With CO-VID19 giving me so much free time, I really wanted to overcome my anxiety and post a story I've been working on for a little while.
I would really appreciate any feedback you could spare, whether it's a review, a favourite or a follow. I love to hear your ideas, corrections and thoughts.
I'm sorry if the spacing is strange in this chapter. Something happened during editing? It should be resolved for the next chapter.
B xx
The hills were starting to catch the weather from the north.
In the fresh morning air, frost covered the ground, but it would melt as the sun began to rise.
She watched her footing on the narrow ledges of the sheer cliff face. Thin strips of grass marked where her footing needed to be, or else face the sometimes deadly fall.
She spotted the large shadow cat, Caspian, stalking through the shrubs and rocks deep in the valley.
He had come to her a few years ago after the birth of her daughter.
The crone in the neighbouring house to her prophesied that they were meant to be together.
The large beast doted on the child and loved her unconditionally.
With the cold starting to become more prominent, food was becoming scarce.
Fruit trees had shrivelled and animals migrated.
The fertile ground was now rock hard and no longer reaped any crops.
She felt her footing feel less certain. Almost slippery.
She hoped the sun would be up soon.
A few steps ahead the precarious foot holds became a narrow path and allowed her to move with more speed and agility.
She felt her stomach rumble. Surviving was becoming more difficult and when food was found, it went to her daughter and crone neighbour first.
The path grew bigger when she spotted a man, unmoving and bloody.
He was dressed in armour, the metal reflected in the rising sunlight. It was a rarity out here.
She had seen men killed for less.
This was a great find.
She quietly unsheathed her blade. She was ready for a battle if it came to that.
The way he was slumped made her almost certain he was dead.
She got closer and saw he had long brunette hair.
Half of his face was scarred, it looked like a burn or perhaps that half of his face was peeled off.
She could tell he was tall and strong, even though he lay so feebly on the ground.
She wondered if anyone would miss him, if he had left anyone behind.
She would say a prayer for him that night.
With her blade at the ready, she nudged his foot and stepped back. The man did not move. She tried to see if his chest had any movement, but with the armour it was impossible.
She returned the blade to her back and crouched down to him.
He smelt like he was dead.
She began to breathe out of her mouth and gently reached out a hand to feel the man's pulse.
His skin felt cool to the touch.
She pressed deeper and as she made out a small movement under her fingers, his large calloused hand came up and gripped her wrist.
She breathed out in shock and tried to steady herself. He snapped open a slate grey eye and studied her intently.
"You gonna kill me?" He asked simply. There was no fear in his voice.
She considered his question. They definitely didn't need another mouth to feed. His armour was invaluable and she didn't know if he would die on the way or if he would recover at all.
She should kill him.
There was just something about his eyes that made her reconsider.
"Depends. Will you come willingly?" She asked him thoughtfully.
She felt his firm grasp loosen on her wrist.
She crouched down next to him and began to look him over for visible wounds.
It was hard with his full armour on.
She pulled the water skin out of her waist band and offered it to him. The effort of grasping her wrist seemed to have taken it out of him.
She held the skin to his mouth and waited for him to open, before she poured a small amount into his mouth, allowing him to swallow.
"Fucking water." He grimaced after he had another sip.
She filled his mouth again before she closed the skin.
"Fucking water." She repeated with a nod back to him.
He rose his eyebrow at her, almost like he was confused to have heard such a word fall from her lips.
"What?" She snapped when she could still feel him looking at her.
He shrugged his shoulders with a wince.
"Never heard a lady-"
"Do I look like a bloody lady to you?" She ground out.
He took in her furs and pants and seemed to reconsider.
She should have killed him.
"Where are you wounded?" She asked him, trying to ignore the way his eyes stayed on her and explored her.
"I don't know." He replied.
That wasn't good. She wondered if he had broken his neck or back.
She stood to her full height, his eyes were still on her.
She moved down to his feet and began to remove his metal overlays and then his shoes.
He looked at her like she had lost her mind.
With his feet now exposed, she drew her knife.
"What the fuck are you-?"
"Can you feel this?" She asked as she touched the blade to the sole of his foot.
He roared in response and blood started to dribble from the cut. She may have pressed too hard.
"Seven fucking hells!" He ground out.
She smiled in relief that she wouldn't have to kill him and that he possibly could walk.
"You are one crazy bird." he grimaced.
"Feeling in your feet is good. It means your back hopefully isn't broken." She said as she rose again and began to untie his armour.
"The fact you can move your hands is good too." She continued as she removed the shoulders and then breast plate from him. He had a thick linen tunic underneath. Most of it was coloured with blood.
The armour she had removed from him was heavy. Too heavy to carry back with them, but too invaluable to leave behind.
A loud whistle left her mouth. It echoed across the hills and into the valley below.
She finished unlacing his armour. It was no easy task with him being practically immobile.
With a nice shiny silver pile next to her, she discarded his chain mail and then lifted up his tunic. She was surprised at the chiseled muscle that lay underneath.
"Are you going to buy me dinner first?" He snapped before he let out a manly roar of fear as the large shadow cat bounded up the cliff face and landed behind her.
"Caspian. I was wondering where you had snuck off to." She said as she offered a hand to the beast, who rubbed against her in return.
"The beast, it's...?" He seemed to not be able to comprehend the sight before him.
"He's a shadow cat." She corrected as she scratched under the large animals chin.
"He?" He almost stuttered in pure shock.
She wondered how many times a man of his size had been shocked like this.
"He likes us." She shrugged.
She stood and began to lace the armour around the black animal. She packed up all of his armour like the cat was a horse. The cat was almost as big as a horse.
With the extra weight Caspian didn't look over joyed.
But she knew that he would get home safely.
She whistled him away and he disappeared as quickly as he appeared.
The man still looked astounded.
"Think you can walk?" She asked him pointedly. They would have to take the long way home with him. There was no way he would make it over the small foot holes in the cliffs.
He seemed to consider that. He looked down at his body and managed to bend his legs up.
She walked to his feet and pressed her own gently on top as she reached her hands down to him and used all of her might to pull him up.
He grimaced and ground out a pained breath as he rose to his full height. She gave him some time to get used to being upright.
"Do you want some more water?" She asked with her hand still around him for support.
"Have you not got any wine?" He replied, sounding less burdened by being upright.
"Probably at home. We have to get there though." She said with a smile and then a grunt as he pushed his body off the wall and she felt how little weight he could bare on his own.
She was tall and she was strong, but he still stood about a head taller and almost double her body width.
She remembered his chiseled abs and surmised that he was probably mostly muscle too.
He took a step and groaned in pain.
It was going to be a long walk back.
Please stay safe during this scary time.
Your support means so much to me.
Love B xx