Return to Normalcy

Return to Normalcy

A Chapter by SpeedyHobbit Armstrong
"

'And it’s my fault,' Kiran thought, 'he wouldn’t even be in so much danger were it not for me… no, but I didn’t do anything wrong either. I was accused unjustly.'

"

Kiran’s dark eyes flickered toward his office window. The sun had moved significantly towards the west since the last time he’d removed his attention from his work. The paladin had spent the morning patrolling the southwest of the city of Northchester.  Not much had happened other than children playing where they ought not to be playing and getting hurt for it, a fistfight at midday in the Yowling Bobcat Tavern,  a wagon with a broken axle requiring assistance, and a vandalized music shop that specialized in string instruments. However, he had returned to headquarters to check on his employees only to learn of a fiasco involving a rowdy group under the influence of an illegal potion that produced hallucinations and rage. They’d thrown turnips, squash and potatoes at bystanders, broken clay pots, upset tables and booths in their drug-induced rampage. Kiran and his men had arrested all of the miscreants, but the question remained of where they had obtained the Draught of Rage.

 

The constable tapped his quill against his desk, rereading the report yet again as though hoping to see something new. All he noticed, however, were a few spelling errors. It was particularly difficult to focus today, his first day back on the job after the dreadful business with Drémeadow and the daunting task of escorting the refugees through the wilderness in the midst of winter to his homeland. His mind kept replaying images of the Pre-New Years’ Banquet’s dreadful events. The land’s queen, Arabella Foxtrot, collapsing in convulsions as she succumbed to the poison flowing through her vessels. The dusky-skinned elf who served as one of the king’s advisors, Jarmir Esteel, exchanging whispered words with the monarch just before the accusation. As though he, a paladin serving for the causes of good and law and gifted accordingly with powers he would only possess so long as he adhered to what was right and true, would ever poison anyone! Worst of all, the king ordering an attack on Kiran’s supporters.

 

He still could not figure out what had come over him, enabling him to protect all of those innocent lives. The only conclusion Kiran could make was that his god had somehow worked through him. He never would have been so successful at preventing what would have doubtlessly amounted to a massacre on his own. It was not humanly possible. Between his god’s using him to prevent a slaughter and the sheer luck of the palace’s main gate being open, with the guards allowing them to pass without question, it was a miracle he and the refugees had all made it out alive at all.



Off in the distance, the bells of the Pelorian cathedral began to clash and clang out the melodic tune of the national anthem, a sign that it had reached the top of another hour. The paladin hummed along with the song. When it reached a crescendo, the chime commenced. DONG! DONG! DONG! DONG!



Four o’clock; the end of his shift. Kiran stood, eager to leave. Even though the paladin enjoyed his job, it has been a trying few hours from his lunch break until now.  In fact, lunch break itself had been exasperating between the muddy road, the unwanted cheese in his stew, and going to the Duke’s to check on the halfling refugees to find a petulant Folco Foxtrot on the top step of the stairs. Folco had evidently been banished from the makeshift classroom that had been set up for the children and adolescents in a section of the massive attic temporarily housing the 200 Drémeadow refugees for disrupting the lesson. The paladin had done his best to admonish the youth without overstepping any boundaries, but received haughty, stone-faced defensiveness nonetheless.



“That’s our bell,” Kiran remarked. He strolled over to his desk, pulling open the near-flat center drawer. Sifting an owl quill, a pheasant quill and a pile of parchment, he extricated a small green pouch and handed it to the lad. “Your wages.”



            The younger man nodded, then drew open the moss-colored pouch, counting the contents. “Thank you, sir,” he said finally. “See you tomorrow.”



            “You’re welcome,” Kiran told his subordinate. “Have a good night. I should be in the office around lunchtime, unless anything major comes up before then. Kindly see to it that everything is in order.” After his assistant left, Kiran checked that everything containing private documents was properly locked and tidy, then shouldered the bag and left for the Duke’s.

.~~~~



            As he entered Awning Square, the marketplace just to the south of the Duke’s gates, the paladin noticed nine refugee children. To his dismay, there was an air of discord. Several were visibly quarreling while others looked uncomfortable. It was atypical for the peaceful folk. From what he had discerned during more than three weeks of exile, cold, blizzards, dearth in game, and the everlasting fear that the group of nearly two hundred halflings he had taken upon himself to protect- after all, it was partially his fault they had to flee their homeland in the first place- halflings did not generally quarrel outright. They favored a more subtle approach to conflict. It took serious difficulties indeed to induce outright fighting. Then again, these were mere children and adolescents who might not have mastered discretion.



            Moving closer to the bickering youngsters, who were standing in a haphazard circle, Kiran caught several words.



            “…oughtn’t we to tell somebody? Something could happen to him.



            “…you worry overmuch…”



            The paladin frowned, concern increasing. The squabbling children took no notice of him. 

         

“ It’ll be fine, Lindo’s looking for him!” one of them, a boy in his late teens, insisted emphatically. “Stop worrying so much!”



“Aye,” concurred Tumis’ sister Lydia, twirling one of her braids on her finger.  “Really, the fool ought not to have run off like that.”



One of the younger hobbits said doubtfully, “I think you lot hurt his feelings.  Maybe that’s why Lindo went looking for him? To say sorry? Didn’t you say they were best friends?” Kiran’s brow furrowed. He was beginning to get an inkling of who was being discussed. He only hoped he was wrong.



            Tumis flapped his hand dismissively. “He’ll get over it!”



 “Aren’t you afraid he’s angry at you?” asked Geronimo, sniffling slightly, “since…”



“Please,” interjected Lydia. “He was already angry about class.”



            “You mean when he got in trouble?” replied Geronimo. Kiran’s heart sank even further. His theory had grown much stronger; it just needed confirmation. If it was who he thought it was… if he had gone off on his own…



A sullen-looking Donna Tofty snapped, “Never you mind. I don’t think anything more of it than that he’s making a big fuss over noth- Roxy, stop it!” Five-year-old Roxetta, who had been toying with one of the rips in her cousin’s skirt, jumped and relinquished her grip.



            “Maybe Folco just went back to the Duke’s attic,” Clotis put in.



Kiran’s stomach seemed to drop out from under him at the mention of Folco’s name- the very confirmation he needed.  Swiftly stepping behind a taciturn girl named Fern Gardenoff, Kiran demanded “Where’s His Highness?”



Nearly every child in the group startled. Fern whirled around, wide-eyed. None of them replied, but simply stared, a few of them stammering slightly, looking alarmed at the look on Kiran’s face. “Well? He shouldn’t be alone!”



“He went that way,” replied Misa Salinger bravely, pointing the complete opposite direction of Duke Ivan’s. The young man felt his stomach clench.



“He might have doubled back where we could not see?” suggested Clotis.



 “That’s what Lindo thought,” Lydia added, taking heart from the initiative of her brother and friend. “He said he would check the attic.” Kiran frowned at them. What was going through their minds? Why weren’t they more concerned? Ought they not to have figured out the dangers of the young prince wandering off by himself? They’re just kids… a small voice in the back of his mind reminded him. At the same time, if anything happened to him…



His thoughts were broken by a small child’s voice from the level of his knee. “What if Prince Folco and Lindo get lost?” asked Roxy. Kiran’s eyes widened slightly. Was that the worst they thought could happen? Folco Foxtrot was doubtlessly considered a traitor for aiding Kiran and the refugees. And it’s my fault, Kiran thought, he wouldn’t even be in so much danger were it not for me… no, but I didn’t do anything wrong either. I was accused unjustly. Those kids might not realize though… or they do but don’t want to…



 “He wouldn’t… you know… run away?” asked Brenner Wooling dubiously.



Kiran stared intently down at the young halflings, who ranged in height from around knee-level to his waist. The children fell silent. “Listen closely ,” he added sharply,  “I want you all to keep an eye out for him, and if you see him, tell him I need to speak with him and wish him to come to me as soon as possible. Don’t stay out too late. Be sure to be back in time for dinner’s distribution. Make sure word gets to me if anyone sees him… or Lindo, for that matter. In fact, if you see Lindo, ask him to come speak with me. Do you understand?” The children glanced sideways at each other, their faces varying from guilt to exasperation to slight fear. “Well?”  There was a chorus of nods and mumbles of assent. “Thank you,” the paladin said in dismissal, sighing slightly, his brain abuzz with activity. “I will speak with you all later.”



This could be very well be nothing; however, Kiran Mani felt very responsible for anything that happened with anyone in this group, particularly Folco. Folco Foxtrot might only be a nineteen-year-old halfling kid struggling to cope with the disaster that had befallen them all as much as the rest, possibly even more as the son of Drémeadow’s king and queen, but he was the refugees’ reluctant leader and the one glimmer of normality when it came to their life after New Years. His safety was critical for both Kiran's peace of mind and the morale of the group of refugees struggling to regain a sense of normality and safety after their lives had been destroyed. 

 



© 2015 SpeedyHobbit Armstrong


Author's Note

SpeedyHobbit Armstrong
Please leave me any constructive criticism you deem necessary! Pull no punches in oiffering advice, as I want to be published one day

My main query: the purpose of this question is to communicate both Kiran's anxiety and the subtle reasoning behind it and the extent to which the kids, particularly the younger ones, underestimate the potential seriousness of Folco's being unaccounted for. How'd I do with that, and how can I make it better and have more of an impact?

My Review

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Featured Review

https://diigo.com/020bw8

I am trying something new for reviews.
Green is for awesome wording.
Yellow is for technical errors.
Blue is for questions or comments on the story.
Red (which I didn't use) would be for consistency errors.

Let me know if the link doesn't work and I can transcribe the annotations.
I really hope it does work because I am having a blast with this annotation site/program thing.

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

It seemingly doesn't work but I suspect the problem is not the link but the ancient laptop I'm curre.. read more



Reviews

OK, finally back to this story. Regarding your query, I think you have dealt with those questions ably here.
One small item:
From what he had discerned during over three weeks of exile
more than, instead of over may flow better

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

Thankoo! Markup duly heeded
https://diigo.com/020bw8

I am trying something new for reviews.
Green is for awesome wording.
Yellow is for technical errors.
Blue is for questions or comments on the story.
Red (which I didn't use) would be for consistency errors.

Let me know if the link doesn't work and I can transcribe the annotations.
I really hope it does work because I am having a blast with this annotation site/program thing.

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

It seemingly doesn't work but I suspect the problem is not the link but the ancient laptop I'm curre.. read more
I think this story is progressing nicely. There were no glaring errors that I could spot. I look forward to seeing how this story continues... from what I can tell so far it is intriguing.

~Stefanie

Posted 9 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

Thanks so much, Stef, and I hope you enjoy the next few chapters!
"My main query: the purpose of this question is to communicate both Kiran's anxiety and the subtle reasoning behind it and the extent to which the kids, particularly the younger ones, underestimate the potential seriousness of Folco's being unaccounted for. How'd I do with that, and how can I make it better and have more of an impact?"... I thought you pulled it off quite well. That was exactly what I got from it.

Posted 9 Years Ago


SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

Thank you very much! [= I appreciate any feedback you have.
I think this is functioning pretty well. A good sense of subtle forward motion.

Posted 9 Years Ago


SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

Thanks for the review! Please let me know if you spot any areas for improvement!
Oh, I almost forgot. Change "library of books" to just "library". It's redundant as written; books are what we expect a library to contain.

This review was written for a previous version of this writing

Posted 10 Years Ago


SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

Thanks for the heads up!
Cher,

I think this is a good solid effort for what it is. Aside from very few missing words or such, it flows well. There are a couple of nagging questions in my mind, though. First, I find Kiran's concern about the guards at the Duke's unlikely. That post would only be assigned to the cream of the crop, assuming the Duke doesn't use his own private guardsmen, which is actually much more likely. Also, in a society where horses and carraiges are the main modes of transportation, there will be a huge area between the outer gate and the front door where groomsmen from the stables will take charge of horses as residents and visitors arrive or prepare for departure and so forth. You probably already have this in mnd, but reading this makes it seem like Kiran only covered a few steps between the two. The courtyard should be a bust place. Put in some detail about swordsmen practicing in the yard or something to give us the sense of space.
I have some further thoughts on Kiran, specifically, but I'm going to hold off on them for now because I've read comparatively little of your work. Am I right in thinking that the order of your books is Democracy's End, Traitor Princess, and then Kiran's story?

This review was written for a previous version of this writing

Posted 10 Years Ago


Hatter57

10 Years Ago

Isn't she dead by the time Kiran's story is told? Or is that just the story her family has come up w.. read more
SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

10 Years Ago

Story they used in Dremeadow while her parents sending wanted posters abroad because they were so em.. read more
SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

10 Years Ago

basically they use story that she died in Dremeadow in case anyone hears of her and asks, and that's.. read more
I'll tell you once I finish reading....

This review was written for a previous version of this writing

Posted 10 Years Ago


SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

9 Years Ago

Thank you! [=
FINE with me Cher.When do you xpect finish novel?By the way, who taught you to write well. did you attend writing class in the school?

This review was written for a previous version of this writing

Posted 10 Years Ago


SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

10 Years Ago

Yeah we did writing every year from kindergarten to 12th grade and then I had to take writing both s.. read more
StoryTellerWriter

10 Years Ago

good luck find literary agent. wish you well.when you famous hope you still remember me.me sound co.. read more
SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

10 Years Ago

[= Corn is a very good food
what was setting the woods?? because the hobbit??

This review was written for a previous version of this writing

Posted 10 Years Ago


StoryTellerWriter

10 Years Ago

good you found time to write.me readin ken follet man from st petersburg.hope we all have time to en.. read more
SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

10 Years Ago

How was the book you were reading?
StoryTellerWriter

10 Years Ago

okay, i guess

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Added on August 6, 2013
Last Updated on January 31, 2015
Tags: hobbits, guard, watch, fear, worried, search, mystery, fiction, fantasy, teen, missing, refugees, questioning, duke, nobility, hiding, secret


Author

SpeedyHobbit Armstrong
SpeedyHobbit Armstrong

Long Island, NY



About
My name is Cher Armstrong, also known as Speedy Hobbit. I'm a USATF athlete in racewalking for the Raleigh Walkers club team. I just graduated from Queens College in Queens borough in New York Ci.. more..

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