Note: This is a series of scenes inspired by select sections of Tennyson's "In Memorium." The title and some lines of each chapter are direct allusions to the poem. I do not own "In Memorium" or The Circle of Magic. Also, my Circle of Magic is a bit rusty, so feel free to tell me if things are out of character/out of world, and how I can improve them. This chapter is about Briar before he was Roach.
Hollow Echoes
"Please, it's for my mother's burial." The little boy cried to the man standing over him. It had taken him all day to get the courage to ask, but he didn't want the lost souls of his parents on his hands. The priestess had told him the bodies had to be handled, or they might not go on the next world. They might not know they had to.
The man pushed the boy aside, muttering, "little beggar," and went on his way.
The boy's lip quivered only a moment. He darted through the crowd to find another person to ask. This time, he was called "you roach," and pushed into the mud.
"Hey Roach," a voice above him said, and the boy looked up. In the light of the setting sun, the person was mostly in shadow. "Begging ain't gonna get you nowhere with them bags."
He had lived here long enough to know that kind of talk, even if the frayed edges of an armband weren't enough to prove this older boy was from a gang. The older boy offered his hand to the younger. His parents had taught him not to talk to gang members, but they were gone now, and even the echoes of their voices were fading from his memory. He needed help, and he didn't know where else to find it. He took the other's hand and was lifted up.
"What is it you need?" The older boy asked.
"I need to pay for my parents' burial. I need to make sure their souls know to pass on."
"Well these bags ain't gonna help you, but I know a better way of getting money."
"You do?"
"Yeah," The older boy took the younger's hand, "see, instead of trying to fight against all this misfortune, you've gotta take it in stride..." He explained as he pulled the little boy along to his new family.
