Amelia Merlin and the Game for Okamila

Part 30: The Gypsies Go North

"We're almost there I swear it. This tree looks so familiar and that little creek back there? Yeah I used to swim there as a kid so you know we're getting close. Gods I forgot about all the snow up here. It's freezing isn't it? Sometimes I think snow is actually like the opposite of a blanket. It covers everything but it makes it all cold instead of warm like a blanket would normally do. I wonder why that is? How does snow even get that cold? What would happen if my brain was that cold?"

"Maybe you would shut up." Banda growled as he followed Daniel's awkward paces through the forest. They were slowly making their way up north with the rest of the gypsies. Daniel had grown up in the north so he was familiar with the landscape. They had sent him forward with Banda so they could find a field close to Stone Garden when they could camp for the time being.

Daniel was nervous about going near his old home. He didn't have any family left and he wasn't sure what it would be like. Being back there, in the north. It was strange and uncomfortable to consider. He tried talking to Banda about it but the grumpy man ignored him usually or said something vaguely menacing. He kept thinking about that girl from the forest. She was so beautiful. She would probably listen so him right? She had that sort of face. He could still see it, like a little elf or something. Her pointed noise and mousy hair. That green cloak which echoed the colour of her eyes slightly.

But the he would remember she had magic and he would shove thoughts of her from his mind. Magic was evil. Magic killed his family. And nothing could change that.

It was getting colder. Snow fell more heavily around them. The thin branches were nearly snapping under the weight of the millions of snowflakes. Their footsteps stopped snapping on twigs and started crunching on snow. Their cloaks were drawn tighter, nights were horrible, fires burned lower and their faces were permanently freezing as were their toes and fingers. Daniel had given up on ever being warm again. The forests were thinning as well which meant they were getting closer to Stone Garden.

When they finally saw the black city on the horizon of an open field it was the most beautiful thing Daniel had ever seen. The strong walls and turrets had never seemed so welcoming. He could hear people. People who didn't despise his presence. A sharp wind nipped his nose but he didn't care. He could see Castle Rock standing out from the houses that surrounded it. The castle was especially wondrous. He had seen it a thousand times before but it was so perfect right now. They walked faster than they had the entire time towards the thought of a bed and a hot meal. Daniel could barely keep up with Banda's long strides through the shin deep snow and he was out of breath by the time they came through the city walls. The sturdy buildings were just as he remembered. Blue and black stone with blue fires burning inside. He could smell horse shit that scattered the cobbled streets and never was a scent so perfect. There was a pub on ever street corner that were all filled with the sounds of northerners drinking. Daniel had never really fit into the culture of most northerners. His village had been unusual in their customs and he was the most unusual out of all but the mere thought of seeing a face that wasn't Banda filled him with joy.

They threw open the door of the nearest tavern and heat radiated towards them. The mass of people fueling the room with their stench and laughter drew Banda and Daniel in toward the warmth. Daniel felt his heart melt along with the snow on his boots. He hadn't seen so many people in so long and he loved it. He practically ran up to the bar and ordered a drink. It tasted horrible. Extraordinarily awful. The scent alone made him sick. But it warmed his throat and then stomach so he kept going. He didn't even see Banda anymore, which actually just made him happier. Before, when they were back in the forest, if Daniel had lost sight of the man he could feel the anxiety rising into his throat and crowding his lungs but now he breathed easily and comfortably in the tavern.

"What can I get for the lovely boy?" a crooked lady asked as she leaned over the bar wiping a glass down with a dirty cloth. 

Daniel let out a deep breath, "Do you serve cocoa?"  The woman raised her eyebrows, and said in her pebbled voice.

"Most men ask for ale, or a strong whiskey."

"I'm not really a man," he confessed as he leaned in towards the lady. "I'm barely more than a boy to be honest and I've spent so long in the forest with a man and he's just been awful. I'm sore and exhausted and I don't think I've eaten anything since rabbit and berries in about three hundred years, or at least it feels like that. My head hurts but not as much as my feet do and I think the blisters on my heels have all burst because I swear I can feel blood soaking through the back of my sock. I hate the colour green now, green is the worst colour in the world. I like red now, you hardly ever see red in these parts so when you do it is a nice break don't you think? I expect all the black and blue most get really tiring after a while around here-"

"I'll get you your damn cocoa if you just shut up."  The gnarled woman smiled kindly at him and rolled her eyes. Daniel recognized his annoying tendencies and did indeed shut his mouth. He had only had the cocoa in his hands for about four minutes when Banda clapped a hand aggressively on his shoulder.

"You're sleeping in the room upstairs. I'll come and wake you in the morning and we will be at your village before noon tomorrow." he said ruffly.

Daniel turned to look at him but Banda was already fifteen paces from him. He stood up quickly from his stool and ran over to the brooding man with the large feathers in his hat. " Where are you sleeping?"  he shouted over the noise.

"The barn. And I swear to all three Gods if you disturb me, I'll kill you and take your dead body to that healer you admire so much."  he growled.

Daniel nodded and stepped away from him. Banda dissipated into the noise and clutter of the tavern and Daniel went back to the bar to his hot cup of cocoa. The next morning the brooding man woke him by ripping the blankets off his bed and hitting him on the head with his fist when he didn't immediately get out of bed, but Daniel decided that maybe Banda was not so bad after all.