(no subject)
[It happens well before dawn. There is static from the radios which have suddenly appeared, and the wavery tone of adjusting. A couple seconds of a song play - Joan, apparently - and then it clicks to this.]
SFX: Older BOYS, young MEN, and a young MINDELAN talking to each other. A single SPARROW lands and chatters angrily
A YOUNG MAN, approx 17-18:
"Aren't they supposed to be asleep?"
MINDELAN, approx 12-13. Her voice is young, but she does not speak like a child:
[with a sigh]
"She's probably locked out and can't get to the courtyard."
[after a pause]
"Jump, stay."
SFX: Brief flurry of SPARROW wings.
A YOUNG MAN, approx 14-15:
"You want company?"
MINDELAN:
"I'm just going to let her into the courtyard. I'll only be a moment."
SFX: Footsteps on stone. Other voices fade.
MINDELAN:
"I don't see why you couldn't wait till I came home, if Lalasa didn't hear you. Or does sitting on the stones make your stump hurt?"
SFX: Wind
MINDELAN:
[Vexed]
"Peg, why in Mithros's name-"
SFX: A male voice curses. SPARROWS fly and chatter furiously. There are sounds of a fight. A YOUNG WOMAN's voice is muffled.
A YOUNG MAN, approx 15-16:
[Angry, trying to be quiet]
"You'll pay for that trick, wench! Call these birds off!"
SFX: SPARROWS continue to fly and shriek. There is a scrabbling of nails on flesh. The YOUNG MAN curses again, softly.
SFX: Faint footsteps. Other SFX grow louder - going outside.
MINDELAN:
[coldly]
"Unhand my maid."
SFX: SPARROWS fly away
YOUNG MAN:
[Surprised, mocking]
"If I were you, Lump, I'd walk away right now."
SFX: A blow is struck. The YOUNG MAN gives a pained cry and falls against something. The YOUNG WOMAN scrambles away
MINDELAN:
[Cold, very controlled, buried undertones of contempt and rage]
"How dare you touch an unwilling woman?"
SFX: The YOUNG MAN swallows and attempts to retreat.
YOUNG MAN:
"You're wrong, Mindelan. The wench has been eyeing me for weeks. They all do it-bed men to earn extra coin over their wages."
MINDELAN:
"Liar."
SFX: A particularly vicious slap
"I know her and I know you, Vinson of Genlith. Those scratches alone condemn you."
SFX: A second slap. The YOUNG MAN - VINSON - gasps and stumbles.
VINSON:
[Shakily. Poorly hiding fear under disdain.]
"You will regret your treatment of me. My family is powerful at court!"
SFX: Footsteps
MINDELAN:
[very softly, with great emphasis]
"You are a coward."
[Still softly]
"You knew you could frighten her-that's why you picked her. What kind of [dei] preys on serving girls? Where is your honor?"
VINSON:
[blustering, fearful]
"Just because I won't brawl with you doesn't mean I have no honor! I-I refuse to get in trouble over a wench who is no better than she should be!"
SFX: VINSON backs into something and audibly flinches
MINDELAN:
"I'm reporting this."
SFX: Footsteps
YOUNG WOMAN, around 15-16:
[Approaches. She has been crying]
"My lady, no! Don't tell! They'll talk. I've no reputation, that's how things are in servants' hall."
SFX: VINSON escapes
YOUNG WOMAN:
"Nobles can make a girl's life a misery-they always do. Please don't report this!"
MINDELAN:
[Quietly, firmly]
"He must be reported. He'll do it again."
YOUNG WOMAN:
[Pleading, speaking very fast]
"Please, my lady, put yourself in my shoes! You'll get me in trouble. His kind can make it hard for servants. He speaks to his mother, who speaks to the chamberlain, who speaks to a steward, who puts my uncle out of work. How will you know it was done? How will you know it even came because of this? In two years you'll be gone, and Uncle and I will still be here. Listen to me."
[There is a pause. More calmly]
"If I'd been on my feet, I could have done something."
[The YOUNG WOMAN blows her nose]
"He had me all twisted around. I could hardly get at him."
[There is a pause]
MINDELAN:
[Warmly]
"I am so proud of you."
SFX: Pat
"He's going to hurt for a long time-he won't dare take those marks to a healer. I don't know if I could have done as well from that position. Did he hit you? Hurt you in any way?"
YOUNG WOMAN:
[Jaded]
"I've bruises where he grabbed me. He would've gotten to hitting sooner or later-they all do."
[She hesitates. Then, quietly]
"My dad, my brothers all hit their women."
MINDELAN:
"I thought Gower said you were alone-wait."
[Suspicious]
"Does he hit you?"
YOUNG WOMAN:
"Dad always said Uncle had strange ideas, learnt up here in the north. He's not, not chirpy, like some, but he's the gentlest soul. He was the only one left…"
[Exhales]
"Raiders came in from the Copper Isles and burned our village out. They missed me-Dad sent me to the river to wash clothes."
MINDELAN:
"So you came here."
YOUNG WOMAN:
"Uncle Gower told me the king's palace is a fine place to work. And so it is-I couldn't ask for kinder friends than Tian, and Uncle. It's just- No place is perfect."
MINDELAN:
"Use the bruise balm. You won't need a lot."
YOUNG WOMAN:
"You're not-"
MINDELAN:
[Grimly]
"I won't report him, but I have to make sure he doesn't forget."
SFX: Footsteps going inside and over floors. A sharp knocking on wood
MINDELAN:
[calling]
"Don't make me say what I've come to say out here in the hall."
SFX: Door opens
VINSON:
[Sullen]
"What?"
MINDELAN:
[Quietly and with intensity]
"If I hear of you bothering any female, not just her, I'll take you before the court of the Goddess. I'll risk making an enemy of the pack that whelped you."
VINSON:
[Snapping. His voice cracks]
"I never want to see the wench again. I'd give anything never to see you."
SFX: Door slams
SFX: Footsteps, doors opening and closing, murmurs too low to understand, a banked fire crackling. Time passes with little sound, though cloth rustles as MINDELAN tosses and turns in bed
SFX: YOUNG WOMAN crying, muffled. Rustling, footsteps. Crying is more audible.
MINDELAN:
[Worried]
"Now, what's this? Lalasa, what's wrong?"
SFX: She sits on a bed. A hug is involved.
MINDELAN:
"Please don't cry."
YOUNG WOMAN - LALASA:
[Thickly, muffled; her face is pressed into cloth]
"When he grabbed me, I hoped you would come - I'd no right, but I hoped. And you did!"
SFX: Pat
MINDELAN:
"You have every right. I'm honor-bound to protect you."
LALASA:
[crying]
"And you did, you did! The look on your face-"
MINDELAN:
"Maybe I should report this after all. It's not right, letting him off when you're so scared."
LALASA:
[Becoming more composed. Cloth rustles.]
"It's not that. Not that, not much, anyway."
[Sniffs. Old, old bitterness]
"I never knew anybody who'd fight for me, never. When my bro-a man, a man hurt me, when I was little, and my parents said I lied. He was more important to them."
SFX: MINDELAN makes a sound, a slight sharp inhalation.
LALASA:
"But you-you faced down a noble for me!"
SFX: Silence. LALASA blows her nose.
MINDELAN:
[Clears her throat. Attempts casual]
"Vinson's not much of a noble."
LALASA:
"But I knew you would, if you found out. Since I've come to your service, I never felt so safe."
MINDELAN:
[Distressed, largely hiding it]
"Well, it's nothing to cry over."
LALASA:
[Chuckles. Quiet envy]
"You're so strong. I wish I was like you. I wager no one ever grabbed you in your life."
MINDELAN:
[Quietly]
"My brother Conal held me off a balcony when I was four. I forget what I'd done to annoy him. He was always hitting me or pushing me. This time he got caught-one of the maids was in the garden and heard me screaming."
LALASA:
"What a brute!"
MINDELAN:
"I'd never seen Papa so angry. He almost disowned Conal. He said he would disown Conal if he heard of anything else like that."
[Bitterly]
"I think the worst part, other than my being scared of heights now… The worst part is that Conal doesn't even remember. I asked him when we came back from the Islands."
LALASA:"No wonder you hate bullies. No wonder you learned to fight."
MINDELAN:
[Deep breath.]
"Are you going to be able to sleep now?"
LALASA:
"Yes, forgive me. I'm sorry I woke you."
MINDELAN:
[Rises from bed]
"You didn't. I was awake. But you should sleep-all the sewing you do these days, you've earned your rest."
LALASA:
[Teasingly]
"And you haven't, I suppose."
MINDELAN:
"Sleep well, Lalasa."
LALASA:
"Thank you, my lady."
SFX: footsteps
LALASA:
[Very quietly]"I knew you would come."
[OOC: Radiomemories, start! First unidentified voice is Nealan of Queenscove, second is Cleon of Kennan. Mindelan comes to regret her actions here. Also, yes, there's someone named Tian. And... trigger warning for attempted rape, though the word is never used.]
SFX: Older BOYS, young MEN, and a young MINDELAN talking to each other. A single SPARROW lands and chatters angrily
A YOUNG MAN, approx 17-18:
"Aren't they supposed to be asleep?"
MINDELAN, approx 12-13. Her voice is young, but she does not speak like a child:
[with a sigh]
"She's probably locked out and can't get to the courtyard."
[after a pause]
"Jump, stay."
SFX: Brief flurry of SPARROW wings.
A YOUNG MAN, approx 14-15:
"You want company?"
MINDELAN:
"I'm just going to let her into the courtyard. I'll only be a moment."
SFX: Footsteps on stone. Other voices fade.
MINDELAN:
"I don't see why you couldn't wait till I came home, if Lalasa didn't hear you. Or does sitting on the stones make your stump hurt?"
SFX: Wind
MINDELAN:
[Vexed]
"Peg, why in Mithros's name-"
SFX: A male voice curses. SPARROWS fly and chatter furiously. There are sounds of a fight. A YOUNG WOMAN's voice is muffled.
A YOUNG MAN, approx 15-16:
[Angry, trying to be quiet]
"You'll pay for that trick, wench! Call these birds off!"
SFX: SPARROWS continue to fly and shriek. There is a scrabbling of nails on flesh. The YOUNG MAN curses again, softly.
SFX: Faint footsteps. Other SFX grow louder - going outside.
MINDELAN:
[coldly]
"Unhand my maid."
SFX: SPARROWS fly away
YOUNG MAN:
[Surprised, mocking]
"If I were you, Lump, I'd walk away right now."
SFX: A blow is struck. The YOUNG MAN gives a pained cry and falls against something. The YOUNG WOMAN scrambles away
MINDELAN:
[Cold, very controlled, buried undertones of contempt and rage]
"How dare you touch an unwilling woman?"
SFX: The YOUNG MAN swallows and attempts to retreat.
YOUNG MAN:
"You're wrong, Mindelan. The wench has been eyeing me for weeks. They all do it-bed men to earn extra coin over their wages."
MINDELAN:
"Liar."
SFX: A particularly vicious slap
"I know her and I know you, Vinson of Genlith. Those scratches alone condemn you."
SFX: A second slap. The YOUNG MAN - VINSON - gasps and stumbles.
VINSON:
[Shakily. Poorly hiding fear under disdain.]
"You will regret your treatment of me. My family is powerful at court!"
SFX: Footsteps
MINDELAN:
[very softly, with great emphasis]
"You are a coward."
[Still softly]
"You knew you could frighten her-that's why you picked her. What kind of [dei] preys on serving girls? Where is your honor?"
VINSON:
[blustering, fearful]
"Just because I won't brawl with you doesn't mean I have no honor! I-I refuse to get in trouble over a wench who is no better than she should be!"
SFX: VINSON backs into something and audibly flinches
MINDELAN:
"I'm reporting this."
SFX: Footsteps
YOUNG WOMAN, around 15-16:
[Approaches. She has been crying]
"My lady, no! Don't tell! They'll talk. I've no reputation, that's how things are in servants' hall."
SFX: VINSON escapes
YOUNG WOMAN:
"Nobles can make a girl's life a misery-they always do. Please don't report this!"
MINDELAN:
[Quietly, firmly]
"He must be reported. He'll do it again."
YOUNG WOMAN:
[Pleading, speaking very fast]
"Please, my lady, put yourself in my shoes! You'll get me in trouble. His kind can make it hard for servants. He speaks to his mother, who speaks to the chamberlain, who speaks to a steward, who puts my uncle out of work. How will you know it was done? How will you know it even came because of this? In two years you'll be gone, and Uncle and I will still be here. Listen to me."
[There is a pause. More calmly]
"If I'd been on my feet, I could have done something."
[The YOUNG WOMAN blows her nose]
"He had me all twisted around. I could hardly get at him."
[There is a pause]
MINDELAN:
[Warmly]
"I am so proud of you."
SFX: Pat
"He's going to hurt for a long time-he won't dare take those marks to a healer. I don't know if I could have done as well from that position. Did he hit you? Hurt you in any way?"
YOUNG WOMAN:
[Jaded]
"I've bruises where he grabbed me. He would've gotten to hitting sooner or later-they all do."
[She hesitates. Then, quietly]
"My dad, my brothers all hit their women."
MINDELAN:
"I thought Gower said you were alone-wait."
[Suspicious]
"Does he hit you?"
YOUNG WOMAN:
"Dad always said Uncle had strange ideas, learnt up here in the north. He's not, not chirpy, like some, but he's the gentlest soul. He was the only one left…"
[Exhales]
"Raiders came in from the Copper Isles and burned our village out. They missed me-Dad sent me to the river to wash clothes."
MINDELAN:
"So you came here."
YOUNG WOMAN:
"Uncle Gower told me the king's palace is a fine place to work. And so it is-I couldn't ask for kinder friends than Tian, and Uncle. It's just- No place is perfect."
MINDELAN:
"Use the bruise balm. You won't need a lot."
YOUNG WOMAN:
"You're not-"
MINDELAN:
[Grimly]
"I won't report him, but I have to make sure he doesn't forget."
SFX: Footsteps going inside and over floors. A sharp knocking on wood
MINDELAN:
[calling]
"Don't make me say what I've come to say out here in the hall."
SFX: Door opens
VINSON:
[Sullen]
"What?"
MINDELAN:
[Quietly and with intensity]
"If I hear of you bothering any female, not just her, I'll take you before the court of the Goddess. I'll risk making an enemy of the pack that whelped you."
VINSON:
[Snapping. His voice cracks]
"I never want to see the wench again. I'd give anything never to see you."
SFX: Door slams
SFX: Footsteps, doors opening and closing, murmurs too low to understand, a banked fire crackling. Time passes with little sound, though cloth rustles as MINDELAN tosses and turns in bed
SFX: YOUNG WOMAN crying, muffled. Rustling, footsteps. Crying is more audible.
MINDELAN:
[Worried]
"Now, what's this? Lalasa, what's wrong?"
SFX: She sits on a bed. A hug is involved.
MINDELAN:
"Please don't cry."
YOUNG WOMAN - LALASA:
[Thickly, muffled; her face is pressed into cloth]
"When he grabbed me, I hoped you would come - I'd no right, but I hoped. And you did!"
SFX: Pat
MINDELAN:
"You have every right. I'm honor-bound to protect you."
LALASA:
[crying]
"And you did, you did! The look on your face-"
MINDELAN:
"Maybe I should report this after all. It's not right, letting him off when you're so scared."
LALASA:
[Becoming more composed. Cloth rustles.]
"It's not that. Not that, not much, anyway."
[Sniffs. Old, old bitterness]
"I never knew anybody who'd fight for me, never. When my bro-a man, a man hurt me, when I was little, and my parents said I lied. He was more important to them."
SFX: MINDELAN makes a sound, a slight sharp inhalation.
LALASA:
"But you-you faced down a noble for me!"
SFX: Silence. LALASA blows her nose.
MINDELAN:
[Clears her throat. Attempts casual]
"Vinson's not much of a noble."
LALASA:
"But I knew you would, if you found out. Since I've come to your service, I never felt so safe."
MINDELAN:
[Distressed, largely hiding it]
"Well, it's nothing to cry over."
LALASA:
[Chuckles. Quiet envy]
"You're so strong. I wish I was like you. I wager no one ever grabbed you in your life."
MINDELAN:
[Quietly]
"My brother Conal held me off a balcony when I was four. I forget what I'd done to annoy him. He was always hitting me or pushing me. This time he got caught-one of the maids was in the garden and heard me screaming."
LALASA:
"What a brute!"
MINDELAN:
"I'd never seen Papa so angry. He almost disowned Conal. He said he would disown Conal if he heard of anything else like that."
[Bitterly]
"I think the worst part, other than my being scared of heights now… The worst part is that Conal doesn't even remember. I asked him when we came back from the Islands."
LALASA:"No wonder you hate bullies. No wonder you learned to fight."
MINDELAN:
[Deep breath.]
"Are you going to be able to sleep now?"
LALASA:
"Yes, forgive me. I'm sorry I woke you."
MINDELAN:
[Rises from bed]
"You didn't. I was awake. But you should sleep-all the sewing you do these days, you've earned your rest."
LALASA:
[Teasingly]
"And you haven't, I suppose."
MINDELAN:
"Sleep well, Lalasa."
LALASA:
"Thank you, my lady."
SFX: footsteps
LALASA:
[Very quietly]"I knew you would come."
[OOC: Radiomemories, start! First unidentified voice is Nealan of Queenscove, second is Cleon of Kennan. Mindelan comes to regret her actions here. Also, yes, there's someone named Tian. And... trigger warning for attempted rape, though the word is never used.]