Blood Brothers

“So, we are brothers now?” Talan asked as he stared at the cut on his palm. The knife they had taken from Finn’s father’s desk was so sharp that he barely felt it slice through his skin. Finn wrapped his matching cut with a kerchief and smiled broadly.

At first, Talan wasn’t sure whether Finn had just wanted to be his friend because he was the only other boy the same age as him, or if he just felt bad for the strange, orphan child who was dumped into his life. But whatever his original motivations, now they were brothers.

“Nothing is more powerful than blood, so we are more than brothers now; we are blood brothers, the strongest bond between men!” Finn gripped Talan’s uncut hand and hauled him up. “It means that I will always protect you and you will always protect me. It means nothing and no one can come between us.”

Finn’s golden locks flopped into his eyes, so he shook his head to clear them. His eyes were so different from Talan’s: a cool, crisp blue compared to Talan’s warm amber. But brothers didn’t have to look alike. His father and uncle Alaric could have been twins, and they were as different as night and day.

Father. Talan felt himself slipping back into the despair that had consumed him these last few weeks. His father was dead. He would never again walk with him in the gardens, or ride with him through the countryside.

Sensing the mood change, Finn slapped his shoulder and shook him slightly. “And that’s not all I have planned for tonight. Remember I told you of the ruins near the edge of the woods? I’ve got snacks packed, and I’ve got a telescope! You can see almost to Bradford with it! In fact, once I saw—”

They both jumped as a diminutive figure appeared beside them. She was small and willowy with a mop of brown curls sprouting out of her head at odd angles. She looked up at them and smiled, she was missing her two front teeth. Between the gap-toothed grin and the wild curls, she looked almost feral. Talan often wondered if the child owned a comb, or if she did, would it do any good? Her tiny freckle-covered pixie face was almost completely consumed by her large, brown eyes, which she was currently rolling into the back of her head.

“It’s just blood and some made up words. I don’t know why you two need to act so stupid about it, and can I go to the ruins with you?” Wren asked as she walked through the barn.

“No.” Finn frowned at her. “Go home Wren, we are going monster hunting, not playing with dolls.”

She wore a sly smile on her face as she picked up the knife they had nicked from Harlan’s desk, knowing exactly where it had come from. “You’re not supposed to have this. Sure would be a shame if you got caught.”

Talan and Finn’s eyes met. They had never been scared of much. Catching snakes in the creek, riding horses at breakneck speed, stealing sweets from the tin late at night? Easy. Nothing to it. Even the thought of cutting their own hands to forge a lifelong bond didn’t scare them. But facing Finn’s father… after stealing from him? Now that was something to be scared about.

“Sweet Wren, be reasonable. Why would you want to get us in trouble? What have we done to deserve such a fate?” Finn, always the smooth talker, slowly made his way toward Wren, his eyes never leaving the knife.

There weren’t a lot of children in the area. Until Talan had arrived, Finn and Wren had been the only children on the farmstead. The families of the laborers lived in the village and rode in to work on the farm. Wren’s father, however, was the stable master and as such was afforded a cottage on the property. But despite the small pool of friends to choose from, it didn’t stop them from trying to exclude her from their adventures.

She always seemed to find them though. Honestly, the way she just showed up out of thin air, he should start calling her Wraith instead of Wren. She was more ghost than the Songbird she was named for. And he had heard her sing, so he knew he had the right of it.

But never one to be cruel for no reason, he decided against voicing his thoughts. Instead, he simply sighed to himself and asked the obvious question.

“Wren, would you like to be a blood sister to us and join us at the ruins?”

“WHAT?!” Finn yelled as he attempted and failed to grab the blade from Wren’s hand.