A Note to Lady Rayven....

[Sir Thanatos]

After a rather pleasant afternoon spent with the Lady, he brushes down Mortis and fills the stall with new hay...Then once his rig is taken care of, the leather cleaned and a bit of saddle soap applied, dried and polished, he steps back and surveys his handiwork a moment.

Nodding to himself that all is satisfactory, he turns and makes his way to his rooms at the Inn. Once inside he settles himself at the small writing table...taking out a small piece of parchement and a quill, he sets words to paper....

Lady Rayven,

I beg for forgivness for this intrusion unto your daily activities, and fervertly hope that I do not interrupt anything of importance.
My wish in this writing, is to convey how much I enjoyed our excursion this afternoon, indeed I now know why you fancy the hills and lake...they pale however greatly when compared to your company fair Lady!

The "guessing game", which you rather handily won, was a wonderful diversion and I pray that I do better at it next time! If of course you grant me Leave to accompany you again in the near future.

In closing, may your activities this day bring you much joy!

Your Humble Servant,

Sir Thanatos

Once the note is written, he sits back in the chair and recalls the time spent with the good Lady...He pondered also the question she posed..."Do you have a Lady waiting for you?"...his features frowned a bit as for the first time in a long time, he allowed his mind to venture down this path....He knew full well why this was so, and that for the most part what he replied to the Lady was truth..he had no desire to leave a woman grieving upon hearing of his demise in battle, somehow it just did not seem like a reasonable thing to do. Of course, being a man, he had need of female companionship from time to time, he did his utmost to be true to his Standing in these matters, and remain as gracious as he could and he would continue to do so.

He had only been in this Kingdom a short time, and he was not one to "fall for the first pretty face" he saw, yet this woman created a stir within him, how she managed that, he did not really know, only that she accomplished it with an ease that almost frightened him. Well, he thought, "one day at a time Than ole boy, one day at a time!"

So he now sealed the letter with the wax Seal of his "Arms" and gathered the parchment up in his hand and went looking for a servant to deliver it to the Lady...He truly hoped he was not stepping over the line here...but time would tell him soon enough!

[Rayven]

Upon my arrival back at the castle after my mid-morning ride, my chambermaid informed me that a letter had arrived for me while I was out.

Eagar to see the correspondence I climbed the stairs to my chambers.

The writing was in fine hand, with neat spacing of letters, loops and swirls that signified the writer had mastered the art. I turned the letter over, smiling as I saw the seal and reached into my desk for the letter opener.

A smile formed upon my face as I read his words.

Taking quill and parchment I replied:

Milord Thanatos,

Thank you for your kind letter and for accompanying me on the ride yesterday afternoon.

I feel the beauty of the surrounding countryside and lake region would have not been observed as keenly as it was if you had not been there to share it with me.

You not only confirmed my belief in your riding skills, but your observation skills as well, as you so aptly displayed in our guessing game.

I will look forward to your future visits to Windstorm. I hope you will see fit to call upon me again.

With deep regard,

Lady Rayven O’Duilleain


Takes the candle off my desk, lighting the wick and letting it drip slowly onto the back of the letter forming a puddle of wax, then reaches for my personal seal.

Reaches down and scoops up Eldri onto my lap, burying my face in the soft fur as I read his letter once again.

[Sir Thanatos]

He had been napping a bit when the soft knock came upon his door, grumbling a little as he stumbled off the bed, he opened the door to find a small boy holding a letter addressed to him in his small hand and a cautious smile upon his lips..

"MiLord, this arrived a short time ago for you..my Da bade me hesitate awhile before disturbing your slumber."

Nodding his head as he listened to the young messenger, then reaching for the small bit of coin he always kept on the table, he hands one to the youngster....

"You did just right boy, tell your Da that I thank him for allowing me the rest before sending you here. Here son, this coin is for your troubles!"

Lightly messing up the child's already unruly hair, he flipped the coin to the lad as he took the letter from his grasp...Smiling to the lad, he then closed the door again and sat upon his bed to read the letter.

"Hmm, the Lady responds quickly I see! Well, at least the Castle Guard did not deliver the letter along with an invitation for me to lose my head, so hopefully the reply is a positive one!" *chuckles to himself*

Taking a long moment to study the hand that addressed the note, he learns a bit about this Lady Rayven....as the hand artistically wrote his name with small fourishes..a "Lady" indeed by the look of the script..and he thought, "Someone took the time to give this woman booklearning to be sure!"....

Reaching for the small dagger he kept in his boot, he opens the parchment and reads the words finely written upon the page. Once finished, he breathes a small sigh of relief, as the letter did not contain words of Dismissal or worse and were in fact somewhat encouraging!

Smiling to himself he makes a decision...Stomping his foot hard upon the floor, by way of summoning the boy back, he waits at the now opened doorway...

"Boy! Is there one in this Village that knows flowers?..There is? Very well then young master, you may afford me one more service! Take this coin to the Florist, and bade him to select a small gathering of fresh wild flowers and have them brought to the Lady Rayven at Windstorm Castle! You can do that yes young'un? Good, good!! Then be off with you! Oh and one more thing, bade the Lady this remark....'To remember warm sun upon a hilltop' Now that's a good lad, run off now!"

He re-reads the words the Lady sent him and a slight smile travels across his lips...and to the empty room he speaks...

"I have one more letter to write!"

Then he sits again and begins placing careful words upon the page, as he deems it best to make sure from the King, that he does not interfere with any Oathbonds placed upon the woman...

[Rayven]

Some time later, after the castle had settle down and Thanatos had taken his leave, I received a knock on my chamber’s door. Standing next to mollie was a young boy about the age of eight or nine and he was holding the most beautiful display of flowers I’d ever seen. Daisies, bunches and bunches of daisies.

I opened my mouth to reply but nothing came out, I simply couldn’t take my eyes off of the beautiful flowers, so many of them, he had to hold them with both his arms around the stems.

Seeing my surprised look, mollie spoke up:

‘e insisted on seeing you Milady, wouldn’t take no for an answer this one. Even when I told him I was going to cuff his ear if he didn’t tell me what he wanted with your time.

He says and she looked down at the boy holding the enormous bouquet of daisies that he was instructed to deliver these to you personally and oh, yes, he has something he needs to tell you as well.

She cuffed the boy on the back of the head a bit to spur him on

“Well, go on with you, say what you came to say then be off with you.”

Clearing his throat a bit then standing up tall and handing me the bouquet of flowers

'To remember warm sun upon a hilltop'

I smiled down on him and took a coin out of my pocket and placed it into his hand, watching his face, as now it was his turn to be surprised.

“Mollie, take him down to the scullery and give him something to eat. I need to write a letter to the sender of these lovely flowers and I wish him to take it back with him on his return trip. I shall call for you when I am finished.”

Mollie dropped a curtsey and took the boy firmly by the arm, leading him down the corridor.

I closed the door and turned, leaning up against it, my head pressed up against the polished wood and pressed the daisies to me. Then I went to my desk and began to write.


Milord Thanatos,

Words can’t express to you the gratitude and joy, not to mention surprise, I feel at this moment.

The flowers were a beautiful gesture. How did you know daisies are my favorite flower?

Please accept this handkerchief as a token of my appreciation.

With deep gratitude,

Lady Rayven O’Duilleain

Inserts a linen handkerchief embroidered with the letter “R”

[Sir Thanatos]

*The young boy had returned with note from Lady Rayven, the Knight thanked the young man and when he offered another coin to him, much to his surprise, it was declined....a rare thing indeed, and the esteem for the trustworthy boy climbed a bit higher. Offering the young master a "cross the chest" manly salute and slight bow which the boy returned with a broad smile, the Knight stepped back and closed his door.

Taking the note to his table, he sat and opened it with his dagger tip and was pleasantly surprised when the hanky fell out. He took it gingerly in his hands and spread it out before him...his smile widened when he saw the "R" monogram upon it...Then turning his attention to the words he read the letter.

As he read the last words contained within the letter, he smiled more broadly, to a point he felt that his face might crack asunder..nodding to himself, he gently placed the hankerchief into the bracers just above his wrists...making sure the "R" was visible and slightly drapped over a small portion of the metal on the bracer over his right hand.

He contemplated writing back, but in the end declined to do so...only because he hoped he would see the Lady long before any messenger would locate her.

So wearing the repaired shirt that the Lady Rayven had sewn for him after the pooch she had found chewed many holes in it, and the hanky within the bracer upon his arm, he stood and made his way towards the castle and the Great Hall.....*