Chapter 5

Serpin woke early the next morning with Collin curled around her.

She snuggled into his arms and felt at peace. The soft kiss near her ear and his sultry good morning gave her goose-bumps. Reluctantly, they got up. After a quick wash, they collected their gear and repacked their packs.

Collin had suggested they collect more ore since they had the means to carry more and it meant they wouldn’t have to hurry back. He heated pannikins of tea for them and they drank them on the way to the mine face.

He got Serpin to touch him, as he showed her how he was extracting the elements they needed, and they found that with her help they collected what they wanted with ease. Collin had Serpin put her box near his. Once they decided they had enough, they placed them back in the packs and they decided it was time to leave.

With light packs and Collin feeling a lot healthier, they made good time. The West Keep side of the mountain didn’t have as many steep ravines and Serpin estimated that if they left at first light, they would be home before dark the next day.

Collin was all for pushing the pace. They had picked up enough food on the way up the mountain and with Serpin’s original supplies that they wouldn’t need to stop often. They could get a decent meal once they did. Along the way, Serpin directed them to where she knew there was water. They stopped late that night once the moon was down.

The next morning, they were already packed and back on the trail as soon as there was enough light to move safely. By the time that they trudged into the Smithy just on dusk, they were buggered. Collin chuckled tiredly and said that going down hills was worse than going up them.

Serpin had to agree. They were late enough that her workers had already gone home. Serpin was pleased that Dalia, Tom’s wife had been looking after the house for her. The couple must have seen them walking in from their house across the street as only a few minutes later, Dalia was knocking at the door.

“Dearie-me, Serpin, I bet you haven’t eaten, have you girl? Luckily, for you, I baked extra this morning and Tom got me a fat longears to make his favourite stew and you know I always make a big pot. He will just have to get me another for tomorrow,” she ran on as she deposited the kettle and the basket of bread on the table.

Serpin chuckled as a small pot of butter appeared from one of Delia’s large pockets and she pulled a glass bottle with a cork in it from the other that contained milk. “I’ll drop some fresh eggs and more milk off in the morning for you, dear.”

Serpin hadn’t missed the curious looks Delia sent Collin’s way. She decided she had better introduce him, or Delia would fret and wonder all night long just who he was. “Delia, this is my bond partner, Collin. Collin, Delia is Old Tom’s wife and the best cook in a hundred klicks. She takes pity on me and keeps house for me.”

Delia opened and closed her mouth a couple of times in shock. “You have not mentioned him before?” she got out.

“Well, I did only meet him a week ago (six days on Tara) but we were both blessed with vambraces that are bonded, so we are too,” Serpin explained.

“Oh, my, my, my, that is good news. Both the bonding and the receiving of magical items. I did think your glow had increased. I am so happy for you, dear. Will the vambrace help you with being a smith?” Delia had to ask, as she was worried about Tom’s job.

“Yes, Collin and I both have three gemmed vambraces and we have different gems, so together we hope to make some exceptional swords and dirks. Collin also helped me extract the ore and other elements we need. I still have four months to get Prince Aydan’s commission done,” Serpin informed her.

“Well, that is good. By the way, another gentleman called earlier today, but he didn’t state his business. He was rather well dressed so he may have another commission for you. He did say he would try again, another time, as we couldn’t tell him when you would be back.”

“Now I had better leave you to get your supper. Tom has cut some more wood so there is plenty to heat water if you need it. I’ll drop some things off for your breakfast. It is so nice you’re home again, as we did miss you, dear,” Delia told Serpin and made her way out the door after saying goodbye to them both.

Collin gave Serpin a ‘What the fuck was that?’ expression, making her giggle. “She will wheedle all your secrets out of you before you even realise, she has,” Serpin commented and giggled again when Collin groaned.

Collin stuck his finger in the pot of stew and stirred some fresh heat into it. “Let’s eat,” he said, as the smell of it and fresh bread was making his stomach rumble.

Serpin could take a hint and agreed food would be a good idea. She collected dishes and they were soon hoeing into the stew. They fought good-naturedly over who got to wipe the pot clean as they had both enjoyed every morsel.

Serpin then felt up to giving Collin a quick tour of his new home. The downstairs section was designed as a large open area with the kitchen at the east end, the sitting room at the west end and the dining table between.

On the back was a large storage room that was accessed from the laundry and across a short hall was the bathroom behind the kitchen. The backdoor was located at the end of the hall and led out to the backyard where there was a large barn with stabling for six lankys.

The front entry was accessed from a long wide porch, it was located between the dining table and kitchen and the back entrances faced it. The foot of the stairs was near the entrance to the bathroom and laundry, and the stairs ran up that wall. A walkway on one side of the top of the stairs gave access to the three bedrooms over the main part of the house.

The other room over the back half was glassed in on the top two-thirds of the back and east side walls. It was designed for many activities and was essentially the Design and Art Studio, where special items were finished. Collin loved this room.

His next favourite room in the house was Serpin’s bedroom. All three bedrooms were large, and Serpin had the corner room over the kitchen with big windows on the east side and a large sliding door out on to a patio.

At the other end of the house, with the same roof height was the Smithy. It was as long and as wide as the full width of the house. A mezzanine floor took up the back third and all manner of metals in bars, sheets and rods, and some half-made items, were stacked on shelves under it and on it.

One could also access the back-storage room from the Smithy and the Designing room from a door on the mezzanine floor. The patio that formed the roof of the porch ran the full length of the front of the house to the end over the Smithy. It was covered by an extension of the hipped roof.

Each bedroom had sliding glass doors that accessed the south facing patio. The area in front of the smithy was paved in cobblestone out to the road. Paved paths from the Smithy and then to the road ran to the one step high porch that had a low railing around it. Several chairs and small tables adorned it and made it a lovely place to sit in the evenings.

In the Smithy, an open coal type forge was near the house side wall and a larger more modern gas-fired one was against the opposite thick brick wall with the gas tanks on the other side of it. Several workbenches of different heights and anvils of assorted sizes were spaced around the room.

Large sliding metal doors could be opened to provide air and light to the smithy from the front and the back wall had long slit windows on both floors to help. Two smaller doors on the bottom floor gave access to the backyard and the stables.

While it looked spacious, Serpin informed him when they used to hire four Smiths and they were all busy you had to be very mindful of what they were doing. She pointed out how the area was split so different activities were primarily done in that space.

Barnacle also did some farrier work, but he normally did it out the front under the patio roof that was close to three metres from the ground, since both floors of the house had lofty ceilings. The thick bricks and the odd spell kept the inside of the house a pleasant temperature in the hot summers.

Serpin mentioned to Collin that she had seriously thought of taking on an apprentice. He grinned and said that she had. He couldn’t guarantee he would be particularly good, but he did promise he would try. Serpin was delighted that he was at least going to try for her.

She decided it was time that he practised something he was good at and took him to wash-up before taking him to bed.

They both found they were up early.

Serpin commented that she felt amazingly well considering they didn’t get a lot of sleep. He too felt a better rested and they were both very hungry. Collin was not going to complain about the sleeping arrangement or lack of actual sleep.

Sharing his body with Serpin had been just as amazing as it had been in the cave. What she lacked in experience she made up with her desire to please him. This had been as wonderful an experience to Collin, as it had been for him learning how to please her.

They had no sooner retrieved fresh clothes and washed-up ready for the day when Delia knocked at the door. Delia and Tom came in bearing gifts and Collin and Serpin were soon making short work of the wonderful breakfast Delia supplied.

While Delia made the morning tea, Tom and Serpin caught up on what had been happening in her near three weeks of absence. Tom informed her that he and Barnacle had nearly finished Lord Jordyn’s new gates and they should have them on a cart and out to his estate in a couple of days. Tom also mentioned the stranger.

After breakfast, they went to the smithy and Tom was fascinated when Collin and Serpin opened the small chests on one of the workbenches and started lifting out what they had collected from the mine as far as ore and minerals and some of the tools they had collected. Tom and Serpin ferried them to the storage area of the Smithy while Collin removed the items.