IMPORTANT FOR ALL READERS! FORGOTTEN CHAPTERS! I realized I forgot to
upload certain chapters-so go back a little and start reading again
starting from Evening Petition . . . Duke Bruno's announcement, among other
things, will be cleared up then.
A/N: Again, sorry for the huge delay, but I think I have the biggest writer's block in history. I just need to get over this hurdle (meaning the stay in Lubran) until I'll be going strong again-so this will probably continue over several chapters, but after that it'll be smoother going.
I'm sorry this one is so short. . . I wanted to put something up while I chew away at my writer's block.
I'm also sorry I wasn't able to answer any reviews-I somehow managed to delete all my emails since, like, November. Thanks for understanding,
Wormy
$$$$$$$$$$
She heard the commotion in the common room and paused a minute before making her way to the door, keeping her hand over her wound to keep the blood from flowing and dirtying her surroundings, wincing as she did so.
All of the other knights but William had arrived, and they were talking and gesturing loudly as Zachary attempted to explain, although he hadn't gotten a proper look at what was going on. Tayli glanced around the room, unnoticed in the doorframe, and saw Terian looking perplexed and a little paranoid as he sat in a chair by the now blazing fire. Softly, she went over to him.
When she touched his shoulder lightly with her uninjured hand, he started and looked up quickly. At the sight of the blood that was oozing out from between her fingers, he turned a shade paler and called for Garram to come quickly.
Tayli was confused, though she kept her face carefully free of emotion as always. What could Garram, the least noticeable of the party, do to help? When he came rushing over, armed with strips of cloth and some string, she understood, and, thinking back, she scolded herself for not having realized it sooner-Joseph Monk had been healed after she'd stabbed him.
By this time, everyone had noticed her presence, and were asking questions busily and gawking at the bloody hand that covered her shoulder (although she couldn't be sure if some were actually gawking at her immodestly exposed arm). She ignored them, following Garram as he beckoned her back towards her bathroom. Starting to get a headache from all of the loud talking, Tayli shut the door behind her. The Kiin were never this loud, even when there was a problem to be solved. They were raised better.
Sighing almost inaudibly, she grit her teeth as Garram took a cloth and water and started to clean her shoulder.
^^^^^^^^^^^
When William returned, having successfully found the kitchen and requested that some food be brought up, he found the others in the process of calming down. It didn't take long before he knew the whole story, and it only increased his respect for Tayli-someone who could take on a hidden attacker in the dark while being outweighed, in a position that would disadvantage them, and without a weapon was a better fighter than he was-though he didn't like admitting it. He wished he'd been there to witness it, although Sir Zachary assured him that he'd barely seen anything. When he asked where Tayli was, he was told that she'd been cut fairly deep in the shoulder and that Garram was taking care of it. Speculating, he asked about her reaction to her injury-a woman of the court would almost definitely faint or go into hysterics when faced with the pain and any blood at all, but he had no idea how Tayli would react.
And, though he hadn't been expecting the usual, he was shocked to hear that she'd accepted it with something akin to indifference, as if the pain didn't matter, or didn't register, and she hadn't been at all fazed by the sight of her own blood. Terian even told him that she'd come out, hand clamped over her shoulder and blood oozing out, to try and soothe nerves.
It was completely amazing, and he knew that the older knights were revising their opinion of her quickly-anyone who could accomplish such things was an asset.
^^^^^^^^^
After Garram had efficiently wrapped her shoulder, considerably dulling the pain, he left to go 'report', as he jokingly called it. Tayli hadn't talked much, only an occasional grunt or nod had shown that she was listening to his chatter at all, but she knew that he was talking to distract her, and recognized his skill. She was gripping the back of a nearby chair until her knuckles turned white to stop from making any sound-the cleansing of it hurt more than the wound itself.
Sighing in relief, she dug in her saddlebags to find her extra clothes. She pulled out her extra long-sleeved shirt and tunic, and pulled them on, putting her soiled ones in the basin of water to soak the blood out, scrubbing at them half-heartedly with soap before giving up and going back outside, wrapped shoulder and arm concealed and face as blank as always, in no way showing that she'd just been wounded.
Meanwhile, Michael had gathered the knights into some semblance of order, and they were all seated around the big table. Silently, Tayli drew out the last chair, letting the knights' babble wash over her. She looked at Michael, who sat on her left side. Quietly, he told her that they'd sent someone to get Duke Bruno and 'Master Ster', after which he pounded incessantly on the table until everyone had quieted.
"Would you care to explain what happened, Mistress Tayli?" he asked her, and Tayli quickly and efficiently told her story, as she had been taught to do.
Just as she finished, someone knocked, and Terian stood up to open the door. The Duke, Rafe, and a servant stood in the doorway, and Tayli sighed almost inaudibly, resigning herself to telling the whole story again.
A/N: Again, sorry for the huge delay, but I think I have the biggest writer's block in history. I just need to get over this hurdle (meaning the stay in Lubran) until I'll be going strong again-so this will probably continue over several chapters, but after that it'll be smoother going.
I'm sorry this one is so short. . . I wanted to put something up while I chew away at my writer's block.
I'm also sorry I wasn't able to answer any reviews-I somehow managed to delete all my emails since, like, November. Thanks for understanding,
Wormy
$$$$$$$$$$
She heard the commotion in the common room and paused a minute before making her way to the door, keeping her hand over her wound to keep the blood from flowing and dirtying her surroundings, wincing as she did so.
All of the other knights but William had arrived, and they were talking and gesturing loudly as Zachary attempted to explain, although he hadn't gotten a proper look at what was going on. Tayli glanced around the room, unnoticed in the doorframe, and saw Terian looking perplexed and a little paranoid as he sat in a chair by the now blazing fire. Softly, she went over to him.
When she touched his shoulder lightly with her uninjured hand, he started and looked up quickly. At the sight of the blood that was oozing out from between her fingers, he turned a shade paler and called for Garram to come quickly.
Tayli was confused, though she kept her face carefully free of emotion as always. What could Garram, the least noticeable of the party, do to help? When he came rushing over, armed with strips of cloth and some string, she understood, and, thinking back, she scolded herself for not having realized it sooner-Joseph Monk had been healed after she'd stabbed him.
By this time, everyone had noticed her presence, and were asking questions busily and gawking at the bloody hand that covered her shoulder (although she couldn't be sure if some were actually gawking at her immodestly exposed arm). She ignored them, following Garram as he beckoned her back towards her bathroom. Starting to get a headache from all of the loud talking, Tayli shut the door behind her. The Kiin were never this loud, even when there was a problem to be solved. They were raised better.
Sighing almost inaudibly, she grit her teeth as Garram took a cloth and water and started to clean her shoulder.
^^^^^^^^^^^
When William returned, having successfully found the kitchen and requested that some food be brought up, he found the others in the process of calming down. It didn't take long before he knew the whole story, and it only increased his respect for Tayli-someone who could take on a hidden attacker in the dark while being outweighed, in a position that would disadvantage them, and without a weapon was a better fighter than he was-though he didn't like admitting it. He wished he'd been there to witness it, although Sir Zachary assured him that he'd barely seen anything. When he asked where Tayli was, he was told that she'd been cut fairly deep in the shoulder and that Garram was taking care of it. Speculating, he asked about her reaction to her injury-a woman of the court would almost definitely faint or go into hysterics when faced with the pain and any blood at all, but he had no idea how Tayli would react.
And, though he hadn't been expecting the usual, he was shocked to hear that she'd accepted it with something akin to indifference, as if the pain didn't matter, or didn't register, and she hadn't been at all fazed by the sight of her own blood. Terian even told him that she'd come out, hand clamped over her shoulder and blood oozing out, to try and soothe nerves.
It was completely amazing, and he knew that the older knights were revising their opinion of her quickly-anyone who could accomplish such things was an asset.
^^^^^^^^^
After Garram had efficiently wrapped her shoulder, considerably dulling the pain, he left to go 'report', as he jokingly called it. Tayli hadn't talked much, only an occasional grunt or nod had shown that she was listening to his chatter at all, but she knew that he was talking to distract her, and recognized his skill. She was gripping the back of a nearby chair until her knuckles turned white to stop from making any sound-the cleansing of it hurt more than the wound itself.
Sighing in relief, she dug in her saddlebags to find her extra clothes. She pulled out her extra long-sleeved shirt and tunic, and pulled them on, putting her soiled ones in the basin of water to soak the blood out, scrubbing at them half-heartedly with soap before giving up and going back outside, wrapped shoulder and arm concealed and face as blank as always, in no way showing that she'd just been wounded.
Meanwhile, Michael had gathered the knights into some semblance of order, and they were all seated around the big table. Silently, Tayli drew out the last chair, letting the knights' babble wash over her. She looked at Michael, who sat on her left side. Quietly, he told her that they'd sent someone to get Duke Bruno and 'Master Ster', after which he pounded incessantly on the table until everyone had quieted.
"Would you care to explain what happened, Mistress Tayli?" he asked her, and Tayli quickly and efficiently told her story, as she had been taught to do.
Just as she finished, someone knocked, and Terian stood up to open the door. The Duke, Rafe, and a servant stood in the doorway, and Tayli sighed almost inaudibly, resigning herself to telling the whole story again.