Я вернулся в деревню

[balancedlight]

Who: Svetlana and Open + a prompt for Fraser
What: Venturing forth and also dealing with April shenanigans!
When: April catch-all!
Where: Milton, then the path up to and including Lakeside. See prompts in post!

Content Warnings: Nothing as of yet; will update!

Comments

[meadqueen]

It's a little bit surprising, such a futuristic thing would be old-fashioned in contemporary Milton.

“It is a strange number to me. The way you mark the years here, at home the year was 874.”

[balancedlight]

"874."

She says it with a hint of alarm, but mostly interest.

"What is life like for you? What do you do? Where do you live? Will you tell me while we walk?"

[meadqueen]

“The oldest you've yet seen,” Randvi says with a wry smile, falling into step next to the other woman. “It's all right to say so.”

Even people who think they're prepared tend to be a bit shocked.

“I grew up in Norway, but I've since travelled to England with an offshoot of the Raven Clan. We built our village in an abandoned war camp on the river Nene and have lived there for two winters.”

[balancedlight]

"You have traveled a long way," she mutters, trying to imagine doing that while not on a plane or a train. She's a little iffy about the distances in Europe, but Russia is a big enough place that she can try and imagine.

"Why did you leave Norway?"

[meadqueen]

“We have. It's a challenging life, but we can live freely.” Randvi’s dreams about life in England had not exactly come true, but it was still better than living as another king’s subject in Norway.

“There is a king in Norway, Harald Fairhair, who intends to unite the entire land under his own banner. Styrbjorn Jarl abdicated to him, and those of us who disagreed with the decision left for England under his son Sigurd.”

[balancedlight]

So many strange words, but she tries her best to keep up, understanding some of them to be titles and the others as names.

"You said you live freely so - so you made the right decision?" she wonders. "Two years later, you made the right choice?"

[meadqueen]

“I don't know.” Being in England with Basim had ignited a strange mania in Sigurd. Randvi had hoped to either settle alongside him or travel together, to get to know him, but instead he had left her behind again. On the other hand, she can't imagine having to live as Harald’s subject in Norway, watching Styrbjorn’s humiliation. “I hope so. The land is… unsettled. Conflict and bandits seem to be everywhere. But our village is a haven to all people, Norse, Saxon, or otherwise. It's a place that I'm proud of.”

[balancedlight]

"So this - a place like this - is familiar to you? People from all over, different places, in an unsettled land. Conflict and - well, I'm not certain that we can call them bandits, but - they are certainly adversarial."

She pauses at her little cabin, opening the door for them both. The fire has been going, providing a bit of warmth through the rooms.

[meadqueen]

Randvi doesn't feel the cold like she used to, thanks to her power, but the warmth of the fire still feels nice.

“A bit. The camp had been used by the Ragnarssons during the invasion to avenge their father's death, so the layout was familiar to us. It had since been ransacked by bandits, so if I can say one thing about this place compared to Ravensthorpe, we got our map in one piece instead of having to piece one together from scraps found in the latrine!”

Those early days really had been a trial.

[balancedlight]

"Scraps in the latrine!"

She shakes her head in disbelief, hiding a giggle behind her hand as she sets water to boil on the fire. "Who was the fortunate one who retrieved them from there?"

[meadqueen]

“My scout Norvid found most of them, but the village blacksmith also encountered one or two.” She smiles fondly. “I laugh as if I didn't have to piece them together. Things were so unsettled when we arrived that we needed to get our bearings quickly.”

[balancedlight]

"How did they end up there?" she wonders, then shakes her head, backing up with a giggle. "No, no. I don't think I want the answer to that."

[meadqueen]

“These bandits were not particularly interested in cartography, it seems!” Randvi can't help but laugh along.

[balancedlight]

"I imagine not!" She raises a hand to her mouth and laughs. "Oh, the smell! I wouldn't want to be around them myself!"

She takes the boiling water from the fireplace, not even thinking as he reaches for the handle of the kettle and pulling away with a hiss. The next time, she reaches for a towel first and then the hot metal.

[meadqueen]

Randvi is laughing too, but gasps when the other woman burns her hand.

“You should put some snow on that before it burns too deeply.”

[balancedlight]

She shakes her head and shows her the palm of her hand. It's red, but not blistered. "Nothing to make a fuss over." She looks down a moment, then pours the water into two cups.

"I am the healer, after all." Said with a sheepish smile.

[meadqueen]

Randvi frowns deeply at the other woman’s palm, but finds her assessment to be correct.

“If you say so. A burn can become putrid so easily, and to lose a hand here…”

Even for someone who doesn't use them to heal it would be terrible.

[balancedlight]

She walks a little closer to her, holding her hand palm up. "It was a silly mistake. See here? It's red, but there are no blisters. I felt it and I can still feel it, so the nerves are still intact and not harmed. It's simply there, on the surface and will fade in a moment."

[meadqueen]

Randvi nods, feeling a little silly at the gentle tone, a frightened child being consoled. Perhaps she's not as far removed from the war as she likes to think.

“I’m still sorry you were hurt on my account.”

[balancedlight]

"No, I appreciate the concern. Especially from a stranger." She returns to her kitchen to make tea. Or rather - something that's like tea. There's not much of it that seems to be left in Milton.

"It's good to see people caring for each other here when we don't know anyone." She hands her the cup.

[meadqueen]

Randvi accepts the cup gratefully, enjoying the warm steam on her face. “Thank you. For my people, hospitality is very important. Taking care of others, whether they belong to you or not. Otherwise none of us will survive.”

[balancedlight]

"Belong to you," she repeats. "I think we should all belong to each other. Because if we don't, then we're left out and - and no one will survive this if they're on their own."

[meadqueen]

“I have a friend who was born in a plague year. She is only alive today because her uncle’s family was willing to shelter them for her birth.” It’s something Randvi thinks of often. “I want all of us to survive.”

[balancedlight]

"I want that, too. I feel - very strongly about it." She wraps her fingers around her cup, just savoring the warmth. "I'm glad I met you, Randvi. I hope we can be friends here."

[meadqueen]

“I am glad to hear it. Both of those things.” Randvi pauses to take a sip of her tea. “I would be honoured to call you my friend.”