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WEEK 18: Flash This by October 9th!
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The sun was sinking low in the hills beyond Loch Fiedred, bathing everything in a gentle, red gold haze. The carter and his son, a gangly lad grown much too big for his frayed breeches, hurried across the courtyard towards the bailey, making sure there would be no further orders from the castellan before they called it quits on another long workday at Castle Llewelyn. Others - scullery maids, squires, postern guards, sentries, serving women, hostlers and even the chaplain - could also be seen finishing up the demands of the day, eager to meet up with their wives, husbands, children and heaping bowls of stew and warm bread.Aerigyn, sitting by the window in her lady mother's now vacant chambers, watched the activity below, the fire behind her warming her and throwing a glimmer onto her sable brown hair.
Are they happy? She thought. Do they accept their lot in life or do they just drag themselves from one day to the next?
Aerigyn made a mental note to have her lady's maid send three bolts of wool to the carter's wife. If the oldest boy wore threadbare clothes then surely his five or six siblings must be faring no better.
And what would Lord LLewelyn say were he to find out about the expense? Aerigyn shook her head slightly, a rueful smile playing at the corners of her mouth. With everything that had gone on within the last month Aerigyn felt sure that the cost of a few yards of cloth would be the last thing occupying her brother's mind.
Indeed, even as she sat by the castle window, Aerigyn was aware that her brother, Robert, the 6th Lord Llewelyn, was deep in counsel with the ecclesiastical consul, recently arrived from Rome.
I wonder. Aerigyn thought Exactly how much is the annulment of my marriage worth to him? How much of our father's gold, how much of his land is he willing to relinquish to Cardinal Marchand to pretend like none of this ever happened? That she and Edward had never happened.
Aerigyn's throat closed painfully, the tears springing into her eyes. Where was he? Dear God, where is my husband?
When she closed her eyes she could still see the look in his eyes as he held her face in his strong hands, gently forcing her to look at him.
"The hour grows short, my lady wife" he had said, his breath frosting in the cold night air. "We sail at dawn."
Aerigyn had held his gaze, determined to show that she could be as strong as he, unwilling to let him see that she was wild with terror and despair at the thought of being separated from him.
"I hate him" she managed through trembling lips. "I will never forgive my brother for this."
Edward pulled Aerigyn, not even three weeks his wife, into his arms and kissed her, kneading her waist with his hands in the way that used to make her squeal when she felt ticklish and melt when she felt desire flooding her veins. At that moment all she felt was sorrow and anger. She returned Edward's kiss, closing her eyes and letting every sensation of him, of his strong arms around her, of his body pressed firmly against her own, imprint itself upon her mind and heart. She would need those memories in the long days to come.
And so she sat in the western most tower in her ancestral home, Castle LLewelyn, a prisoner in all but name, of her brother and only living relative, Robert Llewelyn.
He had smiled when he told her the news.
"We could not catch the traitors before they set sail." he had told her on his return to the castle that dark day.
"It seems someone gave them warning of my approach. But do not worry, sweet sister, you need not think I can be defeated as easily as that." He had tossed his riding gloves onto the carved chest at the foot of her immense canopied bed, the bed that had belonged to her mother and that they had both been born in.
"I have the finest archers money can buy and trust me when I tell you, my dear Aerigyn, they have earned their gold this day."
Despite her attempts to remain cool, Aerigyn twisted the handkerchief in her lap.
"They fired on the ship, dozens upon dozens of pitch arrows. The first one lit by my own hand."
Robert strolled over to the fire, gazing into it with satisfaction.
"It truly is surprising how little time it takes for a vessel to sink." he said, with a laugh. "Especially when you've paid the captain to breach the hull beforehand."
Aerigyn winced but refused to look at her brother.
"So rest assured, Lady Aerigyn" he used her title sneeringly. "This madness you have subjected me to is over. Your wreckless, selfish behavior nearly cost me everything." Robert's voice had gone cold, losing its air of forced nonchalance.
"For our father's sake I will not dwell on this and I will not send you to the Sisters in Rome. I have need of you yet."
Aerigyn's voice was so low, so even, that Robert barely heard her speak.
"I will never marry another, though Edward indeed be - " she could not force herself to say the word. " - gone."
Aerigyn watched the last of the early winter sun finally fade. She felt she could never see another sunset as long as she lived without thinking of her beautiful Edward. The way he had looked at her across the banquet hall the first night they met, his voice trailing off mid-sentence, causing his uncle to look in her direction, wondering what the distraction could have been. Or the way his hazel eyes smoldered when he confessed to her that despite their families' long-standing feud, he would have no other, wed no other if he could not make her his wife.
Sighing, she listened to the guards by her door being relieved so they could take their supper in the garrison's kitchen below.
Robert had kept her under constant vigil since her forced return to Castle Llewelyn a few short weeks ago. He had been kind enough, in his own way, secure that, like always in life, he was going to have his own way. He had paid Sir Ian, the magistrate's own physician, his weight in gold to swear that not only had he examined the Lady Aerigyn and could attest that the marriage had not been consummated but that, on his medical advice, the lady be restricted from being deposed by the papal consul overseeing the hearing because of the "trauma" of her kidnapping by the lawless traitor, Lord Edward of Canaervon.
Robert had all the bases covered, secure in his certainty that his sister would wed their cousin, the weak-willed Earl of Glamoran, creating a dynastic union that would secure him the rights to nearly 1/3 of the lands in the entire lower marches. Aerigyn's brow creased in anger, her mouth tightening at the thought. Then, slowly, gradually, she composed herself and relaxed. she carefully secured the last few stitches in her heavy traveling cloak, making sure that the jewels and gold lire, wrapped neatly in linen, lay flat and smooth inside the lining of the hood.
Satisfied she placed the garment in the basket at her feet, stood and walked over to caress the wine and gold velvet hangings on her beautifully carved bed. Aerigyn thought about her arrogant brother. He was ruthless and calculating, beyond all question.
Aerigyn placed her hand on her lower abdomen.
But little did he know. She looked down and smiled. Little did he know.
Haha, I was wondering where this was:) So glad you went to bed though...you need your sleep, Mistress Ann!Excellent flash again...I'm so glad Tom came back for us!
Here's mine: https://amandasiegrist.wordpress.com/...
A hand obstructed his view as a cold bottle of beer took its place. The tiny sprinkles of water running down the sides gave him a memory he normally reserved for when he was alone. In bed. No one else around to see his misery.
The delicious memory of holding her against the shower wall. The way she clung to him, almost desperately.
Just one of the many memories he tortured himself with.
And reliving moments about Junelle didn't help him whatsoever.
"You gonna grab the da** thing or what?"
Kyle looked at Jason, grabbed the beer and took a long chug. It went down hollow, just like his heart felt. At least his view was back in focus. He could clearly see his June Bug across the yard mingling with people. Way across the yard. Far, far away. Clearly ignoring him, that's for sure.
"What's the deal between you two? She was totally pissed when I said I invited you. What happened?" Jason relaxed in the chair next to him, legs stretched out.
Kyle shrugged.
What could he honestly say to that?
A lot of things happened.
He fell in love.
He made love to the one woman he would always want.
He walked away.
He had accused her of walking away, but he did too. He should've stayed and fought for her. He could've kept her safe and showed her how much he truly cared instead of running.
Because that's exactly what he did.
Ran. Like a scared little child.
He still wanted to run.
"Sh**, dude. Give me more than a simple shrug. Clearly, something happened between you two. Is whatever happened the reason you up and ditched town for five God***n years? Do you know how hard it was to find you? Tell me what the he** is going on."
Kyle turned to Jason, the pain written on his face.
Could Jason see the real reason? Could he see the pain of losing Junelle? Of still not having her as his?
He shrugged again. "Sh** happened. It's kinda hard to explain."
One brow slowly inched up. "Try to explain. I'm sure I'll understand."
Kyle's eyes beamed to Junelle. Her beautiful smile as she laughed at something her aunt said, lifted his heart for a brief moment.
Little did he know that it wasn't something easily explained. Jason would kill him if he knew he took his sister's virginity and then walked away. That he broke his sister's heart. In the same way she broke his.
Little did he know.
Kyle shrugged. "I think I need another beer.
Awesome, Tara! The ending...love endings like that.
Amanda wrote: "Awesome, Tara! The ending...love endings like that."TY :) *reaches for another cookie* *refills Amanda's mug*
Amanda wrote: "Haha, I was wondering where this was:) So glad you went to bed though...you need your sleep, Mistress Ann!Excellent flash again...I'm so glad Tom came back for us!
Here's mine: https://amandasie..."
Me = melting at Junebug! *sigh*
Here's mine . . . When he looked at her little did he know that it was going to be the last time he saw her. The last time he talked to her. The last time he touched her. The last time he kissed her. The last time he told her that he loved her.
If he'd known he would have done so many things differently. He would have run his hands all over her body, memorising every inch of it. He would have held her a little tighter. He would have kissed her longer and deeper. He would have stared into her gorgeous eyes.
If he had known that she was about to die he would have told her just one more time that he loved her.
Great story again Queen Amanda but I'm still waiting for them to finally talk and sort things out so they can get back together!
Jane wrote: "Here's mine . . . When he looked at her little did he know that it was going to be the last time he saw her. The last time he talked to her. The last time he touched her. The last time he kissed ..."
*puts down cookie* Beautiful.
Mod
*smiles wide*
Sooo proud of you ladies!!
@Miss Tara: Welcome to the party, ma'am!! Awesome story!!!
Hugs all,
Ann
Thanks, Princess Jane:) I wasn't feeling that angle today. Maybe next week. *smiles*Edit: I forgot to say (although, I did on your blog post) you made me cry again this week. *wipes tears away* Loved your flash!
Mod
I'm not ready for a reconciliation just yet. Please continue stabbing me in the heart. It feels so darn good. Thank you kindly.
^_~
Haha, Mistress Ann. Oh man, what do I do? You want one thing and Princess Jane wants another. The torture to decide...
Mod
*laughs maniacally*
*whip cracks in the distance*
*the aroma of baking fills the air*
Tara wrote: "*puts down cookie* Beautiful."Thanks, Tara!
Amanda wrote: "Haha, Mistress Ann. Oh man, what do I do? You want one thing and Princess Jane wants another. The torture to decide..."Well I'd say decide on giving us the happy ending, but I'm pretty sure you're going to go with adding in lots more drama and angst before they get one!
But just in case, next week can we please have a happy ending? Pretty please? Pretty please with sprinkles on top?!
Amanda wrote: "Sprinkles are hard to say no to..."I'm still not getting the happy ending though am I?!
No you probably will. *smiles*. They will get their own book and I'll add all the angst in between.As long as the prompt works for me. Sometimes they are hard to work with.
Mod
*grins sheepishly*
That's totally intentional. One week, I chose a prompt and wrote something in 5 mins (seriously) then felt guilty it was too easy and picked another one hahaha...haha...ha...
Talk about issues, eh? Tee hee.
Amanda wrote: "No you probably will. *smiles*. They will get their own book and I'll add all the angst in between.As long as the prompt works for me. Sometimes they are hard to work with."
Ooh! Awesome! Can't wait to read a whole book about Junelle and Kyle! (ɔ◔︣‿◔︣)ɔ ❤
And I agree the prompts can be hard to work with, I always have a whole detailed long story that I want to write but have to limit it to one scene!
Annie wrote: "Amanda wrote: "Sometimes they are hard to work with."*grins sheepishly*
That's totally intentional. One week, I chose a prompt and wrote something in 5 mins (seriously) then felt guilty it was too easy and picked another one hahaha...haha...ha...
Talk about issues, eh? Tee hee."
Funny! (ɔ◠‿◠)ɔ ❤
Annie wrote: "Amanda wrote: "Sometimes they are hard to work with."*grins sheepishly*
That's totally intentional. One week, I chose a prompt and wrote something in 5 mins (seriously) then felt guilty it was t..."
I knew it! Haha. *grins like the devil* I love a challenge!
Jane wrote: Ooh! Awesome! Can't wait to read a whole book about Junelle and Kyle! (ɔ◔︣‿◔︣)ɔ ❤And I agree the prompts can be hard to work with, I always have a whole detailed long story that I want to write but have to limit it to one scene!
Which is why it's hard to do the ending. I feel like I'm missing so many scenes in between. *sobs* But you love reading the endings so, for you, I'll do it!
Amanda wrote: " Which is why it's hard to do the ending. I feel like I'm missing so many scenes in between. *sobs* But you love reading the endings so, for you, I'll do it!"Have I said lately that I love you, cos I do!! (ɔ◔‿◔)ɔ ♥
You might have, but I love hearing it. *smiles*❤️Love you too. ❤️
I had SO MUCH FUN this week!! Went totally overboard... I think there's a scrap of romantic in it, but we'll see I suppose :-)Ephemyia sailed around the room, her white gauzy gown floating behind her in a sea of ripples. Everything was going to plan. Graden was deep in her clutches, little did he know his soul was slowly being devoured by her every time he locked his green gaze on her unusual lavender eyes. She had won him away from Restituina. It was a time-consuming process, but one that, with a little patience, always paid off. She had seen the unusual slackness in his jaw, the drooping of his usually strong, square shoulders. It was a pity that such a fine man would fall so hard. But there you had it. Her kind had to survive somehow.
Suddenly, Graden swept into the room, and to Ephemyia’s surprise, brought half a dozen black coated, armed men with him, along with Restituina, who looked furious. Ephemyia was not perturbed.
Running her fingernails along a marble tabletop, she said, “Darling, whatever is going on?”
“We’re taking you in, Eph.” Graden kept his weapon trained on her, as did the black coats.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“For my attempted murder.”
She laughed, a lilting, musical sound. “I’ve never laid a finger on you, darling, that you didn’t want me to. How on earth have you come to the conclusion I’m attempting to murder you?” She made the words so plausible, threw so much strength behind the gentle chiding of them, that several of the black coats wavered.
But Graden was unflinching. “Look at me, Ephemyia.” He walked right up to her and grasped her arms, forcing her to look up into his face.
For a moment, she was confused. His eyes shone bright blue. Where was the deep green gaze she had come to enjoy peering into?
“Restituina warned me about you. Contacts. I’ve been wearing reflective contacts. It’s your own soul you’ve been consuming.”
“Nonsense. That’s not even possible,” she spat, wondering whether it actually was. She had been feeling a little under the weather these past few days.
“Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. I suppose we’ll find out.”
“How?”
“As you continue to fall under my spell.” He kissed her fiercely, while the black coats turned on the shocked Restituina, blasting her into a million pieces. “You didn’t need to take my soul, Eph. You’ve always owned it.”
Tara wrote: "The sun was sinking low in the hills beyond Loch Fiedred, bathing everything in a gentle, red gold haze. The carter and his son, a gangly lad grown much too big for his frayed breeches, hurried acr..."AWESOME!! Love it Tara.
Bree wrote: "I had SO MUCH FUN this week!! Went totally overboard... I think there's a scrap of romantic in it, but we'll see I suppose :-)Ephemyia sailed around the room, her white gauzy gown floating behind..."
Oooo, that was so good! Loved this:)
Mod
Bree wrote: "I had SO MUCH FUN this week!! Went totally overboard... I think there's a scrap of romantic in it, but we'll see I suppose :-)
Ephemyia sailed around the room, her white gauzy gown floating behind..."
Good story, really
Ephemyia sailed around the room, her white gauzy gown floating behind..."
Good story, really
Bree wrote: "I had SO MUCH FUN this week!! Went totally overboard... I think there's a scrap of romantic in it, but we'll see I suppose :-)Ephemyia sailed around the room, her white gauzy gown floating behind..."
Ooh!! Awesomeness, Bree!! Great story!! Especially loved the ending!!
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PROMPT: Little did he know...
Remember to make suggestions for next week too! It's kinda hard to play the game without them haha!
Ready. Set. Go!
(I totally forgot to post this discussion thread before I went to bed! Sorry, everyone!! Thanks for reminding me, dear Princess!! ♡)