147 AC, The Beginning of Spring

As Brenna Selmy stood up, she was reminded of the fact that she was not a young woman, at least not anymore. Her knees creaked with the many winters that have passed her, yet another added to the list as of a few weeks past. However, the warm breeze that came through Harvest Hall reminded her of why she loved her home. She looked out a window of the castle tower she was residing in, out towards the fields not far from the bastion of House Selmy. Men and women both had already began work on planting the seeds of the wheat fields not being left fallow, as expected. As she thought about this, a knock on the door was heard.

"Yes, come in," she said.

"Excuse me madam, I wished to speak with you on the preparations for the lands of Harvest Hall."

As she turned around, she already knew from the voice that this was Lord Errol, castellan of Harvest Hall.

"Yes of course, especially since Bonifer is gone."

Lord Errol laughs. "Of course, although you were always the one who did this regardless. Even in the final years of Lord Waylon, your dear brother, you were indispensable."

She returns a warm smile back. "You may be right, Errol, although it may not be long before I can no longer. But that is not why you are here, to listen to an old woman speak of her boring life. What did you bring here?"

As she asks this, the Maester Raymour entered the room carrying with him a stack of two large books which he promptly sets down on the table. "Lord Errol called me here to discuss these matters. If I may begin, we can start by looking at what our remaining grain stores look like and what is expected to be reaped at the end of season...." The maester would trail on as the three would begin to discuss the numbers and matters related to the farms of House Selmy, a regular occurrence in Harvest Hall for the past two decades. After all, the name of this castle itself comes from the fields and their crops. It was half-jokingly referred to as a choice to remind its lords and ladies that the strength of Harvest Hall was in its land and the people that worked on it, rather than its impressive castle. Truth or not, House Selmy had found recent prosperity because of this powerful trio that lived in the castle and carefully managed its territory. Unlike many other Lordly Houses throughout the seven realms, the Selmy's, at least in recent times, had maintained a careful and measured presence over its serfs and townspeople.

Brenna Selmy in particular had always had a knack for these sorts of numbers, and her warm and open approach had made her well-liked by even the smallfolk. Her inability, some say on purpose and others say by no choice of her own, to be married had always left a stain on her relationship with her family but her clearly influential position as the handler of the fields of House Selmy allowed her to maintain her presence at court. She had also taken the role of surrogate mother, as best one can do so, for her nephew Bonifer's children in the wake of the passing of Meredyth Caron. This had been especially true for the youngest, Lucifer, who discovered his love of books and stories appreciated and respected by Brenna. He found respite in her attention, something he lacked from his father and his deceased mother.

"Well, I do believe that wraps up this meeting then, yes?"

"Yes Brenna, we will make sure that everything is taken care of." With that, the maester and castellan would leave her presence. Shortly after, she made her way down the tower and out into the open field at the center of the castle complex. She waved at the nearest guard, ordering him to prepare a carriage. She would await by the entrance of the castle quietly until it arrived, flanked by four guardsmen on horseback. She would enter onto the carriage carefully with assistance before making in to the nearest town by Harvest Hall. There, she would meet with the village head in his home.

"Bracks, good to see you again." she said genuinely, as she stretched her back before sitting once again at a table the village head had prepared and cleaned carefully.

He bowed deeply to her as he spoke. "The pleasure is all mine, Lady Brenna. I am glad to see you are still in health, and have the time to meet with people like me."

"Thank you, and you know this is my job no matter how brittle these bones get. Though I do enjoy getting to see the lands like this, it just does not get old."

They would continue speaking as before long Brenna would begin inquiring about the status of the town and, most importantly, how its fields were managing after the winter. Before long she would take her leave, re-entering the carriage where she would take off towards the next important town. In each of these major towns there was a small, but well-furnished and well-kept, house available officially for any use of the Selmy's but in reality for Brenna specifically. Her trail, colloquially known as "Brenna's Journey", was a well-known path that she would take once every few seasons where she would gather knowledge on the towns and farms of House Selmy. It would also serve as a way for Harvest Hall to unofficially gather information on the going-ons of their realm, and a way for people to voice their opinions directly to Brenna. Her relationships with the smallfolk had done wonders to create a positive image of the Selmy's throughout their lands, and it brought joy to the old lady of Harvest Hall that she would be able to see her home and talk to so many interesting people.