“That’ll be fifteen coppers a week to keep ‘em both here, sir,” a man speaks to Gabriel. He’s rather portly, with grey thinning hair and a scraggly beard. His rags have been patched up many times and they are stained with spirits know what. Worst of all is the fact that he smells of whiskey. I hate alcohol, especially the smell. This man’s body odor may make me gag…
Gabriel seems to put up with it though, keeping a straight, professional face. He fiddles with a loose string on his shirt sleeve while he listens to the stable hand speak. Without looking up, he says, “That’s fine. I can afford it.”
The stable hand gives him a once-over and says, “I’m sure you can.” No doubt Gabriel’s fine clothes scream that he’s nobility. Or maybe it’s his clean blonde hair and well-shaven face. He eyes the stable hand when he holds out his hand, indicating for Gabriel to hand over the coin.
He digs his hand into his coin purse and plops fifteen coppers into the stable hand’s palm. The man counts them up twice, as he lost track while counting the first time, and spills the money into a jar on a table. “Thank ye, sir. We’ll take good care of ‘em.”
Gabriel nods and pushes the stable doors open to the world outside. Dragon’s Maw. What a marvelous city. Everything here, though made of coppery colored wood, is elegant in its own way. No two buildings on this street are alike. They each have their own detailed carvings etched into their siding. They are like fingerprints, setting them apart from each other.
The cobblestones on the street lay in perfect rows, as if someone took the time to make sure they all lay perfectly straight. Wooden carts pulled by large work horses rattle down the street, accompanied by busy workers. I spy a several smithies and armories, ready to serve the city’s knights. The bustling street leads up to a towering fortress.
Oh, it's big. The building is like a castle made of sturdy grey stone. The tall turrets and spires on the fortress's outer corners seem to touch the sky. I wonder what it's like to stand up inside one of them? I might get dizzy looking at the world below from such a height. There's a large iron gate spanning the building's entrance, and it's propped wide open. Though the fortress is big and formidable, the gates seem to be like open arms welcoming back the knights. That’s probably where they eat, sleep, and train. That’s where Gabriel and Séaryne are going.
“I have to admit, it feels good to be back,” she says as Gabriel leaves the stables. She is leaning against the wall, tapping her foot against the pavement. Their luggage rests beside her feet, ready to be carried off.
“It sure does. How long has it been? A month? It feels like much longer,” Gabriel responds, hefting up his bags and slinging them over his shoulder.
“It’s a shame that we get a spring break,” Séaryne replies while following suit.
Gabriel laughs as he starts to walk up the street. I follow them up the road to the mighty fortress that Dragon’s Maw is known for. As we get closer, I see young recruits battering up training dummies as they get in some practice before classes. The courtyard is filled with the rucksack dummies. Red targets are painted on their chests. Some even have arrows protruding from their inner circles.
Together they step through the wide open front gate into the main hall. There’s even more people in here. I can tell they’re mostly returning knights, catching up with their friends and getting reacquainted with their surroundings. Coppery colored braziers holding burning wood line the walls, lighting up the shadow darkened room. There are plenty of benches in the area, made for a room with a large number of people. A desk of sorts is situated in the center of the room.
Gabriel and Séaryne make their way over to this desk, lugging their belongings with them. The receptionist stares up at them and smiles when she recognizes their faces.
“Well, if it isn’t my two favorite knights. How are you two?” she says as she scribbles something down into a record book.
“Things couldn’t be better. You?” Séaryne replies, sounding happy.
“Fine, fine." She scans a piece of parchment sprawled out on the desk, her index finger tracing down the paper.
When she spots what she's looking for, she continues,"Alright, Gabe, you’re in room fifty-four. I take it you know where the men’s dormitories are now,” the receptionist says in a light-hearted tone. He nods with a pleasant smile. Did he get lost his first time here, I wonder?
“And Séaryne, you’re in room twenty on the ladies’ side. You two know this place inside out, so I doubt you have any questions, yes?”
“Yes, we’re fine,” Gabriel replies.
“Alright, here are your room keys, and you’re all set. Welcome back!” she finishes as she hands them two clean silver keys.
They say their thank-yous and step back into the lobby. Almost out of nowhere, two boys come running at Séaryne, shouting her name with stupid grins on their faces.
She drops her bags and collides with them in a merry group hug filled with smiles and laughter. One of them tousles her hair and says, “I missed ya, sis! How ya been?” Gabriel stands a few steps behind them, nearly falling over as they almost trample him.
Séaryne laughs, patting down her now frizzy hair. “I’m well, Al. Don’t let mother hear you speak like that. She’ll have a fit!”
“You been spendin’ too much time with the old lady. She’ll have you in petticoats before you can blink!” Alain replies mid-laughter. He’s taller than his sister, but maybe that’s because he’s older. He has short, shaggy brunette hair and those same deep sapphire blue eyes.
“It’s too bad we won’t be able to train with you this month, Séaryne. I wish they hadn’t scheduled our breaks separately this year,” her other brother speaks. I assume this is Dashiell, then. His hair is longer and well combed. Unlike Alain, he speaks properly and seems more mild-mannered. I think they may be twins, as their faces are the exact same. It’s like I’m seeing two versions of the same person in one space.
“What’s one month? I’m sure I’ll learn well enough without you,” she replies.
“’Course you will. You got Gabe,” Alain says, saying Gabriel’s name in a very feminine falsetto.
Séaryne elbows him in the side, hard enough to make him wince. Gabriel laughs, though his face turns a bit red. I wonder how awkward things will get for them during their training? I bet the boys will tease her to no end.
“I apologize, you two. You know how he is,” Dashiell comments, holding back his own laughter.
“Yeah, I mean who’d a thought our tough little sis would be getting married? To a real man like you Gabe. I thought I’d never see the day,” Alain continues, backing away from his sister, lest she hit him again. He reminds me a bit of Rory, always teasing and joking around.
“Now now, we’re not here to embarrass them. We’re taking our sister out to dinner before we leave, remember? We’ve got quite a bit of catching up to do,” Dashiell says, as though he were a teacher calming down a class of wild students.
“Dash is right. You boys have to tell me everything that’s happened while I was away,” Séaryne agrees.
“Right then. Go put your stuff away and we'll see ya in a bit, sis. We'll meet ya down here. Oh, and nice to see ya again, Gabe. How 'bout we cross blades in the field again later?” Alain says.
"Wouldn't miss it," Gabriel says, accepting Alain's challenge. It's good to see that they get along well.
"Sweet! See ya later then, too!" The two boys wave their farewell when he finishes speaking. They disappear into the crowd of knights, mingling with other old friends.
Séaryne sighs, watching her brothers leave. “Well then, I better go put all this away before Dash starts lecturing me about tardiness. See you tomorrow at practice,” she says, lifting her bags into her arms.
"Let's see if I remember the way to my room this time," Gabriel replies with a chuckle.
"Ha! Yes, don't get lost again. I won't let you forget it if you do." They part ways, heading in opposite directions to their rooms.
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A/N: Alright, so theme #22 was 'copper'. Once again, I chose to write it out literally. So, you got your copper coins, and your copper-ish color scheme.
Please comment and thanks for reading! :D