roads where the empress might have sent her forces to recapture Jessmei, so we had stuck to small game trails as our means of travel. We hadn't passed many people during the last two weeks. Just a few trappers who eyed us warily and then continued on their way with only a short word of greeting. The lack of contact was fine with me.
The terrain was rocky and covered with tall evergreens. Spots of the ground were still coated with large chunks of snow that had not melted with the heat of yesterday's sun. The forest carried the scent of sap, ice, and wet needles. There were also hundreds of small streams that we used for fresh water and fishing.
The journey was easy and pleasant since Jessmei was very skilled with conversation. She kept me chatting about my past, what memories I could remember, and what kind of food we were going to feast on when we got back to the castle. It was the same topics she had been talking about since we began our journey but I never seemed to get bored speaking with her.
We had been on the small trail heading south for a little over an hour when we decided to break and enjoy a midday meal. There was a good amount of jerked venison left over, enough for probably three more days, a few fish I smoked, and we had found some wild carrots. We were about to mount our horses again when I smelled the blood coming from Jessmei. Almost as soon as I noticed it, she excused herself to the deeper parts of the woods to tend to her menstruation. She returned after ten minutes and mounted her horse without looking at me.
We rode in silence for another hour.
"Do you want to speak about it?" I asked at last. She looked back at me and sighed, and then her frown turned into a smile.
"Sorry Kaiyer. I did not mean to be so quiet. I was just thinking. Sometimes I get emotional during this time. I realize that this is the simplest solution, but for a few hours today I thought about how beautiful our child would be. I was happy that you weren't opposed to the idea so maybe a part of me wanted, well, do you understand?"
"Of course." I had little experience with handling women's emotions. From what I could remember, Alexia and Shlara didn't want to spend time talking about their feelings. I did understand what it was like to want something that would complicate my life.
The trail took us out of the forest and into a grassy clearing that stretched out for almost twenty miles of gentle hills and dales. To our east in the distance was a steep mountain range that looked like teeth jutting out into the sky. Since we were no longer in the shelter of the trees, a brisk breeze made the grass appear to be a wavy emerald ocean. The path widened a mile down the field and I could see half a dozen plumes of smoke from a grove of pines to our west.
"It looks like a village," I said.
"Should we avoid it?"
"Probably. Let's get closer. It might be nice to get some new food." I tapped my horse forward and Jessmei's followed.
"Food and maybe a bath?" She laughed. "The last bath I took was in the river when you saved me. I feel so grimy. I can't believe that you can stand the smell of me."
"You smell great, like flowers."
"We don't have any money do we?" she said with concern.
"No, perhaps we might be able to trade. But if the village is too big we should avoid it."
The village was composed of thirty dwellings circled by a log and mud wall about chest high. There were many shaggy cows around and I guessed it was a dairy village. A few children were sitting on top of the wall and they waved to us as we approached.
"It’s a good sign that children play freely here. We should go talk to them and see if we can get a bed for the night." She nodded in agreement, I didn't want to deny her any pleasure, and the small village seemed harmless.
A middle aged man emerged from behind the wall and looked at us cautiously. He barked a command and the children scattered off of the wall and into the village.
"Good afternoon strangers. What can I
The terrain was rocky and covered with tall evergreens. Spots of the ground were still coated with large chunks of snow that had not melted with the heat of yesterday's sun. The forest carried the scent of sap, ice, and wet needles. There were also hundreds of small streams that we used for fresh water and fishing.
The journey was easy and pleasant since Jessmei was very skilled with conversation. She kept me chatting about my past, what memories I could remember, and what kind of food we were going to feast on when we got back to the castle. It was the same topics she had been talking about since we began our journey but I never seemed to get bored speaking with her.
We had been on the small trail heading south for a little over an hour when we decided to break and enjoy a midday meal. There was a good amount of jerked venison left over, enough for probably three more days, a few fish I smoked, and we had found some wild carrots. We were about to mount our horses again when I smelled the blood coming from Jessmei. Almost as soon as I noticed it, she excused herself to the deeper parts of the woods to tend to her menstruation. She returned after ten minutes and mounted her horse without looking at me.
We rode in silence for another hour.
"Do you want to speak about it?" I asked at last. She looked back at me and sighed, and then her frown turned into a smile.
"Sorry Kaiyer. I did not mean to be so quiet. I was just thinking. Sometimes I get emotional during this time. I realize that this is the simplest solution, but for a few hours today I thought about how beautiful our child would be. I was happy that you weren't opposed to the idea so maybe a part of me wanted, well, do you understand?"
"Of course." I had little experience with handling women's emotions. From what I could remember, Alexia and Shlara didn't want to spend time talking about their feelings. I did understand what it was like to want something that would complicate my life.
The trail took us out of the forest and into a grassy clearing that stretched out for almost twenty miles of gentle hills and dales. To our east in the distance was a steep mountain range that looked like teeth jutting out into the sky. Since we were no longer in the shelter of the trees, a brisk breeze made the grass appear to be a wavy emerald ocean. The path widened a mile down the field and I could see half a dozen plumes of smoke from a grove of pines to our west.
"It looks like a village," I said.
"Should we avoid it?"
"Probably. Let's get closer. It might be nice to get some new food." I tapped my horse forward and Jessmei's followed.
"Food and maybe a bath?" She laughed. "The last bath I took was in the river when you saved me. I feel so grimy. I can't believe that you can stand the smell of me."
"You smell great, like flowers."
"We don't have any money do we?" she said with concern.
"No, perhaps we might be able to trade. But if the village is too big we should avoid it."
The village was composed of thirty dwellings circled by a log and mud wall about chest high. There were many shaggy cows around and I guessed it was a dairy village. A few children were sitting on top of the wall and they waved to us as we approached.
"It’s a good sign that children play freely here. We should go talk to them and see if we can get a bed for the night." She nodded in agreement, I didn't want to deny her any pleasure, and the small village seemed harmless.
A middle aged man emerged from behind the wall and looked at us cautiously. He barked a command and the children scattered off of the wall and into the village.
"Good afternoon strangers. What can I
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