[Thinlómien]

Wilheard

Wilheard was observing his elder brother. Wulfric was eating the bread and meat offered by Lord Faramund and talking with Fearghall sitting on his other side. They were talking about the finesse of the hall and how cleverly it was built. Wulfric was looking notoriously unhappy, his face was so easy to read.

They were riding among their father's men today as any two ordinary soldiers. Wilheard knew Wulfric knew as well as he did that it was prefectly normal, especially as Athanar already had two captains at his service to command the men. Still, Wulf seemed to take it all as a personal rebuke. Wilheard thought he had issues, or then he was right. Their father was a difficult man to read, especially lately. Wilheard wondered why Wulfric even bothered.

He could understand his brother's disappointment though. This was boring - their father and his captains had been away for ages. Wilheard twitched restlessly. Of course he could eat more, or drink more, but he was not hungry or thirsty. He wanted to go an explore a bit, or see to his horse, or anything. He could not just sit here.

"Don't even think about it," Wulfric said in a low voice at his direction. He was sneaky like that. He could appear to be talking to Fearghall next to him and then suddenly throw a comment intended at his brother.

Wilheard emptied his pint. "I need to pee," he announced, getting up. Several soldiers nearby laughed, but they were too eager to do it, too loud. It didn't sound quite right. Everybody had their minds on what was going with the lords.
"Thank you for sharing," Wulfric said, earning a few bursts of laughter from the soldiers too. "Don't do anything stupid."
"Yes boss," Wilheard said, rolling his eyes. Wulfric always had to act so responsible in the presence of soldiers.

He left the hall, fighting a grin. Finally he could do something more interesting!


~*~


Wulfric

Wulfric watched his little brother disappear from the door. He seriously hoped Wilheard wouldn't act in his typical manner and get into trouble. Now was no time for foolishness - serious business was at hand. Although Wilheard might not have been paying much attention, Wulfric definitely had. He had been acutely aware of the tenseness of the situation when Lord Athanar's men had arrived, and the petty lord who was hosting them had been outright disrespectful. There seems to be a lot of that around here in the midlands, he thought bitterly.

He hoped his father could solve the situation. When he was small, he had seen his father as a great hero with almost magical powers who could solve anything. As he had grown, he had learned to see his father shortcomings and for the last few days he had become more and more doubtful. He's just becoming old and getting softer, Wulfric told himself although soft was hardly the word he'd normally use of a man who disinherited his sons so carelessly. He's losing his grip.

Wulfric had still not quite forgiven his father for the previous days' shock, and would not do so very soon - if ever, at least so he thought. What the Sauron am I even doing here? he wondered. My father has no use for me, not as his heir or as a captain, I could as well go back to Westfold to join Marshal Agrawine. He at least knows my worth and he'd have use for a commander and soldier like me. He started laughing. It was so absurd! Why had his father sent for him and Will in the first place? They had been much better of in Westfold under Marshal Agrawine's mentorship.

"My lord? Wulfric?" Fearghall asked. He looked slightly baffled. Wulfric shook his head. He could not - he should not - explain the stupid situation to Fearghall.
"Too much mead," he muttered, and immediately regretted it. He would not want the men to think he had no head for drinking!

Fearghall was quiet, and so where most of the men in the hall. "I say," Wulfric said in a raised voice, "that once Lord Athanar has made this local lordlings see their duty to their Eorl and their King, we have a drinking contest at the Hall."
The idea was greeted with enthusiastic cheers around the hall. Good, Wulfric thought smugly, now they have something to look forward to and something to think about.

"So Fearghall, tell me, what do you think of the roof? I say it's been built in a rather shoddy manner. If you cut those poles, and those, you could have the whole hall collapse."
"Not so sure, sir. See the walls? They are also taking part of the weight of the upstairs structures."
"Yes, I see. But you also have to take into account that..."

And so they continued for a good while until Wulfric started wondering why Wilheard had not come back and what was he doing. He started feeling comfortable. He didn't want Will to put them all to shame with his behaviour. "Shall be back soon," he said to Fearghall. "Keep an eye on the boys." Then he slipped out of the hall too.

Now where was Will? Outdoors no doubt, the kid went crazy if he had to stay indoors too long. He was just scanning the yard when he met Baldwic, a young soldier who had kind of befriended Wilheard on their way from Edoras. "Hoy, Baldwic! Have you seen my brother?"
"No sir. I was just in the stables to see my horse," the man replied, coming towards Wulfric. "All's well I presume?"
"Certainly. I think you have still some time to enjoy the mead and the food, so better take the opportunity."
"Yes sir," Baldwic replied and hurried inside.

Alright, so not the stables, Wulfric concluded. Where else would Will go? As an answer to his unvoiced question he heard dogs barking behind a barn which was next to the stables. Of course. If he's not with horses, it's likely he's with hounds or hawks.

Wulfric headed to the sound, and like he had expected, he found his little brother playing with a beautiful wolfhound. What he had not expected though was that he was enjoying the company of a beautiful girl. She was maybe of Will's age, short and curvy, and she had long, golden brown hair and a garland of flowers on the top of her head. She was laughing when while watching them play and when Wulfric appeared she was just rebuking the dog: "Shadow, no. Don't tear him apart, for Bema's sake!" And then she laughed a bit more. Wulfric decided she had a very beautiful laugh.

She didn't laugh anymore, though, when she saw Wulfric. Suddenly she looked serious. Wilheard lifted his gaze from the dog and grinned when he saw his big brother.
"Wulf! See what I found?" he cried, scratching the dog behind the ears. "Isn't she marvellous?"
"I'd get your point if you were talking about the lady," Wulfric said, casting a tentative smile at the girl's direction while approaching them. The girl returned the smile, but not quite as warmly as Wulfric would've hoped. Wilheard, on the other hand, laughed.
"See? I'm up to no mischief," he said.
"Yet," Wulfric observed drily.
"You're also one of Lord Athanar's men?" the girl asked.
"Isn't that kind of obvious?" Wilheard asked her.
"Oh yes, I guess I do know everybody here! Silly me," the girl said, smiling, and blushed a little.

Wulfric was displeased. It rattled him that Will chatted so easily with her, and what was that question: so you are also one of Lord Athanar's men? Not his sons? Hadn't Wilheard even introduced himself to this girl? Did she think she's talking to a random peasant? But it would be even worse to break it at this point...

"His name's Wulf. He's my brother," Wilheard said before Wulfric had time to arrange his thoughts.
"Oh, you do look quite alike!" the girl exclaimed, laughing. "My name is Senwyn."
"Pleased to meet you, Senwyn," Wulfric said. Sometimes court manners were the way with country girls.


~*~


Wilheard

Somehow it didn't surprise Wilheard that Wulfric was immediately all after the girl. Well if it gives him something to do and makes him fuss about the "serious business" less I guess that's fine, he thought. He felt a slight pang of regret though - Wulfric was always so fluent with women, he could pay them the right compliments, he needed only one glance to make them know he was interested but he didn't push it. Well, mostly, Wilheard amended in his mind, remembering a few misadventures the two brothers had had with girls.

Shadow was trying to bite his leg off, or at least that's how it felt like. "Hey c'mon girl stop that," he said, shaking his leg to make the dog ease her grip. "You just want attention, don't you?" He scratched its ears a little more and soon she let go. "There, good girl," he said. "Now, catch this," he said, took his boot off and threw it a good thirty feet away towards the bushes. Shadow started barking and rushed towards it. Wilheard laughed. It made him happy to see dogs play. I should definitely get one, he thought.

He was still watching Shadow when she put her head out of the bush, let out a wail and started barking.
"Everything's not alright," said Senwyn's voice. Wilheard turned to her direction and saw he standing suspiciously close to Wulfric, and one of the flowers of her garland was in his hair. She sounded distressed. Wulfric put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure everything's alright," he said. "Will, go and check out where all that noise is coming from."
"I don't have my shoe!" Wilheard protested.
"You what?" Wulfric asked. His face actually looked quite funny. Senwyn slipped from his embrace and knelt to pat Shadow, who had run to her. There was a flash of dismay on Wulf's face so Wilheard though it better to answer quick and honest.
"I don't have my shoe. I threw it to the dog and it went somewhere to the bushes and I can't see it."
"Idiot!"

The noises became louder. Obviously dozens of men were gathering together, and Wilheard could hear the clink of chainmails and neighing of horses. Wulfric seemignly heard it too, he was suddenly all alert - when it came to the beginning signs of a battle, he was like a warhorse. "We go, right now. Something's happening." He turned to Senwyn and gave her a curt smile. "Til later."

He hurried away, hand on his swordhilt, and Wilheard had no choice but to follow him, shoe or not. From behind the barn they came to the yard, and into the middle of two groups of armed men facing each other on horseback. Wilheard cursed in his mind and grasped his sword hilt. He could not see their father, nor Lord Faramund, but all the men - theirs on one side, Faramund's on the other - were now staring at the two of them, suddenly standing in the middle. Wilheard fervently wished he could've been somewhere else.

Wulfric, however, was not quite so ruffled by the unexpected situation. "What is going on here?" he asked, assuming his most authoritative voice.

Good save mate, Wilheard thought, or would've been if you didn't have a flower in your hair and if your brother wasn't missing a shoe.