Selfless Love

Uncle Hebaron

Flashback chapter - how Uncle Hebaron got his nickname.

As the warm summer sun set behind the mountains, the knight and young boy took a moment to rest on the hilltop.

They had spent most of the day repairing part of a livestock fence that they had "accidentally" destroyed while getting into a bit of trouble.

The boy asked why skilled workers had not been hired to do the work seeing as they could probably do the job better.

While the knight agreed that he and the boy weren't the most qualified, when you make a mess, you have to be the one to clean it up.

"You worked hard today," Sir Hebaron said proudly as he wiped the last of the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.

"We both did," Andrew huffed, still slightly out of breath.

A wide grin spread across the burly knight's face.
Without a word he scooped up the child and started walking away from the farm.

"Hey! Put me down!" Andrew protested.

"Not a chance." Hebaron replied with a chuckle. "We need to get there before dark."

"Where?" Andrew asked curiously. "Home is the opposite way."

"Patience little lord," he teased. "You'll see soon enough."

———-

They arrived at dusk to a large deep pond.

"I still don't understand what we're doing." Andrew quipped, still laid across the knight's large shoulder.

Without a word Hebaron put the boy down and began to remove his boots.

Still confused, Andrew copied the knight, removing his own shoes. The moment dragged on and Hebaron remained silent. The young boy's impatience began to flare.

"What now?!" Andrew blurted out, his patience at its peak.

"Now," Hebaron said with a wicked grin, "we can cool off."

He swiftly scooped up the boy again and launched him into the air.

The boy's scream was cut short as his body hit the water with a loud splash. His clothes were immediately soaked, but what did it matter if they were already drenched in sweat.

Hebaron gave a hearty laugh as he charged into the pond. He allowed the water to sooth his aching muscles and relax his overheated skin.

The knight let out a content sigh as he closed his eyes. The moment didn't last. He was soon doused with a large splash of water. His eyes flew open and he saw a very angry miniature version of his commander glaring at him a few feet away.

The knight simply raised an eyebrow at the boy and began to turn away pretending to be unbothered before quickly pivoting and moving his hand across the water to splash his attacker.

The two were soon in the throes of battle. Splashing, kicking, yelling and occasional cursing rang out in the early hours of the night.

The hour grew late and the knight decided it was time to head home.

"Time to get back," Hebaron said as he began to make his way to the shallow end of the pond.

"Just a little longer!" Andrew protested.

"The moon is getting higher by the minute. We've already stayed longer than we should have," said the knight with his back still facing the boy.

Hebaron heard a large splash behind him. And then nothing.