Duncan McBoid



Directly following the Second War Duncan moved in with his older brother, Angus, who had very recently become a single father to a five year old daughter. He owned a large section of land in the lowlands with livestock that needed to be tended and cared for. Because his brother had lost his wife, Duncan worried about Angus and his life. Rightly so, it turned out. Angus had done the best he could considering the circumstances but the house was in a poor state, the horses were not as well fed as they should have been, and young Moira entertained herself quietly and watched her dad with eyes older than she.

Duncan moved what little he still owned, having sold most of it at the start of the war (all the personal things were in storage at his parents), into the spare bedroom of the cottage. He cleaned up the house, reset Moira's schedule, took care of the farm, and gave his brother time to grieve.

Angus let him have full control over everything. Most days he could be found sitting by Genie's grave. The two of them, like many others, had gone to school together and fell in love. Their partnership had begun long before their wedding day and rare were the times they could be found apart. While she had been alive, watching the them together even during school was almost sickeningly sweet.

Keeping Moira busy was the easy part, she loved helping Duncan take care of the animals; feeding, grooming, even cleaning up after them. She also loved helping him in the kitchen and learning how to cook. Getting her to talk was much more difficult. Occasionally he could coax a few words out of her. The Scotsman's most successful area in that regard was what she wanted for supper.

A couple weeks passed by with no sign of change or improvement in Angus' behavior or mood. He was falling in that black, bottomless pit putting in no effort to try and pull himself out. When Moira wasn't around, Duncan began pushing at him and picking fights. He had no training as a healer beyond practicing healing spells during the war. That practice proved beneficial. Their fights were often bloody and mindless. Angus, victorious or not, was always a sobbing mess afterwards. Sometimes, despite his best efforts, he saw Moira pull back out of sight after a few of those fights had ended.

Progress was made, however. Slowly Angus began to return to the living world and the other many things he loved. He joined them every evening for supper, sometimes in the morning. He began telling Moira stories before she fell asleep. Once, Duncan heard him talking to the horses. He apologized for his neglect.

More time would be required for his heart to be mended, though the scars would remain, but Angus was back on his feet. Duncan considered leaving only to find he had grown to love the land and life as his brother did. He also wanted to continue helping Moira and to keep an eye on his brother in case of a relapse. Then he still needed to teach his niece many other things about life, like how to swim. No, he decided. The best thing he could do would be to stay on as part of this small family.