Young Writers Society

"That is the unification of the tribes," he replied proudly. "When the twelve Houses formed and we ceased to be nomads." Tarr pointed out a stone motif around the edges of the tapestry and gestured to an image of tribal men and women building a massive structure. His tutors had taken him to this room many times and tested him on the history of each tapestry, but it was this one that excited him the most. The idea of taming the wild and retaining some of that aggression...being able to have both things at once....it filled him with true awe.

“Incredible!” Aleth answered. He would clearly need to study up more on Tarr’s ancestry, since it seemed so important to him. “What does the symbol mean?”

"That's the symbol for unity. Each of the tribes had a symbol they would carve into trees and the like to indicate they'd been there, and they twelve combined an element of each one to create that symbol."

“Sounds very interesting. What was the Tarr household’s contribution?”

Tarr pointed to a sharp, jagged part of the symbol that bled into a looping design. "The ragged bit there."

Aleth nodded. “I’d quite like to hear more about your ancestors sometime.”

"Then you shall." Tarr dipped his head. "I'll leave you to settle yourself, now. I'll have a maid call you when dinner is ready."

“Perfect,” Aleth smiled at him. “Thank you again.”

Tarr nodded again and grinned, then stepped out and shut the door. Off to speak to his wife about having dinner without him, now. She'd been here less than two months and was already making decisions on her own...that would have to stop immediately.

Ky leapt to her feet the instant Tadaaki walked in with the chest slung over his shoulder. A few of Tarr's servants carried some of their smaller bags, then dumped them in the corner and took their leave.

Tadaaki was visibly shaking.

"Ohh, Aaki!" She hurried over to him, unclasping her own coat and throwing it over his shoulders. Not that it did much. He was easily three times her size and it wouldn't even cover his entire back. Still, she wrapped her arms around him and guided him over to the fire.

"I'm fine," he muttered gruffly.

"No, you're frozen all the way through." She got him settled into a seat near to the flames, then sank to her knees in front of him and gently began rubbing his left hand, hoping to increase circulation. It was ice cold in her hands. "I'm so sorry I couldn't help with the coach more."

"It's not your fault," he answered so softly she could barely hear his voice. He seemed so weak. "It's just this damnable climate."



Aleth gave Tarr a few moments to vacate the hall, wandering around to assess each of the tapestries in turn. Then he glanced around and saw that none of his belongings were in the room, including his servants.

Once he was fairly certain Tarr wouldn't be in the hallway anymore, he went to his door and stepped out, then walked next door and knocked. Instantly, there was a shuffling inside, and a moment Ky pulled the door open.

Aleth stepped past her, eyes flicking around the room and taking it all in at once. His luggage was piled off to the left, next to a small bed. Tadaaki was lying on another small bed that was pulled close to the fire, trembling so badly Aleth could see it from across the room.

Aleth raised his eyebrows. "What happened?"

Tadaaki sprang upward at the sound of Aleth's voice, panicked eyes snapping towards the door. He threw the blankets back, about to push himself out of bed. Aleth waved his hand, silently ordering him to stay put.

"He has a fever," Ky answered.

"No I don't." Tadaaki reached up to pull his coat tighter around himself, but was still trembling violently.

"Tadaaki..." Aleth said warningly. They both knew how he felt about lying.

"Maybe I do, I don't know," Tadaaki murmured, looking at the floor. "But I'm fine."

"You'll stay in bed the rest of the evening," Aleth ordered. "Rest. And heal."

"Sir." Tadaaki obediently lowered himself back down to the mattress.

Aleth turned a sharp gaze back to Ky. "Why aren't my things settled yet?"

"They wouldn't allow us in your room without you present," Ky answered. "I can bring them over now."

Aleth inclined his head, and Ky instantly walked over to the pile of luggage. He reached for his satchel, then walked back over to his own room. Ky tottered behind him, struggling under the weight of the chest that was almost longer than she was tall. She set it at the foot of the bed then walked back next door to grab the rest of the luggage.

Aleth settled down next to the window, pulling out his file on the Tarrs, then he reached into the secret pocket of his satchel and felt around until his fingers wrapped around a piece of paper. He plucked it out and unfolded it, seeing what looked like nonsense written down.

Ky walked back in the room and shut the door, then set the bags down.

"What'd you observe?" Aleth asked, holding up the paper.

"That he's eager for the war. And disdainful of his wife." Ky walked towards him.

Aleth nodded. That much was painfully obvious, within the first thirty seconds they'd been here. Aleth gestured at the chair opposite the table from him, throwing the paper down as Ky sat down. "Add that he's proud of his ancestry. And that he values strength above all else."

Ky obediently scribbled it down.

Aleth went on for a few more minutes, sorting through his memory of all the helpful things about Tarr he'd noticed during their conversation. Ky obediently transcribed each, then busied herself with unpacking Aleth's items while he went back to studying the information he had on the Tarrs, trying to piece together more of their ancestry and history. He hadn't figured it was particularly relevant beyond the most immediate generations -- fathers certainly, maybe even grandfathers -- but he hadn't expected Tarr to be interested in heritage before that.

The gods knew Aleth couldn't give fewer fucks about his only family. His father had been a monster masquerading in the form of a man. His grandfather was even worse. They were the only two members of his family he'd ever met, but they'd been more than enough.

He dismissed Ky to go tend to Tadaaki, then kept studying until a servant came to fetch him for dinner.

The servant arrived promptly two hours after Tarr had left Aleth. He was not a servant in fact, but a slave. A towering man with a badly curved back that gave him the look of a used candle wick, he wore ragged animal furs in place of livery and a thin chain around his neck, which was engraved with the jagged lines Tarr had pointed out in the tapestry. His pale, craggy face was carefully expressionless as he announced that dinner was ready and he would guide them to the dining hall, where Lord and Lady Tarr were waiting.

Aleth looked at the sorry state of the man who had been sent to fetch him. It was yet another aspect of noblemen that he'd never understand. Why have so many slaves if you could not -- or would not -- properly take care of them? It was cruel. As cruel as his own father's treatment of him.

Sure, Ky and Tadaaki had each had their own share of brutality from Aleth's hand. Ironically, Ky much more than Tadaaki, since she was too stupid to stop fighting him and running his mouth at first. But, still, that wasn't Aleth's fault. It was entirely up to his servants how they chose to behave, since they knew fully well what the consequences were if they didn't. If they acted properly, then they were nourished and well-clothed.

Aleth retrieved Ky then walked down to the dining hall with her in his wake, not quite sure what Tarr's protocols were for how and where servants were to dine. But, he still ordered that someone take a warm meal up to Tadaaki right away. He couldn't have his servant getting seriously ill this early in the trip.

"My lord," Aleth inclined his head as he stepped in the room, Ky half a step behind. He turned his gaze on the young girl at the table. "M'lady."

Lady Lyra Tarr, née Loquitur, was a pale wisp of a thing with large, doll-like blue eyes and a thick head of immaculately combed chestnut hair. Though her complexion was sickly, she had full cheeks and a prettily shaped face with a small mouth that was pursed tensely. She stood, resting one hand on the table, and bowed slightly.
"Welcome to our home," she said softly, then seated herself once more. Tarr glanced irritably at her; it was his job to welcome the guests, and he'd already done that. He squeezed her leg under the table, and she flinched.
"Sit," he invited them. "Eat your fill. I killed this boar myself this morning, so the meat is fresh. Our cooks work wonders with what I bring in, I must say."

Aleth noted Lyra's flinch, glancing briefly at Ky. She'd noticed it too. Aleth nodded at the table, silently ordering Ky to take the seat furthest from Tarr -- taking the one across Lyra himself, closest to Tarr.

"It smells absolutely delightful!" Aleth answered brightly, smiling at Tarr. It was becoming even more apparent how little Tarr cared for his wife the more interactions they had, so Aleth decided that he'd be polite -- but not friendly -- with her. Had to stay on the same page with Tarr. And he could always send Ky to befriend Lyra later. Ky would enjoy that anyway. "I can't wait."

As Aleth said this, servants trooped in carrying trays laden with fruits and vegetables, fish, and a massive platter holding an entire boar. Tarr watched eagerly, already poised to cut himself a haunch. Lyra watched passively, hands folded tensely in her lap. Her eyes darted to Aleth, then to Ky, then back to the food.
"Remind me where it is you hail from," Tarr said as the servants set down the boar. "What is it like? What food do you eat?"