"What did you do in the winter," Jessarat asked, "in the far north on the banks of the Cheresen, where the night lasts most of the day?"
Innis didn't answer, and Jess thought he would not answer, and perhaps it was a waste of breath to talk when there was so much ground to cover, and hard walking as they crunched along through the thin crust that had frozen over the snow. But then Innis said, "We told stories around the fire. The long sagas - those are winter stories - always told when the sky is dark and the flames flickering. We would crack nuts - you always save the nuts to crack in winter; it is something to do with your hands; w would flame dried fruits in brandy, and snatch them out of the pans, and suck our burnt fingers and brag about the grand things we would one day do..."
He paused, gazing over the fields with the snow all blushed red as the red sun sank low. He tossed his head like a restive horse, and said, "What will you do in the winters, when you've conquered the banks of the Cheresen, where the night lasts most of the day?"
"I doubt we'll make it so far."
"You're a diplomat." The growing dusk tinged Innis's face blue. "You're right, though. Winter will save us. If anything can."
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Date: 2022-12-06 09:40 pm (UTC)Innis didn't answer, and Jess thought he would not answer, and perhaps it was a waste of breath to talk when there was so much ground to cover, and hard walking as they crunched along through the thin crust that had frozen over the snow. But then Innis said, "We told stories around the fire. The long sagas - those are winter stories - always told when the sky is dark and the flames flickering. We would crack nuts - you always save the nuts to crack in winter; it is something to do with your hands; w would flame dried fruits in brandy, and snatch them out of the pans, and suck our burnt fingers and brag about the grand things we would one day do..."
He paused, gazing over the fields with the snow all blushed red as the red sun sank low. He tossed his head like a restive horse, and said, "What will you do in the winters, when you've conquered the banks of the Cheresen, where the night lasts most of the day?"
"I doubt we'll make it so far."
"You're a diplomat." The growing dusk tinged Innis's face blue. "You're right, though. Winter will save us. If anything can."