Diens was outside, standing on the top of the hold’s wall. For some time he’d been peering out at the forest beyond, tracing the edges of gnarled tree fingers caressing the sky. He’d come to the top of the wall via staircase, out of a small curiosity to see what had changed. The air had; somehow it seemed colder around the hold, as if tragedy had sapped away its heat.<br/><br/>The hold’s wall, to him, seemed taller. The wall was cobbled out of beautiful stone, pristine save for some blemishes here and there. It encased the hold fully, and the only way to enter was through a gate that was watched at all hours of day. From time to time guards would patrol the wall, marching until they made a full circle. Otherwise, he was by his lonesome.<br/><br/>To him the wall was a stranger. The wall had not always stood. It had only been raised some few years ago. It was a child to the one he knew; the one he knew had stood for centuries before this one. Long enough to have bore witness to the lives and deaths of all Siennoughts. That wall had been destroyed long ago, ground to mortar, pebble and dust. All that remained of that wall were fragments that had gone into the creation of its descendant.<br/><br/>A voice echoed his name from the bottom of the stairs nearby. Diens responded to the call by walking over to the stairs, staring down below. He was greeted with the sight of the hold’s corvus, Hillard. Other than his position and name, Diens knew nothing else of the man. It’d been long since he’d been familiar with the residents of the hold. Not since before the destruction of the wall. Hillard had come when Diens had left. Descending down the stairs, Diens met with Hillard.<br/><br/>“Greetings. What would you have of me?” Diens asked.<br/><br/>“As you are aware, I have been tending to your companion for the past day, as he’s been resting within my chamber. He asks for you to come to him,” Hillard said. “I fear that without a familiar face he may go mad.”<br/><br/>“Then I shall go to him.” Diens did not think it strange that Altair craved his company; when one was lost, any familiar face would be well-received. In the hold, Altair only had two: Diens and Snow. “Might you guide me? I am unfamiliar with the hold’s paths.” The hold was a small labyrinth for him; left to his own devices, Diens would’ve likely become as lost as Altair.<br/><br/>The man nodded, as he made his way to his chamber. Diens followed suit, trailing behind him at an equal pace. On his skin he could feel the difference of temperature when the light sting of cold vanished and in its place was the caress of warmth.<br/><br/>“Might I ask you a question, Diens?”<br/><br/>“You might.”<br/><br/>“Your companion… Altair, is it? Who is he to you?”<br/><br/>“He is to me and Lord Siennought as you are to Lord Siennought and I. Without malice, but not familiar.” Diens answered. “I presume the question was brought on by the nature of his wounds. Which, to most, would seem odd for a lord’s companion. If you desire your curiosity satiated, then pursue the matter yourself by asking Altair himself.”<br/><br/>Diens could see that Hillard was taken slightly aback by his answer. He guessed that the man had presumed that the knowledge would come to him easily. But Diens found it preferable to tell the man little; even if they served under the same lord, Hillard was still a stranger. Strangers did not need to be privy to things that they did not need to know.<br/><br/>Hillard diverged from his straight path and turned to a door. He pressed his palm against the lumber and with a squeak of resistance, pushed it open. Diens took a step into the room, eyes drawn towards Altair on the bed. Yet again Altair was bound, his dignity preserved by a thick woolen blanket drawn across his body. He was as tattered as a day ago, and it seemed like the bedrest had done little but leave Altair higher strung.<br/><br/>“Might you leave us be, Hillard? I would think that a man like you would have other duties to tend to than standing idly.”<br/><br/>“As you wish.”<br/><br/>They were left alone. Once the door was shut, Diens found his place in Hillard’s chair. “Greetings, Altair. I see you have stirred inconvenience once again. The corvuses only bind people if they prove difficult to tend to.”