Roe Relaxing at the Trip(Thea)

[Thea Linnet]

"Actions speak louder than words, Roe. You might not have said so many kind things, but what you did for me all the convincing I need." It was true. And on more than one occasion he'd talked his is life being Nottingham and the things he had done. Even though he'd been fighting a war Thea didn't like or understand, she knew that he had been loyal to the French.

She laughed with him as he spoke about her immature personality. "Well, it seems I have more to do for you that I thought. If you missed out all the impulsiveness of being a child, who's a better person to get it than with me? You've seen the way I act, so I figure I have more than enough of that to share." She laughed again and tried to imagine an impulsive Roe. In her mind, he was riding around on his horse, about to go to duty at the castle, then decided to have a drink instead. It wasn't much, but she was sure that after a few days with her, he could end up being quite the troublemaker.

Her eyes widened when he took her hands in his own. For the second time that night, she felt heat creep up her shoulders. Stop it, she told herself. Stop it, stop it, stop it! Control yourself. Well, that easier said than done. "You're right. Why wait?" she asked then, still blushing, she pressed her lips against his. And if he asked, he was the one who suggested it. She pulled away with a slow smile, then hid behind her mug until the flush went away.
"Do you think we should go to the Priory and get married, or should I just contact my friend and get the documents forged?" she asked once her flesh had returned to a normal temperature, though she couldn't stop grinning.

[Roe]

Almost always that was true. He had definitely found that words, especially from the nobility, couldn't be trusted. You really couldn't trust somebody in war until you had seen their actions in the field. "Hmmm .... you may not know it or recognize it, but that is a batttlefield view of life. It was the way you had to view your enemy and his actions, as well as your own comrades."

That might be right, he thought. She might be an avenue to experience a second childhood. "I know another person who can have that effect on me, just maybe not as extreme. I knew her as a little girl and then we went separate ways. You have to understand, Thea, its not that I didn't have a childhood, but it was quite controlled. It was like living two lives. There was the life inside the manor, where roles and dutie, even at the dinner table were quite proscribed. However, when I was able to escape the manor and go into the forest, ort some of the villages, we got to play, ven with some of those noble children who weren't supposed to mix with the lower classes. All of that ended, though .... that is childhood things .... when I turned 12 and was apprenticed out. Hmmmm .... I hope your able to share well then," he laughed.

Roe saw that he didn't even need to kiss her lips and there was a strong physical, and even an emotional reaction. He watched her eyes grow suddenly more large, and even childlike in wonder, and saw a confused, almost indecisive look in her eyes. He wondered yet again how wasy it was going to be for her to disengage when she didn't need him for the legal process any longer. He wondered how this whole thing wasgoing to end. What he did know, if he didn't before was that she had some conflicting emotions at work, just under the surface. Her reaction was proof of that.

The, suddenly, it seemed that one set of emotions, probably the ones he was afraid of the most, became dominant. "You're right. Why wait? .... Do you think we should go to the Priory and get married, or should I just contact my friend and get the documents forged?"

He noted that her kiss, though done with soft lips, was quite insistent and aggressive. He could see that her impulsiveness showed in this part of her life as well, and that it would be necessary for him to keep her as calm and even-tempered as he could. "I think it depends on which you think will work the best when it comes to the overall plan. That is, which will Birmingham find the most convincing."

[Thea Linnet]

Thea frowned slightly at Roe, her lips pouting ever so slightly in thought. "Lord Birmingham is a very material person, so I think just having the documents will be fine. Let's not bother about the whole wedding idea, too much fuss." She waved her hand dismissively then put it under her chin, propping herself up on it.

"I'm sure I can find some childlike behaviours to share with you Roe. And what else of this childhood friend of yours? Do you still meet today?" she asked politely. Her eyelids dropped slightly as a pounding thundered in her temples. Squeezing her eyes shut, she rubbed them slowly then gave Roe a small smile.

"I'll meet you tomorrow at the head of the market? Just after breakfast? I'll have everything by then, I assure you." She stood and shook the wrinkles from her dress. Gathering the letters, she faced Roe. "Goodnight then, my love?" she face scrunched up at the sound of it. She tried again with my husband, but it didn't sound right either. With a small sigh, she placed a hand on his cheek and settled with: "Goodnight Roe." She let her hand rest on his cheek, rough with stubble, for a moment longer then went to the counter. She slid a small pouch at the bar man and whispered, "For your troubles," she gave a pointed look over her shoulder, then grinned when he tapped the side of his nose and took the pouch. The door banged behind her as she stood outside then began the trek back to the castle and the room that awaited her.

[Roe]

So, apparently she did not want a wedding. In a way, Roe thought, that was a good thing. It seemed that she did not have a desire to trap him in an official wedding with official witnesses. So, it appeared that when she no longer needed him, he could return to his regular life. "However you wish to handle it, Thea. I'll trust that you know what's required." It seemed that she was looking at this in a practical way.

Hmmm .... he had fallen for the bait a bit. Was there any potential jealousy there, he wondered. It was difficult to tell. It was clear that he had some practice in hiding what her true emotions were. "Do any of these behaviours rise to the top of the list, perhaps. oh .... yes .... I see her infrequently in Nottingham .... sometimes the castle."

Roe nodded in agreement. "It sounds like a plan and one that you've thought through, which is always a good idea. Make sure that you have a story worked up, since we are bypassing the wedding idea, of were and when the ceremony took place, which may mean, my love, that we are already betrothed, eh? Hmmm .... obviously you have to work out a term for me that can roll off your tongue lovingly, my dear," and he took her right hand and kissed it before she was able to walk away.