Again I have to apologize for not updating sooner, lovelies. With that Avengers fic going on, it's kind of hard to keep switching back and forth between the Shakespeare mood and the Loki mood xD
But I am really grateful to all those who have been patient enough and I hope you all like how the story's evolving so far. So enjoy, lovelies~ ;)
P.S. I do not own any of the Hollow Crown characters. I only own Odette and any other OC you might encounter along the way :)
Jest
"Then I will see you in the morning, my Lady..."
"What for, my Lord?"
"Needn't you keep to your task?"
oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo
"Must we go see the saggy bag of flesh?"
Chuckling at the girl's protest, Hal turned his gaze from the bustling street to Odette, lightly tightening his grasp upon her hand.
"Those are not words befitting a Queen's fair lips."
"As if you would know anything of that, you hotheaded Prince."
Grinning at her failed attempt to fight back a smile, Hal then ultimately chose to offer a serious reply.
"Poins asked me to meet him here; says he has some important thing to share with me. It will do no harm to see Falstaff as well."
Opening the door to the Hog's Head he allowed her to enter the bustling tavern before stepping inside as well.
"Good morrow, m' Lady... m' Lord..."
Raising her gaze at the greeting, Odette smiled at the sight of Mistress Quickly. Offering a nod in return of her greeting, she then inwardly shuddered when the elder female leaned to kiss Hal's cheek. Still, she actually liked the woman... at least much more than she liked that blonde wench she had caught in Hal's bed a few times. Sure, the tavern keeper was not the most educated person, as most common folk, but she was an honest woman and possessed a sort of innate wisdom which had, no doubt, come with the passage of years.
Leaving the woman to her things she now followed Hal upstairs where she could already hear Falstaff's loud snores coming through the door of one of the bedrooms.
"Lazy old crow..." Hal muttered amusedly.
Upon entering, Odette found it impossible to hold back a smile at the sight of the fat elderly man sleeping sprawled out onto the bed. What did clench her jaw, however, was seeing the wench sleeping at his side, her skirt lifted to expose her legs and half of her rump.
"I will wait in the hallway..."
Grasping her arm, Hal instead pulled her against him.
"Dearest, did I not vow myself to you?"
Fixing her with a serious gaze until she yielded, he then once more smiled and turned his gaze to Falstaff whilst reaching down to pinch his foot until the old man finally awoke.
"Now Hal..." he muttered sleepily.
Sighting Odette, he finally seemed to snap out of that slumbering state.
"What time of day is it, lad?"
"What a devil have you to do with the time of the day?" the girl retorted humorously.
Glancing to her Hal chuckled and crossed his arms whilst leaning against a wooden pole of the bed.
"Indeed... unless hours were cups of sack, and minutes capons, and clocks the tongues of bawds, and dials the signs of leaping-houses, and the blessed sun himself a fair hot wench in flame colored taffeta, I see no reason why you should be so superfluous as to demand the time of the day."
Heaving himself out of bed after smacking the wench's rump, Falstaff now spoke again asking Hal if he would be hanged once the Prince became King.
"Shall there be gallows in England when you are King? Do you not, when you are King, hang a thief?"
"Er, no... you shall..."
Smiling at the young male's reply Odette crossed her arms and rolled her eyes at his antics.
"O shall I? O Lord... I'll be a brave judge..." Falstaff replied.
"Well you judge false already. I mean you shall have the hanging of the thieves and so become a rare hangman..."
Biting her lower lip to hold in her laughter when Falstaff began to butter up to Hal, the girl now leaned against the wall whilst the old man sat upon a chair, struggling to get his boots on.
"You have done much harm upon me, Hal, God forgive you for it. Before I knew you, Hal, I knew nothing... and now I am, if a man should speak truly, little better than the wicked."
Chuckling at his words, the Prince merely watched him in silence, letting him ramble on before he leaned forward with an expression that Odette knew too well to be a fake one, despite the lack of humor.
"Where shall we take a purse tomorrow, Jack?"
Arching a brow at the elder man's prolonged silence Odette finally shook her head when Falstaff replied.
" 'Zounds, where you will, lad. And I'll make one."
"I see a good amendment of life in you... from praying to purse-taking." Hal laughed.
Whilst Falstaff rambled on about how it was his vocation, Poins finally stepped into the room.
"Good morrow!" he said cheerfully, shaking Hal's hand before bowing to Odette. "Good morrow, my fair Lady."
Walking then to where Falstaff was seated he leaned against the table.
"Tomorrow morning, by four o'clock, there are pilgrims going to Canterbury with rich offerings... and traders riding to London. If you will go, I will stuff your purses full of crowns. If you will not, tarry at home and be hanged."
"If I tarry at home and go not, I'll hang you for going." Falstaff replied. "Hal, will you make one?"
"Who, I a rob? I a thief? Not I, by my faith..." the Prince replied whilst heading to the door and stepping out into the hallway.
"There's neither honesty, manhood, nor good fellowship in you, nor do you come of royal blood if you dare not stand for ten shillings."
"Well then, once in my days I'll be a madcap..." Hal retorted in jest.
"Why, that's well said."
"Well, come what will, I'll tarry at home."
"By the Lord I'll be a traitor then, when you are King."
"I care not..." the Prince chuckled.
"I will lay him down such reasons that he shall go..." Poins stated.
Lightly narrowing her eyes at his words, Odette then glanced to Hal who had about the same suspicious expression, apparently hinting that there was more to that robbery than Poins had initially said. Taking his hand when he extended it to her, she followed the Prince out of the room whilst Poins joined them in the hallway.
"Now, my good, sweet, honey Lord... ride with us tomorrow. And by all means, bring your Lady as well, she makes a fine warrior. I've a jest to execute that I cannot manage alone. Falstaff, Bardolph, Peto shall rob these men, yourselves and I will not be there. When they have the booty, if you and I do not rob them, cut this head off from my shoulders."
"But it is likely they will know us by our habits and by every other appointment to be ourselves." Hal replied.
"I have buckram cloaks to mask our noted outward garments."
"Yes but they will be too hard for us."
"Well, for two of them, I know them to be as true-bred cowards as ever turned back. And for the third, if he fights longer than he sees reason, I'll forswear arms. The virtue of this jest will be the incomprehensible lies this same fat rogue will tell us when we meet at supper."
Chuckling Hal gave it a thought over before leaning to Poins.
"Provide us all things necessary, and meet us here tomorrow night. Farewell."
"Farewell, my Lord, my Lady."
As she silently followed Hal downstairs and out of the tavern, Odette now finally saw an expression on his face that she had not before beheld. Had someone asked, she would have said it was a mixture of sorrow, determination and steeled resignation. Upon noticing the concerned gaze in her eyes as she watched him the Prince merely smiled, and his face lit up discarding all the darkened veils as the sun discarded fleeting clouds, whilst his arm rested around her shoulders and his lips pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead.
oOoOo
"Come, shelter, shelter..."
With that hushed statement Poins ducked behind a tree whilst Hal and Odette soon followed, hooded and cloaked just like their friend. The dawn was barely breaking through the cover of night, and the forest was veiled in mist. On the road below their hiding point, Falstaff was standing alone whilst his two accomplices were up ahead to watch for the pilgrims. Watching the fat old man calling out Poins' name and cursing at him, even Odette gave in to the humor of the scene and chuckled along with the Prince and their young friend.
"I have removed his horse and he frets like a gummed velvet." Poins explained.
They were still chuckling whilst Falstaff kept swearing at them and his two partners, when the two he was just speaking of came running along the road.
"There's money of the King's coming down the road." Bardolph said.
"Here they come..." Odette muttered, upon sighting the two horses coming along after Falstaff and the other two had hidden on the side. "You would do well to repay their stolen money after this prank, my Lord."
Setting an arm around her and pulling her closer, Hal now grinned.
"I am an honest Prince, my love."
"I doubt you know the meaning of the word." she retorted in jest, making Poins chuckle.
A flash of his grin was the last thing she saw before he claimed her lips for a brief kiss.
"I could not possibly imagine a better woman."
Rolling her eyes, Odette lightly punched him in the stomach.
"Now settle down, you rascals, else you'll give us away."
Going silent the three now watched as the pilgrims dismounted with the desire to walk for a bit, and then Falstaff and his men attacking them and frightening them off before taking the money bags. Whilst Falstaff was now rambling on about how Hal and Poins were cowards, the two young men along with Odette rushed out from their hiding spot with the swords unsheathed, shouting like mad. In an instant Bardolph and Peto dropped the money and took to running through the forest whilst Falstaff followed them as fast as his fat belly allowed him to, whilst begging for mercy.
"Got with much ease..." Poins stated through laughter.
"Were it not for laughing, I should pity him." Hal said when Falstaff tripped and fell onto his back.
However, the sight of the old man struggling to stand and keep fleeing in his terror made the trio burst into laughter again. Allowing them their fun, Odette then clapped them on the back after having returned her sword to its ebony sheath.
"Come, let us away from here, my brave horses... you are carrying this." she stated, pointing to the dropped bags of money.
With that she turned away from them, heading to where they had tied their stallions.
"I fear for England with you on the throne and she in your bed." Poins grinned.
"Best do as she says..." Hal laughed whilst picking up two of the four bags. "In all Hell there is not one fury as terrifying as my fair angel, should you scorn her."
Arching a brow before he burst into laughter, Poins now hefted the other two bags and followed after Hal. The rest of the evening after they had hidden the money was spent at the tavern. It was while Odette was speaking with Mistress Quickly that Hal suddenly grabbed her from behind.
"Do not treat me so coldly, my fair Lady... am I not at all worthy of your attention?"
Turning to him the girl now stared at the sight before her.
"Where have you been? You're dripping wet... and you stink of sack." she retorted, wrinkling her nose.
When he tightened his embrace on her and buried his face against the nape of her neck, she smacked him across the chest.
"Get off me!" she demanded even whilst fighting back a laugh as his breath tickled her skin. "You'll soil my clothes..."
"Good... then perhaps you'll take them off and warm my bed tonight." he chuckled, playfully biting her ear.
"Not tonight, my Lord... find some other way to keep yourself entertained."
"Then should I take one of these wenches upstairs, fair Odette?"
Sighting the heaviness of her scowl, he grinned and wrapped an arm around her neck to hold her in place, before leaning in and forcefully kissing her even as she struggled in his grasp, hitting him in the ribs with her hands. Her resistance soon crumbled, however, and instead she ended up wrapping her arms around his waist whilst he devoured her lips with such hunger as though he had been starved for a year. And she had to admit it, the scent and taste of wine was getting to her head, clouding her mind and urging her to return the same passion in their kiss.
"Your lips are sweeter, my fair angel, than any wine this rundown tavern sells." he grinned, once he had finally allowed her some respite. "And unlike the wine, you make me drunk with just one taste, and make me crave more and more and more with each experience I savor. And I desire no other taste than yours, my love... for none of these wenches, as willing as they may be to warm my bed, can sate the scorching lust you set ablaze in me."
His words finally earned him the reaction he had hoped for when Odette gave in to her urge to smile. Seizing the moment he once again kissed her, then again and again and again whilst he spoke.
"I will... hold to my oath... as long as... you would have me... do it..."
Leaning his forehead onto hers after the last kiss, he once more grinned.
"But I do promise you this... when you do give me leave to bed you, I will have you endure the full weight of the desire and lust you let build up inside me."
"The wine is getting to your head already." she retorted before leaning up to peck his lips.
"No, it is you that is getting to my head, beloved Odette." he laughed. "Now come, sit with me I pray you. Is it not enough that you starve me of your body... must you starve me of your affection as well?"
Rolling her eyes at his antics again, Odette now grasped the edges of his coat.
"Take this off and let your shirt dry, lest you wish to be bedridden tomorrow."
"I am yours to do with as you please, my Lady. If you wish to undress me, then, by God, do so."
"You are incorrigible, you hotheaded Prince..."
Despite her protest which made him chuckle, she did now push the coat off his shoulders and down his arms. Once he was rid of it he stepped back and shook his head violently to rid himself of any wine drops in his hair. It wasn't until around midnight that Falstaff and his men finally arrived, telling tales of hundreds of men that they had fought. Whilst Odette stood to the side listening in amusement, Hal and Poins kept urging them on until finally Hal revealed the true story causing the whole tavern to laugh at the fat male and his companions.
Their fun was shortly interrupted when a messenger from the King arrived, bringing news of the capture of a nobleman by a Welsh rebel and the apparent riot of Northumberland's son. Soon after the messenger's departure, however, they were watching Falstaff acting as the King whilst Hal stood before him to "answer" for his rowdiness. With the two switching roles, Odette found it quite uncanny to see how perfectly Hal could imitate not only his father's demeanor but also his voice. It was during one of Falstaff's replies that Mistress Quickly tugged on the girl's sleeve.
"My Lady, hear me... the Sheriff with a most monstrous watch is at the door!"
With Hal leaping off the table where he had been sitting, all the tavern guests now rushed upstairs to hide whilst the mistress went back to the door.
"My Lord, they are come to search the house!" she exclaimed upon returning.
"I will not hang, nor will I see you hang for that fat, worthless pile of sack." Odette frowned toward the Prince.
"Peace, my Lady... I beg you." he replied whilst putting on his coat.
Turning to Falstaff he pushed the old man toward the staircase.
"Hide yourself! Now for a true face and a good conscience!" he demanded.
When Falstaff started blabbing, Hal pushed him under the stairs whilst Poins concealed himself behind one of the thick wooden polls supporting the ceiling. Sighting the wench Hal grabbed her arm and shoved her onto the stairs.
"What do you stand around for, like a daft woman? Go hide yourself!" he ordered.
With the blonde female scrambling up the wooden steps Hal now threw himself onto the nearest chair and reached out for Odette's hand.
"Sit..."
Glancing from the door to him with a puzzled gaze, the girl finally understood his goal when he motioned to his lap.
"I will do no such thing in public..."
"Sit!" he growled, forcefully pulling her toward him.
In the face of that imposing demeanor he sometimes used whenever he truly wanted something, Odette felt compelled to obey. Casting a quick glance to Mistress Quickly who was waiting for one of them to let her open the door, she now spread her legs and settled onto his lap. His hand suddenly grasping her rump startled her, but before she could dwell too long on that he nodded to the tavern mistress before shoving the other hand in Odette's hair and enforcing a hungry kiss upon her.
It was like that that the Sheriff found them upon entering and for a moment he could not even breathe at the sight. Hearing the sound of his boots coming to a halt nearby, Odette opened her eyes and shot him a glance whilst Hal intentionally ignored him, acting as though he was much too caught in the moment and only leaning away when she pushed against his chest. If not for the danger looming over both their heads, she was sure they would both have likely burst out laughing at the expression on the elder male's face.
"Now, master Sheriff, what is your will with me?" Hal asked after clearing his throat.
"First pardon me, my Lord, my Lady." he managed to spit out whilst still recovering from the shock. "A hue and cry has followed certain men unto this house."
"What men?"
As he posed that question, the young Prince tensed his arm as he felt Odette trying to move away, firmly holding her in place.
"One of them is well known, my Lord... a gross, fat man. As fat as butter..."
Pretending to think for a moment, Hal then finally replied.
"Ah! The man, I do assure you, is not here. For I myself, at this time, have employed him. And Sheriff I will engage my word to you that I will, by tomorrow dinner-time, send him to answer you or any man for anything he shall be charged withal. And so, let me entreat you..."
Looking to Odette as he stated the last words, he intertwined his fingers with her and exhaled an amused huff at her stern gaze.
"Leave the house." he now ordered, once again looking to the Sheriff.
"I will, my Lord..." the male spat out through clenched teeth before adding on, merely out of spite. "These are two gentlemen have in this robbery lost 300 marks."
Faking an astounded expression Hal finally allowed Odette to stand before he rose himself from the chair.
"It may be so. If he has robbed these men, he shall be answerable. And so farewell..."
Mustering a forced smile beneath his mustache, the Sheriff now nodded.
"Good night, my noble Lord... my fair Lady."
"I think it is good morrow, is it not?" Hal retorted.
"Indeed, my Lord. I think it be two o'clock."
Once the Sheriff and his group had left the house, Hal finally released a relieved breath that he had been holding for some time whilst Poins stepped out from his hiding place and the wench descended the stairs cautiously.
"Your father will have me chastised when the Sheriff speaks to him of this impropriety." Odette sighed, dropping onto a nearby chair.
Ignoring the snores now resounding from beneath the stairs, the Prince approached her and leaned down to kiss her forehead.
"Chastised or not, I shall still love you." he replied humorously, trying to lighten her mood.
Rolling his eyes at the continuous snores of the old male, he sighed and stepped to the staircase, glancing down at Falstaff.
"Hark how hard he fetches breath." he said to Poins, making the young man chuckle. "Search his pockets..."
Upon finding nothing of value on him except a ring and some papers, the Prince now turned his gaze to Odette.
"Keep those, we'll read them at a better time." he said to Poins. "I'll to the court... we all must to the wars. So good morrow, Ned..."
With the girl standing he grasped her hand and walked out of the tavern.
"Good morrow, good my Lord... my fair Lady..." Poins called out in their wake.