A Fumble (Sir Kenric)

[Lady Gwyneth]

Gwyn was lost in thought, thinking heavily on her foolish brother and Gunhagel. Her mind was always filled with thoughts of her childhood home - she was always considering ways to remove her brother. She had a son now and needed to think on his advancement. Richard was the second son of a Lord and all he would gain was knighthood. And that was not enough for her golden-haired lad. He deserved better - he deserved a title. And so she spent her moments alone in thought, plotting ways to remove her brother and stepson...to give her boy Gunhagel and Ellesfield. It was what Richard deserved; prior to her brother Bartholomew's birth she had been her father's heir. In any case both her brother and stepson were weak and should he lovely son be anything like his mother, then he would not. Even her father, dear Lord Wynter, would have preferred to have his eldest daughter and most favoured daughter as the future Lady of Gunhagel.

Unwilling, Gwyneth tore herself from thought. It was a matter for another time, for when she would return to Ellesfield and gaze upon her boy. And she would return in a week, after the celebrations had ended. Then she could return to her plots. Her mind, as her father advised, required respite. She wasn't all too hasty to cease her plans. How could she? With each day that passed her son would be known only as the second son of a Lord. She couldn't bare that whilst her stepson lorded over the Estate with a weak hand.

Her plots had, thus, returned as quickly as they left. Yet this time she let them get the best of her; she didn't seem to notice that there was a small rose bush in her path. She tripped and, shocked, she remained there, on her knees with dirt on her damask gown. She gazed down at the roses she had brutally murdered. She could feel her already stern look hardening as she looked up, praying that no one had seen her fumble. And to her great unhappiness, there was someone there.

Tag: Sir Kenric
Timeline: Season 4 - After The Wicked Day
Setting: The Gardens; afternoon

[Sir Kenric]

Sir Kenric had come a long way in a few short years. He no longer felt like he didn't deserve his knighthood, and in fact, he was quite proud of all of his accomplishments. This is not to say he was prideful... but he certainly walked with a great deal more confidence than he once had.

War forced a man to grow up, he had learned. It had helped him to realize that there were far more important matters to worry about than one's own personal struggles and demons. War was about the greater good and protecting the kingdom from those with evil intents.

And now that the king was dead, the kingdom was sure to be under attack once again. He trusted in Arthur as a leader and a king... but that didn't mean he wasn't gearing himself up for new battles.

All these thoughts weighed heavily on his mind as he walked through the court on his way to the stables. He was so lost in his thoughts that he almost didn't see the beautiful noblewoman--that is, until she tripped.

Having once been dubbed "Sir Tripsalot" by his fellow knights--and sadly, the monkier had stuck--Sir Kenric always felt a soft spot whenever he saw someone take a tumble. Quickly, he moved over to the woman, extending his hand to her graciously.

"Are you injured, my lady?" he asked. "Please allow me to help you up."

[Lady Gwyneth]

Gwyneth looked to the handsome man with a firm look. She hadn't recognized him, but that was to be expected - scantly had she traveled to court since her marriage to Harold. She stared blankly at the man's hand, almost as though she didn't know the offer for help. Her mind was still halfway lost in thought and so his words offered a slight recovery:

"Are you injured, my lady?" The golden-haired man asked. "Please allow me to help you up."

Saying nothing, she took his hand. She wouldn't answer the prior, although she wasn't suffering an injury. The Wynters never admitted to pain. Instead, in a low tone, she spoke, "Thank you." Suddenly, as her mind fully returned into reality, her pride got the best of her. Her cheeks were now flushed into a light damask colour and her eyes were evasive. She could tell he was quite pitiful of her and she couldn't bare it - how could she, having suffered such an embarrassment. At least there had been no one else present but the two. Her curiosity at that moment had gotten the better of her mind ans she asked, "Who are you?" But, as always, her voice was on guard. For all she knew he could be affiliated with the enemies of her family, and she had to be wary of anyone she recently met.

[Sir Kenric]

Kenric was relieved at first, seeing that she seemed uninjured. He was a compassionate man, and truly hated to see anyone--let alone a lovely woman such as the one he now knelt before--in pain. He smiled at her, accepting her gratitude, even as he realized she wasn't actually accepting his own offer of assistance.

At first he wondered if he had somehow offended the woman. He hadn't said anything that should have offended her, but perhaps he had hesitated too much in coming to her aid.

But as he took notice of her elegant attire and the proud lift of her chin, Kenric began to understand. She was a noblewoman, after all. Most likely, what she had actually injured had been her pride. He was a noble, too, after all, and he had seen how proud nobles could be. He was a bit more humble than many, but that was mostly because of his own lack of confidence. But perhaps he could make her feel more comfortable if he spoke more formally, giving her the respect due a woman in her station.

"My name is Sir Kenric, my lady," he replied, bowing slightly. "Might I have the honor of knowing your name as well?"

[Lady Gwyneth]

Gwyn eyed him suspiciously, as she did to anyone she met for the first time. She relaxed only when she truly noticed his look of concern. But nevertheless she kept herself on guard.

"I am the Lady Gwyneth Seymour," she replied to his question. She quickly added, "Lady of Ellesfield." She could feel that the tone of her voice grew cold, automatically as though she had no control. The little voice in the back of her mind whispered to her, stating that she should be the one to introduce herself as her father's heir rather than the wife to a man almost double her age.

She shook that from her mind and gave him a smile, one made her seem as though she was selfless. She had assumed, from his perception of caring, that she could give an attempt to gain an ally in him...especially if one was ever to be needed. And so, to start her latest game, she asked, "Who is your father?"

[Sir Kenric]

Kenric noticed that the woman seemed rather aloof and suspicious, but he didn't take it personally. Many noblewomen of Camelot were like that. He understood from having been raised as the son of a nobleman himself that such people were often taught from an early age to behave in a certain way. He wasn't sure if it was worse for the men, who were expected to become knights, or the women, who had to behave as perfect ladies at all times.

He had heard of the Lord Seymour, but he didn't know the man personally. So anything he might have heard about him didn't matter to Kenric. He preferred to wait to form his own opinions on people when he met them, rather than listening to idle gossip. The only thing that occurred to him at the moment was that he had heard Lord Seymour was rather more advanced in age than the woman standing before him.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Seymour," Kenric said, giving her a slight bow.

His face darkened only slightly when she asked about his father. His relationship with his father had never been a close one. In his family, it was all about duty and honor... but very little love. He was only as good as his recent achievements, in his fathers eyes. So while Kenric still mourned the death of the father he'd never really gotten to know, it was a blessing in a way that he had never lived to see Kenric's awkward early days as a knight of Camelot.

"My father was Sir Elric Dale," he replied, unconsciously reaching up to touch the medal he wore on a ribbon around his neck. "He died protecting King Uther, nearly 10 years ago now."

[Lady Gwyneth]

She caught the darkening of the man's face at the mention of his father. Certainly she could use that in itself to somehow gain his alliance.

"My father was Sir Elric Dale," he replied. "He died protecting King Uther, nearly 10 years ago now."

Her brow rose as the man reached up to touch the medal around his neck, striking her interest. As quickly as it was won, it was lost. The mention of Uther almost always caused her interest to be lost. Whilst she did not use magic herself, she thought it was necessary in certain games of the court and she saw the ban of it tremendously foolish. The entire Wynter family were of the same mindset where it concerned magic, and upon the banning, they had secretly offered protection to those with magic; Ellesfield was far from the castle and so it was easy to offer some protection and funding those with magic. She hoped that with the new King's reign, magic would be restored, so that she could hire mercenary magicians.

"I am sorry," she spoke, giving her condolences to something she had no care. "It must have been hard on you."