Armed and Anxious

[for Roan Varangr]

The blonde plastered himself against the wall of the barn, chest heaving. Blood ran down his cheek and the palm of his left hand, one of the many scrapes he had taken in scrambling to dive behind a tool shed at the first sign of the raiding party and then, once they had pasted the barn and seized the animals, crawled under a gap in the building. Not his most shining moment, but at this point, the boy didn't care. He was breathing and more like to stay that way if he didn't get caught. 

The women and children were usually spared the sword, though Kiili didn't envy what became of many of them in the rumors. Men fighting age, like him, however...it didn't matter if he knew which end of a sword to hold or not, he'd be put to one if he couldn't defend himself. And to be honest, he was very uncertain he could do that against even one of the larger, screaming, pelt clad invaders.  

He moved slowly, careful not to make any noise, shuffling slowly over the dirt and hay and being just as mindful of his feet as the screams and the shouts outside the barn. He'd never been so close to such violence before and while he could hear a few of the local villagers and militiamen putting up a fight, he was too terrified to help. What was he going to do anyway? Sure, he was physically strong, but he was no fighter! He felt no less guilt over hiding like a coward. 

The boy nearly tripped over an old hand scythe and was thankful he didn't lose a toe. He picked it up, keen to have something to arm himself with. It made him feel a bit less anxious, even if he was just as like to throw it aside and beg for his life as use it.

Kiili stiffened at the sound of nearing footsteps, stealing into an open stall and pressing himself against the inside wall, making himself as small and still as possible, frantically holding his breath. While these feet weren't accompanied by the crazed shouts and urgency of some of the others, he erred on the side of caution. As long as whoever it was didn't come anywhere near the stall door, and his hiding spot, he'd be fine.