He stands before her
Her hands in his own
Tears in her eyes
But they both stay strong
They speak in low voices
Of the times to come
He promises to return
But how can one promise
When they cannot be sure?
He looks softly into her eyes
She smiles back at him
They embrace long
And begin to walk from the courtyard
She halts and he turns to her
She hands him a parcel
Something wrapped in a cloth
Bidding him to wait before unwrapping it
She pulls him close and whispers
Her words never heard by any save him
And he never repeated them
A call comes from round the wall
They cannot linger any longer
They stop just out of sight
And bid a final farewell
Then go just round the corner
Eight are there waiting for him
The other two she joins
After words from a few of the others
The nine companions set out
She watches him go sadly
And just before she's out of sight
He unwraps the small token
A smile comes to his face
There lies in the cloth a trinket
A charm of jewels as bright as stars
On a fine chain of sparkling silver
He looks back at her once more
And before turning to follow the others
He fastens the chain around his neck
She turns and goes inside
Wiping tears from her eyes and face
Neither knows when they'll meet again
If indeed they ever shall
They go about their lives
Through hopeless times and lonliness
Awaiting happier days to come