The morning sun roused Roxas as it gradually fell over his eyes. The blonde sighed and squinted, slowly rousing to a feeling of complete contentment. He laid still for a moment, savoring the feeling before turning his head to look at his best friend and lover. A smile tugged at his lips as he watched Axel sleep. He looked adorable, his face completely relaxed and his hair spread over the pillow. Then the light fell over Axel's eyes and he groaned, shifting. Eyelids flickered open and Roxas smiled as Axel squinted against the light.
"Good morning." He said softly and Axel groaned, tossing back his head in an effort to avoid the sunlight.
"It's morning already?" He mumbled before pulling the pillow over his head. "Don't want to get up." Roxas laughed and grabbed the pillow, pulling it away. "Hey!"
"Come on, we need to go check the horses." Roxas lightly smacked Axel on the shoulder. The redhead smiled as he pulled himself out of the bed, giving Roxas a quick peck on the cheek. "Don't get all sappy with me, Axel. We're still best friends." Roxas said it jokingly but there was a serious edge to it. They were lovers and he was glad, but he didn't want the kind of relationship men and women had. He wanted to joke around and call Axel a snail when the redhead teased him too much. Axel looked confused for a moment, then smiled.
"Sappy with you? The guy who shoved my head in a bucket once? I'm not that brave!" Axel gave him a quick hug and Roxas smiled, hugging him back for a moment. Then they both got dressed, leaving off the armor. Roxas made a mental note to ask if the housekeepers could launder all of their clothes. That was an expensive service in a town but here it could probably be done for free.
The first thing they did was to go check on their horses. The stablehands were a bit puzzled but directed them to the paddock their horses had been turned out in. Just like the Cleft, the corn people checked the horses at daybreak and turned them out into the pasture all day. The only part that was a bit puzzling was the fact that their horses had been turned out in a smaller paddock with only a new mare and a donkey for company.
"Oh, I bet that mare is the boy's horse and the donkey is for carrying supplies." Axel said and Roxas blinked, watching the horses and the donkey get along.
"You're probably right." The mare and the donkey both looked fit and healthy and seemed to be interacting well with Fleabite and Axel's gelding. "Seriously, what is your gelding's name?" Roxas really couldn't remember. Axel sighed.
"Valdor." Roxas had to suppress a snicker. That was the name of one of their ancestral heroes and it was a ridiculous name for Axel's slow, lazy horse. "Hey, he does a good charge."
"If you say so." Roxas said before he vaulted over the fence. The new mare shied away from him but his own came to him immediately, nickering for treats. "No." Roxas gently pushed her head away. She stood patiently and lifted her feet obediently when he asked. "Hm." Roxas could see the marks where someone had cleaned out her feet, probably this morning. "These people know what they're doing." His respect for Squire Lurius increased a notch. His stablehands were definitely competent. A quick check made it clear she'd been groomed as well and he rewarded her for her patience with a bit of carrot and a scratch.
"Yep! My boy is fine." Axel said cheerfully as he finished his own inspection and gave his gelding a treat. "Should we check the other two?"
"I suppose." Roxas doubted there would be anything wrong but it would be good to make sure, and also get a feel for the new animals. The mare seemed a little skittish but also fairly smart and she seemed to understand that the strangers in her paddock had treats. It took a bit of work but soon Roxas was handling her hooves. Axel tentatively looked over the donkey and Roxas had to laugh. The donkey was completely ignoring the redhead and Axel clearly had no clue.
"Don't laugh at me! Are these things like horses?" Axel asked, a touch crossly. Roxas had to shrug. The Cleft didn't keep donkeys at all. They used their horses for everything –
"They're a little different." They both turned to look at a silver haired boy. He was wearing a threadbare vest and old, battered pants with no shoes. Roxas frowned at that. The Stable Master back at the Cleft had never let the boys go barefoot in the stables or the pasture, although it occurred to Roxas that he didn't really know why. "Donkeys are smarter than horses and they can reason through things. They'll refuse to do anything they decide is too dangerous and they're a lot less prone to panic than horses." The boy smiled as he gave the donkey a gentle rub. It brayed and Roxas winced at the sound. "They can live on poorer pastures than horses. Actually, they tend to get fat quickly if the grass is too lush. They also have good memories and they're vindictive. Whatever you do, don't abuse them. They'll remember and get you for it."
"As if we would!" Roxas said, a bit annoyed with the implication that they would hurt an animal. If the Stable Master ever caught a boy abusing a horse, or anything else for that matter, they'd get much worse than a cuffing. The silver haired boy shrugged.
"I'm just saying. Horses forget but donkeys don't." He gently patted the donkey and pulled a bit of apple out of his coat, feeding it to him. "You'd be amazed at how much they can carry. He'll be taking our supplies for the trip."
"Our?" Axel asked as Roxas blinked. "Hey, who are you anyway?" Roxas poked Axel with his elbow. Was this the squire's son? But the boy just smiled.
"I'm Riku Lurius. You must be Axel and Roxas." He was! Roxas wished he could go back in time a bit and show respect. A bit too late now. But why would a noble be wandering around looking like a particularly disreputable stablehand? Although their experience with nobles was limited to the insufferable Valdi. Roxas tried to imagine him wearing Riku's clothes and had to hide a giggle. "The ungrateful little brat you're going to be escorting to his new cage." The bitter anger in Riku's voice caught them both off guard.
"Uh… oh." Axel said weakly, obviously searching for something to say. Roxas found himself at a bit of a loss as well. Fortunately Riku took pity on them and waved his hand.
"Nevermind. My family problems aren't your business. Surviving the trip is. Father says you're both good." Riku made it into a question and Roxas shrugged.
"We're good enough." He answered as Axel grinned, resting a hand on his shoulder.
"Ah, he's being modest! He's amazing with those two swords of his, you should see him go!" The redhead boasted until Roxas shoved him. "He's also a feisty little thing – ow!" Axel rubbed his head as Riku laughed.
"So I see." Roxas glowered up at the silver haired boy. He was at least a head taller than the blonde. It just didn't seem fair. "Have you two had breakfast? Father is off doing something but we could talk about the trip over some eggs." The reminder made his stomach growl and from the look on Axel's face, his was doing the same.
"Eggs would be wonderful." Roxas said and Riku jumped back over the fence, leading them back into the manor. Riku led them into a cozy little dining area, clearly meant only for immediate family. No one was there but them though. He pulled on a velvet cord and a maid appeared at the door.
"Could you fetch us some breakfast Emily?" Riku asked and she nodded, giving him a tiny curtsy before walking away. "Hang on a moment." Riku left the room and came back a few minutes later with a scroll. "This is a map. We can plot a route on it."
"Wouldn't we just take the normal way?" Axel said, a bit confused. There was a road that led directly to the city. Riku hesitated a moment then shrugged.
"We could, if you're very confident. There's been some troubles… let me show you." Riku stretched out the map then pinned it down in the corners with heavy weights. The maid came back with a tray of food and Roxas licked his lips at the sight of fresh eggs and toast. "Thank you." Riku said politely as he took the tray and she nodded again with a smile. The politeness startled Roxas a little, and he remembered how the nobles had behaved in the Cleft almost guiltily. Were the Glisterheim and corn people nobles so different? But maybe it was because Riku was really a very minor noble. Axel was clearly untroubled by the difference and dug into the food, taking three eggs. Riku smiled faintly, taking only one and Roxas hesitated a moment. "You can have the rest." Riku said and Roxas took the last three. "You see, there's been a lot of problems along this road." Riku touched the map and Roxas frowned. That was the route that had been planning to take. "You noticed how father's been asking you about bandits?" Roxas and Axel exchanged a glance before nodding. "He's been trying to feel out if you've seen anything else. You haven't, have you?"
"Anything else? What do you mean?" Axel asked, confused, as Roxas frowned. What was Riku getting at? The silver haired boy sighed.
"Undead, mostly. There's been a lot of zombies and wraiths appearing, as well as banshees and other things. It doesn't seem to matter how many times we sanctify the graveyards, they just keep turning up." Riku lifted a hand, his palm empty. "No one can explain it."
"Hm." Roxas reflected a moment. That was really odd. Graveyards and tombs sometimes became unsanctified, like the old tomb at the upper end of the Cleft. Resanctifying them could be tricky and the Cleft didn't have a lot of space anyway, so they'd started burning their dead generations ago. "How many graveyards are you talking about? And what length of time did this happen in?"
"It seems like every town graveyard on that road, although it's not confined to there. The problem is rather widespread." Riku drew a circle on the map that encompassed a wide area, then shrugged. "No one's really taken reports and we mostly get news down the road, so that's what I've heard about. But there's rumors about problems all the way to the coast. We haven't had any difficulties here and some people say it's because the Glisterheim in the mountains are keeping the undead away." Roxas and Axel both blinked at that and Riku gave them a smile. "I'm guessing that's not true."
"Uh, no. We just haven't had any problems." Axel scratched his head. "They really say that?"
"Yes. The people here mostly like the Glisterheim from the Cleft, and the other freeholds. That attitude will change as you go west." Riku warned them. Roxas nodded, unsurprised. Valdi and his warriors had been insufferably arrogant to their own people. How would they behave among the plainspeople? He didn't even want to think about it. Axel looked a bit daunted at the thought and Roxas reached out to touch his hand. "Anyway. Did you want to dare the road? Personally I'd prefer it." From the predatory look on Riku's face, he was looking forward to a confrontation with undead. Roxas thought about it a moment and looked at the map again. Avoiding the road would mean adding at least a week to the trip and there was no guarantee it would avoid trouble.
"I think we should take the direct route." Axel said and Roxas nodded. "I'm not afraid of undead." Roxas poked him in the side and Axel blinked at him. "What?"
"Don't be overconfident or a banshee will make your ears explode." Roxas admonished him and Axel grinned, ruffling his hair.
"Don't act like my mom or your brains will explode!" Roxas tried to figure that out for a moment then gave up. "You want to go direct too, don't you?"
"Yes. There are a lot of small towns on that route. If you can get your gelding to move we should be able to stay mostly at inns." Roxas was sure they would have no problems as long as they had stout walls. The only problem would be when they had to camp along the way. Riku nodded, rolling up the map.
"Good. I'll tell father." He said and Roxas noticed he hadn't eaten much of his food. Riku looked young and strong so that was a bit strange. But maybe he'd eaten earlier. Then Riku grabbed his piece of toast to take with him and Roxas almost laughed at himself. Clearly not! Riku left the room and the two boys set to finishing off their breakfast.
"This is so good." Axel slathered a bit of preserves on one piece of bread and Roxas nodded, his mouth full. The eggs and toast with butter were completely normal fare for the Cleft. The preserves were a bit unusual – Roxas wasn't sure what type of berry was in the jelly – but it was still familiar enough. "I think I like it here. I mean, except for the whole place being built for dwarves."
"You might change your mind when we go further west." Roxas said and Axel shrugged, eating another piece of toast.
"We can burn that bridge when we come to it. For now, I'll enjoy myself. Want some milk?" Roxas smiled and accepted a glass of milk, taking a deep drink. When he lowered the glass he saw Axel grinning at him. "You have a milk moustache!"
"The best kind." Roxas licked away the milk, enjoying the sweet creamy taste. The cows were probably on the estate and had been milked just this morning. Milk didn't keep long, unlike cheese. "Should we see if this place has a shrine?" They had both been saying the chants on the road but it wasn't quite the same. Axel nodded.
"Let's!" It took a bit of searching and the directions of a puzzled maid, but they found the small shrine in the manor. It was well cared for but there was no priest, which wasn't really a surprise. The village undoubtedly had a priest so why would the manor need a second? The shrine was different from what they were used to though. Instead of the statues of Ravana and Freka, there was a large idol of Hetanya. She was smiling, her hands outstretched and holding a basket filled with fruit and corn. A little bowl sat in front of her, filled with fresh flowers. Roxas remembered Gegnir's instructions and made the holy sign of Hetanya. "What's that?"
"The holy sign of Hetanya. You do it like this." Roxas smiled as he showed Axel the gesture. The redhead caught on quickly. "Look, they have little idols to the other gods. Lets say our prayers to Ravana and Freka."
"Right." It didn't take long for them to make their observances. Roxas asked the gods for blessings on the Iswulf clan while Axel spoke for the Karr clan.
Altogether, they spent two more days at the manor as everything was prepared for the trip. It was very pleasant and the servants were friendly enough, although the stablehands seemed to resent the close attention the two boys paid to their horses. Axel and Roxas quietly discussed it and decided they didn't care. Horses were too important to leave to someone else and they enjoyed the work. Riku showed them exactly how to handle a donkey and soon they were rather fond of it as well, although the little beast was still very loud. Finally, they were ready to leave. Riku waved goodbye to his father as they left and soon they were on the road.
"Wow, that donkey does carry a lot doesn't he?" Axel admired the little beast. He was carrying almost all of their supplies, lightening the load on the horses considerably. It didn't seem to bother him a bit. Riku nodded.
"He's a good donkey. His name is Jack." Riku sounded long suffering and Axel grinned.
"Jack the jack!" The donkey brayed and the redhead winced. "Ow. Sorry I mentioned it." Roxas grinned as Riku laughed.
"You should be!" Roxas smiled as he listened to the two of them banter back and forth. Riku seemed very nice, despite whatever family troubles that had led to him taking this trip. He was relieved to find that they wouldn't be hauling around a spoiled noble brat. A raven flew overhead and Roxas watched it go, its black feathers glittering in the sun.
The raven was Ravana's symbol. It was a good omen.