Defekt

2: A Grave Decision

     Creaking boards and a thumping on the wall from Ambien woke Moonlitsilver. Her head throbbed and she grunted as she sat up. It was late morning. When had she even fallen asleep again? 

     Oh, right, sometime close to the first crack of dawn. Sometimes she wondered why the rest of the community never came and badgered the little family. Sendra was always sleeping in and mostly only doing work in her own house and occasionally working at the tavern. (and frequenting it with Rico's mother) Ambien...well, he did do work and helped with the harvests, the planting, and especially with delivering special items up to the Lord's manor. Strangely, it was usually absurd amounts of cabbages , milk, and butter that Ambien delivered. 

   Rubbing her head and trying to push the hours-long argument from the previous night out of her mind, she finally stood. Maybe she should just quiet herself and count her blessings? They did have their own house, even if it was more of a shack that was only given by the Keiser to keep Sendra quiet and to stop her demanding the rewards she was promised. 'Ha ha, a token little shack...ha ha...Deux, ha ha...' and sarcasm ran from her brain all over her skull. She reluctantly trudged outside. It was better to get working before Rico had to come get her, even if he was far from the picture of the perfect hardworking peasant boy and instead was the one who got distracted and sat in the lilac bushes most of the day, daydreaming. It earned him many a licking from his mother, but never exactly corrected the behavior. 

     "Oh, here," Ambien's shadow cast over Moonlitsilver and he dumped a bunch of clothes into her arms, "Rico's sisters are out today for somethin, I guess. Here's our little bit of laundry and also all of theirs. Take it down to the river and have it back soon, Rico wants his other pants back as those old patchy ones don't fit him so nicely anymore, and I could sort of use a shirt...my only shirt.. don't want the girls gawking too much, eh?"

  "Keep dreaming, you smell like wet dog all the time," Moonlitsilver jeered, winking at him. Ambien smacked the back of her head with a playful growl.

  "Shut your trap, sis, go do the damn laundry before mom loses another bolt in her head," 

    She chuffed at him but set off. At the river, she began dunking the clothes in and scrubbing them off. Her mind wandered as she did the task. Some of it went back to last night. Some sort of switch had been flipped in her head then. It wasn't like she hadn't thought of revolution before, and it certainly wasn't the first time she dreamed of being the picture of justice and leading people to new freedom and prosperity. The thought wasn't any less idealistic and far fetched, at present. She still was hardly considering the risks and pictured all the struggle and possible bloodshed as the epitome of honor and glory. What if she did do it? Even when she thought she might die, she didn't care too much, and as she said within herself, 'Nobody would really miss me, I'd be out of my misery, and I'd die like a hero in a saga; what have I to lose?'

   The little lynxmaid just had to tell Rico about this. She hurried to finish her chore and deliver the clothing back to its respective owners. 

   "Hey, the neighbors want some help sorting and storing the grain before tomorrow, okay?!" Sendra hollered from the doorway as Moonlitsilver approached.

    "Can't Ambien do it?" 

   "He already is, damnit...just, go do your damn work," she grumbled and hobbled back into the house. 

   Sighing in exasperation, Moonlitsilver turned and obeyed...

....well, sort of.

     Quick pawsteps caught up to her and a flash of bright red fur caught her eye. 

    "Hey, hey!! Moonlitsilver!!" It was Rico, who fell into his usual easy stride next to her, "You being sent out to help with storing everything, too?"