Post by Alsivor on Sept 28, 2008 19:35:09 GMT -8
The camp was breaking up, more and more Caminar leaving by the day. Silvio sat on top of Aleda's wagon with his sister, their legs hanging off the sides, watching as yet another group pulled out. The unspoken question in both their minds: when would Favio finally pull up stakes and go too?
Silvio had been among those wanting to move on, wanting to get back on the road and he felt the pull in his bones, in his blood. The Weyr crowded too close still and he longed for open sky. And yet, he also longed for Genet, unaware that in another time, they had come together and set more than one night on fire.
"Aleda," he said softly and blanked on what words to say next. She only shifted her arm around his waist and squeezed him tight. "I know," she answered as softly. She had decisions of her own to make. She was her family's sabedoria, she had patients in the other caravans too, people she would see now and then on the road who looked to her for their care.
It hung in the air between them, what were they going to do next? Were they going to follow people and duty down the road, or break away, painful as it might be, in order to follow other dreams, other paths.
The crunch of feet through snow approached and Silvio looked downward, surprised to see his uncle Sevino coming up to their camp. He looked upward just as his nephew looked downward and gave a little wave, then he was stepping into his brother's wagon presumably to have a word with Favio. Silvio nudged Aleda and she looked over her shoulder, watching too. The siblings' eyes lifted back to each other at the same time, both holding hope suddenly, still unspoken.
Some fifteen minutes later, both older men came out of the wagon, Favio's face a little dark, Sevino's resigned. "Come down from there!" Favio hollered and Aleda smirked at Silvio, twisted around and dropped to the ground with agility that kind of amazed her younger brother as he followed a little more sedately.
"Yes, Papa?" Aleda asked as they came around the wagon to speak to father and uncle. A look was traded back and forth between brothers, then Favio gestured shortly for Sevino to speak. "Aleda, Silvio, I have made a decision for the winter and though the name of the Caminar has been cleared by recent happenings at the Weyr, I don't think that leaving now serves me well. I have built up a good client base, I have plenty of materials for the winter. So I will be staying. Only not inside the Bowl. Silvio, I understand if you want to find another to work under." He smiled at the young man apologetically then turned to Aleda. "Aleda, there are a few others who will be staying and we know that you are well-connected at the Weyr. Will you stay and be our sabedoria so we do not have to go the Weyr's healers?"
Hope fulfilled and without too much sacrifice either. Aleda could barely keep the smile off her face. "Uncle, I would be honored to remain to serve the family." The words felt sweet even, falling off her tongue. Silvio took a deep breath and tried not to let his own jubilation show. "Uncle, there is no one else I would rather learn from. By my father's leave, I will stay with you to learn my trade." He shot a questioning look towards Favio who only nodded once curtly and pursed his lips at Aleda briefly.
"You have my leave, son. We will have your wagon ready at mid-summer for your wedding." Stepping forward, Favio rested his hands on Silvio's shoulders and kissed him on both cheeks, then repeated the gesture with Aleda. "You both have my blessing for the remainder of the winter, though I will miss you through the half-turn to come. Sevino, I entrust my children to you," he told his brother formally and took his brother's hand for a moment, sealing the bargain.
When it was done, Silvio went to ge the rest of his things out of the boys' wagon and moved it all into Aleda's. Aleda had nothing to move, but she re-organized the inside of her wagon a little to accomodate her brother and make it look like he was going to sleep on the floor, when they both knew very well they'd probably just wind up curling up together for the familiar comfort of shared space in fraternal fashion.
After the flurry of farewells, hugs and kisses and lots of teary "I'll miss yous" from Verena and Adrina for Aleda and a quiet lean of Milo's shoulder against Silvio's, the rest of the family broke camp as well, leaving behind dark clear rectangles of frozen ground starkly visible against the light coating of snow where the wagons had stood for so long.
This time as Aleda and Silvio watched from the roof, they waved to their younger siblings hanging out the backs of wagons as the family moved on out of the Bowl and into the tunnels and out then onto the road. When they were out of sight, Aleda took Silvio's hand in hers and squeezed it tightly. He, unlike she, had never been away from the family before and she thought perhaps she understood the odd mixture of hopeful and stricken that turned up on his face.
"Well then. Let's have dinner," she suggested to him. The ghosts of the wagons remained for a while, but in the morning, the snow had filled in the traces, leaving only an emptiness around Aleda's lone caravan. A day or two later, she hitched up the dray her father had left behind and took the wagon outside of the Weyr to the little clearing where her uncle and a few other families had set up a new camp.
For all of the conflict that she and Silvio both felt, it was good to be out under the open sky again.
Silvio had been among those wanting to move on, wanting to get back on the road and he felt the pull in his bones, in his blood. The Weyr crowded too close still and he longed for open sky. And yet, he also longed for Genet, unaware that in another time, they had come together and set more than one night on fire.
"Aleda," he said softly and blanked on what words to say next. She only shifted her arm around his waist and squeezed him tight. "I know," she answered as softly. She had decisions of her own to make. She was her family's sabedoria, she had patients in the other caravans too, people she would see now and then on the road who looked to her for their care.
It hung in the air between them, what were they going to do next? Were they going to follow people and duty down the road, or break away, painful as it might be, in order to follow other dreams, other paths.
The crunch of feet through snow approached and Silvio looked downward, surprised to see his uncle Sevino coming up to their camp. He looked upward just as his nephew looked downward and gave a little wave, then he was stepping into his brother's wagon presumably to have a word with Favio. Silvio nudged Aleda and she looked over her shoulder, watching too. The siblings' eyes lifted back to each other at the same time, both holding hope suddenly, still unspoken.
Some fifteen minutes later, both older men came out of the wagon, Favio's face a little dark, Sevino's resigned. "Come down from there!" Favio hollered and Aleda smirked at Silvio, twisted around and dropped to the ground with agility that kind of amazed her younger brother as he followed a little more sedately.
"Yes, Papa?" Aleda asked as they came around the wagon to speak to father and uncle. A look was traded back and forth between brothers, then Favio gestured shortly for Sevino to speak. "Aleda, Silvio, I have made a decision for the winter and though the name of the Caminar has been cleared by recent happenings at the Weyr, I don't think that leaving now serves me well. I have built up a good client base, I have plenty of materials for the winter. So I will be staying. Only not inside the Bowl. Silvio, I understand if you want to find another to work under." He smiled at the young man apologetically then turned to Aleda. "Aleda, there are a few others who will be staying and we know that you are well-connected at the Weyr. Will you stay and be our sabedoria so we do not have to go the Weyr's healers?"
Hope fulfilled and without too much sacrifice either. Aleda could barely keep the smile off her face. "Uncle, I would be honored to remain to serve the family." The words felt sweet even, falling off her tongue. Silvio took a deep breath and tried not to let his own jubilation show. "Uncle, there is no one else I would rather learn from. By my father's leave, I will stay with you to learn my trade." He shot a questioning look towards Favio who only nodded once curtly and pursed his lips at Aleda briefly.
"You have my leave, son. We will have your wagon ready at mid-summer for your wedding." Stepping forward, Favio rested his hands on Silvio's shoulders and kissed him on both cheeks, then repeated the gesture with Aleda. "You both have my blessing for the remainder of the winter, though I will miss you through the half-turn to come. Sevino, I entrust my children to you," he told his brother formally and took his brother's hand for a moment, sealing the bargain.
When it was done, Silvio went to ge the rest of his things out of the boys' wagon and moved it all into Aleda's. Aleda had nothing to move, but she re-organized the inside of her wagon a little to accomodate her brother and make it look like he was going to sleep on the floor, when they both knew very well they'd probably just wind up curling up together for the familiar comfort of shared space in fraternal fashion.
After the flurry of farewells, hugs and kisses and lots of teary "I'll miss yous" from Verena and Adrina for Aleda and a quiet lean of Milo's shoulder against Silvio's, the rest of the family broke camp as well, leaving behind dark clear rectangles of frozen ground starkly visible against the light coating of snow where the wagons had stood for so long.
This time as Aleda and Silvio watched from the roof, they waved to their younger siblings hanging out the backs of wagons as the family moved on out of the Bowl and into the tunnels and out then onto the road. When they were out of sight, Aleda took Silvio's hand in hers and squeezed it tightly. He, unlike she, had never been away from the family before and she thought perhaps she understood the odd mixture of hopeful and stricken that turned up on his face.
"Well then. Let's have dinner," she suggested to him. The ghosts of the wagons remained for a while, but in the morning, the snow had filled in the traces, leaving only an emptiness around Aleda's lone caravan. A day or two later, she hitched up the dray her father had left behind and took the wagon outside of the Weyr to the little clearing where her uncle and a few other families had set up a new camp.
For all of the conflict that she and Silvio both felt, it was good to be out under the open sky again.
