Iron Rations

Yule Connor- Lyall Hound

I didn't know what made me say it. But I answered honestly. "I recognized you by your-by your eyes." As I said it, I stared at the tall boy straight in the...eyes. His eyes seemed unchanged, as silver and young as 5 years ago.

For a few moments, we didn't talk, just staring at each other's faces, hardly believing we just met each other for the second time.

Admittedly, the night after I was found by the boy, I had been thinking of him. As I lied on my bed, I wondered things about him. What is his name? How did he find me? Are his eyes really silver? Yeah, I wondered that too.

"Rum! Rum from the western isles, get them here!"

The rowdy voice of a man snapped us back to our senses.

"So... I decided to begin slowly. "What's your name?" I flashed a friendly smile.

The boy didn't seem sure whether he should smile back. Then I realized he didn't seem like the kind of person who'd smile at everyone.

"Hound," he replied. "Lyall Hound."

"Lyall..." I said the name slowly. Then I realized his eyes were trained on my face. I turned back to him. "Calliope Connor. Though most people call my Yule. Not that I like it," I blabbered. "I think it's just one of the nicknames you get stuck with after you've done something. Yule is-"

"Yule..." Somehow, I relished the way how he said my name.  He didn't say in the hard, careless tone most folks would use. Instead, he pronounced carefully, as though testing the syllables if they fitted in his voice.

He was quiet for a while so I tried to distract him. "So...where's your falcon?"

"Shiv?" despite the way he said the name, I noticed his expression seemed to lighten at the word, and somehow, I got the idea the falcon was not just a pet to him. "I left her at home."

Something about his tone made me sure he and falcon were almost like reflections of each other. Like the falcon was Lyall's soul.

"You're shivering."

The bare concern in his voice made me see him in a different view. He must've realized the change in his voice too, because when he spoke, he resumed his quiet, I'm-a-loner-so-I-shouldn't-be-talking-to-you voice. "Don't have a coat?"

When I shook my head, I shivered more violently. It was getting cold and the people around us were starting to put on jackets.

Lyall seemed to argue with himself in his quiet way, and then he removed the fox pelt around his shoulders. Then he extended it towards me. I accepted it, surprised, draping it over my shoulders. I instantly felt warmth and the fur tickled my neck. The pelt felt like a scarf.

When I met Lyall's eyes, he was trying to avoid my eyes. At first, I was confused then I put the pieces together: he wasn't used to human contact. I should've realized it earlier. The quiet tone he used when talking, the way he talked about his falcon as though she was the only person he'd ever known, how he merely handed me the pelt as though trying to avoid touching me. If I were smarter, I would have realized it earlier and became more careful talking with him.

"Feeling better?"

I nodded and for a second, I met the eyes of a jealous-looking trader holding a glass bottle of clear liquid. He was eyeing the pelt hungrily.

Lyall realized I was looking at someone over his shoulder and he glanced back. When he turned back to me, there was a small smile on his face. "Don't mind him. He's just jealous of the pelt. He wanted to trade with me a while ago."

I turned red and tried removing the pelt. "I'm sorry! I shoulda realized you're trading! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I-"

His gaze made me close my mouth.

"It's yours now," he said. "As a sort of reunion gift." He smiled a genuine smile which I couldn't help but return. Then I remembered the herbs. I pulled them out of my pocket, and extended them to him. "Take it. My reunion gift to you."

He raised an eyebrow. "It's like we just traded."

"This is gift-giving, not trading," I said, grabbing his hand, moving away his fingers, and thrusting the herbs to him.

He still looked as though he wanted to argue, but then, he closed his mouth and simply nodded. "Thank you."

I grinned back at him. "Don't mention it."

For a few seconds, we resumed another one of those staring moments, and I started to feel uneasy. Lyall sensed it after a while and he cleared his throat.

"Better be going," he said, rubbing his head sheepishly. "It was nice seeing you again, Yule."

He disappeared into the thick crowd of traders before I could even say my own good-bye.

When I got home, it was afternoon. The gentle drift of snow this morning had turned to a blizzard, and I was glad I had the fox pelt for comfort. Then I realized this is the second time Lyall saved me from the cold.

As I put down the bottle of milk beside the door, there was the rapid sound of footsteps and when I looked up, I saw James in front of the kitchen door. I avoided his piercing gaze and considered him for a few moments. He was still wearing his jacket, and his skin is flushed from the cold. His fingers are stained with ink from the printing press.

He raised an eyebrow. "Whoa, where'd you get that pelt?"

My cheeks burned as I replied, "a good friend gave it to me."

"A girl?" James asked.

"A boy," I replied quietly, avoiding his gaze.

For a few seconds, he looked at me like I'm on drugs then a grin appeared on his face. "I can't believe that my twin sister is all grown up!" he wiped an invisible tear from his eye jokingly. "Is he spending time here tonight?"

The quip earned him a slap on the arm from my good hand as I passed him to go into the kitchen. "I barely know him."

"Well what is his name?" James asked, rubbing his cheek. His voice is no longer in its usual joking tone. Now it sounded overprotective. Though I would've teased him about the sudden change in his voice, it's not like it'll do me any good. Somehow, James likes to keep track of every male person I meet.

"Lyall Hound," I said quietly. I opened one cabinet and saw the kettle containing my bath water. It's a disappointment it turned cold again. I lit a fire and began to reheat the water.

"Lyall Hound?" said James, sitting down on the kitchen table. "Isn't that bird boy?"

"I guess so," I replied. "He has a falcon. I think her name's Shiv."

James nodded before handing me a paper bag. I gave him a confused look.

"It's for lunch," said James. I grinned at him before opening the paper bag and I pulled out a huge loaf of bread. The crust was crisp and fresh, and I could smell sugar and raisins.

"It'll go well with milk," James said with a huge smile.

I gave my brother hug before telling him sternly, "get off the table or you're going to leave a mark there."

James laughed, before settling down on one chair. "Get a knife!" he said impatiently, drumming his fingers on the table wood. "I'm starvin' here!"

"Get the milk first," I shot back with a smile. "It's by the door."

As James went out to get the milk, I got a knife and settled down on a chair oppsoite my brother's. As I began to cut the bread, I remembered the fox pelt is still around my shoulders. When I took it off, I suddenly wondered what Lyall is doing right now.