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 Posted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 6:06 am
 The captain finished supervising herding the new preybeasts into Stormborn lands, where the plateaus and rocky cliffs made it very difficult for them to run back off. He had been away, leading his reavers, for many days and he was looking forward to some rest back at his den. He wasn't so sure if he was looking forward to meeting his wife, again. She wasn't a wife of his choosing, no matter how pretty she was. And they hadn't been married long. He was never quite sure of his reception at home - but he hoped it would be a comfortable one.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 3:20 am
Ragnhild Had heard that the reavers, and with them Uthred, had been spotted returning to the lands, and immediately her stomach had started misbehaving. It wasn't bad, just a constant, mild nausea, but it was made worse by Ragnhild's anger at herself for feeling it.
There had been too many turns with males in Ragnhild's young life, and she still preferred those males that could talk to her and make her feel good about herself (in spite of herself... she really wanted to shed that silly, girlish weakness.) Uthred reminded her of Gunne. He was big, strong, respected, and she liked that... but they had barely had time to even speak with each other since becoming mates, and she still felt nervous and uncertain around him. But she had made a resolution to be a good wife to him, and by her ancestors, she would keep to it.
There! She saw his grey and white shape approaching the den that they now shared, and fought down a sudden shiver of nervousness. Lifting her head high and arranging her paws and tail in a way that she knew would give her a most pleasing profile, she forced a smile onto her face and awaited her husband's approach.
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Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 9:46 am
Uhtred ducked into the den, and let his eyes adjust to the different light within. There she was, sitting perfectly arranged to present her good points, with the same beauty and charm that had landed her as Gunne's mate in the first place. It made him think of her sister, Dalla, another beauty of the pride - the lioness he had be considering going after before Aesir gave him Ragnhild.
It didn't matter now, he was mated, sure enough, and he doubted Dalla would be willing to dabble with her sister's mate. Still, a lion could dream. And Ragnhild was quite a beauty, even if she came off as more delicate then her sister.
"Hello, Ragnhild. How has the pride been in my absence?"
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Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 4:54 pm
Ragnhild bowed her head in response to her husband's greeting, and got onto her feet to better anticipate his needs.
"We have been scraping by as best we can without our best reavers around," she replied, her smile brightening for a moment. "But I won't bore you with the details. No significant fights, no remarkable scandals. Can I get you anything?" She lifted one paw hesitantly. "I have a fresh kill prepared, in case you would be hungry...?"
Gunne had used to want her to groom him, when the mood came on him, but the very idea of even suggesting such an intimate thing to her new mate made her ears uncomfortably warm. First of all, she had no idea how he would react. And if he disapproved, would he be aggressive about it? She needed to know her mate better, and this was the first good chance she had really gotten, so far.
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Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 7:05 pm
Uhtred had not been expecting Ragnhild to be . . . eagerly? . . . anticipating his needs upon his return. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting, not really knowing the lioness he had taken to mate, but a meal was not it.
He had assumed she would be cold, or maybe even absent, but if she wanted to feed him, he would be fed. They were stuck with each other now, as far as the pride was concerned, and they should make the best of it.
"A meal sounds good, wife. And then, would you like to walk down to the fjord with me?"
The invitation to go walking was spur of the moment. After he ate, he thought maybe . . . it would be time to actually talk to her. Away from his reavers and the rest of the pride. In peace.
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 1:06 pm
Uthred's change to use of the word 'wife' didn't pass unnoticed, and his suggestion made Ragnhild's ears perk eagerly (And maybe a bit more noticeably than she would have chosen, had she thought about it). Her voice lowered a little, so as to hide her most obvious excitement, as she replied:
"That's a lovely idea, husband. I would like that very much." The perfect opportunity to talk and get to know him better! Ragnhild had to keep herself from bouncing as she turned and went deeper into the den, bringing out the choisest parts of the meal she had prepared for him. And Uthred himself had made the suggestion! Things were going really well tonight!
The first time she had met him, she had been a bit too shocked by Aesir's decision to get rid of her to really react much, and she was fairly sure she hadn't made the best impression. After that, the few times that she had spent brief moments of time in his company, she had still been too deep in thought - or shock... but impressions could be changed, and now that she had made her resolution, she had to smile and charm all the more to make up for lost time.
This time I will be a good wife, she once again swore to herself. I mustn't let such a good start go to waste.
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 2:17 pm
Uhtred waited for Ragnhild to bring back the meat, and considered her and the meal she would return with. Was it fresh killed today, or was it a few days old, merely laid by until his return? Which pieces would she give him - the hero's portion was properly reserved for the leader of the hunt, or the Warlord in a feast, but this was a meal in his own den, and he could expect the heart and shoulder for himself.
The hero's portion had been a custom he remembered from his old pride, and had slowly introduced it here, and the Stormborn, used to perks to reputation for the worthy, adopted it quickly. Would Ragnhild, the former wife of Gunne, know to set it aside for him?
The thought of Gunne reminded him of something. He had not yet claimed his mate's dues with his wife, but Gunne no doubt had. Possibly even Aesir, in the muddle that happened when he came to power. If they had topped her, any cubs in the next few months could be theirs.
Uhtred would not mind raising the cubs of Gunne - but not of Aesir. He would wait to claim his marriage rights until he was certain that she did not have another lion's cubs in her belly.
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Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 12:31 pm
Ragnhild had no idea that the tradition of the hero's share originally came from Uthred's old pride, but she had quite some experience with preparing food for big warriors and returning heroes, so she quite confidently pulled out the heart and the shoulder to give to her husband. The rest would keep for a few days more, if Uthred wasn't ravenously hungry. And if it would turn out that all he wanted to eat was day-fresh kills, then Ragnhild would barter the rest off, like she had up until now, and make sure he got what he wanted.
Ragnhild had been making sure to have a day-fresh kill for every day these last few days, usually by bartering, but this one she had actually caught herself. She knew it was a little silly of her - who could tell the difference, after all - but she felt a little proud to be able to present her mate with food that she had caught by her own tooth and claw. Ragnhild wasn't the most accomplished hunter, with her slight build and fine limbs she was definitely built more for speed than strenght, but she was nothing if not tenacious and it was almost enough to compensate for the subtleness of her physique.
The weight of the meat bent her neck so that she couldn't quite keep a good eye on where she was going, but she knew the den well enough to find her way back even so. The hefty portion of meat thumped heavily against the ground in front of Uthred, and Ragnhild looked up to give him a big smile.
"Will this be enough to sate your hunger, husband? If not, I have more."
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 10:42 am
Ah, so she had known about it. Uhtred was glad for that; although he considered himself fully stormborn there were a few traditions he liked to hold on to, and he was happy Ragnhild would let him practice them in the privacy of their den.
"This will be enough for now - but I may be hungry again after our walk."
Uhtred was impressed by her effort rather than the feat of strength it took to move his meal. The meat would have been nothing to him - but it obviously took some effort from her.
"Fresh meat is always more savory on the tongue. I thank you."
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:18 pm
Ragnhild sat down and gracefully bowed her head. In her mind she made careful note to try to have as fresh meat as possible, as often as possible.
"If my husband wants fresh meat, I will make sure to get it for him," was, however, all that she said about it.
Then she took a few steps back into the cave and turned a little away from Uthred, concentrated on thoroughly grooming herself in order to let him enjoy his meal in peace. She made sure to still be within sight and a comfortable speaking distance, in case he needed or wanted anything, but outside of his most immediate view.
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Posted: Fri Sep 02, 2011 10:57 pm
"Aren't you hungry?" Uhtred asked once he had taken the biting edge off his hunger with the meat, and realized his small wife was not eating, but waiting as if to serve him. He wasn't used to being waited on like this - and it was a bit unnerving. Then again, she had had plenty of time to eat while he was reaving, and it was entirely possible that she just wasn't hungry.
"But if you're not, maybe it's time we took a quiet walk. Are you ready wife?"
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Posted: Sat Sep 03, 2011 4:29 am
"Oh, I already ate. I wasn't sure when you would be coming back." Ragnhild got to her feet and smiled at her husband, fighting down another brief surge of unruly butterflies in her stomach. It was just a walk, for heaven's sake. Walk and talk, just like she had wanted.
But perhaps she was a little nervous of what she might find out.
Oh well, only one way to know.
The tan lioness walked closer to her husband and nodded, giving him a bright smile. "I am ready, husband."
She was fairly certain that Uthred was not going to begin the convarsation, and she did have a few pressing questions that she would like to have answered, but she didn't know quite how to start and so she hesitated, remaining quiet for the time being.
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Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2011 2:48 pm
Uhtred licked his chops, stretched, and rose up to stand beside his wife. "I'm done my meal, so this is a good time to go. Let's enjoy the sun before it goes down all the way. And we can talk by the water."
Uhtred ducked out of the den and led the way to the beach, not waiting for his wife to follow. She would, he knew; she needed time to talk just as he did.
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