Dragonsoul

Chapter 8

The ride to the village center felt short to Leonie though, in reality, the distance was much larger than her sadness allowed her to see. The fact that she would have to sell her father's horse, his companion and friend, weighed heavily on her young heart. It was another part of her father that she was losing. The worst thing about it was that she had no control in the matter, it was as inevitable as the rain.

It was obvious that they needed supplies for the winter and to get them, they needed the money, money they did not have at that moment. Selling the horse was the most obvious choice since no one besides her father had any use of the horse. It was harsh, but it was the truth.

Even though she loved riding the horse, there were no other ways in which they could use it except for the enjoyment of a long ride. However, Twin village wasn't a place where one could afford to do anything for pleasure's sake. There were too many things that had to be done to barely survive, their focus had to be on welcoming another spring in good health. They couldn't afford to enjoy long rides through the forest.

Once she entered the village, Leonie proceeded to the market place. As it was crowded, she had to climb off the horse and slowly walk it around the people. It was a slow and tedious process, but Leonie didn't mind since it gave her a few more precious moments with White Wind, their precious horse.

He was twitchy and obviously uncomfortable, but still, he followed Leonie's guiding hand with utmost trust that made her feel even worse about what had to be done. Although she had promised herself she would not shed any more tears, after all she had been through worse pain than that, just a day before, those treacherous little mischiefs came running from her eyes and gathering around her mouth.

To add to her misery, every man of slightly larger stature resembled her father, to her pain worn eyes. She saw him in everyone and everything. It was the strangest thing ever. It would appear to her that the person had exactly the same physical appearance as her father. Once they would turn around, she would notice that they were in no way similar to him.

Sometimes, even the face of a random person on the street, resembled her father's until her eyes stopped seeing what they wished to see and saw the truth. Until they saw that there was no similarity between that random person and her father. Every time the realization hit her, it was like being stabbed with a knife straight into her heart. 

Still, she could not allow herself to fall apart. Her mother was relying on her. She needed to do everything in her power to make sure that the rest of her family survived. Leonie was determined to do so by doing even more than what her mother had asked of her.

With firm resolve, Leonie wiped away her tears with the end of her sleeve and continued leading White Wind towards the main part of the marketplace which was reserved for animal sales. While she went on, she kept making soothing noises to calm both the horse and her own sorrow-filled heart.

Sorrow was relentless. It shackled her heart and no matter how much she tried, Leonie could find no release. The only solution was to accept the sorrow as part of who she was and move past it, with it. It was the only thing she was able to do for the time being.

As soon as she reached the right place, people surrounded her, asking about the price of the horse and its age. However, most of them knew her, knew the horse. She assumed they just felt more comfortable following the routine, doing what was expected of them. 

If it were any other child out there, selling a horse, it would have been considered strange, some might have even thought taking advantage of a young and inexperienced child, but not her. They had enough respect for who her father was to never even think of blemishing his memory like that. Besides, they were aware that young though Leonie was, she was much more experienced in sales than any of their own children.

She had spent many a day with her father in the same marketplace exchanging meat of the hunted animals for other goods they needed. Sometimes they even sold eggs or sheep that their small farm managed to produce. She grew up in the market, and no one could deny her skills and merits.

Having that in mind, her task was accomplished much sooner than she expected, or wanted. Leonie was in no way ready to say goodbye to White Wind, to her friend. He had been with her since she could remember, and it was horrible for her to realize that two souls that were always by her side were gone. They would never again be by her side, and it was difficult for her to face that fact.

With her head hung low Leonie started slow and arduous walk home. It was not the physical exertion that made it so troublesome for her, but the heavy burden on her heart. She got more than enough money for White Wind, but money could not buy her happiness. It could not chase away the pain or bring her father back, but at least it could make sure that the rest of her family did not leave her. 

Once she got home, even before she went inside the house, she went into the stables to check on her dragon friend, the only friend she had left. He was the only light, besides her family, in the darkness that seemed to surround her every step and she had to make sure that the little guy was okay.

Looking inside the stables, she noticed the dragon sleeping on the bale of hay peacefully snoring. It was such a peaceful image that Leonie did her best to leave quietly so as not to wake up the little guy. After the emotional turmoil he had gone through because of her, she felt he deserved to rest undisturbed. 

Instead of bothering the tired out dragon, Leonie proceeded into the house to give her mother the good news, to tell her that they got more money for White Wind than either of them expected. After all, his reputation as a reliable horse with a sure-footed walk, made him desirable among Hunters. Moreover, some Hunters could afford to be generous towards the families of the ones who had lost their lives doing the job that was much more dangerous than regular people assumed.

"Mother! I am back!" Leonie yelled out the moment she stepped into the house.

Before her mother had the chance to say anything, Nald came out running towards her. He hugged her so tightly that it felt to Leonie like hugging someone you had not seen in ages not someone you had not seen for a few hours. Still, after what happened to their father, Leonie could understand why he felt so worried about her when she was away.

"Well, hello to you, too. You know, I do need to breathe, so maybe don't squeeze me so tightly." Leonie said.

As she said that, Nald quickly let her go but still had a look of someone who had seen a pixie for the first time ever, the experience Leonie knew was a wonder in itself. It felt as if for Nald seeing her unharmed was on the same level as that.

"You are back sooner than I expected. Did everything go well?" Amitola asked.

"Yes, it was really quick. White Wind is famous among the hunters so it was an easy sell and we got more money than I expected we would." Leonie said.

She tried to make her voice business-like, but she could not stop it from shaking when talking about her dear friend as if he were just a thing to be used to earn money. It was unfair, but necessary and she had learned that long ago. Still, she was yet to find a way to deal with that truth of life.

"I am so sorry, my dear," Amitola said.

There was compassion in her voice and the warmth of love that only a mother could offer. It was like a healing herb to Leonie's gaping wound, exactly what she needed at that very moment.

"You must know that if I thought, even for a second that they would show me the same amount of respect and admiration as I am sure they did to you, I would have gone myself. But you know as well as I do that they have much more respect for the children of the Hunters', the ones that share the same powerful blood than they do for their wives." Amitola said.

There was sadness in her voice that she tried to control. She needed to be strong for her children, but sometimes being strong felt like being a small pebble fighting a huge wave, an impossibility.

"Nald, can you go fetch some firewood. I need a moment alone with your sister." Amitola said.

The boy was gone in a blink of an eye, happy that he could avoid what he assumed would be a girl talk. He wasn't ready for more of that. Bringing firewood sounded much better.

"My dear, Leonie, I think it's about time I tell you a few things that you need to know," Amitola said.