rabble rousers

Some things changed. Some things stayed the same. So much had changed in the last few months, and yet here Hazel was, getting ready to patrol the market. Fall had come, and the daylight hours were getting shorter. The market days left for this year were numbered. Soon, they'd be buried beneath a blanket of snow again. Though things had only gotten busier, more complicated, more involved, the seasons would still change. Time would still march on. She still had yearlings to train, she still had patrols to do-- why not kill two birds with one stone?

It was an afternoon patrol, dusk settling around her shoulders. It would be time to close things down for the evening, but not quite yet. Hazel lit a few lanterns as she thought about which yearling to call for. Finally deciding that it would be Kyanite, the general moved towards the middle of the Col, calling for the girl. Hoping she'd come promptly, so they could get to work.

"Speech"