*Somewhere, sometime, in the future or past, a book is found. Perhaps it is found in a library, perhaps it is found half burned in a fireplace somewhere, or in the forgotten chest of a hag, or even alongside it's Companion Book "The Diary of Anna Smythe" but it is found. Bound in sturdy leather, unremarkeble except for it's durability, the tome is filled with the life and simply written words of Dragomir Katzinkaly, Barovian peasent*
Entry 1
Anna's started keeping a diary, and I realized i've never really recorded my thoughts in writing. I am not a profound or complex man, but for my people I am a black sheep amongst white, an oddity. Maybe someone will read this someday, and they'll know, not all Barovians are inbred ignorant savages.
I've been many things in my life. A Soldier, a Guard, a Torturer, a Mercenary, and even a fighter of Demons. Working for the Vallaki Guard I learned how dirty, and unfair the world of soldiering really was- I served as the armed fist of a sometimes corrupt system, desperatly fighting to maintain order. I've tortured men, innocent men, for forced confessions to crimes they didn't commit, in the name of saving face for the government. I've also fought bravely for my country in open war, against unlikly odds- few against many, cannons roaring and men dying, and I lead those men and I lead them to victory. I never enjoyed the dirtier side of the business. I had a chance to live out my dreams of wartime glory- I even saw the Count in person once. I saw him personally kill traitors. After I met Anna, it wasn't long before I retired and joined the Red Vardo.
In The Vardo, it was much the same. A ruthless crime family that straddles the edge of social parasite and private executions guild. Silencing traitors, exploiting foolish consumers, and even fighting a demon in a secret job for the Count while trying to help a band of cultists summon another in exchange for information. Dirty business, evil business. I only joined for the money, and I got out when my wedding to Anna drew near.
Anna. How can I describe Anna. I don't usually believe in fanciful romantic bullshit- life is a cruel harsh thing. But Anna. . . What we have is true love, love that only comes once in a thousand years. Not lust, not affection, but love. She completes me, makes me be a better person. I ground her, help her to be a better person. She's beautiful and kind, but smart, and not at all sappy or foolish. A woman with a formidable and at times, ruthless mind. She matches me in everything. What we have -is- something special. What we have together is probably better then whatever you, dear reader, ever have. Arrogant? Maybe. But it's the only way I can describe the sublime happyness I feel- happyness from a bitter cynical man whose suspicious of everyone and everything.
Our love, my love for her, is a beacon of hope in this godforsaken shit stained piece of rock we call our world. She makes everything bearable, everything okay. I could devote pages to her, writing the same things over and over, and not grow tired of it. So i'll just stop.
We'll be having a baby soon too. It just blows my mind. Everything is going right. That niggling voice of doubt thats always in the back of my mind, that voice of cynicism that tells me "It's always brightest before it goes pitch black", that voice is gone. Silenced by Anna. I can finally feel optimistic about something, about someone, about my life. I don't know if i'll be a great father, but I know Anna will be a fantastic mother, so we'll even each other out. Once we have the money we're leaving Barovia for someplace a little less blatently deadly. We only want a simple, rustic life, where we can raise our children in peace- nothing outrageous. Best not to tempt fate anymore then I already have by being happy.
For the first time, everythings going to be okay.