The First Farewell

It wasn’t often that the Northman had offered a trade this big but the previous winter had been a harsh one and they needed medicines, pipe weed and all the wool Gehenna could spare. Their offer was gold, alot of it and horses. Several Neithbren too which were some of the most stout and heartiest horses that Middle Earth had ever known. Calaren was packing which a very sulky Narisa, his wife, refused to help with. Conleth had told him that no women would be able to come on this trip due to how the Northerners viewed them. To them women were strictly taboo during trade deals unless the women were the trade but such things were not the way of civilized people. Narisa was so angry she threw her cup at him, her grandfather at supper when he told her and had been nothing but spit and vinegar to Calaren all morning. She tried to push him from their bed when he wouldn’t relent and he had had to get ‘rough’ with her to get her to stop but she had until she woke where it all started up again. For the 10th time she pleaded with him as he strapped on his last saddle bag and he paused to look up at her.

“You know you’re beautiful when you’re angry,” he said with a wide smile and it caught her off guard and caused her to pause...for a moment. “You know why, they won’t deal with us if I bring you but you know I want you to come my love,” he said. Just ahead of them Conleth and Serethiel quietly said their goodbyes. She touched his face affectionately as they spoke in soft tones to one another. Behind them was Baren and Ithilwen who made a show of saying their goodbyes. She had her legs wrapped around him never minding that anyone and everyone could see her calves and kissed him over and over.

Part of his promise, part of why she married him was that they would breed, raise and trade horses together, something she reminded him often of late when she was stuck managing their household. This was just one more thing he’d be doing without her and she had little but cross words for him.

Narisa was frustrated. For the first time since moving to Gehenna there was an opportunity to conduct a deal that involved horses and she could not be apart of it because the deal was with the Northmen. It angered her that the Northmen looked down on women so much and she now wanted to go just to give them a piece of her mind! She would bet 100 gold pieces that she was a better rider and archer than any Northman they would put her up against.

While they had only been married and been in Gehenna for a few short months, she had hoped by now that she would be doing more. She was growing impatient and tired of housework. She needed to be outside in the fresh air otherwise she would soon go mad and bring Calaren with her!

She sighed and shook her head as Calaren strapped on his last saddle bag. "I don't even understand why we are dealing with these Northmen in the first place. They kidnapped my cousin's son. We should have nothing to do with them except kill them until they release Aslan."

Calaren tried to show her how much her efforts meant but if she wasn’t out with him she simply wasn't happy. The problem was that their estate needed alot of work and required alot of her time to get set up. Servants needed to be trained, orders needed to be specified and everything else that went with it. At night however it was just them, together, alone and Calaren could never seem to get enough of her. While she was complaining he paused and was smiling as he looked at her. He imagined her without her clothes on and her hair down. She was straddling him and she looked absolutely beautiful like that.

“I’m going to miss you Narisa...so much,” he said as he straightened. “Come, kiss me goodbye and tell me that you love me,” he asked...and in public.

Narisa was truly unhappy with this entire arrangement and then it didn't help her mood when Calaren told her what to do in front of her family. In pure defiance she kissed his horse on the nose instead and told it that she loved it before starting to walk away. Then, with a sudden change of heart she turned and rushed back into Calaren's arms.

"I love you."

Meanwhile, Laenaya sat with Brandt at their kitchen table. Breakfast sat before them, but neither of them ate. They both knew about the trade and it killed Laenaya to know that her family was dealing with those that had kidnapped her son. Beside her their 7 month old daughter, Auriela, sat in her high chair. Laenaya loved her daughter greatly, but a hole still existed in her heart for Aslan.

Calaren turned in his saddle as he waved back at narisa, a their First Farewell since they had been joined in marriage. He smiled then turned back and slid his leggy red into position along the second wagon in the caravan. Conleth led the procession on his tall, dark brown mare. It was a large, strong looking horse that bobbed its head when it stepped. Beren’s horse was snowy white and much smaller and lither than then the others. Calaren knew though that it would likely be the fastest out of them all and he honestly couldn’t wait to see these Neithbren that he had only heard about. They had a few of them in Edoras but he never got to ride one.

Serethiel stepped back to Narisa and Ithilwen joined them along with several other women who watched their husbands or sons ride out in the early morning sun. Serethiel hugged Narisa and gave her a reassuring smile. “Take heart Narisa, what must be must be,” she said and kissed her cheek. “Come, walk the market with me and tell me how you’ve been getting on,” she said as she walked with her. Ithilwen’s dress was white with a silvery fabric that seemed to make it almost glow in the sunlight. Her long, golden hair looked perfectly arranged and dirt and dust never seemed to touch her. She was elven, a Princess actually but she wiped a tear away anyway. She loved Beren and always when he left it was as if part of her own heart left with him.

Narisa watched as her husband rode away with the others and she felt a twinge in her heart. They had not bee parted since being married and she wasn't sure how easily she was going to be able to sleep without him next to her in their bed. However, she maintained a strong face, though her grandmother could see through her and hugged her. Narisa was grateful for the embrace and she hugged her back and forced back a few tears. She agreed to walk with her grandmother and walked with herself and Ithilwen to the market.

"Things have been well," she told her. "I just...I suppose I'm growing bored and impatient. I know that it will take time for us to obtain our horses, but I don't know how much longer I can be in the house."

“Well, you’re not in there now?” Serethiel said as they turned and entered the square. People hustled by them, men, women and children, all crowded around them. Hawkers cried out their wares and food while sheep ‘Bahhed’ and chickens clucked and scratched nearby. It was a cool morning though there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. A slight breeze blew in at them from the North, a promise of the cold winter that everyone talked about though fall had just begun.

“Are you both...trying for a babe or waiting?” Serethiel asked as they came up onto a stall with all kinds of baskets, Serethiel held one out to Narisa, it was made of a dark brown wicker and had a padded armrest and a shallow bowl. Ithilwen hummed as she perused the fresh plums at the next stall and even just that sounded like silver chimes in Narisa’s ears. Every movement, every motion she made was altogether graceful as if she were performing a dance though she was just walking with them. She held a slight smile on her face but it looked as if her thoughts were elsewhere too.

Narisa accepted the basket her grandmother handed to her and walked along with her an Ilthilwen. She was rather intimidated by the exquisitely beautiful elven princess. She moved like no one she had ever seen before and every movement she made was graceful and elegant. Narisa was distracted, however, when her grandmother suddenly asked her whether she and Calaren were trying for a child.

"No, we're not," she replied with a little blush. She was quiet a moment as she looked at a few of the plums herself before looking back at her grandmother. "May I confess something? To be perfectly honest, I'm not entirely sure I want children...at all."

A flute began to play not far away, a man in a dark tunic vest and white sleeves was playing ‘The Thrushes take flight’ a fairly lively song that seemed to emulate the general mood of the people that milled about here. Serethiel grinned as she plucked a Morning Bloom from a vendor that sold all kinds of flowers. She shifted then deftly set it near Narisa’s left temple into her hair. “Your mother once thought as you do now,” She said with a light-hearted sigh. “It is not always that what you see for yourself ends up happening. You may find that a woman’s heart when tied to a man such as Calaren has a way of changing that image, more oft than not,” Serethiel said while she shifted around ginger root and vanilla stalks and then Ithilwen moved up to them.

“You seek adventure and excitement, I can see it in the way you hold yourself Narisa,” Ithilwen said excitedly. And her eyes nearly glowed with a knowing light. “Calaren is working very hard to impress your grandfather in hopes you will be proud of him for it...He relies heavily on your view of him and he worries that he is failing in making you happy,” She said though her happy expression never changed. Serethiel gave Ithilwen a stern look as she cleared her throat. Ithilwen winked at Narisa as she made a slight bow to Serethiel. “Sorry mother,” she said but also touched Narisa’s arm lightly as if to tell her that what she said was truth.

Narisa smiled as she heard the music suddenly begin to play. She was continuing to following her grandmother and Ithilwen and suddenly her grandmother plucked a flower and tucked it into her hair by her left temple. She looked over at Ithilwen who had suddenly come up beside her and listened as she spoke of Calaren. She was surprised to learn that he felt he was failing to make her happy. Why would he think that? How could she let him think that?

"Calaren could never fail to make me happy. I am at my happiest when he is around me. I actually think just the opposite...that I may fail to continue to make him happy. I am doing my best, but I wonder if he will truly be happy not having a traditional wife."

Serethiel looked at her a moment before raising her eyebrows and looking back toward the stalls nearby her. Pears, honeycombs and potatoes. Ithilwen stayed leaned into Narisa as they walked and was quite interested in Narisa’s way of thinking for she could read her thoughts, in a fashion and it amused her greatly to have a completely different perspective of life from someone new.

“You use that word...traditional, as if it is some badge of dishonor,” Serethiel said as she picked up a sweet potato and and set it and two more into her basket. Her tone was neutral as was her expression as if this was all just idle conversation, which it was for them. “So distasteful to you to make your husband as comfortable as he can be? Do you think a servant will be as attentive as you? Nor have that kind of attention to detail that you might have knowing him so well? My Conleth is always willing to work his hands and body to death for others and asks nothing in return. He’d sleep on a bedroll if he had to and not complain a whit. He works for his family and for me, not because he expects to get something out of it. But because it is simply who he is and honestly, I could never keep up with him like that. Who am I if I do not do the same though? He leads by example and lives to improve himself and the lives of everyone around him and perhaps, I could work along side him but then his home would not be the sanctuary, the place of succor that it is for him. It may be that Calaren’s ideals of a home and hearth are just a place to hang his cloak and so the life you wish to have with him can be realized. You will have to make that choice Narisa, as your mother and I both have,” she said and it was plain what she meant.

Ithilwen smelled a banded stalk of greens then set it into her basket. There was no hint of condemnation in her voice nor her expression either as she spoke. “But you are young and used to things going the way you want. A small part of you enjoyed telling him no when he proposed. It set him down below you, in a fashion. And it is about what makes ‘you’ happy, being close to him now and working alongside him...but do you think that he really ‘needs’ you there? If not, than why would you remain at such a station? Balancing your own happiness and what needs to be done is not easy. Beren has his own...quirks,” she said and winked at her. “And though there are things I do for him that do not please me,” She whispered. “They please him a great deal and I derive pleasure from his. We are...connected in this way,” ithilwen said.

Narisa was always overwhelmed at the variety of fresh produce available at the Gehenna market. It was a sea of colors and scents that made her mouth water. She would watch as her grandmother picked up various pieces and checked them for the correct ripeness by smelling, touching, or tapping them. She had not yet learned these tricks, but she hoped to learn from her this and many other things that she did not know. She began to follow her grandmother’s lead and picked up a sweet potato herself. She wasn’t sure how to cook it, but she felt embarrassed leaving her basket empty. She listened quietly as her grandmother spoke and sighed softly. She wanted to make Calaren happy….to give him the same happiness he had given her. But she wasn’t certain she could be the same kind of wife that her grandmother and Ithilwen were. She knew that as the wife part of her duties were to keep their house, but Calaren knew that she truly wanted to be involved with the horses and had promised her that she would be. However, she could see now that even though they would have a housekeeper and a servant that she would still ultimately be in charge of their estate. She didn’t want to let Calaren down. Disappointing him would break her heart, but he had known the type of woman she was when he married her.

“What connects Calaren and I, beyond just our love for each other, is our love for horses. We understand them almost as much as we understand each other. I think if we had a choice that we would just go out riding each day and do nothing else. I know that as his wife that I am ultimately responsible for our home and I will do what I need to in order to keep it in order, but I will also remain his partner when it comes to our horses. If this means I need to work twice as hard and sleep less so be it. I will be the hardest working woman in Gehenna.”

“Calaren, will surprise you, Narisa,” Ithilwen whispered and could not contain her mirth as if she knew something, something wonderful that she did not. She sauntered away then spun gracefully before she stopped ahead of them to look at several bolts of colored cloths of differing patterns. “I do like your enthusiasm Narisa,” Serethiel said and began to tell her about potatoes and other things that she saw Narisa was watching her about. The hours slipped by quickly and as she set her basket on the table, it was brimming with produce and other things she had wanted. Helen, the older of the two house women curtsied as she entered the kitchen and wasted no time getting started in putting what she had bought away. Estelle was young and quite lovely, with pale skin, red hair and bright green eyes. She smiled up at Narisa while using a hand broom to get the line of dust off of the floor. When she stood she left a bit behind and by the way she lifted the hand broom and moved to the refuse box she did not intend to return and get that last bit.

The days were mostly sunny with some clouds here and there but the rains, thankfully had subsided. Simaril was always anxious to run and indeed seemed to need her company and the wide open spaces that made her brethren who and what they were. In the evenings she was invited to share meals with Serethiel and ithilwen. Sometimes separately and other together with Ithilwen’s children and families and Laenaya and Brandt as well. It was no secret that Laenaya held more than a little hatred toward the Northmen but Conleth wouldn’t change his mind to trade with them. Gehenna made its own decisions in that regard and both the white city and Edoras both would not sway him to do otherwise.

Narisa missed Calaren deeply. She found it impossible to sleep without him in bed beside her and so she spent the quiet evenings setting up their newly built house. It was not nearly as large as her grandparent's manor, but it had what they needed and wanted and that was good enough for her. Narisa put time and effort into figuring out where things should go and always considered what Calaren would want. In fact, she was excited to surprise him with the 'men's lounge' she had created using a small room off of the library. While Narisa always wanted to be included in whatever Calaren did, she knew that there were times he needed to just go off with the other men and smoke pipes and she respected that. She even splurged and purchased some of the finest pipe weed she could get her hands on and had had a pipe hand crafted especially for him that featured horses carved right into the wood.

During the day she visited with her grandmother or Ithilwen when she wasn't out riding. Winter was coming and the air was already growing cooler. It didn't bother Narisa though. She loved the biting feel on her cheeks and the tip of her nose as Simaril cantered across one of the fields...her long, dark hair fluttering behind her like a flag in a stiff breeze. She only wished that Calaren was there with her...egging her into a race with him.

After going out for a ride one afternoon, Narisa went to her grandparent's manor to help prepare dinner. Narisa was glad to have a cook as she wasn't extremely talented in the kitchen, though she did try. She had spent time with her cousin that morning and a question had been plaguing her mind ever since.

"Do you think the Northmen killed Laenaya's son?"

Serethiel did not answer immediately and she didn’t falter from showing Narisa how to properly dress a duck. “See you tie it like this to hold the stuffing inside,” she said as she paused for narisa to try it on hers. She nodded approvingly as Narisa worked, their hands wet and covered in duck fat up to their wrists.

“It would make no sense to, the Northman are...strange about honor. It is more like...It’s more like saving face and gaining respect in their own eyes. They would garner taking the boy as...well, an even trade,” she said. “They were tricked and when they discovered the deception they equalled the score and took him to raise as their own. Conleth would allow no forays to bring him back. He did not agree with the deception in the first place...dishonorable…” she said and turned to look at her granddaughter as if it really drained her sometimes to be with such a man for so long. “Gehenna has enjoyed its own relationships with the peoples around it which means safety for all. But we’ve seen large bands of raiders recently who let us know that they are out there. Our walls have made an impression and the accuracy of our bowman,” she said with more than a little bit of pride to that. She had trained many of them from nearly after birth.

Narisa watched what her grandmother did and copied her as closely as she could. She was relieved when her grandmother nodded approvingly after she had finished. She was actually quite proud of what she had accomplished. It looked just like her grandmother's and she could not wait to cook it and eat it.

As they got the ducks into the oven, she listened to what her grandmother said about the Northmen. It surprised her to then learn that raiders had been seen near the Gehenna borders again. Talk of raiders reminded her of her own encounters with them in Rohan but she was not afraid of them.

"Grandmother, if you need another archer I would be honored to take part in the watches."

Serethiel was surprised to hear Narisa say that. She had begun to think that her granddaughter was a bit selfish with her time and perhaps more than that but her offer made her pause to turn and look at her. Narisa seemed to be truly offering her help and it made her smile. “The watch always need help, if you can spare the time,” she said belatedly.

The duck was put in the oven and Serethiel showed Narisa how to prepare the sweet potatoes. THey sliced them thinly and layered them into a round piece of crockery. She explained that it was important so that the heat got to every piece evenly. Later, when they shared a quiet meal together she learned why that was so important. The duck was delicious and seemed to melt into her mouth. The potatoes...sweet and not too soft to pick up with a fork made a perfect bite.

“My...Conleth,” she corrected. Serethiel still seemed to use her title of affection for him, ‘My Conleth’ instead of just ‘Conleth’. It embarrassed her sometimes with mixed company or with younger people like Narisa. Though she always thought it was silly to feel embarrassed about something like that. “Is not so great the hunter. He can be quiet if he needs to be, quite so but honestly he moves like a wounded bear to my ears,” she said and winked as if she were telling Narisa a secret. “I do most of the hunting and even with my injury I can still hold a bow, just not the same as everyone else,” she said as she wiggled her arm. The pain of that loss was long since gone now though.

“Its times like that that define how close a couple really is,” he said with a smile and took another bite.

While Narisa enjoyed eating with the rest of the famiy, she quite liked having a quiet meal alone with her grandmother. She idolized her and wanted to be like her. She wanted to have her strength...her resilience...her beauty...her grace. She watched the way her grandmother ate and did her best to emulate the way she carefully picked up small bites of food with her fork and brought it up to her mouth without bending over her plate. However, she was never stiff in her movements. It was amazing for her to think that such a graceful woman could also be so deadly with a bow and arrow.

Narisa was quiet for a long moment before speaking gently.

"How have you and Grandfather lived through it all? All the pain and heartache and yet it seems to have only made you both stronger."

Serethiel smiled brightly at Narisa at her question and her eyes sparkled with the knowledge and memories of 500 years. “That day that he saved my life...saved me from myself was the most important day of my life Narisa. And it was ‘him’ not just someone that had to come. You know he was a soldier and scout of Edoras, long ago and she went on to tell her of his tale of the mountains and fighting for months to stay alive in the darkness. And then of her tale and of the Orcs and how she had been torchered. By then they were drinking tea and it was very late and they had retired to the living room near the fireplace.

“And then there was Nauriel...and Beren and Lindariel,” she said and her eyes were actually moist from just remembering how small they were. “Our children were the greatest gift we could ever give one another and also, the greatest give Conleth and i could give to this ailing world. You see Calaren and yourself, you both love horses and he has a true knack for breeding. Bloodlines and horse-matching is not at all easy. What you both come up with will make each horse a soldier rides in Edoras that much more capable and strong. Who will take up for you after you’re gone? Oh Conleth has dabbled in it but not the degree that Calaren is. You see how he looks when he is with them. It’s like he is a different man altogether. I could say the same when he is with you. It is like there is a light that draws him to you, heart and soul,” she said. She wanted to say more that alluded to her giving him such gifts but she was afraid it might draw her too close to thinking she meant children...which she did but would never say outright. Narisa was young yet and wants to have experiences and adventures. She wasn’t sure if Calaren did though.

OOC-Ready for a new thread?

ooc yes

OOC-Shall we jump to when the women start to become concerned because the men are late in returning?

ooc sounds good

OOC-new thread