Chapter 90: Interlude: Sixteen

Twenty-third day, Eighth Moon, 257 AC (+22 days)

Faster! Faster!

He pushed the bicycle faster as he raced down the street to his house, as he made his way back from the archery range where he had been practicing with his friends. They practiced every day in the summer, and then usually went for a swim afterward in the river.

They were lucky – he knew that. The village kids usually got to play during the day – if there was no school. Which, in the summer, there wasn't much – but his Mum made sure he went to every class, which sucked. The farm kids all had to work and help on the farms during the summer, so we didn't get to see them much.

Dad had said that I would have to start working with him this summer, but Mum said I didn't have to. At least not until I turned 13, which was only a few moons away. Rollo's friends were all in the same position, and some of his friends were already helping out on some days.

Today had been one of the few days when allhis friends came out to play. They even got to play as if they were knights, using the few bicycles that their parents owned and pretended they were horses. Rollo's parents didn't like when he played those games – worried that the bicycle might break – so they could only play sometimes, and away from the villagers.

As he raced down the concrete street, his speed picked up as he weaved around the wagons that were making the trip up to the castle, he eventually came to his house.

It was one of the newer houses in the village. It had three whole levels! The food storage was in the lowest level, but he never really went down there – it was dark and boring.

He suppressed a shiver. He used to have nightmares about it when he had been younger.

The main level had the kitchen and eating area as well as the bathroom and heating stove. The bathroom was pretty cool – almost none of his friends had one! It was this big wood thing that you could sit on and go poop. Then you pushed this rod thing and woosh! Gone away.

His friends had to go to the public toilets that got washed away into the river or had to go to an outhouse – but that sucked in the winter.

His Mum also got to get water from this tap thing instead of having to pull it up from a well – or making him pull it up from the well. Dad was worried about the cost of having to fix it when it broke – but Mum wouldn't hear of doing anything differently. His Dad was always worried about something called a budget, but Mum said that if Master Ragnar did it, they should too.

Crazy! His Dad knew Master Ragnar! Master Ragnar's youngest daughter, Anari, would sometimes play in the village, but rarely with his friends.

Entering the house, he shouted, "Mum! I'm home!"

She turned away from the table where she was chopping vegetables and gave him the stink eye. "Go wash your hands! I see all that dirt on you!"

Grumbling, he went to the kitchen and started to soap up his hands. His Mum never bought the fancy kinds of soap, with weird things like goats' milk, but she always bought the nice smelling ones.

By the time he scrubbed up and returned to the kitchen, his Mum was setting the food on the table. The smell of corn soup filled his nose as he pulled out his chair and plopped himself down. Dad carried over some old bread and a plate of fresh vegetables before pouring himself some small beer while Mum gathered the rest of his siblings.

"Have a good day, Rollo?" he asked, his voice deep and comforting.

Rollo nodded. "Uh-huh, I practiced with my bow and then played in the river with everyone else."

Dad looked at him, skeptically. "And no doing anything you shouldn't have with my bicycle?"

Rollo shifted guiltily in his seat.

Dad sighed. "You're lucky I didn't need it today. But you can't keep doing silly things with such expensive tools. You are almost a man now, and you need to set a good example for your younger brothers and sisters."

He nodded. "Yes, Dad."

"Good. Your mother and I have also decided it was time for you to start helping the family more. On days without school, you will be coming with me to work."

Rollo looked stricken. "But-but school's only once a week! That's means I gotta work all the time!"

"Not all the time, but yes, most of it. You'll be starting with general labor to get a feel for the work before you start learning from me, so you'll be tired most days – which means your younger brothers will have to pick up some of your chores."

Rollo pouted. "Yes, Dad."

Dad put his hand on Rollo's shoulder. "There, there. It's not all bad. You'll have less chores around the house, and I'll make sure you get some coin to spend as you want."

Rollo looked up eagerly. "Really?"

Dad winked. "Of course! You'll get some spending money to spend on sweets if you want – or to impress the girls." He said the last, with a booming laugh as Rollo's face burned.

He pushed the image of buying Eyla expensive sweets out of his mind. "Dad!" He protested.

His dad continued to laugh as the rest of the family came in from outside and sat at the table.

Rollo kept quiet for the rest of the dinner, embarrassed from his Dad's teasing, and let the rest of his family talk. His siblings were just talking about their friends with each other, so Rollo ignored them.

"Rumor has it that Master Ragnar has been talking about instituting a ban on livestock in the village. Worried about health as more and more people live in the city," said Dad.

Mum frowned. "Even pigs? The pigs we keep in the yard are very helpful and help feed us."

"Even pigs."

"Wasn't Master Ragnar the one that came up with the method of reducing the smell from pigs?"

"He was," Dad confirmed. "But he's concerned that disease will come with so many animals and people in such a small area."

"Banning everyone, though? Why not ban just those who break the rules?"

Dad shrugged. "'Dunno. I think he's worried about people who let the animals roam everywhere like Dun's family."

Mum scowled. "They just let their animals roam free and shit everywhere! Even on the concrete streets!"

"I think that's why Master Ragnar is thinking about it."

She harrumphed. "Seems to me Dun's family ought to be the ones banned from having animals."

Dad shrugged as he drank his beer. "Maybe they will. 'Dunno when that will be though. Master Ragnar is also trying to build up his new castles and doing all the planning for that."

"Good, that's good. Lots of work for you then."

"Aye, and for a long time in the future."

"In this area?"

"Maybe. I think it'll be the younger men who end up having to move to the new places to oversee the work. Probably the ones without wives or children."

"Good; I don't want to leave this house. It feels like living in a dream – and having running water? Your parents' house was one of the nicer ones in Winter Town, but even that can't match this place. And any new location Master Ragnar wants built won't have a house like this."

"Aye, but that might mean I can't go any higher."

"Any higher? What's higher? You are one of the wealthiest men in the city!"

Dad shrugged. "We could be wealthier."

Mom slapped his shoulder. "Don't be foolish. Any extra coin we'd get for moving would go right back into making a new house! And the new village would not be as nice as Redbridge."

"True," conceded Dad.

"What was Winter Town like, Dad?" asked Rollo.

"You don't remember anything?"

Rollo shook his head.

"Of course, he doesn't," Mum scolded. "He was young when we left."

"Well," said Dad. "Winter Town during the summers was a slow place. About as many people as Redbridge, maybe a bit more, and was nice and close to Winterfell – the greatest of all castles in the North! Even larger than Sunset's Rest!"

Rollo and his siblings gasped. "Really?"

Dad nodded. "Really. And it's thousands of years old!"

Rose, Rollo's eldest sister, asked, "Did they have really nice roads there, like Redbridge? 'Cause Nyra says that her 'Da said that Deepwood Motte doesn't!"

Mum shook her head. "No, not in Winter Town – or anywhere else in the North either! Some places, like White Harbor or King's Landing, have stone roads to help keep the mud away, but nothing like here." She wagged her spoon at them. "You are all very lucky and best remember that!"

Dad laughed. "Very true. Winter Town was nice, but Redbridge is much better. The winters in Winter Town had a lot more people, and could have its moments, but – well, it had its problems too," he said, trailing off with a grimace.

"What kind of problems?" asked Rollo.

Mum looked over at Dad worriedly before she said, "Don't you worry about that, dear. Rose be a dear and help Rollo collect the plates. You two are cleaning the bowls tonight."

Sighing, Rollo went about collecting the dishes. He wondered what could have been so bad during the winters.

A/N: This will be the last interlude for this batch. The next chapter will be Chapter 31! It will be a long one so I don't know when it will be done. Also, to clarify since won't let me post links, the bicycle style is a simple style really - its called Chukudu. Check out the wikipedia page.