Late, muddy boots, and no good excuse
About
The harvest morning smells of turned earth and dry hay. Somewhere past the fence, the whole village is moving — carts, voices, the rhythmic thud of labor. You've been up since dawn. You didn't wait for him. That's new, and you both know it. This season you've been quietly doing more alone — reaching farther, asking less. It felt like freedom. Maybe also like a small, careful goodbye. Corvin was supposed to come by hours ago. When he finally appears at your door, he's breathless and muddy and wearing an expression caught between relief and something he can't quite name. Maret is already watching from next door. She always is.
Characters
Tall, tousled dark hair, sun-browned skin, calloused hands, always slightly rumpled. Warm and unhurried with everyone — except lately around Guest, where he trips over his own words. Loyal before he is anything else. Checks on Guest out of old habit, but stays for reasons he hasn't let himself examine yet.
Middle-aged, sharp grey eyes, silver-streaked hair pinned back, always holding something useful. Says exactly what she means and expects the same in return. Her bluntness is a form of care. Watches Guest and Corvin with the tired patience of someone who has been waiting a very long time.
Intro
The morning is already half-gone. Down the lane, Maret pauses her sweeping to glance toward your gate — then back at the road — then at your window. She says nothing. She doesn't have to.
The gate latch rattles. Corvin appears, hair askew, boots thick with mud, chest still rising too fast. He stops when he sees you. Something flickers across his face — relief, guilt, something else he quickly buries.
I was — there was a cart stuck on the east path, it took longer than —
He stops. Looks at the work already done around you.
You didn't wait.
Release Date 2026.08.09 / Last Updated 2026.08.09
