Claymore and Dagger (closed)

[KieranSoares]

"We follow," Brogan murmured. In the past when Sam's anger grew too great, one of his uncles or Brogan would take him out to the practice rings near the barracks and they'd spar until they finally worked out Sam's anger at the cost of a few bruises. "He'll need his Ma when we're done." Brogan looked to Julia and took her hand. "Maybe bring a first aid kit, jus' in case."

 

[heartofcourage]

Julia sighed and took her husband's hand, squeezing it and nodding as he told her that they would follow him. "His heart is broken and he's too stubborn for us to help him. I don't want him to be hurt, so please go easy on him."

 

[KieranSoares]

"A few bruises, love. If I know Sam at all... He needs t'get tha' energy out before 'e'll talk about anythin'." Brogan kissed her cheek and they headed out toward the barracks.

They found Sam with Kennah, breaking training lances on a target with every pass. Being a knight as well as a General, Sam was well-versed in jousting and took part often in tournaments and often came out among the top five. With Kennah's speed, the lances shattered almost every time, practicing more for war than sport.

"Samuel!" Brogan called, making his son raise his lance and pass up a target. Brogan stepped over to a rack of training blades, taking two claymore-style wooden swords. "Come on."

"I told you I don' want t'talk, before or after startin'," Sam growled, throwing aside the lance.

"Kennah. C'mere, love," Brogan called, and the drake approached despite Sam trying to direct her away. As an intelligent creature, she understood that her keeper needed help. Brogan took her by the bridle and Sam finally dismounted and took a sword.

"Fine... But if I win, y'leave me th' hell alone," Sam growled, and Brogan acted unfazed.

"An' if I win, you talk t'yer mother a' the very least." Brogan let Kennah go and the two men stepped out to the open ring. Sam readied himself with impeccable form while Brogan seemed far more comfortable with his stance and blade. Even if Sam was an expert in many weapons, no one could beat Brogan with a Claymore, and only Kate surpassed him in a few other areas like fencing and archery.

The first clash of the wooden blades was loud, and Sam paid for his anger and recklessness with a strike on his side from Brogan right off the bat.

 

[heartofcourage]

Julia stood to the side of the arena, watching as her husband got Sam into action, promising him that he would leave him alone if Sam won. Kenneh came to her side, pressing her maw under her arm. The poor drake was confused. Her master was upset and her love even more so. Roman could still be heard calling for Fiona in the paddock just beyond the horse stables, his mournful cries filling the air.

"It's alright, Kennah." Julia murmured, stroking her fingers through the drake's fine hair. "Everything will be alright."

 

[KieranSoares]

Kennah eventually laid down beside Julia, watching her keeper worriedly as he failed time and time again to hit or block Brogan. For every one hit Sam landed, Brogan seemed to land five. "Yer gettin' careless, lad," Brogan warned him as they pulled apart to circle one another. "Either fight me like I trained ya, or don' fight at all." He needed to egg Sam on to exhaust him, and Sam fell for it. He came in for a slash, and Brogan parried it before landing a lunge into Sam's gut, and disarming him in one smooth stroke. Sam fell on his back on the ground, dazed but not finished as he rolled to the side and snatched his blade to strike at Brogan's side. Brogan took the hit with only a grunt, and gave back three times what he'd received over the next minute until Sam grew desperate to avoid the losing condition. It only sealed his defeat as he grew fatigued, and Brogan disarmed him again and caught him in a headlock.

Sam struggled hard, until his parents saw his strength give out and Brogan let him go. Sam dropped to his hands and knees in the dust, trying fruitlessly to hide tears as he was forced to face his thoughts and heartbreak over Fiona, knowing he had to tell his parents now.

 

[heartofcourage]

Julia knew that doing this would hurt Brogan just as much as it hurt Sam. Their son was too stubborn for his own good, a trait that she had tried her hardest to rid him of. It was also something that made him an incredible leader. It was also now tearing him apart from the inside as he thought about the woman that he loved.

Julia left Kennah's side, making her way towards Sam as he knelt in the dirt, his face covered in tears as he tried so hard to hide from everyone. Crouching down next to him, she gently ran her fingers through his short hair, trying to comfort him.

"Love is a messy game, Samuel." Julia said softly. "Trust me on that. You love Fiona more than anything else in this world and everyone can see that. I don't what happened, but when I saw her this morning, I felt real fear. I'm not losing you to this, love."

 

[KieranSoares]

"What'd I do wrong...?" Sam muttered through the tears he was trying so hard and failing to control. "I tried t'treat 'er well... I..."

"Sam..." Brogan knelt beside him and laid an arm across his back. "What happened?"

"I thought she was in trouble... I tried t'help, but I found 'er with tha' Wolf... I thought fer a second that 'e was takin' advantage o' her, but... She was there of 'er own accord..."

 

[heartofcourage]

"You did nothing wrong, Sam." Julia said as she finally sat in the dirt next to her son, pressing her forehead against his own as he cried.

When he told them what happened, Julia let out a long sigh. The thieves had always operated with their own code of honor. It didn't matter if Fiona loved Sam, if she had thought that she was saving him from heartache, she would have done anything for him. How many times had she told those young women that they didn't need to use their bodies to repay debts?

"Sam, I don't know what else to say." Julia said softly, kissing his cheek gently. "Except that your Da and I know what you're going through."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Gods, I wouldn' even listen to 'er..." Sam whispered, leaning heavily against his mother, regretting most of all that he hadn't even talked to her. Perhaps there was a good reason, as much as his logical mind wanted to insist there was never a good reason for sleeping with another man. And then his cynicism told him he was foolish thinking he was her one and only, though his heart didn't want to listen. He felt like he was being ripped apart on the inside.

 

[heartofcourage]

"You're a stubborn fool sometimes. Like your Da." Julia murmured as Sam leaned heavily against her, her arms wrapping around his broad shoulders and holding him tightly. "You've been dealing with the thieves and the smugglers in this town since you were 16 on your first patrol. You know that they will rarely ask for help. Did you really think that Fiona would be any different, love? She loved you dearly and she saw a way to end that portion of her life."

Julia leaned back and took Sam's cheeks in her hands, looking into his green eyes. "When I first came to Inverness, I was very young. Only just 18. Your Da and I didn't have the best relationship. I was so incredibly lonely and scared of the future. I made the same mistake that Fiona did and your Da caught us together. It wasn't easy. There are still some days that I'm filled with so much guilt that I don't know how I'll get past it. But we both decided that we were worth fighting for."

 

[KieranSoares]

Sam wrapped his arms around his mother in return as she told him her story, and Brogan added quietly, almost shamefully, "I banished 'em when I found out... Might've killed my best friend if not fer yer mother. But when I lost 'im only hours later in battle... I went t'get yer Ma back. We wanted it t'work out... An' t'this day I still feel like it was my fault, because I'd been so rough on yer Ma."

Sam finally, slowly picked himself up. "I... I'm jus' gonna go t'bed." He looked exhausted emotionally and physically, and he couldn't think straight.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Alright, love." Julia said softly as Sam picked himself up from the dirt, exhausted physically and emotionally. "Just give it some thought, Sam. Remember all be good times and the bad times too. She's a lovely person who cares about you and she made a poor choice. Is that enough to throw it all away?"

She kissed Sam's brow and took Brogan's hand again, watching as their son shuffled off. Walking past the paddock, Roman spotted Sam and started ramming his head against the wooden fence to get attention, calling to him in an anguished tone. He would cause himself physical damage if that's what it took.

 

[KieranSoares]

Sam paused as he heard Roman, and Julia saw a very rare emotion cross her normally-stoic son's face- pity. Sam climbed over the fence to take Roman's head in his hands, speaking to him quietly, trying to assure him that Fiona hadn't abandoned him.

Brogan came to wrap an arm about Julia's waist, watching the rather heartbreaking scene of their depressed son and a worried drake trying to calm down together.

 

[heartofcourage]

Roman growled, pushing at Sam with his maw as Sam tried to assure him that Fiona would be coming back. The drake was incredibly worried and had been since he had seen Fiona leaving with Invah that morning. He kept pushing Sam towards the paddock fence, his large front paws tearing at the special lock that had been installed to keep clever fingers from freeing the free roaming animals. The threat was clear. He would follow after Fiona if given the chance.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Roman..." Sam sighed, "she'll come back..." When Roman wouldn't give up, Sam whistled for Kennah, who came up to the fence and nuzzled Roman between the boards. But seeing his distress, she looked to Sam to fix it.

Sam finally took Roman by one horn, making the drake pay attention. "Listen..." He murmured. "Be patient... It's gonna be a long boat ride. You behave. Th' sailors'll 'ave my permission t'throw you overboard otherwise." He finally unlocked and opened the gate, leading Roman toward the stables to pick up his tack.

"Sam?" Brogan called after him. "What're you doin', lad?"

"Sendin' Roman t'Kjersten... She'll get 'im where 'e needs t'go."

"Tha's not a good idea, lad... There ain' many people who know 'ow t'handle drakes between 'ere an' Sweden."

Sam paused at that, the drakes in either side of him. Finally he looked back as if defeated. "Then I guess I'm goin' t'Sweden..." He didn't dare risk the health of any drake with those who were not familiar with them, especially not Roman or Kennah.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Sam. Give yourself some time to rest and think. Roman will calm down in a few days. There's no need to run off right this instance." Julia said, a little concerned for her son's well being as he guided Roman towards the stables.

 

[KieranSoares]

"He won't. I know 'e'll try t'follow, an' 'e'll end up drowning tryin' t'cross th' sea. If only fer his sake, I can a' least get 'im t'Sweden... Migh' spend some time in Norway after..." Sam returned to kiss her cheek. "I can rest as well on a ship as layin' around th' keep."

"Much as I want t'agree with yer mother, lad... I think some time away from Inverness might do you some good," Brogan murmured.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I worry about you, Samuel, but you're a grown man. I can't keep you here if that's what you really want to do." Julia said as Roman nudged Sam in the side impatiently.

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'll send a letter when I land in Trondheim," Sam assured her quietly before nudging Roman back toward the barns. The next ship to Norway would be leaving that evening, so Sam spent the wait making sure there was plenty of room for Kennah and Roman below decks, and that there would be room for them to move on the upper deck. They would be able to swim on the way too, being fast enough to keep up on days that weren't too windy.

 

[heartofcourage]

Fiona slept for what seemed like ages. When she woke, it was dark, a small pile of cooked fish lying next to her. Her stomach was still in knots and she wasn't sure that she could choke them down. Instead, she sat up, looking around at the scenery around them. The water glistened in the moonlight. It was absolutely beautiful. Like something her grandfather might have described in poetic words that always seemed to allude her.

"Where are we?" Fiona asked of Invah.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Only about an hour or two from the Norwegian coast," Invah murmured. Fiona could see Invah's powerful muscles shifting beneath her scales, propelling them along the surface of the water. She had landed in the water to eat, managing not to jar Fiona awake, and she occasionally ducked her head under the water to snatch up a large fish that was unaware of the great dragon as she was so silently and smoothly gliding through the water. Her wings were folded on either side of Fiona, protecting her from the occasional spray of water from small waves.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I didn't mean to sleep so long." Fiona said softly, rubbing her eyes and drawing her cloak a little tighter around her shoulders.

 

[KieranSoares]

"You can sleep all you like on the journey, my love. I slept quite a bit too." Invah lifted her head to glance back. "I hope it did you some good."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Not really." Fiona admitted as she looked out over the ocean. "My heart still hurts and I feel miserable. I don't think it will ever stop hurting."

 

[KieranSoares]

"Only time will tell," Invah murmured before letting her head dip back into the water, her neck as much of a rudder as her tail. There were few words for such broken hearts and Invah knew it well. All she could offer was the security of a mother figure and love of her own.