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Post by Clayton on Mar 13, 2009 20:11:18 GMT -5
"Oh, I've been hunting since I was old enough to fire a rifle. That was some funny moments of me fallen back on my bottom from the recoil of the gun." He chuckled to himself, taking the seat next to Tremaine. He saw her hand was still on the cushions, but he did not reach for it; that would be too improper.
"Actually, I didn't begin hunting professionally until after the death of my wife. I suppose you could say it was an escape from a cruel reality."
He was quiet for a time, his mind taking him back through the memories.
"Well, pelts are an easy thing to gauge for quality. Usually it is based on how well the animal takes care of itself." He smiled to himself at the thought of a young Tremaine going hunting. "Well, if you wish, I can teach you to shoot a gun. It might come in handy one day. As for traps, I find that your standard beartraps and cages work fine. You just need to remember where you place them and not get trapped yourself," he laughed.
Tremaine asked him if she could tell him something. Clayton watched her face, trying to think of what it could possibly be. "Oh, of course, my lady," he said finally. "I am at your service."
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Post by ladytremaine on Mar 14, 2009 12:42:07 GMT -5
Lady Tremaine blushed and allowed Clayton to sit down next to her. She could actually see Clayton as a family father. She would have loved to see him surrounded by children. Unfortunately the behavior of her own daughters often made her sigh. She wondered if she should have sent them to the Military Academy at West Point instead of to the boarding school. But she was afraid it would have lowered the moral of the soldiers.
She listened to Clayton with a smile, imagining him as a little boy with a rifle. The image brought a soft smile to her face, and her eyes were glittering. When he mentioned the death of his wife, she wanted to place a hand comforting over his, but she was afraid how he would react.
Lady Tremaine listened to Clayton as he started speaking of pelts. He seemed to know what he was talking about. She blushed when he offered to teach her how to shoot a gun. She would love that. She smiled and looked up at him again.
"I would love to learn how to shoot again. I hope I am not too old. I will heed your advice about the traps. I don't think I would like to be trapped in any of them."
Lady Tremaine blushed again, lowering her head when Clayton said she could tell him anything. She was a bit shy to bring this up, but she had to tell him sooner or later. Then she would take his reactions as they came.
"Do you remember when we kidnapped the gypsy and brought her to the castle, and she lured us to drink a tea with something in it? A tea that made strange things happen?"
She looked away, wondering how he would react to be reminded of that. She took a deep breath, gathering all her courage.
"I have been thinking about it.... and I found that it wasn't only the tea..... At least not from my side...."
She studied her hands that were folded neatly in her lap, surprised to see they were trembling. There was no way she dared to look up at Clayton now.
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Post by Clayton on Mar 15, 2009 18:24:43 GMT -5
[[*shudders* Anastasia and Drizella at West Point! I think our boys have suffered enough!!!]]
Clayton was starting to get comfortable now that all the formalities were out of the way. It was so easy to forget that Tremaine was a Lady of the Court. She reminded him of the old friends he had as a child. That was what this relationship felt like, old and familiar.
He chuckled when Tremaine said that she was too old for hunting. "Ah, that is nonsense," he laughted. "I would be happy to take you out tomarrow and see what kind of skills you have."
His smile faded when she mentioned the incident with Esmerelda and the tea. The hunter simply nodded in understanding, not having the heart to go over the pain verbally. He glanced at Tremaine out of the corner of his eye and saw she was studying her hands.
"Well, I do find you to be a brillant and lovely woman," he said cautiously. "I will say that it wasn't just the tea that made me act that way that night."
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Post by ladytremaine on Mar 15, 2009 18:43:37 GMT -5
(( ;D I thought so too. Poor soldiers! *Snugglehugs* ))
Lady Tremaine smiled and looked over at Clayton. He seemed more relaxed now. She was glad the formalities were out of the way. If Lady Tremaine had any friends in her childhood, she could have said that he reminded of them. But the only friends she ever had, were her brothers Jehan and Claude. She blushed and smiled when Clayton invited her to go hunting with him. She looked up at him and smiled.
"Are you not afraid I may take your offer seriously and accept it?" She asked with a twinkle in her eyes. "I would love to go out with you tomorrow. Though I am afraid my skills are not what they used to be. I will probably make you laugh."
Lady Tremaine felt remorse by her words when she noticed how much the mentioning of the gypsy hurt him. She felt a sudden urge to send that little street rable a cookie jar.... but she had no idea if Esmeralda even liked cookies. Judging from her slender body and her perfect smile, she avoided sweets.
Lady Tremaine's blushing deepened when she heard Clayton call her a brilliant and lovely woman. She smiled, still looking down at her hands in her lap. They were still trembling, and she tried to keep them still.
"Thank you," she replied shyly.
Lucifer was laying under the table, glaring at them with his yellow, demonic eyes. He lifted his paw and planted his claws in the tablecloth. Still hidden under the table, he then pulled the tablecloth down from the table, causing the china, the tea and the sandwiches to land everywhere in the living room.
((Just tried to put in some action in the end, to keep things from getting too mushy ;D ))
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Post by Clayton on Mar 16, 2009 14:01:37 GMT -5
Clayton turned to Tremaine in faint surprise. "Why should I think that you wouldn't take my offer seriously?" he asked her. "I would never ask a question of you if I did not want the honest answer."
It seemed that Tremaine was pleased with his answer because she was smiling. "But you must understand something, Madam," Clayton began, clasping his hands together in his lap. "I have not been with a woman romantically since my late wife, at least not one where the feelings have been mutual, as ours seem to be. You must inform me if I do anything to offend you, as I am a bit out of practice at all this. I don't want to ruin this time that we have together."
He glanced at her, worried that he had overstepped his bounds. Suddenly the tablecloth was yanked from the table and the china smashed upon the floor. Clayton leapt up with a shout and saw Lucifer's smirking eyes staring back at him from under the table.
"That blasted cat!" the hunter roared, loosing his cool. It was worst than the gypsy girl's goat.
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Post by Anastasia & Drizella on Mar 16, 2009 15:03:49 GMT -5
((Esme asked me to join to tell Clayton about Marian))
“So who exactly is this man?” asked Drizella in an utterly bored voice, straightening up the last item of her outfit as she examined her outfit in the mirror. She and her elder sister Anastasia were bustling around their bedroom (though why now they’d taken over the castle they had to share one was a mystery to them), preparing to go downstairs and tell their guest of their discovery.
“From what I’ve heard he’s a famous hunter,” replied Anastasia, checking her pockets to ensure that she had to photo of Maid Marian before holding the door open for her sister, “one who’ll be able to get me my coat.” She giggled unpleasantly, earning a sneer off her sibling.
“I think you mean my coat!” she corrected, brushing past the redhead and out into the corridor. Drizella stalked downstairs, Anastasia in tow, and upon reaching the door to the parlour didn’t give a second thought before pushing it open and stepping inside.
“Good evening mother,” they both chimed, before turning their attention in turn to Clayton instead, “Good evening sir.” Anastasia instinctively reached into her pocked and brushed her fingers against the photo, ready to bring it out and show the hunter.
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Post by Clayton on Mar 18, 2009 16:28:43 GMT -5
Dusting the shards of pottery off his clothing, Clayton sat down again. Someone needed to train that animal better! He saw a pair of girls enter the room. While not incredibly beautiful, they seemed to have manners enough. He could tell that these were Tremaine's girls.
"Good evening ladies," he said, coming forward and taking each of their hands and giving it a delicate kiss. "I am William Clayton, Lord of Greystroke. Forgive the mess," he added, kicking aside a piece of china under his foot. "Seems Lucifer couldn't stand being ignored for so long."
He gave the cat a scowling look and watched him slink away under the dresser. "Would you girl like to join us?" he offered, motioning towards the couch and nearby chairs.
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Post by ladytremaine on Mar 19, 2009 9:36:50 GMT -5
Edgar scurried in, carrying a broom and a dustpan, and started sweeping up the broken shards. Lucifer had fun chasing after the broom. Lady Tremaine watched them with a smile.
"I will tell you if you offend me, Lord Clayton, but so far, I don't have any reasons to. You are the perfect gentleman."
She offered him a smile, and was just about to say something else, when her daughters bursted into the room, clearly fighting over something. Lady Tremaine gave Clayton an apologetic smile, clearly embarrassed that her daughters could argue in front of their house guest.
"Excuse me for a moment," she said quietly to him and stood up, then started walking to the girls. She spoke calmly to them, in the ladylike manner that was so typical for her.
"Girls, girls. What is this disturbance all about, hmmmm? Before you tell me, I want you both to meet Lord Clayton Greystoke. He is a very good friend of mine, and I want you to behave like the ladies I raised you to be in his presence."
She turned to Clayton and smiled.
"Lord Greystoke, this is my two daughters, Druzilla and Anastasia."
She poked her daughters discreetly, as a reminder that a polite curtsey would be in place here.
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