Match Made In Hell

[Vortigern]

-------Vortigern was riding through the woods of Camelot, the Darkling Woods he believed the were called. The sun would set in a couple of hours, but he just needed to be away from everyone. Granted, horseback riding in this foreign kingdom was not the most ideal way to spend time away from others, but right now, it was all he had. The five day festivities had finally drawn to an end, and the visiting royal and noble families were slowly returning home. Unfortunately, Vortigern had to remain. By order of his father of course. He would never condemn himself to such a painful fate. But alas, his father had ordered he stay and speak with Uther regarding a separate treaty between Sorelia and Camelot. Vortigern had no desire to do this. He did not want peace treaties between each and every kingdom. It left no opening for war, and therefore no possibility for expansion.

-------But, he would honor his father, the king's requests. And he was here. He didn't really engage himself in many of the tournaments, for they held little interest to him. He made up the perfectly good excuse of having a previous injury and not wanting to agitate it. If he was back home, he knew he would have a guaranteed win for no one would dare beat him. No man had the audacity. But here, he was just another Prince. It was far less exciting. And of course it did not help matters when his father gave him one of his infamous 'You must find a wife' speeches. They were getting tiresome, and was even more so was the fact that Vortigern had to actually look for one. Which was precisely why he needed to get away from all the pathetic socializing and just rid god knows where.

-------He was void of his armor, and clad in his regular clothing, one of evident expense and a bit of extravagance. He was a prince after all. He was expected to carry himself well. He was absent of his men's company. No Sorelian knights in his presence, for it defeated the purpose of needing time away from everything. Which is why when he heard surrounding footsteps, he slowed the pace of his horse. He was no fool. He was a general, and so it was in his skills to be aware of his entire surroundings. And right now, there was someone else nearby. It did not take long for them to be revealed to him. A young girl. On a horse. By herself? Bizarre. She did not look to be a peasant for she held the appearance of a noblewoman. Of course, she could be a thief which would explain it as well. He moved his horse towards her, abruptly blocking her path. "You will tell me your name." It was not a question or request; it was a command. For the only way she would be even remotely equal to him, was if she was either a princess or queen.

Tag: Caitrin de Archer

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin had taken advantage of the gorgeous weather and had set out on her journey earlier in the morning than she would usually do. She had even risen before her Uncle, and that was a small achievement in itself. She had wanted to take the opportunity to ride out into the Darkling Woods and make the most of her day. She had taken the scenic route, and was now riding happily through the woods at her own leisure. Her Uncle had been nagging her the day previous about everything and nothing; so she’d taken it upon herself to give them both some space, because that was usually what was needed following one of their arguments.

She was riding out on one of the normal horses they had in the stables today, her mare had an injury so she had thought it best to just settle for one of the lesser horses rather than injure the mare. This horse was a lot less quick on its feet, and less responsive than the mare, but it had done alright so far, and they were already well into the day. Having made good time, Caitrin was sure this was one of the furthest places she had ever rode out to; she felt quite proud, at least she felt quite accomplished. She knew that it must be drawing on in the afternoon now, and she should probably be thinking about heading back sometime soon; her Uncle would worry, and she didn’t want to be caught out in the dark anyway.

She nudged her horse onwards down the path and continued to look around her. She knew the risks of riding out by ones self, but it had never stopped her in the past. She had at her disposal a small dagger which was held in a belt at her waist. She was wearing a long red gown, and a black riding cloak to keep the chill off her shoulders; she looked every inch the noblewoman. Her eyes darted up as she quickly became aware of another rider on the road up ahead. Her eyes widened as he stopped his horse in front of hers. In shock she pulled on the reigns, pulling the horse to a quick stop. She raised her eye brows at his words; who the hell did this man think he was? She kept a tight grip of her reigns, should she need to get away from this man quickly, and leant slightly forwards to him, “I will tell you nothing unless you ask nicely.” She pressed her lips together, deadly serious and relaxed slightly in her saddle; sure that wasn’t the reaction the man wanted.

[Vortigern]

-------Did she truly just say that? Tell him that he had to ask nicely? Who was this insolent woman! If she was from Camelot then he needed to have a chat with Uther about the lack of respect the noblewomen expressed. If she was from another kingdom, then he would find their king and speak the exact same words. Now Vortigern certainly hoped she was no princess or queen, for it would be a bit more difficult to assert his authority on them. Judging from her few words, he knew women like her. They tended to be sharp tongued, and quick witted. She certainly had the attitude of a soiled princess. Just as he had the attitude of a spoiled prince. "I will grant you pardon for your ignorance." Because apparently, he was in a good mood. No, it was because he kept his father's words in the front of his mind: be respectful.

-------"So I will tell you again, to speak your name to me." For his patience would wear thin if she did not. Now, he wanted to know her name to find out who he would have to search for to speak about her rudeness. He certainly was not expecting this, nor did he appreciate it. He was of royal blood, and who was she? She was no one. Just a woman. A little naive little woman. And Vortigern would put her in her place.

[Caitrin de Archer]

The man was obviously of noble status from his clothes, so it was a wonder why he wasn’t acting like it. Then again, if he was quite far up the social scale then he was probably acting as he should; arrogant and rude. Caitrin had never been high enough up in society to enjoy that sort of freedom, she had known Lord’s like him back when she had lived in Mercia. The Lord’s in Camelot tended to take more after Arthur, and even Uther, and show more compassion and care about their subjects; even the servants. She stifled a laugh as he forgave her for her ignorance; her ignorance? He was the one being rude. What was he doing out here anyway? She doubted his motives for being out here were the same as hers, he probably wasn’t out here for the scenery. “And I’ll pardon you for your rude behaviour.” She even bowed her head to complete the deal and watched him carefully, that was probably the wrong thing to say as well.

Despite her kind words of apology, the stranger still insisted on commanding her to speak her name. She shook her head and kept close eye contact with the man, not wavering or moving for a few moments, “And I’ll tell you again to ask nicely.” Caitrin had known a lot of nobility, but no one had been this rude to her in the first few exchanges. She’d spoken with servants with more manners than the man in front of her and to say the least, she wasn’t impressed with him or his attitude.

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[Vortigern]

-------She would give him her forgiveness? He would take it and spit on it. Why the hell would he need or want her forgiveness. It was her who should be more concerned about attaining his forgiveness; of getting on his good side. He was a man with power. What was she? "You forget your place woman," he said. This was going along with the assumption that she was nothing above mere nobility. If she was more, then she surely would make it known by now. For no princess or queen would feel that it was her place to be degraded. "You best watch your tongue. Or we can be having a similar conversation with you behind bars." A threat that he did not plan to go very lightly on.

-------"My patience is at an end. So I will give you one last chance to redeem yourself and tell me to which family you bring disrespect and disgrace upon." He was growing impatient with her confidence, or whatever it was that made her so bold to speak to him in such an impolite way. When clearly, he was entitled to far better. She should be getting off her high horse [in this case, he meant that both figuratively and literally] and bowing her head to him. He would one day be king, and her offense was enough for him to punish her entire menial family. No, he wasn't dramatic at all.

[Caitrin de Archer]

There were a lot of things which made Caitrin’s anger rip through her quickly and without stopping, and this was one of those things. Her place? Was he honestly being serious? She gave a disbelieving scoff at him, which could have doubled for a small laugh, and raised her eye brows. She knew her place perfectly, and it wasn’t to be bossed about by good for nothing nobles like him. “My place?” she repeated angrily, “And where do you suggest that might be?” She wasn’t going to bother with formalities, because respect was earned as well as given in titles such as ‘My Lord’ and at the moment she held more respect for the stable boys in her Uncle’s manor than this man. There was a reason the men at court never talked to her in a manner such as this; they always came off worse.

Behind bars? Caitrin supposed it made him feel big to make such threats, but if he hauled her up in front of Arthur she knew he would understand. Of course she couldn’t count on that, but it was something to hold onto because she was good friends with the Prince. She raised one eye brow at him, not letting it show that she was slightly bothered by his words, “And who are you to make such threats?” She asked coolly, not even raising her voice which was a first for Caitrin as she remained in total control of her anger, for the time being at least.

Caitrin had never been one for threats, she never usually even cracked under threats either and this one wasn’t going to be the exception to the rule. She used her reigns to manoeuvre her horse so she was alongside the mans horse and drew up to him, “Or what?” She asked quickly, “And I’m sure if I were to ever bring disrespect and dishonour on my family it would be for some other reason, and not for refusing a stranger my name.”

[Vortigern]

-------He had hit some sort of nerve. That was evident in the way she scoffed at him. In the way her voice questioned his words. Her place. Yes. Her place. And now she was questioning what that was. There were so many answers he could give to that question. But judging from what he could already determine from her personality, he knew what road to go down. "It is behind a man. Quietly respectful. Obedient and fully compliant of his will." Traditionally of course. Vortigern had come across far too many women who were all for that concept of female empowerment. He didn't care much of it, he had five sisters after all. But he grew irritated when they disrespected him and his title. Why not return the favor.

-------Now she was asking who he was. Wouldn't she like to know. He watched her as she moved the position of her horse, staying completely still on his. Was she truly challenging him? Didn't she know how greatly outmatched and outranked she was? He was the future king of a powerful kingdom. One word to Uther and that was it. If not, then hell, it would give cause for tensions to grow. Perhaps even lead to war! Something that Vortigern craved, yet knew would never be so long as his father drew breath. "Unless that stranger that you so dismissively and rudely speak to is a prince." Yes; that's right. A prince; a genera; a future king! "Who knew that a woman could be so foolish as to insult royalty," he said shaking his head, with a 'tsk tsk' sound to go along with his words. "Something that will not so easily be forgotten," he added as a further threat.

[Caitrin de Archer]

As he spoke of her place, Caitrin felt herself getting more and more annoyed. She had never really been obedient of any men's will; and that dated right back to her childhood. She was the seventh child and had been left relatively to her own devises, but had still been expected to fall into line with her many brot hers and sisters; a plan which hadn't worked really at all. She had always rebelled against her father at every corner, her nurse maid had encouraged her headstrong ways in some aspects. She even now was disregarding her Uncle's control over her and riding out by herself, and Caitrin was sure when or if she took a husband that she would not obey them in the way this man was suggesting. She was not just some noblewoman who was going to fall in line with the stereotype. "I am glad that my immediate family see differently to you." It was true, her Uncle did not expect her to be some quiet little nobody, in fact he often encouraged her wit, "As I am sure I have never fully obeyed a man, and surely never will."

She felt completely confident, and in control, as she moved her horse alongside his. She even managed a small smirk, but that was before he mentioned he was a Prince of course. She faltered slightly but didn't turn to start apologising as in her mind she owed him no apology; he had been rude and she had merely just pointed it out. "If you are a Prince then surely you were taught to ask for someones name in a dignified manner instead of just demanding it of them?" She asked quickly and then looked over him. His stance certainly matched his arrogant nature and words that was for sure. His threat was nothing to her, if anything she had her bonus card which was that she was in fact a Mercian noblewoman, therefore Uther had little control over her, and neither did the Mercian King Baynard. "Your threats don't scare me." She said bluntly, "My name is Lady Caitrin de Archer, seventh child of Lord Payton de Archer and Lady Ardith de Archer." She even bowed her head to him although formalities hardly mattered now did they?

[Vortigern]

-------He didn't doubt her her immediate family supposedly saw different from him. It would explain why she was out here alone. Even if she had snuck out, it merely meant that there was no tight leash around her. That she was not paid close enough attention to. Vortigern only half listened when she spoke of how she have never obeyed a man. "You speak to me of such things as if I care," he said dismissively. He did not care about whether she obeyed men or not, or what she chose to do in the future. "You asked me of where your place is, I told you." Whether she heeded to it or not in the future was not his concern. "I simply pity the unfortunate man who is cursed by the title of your husband." Whether she was married or not, was something else he did not bother to ask.

-------Did she know nothing of princes? The more she spoke, the more convinced he was of her lack of intelligence. And the more he felt he was wasting his breath. She was trying to act all bold, saying that his threats did not scare her. "Foolish, as well as naive. And stupid." His words were bluntly spoken, ones of truth according to him. And there it was. He had finally gotten her name. That was all he needed to know. "Clearly you do not know the workings of this world, little girl. So return to your home, back to your embroidery and feed your delusion by pretending you have courage just because you spoke with outrageous disrespect to someone of a higher status." And this conversation was over. He would make sure of that. He turned his horse, deciding to return from the direction he had come.

-------But the moment he turned his horse, he heard approaching sounds. This time, there were several, from they were coming from all sorts of directions. He slightly narrowed his eyes, looking around but he did not remain confused for long, for soon enough, a large group of men on their horses charged down towards them. Bloody hell! Bandits! He pulled out his sword from its holder but before Vortigern had any more time to react, he was yanked off his horse, thrown to the ground. The sword fell out of his hand and was immediately grabbed by one of the ambushers. "Imbeciles!" He cried out as he was on his back. "This shirt cost more than the worth of your lives!" He snapped at them as he quickly attempted to get to his feet and brush himself off. "Take her," he said referring to Caitrin without so much as looking at her. "She's worth far less than even your life." The bandits saw clear advantage in this situation, as it seemed that he was not her protector. With that, they slowly inched towards her, leering at the young, 'vulnerable' woman.

[Caitrin de Archer]

The subject of husbands was always a touchy one with Caitrin. After she’d been practically sold to a man in Mercia, but luckily had been spared actually marrying him, she had been weary of the topic of husbands. She didn’t particularly want a husband by her side, especially if he had similar attitudes to this arrogant Prince. She would never walk up the aisle to a man who expected her to play the part of a dutiful wife, silent and with a child in her belly every year. She stiffened up, she was sure that she would make someone a good wife, just not in the traditional sense. However, such things were to crude to speak of in civilised conversation so she just smiled at the man, “Well hopefully my husband will have better manners than you, when I eventually choose to take one.”She finished her words with a small smirk and cast her eyes away from him for a few moments.

He was insulting her again, this man was obviously used to getting his own way. She knew the workings of the world perfectly, but Prince’s were not all arrogant like this one was. Caitrin was on good terms with Arthur, the Prince of Camelot, and she knew he would never treat anyone like this; even his servant Merlin who he constantly complained of. She pressed her lips together, “I will gladly return home, just to once again partake in civilised conversation.” She cocked her head back, her hair flicking in the same direction as she prepared to leave. Irritatingly, the man turned his horse in the same direction Caitrin was about to head in so she decided to hang back, perhaps there was another path she could take so she didn’t have to run into them again.

He wasn’t leaving; what was keeping him here? She obviously didn’t hear what he was hearing as quickly and Caitrin only noticed the patter of hooves when the men were already upon them. There was a group of men on horseback charging straight towards them. Her head told her to grab her dagger from her belt, but she couldn’t move her hands from the reigns and she tried to turn her horse to go in the opposite direction but the bandits had already closed the pair of them in. For the moment they seemed more interested in the Prince and she only looked round when she heard him shout out. He was on the floor, the bandits already upon him.

“Take her, she's worth far less than even your life." Her eyes widened; had he really just said that. She held onto the reigns of her horse until her knuckles were white and only watched as the men carefully inched towards her. As they stood essentially by the side of her horse she released the reigns and finally tried to grab her dragger. It was, however, too little too late as one of the men had grabbed her waist and was pulling her off and onto her feet. The one who had pulled her off the horse shoved her quickly against the nearest tree; her back against the bark. She looked up at him, he looked like a stereotypical bandit; he was quite large, with a few teeth missing in his grin and was looking at her almost menacingly.

“Get off me.” She finally found her voice and tried to push him away but his body stopped her from moving anywhere. He laughed, as did a few of the other men in their little gang. The man’s hand ran past her hair, and she put her face away from him. His hand was large and clumsy, but he ran it along her collarbone and up to her neck, where she was wearing a small jewelled necklace. He tried to fumble with the clasp of her necklace. He began to breathe heavily and, in his impatience, merely ripped the necklace from her neck. She gasped as the metal sunk into her skin, sure he had cut her neck in his hurry. He looked pleased with his find but his eyes were back down on her. She couldn’t see anyone else past him, but she had a favour to return. “You don’t want me, you really don’t.” She pointed in the direction she assumed the Prince was in, “He’s worth a lot more than I am! He’s spent the last five minutes pointing it out.”

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[Vortigern]

-------Vortigern watched the man move towards Caitrin, eying not only her but the necklace she possessed around her neck. "Give me your jewels." The demanding voice caused Vortigern to abruptly shift his gaze, looking at the man in front of him. He held out his sword towards the prince, ordering him to surrender the jewels worn around his neck, on the shirt, and probably any gold he carried in his pocket. This was just infuriating. Vortigern was a prince! He should not have to heed to this barbarian. This, peasant! Camelot was ridiculous. If he was in Sorelia, no man would dare hold a weapon against him. He had a reputation, one meant to be feared! This was precisely why he despised visiting other kingdoms. Because he was seldom given the utmost respect he was entitled to.

-------A frustrated sigh of pure annoyance escaped his lips as he began to unbutton his very expensive jacket. His agitation only grew when the woman said that he was the one they wanted. The audacity! But this made Vortigern cease his actions. He was not going to surrender anything to them. Except perhaps the woman. They would probably dump her off after only a mile of riding with her, as they too would so quickly grow sick of her over vocal tendencies. Vortigern looked at the man who was still glaring at him expectantly. Dear god. This was just nonsense! But, he would have to do something. He was a general after all. Without a moment's warning he lunged towards the man, grabbing his wrist and twisting his arm so that his grasp on the sword would loosen. The bloody man had an iron grip. So instead, Vortigern moved behind him, and put his hand on either side of his head, snapping his neck and causing instant death.

-------Finally! He had his sword back. He quickly moved to the man who was standing in front of Caitrin and stabbed the sword through the man's throat. Another instantaneous death, after a few gags and blood filled hacks. Vortigern had not done this to save her life. And he would deny it if anyone accused him of doing such a thing. He looked down at Caitrin, clearly irritated by everything, especially her. But more recently, her remark. "I swear the only thing women are useful for is having children." And with those chauvinistic words meant to insult her...he could not say much else. For he felt a heavy metal hit his head, making him collapse to the floor. He was not fully unconscious. Just massively disorientated as he was now face down in the ground. Bastards.

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin would have probably moved her hand to check if she was bleeding, or at least to try and push the man back, but he still had her pinned up to the tree. She tried to wriggle free as he ran his thumb over the jewel which had been at her neck and gave her a toothy grin. “Got anymore of these?” He asked, but it was more of a demand and she shook her head,

“No, now get off me.” He laughed and pressed himself up against her with more force. He ran another hand down her face, dropping to her collar. He smirked up at her and Caitrin tried to pull away from the tree but he had her trapped of course.

“Now where could you be hiding the jewels?” He started to say, but as he tried to drop his hand to the top hem of her dress there was a commotion heard behind them. Caitrin’s eyes widened as one of the bandits was now lay on the floor; dead. The man who had his body pressed up against her shifted slightly in confusion, and Caitrin let out a small yelp as there was a flash of metal, and the man fell to the floor. She looked up at the Prince and felt her heart thud in her ears. It took her a few moments to register what had just happened, and then of course he was talking to her. She screwed up her face at him and his comment. The seriousness of the situation seemed to fade into obscurity as her annoyance with the man in front of her returned.

“I already feel sorry for the woman you choose to have children with." She was staring up at him, so didn’t notice the man sneaking up behind him until it was too late. There was a crash of metal against the Prince’s skull and Caitrin did little more than watch him as he fell to the floor. This time she was more prepared and she drew the dagger from her belt and held it up to the man who had knocked the Prince to the floor. “Now just stay-“ Was about as far as she got before the handle of the man’s sword collided with the side of her head, knocking her to the floor beside the Prince; her dagger went flying off in a different direction. She didn’t have time to cry out before her body collided with the floor, she was down but she was still conscious. One hand went to her head where a lump was already forming and she winced as her fingers traced the point of impact. She was too preoccupied with her head to notice what the bandits were doing, they were leaving her alone and that was the most important thing wasn’t it?

She looked up, and shifted her weight onto her side so she could look up. Her vision was slightly blurred but after a few blinks it corrected itself. She watched as two of the bandits got astride their horses, but wait, they had another horse riding by their side; that was her horse! She tried to stand up but only stumbled as she watched them take hers and the Prince’s horse off with them. Her eyes widened and she stumbled to her feet, falling over again and just deciding to stay on her side until she didn’t feel so busy. The men were already riding off into the distance so shouting after them wasn’t going to do any good was it?

Her Uncle was going to kill her.

[Vortigern]

-------Vortigern was not sure what was happening. He tried to raise his head but it felt far too heavy so he just kept his cheek on the ground, his blinks long and drawn out. As he used every ounce of strength within him to just stay conscious. He felt someone grab his jacket and pulling it off. Had he been a woman, he would have cried rape. But he knew that they were taking it for the jewel and expensive work on it. He could not physically nor verbally object either, for he was too impaired to do so. He would just have to deal with the fact that one of his favorite jackets was now in the hands of some crude and idiotic man who would probably use the fabric to wipe his nose with. Left in his white, long sleeved shirt underneath, he felt a bit exposed. The shirt was too plain for him to just wear it in public! It made him look...like just a nobleman rather than a prince. Revolting.

-------Somewhere in the background, he heard the rapid sound of hooves thundering on the ground. They were leaving as quickly as they had come. Thank god for that. He heard them going greater in the distance, or so he believed. Hopefully it was not his disorientation causing him to misjudge how close or far something was. He very slowly raised himself, his eyes looking around him. The first thing he noticed was that his horse was no where to be found. Had it run off? No. Surely not. All his horses were exceptionally trained to not run in the face of danger. So where....bloody hell! He quickly got to his feet, having gotten up too fast so ended up stumbling to the side. He held his hands out for balance, groaning from the intense pounding in his head. As he continued to frantically look around, he noticed the girl.

-------Great. Wonderful! How tremendously lucky of him! They had taken his horse but left the woman?! Where were they? Perhaps he could offer them an exchange of sorts. How truly unfortunate this was. He had no means of transportation, and was instead left in the company of someone he had already disliked after her first words to him. She was on the ground. Was she dead? He walked towards her, in a wayward way for he was not yet fully balanced and peered down at her. He would not lower himself to her level, so instead, picked up a nearby long stick and proceeded to poke her. She was alive; he could see her breathing. "Great. I am stuck with no horse; just a completely insufferable woman instead." He was obviously just talking to himself. But now, his words would be directed to her. "Better you be on the horse that you let them steal, rather than remain behind in my presence!" He snapped, clearly angry with the outcome of this situation.
"Bloody useless," he added in a mumbled voice, just...because.

[Caitrin de Archer]

The horse was gone, she was as shocked as she was annoyed. Her first thoughts was how on earth was she going to explain this all to her Uncle? She had lost one of his horses, it was one of the spare horses but she had still lost it! Then she felt relieved that she had left her mare at home, Lord knows she would have run after them, dizzy or no, if they’d have even thought about taking the mare. She still felt dizzy, she had no idea what the Prince was doing, and bluntly she didn’t care. Her head was still banging and she closed her eyes, wanting it to stop. Her side hit the floor again but she didn’t care about that now either; it felt comforting and at least her vision wasn’t spinning.

She could hear movement close by and she guessed that it was the Prince; great. She wished that they had taken her words, and taken him to be ransomed off or something like that. Caitrin didn’t move, she was quite happy where she was for a few moments. All she was focussing on was the throbbing in her head, wanting it to stop and wincing as the throbbing continued to get worse. What the hell was she going to do now? No horse, and she was a fair walk away from Camelot. Night was drawing on them; well this was going to be just perfect wasn’t it? Well, of course thinking about walking to Camelot was all well and good, but she had yet to actually stand up yet.

She felt a sharp pain in her side and winced; what the hell was that? She finally opened her eyes and the world swam into focus; the Prince was standing above her, with a stick. Had he just poked her with the stick? He was shouting, now there was a shock. She hauled herself up off the ground and sat up, just trying to focus on what he was saying and blinking as her vision finally focussed properly. His words were irritating her; hang on, he had been the one who had been going on about women knowing their place! What had he expected her to do, throw herself in front of both of the horses? She was still just sat on the ground, waiting to feel less dizzy before she attempted to get to her feet. “That I let them steal?” She repeated and scoffed, running a hand over her face and groaned slightly. “Sorry, I was waiting for my orders like a dutiful woman.” She said sarcastically and pulled a face at him and looked back to the ground, feeling for her dagger at her belt, no wait she had dropped it hadn’t she? She looked about her persons and found it continently lying within arm’s reach and replaced it at her belt. “I didn’t see you running after the horses either.” Her words were entwined with her irritation, how was it her fault the horses had been taken?

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[Vortigern]

-------Yes. That she let them steal. Of course her sarcastic retort did nothing less that irritate him further. Seems she was returning the favor that he had granted her: driving him mad! Would he really have to bare her company for the next few hours, until they got back to Camelot at least. That was just going to be maddening. But there was a thought that had never been far from his mind; that a woman would drive him to madness. He had thought that his sisters, one of five, would be responsible for this. But it was quite possible that Lady Caitrin would take that role. No. He could not give her that, what some would consider, pleasure! "You are the one who acted as if she were so bold. You just proved what I already knew; that you are nothing but weak and incompetent." With bold, he was referring to the way she had spoken to him, clearly trying to counter his sexist remarks.

-------"Next time you try to express courage, be sure that your actions to do not contradict your words." Well, he doubted that she would have a redeeming moment for right now, his mind was made up about her. But his words were sarcastic and with obvious rudeness. Finding his balance was a bit better now, he began to brush himself off, disgusted with what had happened. He was missing his jacket! He was missing his horse! They had robbed him of everything, except her. Oh joy. Wait, was she now blaming him for what had happened? How preposterous! "In case you failed to notice, and with your lack of perception it would come as no surprise if you didn't, I was lying on the ground unconscious!" He knew that she too had been knocked out, to some extent for she was clearly displaying signs of disorientation. But who cared about her well being. It was about him, and what she allowed to happen!

-------The question became, now what? Would they have to travel on foot? Wait, since when was this cumulative. Would he have to travel on foot? He looked around at his surroundings, still feeling a strange dizziness and decided that he would wait a few moments before proceeding forward. Trying to look casual, he walked, or slightly stumbled rather, towards a tree and leaned against the trunk. Damn, he did not even have his sword. They had taken that too. The only weapon they had was her pathetic looking little dagger. And if she was the user of it, then there truly was no hope for either of them should they encounter more danger. They were doomed!

[Caitrin de Archer]

Caitrin still did not feel up to actually hauling herself onto her feet. Even the thought of getting to her feet made her feel slightly ill. She looked over at the Prince, who was standing quite close to her, and tried really hard just to focus on him. It was harder than she had first thought and he occasionally slipped out of focus but fortunately her gaze was more steady than not. She was still aware the side of her head was throbbing terribly where she had been knocked from her feet. Caitrin finally put a hand to her neck where her necklace had been ripped from her neck. There were a few spots of blood which she noticed as she pulled her fingers away, but it was nothing really to worry about. She looked from her hand to the Prince, who was still angrily arguing with her. “In case you failed to notice I was pressed up against a tree.” She snarled at him, keeping a glare on at him, “Would you have me throw off a man who was almost three times my weight?” Now that was ridiculous, she hadn’t even been able to move her arm to grab her dagger to get the man off her.

She scoffed as he told her not to contradict her words; in her eyes she hadn’t. She hadn’t given in to them had she? They’d had to tear the necklace from her neck, and if she had been able to reach her dagger she could have probably fended the man off. “I’ll remember that next time I’m set upon by bandits, with a Prince who can’t defend himself either.” She scoffed again, but she was perfectly justified in her words because he hadn’t done an amazing job at defending himself, well the fact he was knocked unconscious proved that!

Caitrin was not taking any of the blame for what had happened. If he hadn’t been so proud, and had just asked her politely for her name they could have been long gone before the bandits were even in the area. In her eyes this whole thing was his fault and that was a view she wasn’t going to shift from in a hurry. “And in case you failed to notice, I too was knocked unconscious, therefore I fail to see how this is my fault! Unless you just supposed I was just lying on the floor for the fun of it!” Her words were almost hissed, but she was angry, more angry than she could ever remember being.

She looked down the road, wondering how far the bandits were now; with her horse. She shifted her position, still sitting rather uselessly. She looked up to the Prince and noticed he too was steadying himself. She didn’t care if he was a bit dazed, because he had so far shown no care for her wellbeing either; she obviously wasn’t ok as she hadn’t yet moved so she stubbornly remained on the floor for the time being. She knew they couldn’t stay here forever, they’d have to walk back to Camelot but it was already late in the day, could they make it back before nightfall? She supposed they would have to, yet she still remained just sat, trying to stop the world spinning.

[Vortigern]

-------Dear god. She was far too disagreeable. Whatever happened to the good days where noblewoman were meek and timid. It seems he kept crossing paths with ones who were far too outspoken. "I would not have you do anything, for apparently even raising a weapon is out of you capability." Since the dagger she had was not in her hand. He was not surprised, or should not be surprised rather. Clearly, it had been up to him to defend and had he not been outnumbered and distracted by her...yes! That is what it was. It was her fault. He had been looking at her when knocked semi unconscious. Everything was so clearly her fault! Wait now. Did she truly just accuse him of not being able to defend himself? The nerve.

-------"I at least was able to take the lives of two of them. Not pathetically cower by a tree. But then of course, you are only a woman after all." His comment was meant to be degrading. And he also purposely left out the fact that one of the men had conveniently been attacking her. He had not done it for her. He had done it for pride. Yes! Pride! If word got back to his kingdom that he had 'saved a damsel in distress' as rumors tended to skewed the truth, the reputation that he attempted to build and has spent time building, would slowly become undone. People would think him honorable. He was to be feared, not admired! What kind of person feared a man who was accused of saving the life of a woman?! "Besides, had you not been talking incessantly, I would not have been distracted."

-------Yes, he was bringing the blame back to her. Which was nothing new. He just had another reason to blame her now. Did he think she was lying on the ground for fun? Who knows! Maybe she was playing dead like a dog. Trying to divert the attention from her. "Well you would not be the first noblewoman guilty of sloth." One of the seven sins. He was merely criticizing her, though he knew in his mind that it was not laziness that caused her to remain on the ground. The pounding in his head was not going to cease. For it was only intensifying from this conversation. He pushed himself off the tree and looked down the path he would take. "It seems we will be forced to share the path that lies ahead. If you must be in my presence, then I challenge you to do something that is probably the greatest difficulty you will ever be faced with: be quiet." Could she actually do it? Probably not, for he knew that his was provoking her and that the road back to Camelot City would not be a peaceful one.

[Caitrin de Archer]

She raised her eyes to him, realising as he spoke he had four eyes, but that wasn’t a problem, a moment ago it had been six so this was a mild and agreeable change. She steadied herself whilst sitting down, focussing on his words, “I would like to see you raise a weapon with your arms pinned by your side.” She hissed mildly and closed her eyes, not particularly wanting to look at the Prince anymore, and needing to just not focus on anything for a few moments. How on earth was he standing up? Maybe she had received a larger blow than he had. She wasn’t sure and she certainly didn’t care, she was going to sit here as long as it took for her head to stop spinning. She knew the ache in her head would not stop anytime soon.

Cowering? She hadn’t been cowering, the man had shoved her there, how the hell had he arrived at the conclusion that meant ‘cowering’. “I wasn’t cowering anywhere!” She was scowling now at him, she didn’t appreciate being called a coward as she’d been pulled off her horse and practically abused by the bandit who had her pinned by the tree, “In case you hadn’t noticed there was a large brutish sort of man pinning me to it!” Caitrin ran a hand over her face again and through her hair which was somewhat more scraggly than before the ordeal had begun. “I assume you were spared the same treatment, I shouldn’t be too insulted they didn’t want to get their hands all over you if I were you.” She gave a small sort of shudder, she’d heard tales of men praying on young women who went out on solitary rides and that sort of thing did frighten her. Although she didn’t like to admit it, she was rather petite and therefore weak in strength, though she would never say she was weak in mind.

“If you had not insulted me I would have not replied to you, anyway you spoke to me first.” She was quick to point out, no way was the blame for this being laid on her. The fact he had allowed himself to become distracted was hardly her fault, as she had pointed out, he had spoken to her first, and told her she was no good at anything other than bearing children.

Now she was being accused of laziness, this man really thought the worst of her in every aspect he could conjure didn’t he? Her head was still throbbing but she opened her eyes, and looked up at him, her head slightly lolled about but she managed to steady it eventually, “I’ll remember to not be so sloth-like next time I’m knocked out by the end of a sword.” She felt her head again where the throbbing was coming from and felt the large bump which had formed; it was hardly attractive was it?

Wait, what? Forced to share the same path? That meant that he was heading back to Camelot as well didn’t it? She wasn’t looking at him, she had her eyes closed again and was just listening silently, concentrating on his words rather than her head; she just wanted the pain to subside as quickly as possible. That was hardly going to happen if she was forced to walk alongside him for hours on their way back to Camelot was it? She was sure her headache was partly down to him anyway. “I will remain as quiet as you are polite.” She smirked to herself, still keeping her posture steady, “Not at all. If I wish to speak I will speak, but I suppose you already knew that.”

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[Vortigern]

-------He did not care of her inconvenience at the time. She was still a little weak girl in his eyes, regardless of what she said. "My skills in combat far exceed mere words," he boasted. "I would have found a way," he concluded. Of course, he had not been placed in that situation. So it was quite an easy thing to be certain of, for it was all hypothetical. She had been pinned against the tree and because they lost the horses, he would tell her that everything was her fault. She should just stop arguing with him and accept it! Well, apparently she had never been called a coward before. He glared at her when she pointed out her disposition at the time. "You are a woman of all talk. Your greatest weapon is your tongue for you can speak all the words you wish, fueled by courage from a non existent place, yet when faced in direct danger, you are indeed a coward." Now he was only saying it to upset her. She was a woman; he did not expect her to know how to fight.

-------Her next words presented a possibility that he knew were the source of all women's fears. It was what their greatest nightmares were made of. Men taking advantage of them in the most crudest of ways. While Vortigern was no such man, he cared little for this woman's virtue. Who was she to him? No one. A thorn in his side yes, but nothing else. "Well what do you expect when you roam around the woods on your own." Was he saying that it would have served her right? It was his annoyance, truly, that enabled such harsh implications. Great. Now they were arguing about something not worth arguing, because he was right. But she was clearly stubborn; as was he. "You were so determined to insult me back that you not only distracted me, but failed to notice the man approaching me." Yes! More cause for blame. How could someone be so blind as to just be totally oblivious to the facts?

-------He just ignored her sarcasm. He was getting highly agitated by it, as it was only aggravating his worsening mood. Damn woman. And he wouldn't even be able to get rid of her. Unless he killed her. Hmm. Now that was a tempting thought. Kill her, and blame the bandits. The thought was only fleeting. Vortigern may be cruel and violent, but he only killed to make a point. Killing her would show nothing. But it would appease his the throbbing in his head. No no. He would have to dissuade such thoughts...for now. "Good god woman, do you ever stop arguing? No wonder your family permits you to ride off on your own. They are probably overjoyed by the peace and quiet they gain, only attainable by your absence." A gift that he was currently not being given.

-------Shocking; more defiance from her. He had no intention of being 'polite' which meant...damn. Which meant that she would have no intention of remaining quiet. He glared at her once more, not offering any aid to her though he did notice that she was still recovering from the wound. He did not even wait until she was in a better state. She could stay behind for all he cared. And that was when a thought hit him: he was not familiar enough with these lands to find his way back. Yes, he could guess and use logic, but there was no guarantee. He knew the general path, but if there were any obscure twists, turns, or shortcuts then he would not know them. Great. More wound to his pride. He supposed that ruled out killing her. Seemed she would have some sort of purpose after all. Not vocalizing any of this, his irritated glare lingered on her for a few prolonged moments, before he began ahead on the path from which they had come from.

[Caitrin de Archer]

Though the man spoke with such confidence which would suggest that he could obviously protect himself successfully in battle, Caitrin supposed otherwise. He spoke of her being all talk, but it seemed apart from two dead bodies, the Prince was all talk as well; he had not done his job of protecting himself as he had been knocked out. She knew that she had been frightened when the bandits had first attacked, but she had never been put in that position before, and neither did she ever want to ever again. She had been lucky she supposed, she had escaped the ordeal with a cut to her neck and a throbbing head; oh and an arrogant Prince. “It might surprise you, but I am not often put in such a position, forgive me if I panicked.” She obviously didn’t want his forgiveness, it was just something to say to fill the gap; is words were meant to be cruel and she supposed that was the only function of them. “You should have been able to defend yourself better than I could, you had a sword, all I had was this.” She gestured to the small dagger at her belt and her words were almost bitter. She of course had her sorcery, but this man couldn’t know that; no one ever could. Caitrin’s confidence came from the fact she always had that to fall back upon should she needed it, but that was a small comfort as she knew that in Camelot she could never use her magic.

His words rung some sort of truth and that distressed her in some way. She was putting herself at some risk here, she knew that. Her virtue was obviously something she had been taught to protect; at court most thought her flirts led to more but they never did and that was that. “I can protect my virtue just fine on my own.” Came her rather blunt reply. How was it her fault she had not noticed the man behind him? The Prince was quite a lot taller than she was hadn’t been able to see the man at his shoulder until it was much too late, “It’s not my fault you let yourself become distracted by a woman.” That was quite a fun reply on her part, and slightly flirty, could he handle that? She looked at him carefully, he was a proud man so he was probably used to female attention of some sort, and of course he was used to getting his own way.

Her head was still throbbing from the blow but as she opened her eyes again the world swam into a beautiful single focus and she breathed out gently in relief. At least everything had stopped spinning. When she looked back up to the Prince he was finally just in focus and she even managed a small, weak smile, which faded as he insulted her. She rolled her eyes, this man knew nothing of her and her lips curled into a small smile, “They wanted peace so much they sent me to another Kingdom.” She said bitterly, refusing to look at him and instead looking at the path ahead of them.

Her head was still lolling about on her shoulders and she hated the feeling of not being in control of her own movements. She saw the Prince watching her, she knew he wasn’t watching her out of pity or concern so why was he looking at her. Then he turned on his heels and began to walk away from her. Her eyes widened and she shot up to her feet, the blood rushing to her head and she stumbled a little bit, putting a hand to her forehead; trying to steady herself. “If you’re going to be so impatient at leaving could you at least slow down?” She requested, stumbling slightly as she concentrated at just putting one foot in front of the other. At least the world wasn’t swimming anymore, that was one consolation at least.

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