Gorbo Grandman said
An old man, his face so full of wrinkles it looked like a plum, walked down the road towards the radiating temple. In his right hand he was holding the arm of a young boy. The old man walked bent under the weight of his age, but walked steadily regardless. The young boy's short legs weren't nearly long and strong enough to keep up with the old man's pace, and he was almost skipping alongside the old man's saunting steps. He looked a little concerned and nervous, but excited nonetheless. The old man was smiling, almost just as excited as the young boy."See Ronnie? Over there. That's where the great pyre is burning. Ooh I can already feel it's warmth. Your old pop used to light those things back in the day you know..." The old man said nostalgically. Pausing his steady tread, he was about to lift the little boy on his shoulders to help him see, but immediately felt his back refuse. A bit awkwardly they continued making their way to the pyre.A bit concerned, Ron looked up at his grandfather. "Why are we going here gramps?" he knew already, because his grandfather had explained him over a million times now, but he was still very nervous about the grand sacrificial celebration. "Because I went here when I was your age, and so did your father. It's tradition!" He said with a happy smile, but with a strictness in his voice that made certain that Ron would go to the pyre, wether he wanted it or not. "And I'm sure there's nothing to worry about. Ne'er in me life have I seen a god extend his torn upon a sacrificer." He assured his grandson, this time with sincere empathy in his voice. "Who knows!? Perhaps one of the gods will even choose you!" Ron wasn't convinced "But grampa!" he said softly. "That's what I am worried about!" Relentlessly the old man paced onwards to the temple, his concerned grandson in his wake. When they finally did reach the temple, the old man scurried through the crowd, making sure his little boy could sit as close to the action as possible. "Now don't you worry Ronnie, you'll be just fine if you sit right here!" The old man whispered as he put him down with a few other children attending to the sacrificial feast. He then walked off to meet some of his old pals who were within the crowd, leaving Ron sitting timidly between the younglings, staring at the pyre with great eyes.
Gorbo Grandman said
Ron looked up, in his eyes there was still the fear and embarrassment that had been there a moment ago, but as he slowly took the cloak from the man he smiled lightly, as if trying to show him some thankfulness. He didn't know who this man was, and he sure didn't know if he could trust him, but he small act of kindness showed that the man's intentions weren't inherently bad... as far as Ron knew. "Thank you sir..." He mumbled softly, and he wrapped the coat around himself. The shivering slowly stopped, and his teeth weren't clattering that much anymore."The girl..." He hesitated. Would he want to betray her? Of course he didn't owe her anything, and she had just threatened his life. While he did feel bad for the girl a moment ago, he couldn't come up with some kind of excuse, so he decided to tell the truth, or at least half of it. "She tricked me. She took my clothes and ran off. I don't know who she was, and I don't know where she went..." After explaining his situation, he looked up at the other man who had just approached and awkwardly asked him how he was doing. "Not too well sir... My clothes have just been stolen." He looked down to the ground and sighed. "Grampa is going to be so angry with me." Then a roar of noise and music blasted through the street. The silence that came afterwards was almost as deafening. Ron could feel the sudden tension in the atmosphere. It was as if the world had suddenly fallen silent. For a moment, Ron wondered if he had gone deaf, but then the voice of Āwhātama sounded, and as he brought his message Ron's concerns about this evening realized. "Champions? Tests? Did you hear that as well?" He said loudly, almost completely forgetting the situation he had been in a moment ago. This was huge, and even though Ron was young he knew it. Gods, speaking openly to the mortals like this? It was legendary, and utterly terrifying to Ron.
With all the commotion, the old man had lost track of time, and decided that it was time for Ron to join him in the sacrifices. Returning to where he had left his grandson, the old man found Ron wasn't there.
"Ronnie?" he called, "Ronnie!"
He sighed.
"Now where did that boy run off to this time?"
