*Sumnyot had extricated herself from her guest's arms, very early in the morning. She had not slept much anyways, and the few hours she had, had been full of tiresome waking-dreams. So, Sumnyot had easily roused herself with no ill will. After putting on her same meagre bits of clothing, foresworn skirt and loose jerkin, Sumnyot took a bone-tipped spear from her weapon-bundle, an old net from outside her tent, and then she had gone down to the river. Stalking barefoot in the morning-dimness, upon wetted rocks, and hiding within the hanging river-mists, Sumnyot speared a smallish, healthy-looking mudcrab.
Indeed, Sumnyot mulled as she had carried her kill home, she did want Lydia to have a good and hearty meal, before having to head out upon the wearisome roads. Also, Sumnyot had thought awkwardly as well, she felt as though a nice breakfast would somehow make up for her own strangeness, her taciturn ways and sometimes very guileless tongue. Yes, Sumnyot had thought to herself as she climbed the grassy riverbanks with her wet mudcrab stuck inside the old net, she very much wanted Lydia to leave her side soothed, and content. But she had not known if such a thing was truly possible.
Sumnyot had quietly returned to her dwelling, intent on her task anyway. Leaving the mudcrab, and its sweet fishy reek, outside, she'd put her spear away, then went outside to stoke up a big fire in the pit out there, which she could fit a large pot of water on. And Sumnyot had boiled up her crab. She boiled too though, freshly picked green leeks and she steamed mushrooms, all from her secretive garden hidden off in the wilderness. And, she had also taken it upon herself to roast up a great many cloves of garlic, and then she had thought too, that she would even offer up a bowl of her preciously stashed salt for their meal. Sumnyot had decided too, that she would even make tea to drink, by Y'ffre! A fine and restorative tea, made from the plentiful blue mountain flowers, and the leaves of Elves Ear, which hung dried and simply waiting to be used up, from her tent-roof.
Sumnyot did all these things easily and rather quickly, and when everything was cooked and ready to be eaten, Sumnyot had gone and woke Lydia up with a nudging toe. Then, they had eaten and drunk together outside on the dewy grass. Because there had just been too much food, and none of it would fit together upon the small table inside Sumnyot's tent. So, Lydia and Sumnyot filled their bellies happily out of doors, talking and gamboling together, becoming fully energised by the food and drink, while able to observe the beautiful dawn coming up in the east, all that while.
And all so soon it seemed, they had broken their fasts as much as was thinkable. Then, Lydia had left with her horse, to go and water him down at the river. And Sumnyot, who decided to not wash the dishes, simply threw the emptied, scoured things into the old pot on the fire. Though she, of course, had dumped the crab-water away from her tent, and ladled fresh water into the pot before that.
Then Lydia had finally returned. She rubbed down her horse with picked field straws, then quickly blanketed, saddled and packed him. And Sumnyot had remained outside, ponderously watching the ever brightening dawn, while Lydia went and put on her steel bits of armour, her fire-dried black cloak, her belted longsword and shield.
Then, Sumnyot herself, had gone back into her tent to grab up her own, night-blue cloak. She'd slung her shroud over shoulders and left her tent, only to find Lydia already waiting, seated upon her dark horse. While Sumnyot had put her hood over her braided-head, and began to lead the way on to the road, the pensive half-breed woman surprised herself, as she thought that she was somehow already starting to miss her Housecarl's company.*
X
Sumnyot stood, hooded and barefoot on the fogged-over, loosely cobbled road. Sumnyot gaped up at Lydia, who sat upon her black horse, with a small smile. After a silent, understanding moment of meeting eyes, Sumnyot decidedly stepped closer to Lydia's big horse. Then the half-breed woman slowly reached up her bare arm.
Lydia, bending down a little, grasped firmly at her patroness' proffered arm. And Lydia held Sumnyot's small wrist tightly within her gauntleted hand, while the half-breed woman on the road, too did the same to Lydia. "You promise you shall remember our deal and its intents, lady Sumnyot?" Lydia asked quietly with searching, pretty green eyes.
Sumnyot smiled widely then at Lydia, while they heartfully embraced each other, hand-to-wrist, as if they were old battle-friends and not simply just happenstance acquaintances. "As I have said," Sumnyot murmured, grinning. "I am a woman of my words. I shall remember, Lydia. And do not fret about this…"
Lydia though, frowned down at Sumnyot and squeezed harder at her slender bare arm. "I…am none so sure," she mumbled, feigning a mock-look of dark suspicion. "I recall you vowing to 'cut my throat' only the other morning. Yet here I am, still with my head!"
Sumnyot laughed delightedly at Lydia's unexpectedly playful words. "Ah," she huffed after a moment. "But, does not every woman have to eat her words sometimes?" she retorted grinningly.
Lydia smiled widely, flashing her straight pearly teeth at Sumnyot, in a very open grin that was somewhat unusual for the Nord woman. "I jest," Lydia confessed needlessly. "Your word is good to me, lady Sumnyot."
Sumnyot nodded up at her Housecarl. "Before you go," she inquired. "You must also promise me some things." Sumnyot then studied her leaned-down Housecarl with an openly yearning look. "You must not come back to me, lest I myself send for you. And you, please, must tell no one where it is that I live…"
Lydia's raven-brows knitted upon her pale, fine-looking face. "You needn't have asked," Lydia replied. And she gaped feelingly, at her patroness' large and elfin, captivating blackish eyes.
Sumnyot nodded again then. "I do thank you, Lydia," Sumnyot replied, and she slightly shook her strong grip upon Lydia's steel-plated forearm.
"You know still..." Lydia whispered back, her green eyes darting over Sumnyot's upturned, feline face. "That you must go to the Greybeards? You must help my motherland?" Lydia frowned pleadingly as she continued on. "You have spoken so fondly of equality to me, Sumnyot," Lydia said. "Surely you see that your own principle is at stake, while you spurn this role as the appointed Dragonborn?"
Sumnyot blinked for a moment at Lydia, then she sighed deeply. "Of course, I know this," she responded, with grave feeling in her voice. "But I have not the time, nor the want to explain away my heart to you. So please," Sumnyot urged, firmly grasping her Housecarl's arm. "Please, be still for now. And let us just be content to say our goodbye's to one another."
Lydia nodded her head quickly at that. "Yes..." she uttered quietly. "Yes. This, I do understand."
Sumnyot then, inexplicably grinned with a stern shaking of her hooded head. "And you stubborn, stubborn woman!" Sumnyot chided teasingly. "You choose now of all moments, to use my first name alone, simply by itself?" Sumnyot huffed out a laugh at Lydia. "You are indeed, an unkind woman. So you must redress, and say goodbye to me now using my name again, you!"
As Sumnyot falteringly, somewhat unwantedly, stepped away from Lydia and released her hold upon the Nord's hand, Lydia could only helplessly smile along with her bizarre patroness. "Well, goodbye then, Sumnyot!" Lydia called with a deep nod of her dark-haired, mist-wetted head. "I thank you very much for the spare rations you gave to me. And upon your call, I am yours, always."
Sumnyot couldn't help but laugh. She looked over her cloaked shoulders then, funnily. "And who are you talking to, Lydia?" she jibed as she glanced about. "Is some namby-pamby lord behind me now?"
Lydia laughed at her Thane and shook her head. "By Talos. Do not tease me, Sumnyot!" she retorted. "I mean what I have said, truly!"
Sumnyot grinned and knowingly nodded at Lydia. Then she lifted her hand in a bid of simple, disheartening farewell. "Thank you, my friend," Sumnyot said. "Travel safe, but travel fierce too, and keep a wary hand on your sword-pommel!"
Lydia nodded slowly, with a disquieted face, at the half-breed woman's gesture, and at her final words. Then she seemed to sigh rather doggedly. And the odd pair gaped at one another then, like very silly heartsick youths. And warily, they both saw this in one another's nakedly staring eyes. Yet, they both in their secret heart-of hearts, understood wordlessly that neither one of them worried overmuch about such a foolish thing, though it was slightly inexplicable and mad and frivolous. Then, Lydia at last broke from Sumnyot's gaze, and she resolutely looked away from her. She clucked her tongue and urged her black horse forward.
Lydia and her horse only got a few, very dismal, clopping horse-steps away though. Then Sumnyot wildly decided to silently race, in her padding barefeet, down the road after them. As soon as Sumnyot was near enough to the big black horse, she lifted her leg up and used Lydia's own stirrup-secured boot as a foothold for herself. Then Sumnyot grasped lightly at Lydia's cloaked shoulder, and she hauled herself up to a standing position right beside the Nord woman, riding on her boot and holding herself steady by the horn of the saddle.
Lydia, with a startled look, instantly reined in her mount, and she gawked at Sumnyot who was so suddenly pressed close against her. But before Lydia could even think to speak, Sumnyot reached out with her one free hand and slipped it behind Lydia's head, into her soft dark hair. The half-breed woman briskly urged Lydia forward, and she kissed her smilingly.
Sumnyot's lips moved and pressed at Lydia's full mouth, very gently and tenderly, but with a nakedly, telling, spryness. Lydia eventually began to respond with her own tentacious, firm hunger, and she curled her arm around Sumnyot's willowy hips, pressing her even a little closer to herself. And the two kissed at each other keenly, very tenderly, for a small moment upon the road, curiously while upon a black horse, and veiled within the gray Reach-mists with only the golden, brightening sunlight peeking at them.
Sumnyot thought, very distractedly though, that before Lydia should try to persuade her into the saddle, she had better go, lest she be positively swayed through Lydia's kisses. So, Sumnyot pulled away from Lydia then, their lips smacking wetly apart when she did, and the half-breed woman gave her Housecarl a last wry smile, before jumping away.
"Now you may go. Goodbye!" Sumnyot cried with a wide smile. Then she contentedly turned and began stalking her way back up the stony, dew-wetted road in her barefeet.
Lydia, breathing hard and her lips still seething with a lovely pinkish hue, twisted inside her saddle to look back at her reckless Thane.
Up the road though, Sumnyot herself, knowingly turned around then, and she waved her hand at Lydia in an absolute, true farewell. "Go, my friend!" she called. "Do not waste your daylight!"
