Page 36 of Stormlost

Ralf also rejoined the group, bringing with him an even stronger reminder of the frigid outside.

‘Good afternoon, wife, Sereh. Arrow is such a fine creature,’ he commented, his back turned on them as he dragged his great cloak from his shoulders and hung it near the peat driven fire to dry.

‘Weather is terrible,’ he chuntered and grunted. ‘As bitter as the Long Night, if I do say so myself. And last night’s winds must have been terrible. There’s snow banked against the eastern side again, almost blocking the doorway.’ They all looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to notice the Librarian in their midst. It was only as Ralf was sitting with a steaming cup of tea between his red, chapped hands that his eyes strayed to the latest addition to their gathering.

‘Well, you’re a sight for sore eyes, Librarian. Now surely you can tell me why it’s still so cold out there. I’ve had to crack the ice over the stream twice today, and it’s not even going dark yet. Tomorrow, it’ll be backbreaking work. Is there anything written in those old musty scripts of yours or have you not even noticed?’ Ralf asked. He looked at the Librarian questioningly. ‘It’s rare to see you on this side of the stairs.’

The Librarian smiled at first, but his expression became wary as Ralf spoke. She was sure that like Emma, he knew more than he was telling them. He glanced at her as if he could hear her thoughts. A small smile stole back across his face.

‘Don’t worry too much about it, Ralf. It’s an inconvenience, but soon the snow will disappear and life can get back to normal. It’s happened before, I’ve checked my records. It’s an anomaly. Don’t fret so much. Surely we have lots of peat in store, and if this isn’t delicious meat in the pottage, then I don’t know what is.’

‘Well, yes, I can’t deny we have vast quantities of peat in store, but Sereh there brought the meat. Her lovely wolf-dog,’ and here he bent down to stroke Arrow between the ears, ‘hunted for it on the way here. It’s a funny thing really. I haven’t seen any hares around here, yet she manages to catch the three plumpest specimens I’ve ever seen. Where did you say you got them again?’

Sereh floundered to remember her lies. A long moment went by.

‘I came via Snaefell, from the Eastern Quarter. I’m not sure exactly where we caught them. I… lost track of all my surroundings out there. In truth, all I could think about was surviving the blizzards and terrible weather to get here and claim sanctuary.’

She looked down at her hands hoping Ralf and Freya wouldn’t notice the heat spreading over her cheeks. She tried to keep her explanation as near to the truth as possible, only missing out the whole escaping from Rankil due to being trapped in the storm when sent to expose Pal. The miracle of finding Erann on Vatna Jokull. Finding her dead friend, Estrith, only to then discover Erann again. Neither did she mention the avalanche that had trapped her and Erann in different places or the flying dragon she’d met. And she certainly didn’t reference her virtual imprisonment within the caverns, although the Librarian had been sent a message by Emma. The thought of Erann once more stabbed at her conscience. She needed to find a moment to speak to the Librarian about him. She’d allowed herself to be distracted by the vellum recording her ancestors name.

When she finally looked up, Ralf had forgotten his query and was engaged in a heated debate with the Librarian about the peat and food supplies. The use of her father’s name brought her abruptly back to the conversation. Ralf was muttering about how they only had so much peat in store because they’d made Hagon cut it so long ago.

‘It must be the driest peat anywhere. Admittedly it’s been drying for well on twenty rotations now. If the weather continues like this, though, we’ll have to think about getting another apprentice. The work’s far too strenuous for me.’

At his words, the Librarian fixed him with a steely eye.

‘I’m fully aware I’ve been remiss in my duties at finding a replacement for myself. But never fear, I’m not about to drop dead at your feet. You can stop worrying about what will become of you if I die. I’ve assured you both you’ll always be taken care of, and I stand by my words. Just like your father before you, Ralf, and his father. Your family gave up much to care for the long line of Librarians. You’ll not be cast out and left to fend for yourself. I’ll go to the next Full Council Meeting or send word of my intent to take a new apprentice. Then you can have the joy of training another in your vision. You might reminisce about Hagon now, but at the time you were wretched with his selection.’

Ralf huffed. ‘Now you might be right there, and now I’m even older to train a new one. Sereh here seems to know what she’s doing. Can’t you break with tradition and train a woman to replace you?’

Sereh was watching the Librarian’s face intently as Ralf spoke. The emotions sweeping across it in a dizzying array made her heart leap. Maybe she and Erann could both come to live and work here when he was found safe and well. That would be perfect. She could learn about the scripts, while Erann helped the Librarian. He could be the next Librarian, as he couldn’t be the next jarl.

‘Ralf, you know the rules. The Librarian must be male. It’s always been that way. Sereh would be welcome to work alongside the new apprentice, but she could never take my place.’ His tone heated, Sereh quickly switched her glance back to him; hope rekindling. She thought it would be good to be trained as her father had been. She’d admired him even though she’d lost him at such a young age. To know the things he’d known would be amazing.

Ralf quickly found a new subject to tirade about.

‘And the shutters need to be repaired. The one was banging all night long. And, I would welcome a new axe.’

‘Come now, Ralf, enough of that. Let the Librarian and Sereh speak. That’s why she’s come here. Have you even asked him yet?’ Freya interjected.

‘Asked me what?’ the Librarian queried, and Sereh almost laughed at the caution in his voice.

‘I’m seeking sanctuary,’ she stated. ‘I’ve managed to escape from the soon-to-be jarl, Rankil. I have, well, I have information to share with the Full Council Meeting, but I need to ensure he can’t take me back to his steading first.’

‘Of course,’ Freya began, but the Librarian quelled her with a look Sereh could only term foreboding.

‘I’ll think about it carefully, Sereh,’ the Librarian mollified. ‘For now, you must stay here. And now, as you’re here, I’d like to tell you about your father. He was not, as I’m sure you’re unaware, always such a sensible individual. Ralf, tell Sereh all about her father.’

Sereh spent the rest of the afternoon listening to tales of her father as a young man, and all the other apprentices Ralf had helped to mould. There seemed to have been a few of them, even accounting for the twenty-rotation gap since then. She laughed and cried at the stories of incompetence and stupidity, watching the Librarian carefully. He joined in the laughter and even added his own stories, but she couldn’t help wondering why her father had been the last in what seemed to be a very long line of apprentices.

As the night wore on, Ralf even took to regaling stories of the apprentices his father and even his father’s father had known. Sereh was left thinking all young men had some strange problem with acting in a sensible manner and understanding how to light fires, dig ice holes and even cook. It made her realise that while she hated Rankil, he’d at least given her a good grounding in how to fend for herself. She doubted any of the boys who’d been trained here in the past would have survived a scant morning outside, let alone the long days she’d managed when escaping.

At some point during the evening, the Librarian stood, yawning.

‘Sereh, come find me in the morning. For now, I must get some sleep. Good night, Freya. Good night, Ralf. Thank you for all you do,’ and he shuffled through the door, and he did shuffle. Sereh noted how his actions were much more like Ralf’s now.

Not long after, her eyes grew heavy and she also retired to her comfortable bed. She thought it would be possible to get used to living here. But then there was Erann.

Her last thoughts were of him. She dreamed of him, only to wake in the deep black of night with tears streaming down her face and her pillow wet to the touch. Despair gripped her afresh and only when Arrow nudged up close to her, her slightly stale breath blowing into her face, did she calm enough to sleep properly again. She schooled herself not to have dreams haunted by the man she loved and missed.