Morning all. Snow is mostly gone but a few trees weren’t so happy with the cold. So I am going to be spending a chunk of today cleaning up the fallen from the back yard. Before then, we have the writing prompt. So to the timers!
Not where I thought this was going actually.
Thursday, January 16th: The forest was shrouded in mist.
The forest was shrouded in mist. He stared at the gray world before him. In places he could see the darker boles of the trees, shadows in the mist. There was a path, he could see it from where he stood, leading from the open ground and into the wood. He looked to the others. Going in was a bad idea. He knew it.
He looked from face to face. They seemed unconcerned. Many of them seemed to think this was a fun outing. There wasn’t a worried line creasing any of their faces.
“I don’t think this is such a good idea,” he told them. They looked to him. He saw confusion now on a few of their faces, mocking on others.
“It’s just a short walk through the woods to reach the castle on the other side,” Gerald informed him. He sounded exasperated by Franklin’s concern. “What could possibly go wrong?”
“Especially with Sir Gerald in charge,” Madaline said. She fluttered her lashes at Gerald who preened. He puffed up his chest and turned away, his steps already taking him towards the forest.
There would be no talking to him now. Franklin knew that. Ever since he had been knighted Gerald thought himself invincible. The reaction of the ladies at court and the shining eyes of the men without titles in their group only seemed to encourage him. Gerald paused and looked back at Franklin.
“You can go the long way round if you’d like. We’ll tell the others you be along eventually.” He turned away and strode down the path. Th rest of the group, many of them giggling or letting out chortles of amusement trouped after him.
“You know I think I will go the long way round,” he told them. Annoyed with all of them, Franklin backtracked to the crossroads and turned onto the side road. It would lead him around the mist shrouded woods and would take him at least two extra hours to cross, but the reports were still fresh in his mind.
‘Besides I’ve had enough of this group,’ he thought as he moved down his chosen path. He kept his pace brisk, partially because it was a longer walk but partially to burn off some of his anger. Gerald was becoming unbearable. Franklin knew that when he came of age he would inherit a title held in trust for him. Gerald knew it as well and pointed out he did nothing to earn it.
The implication being of course that Gerald earned his knighthood. The fact that his father bought him the knighthood, using the money that Franklin’s father paid him to help his training before he took his inherited position was irrelevant. Somehow it translated into Gerald earning his title while Franklin had his given to him.
Franklin shook his head. It didn’t really matter. Soon his training would be complete and he would come of age. He had inherited a barony from his mother’s family and would take charge of it.
Ten til Midnight 