《Touch of Merton》


 Two Worlds

    At the Merton tavern, Eugene sat in his usual spot, with a pint of beer in front of him. His red, curly hair hung over his round, cheerful face. Eugene¡¯s gentle, hazel eyes watched merrily as more and more people began to flood in. For a small town tavern, it was impressively busy.


    ***


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    The village was littered with wounded villagers, blood, and weapons. Logan¡¯s head throbbed. Her usually soft, blonde hair hung stiff from the blood. She and a comrade, Demitri, had been passing through the small village of Acrine, when a group of 20-30 goblins suddenly ambushed. The battle was over, but Logan could not find Demitri.

 Reunion

    Eugene could not remember that much of his old classmate, Demitri. The boys had attended school together, but when Demitri left to pursue his desire to be a warrior, he and Eugene lost touch. Eugene was fortunate, his family owned the tavern, and he had no need to leave Merton. The funeral came as no surprise. Although Eugene had never been to war, he knew what war looked like.


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    Another war. Another body.


    Eugene slouched into his chair and sat with his thoughts for a moment. He was tired of attending funerals, but was interested to see who would stumble into town. A funeral in Merton meant a childhood reunion for Eugene.

 Cedar

    The funeral began at 1200. There were a lot of people gathered at the fountain in the middle of town. There were many locals, but also a lot of visitors. Some were already quite inebriated, and more were stumbling out of the tavern.


    In his sensible, brown shoes, Eugene walked slowly towards the crowded fountain. The ground was hard and dry.


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    I wonder if she¡¯ll be here.


    The last time Eugene and Logan saw each other, they were 15. It had been 10 years since then. Eugene was not even sure if Logan was still alive. He had a mad crush on her when they were kids, but never told her because he knew she wanted to become a warrior.


    ***


    Logan walked through the gates of Merton. She immediately heard chatter and bursts of laughter coming from the steps leading into the tavern. It was a cool late afternoon. The smell of Cedar wood burning brought on a pleasant feeling of nostalgia. When burned, Cedar smelled light and sweet. As much as Logan wanted to get out of Merton, she could not deny how nice it was to be back.