~Chapter 2~
The frozen northern air was the first thing Neal felt when he awoke the following morning. A soft tangle of brown locks that were not his own was the second. He looked down at the still-dozing Kel in his arms. Her fair complexion framed by the silken strands of golden brown, her long, delicate lashes resting together in sleep. And for Neal, everything at that very moment was just the way it needed to be. He paid no mind to the howling wind just behind the makeshift door or the damp, rotting earth that had threatened to flood the night before. She was all that mattered...
"Neal?" Kel rubbed the sleep from her eyes and turned to him. "Is it still raining?"
"Kel! You've been out for hours!" He teased. "No, the rain stopped about an hour or so ago. More storms are expected, but we're all hoping the Stump'll spare us from anything else this place could throw at us." He smiled boyishly.
"I suppose that means he'll find something else for us to do." She returned his grin. "I haven't been outside yet, but I'm almost sure the campsite is a mess." She surveyed the mess inside the cramped shelter. "We'd better get work in here too." Neal shifted so Kel could sit up. She grabbed his hand and together they managed to make it into a sort of a standing positon.
With each mind on the heart of the other, the two set to their tasks. Neal began to fold the wrinkled blankets and stack them in a corner, while Kel reorganized the sacks of supplies that had been upset by the wind and their moving around the night be They then ventured outside to patch the thinning areas of the roof. Kel's prediction was indeed correct: the camp was in tatters. Sticks from the shelters had flown in all directions across the clearing and everything resting on the ground was now covered in a thick, pastey mud.
"You'd think this wasteland would settle for mud and ice, but no...it has to rain too." Said Merric of Hollyrose sourly as he, too, tried to fix his shelter.
"I'd shove it if I were you. Wyldon isn't having the best of days." Added Seaver from across the way.
"Neither are we." Muttered Neal as Kel pushed the last of the fallen twigs into place. Kel threw him a grim smile.
Just as the squires had finsished thier rebuilding, the side of the tent was pulled back to reveal Lord Wyldon, fully dressed in a dark tan, as cheerful as ever. "Alright!" He pulled a board from the lumber pile and dropped it at his feet. He stood atop the wood to avoid sinking into the ever-preasent mud. "Owen! Start scrubbing that pot. It's your day to cook." He shot a glare, icy as the wind, to the sleepy Owen. "Get yourselves dressed suitably for a long climb and then meet back here in a half hour."
"My Lord, more storms are expected." Protested Merric.
"A knight does not wait for the weather to fulfill his wants!" Wyldon barked. "You think immortals rest while it rains? Think bandits sit at home during a hail storm? I hope you never find that out the hard way! Now get to it!"
The group shook their heads. Neal let out an exasperated sigh only audible to Kel.
"That man never sleeps!" He grumbled.
"I'll be back in a minute." Kel told him. "I'd like to change before I pack up." She left the clearing and returned to her heap of belongings. Climbing...that didn't sound too good. The mountain bases were demanding enough for anyone. She rummaged through the sacks of garments and finally selected a pair of dark tan breeches, a white cotton shirt, a sturdy tunic of deep blue, and a warm cloak of the like. She took care to remember leather gloves and boots before closing her bag. *There* She thought to herself. *That should be alright.* She finished her packing and returned to the main clearing to meet her fellow squires. As the team assembled, Kel glanced at the mountains before her. An idiot could tell that it would not be an easy journey. *Oh well.* She glanced across the circle. *At least Neal will be with me.*
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Ooohhh....a mountain...Neal....Kel...he he he.....
The frozen northern air was the first thing Neal felt when he awoke the following morning. A soft tangle of brown locks that were not his own was the second. He looked down at the still-dozing Kel in his arms. Her fair complexion framed by the silken strands of golden brown, her long, delicate lashes resting together in sleep. And for Neal, everything at that very moment was just the way it needed to be. He paid no mind to the howling wind just behind the makeshift door or the damp, rotting earth that had threatened to flood the night before. She was all that mattered...
"Neal?" Kel rubbed the sleep from her eyes and turned to him. "Is it still raining?"
"Kel! You've been out for hours!" He teased. "No, the rain stopped about an hour or so ago. More storms are expected, but we're all hoping the Stump'll spare us from anything else this place could throw at us." He smiled boyishly.
"I suppose that means he'll find something else for us to do." She returned his grin. "I haven't been outside yet, but I'm almost sure the campsite is a mess." She surveyed the mess inside the cramped shelter. "We'd better get work in here too." Neal shifted so Kel could sit up. She grabbed his hand and together they managed to make it into a sort of a standing positon.
With each mind on the heart of the other, the two set to their tasks. Neal began to fold the wrinkled blankets and stack them in a corner, while Kel reorganized the sacks of supplies that had been upset by the wind and their moving around the night be They then ventured outside to patch the thinning areas of the roof. Kel's prediction was indeed correct: the camp was in tatters. Sticks from the shelters had flown in all directions across the clearing and everything resting on the ground was now covered in a thick, pastey mud.
"You'd think this wasteland would settle for mud and ice, but no...it has to rain too." Said Merric of Hollyrose sourly as he, too, tried to fix his shelter.
"I'd shove it if I were you. Wyldon isn't having the best of days." Added Seaver from across the way.
"Neither are we." Muttered Neal as Kel pushed the last of the fallen twigs into place. Kel threw him a grim smile.
Just as the squires had finsished thier rebuilding, the side of the tent was pulled back to reveal Lord Wyldon, fully dressed in a dark tan, as cheerful as ever. "Alright!" He pulled a board from the lumber pile and dropped it at his feet. He stood atop the wood to avoid sinking into the ever-preasent mud. "Owen! Start scrubbing that pot. It's your day to cook." He shot a glare, icy as the wind, to the sleepy Owen. "Get yourselves dressed suitably for a long climb and then meet back here in a half hour."
"My Lord, more storms are expected." Protested Merric.
"A knight does not wait for the weather to fulfill his wants!" Wyldon barked. "You think immortals rest while it rains? Think bandits sit at home during a hail storm? I hope you never find that out the hard way! Now get to it!"
The group shook their heads. Neal let out an exasperated sigh only audible to Kel.
"That man never sleeps!" He grumbled.
"I'll be back in a minute." Kel told him. "I'd like to change before I pack up." She left the clearing and returned to her heap of belongings. Climbing...that didn't sound too good. The mountain bases were demanding enough for anyone. She rummaged through the sacks of garments and finally selected a pair of dark tan breeches, a white cotton shirt, a sturdy tunic of deep blue, and a warm cloak of the like. She took care to remember leather gloves and boots before closing her bag. *There* She thought to herself. *That should be alright.* She finished her packing and returned to the main clearing to meet her fellow squires. As the team assembled, Kel glanced at the mountains before her. An idiot could tell that it would not be an easy journey. *Oh well.* She glanced across the circle. *At least Neal will be with me.*
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Ooohhh....a mountain...Neal....Kel...he he he.....
