Passage Ch.1 Haplo's Dog
Summary:Life is a journey with snapshots kept in your memories
Yuletide Gift for http://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkhymns/
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The men searched the bodies for weapons or other useful items. Then they walked, leaving what was left of his parent’s corpses to other scavengers. Haplo followed silently behind, careful to erase traces of their tracks. He assumed that he was supposed to follow; it was his job to erase any tracks left behind by his parents. Only, these weren’t his parents.
The adults said nothing, alert and watching for predators or tricks from the Labyrinth. Haplo’s tears dried in the moaning wind as they moved through the barren landscape. It was nearing night when they were hailed by another Patryn. They then entered a Squatter’s camp, one or two daring small fires were lit, giving off a pleasant smoky smell. They would probably be put out soon, but for now they heated pots of food.
The men went up to an older woman and began speaking to her. Haplo continued to follow, and was surprised when the woman addressed him, “What’s your name?” He answered and she nodded, “You will stay with this camp until you are older Haplo. Get some food and rest.” The adults then left, attending to other duties and leaving Haplo standing there alone.
He wandered over to one of the small fires and someone handed him a bowl. He sat staring at it for some time before sipping at the broth. It didn’t taste quite like his parent’s. Maybe it was made from a different animal.
After some time it was dark, the fires long buried and low conversation quieting. Another adult came and took him to a tent. At their instruction he lay down and stared at the tent walls before falling into a deep and dreamless sleep.
Movement and sound woke him. The other sleepers in the tent were getting up. He sat and watched as they packed their things and left. Slowly he rose and followed them outside. The camp was breaking up; tents being brought down in between bites of food. Someone handed him a bit of dried meat and he chewed on it, watching.
Sudden movement caught his attention. An animal ran from out behind a tent and he tensed, looking for a weapon. None of the adults reacted, except one. A man called something and the animal ran to him, but it did not bite despite the sharp teeth that Haplo could see in its panting mouth. The man reached down and patted the animal.
The animal had brown fur, four legs which it walked on, a long tail and tongue, and large yellowing teeth. The paws had claws, but they did not seem particularly sharp. The tail was moving, it hit a passing Patryn, but it didn’t seem to hurt. It was somewhat small, standing at about Haplo’s waist and the man’s thighs. It was rare to see animals in a camp, although he had come across goats before. They had to be fed and protected against predators after all, and it was rarely worth the trouble when meat could simply be multiplied with the Patryn’s magic.
An adult with her long brown hair bound in braids came up to him and told him to make water for the journey. Haplo, familiar with this task, crouched down to replicate flasks, glancing up occasionally to watch the animal and the Patryn giving it orders.
They walked until dusk and then set up the tents again. Haplo was surprised that they were stopping so soon, but simply kept following. It was difficult to make sure that all the tracks from so many people were cleared. Occasionally an adult had held back from the group to watch him work, but they said nothing and Haplo assumed that they were satisfied with his work. There were a couple other children, staying close by adults that he assumed were parents or family. There was one baby, trying to cry. When they stopped Haplo got close enough to see the sigils for protection and silence stitched into its blanket. Until the baby learned to be quiet on its own it would stay wrapped up. Haplo’s own blanket had been made into makeshift clothing long ago. His mother had rebuked him for clinging to the worn cloth when she took it away.
A couple of scouts came in; to his surprise the man and the animal were with them. They spoke to the Headwoman, and then the man patted the animal, which lay down, panting. The Patryns walked off to different tasks, leaving the creature behind. Haplo thought that it must be a highly trusted animal to leave unattended like that. One of the children, younger than Haplo, ran up to it with a bit of meat, which it snatched up with its mouth and seemed to swallow whole. The child awkwardly patted the animal’s head, then the animal jumped up and licked her hands. Haplo stared, expecting the animal to bite, but instead the child began to run away. The animal ran the child down and began to lick her face as well. Instead of being frightened, though, she laughed. For some reason it seemed like the animal was happy as well, though it hadn’t received any more meat that Haplo could see.
One of adults told the child to be quiet, and her laughter cut off. She sat up, patted the animal some more and then left to get some food. Another adult placed a plate in front of him and Haplo took it without looking, his gaze still fixed on the animal, which had laid down and rolled onto its side. Haplo didn’t see the concerned looks which passed over his head.
That night the same adult, a fairly old Patryn of about 42 Gates, came and took him to the tent. The other inhabitants spoke some before falling asleep, but Haplo stayed quiet, staring at the wall again until it faded into dreams.
He started awake, the image of his mother’s blood covered body following his sight like an afterimage. Shaking and breathing heavily Haplo stumbled out of the tent into the dark night. Nauseous and dizzy he fell to the ground panting. The air was cool and still, the camp suffocatingly quiet save for his own stifled gasps.
A rustle startled him and he shied away from a dark shape approaching. Did something get past the watch? Warm, foul breath brushed against his face and he cringed away. A slick sound and then something wet and warm was sliding against his cheek. Astonished, he opened his eyes and hesitantly reached out. Soft dense fur met his fingers and he realized that it was the animal that he had seen earlier. As his eyes slowly adjusted to the dark he could see it looking at him curiously.
Remembering the child’s fearlessness he hesitantly patted the animal’s head. Pulling back he watched the animal closely; it licked his hand and then nudged it back up onto its head. Haplo gave a soft breathless laugh which for some reason morphed into a sob. Impulsively he threw his arms about the animal and hugged it while crying into the fur. It reacted to this treatment with a few licks, but stayed still and warm beside him until the silent crying stopped early in the morning.
The next day Haplo learned that the animal was a dog, an animal that could be trained for scouting and fighting and known for its loyalty. When he was fifteen he began to get the urge to leave the camp, but told himself that he would stay for just a little longer, see if there was anything else to learn. He was almost relieved when the dog was killed a Gate later, because that meant that he could now leave the camp without leaving him behind.
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I always kind of wondered why Haplo would associate dogs with compassion and intelligence strongly enough to create his own.
Yuletide Gift for http://archiveofourown.org/users/Darkhymns/
----------
The men searched the bodies for weapons or other useful items. Then they walked, leaving what was left of his parent’s corpses to other scavengers. Haplo followed silently behind, careful to erase traces of their tracks. He assumed that he was supposed to follow; it was his job to erase any tracks left behind by his parents. Only, these weren’t his parents.
The adults said nothing, alert and watching for predators or tricks from the Labyrinth. Haplo’s tears dried in the moaning wind as they moved through the barren landscape. It was nearing night when they were hailed by another Patryn. They then entered a Squatter’s camp, one or two daring small fires were lit, giving off a pleasant smoky smell. They would probably be put out soon, but for now they heated pots of food.
The men went up to an older woman and began speaking to her. Haplo continued to follow, and was surprised when the woman addressed him, “What’s your name?” He answered and she nodded, “You will stay with this camp until you are older Haplo. Get some food and rest.” The adults then left, attending to other duties and leaving Haplo standing there alone.
He wandered over to one of the small fires and someone handed him a bowl. He sat staring at it for some time before sipping at the broth. It didn’t taste quite like his parent’s. Maybe it was made from a different animal.
After some time it was dark, the fires long buried and low conversation quieting. Another adult came and took him to a tent. At their instruction he lay down and stared at the tent walls before falling into a deep and dreamless sleep.
Movement and sound woke him. The other sleepers in the tent were getting up. He sat and watched as they packed their things and left. Slowly he rose and followed them outside. The camp was breaking up; tents being brought down in between bites of food. Someone handed him a bit of dried meat and he chewed on it, watching.
Sudden movement caught his attention. An animal ran from out behind a tent and he tensed, looking for a weapon. None of the adults reacted, except one. A man called something and the animal ran to him, but it did not bite despite the sharp teeth that Haplo could see in its panting mouth. The man reached down and patted the animal.
The animal had brown fur, four legs which it walked on, a long tail and tongue, and large yellowing teeth. The paws had claws, but they did not seem particularly sharp. The tail was moving, it hit a passing Patryn, but it didn’t seem to hurt. It was somewhat small, standing at about Haplo’s waist and the man’s thighs. It was rare to see animals in a camp, although he had come across goats before. They had to be fed and protected against predators after all, and it was rarely worth the trouble when meat could simply be multiplied with the Patryn’s magic.
An adult with her long brown hair bound in braids came up to him and told him to make water for the journey. Haplo, familiar with this task, crouched down to replicate flasks, glancing up occasionally to watch the animal and the Patryn giving it orders.
They walked until dusk and then set up the tents again. Haplo was surprised that they were stopping so soon, but simply kept following. It was difficult to make sure that all the tracks from so many people were cleared. Occasionally an adult had held back from the group to watch him work, but they said nothing and Haplo assumed that they were satisfied with his work. There were a couple other children, staying close by adults that he assumed were parents or family. There was one baby, trying to cry. When they stopped Haplo got close enough to see the sigils for protection and silence stitched into its blanket. Until the baby learned to be quiet on its own it would stay wrapped up. Haplo’s own blanket had been made into makeshift clothing long ago. His mother had rebuked him for clinging to the worn cloth when she took it away.
A couple of scouts came in; to his surprise the man and the animal were with them. They spoke to the Headwoman, and then the man patted the animal, which lay down, panting. The Patryns walked off to different tasks, leaving the creature behind. Haplo thought that it must be a highly trusted animal to leave unattended like that. One of the children, younger than Haplo, ran up to it with a bit of meat, which it snatched up with its mouth and seemed to swallow whole. The child awkwardly patted the animal’s head, then the animal jumped up and licked her hands. Haplo stared, expecting the animal to bite, but instead the child began to run away. The animal ran the child down and began to lick her face as well. Instead of being frightened, though, she laughed. For some reason it seemed like the animal was happy as well, though it hadn’t received any more meat that Haplo could see.
One of adults told the child to be quiet, and her laughter cut off. She sat up, patted the animal some more and then left to get some food. Another adult placed a plate in front of him and Haplo took it without looking, his gaze still fixed on the animal, which had laid down and rolled onto its side. Haplo didn’t see the concerned looks which passed over his head.
That night the same adult, a fairly old Patryn of about 42 Gates, came and took him to the tent. The other inhabitants spoke some before falling asleep, but Haplo stayed quiet, staring at the wall again until it faded into dreams.
He started awake, the image of his mother’s blood covered body following his sight like an afterimage. Shaking and breathing heavily Haplo stumbled out of the tent into the dark night. Nauseous and dizzy he fell to the ground panting. The air was cool and still, the camp suffocatingly quiet save for his own stifled gasps.
A rustle startled him and he shied away from a dark shape approaching. Did something get past the watch? Warm, foul breath brushed against his face and he cringed away. A slick sound and then something wet and warm was sliding against his cheek. Astonished, he opened his eyes and hesitantly reached out. Soft dense fur met his fingers and he realized that it was the animal that he had seen earlier. As his eyes slowly adjusted to the dark he could see it looking at him curiously.
Remembering the child’s fearlessness he hesitantly patted the animal’s head. Pulling back he watched the animal closely; it licked his hand and then nudged it back up onto its head. Haplo gave a soft breathless laugh which for some reason morphed into a sob. Impulsively he threw his arms about the animal and hugged it while crying into the fur. It reacted to this treatment with a few licks, but stayed still and warm beside him until the silent crying stopped early in the morning.
The next day Haplo learned that the animal was a dog, an animal that could be trained for scouting and fighting and known for its loyalty. When he was fifteen he began to get the urge to leave the camp, but told himself that he would stay for just a little longer, see if there was anything else to learn. He was almost relieved when the dog was killed a Gate later, because that meant that he could now leave the camp without leaving him behind.
---
I always kind of wondered why Haplo would associate dogs with compassion and intelligence strongly enough to create his own.