That's The Way The World Ends

[Briar Holden]

29th of Winter, 501 AV He couldn't believe how fast that boy could run. It seemed to run in the family. Briar and Burke Holden, two brothers carried by the wind. One more than the other it seemed, but both had been naturally gifted with the speed of their feet and they often utilized this as they bolted through the streets of Sunberth together, the older brother tailing his younger rival. Flustered and refusing to accept defeat, Briar continued to press his body over unthinkable limits for a kid, just eleven years old. It wasn't easy for their elders to follow their pace, life moving incredibly quickly for the youngin's. The streets were dangerous, giving Burke and Briar even more reason to dare them at times like these. The cold had crept on the city and they darted ahead between the masses of citizens lumbering about the streets to make it down to the marketplaces for some hot soup or shelter for the cold nights. Barely dressed as far as was expected or required to cope with the cold, the two children kept their bodies warm by speeding along after eachother. Briar couldn't possibly hope to catch up with Burke. While Briar had also been gifted with a pair of swift feet, Burke was even faster. It came naturally to him, and Briar couldn't help but think the boy had been blessed by the divine with wings on his heels to float through the air the way he did. He moved with a grace that seemed unnatural for a boy his age and it more often than not could leave Briar utterly awestruck. He was determined to one day manage to catch up to his brother and feel what it was like to fly over the ground like he did. It was his goal and highest ambition, so he couldn't give up his rigorous training. He would eventually catch up to his brother, mark my words! It didn't seem he would today, however. Burke turned a sharp corner and Briar, unprepared and caught in fleeting thought, skidded with his heels dug into the dirt as he attempted to steer around the corner, unfortunately losing his balance and tripping himself over, rolling miserably across the ground and past the alleyway that he could barely make out Burke disappearing into. Shyke! This was no good at all... While clambering back up to sit Briar called out for his younger brother and, reluctantly, admitted his defeat and surrendered to the obviously superior part of the pair. It took a little while before Burke finally returned, a blush standing him up in his face and burning away at his otherwise pale cheeks. He beamed down at his older brother as he brushed off the dirt of his knees and the fresh scrapes that had started appearing underneath. ... Burke was a good kid. He really was. Briar couldn't possibly claim anything else. While he was obviously the better runner of the two, his humble attitude made him a very good winner. Dipping down next to Briar, Burke spat in his hand and reached out to rub his older brother's knees affectionately and soak up his scrapes. ... While this gesture did throw Briar off just a wee bit, he didn't find it in him to complain. It was an act of goodwill, however gross his saliva felt against his knee. "You are fast. It's like the Gods carry you while you run." While Briar admitted this, Burke couldn't help but give him a bit of an odd look. "That doesn't sound right..." Burke extended his other hand to Briar, much to his relief an appreciation. He happily took the dry and not-spat-in hand as he rose up to his feet again with a gentle, helpful tug from Burke. While his help wasn't exactly necessary or really helpful, Briar appreciated the gesture nonetheless. "I'm sure they've got better things to do. You're gaining on me, though, Briar... Saying that, Burke spread a smile across his face. It was thoroughly earnest, from what Briar could tell. He reached out to give Burke a little pat in his head, making sure to ruffle his blonde hair in the process. "Whatever. Let's go back to the tents." He turned around, taking a moment to figure out just where in the city they were at this point by stepping out in the middle of the street and scanning it up and down with his eyes. Deciding on which direction they were supposed to go, he turned his head back to Burke again. A grin quickly spread across his face. "Race you there!" He bolted. The two boys ran through the streets once more, laughing at the competition. Burke won, again. .

[Briar Holden]

. The Tent City. Home to plenty and sanctuary of few. That's where the Holden/Garnett family had holed themselves up for the past few decades, even prior to the birth of the two brothers and their older sister. It was a mess for such a large family to live in a place like that; the tents continued to move around as the city seemed to remodel itself on a fairly regular basis. Briar couldn't remember where the tent had stood when he was younger, the grounds around here carrying little in the way of distinguishing features. It was dry and dirty, making life in this place a challenge for everyone. You wouldn't live in a place like unless you couldn't afford something better or were running away from something that failed to find you in a city that always continued to change its shape. Nothing lasted forever in the City of Tents--that was the only infinite truth about it. The family tent was large. Big enough to host a family of six. Briar, Burke, their sister; Dusty, their parents; Redd and Lotta, and their aunt; Kit. For as long as Briar could remember, it'd just been the six of them living in that tent with the occasional appearence of Happy, a girl whose family seemed to often wind up near or next to their family tent. Most of the family spent their days within that tent, running what sad excuses for personal businesses they could come up with for the sake of earning the family's keep. Everyone who could had to pull their share of the weight, though Briar and Burke were still a little young to be expected to do so, themselves. It wasn't long now before Briar would also be expected to contribute, however, and he knew as much. Were it up to him, he wouldn't mind holding it off for a while longer. Flustered and thoroughly exhausted, the two boys crashed down in front of the family tent after crossing almost the entire city back and forth. Their skin steamed in the cold winter air, blushing furiously from the intense physical exercise. Burke had made it to the tents first, Briar following him not all that far behind. Admitting defeat once more, Briar surrendered to Burke who would only spare him the fleeting gesture of batting his hand dismissively. He would speak, had his breath not been stocked up in his throat from the exhaust. All the boys could really do for the time being was sit down on the ground and work on their breathing, slowly but surely recovering from their little competition. A pleasant scent trailed out through the fabric of the tent, gracing their senses and making their mouths water. It seemed their mother had already started preparing the supper, and judging by the scent... It was going to be good. Once in a blue moon, the family felt it could afford to spoil itself with a fine meal to lift their spirits and temporarily make them forget about their supposed misery. Once the two boys felt they'd recovered enough, they helped eachother to their feet and unsteadily made their way into the tent on soft and wobbly legs. On the way in, they were met by their father who only spared them a passing glance and a grunt as he passed them by and soon disappeared off between the tents, his heavy footsteps drowning in the bustle of life from the nearby inhabitants. Redd had always been like that, for as long as Briar could manage to remember. Their father, Redd, was a man of very few words. A man of very imposing size and a frightening facial expression---he had become respected by a fair amount of people for possessing such distinct features. Unfortunately, his large size hadn't been passed on to any of his children. Briar often mourned this, as Redd was a big and powerful man and worthy of all the respect he had managed to garner over the course of the years. Although Redd never got involved in his children's lives, Briar still held great respect for his father. Inside the tent, Lotta diligently prepared for the meal of the day. She only spared the boys a glance once they entered before dismissing them and giving the food her wholehearted attention. Kit and Dusty helped her to the best of their ability, though neither had any real experience with the art of making food the way that Lotta did. They took it upon themselves, instead, to make sure everything was in order for the time the meal was ready; so everyone had somewhere to sit and rest their trays. A good meal deserved a good setup, and they went so far as to rearrange the rest of their furniture and belongings to enable this to happen. Just like the Tent City always changed and warped, so did the inside of the family tent. With different family events floating by on occasion, the interior of the tent was reshaped time and time again to reflect this. The bedrolls were all stuffed away until they were needed again and the rest was shuffled about to make room for a large table of sorts that they could use. It consisted of crates and barrels, covered by a large blanket to look more pleasant and luxorious. ... By their standards, at least. Burke and Briar, tired as they were, did their best to contribute to the cooking. Neither of them had much knowledge, so they joined their aunt and sister in rearranging the tent to make room for the lot of them. Then, they sat quietly on their blankets around the makeshift table and waited patiently while the food was being prepared, talking briefly between the two of them. "Has Happy been doing alright, Briar? I haven't seen her in a couple of days." In many ways, you could say that Burke was more mature than Briar. It showed in the way he spoke. He was calm and collected, thoughtful and plain friendly when he could be. Briar couldn't remember that kid ever becoming angry at anyone. Sure, he screamed and kicked a fuss as a toddler, but that was a long time ago. Even then, Burke had been a remarkably placid little kid. ... He wasn't sure if that was a healthy sign or not, but at least it made their work much easier. "She needs to take care of her family, too. Not just us. That's true, though... It's odd not to have seen her for so long. I guess she's got her hands full." Yeah, she probably had her hands full. Happy had a big family, too. Briar wasn't very familiar with them as most of the time he spent with Happy was away from her family, but from what he understood, they weren't the most pleasant of sorts. They weren't horrid, but he sincerely doubted their ability to successfully raise and care for their children. He always assumed Happy would be spending more time with them if she actually enjoyed it. "Yeah... Yeah, I guess so. Her mother was sick, right?" ... That's right, too. She was. Briar frowned faintly. It was true that Happy's mother had fallen ill some time ago. This winter had been particularly harsh on some people, it seemed, the cold biting down extra hard in those who were a little more sensitive to it. He had heard that plenty of others around the city had caught on to sudden illness, though it was worse out in the Tent City than the urban areas. If you ever grew sick out here, you didn't have the same opportunities to get medical help. So, he assumed, Happy must've been busy taking care of her sick mother. If anyone, Happy would be able to provide for her. Happy was a beautiful human being in every aspect. A future cook, as well. If anyone could take care of her mother and give her what she needed while she was sick, it was probably Happy. If that was the case, then Briar could definitely forgive her for leaving him with his brother for so long. "That's right... That explains why she's been gone. It seems that sickness has been spreading a lot lately." He was worried. It didn't seem like a pleasant illness at all. As long as they stayed warm, though, he guessed they'd be fine. In the middle of that thought, a steaming platter was set down in front of his face and the scent of the food tickled his nostrils. Both their eyes lit up at the sight of the wonderfully prepared dish, seeming far more enthusiastic than the women as they settled down around the table as well to get started on the meal. As soon as everyone were seated, they ate in silence and without Redd. Their father had failed to return to the tent in time, as per usual. No one seemed to mind at this point, however, so everyone simply enjoyed themselves best they could. Briar felt like he was floating atop the clouds for a moment, there. He chewed slowly and savoured the taste for as long as it lasted until he'd sucked out every last ounce of it, swallowing reluctantly before working on the next generous bite. Starting a few years ago, Briar had grown thinner and thinner. He was quite the chubby boy in his earlier years, though that was hard to believe now that his body was closing in on becoming more skin and bones than actual flesh. He had a sickly appearence to him, although he had a fair bit of muscle on his limbs as proof of his healthy amount of exercise. Now, however, Briar never ate a full meal anymore. He would enjoy himself for a few bites before discreetly handing the rest of his food over to Burke. This had been a habit of his since Burke's earlier years when he had only just become able to chew his food on his own. Burke had been a very weak child when he was younger, so Briar thought the additional food would help him grow stronger. If it was his food that helped him or something else, he didn't know; but Burke did indeed grow stronger and stronger in the coming years and continued to accept Briar's food whenever it was given to him. He had been reluctant at first, but then it had become a natural thing for the brothers when Burke had learned that protests were utterly futile against Briar. The meal was finished in silence, the women dismissing themselves to get on with their business and leaving Burke and Briar to their own devices. They spent the rest of the day simply chatting with eachother. When the day came to an end, the tent was laid to rest and the family slept. Briar was the last one to fall asleep. He spent many hours into the night, staring into the ceiling of the tent. Anxiety gnawed at every bit of his being and prevented him from falling asleep. Eventually, exhaust got the better of him and he passed out cold. That night, he had a nightmare. .

[Briar Holden]

30th of Winter, 501 AV He was dreaming. It was fleeting at the surface of his mind as he lay just at the strand between unconsciousness and being awake, twisting and turning under his covers with a pained expression spread across his face. The anxiety that plagued Briar before he fell asleep had followed and tracked him down within the Dreamscape and tormented his otherwise restless sleep. He shuddered, tossing and turning atop his bedroll afore rolling down onto the cold, flattened dirt floor and kicking off his blankets in the process. The inside of the tent seemed to be quiet save the movements of the restless sleeper, a gentle bustle off in the distance as the nightly patrols lumbered on between the tents to make sure everything was in order. It was a pre-emptive measure by the people living here--who knows what sorts stalk the Tent City late at night to look for some easy bastard to rob. Briar ran. This wasn't particularly unusual to him, but why was he running again? He didn't know. All he knew at that moment was that he ran for his dear life, his body straining to the max to keep him moving at every cost. His vision had narrowed and his mind couldn't bring itself to perceive the world surrounding him, focusing on a single point ahead of him. Whatever it was, it seemed like he was chasing it, a bright point far ahead of him and far out of his reach. He could stretch his hand out in front of him but his fingers wouldn't fall anywhere close to it. So he ran. Desperately. Whatever it was, it felt... ... He didn't know. Opening his eyes slowly, facing the floor with his body sprawled all over it with half a leg still on his bedroll, Briar still didn't know what it felt like. Why had he been running? He had spent his entire dream just running, though he didn't know why. Was he running away from something? Was he chasing something? Whatever it was, Briar couldn't bring himself to gain any clarity at this time. He shuddered again and wrapped his arms around his frail and thin body, rolling over on his side. The cold crept in under his skin, but he didn't seem to mind that just yet. He was busy listening to his own heartbeat. Since he'd awoken, his heart had been thumping loudly against his eardrums, hard enough to blur out any other sounds coming from his surroundings. It was almost painful. Beads of sweat had started to form on his forehead already and, if he thought about it... His nightshirt felt soaked across his back. It seems he'd woken up in a cold sweat. A cold sweat. Cold. Sweat. Cold. As if reality dawned upon Briar, he rolled back onto his bedroll and immediately wrapped himself back up in his dear winter blanket. At this point, he was trembling from his body gradually cooling down, though the blanket offered him a bit of comfort despite that. It took him a while to completely come to his senses post-awakening. Unease still linger at the front of his mind and his calves itched with the desire to continue running, despite the ache and exhaust he could still feel from yesterday's marathon with Burke as his opponent. He turned himself over on his back to stare into the ceiling of the tent. It was still dark outside; he could tell as much. He didn't know how many hours he'd slept, but it couldn't have been awfully many. It was dark enough that dawn was still a couple of hours away. Briar eventually rose from his bedroll, quickly slipping himself in a couple of layers of old rags to keep whatever warmth he'd managed to recover. His skin was pale in the dim lighting of the moon as he stepped outside, however, and his body was still freezing underneath his clothes. Shivering and trembling, Briar still made up his mind to take a job about the Tent City to clear his mind and build up his warmth again, despite the cries of agony from his calves and the protests of the rest of his body. He set off, taking it step by step as he made his way down the crooked paths between the tents. It seems his idea of going for a jog had been a sound one. His mind cleared up soon enough once he managed to force his body in pace with his racing heart, allowing it to calm itself again if only ever so slightly. He kept his jog rather slow as he circled around the area, zig-zaging between the dormant tents and occasionally dodging out from the nightly patrols. A few of the stronger men had banded together to patrol around the tents at night to ensure the safety of their children and families. Briar had this wishful fantasy that Redd, his father, would be among them one of these nights. He was rarely up at this time of the day, however, so there was no real way of him knowing for sure. He couldn't see Redd in the groups he passed, but he refrained from being all too disappointed. ... Redd was a man of his own will and the judge of his own life, so to speak. He came and went as he desired and it was rare that he ever joined the family for their meals, sometimes not returning to the tent until after the rest have fallen asleep. Some mornings, he's not in the tent when the rest of the family awakens again. Lotta has never questioned it, though Briar was utterly convinced she knew more than she was letting on. She had always been deceitful, however. Briar knew better than to trust her and always took her words with a handful of salt. After all, she was a practiced liar and it's not like that wasn't common knowledge around these parts. Furthermore, he was also convinced she liked that sort of hushed reputation just fine. It most likely served her purposes better than anything else. Briar shook his head, dismissing the thought. He slowed down his steps until he eventually came to a complete halt outside of... Happy's family's tent. Inside the tent, Happy and her family were all sleeping peacefully, it seemed. Briar was careful not to step on anything or anyone as he entered and remained as quiet as he could possibly managed. He hadn't planned on entering too far, anyway. He stood near the entrance and gazed further inside where a familiar snore gave away the location of Happy's sick mother. While Briar had never known her very well, he could still identify the sound of her thick throat from all the times he'd snuck inside their tents at night. ... It was nothing suspicious, really. It was just that Happy and his contact had mostly been in secret when it came to her family. They didn't seem to appreciate it quite as much as Briar's family did, for some reason he couldn't possibly fathom. Whatever it was, his youthful mind probably couldn't wrap itself around it. Happy was sleeping right next to her mother, the two tangled up in eachothers' arms. Her mother seemed... to be in pain, from what Briar could see from over there. It was hard to make out exactly, but her face had twisted unnaturally and her forehead glittered in the subtle light of the moon that snuck in past the flaps that made the tent's entrance. Standing there for quite some time, for what felt like a shorter eternity, Briar was able to hear her mother moan and whine in her sleep, murmuring to herself in what seemed to be a very restless sleep. On occasion, she seemed to call out Happy's name and wrap her arms tighter around her slumbering daughter. It made Briar twitch, but he refused to move from his spot near the entrance of the tent. Frankly, he was afraid of provoking the rest of the family, should he mess up and cause them to awaken. ... Part of him was willing to take the risk just to step over and make Happy's sleep a wee bit easier, as her awkward position against her mother's chest looked anything but comfortable. Briar briefly glanced down to the floor to make out a path for himself between the rubble as he made his way over to where Happy and her mother were resting. Once he reached them, he carefully, so to not wake any of the two, tried to move one of her mother's arms away. ... Fruitlessly, as they were tangled up pretty firmly. Cursing quietly to himself after several minutes of trying, Briar finally gave up and went to leave the tent. Not without affectionately stroking his fingertips over Happy's forehead, however. She... looked so peaceful while she was sleeping, despite her awkward position. Briar couldn't quite explain the attachment he had to this girl. Something about her made him fiercely protective of her and his chest was burdened by the desire to be around her. It was a strange feeling; one that he couldn't even feel towards the members of his family. Not even Burke. ... Well, that might be because he saw Burke every day. And every night. On his way out, Briar knocked over a small pot by mistake. The utensils inside scrambled and fell out onto the floor, the noise causing enough disruption to draw a grunt out of Happy's mother from the back of the tent. That, he reckoned, was his cue. So he bolted, plain and simple, out of the tent and down the paths leading back to his own tent. Luckily for him, he managed to avoid detection this time. Once he returned to his family's tent again, it looked like the sun would rise within the hour. There was hardly any point in going back to sleep at this point, even though Briar's body ached from exhaust. He entered the tent anyway and tucked himself in on his bedroll, at least deciding to warm himself up until sunrise and pretend he hadn't gone outside in the middle of the night. He supposed that was for the best, or Lotta might thing he'd gotten himself into some sort of trouble again. ... He certainly didn't want that, again. .

[Briar Holden]

35th of Winter, 501 AV It didn't look like it was going to get any better. Briar returned to his tent in the middle of the night again. He still couldn't sleep. Something was nagging him at the very back of his mind and he felt the anxiety slowly eating him up on the inside. His senses were tingling and his gut told him that something was wrong, forbidding him the restful sleep he could usually manage to get himself. He hadn't eaten properly in several days now and while his stomach rumbled desperately after food, he couldn't bring himself to swallow. While the rest of his family slept at night, his eyes remained open and he just couldn't find it in himself to relax. Every night he hoped that his body would shut down on itself and give him a moment's rest, but it seemed not to happen anytime soon. Every night he would stare into the ceiling of his tent for a few hours, faint and wake up again a little while later in a cold sweat and sprawled all across the floor when his mind mercilessly threw him out of his sleep. It was the same thing over and over gain; he would get up, take a peek at the sleeping Burke and exit the tent again as soon as he felt the boulder sink to the bottom of his stomach. He would go for a run about the Tent City to clear his mind and eventually find himself outside Happy's family's tent. It bothered him. He couldn't explain his behaviour, but even the slightest resistance to follow his strong urges in the past few days had caused the weight in his heart to feel so much more painful. He couldn't bring himself to resist and continued on with his awkward routine, growing more and more tired with every passing day. Burke had expressed his worries the day before, but Briar had just dismissed him and told him that the cold might be getting to him. Lots of people were getting sick now, after all, so it was just easier to blame his exhaust on that. Granted, had he really been sick, he wouldn't have the strength to rise up from his bedroll; he knew this better than most, possibly. Every night that he crawled into Happy's tent, he found her mother in the exact same position as the night before. Her condition was getting worse with the hour and even in the dark of night, Briar could tell that she was pale and sweating. Her cheeks had started taking on a blue-ish hue and her breathing was ragged and strained. The calls for her daughter in her drugged sleep had become weaker and more... filled with sorrow. Briar's heart stung at the sound of it and he gently patted the sleeping lady on her head. ... Her forehead was soaked and burning hot, despite her pale complexion. Nevertheless, Briar did his best to comfort the slumbering sickling and even went to get towels and water to wipe her forehead clean. Two nights ago, Happy had stopped sleeping next to her mother and was now sleeping on the floor a few feet away. ... He couldn't imagine what Happy's mother must've been feeling right now. Considering her miserable look as she steadily grew more and more sick, the fact of her daughter taking her distance must make her feel lonely. And helpless. Briar swallowed and looked away from the woman, doing his best to dismiss that train of thought. He didn't need it. Not right now. Finishing up his routine like every night, Briar left once he'd dabbed the sleeping woman's forehead and brought his towels with him in a bucket of water he'd brought from a nearby well. Clean as it gets, considering the circumstances. He sighed once he stepped outside the tent, watching the steam of his breath sail away on the cool and soft breeze. If his suspicions were correct, Happy's mother might not survive for much longer unless she's given the help of someone who knows what they're doing. Not someone like Briar, who only acted out of pity and denid compassion. He shook his head. Given the price of good medicine, he... Dismiss it, Briar. This sort of thinking isn't any good. Not for you, and especially not for Happy. That's right. Happy. He looked back over his shoulder. Happy was still an innocent little girl. It wasn't uncommon that families were torn apart in places like these and no one would even bat an eye at the grief and misery of a young child in the streets. In fact, such children were often snatched up and brought into the slave trade, he imagined, since they were weak and without a purpose. They were perfect to train and sell to someone who wouldn't bother with a stronger specimen. ... He wouldn't let that happen to Happy, however. Worst comes to pass, he would take care of her. Standing outside her family's tent, he made that a promise on his honour. He muttered it out only loudly enough for himself to hear, satisfied with his own gesture nonetheless. Sending his best thoughts of good luck and promise to Happy's mother, he left the premises again and returned back home to his tents, tucking away the bucket and hiding the towels nearby. He'd wash them out in the morning so they were ready for use once he returned back to the tents again to continue his nightly routine. ... When he climbed back inside his family tent, "Where have you been...? Briar froze. In front of him stood Burke with his blanket wrapped around him, staring at his older brother as he entered; panting, sweating and fully dressed no less. Scrambling his brains for a good excuse to offer his brother, Briar blurted out; "I-I.. I was out for a run." His brow furrowed deeply. "... I couldn't sleep." It was obvious that Burke didn't believe him. Briar went on to reassure his brother that everything was fine and telling him to go back to sleep. In the end, Briar had to wrestle his brother down and tell him to stay like a good boy on his bedroll before both of them could finally sleep out the rest of the night. Well, Burke could, content with the return and interaction with his brother. Everything was in order, after all. Or so he thought. Briar patiently waited for Burke to fall back to sleep before he finally opened his eyes again and continued his staring into the ceiling of the tent. He would rather keep his eyes open, genuinely afraid of what he might see if he kept them closed. His mind ached, undesirable images creeping at the edges of his consciousness and fighting to slide themselves over his eyes. This anxiety could well be the death of him, he was almost convinced. What's worse, he couldn't explain it at all. He didn't know why he was feeling so worried. ... Maybe he was scared. But of what? What was it that scared him so much? .

[Briar Holden]

39th of Winter, 501 AV One could say it was a winter like any other. That was so far from true in Briar's little isolated reality as it possibly could be. Kneeling over Burke's bedroll with a wet cloth in hand and completely black rings surrounding his eyes, Briar did his best to make his younger brother comfortable. The entire tent had been rearranged again to allow the best possible situation for young Burke, most of the family sacrificing their comfort in order to move the boy closer to the center where they could light a protected fire to keep him warm all throughout the night. It was early morning and Briar had only just returned from Happy's tent to be chewed out by Lotta and forced into the duty of watching over his brother in the early hours of the day. Exhausted and bitter, Briar sat by his brother and continued to dab his forehead to make sure his fever could be cooled down. He had awoken the day before, paler than he had been in many years and he had refused to eat and move very far from his sleeping spot. He moaned in his sleep and couldn't even manage to stand up on his own. Lotta and Redd, their parents, had immediately prompted to tuck him back down to let him rest, assigning the rest of the family to watch over the child while Lotta rummaged about their home to keep everything in order and always supply Burke with easily digested food so to keep his stomach from getting completely empty. He needed nutrition to combat his oncoming illness after all. Redd, as per usual, disappeared off into the city and wasn't to be seen until the next morning when he left the tent as the rest of the family was just waking up. Briar chewed bitterly on the inside of his cheek, watching his brother in his restless and seemingly painful sleep. In truth, the boy was feeling empty on the inside and the bitterness sticking to his face had stuck there since he returned, his face frozen the same way it had been before his heart sank into the bottom of his chest. For days, he had watched Happy's mother's condition swiftly deteriorate and he was already convinced she didn't have much time left. He knew that if Burke was going to follow the same pattern, he likely wouldn't be able to survive. What's worse is... Burke was weak. Even with all the effort Briar and the family had put into making him grow up to become stronger, he was weak. He didn't have the resiliance of a normal human being and there was no way he would be able to survive this winter like this. Briar swallowed down the sour taste in the back of his mouth, looking away from Burke to stare into the fire positioned only a couple of feet away from himself and Burke. It was a safety precaution, so Burke wouldn't stir in his sleep and accidentally slip into range of the fire. Should his nightly guardian fail to protect him, the distance would. Wasn't it just fantastic, the faith the family members had in one another? It had always been like this. The parents made a habit of not believing openly in their children, preferring to keep them on their toes to make them work harder, only praising the most unlikely of achievements and not recognizing anything else than pure excellence. Suffice to say, neither of the three children had seen much praise in their day, swiftly losing every ounce of faith they had in their older guardians. In return, their parents didn't offer their children so much as a second thought and couldn't find it in themselves to fully trust any of them. They made that painfully clear, time and time again. ... Well, "them". Lotta. Lotta was the culprit in that regard, since she'd been the most present and active in the way this family was run and handled. Redd, the man of the family, was busy elsewhere with few to no exceptions. He had no part in the raising of his children, leaving everything in Lotta's supposedly capable hands. Of course, her sister Kit had often assisted her and she was no better. They were both spawns of Rhysol, he was utterly convinced. Evil and wicked. Redd suddenly entered the tent again, striding over to Lotta with long steps to speak to her in a hushed tone. Briar paid them little heed, too busy with watching over his brother. He could hear enough that Redd sounded distressed, Lotta not answering his state of alarm with any particular reason or care, simply dismissing him as if he was being unreasonable. A heat built up in Briar's chest and he felt his eyes tightening a little in their eyesockets as they rolled over to peer in their direction. Of the two adults, he strongly preferred Redd. He was something of a hero to Briar in many ways and stood as a shining example to him in what he would have aspired to become once upon a time. Due to his bitterness towards Lotta, he couldn't exactly appreciate the way she spoke to and interacted with his father, thus actually giving their little conversation a small bit of attention. It seemed he was out too late, however, as Redd seemed finished with their talk and turned to exit the tent again with something of a defeated expression on his face. His large and imposing figure, in Briar's mind, seemed to have almost shrunk a little bit in the past few days. His stance lacked his usual pride and his shoulders hung limply from their joints even as he exit the tent without casting so much as a glance in Briar's direction. He snorted, turning back to Burke again and squeezing out the water of his wet towel in an empty bucket. He wringed it between his hands until his fingers ached, his jaw clenched from frustration that bubbled up within. He couldn't surrender to everything that was going on right now, but the gods surely knew how much he had wanted to. His inner strength had been put to the test more times than he could count in the past several days and he had no doubt in his heart that it would be tested time and time again in the near future. His gaze fell on Burke again and an enourmous weight fell in his gut, causing him to sway and his vision to blur for just a moment. This isn't fair, he thought to himself while reaching a hand up to wipe away the wetness beginning to gather around his eyes. This just isn't fair. Later that day, Dusty relieved him of his duties and let him take some time to clear his mind again. He headed out of the tent, still exhausted from so many days without proper sleep and plenty of physical strain. He rolled his shoulders while walking down the narrow streets that had formed between the lanes of tents, watching the people around them as they went about their daily business. Winter brought about a whole other sense of urgency to the Tent City, its inhabitants struggling more than ever otherwise to survive from day to day. People scrambled for food and shelter every day, calling down doctors and healers from the main city to help their sick for a price. A price that most the people here couldn't afford---Briar knew he didn't have that kind of money on him, and he sincerely doubted that any other member of the family had that sort of funds on hand. It was expensive to get help in this place. It wasn't because the doctors or healers wanted to squeeze every last copper-rimmed miza out of the poor and needy, but because they needed guarantee. The Tent City, after all, was just as dangerous as the alleyways of Sunberth. You could get lost if you didn't know where you were going, and the people of the Tent City were always happy to take advantage of a careless stranger to feed and preserve their families. Therefore, doctors and healers would only answer the calls of those who were willing to pay them, even then taking a great risk to even come into this area. Most of them had people with them, however, so "accidents" were uncommon. ... However, not unheard of. Even Briar knew this. And, then there was the fact that most of the people with the natural ability to heal using the wonky magical gifts or whatnot that they had access to, were slaves. They would only come here if their masters gave permission, and the terms of such a gift were always harsher than anything your regular doctor could possibly conjure. Briar coughed, wiping some spittle from around his mouth. He needed to dismiss that train of thought, too. His mind was going nowhere good or pleasant these days, it seemed. Unlike a few days ago, however, Briar's mind seemed to be clearer on why. ... This illness that spread through the city was horrid. It took its toll on the populace and that's what Briar had been so afraid of. He didn't need more suffering in his life, but then people around him started showing the signs and falling into deep and dangerous sickness and there was absolutely nothing that anyone could do. Least of all, Briar. What little he was capable of wasn't nearly enough to help any of them, no matter how much he wanted it or prayed to the heavens to appeal to whichever diety out there who'd be a specialist in taking care of this kind of dilemma. He cursed his fortune, and he cursed the so-called "gods". In the middle of the street, he stopped and physically stared up at the heavens with a deep and grim scowl on his face, leering with bitter intent at a passing dark cloud while muttering his condemnation of the divine entities. He stood like this for a few minutes before finally moving on when people started giving him odd looks, pulling his blanket closer around himself and sinking his head down between his shoulders and he lumbered on quietly, alone, through the City. No one ever saw the tears he shed that day. .

[Briar Holden]

. Not until the evening had crawled upon the Tent City did Briar return to his family tent. There, he was greeted by Dusty. He came to a stop the moment he saw her as the expression of terror on her face made his stomach turn and he couldn't... he couldn't overcome the ominous feeling that was growing within his chest upon seeing her. Dusty spotted Briar after a short moment and rushed over to him, gripping both his shoulders and shaking him violently. Admittedly, his vision blurred from that little gesture alone, his body struggling to keep him awake at this point. She screamed at him but he couldn't make out what she was saying; his senses had gone haywire from her unconventional greeting, his entire system scrambled and in disarray. It took him a minute to finally recover and look at her straight, her impatient face greeting him once he finally came fully to his senses agains. "Sorry, say that again...?" ... He didn't mean to come off as ignorant, but it seemed that Dusty had interpreted it that way. He would never understand that woman. "Burke is gone, you twit! If you so much as dare suggest you haven't seen him since you left, I'm going to smother you in the snow..." Suffice to say, Briar fell eerily quiet. Not because he wanted to avoid a good, cold smothering, but because he was stunned. Burke was gone? He stood as if frozen in Dusty's grip for a few more minutes with her scrambling his senses a couple more times with her shaking of his shoulders before he finally broke off from her, shaking her hands off of him along with the blanket he'd been wrapped in. It fell into the snow as Briar forced his body into a sprint, dashing down the streets of the Tent City to desperately search for his younger brother. Knowing how sick he was, it wasn't possible for the boy to have gotten very far. If this proved to be true, he should be able to find Burke before he inflicted any serious damage on himself and made his survival of this sickness... impossible. Briar swallowed bitterly and shook his head as he ran, once again deciding to dismiss his thoughts and focus so to not distract his already distraught mind. ... And he searched for hours. Darkness had started falling over the city and the biting cold chewed into Briar's skin. Desperation was tugging at his limbs to still enable him to move, staggering through the streets of Sunberth in a clumsy jog as his body moved on when it actually shouldn't. His vision had narrowed a long time ago and he spin about in circles several times before making a turn to fully be able to see where he was and where he was going. He already knew at the back of his mind that he had no idea what he was doing, he was just running for the sake of running at this point. ... Somewhere, Burke had run away. A sick, frail and weak boy had run away. His brother, his sick, frail and weak brother had run away to who knows where. Wherever he was, he was cold, hungry, feverish and miserable. The urgency of the situation was what kept Briar going, as he otherwise had no spare strength left from his rough days coming up to this point. He had no doubts that, once and if he found Burke, he would collapse face-first into the snow. It was pointless, wasn't it? He was at the point that, even if he found Burke, he couldn't help the boy. Somewhere at the back of his mind, he knew he was too tired. There was no way his body would keep itself running for long enough to carry him and Burke to safety, nor to comfort Burke until help arrived. All he could do was find him and leave both their fates in the hands of a goodwilled stranger. That was what he assumed. So why was he still running? Was he running away? Or was he chasing something? ... Briar didn't know. He still didn't know. Pressing on past the limits of his mortal body, Briar still didn't know why he was running. He knew he wished to find Burke, but why was he running? Weren't there better ways to find Burke? ... No. No, there weren't. Because only he could find Burke. A couple of hours later, he did. Darkness had already set in and most the denizens of the city had already returned to their homes in order to get some sleep. And there he was, pale as a ghost and slumped against a wall in one of the central alleyways. For a moment, Briar almost thought that Burke was already dead. It was his face that convinced him otherwise, the weak elder brother sinking down in front of the slumped figure of his protegé to look upon the bright and blushing face he knew all too well. Despite his obvious weakness, Burke was still smiling that same smile he'd always known him for. It warmed Briar's heart. His body trembled as he sank on his knees in the snow in front of Burke. "F-found... you. Why did you...?" Briar swallowed, his dry tongue scraping painfully at the inside of his mouth to prevent him from speaking clearly. He was hoarse and his voice was weak. Weaker than he would've imagined. Burke continued to smile, however. "I wanted to run. I wanted to feel the wind in my face one last time, Briar." When Burke said this, Briar's vision blurred. He didn't know if this was because he was weak and his consciousness was fading, or because tears had started to well up in his eyes again. All he knew then was that he could no longer see Burke's smiling face, making his heart sink in his chest. "... That's silly ta-talk, Burke. You just need rest, and you'll be up and bouncing in no time. You know that..." While Briar knew the fundamentals of a good lie, he couldn't bring himself to sound particularly convincing right now. His weakness betrayed his anxiety, though this was no news to Burke. He already knew the sentiments of his older brother. A quiet and rasped laugh came from Burke, cleaving sharply into Briar's heart. This illness has even stolen his laughter from him... "I'm weak. I can't feel my legs and my fingers are stinging so much I don't want to move them. By myself, I can't go back home and without you here, mother or father would never find me. I would've died right here, Briar. But now, at least I can go back home and die peacefully surrounded by you lot, right?" Briar didn't answer. In truth, it was questionable whether he'd heard a single word Burke had just said. Regardless, Briar pushed himself up on his feet and stood by Burke, reaching down to scoop him up in his arms. It was an awkward position for the younger boy and Briar's body protested painfully to the sudden strain. Not heeding the warnings of his body, however, Briar carried his brother out of the alley and continued down the street. Resting peacefully in the arms of his elder sibling, Burke continued to wear that warm and rosey smile even as his eyes shut, drifting off to a brief and intoxicated sleep against his brother's chest. It was a shame that Briar would never be able to see this, however, as his mind had already blanked out entirely at this point and his body was pretty much moving on its own. From then on, he has no memory. The last thing he remembers of that night is carrying Burke through the streets of Sunberth. Then, everything whites out. .

[Briar Holden]

45th of Winter, 501 AV Several days passed. Briar slept through them all. His body finally couldn't take any more. His sleeping hours were spent sweating and moaning in nightmarish dreams, his anxieties still not letting him rest in peace. He was left mostly on his own for the duration of these days, laying on his bedroll for the majority of the time. Only really leaving his bedroll to get some food into his system, he couldn't care less about what was going on around him. His family let him skip out on the shifts they took to watch over Burke, much to his dismay. He was ultimately left without a purpose as Burke's illness got worse and worse, gradually claiming his body and spirit, tearing away at the hearts of his family members who watched him slowly waste away. Redd was still nowhere to be seen, his bedroll not having been in use in several days. In fact, it hadn't been used since Briar saw him leave the tent after an unpleasant conversation with Lotta, and he supposed Redd had a very good reason to leave his family behind at a time like these. ... He hoped, with all his heart. The atmosphere had gradually become colder in this tent. It was warm and heated up during all hours of the day to keep Burke as comfortable as possible, but everyone were preparing for the inevitable at this point. Burke had admitted to Briar when he found him in that alleyway... that he knew he was going to die. Briar's chest felt heavy as that image popped back into his mind; the last time he was ever going to see Burke's smile. Since he returned to the tent together with his older brother, it seemed Burke had been out cold and struggling to keep himself alive. Lotta had manage to draw the attention of a small-task doctor in the city to come out and look at the child, but he had repeatedly told her there was nothing he could do. She continued to pull him back into the tent to check on the sick child's condition, despite him always telling her the same thing. Over and over again. Briar grew sick of hearing it after a while, to the point where he'd be grinding his teeth and covering his ears every time the doctor entered the tent. He'd even learned to recognize the sound of his footsteps. A heavy right foot with a slight drag on the left; if he had to guess, that doctor had gotten himself into a tussle sometime recently. Perhaps he wasn't such an honest practitioner as he claimed. Normal doctors didn't get assaulted in alleyways, he told himself, though he didn't know if this was true. Least of all in a place like Sunberth. He hated waiting. Knowing that Burke would die sooner or later, all he could do was wait. His body wouldn't carry him if he attempted to do anything else; not even to carry out his nightly routine of visiting Happy's tents. Speaking of Happy--he wondered how her mother was doing right now. ... And then he came to regret ever entering that train of thought as he bit his tongue and turned over to bury his face in the folded up piece of cloth that acted as a pillow for his head. Happy hadn't come over in the past few days to look for him. Whether her mother was still alive or not was a mystery to him, but even if she was... he sincerely doubted she would remain alive for much longer. He grits his teeth and shut his eyes tightly, rubbing his face further into the cloth. This was too much for him. He was still a child and he was trying so hard not to be, for the sake of his sanity. The amount of responsibility he'd taken upon himself while all of this had been going down weighed too heavy on his shoulders and he could certainly feel it now. For some reason, he'd managed to keep himself going despite all odds, but now his good fortune was taking its toll on him and his muscles ached with every single little move he made. He wouldn't be able to move out of this tent, and he might not even be able to move over to see Burke one last time before he passed away. That was what sucked the most. Though, thinking about it... He sighed softly, calming his racing heart. At least, in that case, Briar's last image of Burke would at least be with a smile on his face. That same smile that he'd always known Burke for; a smile that he loved with all his heart. He would cherish that image for as long as he yet lived. At that moment, he pretty much decided he wouldn't look in Burke's direction. He turned his back and faced the cloth wall of the tent, pulling his blanket tightly around him. When they served the last meal of the day, Briar didn't join them. He simply stared quietly into that wall, praying. He didn't know who to pray to, but he prayed anyway. For a safe passage for Burke, and to make his passing as painless as possible. To give him a nice spot in whatever came after death, give him a place to run freely with the wind in his face so he could fly across the world like he'd done so many times in Sunberth. Rolling plains of green grass where he could feel free, loosen the shackles of everyday life and become weightless, like Briar had imagined him if he got any faster on his feet. Briar smiled softly to himself as he imagined that grassy landscape in front of him, drawing it upon the dull cloth of the tent and picturing Burke running across the fields with that beautful smile of his pasted on his face. He was absorbed in this picture for hours, night falling over the Tent City once more. Before he knew it, there was a crowd gathering inside the tent and he thought he could hear a distant sniveling. Turning around, finally, he gazed out into the tent and saw a crowd of large men in the company of his father, Redd, who surrounded the spot where he knew that Burke lay. They were murmuring quietly to themselves, and Redd had a look of defeat upon himself as he gazed down upon what could only be his son. Judging by the tension in the air and the look on everyones' faces, it was over. And Briar had missed it. He was happy he did. That way, he could continue living with the illusion that Burke left this world with a smile on his face, and was now running across the green plains just like Briar had wished for him. He cast a brief glance into the ceilings, muttering one last request to the divine before his attention turned back to the group surrounding Burke's body. Lotta stepped out of the group with a hand over her face, back turned to Briar and the crowd as the large men reached down to scoop up the lifeless body of the little boy, wrapped up tightly in a warm blanket to keep him at a respectable temperature even past his death. Briar looked away, laying down again to stare into the tent's wall and again envision that grassy landscape before his eyes. A lump was steadily growing in the back of his throat as he heard the group leave the tent, presumably taking Burke with them to dispose of his body somewhere so it wouldn't spread any nasty diseases to those still amongst the living. Before his eyes, Burke danced across the fields of grass, smiling and laughing like he used to before he fell to his illness. Briar would stare into this picture until he eventually lost his consciousness again, exhaust getting the better of him. He parted ways with Burke for the last time, leaving him with these words at the edge of his conscious mind: I guess... I finally caught up to you, little brother. .

[Gossamer]

. Character: Briar Holden Experience: +4 Running, +5 Observation, +2 Stealth, +1 Evasion, +1 Medicine, +1 Tracking, +2 Bodybuilding, Lore: Burke is a Faster Runner, Falling Gracelessly, ( The Tent City of Sunberth: Geography, Politics, How To Survive It, Winters Are Hard On People), Experiencing Nightmares, Watching Family Waste Away With Sickness, Being Protective Of Happy, Burke Is My Role Model, Experiencing an Epidemic (In Tent City), Carrying His Brother Home To Die, Burke’s Death Additional Note: God this was a sad thread. I enjoyed reading it because it drove home how bad the conditions in Tent City really are. Thank you for writing it and sharing it with us. I could really see how close Briar was to Burke and I loved how the family named all their children especially Happy. I’m so sorry for your PC though, which is terrible because its not real, but I feel sorry nonetheless. .