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Claymore and Dagger (closed)

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"I suppose I can ask around for something." Fiona said as Will pulled the steed to a stop. "How do you like him?"

She smiled at the excitement in his eyes. She had never seen Will so hopeful about anything before and she had known him for a long time. She had found Will in the woods one day when he was no older than five. He had run away from a terrible situation, something that he had never told her the truth behind. She never asked as it seemed to bring up bad memories. She took care of him, often going without food herself when times were very tough, and he would come and go as he pleased. He always seemed to come back to her, however.
 
"He's perfect," Will told her, already clearly attached to the horse. His many 'borrowings' of other people's horses had served to make him a competent rider by experience rather than teaching.

"Well, he's all yours. Just make sure you find a stable for him. If you take care of it yourself, all you'll need to pay for is the feed and bales." David opened up the corral and Will looked to Fiona.

"If I can enlist with the rangers, they'll give me an advance pay for a stable." Will had done his homework on the subject, ever since he first saw the impressive form of Ciaran Ghis on the back of a great walker in his dark cloak with his bow across his back, leading a group of equally impressive rangers and foresters.
 
"Well, how about you ride out to the garrison and see if you can sign up for training. I'll meet you at the town square at dusk." Fiona said, knowing that she still wasn't done for the day. She had plans for what coin was left over.

When Will rode his horse out to meet with the garrison and Fiona had thanked David for his troubles, she made her way towards the bakery. She knew that she wasn't welcome but there was something that she had to ask about. When she pushed open the door to the bakery, the smells of warm bread instantly filled her nose. It was warm and welcoming.

The little boy that she had startled the day before peeked out from behind the counter to see who had entered. He immediately ducked back behind the counter and scurried back into the bake house.

"Da! Da!" He called, pulling on Aleister's apron. "She's back. The woman is back."
 
Aleister rose from stoking the fire under an oven when Lynn raced in, and he stalked out of the bakehouse to face Fiona with that one hard, fiery eye. She knew the stories about what he used to be, and how much a force to be reckoned with that he still was. But seeing Fiona standing out in the open, not trying to sneak around, he let his grip on the hatchet on his belt loosen.

"Can I help you?" He half-growled, not sure of her intentions. She hadn't succeeded in stealing from him, and he'd heard she had escaped, though word hadn't reached him about her pardon yet. Still, Aleister wasn't the kind of man to hold a harmless person hostage til guards came to arrest her, so he kept his distance.
 
"I don't want trouble." Fiona murmured as she saw the fiery look in Aleister's eye. "I have a pardon from the prison if you would like to see it."

She reached into her pocket and offered him the scrap of paper that she had been given to prove that she wasn't in trouble any longer.

"I'm sorry about scaring your boy." She said softly. "I was hoping to find some stale loaves of bread. I didn't expect him to be here."
 
Aleister took the paper and read it over quickly, and he visibly relaxed. Reading that she was pardoned as part of the reward for turning in a known, effective assassin, made Aleister anything but vicious. He was still a quiet fellow, but never unkind to most. Handing back the paper, he crossed his arms comfortably, a clear sign that he wasn't bothered. "Y'didn' so much scare 'im as make 'im worried about th'locks an' 'is Ma. But no harm done... yer clearly no' too bad if y'turned in a man li' Kerrigan."
 
"I'm here about the home you have for rent." She said, knowing that since they had added on to the bakery and made more room for Aleister's family, the cabin that Kayla had owned was used for rent. "I have most of the payment in coin right now. I will work for the rest, though."
 
Aleister didn't answer for a long moment, reaching up to stroke his beard in thought. He knew it might bring him some bad reputation for letting a former thief rent from him, but he also had never turned away an honest person, which was what Fiona had just proven herself to be.

"How are you going to work off the rest?" Aleister asked her before giving her an answer.
 
"The lad that will be living with me is joining the Rangers right now. That will help. I intend to try and find employment myself. I was told that Mrs. Aoli is looking for help in the were village." She told him, suddenly worried that he wouldn't let her rent the cabin.

She glanced over his shoulder as she saw Lynndon watching them from around the corner of the door frame. A woman's voice called to him from upstairs and soon, he was scurrying up the wooden stairs to answer his mother's call.
 
"Awful long way to walk for work every day," Aleister told her, but she could see a bit of empathy in his dark eye now. "Tell you what, lass... Y'can stay a' th'place til y'find a job. If it's too far away, I know some people who'll rent t'you in the villages. Yer friend'll have a horse, so distance ain' such a bother. But unless you get one too, y'really ought t'live close t'yer workplace. Sound alright?"
 
"I don't take charity. I intend to pay for that house." Fiona said, the stubborn streak that she was known for coming through as Aleister offered to let her stay there until she found employment. "I'll make do with whatever I can. If I have to walk all the way to the village and back every day, then I will."
 
"I didn't say free," Aleister said with a tiny hint of a smile at her stubborn insistence. "I jus' won' charge ya fer a whole month til I'm sure ye'll stay tha' long. We'll start with a day t'see if y'can get tha' job."
 
"I guess I can agree to that." Fiona said with a nod. "Only until I find a job though."

"Al." Came a woman's voice as the stairs squeaked beneath her feet. "Love, lunch is ready."

Kayla saw her husband talking to the blonde woman in the front of the bakery and paused for a long moment. She knew that woman was Fiona Blackstone, especially after Lynndon had told her that the woman had come back to talk to Aleister. She was heavily pregnant with their second child, but she still worked just as hard as she always had.
 
"I'll be righ' there, love," Aleister said softly to his wife, his fire always calming in her presence. He pulled a keyring from his belt and gave Fiona a simple iron key inscribed with a G on the ring, then he pulled out a second copy of it. "Give one t'yer friend. Rent's fifteen silvers a day fer now. If y'need anythin' fixed 'r seen to, jus' let me know."
 
"I'll pay at the end of every week." Fiona said as she took the key from Aleister and slipped it into her pocket. "Thank you. I promise that you won't regret this."

Fiona nodded to both of them and left the bakery. Kayla moved to her husband's side and watched the girl go through the front windows. She seemed to be in good spirits, but she wondered what made her husband trust the girl after she had tried to steal from them the day before.

"You're renting her the cabin?" Kayla asked, glancing up at her husband as her hand rested on her swollen belly.
 
"Mhm," he rumbled, drawing her against his side and kissing her cheek. "She turned in Morgan Kerrigan. Rho pardoned 'er as part o' the bounty. She's a good sort, jus' stuck in a bad place."
 
"Lynn is worried to death." Kayla said as he pulled her against his side and kissed her cheek sweetly. "He insisted he needed to stay with Jamie when I came down to get you. Jamie has been sleeping next to the fire since breakfast and I told him that he didn't have to be his brother's keeper. He insists that he has to make sure that Jamie is safe."
 
"He's jus' scared for 'im since 'e 'ad tha' bad fever an since 'e's always been so little. He doesn' understand tha' Jamie's strong an' healthier'n ever. An' a scare like a break-in'll make Lynn even more careful. But it's alright. I'd rather 'ave 'im be overprotective than fight all th'time like most siblings."
 
Kayla smiled up at her husband as he found a way to explain the situation that made her feel better. She kissed his cheek just as she heard Jamie fussing from upstairs. Her son was always cranky when he first woke.

"Mama! Jamie's awake!" Lynn called down the stairs.

"Did you wake him up?" Kayla called back, knowing that when Lynn had to pause to consider the answer that he more than likely had.

"No." Lynn called back and Kayla chuckled, looping her arm through her husband's as they walked towards the stairs.

"Lord help us for having another." She said softly. "We may have truly lost our minds, Al."
 
Aleister made his way up and picked up Jamie out of his cradle. "Shh, lad," he murmured, cradling the boy close against his chest. With Kayla so overwhelmed by their children so often, Aleister had always been an attentive father even when he was busy, bringing the boys with him to do little tasks or pick things up to give Kayla a break or a chance to do other things.
 
"He was sound asleep when I walked downstairs. Did you wake him up, love?" Kayla asked as Lynndon looked so guilty. "He needs sleep to make him big and strong, Lynndon Gale MacNamara. You need to leave him be."

Kayla kissed Lynndon's forehead to lessen the blow before she turned to dish up their lunch of rabbit and rice. Once the boys were settled and Aleister had his share, she sat down with a happy smile on her face. Her family was important to her and she was happy to see everyone flourishing. Jamie had been small from birth, but at 2 years old, he was doing better than he had in his early days. They were lucky, safe and happy in their little home.

Fiona stood in the middle of the market, where she had told Will to meet her when he was done, looking around her at everything she could see. She had enough money in her pocket to buy supplies, frivolous things if she wished, but she found herself feel anxious. What if the money didn't last? She was afraid of finding herself back out on the streets, forced to steal to survive.
 
Will didn't take long to return, and his success was immediately apparent by the huge grin on his face and the dark green cloak he now wore, and the paper clutched in his hand. "Fiona!" He called, hurrying toward her and leading Volgern along. "Look!" He gave her the paper, and it was his signed contract to begin training. If he passed Ciaran Ghis' courses and met expectations, he'd be awarded with the title of ranger, a standard-issue set of leather armor, a bow, and other tools and items in a saddle pack along with a sword that would most likely come from the expert keep blacksmiths.
 
"You'll have to work hard. Ciaran Ghis only takes the best." Fiona said with a smile as she looked into Will's excited eyes. "You need to listen and be respectful to everyone. You'll be just fine."

She ruffled his shaggy hair and looked around the square for a moment. "We need to buy some supplies before we head to our new home."

She glanced at Will with a smile of her own on her face as she showed him the extra key. "Just for the time being, but if we both work hard, we can stay there for a long time. We need to be careful with our money."
 
Will was absolutely shocked again by what Fiona had been up to. "I promise I'll save up everything I can." He'd always been careful of what little money he'd ever had, never buying anything other than supplies or clothes.
 
"Let's get some food and you some new shoes and pants." Fiona said as she wrapped her arm around Will's thin shoulders. "I told you that I would take care of you, right? Tomorrow, we'll ride your house out to my camp and get the rest of my supplies and then I need to talk to Mrs. Aoli about a job."
 
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