Still Nesting [4/2, afternoon, Marisée/Open]

[Marisée Forthwind]

Tegan was down for a nap. Finally. Sometimes Marisée wondered if her darling daughter would ever finally go to sleep. Often when she moved the sleeping baby to put her down, Tegan would wake right up and squall until she was held again. Today, however, she was lucky enough to have transferred her without waking, and had a few moments to herself.

Most would tell her to rest and relax but now that Marisée was finally up she wanted to be doing something. And her sister would be there soon; the Castle needed to look nice! So she was off down the halls where Melari would be staying to ensure the place had been cleaned and organized to the degree Mariseé felt it should be. Two months after Tegan’s birth and Marisée could still feel that nesting instinct overwhelming her. Or maybe she had just always had a natural drive to see things in order.

She entered the guest room and checked the linens, the curtains, the table tops and the wardrobe. She was decently impressed; clearly the room had just been cleaned. That was good, because Melari was used to House Forthwind’s way, which was to keep everything as clean as possible. With the room in order, she checked the parlor, conversed with a maid, ensured enough chamberpots would be brought up, and then decided to head for the kitchens to get something to eat before Tegan woke and needed another feeding.

If she was honest with herself, she still wasn’t used to the Kyffin’s Castle. White Spires had been her home for seventeen years, and her mother had managed the home as though she’d been born giving orders. Marisée had inherited much of her mother’s spirit. But at Caerderwen, the managing was done differently. Not wrong, just different, and in ways she wasn’t in line with.

Turning, she entered the kitchens where the cook carved her a piece of lamb and a cup of broth. Another kitchen maid carried it into the main dining hall for her, and she settled down to eat alone. Her husband was probably off doing business with the other men, and she had no idea where Branwyn was either. But some time alone didn’t bother her. She used her eating knife to cut off some meat, dip it into the broth and then take a bite. It was delicious, seasoned with rosemary and sage, and Marisée planned to spend the next half hour enjoying it.

[Branwyn Kyffin]

Branwyn was in a whirlwind of a good mood as she entered the castle, breezing past Gerald, the servant who had opened the door for her. She gave him a grin and swept her hand back through her hair, having a difficult time taming it and her desire to twirl down the hallway. She had just finished a brisk trot through the forest on Artan, and although she hadn’t been able to gallop like she might’ve if it had been earlier in the day and there had been less people around, just riding Artan made her happy. The fair weather and the signs of the coming of spring had just improved upon what already existed.

She breezed through the hallways and into the kitchens, adapting a slower, more sedated walk as she traveled. By the time she got to the kitchen, she was a lady again instead of a horseback rider. She procured a buttered roll, hot from the ovens, and listened as Ella, the head cook, explained how they needed more firewood as well at least one more kitchen lad. The last one had been commandeered by the stables, which wasn’t right, according to Ella, and someone needed to talk to that Head Stablemaster about stealing good help and it was a good practice to let such things happen, wouldn’t you agree…

After a while, Ella mentioned that lady Marisée was taking a meal in the main dining hall. Ah, Marisée. Branwyn smiled. She was a very sweet girl, and Branwyn wished she could be half as kind and gentle as she was. She just seemed so effortlessly good…if only she wasn’t so determined to have the entire castle scrubbed and shining. Branwyn happened to think that Caerderwen was rather wonderful with a lived-in feel. She liked the small messes and the feeling that the place had been touched by human hands on a daily basis. But it was a minor difference of opinion, after all.

After Branwyn had promised Ella a new kitchen lad, she headed down to the main dining hall. Maybe Marisée would like someone to join her? It couldn’t hurt to ask…

She entered the room, her roll wrapped in a cloth and a smile on her face.

“Care for company?” she asked the younger woman.

[Marisée Forthwind]

Marisée was in the middle of chewing a piece of lamb when Branwyn entered the room. She couldn’t open her mouth to speak - that would be unlady-like! - so she waved her over with her hand, feeling slightly embarrassed that she had to wait to give a proper greeting. Marisée doubted that Branwyn would be offended, but that didn’t make the small slight easier for the woman to manage. Finally, as the lamb was chewed enough to swallow, she spoke.

“I’d love some company. Especially the type that speaks instead of screams,” she joked. Tegan didn’t scream that often, but she was still a infant, and when she was wet or hungry or over-tired she definitely fussed. “Please join me. What did you do this morning?”

Marisée wished she could say she’d spent more time getting to know the unofficial matron of the house. With Bryn still unwed, Branwyn had stepped up into the role of lady of the house. Between her duties, and Marisée’s pregnancy and child, the two hadn’t spent much intimate time together. Or maybe it was their obvious differences in the perception of a clean and organized household.

Perhaps that should change.

[Branwyn Kyffin]

“I believe I can manage speaking instead of screaming,” Branwyn said, grinning back. She felt a little guilty for not having spent more time with the young mother or at least offering to look after Tegan once in a while. However, Tegan usually reminded her of what she herself didn’t have: a baby. Or, in truth, a family of her own, complete with a husband. However, since she was already twenty-one, she knew her chances of ever getting married would most likely be slim. Besides, Bryn needed her here, and he would until an unforeseeable point in the future. No use mulling over it…

Roll in hand, Branwyn walked over to the table and sat down opposite of Marisée. She flopped open the cloth over the roll and picked up the serrated knife that had been in the cloth. If it had been only her or just her and Bryn, she probably would’ve just tore into the bread with her fingers, but ladies had to be dainty. Ladies used knives. So, following suit, so would she.

“I went for a ride,” she said, “The woods were lovely.” And she had been reluctant to leave them. She quartered off a section of roll and looked at Marisée. “How was your morning?”

[Marisée Forthwind]

“Then I’m sure we’ll manage a lovely afternoon conversation,” Marisée smiled back. She probably should have offered sometime in the last few months to let Branwyn hold Tegan, but at the same time Marisée still felt that strange overprotectiveness of the little baby, and Branwyn hadn’t exactly been the most available anyway. For living in the same castle, they managed to keep themselves fairly busy, and with all the frequent feedings, Marisée hadn’t spent as many evenings at the family dinner table.

She watched as Branwyn began to work on the roll, her eyes shifting from the knife back up to her goodcousin’s face. “Riding in the woods sounds lovely. I always have enjoyed nature. It’s one of those places where you can close your eyes and just listen to the sounds around you and think about how simple life must for all other creatures. Eat. Sleep. Live. But the gods clearly intended more for us.”

She took another quick bite of her food and then when finished chewing continued on. “Well, my sister is coming to visit and see the baby, so I have been ensuring her room is ready.” She left off saying properly cleaned. She was sure that wouldn’t go over... well.

[Branwyn Kyffin]

Branwyn felt her eyebrows wanting to lift as Marisée talked about the experiencing nature. Now that was something she could potentially bond with the younger woman about. Maybe she would invite Marisée to go for a walk with her some time. She knew hunting would probably be out of the question; Marisée didn’t really strike her as a lady who would enjoy hunting. She seemed gentle and kind and as if the mere thought of killing a rabbit would displease her. “At least we can visit nature, even if we’re kept from the simple life of the creatures that inhabit it,” she said.

She was certain she had heard something about this at some point. Branwyn nibbled at a bit of the tough, hearty bread crust. Marisée sister was named Melari, wasn’t she? Branwyn had a feeling that if she had met them at the same time, she would have gotten those names messed up numerous times.

Oh…she hoped the staff wouldn’t be pushed to irritation when it came to preparing the guest room. They were used to cleaning, of course, but they weren’t used to getting down and scrubbing at the cracks in the floor with tiny bristle sticks or flicking invisible dust motes that they couldn’t see. Well, tempers and frustrations could be assuaged and handled if it happened.

“It’ll be nice to have a guest,” she said. Their home was often threatened by raiders, so visitors weren’t exactly common. “Have you missed her greatly?” She didn’t know if their relationship was a good one or poor one.

[Marisée Forthwind]

“I would enjoy that. When Tegan is older I’m sure she will enjoy being taken out and about. But not yet. I wouldn’t want her to catch something out there. As much as I love nature, I know how easily being exposed can bring on illnesses.” One of the reasons she’d been so into the world of herbs and healing, for both herself and those she loved. “But she can stay here with someone, maybe her father.” Marisée still had a hard time leaving her at all, but she realized that to stay sane she needed to have her breaks.

The conversation turned to her sister and Marisée couldn’t help but smile. “I miss her so much. She was both my sister and my best friend. Every memory I have involved her. We are so close in age, only a few years, that we grew up doing everything together. She’s coming to see Tegan of course, or at least that’s the excuse we’re using. I’m sure my brother would have been fine with her coming either way.”

She just hoped the Kyffin family would make Melari feel welcome. They were different, the Kyffins. Not in a bad way, just different. And her sister had spent most all of her life living at the White Spires.

[Branwyn Kyffin]

Branwyn nodded, though she was thinking to herself that a little dirt and grit was good for a child. Made them hardier, as far as she could tell, and they were easy enough to wash off; dunk them in a river or a scrub them down with a cloth and they were as good as new and happier for the mud. Then again, Marisée probably only meant to confine the child inside for now. Certainly she would be allowed some freedoms when she was older… If not, she would find an advocate in her older cousin. No Kyffin child could be contained indoors for too long; they were a hands-on lot and were often not satisfied with books and learning alone.

“Perhaps we can take a walk around the grounds together on some mornings, then,” Branwyn said. Bonding with her new cousin through the forest might not be such a bad idea. Actually she could potentially quite enjoy it, as long as Marisée didn’t confine the conversation to court talk and needlework and house work. Branwyn could manage to talk of those subjects for a while, but she did not enjoy them.

Branwyn put her bread down as she listened to Marisée. It sounded like the other woman was extremely close to her sister, which Branwyn thought was sweet. She loved her sisters, but she was more of a responsible figure for them, not a best friend. It saddened her, occasionally, but it was what they needed…not a wild, brash, headstrong older sister. She was actually closer to Bryn, in truth, than her sisters. She laughed a bit. “Well, I’m very glad she’s coming, and she’s welcome to stay as long as you like. I’m certain we can come up with all sorts of good reasons for her to stay.”

[Marisée Forthwind]

As Branwyn spoke, Marisée continued to eat her meal. She marveled at how good the food tasted when she could relax and eat leisurely. She kept expecting the nurse to come down and tell her Tegan was hungry and needed to be fed again, something that Marisée insisted she do herself. Many nobles might use a wet nurse, but not Marisée. She wanted to be a mother in all ways.

Branwyn mentioned the gardens, and Marisée wondered why they hadn’t gone on a walk before. Had she simply spent so much time with Tristan that she neglected the rest of the family? Had she been too busy caring for herself during her pregnancy? Had she missed Mel so much she hadn’t bothered with new friendship? Marisée couldn’t place her finger on why, but a walk in the garden was definitely a good start. “We should, and when my sister arrives perhaps we can all go. Melari is so sweet. You will like her.”

Her eyes lit up at Branwyn’s suggestion and she nodded. “Oh, that would be wonderful. I just can’t thank you and your brother enough for letting her come visit.”

She finished her food and pushed back her plate. “If you have some time now, perhaps we could take that walk? I hopefully have a little more time before Tegan wakes.”