The stables were quiet today.

It was quite pleasant for Levi who was sat outside the wooden building on his break. Other stablehands walked back and forth, mucking out stalls, tacking up horses, wheeling handbarrows about with equipment and hay. It was a stark difference between this and the barracks. Though he had remarked once to one of the older hands that it smelt about the same, earning a hearty laugh in response.

He poured chamomile tea into his cup from a little metalic flask he kept on his hip, savouring the sweeter taste. He couldn't remember asking the kitchen maid for honey but it wasn't an unwelcome suprise. Since he had been reassigned here, he had almost restored the place to how it looked when first built. It was something he took great pride in as his mobility wasn't what it used to be.

As a retired knight, his injuries were what forced the hand of his prior charge to retire him. It had been an emotional day. More for them than him. He had accepted it and was looking forward to a bit of rest after the war. Working with horses was theraputic for him since he had been around them since he joined the army. It was a nice task that let him get out more and go hunting if he pleased. He still lived in his prior quarters, even without the title to go with it. He had declined at first but his charge had insisted once again.

As he ate his sandwich, he rubbed his knee to try ease some of the pain. He had been on his feet a little too long while repairing a ceiling beam earlier and it was already complaining. It was easy to forget he wasn't as spry now on good days where the pain was dull. As Levi sat in the yard enjoying the quiet, it was broken by the sound of an all too familiar voice approaching across the cobbled road.