Some crap that I write.
Paloma grew up the daughter of a peasant out by the Faldyn woods, east kingdom. It was a place that did not seem to have a whole lot of sunlight. Rather, most of the time it rained or was overcast. As a child she had golden brown hair that was most often worn in an unkempt fashion. She kept up with her two brothers in their games of swashbuckling adventure and tree forts. All three of the children would often come home with mud encrusted feet, happy red cheeks, and contagious bubbling laughter. They crowded around their father by the fire and told him all about the tales that had happened that day.
She was a young girl whose only mistake was that she made friends with some of the inhabitants of the wood. Unfortunately the townspeople looked down upon the elves with distrust and suspicion. It was not considered a good thing to befriend them in her village and those who were rebellious enough to do so were often ostracized and cast out. She tried her hardest to conform to the expectations of a women however it was very difficult to ignore the yearnings in her heart. They constantly rose at the most inopportune times and caused her much annoyance. She tried to be what they wanted her to be but it always made her feel wrong, as if she were lying. Sitting around doing embroidery and cooking for the men wasn't enough. It made her question if there wasn't something more the fates had planned for her.
Magic was unnatural, the devils work and many of them were frightened of the unknown. They told of elves carrying off wandering children for acts of evil, that those carried off were never seen again. Despite this Paloma learned some of their ways, their magic and battle trained with the children of the elves. As she grew older her hair became sleek and dark with the natural transformation from awkward youth to a beautiful woman. She would often catch whispers and slick glances from the older folk. She caught words such as "that girl seems unnatural" and "is she truly one of us?" Lowering her head in shame she went about her daily chores unknowing how someone else was watching her with more than just petty gossip in mind.
Bain was one of the many local boys around. He had a fondness for Paloma and took an interest to her strange ways. Many times he had helped her in day to day tasks as well as providing things needed when money was scarce. However as with most men there was a string attached. She did not completely trust him however needed the favors he provided her. It was only a matter of time before he wished to collect his payment. The price he wanted remained to be discussed but Paloma guessed it would probably be high. So she went about her life like this until her father fell very ill. No longer able to gather and cut wood for profit as he had done most of his life. It was not certain if he would recover or if he would die, medicine was in short supply to the common folk.
It was now up to Paloma and her brothers to take over the "Family business" Soon they worked out a system where her brothers would gather wood and return home to either chop it into firewood or carve it into roughly made spoons and simple toys. Once they had a sizable quantity it was taken to the market and sold. Paloma was responsible for the provisions and the cooking. On rare occasions she traveled to the woods in which to give her brothers a lunch. If she had gone too often the talk would only make her that much more the subject of gossip. Then there came a day where after feeding her father some watered down broth she set out in the forest to deliver her brothers lunch. Taking care where she stepped Paloma followed the large imprints of her brothers footsteps.
She knew it would eventually lead her to them. A pair of mischievous honey colored eyes glanced out from their perch in the tree while safeguarding the town. With a deliberate breath, Bain drew back the string on his well used bow. Taking a calm aim the sharp end of the homemade arrow was pointed toward the lovely Paloma. She was so caught up in searching the forest that she failed to notice the first arrow.It flipped the edges of her brown hair as if from a strong wind. What did catch her attention was a hint of laughter in the wind. She looked up with a mahogany gaze and searched the trees for the source of the laughter. It was only after the second arrow that she noticed someone was attacking her. One panicked gasp later she finally remembered she had a sword.
As soon as she had drawn the steel from its leather sheath Bain had jumped down from the tree. His arm encircled her neck and a husky voice asked "Do you yield?" Paloma stiffened in cold surprise but kept a grip on her blade. "Is this now a thiefs wood where men prey on weaker creatures?" she spat out. Her words were greeted with more laughter as the arm relaxed and slid down her side, coming to a rest at her waist. The touch was more familiar than she was comfortable with. "Only when one enters into enemy territory, you wouldnt be out looking for Fae now would you?" she replied. "Are you now an enemy, sir?, I was under the impression you were taking liberties"
A hint of a smile rested on her pale lips as she planned retaliation. She recognized the voice to be one of the village boys. The one who had his own harem it seemed. Why he had taken an interest in her was beyond her comprehension. Swinging around, she pointed the tip of her blade at his throat, her hair flying attractively with her movement. This fact had not gone unnoticed from Bain who was openly admiring her."As far as your question is concerned" she continued letting his mistake truly sink in "I would never yield to one as repugnant as you" The fact that he was at sword point seemed to escape him. His continual smile further unnerved her and set her on edge. "Are you so sure about that Paloma? Ask yourself why my arrows missed" Paloma blinked realizing that if he had wanted to harm her he would have. What exactly was his agenda?
"You risk your life for an outsider? Pray the council does not hear of this. She smiled sadly at him and made a quick exit back towards the town. They might be in control of the town now, spreading their lies and superstition however Paloma could not deny the fire inside her. She could not be yet another "Silent women" who sat by the fire and were chattel. Someday, she would be taken seriously and men would think of her as a person. Elves and humans could get along; it was the people in power who chose to complicate issues. But who was she? Just a mere girl noone would take seriously. Bain watched her leave with his mirth filled owl-like eyes. He desired nothing more than to have her come back, to have her at rapt attention with one of his self achievements. It was the challenge she posed to him that drew him to continually seek her out. "No matter beautiful one, I can afford to wait"
 Jayce Reinhardt · Tue May 05, 2009 @ 09:07pm · 2 Comments |
