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Saeryn choked on her tea, coughing before finally laughing. Eodwine saw and stood, ready to come to her aid. She beckoned for him to sit back down, laughing still.
"Wed?" she asked, amazed. She coughed again, this time intentionally. "Linduial, the lord of the hall and I are not wed. We are merely friends. I left my home lands partly because of the prospect of marriage. The lord Eodwine has sworn an oath for my protection. He has kept me safe in the past and I owe him very much. My position in his hall is as hostess. I merely take it upon myself to see to his health and happiness. Every good man needs a lass to make him smile and eat on time. I daresay he'd work himself too hard without someone to encourage dance and song.
"Perhaps you'll find it rude of me to ask, but I notice you travel with a protector rather than a consort. What of your own status? A fully fledged lady of the land, or one still, shall we say..." she considered her words before projecting her own quandary with a look inviting laughter, "running as fast and far from the fetters our lands place upon us for our own good?"
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