Castle Rollin

Echo smiled at Lady Rollin, genuinely liking the seemingly warm-hearted woman. "He does indeed help me get around. Fortunately, he tends to make a constant noise, and I've trained my ears to detect the delay as this echoes off the surfaces around and about. It allows me to build up a picture of my surroundings, and I'm able to function fairly well because of it. An old monk named 'Blind Tad' taught me the art, though I fear it took me a number of years to fully master."

He reached for a couple of small plates, grabbed one of the small pies, tore it into two, and lay a half on each plate. Nadir was hovering before he even pushed one of the plates towards him, and he wasted no time in diving in repeatedly like some form of demented woodpecker, losing all the style and pose he had erstwhile tried to maintain. Echo took the other plate, and savoured the dessert along with a mouthful of wine.

Echo turned his head to address the Patriarch. "I'm glad to hear it My Lord. I have no doubt that he will do as you say." He paused as he considered his next words. "As I understand it, Lady Lucette is unaware of the offer being made, though I believe she is keen to find a husband. Regardless, I believe Lord Robynson to be as committed as yourself to this marriage, and I don't doubt that he will be any less insistent than yourself that his offspring make it to the altar." It wasn't a lie. He didn't want to mention that she had made a pass at him, and chose to interpret this as her wanting to find a husband.

Echo emptied his goblet of wine, enjoying the food and company of the Lord and Lady Rollin.

"Of course My Lord." Echo rose as he spoke, motioning for Nadir to follow them. The hummingbird was busily feasting on the jam-filled pastry offered up by Lady Rollin, and paused, contemplating the former noble, and then the tart. Some internal battle ensued as his priorities were tested, but an impatient click from Echo finally persuaded the bird, and it zoomed over to him, ready to assist. "Don't worry my friend, it will be here for you when you get back, I'm sure."

Echo followed Lord Rollin through the passageways of the castle, and through some large doors to the grounds outside. As they exited, Echo heard the calls and clatterings of the guards who were busy searching for the young Lord, and quieted himself, gesturing for Nadir and Rollin to do the same. As they stood there silently, he concentrated hard on the sounds around him, attempting to detect the breathing or movements of the young Lord.

If he couldn't find him quickly, Echo resolved to call Zenith in to assist. Nadir wasn't great in the dark, but the barn owl excelled at night hunting, and with the amount of ground he could cover, the young noble would have little chance to escape.

Echo absorbed the situation as Lord Rollin dragged his young heir from the butcher's girl's closet, and quickly moved to put himself between the lumbering butcher and the pair of nobles as they made their way past the stunned commoner. He had doubts that the man was stupid enough to strike the wily old Rollin for his intrusion, but he feared he may attempt to strike the younger man for his prior-to-unknown dalliance with his daughter. Echo didn't question that the man had a cleaver close by, and that he could wield it with fatal consequences, so continued to shield the pair until they were out of the butcher's shop, and any immediate danger.

He regarded Iric with mild frustration. "My Lord Iric, I fear it is your Lord Father who needs to talk some sense into you! Do you not consider your actions? You would besmirch your family name, as well as that of the poor girl?" He knew it wasn't really his place to berate the young Lord, but he hoped that hearing it from someone other than his father may help him understand the gravity of the situation.

He eased up slightly, keen to try and help Iric see that he had a duty here, and that fighting it would be futile. "Once you are married to Lady Lucette, and run your own house, no man can comment on who or what you may chose to do behind your own closed doors, but until then My Lord, you must not risk the disgrace that this brings."

He quietened then, keen to not overstep his bounds, and allow the Lord Rollin to reinforce his will upon the young man. Nadir sat atop his shoulder, begrudgingly watching the ongoing drama with a seeming impatience to return to his new friend Lady Rollin, and her tasty jam tarts.

While happy to speak to Iric, Echo really didn't know what else he could say to the young man. As Lord Rollin left the room, Echo stepped inside, regarding the young man as he sat grumpily on the end of his cot. "You must understand that the marriage to Lucette is the right thing to do My Lord. I understand that you think you may love another, but can you honestly see a future in it? Do you believe you'll be given chance to marry a commoner? What happens if one of these girl's is to become with child, what future do you see for them?"

He was keen to drive home the reality of being a noble. For many years Echo had considered this would be his own fate, destined to marry a noble for no reason other than wealth or alliance, and he had been brought up to expect and understand this. He couldn't help feeling a little relief that his life had taken a different path.

"Please my Lord, I beg you, honour your father, and do your duty and accept this engagement." He smiled, hoping that the young man may finally accept his fate.

Echo stifled any outward signs of a smile, but he was genuinely relieved that the young man was finally coming round. Now he'd accepted it, Echo had no doubt that he would feel much better about it in the morning when he'd grown more used to the idea. "I do not know Lady Lucette well, but she seems intelligent, and very personable." She'd been far too personable for Echo's liking. "While I cannot vouch for it myself, I am told she is a rare beauty." He gestured to the covering over his eyes, finding one of the rare moments where his blindness was a welcome factor.

Happy that his work here was done, he would turn to leave the young Lord to acclimatise to his new future. He suspected that it was getting late indeed, and maybe it was time for him to retire for the evening. "Sorry Nadir, I fear you may have to make do with some honey once we get to our room." The hummingbird seemed unimpressed at the loss of an opportunity for jam tarts, but the prospect of honey did seem to cheer him a little.

Echo would look to see if Lord Rollin required him for anything further, and assuming that he didn't, would look to seek guidance to his room.

"My pleasure my Lord. I'd be delighted to attend the wedding, I look forward to toasting your son's nuptials with yourself and Lady Rollin." Echo was intrigued by the talk of the gift, and was keen to find out more, but decided that Lord Rollin had obviously intended it as a surprise, and he would have to wait.

He felt the slightest twinge of guilt and pity as Iric lay there hopeful of Lucette's potential. He was obviously a fairly weak-willed individual, and Echo could only wonder how the seemingly devious and calculating Lucette would feel about a match with such a man. Maybe they would rub off on each other, and meet somewhere in the middle. It was a wistful notion, but it gave the former noble hope, albeit a distant and unlikely one.

With a bow, Echo made himself scarce and retreated to the guest quarters. The delighted Nadir performed laps of the room as he spied the sweet pastry, and didn't stand on ceremony as he swept over it hungrily. Echo suspected that he would have to be careful that his lovable companion didn't decide to stay with his new best friend, the generous Lady Rollin.

Exhausted at the events of the last few days, Echo collapsed happily into bed, and within seconds was snoring quietly.

Echo felt revitalised as he headed to breakfast, the sleep in the soft, warm bed having eased the ache in his muscles, and he felt prepared for the long ride back to Castle Robynson. As he sat at the breakfast table and greeted the nobles of the house, he considered the heavy rain that poured down in sheets outside. Echo couldn't see well in the rain, the noise of thousands of individual droplets of water hitting the ground assaulted his senses, stopping him from mapping an accurate image of his surroundings. This wasn't a good turn of events.

He turned to address Lord Rollin, the happy demeanour of the man forcing Echo to smile slightly, even in light of the unfortunate weather. "I'm afraid Lord Robynson gave me but a week to complete my task." He considered the timeline, pondering the best course of action. "Today is day three, and with conditions likely to be very soft underfoot, I fancy it will take me closer to three days to get back, so I still have but a little grace. If it doesn't displease you my Lord, I'd like to give the weather til this evening to ease up, and then I'll head out regardless."

Echo and Nadir tucked into breakfast, the small hummingbird paying great attention to Lady Rollin who seemed happy to help the bird to a portion of jam and marmalade. Echo crunched on a piece of toast, absently considering his tiny friend and his impeccable ability to find allies in his lifelong hunt of sweet things.

After they had finished breakfast, Echo motioned for Nadir, keen to go and check on Radish and get a better sense of where the weather clouds may be moving in from. "If you'll excuse us for a little while my Lord, I was keen to go out to the check on the weather and my horse."

He stepped out of the doors, into the small courtyard that led across to the stables. The rain was deafening to Echo, and he had to motion to Nadir to act as guide. Nadir didn't much like the rain either, but knowing his friend's weakness to the downpour, he hovered out into the courtyard, chirping loudly as he himself was assaulted by the heavy drops of rain. Echo slowly followed the sound, his movements slow and purposeful, and his hands held defensively out in front of him.

As he made it to the centre of the courtyard, the jewel on his brooch glowed as he attempted to use it's magic to stare off into the distance, attempting to gauge the darkness and movement of the clouds in the distance. The nature of the enchantment offered him no assistance to movement in the rain, the monocular view of the world lacking the depth perception needed to find his footing properly.

Echo continued on, finally reaching the stables, and the shelter that allowed his perceptions to function fully. He quickly found Radish, one of Lord Rollin's staff obviously having moved her to a stall and given her the proper food and water. Echo grabbed a few carrots from the stable stores, and moving to the horse, offered her one of the vegetables. Radish gnashed it eagerly, seemingly happy to see the former noble.

Echo ran his hands across the flank and legs of the horse, massaging the tendons and once again forcing his thumb into the previously injured muscle, keen to ensure it wasn't tightening up again. Radish was unperturbed, the man seemingly having gained the total confidence of the horse. Echo remembered his own muscles after the long ride, and was keen to keep the erstwhile hobbled horse in top condition for the ride home.

Once happy he had done everything he could, he patted the horse affectionately on the neck, and headed back to the breakfast table. Once more struggling with the courtyard, Nadir took the lead again, loudly guiding the blind man to his destination. Once safely indoors, Nadir impatiently shook the water out of his feathers, and headed off back to see Lady Rollin without delay, Echo following behind.

Even though they'd barely finished breakfast, Nadir flew directly to Lady Rollin, hovering close to her face as he nodded his beak purposefully in the affirmative. Echo couldn't really blame him, and with three possibly wet days in the saddle ahead, he didn't begrudge his little friend making the most of the castle luxuries while he could. "Greetings My Lady." Letting out a laugh, he gestured towards the hummingbird. "While I'm sure he needs no translation, let me assure you that that's a resounding 'yes please'."

Echo took a seat, relaxing in the comfortable environment of the castle. What a marked difference this place was to the oppressive and ominous feeling of Castle Robynson. He couldn't really put any words to what was so different, but the place felt noticeably happier, probably in no small part to the cheerful Lord and Lady who ran it. That and the lack of siblings trying to do away with each other. For a moment, he feared that the introduction of Lucette may be of detriment to the house, but he shook the notion away. They would gain wealth and a valuable alliance from the match, and they would make an honest man of their son.

He would continue to pass the time, happily engaging with the Rollin family, in the hopes that the clouds may finally lift, so that he may have simpler and safer passage back to Castle Robynson.