Eorling Mead Hall - The Barrow-Downs Discussion Forum

littlemanpoet · 06-27-2006, 10:01 AM

"Is that the last of them?" Eodwine asked by way of formality. Saeryn, Thornden, and Garwine were the only others left in the Hall. Eodwine stood.

"Lord!" Garwine said from the doorway, for he was looking outside.

"Yes, Garwine?"

"There is one family sitting on the grass outside yet. I'll ask them if they have business with the Eorl." Garwine was through the door which had closed behind him while Eodwine's mouth opened, ready to say, Good. Eodwine smiled and sat back down.

Moments later, Garwine opened the door and in walked a Rohirric man and a Dunlending woman, followed by a boy who seemed half one and half the other. Hot on the boy's heels were Garstan's two children, seeming to have made friends with the boy already.

Eodwine's eyes narrowed. The boy was a half breed and this man had been unable to find better than a Dunlending wife. Such were his immediate thoughts, though he knew them to be somewhat harsh. It was hard not to speak that way, especially due to his dreams of Kéðra of late. Still, as Eorl he knew he had to give them a fair hearing, and was determined to.

"I greet you, goodman and goodwife. You have waited long, it seems. Now is the time to have your say." He had been about to ask them how he could serve them, but did not wish to imply service. Then he had thought of telling them to speak their piece, which would imply that he wanted them to be quick and done soon. That would not do either. He hoped the words he had chosen did not imply the wrong meaning, but feared they did. He waited for the man to speak.

JennyHallu · 06-27-2006, 11:05 AM

Lin left the barn late in the afternoon with a cheerful wave at Leof, so absorbed in his work and the horses she doubted he noticed her departure. She noted with relief that the riot of people, horses, and wagons filling the yard to capacity seemed to be nearly all gone, but still...she didn't feel like facing more strangers. While none had spoken to her, she couldn't help but notice the whispers and rumors that had followed her all day.

A low rumble from her stomach quickly helped her choose her path. She'd skipped lunch, choosing to stay with Leof in the stable instead, but she was sure there must be plenty of food left over. Almost silently she slipped across the courtyard, dimming slowly as the sun began to set, and crossed through the dormitories into the kitchen garden, intending to enter by the back door and avoid whatever strangers still sheltered under the tarp protecting the rapidly growing Great Hall. The kitchen garden seemed deserted, and Lin skirted the large tree quickly.

A cough from behind her made her screech and spin around, placing her back to the wall in her newly-learned paranoia, ready to run, peering into the shadows under the old aspen tree. A familiar face quickly took shape.

"Degas, is that you?"

Feanor of the Peredhil · 06-27-2006, 11:21 AM

"I am sorry, my lady. I did not mean to frighten you, but you didn't hear me call your name." Degas took a step closer; close enough that they could have a conversation without calling statements and responses across the distance, far enough that all propriety was preserved.

He looked her up and down, seeing her differently than before. She was more beautiful than ever, even with bruises, perhaps especially with them. He had liked her very much before when he had thought of her as a lovely, fiesty, and very desirable girl. Now he looked at a woman and he was not displeased.

"I meant... I meant to apologize..." He looked at her beseechingly, his words just loud enough for her to hear and no louder. He looked into her eyes, afraid to see what he suspected would lay there: she would blame him for her ordeal, and she had every right to do so. He did not know what to expect, but he braced himself for the worst.

JennyHallu · 06-27-2006, 11:39 AM

"Degas..." she paused, visibly relaxing, the look of a frightened beast disappearing from her eyes. "I saw you this morning, at court, and wanted to talk to you, but there were so many people." She paused, a shy and slightly embarassed blush creeping up her pale cheeks.

"I--um." The false start did not help her confidence. "I need to apologize."

"What?" Degas' face was a study in surprise, but Lin was inspecting her hands rather minutely and didn't notice.

"At the Fair...the day I was kidnapped. I--" Lin looked up suddenly. There was a wryly amused expression on her face, but her dark eyes were pleading. Don't laugh at me. "There was a dancing girl. On a corner. And I saw you watching her and I just got mad, I don't know why, you have every right to think she was pretty if you wished, but I got mad, and I walked off when you weren't looking, and I got lost, and kidnapped--" Lin stopped, aware she was talking too quickly.

"And I'm sorry. That you had to worry about me."

Feanor of the Peredhil · 06-27-2006, 12:20 PM

Degas stopped short, floored. His mouth opened slightly as if to reply, but he was caught up in thought. His eyes had been on one girl only, two if he counted the little one on his shoulders.

He'd asked Linduial to pick out a necklace... not for Saeryn, but for herself... and she had responded that Saeryn would like a certain one that Degas had never quite managed to purchase. And then Lèoðern had drawn his attention to scarves and kittens and Lin had been gone.

He looked down at her, but not condescendingly; he was simply that much taller; and he met her wide eyes quite seriously.

"There... there was a dancing girl?"

JennyHallu · 06-27-2006, 01:21 PM

Lin looked up in confusion, meeting Degas' eyes for the first time. "You don't remember the dancing girl? But--" She paused. She'd convinced herself that Degas had been so distracted that day, but had she really had any reason to believe it? "I thought-- I'm sorry, Degas. Seems I had more to apologize for than I thought." She was silent a moment. If I hadn't acted so stupidly, I might never have been attacked. It was all my fault. She glanced up at the young man, her self-doubt roiling at the corners of her thought.

"I should never have wandered out of your sight. It was all my fault. I'm sorry."

Feanor of the Peredhil · 06-27-2006, 02:14 PM

He looked into her eyes and saw that she meant her words. He took an unplanned step forward and took her hand without considering the implications. He held it carefully between his own.

"Lady Linduial... you have nothing for which to apologize." His words were for her alone and he lost sight of everything but her eyes. "I never should have taken my eyes from you. I blame myself... the one time... the only time, it would seem... that my eyes strayed from you was the one time it most mattered. I was your escort and my attention wavered. It is my fault that you were taken and if there is a way, any way, that I can... that I can do anything... please, would you have me do it?"

06-27-2006, 10:01 AM	#1
littlemanpoet Itinerant Songster Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: The Edge of Faerie Posts: 7,066	"Is that the last of them?" Eodwine asked by way of formality. Saeryn, Thornden, and Garwine were the only others left in the Hall. Eodwine stood. "Lord!" Garwine said from the doorway, for he was looking outside. "Yes, Garwine?" "There is one family sitting on the grass outside yet. I'll ask them if they have business with the Eorl." Garwine was through the door which had closed behind him while Eodwine's mouth opened, ready to say, Good. Eodwine smiled and sat back down. Moments later, Garwine opened the door and in walked a Rohirric man and a Dunlending woman, followed by a boy who seemed half one and half the other. Hot on the boy's heels were Garstan's two children, seeming to have made friends with the boy already. Eodwine's eyes narrowed. The boy was a half breed and this man had been unable to find better than a Dunlending wife. Such were his immediate thoughts, though he knew them to be somewhat harsh. It was hard not to speak that way, especially due to his dreams of Kéðra of late. Still, as Eorl he knew he had to give them a fair hearing, and was determined to. "I greet you, goodman and goodwife. You have waited long, it seems. Now is the time to have your say." He had been about to ask them how he could serve them, but did not wish to imply service. Then he had thought of telling them to speak their piece, which would imply that he wanted them to be quick and done soon. That would not do either. He hoped the words he had chosen did not imply the wrong meaning, but feared they did. He waited for the man to speak.

06-27-2006, 11:05 AM	#2
JennyHallu The Pearl, The Lily Maid Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: In my luxury Barrow, snuggled up in a pile of satin pillows, eating fresh fruit. Posts: 1,628	Lin left the barn late in the afternoon with a cheerful wave at Leof, so absorbed in his work and the horses she doubted he noticed her departure. She noted with relief that the riot of people, horses, and wagons filling the yard to capacity seemed to be nearly all gone, but still...she didn't feel like facing more strangers. While none had spoken to her, she couldn't help but notice the whispers and rumors that had followed her all day. A low rumble from her stomach quickly helped her choose her path. She'd skipped lunch, choosing to stay with Leof in the stable instead, but she was sure there must be plenty of food left over. Almost silently she slipped across the courtyard, dimming slowly as the sun began to set, and crossed through the dormitories into the kitchen garden, intending to enter by the back door and avoid whatever strangers still sheltered under the tarp protecting the rapidly growing Great Hall. The kitchen garden seemed deserted, and Lin skirted the large tree quickly. A cough from behind her made her screech and spin around, placing her back to the wall in her newly-learned paranoia, ready to run, peering into the shadows under the old aspen tree. A familiar face quickly took shape. "Degas, is that you?"

06-27-2006, 11:21 AM	#3
Feanor of the Peredhil La Belle Dame sans Merci Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: perpetual uncertainty Posts: 5,517	"I am sorry, my lady. I did not mean to frighten you, but you didn't hear me call your name." Degas took a step closer; close enough that they could have a conversation without calling statements and responses across the distance, far enough that all propriety was preserved. He looked her up and down, seeing her differently than before. She was more beautiful than ever, even with bruises, perhaps especially with them. He had liked her very much before when he had thought of her as a lovely, fiesty, and very desirable girl. Now he looked at a woman and he was not displeased. "I meant... I meant to apologize..." He looked at her beseechingly, his words just loud enough for her to hear and no louder. He looked into her eyes, afraid to see what he suspected would lay there: she would blame him for her ordeal, and she had every right to do so. He did not know what to expect, but he braced himself for the worst.

06-27-2006, 11:39 AM	#4
JennyHallu The Pearl, The Lily Maid Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: In my luxury Barrow, snuggled up in a pile of satin pillows, eating fresh fruit. Posts: 1,628	"Degas..." she paused, visibly relaxing, the look of a frightened beast disappearing from her eyes. "I saw you this morning, at court, and wanted to talk to you, but there were so many people." She paused, a shy and slightly embarassed blush creeping up her pale cheeks. "I--um." The false start did not help her confidence. "I need to apologize." "What?" Degas' face was a study in surprise, but Lin was inspecting her hands rather minutely and didn't notice. "At the Fair...the day I was kidnapped. I--" Lin looked up suddenly. There was a wryly amused expression on her face, but her dark eyes were pleading. Don't laugh at me. "There was a dancing girl. On a corner. And I saw you watching her and I just got mad, I don't know why, you have every right to think she was pretty if you wished, but I got mad, and I walked off when you weren't looking, and I got lost, and kidnapped--" Lin stopped, aware she was talking too quickly. "And I'm sorry. That you had to worry about me."

06-27-2006, 12:20 PM	#5
Feanor of the Peredhil La Belle Dame sans Merci Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: perpetual uncertainty Posts: 5,517	Degas stopped short, floored. His mouth opened slightly as if to reply, but he was caught up in thought. His eyes had been on one girl only, two if he counted the little one on his shoulders. He'd asked Linduial to pick out a necklace... not for Saeryn, but for herself... and she had responded that Saeryn would like a certain one that Degas had never quite managed to purchase. And then Lèoðern had drawn his attention to scarves and kittens and Lin had been gone. He looked down at her, but not condescendingly; he was simply that much taller; and he met her wide eyes quite seriously. "There... there was a dancing girl?"

06-27-2006, 01:21 PM	#6
JennyHallu The Pearl, The Lily Maid Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: In my luxury Barrow, snuggled up in a pile of satin pillows, eating fresh fruit. Posts: 1,628	Lin looked up in confusion, meeting Degas' eyes for the first time. "You don't remember the dancing girl? But--" She paused. She'd convinced herself that Degas had been so distracted that day, but had she really had any reason to believe it? "I thought-- I'm sorry, Degas. Seems I had more to apologize for than I thought." She was silent a moment. If I hadn't acted so stupidly, I might never have been attacked. It was all my fault. She glanced up at the young man, her self-doubt roiling at the corners of her thought. "I should never have wandered out of your sight. It was all my fault. I'm sorry."

06-27-2006, 02:14 PM	#7
Feanor of the Peredhil La Belle Dame sans Merci Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: perpetual uncertainty Posts: 5,517	He looked into her eyes and saw that she meant her words. He took an unplanned step forward and took her hand without considering the implications. He held it carefully between his own. "Lady Linduial... you have nothing for which to apologize." His words were for her alone and he lost sight of everything but her eyes. "I never should have taken my eyes from you. I blame myself... the one time... the only time, it would seem... that my eyes strayed from you was the one time it most mattered. I was your escort and my attention wavered. It is my fault that you were taken and if there is a way, any way, that I can... that I can do anything... please, would you have me do it?"