Medieval Thing

Chapter two

Arwin Hickory groaned and rubbed her forehead as she sat on the wooden, knee-high garden wall around a strawberry patch in the palace yard.

In a week, it would be twelve years, to the day, since her home, village, and family were destroyed, and her memories had been coming back from where she had vanished them to. Sometimes they came back in waves and she would break down and collapse, sometimes remembering her family, other times it would just be an incredibly clear memory, like sitting in a tree and getting soaked in a rainstorm just so she could practice shooting without standing, from seeing someone cry. The red rose vine that had climbed up the walls, from seeing a daisy. Stuff like that.

Lately it had been a lot worse.

She heard the pattering of rain and thought it was another flashback, until she realised it was feet.

* * * * *

Tommy had asked person after person if they knew where she was, until he had eventually found someone who could tell him, then he ran through the yard, small legs pumping hard, finally seeing her sitting by the strawberries.

"Scout!" he called,"Scout, I need you. I need your help."

Arwin, usually called Scout, due to being a scout, raised her eyebrow, waiting for him to continue.

"Scout, it's Oddie," he said, trying hard not to cry, "he took Cookies and–" he stopped, desperately fighting back the crying, trying not to make a price look like a baby, but suddenly that changed.

"Why would you need me?" she snapped.

Tommy started at her in shock, his tears suddenly coming to a stop. The words had surprised even her, and as she looked into Prince Thomas's big dark eyes, she could see he was really very worried, so she slid down off the strawberry patch wall and knelt in front of him.

"What did Oddie do?" she asked, putting her hands on her knees.

Tommy, wondering if he should go to someone who was a bit less grumpy, looked her carefully up and down.

She wore her fawn coloured hair in a bun, with a red hair tie, as usual, and she wore the red stud earrings that she always wore. Scout, Tommy thought, never, ever changed, and was still wearing her blue 'underneath-armour', and the same knee-high, red-topped, black boots with the red octopuses that she was wearing weeks ago.

The only usual thing that she was not wearing were her now and arrows, the weapon she was best (and better than anyone else) at using.

He looked at her face, and could see that, despite how grumpy she usually was, she did actually want to help him, so he told her what happened.

* * * * *

Scout ran through the palace to the armoury, grabbed a bow, two quivers, just in case, and a sword, then ran to the stables, and, sliding the sword into the saddle sheath, jumped onto her white-splotched brown horse.

Knowing Oddie, she guessed he would be heading to the scorched out plain called The Dragons' Battle Field where there had been several wildfires lately.

* * * * *

Ottokar rode Cookies quietly over the scorched ground puffing small clouds of dust and ashes with each step.

Cookies whinnied quietly, and Ottokar reached down to give his neck a reassuring pat.

"Come on, boy. Nearly there."

They stopped in the shelter of a large rock, and Oddie slipped himself down, bringing with him the sword and shield.

Before leaving, he stroked a hand down Cookies nose and told him to stay; then he walked around the rock and set off in the direction of the green and yellow mottled dragon head that he could see in the distance.