|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Tue Mar 25, 2014 7:23 pm
Kade couldn't help but laugh. He too had been somewhat surprised by the habit of Sunderlanders to keep sex as far from society as possible. It seemed strange. Everyone did it, didn't they? Still, it was best to respect the boundaries of the culture that had accepted you.
... it was nice to be in the company of someone who thought similarly, though. He considered her having passed the test. Once again the young woman would find an arm offered to her, but this time entirely willingly.
"I'm glad to find someone so agreeable. If only I had known, I might have let you read the manuscript before handing it back."
Of course, the tests of a man were one thing. The test of his children would be another. He did not live far. Already the homes were beginning to diminish in size.
"So. Tell me about where you're from, hm? You have such an interesting accent.
MoonRazor I figure sending them home in one more post? Unless you have a better idea than throwing some kids at Ysalone.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2014 11:04 pm
There was no hesitation as she placed her hand at the crook of his arm and allowed him to lead her down the street, her other hand gliding down his bicep in a light, almost unconscious caress. It could as easily have been flirtatious as gentle and caring, and sometimes with Ysalone, it was difficult to tell. If she had to be honest there were moments when she herself was not so sure. For the most part, it hardly mattered to her. Here was a man - indeed, a person - with whom she could share a laugh and her intentions were only to enjoy her time in whatever capacity that enjoyment might take.
"Next time, m'sieur, you let me know, eh?" She let her laugh, bright like water tumbling into a glass, ring again in the way only Ysalone knew how. It was a real laugh, not the demure giggles she restrained herself to in the company of "proper" ladies and gentlemen, but a head-tossed-back, hair-swinging, unfettered laugh that she only ever found herself enjoying when she was around people like Kade. The ones who cared less about her bloodlines and etiquette and more about her fascination with raunchy manuscripts.
"Moi?" She said, and a sudden pride infused her voice. "I am from Gallia. There is not so many rules in Gallia. Mon papa, 'e 'as a... euh... vignoble? Ze place with ze grapes, for wine. But, bon, papa, 'e thinks I should learn some 'real' manners in Sunderland or find a rich 'usband 'ere." Ysalone shrugged. "I do not think so." It might have been as much the fact that she had no desire to marry a rich Sunderlandian noble as the fact that few would consider a proper wife. It wasn't so much her lineage as that she had wasted little time in establishing a reputation for herself, and most proper noblemen were not convinced they wanted such a flirtatious wife.
"What about you, m'sieur? Where do you come from?"grasshopper pie WAHAHAHA yes I am perfectly fine with throwing her to the children. sorry I am so damn slow
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2014 10:30 am
"We're from Feoulor. It's not so far away, over the ocean. We came here to be with family after, ah..." He nodded his head toward his other shoulder, if it really could be considered one. "The medical care is much better here."
Silence fell over him then, if only because they had begun down his bustling street. His home was a two-story building, large enough for himself and the children but certainly no mansion. If Ysalone as truly nobility (and he believed it), he wondered what she might think.
It was Kanina that noticed the approaching pair first. A pale head and a pair of swiveling ears appeared in the front window. The deer had grown in leaps and bounds since she had first appeared to the Stendahl family, and she was of fair enough size to still fit on the chaise and be able to see out into the street. She stared Ysalone down as they approached, dropping out of sight only when Kade's hand was on the door knob.
"You can't say I didn't warn you."
The door swung open and there was a brief tableau; Will playing with a wooden train on the floor, Abigail lounging behind him on the couch, singing softly and reading a book. Madeline, the one-year-old, seemed to be reaching for something in Elsabeth's hands, but she turned to face him when the door came open. It was she who approached first, a little girl with dark brown curls and hazel eyes, toddling toward her daddy and throwing up her hands. Kade was rather skillful in scooping the child from the ground once he had freed his arm. Madeline's eyes, however, were not on him but on his companion.
Kanina was next, peering out through the office with a curious gaze. She only came within a few feet of the pair and watched as if judging. William, a boy of 6 with pale blonde curls and grey eyes, paused in his playing to see what the fuss was about, and then looked back toward his sister. She was a freckled girl of 8 with long blonde hair and blue eyes, like her father's. Her brow furrowed as she swung her legs off the couch and closed her book.
"Daddy, who's that?"
"Ah, everyone, this is Ysalone. She's visiting Sunderland from Gallia," Kade explained, and then motioned to everyone in turn and bounced the baby, "Abigail, William, my sister Elsabeth, Kanina the spooky deer and little Madeline."
Elsabeth looked quite like her brother, although she sported the same curls as some of the children. She wiped off her hand and approached for a hand shake, which prompted William to jump up and Abigail to finally approach. WIlliam beat his auntie there, offering his hand to this new woman.
"Hello it's a pleasure to meet you." The boy's greeting was recited with a feeling of repetition, rather than understanding. Abigail seemed much more wary of the newcomer. Elsabeth offered her hand after the child, but when she said "Hello, welcome, it's a pleasure to meet you," she rather seemed to mean it.
So this was a day in his home. 3 children and a deer, perhaps a babysitter too, constantly doing this and that at all hours. He had warned her. He also wouldn't think any less of her if she fled immediately.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2014 8:14 am
She had grown up with a stableboy, Stephane, barged in on his family just before dinner to join them at their table, giggled with his sisters, raced ponies bareback across the lawn. With his family, as with Kade's, there had been a sense of ordered chaos. There was so much motion, so much constant energy that it ought to be overwhelming, but somehow it all held together. The scene that lay before her now reminded her so much of ones she had faced in the past: baby Simonette climbing into Stephane's embrace, shy Laura watching from afar as young Sylvie came to grab her hand. If Ysalone felt overwhelmed, it was only by the sudden familiarity of it all.
"Bonjour, William, Abigail," she managed to say, taking the boy's hand and waving to the girl. Her elaborate dress seemed suddenly to become quite unnecessary and take up far too much space as she took Elsabeth's hand, and her sheepish smiled seemed for once to be genuine. Ysalone was quite aware that her visit could easily be taken as the fanciful sport of a young, spoiled noble girl who had nothing better to do but impose herself upon others. Especially here in Sunderland, she had realized, people were prone to those sorts of thoughts. Perhaps on some level it was true, but she quite enjoyed Kade's company too. "Enchantée, madame. This is a wonderful 'ome."
She meant more the energy in it. The house itself was quaint enough and cozy, almost like Stephane's house but without the same Gallian charm, but she hardly noticed. There was too much going on inside for that.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2014 10:37 am
William accepted the shake and then went to stand beside his skeptical elder sister. Madeline still stared, now shoving two tiny fingers into her mouth.
"Oh," Elsabeth replied, looking up to Kade, "Well, I live just down the road, actually." Still, it was clear that this place had had a woman's touch. Elsabeth had been kind enough to help when the family had moved in, and even such a superficial thing had seemed to comfort the children. The bits and pieces of Lexa that had been left were long gone, stored away in a trunk in the cellar.
"Daddy, I'm hungry." It was William, wringing his hands together. Not a single moment's rest in this house, not even with company.
"Well then. We'd better get lunch started."
Elsabeth lowered her voice, addressing Kade. "Do you want me to stay?"
"No, no, we could be fine." His voice had lowered as well, more reflex than anything as Ysalone could certainly still hear.
"You're certain?"
"Yes, Elsa, thank you."
"Well then," his sister said, smiling and touching Ysalone's arm, "It was a pleasure to meet you. Goodbye!" She gave Kade a kiss on the cheek and disappeared out the door after they had shared their goodbyes, and there was Ysalone, closed in a house with three children and their father. A daunting task for the average woman, but then again this girl did not seem so 'average.'
Madeline began to lean over her father's shoulder then, a bit more difficult to handle with only one arm. She seemed to want Ysalone to hold her, or else to touch her shiny jewelry. Kade turned to Ysalone and smiled. He wasn't going to offer or even ask for her to take the baby. That would be rude. Instead, he nodded for the kitchen at the back of the house.
"You're welcome to stay, if you'd like? I don't think your servants will come looking for you here."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2014 7:45 am
The Kinross servants certainly wouldn't think to look for her here. They didn't know her well enough yet. The thought of them scrambling about the city in search of her was an amusing one. How would they report back to Andrus, after all, if they lost his cousin? Andrus was every bit a gentleman, but he was a serious man and had some of his father's wrath when seriously provoked.
"Thank you," Ysalone said with a nod. It was a pleasant feeling, know she had some time to herself before having to return to her cousin's mansion. "I can... take her, if you want," she added, offering more because it seemed like the polite thing to do and less because she actually wanted to hold Madeleine. Ysalone didn't really know what to do with herself with such small children, after all. She had played with them, yes, but she couldn't recall ever holding one. That was a job for ladies' maids.
But it seemed as though having to manage an entire household with only one arm was much more difficult than holding a baby with two, so Ysalone volunteered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun Jul 06, 2014 10:44 am
Madeline gave a whine and reached our further, definitely looking for Ysalone to give her some attention. Kade seemed to consider the young woman's offer for a moment. She hadn't seemed too delighted with the thought of holding a small child, but Madeline would wail if she was put down and occupied the only arm he had. He gave Ysalone a pitying glance and leaned over so she could accept the child.
"Thank you," he said with a little nod. Madeline was immediately interested in Ysalone, or more so her wardrobe, plucking at her jewelry with tiny fumbling hands and touching the fabric of her dress. She was ignorant to any awkwardness her new friend had in holding her, well used to shifting her weight and feeling the entire body tip.
As Kade approached the kitchen, Abigail tugged at his shirt.
"She's rich, Daddy," she informed.
"Yes, Abby. I know."
"Why is she here?"
"She's just in for lunch today," Kade said, rummaging through the pantry. He hadn't had a real meal in quite some time. Children required speed and ease, and that didn't leave much time for a good steak or whole fowl. It would be sandwiches, again.
"Is she our new Mommy?" William asked, moving to take the bread from the pantry and set it on the counter. Kade only laughed as he began to prepare a meal. He employed a strange blade for cutting, usable by one hand and able to slice whatever he so wished, while Abigail sliced the bread.
Madeline looked Ysalone in the face and pointed to the kitchen.
"Buh-huh," she said definitely, bouncing slightly.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Aug 11, 2014 2:59 pm
"Oh," she said with a small laugh, adjusting her weight to keep little Madeline upright as the child poked at her jewelry. "Amethyst," she told the child, suspecting that the little girl couldn't understand. But it felt more right than simply ignoring her. Ysalone hadn't held a child since her brothers had been toddlers and she, only a few years older, had clumsily hauled them from place to place as if they were very large animated toys.
"You want to go there?" she asked, following Madeline's lean toward the kitchen, where Kade and the other two children were moving like a well-practiced team.
"I don't think you want me for a mommy, William," Ysalone added with another laugh, shifting Madeline's weight onto her other hip as they watched the sandwich-making.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Sep 09, 2014 3:21 pm
William gave Ysalone a bit of a look as if he couldn't understand the weight of her words. The children knew something of class, but a nice woman was welcome to be a mommy, wasn't she? He stole a bit of cheese as his eldest sister sliced it from her step stool, and she batted at his hand. He only laughed, the conversation forgotten.
Madeline seemed entranced by the idea of food as well and leaned out, both arms stretched toward Kade while her eyes remained on the counter.
"Daddy can't," he said, giving a little chuckle. The baby was still too young to understand the meaning behind having only one arm. For a moment, Madeline's face twisted like she might cry, but then her fingers found her mouth again and she turned to Ysalone. Her eyes were big and bright, yet untainted by whatever the world had to throw at her. As if seeing her new friend for the first time, she smiled.
"Are you hungry, Ysalone?" Kade asked. It seemed a silly offer. The woman must have cooks and servants, and he was offering her a sandwich. "It's not so fancy, but it'll fill you." Hm. That was a bit of an awkward sentence.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
