April 8, 1176
Asalaye's father was not the sort of man Cord would have normally pegged as intimidating. He was a good man, a kind man--the sort of man who let the village children swim in his pond on hot days, the sort of man who went to shops with uneven coin and let the proprietors keep the change. But today, he could have been anyone. Sitting there, his eyes narrowed and frown swelling and the rest of his body eerily still. He might have been a stranger. He might have been a wild animal crouching in the bushes, just waiting for his prey to make the wrong move."I take it this is about my daughter?"
Cord swallowed. He'd been hoping to lead into that with some prelude of chitchat, but the awkward silence must have passed the time Adonis had allotted it. So much for getting comfortable first. Why had he hesitated? Stupid, stupid... "Uh, well... yes.""I see." The older man rested his hand on the chair's arm and sighed. Cord didn't even have to asked. Adonis already knew. "Well. Forgive an old man for never dreaming this day would come so soon."
It was neither a yes nor a no. Cord struggled against the urge to fidget; indignance probably wasn't of much use to any cause. "Sir, I don't want to rush you, but--"
"Cord, you have sisters." He frowned. What did his sisters have to do with anything? "Suppose Had and Lyraina had never met, and suppose she never had anyone else--impossible, I know, but bear with me. Suppose Hilla had a gentleman caller who one day went to you or your stepfather and asked for her hand. If you tell him yes, then what do you tell Lyraina?"Err... "To be happy for her sister?"
Adonis's brow furrowed. Great answer, genius. "Cord, I never had any sisters, but I did have a pair of cousins growing up, two girls. The younger was bright, pretty, outgoing. The elder... well, there was nothing wrong with her, but her sister was larger than life and cast a proportionate shadow. The younger girl had four proposals before she turned sixteen. She ended up marrying the fifth man, a man that her sister had once admired. After that, my older cousin stopped eating. She grew so thin and pale that her parents had to send her to a nunnery to recover." He took a sharp breath, brown eyes flitting to the ceiling. "She never did."
He knew where this was going. Somehow, Cord got the impression that Nanalie was made of sterner stuff than her ill-fated cousin, but if Adonis had seen that happen before then there probably wasn't much he could do to reassure him. But if Adonis wanted him and Asalaye to wait until Nanalie had married... well, how long would that be? "I understand your concern, but I don't think Nanalie would take it that way.""And how can you be sure of that?"
If ever was a question a man never wanted to hear. Cord swallowed. "Well, I guess I can't, but--"
"You can't." For a man of his age, Adonis had retained more of his prime than many could hope for, but the light in his eyes was cool and seasoned. For the first time in their acquaintance, he looked truly old. "But I suppose there's one way to find out."NEXT CHAPTER:
5 comments:
Aaaaand the new computer (and EPs) are back in business :)
Thinking I'll do the Sim Haven September Challenge tomorrow. It'll be a prologue piece again, this time falling into Realmspeaker canon.
I'm really happy to hear your computer is back in business! Mine has been acting increasingly like an old man with dementia: one day fine, the next wondering what all those files are for.
This one surprised me, and it's ominous. What is Adonis saying, that Cord has to propose to Nanalie and see if she accepts? Am I getting that wrong? I can't imagine being Nanalie if that's what's going on, but then I guess that was the way it was.
Well, that explains why Adonis is so freaked out about Nanalie. Poor Adonis. And poor Nanalie.
(Although this gives Lonriad more time to get his act together -- yay!)
I don't think, though, that Adonis is asking Cord to propose to Nanalie first. That would just be ... dumb. What if she said yes and Cord was then stuck with her? (Not that Nanalie is a bad person, but, you know, nobody is right for absolutely everybody.) That would just lead to a slew of broken hearts. I think he is asking Cord to wait a bit and see if Nanalie gets any bites before marrying her younger sister.
Although I wonder what Adonis would say to Lonriad if he showed up at the door? Although considering the Kemorin style, I imagine the conversation would be less, "Sir, can I marry your daughter?" than "Sir, I've already married/knocked up your daughter. You don't mind, right? ... Right?"
lol Morgaine :D
I am guessing that the question will be less, "Nanalie, will you marry me?" and more "Nanalie, would you care if I married Asalaye?"
I would be interested to see Asalaye's reaction if Cord proposed to Nanalie and she accepted long before Asalaye realized that Lonriad is her guy.
Glad your 'pooter got fixed, Van!!
Beth: Thanks. Heheheh... hope yours gets its butt in gear :S
What Adonis is saying definitely has something to do with Nanalie's future. The question at this point is whether he's asking Cord to wait, or maybe asking him to ask Nanalie first?
In any case, we'll find out fairly soon.
Morgaine: Poor Adonis indeed. And poor Nanalie, even if she is made of sterner stuff.
But yes, it does give Lonriad a bit more time to make his move ;)
Yeah, Cord proposing to Nanalie probably wouldn't be the best idea, or at least if there was any chance of her saying yes.
I don't know if Lonriad would get a different response. On one hand, Adonis still has his cousins on his mind, but on the other hand Lonriad is his lord's son and Adonis is conservative enough to observe that. But yeah, if it was Lonriad, I doubt it would be permission he was after :P
Pen: If only in Cord's head, I'm sure it will be ;)
Asalaye's reaction would... certainly be interesting. Interesting indeed :S
Maybe Lonriad could cheer her up. In the hayloft. With his reproductive organs.
Thanks Pen. I'm definitely relieved :)
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