The Founding of Rumble.

Chapter 24: Leeanne's past comes back.

Chapter 24: Leeanne's past comes back.

A month later they returned to the capital, Jayda had let Leeanne know about Ivor's chest during the winter with the clan, she had been in no rush to get it however she knew eventually she would have to take that chest off Matt's hands. Leeanne snuggled into Cait's body, the big book of medicine Jayda had lent her, was in her lap and she was diligently reading. Since becoming a War Horse her diagnostic skill had risen to eight and she was hoping that one of the Gods would pick her to be an apostle however she didn't think she would be picked, after all she was a nine tail, a divine being and one with a purpose even though she had no territory.

Matt walked into the room and plonked a desk chest on the sitting table and expertly flicked a sealed letter to Cait. "There, my promise to Ivor kept." He walked over to the bar and poured himself a quarter measure of honey mead and watered it down.

Leeanne closed her book and it vanished into her item box, the desk chest went in as well and she walked off to go through the box in private. Cait let her go, she opened her letter and read it, she glanced up stairs when she finished reading.

"Was it rough?" Matt asked, he knew he was dredging up pain that Cait might not want to broach, however Leeanne was his friend, he wished that he could have been there for her, helped her through her grief.

Cait sighed, resigned to rehashing the pain, "Yeah, she really spiralled there. When we got her she raged for a bit, then for about a week, she was just broken." Tears formed in Cait's eyes Leeanne had basically been fading away. "Astra managed to snap her out of it, basically told her is this is what Ivor would have wanted. After that Leeanne was just angry and so, we had her take her anger out on monsters, on training. Jayda took a while to thump the instinctual fighting out of her and improve her skills and to get her to start thinking again."

"How long did it take?" He asked before he took a sip of his mead.

"A good three months before her grief was worn down enough to even consider the next step." Cait explained.

Matt frowned for a moment before he sat. "The next step being," he tapped under his left eye to indicate the change in Leeanne's eye.

"Yes and no, she was at the point where she needed to be alone, to sort out her thoughts. We weren't so concerned with her running off and getting killed at that point. We went hunting Hydra and left Leeanne in a safe place, probably a good thing considering we came across a unique six headed hydra. It would have wiped Bailey off the map if Jayda hadn't killed it and like the Blade Ant Bear, it was not an easy fight."

"A 6 headed Hydra?" Matt questioned alarmed.

Cait nodded, "Yeah, vicious fight, delicious meat. Anyway, when we came back to collect Leeanne, she was a Wildling."

"A powerful one," Matt remarked, like Jayda he felt almost nothing from Leeanne, it meant she was good at masking like the other War Horses.

"Yeah, she'll tell you," Cait answered.

"Still, I am glad you were in her life, without you, Leeanne would probably be dead right now." Matt told her and Cait gave him a small smile.

"Still wish he hadn't died though." Cait told him and Matt nodded.

"So, Dark Elf piercings?" He had noticed them in both women's ears.

"Yeah, Fal is pretty insistent." Cait touched her left ear, "It started with a clan cuff then she started giving us milestone rings," her fingers found her pair ring, "Then Leeanne and I were paired, by both Barbarians and Dark Elves standards."

Matt frowned, "I didn't see a pair necklace."

"Yeah, it was a combined ceremony, Fal, Dalla and Zo figured it out and decided to use a piercing instead of a pair necklace, less bulky things around our necks." Cait explained as she pointed to one of the rings with a charm hanging from it.