Distress: Day 3

Word Count: 18,024

Summary of Events:

Olwyn collected a disguise and wore it in secret a few times — mostly to get used to the significant weight of the chain mail — before she successfully left Friðærd with the unit returning to the front and choosing the alias of Beric so as to not be found out. On the way she ended up making the acquaintance of a warrior who was older than her and willing to teach her how to do things that she hadn't learned from her brother; she thought he would make a nice husband, but she had no idea if he was married or not. Upon arriving at the encampment outside of Wygþmynd the unit was inspected by King Elaþa, on his stallion, Þaranys, who started to act up as the inspection got closer to Olwyn's position . . .

Excerpt of the Day:

This, coupled with the fact that she was going to be coming very close to her brother and uncle was making Olwyn rather tense, but she hoped that she would be able to be passed by unnoticed still somehow.

When they got to the row Olwyn was in Þaranys was nearly uncontrollable and was trying to rear. Uncle Elaþa dismissed the forward portion of the unit so that Þaranys’ fighting wouldn’t cause the stallion to bump into the backsides of the horses he’d already passed the front sides of and cause pandemonium.

Þaranys finally got himself up into a rear in spite of Uncle Elaþa’s best efforts right in front of Gwynwyfar. He threw his forequarters up into the air several times and tossed his head, trying to get Uncle Elaþa to release his close hold on the reins — including the secondary reins that attached to a chain under Þaranys’ chin to help keep the stallion in check as such horses were more difficult to control than mares or geldings.

“Where is the mare?” Uncle Elaþa asked, sounding strained in his efforts to control his stallion.

“Who in this rank has a mare?” Nuaða asked somewhat firmly.

Olwyn and a couple others raised their hands.

“Keep your hand up,” Nuaða said, surveying the line.

He then strode off to one end and went around behind the mares, checking to see if any of them were in heat, which was likely what was upsetting Þaranys, whom Uncle Elaþa had moved a ways away from the line in an effort to settle.

“As I suspected,” Nuaða’s voice behind Olwyn startled her, which startled Gwynwyfar, but Olwyn managed to keep her mare from panicking and looked over her shoulder warily at her brother. “Your mare is the culprit.”

“I’m sorry Your Highness,” Olwyn said. “I didn’t know or I would have warned His Majesty.”

“It is fine,” Nuaða said, although not as softly as he usually spoke to her — and that likely because he didn’t know he was addressing his sister. “His Majesty does not typically conduct inspections on horseback.”

Olwyn felt rather embarrassed, though. She hadn’t wanted attention called to herself, and she wished she would’ve checked to see whether Gwynwyfar was in heat or not so she would’ve been able to know that she might end up calling attention to herself; although that might have resulted in her being even more anxious than she was.

“For reasons I am sure you understand, your are dismissed with the others,” Nuaða said, looking her in the eye.

“Yes Your Highness,” Olwyn replied, fighting the urge to look away from him so that he wouldn’t find her suspicious.

He moved on without seeming to have recognised her at all and Olwyn rode Gwynwyfar off toward where the other men of the unit had gathered who had been dismissed and did her best to put herself as far away from the group remaining to be inspected.

Pronunciations:

Beric: behrihk

Þaranys: thahrahnihss

Gwynwyfar: gwihnwihfah