Mo Chroí
Hey guys! Sorry, I know I keep writing new ones, but I'm nearly done with the third chapter of Devil In Disguise and a couple other chapters are either nearly done or half-way there, so bear with me. I hope you enjoy this, though.
Chapter one: Cuimhní
The night surrounded me, but it wasn't as silent as usual. I sat around the fire, smiling and laughing with the men and women of my tribe as we each took turns singing, dancing, or entertaining of some kind. Liam had just sat down after dancing his heart out.
"Andraste, Is é do sheal!*" he called out, Maeveen nudging me slightly.
"Beidh mé ag dul.*" I smiled, standing up and looking them all in the eye.
"Deora ar mo chroi Ma shiulaim o na laetha beo
Ba dheas an la go oiche
Na glortha binne i mo thaobh
'S aoibhneas i gach ait gan gruaim
Athas ar mo chroi go deo
He-a-ro
He-a-o-ro
An ghrian 's an ghealach ar mo chul
Nil uaim ach smaointe o mo shaoil
Deora ar mo chroi go bron
He-a-ro
He-a-ro
He-a-o-ro
Deora ar mo chroi
"Ah, tá tú dhá iad, mo chaired*," I chuckled, scratching Evelina's head as she nestled in my lap and rubbing my cheek against Ula's, her tongue flicking out to lick it. I giggled, my family laughing softly around me.
"Tá sé am dul isteach Liam, tá tú Maeveen agus ag breathnú ar dtús. Uimh súgradh timpeall an ama seo, *" I muttered, standing up and heading to my "bed". Eve and Ula chattered endlessly at each other from around my neck, thus causing many of my fellow Woads to stare at my furry neck. Chuckling myself, I swiftly climbed up my tree and into my little canopy I had put together beneath a thick layer of leaves that did work to keep me dry when it rained, and it did a lot in Briton. Curling into the soft bedding, I pulled my fur blanket up to my chin and smiled softly as my two friends curled on either side of my neck. Slowly, as I listened to the sounds of the night, I fell asleep until my watch was to come. Little did I know, a secret pair of eyes watched over me.
I was awoken what seemed like seconds later, but in reality it was hours. Maeveen yawned as she climbed down the tree, waiting for me to get in place before heading off to her own bed on the ground. Of all of us, and there was a good twenty odd, I was the only one who insisted on sleeping in a tree. I didn't mind the forest itself, nor the animals, but I liked to have a good vantage point to defend my companions should the need arise. Silently moving to the spot Mae had deserted behind the bushes, I nestled myself against a lone tree, its roots providing the perfect chair. A pair of yellow eyes peered out at me and I smiled, beckoning the creature forward with a long, pale slender finger. Gwyn sat beside me, her tail still against the leaves as she, too, waited and listened. Gwyn was my favorite, of all creatures, in the forest to spend my watches with. She was silent and protected her home, our home, with just as much fervor as we did.
It could've been minutes, seconds, or maybe it was truly hours later, during the sunrise, a shrill whistle sounded from across the field. Gwyn's ears perked up and a smile near split my heart-shaped face in half as I answered with a whistle of my own, accompanied by a howl. Hurriedly, I dashed out of the bushes, knowing one of the others would instantly take over, with Gwyn on my heels.
"Sister!" I called, excitement ringing clear through my voice. I could see her smiling face, accompanied by her husbands' as he walked by her side. "And my dearest brother-in-law! Now this is a surprise." I muttered, hugging them both simultaneously, Gwyn circling us and yipping happily.
"You mean your only brother-in-law." He admonished, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"Ah, Arthur, must you constantly point out that detail?" I asked wearily, shaking my head in silent laughter.
"The men miss your voice in the Tavern, though from the look on Tristan's face, he was scouting nearby last night and heard it." Guinevere chuckled, poking my side.
"And how is my favorite silent companion?"
"Oh, he's fine. Recovering from minor wounds." She smiled nervously.
"Guinevere..." I growled, narrowing my eyes.
"He was run through, Andraste, but, luckily, the sword missed his organs and Dagonet was able to heal him quickly." Arthur provided, wincing at my glare.
"So you let him ride around, scouting in the woods, when he should be in bed resting?" my incredulous tone left no doubt at the anger hidden behind my dark grey eyes. "I will fix this."
"Andraste, I don't think that—"he began, but it was too late, my mind was already made up, and by the look on his face, I'm sure he understood. If not that, then it was surly my sisters hand on his arm.
"Let her." She murmured, "He'll listen to her, most likely. If not, she'll simply bind him and make him rest."
"Not a bad idea, sister dear." I beamed, whistling softly. A whinny answered me as a black mare came thundering out of the woods, a white crescent on her forehead. "Janua and I will go meet him."
"I'll surely regret this, but he's most likely wandering around in the court yard, as Dagonet won't let him go elsewhere." He sighed, rubbing his face with a hand. Beaming, I said my goodbye's and set us off at a gallop. 'Tristan, I swear, if you've gotten yourself hurt worse than I think, I'll kill you myself.' I thought, my glare growing in intensity, so much so that Janua neighed from beneath me, tossing her mane.
"Sorry, love. I didn't mean it for you." I soothed, slowing us to a leisurely walk as we neared the gates. The men stared down at me in either shock or lust; I wasn't sure, as I was too accustomed to stares whenever I visited the fort at all. They took in my thick, leather bindings across my chest and the one around my waist, holding up two long strips of cloth as they hung down front and back; a pair of incredibly short shorts made out of deer skin kept my attire as "modest" as I needed it to be. Shifting in the stirrups, I waited for them to open the gate, hearing the groan of metal as it did. Nudging her forward, we made our way into the courtyard and instantly I found him. His dark brown, nearly black eyes pierced into my stone grey ones and he looked torn between fear, anger, and relief all at once. I plastered a falsely sweet smile on my face as I dismounted, my soft, boots making little noise as I landed, and handed the reins to Jols so he could take care of Janua.
"Tristan, are you well?" I started, moving to stand in front of him. He nodded slowly, inching backwards and slanting his body away from me so that I, hopefully, wouldn't notice the white of the bandage that threatened to peak out of his tunic. Unfortunately, his luck was not working for him today, though mine seemed to be. "Shouldn't you be resting if you're wounded? Arthur told me you had been run through, but if you're up and about it shouldn't be that bad, right?"
"Aye." He answered softly, fixing me with a wary glare.
"Well, then you wouldn't mind if I took a look at it, then would you?"
"Dagonet has deemed me well enough to walk. You need not take a look." He grumbled.
"Nonsense, it's just for my peace of mind, honestly."
"…" I was met with the silent stare of resignation as he turned towards his quarters, looking over his shoulder briefly to signal for me to follow him.
-Minutes Later-
"Tristan!! Oh, I will kill you one day!" I howled, staring at the wound on his abdomen. It had been getting increasingly hard to ignore how well his chiseled chest looked with sunlight streaming onto it, that is, until he finally removed the bandages so I could see the damage. Then it was as easy as climbing a tree.
"It's not that bad, Andraste." He murmured, eyes anywhere but looking at me. I huffed in aggravation.
"Not that bad my ass." I grumbled in reply, bandaging him back up, ignoring how close we were. "You will rest, or so help me, I will tie you to this bed until that wound has healed properly so that you do not aggravate it." From his soft chuckle, I could tell he thought I was joking.
"I'd take her seriously, if I were you, Tristan." A voice declared from the doorway. I spun to face it, glaring menacingly at the speaker.
"Lancelot, don't you dare."
"What? I'm just saying he should, though I'm sure he'd enjoy it if you did. I know I would." He smirked, winking at me before waggling his eyebrows in a lewd gesture. I scoffed and turned my back to him.
"Who would ever want to tie you down in a bed?"
"Plenty of women, Andy."
"Then they must all be lacking of their senses, for the smell is enough to tie you down in a river and leave you." Tristan chuckled a little louder at my comment, causing Lancelot to growl before turning and stalking out of the hallway. "Now, I was serious." I continued.
"No."
"No what?"
"You will not force me."
"I will."
"You will not."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"Yes!"
"No!"
"For the sake of all that is—bloody hell, Andy, what are you doing here?" Bors called, interrupting our argument.
"Currently arguing with a stubborn ass."
"Ah, I see. Well, you should know you'll win. You always do." He smirked. Tristan leaned around me to glare at his brother in arms. "You'll thank me one day, Tristan." Said knight scoffed and rolled his eyes away, fixing his now steaming glare on the defenseless wall. Bors left shortly afterwards and we were left to our own devices once again. Sighing, I ran a hand through my long, dark crimson hair.
"Tristan, please, do as I ask. I do not want to have to worry about you."
"Then stop worrying."
"You know just as well as I that that won't happen so long as there is breath in my lungs." I groaned, my resolve to keep my dignity and not beg him beginning to waiver. "Please, just please, rest for one more day."
"One."
"One, I promise."
"On one condition."
"What?"
"Stay." His voice made me pause.
"What?"
"Stay here...with me." He tried again, eyes moving to stare into mine. Beneath their mysterious, dark depths I could see something move, shift, change, but into what, I wasn't sure. I never was with Tristan. He always had me guessing, though, granted, I knew more about him than the others, with the exception of Arthur.
"Tristan, I—"
"Then I won't rest."
"…."
"Andraste..." Oh how I hated, no, loathed when he said my name like that. The mere sound of it flowing from his sweet lips was like a million, burning suns melting me in his hands.
"Fine." I whispered the will not within me to growl or snap at him this time. He smiled, or, at least, smiled the way only he could: a quirk of the lips at either corner, the twinkling returning to his onyx pools.
"Good." I only hoped I hadn't signed my death wish. Not taking into consideration that the man before me either didn't know his affect on me and was innocent (which is hardly likely) or knew exactly what he did to me and was enjoying taking every advantage he could. Yes, I would kill him one day, but that day was going to be long in coming.
Author Notes:
Translations for the *:
"Andraste, it is your turn!"
"Alright, I will go!" (the song is Deora Ar Mo Chroi by Enya)
"Tears on my heart If I walk from the alive days
It was beautiful all day
The sweet voices by my side
And beauty without dispair everywhere
Joy in my heart forever
He-a-ro
He-a-o-ro
The sun and the moon behind me
I'll only need thoughts from my life
Tears sorrowfully on my heart
He-a-ro
He-a-ro
He-a-o-ro
Tears on my heart.."
"Ah, there you two are, my dears."
"It is time to go, Liam. You and Maeveen are on first watch. No playing around this time."