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+--- Thread: [G] [C] 734.04.20 | Strolling with a Purpose (/showthread.php?tid=1886)
734.04.20 | Strolling with a Purpose - Darumem - 03.Sep.13
Darumem regarded the large hold before him as thoughts of running a major hold ran through his head. He knew he could do a fine job of it but of course too many Telgarian heirs separated him from any chance of claiming the position of Lord Holder of Telgar Hold. Too many of the blood stretching ahead of him, so unless he started a bloodbath Darumem knew he had no chance at all.
Waste of mental energy these thoughts and Darumem wasn't big on wasting anything. Grieving for his lost Suhesa was done and over with and he had his future to consider now. Not only his future but also the future of the pack of daughters he had sired off of Suhesa. She gave him only one son who died, his fool of a Nanny failed to watch over him close enough and he ended up falling down the stairs. Darumem suspected the whore spawn pushed his Heir down the stairs, if it wasn't for Suhesa warning him of the trouble it would cause, he would have killed the old woman. Instead he beat the nanny, discharged her from his service and exiled her from his hold.
Suhesa then gave him another daughter and ended up dying of some illness barely six months later. It was quite inconvenient and even worse, he actually loved his wife so it did hurt to lose her. Darumem had yet to touch another woman since then but it was time enough he found himself a new one. He would be damned to have his hard work end up in the hands of one of his brothers or nephews.
He also had to start considering wives for his daughters...Daresa was sixteen turns now, more than old enough to be espoused. He had two other daughters coming close to being of age too, Memhesa and Hesame. With this in mind, Darumem traveled to Telgar Hold. He will beginning the process of finding a suitable spouse for his eldest daughter foremost then place feelers for his other children. He will also keep an eye out for any attractive young women with good birthing hips to claim as his own.
It was a fine day and as much as he rather be tending to the business of his Minor Hold, Darumem was strolling through the public gardens. He had already sent word to the Lord Holder of Telgar indicating he was present and awaited his pleasure. There were always a good chance of a endweek Gather or feast in the main Hold he could attend. For now he allowed himself a rare moment of inactivity by strolling about the public gardens in the warm afternoon sun, eyes keenly searching for anybody of note.
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Kira - 04.Sep.13
What on earth had possessed her to bring her brothers to this place? If she and any sort of clue that they were going to use it as a Play area instead of being the well-behaved boys she knew they were capable of being, she would have taken them somewhere else. Anywhere else!
Kira sighed. She had been darting in and out of the hedges and taller stands of flowers and trees, following a trail of giggles and half-glimpses of disappearing boys that were, quite frankly, too old for this sort of mischief.
Then again, one was never exactly too old for playing pranks on family, were they? Kira couldn't help the small smile that appeared on her face at that thought. No, not really.
But that meant that she was stuck looking for two rambunctious pre-teens in a decently large area. They avoided the low-cut grasses and ground cover, and that was making her job all the more tiresome. Kimora would have yelled at her for incompetence, had she been there. Kira was grateful she s wasn't.
With that thought, she heard a giggle coming from somewhere close, narrowing down the place, she pasted a triumphant grin on her face. Oh, they would get caught, and then they would pay! Kira snuck over, waiting for the next body to pop around, sure that it would be her brothers. At first sight she leapt, smacking into a body.
A body that could not have in any way been her brothers. Kira gasped in horror and paled, backing up immediately. "I'm s-s-so sorry!" She said, paling as she took in the look of the man's clothing, the way he held himself. "Pl-leas-se, let m-me make it up t-to y-you!" She didn't know what else to say at this point. Smacking into a Holder! Oh, her sister would have her head for this!
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Darumem - 04.Sep.13
As he plotted the many ways he could earn greater favor with the Lord of Telgar Hold, perhaps even find a husband for one of his daughters from out of the Lord Holder's many bastards. It would put the blood into his grandchildren and bring them a little higher up the 'food chain'.
As he contemplated he heard the sound of children laughing and giggling. Being a public garden and a beautiful day to be out it wasn't surprising the local mothers will be out with their children.
The path was reaching a fork and the high hedges in this section proved an effective blind spot to hide somebody. Thus when he was just about to round the corner he was totally caught off guard by the body jumping out at him.
If it wasn't for the fact he was caught off guard, Darumem may have reacted far more violently. Instead the shock gave the young woman a chance back away from him before he finaly reacted.
"What do you think you are doing?" He demanded. Darumem didn't shout but his voice was so full of thick authority it was almost a growl. As his small eyes narrowed he took in the woman before him. In the back of his mind he guessed she was not much older than his oldest daughter. He took in her clothing and guessed she was just some resident's daughter or wife. Beautiful. Well proportioned and a few other thoughts came to mind as she stammered apologies and offered to do anything to make it up to him.
"Explain why you are jumping at people?" He decided that would be the first step in making things up to him. Fortunately his surprise at being so caught off guard had faded and his voice was less demanding but more his normal firm tones when dealing with those he perceived to be beneath him.
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Kira - 04.Sep.13
The man didn't shout, but his demand was ma in such a voice that Kira was rooted to the spot with eyes wide, afraid that if she didn't obey him he would hit her or some such. His face was terribly expressive and had that written on it. The second question only eased her nerves a little. Even if he was willing to forgive her, if word of this got back to her sister, Kira knew how painful the punishment for being such a clumsy dimglows would be.
"I...I... Br-rought my brothers-s-s here, and they-y've disapp-peared on me. I thought they-y were hiding and com-Ming around the hedge... I didn't mean to jum-m-mp out at y-you." Her fingers laced together tightly. It was a terrible offense to have this happen, and Kira didn't know how he would punish her in turn. She had answered him, certainly, but that couldn't be the only thing he would want of her as apology.
Her siblings, seeing the trouble she was in, came forward and rallied together for her... Behind her back. Kira could feel them clinging to the back of her dress as they looked up at the older Holder. "It's true, sir, we were hiding and playing and she was just trying to catch us," the older me piped up. Kira was grateful for it, reaching back to grasp his hand.
But even with her siblings's support, Holders weren't necessarily kind, and that made Kira keep alert and ready for a blow from him. If she were more unlucky he might demand a few lashes. Kira hoped that he was more lenient than that, not wanting to go back to her family so ashamed. Not wanting it in front of her brothers. But regardless of his worried or afraid she was, she stood there stiffly, ready for whatever punishment he had in mind.
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Darumem - 04.Sep.13
Darumem listened to the girl explain why she had jumped her, her stutter difficult to decipher to the point he was getting irritated. Was the girl so terrified she couldn't speak? It didn't occur to him she stuttered due to a defect other than being scared.
By the time she finished talking and a few seconds of silence fell between them, Darumem was able to work through her stuttered words to learn what she said. Then he noticed the two boys who appeared from where they were hiding to cling to her skirts. His small eyes darted to the oldest boy's face as he talked before taking in the other boy. Sister, with two brothers. He filed that information in the back of his mind.
Suddenly he smiled, his whole face flowing into the expression. "Well, it isn't the first time I heard of overly excited children causing things to get out of hand and the public garden is a fine place to play hide and go seek."
"What's your name, girl?" He asked, the smile vanishing as fast as it appeared.
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Kira - 04.Sep.13
In the silence that fell, Kira could only hear her heart pounding. She had no clue what would happen now. And her stutter... Had that only made things worse? Would he grow frustrated by it and simply dismiss them? The latter would be a small blessing, but Kira didn't know if that had a chance of happening.
But then he smiled, and her shoulders relaxed a bit. He couldn't be that angry, not if his words were any indication. She gave him a small smile back. But then the look fell from his face once more, and the smile fell from hers. "Kira." Finally, a word without her stutter hampering it. She also gave him a small curtsy in addition to it, to properly pay him her respects. Kira's gentle hand on her brother's shoulders meant that they also bowed to the mañana gave him their names.
But after that, Kira didn't want to say anything more. He was a Holder, she merely a stuttering drudge. Her older brother stepped forward. "Thank you for being so understanding, Sir. We won't cause anymore trouble like this today. If that's all, then we will escort our sister home." The boy was used to taking over in situations like this, aware of how Kira's speech issue would be seen by others. Besides, it didn't seem like any great offense to the man, since he had seemed ready to forgive them.
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Darumem - 05.Sep.13
Her smile did enchance her beauty, Darumem noticed. He continued to silently study her, the only acknowledgement he gave to acknowledge her answer to his last question was a slight nod. Kira, her name was Kira. He found it a pleasing name, Kee-rah. He will not forget it.
When the older of the two boys spoke so politely, Darumem smiled again, not as widely as before. "Well said, young man, well said. You will make a good little Holder if you marry right, I am certain."
"Kira I do hope you follow your brother's example and be more careful how you play. I am not an unreasonable man and there was no harm done. It isn't every day I have a beautiful woman jump out at me from behind a hedge." Darumem's hand moved before him in graceful movements as he talked in a more at ease manner. His eyes once more fell upon the older boy. "There is no need to end your enjoyment of the garden on this fine day. Unless it is time for you to return home."
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Kira - 05.Sep.13
Kira and her brothers were reliev that the man didn't seem too terribly angry at them. He acknowledged Kira's name with a nod, though he didn't offer his in return (not all that surprising, but still), and was polite in turn to Kira's brother. He have another small bow to formally acknowledge his words. He rather liked the praise he was given, it was nicer than what Kimora had to say to him!
Kira also smiled at him, brushing her hand over his hair to agree with the Holder. He had done well. Her eyes then lifted up to the Holder's as he continued to speak. A light blush tinted her cheeks, though it was both one of embarassment and irritation. She had been careful right up until the decision to ambush her brothers! But Kira didn't say a word, merely inclined her head to agree with his reprimand. She chose to ignore his words about being a beautiful lady. Simple flattery, she was sure.
For a moment when he spoke to her brothers, there was a mental tug of war between who would win - them for getting someone else's approval of playing, or her for wanting to go somewhere it was more appropriate to roughhouse. They locked eyes... And her brothers won. With a small sigh, she acquiesced, a wry smile on her face. Both the boys grinned widely.
"No, sir, papa won't mind us bringing her home in a few hours!" The eldest said. "Thank you for being so kind and understanding!" With that the two darted off, leaving Kira alone with the holder.
And she was at a loss of what to do now. She looked back at him, then gave the man a bright grin. He was rather nice, far from what she had experienced most holders to be, and seemed rather decent when all was said and done. But Kira was also sure that she was intruding on his time here. Kira gave him a small curtsy and moved to excuse herself so that she could continue to peruse the garden herself.
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Darumem - 05.Sep.13
Darumem chuckled at the boy's enthusiastic comment about their father not minding if Kira was brought home a few hours later. He understood boys far better than he did girls despite the fact he had four daughters. Once the boys ran off, Darumem focused his eyes completely on Kira.
"I seemed to have forgotten to introduce myself. I am Darumem, Lord of Litner Hold...under Telgar of course." For now, he thought silently. As much as he wanted Telgar Darumen knew he would never have a chance. Not unless he arranged for many deaths. Darumem was clever but knew it will take a few generations before his bloodline ruled Telgar.
He studied the woman briefly then decided to ask one more question before dismissing her. "What is your father's name? Answer that and then you may depart. I don't want your brothers worrying what's keeping you."
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Kira - 05.Sep.13
Kira nodded slightly when he introduced himself. She wasn't sure why he felt the need, but it was a nice gesture.but it also made her feel even more embarrassed - he s a Lord Holder! Not just a rich holder, like she had assumed. He was that and more. She gave him yet another curtsy. She was feeling uncomfortable under his scrutiny, but didn't want to show it by fidgeting or acting in a way that could be construed as rude.
She had already had too many bad incidents today.
His next question surprised her quite a bit. For a moment she paused, lips parted as she took in that he wanted her father's name. What would he want it for, exactly?
Taking a deep breath, Kira managed yet another smile. "Moran." Her shoulders slumped slightly in relief. Another word without a stutter! It made her grin all the more brightly.
With that, she curtsied once more and left as quickly as she could without being rude. Her brothers called out to her and she waved to them, glad to get away from that potential situation.
Re: Strolling with a Purpose [Open] - Darumem - 05.Sep.13
Darumem had to give the pretty young woman credit, she did curtsy the right amount and had been quick to apologize for her earlier error. She was an amusing distraction and he did have other things to tend to.
Why did he ask the name of her father? Darumem normally didn't bother asking that sort of information from faceless drudges. The name didn't mean anything to him either.
It was worth it for that smile The thought drifted across his mind. It was a thought that made him realize he was without a wife for too long. He had grown accustomed to somebody warming his bed at night. He missed Suhesa and had not been in a rush to find a new wife but the need for an heir was pressing. He could take this girl for his pleasure, or any drudge that caught his fancy. He didn't want to.
Darumem watched as she left to join her brothers and could see her relax the further she moved away from him. He shook his head, berating himself for standing there watching her leave like some boy seeing his lover returning home.
Turning his back on her he headed for the nearest path that lead out of the public garden. He no longer wanted to be out there in the sun enjoying the weather. A good workout was what he really needed. Or so he told himself.
<<Fin>>