A Dinner To Remember

Eomer was not big on finery or table settings but Lindariel was...with Brianne and her mother’s help. The large table glittered with the silver, flatware, a white, bone china and polished glass and pewter. Large blue vases held white lilies and carnations and the tablecloth was a stark, pressed white. Eomer was in uniform along with The Commander, Eagan and Theodred. Lindariel wore a brocaded dress of crimson and gold while Brianne’s mother wore a light violet dress, heavily laden with lace and embroidery. Brianne wore a pale green dress, cut lower than she normally wore, barely showing a crease of bosom. Normally she wore dresses cut high near the neck but today her dress was obviously designed to entice Theodred though she hardly approved of the cut herself. Her hair was down with a dark, green ribbon in her hair. Her golden locks shined like the sun when the light hit her just right and a simple gold pendant hung down to draw attention to her ample chest.

Eomer and his family stood in a line to receive their visitors. The Commander and his wife were first. He bowed while she curtsied regally then moved down the line repeating the process to everyone. The Commander shook Theodred’s hand vigorously and Theodred nodded a bow in respect though he really wanted to roll his eyes in consternation to this whole thing. Brianne was stunning and even he felt his tongue go dry when he saw her. Her pale neck and bosom was in contrast to the fringes of her dress and it was difficult to avert his eyes. She curtsied to the King and Queen then when she moved in front of Theodred she curtsied low to him, giving him a full view of what she had...until now, always kept hidden. When she straightened her cheeks were a bit flush, obviously she had been coached to do this and was sufficiently embarrassed but her cheeks colored more when Theodred’s cheeks colored. Both understanding now that he had seen and liked what she knew he would.

“You are...very beautiful tonight Brianne,” he said respectfully, almost stiffly. That was for his mother’s benefit and not because he wanted to say anything of the kind. “You are to kind to say so, my lord Theodred,” she said in a breathy voice. And damn if the hairs on the back of Theodred’s neck didn’t stand on end when he heard how she said his name. This was NOT going to be easy he thought. He had never seen Elisa in a dress like this but knew she’d be just as beautiful if not more given the chance. Narisa and Brianne curtsied to each other and then Eagan passed down the line. Theodred shook his hand and then he was before Narisa.

Narisa’s ankle was throbbing, but she hadn’t had time to rest it before dinner. She had been quickly led to the bathtub by her servant who then made sure she was thoroughly scrubbed and clean. She was hurriedly put into her dark blue gown and her hair was arranged half back. She wore an elegant gold necklace, which hung no lower than her collarbone and small, gold drop earrings and a bracelet which had dark blue gems. She would much rather have been in her riding clothes, but there was no getting out of this dinner. She tried not to think about the fact that Eagan would be there. Perhaps they wouldn’t be sat next to one another...although that was highly unlikely.

She stood in line with her parents and older brother as the commander and his family walked in. She couldn’t help but think Eagan quite handsome in his attire, although she tried to look indifferent. She was with Thane now...not Eagan.

Eagon bowed low to Narisa. “Your dress is very beautiful Narisa, may I escort you to your seat?” he asked politely then held up his forearm and moved smoothly up to her. The thorny look she gave him right then made him want to cringe back. He remembered her hitting him in the nose and was tempted to jerk back. Both Eomer and Lindariel had shifted their gazes now toward her, they were just to her left, as Theodred escorted Brianne away to the table.

Narisa's gaze narrowed as she looked at Eagan. She hesitated to accept his offer, but felt her parents watching her. She knew it would be incredibly rude to not accept and so she finally nodded and took his arm. She remained quiet as he walked her to her seat. She winces little as she walked because her ankle still hurt.

“You are very beautiful in that dress,” Eagan whispered. “I’m not saying that just to be polite. I really mean it,” he added as he pulled out her chair for her. In this more informal setting the women were seated when they arrived at their chairs. The men seated themselves then the servants began with the wine. Poured short for Narisa and Eagan, it was a dark, red wine to go with the beef, barley soup. It was quite obvious to the younger folk that intentionally there were...gaps between the table settings. The four parents were practically on one half of the table, the King and queen side by side at the head, the commander on his left, his wife on their right, across from the commander. Theodred was also on the left but nearer to the other end of the long table with Brianne to his right. Eagan was across from Theodred with Narisa to his left.

“Theodred noticed that Brianne didn’t begin eating until he did. “Brianne, do you prefer the white city to Edoras?” he asked at the same time Eagan reached to catch Narisa’s napkin before it fell on the floor. She snatched it back with a scowl for him. “Would you prefer we didn’t speak? Or does Thane have license over your tongue as well?” he said almost petulantly.

Brianne’s embarrassment from earlier had faded, but she was still somewhat nervous, despite the fact that she knew Theodred. This, however, was not an ordinary dinner. She knew that there were hopes for a marriage between herself and Theodred, which she hoped for as well. She had always liked the prince, but now that they were older she found she could barely take her eyes off of him. He was incredibly handsome and rather charming and she could easily picture herself at his side. She had not heard of any competition so she hoped that a courtship might follow the dinner.

“I do love the White City,” Brianne admitted after she sat down, “but I will always prefer Edoras. I love the people here. They are hardworking, good people.”

Narisa allowed Eagan to escort her to her seat and pull out her chair for her. She sat down and then took her napkin to put in her lap, but it slipped and started to fall to the floor. She went to grab it, but Eagan grabbed it first. She snatched it from him and put it in her lap.

“I can’t imagine what we would have to talk about,” she responded with a harshness to her voice before taking a sip of her wine.

Eagon thought a moment while he gave her a sidelong glance. He was hardly ever nervous. Like Narisa he took things in stride...most of the time. “Well, how about you accepting my apologies for starters?” he said as he took a sip of the soup. It was good and he took another. “You always seem to take what I say the wrong way or at least, not how I meant it and no matter what I do or say, you seem to stay angry. If we,” he paused to glance at Theodred and Brianne but they were not paying any attention to them. “Can’t be...more...then can we at least be friends again? I’ve...missed you Narisa. I don’t want us to be at odd anymore,” he said softly then winced when he tried the wine.

Theodred tried the soup but his stomach wasn’t playing fair with him right then. He tried the wine and that seemed to go down much more easily. He also knew...well, suspected, that Brianne was lying. Someone...most likely her mother, coached her into saying that. Brianne was made for the fineries of Minas Tirith. He couldn’t see her here...not really. “Well, now that Rohan is expanding, we are planning on manning outposts. The men that live at these outposts will be bringing their families with them and actually living there,” he explained. He wanted to see her reaction at that. Such a life would not be easy and he was only partly truthful about the outposts anyway.

Narisa sighed and put down her wine glass. She glanced over at Eagan slightly and was quiet for a long while before finally speaking.

“Fine...I forgive you. We’re friends again.”

Brianne delicately ate a few spoonfuls of soup as she listened to Theodred. She did not bend over her bowl at all. She sat with her back tall and straight and brought the spoon up to her mouth without spilling a single drop. She did not slurp and took only as much soup as she knew she would be able to elegantly put into her mouth. Theodred might notice, however, that she paused when he mentioned the outposts. She seemed to be thinking about what he had just said.

“Well, that sounds quite exciting,” she replied as she put down her spoon and lightly dabbed her napkin against the corners of her mouth. “Will you be at one of these outposts?”

Eagan gave her a wry quirk of a smile. “Oh that was convincing,” he said sarcastically. “You set me down then try to placate me until this dinner is over. I see how you are now. Maybe I am better off not being your friend,” he said though he couldn’t keep the hurt from his voice. He turned back to his soup.

Theodred sighed, he didn’t like playing this game and something about her intrigued him and her scent was making his head spin. “Time moves us without pity or mercy,” he whispered. It was a quote from one of his favorite books, ‘Time Without End’. A fantastical tale about a man who lived three lifetimes. Originally thought to be the life of a Dunedain lord. For the moment all thought of Elisa spilled from his thoughts and he turned his gaze to face her and took up his glass of wine.

“I was exaggerating to get a reaction out of you. For the rest of this dinner...could we try and...just talk about what is in our own hearts? Not just what our parents expect us to say? I remember you as a girl who could never have any fun. I never liked you when we were children. You were so stiff and you always hated to get dirty or join us if we we were doing even had a chance of getting dirt on your dress. Even that dress, it is very beautiful but it doesn’t really seem like you. I’m more than my political status or what I look like and I feel you consider me as half of the contribution as to what our children might look like. Do you understand?” He said. He hoped she did, it wasn’t his wish to hurt her feelings but it was his he spoke of now. He was alot more than what he felt she and her mother considered.

Narisa wasn’t sure what to say. She sat there quietly for a long time before remembering something from long ago.

“Do you remember when we put that fake snake on your mother’s seat at dinner one night? She screamed so loud and nearly knocked the table over when she jumped up.” She smiled a little as she thought about it. They had been quite the troublemakers when they were younger.

Brianne was rather surprised by Theodred’s sudden statement. She looked over at him slightly as he spoke about them as children and blushed a little when he mentioned her dress. She picked up her glass of wine and took a small sip as she considered what he had said.

“Yes, I understand,” she replied honestly. “The dress was my mother’s doing. She...she hoped you would like it (or rather what it showed off).”

“And what about you? Do you think it...distasteful? What if I wanted to see more of you? What if I agreed to court you if I could see more, would you agree to that to? What if...and his eyes flickered to her wine glass. ‘What if I asked you, right now, to spill your wine in your lap. Or to throw your piece of bread at your mother, would you do that if I really wanted you to? I know all of this is improper but, what is improper is what each of us decided it is,” he said sincerely and took a sip of his wine. He spoke in soft tones and his sister seemed preoccupied with Eagan at the moment so he continued.

“I m a man of passions Brianne. Life is fluid, I choose to follow the next moment to where it leads, I would expect my mate to do the same. I want a companion, not just a wife who cook and cleans and tends the children. Someone who would lay bare her desires to me and expect me to care to what those were. I’m not saying that proprietary doesn’t have it’s place. It does, but, what if I wanted to kiss you or…’touch’ what you so elegantly display for me, would you feel insulted? Or complemented by such desires?” he asked hesitantly making sure his sister and Eagan weren’t listening.

Eagan smiled almost slyly remembering that. It was Narisa’s idea but they both were paddled for it. He rolled his lip to stop himself from actually chuckling and then he was into it. “She jumped up so fast she toppled the table,” he said snorting his soup. Both their fathers were so angry. “Boy did you squeal when your mother paddled you...some to think of it...I think I did to when my father did me,” he said with an embarrassed cringe. “What about when we put itch oak on Lord Justin’s saddle?” Lord Justin was an older man who hated kids. He was always grumpy in his retirement and they always found ways to torment the poor man.The man itched so badly he practically had to run home to wash it out. They never saw him move so fast.

Brianne seemed rather unsure. She had never done anything improper in her entire life. She had been raised with the intention of being married to a Lord or Prince. What Theodred was asking her went against everything she had ever known. He would see the conflict in her eyes and his words made her blush. What he was saying scared her...and yet at the same time she wanted him to like her...wanted him to think of her as a suitable wife.

“I don’t really know what to say Theodred,” she said honestly. She was quiet a moment before turning to face him. She looked into his eyes. “Ever since we were children I’ve always liked you. I find you brave and spirited and I know you to have a good heart. I wanted nothing more than your attention...but you always seemed to favor Elisa. I was jealous of her...of your attentions toward her. I wanted to try and be more like her, but in my heart I truly believed that when we grew older that you would prefer someone more like me. I cannot say what I would or would not do if you were to court me...but I feel you should give me a chance to show you how happy I can make you...because I truly believe I can.”

Narisa had just taken another sip of her wine when Eagan brought up the time they had put itch oak on Lord Justin’s saddle. She snorted as she remembered and nearly spit out the mouthful of wine she had as she began to laugh.

“Or how about the time we decided to scare one of the servants by jumping out of a closet as she walked by. She had a tray full of glassware and dropped it on the floor. She then got so angry so tried to chase us through the hallways.”

Theodred sighed, this wasn’t going well at all. Or was it? If they didn’t get on then he could bring Elisa into the picture and he was certain his father would take whatever he could get then. He nodded in agreement to some of what she said. He held out his hand for her to take.

“Elisa…” It was difficult to talk about Elisa to her but he continued on. “ Elisa cared about what I liked, what I wanted. She told me her dreams and what inspired her. She was my friend...is my friend,” he corrected. “You never asked me anything or told me anything except what we should or shouldn’t do. Do you even know me? How could you make me happy if you don’t even know me? I realize that how things used to be...we would step out, talk, get to know one another. You think being a good wife is a duty or a responsibility. What about just being there for someone because they were sad or depressed? Remember when I broke my leg? Your mother called me foolish and wouldn’t let you come to see me. Elisa did...every day and she worked hard with her father besides everyday. If I cared for you Brianne. No one could tell me not to come see you if you were hurt. No one. And even when you were sick for those three months I did come to read to you sometimes. Not because we were good friends but because I wanted you to feel better,” he explained under the two gigglers across the table. He could tell Brianne did not much like what he was saying so he modified his tone.

“It is obvious...we are attracted to one another. I mean...I am to you, you are a very beautiful woman. But I won’t marry a woman I do not know and love Brianne, don’t you want to marry a man that you feel in your heart you can’t live without?” He asked.

Eagan began to open up to Narisa. They had a great deal of history together. The poor servants, their pranks they played on them were still talked about today. The second course was set before them, steamed carrots and turnips and glazed pork. It tasted incredible and both he and Narisa talked lively as they ate and they were permitted another half glass of wine. He noticed that Theodred and his sister were in a much more deep discussion...at least it seemed so by their hushed tones, intense expressions and he never saw his sister eat haphazardly before. They held hand...at least he thought they did, she cut her meat with her fork as if eating at all wa an annoyance that took her away form the conversation.

Brianne wanted to look away from him when he spoke about Elisa, but she didn’t. She forced herself to continue to look into his eyes. As he spoke about Elisa she couldn’t help but notice a change in his eyes that betrayed some potentially deeper feelings for her. That thought upset her greatly, but she knew that his father would never allow him to marry a blacksmith’s daughter. She knew then that she would need to work hard to put herself ahead of Elisa in his affections and that would mean acting a little more like her.

As the dinner continued on, Brianne and Theodred continued to speak. She began to open up more to him, although it was clearly difficult with her parents being so close by. She confessed to him that when she was younger she had dreamt of becoming an actress and singer and traveling the world performing, but her parents had quickly ended that dream. As she spoke she reached under the table and gently took his hand into her own.

Despite Narisa’s concerns about dinner, she ended up having a wonderful time with Eagan, talking about the past. She completely forgot her anger towards him and the pair laughed and smiled. She hadn’t laughed like that in such a long time. As she looked over at him, their faces flush from laughter she felt a flood of old emotions come over her...mixed with new desires. Perhaps they could...no...she was with Thane. She cared about Thane, didn’t she?

Finally dessert came but when Narisa looked across the table, Theodred and Brianne were gone. Lindariel and her mother watched them go with more than a little hopefulness. It was a vanilla pudding with whipped cream and berries. As Narisa dug into hers she felt something hit her in the side of the face. It was a blueberry covered in cream. Eagan had flipped it at her with his spoon! Though he did a very good job of playing it off as if he had nothing at all to do with it. There was no one else...it was surely him. The tone of the adults conversation had changed and there was far more mirth and chuckles now.

Theodred allowed Brianne to hold his hand as much as she wanted. Part of him felt he was betraying Elisa but he promised his mother he’d give Brianne a chance and so he was. The crickets were loud in the darkness and dim lantern lights marked the stone path for them. The sky was completely clear save for the stars that peppered the night. The mountains loomed in a light haze in the distance that marked West.

“Well, I for one would like to hear you sing Brianne..would you...here, now?” he asked. He remembered her singing by herself once when they were younger. The song was a sad one, perhaps because she felt so alone then? He felt sorry for that Brianne but this one...this one looked at him, with large, hopeful eyes. “If you want to...I mean,” he added belatedly. He didn’t want this to go back to what ‘he’ wanted and what ‘he’ would like.

Narisa loved sweets. She couldn’t get enough of them. If she had had her way she wouldn’t have eaten dinner at all, but would have skipped straight to dessert. The dish barely hit the table in front of her before she grabbed her spoon and began to dig in. She was so focused on her pudding that she didn’t see what Eagan was doing until a cold blueberry, covered in whipped cream hit the side of her face. She immediately looked over at Eagan, who was trying to look innocent, but she could see the sly smile tugging at the corner of his lips. Without hesitation she scooped up a bit of pudding and whipped cream in her hand and shoved it into his face.

Brianne was glad when Theodred suggested they skip dessert and go for a walk instead. She walked with him from the dining room, fully aware of the eyes that were on them. She felt she could breathe once they were outside and away from everyone’s gaze. It was beautiful, clear evening and she continued to hold Theodred’s hand as they walked. They found a nice place to stop and it was then that he told her he would like to hear her sing. She blushed a little and was about to say no, when she realized that would just be taking a step back. She wanted to give Theodred what he wanted. She hesitated only a moment as she tried to think of what to sing. Finally, she decided on a love song...hoping that wouldn’t be too much. She had a beautiful voice and she looked at him as she sang just for him.

Eagan snorted pudding and it wasn’t long before they were flinging handfuls of pudding at one another. It was her father clearing his throat that stopped them short, each with a hand full of pudding ready to splash on one another. As a small amount began to dribble off her hand, her eyes shifted down to it and slowly it splatted down on the table cloth. Both of them were a mass of globs of the stuff here and there about their persons. On their clothes, their faces and in their hair. As their mothers began to rain down outrage and admonishments Eagan smiled at her and he saw her smile back at him. He knew then that he had his Narisa back though he doubted very much that the world was prepared for them. Their parents certainly weren’t.

Theodred loved the song. She really did have a wonderful voice and the song was about love but also a little sad and emotional as if her heart mimicked that of the woman in the song. He had no idea what he was going to do now. Despite all he actually wanted to know more about Brianne but none of this was at all fair to Elisa. They stood on the gazebo that overlooked one of the Eastern Gardens. He sat on the railing and she stood very close to him in the shadow of the small, rounded roof where the light of the moon could not touch them. She still held his hand and he felt hers grow quite warm in his. It was clear what she wanted him to do yet he wished that she would just do what she wanted instead of it always being him. He asked to excuse them. He had to ferret out that she liked to sing, he had to get her to open up to him and now that she was he found himself wanting her. She was a complete contrast to Elisa and he found that not every one was a bad thing.

“Do you wish me to kiss you Brianne?” he asked softly out of the blue. “I will not...if you want a kiss then you will need to take what you want,” he said and found that saying that left him a little breathless as well. ‘Theodred you are a jack fool!’ he cursed at himself. You shouldn’t have said anything! But it was out now and he knew that if she did, he would not pull away.

Narisa began to shriek and laugh as they began to throw pudding and whipped cream back and forth at one another. For a brief moment she felt like she was 10 years old again and didn’t have a care in the world. She felt happy again...truly happy for the first time in years. She didn’t know how much time had passed, it felt like an hour, but in reality was probably only a few seconds, but she looked up and suddenly saw her father looking hard at them. Glancing around she saw the mess they had made and knew that her father was going to give her quite the talking to tonight. However, she didn’t care. Despite it all she just started laughing again.

Brianne had felt nervous singing for him at first, but by the end of the song she felt completely at ease. She could tell he enjoyed the song and her voice by the look on his face and that alone gave her confidence. At the end of the song there was a few moments of silence between them. She watched him, looking into his eyes. She could feel his hand in her own. It felt warm and strong. She found she desperately wanted him to kiss her and when he said those words she felt her heart might burst from her chest. But then he told her that she would need to kiss him if that was what she wanted. She hesitated a moment, but kept her eyes on his. She slowly moved forward and paused just a second before pressing her lips against his own.

Her lips were fuller than Elisa’s, softer, warmer. Her kiss was chaste, he knew that it would be and he kissed her back in kind. He kept his hands and his body to himself and if he didn’t know better he would have thought that she had hoped for more. But he had a promise to keep to Elisa and when she kissed him again, much more passionately Elisa slipped from his thoughts. He kissed her back and she allowed his hands to touch her more shapely curves...to an extent that is. A silent promise to him of what he could have if he were to commit himself to her. They went back to the lighter, sweeter kisses and he didn’t return her to her family's apartments until very late into the night.

The next day he rose early. He tossed on his riding clothes and brought his horse from the stables. He damaged one of his horses shoes so that he’d have an excuse to speak to her and he dearly needed to talk to her. He rode into the small courtyard and dismounted. Her father came out immediately and wiped his hands as best he could with a small, white cloth that had gone almost black due to all the oil and soot.

“Threw a shoe? Well...uh,” he said awkwardly and he looked back toward the smithy then back out to him. He scratched his head. “Elisa don’t wanna see ya milord...but a’ve no fear, I’ll fix ya right up quick like,” he said and took his horses reins. “Thank you Master Bautry but perhaps I will go in and speak to Elisa...I know she is unhappy with me right now,” he said plainly then wished he had those words back. Her father looked at him oddly but just shrugged and walked his horse away.

Elisa was handling the bellows trying to get the fire hotter for the proper temper they were working on. “Can we talk?” he said as he approached her and took off his riding gloves. It was obvious now that she knew, she looked angry and hurt. She refused to look at him and she moved around him when he got in her way. “Will you…” he tried to say and she stepped around him again. Finally, having enough of this he planted himself and when she tried to move by him he grabbed her arm. She tried to yank it free but his grip clamped down on her like an anvil. “You will speak to me Elisa...now, we have much to discuss, you and I,” he told her in a harsh tone he often took when he had had enough of her attitude. He stepped back further into the smithy where there was more room. Her father peered in then cringed when he saw her expression. He wanted no part of that...whatever it was that had her so angry. He was afraid that her anger would carry over to him so he decided to change all the shoes on his horse...just incase.

Elisa hadn’t slept that night. She spent the entire night tossing and turning and thinking about Theodred and Brianne. In the morning word reached her ears that someone had spotted Theodred and Brianne in quite the intimate embrace the night before. Her heart had shattered into pieces and it had taken every last ounce of strength she had to keep from bursting into tears. She was angry...not just at Theodred, but also at herself. She had listened to her heart instead of her head and because of it she had gotten hurt. She had known this was going to happen...despite Theodred’s promising and reassuring words. When compared to Brianne, she was nothing more than the blacksmith’s daughter.

She had seen him approaching on his horse and had told her father that she didn’t want to see him. She could hear their exchange as she used the bellows to try and get the fire hotter. She heard Theodred come into the room, but she refused to look at him. She was afraid to hear what he had to say...in fact she didn’t want to hear it at all. She tried to ignore him and hoped he would just leave, but he grabbed her arm to stop her and force her to look at him. He would see tears in her eyes.

“What is there to discuss? There’s nothing! There never was! I knew this was going to happen and yet I still allowed myself to fall in love with you. Please, I don’t want to hear whatever it is that you are going to say. Please just spare me that. Brianne is the only choice...she always was. I wish you both happiness...now please just leave.”

Theodred grew angry himself and pushed her back and gave her a dangerous look. “Don’t you take that tone with me! Now you listen to me Elisa Bautry! I did everything I could...for my mother, for my father and even though I know you won’t believe this...for us as well. Yes I did kiss Brianne...or she kissed me rather, but I’m not in love with her,” he said a little too loudly. Luckily her father had began hammering already and had not heard. “So you can just stop acting like there is nothing between us because there is. One evening can’t wash away all those years we have together. You think me ‘that’ shallow?” Not quite the right choice of words but his mind was racing and he was angry because she was angry and also very hurt but her thinking of him like that hurt to and he could not keep that from his face completely. However she just crossed her arms and scowled at him. He narrowed his eyes. “Fine...I will go to my father right now and tell him that I want you and be done with it!” he said in a growl then spun around and took a step away from her. If he did this there would defiantely be no going back from it and he certainly sounded serious. Before he could take two steps though she tripped him from behind and came to sit on his back. “What the!?” He uttered in surprise. “Get off me Elisa!” he barked.

Elisa looked over at him and her eyes narrowed at his words. She was clearly quite hurt and angry and very upset. She wasn't sure what to think or believe at this point. She was too upset to think clearly and didn't quite know what to do. But when Theodred suddenly told her he was just going to go tell his father about them and be done with it she knew that wouldn't be a good idea. As he turned to leave she managed to trip him and she sat down on his back to try and keep him from getting up.

"Theodred if you do that you put myself and my father at risk. If he says no and word gets out about us my father's business could be ruined and Brianne's parents could come after me so don't you do that!"

OOC-Are you having problems with the board on your phone? Ever since yesterday whenever I try to open up a link to the board it won't take me there, and I have ads that pop up. It's only on my phone, but is really frustrating.

Ok I installed a new ad blocker on my phone and that seems to have worked

Ooc which ad blocker did u pick cuz I can't even use my phone to post