Chapter Three: The House of Healing...Or Not.
Mardela could hardly believe that she was willingly entering into a guarded fort. She never responded to authority and boundaries very well, that is why she constantly traveled. Traveling was the life that she knew and she loved it, that and she never had the chance to stay in one place with all the trouble that she could get into. Don't be so hard on the place Mardela. She cautioned herself. The pickings seem to be ripe and you haven't even entered the gate. At this thought she smiled and tightened her grip around Gawain's waist.
In no time at all they approached a large gate, she could see that the guards were already opening it to welcome the knights home. Upon entering the fort she saw that it was less of a fort and more of a community. She noticed the shops and people milling about their daily routine and smiled at the normal feeling that she got from it all. All the knights soon came to a stop and a man and some stable boys took the reins from each knight as they climbed down from their horses. Gawain dismounted and held a hand out to Mardela, who refused it and swung her leg over the saddle preparing to jump off, no sooner had she done this did she remember the blow that the Captain had given her across her stomach. Almost forgot about that one, it's a funny thing, adrenalin. Instead of landing gracefully on her feet she gasped in pain and fell from the saddle, lucky for her, Gawain was right there to catch her before she hit the floor and worsened her wounds.
"Are you hurt?" He asked with concern evident in his eyes.
"No, I just like falling from horses!" She replied and rolled her eyes at the stupidity of the question.
"She sounds fine to me." She heard someone say and turned to see Lancelot smirking at her in that oh so attractive and infuriating way. I could just kill that man. She thought to herself and made a motion to lunge at him, that is until she remembered the pain in her abdomen and winced, falling back into Gawain's arms. Although she was happy to note that he did back away from the lunge, even if she couldn't follow through with it in this condition. Mardela started to feel a little woozy and moved her hand to her stomach only to remove it and see it covered in blood. This is not a good sign.
"Let's get her to a room, I need to take a look at that wound." She heard someone say as Gawain picked her up and carried her into a nearby building. After winding through various hallways they entered a room and she was set on a flat surface. "I'm going to need to rip your shirt to see how bad it is." The man stated matter-a-factly.
"Awww, only the shirt? You could be a little more bold, I promise not to tell." Mardela teased through the pain that was emanating from her body. She would say anything to get her mind off the pain; she would do anything to get her mind off the pain. Well, not anything, but close. She felt the man rip a portion of her shirt away and she felt him trying to clean away the extra dirt and blood.
"It's not as bad as I thought, there is just a lot of blood." He said, continuing with his cleaning. "I'm going to sew it up but I am going to need to have someone hold the cut together, it is rather wide."
"Do what you gotta do, there just better be a drink waiting for me when this is all over with." She closed her eyes and gritted her teeth as someone, who she assumed was Gawain, placed their hands on her stomach. She let out a blood-curdling scream as the hands pushed the cut so that the sides met. Mardela opened her eyes only to meet the amused eyes of Lancelot staring back at her.
"You know, you don't look so bad half dressed and screaming." Mardela only growled at him through clenched teeth and glared with all the might she had left.
"Lancelot, if you are going to aggravate my patient I can get someone else to help me." The other man said while beginning to sew up the cut.
"Sorry Dag, she just makes it impossible to resist." Lancelot replied giving Mardela a quick wink.
"I know you are lacking in the self-control department but do try." The man she now knew was Dagonet replied. A few moments later Dagonet finished tying up the wound, "Well that is it for now. I recommend that you keep your movement to a minimum and don't do anything strenuous." He then helped Mardela to a sitting position and wrapped a bandage tight around her waist a few times. "Now are you hurt anywhere else?"
"I'll be fine."
"If you don't tell me I will just have to inspect all of you." He replied.
"I could take care of that if you would like", Lancelot offered with a devious grin.
"Lancelot, get out." Dagonet practically yelled at the other knight.
Lancelot then left the room mumbling, "Fine, I was just trying to help."
Mardela looked at Dagonet and realized that he was only trying to help, "I got cut on my arm as well." Dagonet ripped her sleeve.
"You really do enjoy ripping my clothing off don't you?" She jeered and for a moment she thought she saw a look of amusement pass over the man's face before it was replaced with seriousness.
When he was finished Mardela turned to Dagonet, "Thank you. I will make sure to pay you back for this, you'll just have to wait until I heal a little, like you said, 'no strenuous activity'". She jumped off the table feeling much better, that is until she felt the pain again as she landed on the floor. She stumbled a bit until Dagonet leaned over and helped her brace herself. Mardela smiled up at him with thanks. I must remember to take it slow until this thing is healed. She scolded herself. "What now?" She asked looking towards Dagonet. He simply pointed towards the door where Mardela saw Arthur entering the room.
"I have had a room prepared for you. Jols here will take you to it and take care of anything else that you may require." With that a man stepped forward and offered his arm to Mardela.
"Thank you Arthur." She said leaving the room with Jols, before she was completely out of earshot they heard a whisper, "So…you can help me with ANYTHING they say?" Arthur looked at the retreating woman with surprise while Lancelot, who was still in the hallway, merely laughed.
Soon Mardela found herself entering a room, it was larger than many she had stayed in before but still modest. The contents of the room consisted of a rather large bed, a rug, and a table at one end with a candlestick on top. Right past the bed there was a window and to the right side of a room she found a doorway that led to a large bathtub. "Now I don't think I will be able to sleep in the huge bed all by my little self each night."
Jols laughed at the blunt innuendo and replied, "This room used to belong to one of the knights, he was one of the larger men."
"Was he really? You sound like you speak from experience." Mardela looked to see that Jols was trying desperately to think of something to say to clarify his comment but the words simply wouldn't come out. The look on his face made her burst into a fit of laughter. "I was only joking, I know what you meant. This room will be wonderful Jols." The man sighed with relief and laughed along with her, but more in embarrassment than amusement.
"I will send a maid up to draw you a bath and I will fetch you when it is time for dinner." He was about to leave when Mardela stopped him.
"Jols, could you make sure that my dog finds her way to my room and one more thing. I had a bag that had my belongings with me before the fight, I believe it might be in the cart with the supplies, if someone finds it I would like it returned to me." Jols nodded at her requests and turned to exit.
"Oh and Miss, I can help you with ANYTHING." With that and a smile he exited.
"That one is a little feisty, but fun." Mardela watched him leave and then made her way to the window. The view was better than she had expected and she found herself looking around to get a grasp on the surrounding area. She then heard a knock on the door. "Come in", she called. A maid entered with two pales of steaming water. "Hello! I'm Mardela." The maid refused to look her in the eye and with a slight nod in Mardela's direction she went about her duties. "Okay, so you aren't exactly a talker, that is okay. But if you don't tell me your name I will have to make something up." The maid still didn't answer. "What about Ralph. That is a lovely colorful name."
The maid looked at Mardela with terror and spoke, "My name is Evia".
"That is much better. It is a pleasure to meet you Evia. Thanks for the bath." Evia seemed much more relaxed now and actually smiled at Mardela. "You're welcome Miss."
"You can just call me Mardy, it is much less formal." At this the maid almost looked shocked. She finished preparing the bath and turned to leave.
"Will that be all Miss…. I mean Mardy?"
"Yea, thank you again Evia". The maid then left with a smile on her face. That one could use a little backbone, I can help with that. Mardela thought as she stripped and carefully lowered herself into the tub. The water was hot but it felt wonderful on her aching bones and muscles. Mardela removed the tie from her hair and dipped her head completely under the water, rinsing the dirt and blood from her face. Her head emerged from the water seconds later and she rested it on the tub, allowing her hair to fall over the edge. By now the water was so dark with dirt and all the other things that clung to her skin over the past few days that she could barely see her feet. She heard a knock on the door and yelled, "Come in".
"Hello, Mardela?" A male voice called.
"I'm in here, come on in." She soon saw Gawain's head poke through the doorway into the bathing area.
"You look like you are enjoying yourself." He smiled at the relaxed look on her face. "I was just going to offer to give you a tour of the premises, but it looks as if you are busy right now."
"No, I was just finishing up, just let me get dressed."
"Great." Gawain turned to exit.
"Where are you going, I thought you were going to give me a tour?" Mardela asked in confusion.
"I was just going to give you some privacy, but I would be more than happy to stay if you like." Gawain said giving her what he must have considered his seductive look. Not bad. Mardela thought.
"I don't mind. I have this ability to change anywhere in front of anyone, just hand me that towel." Gawain did as she asked and Mardela pulled herself from the water with the towel firmly in place. Gawain never saw a thing. Mardela stepped from the bath and walked over to where Gawain was standing when she suddenly realized something. "I just remembered that all my non-bloody and dirty clothing was in my bag, and I don't know what happened to that thing."
"I'm sure I can scrounge something up for you to wear. I'll be back shortly." Gawain exited the room to find some suitable attire.
Shortly Mardela heard the sound of someone stopping outside her door. "Come in" she yelled before they got the chance to knock. To her surprise it was not the man she thought. "Not you, what are you doing here?"
Lancelot smiled, "Unless you also suffered from some sort of brain damage you might remember the words 'come in' being yelled not one minute ago." He smirked as he saw her face begin to get red with rage, or was that embarrassment?
"Well, your in, so what the hell do you want?" She practically screamed at him. Yep, that is rage all right. He thought.
"I was just going to give you this bag. I was told you lost it." He stepped closer to her, fully aware of her state of undress. "Now can I get a little finders fee?" He asked leaning closer and bringing his arms up to her waist. For a moment Mardela felt a little something but then that voice came back. Trouble. She quickly came to her senses and put her defense back up.
I don't know why I ever found this guy attractive. I only bed people on my terms. This ought to teach him a lesson. Still being in a state of anger Mardela purred in a seductive tone, "I have your fee right here". She then lifted her knee, crashing it into his groin. Lancelot immediately shrunk back and his body seemed to pull into a ball.
With his voice coming in pants he yelled, "What the fuck is wrong with you." He seemed to regain his composure a little but the pain was still evident on his face. "You are in for a surprise if you think I am always this nice to bitches like you." With that he walked, somewhat strangely out of the room. Once in the hallway he leaned against the wall mumbling, "I was crazy to think that that woman had anything. She is a crazy bitch." As he wandered down the hall he passed Gawain who heard Lancelot mumble, "I really need a drink about now." Gawain smiled and headed back to Mardela's room. He entered and found her already dressed, in much the same attire that she had been wearing earlier, just cleaner. He was about to ask her where she got the clothing but she never gave him the chance.
Mardela quickly grabbed his arm, "I'm ready for my tour." Gawain smiled down and her and they exited the room.
And then there were three! Anyone feel like they understand Mardela a little more? You should all know that I actually wrote out a character analysis for Mardela so that I could gauge how she should act and react in each situation. I really want to keep her character development and background accurate. As always, please R&R. This time I will take you out to eat if you do!