Slow and steady wins the race (Griff)

[Caitrin de Archer]

It hadn't been a long ride from Camelot, it had seemed like mere minutes really. Caitrin had been caught off guard as Griflet had stormed into action, declaring a race. Her first instinct was to decline, of course she was supposed to act ladylike and proper when in front of other nobles, however she had already shown she was neither of these things fluently to Griflet. In fact, she had shown herself to be the total opposite in some respects, but it was his fault. He had been so rude in the stable and so upfront she'd almost felt she had to act defensively.

He had been in front of her for most of the journey out of Camelot, mainly because she had more thought that they were riding out of a busy city, he had seemed to have forgotten that. She had overtaken him as the woods had come into sight, after all, her mare was a better breed than the spare horse at the stables. It was probably a spare for a reason.

They reached the marker for the crossroads, one led to the woods, one to the Merian kindom, the other to Cenred's kingdom. Caitrin allowed him to catch her up, in truth he wasn't that far behind, it just felt good to have the upper ground. "Was I too fast for you?" She asked, rearing her horse around to face him full on and cocking her head to the side, "I would have thought you'd take the race much more seriously than that." She was half smiling and began a slower trot towards the woods, "Have you been around these parts before?" Even if he was not from Camelot he might have passed through here seeing as it was one of the main trading routes as well.

Her heart of course had lept as she'd seen the sign for the Mercian kingdom. She knew she couldn't go back, she'd been here for nearly four years and her father had never sent for her. He'd made it plain she would reside at her uncles until the time came for her to marry; whoever that might be.

[Griff Aubert]

For some reason, still quite unknown to Griff he had decided, in rather uncharacteristic act of...something, that this precise moment in time was not the time to be his usual arrogant and narcissistic self. It was a rather perplexing situation, as most seemed to be at the moment, but he couldn’t help but not want to win the race, if only so Caitrin would have more to laugh at him about and then she would have more reason to stay. Therefore, as a consequence of his phenomenal self-control, he would be given much more time to finally achieve his goal.

It was almost immediately after this thought that Griff realised that he wasn’t displaying anything uncharacteristic at all, in fact, he appeared to be completely unable to do anything that wouldn’t result in his own good fortune. The thought was a slightly disappointing one, he was sure he must have done something selfless at least once. He stopped himself; he should be concentrating on the task at hand before worrying about the inner recesses of his psyche. He was suddenly very aware that she was waiting for him to reply, hopefully something witty but his brain didn’t appear to be engaging as it should be. Instead he replied with a rather weak “I was simply admiring the view.” In his opinion it was a very good view.

He followed Lady Red and her horse towards the woods. There was a very likely chance that he was going to get lost. “Only once.” He could be lying; it all looked the same to him. “A few days ago when I came here but I can’t say I’m a connoisseur of the woodland roads. Still,” he grinned, “it just means we’ll have to stick together, we wouldn’t want to get lost, now would we?”

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin had been right about the weather warming up with the afternoon. It had barely hit midday and she felt as if the sun was targeting her. Beginning to get too warm, Caitrin took off her cloak which she did feel a bit self conscious of doing in from of Griflet, she never minded in front of men at court but she didn’t want Griflet to pursue his thoughts of ‘liking her’. She’d much prefer he just stayed an acquaintance, but maybe it was too late for that. She tucked her cloak around her waist and sighed softly. Of course her dress was long sleeved, with the material ending by wrapping around the middle finger of both of her hands. Her dress was blue silk, with black trimmings along the neckline. She had a black waste band as well, and of course she was wearing her riding boots. It was no wonder she was so warm really.

Caitrin tossed her head back, she resisted the urge to yawn again as she had done earlier in the morning. She knew she had to stop staying up so late when she knew she had to be up at the crack of dawn. She turned her horse in the direction of the woods and smiled as Griflet said that he was just admiring the view,

“No one can beat the view of Camelot on such a glorious day.”

She pointed out, then began to push her horse onwards, aware that the day was gaining on them. Griflet was now pointing out that they would have to stick together so they didn’t get lost. Caitrin laughed, “You mean so that you don’t get lost?” She asked raising her eyes at him, stopping her mare for a moment, “I know my way around perfectly.” It was true, she’d been out to the woods nearly every week since her arrival in Camelot.

She rode on a bit further, thinking that her idea of today had been to practice her spells by the river, alone. Though she couldn’t see what the point of conjuring water by a lake would be; at least it was discreet. She could even have gathered some leaves for her herbology. However, she didn’t want to do any of these things in front of Griflet, obviously. She didn’t have a death wish. So what to do with the ride? Well, she could have some fun she supposed. Griflet didn’t know the forest as she did; he’d find it harder to keep up.

It was always best to keep them on the chase.

With a sharp laugh she kicked her horse in the sides, spurring her into a sprinting gallop through the oncoming trees, she knew he wouldn’t know the route as quickly, she sifted through the trees, half gliding on the air. “Can you keep up?” She shouted over her shoulder.

[Griff Aubert]

“That’s not what I was talking about.” Griff said with a tone of sincerity so convincing he was almost having to remind himself that he was a self-proclaimed cad with no intentions of changing, the very thought of reform was too much for him. He just needed to get his head back in the game. All he needed was a nice, sharp slap in the face. Luckily he happened to know someone who appeared to be more than happy to administer such a slap, a simple insensitive comment ought to do the trick. He was quite the expert at the insensitive comment. With no subtlety whatsoever his eyes dropped to below her collarbone – how considerate she had been in discarding her cloak! – and said: “Not bad at all.” There, all was well with the world again and Griff was able to go back to being his obnoxious and narcissistic self.

She was laughing at him again, and it was rather irritating. He wasn’t used to anyone laughing at him, let alone a young woman who should be far too busy falling for his wondrous charms to find anything funny about his lack of woodland-highway knowledge. He was justify this ignorance to himself mentally, telling himself that he had only arrived in Camelot a few days ago, so of course he wasn’t going to know his way and if they were in Glouchedon she would be the one getting lost. It was a rather petulant thought but it was certainly making him feel better. “It was merely a suggestion.” He replied, trying to keep the irritation out of his voice, “I was rather enjoying the pleasure of your company and sought only to continue.”

And now she was riding off into the distance. This was certainly a new experience for him; usually it was the other way around. He didn’t like the experience one bit, and part of him had no intention of chasing after her whatsoever. But the other parts were reminding him that he was telling the truth about not knowing his way around and he really did want to stay in her company. So, ignoring his more stubborn and easily offended side he found himself in hot pursuit of Caitrin, and strangely, rather enjoying himself.

[Caitrin de Archer]

If she weren't on horseback then her hand would have collided so hard with Griflet's face that he probably would have been knocked side wards. How dare he! She hadn't expected anything less of course; it happened enough to her. But to publicly acknowledge his thoughts was something Caitrin had not encountered from the gentlemen of Camelot. Then again, this man portrayed himself to be neither a gentleman nor was he from Camelot. "I did not take my cloak off for your benefit." Her words were harsh and she tossed her head from him, focusing on her ride.

She must have touched a nerve, it was the only reason possible for his tone changing, it was harsher and crisper, letting Caitrin know she was bordering on annoying him. What a pity. 'He must not be used to getting his own way.' Caitrin mused to herself. It made her even more determined to continue on her chase, she never allowed herself to be trapped by courtiers in the past, so why would she now? Especially for one who showed himself to be in such low standings. "From my experience men prefer to lead then to be led, no?" She asked, grinning, "It therefore must be irritating to be in lands you yourself know very little of?"

Caitrin allowed herself glances back at Griflet occasionally to check he was hot on her heels. A few times it appeared that he was losing track of her, after all she wasn't making the route a particularly easy one to follow. She was enjoying herself though; getting a total arrogant stranger lost in the woods? Who wouldn't be having a good time?

She finally allowed herself to slow down and for Griflet to catch up to her. They were now no more than ten minutes away from the waters edge. She stayed astride her horse whilst she waited for him to catch her up. Running a hand through her hair she caught her breath quickly, for a woman she was quite fit and was up to long rides through the forest, even at those kind of speeds. "Was I too fast for you?" She asked playfully as Griflet came into view.

[Griff Aubert]

That was better! A woman about to slap him – he was back on form. “I’m not this handsome for yours, but you still enjoy looking at me.” Griff grinned. It certainly took a lot of skill in being this obnoxious, and he took pride in the fact that he was in possession of plenty of it. What with his charm, good looks and ability to simply be fantastic, it was only a matter of time before Caitrin was no longer able to resist him. She tossed her head, managing to flick her hair everywhere, which really wasn’t fair on Griff, especially after removing the first layer of clothing. It was hardly his fault if he couldn’t help but have inappropriate thoughts.

Now she was grinning at him. Hers was probably in existence for the same reason as his and not because she was enjoying his company, rather, she was enjoying mocking him. But that didn’t really matter because now they were both grinning which meant they were bonding and that meant his plan was working and so he was fully justified in feeling quite a bit smug. He had, after all, deserved such a feeling, especially after being almost slapped twice. It was very well earned. “On the contrary,” he replied, leaning slightly towards her, but only slightly as there was a danger of him falling from his horse and somehow he couldn’t imagine Caitrin rushing to his aid, “I quite enjoy exploring new landscapes.”

And she was off again. It was rather difficult to flirt with someone when they kept disappearing. He’d done his fair share of chasing girls before but this was utterly ridiculous. This particular horse was rubbish. Not for the first time he was irritated at the fact that his horse was still in Glouchedon. His father had been very clear when he said Griff was not to leave with it, no matter how much money the stable boys were given, much to Griff’s irritation. His horse would have caught up with Caitrin’s in no time, and would easily overtake (despite not knowing where he would be going, but Demetrius had always had an attitude problem). Eventually she stopped and Griff and the not-Demetrius horse were able to catch up with her. She ran a hand through her hair, an action which appeared to have the same effect on her young male companion as flicking it did. “Not at all. Me and...Hector were rather enjoying ourselves.”

[Caitrin de Archer]

As much as she hated herself for admitting it, Caitrin was having a good time. There were still strands of irritation in her thoughts whilst considering Griflet. It gave her satisfaction in a way to consider she might be out of his league. He obviously had little wealth, and if he did, he certainly wasn't doing his families reputation any good by flirting with women he'd only just met. She meant to laugh at his comment about looking at him because he was handsome, "I keep looking to check that one from such a noble family can act so," She was searching for a word which completed her thoughts, "Forwards." There we go, and she had safely put to bed any thoughts that she enjoyed his looks.

Caitrin was a bit irritated he seemed to be throwing all her teasing back at her. He wasn't rising to the bait as men usually did with her. Maybe that was why he hadn't rode off in frustration yet. "Good." Was all she could think of replying to his landscape comment, "I enjoy the landscape as well, I ride out most weeks and never tire of it." Caitrin felt it was important that she kept their relationship as proper as possible, Griflet seemed hell-bent on flirting and trying to get their relationship past that which Caitrin had not experienced before.

As she slowed her mare down by the waters edge, and Griflet caught up with her, she laughed at his reply, "Hector?" She asked, raising her eyebrows then she shook her head, deciding she really didn't want to hear the reasoning behind the name. She had reached their destination anyway. "I'll have to go faster next time then." She decided, calling over to him, "Can't make things too easy for you can I?" She winked then dismounted her horse, taking the mares reigns and tying them to a nearby tree. She lent up against the tree, putting her feet on the roots and resting her head in one of her hands and sighing in the sunlight. It was one of the warmest days of the year she'd experienced so far, and she was far from complaining. It was a welcomed surprise from the rain they had been experiencing. "So," She directed at Griff after pausing for a while, and jumping off the tree roots, "What do you think?" she gestured to the lakeside and the surrounding countryside, "Beautiful isn't it?" She caught his eye line after her last question and cocked her head to the side, folding her arms and grinning, "Any requests on what to do, or where to go next?" She had considered the question before asking it, but Griflet could use the question to go up in her estimations, or down as it might prove to be. But as the case was, Caitrin had only wanted to come to the lake to practice her magic in relative secrecy and now that was out, she wasn't sure what to do next.

[Griff Aubert]

Griff was rather offended that Caitrin didn’t seem to appreciate his name choosing for his horse. “It’s a good, strong name. Hector was a prince of Troy.” His reply was rather snotty despite his intentions for it not to be. It was a damn fine name! “It simply oozes status and...equine...something or other.” It was a rather weak reply as replies go, but he made his point. Not very eloquently, mind, but it was made all the same.

He waited for her to dismount before following suit; he wasn’t going to take any chances by leaving his horse and giving her ample opportunity to run off. Now she was just being ridiculous. First it was the undressing, then it was hair, now it was the leaning. She was no longer allowed to complain about any of his comments if she was going to act in such a way. And he was no longer accountable for his actions.

Griff found his own tree to lean on, but in a less seductive way, naturally. He stood opposite her, arms folded against his chest and one foot against the trunk. After she spoke it was a few moments before he replied. Firstly, because his brain had immediately found itself thinking things he definitely shouldn’t be, and secondly because he was too busy trying to work the woman out. In less than half an hour she’d gone from trying to run away from him, to almost slapping him to being very unladylike and terribly suggestive. Of course, he wasn’t complaining, he was just confused. Was this a trap? Probably, but he had a habit of getting out of bad situations so it really didn’t matter.

He pushed himself from the tree and walked rather slowly towards her. She was only an inch or so shorter than him, but he still had to look down to catch her eyes. Without saying a word he brushed a few stray strands of hair behind her ears and with a soft smile asked, “What would you like to do?”

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin was glad that Griflet followed her lead at dismounting her horse. It would have been incredibly embarrassing if he'd tried to ride off and show her up. Then again, with the slow horse Griflet currently was in possession of, it wouldn't take her long to catch him up. She was amused he was leaning on a tree opposite her, and he was acting oddly quiet. Despite only knowing him for the short space of time that she had, Griflet hadn't struck her as a thoughtful, quiet person. Therefore his silence concerned her somewhat, "Your a bit quiet." She commented as she pushed herself from the tree she had been leaning upon.

Caitrin kept her eyes on Griflet as he walked over to her, she could feel herself trembling beneath her silk dress and she breathed out slowly and coolly as he stood over her. For a moment she felt small as he looked down at her. She continued to lock eyes with him, wondering what on earth he was doing. A few moments ago, on the horses, she would have been hard pressed to find a moment he didn't want to give her a sharp reply, but now it seemed like an age for him to find an answer.

She felt her trembles return as his hand was raised to her hair, pushing delicate strands of it behind her ear. She had dropped her eyes to look past him but now she forced her eyes back up to him, fearing being considered rude if she did not.

“What would you like to do?”

It took her head a few moments to catch up with the rest of her body as soon as she realised she had been staring at him a few moments too long. She then held her ground even with his smile she was determined he wasn't going to catch her out; like she was sure it did with other women. She bit her lip, considering her reply, "I'm not sure." Was all she could answer, it sounded feeble and she was ashamed at the lack of volume and confidence in the answer. She wasn't going to let this happen; she clenched one of her fists and drew a breath, "We could always ride out near my Uncle's lands," She suggested and shrugged, "Unless you'd rather we rode or did something else?" She wasn't that sure she wanted to return to her Uncle's lands this early in the day, he wasn't going to be expecting her anyway and she would probably ruin his daily routine if she did. She hoped Griflet could suggest somewhere else to ride out or somewhere, despite him only arriving a few days ago he must surely have some orientation of Camelot?

[Griff Aubert]

It was rather an effort to suppress a smirk, but Griff was managing all the same. It would completely ruin the effect if he did. He should have figured this out earlier, for all her confidence and teasing, Caitrin was young and inexperienced, and, judging by her reaction very much wanting to become experienced, even if she wasn’t going to admit it.

Caitrin was biting her lip. That was another thing he could add to his list of inappropriate things that were happening in front of his face. He was definitely no longer going to be held responsible for his actions. She biting her lip. He was acutely aware of the change in her breathing and the clenching of her fists, both actions making it even harder to suppress his smirk. Finally. He’d waited long enough. Alright, he had waited about half an hour, but even so, that was a lot longer than usual.

She was trying to remain casual and aloof. It wasn’t working. Still, it was admirable, and amusing that she was trying. She was definitely stubborn, he’d give her that. Griff stepped forward, trapping her between the tree and his own body. He’d finally found a way to get to her, he wasn’t going to stop anytime soon. He looked her up and down again, only this time it was much slower, and hopefully much more effective. “As I said,” he began, consciously lowering his voice, “it’s entirely up to you. If you fancy a ride I’m more than willing.”

[Caitrin de Archer]

OOC Haha I logged on at 7.4O, I just missed you! Also don't kill me!

Caitrin was beginning to loathe this situation. This man obviously thought he could get the better of her. She certainly had become spurred up in the moment, her breathing slowing and she felt a chill run up her spine. She licked her bottom lip and bit it again in her nervous way. She looked Griflet up and down, he was still being annoyingly quiet. But then again so was she.

He moved closer, and like a trapped animal, Caitrin stepped backwards, finding her path blocked by the large oak behind her. her hands went to the tree, her nails tracing the cracks in the oak's bark. She wasn't quite sure what was happening, she wasn't being courted, this was improper. She couldn't let him take advantage like this for her families reputation more than anything. Plus, what would Arthur think of her? Her friend knew her as a strong, independent woman, so why would she throw away all of that?

She opened her mouth to speak, realising that Griflet could not hear the turmoil happening in her head about her situation. All that came out was a small "I..." Her words fell to the ground as if they had been turned into stone. She should have ridden off without Griflet, she should never have allowed her to be trapped like this.

Caitrin had never been in a situation like this. Her teasing had usually got rid of the most gentlemanly of noblemen, and her looks meant that the others merely admired her from afar. She had always been the one to lead a situation, rather than to be led. She wasn't enjoying the opposite experiences for obvious reasons.

Then she got her spark back, as if something in her head clicked back into place. Her eyes widened and she managed to speak out confidently, "I think I will ride back to my Uncle's lands." The words were quick and panicked, as if she were in some sort of life threatening situation. She didn't add him to her invitation as she figured that the last thing she needed was her Uncle questioning her actions; he might even stop her riding into Camelot if he knew what she had been up to.

But she still hadn't moved from the tree.

She looked back up at Griflet, questionably, now she was back to being irritated. He refused to be drawn in by her teases, was arrogant and simply sought to lead her a merry dance."What are you doing here?" Her words were softer than she intended but then she regained her stance, "Do not jest with me, why are you really here? With a total stranger in the middle of nowhere." Her words were anything but intimate, they were harsh and accusing. She was being serious though, he couldn't have developed feelings for her in less than an hour, Caitrin didn't believe in true love; she wasn't even sure she believed in love and this man wasn't going to make a fool of her.

[Griff Aubert]

Hmm. Griff had thought the riding comment was too much shortly after saying it, still, there must be some way he could salvage the situation. He was finally getting to her so he was not going to give up now. Besides, she may be saying that she wanted to return to her uncle, but her body language was clearly betraying her. After all, if she was that determined she wouldn’t still be against the tree. It was safe to say, Lady Caitrin was no wallflower. If she really wanted to leave she would be doing so. As she wasn’t it meant everything Griff was doing was working.

It really was, increasingly difficult to try to hide his smirk, and he thought, given the circumstances, he was doing incredibly well at doing just that. On the surface he was the epitome of sincerity. He took a step back, not too far mind, he was rather enjoying their proximity, but enough to give Caitrin room to move. “If you wish to leave I have no desire to keep you against your will.” There was a flicker of movement in the corner of his mouth. “However, I remain unconvinced that you do.”

Just as he suspected she had remained still, although she no longer looked completely charmed by him, but irritated. Hmm, this could go either way. Her words caught him off guard, he certainly wasn’t expecting her tone to be quite so accusing and more a moment he was quite taken aback. He was, however, able to compose himself and, again with an air of sincerity about him, replied thus: “I told you: I like you.” It was a rarity, but Griff was actually telling the truth. Gosh. “And you’re not a complete stranger; I thought we’d already established that.” He was quiet for a moment, wondering whether or not that was a satisfactory answer. It probably wasn’t. He stepped back again, holding his hands out as one accused of a criminal act and protesting their innocence. “I simply enjoy your company. Here. Now.” He sighed, his hands dropped and he took a step towards her again. “I have been inappropriate with you, I apologise. I didn’t mean to cause you offence. Will you forgive me? And perhaps not leave me stranded here?”

[Caitrin de Archer]

The day was suddenly beginning to feel cold and the hairs on the back of Caitrin's neck stood up as another chill rippled through her body. She suppressed it physically showing, but she still felt her body turn colder. He'd moved away from her at least, her head wasn't controlling her feet whilst he spoke and she remained pressed up to the tree. As he said she could leave if she wanted to she had half a mind to jump on her horse, ride to her uncle's home and have done with Griflet for good. However, something about him intrigued her. He could switch from gentleman to arrogant fool in the blink of an eye, as if practiced in both which Caitrin had not come across before. She admitted she had lived a sheltered life, even when she had come to Camelot her Uncle had shielded her from the fools at court whom sought her fortune, nothing more. But now she was on her own, for the first time; it was unfamiliar and scary. She wasn't enjoying it.

Caitrin stepped up to Griflet, her head finally making sense as she raised her eye brows, folding her arms and regaining some confidence, "And what would make you think I don't want to leave?" She was sure he was just spurning out comments like these to keep her attentions on him. There was something arrogant and triumphant in his stance which got more and more personal as the conversation continued.

Now he was apologising? Caitrin couldn't hide her confusion, this man really was something new. He had gone from being inches from her person to admitting how inappropriate his behavior was and apologising for it. There was no doubt he had been anything but a courtly gentleman, in Caitrin's opinion he had been more interested in other things than bothering with formalities. She wasn't sure what to think of his apology, should she just take it at face value?

She furrowed her brow and folded her arms, "Well I won't leave you stranded here; I'll direct you to Camelot when we reach the crossroads." She was serious about being irritated with him, but she had annoyed herself by being dragged into his spell, she should have known better really. If he really did like her then he wouldn't give up after one go. "And you don't know me, not really." She gave him a small wink and walked slowly backwards to her horse, stroking its nose and looking confidently back at Griflet, "You know bits of my personality, and of course my looks, but nothing more," She abandoned her horse and took a few slow steps towards him, "As I know nothing more of you." Now she was challenging him, if he was going to act like he knew her inside out then she was going to get to know him as well.

[Griff Aubert]

It was now Caitrin’s turn to walk over to him, and he certainly wasn’t complaining. Her question seemed a little weak though, she was, of course, trying to pretend she couldn’t care less about him and could abandon him any moment, but the very fact that she had ignored all opportunities to do so was evidence that it was all bravado. “Well,” Griff said, feeling he was about to point out the obvious but maybe he was missing something. It wasn’t likely though, “You’re still here, which is my main reasoning. I’ve known several girls like you,” that didn’t come out right, but he’d said it now so he was just going to have to follow through, “it’s all high collars and irritation, for the first ten minutes anyway.” Yes, that was definitely one of his worst lines. On the upside however, nothing he said could be any worse. Probably.

He was confusing her, it was a nice feeling. It made him feel mysterious and enigmatic when really his sudden personality changes were only his way of discovering which of the many tricks up his sleeve would work best. So far he had deduced that the best way to get her on side was to play on her inexperience, rather than try and be smooth and charming. She had clearly had her fair share of suitors, but none of them were perhaps as forward as Griff was, so he was certainly going to use this to his advantage.

Griff watched her curiously as she replied that she would not, in fact, leave him in the woods. She appeared to making her exist, but then she winked and he was certain that she was not going to leave, not for the time being anyway. He supposed she was trying to control the situation, to take on the lead role; it was all rather amusing to watch.

Ah yes. She was walking towards him. He knew she wasn’t about to leave and allowed himself a moment to appreciate his own intelligence and gifts with the fairer sex. Her points were rather good though, he would give her that. They didn’t know anything about each other and yet here they were alone in the middle of a forest. It would all be rather romantic if he cared about that sort of thing, well, he did care about that sort of thing when it suited him to. “Alright then,” he nodded, fair play to her. “What would you like to know? Ask me anything.”

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin was unimpressed at his remarks. So unimpressed her gaze had hardened and her body had become stiff. She folded her arms and gave a short nervous laugh, she could hardly believe he’d just said that. Assuming he was trying to convince her that he did ‘like’ her, he was doing a fantastic job at counteracting it.

She didn’t appreciate being told she wasn’t individual, it was one of the things Caitrin liked to pride herself upon. Caitrin enjoyed male pursuits like riding alone, archery and yet had all the airs and graces of a young lady. Her uncle often commented that he would not have half the alliances he did if it were not for his nieces charm. Although Caitrin knew she was not the most attractive lady at court, she prided herself on her looks and her varied lifestyle.

“I was only annoyed because you were being over familiar.” She said hotly, she would not be another notch in this man’s staff, she would not be that kind of woman. That was what he was suggesting anyway, he was suggesting that she was nothing new, that he’d had crushes like these before. Obviously these had not led to much, and unless she could be convinced otherwise, neither would this crush. “But if you know so many women like me,” She cocked her head to the side, “You won’t be too disappointed when I leave?” How dare he assume to know her after little more than an hour, she was Lady Caitrin de Archer and she refused to be treated like this. The irritation was too vibrant to be ignored and she sucked back her lips, trying to keep her cheeks from flaring up in fear that Griflet would take it to be blushing rather than anger.

It shocked her in a way that he was so open to her suggestion, that he didn’t mind the possibility of relaying his life story to an early acquaintance. She was thrown by it and for a few moments didn’t know what to say. Naturally she regained her footing and folded her arms in a serious manner, “Ok, ask away? I’ll start small, why have you come to Camelot?” Now, it wouldn’t be fair not to return the favour so she unfolded her arms in an open gesture followed up by, “What would you like to know?” She had stepped towards him as she had asked the latter question and looked him up and down, wondering if he would be completely honest with her. She had nothing to hide, but did he?

[Griff Aubert]

It was certainly amusing to watch Caitrin becoming increasingly annoyed and trying to regain control of the situation. Well, that wasn’t going to happen. Griff had already managed to get her flustered and blushing, it would be no hard task to do it again. It would be quicker and easier too, but this was far more fun. He had to admit she did look incredibly attractive when she was angry. He would have voiced this opinion but it probably would have earned him a slap. Again.

“You won’t be too disappointed when I leave?”

Was this the second time she had something to this effect? It was all very well and good saying it, but as Griff had thought a few moments before she had had ample opportunities to leave, yet here she was, so it was unlikely she would just up and go now. Still, he would be disappointed. But seeing as she showed no signs of actually leaving it was not really an issue, so he remained quiet and merely continued to watch her with an increasing curiosity. He was beginning to figure her out, or at least thought he was, which was more or less the same thing. Lady Red was certainly headstrong and stubborn, probably not unused to male attention, but definitely unused to not scaring them off. It was a shame really; a little more male interaction would probably lighten her up.

It was clear from her body language that she certainly wasn’t expecting a reply like that. He liked being unexpected. What seemed like a suspicious and frankly odd offer to divulge his life story, should she ask him, was simply him indulging his narcissistic tendencies. There was no finer topic than himself and he would freely converse about it for hours. He was not a man who was easily embarrassed so felt there was no shameful past and he was more than happy to (slightly) exaggerate his angst-ridden origins. Even so, he was also acutely aware of the power of an air of mystery so he was just going to have to contain himself and keep his answers as ambiguous as possible. If nothing else her curiosity would be piqued and their conversation would last for a while. It was a win win situation. Well, for Griff anyway so that probably meant it wasn’t a win win situation but he was enough of a narcissist to think of it as such.

In answer to her question he shrugged and replied nonchalantly. “I was disowned by my father.” Now it was his turn to ask a question. He bit his lip as he thought and scratched just above his eyebrow. “All right. Why are you so determined not to like me? And don’t say that I’m one of ‘those men’. That’s not an answer. Why are you so determined not to like me?”

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin now discovered something else about Griflet which irritated her; his silence. She kept throwing comments at him, things he should rise to as so many others before him had. Caitrin had therefore fallen silent, like a child who had been scorned. She of course wasn’t going to give up the control of this situation to Griflet but he surely wasn’t going down without a fight. He was annoying her, with his silence, as if he knew she already knew the answers to her own questions; as if he knew he didn’t need to reply to her. She hadn’t left yet so in a way he couldn’t answer her question because he must have known she wasn’t just going to jump on her horse and leave. How could he be so presumptuous? Or more importantly still, how could he know in the first place?

“Disowned?” She repeated, her brows furrowing as her arms flopped to her side. It was as if he’d taken the breath for her lungs. She wasn’t expecting that answer, she was expecting something more appropriate, such as for trade, alliances or marriage or something like that. She almost felt sorry for him for a moment, then again, she didn’t know what he had been disowned for so she wouldn’t let her feelings jump to conclusions. “Why?” She asked, folding her arms again accusingly. She wasn’t going to let him off that lightly, especially with the question he followed up with.

“Why are you so determined not to like me?”

Caitrin had managed to keep her temper however much this man had dangled his teases and words in front of her but now he had crossed the line. No, she was sure he had crossed the line ages ago; as soon as she had met him. “Im not determined,” She scoffed, half laughing at his words, “What do you mean I’m determined not to like you.” She threw her arms to the side, she could feel her cheeks heating up as she walked backwards from Griflet, keeping her eyes on him, still disbelieving what he was saying, waiting for the contradiction that never came from him. She ran her hand through her hair, speaking incredibly quickly but not stepping back towards him, “Your being serious aren’t you?” It was evident he was, so she managed to calm down for a few moment, thinking of an answer, she wasn’t determined not to like him, his personality made it hard to find anything redeemable to like within him. “Because since we have met you have been determined to do nothing but annoy me, and don’t pretend you don’t know what your doing.”

[Griff Aubert]

Why was she so interested in why he’d been disowned? Well, he knew why. Why wouldn’t she, but it really wasn’t something he wanted to explain, and she’d probably know if he was lying. Hmm. Was there a way to say “Well, I ended up with this girl” without actually saying “Well, I ended up with this girl.”? He desperately needed an explanation that would put himself in the best possible light, only he wasn’t sure that one existed. Still, if there was one it would be him to find it. He just needed to try a little harder. “It’s not really that interesting.” He replied, scratching his neck again. “There was this girl and things...progressed. Anyway. That’s not important.”

The reason it wasn’t important was because she was now angry at him, again. He had thought his own question was perfectly valid. It seemed quite clear to him that it was the idea of him that she disliked, rather than him as a person. Obviously Caitrin didn’t agree. She really was doing well at fighting the stereotype against redheads. He would have said as much, but he quite liked his limbs being attached. He was holding his hands up defensively, because clearly having his hands in the air would prevent her from attacking him. “I’m not doing anything! You’re just...sensitive.” Even before he said it he knew it would not help the situation at all. Saying the wrong thing was something he becoming increasingly good at, especially in Caitrin’s company. “You’re the one who keeps trying to run off. I was being chivalrous.” Well that clearly helped manners. As soon as he’d said it he stepped back, instinctively, she was definitely going to hit him now.

[Caitrin de Archer]

Once again Caitrin found herself dumbstruck with Griflet's answer. She was obviously thinking too much into the situation because, she expected him to have done something far worse. She felt a little bad for presuming the worst for a few moments, but the feeling went as quickly as it came as she listened to him trying to excuse what he had done. The way he spun his words was as if he was squirming in her judgments which was an odd feeling as Griflet had always seemed calm and collected, unlike how Caitrin had painted herself to be. "Thing's progressed?" Caitrin felt like she had a right to know these things, this man was trying to court her after all, so she felt like she should know what he had done in the past; plus she was a little bit nosy as well, "Your father banished you for falling in love?" It was an unlikely scenario and one Caitrin could not picture unless it was a woman several ranks below his own.

Caitrin could feel herself shaking with anger, she had been insulted that he had accused her of being determined not to like him, and he had not made it much better. She was sure what she had said was true; he was trying to wind her up and irritate her. Caitrin didn't know why he thought irritating her would be a good idea, but she was certain she wasn't going to be the one who came off worse in this situation. Therefore she needed to be calmer. Screaming and shouting had never gotten her anywhere as a child, and as an adult it would do less.

"Sensitive?" She repeated, looking him up and down, sliding her weight onto one side and folding her arms, "Do not treat me like a child, I know you think that I object to you as an idea and that is why you are trying to irritate me." She was spinning her words cooly and slowly, her body no longer shaking from her gripping anger, "But you play up to the stereotypes. You tell me you are sorry for being over-familiar, then insult me in the next breath. You present yourself as chivalrous and true, but then also tell me that you left a woman you were in love with." Although Caitrin may have taken the latter comment out of context the point still stood, Griflet was inconsistent, and therefore made it harder to like him, "How do you expect me to change my attitude towards you if you keep acting so inconsistent?" Although she was no longer shouting her words rasped off her tongue in an almost hiss.

[Griff Aubert]

“Heh.” Such an articulate response, but it was all that Griff was capable of at the moment. He was still scratching his neck, quite unsure as to how to answer her. The fact that she presumed he had been in love with the woman in question was further proof of Caitrin’s naivety, something he didn’t want to spoil. He also didn’t particularly want to lower her view of him anymore, if that was possible of course. “Love wasn’t really the issue...” he trailed off. This was really making him look good. “Rather the lack of it...” He needed to change the subject and quickly before her opinion of him was beyond repair. “Anyway, as I said, it’s not important. And it’s really not that interesting.” He was pretty sure that her curiosity would not be satisfied with that for an answer, but she would just have to cope as that was all she was going to be given.

If her words didn’t show her anger, her body language certainly did. He’d noticed that about her, whether it was intentional or not her actions always mirrored her words and he presumed her thoughts. He watched her as she spoke, focussing more on her actions than anything. There was, however, something she said in particular that caught his attention.

"How do you expect me to change my attitude towards you if you keep acting so inconsistent?"

It was a very good question, as questions go, and he was having to think very carefully about his answer. He wasn’t being inconsistent at all. His goal was always the same, the motive was the same, it was only the methods that changed. He could change between charming and chivalrous, and flirtatious and inappropriate as easily as he changed his shirt. But it was all for the same outcome and it was all a facade. “Because it’s a lot more fun.” He replied with a grin and went back to the tree he had been leaning against, standing in the same position – one foot pressed against the trunk, only this time his arms, instead of being folded against his chest, were behind his head, further emphasising his arrogant nature. He was finding his feet again, as it were, the temporary return of his own insecurities was quickly being pushed away, because they were hardly attractive features. “Would you rather be angry or,” his voice dropped slightly, a purely conscious action on his part, “would you rather just enjoy the moment?”