Rain fell miserably the afternoon that Brienne had left, not wanting to draw attention to himself, Tormund had sat sulkily in the gate tower. He had found a thick chunk of wood that he absent-mindedly carved. Tormund never liked goodbyes, and avoided them wherever possible, the feeling of absence was something he could afford to think about, a battle was looming and he could not afford distractions lest he never see Brienne again. Some Free Folk yet remained at Castle Black to help with forging and general maintenance as the castle was in dire need of repair, he saw to them and made sure they had everything they required in the days that lead their departure for war.
Then the raven came.
Jon Snow summoned Tormund to his quarters, an unravelled parchment sat delicately on the oak war table. Tormund entered cautiously, his eyes flickering between Jon and the paper. Jon stood and passed the parchment to Tormund, he took it and read it carefully. Mance had taught him how to read during his service to him but the words only filled him with doubt. Jon took a step towards him,
"Our negotiations with Riverrun have gone sour, word has been sent about the Blackfish's death but nothing about Brienne and Pod" he said, his gentle brown eyes not leaving Tormund as he processed the information. Tormund turned away wordlessly, what good was it for him to live if only to endure her death? They had only been together a short while, but Tormund would have given his life to relive just those moments. Jon rested his hand on Tormund's in comfort, "We will kill the Lannisters Tormund, you have my word" he stated, Tormund turned to him, his expression wild with grief and rage. He nodded and stalked away without a word, "We march in the morning, ready your people. I will do the same" he said as Tormund left through the room.
Tormund's nostrils flared, he needed to kill something. He would hack the first Lannister he saw to pieces. He marched to the stables, shoving a stablehand into the wall to clear the path to his horse,
"out of my way boy, unless you want to lose your head" he snarled as he yanked himself into the saddle, earning a startled whinny from his cob at his severely agitated master "Tell my kin to prepare for march at first light" he commanded, his eyes piercing the boy like knives. The horse reared on his hind legs, a shrill cry escaped from the boy as he darted to safety from hooves and went to carry out his command. Tormund kicked his mount forward and it flew out of the castle and into the forest as fast as a shadow, hunting in the forest was easy and it was not long before deer tracks appeared in the mud beneath him. Tormund dismounted, he carried a dangerous aura about him as he scanned the area with deadly intent. He followed the tracks till the herd came into view, the majority stood together but a few deer stood slightly away from the ever-watchful eyes of the herd. Tormund crouched low, sticking to bushes and not making a sound. He was an arm's length away from the strong beast, he silently drew his dagger. He painted it with a compound his people called 'umbra' it was thick and black in colour, it prevented the blade from glinting and giving away his position. Tormund dared to move closer, he held his breath and struck at the deer. The metal pierced the deer's hide directly behind its foreleg and between its ribs. It cried out and the rest of the scattered and were gone within seconds. He shoved the dagger deep into its body, as the body went limp he stayed and looked at it for a while, allowing himself to think of Brienne, he should have said goodbye. He cursed himself at the blunder, he prayed to the Old Gods that they allow him once last glimpse into those sapphire blue eyes before he died.
Darkness had long descended by the time Tormund had hoisted the carcass onto the back of his horse and returned to Castle Black. He gave his horse over to a scared stableboy, the same as before. Tormund looked sternly at the boy, "did you tell my people?" he asked, the boy nodded but looked suspiciously sheepish, "did they do as commanded?" he continued with a raised brow, the boy looked down to his feet and shook his head,
"They did not listen to me Ser" he whispered. Tormund nodded with a slight smile at the mental imagery of this whelp telling his people what to do. He flicked a gold coin at the child, not that he would have much use for it, before handing him the reins and heading towards his chambers. Tormund walked into his chamber and peeled his armour from his skin, even beside the fire he felt cold. He clambered into bed and pulled the furs around him, he closed his eyes and saw Brienne's face the day he first saw her. She was astride her grey gelding, proud and strong. Honour and loyalty drive her, something that earned her a great deal of respect from Tormund. He dreamed of her nestled into his chest, humming a southern tune that soothed him more than any other rhyme he had heard from his people. He rested well, gods know when he'll get to have another decent sleep.