The exercise:
It's time for our fourth visit to: Mejaran.
Click the link if you're new or just need a refresher. If you're just joining in, you can either build on what's already been written or add something completely new (that still fits the setting, obviously).
I was going to save this for the weekend, but then I got an idea for mine a couple of days ago and got all excited. So here we are.
Max seems to be taking these shots in stride, other than a bit of extra sleepiness. Much better than last time, so far.
Mine:
"What's with all the swords anyway?" Yarel asked Orsana as the blacksmith returned to her work. Word had traveled fast that Shotek was already out of custody - long before the duo could do anything they might regret. "Seems like a lot more than anybody in Mejaran would need."
"You know that quiet fellow, Azmar? The one who seems to spend all his time standing in the cold staring at windows and roofs? He put in the order."
"What in the world for?" Yarel stretched out a hand to feel one of the finished hilts but it never reached its destination, as Orsana swatted it away without turning around. "Ow. You have eyes in the back of your head, don't you?"
"Believe what you will, youngblood."
"Don't worry, I shall." Yarel squinted at his friend's back. Had that been a giggle? Surely not. "You didn't answer my question. I know the real estate business around here must be deader than Lady Helen's conscience, but he doesn't seem the sort to go into arms dealing."
"Apparently he's starting a swordsman's club of some sorts." Orsana brought her hammer down once more, then paused to study the steel. "You know, dueling and all that nonsense. Boys with too much time on their hands."
"What?" Yarel's voice had gone higher than he'd intended and he forced it back down before continuing. "If he's starting a club like that, why is this the first I'm hearing about it? There should be posters on every window!"
"Indeed," Azmar said softly from the doorway behind him, startling Yarel just enough for him to wet himself (but only slightly). "It's almost as though everything is not quite as it appears..."
6 comments:
I'm glad to hear that Max is taking the shots like a trooper! He'll be going with you and reassuring you for your shots in no time at all ;-)
I was waiting until the weekend to ask about Mejaran as well actually, as you seem to be a little busy at the moment. But you've gloriously pre-empted me! So Shotek is free again, and Azmar is possibly revealing a card in his hand... there's so much going on in Mejaran. And I suspect we're only just scratching the surface here...
Mine:
"You told her you were coming to talk to me?" Jocelle's glare had all the heat of the ten-foot tall bonfires that Mejarans lit at Yule to remind the sun to return. "Lady Margaret knows about me?"
"No," said Liefert, grinning. "I told her I had a man informing me, and the guard she sets to following me is, as befits her purse, half-blind and half-lame and currently watching a man he thinks is me feed ducks."
"Hmph. I'm surprised there are any ducks left in Mejaran the way her and Lady Helen throw their banquets. How long ago was it that they ate the last swan?"
"Long enough. Now, tell me about Azmar. Please?"
Jocelle set the bowl she'd been scrubbing aside: turmeric stained things yellow far too easily for her liking. "Just you make sure that Yarel is kept out of this," she said. "He's that age... I lost his father already." She paused, and Liefert tactfully stayed silent, waiting. "Azmar has a friend, who comes to visit him once a month. He arrives late at night, and leaves late at night, so it's possible that there's only me and Azmar who even know he comes here. They talk, and the friend sometimes drops things off. I've never seen him leave with anything though. For a while I thought he was Azmar's boyfriend."
Liefert smiled. "Azmar with a boyfriend?" he said. "He seems like too cold a fish...."
"Hah," said Jocelle. "Well he does have a boyfriend actually, which is just another of his secrets."
"How do you know all of this?" asked Liefert suddenly. "I know about–"
"And you'll stay quiet about it," said Jocelle firmly. "Walls have ears. Which is, broadly speaking, how I know so much."
"Such big ears," said Liefert. "It's a wonder the rest of us can't see them!"
Greg - yeah, that wouldn't surprise me at all. 'Relax, Dad. This won't hurt at all...'
Love the bonfire detail at the start there. And you've added another intriguing element to the mix as well.
I'm enjoying how complex and fleshed out we've managed to make this place in such a short time!
Vanara almost dropped the stack of plates. "He's asked you what?"
Divana shushed her and took the stack. "He didn't ask me to, I suggested it," she whispered. "I don't have much time, I've to be quick."
"A bit too quick, don't you think?" She absently reached for another dish, then considered it a moment. "Does anyone else know?"
"You and my mother are the only ones."
"Madame Oleán, wife of one of the principles of Mejaran---" Divana shushed her again, so she lowered her voice. "---is letting her daughter run away with a practical stranger on what's essentially the eve of her wedding?"
"She's actually surprised I didn't sooner. Please, you musn't tell, not until we've a few days under our feet."
Vanara wiped her hands on her apron. "Would you come back?" she asked quietly.
"Not for a long time, if we did."
The two were quiet. "Divana, may I be frank for a moment?"
"Of course."
She hesitated. "Azmar's up to something."
Divana bit her tongue to keep from laughing. "That vacant oddball, up to something?"
"Surprising, but serious. I don't know what's in the works, but he's close to Principle Ikava. Your... idea will almost certainly irritate him---"
"To say the least," Divana interjected, almost relishing in such a thought.
"---But it also might spur him to help Azmar with whatever he's planning. Again, I don't know what his plan is, but I don't have a good feeling about it." She sighed. "Were something not afoot I'd not say anything."
Divana nodded. "My mother knows what's at stake. She's told me herself that Father will understand, even if it does mean the two sides' leadership stays separate for more time." She paused, but nodded again. "They know I'll be happy."
"So long as you are." Vanara hugged her tightly. "Consider me lipless. Now fly, you starlings."
apologies for being a little late, I haven't had internet for the past few days and completely forgot the beginning of the month meant Mejaran. Hopefully my bit's suitable. ^^
g2 - I was actually thinking of sending you a note to let you know that this month's post was up. Glad you found it despite my lack of following through on that thought :P
Intriguing development. I suspect plans will not go smoothly, but it's still early in the year yet :)
I'm going through some organizational stuff, and I realize that this flight, at least initially, did not go smoothly, as seen here. But eventually this happens.
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