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Vale of the White Horse
Topic Started: 5 Jan 2010, 13:03 (19,278 Views)
Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Very well.' Gwyddien looked back at Elgued. 'Elgued will go to the Vale and others will be stationed on the border of Silures territory, as he suggested. Is there anything you have picked up that might be of help, share it with us.'
Gwenllian stared off into the distance. There was nothing she could tell these men, unless they were interested in how many times a day he could bring himself to humiliate and abuse women. The days in his tent were such a blur or fear and anxiety that she could hardly remember anything had she wanted to.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He looked at Gwenllian, but she said nothing. ‘Just one thing. He likes torture. Do not fall into his traps. If one of our men do, it is better that he find a way to kill himself first.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
She wrapped her arms around herself. No matter how safe the presence of all these armed men made her feel, she really wished it was just her and Rhywallon again. Not that she knew what she could say to him, but she'd grown so accustomed to being silent together it had become something of a reassurance whenever she was afraid. Gwyddien looked grave as he got up.
'I see,' he said. Gwenllian thought he liked saying that. 'You must rest now. We'll discuss further in the morrow.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
'Right.' He managed a stiff nod.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
When Gwyddien retreated, the other men dispersed as well. Elgued lingered a little longer, but then he too strode away, leaving them alone. She played with the bowl she still had in her hands, the contents only half-eaten. Then she put it down and shifted until she was sitting as close to Rhywallon as she dared, their legs touching. Some of the tension that had built up for weeks was starting to leave her body. There was still a sickening feeling in the pit of her stomach, but the knot was loosening. Perhaps it was best to discuss what she feared most as soon as she could, but she couldn't really find the words.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He looked down on her for a while. The brave girl he had come to discover during their stay at Caer March seemed to have slipped away, leaving nothing but the frightened rabbit in place. ‘When are you going to say it?’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
She opened her mouth, but closed it again and frowned. There was something in his voice that made her think. Of course she had every reason to be scared, but she'd been abused by Higueid for four months and she'd lived through that too, hadn't she? Gwenllian opened her mouth again to apologize, but then decided it was probably the last thing he wanted to hear. 'The moon hasn't come upon me yet.' There, it was out in the open now.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He felt his jaw tighten. Well, of course she was frightened of that. He’d had a hunch, yet hoped that her closing off had only to do with the abuse. Rhywallon took a stick and poked the fire. It hissed back at him. ‘I see. How long?’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Five days now,' she said. 'I've been late before, but...'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
But this was different. She didn’t have to tell him. ‘Can it be – of me?’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'It could be,' she said hesitantly. It was a possibility she hadn't really thought of yet. Oh, if she was pregnant, she hoped to the gods it'd be Rhywallon's child. There was no way to know for sure, however. 'If it isn't, I -' she couldn't go on and shook her head. 'I don't know what to do.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He forced his lips to be unmoving. If it was not his, he knew what he wanted to do, alright. But telling her that would probably throw her off balance even more.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'I should have told you before, I'm sorry.' If only there was a way to stop her from being pregnant...
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘You’re in shock.’ He got. ‘I don’t blame you.’ Not for not telling before…and not for being pregnant. Maybe. With the feeling of a stone in his chest, he moved to one of the men close to the next fire. ‘Lend me one of your blankets.’
‘…Why? It’s cold.’
‘Because I say so.’ He held out his hand. The man stared up to his face for a little. Rhywallon had no idea what he must see: a grim mast, set so tightly that it appeared he would actually throttle a man over a small dispute. He wouldn’t; whatever was on his face was fear. Still, he got his blanket, and returning to Gwenllian, he wrapped it around her shoulders.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
For a moment, she thought he didn't want to be with her anymore, but when he returned and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders, she knew she'd been thinking ridiculous things. It wasn't her fault that Sulpicius had done those things to her, and though she still felt foul there was no reason to think Rhywallon was going to abandon her because of it. Her eyes threatened to spill over, but she bit the tears back. She was sick of crying. 'Thank you,' she said, pulling the blanket tightly around her. 'Please put your arms around me?'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He did so, without saying anything. She felt warm and alive against him, but the way that she shivered made him think that she would probably never forget what had happened. ‘It was…too much for you. Your husband. Now this.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'If it was too much, I don't think I'd be sitting here,' she said slowly. With his arms around her, a fire crackling in front of them, in the middle of a camp full of armed men, it was easier to relax. Though she still could not see how she could ever go back to her old life, it was a little less difficult to think of the present without feeling as though someone was sitting on her breast, choking her. Gwenllian lay her head against his chest. 'You saved me, both times.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘Make that one time, Gwenllian. The second time to blame is all on me.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Stop that, I can't bear it when you say such things. You got me out of there, so you saved me.' Her mouth twitched, but the smile didn't break through. 'Let's not talk about it again.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He let out a reluctant sigh. ‘Fine. We’ll not speak of this again.’
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
What would they do now? Stay here until everything was sorted out? Gwenllian couldn't imagine that it would get sorted any time soon. The Romans were too inventive, too experienced in taking over other lands. After listening to Rhywallon's heart beat for a while, she spoke up. 'Do you think there's something I could do to make myself useful here?'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
'Hm.' He lifted his hand, stroking through her hair. 'There are always things to do in places like these...But would in what way?'
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'Anything would do, really. I just don't want to stay here without doing anything to earn my keep, but I wouldn't want to get in the way, either.'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
He smiled. 'Welcome to a men's world, Gwenllian. We're used to doing our own mending and cooking, but I'm sure the structure of the camp could be better managed under a woman's hand.'
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Managed, even. Well, if these men were all right with that, she'd welcome the distraction it would provide her with. It'd probably take some time to get used to, but it might be a better life than she'd known so far - not counting the months she'd spent at Caer March. She wondered how Briallen was doing, and whether or not she'd found a cure for Tudwrig's curse yet. 'All right. Is this a permanent camp, or does it change locations a lot?' She thought the latter, based on what she knew of these men and their activities.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
'We have the tendency to move around,' he replied, still smiling. 'But Gwyddien keeps a post stationed here, so we know where to return to. Didn't you wonder how I knew where to find the camp?'
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
'A bit, but I thought you may have worked some sort of system to let each other know where the camp was at.' And she'd had other things on her mind. Still had them, though it was easier not to think about those now. Her belly was full and it was a good feeling that she could lean against Rhywallon without her body tensing like it had done before. 'How did you end up with these men?'
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘After all that happened, leaving my home, roamed around a bit…After some wandering, I met Gwyddien. Decided to stick.’ He closed his eyes. Gwyddien had taken him with open arms. He had never tried to ease the bitterness after he’d learned what had happened to him. Perhaps because he had seen that an angry young man was an asset to his team. Or maybe because he had known that nothing would easily heal the wounds he had suffered from loss. In any case, the man had offered him a place to stay, a goal to live for and brotherhood – such as it was.
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Sonja
Red & dangerous! Rawr!
Gwenllian nodded, her cheek brushing against his tunic. It was a nice feeling, very commonplace, and for some reason made her think of her life before she married Higueid. She wished she could sit like this for a long time to come; she'd even sacrifice her sleep for it. 'It doesn't seem like a half-bad life,' she said. At least they were free to do what they wanted. She thought she could get used to it.
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Marieke
Lief! <3 (and powerful!)
‘It’s dangerous,’ he muttered. ‘Especially with figures such as Sulpicius and Rufus.’ He raised a hand to stroke her hair. ‘Other than that, I’m sure it is preferable to the life you’ve had before.’
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