Judgement [Story]
So. Macglynn drew an amazing picture and I was like "WHOA THAT MAKES ME WANT TO WRITE SOMETHING" and she was like "OKAY SO WRITE SOMETHING" and I was like "ARE YOU SURE IT'S YOUR CHARACTER" and she was like "YES STOP BEING WEIRD."
So I wrote something.
Chadley looked up at the armor hanging so carefully in his room at Northshire Abbey. He didn't like to tell anyone that he opened this closet every night to look at it, make little adjustments here and there to ensure that it was hanging correctly, that nothing had fallen down during the day or been knocked out of place. It was his father's armor, armor he'd carried with him from Corin's Crossing to Southshore to Northshire Abbey. Years ago, when he'd last tried it on, Mairèad had told him that he'd grow into it someday, but it was someday and though Chadley had filled out and gained a few inches, he knew he'd likely never fill his father's shoes.
Instead of filling them, he sat at them, looking up at the old ceremonial plate that still gleamed as if it had been worn only a few days before. Sitting here, it was easy to imagine Oliver MacGlynn alive and smiling down at him--a real smile, not the macabre grin that he now wore regardless of mood. It was easy to imagine him as he was, always, leaving for some Silver Hand gathering or returning from one, the man Chadley idolized and not the husk of him that remained.
"We went home last week," Chadley told the armor in a soft voice. Nobody, not even Mairèad, knew that he talked to the armor as if it was his father. Not that she'd judge him for it, he knew, but some things were better kept behind closed doors. "Me and Mair, to Corin's Crossing? It's a mess. The Scourge haven't given up their hold there, and for every one you cut down, two more rise out of the ground. It's a living nightmare."
"But!" Chadley grinned up at the armor and reached over, retrieving an old wooden box. "Look what I found! Remember this? I kept all my stuff in here. Like..." He rummaged through the contents, coming up with a small wooden carving of a dog. "...this. You made him for me when you were out at Stratholme, after Ma said we couldn't get a dog. You said he was the only thing that kept you entertained during those trials you had to hear."
More rummaging and Chadley removed a child's drawing on the page of a libram. "You were pissed when I colored all over yer libram, but then the next morning, I found this next to me on the pillow." The child's drawing showed a crude paladin in red and gold armor, but added to it in black pen was a more careful drawing of what looked to be a young Chadley on the paladin's shoulders.
Chadley's rummaging became more deliberate. "But this... this was the best find." He pulled out something wrapped in black cloth and after a moment, removed the cloth to reveal the final piece of the armor, the telltale mask of the Judgment design. "It's pretty beat up," Chadley admitted, tugging on the leather hood and touching the worn corners. "But it's here. And... I'm gonna ask you to help me fix it up. If for no other reason than I want the full set together. It's like having you back. Like..."
Well, no. It wasn't really, and he knew that. Chadley sat in silence for a moment before setting his box of treasures on the floor in front of the armor. He then stood and straightened his shoulders. "I love you, Dad," he whispered as he closed and latched the doors that hid the armor from the world.
So I wrote something.
Chadley looked up at the armor hanging so carefully in his room at Northshire Abbey. He didn't like to tell anyone that he opened this closet every night to look at it, make little adjustments here and there to ensure that it was hanging correctly, that nothing had fallen down during the day or been knocked out of place. It was his father's armor, armor he'd carried with him from Corin's Crossing to Southshore to Northshire Abbey. Years ago, when he'd last tried it on, Mairèad had told him that he'd grow into it someday, but it was someday and though Chadley had filled out and gained a few inches, he knew he'd likely never fill his father's shoes.
Instead of filling them, he sat at them, looking up at the old ceremonial plate that still gleamed as if it had been worn only a few days before. Sitting here, it was easy to imagine Oliver MacGlynn alive and smiling down at him--a real smile, not the macabre grin that he now wore regardless of mood. It was easy to imagine him as he was, always, leaving for some Silver Hand gathering or returning from one, the man Chadley idolized and not the husk of him that remained.
"We went home last week," Chadley told the armor in a soft voice. Nobody, not even Mairèad, knew that he talked to the armor as if it was his father. Not that she'd judge him for it, he knew, but some things were better kept behind closed doors. "Me and Mair, to Corin's Crossing? It's a mess. The Scourge haven't given up their hold there, and for every one you cut down, two more rise out of the ground. It's a living nightmare."
"But!" Chadley grinned up at the armor and reached over, retrieving an old wooden box. "Look what I found! Remember this? I kept all my stuff in here. Like..." He rummaged through the contents, coming up with a small wooden carving of a dog. "...this. You made him for me when you were out at Stratholme, after Ma said we couldn't get a dog. You said he was the only thing that kept you entertained during those trials you had to hear."
More rummaging and Chadley removed a child's drawing on the page of a libram. "You were pissed when I colored all over yer libram, but then the next morning, I found this next to me on the pillow." The child's drawing showed a crude paladin in red and gold armor, but added to it in black pen was a more careful drawing of what looked to be a young Chadley on the paladin's shoulders.
Chadley's rummaging became more deliberate. "But this... this was the best find." He pulled out something wrapped in black cloth and after a moment, removed the cloth to reveal the final piece of the armor, the telltale mask of the Judgment design. "It's pretty beat up," Chadley admitted, tugging on the leather hood and touching the worn corners. "But it's here. And... I'm gonna ask you to help me fix it up. If for no other reason than I want the full set together. It's like having you back. Like..."
Well, no. It wasn't really, and he knew that. Chadley sat in silence for a moment before setting his box of treasures on the floor in front of the armor. He then stood and straightened his shoulders. "I love you, Dad," he whispered as he closed and latched the doors that hid the armor from the world.