Starlight Sonata |
Summary: | After the greeting of the King of Aberdeen, Logen takes Caitlyn to the gardens for a starlit picnic. |
OOC Date: | 14 August 2013 |
Related: | When the event gets posted, that'll go here. |
Players: |
Public Gardens |
A broad path of crushed white stone runs in a wide circle around a fountain, ringed in turn by flowerbeds. Beyond them, the lawn continues, smooth and softly green. A row of rosebushes, in full bloom, are planted along the stone wall to the north, flanking the gate. The path branches off to the south, where it joins a shady avenue lined with lush green trees, and to the east toward a quiet grove. |
43rd Nar, 228 |
<OOC> To set the mood - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQVeaIHWWck
Under the bright and dreamy light of the planet Cri, the gardens are alight with stars and the warm glow of lamps. Here and there night blooming flowers toss their fragrances into the cooling air. On a small rise in a wide clearing a thick clean horse blanket, freshly laundered with a perfume to rid the horse smell, has been sprawled out carefully and set with a basket still warm with a selection of foods for the two to enjoy. There is also a large clay mug of really hot chocola so that it'll keep warm. A large woolen blanket is folded neatly to the side for when the two picnickers decide to cuddle and gaze at the heavens, they'll be able to. Along with the hot bitter brew is a sweet strawberry infused water in a glass pitcher, chilled to keep the crisp clean taste. Servants have returned to the castle for now, with a few guards posted in the distance for safety.
Logen leads Caitlyn to the blanket, but just prior to sitting with her; he hugs her close to him. His hand going to the back of her head to weave his fingers into her hair and bring her lips to his in their nightly allowed kiss. Just as the kiss is about to break off, having pushed close to the minute mark, Logen's lips part slightly and his tongue teasingly slides over Caitlyn's lips before he steps back and takes her hand to help her down onto the blanket. "My Caitlyn, it feels like ages since we've been able to enjoy each other's company without more than guards or handmaids to peer at us from a distance." he takes a moment, "I cannot tell you what it meant to me to see you at the ceremonial greeting of King Isaac Aberdeen. You know I am not one for such crowds that continue to grow… seeing you made me feel safe again."
Caitlyn's eyes alight with pleasure as she is led into the garden, to the spot where the picnic is displayed, and when Logen takes her into his arms, she sways closer, leaning into the embrace with a natural grace of movement. Her lips part under his and a soft gasp emits from her lips at the electric touch of his tongue grazing her lips. Her eyes close, the world disappearing except for the man she loves so deeply and without reservation. She prays for time to stand still as her arms wind about his neck, her lips clinging to his, savoring the feel. But it does indeed end to her disappointment. She smiles warmly though as she holds Logen's hand, lowering herself with his help, to the blanket "I miss you whenever we are apart Logen and it seems that time is always my enemy. You have been so busy with your duties and I feel selfish for wishing you were there with me all the time." She glances at the food, her smile growing "I wished so much to join you there on the royal dais, but…" she hesitates and furrows her brow. "It would not have been proper. There has been no official announcement of our betrothal…" again her open expression makes it easy to read her emotions. She is bothered.
"You know I would be there, with you alone, for as long as our hearts still beat within us… and when they finally do stop, I doubt even death could keep me from you my Caitlyn." Logen smiles softly to her, though the mention of the dais and being kept from it does cause that smile to wane, then frown. "I tried, I offered our children's names, my own personal indenturing, I offered them whatever I could… to make them reconsider, to negotiate for my own selfish reasons, to give you the full status of a princess Kilgour that I feel you deserve." he sighs softly, shaking his head, "Such was only to send my mother into a fury at me for daring to ask or mention such a thing. Claiming that I'm lucky they've 'allowed' this marriage, telling me to be grateful that you're even being accepted as suitable to be wed to their son." Logen looks away, a slight rise in his tone belying the anger building in him, "If she had not stormed from the room… I may have threatened to denouce my title as their prince and son. I love my family dearly, I'd do anything to protect them and I'd help them rule this land in a heartbeat. I want no doubts about how special they are to me… but for you, your love, I'd give up the life of a prince and work hard each day to provide for you a life you could be proud of."
"I'll speak with the new Voice of the King, and still current Chancellor Caedmon. He was recently appointed, with my brother being made Marshal. If I have to, I'll make the announcement myself. I'll walk the streets and shout myself hoarse until I've made certain every last person in Darfield knows of our betrothal."
Caitlyn tucks her legs beneath her, leaning on her hip as she reaches for the hot pitcher of chocola. She pours a mug for Logen, swirling a stick of cinnamon in the hot liquid, just the way he did when he introduced the beverage to her. She passes it to him before pouring her own, all the while listening to him as he speaks. She smiles lovingly at him and places her hand over his in a gentle caress, uncaring if Lavona sees it. "It is not your fault, Logen. I know how hard it has been and how much you have fought for my honor. I love your family as well, not only as my sovereigns, but also because they are a part of your life. I need no titles and I will not hear of you giving up yours. Your duty to your people comes first, before my welfare. They need you." she speaks with a soft strength, unwilling to let him forget the good he could do. She starts a plate for them to share, strawberries dipped in chocola and sliced warm meats with cheese and bread. She smiles a bit "I want the world to know that I belong to you, fully and without reservation. I want them to see how proud I am to be your wife."
Logen takes the cup and sips at the hot drink, before smiling again. "I just want for you to be seen as on equal standing as me. I know, in our society you are not close at all to the same status I am, and even wed you'll still be socially below me… and this is what I detest. You are my equal to my eyes, I want everyone else to see what I see when I look at you." he takes a bit of cheese and chews on it thoughtfully before changing the subject after he swallows. "Tell me about your childhood? I know so little about you… let us take this time to truly court. What was it like growing up in Southerland?"
Caitlyn blushes a little, her smile widening in pleasure, a twinkle of teasing entering her gaze "Well lets not have them see me in quite the same way you do, Logen. I'd rather you be the only one undressing me with your eyes…" she says before taking a bite of a strawberry dipped in chocola. She glances at Lavona skulking in the shadows and then to Logen's guards before moving closer, patting her lap as she motions Logen to rest his head there to make their talk all the more intimate. "Sutherland?" she muses aloud, a warm smile gracing her countenance, revealing her love for her childhood home. "There are vast plains there, where the horses run wild. The forests are thick and green. The summers are hot, but we would take trips to the southern coast to enjoy the ocean breezes. I never was allowed to go until I was eight though. Much of my childhood was spent as an invalid I'm afraid."
Logen takes the cue and sets his chocola down before moving to rest his head in her lap and look up at her as she speaks. He chuckles softly, "Once we're wed, it'll be more than my eyes that undress you." he says in a sultry teasing manner. Her explaination of her home brings a wonderment to his eyes, until the very end where his face shadows a little in sympathy. "What was wrong? You don't seem like a sickly person… especially not that night." he asks, smirking slightly at the memory of their one night together that started them on this wonderful path to happiness.
Caitlyns blue eyes look down into Logen's, bright with pleasure as he speaks of their wedding night to come. She laughs softly in rememberance as her fingers gently brush the hair back from his temple in a slow, soothing caress, over and over again as she speaks "If you keep reminding me of that night, I cannot be held responsible for my lack of resolve." she says pointedly, her smile turning to a teasing one, "My birth was hard on my mother and I was born too early. I was not expected to live beyond my first night. I had trouble breathing often in my childgood, and I was -always- sick. My parents found a healer when I was eight, whose methods were unusual but effective. He nursed me to health and became my tutor as well. I still must guard against chills and sickness, but he gave me my life."
Logen listens with a smile, chuckling at her tease about lack of resolve. It quiets though, when she speaks of the sadness inherent in the sicknesses of her childhood. The harsh reality that not all births are strong and easy like that of the Kilgours. Logen lifts his hand to her neck and pulls her down into a kiss, her hair cascading down around his face and onto his chest as this occurs. After he releases her, "There is a healer I need to personally thank then. We'll let the royal healer know of any health concerns, and what treatments to use as well." the look of concern fades to one of curiosity, "Where there any boys in your childhood, my Caitlyn? Who's my competition, hm?"
Caitlyn runs the back of her fingers down Logen's cheek as she leans over him, her lips finding his for a moment, thier kiss deepening, sparking feelings…feelings that prompt her to pull back finally, her cheeks flushed as she clears her throat. She smiles then at him, sharing a private look that speaks volumes to her heightened desires. "Gaelen taught me everything I know practically." her eyes soften with affection "He is getting on in years and stays in Sutherland where it is warm." A shadow passes over her features then, a dulled but remembered pain of loss. "Sinjin Danforth, heir to Baron Danforth, my fathers vassal. He was Cedric's boyhood companion and he and I were betrothed when I was 14, with my parents stipulating that the marriage not take place until I was 17. I had always had a crush on him and one day he just…noticed I was growing up. My father, as a betrothal gift, made Sinjin part of his personal guard. They died together in a skirmish when I was 15."
"Then I need to visit him, and your home. I should see the place my Caitlyn grew up… see the fields she wandered, the coast she played along in the summers, the forests she explored." Logen smiles at her, noting her need to pull away a little, understanding and refraining from furthering her. When the shadow takes on her features, Logen's smile fades to one of genuine concern, and apology. His hands seek out one of hers and he holds it there between his palms. "I am so sorry to hear that Caitlyn… I had no idea. If there is a place I can go… to pay my respects to him, and your father. Tell me, I would like to honor the man who'd won my Caitlyn's heart before me, for he truly would have been something special."
Caitlyn shakes her head softly as she smiles down into Logen's face "It was a girlish crush. I could have been happy with him I suppose, but his kisses did not elicit the reaction that yours do." She traces Logen's lower lip with her finger as her voice warms and softens to a more intimate tone. "In all the time we spent together, I never lost my resolve, never went further than a few stolen caresses. But then I met a man who immediately captured my heart and my desires, making me lose all resolve, making me ache in ways I had never felt when Sinjin touched me." Her voice is filled with emotion. "More than that though, he captured my mind with his intelligence and charm. No one has ever touched me like that. I would love to take you to Sutherland My prince. But enough talk of me Logen. In payment for my story, I would like to hear yours. How was it being a prince of the blood?"
Logen smiles brightly up into Caitlyn's face, his hand going to her cheek to softly caress with his thumb before dropping again to her hand. He sits up now, shifting so that he slides one leg around her and pulls her up to sit in his lap. He supports them with one hand behind his back palm to the ground, the other takes up the blanket and tosses it over them to stave off the chill of the cool night air. His hand slips to the outside of the blanket for the comfort of her handmaid, but remains around her middle so that he can hold her. "As most would expect the life of a prince to be. I had a loving family, when I was born my father decreed that there be a feast every other day for a week in my honor. I grew up with Tyrel as my best friend, Caillin my confidant. Roslin… was different. She takes after mother in a lot of ways, and while I was kind and endearing and encouraging… we never grew as close as Tyrel and I did, or Caillin and I did. Mikhal is the baby, I'm nine years his senior, so I really haven't gotten to know him well." Logen's arm starts to ache, it's been a long day of physical work for him. He slowly eases them back so that his head rests on his arm, and she rests on him. Never do their hands leave the ever watchful gaze of her handmaid, and not once does the blanket move in any suggestive way. As they lay there, looking up into the night sky at the stars haloing Cri, Logen smiles softly. "When the tutors started to arrive to give me lessons along side my brother I was over joyed at the prospect of learning. I took to my studies with a vigor, and eventually came to find my love of literature, my penchant for tactics, and my need for solitude or smaller gatherings of twos and threes. Combat training was tough, but I excelled at the use of blades and loved to ride on horse back." he smiles. "All this before I even made it to fifteen."
Caitlyn's hand rests on Logen's chest, her palm over his heart, smiling at the steady beats that reverberate in his ribcage. She nestles his chest with her cheek as she listens to him speak of his family and childhood, another glance to their chaperone is given, a twinkle of good-natured resentment alight in her eyes. All she can do is smile though and cuddle deeper into the blankets "I wish we could have met as children. We both have the thirst for knowledge. I even enjoyed etiquette classes." she confesses with a short laugh. "We will have to go to Sutherland so you can meet my brother Ronan and my younger sister Moire. She is far prettier than I and so very bright." Her pride in her family is apparent and she blushes then as thoughts come to mind. "I hope you do not mind but…I want children right away Logen. I want a big family."
"Of course I do not mind, how can I refuse? My only sadness is that all of my children will not be of the royal line thanks to my mother. I'm of half a mind to raise them in Sutherland with their uncle, just because of what she's said to me. What was implied, and what people have whispered about you." Logen's eyes flash with an unhidden anger, "You are no whore, I should know… the woman who shattered my heart and soul was one. She deserves no name, for she's but a dark stain in the history book of my life. It brings a seething anger to my lips when people insinuate such a lie about you."
Caitlyn stares up at the planet Cri that dominates the sky, here eyes reflecting the twinkling glow of stars as she rubs her cheek against Logen's shoulder as she cuddles beneath the blanket with him. As he speaks, a cloud of pain passes over her features, a look that if not caught by Logen, is quickly masked behind a soft smile. Leaning up, she looks into his eyes and touches his cheek with gentle fingers. "You and I know the truth of things Logen. What poisonous whispers have created, no one can undo. I have no regrets about what happened between us. How can I when it has brought me more happiness than I have ever known." She sighs and rests her head on his shoulder once more. "I only wish her Majesty might understand…someday. Will you tell me about the woman who broke your heart?"
With her facing away from him, Logen misses the look of pain she hides behind her smile. "Her name was Gladys… I've forgotten, or don't want to remember, her surname. She worked in a local tavern long since closed and gone." his hand around her middle seeks her hand to give it a squeeze. "I've told no one about this, not even my own brother." he sighs softly, "I was sixteen… she was in her mid twenties. I was friends with the son of the tavern keep, the son was nineteen and part of the soldiery until he had a training accident and was speared through. Gladys was over wrought with what seemed like genuine grief. She claimed they'd been lovers, with hopes to marry. I fell victim to need to comfort, and in my sympathies she dug her claws into my heart… pulling me deeper into her trap. It was less then a month before she started to seduce me, claiming it was just too hard to sleep alone at night. I would share her bed with her, held in her arms by lonely heart began to fall for the comfort I felt there." he breathes, "Three months of this occurred before the first and last time we slept together. For the next morning the tavern keep barged into her room to find her fixing her hair with me lying in her bed asleep. She was fired, sent away from the city without a word. The tavern keep found a note for me… she was claiming to have made a mistake, and now she feared she would carry that mistake within her as my bastard child. This was also a lie, for she was found to be barren after caught attempting this very thing with another noble's son." he snorts and fall silent.
Caitlyn's furrows her brow as she listens and while Logen speaks she turns her face up to him, wanting him to see how much she shares his pain, how much her heart aches with him as he remembers his first love. Their fingers intertwine beneath the blanket, her hand soft and warm within his. Her free hand reaches up to gently stroke his cheek before moving down to the side of his neck, soothing touches given as she listens intently, her eyes brimming with unshed tears at the memories not even her own. "Oh Logen…" she breathes softly "I see now why you guard your heart so closely and how could I blame you for that. She took your love and gave back only sorrow and pain." Her eyes take on a fierceness, a spark of little seen anger from this usually gentle creature "Were she still in the city I would tear out her eyes and feed them to the ravens. I will never forgive such a blackened soul…"
Her empathy brings a gentle tear from his eyes to slide down his cheek and be swept away by her thumb. "I know you love me, Caitlyn, it's just difficult to allow myself to admit the same thing to you. I don't want to say it… and two months from now have our world fall apart. I could never do that to you, ever. Which is why it makes me so angry when people speak ill of you. Gladys was a whore, a harlot, a bitch. She seduced and used me to try and stab at my family for money or power or both. Then, when she'd gotten what she wanted she left to seek out another… I firmly believe her only regret was not making sure she was pregnant with a child before she was fired and tossed from the city." Logen's risen anger causes his skin to burn under her fingers, but as he slowly lets his eyes look into hers something in him changes. The seething black hatred, bitterness, pain… is swept away by her smile, her touch, and to just look into her eyes for him. "My Caitlyn…" he takes a breath, and swallows, but softly… calmly, he looks at her. His arm wraps a little tighter around her and pulls her slightly closer to her face, a hand to her cheek as he pulls her into yet one more kiss. This one, deeper and more passionate than the last. It lasts longer than the other ones and causes her handmaid to clear her throat a couple times. As Logen relents and finally starts to break the kiss, he whispers softly, "I love you Caitlyn Crawford, with each fiber of my being. I am yours, until the gods themselves fold into chaos and all things cease."
The kiss they share is one she will never forget. They have shared passion and desire, caring and respect, but up until this point, never mutual love. Caitlyn trembles against Logen, her lips sliding across his, meeting his passion, his love, with her own. The guards are forgotten. Lavona is but a dim memory. Everything is her beloved Prince. His tear meets her thumb as she brushes it aside gently, cupping his cheeks as she responds, desire and love filling her. Something inside Caitlyn breaks free, that last bit of reservation, the last ounce of selfish guardedness when Logen whispers his confession into her ear. Those tears that merely threatened before, come full force with a cry of utter joy and wonderment, her arms thrown around his neck as a sob escapes her. "Logen! My Logen!" she cries out to the skies "I love you…I love you. I am yours, now and forever. There is nothing, no one that will ever stand between us, this I swear before the gods!" The waterworks continue as she buries her head against his neck.
Content to simply lie there, holding her in his arms. Logen's arms hug her to him as tightly as possible without suffocating his beloved. The night slowly begins to slide past them, and it would seem they'd spent the night together once more for the edges of the horizon begin to administer day's make up with the lightest samplings of soft purples and pinks. Lavona has finally had enough, it would seem, and walks over to scowl at them. Logen meets her scowl for a moment, but his relenting is not done because of her face, though he's certain children check for it beneath their beds before night creeps in, but for the mere fact that it would seem Caitlyn has fallen asleep in his arms. He is careful not to wake her, as he moves to stand. Shuffling her about him to eventually be on his feet with her in cradled in his arms, head lulled onto his chest. The guards move in now, and a servant takes cue and starts in on clearing up after the prince and his betrothed. Logen softly whispers his protests to Lavona, who's attempting to take Caitlyn from him. "You cause her to rouse, handmaid, and it'll he your ears to pay. I'll carry her myself, now guard her by guarding me." with that, Lavona's seething gaze staring ballistae bolts through Logen's back, the prince carries his Caitlyn back to the castle. Once within, he continues to carry her up to her room where he lays her down in her bed and tucks her in. He caresses her cheek with his thumb for a moment, just smiling at the beautiful face of the only woman to have won those three simple words from him. Logen retires to his own chambers not long after that.