Chapter 25
Preparing the records was exacting, but straightforward. Kyminn took the time to check and recheck each document. He was determined the baron would find no fault. Once those were set aside, he began work on the difficult correspondence – the reports to his various superiors. Trying to keep the report factual while neither damning with faint praise nor shouting 'more nobles should be like Baron Dunn' proved an interesting challenge. Still, by the time all was complete, he believed he'd presented an honest account.
Signing and sealing the various documents was a surprisingly simple process. It was the first time Kyminn had had reason to use his sigil and he felt a little odd in doing so. Every Healer carried on his person a small enameled disc bearing the Healer's emblem. The obverse of the disc was in Healer green, with the emblem rendered in silver. On the reverse was stamped the year of that Healer's qualification, the Healer's initials and a stamp representing the current Dean. Such discs weren't especially difficult to duplicate, but they were easy to verify and the penalties for falsifying them were severe.
The majority of Healers lacked a family crest or seal for authenticating documents, so the sigil was used instead. The stamped reverse was pressed into the wax, alongside the Healer's signature. It was a peculiar feeling to see his own simple mark alongside the baron's elaborate seal.
With departure looming, Kyminn threw himself into preparing for the next leg of his journey. Two grooms would accompany him and the horses to the next guard station. Although they would be expecting to stay in small villages enroute, it was unlikely there would be sufficient stabling for so many visiting animals. As a result, several of the horses would carry feed and other supplies. It was only a four-day trip, but there were a surprising number of details to arrange.
SCENE BREAK
As had become customary, Kyminn and the rest of the household gathered in a small drawing room before dinner. Although they seldom interacted, by tacit agreement the Healer and Bard had set aside their differences for the remainder of Kyminn's visit. The footman's knock, the usual announcement that dinner was ready, brought everyone to their feet.
"Milord Baron, Lady Dunn, the Herald has arrived. As you directed, I have brought her to you directly." With a bow and flourish, the footman stepped aside to admit a figure in white.
"Milord, Milady – Herald Tarva."
Kyminn burst into a grin, but protocol prevented him from blurting out a greeting. The last time he had seen Herald Tarva had been in Oakden, two and a half years before.
"Good evening, Baron, Lady Dunn." Still striking with her autumn-hued hair and deep green eyes, to Kyminn's eye, Tarva hadn't aged a day in the intervening years. He suspected the Herald would be one of those magnificent women who remains gracefully ageless until time finally claimed her.
"And Kyminn!" There was genuine pleasure in the Herald's voice. "I was hoping I'd get here before you left."
Kyminn offered the Herald the formal bow the setting seemed to demand. "I'm very glad to see you, Herald Tarva. Aelish is well?"
"She's fine, thank you. She sends her greetings as well."
"Herald Tarva," the baron recaptured the Herald's attention. "I realize that your duty doesn't permit you to stay with us during your circuit, but would it extend to having you join us for dinner? Or at least long enough for you to warm up?"
"Thank you, Lord Kellix. I'd be pleased to join you. Actually, I'm hoping I can claim a bit of your time to find out what your most urgent needs are." Not even the baron was immune to the Herald's commanding presence. The baron was nodding almost before he'd decided to do so.
"Milord Baron, Herald Tarva, if the Companion Aelish has no objection, I'd be happy to see that she's seen to. That way Herald Tarva doesn't have to go back into the cold."
"Aelish says that would be fine. Thank you, Kyminn." At Tarva's nod, Kyminn excused himself to those present and slipped out.
Settling Aelish was straightforward. Kyminn ruthlessly evicted one of the stallions from his spacious stall, relegating him to a standard standing stall for the duration. It was the matter of a few moments to thoroughly clean the stall and lay down fresh straw. The baron's grooms were diligent and took pride in their work – there was actually little soil to clean.
An equally thorough scrub of the water bucket, fresh water, hay and grain. Finally, a bit of rope fastened to the various latches, should Aelish wish to leave the stall. Kyminn held up a brush and comb. "Quick clean up or thorough? Which do you prefer? Quick?" At the Companion's nod, Kyminn was quite happy to give her a quick, but complete rub down while she enjoyed her grain. At another nod from the Companion, he left her rugged up and relaxing. She would be warm, fed and rested when the time came for she and her Chosen to venture back into the cold night.
Kyminn ducked back into his room long enough to manage a quick wash and change. Although most decidedly not horses, Companions smelled like them. While Tarva no doubt wouldn't mind, the baron – and Lady Dunn – most definitely would mind it if one of the dinner guests smelled like the Stable.
Much to his irritation, Kyminn realized that he wasn't the only one who'd taken the time to change. During his trip to the Stable, Tarva had taken the opportunity to freshen up and put on clean Whites. That was to be expected. Less expected, and less welcome, was the fact that Arvyill had used the opportunity to change into his formal Scarlets. Whether it was out of genuine respect for the Herald, or simply another case of Bardic theatre was impossible to determine, but it left Kyminn, wearing his workaday greens, feeling distinctly second class and shabby.
The conversation over dinner was wide ranging and interesting. By unspoken agreement, the matter of the war was left for another setting. Tarva made the interesting observation that they had present "Heraldic, Bardic, and Healer's circles. Nearly have the whole of the country represented. Just missing a blue uniform."
"Milord Baron is a retired Guardsmen," Kyminn pointed out. "Will that do?"
"Well said, Kyminn, I suppose it does." Tarva gave him a warm smile.
"Actually," Arvyill said thoughtfully, "I think we actually represent a wider cross section than just those four major bodies." He started indicating people around the table, "Noble birth," that was the baron, of course. "Ennobled by marriage," that was the baroness, much to Kyminn's surprise. "Country born, of a craftsmen's family," the bard pointed to Kyminn. "City born, of a merchant family," the bard had mentioned that he was a candlemaker's son.
"And I'm a small-town farmer's child," Tarva added. "Quite right, Bard Arvyill. This table represents all the many faces of Valdemar." Her gaze flicked over the Bard and Kyminn's fading bruises. "It's good to know so many different voices can come together in harmony." Her tone was ironic.
Immediately after the dinner was concluded, the Baron and Herald removed themselves to the baron's study, presumably to discuss any critical matters within the barony. Feeling a bit like a fox waiting outside a mouse hole, Kyminn waited in the drawing room for them to emerge.
"…I'll have to ask for Herald's judgement on that matter," the baron was saying as the door finally opened. "I've made my own ruling, but Master Ottar is appealing."
Kyminn grimaced. The issue of Master Ottar had been discussed a great deal of late. The tenant in question was a pig farmer and he ran pigs in the wood adjacent his small holding. The man paid his rent on time, but the baron suspected the fellow was under-reporting the number of swine he actually owned. The man claimed the usual rate of sow and predator related attrition, but there was more pig sign in the woods than the claimed numbers would account for. Attempts to locate the additional animals had thus far been fruitless, leaving the man free to avoid taxes on them. Master Ottar, for his part, claimed the baron was singling him out due to malice as the pigs had previously caused problems for other tenants.
Kyminn rose as the baron and Herald entered the drawing room, and the baron paused in surprise. "Kyminn? We didn't expect to see you here. You didn't have to stay, you know."
"I'm aware of that, thank you milord. I was hoping I could have a few moments of the Herald's time."
Tarva eyed him speculatively. "Is it urgent?"
He spread his hands in a noncommittal gesture. "Only in that I will be leaving the morning after tomorrow and I will need a decision from you before then."
"I see. How much time to you need?"
That noncommittal gesture again. "What I have to say won't take long. Whether you need to take some time to consider my words…that I can't say."
Heralds are, if nothing else, decisive. "Lord Kellix, if you and are I done for the time being, I'll ask Kyminn here to show me the stables. He and I can discuss his business on the way. If that suits everyone?"
Unsurprisingly, there were no objections.
As Kyminn had indicated, what he had to convey to the Herald didn't take many words.
"…As you can see, I believe it may be more of a necessity than we first thought for me to make this side trip." He pushed open the stable door and gestured Tarva to proceed him.
"I have to admit, you've made a strong case." The Herald eyed the young Healer appraisingly. "To change the subject for a moment, what's up with you and the bard?"
In spite of the darkness, his blush was still clearly visible. "It turned out to be nothing more than a misunderstanding."
She shook her head and rapped the Healer so sharply on the noggin with her knuckles that his eyes watered. "Stupid little banty cockerels! There's far too much at stake these days for you to let your temper get the better of you like that!"
"I know. I promise, it won't happen again." There was genuine contrition in Kyminn's tone.
"See that it doesn't! You're going to some places where you'll experience far more provocation than one strutting bardling. Lose your temper there and you disgrace yourself, your Circle and the crown." It was grimly warning.
The Herald sighed and relented. "Be that as it may, you've made a good case for your little detour. I'm going to endorse the change and I'll support you to Talamir on this. In fact, we'll adjust your schedule to accommodate it. It's only a matter of a few days so we can stretch things to fit."
"I was hoping you'd say that," Kyminn admitted. "I took the liberty of preparing an adjusted schedule in case you said yes." He held a packet out to the Herald, his expression hopeful.
Both Herald and Companion snorted. "I'm not sure whether I should consider you to be cheeky or well prepared." But it was with a smile.
"One tries, Herald. One tries." He tried very hard not to sound too smug.