by Ria » Sat Mar 25, 2006 8:51 pm
The day's work had been hard, but not too different from the kinds of chores she'd done as a child for her own family. "Sir" had only occasionally suffered speaking to her, though Ria thought she had caught him trying to stifle a smile at one of her less polite responses to his gruff orders. For the most part, Kenneth had been delegated the job of letting her know what needed to be done. She did all the cooking and house-cleaning, which consumed the greater part of her day, but she also helped care for the animals. Such mundane things actually turned out to be fairly daunting tasks since the two men had not spent much time on those chores in some time.
"Well," Kenneth had explained through an embarassed blush when she'd commented on the state of their home. "We've only been doing what absolutely had to be done to keep our farm running. A few things fell by the wayside after..." He'd shuffled uncomfortably, running his fingers nervously through his shaggy hair, and avoided making eye contact. "I guess that's why Father took you on." Ria had felt sorry she'd said anything. Lunch had been a rushed affair so that everyone could get back to work, something for which the woman was unexpectedly grateful. She'd been able to finish scrubbing the rest of the house without speaking to either man.
The sun was sinking low on the horizon when Kenneth finally came out to the barn to let her know that she needed to prepare supper. She could tell that he still felt awkward about how badly he and his father had let things get, which made her feel worse.
"Kenneth, I didn't mean to criticize your home earlier. I hope you know that." The lad looked startled and flushed again. Ria picked up a handful of hay and rolled it in her hands to free some of the dirt that has caked to them while working with the horses and pigs. Once she'd tossed the hay aside she turned her gray-blue gaze on the still silent youth. "May I ask what happened to your mother?" His face drained of color and his lips trembled slightly. At first, she was afraid she'd trespassed too far, but he found his voice before she had the chance for another hasty apology.
"She died last winter." He stared at his feet and swallowed hard, his hands fumbling in front of him as he fought to express himself without tears. "She took ill--the coughing sickness--and the healer couldn't save her." His eyes squeezed shut and his jaw clenched visibly. Ria could barely stand to see him fight with himself in that manner, so she moved to his side and wrapped an arm about his shoulders comfortingly.
"I'm sorry for your loss, Kenneth. I, too, have lost loved ones recently." He looked up at her, his eyes brimming with moisture he was working so hard to hold back. She cleared her throat and frowned. "Just because your father is handling this without openly mourning doesn't mean you cannot cry. It is okay to miss the ones we lose." As if he'd merely been waiting for her permission, Kenneth let go of his control. Fierce sobs shook his body as Ria soothingly rubbed his shoulders, just as her own mother had done for her when she was a child. After several moments, he grew quiet and drew away, wiping his face.
"Thank you, Ria." He took a deep breath and looked out the barn doors. The sun was nearly below the treeline already. In a flash, his calm was replaced by concern. "Oh no! Father will be unhappy for having to wait so long. We'd better go."
"I'll deal with your father. You just go in and tell him that I'm on my way in." He hurried to the house with a quick nod of assent, and Ria walked calmly to the well to wash her face and hands. She hadn't expected such an outpouring from Kenneth, but since he'd obviously been walling his pain inside for so many months, it only made sense that he would give way with gentle probing. Of course, she wanted to strangle "Sir" now more than ever. How dare he put his son through such torment! The woman dried her hands roughly on her trousers before heading inside.
"You don't seem to understand that other people are waiting on you." Kenneth was sitting in silence at the table, staring resolutely at the wood grain. "What took you so long? Or did you forget the generousity I've shown just by letting you stay here?" She glared at the older man, forcing slow, deep breaths to maintain her cool. "And what did you say to my son? He looks as though he's been through some sort of uncomfortable ordeal, but he won't say a word about it."
"If you must know, your son had the great misfortune of catching me attending to a call of nature when he came looking for me." Kenneth blinked a few times in surprise, but didn't speak up, so "Sir's" attention remained on Ria. As she'd expected, the father looked taken aback, but she saw no reason to let him regain his composure. "Now if that's an offense worthy of chucking me out in the streets, please let me know, and I'll be on my way. However, if you're as hungry as you complain of being, sit down, get out of my way, and I'll cook dinner. Sir." She didn't even bother with a false smile, instead staring him down with all the heat of a firestarter's anger. The stone around her throat warmed noticeably and began to glow intensely before she reined in her ire.
"I-I wouldn't have thrown you out for being late." He looked questioningly from her face to the firestone and backed to his chair at the table.
"Then don't posture as if you will," she snapped as she moved to begin cutting the vegetables he'd brought in from the field. "And for that matter," Ria spun about and shook her knife at him. "Stop lording over me as if I'm ignorant or not worth your time, or I'll leave of my own accord." She went back to cooking, taking out her irritation on the meal she prepared. Both men remained fearfully silent as they watched her, and could barely stammer a thank you when she shoved plates in front of them. Kenneth kept looking from his father to Ria and back, his face a picture of uncertainty, but "Sir" just kept his eyes glued to his plate. Ria finished her meal first and moved her plate to the countertop before turning to go to the barn for the night.
"Wait, Ria!" Her nostrils flared as she wheeled on the man.
"You can clean your own dishes tonight!" She caught herself looking into a very different set of eyes than she'd faced all day, and stopped before launching into another tirade.
"Actually, I was going to say that we do have an empty room you could stay in if you'd prefer it to the barn." "Sir's" voice was more like what she'd initially imagined a man like him would sound like, though the tenative tremor was likely a new addition to his timbre.
"Oh...yes." Ria glanced at Kenneth who was smiling and nodding, evidently pleased. She followed the man as he led her to a room that she had noticed in her cleaning. She'd only really noticed it because the room was the only chamber of the house that didn't need to be scrubbed, and it was the only one that showed signs of a feminine touch.
"Have a good night. Kenneth will wake you in the morning." She nodded, still looking at the furnishings of the room.
"Thank you, Sir." The man paused before turning away and half-smiled, though Ria didn't see it.
"The name is Tobias, not Sir." She smiled to herself, but didn't turn until she heard the door close behind her.
"Thank you, Tobias."
Sadly destroying everything I've done and
everything remaining is burning in my fire