Chapter 55
"I'm sorry serrah, but everyone in Lothering is running short on supplies," the dry goods merchant told them.
"I was afraid of that," Hawke sighed. "Redcliffe isn't too far, we'll have to try there."
"Sorry serrah, but they're not selling to outsiders either," she ruefully shook her head. "The storms are particularly bad this year, and it took a long time for most of Ferelden to recover from the Blight. No one wants to run out and not be able to feed their families, you understand."
"So the only thing to do is to go to Denerim," Jethann said excitedly. "Should be a fascinating place."
"Well I don't want to travel that far," Orana sniffed. "Even though the snow wasn't that deep, it was still tiring to get to the village from the farm. It wiped me out."
"There are some people here banding together to travel up to Denerim and bring goods back," a voice spoke behind them.
Turning, Gavin saw a man who he recalled ran the local tavern. "You have men going? Would they mind a couple extra swords?"
"Barlin Jr, at your service," the younger man stuck out his hand. "Not a lot of experienced fighters here anymore, not since the Blight really. We fall under Gwaren's rule, but with Loghain dead and Anora pretty much imprisoned, no thought has been given to this Maker forsaken corner of the land."
"You have no overlord other than the Teryna?" Gavin frowned.
"Our mayor has written both the Teryna and the King and has yet to receive any word back," Barlin rolled his eyes. "Without the 'proper' lord, we have no means of generating income to pay for any extra soldiers to be stationed here."
"So who's going on this trip then?" Fenris looked around skeptically.
"The blacksmith and the miller have some fighting abilities, but that's pretty much it," Barlin shrugged. "We figured that if enough go along, the bandits that might be out and about will leave us alone."
"I didn't realize there was a miller here in Lothering," Jethann looked around curiously.
Orana pointed off toward the hills behind the town. They could just see the top of a windmill. "The river flows through below the line of the hills so you can't see it. A mill wouldn't be anywhere but on a river."
"You really need to be more observant Jethann," Gavin shook his head. "Well, we need supplies and we're certainly quite capable of taking care of ourselves," he said to Barlin. "If you don't think they'll mind us tagging along that is."
"We would appreciate that," Barlin nodded. "They've just finished loading the trade goods and foodstuffs for the trip onto the sleigh and are leaving in a couple of minutes. I'll let them know you'll be joining them."
"It'll just be Fenris and myself," Gavin called to his retreating back, getting a wave of acknowledgment. Turning he held up his hands to forestall the protest he knew Jethann was going to make. "We can't leave the farm unoccupied and the trip will be too tiring for Orana. You'll have Fang to help guard you."
The mabari whined and cocked his at his master before giving a stern bark and going to sit at Jethann's heel. Orana looked down and the up and met Jethann's eyes, "Perhaps in the spring the two of us can make the trip to Denerim together."
"Fine, fine," Jethann grumbled, but it was just for show. It was colder out here than he had expected and the thought of all those cold nights on the journey caused him to shiver. But he still worried about his friend. "I just figured if all of us went, it would be easier to you know," he hesitated and then lowered his voice to a whisper, "keep your secret."
Gavin smiled, "Thanks for your concern, but I'll be fine. This is how I lived before the Blight drove us from our home."
"We better get going Hawke," Fenris tugged at his arm. "He's in good hands, don't worry," he reassured the other two elves. He knew they had to be at least a little worried about being left alone. But, it was winter and there weren't many people about, so the farmhold should be safe enough. And having a war dog as a guard was as good as two men at arms.
They hurried to join the others, exchaning names and brief handshakes before heading out. The first mile or two was passed in relative quiet. Then the villagers curiosity about Fenris got the better of them and the questions started flowing. He and Gavin answered cordially, but cautiously, offering nothing more than the barest facts. This seemed to be more than enough for the villagers and soon conversation turned to other things.
For three days they travelled without a hint of trouble. On the fourth day, Gavin caught sight of movement in the trees next to the road and nudged Fenris. The elf nodded and casually moved around to the other side of the sleigh, pretending to be checking the load. As soon as he was hidden, he slipped into the woods to double back around and determine the threat to them, if any.
"What's he doing?" one of the men hissed angrily, suspicion on his face.
"There's someone shadowing us from the woods to our right," Gavin told them. "Don't look!" he hissed. "Fenris is going to try and see if there's any threat there. Everyone just act like nothing's wrong."
They continued on for a while until the sounds of fighting broke out. "Weapons ready, watch your backs!" Gavin shouted as he drew his short swords. They weren't his first choice, but bringing his staff had been out of the question. A loud howl drew his attention as two mabari broke from the trees followed by two highwaymen. He barely had time to wonder if Fenris was alright before the dogs were on him. He saw a blue blur out of the corner of his eye and heard the screams of one of the bandits dying. Between himself, the blacksmith and the miller, they made short work of the dogs.
The remaining robber, seeing that they weren't such an easy target after all, decided to turn tail and run. "No don't," Gavin shouted at the blacksmith's apprentice as the boy tried to stop the robber, getting a sword in his belly for his trouble. Gavin hurried to catch the young man and lay him gently on the ground.
"Damn fool boy, what you go and do that for?" the Blacksmith cried. A gruff man in his fifties, it surprised those who knew him to see tears gather in his eyes.
"Sorry Bill, wasn't thinking," John gasped, eyes closing in pain.
Fenris looked at Gavin and saw the mage's indecision. Gavin could save the boy but it would expose him as a mage, something they'd tried hard to avoid. "The wound is deep and the nearest place to find a healer is Denerim which is still more than a day's travel in front of us."
"He won't make it that far," Bill said gruffly, taking the boy's hand. "Sorry kid."
"I can heal him," Gavin said firmly.
"You're a healer?" asked Madon the miller skeptically.
"I'm a mage," Gavin shook his head.
"I don't care what you are," Bill said sharply. "If you can save him, you do it."
"But, he's a mage!" Madon protested. "You remember how them's at the tower went nuts. Can't trust a mage. What if we get hit by some weird spell or something."
"The hero of Ferelden is a mage from the tower," John protested, his voice raspy and laced with fear. "Mages helped stop the Blight and my mother's cousin is a senior enchanter at the Circle. And there is a mage from the Collective right in town."
"Yeah, but there's also a Chantry and templar to keep him in line," Madon said mulishly.
"Stow it Madon," Bill growled at him, glaring at the miller until the man looked away. Turning to Hawke he nodded, "Go ahead and help him if you can. We're out of options."
Gavin closed his eyes and gently laid his hands upon the boy. He'd always been good at healing, but the spirits assistance amplified his talent. With her help, he easily used magic to knit the boy's wound from the inside out, repairing organs, tissue, arteries and everything in between. He was unaware of the warm glow that surrounded him and the boy, but it caused the others to step back and Fenris to hiss in discomfort.
The warmth and comfort flowing from Gavin into the boy spilled over and touched those around them. Even the miller found his alarm at being in the presence of a mage calmed. After what seemed like ages, but was really less than an hour, Gavin lifted his hands from the boy and sat back, feeling drained but happy he'd been successful.
"John," the blacksmith hunkered down as the boy opened his eyes, hands automatically going to the bloodsoaked shirt and pulling it aside. He saw nothing but a light pink line where the wound had been and even as he watched that too faded away leaving nothing in its wake. "I don't believe it," he said as he looked up at Gavin.
"Maker forgive my harsh words," the miller swallowed hard. "You saved his life. I'm sorry for my suspicions and doubts."
"The pair of you handled yourselves extremely well," Bill acknowledged. "My guess is that you've done this kind of thing many times before. Fighting and healing people that is."
"We have some experience at it yes," Gavin nodded. "But all we want now is to live quietly and farm my land.
John got slowly to his feet and leaned against Bill briefly before standing on his own. He held out his hand for Gavin's. "Thank you for my life. You have my word that no one will ever hear about this."
"Yeah, especially since your mum would skin your hide if she heard about that stupid stunt you pulled," Bill growled, eliciting laughter from everyone.
"You were lucky kid," Fenris regarded him coolly, his markings still glowing softly from exposure to Gavin's magic. "Next time, let them go and then inform the local watch of what went on." He turned to Gavin and assessed his condition before looking up at the sky. "There's not much daylight left. Let's find a good spot for camp and rest up. We should reach Denerim late tomorrow."
They all agreed and set about doing as the elf suggested. Gavin turned to Fenris, "That went better than I expected. I hope that nothing happens to draw attention to us while we're in Denerim. There will likely be Templars and soldiers all over the city. None of them will be as accepting as our fellow villagers."
"In the city there will be healers and guards so our services won't be needed," Fenris pointed out. "As long as our friends don't say anything, we'll be fine."
About half a mile up, they found a fairly decent spot. Madon kept looking up and sniffing the air. "I suggest we rise early and double time it to the city. We might have to stay for an extra day," he told them as they cleared a large area of snow for their camp.
"Bad weather heading our way?" Fenris asked.
"Yep, just not sure how bad," the miller shrugged.
Gavin helped get dinner ready and smiled and talked calmly with his companions. Inside, however, he worried about the difficulties an extended stay in Denerim posed for him. He looked up and saw Fenris watching him, calm reassurance in the elf's eyes. He took comfort in the knowledge that Fenris appeared to be unconcerned.
"We'll watch your back and our tongues," Bill reassured them after catching the silent exchange. "Least we can do for you after all this."
"I appreciate that, thank you," Gavin nodded.
"Yeah, up until today, we had no clue you were a mage and it will stay that way," John told them, casting a challenging look in Madon's direction.
"No one'll hear a word out of me," the miller nodded. "But, if we're getting up early, best not stay up late."
Once more they spread out their heavy horse blankets and placed their bedrolls on top. Camping outdoors in winter, while not comfortable, was possible if one was properly prepared. It still wasn't all that warm either, so having Fenris' back pressed to his was welcome. So far, their companions hadn't sussed out the relationship between him and the elf and he intended to keep it that way. Bad enough they knew he was a mage. He had no idea how they would react if they knew he liked men. Most Fereldens weren't nearly as open minded as they liked to pretend.
"Stop worrying Hawke," Fenris whispered. "I know that kind of healing takes a lot out of you, so get some sleep. Everything will be just fine."
With those words echoing in his head, Gavin closed his eyes and fell into a sound sleep. Fenris silently watched and listened for a while until he was sure the others were asleep. Then with a last prayer for no more trouble on their journey, he too fell asleep.