The Winter kingdom

Version 2.0

The faint light of dawn barely pierced through the frosty windows, casting a soft glow on the makeshift bedding where Brandon, Edric, and Jon huddled together. The embers of the fire, reduced to a low burn, emitted a feeble warmth that barely staved off the biting cold. The trio, wrapped in their blankets mixed with a couple extra that they scavenged, huddled together for warmth, a united front against the frigid winter that pressed against the walls of their shelter.

As the first light of day tiptoed into the room, casting long shadows across the worn floorboards, the three friends stirred. The cold had crept into their dreams, seeping into every corner of their makeshift refuge. With reluctant groans, they began to rouse from their collective huddle.

With the cold quickly seeping through the gaps in their moved blankets, they were quick to move getting the fire going again with new furniture wood. (The fire went out as Jon wanted to stay warm in his blanket and did not want to move out of it.) With a fire going, breakfast was being prepared which was heating the stew from last night, and through fate played with them again, there was a knock at the door.

Though this time they would not be caught out, once in position, the door was flung open, and Branden leaped backward like a startled cat, bringing his sword low.

With the door wide open they were presented with their guest. Soft skin and calming sky eyes greeted them, a light line of footprints leading to her. Her freshly smooth raven-black hair caressed her fine furs and leathers, filling them out nicely as she moved and swayed in the light morning winds.

The light morning sun reflected her pink cheeks, as they highlighted an honest smile that matched perfectly with her eyes. She held out a calloused fingertip hand, in greeting only to quickly pull away as she saw Brandon. With fingers fiddling with her cloth ends,

"Um. Sorry for disturbing you, I'm Jocelyn, you met my sister yesterday," she said, fiddling with her clothes.

"Hey, no need to scare my sister like that. Look, we have brought your blankets." Lyanna emerged from the side of the house. "Look I am sorry for what I did yesterday, but I was desperate, and I know it isn't right of me to take from you guys like that, so like I promised." As she held out the blankets.

"We are sorry and thank you for the meal; it was very delicious." she smiled brightly while Lyanna looked away.

"It is all right; you beat us fair and square, to only lose a bowl of stew was much better than losing my balls." Brandon laughed.

"Wait, just a bowl, not two," she says, looking to Brandon before flicking her head towards Lyanna. "Lyanna, did you not eat anything yesterday? I told you to stop doing that," she wrapped up her sister, burying her head in her.

Lyanna wraps her arms around her sister and kisses her on the top of her head. "It's fine; we will just have to find something today. But first, our trade." Finally completing her promise. They looked to be made up of mutable scraps of smaller blankets, finely sewn together.

While Brandon trades, the three quick trade looks, reading each other's eyes. Edric shrugs his shoulder, with Jon nods.

"Would you like to come in for breakfast? We still have a bit of the stew left over."

Jocelyn is quick to waver her hands. "No, that is fine; we don't want to bother you again."

"It's fine. If we did not want to give you food, we would not have said anything. So come in, join us by the fire, and have some food."

Jocelyn and Lyanna give each other a quick look before hunger and the feel from the guys in front of them decide for them.

They enter the house and are hit by the slight warmth of the fire and the rich aroma of the stew despite it being one night old. Edric searches the house for some spare bowls and serves up their new guests.

"Hey, I have become too curious but what happened to this village? I assume that you were a part of it?" Edric asks, passing a bowl to them.

"We are, though we are the last of the village now. Not but two moons back, we lost the last of those who stayed. They headed out into the cold during the night to remove the burden on us. Gertrude and Ethel," she smiled fondly.

"I'm sorry to hear that; they sound like good people,"

"They were. The rest of the village has either passed on as well or they moved from here, seeing if they could find a better life somewhere else. Leaving just my sister and me. But what about you guys? Seems odd for three lads to be heading this way. I would ask if you were looking for a better life, but it seems that you have already found it if you can feed yourselves well and give us meals."

Brandon puts down his bowl. "We're heading north; we are helping the children of the forest to look for what has been causing these problems with the winter, then hopefully stop it or at least report back what it is."

With eyes of skepticism, she looks at Edric before looking at the food finished before her and at the obsidian dagger strapped to the side of his pack next to his bedding.

"And you guys just decided that you want to do this, risk the cold, hunger, loneliness, and dangerous journey?" she asks.

"It was do this or watch our village die of hunger and with what we learned from the children of the forest there was something we could do for our village," Jon explains.

"Something that would fix the village instead of staving off the problem."

"What did you learn." Asks Jocelyn, her eyes sparkling with wonder.

Brandon took out some herbs from his pack. "Just some basic things, fighting, 'medicine' they called it, some tracking and living off the land, but most importantly understanding their rituals. See if we can't find the root of our problems."

She shakes her head. "You lads are crazy."

"Hey, don't be mean, Lyanna."

"I never said there was anything wrong with a little crazy," Lyanna's smile played on her lips.

"So, what about you ladies then, staying here where it seems you are struggling with food, or are you going to move then, find better places to live?" Edric takes over.

Lyanna sits contemplating while Jocelyn sits there waiting for her sister's decision. She contemplates for a while before getting a happy grin.

"How about another trade? We join you guys on your journey, and you give us food. We might be able to help you sort out this entire problem."

"Lyanna, you don't need to do this" Jocelyn starts before Lyanna stares her down. "Jocy we can do some good here, and you get to eat for it. Trust me, okay. Assuming that you guys will want us to join," Lyanna says.

Jocelyn just nods to her sister while the three boys look toward each other.

"Got any skills?" asks Brandon.

"I am quick with knives. I am also a good cook." Lyanna says.

"I have my bow that I use to hunt, that I am not half bad at, that my dad let me use when we hunted together."

Edric scratches his beard. "An extra hunter is always useful, good with spotting and tracking, could be useful for what we are doing, and another pair of eyes never hurt,"

"A cook, that is skilled in knives and tried to chop off a man's balls when we first met. Sounds like there is a joke in there, I just don't know what,"

Brandon shrugs. "Well, food is not as much of an issue, so why not? Welcome to the party, Lyanna, and Jocelyn,"