Chương 100: 99: Back Home

Colin and I made it back to the homestead just before dark. On the ride back I let him test out his skills and regale me with some of his training stories. I still didn't know what his plan was, but I sincerely hoped it didn't involve leaving with the squad if they were sent after the goblins. Tieg seemed to be the kind of person who felt jumping off the deep end with no ability to swim was the best way to make sure you went far in this world, so I doubted he'd say no if Colin asked.

I hadn't been able to meet with Woolsy while we were in town, but if push came to shove, I'd try to lean on him to send Colin to Riverton. After we took the saddles and tack off the horses, we rubbed them down, then made sure they had plenty of oats and water. When we got inside, a majority of the homestead's inhabitants were hanging out around the tables, talking and enjoying each other's company. I saw Emily standing with her group of ladies around the island in the kitchen, so I made my way over.

"Hey dear, looks like a festive time," I said. She smiled and gave me a peck on the cheek before she spoke.

"Indeed. I felt that it would be good for morale. We should do this more often."

"Indeed," I said.

"How are Laeth and Seamus?" She smiled at the question.

"Seamus is asleep. Lorcan said he's fully healed, but he will not wake until morning. Laeth is in our bed still for one more night. He woke up just a few hours ago. I was about to take some food up to him. If you want to take it up to him instead, that would be great."

"Sure," I said. My heart sped up a bit at the thought of how the talk might go.

"I'll do that. Maybe you should talk to Colin. He got his Scout class. He's already level 14." She looked over to where he was sitting at the table and smiled. Then her smile turned brittle. No doubt she was worried about him leaving with Tieg.

"Perhaps," was all she said. She handed me a bowl of stew and some bread, along with a large glass of cold milk. She gave me another peck on the cheek, then I steeled myself for the talk to come. When I got to the top of the stairs, I could see that the door to our room was ajar. I yelled in to Laeth.

"Can I come in? I have food." Laeth yelled back, "Come in, sir." I turned my back to the door and pushed my way in. When I turned around, I could see Laeth sitting up in bed. He had a tan leather patch covering his left eye. My face fell, and I immediately stammered out, "Laeth, I'm so, so sorry! We didn't properly protect you when you were on our homestead! What would your dad say to me now?" Laeth looked stunned.

"Sir, if my dad saw me now, he'd tell me I deserved this because I wasn't strong enough to stop it. Sir, this could have happened anywhere. It certainly isn't your fault."

"First off, quit calling me sir. You can call me John. Or Mr Jacobsen. Even so, you almost died." Laeth laughed.

"You're not wrong. I still can't believe it was that damned billy goat who saved me. Well him and Seamus. I guess Seamus dragged me into his forge." He sighed, "Sir, and I'm going to keep calling you sir. If you say you feel bad about my eye, then just let me keep doing what I'm doing out here. I'm healed up now. Minus the eye. Lorcan says there's nothing that can be fixed that's still wrong with me. I'll be healthy enough to work in another day or two."

"Alright," I said.

"Do you plan to stay with us? I'll let you out of your contract if you'd rather leave." Laeth looked up in alarm.

"No! Sir, I just said I want to stay and learn to be a proper homesteader. I still want a homestead of my own."

"Alright. In that case, take these." I handed him the Farmhand and Butcher class scrolls.

"I consider these compensation for your lost eye. I'll hear no argument from you." I said that last part quickly, as I could see he was about to protest.

"Take them," I said.

"Now let's get some food in you." I grabbed the tray and took the cloth off the top of the bowl of stew. I could smell the carrots and celery as the steam wafted off the hearty barley stew. I handed Laeth the tray, which he took gratefully. Once it was situated, I handed him the large glass of milk. I asked him if he wanted me to stay while he ate, but he said he was still pretty tired from the healing. He wanted to eat, then go back to sleep. You might be reading a pirated copy.

Look for the official release to support the author. I patted him on the leg, then made my way back downstairs. I saw my farmhands sitting with their wives, minus Sean of course, so I made my way to them next. I sat down and asked how they were all doing. They said they were fine. I gave them the same option to head to town for safety, but they all said they were staying.

"Alright then. Stephen, here's a Farmhand scroll for you." After I handed Stephen the scroll, I said to them both, "Assuming things go well the rest of this year, I'll be asking the bishop to request that the two of you get homestead slots. I'd like for you to both consider getting plots close to me here. I'll help out with the tractor if you do. If you don't get a slot, I'll give you loans for a piece of land if you want that." The two men and Tess looked stunned.

When none of them spoke right away, I chuckled and said, "I don't need an answer right now. We have all year for the three of you to make a choice." Next, I looked at Zack and Anna. I pulled my Craftsman scroll out of my bag.

"This is for you. It's yours free and clear, but same thing. I'd like you to consider staying out here. I know you're supposed to have a master for at least a few years. There's a man who should be here in a few weeks. I don't know anything about him or his wife. But you can learn from him." All five people sitting at the table looked stunned. I felt my cheeks redden. I looked at Anna and Tess and said, "Ladies. I apologize. I didn't even think about classes for you two.

Let Emily know what supporting classes you want. I'll see what we can do about getting them for you." That left everyone slack-jawed. I felt incredibly awkward, so I excused myself and got up. I was nervous about this last conversation, but it needed to happen. Colin was still sitting with the squad and Rupert, so I went and sat across from him.

"Gentlemen," I said.

"I'm gonna ask a couple of uncomfortable questions." Across from me, Colin let out an audible groan and lowered his head. I almost laughed since his hair didn't cover his face now that he always wore it tied back. Instead, I turned to Tieg.

"I assume Colin mentioned why we have groups of goblins about, and what it means moving forward?" Always spare with his words, Tieg simply nodded.

"Good." I took a breath to settle my nerves, then continued on.

"If you all are called out to a mission across the Barrier Mountains, I'd ask that you don't consider taking Colin with you." Colin jumped up and yelled out, "Hey! That's not fair!" Now I had the eyes of everyone in the room on me. I looked over at Emily and I could see her looking at me with concern written plain on her face. I smiled weakly at her, then continued on in as calm a voice as I could muster.

"Despite his eagerness, he's too far behind you all in levels, and experience. I know levels are power, and power provides safety. But there's gotta be some limits." Tieg still watched me calmly. The silence went on long enough that I wasn't sure if he was going to respond at all. Finally, he nodded and said, "I agree." That took me aback. I wasn't sure if he agreed that it was too much, or that he would do as I asked. Colin apparently had similar thoughts.

Despite his obvious attempts at imitating Tieg, a hint of a whine bled into his voice.

"But sir, I'm willing to learn, and you all have said I'm doing a good job. I'm a man, I shouldn't kept back just because John asked you to." Tieg's eyebrows raised at that. Mick and Cathan quickly muffled laughs. Tieg, as calm as ever, said, "This has nothing to do with John's request. If we are asked to go across the mountains, we would never endanger someone who needs more experience and levels. If we are not called away, I would still ask you to train with us. I will make the request of the proper authorities."

That wasn't what I wanted to hear, not fully. But it was better than I feared. I nodded, then looked at Rupert.

"I got my scroll. You need to spend some more time with me to make sure we're actually getting me where I need to be as a Wizard. Frankly, I don't think you've been as involved as you could be as a teacher." Rupert smiled sheepishly at me and nodded. I gave Rupert a small nod, then stood up.

"Thank you gentlemen. I won't take up any more of your time." Emily was giving me a, let's talk look, so I started making my way over to ask her to go upstairs with me when I heard scratching at the door, followed by a faint barking noise. One I recognized as coming from Buck or Spot. I turned around and walked over to the door. When I opened it up, I was greeted to the sight of Buck and Spot, both holding two baby rabbits apiece in their mouths.

Both rabbits looked as if they were doing fine, and all four of the little kits appeared healthy. Two of them were one hundred percent pitch black. The other two mirrored their mothers in appearance. I stepped back and opened the door fully, and both rabbits hopped inside. They each gently set their kits on the floor in front of me, then looked up at me with pride in their eyes. They looked just as proud at birthing their babies as they did when they killed a predator and showed it to me.

I bent down and asked, "Is it okay if I pick one up?" They both chuffed at me, then nosed their kits closer to me. I couldn't help myself. I started laughing and crying at the same time. I picked up all four of the kits and snuggled them in my arms. I turned around and said, "Look everybody! New babies, and they're adorable!" ———————————————— Female Herd Leader mammals are known to present their firstborn offspring to their owners to show that they've achieved their job in successfully procreating.

Dwarven Rabbits in particular are known for this behavior. Should their owners reject their offspring for any reason, they will eat them and be ready to go into heat again soon after. It is therefore of vital importance to take this "ritual" seriously. You must show that you are taking the process seriously and give the baby animal a thorough looking over. Excerpt from Animal Husbandry by Sir Frederick Douglass. This book is available in the Albion Trade Guild Store.

When purchased, it will be available as a tab on any agricultural related Almanac.