MidAfternoon Snack{Brynn}

[Aliyaha]

There was hardly anyone in the kitchens apart from a cook as a young blonde haired girl slowly opened the door cautiously. She was still learning her way around the castle of Camelot and she didn’t think she would learn it any time soon. She wondered how people even managed to live at a palace. I prefer the manor, she thought and sighed softly to herself. Aliyaha Bennett was still getting use to the fact that her parents weren’t living anymore and that she wasn’t with the master and the mistress that she had practically grown up with them. They had treated her well despite the fact that she was born a servant. And she would probably be a servant for the rest of her life until she did something that was worthy of leveling up a rank. So the old fantasy stories goes anyways. Like any other child the young girl loved being read fantasy stories to. She thought of them as an escape from the world that she was living in. The world that she was now starting to get used to.

Most of her life Aliyaha had heard the fact that servants were supposed to be seen and not heard. It was hard for her to adjust to that fact as she was the little girl that was always being friendly and talkative. Not for your typical servant if one was to stop and think about it. A small sigh escaped from her lips as she smoothed out her dress. The dress color today was a plain light brown. She had her blonde hair up in a ponytail to keep it from falling everywhere as she works. It was always a hassle for the young girl whenever she had the chance to stop whatever she was doing and always tying it back up. Aliyaha shook her head to clear her thoughts and scanned the kitchens, wondering what she was going to have in the meantime. Aliyaha wasn’t really hungry as the morning meal was two hours ago. She was just wondering in and looking around for a snack. Her mind went to her parents and she sighed softly, a wistful look in her eyes.

She had lost her father when he had died in battle. Her mother had died a few months after he did. It was depression, she was often told. That had caused her to wilt away into death. She sniffed a little. Thinking about her parents was always a tender subject for the young girl. She didn’t even think about losing them a couple of months apart. Aliyaha shook her head, closing her eyes. She didn’t want to think about it. Not now. Not the fact that she was still getting over the deaths of her parents and the sudden change in her personality. Before their deaths she was always a happy go lucky little girl. She was always smiling and laughing. Now Aliyaha was quiet and didn’t speak unless she was spoken to. She was mainly hidden in the shadows, staring in envy at the other children in the court with their parents. Stop that, a small voice scolded her in the back of her mind. You can’t change the fact that they’re dead. Aliyaha sighed as she shook her head at the foolishness. She continued on with glancing around at the kitchen, not noticing the fact that the door was slowly opening.

Tag: Brynn
Words: 570
Set During: Season One Episode Five[/i][/color]

[Brynn Reade]

Rain was not good for the geese. Not good at all. That’s why Brynn had returned earlier to the castle than usually at this time of year. Usually she always awaited sundown before she rounded them up and lead them home towards their shed.
Being home early had its merits for sure. She could pass the time playing with her little siblings or helping her mother preparing the evening meal for the nobles and royals of Camelot. She could even take a small detour and visit her father wherever he was standing guard right now. Of course she couldn’t keep him from doing his job for too long, some of the more picky nobles actually found it irritating if guards proved they had a mouth to speak and where not just silent shadows in the corridors.

After brief consideration Brynn decided though she would not bother John Reade today at all. Early as it was she would not miss the end of his shift this time, and over a little bred and fruit which the Reade family called their evening meal, there would be ample time to talk. The kitchens then!
While she walked the familiar paths through the vast castle, absentmindly wringing out her hair from the heavy rain she had been in on her way back, her thoughts strayed to the little troubles of her life. Would Gyrth finally manage to drive his mother crazy today with his neverending shadowfights? If the weather proved to be better tommorrow she would maybe need to take him with her again, to take a little weigth of her mother’s already overburdened shoulders. And little Elinor… would she feel better now than she had in the morning, when a light fever had kept her from accompanying her big sister to the meadows? Her mother Meghan had assured Brynn it was nothing serious, just a little cold, but still, Brynn rather saw her little sister up to no good than lying down in bed.

When she opened the main door to the kitchen she found it surprisingly empty. Only one cook was working up the necessary preparations for the following hours. Brynn raised an eyebrow in surprise. Had she miscalculated, was it really THAT early or was everyone just having a lazy afternoon. Hmm… scratch lazy, her mother probably was looking after El while at the same time trying to keep Gyrth from harassing his little sister all that much. She should go and help her!
Just then the figure of a young girl caught her attention, seeming a bit lost in the grand kitchens. Placing a friendly smile on her face and readjusting her wet cap, Brynn approached the girl. “Hey there! Can I help you with something?”

[Aliyaha]

Aliyaha continued to glance around the kitchens, wondering if she should ask the cook for a snack to hold her over until later on. She glanced up at the cook, an old grandmotherly woman, and quickly glanced away. She was feeling rather shy as she looked around at the kitchens some more. She took a deep breath and walked over softly asking her for something to eat. The cook glanced down at the fifteen year old and smiled as she tore a loaf of bread in half and handed it to her. She smiled shyly as she gave her a quick thank you before breaking off a tiny piece and chewing it. Her ears pricked forward, hearing the sounds of footsteps. She turned around to look at another girl that was walking towards her. The cook raised an eyebrow at the other girl before looking away, a small smile was starting to spread across her lips. Aliyaha shook her head when the other girl asked if she needed help with something. “No thanks. I was just coming in for a snack,” she glanced down at the ground for a few seconds before raising her head back up. “I just arrived to the castle not too long ago and I’m still learning my way around.” Aliyaha smiled a little. She was never the one for conversations. Not the way that she used to be anyways.

She bit down on the inside of her cheeks at the thought but took a deep breath. “My name is Aliyaha. Most people call me Ali though,” A strand of her blonde hair managed to break away from the ponytail, falling into her eyes. She pushed it away. “May I ask who you are?” She marveled at the fact that she used to be out going and talkative, something that wasn’t in the general personality of a servant but her parents didn’t mind and neither did the master and the mistress. As long as her chores were done and done right did she had time to herself before the next set of chores. I miss that, she thought to herself with a small sigh. Aliyaha shook her head again at herself. She was quiet as she waited for the other girl to respond while slowly eating the bread. “I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind showing me around the castle.” She wanted to know as she started to pick at the bread. “When you have the time. I mean…” Aliyaha let her voice trailed off as her cheeks turned slightly pink. She shifted a little as she was starting to become slightly anxious over who knows what. She was never this way before. But that was before the death of both of her parents.

The one event in her life that had caused her to change. Aliyaha sighed a little, a wistful look in her eyes as she glanced down at the ground rather shyly. When her mother had died she thought her whole world had collapsed. She started to withdraw into herself. She was no longer trying to be the center of attention, which was probably a hard thing to do when one was a servant. It was like that old saying, servants are to be seen and not heard. It was something that Aliyaha wouldn’t even think of trying to do. She had been grateful for everything and how she was raised. She wouldn’t trade that in for nothing. A small sigh escaped from her lips as she forced herself out of her thoughts, raising her head to look at the other girl. She noticed the silent for the first time and Aliyaha forced herself to smile.

[/size][/color]

[Brynn Reade]

At least the girl – Brynn thought her a few years younger than herself – did not die on the spot at being addressed, because that the goosemaiden had feared to happen as timid as the girl outwardly looked. But apparently her outer looks where somewhat deceiving as the girl started a conversation quite freely, asking a few questions and giving information in a row. Brynn, normally only used to Alex talking so much in such a short amount of time, found her head spin slightly and had to work out a few things in her head first before she could think of replying to even one of those statements.
Before though, she exchanged a look with the cook who asked her with a jerk of her head if she wanted something to eat too, but Brynn refused with a simple shaking of her own head. She wasn’t hungry yet, she could wait for her father’s shift to end.

Then she returned her attention to the young servant girl in front of her, soon enough to still catch the name that was being mentioned. “Aliyaha? What a beautiful name! I’m Brynn Reade, the goosemaiden of Camelot.” She introduced herself with just the tiniest hint of pride in her voice. Yes, she dearly loved her position and was proud that she was the only one herding the geese and therefore could use her profession almost as a title. When it came down to it, it was no job with big prestige and Brynn would never look down on any other servant because of it, but she just couldn’t help thinking that this job was also her vocation and therefore something special. “Oh, and as far as I know I don’t have any nicknames, apart from family nicknames only bearable BECAUSE they’re used by family”, she joked. “Goosey is one of them, but please never call me that.”

When Ali voiced her request she seemed surprised and almost shocked at her own bravado, which made Brynn smile in understanding. She knew of moments like this, when words just seemed to tumble out before you could stop them, and she knew this feeling of embarrassmet. “You mean, now?” she inquired to make sure, then cocked her head. “Indeed, why not! You strike lucky, normally I wouldn’t be here at this time of day. I’ll happily show you around.”
This could prove fun, Brynn thought, smiling inwardly. It’ll be an interesting experience, showing someone around the places she had known ever since birth. She didn’t know what Ali would be interested in, but there was no harm in asking after all. Something about this girl made her wonder. Why was she here all on her own? Where were her parents? She had that kind of lost look about her Brynn had sometimes observed in a little duckling in search for his mother. But could she dare to ask? Well, maybe she shouldn’t approach the subject so bluntly… “How did you end up in Camelot, if I may ask?”