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Two Weeks Later
THE NATION OF MARLEY WAS LARGE. Its lands were a decent mixture of compact cities, bustling with hundreds upon thousands of people, and the hill-warped countryside, the grasslands stretching past the horizon into forests tall and grand. Adrien remembered the first time he was allowed to venture into Liberio with his father and brother. It had been a stark contrast to the lush wilderness he'd grown up in where the closest neighbouring house was an hour away by horseback and even longer on foot. The city was scary for a young boy who'd never left home before. Everywhere they went, Adrien had clung to Willy's side like his lifeline, terrified that the moment he let go he'd get swept up in the crowds.
Once he'd gotten used to the fast pace of living in an urban region⸺and after his father told him to toughen up⸺he grew accustomed to the lifestyle. It wasn't nearly as quiet as his home nor did it have the earthy smell that Adrien adored because it reminded him of rolling around in the grass with his siblings, but he liked it all the same. Their visit ended almost as soon as it had begun, his father's business concluded in less than a fortnight. And, truthfully, Adrien had been glad to return home. He recounted his adventures with the children of other nobles to Lara at dinner the night they arrived at home. But there was always a part of him that yearned to be in the city square, taking in the sights and sounds like a man deprived of his freedom for the first many years of his life. He was never again scared of Liberio. When given the chance he bore it as his second home. Ridiculous as that sounded.
The journey between Tybur Manor and the first city of Marley was half a day. The trip was long and gruelling, the roads curving through rocky terrains that often cost them a wheel or two. Adrien always tried to sleep through the entirety of the ride, but the rocking of the cart was too violent to lull even the deepest of sleepers into a peaceful slumber. It didn't help that he somehow always ended up being alone in the quintet of cars his brother took on every visit that was done as a family. He'd never bothered to consider how it worked out that way. (Willy rides with his wife and three of his children⸺all his boys. Their parents have a car to themselves, and Fine and Adalia invade Lara's car. Adrien is then left to his own devices).
"What are you thinking about?"
Alone, and left to his own devices...with Kieran.
Kieran Dahlvig had been Adrien's sparring partner since he was fifteen. A foriegn orphan from a country neighbouring Marley, Kieran was the youngest member of the Tybur's personal guard at twenty years old. He was only two years older than Adrien and had joined when he was sixteen. Willy had been apprehensive about it at first, but he allowed it after the Commander of the guard offered to take Kieran under his wing. By doing so, he was essentially raising Kieran, seeing as he had no other means for parentage.
