This fine Sunday, I dare you to imagine how much of a TIRED DAD™ face Halt must have had after getting to know Alyss and Cassandra fought a giant man-eating tiger with nothing but a wooden plank and a sling.
TW: blood, death of a minor, mentions of rape/sexual assault, violence
Cassandra sorted through the mail that had just been delivered to her suite. It was mostly invitations, a couple letters from ladies she viewed more as acquaintances than friends, and at the bottom of the pile, a blank envelope. Cassandra turned it around but it was blank on both sides. No return address, it hadn’t even been addresses to her. Cassandra frowned, how it the mail carrier even know to deliver it to her? She ran the sharp blade of her letter opener over the edge of the envelope and pulled out the letter.
As her eyes scanned the page, she couldn’t help but let out a sudden yelp. Instantly Horace was at her side. He had been just outside her room, speaking to one of the footmen. Cassandra’s hands shook. Her grip on the letter tightened as she collapsed into the chair.
“What? What is it Cassie?” Horace kneeled beside her, his hand on her arm, alarm rising in his voice. But she hardly noticed him. She couldn’t stop staring at the letter.
Because her name is written at the top of the page. And there was a loop at the top of the C.
Cassandra
I need your help.
Come to the Salted Dog tavern in Eisel with Horace as soon as you can. Come in disguise and ask for Daniel Carey. I’ll explain everything when you arrive. Don’t tell a single ranger, including Crowley. Not even Halt.
I trust you Evanlyn, I hope you can still trust me.
1 Week Earlier:
“Dan! Daniel!” Someone was standing above him and shouting.
Will stirred as a boot kicked into his ribs. It could have been harder, but it certainly wasn’t soft.
“What is it now?” Will groaned.
“There’s an issue upstairs that needs your attention. Room 3.” The old innkeeper, Thomas, barked.
“I worked all night, and the day before. Get Miles to deal with it. Let me sleep.”
“Miles is too green for this one. If I send him he’ll keep you up with all his whining.”
That caught Will’s attention. Miles wasn’t that new. He could handle most of the problems that came up in and around “The Salt” as the tavern was locally known.
“What haven’t I trained him for?” Will had already sat up and started to tug on a shirt.
“A dead kid.”
The words should have hurt. They should have cut Will to the bone. They should have made his chest tighten. Five years ago they would have.
Will sighed. “He’s seen a dead kid before. Six months ago remember? The boy by the river.” The boy by the river. Will knew the boy’s name. He knew almost all of the names of the bodies he found, but he didn’t bother using them. What was the point? Corpses don’t care if you use their names anymore than they care where you buried them. Will did his best to bury the memories of them as soon as they were in the ground.
“This is different.”
Will rolled his eyes. Miles was coddled. Will knew it was mainly his fault, he had shielded the boy from too much for too long. He was 18 now, far too old for Will to still have to old his hand through every mess they had to clean up.
“Fine but he’s coming with me. He needs to learn.”
“Do what you want, just take care of it, I need the room clear before this evening.” Was all Thomas said before he left the closet Will called a room.
Will finished buttoning his shirt and pulled on his boots. Before leaving his room he packed his few possessions into a tight bundle. Then he used his saxe knife to pry up on of the floor boards and stowed the roll under the floor. There was no lock on the door and Will knew from experience that if you weren’t careful, you could lose everything you’ve got in an instant.
He made his way out to the stable behind the inn and found Miles. He was laying on a bed of hay, a quill and notebook in his hands. Will didn’t need to see the pages to know what he was doing. Will had been teaching Miles to read and write and while the boy was a slow learner, he was a diligent student. Miles practiced his reading and writing every chance he got. For a single heartbeat, Will wondered if he should leave him be. If he should take care of the body upstairs and protect Miles from whatever horrors were waiting for him. But as quickly was the thought appeared, it faded. Miles had to learn, just like Will had.
“Miles,” He called out, “Come with me, we’ve got a job to take care of upstairs.”
Miles’ head shot up. “You were out all night Daniel. I can take care of it.”
“We are doing this one together. Let’s go.”
Miles followed Will inside and up the narrow staircase. Will opened the third door and took in the scene.
“Oh god.” Miles chokes out behind him.
“If you’re going to be sick don’t do it in here.” Will says. He walks forward and crouches down next to the body. It’s a girl, no older than 14, and there is blood everywhere. The floor is slick with it. The sheets of the bed are stained red. It’s splattered on the walls and if he were to look up, Will is certain he’d see it on the ceiling. The girl’s clothes were torn and her skirts pushed up to her waist. Will clenches his jaw and pulls them down. Even the dead deserved a modicum of dignity.
“Miles.” He calls. When he doesn’t get a response he turns his head. Miles is still in the doorway. His face is ghost white and even from across the room Will can see that he is shaking. “Miles!” He says louder.
His eyes snap away from the girl and meet Will’s, “How, how could someone do this?” His voice is weak.
“There are many terrible people who do many terrible things in this world Miles.”
“She’s a child.”
“Do you think that matters to the type of monster who would do this sort of thing? Her age is most likely why this was done to her.”
Miles was speechless and Will couldn’t blame him. Even after all of his training as a ranger and the 5 brutal years since he left the corps, Will was still nauseated by what was in front of him. Not by the body or the blood, he had grown used to the stench of iron and decay, but by the story the scene told. Miles was horrified by what he saw, Will by what they hadn’t seen.
“Miles, go ask Thomas who rented this room last night. Get the name if he has it, but focus more on what the man looked like. If the girl was with him or if he was alone.” Miles was glad to left the room and quickly followed Will’s instructions.
Standing up, Will paced around the room slowly, searching for any sign of the man, or men, who did this. The man no doubt gave a false name, if he gave one at all. He wasn’t expecting much from Thomas, the innkeeper had a reputation of turning a blind eye to the unsavory types who rented his rooms, but he wanted to give Miles a reason to leave. Thomas was right, this was too much for someone as young and as gentle hearted as Miles.
Will’s boot caught on something tacky on the floor. Will glanced down, but it wasn’t blood like he had been expecting. Swiping at the substance with his hand, he sniffed his fingers. It was tree sap. But not just any sap. It was Copal. And that fact made Will feel sicker than the bloody body that was still in the room with him. Because there was only one area in the fief that Copal trees grew.
“Thomas said it was a short man with a beard in a black cloak and he was alone. He wouldn’t say anything other than that.” Miles had returned. Normally that information would be next to useless. It was minimal and vague. But if you combined those few details with the Copal sap, Will was almost certain he knew who was in the room the night before.
“I need to send a letter. Can you start cleaning or do you need to wait for me?”
“I can clean up.”
“Be honest Miles. Don’t agree to something you can’t manage.”
Miles swallowed, “I can clean the sheets and walls, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to touch the girl.”
“That’s fine, I’ll take care of her when I return.”
Will left and went to the post master’s office where he quickly scribbled out a note. He made arrangements with one of the carriers, paying extra to make sure that the blank envelope arrived in the correct hands.
“I’ll see you soon Evanlyn.” He whispered to himself before heading back to the tavern.
I’m currently deep in RA writer’s block so I won’t finish this for a hot minute, might as well share a snippet of a fic that I was working on:
Will stands on the quay, wrapped in a thick woolen jacket. The cold wind bites his skin as he looks over Wolfwind, Erak Starfollower’s wolfship, the same one that brought him and Evanlyn - Cassandra, he corrects himself mentally - to Skandia almost a year ago. He still remembers the chilly wind, the feelings of dread during a storm, the cold sea water that splashed onto the deck during the storms, the time they almost drowned, tied to a mast so they wouldn’t fall into the dark blue coloured ocean.
While he doesn’t remember the majority of his stay in Skandia, and the memories that he has are accompanied by fear, cold and more fear, he remembers the journey.
And that’s why he’s reluctant to board the ship now. The ship that will get him home again. The ship that will carry him away from the hellish place that is Hallasholm. Away from the yard where he had to serve as a slave.
“Will, what’s the matter?” Cassandra calls at him, already safely on board. She doesn’t seem to have many problems being on the wolfship, but Will sees how her skin is deathly white, the only hint that she doesn’t feel as safe as she looks. He doesn’t blame her.
Forcing in a deep breath, he steps onto the plank to board. It’s wet and slippery and he shivers.
Just a baby Cassandra doodle to brighten up your day. I got a new art program and I’m loving it, so feel free to send requests! I’ll be sketching all day
In which Cassandra, Crown Princess of Araluen is dressed in period accurate clothing for the period which Ranger’s Apprentice might have taken place.
Angel did a lot of research for this, and decided that with the floating timeline that John puts in place, a 12th century (1100s CE) look was most appropriate. That being said, a lot of our knowledge of Early Antiquity looks and medieval clothing is based in artwork that could have been heavily altered, since few clothing items have survived. We do know that layers were a must, and that married women wore their hair up and under a cover both for modesty and cleanliness. This is one of Angel’s favorite topics, so there will be more historical costuming coming in July after prompt month!!
In which two children, far too young, endure a vicious storm while tied to a Skandian wolfship. Little did they know, it would only get worse from here.
