3. Free spirits

Free spirits


  • _It is a cool night; dusk just setting and the bugs making soft gentle sounds. A warm fire crackles, blazing against the busy people of the camp. An old woman is seen sitting by one of the smaller fires, chanting to herself quietly and soundly. A small child walks up to the old woman, tugging on her robe and smiling warmly.
    "What do you want child?" The woman croaked. The child blushed shyly and mumbled something.
    "A story, mam!" He whispered. The old woman smiled to him and patted her lap; the boy carefully sits on the woman’s lap as she clears her throat to tell a tale.
    "Now, child what tale do you want? I know many to soothe a brave heart like yours “She smiled a crooked smile.”Do you want dragons and maidens, castles and wars?"
    She waved her hand at the fire, it sparked alive and danced brightly, the child's eyes widened in surprise and whispered in her ear again.
    "Oh? A different story child?" She chuckled to herself, and then began to hum and rock on the spot, stroking the child's hair. "Very well then child, I shall tell you a tale, a very different tale, but I warn you, that there are no great dragons, no maidens with troubled pasts."
    "Child this story is of hope, and love. How a young maid was able to find her place in the world. Now this maiden, is no one powerful, no one great, just a single girl, a noble born girl from a distant place.
    My, what a proud family they were, their history rich, powerful, The Lunaya name, is centuries old, they had helped in countless wars, fought side by side with kings and princes. Now child, this family has many rules and regulations, they are strict in their ways. The men of the family are corrupt, they gamble, drink, and smoke witch’s weed and do so many cruel things. The woman of the family, have to behave as the men see fit. A woman may not have opinions of court matters, her position lies with the family, running a household. Now child, look around you and tell me, do you see any of the woman and girls here looking sad and quiet?”
    The woman moved her arm in a arc, gesturing to all the people around the fires and the camp. The buzz of conversation and laughing, mingled with giggling made the child sit for a moment then whispered in the woman’s ear.
    “Yes child, not one of the women here is obeying the men are they? They all stand as equals. Now when ever a child is born the family may hold a celebration, but if the child is a girl, then there is no celebration.
    This was the very same for this little maiden, she never had a party to welcome her to the world, to let the gods know her name.”
    The old woman starts to tell the tale to the child, for them both the scene fades, the tale it self becomes real, ghosts of the past reawaken, shaking the chains loose and come to life.

    It was a warm spring day; the peasants went about their work with a gleeful smile on their faces, easy at work. It was a fine day, a day that would be added to by dusk.
    A woman lay sweating on a bed, a maid hovered close, wiping her damp skin with a rag and dipping it in water over and over. What was wrong? Why hadn't the child come yet?! The father paced about his study quickly, if it was a boy, he would have all the family wealth, a fine heir for the fortune, but a girl, and she would have to marry. It was simply enough; she wouldn’t have a chance to run away like the rumours of the Del Lioncourt family. ( 😉 )
    Another yell of pain echoed down the hall, the woman wailed again before it went quiet. The family had the best healers about to aid her yet; the poor woman wasn't bringing the child into the world.
    Then there was a knock on the door, and maid walked in quickly holding a tiny bundle in her arms, a smile tracing her lips. The father held the naked babe up the light, then his smiled faded, he handed the child back to the maid and waved her off.
    The maid paused at the door, cradling the tiny child to her breast, hushing it to sleep.
    “Sir, the mistress, she did…not…..live long enough to name the babe.” The maid closed her eyes a moment, praying that her master would not lash out.
    The man rubbed his eyes and kept on running his hands through his hair, pacing the room, quickly. He stopped suddenly in the middle of the room, looking though the window and to the setting light.
    “Call her, Lucia” It was simply said. The maid bobbed and hurried from the room.

    It was very a much honour to have the father name the child, especially a female. So Lucia grew up, learning how to step dance and bow. To many this lifestyle would be slow boring and dull but to Lucia it was all she knew. The days for the woman of the family were long and had to be filled. Reading, song and meaningless tea parties were often the remedy for boredom. It was soon found out that Lucia had a gift from Tyr, a gift of song. She had a soft sweet voice and when she sung, it was simply breath taking. Her father soon found out that she was good for entertaining the people at social gatherings, so she was pushed and pushed to sing for an endless list of faces and names. Slowly for Lucia singing lost its fun and purpose.
    As the timed changed, so did the family, it was time to leave Waterdeep and move onto a new fresher place. The father and brothers fought and fought for a new place to establish the Lunaya name. Then suddenly a place came up, Peltarch, in the land of Narfell: famed for its cold regions and myths. It would be a good start, though it would take moths, if not a year to get there.
    But the men were determined to start anew here, and the family had a few young maidens for marriage: to forge new alliances with richer families in Peltarch. Lucia was taken with her family, and travelled for a year and a few months to get there.
    During that time she had grown very zealous of the fighters and magic casters, how free they were to do as they please but she learnt to keep this jealous hidden, keeping her thoughts to her self.
    Finally they arrived at Narfell, and became at home in the great city of Peltarch.

    Suddenly it started to rain, first lightly dripping then pouring down with all of Tyr’s might.
    “Come child I will tell you more in time, you have enough to dream about” The old woman patted the child on the head and watches him scamper off, she gets up slowly and cracks joints, hobbling off to the shelter of a tent. The old woman lay down on the bedroll, stroking a near by dog for comfort. Ass he closes her eyes she starts to dream of the maiden, finding her self in the world, singing for people she wanted to sing to.
    She was Lucia again in the dream, but her free self in life. Nothing could stop what she had become, in some ways; the old woman misses the comfort of closed doors. But in many ways, the feel of cool wind on her face is worth all she did.._

    Login: Lucia_of_light2
    Char name: Lucia


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