“Hey Brynjar, we’re going fishing, will you join us?”.
Brynjar looked up from the pile of charcoal he was shoveling into sacks to see his friends Alfvar and Fulka looking at him expectantly.
“Sorry, I can’t,” he replied “My father has to finish the order of new swords for the Hold Guards, he needs this charcoal."
“I hope the order is finished soon.” exclaimed Fulka “His keeping you so busy we have hardly seen you in weeks."
Brynjar sighed as he watched his friends walk away laughing and enjoying the warm weather then got back to his work. When he had filled enough sacks he grabbed one and carried it to the forge. Balgruuf looked up from the anvil to survey the scene, the look on Brynjar’s face told him all he needed to know.
“You would rather be with your friends then helping your old father at the forge?”
“No Father, you know I’m always happy helping you here.”
“Ha! I don’t think you’re as foolish as that son. When I was your age I would rather have been anywhere than helping my father. I am sorry to keep you here but this order is important. If we can’t fill it in time the captain will give the contract to that fool at The Scorched Hammer.”
“That will never happen Father, you said yourself, ‘Some secret ingredient in the forge doesn’t matter a damn if you don’t have any skill with a hammer.’”.
“True enough but skill with a hammer doesn’t matter if you don’t actually finish making the swords. And another thing, don’t let your mother catch you using that language or she’ll skin us both,”. Balgruuf winked at Brynjar who grinned in reply.
Balgruuf continued, “When the order is done you can spend plenty of time with your friends and if you like you can keep those knives I’ve been showing you how to make. You’re coming on well and you’ve done a fine job. Once the handles are bound and the blades are sharpened they will be knives anyone would be happy to own.”
Brynjar looked up at his father with a mixture of joy and surprise, “I can really keep them?”
“I said as much didn’t I? I suggest you keep the best one for yourself and give the other two to you friends, it’s no good catching a fish if you don’t have a knife to gut it. Now let’s get back to work."
“Surely you’re not going to work all day without a bite to eat are you?” Balgruuf and Brynjar looked up to see Hilde smiling at them with a basket in her arms. “Bread, meat, cheese and apples for my two strong men,” she said, “and two bottles of ale of course, working a forge is thirsty work."
Balgruuf’s face broke into a huge grin as she approached, handing Brynjar the basket and tussling his hair as he searched the contents for an apple. Balgruuf wrapped his arms round her and planted a kiss on her cheek. “Thank Mara for giving me such a wonderful wife”
“I thank her every day for giving me such a fine husband and son. Now don’t work too late I have a treat for tonight, a merchant came south from Dawnstar with oysters. I am baking them into a pie with with venison, mushrooms and ale. I also picked up couple of bottles of honeybrew, they’re cooling in the river right now."
Balgruuf’s grin grew even wider, “Oysters! However much I am thanking Mara it is not enough, we won’t stay late."
“Remember after dinner tonight I am working at the inn and will be back very late, but don’t worry we may not go to sleep together but we will wake up together."
Hilde walked away turning to smile at them as they started to remove their lunch from the basket.
Later that day with the work done Balgruuf and Brynjar walked home together. Balgruuf telling tales of his travels and adventures. Brynjar had heard them before many time but he never got tired of them. Reaching their house they stepped inside and were greeted by a crackling fire and the smell of the pie Hilde had promised. Hilde turned to them a smiled warmly her eyes sparkling like they always did.
“Welcome home, now both of you wash your hands and faces before you do anything else. So much sweat and soot, I swear you two get worse every day. I put a bowl of warm water and some cloths on the table. While you do that I will go and fetch the mead."
With their hands and faces cleaned and the bowl tipped outside they sat waiting while Hilde finished preparing the meal. Finally Balgruuf spoke up.
“I was thinking about this order of swords for the Riften guards, in another couple of weeks it will be finished and we will have plenty of gold. We could take a journey together."
“Where were you thinking?”
“Your cousin lives in Solitude and you haven’t seen her in years. I also have some old friends from the legion there and it would do the boy good to see a little of the world, he can see the sea and the ships sailing into the harbour under the great stone arch. I will never forget the first time I saw it. such a sight!”
“And who will stop our home and the forge being ransacked while we are travelling the world?”
“Frigga and Leif just got married three months ago and they’re still living with his parents, they would do anything to have a house to themselves for a few weeks."
“Very well if they are willing we can think about it now enough talk dinner is ready."
Hilde laid out the meal in the table; potatoes roasted in goose fat, carrots and parsnips roasted with honey and herbs and in the centre the venison and oyster pie. They joined hands as Hilde said a prayer to the divines, thanking Kynareth for the animals that fed them, Zenithar for the honest work that provided them with a home and finally Mara for the love they shared as a family. With the prayer finished they ate their meal.
Once the meal was complete and the dishes cleared away Balgruuf sat with his son by the fire telling more tales of his adventures and occasionally using the poker when he needed to demonstrate a tricky bit of sword play. Hilde got ready for her evening working at the inn pausing from time to time to laugh or at her husband’s antics or express her doubt that he had really fought three trolls single handed. When she was satisfied she kissed them both goodbye and headed out.
It was four hours later, Brynjar was asleep and Balgruuf sat in his chair sipping the last of the mead and watching the glow of the embers in the hearth slowly fade. Suddenly there has an urgent hammering on the door. Balgruuf got up a little unsteadily and made his way towards the door. The hammering continued until Balgruuf opened the door to find Frigga standing outside, her face was as pale as ash. She looked at him with tears streaming down her cheeks. “It’s Hilde, the inn, you’ve got to come right now”.
Leaving Frigga standing on the threshold Balgruuf ran up the road towards the inn and burst through the door. The inn was full of people but almost silent apart from the sound of women crying. Near the centre of the room a crowd had gathered around something on the floor. Frantic with fear Balgruuf forced his way through the crowd and looked down. “HILDE, GODS NO!!!” he cried out falling to his knees.
Hilde was lying before him, her hair and the floor around her head was soaked in blood. She looked up at him and a spoke in a voice that was barely a whisper, “My beautiful husband, I’m so sorry, I wanted to come home to you, to wake beside you tomorrow.” Failing to hold back his tears Balgruuf replied “Don’t worry my sweet you will be fine and we can take that journey I spoke of, just the three of us. I will show you the ships coming into the harbour. I know you’ve never seen the sea. We don’t have go too soon, we will wait till you’re better, we have all the the time in the World. We’ll go when you’re better.” he looked down at her there was a faint smile on her lips but the sparkle had gone from her eyes and she was staring at nothing. He gently lifted her body into his arms and sat in the bloody floor holding her close rocking back and forth as his body was wracked by sobs he could no longer contain.
“Mother?” Balgruuf looked up to see Brynjar standing over him looking down in horror. Balgruuf tried desperately to find the words that would help but was unable to utter a sound. He simply looked up at his son, his face a mask of grief. Brynjar turned and ran, bolting through the door he headed into the night. Balgruuf remained on the floor, wanting to go after his son and comfort him but unable to let Hilde go. The pain slowly turned to numbness as he felt everything good in his life and his son’s wash away in a tide of blood.
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Comments
I will start on Chapter 3 so... more
I have to say Minophis you wrote this chapter well. The flow was nice and everything was tranquil. WAS ..........
Don't keep us all waiting.