The Stone of Shadows

3. The Pines

At the crack of dawn, Alexandra and Kurt set off on the long journey. The two said their goodbyes to Bjor the night before, Kurt with tears, and Alexandra granting the thanks that she would give to an innkeeper for letting her stay the night. They went on their way. Kurt carried the map, the tent, and his food; Alexandra carried her things, leaving behind the tattered dress and taking an overcoat that Bjor spared, along with clothes from his deceased wife. The clothes, oddly, fit Alexandra well both in size and style. She recognized the costume to be Elvish in aesthetic, mostly dark in color, decorated in nicely lined swirls. But Alexandra couldn't ponder on the story of Bjor's wife at the moment, since the journey ahead was treacherous, and she had to keep her eyes on the path.

The sun was thawing the icy ground. The pines couldn't shield off all the sun, leaving paths of light stretching in odd directions. Though everything on the ground was dead, the light seemed to show a sign that spring would show itself sooner than later. The first few miles of their trek were met with silence. The two did not speak to each other, nor did the pine forest offer any obstacle. It was at this time, Kurt decided to start a conversation.

"So... you're from Mirewood?" he said. "I heard it was a marshy place... wouldn't live there myself."

"It is not all marsh," said Alexandra, speaking towards the empty path ahead.. "There are forests and mountains too. I live in the mountains."

"Mountains? How tall?"

"Very tall. And quite beautiful too. Same with the marshes. Actually," said Alexandra. "I'd say our swamps are prettier than your mountains."

"Prettier than... you must be joking."

"But I'm not. We wouldn't call it Mirewood otherwise. Just as the name of your country reflects her greatest attribute, the same goes for ours. If you weren't so close minded you'd understand."

"I am not close minded!"

"It's not your fault. You've never left your home... I could tell by the way you said goodbye."

"And wouldn't you do the same with your home? Isn't that why you're going back?"

Alexandra stopped in place. Kurt slid to a halt, seeing what he had done. She looked down at the snow. "Look, I understand you're expecting an award from this, so if you want a higher payment for your services, I prefer we didn't go into the details as to why I want to go home. Understood?"

Kurt, shaken by her coldness, nodded his head. She said nothing, and continued on the snowy path.

There were many miles afterward that were clouded with silence, miles where Kurt paid more attention to the change in landscape, the rising hills, the clouded notches blanketed by snow. It was all different to him, and for Alexandra, it was only a landscape. Her attention was only attuned to returning home, and everything in between was either a path or an obstacle. But after many days, the bare mountains stood only hundreds of miles away, in eyes' sight from the pines. Alexandra was amazed by the red hills, covered by white thawing snow. The sun grew warmer as they journeyed, encouraging both of them to take off their overcoats. Kurt noticed a winter flower creeping out of the snow, it's petals closed. He crouched before it, the melting frost glimmering around it. "Spring is coming," he said, excited. "It'll arrive when we hit the mountains."

Alexandra looked up, the sun warming her skin. She looked ahead to see something in the distance. An Orc, trudging through the snow, a rabbit slung over his shoulder. Alexandra patted Kurt's back to gain his attention. She pointed to the Orc. Kurt looked at him, less expressive about the man. "So?"

"There must be a town nearby if he's here."

Kurt stood up, and walked forward to the Orc. "Let's go ask then."