DISCLAIMER: Only own Sylwen and Lucy
Once Bard was sure Lucy was settled and safe did he stop and take a breather, sitting down on the couch as he leaned on his knees, face in his hands as he heaved a sigh. He was still coming to terms with the story he had heard behind what happened to Lucy. He knew Alfrid was bad, but to go this far? He shook his head slightly in disbelief.
He had known Lucy since she was young, and this was going on for how long now? And he was only hearing about it now?
"Are you alright?" A soft voice came from his left as he felt the couch weigh down slightly.
Bard lifted his head, looking at Sylwen before he smiled weakly. "Fine just, a little in over my head." He chuckled softly, seeing the guilty expression overcome her soft gaze.
"I don't mean you." He shook his head slightly, sitting up straight again. "I'd still rather take all of this if it meant saving you again." He smiled softly, chocolate clashing with green.
Sylwen felt her cheeks flush slightly at his words, not recalling anyone ever saying something to her with that much meaning behind it.
She sputtered slightly, sitting up straight. "I-I don't know what to say." She said, looking down into the cup in her hands, embarrassed.
"Don't say anything?" Bard suggested as he leaned back into the couch slightly, taking a breath of air, listening to the kids downstairs conversing. He pushed himself to his feet again, stretching his back a bit which had been bothering him for the past couple days. A pulled muscle maybe? "Just knowing you're safe is enough for me." He glanced down at her, smiling softly.
Their moment was interrupted when a loud pounding came from the door, causing it to rattle angrily.
Bard frowned slightly, feeling Sylwen standing up behind him. "Stay there." He told her, hearing the kids begin to ascend from downstairs. "Stay downstairs." He told them, walking to the door as he peered out the window.
There stood Alfrid, red in the face with anger. Great.
Letting out a sigh, Bard opened the door as he stepped in the way in case the angry little man tried to force himself in. "What do you want Alfrid?" He asked, hand on the doorknob.
Alfrid couldn't make words at first, trying to look into the house for Lucy, who he knew was hiding here somewhere. There wasn't anywhere else she would be other than this place.
"Where is she?" He finally formed proper words as he glared at Bard angrily. "Lucy! Where is she?"
Bard's hand gripped onto the doorknob tighter, resisting the urge to make what was already bad worse.
"Yeah. She's here. And she's staying here." Bard stated in a way that there could be no argument against it.
Of course Alfrid thought differently.
His face went redder, if that was even possible. How dare this, this bargeman have the audacity to tell him what HIS daughter will do.
"Your boy-" Alfrid didn't get the chance to finish his sentence as he stumbled backwards into the railing of the stairs.
"My boy," Bard started, immediately defensive. No one brought his children into this. "Is to stay out of this. What he did, was completely justified." He growled out, glaring down at him. "I could get you put away for what you've done to Lucy." He towered over him.
"Come near my home again, and you can bet your coins that the town will know." Bard threatened before turning around, slamming the door shut, the pots hanging on the wall rattling from the force.
Lucy backed up farther down the stairs, stumbling slightly, as she did so, falling into Bain.
"This isn't going to end well." she sighed, softly, shaking her head. "He's too much of an idiot to just let this slide. If I don't go deal with him, the master is going to hear about this, and you're going to be in a world of trouble."
She regained her balance, making her way back up the stairs.
"Bard." She began, placing a hand on his arm.
"You should know he's not going to stop. I must go with him, or you will pay the consequences." She smirked, almost reassuringly. "I'll be fine, he's nothing I can't handle."
"No." Bard spoke through clenched teeth as he turned around, fists balled at his side as he stood there, seething, eyes ablaze. His anger had taken a hold of him, making unable to see clearly. See what really mattered at the moment.
Lucy blinked.
"Excuse me?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "I thank you for your kindness, truly, but I cannot stay here. I must go with him, or there will more than just hell to pay on your shoulders."
"I'd rather you didn't lose your head over me, Bowman. It would be a shame."
"She has a point." Sylwen spoke softly as she walked over to the group, putting a hand on Bard's arm gently, looking up at him. "You do not want any more trouble for your family than there already is." She pointed out, trying to edge him out of his rage. "What he did was beyond horrible, but right now you should be thinking of your family." She told him.
Bard listened to her speaking, his body visibly relaxing at her touch though he hadn't seemed to notice it himself. He turned his gaze to his three children that stood near the stairs, gazing at him quietly.
Sylwen removed her hand from him, taking a step back to give him space as she held her hands in front of her.
It was a few moments before Bard spoke again, letting out a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair.
Anger had overridden any common sense the man had once had for a few moments, Sylwen managing to snap him out of his stupor.
"Very well.." He said finally, looking down at Lucy as he put his hands on her shoulders. "Just, promise me you'll be safe alright?" He asked her, staring down at her.
Lucy smiled warmly, her hands coming up and holding onto his as they rested on her shoulders. "I'm always safe, Bowman." She said, reassuringly. "Have a little faith."
With that, she turned and exited the house, slowly following Alfrid as he drunkenly made his way back to his house, shoving people aside angrily as he went. Slipping in through the window around back, hastily as Alfrid battled with the lock and key.
Sprawling herself across her bed, she waited.
She heard the door fly open, crashing into the wall behind it, making the house tremble. Rolling her eyes, she listened as Alfrid closed the door, tossed the keys on the table and made his way to her room.
She could hear him sniffling as he went.
His little scraggly form stopped in the doorway, looking at her in confusion. "How did you -?" He shook his head. "I feared you wouldn't come back to me."
Lucy smirked. "Where else am I going to go?" She replied snidely. "You'd ruin the lives of anyone who tried to take me in, I have no choice but to return, eventually."
"Bard's boy will pay for what he did to me!" He snarled angrily.
Lucy launched herself off her bed at her father from the sound of his threat. Her head held high, defiantly, she looked at him.
"And you won't for what you did to me?" She snapped.
He hesitated under her intimidating pose. "I..."
"You will leave them alone, is what you will do!" She demanded. There was no way around it. "I have let you walk all over me and take advantage of me without uttering such facts to a soul. You should have known the day would come when you would be caught. You are simply bitter because the one who actually caught you was a child of Bard's. You make life for them harder than you already do, and it will be your life who will become miserable." She poked him in the chest.
Alfrid snapped, his hand coming up quickly but she grabbed it before it struck her.
"I dare you to try it again!" She said quietly, coldly.
Alfrid's eyes widened, a silence coming from the man before he spoke. "Why must you always side with them?" He asked, pulling his wrist from her grasp as he frowned slightly.
"Because they hate you just as much as I do, father." Lucy replied coldly.
Tears welled up in his eyes. "Must you always point out that I am every time you are angry with me?" He asked softly
"Yes." She said simply. "Because you do not deserve to hold such a title and do so nobly. You are blood, but you hold nothing else over me. You aren't even as tall as me, so even your size is below me." She shoved him backwards.
"If you do not want this taking to the wind, you will keep this disclosed. Nothing about Bain's heroic actions will be uttered by you. For if they are, it will be your tongue I will own." She warned him, slamming the bedroom door before collapsing on her bed once more.
Authors Note: Here's chapter five. Sorry it took so long. My days have been taken up by sleeping and working. I work nights and when I get home I just sleep. So I apologize for taking so long to edit this. I realized as I was editing it today, that it didn't need that much editing at all..
R&R