However careful she might be with her words, the dry twist of her smile gives away how she feels about that.
"I suspect," she says wryly, at last, "that there are a few men in this realm who might disagree with you on that."
Again, she is thoroughly aware of her own unpopularity in King's Landing - aware enough to bear it as something of a badge of honour, even if it also stings. But he does not strike her, at least, as a man who is likely to agree with their reasons - and she will confess that there is something pleasant about talking to someone who seems to be sympathetic to her own beliefs and understanding. Someone other than the woman she is carrying on a dishonourable affair with, in any case.
"Do you mean to stay here long, or only for the tourney?"
He disagrees with a great many men about a great many things. He doesn't tend to lose sleep over it. Certainly not when the men doing the talking say so little worth the breath it took to speak -- something infuriatingly common in King's Landing. It's one of the reasons he detests this place so much, and why her question draws another scowl to his face.
It is strange - particularly when she began this conversation wondering whether she should leave before he saw her - to find that there is a degree of relief in him saying that, even and especially with the scowl that accompanies it. Even if they do not speak at all again, there is something comforting in the thought that there might be one sane man in this city who did not sail here with her.
Having said which...
"So will I, I do not doubt." She will not think too hard about why; easier to blame it on weather and tide, or on the diplomatic duty she came to do and which is so clearly in vain. But it is true, all the same; she has said as much to her men. "When this is healed, perhaps you might show me a little of your parries under less showy circumstances? My people do not much lend themselves towards axes; but you clearly know well how to make the most of them."
Which is not at all a transparent ploy to spend more time with a man who has, by virtue of being less than entirely unpleasant, just become one of the most interesting Westerosis she has met thus far.
Aleifr gives her a sympathetic look at that. He doesn't know where her home is - the 'Rohan' he had heard mention of, or 'The Mark' that she had mentioned directly - but he knows that it is far from here, and he knows what a miserable thing it is to leave home far behind you to come to this place. The North is not without its faults, but it is not a nest of vipers, and judging from their shared disdain for King's Landing, he'd wager that neither is this Rohan.
The request that follows ... Aleifr's scowl lifts and an eyebrow arches, intrigued. Without hesitation, he offers an affirmative nod.
"It'll be nice," he grunts, "sparring against someone worthwhile."
He had no shortage of prospective partners, but few that draw his interest. He has the retainers who followed him south, but they offer little that he has not seen before, even if they are capable fighters. Young knights are an even mix - those who see a massive man and see an obstacle to make a name for themselves overcoming, and those who recognize that such a contest would reflect poorly on them if they tried anything of that sort. The latter sorts itself out, the former is rarely worth his time because their confidence eclipses their skill and he has nothing to gain from slapping them aside besides a mesaure of personal satisfaction. The more seasoned southron lords and knights, those who've seen an actual fight, are less eager to measure themselves in such pointless contests.
Éowyn is capable and they've crossed steel only once.
What's more ... he knows little of her, but from what he sees, he suspects he'll come to enjoy her company. She seems a kindred spirit, and one who talks sense ... both of which are rare here. Time will tell if there's a side to her that will prove those assumptions wrong, but Aleifr isn't typically taken by surprise with such things.
Watch people closely enough, they tell you who they are.
That gains a smile - the rare kind which actually touches her eyes. For a moment, under the bruising, there is a different kind of beauty to her: most often, she is coldly fair, like snow on the mountains, but for a moment, she looks fully present and alive, her intensity softened by momentary warmth.
In this kind of place, when she has felt so alone and so scorned, it comes as a welcome surprise to not only be taken seriously enough to accept her offer, but - based on the speed of his response - to accept it with a degree of enthusiasm. It makes her think, uncomfortably, of the joy and relief that she felt when the Fellowship came to Edoras; how desperately needed a small light can be in greater darkness.
(Which leads, inevitably, to remembering how lights can gutter and die out. Perhaps that is why the smile is so brief.)
"And for me, to learn more of how men fight this side of the Sea." With the exception of the tourney, she has had little chance to see Westerosi fighting - only enough to know that it is decidedly different to that of either Rohan or Gondor. If nothing else, they seem to lend themselves more to heavy armour here.
There, again, is a hint of another Éowyn in her eyes; a small gleam of humour which is less guarded than it often is. "So long as they can spar more gently as well; for I do not fear pain, but I should like to have both arms for some of my sojourn here."
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sforzinda
no subject
Date: 2023-11-24 11:40 pm (UTC)"I suspect," she says wryly, at last, "that there are a few men in this realm who might disagree with you on that."
Again, she is thoroughly aware of her own unpopularity in King's Landing - aware enough to bear it as something of a badge of honour, even if it also stings. But he does not strike her, at least, as a man who is likely to agree with their reasons - and she will confess that there is something pleasant about talking to someone who seems to be sympathetic to her own beliefs and understanding. Someone other than the woman she is carrying on a dishonourable affair with, in any case.
"Do you mean to stay here long, or only for the tourney?"
no subject
Date: 2023-12-04 10:12 pm (UTC)"Probably."
He disagrees with a great many men about a great many things. He doesn't tend to lose sleep over it. Certainly not when the men doing the talking say so little worth the breath it took to speak -- something infuriatingly common in King's Landing. It's one of the reasons he detests this place so much, and why her question draws another scowl to his face.
"I'll be here for some time."
no subject
Date: 2023-12-05 12:25 am (UTC)Having said which...
"So will I, I do not doubt." She will not think too hard about why; easier to blame it on weather and tide, or on the diplomatic duty she came to do and which is so clearly in vain. But it is true, all the same; she has said as much to her men. "When this is healed, perhaps you might show me a little of your parries under less showy circumstances? My people do not much lend themselves towards axes; but you clearly know well how to make the most of them."
Which is not at all a transparent ploy to spend more time with a man who has, by virtue of being less than entirely unpleasant, just become one of the most interesting Westerosis she has met thus far.
no subject
Date: 2023-12-05 04:05 am (UTC)Aleifr gives her a sympathetic look at that. He doesn't know where her home is - the 'Rohan' he had heard mention of, or 'The Mark' that she had mentioned directly - but he knows that it is far from here, and he knows what a miserable thing it is to leave home far behind you to come to this place. The North is not without its faults, but it is not a nest of vipers, and judging from their shared disdain for King's Landing, he'd wager that neither is this Rohan.
The request that follows ... Aleifr's scowl lifts and an eyebrow arches, intrigued. Without hesitation, he offers an affirmative nod.
"It'll be nice," he grunts, "sparring against someone worthwhile."
He had no shortage of prospective partners, but few that draw his interest. He has the retainers who followed him south, but they offer little that he has not seen before, even if they are capable fighters. Young knights are an even mix - those who see a massive man and see an obstacle to make a name for themselves overcoming, and those who recognize that such a contest would reflect poorly on them if they tried anything of that sort. The latter sorts itself out, the former is rarely worth his time because their confidence eclipses their skill and he has nothing to gain from slapping them aside besides a mesaure of personal satisfaction. The more seasoned southron lords and knights, those who've seen an actual fight, are less eager to measure themselves in such pointless contests.
Éowyn is capable and they've crossed steel only once.
What's more ... he knows little of her, but from what he sees, he suspects he'll come to enjoy her company. She seems a kindred spirit, and one who talks sense ... both of which are rare here. Time will tell if there's a side to her that will prove those assumptions wrong, but Aleifr isn't typically taken by surprise with such things.
Watch people closely enough, they tell you who they are.
no subject
Date: 2023-12-05 10:34 pm (UTC)In this kind of place, when she has felt so alone and so scorned, it comes as a welcome surprise to not only be taken seriously enough to accept her offer, but - based on the speed of his response - to accept it with a degree of enthusiasm. It makes her think, uncomfortably, of the joy and relief that she felt when the Fellowship came to Edoras; how desperately needed a small light can be in greater darkness.
(Which leads, inevitably, to remembering how lights can gutter and die out. Perhaps that is why the smile is so brief.)
"And for me, to learn more of how men fight this side of the Sea." With the exception of the tourney, she has had little chance to see Westerosi fighting - only enough to know that it is decidedly different to that of either Rohan or Gondor. If nothing else, they seem to lend themselves more to heavy armour here.
There, again, is a hint of another Éowyn in her eyes; a small gleam of humour which is less guarded than it often is. "So long as they can spar more gently as well; for I do not fear pain, but I should like to have both arms for some of my sojourn here."