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batsutousaiFirst Elspeth refuses to kill Bonnie, now this! *throws hands up in the air helplessly*
And, as a mental note: NO MORE BEAR CUBS!
At Good's End
Chapter Two -- Meeting Up
"So," said Elspeth, once they'd stopped a fair ways from the bears, "I wouldn't have expected you to be saying 'my Lady' all the time after kidnapping me to use me as a hostage for your country."
Bonnie rubbed at her face. "It was rather beat into us. I did try, while you were asleep. But it didn't stick once you'd woken, clearly."
"Uhm, wait, beat?"
Bonnie shrugged uncomfortably. "Milord Kerry has the upper servants beat respect into the newest servants until we don't slip anymore. Then, and only then, are we allowed to serve you."
Elspeth felt a little ill and began to wonder at her idea of evil being the best. "I-I had no idea. That's....barbaric..."
"Milord Kerry will do as he will."
"B-but that doesn't excuse it!"
Bonnie shrugged helplessly, then changed the subject, "Does my L–ah, Gwenonwyn know how to use that?" she said, pointing to the bow Elspeth had settled beside her when they got off the horse.
Elspeth grimaced and looked down at the bow. "Ah, it's been a while, but I think so."
Bonnie bit her lip, then seemed to come to a decision and nodded. "I know a little about archery, so how about I help you get a refresh? No point in carrying it about if you can't use it, right?"
"Oh! Right!" Elspeth hopped to her feet and picked up the bow. "Uhm, do we have a target? And no apples on heads, please," she added with a nervous laugh as Bonnie went rummaging through one of the saddlebags.
Bonnie shot her a horrified look. "What? Apples on heads?! Why would anyone do that?"
Elspeth moved her mouth in silent surprise. Wasn't that a practise here? Between friends on the yard or to prove how good an archer someone was? It always seemed to happen in books back home.
Bonnie shook her head. "My Lady, you must have really been knocked about by the Lady of Death."
"Lady of Death?" Elspeth parroted.
Bonnie blinked, then said, "The Goddess Radha?" as though speaking to an idiot.
Elspeth let out another nervous laugh. "Oh, ah, of course. Silly me. Heh. Uhm, right! Archery! Do we have a target?"
"Yeah," Bonnie said with a sigh, pulling out a swatch of cloth and a small knife. She walked over to a tree that wasn't too far from where Elspeth was standing and used the knife to stick the cloth to the bark. Walking back, she said, "Right. Let's see your stance."
Elspeth took a deep breath and let it out as she straightened her back and placed her left foot in front of her right, facing to the side. She drew an arrow from the quiver on her back and settled it against the string, leaving the bow loose and pointing down toward the ground, away from her feet. The she glanced over at Bonnie.
Bonnie smiled. "And here I thought you hated physical exertion, my L–Gwenonwyn. The other servants always told tales about how you would only condone a sport that allowed yourself to sit in a shaded seat with a cushion and some cold lemonade."
Elspeth's responding smile was more of a grimace than a smile. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. Just, ah, don't pass it on, right?"
"Oh, of course, my– Gwenonwyn," Bonnie said cheerfully. Before Elspeth could crack a joke about how she was nobody's, thanks, Bonnie continued, saying, "Now, draw the bow and let's see if you can shoot the cloth. Do try not to kit the knife, it's the only one we've got."
"And let me guess," Elspeth muttered sarcastically as she drew back the string of her bow, "the nearest town is some hundreds of miles away."
"I don't know of miles, m–Gwenonwyn, but it is a few days ride from here, yes."
"Same difference," Elspeth muttered, then loosed her arrow. It nicked the edge of the cloth – and the tree – and disappeared into the forest. The string also smacked angrily against Elspeth's uncovered arm and, even as she yelped in pain, Elspeth thanked something unknown – certainly not Radha, since the damn woman was probably laughing every time she got something wrong – that her gown had short sleeves and that nothing had caught in the string. One of the boys in her class had gotten his shirt caught in the bow and the shirt was ruined, while the arrow went way wide and would have hit a passer-by if the school's fence hadn't caught it.
Bonnie ran for the saddlebags again and grabbed a few things out. "Guards! I completely forgot about the guards! How could I be so stupid?! My Lady, are you okay?"
Elspeth gritted her teeth and nodded, then glanced down at the inside of her arm. It was an angry red, but it didn't look serious. "I'll be fine," she muttered, shaking her arm as if it would help.
Bonnie stopped the shaking and wrapped it with a long strip of clean cloth. Then she fastened a guard around the make-shift bandage and nodded to herself. "That should do it. Now, shall we try again? That was a good shot, if you haven't practised the bow in a time as you say, and I'm certain to believe that." She grinned good-naturedly, as if to say she meant her words in jest.
Elspeth wondered if she should have been insulted by this other woman's easy talk, since she was supposed to be playing the daughter of this word's Caesar, but she really only saw the other as a mirror of herself, and that made her go cold at the thought of losing this woman, who might have been her friend, were they not in this situation. And were Elspeth's heart not already frozen to friends; a lack of friends during all of one's life could do that.
"Thanks," Elspeth mumbled, both in response to Bonnie's quick treatment and her comment about it being a good shot. Then she pulled out another arrow and notched it. Taking a deep breath, she let it go.
This time, the arrow actually stuck in the tree, but it was just below the cloth. Elspeth pursed her lips and waited for a quietly giggling Bonnie to get the arrow before she tried again.
This could take a while.
***
Four hours after they'd started, counting a few breaks when Elspeth had gotten tired, she could consistently shoot at and hit her target. While her stance had been okay, her aim had been crap, and so that was what they'd started focusing on after a good half hour. If Elspeth hadn't known better – and sometimes she wondered if she really did – she would think that Bonnie had enjoyed her frustration at constantly missing. The best part of the whole practise session was that she no longer had to think to hit something. She still had to aim – the sorrow of being human – but she no longer had to take a deep breath and make absolutely certain her stance was perfect before loosing her arrow.
The two women spent the rest of the afternoon discussing a course of action for the next day. Bonnie stood by the fact that it would take them a few days before they would reach a town where they could part, even if they were to cross the border into Abathal or Merun; never mind that going across the border would be dangerous in the extreme for Elspeth and no one would agree to travel with her back into Kerry. Elspeth wondered how much the real Gwenonwyn knew about how the rest of their world felt about her family.
Elspeth debated about telling Bonnie that Finlay and Lonán would be joining up with them soon. She knew that Radha had promised to send them her way, but they'd had to flee from the bears and had done so on horse-back, while the two men were on foot. Really, she wasn't sure they'd meet up until the next day, and even then it could be a while, since they'd still be on horse.
Deciding she didn't want to get Bonnie's hopes up about parting all the sooner – anyway, she liked travelling with the other – Elspeth kept quiet about the two men and they got ready for bed in peace. Keeping in mind what Finlay and Lonán had done in her book, Elspeth suggested they set a watch and offered to take the first half. Grateful, Bonnie fell right to sleep and Elspeth found herself alone in the quietly chirping forest.
Elspeth hugged herself and settled down on the ground next to their horse, who'd started to doze. Earlier, she'd inquired about the horse's name and Bonnie had introduced him as Dusty, because of his grey-speckled coat. Dusty was a reasonable horse, all things considered, but Elspeth was still unsure of him since she didn't know how to ride. Panicked escapes from bears were one thing, riding off to the nearest town was another thing entirely.
She had also found out, earlier, that Bonnie had wisely stolen a money pouch from Gwenonwyn's room before stealing away with the Lady. The two had debated for a bit over what to do with the money when they split – Elspeth wanted Bonnie to take some of it, but Bonnie was firm in her belief that all of it belonged to Elspeth – but Bonnie ended the argument by saying that she would likely flee to Abathal, since Zeptel was no longer a safe option, Kerry even less so, and they used a different coin there. Elspeth did insist that Bonnie use some of the money in the nearest town that they were headed for to buy provisions, and wondered about exchanging coinage, like one could do in Elspeth's home world. Bonnie insisted that they couldn't change money over – Lord Kerry frowned on such things and wouldn't allow it, didn't Gwenonwyn know that? – but if Elspeth was willing to part with it, Bonnie could take her gown and sell it for a fair penny in Abathal. Not caring for the gown – it was heavy and a little out of place this far from the capital, Elspeth had readily agreed and had traded the glorious gown for a simple peasant's dress and undergarments that Bonnie had an extra set of which luckily fit. The gown had been packed away and the problem of money had been solved.
Elspeth quite enjoyed her new clothing. While the gown had been very pretty – purple was her favourite colour, after all – it also brought her down rather a bit. And it was a dress, which she'd only ever worn for fancy things that her grandparents would, mockingly, invite her mother and she to every year or so. Dresses had few good memories.
Not that the peasant clothing wasn't a dress, but it, at least, wasn't quite so likely to trip her. The skirt was much shorter, being not much further than her knees, and there were already rips in it, since Bonnie had said she'd bought them at least second-hand. Bonnie had cringed when saying that the offered clothing had been bought used, but Elspeth hadn't cared, though the real Gwenonwyn probably would have. Even better, the second-hand clothing had come with some dull, broken-in sandals that were a little too big for Gwenonwyn's dainty Lady's feet – which Elspeth was not looking forward to breaking in, herself, since they'd really hurt in the process – but Elspeth could handle too-big shoes, and they were better for walking than the high-heeled boots she'd been wearing which were required for Lord Kerry's court.
Elspeth sighed to herself and shook her head, wondering how long she'd been sitting there, thinking. She desperately wished for a watch of some form, but she didn't think they existed yet in this world. She was also aware that, assuming Radha had spoken true and the two men were still headed their way, they wouldn't be there that night. They'd hopefully meet up some time during the next day, but Elspeth wasn't certain. With her luck, they wouldn't be meeting up until they got to whatever the closest town was, and wouldn't that be a pain.
Elspeth finally told herself that there was no thinking about what might bes, since tomorrow would come tomorrow and what would happen would happen. As her mother often said, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. So Elspeth leaned hear head back against Dusty's coat and counted stars, wondering which ones were the same in her own world, if any.
***
Elspeth was dreaming. She seemed to be doing that, lately. She really hoped she wasn't going to be meeting with a god this time, they seemed kinda annoying. And demanding. And rather likely to kill you if you said 'no'. Or much of anything at all.
She glanced down and wondered at the ground. It was very black and non-existent. She was sure she'd read about someone standing on nothing before. Possibly a few times. How clichéd.
"Hey, when there's nothing below you, can you still feel it?" she wondered out loud. Then she knelt down and put her hand on... nothing. There was clearly something holding her up, because she didn't feel like she was floating, but she couldn't feel anything beneath her hand. How odd. She decided to do a handstand, just to see if she could.
"What, do you think you're doing?" a voice snapped in an uppity tone.
Elspeth fell flat on her face and shot a glare up at the girl who'd interrupted her, only to find herself looking at... herself?
Elspeth stood slowly, dusting herself off. "Uhm, who are you?"
"I, little peasant, am Lady Gwenonwyn Keeva Lasair Kerry, the daughter of Lord Cathaír Kerry, ruler of the Country of Kerry," the other said pompously.
Elspeth blinked a few times, then commented, "You're worse than my grandfather, and that's saying a lot, 'cause he's a right asshole. Kinda sad, seeing a woman with two assholes, one in her butt and the other on her arm. You're much the same, aren't you? Your poor, poor father. No wonder he's such easy prey for Hywel."
Gwenonwyn just gaped, amazed at the audacity of this girl who stole her body.
Elspeth snickered. "You look like an idiot."
Gwenonwyn's mouth snapped shut.
"Didn't Radha say she was going to put you in stasis until I was through having to use your body to do her dirty work? Why am I dreaming about you?" Elspeth asked when it looked like Gwenonwyn wasn't going to say anything after all.
"The Great Goddess Radha? She gave you my body? Why? And what's 'stasis'?" Gwenonwyn questioned eagerly, seemingly completely different at the mention of the god she prayed to.
Elspeth cocked an eyebrow at her double. "Yeah. Great. Sure. Yeah, she wants me to stop your dad from taking over the word and also keep this guy from trying to kill your dad and most likely getting killed himself in the process. Then I can go back to my world." Elspeth shrugged at the incredulous look on the other's face. "And stasis is stasis. It's kinda like freezing your mind so you don't interfere, I guess. Something like that. Sci-fi term."
"You, are from a different world," Gwenonwyn said dryly. "What a load of nonsense. Kerry is the only world out there. Why the Goddess would have chosen such a fool child to take over my body and supposedly save my father from some fool boy child that wouldn't be able to touch him anyway I'll never understand."
"You really are a stuck-up bitch, aren't you?" Elspeth asked, rather impressed.
"Excuse me? Who are you to use such language around me?"
Elspeth laughed. "This is rich! I'm beginning to see what Radha meant about you not being anything like the person I wanted to write. In fact, now that I've met you, I think I'll quite enjoy ruining everyone's image of you. I'll go out and help some poor people and kill some of your dad's soldiers and spread horrible rumours about you and–"
"Don't you dare do any of those things, you wretch!"
"Or what," Elspeth spat back, a nasty look on her face. "You'll stamp your foot and cry for Daddy?"
"I-I'll send out Father's soldiers to find you and have you brought back to be killed in the Grand Square!" Gwenonwyn insisted.
Elspeth started laughing to hard she could hardly breathe.
And then, she was shaken awake.
***
"My Lady," Bonnie hissed, shaking her. "My Lady, there are voices!"
Elspeth jerked up, awake. "What voices?" she hissed back. Then, as an afterthought, added, "And stop calling me that."
"Shhhh..." Bonnie cautioned.
Elspeth quieted her breathing, then she heard them:
"Why do we have to keep going?" one voice whined.
"Because I said so. Be quiet already, Finlay! You're going to attract something!" the second voice hissed, sounding irritated.
Elspeth smiled to herself and stood, bow in hand. "Like us?" she asked calmly, and had to blink when Bonnie somehow uncovered the fire.
Finlay and Lonán stood there, just as Elspeth had imagined them to be when she'd written them in her book. Finlay wore his ridiculous hat and beat-up armour and had the look that Elspeth had only ever seen on ditzes plastered on his face. Lonán was dark and quiet with almost-new armour and a stylish hat.
Lonán had notched an arrow without even seeming to realized it, for he lowered it when he'd blinked the sudden light out of his eyes and seen that they were only facing two women, who had their weapons out, but not at the ready. Finlay had simply gone pale and frozen in place at the chance that they might be attacked.
Bonnie grinned at Elspeth and motioned to their fire. "Why don't you settle at our fire for a moment, gentlemen? Tell us where you've been and where you're headed. We promise not to bite."
"We don't have time," Finlay said, finding his tongue. "We're making our way to the capital to ki–"
Lonán smiled, hand over Finlay's mouth. "We got lost a few days ago and are trying to make up for it," he explained. "But he's right, we're on a schedule and really must be going."
"Ah," said Elspeth on a whim, "so you've come from across the border? How odd to see fellows from Abathal gone to see Lord Kerry without a horse between them."
"It is odd," Bonnie agreed, frowning.
"Not from across the border, no," Lonán replied, frowning. "Why do you say that?"
"Because, the only people out this far would be someone from across the border," Bonnie explained. "We're about two days ride west of E'Fal. Although, now that I think of it, most fellows from Abathal travel first to Alane on the western side of Kerry, it being only across the mountains and north from their capital."
"You said we were going the right way!" Finlay hissed, pulling away from his friend. "You said that ridiculous Radha you worship was leading you true!"
"It's unwise to speak poorly of the Gods," Bonnie cautioned sharply, "lest they show you their fury until you die, as short a time that might be."
Elspeth smiled at Lonán, who looked saddened by his failing. "Perhaps Goddess Radha was leading you to us. I was accompanying my sister here to the border so that she might pass to find her husband, but I must travel instead to the capital. My sister is wary of my travelling the whole way alone and we'd been praying to Goddess Radha to send us aid. And she has delivered so well."
"Praised be," Lonán murmured, and was echoed by Bonnie and Elspeth. Finlay still looked upset with the turn of things.
Bonnie turned to Elspeth with an amused glint in her eyes. "This is a blessing, sister. Now we may part in the morning to find our fortunes apart."
"Indeed, my sister," Elspeth agreed, inwardly gagging at all the praising to the god who'd gotten her into this mess to begin with. "But for now, my friends, we should rest, for tomorrow will come painfully quick if we do not take our rest soon and well."
The other three agreed with Elspeth and set about getting the two men unpacked and ready to sleep. Since she'd slept already, Bonnie said she'd finish with her watch and Elspeth decided to stay up with her for a bit longer. Once the two men had fallen asleep, Bonnie turned to Elspeth and said, "Are you sure about those two? I don't think they're very trustworthy, my– Gwenonwyn. I mean, what business do they have at the capital, anyway?"
Elspeth cocked her head and glanced up, as if listening to something from above speaking to her, then smiled and nodded. "These are the two I'm meant to go with."
Bonnie still looked uncertain. "If you say so."
"I do. Don't worry about it, Bonnie. I'll be fine. And if they try something, I'll punch them in the nose," Elspeth assured her.
Bonnie grinned. "Well, at least you'll have time to run while they're still reeling from the shock of getting hit so well by a girl." They both shared a laugh. "Go to sleep, Gwenonwyn. And may your dreams be quiet."
"Good night, then," Elspeth replied, then crawled over to her bed roll and curled up.
She had no more dreams that night.
Chapters:
One |||Two ||| Three ||| Four
Summary & Character Info
Incomplete
.
And, as a mental note: NO MORE BEAR CUBS!
Chapter Two -- Meeting Up
"So," said Elspeth, once they'd stopped a fair ways from the bears, "I wouldn't have expected you to be saying 'my Lady' all the time after kidnapping me to use me as a hostage for your country."
Bonnie rubbed at her face. "It was rather beat into us. I did try, while you were asleep. But it didn't stick once you'd woken, clearly."
"Uhm, wait, beat?"
Bonnie shrugged uncomfortably. "Milord Kerry has the upper servants beat respect into the newest servants until we don't slip anymore. Then, and only then, are we allowed to serve you."
Elspeth felt a little ill and began to wonder at her idea of evil being the best. "I-I had no idea. That's....barbaric..."
"Milord Kerry will do as he will."
"B-but that doesn't excuse it!"
Bonnie shrugged helplessly, then changed the subject, "Does my L–ah, Gwenonwyn know how to use that?" she said, pointing to the bow Elspeth had settled beside her when they got off the horse.
Elspeth grimaced and looked down at the bow. "Ah, it's been a while, but I think so."
Bonnie bit her lip, then seemed to come to a decision and nodded. "I know a little about archery, so how about I help you get a refresh? No point in carrying it about if you can't use it, right?"
"Oh! Right!" Elspeth hopped to her feet and picked up the bow. "Uhm, do we have a target? And no apples on heads, please," she added with a nervous laugh as Bonnie went rummaging through one of the saddlebags.
Bonnie shot her a horrified look. "What? Apples on heads?! Why would anyone do that?"
Elspeth moved her mouth in silent surprise. Wasn't that a practise here? Between friends on the yard or to prove how good an archer someone was? It always seemed to happen in books back home.
Bonnie shook her head. "My Lady, you must have really been knocked about by the Lady of Death."
"Lady of Death?" Elspeth parroted.
Bonnie blinked, then said, "The Goddess Radha?" as though speaking to an idiot.
Elspeth let out another nervous laugh. "Oh, ah, of course. Silly me. Heh. Uhm, right! Archery! Do we have a target?"
"Yeah," Bonnie said with a sigh, pulling out a swatch of cloth and a small knife. She walked over to a tree that wasn't too far from where Elspeth was standing and used the knife to stick the cloth to the bark. Walking back, she said, "Right. Let's see your stance."
Elspeth took a deep breath and let it out as she straightened her back and placed her left foot in front of her right, facing to the side. She drew an arrow from the quiver on her back and settled it against the string, leaving the bow loose and pointing down toward the ground, away from her feet. The she glanced over at Bonnie.
Bonnie smiled. "And here I thought you hated physical exertion, my L–Gwenonwyn. The other servants always told tales about how you would only condone a sport that allowed yourself to sit in a shaded seat with a cushion and some cold lemonade."
Elspeth's responding smile was more of a grimace than a smile. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. Just, ah, don't pass it on, right?"
"Oh, of course, my– Gwenonwyn," Bonnie said cheerfully. Before Elspeth could crack a joke about how she was nobody's, thanks, Bonnie continued, saying, "Now, draw the bow and let's see if you can shoot the cloth. Do try not to kit the knife, it's the only one we've got."
"And let me guess," Elspeth muttered sarcastically as she drew back the string of her bow, "the nearest town is some hundreds of miles away."
"I don't know of miles, m–Gwenonwyn, but it is a few days ride from here, yes."
"Same difference," Elspeth muttered, then loosed her arrow. It nicked the edge of the cloth – and the tree – and disappeared into the forest. The string also smacked angrily against Elspeth's uncovered arm and, even as she yelped in pain, Elspeth thanked something unknown – certainly not Radha, since the damn woman was probably laughing every time she got something wrong – that her gown had short sleeves and that nothing had caught in the string. One of the boys in her class had gotten his shirt caught in the bow and the shirt was ruined, while the arrow went way wide and would have hit a passer-by if the school's fence hadn't caught it.
Bonnie ran for the saddlebags again and grabbed a few things out. "Guards! I completely forgot about the guards! How could I be so stupid?! My Lady, are you okay?"
Elspeth gritted her teeth and nodded, then glanced down at the inside of her arm. It was an angry red, but it didn't look serious. "I'll be fine," she muttered, shaking her arm as if it would help.
Bonnie stopped the shaking and wrapped it with a long strip of clean cloth. Then she fastened a guard around the make-shift bandage and nodded to herself. "That should do it. Now, shall we try again? That was a good shot, if you haven't practised the bow in a time as you say, and I'm certain to believe that." She grinned good-naturedly, as if to say she meant her words in jest.
Elspeth wondered if she should have been insulted by this other woman's easy talk, since she was supposed to be playing the daughter of this word's Caesar, but she really only saw the other as a mirror of herself, and that made her go cold at the thought of losing this woman, who might have been her friend, were they not in this situation. And were Elspeth's heart not already frozen to friends; a lack of friends during all of one's life could do that.
"Thanks," Elspeth mumbled, both in response to Bonnie's quick treatment and her comment about it being a good shot. Then she pulled out another arrow and notched it. Taking a deep breath, she let it go.
This time, the arrow actually stuck in the tree, but it was just below the cloth. Elspeth pursed her lips and waited for a quietly giggling Bonnie to get the arrow before she tried again.
This could take a while.
Four hours after they'd started, counting a few breaks when Elspeth had gotten tired, she could consistently shoot at and hit her target. While her stance had been okay, her aim had been crap, and so that was what they'd started focusing on after a good half hour. If Elspeth hadn't known better – and sometimes she wondered if she really did – she would think that Bonnie had enjoyed her frustration at constantly missing. The best part of the whole practise session was that she no longer had to think to hit something. She still had to aim – the sorrow of being human – but she no longer had to take a deep breath and make absolutely certain her stance was perfect before loosing her arrow.
The two women spent the rest of the afternoon discussing a course of action for the next day. Bonnie stood by the fact that it would take them a few days before they would reach a town where they could part, even if they were to cross the border into Abathal or Merun; never mind that going across the border would be dangerous in the extreme for Elspeth and no one would agree to travel with her back into Kerry. Elspeth wondered how much the real Gwenonwyn knew about how the rest of their world felt about her family.
Elspeth debated about telling Bonnie that Finlay and Lonán would be joining up with them soon. She knew that Radha had promised to send them her way, but they'd had to flee from the bears and had done so on horse-back, while the two men were on foot. Really, she wasn't sure they'd meet up until the next day, and even then it could be a while, since they'd still be on horse.
Deciding she didn't want to get Bonnie's hopes up about parting all the sooner – anyway, she liked travelling with the other – Elspeth kept quiet about the two men and they got ready for bed in peace. Keeping in mind what Finlay and Lonán had done in her book, Elspeth suggested they set a watch and offered to take the first half. Grateful, Bonnie fell right to sleep and Elspeth found herself alone in the quietly chirping forest.
Elspeth hugged herself and settled down on the ground next to their horse, who'd started to doze. Earlier, she'd inquired about the horse's name and Bonnie had introduced him as Dusty, because of his grey-speckled coat. Dusty was a reasonable horse, all things considered, but Elspeth was still unsure of him since she didn't know how to ride. Panicked escapes from bears were one thing, riding off to the nearest town was another thing entirely.
She had also found out, earlier, that Bonnie had wisely stolen a money pouch from Gwenonwyn's room before stealing away with the Lady. The two had debated for a bit over what to do with the money when they split – Elspeth wanted Bonnie to take some of it, but Bonnie was firm in her belief that all of it belonged to Elspeth – but Bonnie ended the argument by saying that she would likely flee to Abathal, since Zeptel was no longer a safe option, Kerry even less so, and they used a different coin there. Elspeth did insist that Bonnie use some of the money in the nearest town that they were headed for to buy provisions, and wondered about exchanging coinage, like one could do in Elspeth's home world. Bonnie insisted that they couldn't change money over – Lord Kerry frowned on such things and wouldn't allow it, didn't Gwenonwyn know that? – but if Elspeth was willing to part with it, Bonnie could take her gown and sell it for a fair penny in Abathal. Not caring for the gown – it was heavy and a little out of place this far from the capital, Elspeth had readily agreed and had traded the glorious gown for a simple peasant's dress and undergarments that Bonnie had an extra set of which luckily fit. The gown had been packed away and the problem of money had been solved.
Elspeth quite enjoyed her new clothing. While the gown had been very pretty – purple was her favourite colour, after all – it also brought her down rather a bit. And it was a dress, which she'd only ever worn for fancy things that her grandparents would, mockingly, invite her mother and she to every year or so. Dresses had few good memories.
Not that the peasant clothing wasn't a dress, but it, at least, wasn't quite so likely to trip her. The skirt was much shorter, being not much further than her knees, and there were already rips in it, since Bonnie had said she'd bought them at least second-hand. Bonnie had cringed when saying that the offered clothing had been bought used, but Elspeth hadn't cared, though the real Gwenonwyn probably would have. Even better, the second-hand clothing had come with some dull, broken-in sandals that were a little too big for Gwenonwyn's dainty Lady's feet – which Elspeth was not looking forward to breaking in, herself, since they'd really hurt in the process – but Elspeth could handle too-big shoes, and they were better for walking than the high-heeled boots she'd been wearing which were required for Lord Kerry's court.
Elspeth sighed to herself and shook her head, wondering how long she'd been sitting there, thinking. She desperately wished for a watch of some form, but she didn't think they existed yet in this world. She was also aware that, assuming Radha had spoken true and the two men were still headed their way, they wouldn't be there that night. They'd hopefully meet up some time during the next day, but Elspeth wasn't certain. With her luck, they wouldn't be meeting up until they got to whatever the closest town was, and wouldn't that be a pain.
Elspeth finally told herself that there was no thinking about what might bes, since tomorrow would come tomorrow and what would happen would happen. As her mother often said, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. So Elspeth leaned hear head back against Dusty's coat and counted stars, wondering which ones were the same in her own world, if any.
Elspeth was dreaming. She seemed to be doing that, lately. She really hoped she wasn't going to be meeting with a god this time, they seemed kinda annoying. And demanding. And rather likely to kill you if you said 'no'. Or much of anything at all.
She glanced down and wondered at the ground. It was very black and non-existent. She was sure she'd read about someone standing on nothing before. Possibly a few times. How clichéd.
"Hey, when there's nothing below you, can you still feel it?" she wondered out loud. Then she knelt down and put her hand on... nothing. There was clearly something holding her up, because she didn't feel like she was floating, but she couldn't feel anything beneath her hand. How odd. She decided to do a handstand, just to see if she could.
"What, do you think you're doing?" a voice snapped in an uppity tone.
Elspeth fell flat on her face and shot a glare up at the girl who'd interrupted her, only to find herself looking at... herself?
Elspeth stood slowly, dusting herself off. "Uhm, who are you?"
"I, little peasant, am Lady Gwenonwyn Keeva Lasair Kerry, the daughter of Lord Cathaír Kerry, ruler of the Country of Kerry," the other said pompously.
Elspeth blinked a few times, then commented, "You're worse than my grandfather, and that's saying a lot, 'cause he's a right asshole. Kinda sad, seeing a woman with two assholes, one in her butt and the other on her arm. You're much the same, aren't you? Your poor, poor father. No wonder he's such easy prey for Hywel."
Gwenonwyn just gaped, amazed at the audacity of this girl who stole her body.
Elspeth snickered. "You look like an idiot."
Gwenonwyn's mouth snapped shut.
"Didn't Radha say she was going to put you in stasis until I was through having to use your body to do her dirty work? Why am I dreaming about you?" Elspeth asked when it looked like Gwenonwyn wasn't going to say anything after all.
"The Great Goddess Radha? She gave you my body? Why? And what's 'stasis'?" Gwenonwyn questioned eagerly, seemingly completely different at the mention of the god she prayed to.
Elspeth cocked an eyebrow at her double. "Yeah. Great. Sure. Yeah, she wants me to stop your dad from taking over the word and also keep this guy from trying to kill your dad and most likely getting killed himself in the process. Then I can go back to my world." Elspeth shrugged at the incredulous look on the other's face. "And stasis is stasis. It's kinda like freezing your mind so you don't interfere, I guess. Something like that. Sci-fi term."
"You, are from a different world," Gwenonwyn said dryly. "What a load of nonsense. Kerry is the only world out there. Why the Goddess would have chosen such a fool child to take over my body and supposedly save my father from some fool boy child that wouldn't be able to touch him anyway I'll never understand."
"You really are a stuck-up bitch, aren't you?" Elspeth asked, rather impressed.
"Excuse me? Who are you to use such language around me?"
Elspeth laughed. "This is rich! I'm beginning to see what Radha meant about you not being anything like the person I wanted to write. In fact, now that I've met you, I think I'll quite enjoy ruining everyone's image of you. I'll go out and help some poor people and kill some of your dad's soldiers and spread horrible rumours about you and–"
"Don't you dare do any of those things, you wretch!"
"Or what," Elspeth spat back, a nasty look on her face. "You'll stamp your foot and cry for Daddy?"
"I-I'll send out Father's soldiers to find you and have you brought back to be killed in the Grand Square!" Gwenonwyn insisted.
Elspeth started laughing to hard she could hardly breathe.
And then, she was shaken awake.
"My Lady," Bonnie hissed, shaking her. "My Lady, there are voices!"
Elspeth jerked up, awake. "What voices?" she hissed back. Then, as an afterthought, added, "And stop calling me that."
"Shhhh..." Bonnie cautioned.
Elspeth quieted her breathing, then she heard them:
"Why do we have to keep going?" one voice whined.
"Because I said so. Be quiet already, Finlay! You're going to attract something!" the second voice hissed, sounding irritated.
Elspeth smiled to herself and stood, bow in hand. "Like us?" she asked calmly, and had to blink when Bonnie somehow uncovered the fire.
Finlay and Lonán stood there, just as Elspeth had imagined them to be when she'd written them in her book. Finlay wore his ridiculous hat and beat-up armour and had the look that Elspeth had only ever seen on ditzes plastered on his face. Lonán was dark and quiet with almost-new armour and a stylish hat.
Lonán had notched an arrow without even seeming to realized it, for he lowered it when he'd blinked the sudden light out of his eyes and seen that they were only facing two women, who had their weapons out, but not at the ready. Finlay had simply gone pale and frozen in place at the chance that they might be attacked.
Bonnie grinned at Elspeth and motioned to their fire. "Why don't you settle at our fire for a moment, gentlemen? Tell us where you've been and where you're headed. We promise not to bite."
"We don't have time," Finlay said, finding his tongue. "We're making our way to the capital to ki–"
Lonán smiled, hand over Finlay's mouth. "We got lost a few days ago and are trying to make up for it," he explained. "But he's right, we're on a schedule and really must be going."
"Ah," said Elspeth on a whim, "so you've come from across the border? How odd to see fellows from Abathal gone to see Lord Kerry without a horse between them."
"It is odd," Bonnie agreed, frowning.
"Not from across the border, no," Lonán replied, frowning. "Why do you say that?"
"Because, the only people out this far would be someone from across the border," Bonnie explained. "We're about two days ride west of E'Fal. Although, now that I think of it, most fellows from Abathal travel first to Alane on the western side of Kerry, it being only across the mountains and north from their capital."
"You said we were going the right way!" Finlay hissed, pulling away from his friend. "You said that ridiculous Radha you worship was leading you true!"
"It's unwise to speak poorly of the Gods," Bonnie cautioned sharply, "lest they show you their fury until you die, as short a time that might be."
Elspeth smiled at Lonán, who looked saddened by his failing. "Perhaps Goddess Radha was leading you to us. I was accompanying my sister here to the border so that she might pass to find her husband, but I must travel instead to the capital. My sister is wary of my travelling the whole way alone and we'd been praying to Goddess Radha to send us aid. And she has delivered so well."
"Praised be," Lonán murmured, and was echoed by Bonnie and Elspeth. Finlay still looked upset with the turn of things.
Bonnie turned to Elspeth with an amused glint in her eyes. "This is a blessing, sister. Now we may part in the morning to find our fortunes apart."
"Indeed, my sister," Elspeth agreed, inwardly gagging at all the praising to the god who'd gotten her into this mess to begin with. "But for now, my friends, we should rest, for tomorrow will come painfully quick if we do not take our rest soon and well."
The other three agreed with Elspeth and set about getting the two men unpacked and ready to sleep. Since she'd slept already, Bonnie said she'd finish with her watch and Elspeth decided to stay up with her for a bit longer. Once the two men had fallen asleep, Bonnie turned to Elspeth and said, "Are you sure about those two? I don't think they're very trustworthy, my– Gwenonwyn. I mean, what business do they have at the capital, anyway?"
Elspeth cocked her head and glanced up, as if listening to something from above speaking to her, then smiled and nodded. "These are the two I'm meant to go with."
Bonnie still looked uncertain. "If you say so."
"I do. Don't worry about it, Bonnie. I'll be fine. And if they try something, I'll punch them in the nose," Elspeth assured her.
Bonnie grinned. "Well, at least you'll have time to run while they're still reeling from the shock of getting hit so well by a girl." They both shared a laugh. "Go to sleep, Gwenonwyn. And may your dreams be quiet."
"Good night, then," Elspeth replied, then crawled over to her bed roll and curled up.
She had no more dreams that night.
One |||
Summary & Character Info
Incomplete
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no subject
Date: 8/11/08 14:40 (UTC)I am trying my best to not make her sound like a Mary-Sue. The original concept didn't have any gods, but then I realized that a world this backwater would require some sort of belief in higher powers, and what better way to introduce her to those 'higher powers' then have them be the reason she's there. ^.^"
Lonán, at this point, is more riding on the fact that they were destined to meet because his Goddess wanted them to. He kinda figured that they'll travel together as far as the capital, then leave her at the gate. Next chapter, she proves herself a bit more interesting and certainly more useful to their cause. (And, yeah, she distracts Finlay really well, 'cause Finlay's an idiot. *cackles madly*)
I never mind your long comments, dear. They always make me think just that little more about what I'm writing. (And give me an idea about things that I should put in the story... ^.^")
^.~
no subject
Date: 9/11/08 18:13 (UTC)I feel you'll have more trouble getting some depth into Finlay's character. Next chapter, maybe :-) We haven't seen much of our heroic duo yet.
best wishes,
cloe
no subject
Date: 10/11/08 02:08 (UTC)Finlay, alas, isn't much of an 'in-depth' sort of character. But you find out how much of an idiot he is next chapter. (Elspeth is forced to watch him. XD)