Kaeldor went to the door and knocked a few times. After a bit of time with no response, Kaeldor opened the door himself.

  “Well, it seems that my cousin isn’t home. But don’t let that stop you, come inside!”

  Ili followed Kaeldor inside. Despite its small size, the house was way more spacious than Ili first thought. On the warm cobblestone floor, from the window to the chimney, a dwarf-sized bed stood. Next to it was a small bedside with an unlit candle and a book on it. On the other side of the room was yet another dwarf sized bed, with a few wooden steps next to it, most certainly made to help the old man get in it. This bed was right next to a slightly bigger and clearer window, to let the old man gaze at the sky even from his bed, as that seemed to be what he enjoyed doing the most. Along that wall, on the opposite corner, was a long and spacious chest, made for storage.

  On the floor was a big red carpet, decorated with traditional dwarven symbols. And on the walls, many weapon stands were placed, each with their respective owner’s names. One of the stands was empty, with the name “Kaeldor GreyThorn” on it. Kaeldor approached that one, and placed his weapon back in the stand, with a slight smile of relief.

  “I am back...” he said, touching the weapon stand with his hand, moving it along the metal handle of the battle axe. “Well, what are you just standing around for? Make yourself at home!” Kaeldor smiled, turning to Ili, who was just weirdly standing at the entrance.

  The girl was taken aback by his sudden change in tone. Kaeldor went to the bed on the left side, his cousin’s bed and took the clothes off it, putting them on the carpet. Then, he neatly made the bed, brushing the dust off it. Then, he patted it once with his hand, in a friendly manner.

  “There you go! Good as new!” the dwarf said, inviting Ili to put her things on the bed.

  “But... Isn’t this your cousin’s bed?” she asked, a bit hesitant.

  “Ah, so what? He isn’t going to mind! You’re our guest, after all!”

  The confident smile on his face managed to make Ili overcome her hesitation, as she slowly and carefully walked to the bed, trying not to step on the red carpet as much as she could, to not ‘dirty’ it with her fairly clean shoes. As she got in front of the bed, she took out the small, light brown blanket that she had in her pouch and carefully placed it on the bed.

  “You know this isn’t the king’s palace, right? You don’t have to be this careful!” the dwarf said, laughing at the girl’s behavior, patting her on the shoulder in a friendly manner.

  Ili didn’t mind the act, as she curiously looked around the room, at the weapon stands.

  “There are so many... Are these all from your family?”

  “Yes, indeed. These are all of the weapons wielded by the ones in the GreyThorn family. Back from my great-great-grandfather!”

  Kaeldor walked around the room, touching the stands with his hand, making the full circle around.

  “It's a dwarven tradition that once a dwarven male receives his first weapon, a stand with his name will be made and placed inside his house. It is a symbol of good luck for when he’s away in battles or fighting wars. Once the weapon has returned to its stand, only then can he rest…”

  The room was bathed in warm, yellow light as the sun began to set. The laughter and cheers from the outside grew clearer in the quiet room.

  “So… want to go out into the village?” Kaeldor finally asked, breaking the silence. “Not much to do inside anyway. I could show you around.”

  Ili thought for a moment, then smiled and nodded. “Alright, let’s go!”

  They stepped outside, passing the still-sleeping Old Man Kal, who rested on a bench, clutching his wooden staff. They walked quietly down the cobblestone path to the main road, where most of the visitors were gathered around campfires, talking in small groups. As they strolled through the village, the dwarves began lighting lanterns above their doors.

  “Alright now, follow me!” Kaeldor went off the main road, heading uphill through the snow. Ili followed closely behind him, carefully stepping in his footprints to avoid the snow.

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  Kaeldor reached the top of the valley first, gazing into the distance.

  “So, what did you want to...”

  Ili couldn’t even finish the sentence, as her eyes grew wide in amazement. In front of her was a scenery like out of a painting. The wide plains, filled with forests of all sorts, all bathed in the orange light of the beautiful sunset. Small villages, no bigger than the grains of sand, could be seen far in the distance. Their lights were starting to shine brighter as the sun was setting, enveloping the world in the cold embrace of the night...

  “It’s... beautiful,” Ili whispered, awestruck.

  Kaeldor smiled warmly, patting her head. “It is, isn’t it?”

  “Thank you, Kaeldor... for showing me this,” Ili said softly, captivated by the scenery.

  “Don’t mention it, little one,” Kaeldor replied, pleased with her reaction. “It’s been my pleasure.”

  The sun finally left the horizon, as the night took over. Nothing could be seen anymore on the ground, other than a few yellow lights. However, the sky was bathed in the bright colors of the cosmic lights, beneath the sharp flickers of the stars.

  “Alright, let’s head back,” Kaeldor said after a while, turning to leave.

  “I think I’ll stay a bit longer, if that’s alright,” Ili said, her eyes fixed on the stunning view above.

  Kaeldor smiled gently. “Of course, no worries!. I’ll be waiting for you at the house, then. Take care!”

  After some time, she finally decided to go back to the house. Ili got up and shook the snow off her clothes, then began walking back to the village, still stepping in the steps Kaeldor made, to avoid touching the cold snow.

  She soon got back to the city. The main road was lit by the lamps outside the villagers’ houses, and by the campfires of already sleeping visitors. Here and there, she could see some groups of people, gathered around the fires, eating and sharing stories. The same could also be seen in the dwarven houses, some of which had even invited travelers to their tables. It was a very peaceful night, with a hint of joy flowing around the cold air of the mountain pass.

  Reaching the end of the village, Ili turned onto the cobblestone path leading to Kaeldor’s cousin’s home. The lights were on, and smoke curled from the chimney. Old Man Kal was no longer on the bench, likely brought inside by Kaeldor, the thought bringing a soft smile to Ili’s face.

  Before she could knock, the door opened, revealing a slightly taller dwarf with light brown hair, green eyes, and a double-braided beard. He smiled warmly.

  “Hello, Miss Ililith! I’m Kulhun, Kaeldor’s cousin. May the gods be pleased with our meeting!” he said, extending his arm.

  “It’s the dwarven way of saying ‘nice to meet you,” Kaeldor explained, seeing Ili’s puzzled expression.

  Ili shook Kulhun’s hand and stepped inside, taking off her shoes at the entrance as she noticed that the others were also barefoot. Kaeldor was at the fireplace, tending to the food. Behind Kulhun, Old Man Kal got closer to Ili, raising his hand like a child.

  “Miss Ililith... It is nice to meet you!” he said, his eyes still half-closed. “I am Old Man Kal...”

  Ili smiled kindly as she got down on her knees to shake the elder’s small hand.

  “Nice to meet you!” she greeted, genuinely happy that he finally noticed her presence.

  “Come... Eat with us!” the old man said, as he slowly turned and moved to the red carpet that was on the floor, where four wooden bowls were already prepared and sat down. Kulhun looked at Ili.

  “I apologize, but we don’t have a proper eating table. But feel free to eat in bed, if you prefer, miss Ililith!” Kulhun said, a bit ashamed of his lack of furniture in the house.

  “No no, it’s perfectly fine!” Ili responded, shaking her hands in front of her in a dismissive way. “I actually like it here!”

  Kulhun’s face brightened as he saw the girl’s genuine and innocent smile.

  “The food’s ready!” Kaeldor said as he took the metal pot from the fire, placing it in the middle of the bowls. It seemed that the carpet itself was made with the intended purpose of eating on, as it had a small hole in the middle, which perfectly fit the pot. At first, Ili thought that it was only a design choice, but it was all coming together now.

  The four of them got down on the carpet, forming a small circle around the pot.

  “There you go!” said Old Man Kal, as he handed Ili a bowl of stew.

  Ililith thanked him with a bright smile, and waited for everyone to finish filling their bowls of stew. Once everyone had their food in front of them, the three dwarves caught each other’s hands, as they waited for Ili to join the circle.

  “It’s just an old dwarven tradition. You don’t need to say the words.” Kaeldor explained.

  Ili took Kal’s hand with her right, and Kaeldor’s with her left, as the circle was finally complete. She remained silent as the others closed their eyes and began saying something in dornohyan, which she didn’t understand. After a bit, she too closed her eyes, enjoying the solemn atmosphere of the tradition, in the warm house, as the smell of fresh stew was filling the air.

  “... Eto dorhi nosorus altus...” (1)

  They finally stopped and opened their eyes, letting go of their arms, before finally starting to eat.

  It was a calm atmosphere, the only sound being the one made by the clinking of wooden cutlery on the wooden bowls. Despite their appearance, the dwarves seemed much more mannered than Ili made them out to be. It was a calm atmosphere, in the empty embrace of the starry night, seen outside the small windows of the house. It was nice...

  Footnotes:

  1 - “And so it shall remain forever”, common ending to dwarven traditional sayings and prayers.

  Dear reader,