"But father, you crossed the Strand... you succeeded where even Haddalan failed... and he was the greatest tracker in..."
"Boy! Enough! That was many years ago and that crossing cost our family dearly... you... you know that..." His thunderous response faded into a sad whisper. Petyn no longer wished to push his father and talk about the desert. He saw the sadness reflected in the firelight in father's eyes. Petyn knew everything about his father, about his kindness and character... but he knew nothing of his father's past. He had suspicions but he knew only that his father had sacrificed everything for the safety of Petyn himself... even his beloved wife. Petyn knew, sadly, only the important things about his mother, some might have called them details, trivialities... but to Petyn they were everything.
He knew his mother was beautiful by look in his father's eyes when he used to talk about her when Petyn was young. He knew that she was strong and brave; his father had told him as much when he first asked about her, at that moment and then every year on his birthday his father would tell him, he would say "Petyn, your mother was strong, unlike any woman I have every met. She was stronger of will than any man, or beast I have ever known. She had more bravery than an entire legion of mounted riders, I wish only that you remember her bravery and strength whenever you are afraid... and that every year you honor her on your birthday."