in my new black shoes.
Stepping lightly, sitting mostly
without any idea of how awfully
tomorrow my feet they’ll abuse.
Then my poor feet will cry for rescue.
I’ll change my socks hopefully
and I will walk quite carefully.
Putting on those shoes I’ll rue.

I’ll trade socks for nylons,
Plaster band-aids across my feet
And change into socks once more.
Only then will my feet let bygones
fade away and retreat.
So I’ll forget I was ever footsore.

Autumn

for dVerse

I’m looking back
Back over my shoulder
Back into that time before
To other autumns
And other leaves
Gold-red leaves.

I walked a circle
Turning round and round
In the same steps
Different autumns;
Same steps.

And now;
Autumn is the same
But these steps are new
New, untried, I’m unsteady
On my feet.
Longing for autumns past.

Yet, I’ll go
Forward passing autumn
And on and on
Until my steps circle round again.

In Praise of Chutney

for dVerse

Golden-orange, green tinged apricots
And paper white, paper wrapped garlic
Tiny brown cilantro seeds; coriander.

Hours spent delicately picking coriander
Sticky hands coated in nectar from cutting apricots
And fingers smeared by dirt while digging garlic.

Blended together; a melody. Zinging garlic
Citrus bursting out of coriander
Swimming in a golden sauce of apricots.

Apricot chutney with garlic and coriander a delicacy homemade.


Chutney is like a cross between jam and salsa. It's amazing.

Reflections on Fire

Magpie Tale 132

Shared with dVerse Open Link Night

sharp winter beyond
window waits for summer sun
until then fire warms

without bright fire
electric heating shuns the
glinting snow without

two big red cherries
debate with the antique clock
when to light the fire

icicles out; fire in
by hearth chocolate cup
warm hands and warm heart

Sage Dance

for dVerse

Russian sage fills the air
Flying from blue fuzz
Tickling bunny’s nose
While droning bee buzz
Dripping down long ears
Speaks an invitation

So bunny waits for fairy song
And moonrise through the field
Painting grass with silver wealth
While fairies come out well-heeled

Music mingles in the breeze
Across the silver stage
Bunny bounds in the dance
Through the nighttime age
For the joy of life
And the Russian sage

Two Girls, One Bucket

for dVerse

Picking up fallen peaches
squirming away from bugs.
I like dog kisses and cat’s fur
against my hands.
Not spider and rolly-polly feet
or ants.
Katie’s never feared a creepy-crawly.
Snatches peaches two or three at once
fills the bucket by the time
I’ve taken two from the ground.
She complains
she did all the work.

The King's River

Magpie Tale 131

shared with dVerse

I remember sailing on the king’s river
On the river in the summer, watching the shore slip by
Slipping by old castles among new grasses
Among the grasses I thought I saw a bard
A bard he was I know, for he held a harp in his hand
With such a harp in his hand I heard him sing
Singing of days long gone flown with the wind
The wind itself stopped to listen, and so did time
The times of old slid back into their places
In their places princes courted smiling maidens
Smiling maids rescued threadbare tailors
Threadbare tailors found their thread again
And with their thread sewed all the world back up.

Summer Morning

for dVerse

day light touch my face
morning wakes but I in bed
open eye then close again

Huitain Cat

for dVerse

He’s a sly fellow with whimsies
to engage a leaf in combat
or catch my hand in a tease
or declare war upon the rats
to show his skill to me. The cat
only asks for this show my lap
to curl himself in warm and fat
purring. Letting me enjoy his nap.

Crochet

for dVerse
and Magpie Tale 151

An elegant tangle is wrought
from soft yarn twisted into
a delicate kind of knot.

Before beginning; careful thought:
wool or cotton, from which jeweled hue
will an elegant tangle be wrought?

Across the fingers keeping taut
and loose; the yarn glides through
to make a delicate kind of knot.

First stitch: hook and slipknot
pull through, a rhythm of redo, redo
thus is an elegant tangle wrought.

Loop and pull; again; it’s caught
between hook and hand anew
crafting a delicate kind of knot.

Forming something from naught
is an ancient joy made new
from which an elegant tangle is wrought
becoming a delicate kind of knot.

Doorway

Magpie Tale 126
Shared with dVerse

The window was the answer.

It was a question I had always asked. What’s out there?
Mother Gothel never answered.
But she had to have the window. She had to go in and out.
And slowly the window brought my answer.

Out there were pears and apples.
Which came from trees, she let slip. I saw trees from my window so it wasn’t much.
But the trees that I could see never had pears or apples, so it was something.
Out there were dresses. They didn’t grow on trees.
Mother Gothel did not know how much she told me when she told me that.
When she told me how a dress was made, with impatience at my ignorance, she did not know she told me there were people like us beyond the walls of my tower.
I imagined other towers, with other girls.

Mother Gothel never knew I could see the men hunting. Nor did she know one of them sent a bird with a letter to me, through the window.
He told me everything of the world I longed to know. Letter after letter after letter.

Mother Gothel burned them when she found them. But it was too late. The window had brought me answers. When she left, raging, I was ready.

It had taken me a long time to learn those knots. The hunter’s pictures had not been very good. But I secured sheets and curtains and quite a few dresses together. And climbed out of the window, my doorway to the answer, what’s out there?

Squares

for dVerse

Silver

Fairy beneath moon silver
Beneath soaring in flights
Moon in anticipation of
Silver flights of fancy.

Sea Lore

I walked by the seashore
Walked lifting shells pink – speaking
By shells heard ocean lore.
The pink ocean sand shifting
Seashore speaking lore; shifting secrets.

for Magpie Tale 123

Hat

Silk hat; black. Important to us.
Hat for night meetings; Secretly covered,
Black night that we walk in.
Important meetings; we vanish away. Mystery.
To secretly walk away soft like.
Us covered in mystery. Like silk.

Beyond

Magpie Tale 122
shared with dVerse

I found a doorway this afternoon
Or maybe it was a window.
I thought the rain left only mud
But there it was, untouched and new.
A forest growing clear and strong
And I could hear the music in its leaves.
It seemed a shame to pass it by
Unexplored and left in memory’s drawer.
So I unlocked the door and went in
Or fell through the window, I do not know.
But I spent the hours there
And met the birds and every flower.
Danced with fairies and joined their feasts
Stopped in a tree and spoke with owls.
I met a unicorn too, and laughed under silver stars
And by their light returned home again.
Without locking the door
Or perhaps I didn’t close the window.
Never will I cease to look
For doorways and windows.
I’ll find them again I know
Beyond the mud to worlds untouched and new.

Paper

Magpie Tale 121
shared with dVerse

Paper

Blinding white, unknown
Like a new blanket of snow.
There is a beauty
To the freshness,
Weeping for the first footprint,
Splattering of black ink.

Yet there is no snowman
Without the footprint
No story without
The invasion of words

Words conquering the page
But gently.
Caressing the paper,
Greeting it friendlike.
Twining white and black together
Like rose and trellis

Until the paper
Sheds its skin of white.
Emerging butterfly
Glorious in color
Made from black and white.

What to Do in a Bottle

Magpie Tale 115

I was bored. After all, I’d only read the same book a few thousand times, maybe a million, maybe more. I flipped another page, taking care to turn it from the top. The next page I’d turn would be from the bottom, after that I’d go for the one seventy-eighth mark. When turning pages is all you do for centuries, you get picky about how you do it.

It had been a great book once, before I had it memorized and could quote every word of the text. Now it was dull and about some guy with a genie doing impossible feats. Once that genie had been me. I guess I should have known reading about myself would get boring after the first century. If I’d even been in here a century.

I guess that’s the worst thing about being a genie in a bottle. Time slips away from you. It wasn’t so bad when my bottle was new and I a freshly caught genie. Oh, I’d been angry and fearsome then. I’d fly screaming out of the bottle, hissing insults and trying to turn the tables on those who called themselves my master. Then I missed my first two hundred years of history. After that I learned to scream with joy when the seal on my bottle was broken. I’d been a busy genie, granting wishes, building golden castles and destroying them again. And then nothing.

Sometimes, I’m not sure why, I can get a glimpse of the world outside my bottle. I’m not sure if this makes confinement worse, or if it eases the monotony to see something new. Either way, from what I’ve seen, and because of all this water that keeps leaking in, I’m at the bottom of the sea.

So I was bored. Until I felt my bottle move. I’ve gotten good at telling what moves my bottle. Sea tides, an animal, a human hand. This was a hand. I strained to hear sounds from the outside world. There was something about a shipwreck recovery and learning about an age gone by. They were excited about my bottle, wondering how old it was. Older than the ship they guessed. What’s inside I heard them ask.

Now I’m just waiting for my bottle to be opened. There will be great deeds for me to do once more. And before I get sealed away again, I’m going to bring a lot more books.

The Valley

Magpie Tale #98

Still.

That’s what it is up here. Oh, there’s a cool breeze the plays with the leaves, but it dies quickly. And a few birds join it every now and then and I think I saw a squirrel a while back. But down in the valley, there’s all the movement. Constant, obvious movement. It starts with the river that cuts the valley in half, and flows fast. Horses stamping and tossing their heads, dogs running between legs and once in a while I can see a cat dart through the crowd. The people mill around; from up here it seems senseless, but I suppose they know what they’re doing.

Yes, it’s very still up here. And quiet. I can’t hear the clamor coming from the valley floor. The shouting, and barking dogs and neighing horses and clashing metal. All I can hear are a few birds. The wind. The crunch of snow as my comrades left; it was quiet enough that I could hear it. The waterfall as it plunges into the river. No, I can’t hear that, it’s too far. But I like to think I can.

I have a good view of the mountains on the other side of the valley. Sharp peeked and with lingering snow, just like the ones on my side. But it’s spring now not winter. Even the aspens have leaves, so it’s no longer just the pines that are green. I say it’s spring; it’s spring up here. Cold and fresh and clean with the glint of snow; damp and moist. Down in the valley it’s already been spring and now it’s summer and hot and dry. I could almost be glad to be up here.

Stillborn, that’s how I think of the valley. It could have been beautiful. I think it wanted to be beautiful. But it’s in the wrong place. This valley, it’s the only pass through these mountains. It’s been eager to welcome everyone who passes through. The people haven’t been welcoming though. And whenever the valley seeks to give life, it gets death. Oh, yes, there’s been battles here, famous ones. Guntram died here. And so did Ratimir and Fenrir and Cynbel. The great sword Amund was broken here. There’ll be more; like as not we’ll have one before summer’s over. That’s why I’m up here; keeping watch.