It was in the middle a winter's morning when Dorm Silverfalcon quietly walked out of his house. His body was covered in thick wools and leathers that protected him from the cold temperatures and the snow that fell from the sky and blanketed Solace's dirt roads. As he walked down the dirt path in front of his home, the ranger ran his hands through his brown hair, brushing out the hundreds of snowflakes that had quickly formed into a small freezing cap on the top of his cranium.
Smiling, Dorm stared down the road, his green eyes spotting his friend Lynsey Greensteel, who had recently accepted the title of depuity in Solace. Lynsey appeared to be scolding a group of gnomes who had engaged in a snowball fight with a trio of kender. She had her flaming red hair tied up in a bun and wore a shining coat of mail over her wool tunic.
The ranger's eyes lit up as his mind conceived a mischievously plot. Picking up a handful of snow, Dorm began moving silently towards his friend, his hands firmly packing the snow into a tight ball.
Dorm moved to the right, in hopes of avoiding her sight, and when he was close enough, he threw the snowball as hard as fast as he could, then watched as it flew in a straight line and struck the depuity in the back of her head.
Deputy Lynsey Greensteel let out a scream as cold trails of melting ice flowed through her clothes and down her back. She drew her magical sword Redcrosse and turned to face the culprit that hit her. When she spotted the ranger, she sheathed her sword, noticing the grin on his face, but failed to see the small round white object in his hands. "You son of a-" her words were ceased as the ranger had already released another snowball, this one hitting her in the face. Quickly brushing aside the snow that had splattered on her face, Lynsey charged her friend and speared him.
Dorm let out a grunt as the back of his head struck the ground. He tried lifting his body, but Lynsey's body mass and strength-combined with the weight of the armor she wore on her person-kept him pinned to the ground while her hands picked up piles of snow and dirt and shoved it in his face.
"Whose laughing now?" Lynsey said as she stood up and helped her friend to his feet.
As the tingling sensation covered his face, Dorm shook her head. "I'd...I wasn't laughing. Sometimes I forget how strong you are."
"So do some of the fools down at the Trough," the depuity said with a smile. "Are we still planning to light the Yule Log together tonight?"
"I was on my way to get the log right now," Dorm answered as he and Lynsey began walking down the road. For a moment, the ranger's thoughts turned to his friends. Roxilandra and Timber were in Ergoth, visiting Roxi's mother Juniper, while Melinda was currently in Palanthas, meeting with the wizard Jenna, who was the head of Red Robes. Both Lynsey and Dorm had been invited to go along with Roxi and Timber, but Lynsey was busy with her duties as deputy while Dorm was busy with his duties helping Laura Majere at the Inn.
"Remember, Laura would like up to stop by the Inn tomorrow morning," Lynsey broke in, turning the ranger away from his thoughts and back to reality. Dorm turned the red haired woman, about to say something, when the cries of "Thief!" echoed from at the end of the block.
"Duty calls," Lynsey said, shaking her head. "I will see you tonight." After giving her friend a kiss on the cheek, the deputy walked away, assuring herself that she would be dealing with nothing more than a curious kender.
The ranger felt a warmth in the place on his cheek that had just been touched by the lips of a woman. Smiling once more, Dorm continued to walk, his mind now on the task at hand.
For the remainder of the morning and the early part of the afternoon, Dorm continued down an invisible trail that had led him out of Solace and into a large open area. His eyes scanned all directions, seeing several trees and bushes in every direction. He quickly found of what remained of a large oak tree, much of it already cut into pieces, and grabbed a smoothly cut log.
Part of the ranger was heartbroken, as he was attuned to many of the trees that grew around the town. Yet he knew that the parts of this tree that had been harvested, would be used by the townsfolk to light Yule fires. He also knew that these trees would grow again.
Holding the log in his right arm, Dorm began walking back to town, when he noticed a trail of paw prints embedded in the snow, heading in the northeastern direction.
Dorm quietly followed the trail of prints, until he came across the body of a large white wolf. The animal appeared to by laying in its side, breathing heavily from exhaustion.
Dorm moved quickly and scooped the wolf in his arms, gently tossing it over his left shoulder. A shiver went down the ranger's spine as the wolf let out a whimper that seemed to echo through his eardrums.
"Better get you back to town my friend," Dorm whispered as he raced home.
The stars were shining when Dorm had arrived back to his house. Wasting no time, he placed the wolf near the fireplace, then placed the smoothly cut log into the fireplace. As he went to his bedroom to get a blanket from his bed, Lynsey entered the house, her eyes filled with irritation and relief.
Dorm looked at Lynsey as her eyes found the animal near the fireplace. "I found him after I grabbed the Yule Log," he said as he placed the blanket on top of the wolf's body, who was shaking as Lynsey's fingers stroked his fur.
Lynsey shook her head as she stood up and grabbed the flint and steel from the ledge on the fireplace. "I take it you were going to start the Lighting early then?" she asked as she struck the flint and steel together, which then caught the log on fire.
:"Of course," Dorm said as he brushed the wolf's smooth white coat. It was then he noticed the animal's black eyes look up at him. The ranger smiled politely at his new friend, then turned his attention back to the fireplace, where the log he had selected from the forest, was now burning brightly and beautifully.
"Good," Lynsey said as she sat next to Dorm. She placed her head on his shoulder as her eyes went back and forth between the white wolf and the burning log. "You know Dorm, I am starting to wonder if the gods led you to this beautiful creature."
Dorm rolled his eyes. "You're starting to sound like Roxi."
Lynsey gave the ranger a punch on the arm. "I'm serious. I think you should keep him here with you and Timber."
Dorm watched the wolf move slowly towards him. "You think he would mind?"
The red haired deputy shook her head as the wolf's head on the ranger's leg. "No not at all," she replied quietly. "So what name will we call our new friend?"
Dorm thought about it for a moment, then looked into the wolf's eyes. "Dasher," he finally declared in a calm voice. "His name will be Dasher."
Lynsey patted Dorm's arm as she looked back into the fire. "Dasher is a good name for a wolf."
Dorm continued to look down into the white wolf's eyes, sensing that the animal agreed with the woman.
Note: This is really just a simple story with no thickly woven plot or kick-ass fight scenes (I know I miss them too). As for the grammar errors, as always, I will fix them later...someday...when I get a chance