Ok, Here's the first chapter. It's long yes, but please let me know what you think.
A
cold night wind blew through the trees and toward a small cabin in
the meadow. As it played across the face of the lone figure standing
just outside, she breathed in deeply. Her tall elegant figure
silhouetted sharply against the full moon, whose rays played in her
eyes, and gave the impression shining jewels. A taller man silently
came to her side, his large figure casting the woman in shadow.
“Am
I doing the right thing Abel?” she asked the man. “Maybe I could
just run off to the city, disappear, and start a new life,” she
hardheartedly teased. “No, this is what I want. He is what I want.
But I’m scared.” She corrected a moment later.
The
man smiled at his younger sister, “You are doing the right thing
Morgan, I know Jacob, He is a good man, and he will take care of
you.” Morgan turned and put her head in Abel’s chest. “I wish
father could have been here. I wanted him to see this.” She
muttered softly. Abel said nothing for a long time; they both stood
in the night absorbing the moonlight, and listening to the wind as it
blew through the grass
“Come.”
Commanded Abel gently, “we can’t have you getting sick the night
before your own wedding.”
The
two figures disappeared into the house, and even though she was in
her bed, Morgan couldn’t get sleep to come. She lay awake for a
number of hours reassuring herself that she was in fact doing what
she wanted. After all she had
chosen to marry Jacob, but maybe she was too young, maybe she wasn’t
ready, maybe, maybe, maybe kept going through her head. Sleep finally
began to overtake her. As she rolled over her last thought was of how
much she loved Jacob, and how she wanted to be with him for the rest
of her life. Morgan drifted to sleep with a smile of her face.
The
sun rose upon a new day. Others were stirring in the house just
starting to come from their sleep. Jacob however had not slept. He
had hardly closed his eyes at all, finally the day had come; he would
marry Morgan today. He thought back upon his life, how he and his
best friend, Abel, used to tease Morgan relentlessly. Not for the
first time he asked himself when he had actually fallen in love with
her. It had to have been when he was nearly sixteen years old. Jacob
had always enjoyed getting to know the young girls in the village,
occasionally stealing a kiss or to, but Morgan had always been off
limits, she was his closest friend’s sister after all. One year
however, at the end of the harvest celebration, held every year in
Lifespring, he remembered noticing how beautiful Morgan looked as the
sun had danced upon her golden curls; her shining green eyes had
caught his attention. Had they always sparkled like that? Her eyes
that seemed to gaze deeply into a person instead of just seeing their
face, and that was the day Jacob had decided that he was going to
marry her. It had taken time, at first she didn’t want anything to
do with him, for all she knew of Jacob was that he was a constant
bother and pest to her. Abel wasn’t of much help at that time
either; he couldn’t bring himself to understand that his closest
friend was pursuing his younger sister. At long last, nearly four
years later, Jacob had finally achieved what he had desired. Not only
was he going to marry Morgan, but she genuinely loved him, as he did
her. Abel as well had come to see that this is what both his sister
and best mate wanted. Though he was dark and moody about it in the
beginning, he had come around and seemed to be trying to support
their marriage at the very least.
Jacob
leapt out of his bed. He could not be late for his own wedding. He
went down to the river to wash himself, and then put on his best
clothing; his finely woven, high collared, wool shirt, dyed a blue
that matched the sky that day, and a sturdy pair of brown trousers
with a bright green stripe running down the length of his legs. Soon
he was on his horse toward the town square to make sure everything
was on order. After seeing to some simple decorations, and talking to
the mayor to assure that there would be no delays, there was nothing
left to do but wait.
He
looked out over Lifespring; this small town had been his life. He
knew the small wooded huts with their straw roofs well, and could
name just about every one of the residents of the village. From old
Thomas, who spent most of his days yelling at other folks just to
hear the sound of his own voice, to the mayor, Seth Evans, probably
one of the youngest mayors in the history of Lifespring, but also one
of the best.
Abel
carefully led the carriage toward the town, he knew his sister was
fretting about something or another inside, he smiled to himself,
rarely if ever did anything make her so nervous. He scratched at the
small beard at his chin as he thought; he had never
seen his sister so nervous before. He had learned from her example of
calmness, how she always thought before she spoke, and was always
very careful to never say anything she would regret. Yes, Abel
admired his sister greatly, although he would probably never admit it
to her, nor anyone else for that matter.
Jacob
had never really been able to convince Abel that what he felt for his
sister was sincere; for a long time he had thought Jacob was only
going on about his feelings for Morgan only to upset Abel, it was
actually Morgan who had shown Abel that he needed to change. As he
directed the horses to the town square he began to think back to when
Morgan had, as far as Abel was concerned, shown her love for Jacob,
almost two summers ago to the day.
Jacob
had just finished telling Abel that he was planning on taking his
sister out for a hunting trip, and was staring dumbfounded at his
friend as his face slowly went from being startled, to sheer
amusement, until Abel found himself laughing out loud.
“What
do you find so funny?” Jacob asked, color flooding to his cheeks.
“You”
Abel replied, “You always love your little jokes, and honestly I
just about believed you this time.”
Before
Abel really knew what had happened, Jacob was storming away rubbing
his fist; Abel just sat there in amazement, tasting the blood in his
mouth. Did
that really
just happen?
He asked himself, not quite ready to accept that Jacob had hit him
square in the mouth. As he watched his friend disappear around the
bend in the road, a troubling thought crossed his mind maybe
he really does
like Morgan.
Abel
arrived at his house just in time to see Morgan leaving accompanied
by Jacob. Abel couldn’t believe his eyes; they were actually
walking hand in hand! Abel quickly decided to follow them and see
where they were going. He headed into the forest, melting into the
shadows, barely making a sound, but always being sure he could hear
Jacob and Morgan talking. He followed them for quite some distance,
listening closely to their conversation; Jacob was saying, in his
most impressive voice, that he would teach Morgan to use a bow and
arrow. Abel had to stifle a laugh, closing his eyes as he did, his
sister was the last girl in town that needed bow lessons; in fact she
was probably a better shot than Jacob. Abel opened his eyes abruptly
when he heard a twig snap under his feet. He stood there startled for
a moment, hoping that his blunder would go unnoticed.
“I
need to step into the woods for a moment.” Abel’s heart sank, he
was discovered. He began to think of escaping, but it was too late;
he could already see her approaching, his sister had definitely seen
him. Morgan was now only a few feet from Abel, just out of arms
reach. She pointed commandingly toward the house, obviously telling
Abel that he was to leave. He was just turning to leave when
Morgan’s walking staff caught him in the small of the back. Abel
had been completely unprepared for the attack, which was the only
reason that he fell, twisting as he did so letting his back thump
onto the hard forest floor; Morgan was kneeling on his chest in an
instant, her mouth an inch from Abel’s ear. Normally Abel would
have easily dislodged her, but he was out of breath from his fall,
and he was burning to know exactly why his sister had struck him.
“I
love him little brother, you need to accept that. Go home and leave
us be, if I hear you again, Jacob will learn that I really don’t
need him to teach me to shoot a bow.” She stood up and Abel could
see a dangerous smile on her face, he knew better than to try his
sister’s patience. He slowly stood and left as Morgan returned to
Jacob, hurt and angry. Even though Abel was older than his sister by
nearly two years, she had always called him little brother when she
knew it would cause him the utmost annoyance. So massaging his jaw
and chest, Abel had walked slowly home.
As
they came within view of the town Abel was chuckling to himself,
Morgan truly was
beautiful in every way. She was a strong woman, and was always
sincere about what she wanted, and how she felt, and constantly tried
to lift the burdens of others, while, seemingly, never even noticing
her own.
They
arrived at the town square amidst cheers of delight and
congratulations. Abel quickly leapt down from the carriage to help
his sister come out, only to find that someone had already beaten him
to it.
“Careful,”
Jacob whispered as he helped his bride to be descend from the wagon,
“we wouldn’t want you to fall on such an important day.”
Morgan
looked at Jacob in that special, soft way that seemed to be reserved
for when she saw him. Abel still tended to wince at the unsure smile
Jacob held in reserve for her, mostly because he saw how it made his
sister go weak at the knees for Abel’s closest childhood friend.
The
sun beamed warmly down as Seth began with the ceremony, but Jacob
barely had ears to hear what was being said, he tried to concentrate,
but thoughts came unexpectedly to his mind. He smiled to himself as
he remembered one particular summer he and his friend had been trying
to torture Morgan.
Abel
and Jacob had been creeping through the bushes; Abel was trying to
teach Jacob to be quieter when he moved through the woods. They had
decided on their target; Morgan. She was humming softly to herself,
washing clothes at the river; the brush on the banks could easily
hide the two boys. They peered through the dense branches; Morgan was
wearing a plain brown dress, perfect for hiding the fast approaching
evidence. With her back to them she never saw the two mud balls
coming. By the time she realized she had been hit, both Abel and
Jacob were high in a tree, armed with a few rocks, just in case.
One
thing Morgan had always been good at was being able to use her head,
even when angry. It didn’t take her long to find the two boys. She
had glared and shouted for only a few seconds before climbing a
nearby tree and throwing two small eggs, one at Jacob, the other at
Abel. By instinct more than anything they both caught the small blue
eggs that were slightly spotted with brown. With the two still
wondering why she had done this, Morgan quickly slipped down the tree
and ran like the wind back to the river.
“What’s
the point of this?” Jacob had asked. And only a moment later both
young men came to the unfortunate realization of what Morgan’s plan
had been. Morgan knew full well that Forest Turns are highly
protective, and are prone to attacking whatever may be disturbing
their nest, or even holding their eggs. When two of them returned,
all they saw were two dumfounded boys holding their eggs.
After
a few minutes both boys were scratched, and slightly limping from
having half-jumped, and half-fallen from their tree. They glared
bitterly at the gaily singing birds as they slowly limped home. A
few hours later Morgan had returned looking brilliant, with a basket
full of clean cloths in tow. When her father had asked her how she
had gotten muddy, she had lightly replied, with hardly a glance at
her brother and Jacob tending their wounds in the corner, “I
slipped near the river, no worries father, I can clean it out.”
Jacob
suppressed a chuckle as he remembered. He was sure that he was doing
the right thing.
He
forced himself to listen to the mayor. “As the father of the bride
is no longer with us, her brother Abel had been asked to give the
fathers blessing to this happy couple.” Only because they knew each
other so well did Jacob see the slightest hesitation in his friend,
he doubted that any other person had noticed. It stung Jacob to the
heart.
“To
my sister I say congratulations. You would be hard pressed to find a
better man, and you deserve no less. To my closest of friends, I
say…” a tear began to fall from Abel’s dark eye, which he
hurriedly wiped away “I say, protect her, and be happy together.”
With that, Abel swiftly turned away to bask in the shade of a nearby
willow.
In
just a few more moments the ceremony was over. That was it. Jacob was
finally married to Morgan. The festivities continued long into the
night, feasting, toasts, and endless congratulations. The day passed
in joyous celebration; even old Thomas was entertaining the younger
children with thrilling stories of his childhood. Stories of dwarves,
trolls, elves, and other creatures. Abel stood nearby listening,
trying not to look as enthralled as the young children, even though
he was. Everyone knew that Thomas hadn't really ever seen any trolls
or dwarves, seeing as they had been banished after the Forever
Kingdom fell, his stories of them were just as entertaining.
Just
before it was time to leave, Jacob found Abel sitting alone near the
dark wagon and went to talk to him.
“I
haven’t had a chance to thank you all day for what you said Abel, I
can understand if this is hard for you, and-“
“No
my friend,” Abel interrupted, “I know what it is that you are
thinking, and no, I hold no resentment toward you, and especially not
to my sister. This was for the best, you two deserve each other. No
matter what anybody says, I am
happy for you both.”
“Then
what bothers you my friend?” Jacob asked.
There
was a long pause, for a moment Jacob thought that his friend hadn’t
heard him. “It’s nothing” Abel finally responded.
“No.”
Jacob said firmly, “It may be possible for you to lie to everyone
else in this town, but you should know better by now than to try to
lie to me.”
“I
had to try.” Abel muttered heavily. He took a deep breath and
turned to look Jacob squarely in the eye. “Do you remember when we
were younger, and had planned that we would leave all of this
behind?” he gestured with his hands to the dying festival, and
Lifespring in its entirety.
Jacob
nodded slowly, “yes, we wanted to leave Lifespring, and the life we
have.”
“You
never really wanted to leave, and I have realized that you won’t be
leaving. You would have come with me, but now you will stay for
Morgan. Even if I do leave, I know you won’t be coming with me.”
Abel finished with a heavy sigh. “I know I sound like a child, but
I have always wanted to leave this town, and see something more.”
Jacob
sat in silence for a moment not knowing what to say, when he began,
he chose his words carefully. “Abel, we talked of that as children,
but we are no longer children. Maybe a number of years ago it would
have been interesting to see the world, but you have to understand,
that… being happy is in your mind, not in where you are. I’ve
found my happiness here… I know you can too.”
With
that, Jacob stood up, “take care my friend” he said simply, and
turned away, toward the firelight. He knew Abel would be fine; he
only needed some time to think about it. Now, however, Jacob was
going to be with the woman he loved, for the rest of his life.
Abel
started home in the growing darkness, deep in his own thoughts. He
knew that Jacob was right; however much he resented it. He had never
wanted the simple life of a farmer, stuck here in Lifespring; he
wanted to see the Crystal Sea, or the Dragon Mountains. Abel sighed;
he had never even seen the River Oasis, only a journey of three days
from his home. It was said that the river was the only source of
water for all the people of the Fire Sea. The man chuckled to
himself, the Fire Sea was incredibly vast, and though the river was
said to be large, the number of supposed nomads in the Sea could not
live off one sole source of water. Besides, the desert held other
dangers, and Abel wanted to face them; for that very reason he had
spent his whole life studying ways to survive with little or no
supply, and how to hunt, that was why Abel was the best archer, and
swordsmen in the three villages of the Blue Valley
By
the time Abel had arrived at his cabin, night had fully set in, and
yet the young man wasn’t tired. He sat in the dark, facing his
empty fireplace for hours into the night, thinking of what his life
would now hold for him. After a time his thoughts started to chase
one another, going in circles, slowly becoming more and more
irrational. Jacob
has abandoned me, I am alone now. I have to leave this place, I can’t
stay.
His eyes began to droop, sleep clouding his thoughts. If
I can escape then I can see the world, but nobody can know, they
would try to stop me… and
sleep finally embraced him.
The
next few months passed in a dreamlike manner, Abel couldn’t seem to
pin down his emotions. The constant swirling of joy for the happiness
of his sister and friend; to the hollowness that comes from those
lonely days of long uninterrupted labor on the farm that now belonged
only to Abel. On one of these lonely days, nearing harvest time, Abel
found himself looking out over his small property. His crop had come
in good this year; this winter wouldn’t hold the hardships of near
starvation that previous winters had held.
With
a sharp and unexpected suddenness, Abel thought back to nearly four
winters ago, his father had injured himself during harvest time, the
wound on his leg had been deep, and was starting to become infected.
While he had recovered, thanks to the constant and skilled work of
Morgan and a few other women in Lifespring. His battling the
infection and his recovery had left him unfortunately weak during an
especially harsh winter. Abel and Morgan had both drifted off to
sleep the night he died, the cold finally winning over.
Abel
was surprised to find himself on his knees, his face in his hands; he
had not wept so for as long as he could remember. After a few moments
he got a hold of himself and regained his feet. He stood in his field
only a moment longer, then decided that the fields could survive the
rest of the day without his help.
He
was surprised to find Jacob standing at his small cabin waiting for
him. Abel quickly dropped behind the shadow of a nearby tree, forcing
himself to appear as though all was well. He fixed a smile on his
face, and called out to his friend, and now brother-in-law, as he
came out from behind his tree. Jacob’s face lit up in a way that
Abel had never seen. His curiosity peaked; he quickened his pace to
see what Jacob was so radiant about.
As
soon as Abel was under the shade of the cabin Jacob hugged him, he
felt Abel stiffen under the embrace, for the two rarely ever hugged.
“She’s pregnant!” Jacob exclaimed as they quickly broke apart.
“You’re going to be an uncle!” Jacob laughed heartily at the
look of shock on his brother’s face. “Don’t be so stiff my
friend, come, Morgan cannot wait to see you. She wanted to tell you
herself, but I couldn’t resist.” The shock and darkness quickly
slid off Abel’s face as he seemed to come to the realization of
what Jacob had said. With satisfaction Jacob noticed that the smile
he now wore was much more real than that he had been wearing when he
had came from the field.
As
they hurried to Jacob and Morgan’s cottage taking the small forest
trail to avoid cutting through the main parts of Lifespring. After a
short while they arrived at the cottage, where Morgan was waiting
anxiously dressed in a simple brown dress of stout wool. She ran out
the meet the two men, and as Jacob had done, she hugged Abel tightly.
Abel warmly embraced his sister; he could tell she was crying. As
they pulled apart from their embrace Morgan surveyed her brother’s
face, which held a large smile, the biggest he had worn in months.
“Jacob
told you.” Morgan stated, trying to sound angry, but merely
attaining playful amusement.
“Forgive
me love, I could not resist, of course he was a lot less accepting
when I tried to hug him.” Jacob defended, his face splitting into a
grin again.
“How
long have you known?” Abel cut in as Morgan opened her mouth to
explain to her husband why Abel was not eager to hug him.
“We’ve
suspected for about 2 weeks now, just the last few days of morning
sickness have really confirmed what we both had been hoping.” Jacob
responded.
“Maybe
you have been hoping for morning sickness, but I would just as easily
go without it” reproached Morgan, once again failing to repress a
smile.
“When
will the baby be born?” Abel inquired, this time cutting off
Jacob’s explanation.
“We
think that it should be near mid summer, possibly a little sooner. We
can’t be completely sure.” Morgan explained.
“This
is so wonderful, I’m so happy for the both of you.” Abel said.
Abel passed the rest of the day with his sister and Jacob, talking,
and enjoying their time together. Morgan was positively glowing; the
prospect of being a mother seemed to thrill her like nothing else
ever had. At any mention of the baby she was carrying her eyes would
light up, and an inevitable smile would cut across her face, despite
all of her efforts to suppress it.
As
Abel headed home that night he felt more elated than he had since
Jacob and Morgan’s wedding. More so than even that, for he had had
many doubts and concerns during the wedding ceremony. No, Abel had
not felt this overjoyed in a great while perhaps it had been years;
but the prospect of being and uncle was enough to keep a smile on
Abel’s face through his entire harvest, and into the first snows of
winter.
For
Morgan however the shortening days and dreary weather seemed to take
a great toll on her mood. Jacob entered the house one day during a
particularly harsh and cold rainstorm. The day spent at his small
shop in town had been very profitable, and he was ready to see the
smiling face of his wife. Upon his entry however he found Morgan
sitting the special chair Jacob had made, face in hands, and heaving
with sob after sob. Dropping his tools, and bag containing the day’s
profits, he ran over to her.
“Morgan,
what’s the matter? Are you well?” he asked, grasping her wrists
gently, the concern in his voice obvious. Through heaving gasps she
managed to force a reply
“I’m
not ready.” Jacob half- stood and embraced her as best he could
from her sitting position, and Morgan slowly snaked her arms around
her husband’s waist.
“You
are going to make a great mother Morgan, I know you are.”
“But
what if I don’t make it?” Came her reply, and she finally raised
her gaze so that it held Jacob’s. Silence reigned the night for a
few moments, husband and wife searching each others eyes for the
answers they needed.
“You
are going to be fine, my heart.” Jacob said gently, finally
breaking the eternal quiet.
“But
my mother…” was all Morgan could manage before her tears
overwhelmed her again, and she buried her head in her husband’s
chest.
For
the first time in his memory Jacob felt completely powerless. How
could he convince his wife that bringing this child to the world
wouldn’t take her life? Especially when it had done just that to
her own mother. Terror started to well up deep within Jacob’s
heart, threatening to take over his entire sense of reason. He could
possibly loose Morgan, she could be gone… NO.
He would not fall to despair.
“In
six months you, our child and, I will be sitting here together,
alive, and well. Nothing is going to change that, don’t let
yourself ever think otherwise.” He finally said, slowly lifting
Morgan’s chin with his finger until once again they were looking at
each other eye to eye. “I love you Morgan, and we are going to be
together forever.” He affirmed as he gently kissed her.
The
winter months came and went, the snows that usually blanketed the
entirety of the Blue Valley were sparse, and when the snow did come
it lasted only a few days. As Abel had predicted, the harvest had
been excellent, and it was more than enough to keep himself, Jacob,
Morgan, and many others in the village fed through the mild winter.
Occasionally Jacob would still find his wife in moods of quiet
sadness. In those moments when her fear outweighed her hope, Jacob
would take her hands, and firmly reassure her that both she and the
baby would be healthy, and strong, and that they would live together
as a family. Morgan took heart at her husband’s constant
encouragement, and let it wash over her. In her saddest moments she
tried to recall his calm, handsome face. The memory of his sweet,
soft blue eyes and the deep lines that formed around them when he
smiled were usually enough for her to continue through the day. When
memory wasn’t sufficient however Jacob always seemed to be at her
side giving her the words, or feelings that she always needed in just
the right moments.
As
winter died and the warm rains brought the new life of spring Morgan
found herself full of happiness, and would often times break out into
song as she prepared her home for the addition of one more. Her belly
was starting to show her pregnancy, and she would often look at her
reflection in the looking glass and smile. The warming weather,
however, did not have the same effect on all the inhabitants of life
spring. Abel found the work of spring planting dull, and mundane. His
gains from the year before had allowed him to hire a few of the
village boys to help him plant this year, and on many days he would
leave the fields early and leave Herm, his chief worker, in charge of
finishing the days work. After one such day Herm came to Abel, who
was sitting on his porch chair, with his back to the fields.
“It’s
too dark to continue Master Di’Traeus” Herm announced in his
sharp voice. “We’ve nearly completed the southern field. By
tomorrow we should be finished with all the planting.” Abel felt a
stab of annoyance. Herm was a sturdy worker, and knew much about
farming, he was far too stubborn to call Abel by his given name
however, and preferred to use his family name.
“Herm,
if you call me Master Di’Traeus one more time you will not be
employed here any more.” Abel threatened half turning his head
toward the man.
“Master
Di’Traeus, you tell me that least twice a day. If you were to carry
out that threat you probably could have released me from more work
than I have ever had in my life sir.” Against his will Abel was
forced to smile. Herm was probably more than twice Abel’s age, and
still insisted on calling him master. He rose from his chair and
faced Herm, towering over him by head and shoulders.
“Well
if you were to work any harder, you would likely make the crops come
up before their time, releasing you would be plain foolish Herm.
You’ve done well today. Tell the boys to be here tomorrow.” They
clasped hands shortly, and Herm turned to walk away. As he stepped
off the porch Abel called out to him.
“Herm,
you forgot the boy’s money.” He gestured to the small table next
to him holding a small bag full of coin. “While you might be
willing to work without charge, I’m sure the others don’t feel
the same.”
“They
can have it tomorrow when they’ve earned it.” Herm called back
waving over his shoulder. Abel stood alone for a moment, thinking on
the man he had hired. He had brought Herm on by recommendation of a
farmer out in Ridge Valley. He had said that Herm was one of the best
workers he’d ever had, and he had worked on the man’s farm for a
good seven years before severe crop failure had forced him to let all
of his workers go. Abel had all but relinquished control of his land
to Herm, and had never had his planting done so soon, let alone in
all of his fields. While most of the ten boys he had hired at Herm’s
suggestion were too young to shave daily, the man had them working
harder than most full grown men. Abel turned and sat down hard in his
chair again, this year’s crop was again likely to be successful.
The rains were coming hard, but as long as there was no flooding,
there was no reason to worry. He sighed sadly, it would be another
plentiful year stuck in the Blue Valley.
There
was a footstep on Abel’s porch, he turned quickly, half rising out
of his seat. He stopped when he recognized Jacob.
“Why
are you here?” Abel asked, more rudely than he had intended.
“I
haven’t seen you in nearly a week; I knew you would be home at this
hour, so I decided to come by for a visit.” Jacob replied with a
smile, and ignoring his friends abruptness.
“Well
than, come inside, have a drink.” Abel said, trying to sound
cheerful. Jacob grabbed his arm as he left to enter the house.
“What’s
wrong with you brother? I passed by Herm on the road, he says that
you hardly work half the day in your own fields before coming here to
sit and stare at the walls of your house. I know your planting is
going good this year, but to let your workers do all the labor is
unlike you. So, what is it?” Abel looked Jacob hard in the eyes for
a few moments before answering.
“I’m
not a farmer Jacob… I wasn’t meant for this life.” He dropped
back into his seat, and Jacob slowly sat down on the small table,
which groaned under his weight. For a long time, nothing was said.
Finally it was Abel who broke the silence, “Every year I’ve told
myself that this will be the last time I have to work this land. That
next year I will leave Lifespring. That’s what made the year
tolerable. I know I could never leave this place without you, and now
that you’re married, I couldn’t let you leave. I don’t know if
I can stand the thought of being a simple farmer for my whole life. I
don’t want this kind of life.” By the time he had finished
speaking Abel was looking at his knees, barely keeping his voice
steady.
Jacob
rose and walked over to one of the lanterns that were hanging from
the covering of the porch, after lighting it he walked to the edge of
the covering, and stared out at the fields. A light rain had begun to
fall creating a soft rhythm in the dark night.
“I
won’t try convincing you that you have to stay Abel. Or that you
were meant to be a farmer.” He said, turning toward his friend, his
face bathed in the soft glow of light from the lantern. “I will
tell you that your sister and I need you here.” He started walking
over to where Abel sat, still speaking softly. “I will also tell
you that this has to stop.” He was standing right in front of Abel
now, speaking firmly. Abel looked up in slight surprise. “You need
to find yourself. Sometimes we have to do what we hate, all we can do
is learn to enjoy it, and find pleasure in the company of friends,
and those who love us.” Jacob had now grabbed Abel by the tunic and
lifted him out of his chair so they were face to face. Abel said
nothing; he was too stunned at Jacob’s intensity. “Maybe you
weren’t meant to be a farmer, but you were meant to be my brother,
and I need you to start acting like a man.” Jacob released Abel,
and let his voice soften once more. “I’m sorry to speak to you
like this” He said turning his back to Abel again.
Abel
was still on his feet, staring in amazement at Jacob, his friend had
never spoken to him like this before. Slowly he walked up to his
friend’s back, and slowly raised his hand, and let it fall onto his
friends shoulder.
“Thank
you brother.” Was all he said before tuning to enter his house.
Jacob’s
words seemed to work a great effect on Abel. From then on he spent
more time in the fields along with his workers. Every time he saw
either Jacob or Morgan he had a smile ready, and was ready to give a
cheerful word. As spring gave way to summer the anticipation of the
birth of Morgan’s child grew, she was sore much of the time, and no
longer slept through the night, due to aches, or other pressing
necessities. Jacob seemed to grow increasingly nervous, he would
often catch himself pacing, or biting at his fingernails, after which
he would have to take a deep breath and tell himself that he had to
stop. For the weeks leading up to the birth of their child Jacob
hired a mid wife to be in the house with Morgan to be ready when the
time came. Whenever Jacob had to leave the house he had a number of
young village boys ready to run and return him to the house if Morgan
needed him for anything.
As
midsummer neared, Jacob would spend fewer and fewer days at his
carpentry shop, deciding that it was more important to be near Morgan
as the birth of their child grew nearer. Abel began to dedicate
himself to making sure that his sister’s house always had their
necessities, which required that he take multiple trips into town;
which left Herm to take care of the majority of the work on the farm,
which he was happy to do.
Lifespring
was having its annual Midsummer celebration, Abel arrived near
midday. He looked around for Jacob and Morgan, he had convinced them
that a few hours in the sun would do them some good, and they should
celebrate the successes of spring with the rest of the town. After a
few minutes of search and inquiry Abel learned that Jacob had not
come. Disheartened he began to head back to his farm; as an
afterthought he decided to go to his brother- in- law’s house to
see why he had not come. As he neared their house he saw the large
figure of Jacob pacing in the wide road. Abel chuckled to himself,
and prepared a light chastisement for his friend’s neglect to their
meeting in town. As soon as Jacob noticed Abel striding up he called
out to him “It's happening!” For a moment his remark puzzled
Abel, but his paled face and the sweat running on his neck made
Jacob’s meaning clear in moments.
“Now?”
Abel asked suddenly alarmed
“It
started about an hour ago.” Jacob confirmed “I brought some help
for the midwife, and she told me that it would be better if I stayed
out of the house.” At this comment Jacob’s face betrayed his deep
disgust at having to do so. “So now I’m stuck out here until they
decide it proper for me to return.” The bitterness was now clear in
his voice.
“I
cannot do much, but I will stay with you here until your child is
born brother.” Abel assured; his voice a mixture of deep concern
and a laugh for his friend’s behavior. This made Jacob pause for a
moment, Abel had never called him brother before.
“Thank
you brother.” He replied after a moment’s hesitation. A shadow of
a smile passed over Abel’s face, and he went to sit on Jacob’s
porch.
The
sun was low over the forest when the midwife finally emerged from the
house. Jacob was on his feet in the blink of an eye. Abel, who had
fallen into a light sleep, stirred and looked blearily toward the
woman. The midwife’s solemn face broke into a large smile at
Jacob’s reaction.
“You
have a beautiful son Jacob.” Before she had really finished her
words Jacob had his hand on the door and was in the house in a
moment. The woman turned to Abel; she was tall, nearly up to Abel’s
shoulder, with a pleasant face, and strong features. The gray in her
hair was the only thing that betrayed her age. “Well Uncle Abel,
what more do you want? Come back tomorrow, Morgan needs her rest, and
she has Jacob.” Was all she said before turning to leave.
