There is a Word Usage Key at the end.

28th of Towin Day 1

George self consciously admitted to Larch, “I never had much schooling really, and I don’t read and write too well,” and stretching the truth a little because he thought it would cast himself in a better light added, “I always had my dogs to look after.”

Larch gave him immediate saught(1) by saying, “I bethink me I understand what you are spaeking(2) of, but that’s not our way, George. Your family will ensure you are teacht(3) what you need to learn when you are ready. Many of us are not Masters of reading and writing, but it’s a riandet(4) to any for whom it doesn’t play a part in her craft. What are you good at, George? What do you enjoy? There are numerous Mistresses and Masters seeking daughters and sons to apprentice to their craft, but it would be best for you if you had an interest in what your parents could teach you.” George diffidently explained of his dogs expecting to be raked down as a wastrel. “You really need to have spaech(5) with someone from the huntsman’s office to see what they need and can do for you,” Larch telt(6) him.

George was overwhelmed by the concept of a huntsman’s office, and he became animated for the first time. He was suddenly aware this may be a good place to be for someone with his interests and coming here was possibly the best thing to have happened in his life. His questions sharpened, and Larch telt him, “They have kennels for hunting dogs of various kinds and ferrets, though I believe they’re not much uest at the moment, stables of course and mews.” The last was new to George, but he knew of the concept of falconry. “A hunter or a tracker would have training with the bow and other weapons and riding of course, but really, George, I know little of these matters. Would you like me to arrange a meeting with the huntsmen for you?”

George had never had any encouragement before. This was a dream come true, and it was incredible to him the simple act of catching a coney turned him into a food provider which was apparently a high status craft. He managed to stammer out a, “Yes,” and then a belated, “Please.”

“I’ll send a runner over now,” Larch telt him. George retired to a chair to let Larch have spaech with someone else, and an hour later Larch awakened him from his reverie to say, “George, go with the runner. Mari and Ford of the huntsmen will spaech with you.”

George followed the runner to what he was telt was called the Huntsman’s Commons, another eating space, where he was met by Mari, a thirty-six year old, thin yet strong looking woman with compelling, violet eyes, dark brunette hair and a welcoming smile and Ford, a thirty-seven year old medium built man with evidence of a healt(7) braeken(8) jaw and an even bigger smile. They introduced themselfs and telt him they were married to each other and both huntsmen. After having a mug of leaf in the Commons, Ford said, “We’re telt you like dogs, George, so why don’t we go to the kennels and have spaech there?” They did so, and they spake(9) of running dogs, tracking dogs, and dogs for every possible kind of field craft, some of which George admitted he knew little or nothing of.

George was petting Minxie, a cream coloured, jill polecat and said, “She’s lovely isn’t she? When is she due?” Neither Mari nor Ford nor indeed any other had suspected Minxie was pregnant, and George explained, “There’s just a little bit more of her, just here. Isn’t there, girl?” stroking her with his finger where he was indicating.

“What bethink you of our kennels, George?” Ford asked.

“Not much,” was George’s blunt but honest reply. “They haven’t been cleaned properly for a long time, the dogs are overweight and the ferrets are bored.”

“What bethink you needs doing then, George?” Mari asked him.

“If they were mine I’d exercise some weight off the dogs for a start. It’s not good for them to be fat, and the best way to do that is by working them. The ferrets need something to interest them. I’d take them ratting. It’s obvious there’s no shortage of them here in the kennels and there’ll be far more in the stables’ food stores. The kennels need a proper cleaning several times with boiling water.”

“All on your own?” asked Mari.

“If they were mine I should,” he replied defensively. “They need it, and soon. The dogs are overweight, and fat dogs get heart attacks. Bored ferrets will fight and kill each other for something to do. The kennels need proper cleaning, and soon, or the animals will get ill. And the rats need killing before they take the place over.”

“Mercy!” said Ford, exchanging a spaeking look with Mari. “I bethink me you had better put Minxie back because we’ve a lot to discuss, George.” George put Minxie back reluctantly, and they left the kennels. After a brief look in at the mews which George was even more reluctant to leave, Mari and Ford invited George to eat with them.

28th of Towin Day 1

Gorse taekt(10) Morgelle to the instrument makers stores. “The best thing to do is to start looking at the back of the stores, because I’m sure that’s where I seeën(11) it when seeking some thing else,” Gorse suggested. It didn’t take him long to locate the instrument. The cruit(12) was dusty and had three braeken strings. Gorse lovingly blew the dust off, oiled and polished the instrument before restringing the braeken three. He didn’t tune the instrument but passed it to Morgelle along with the tuning key, who he could see was having difficulty restraining herself from touching it. “Tune it, Morgelle, and play something for me, aught, aught at all. I have never hearet(13) it playt.”(14)

Morgelle handled the instrument with great care, love even, and ran her fingers over the strings, which resulted in an appalling cacophony since all the strings had lost tension over the many decades it had lain there, its voice silent whilst patiently awaiting her caresses. Her ear was good, and she tightened every string before running her hands over them again. This time it merely sounded like a badly out of tune musical instrument. She tightened the strings again, and now it sounded as if it had been tuned by someone with not too accurate an ear. To Gorse’s surprise she went through the process another six times, tightening fewer strings each time, before she was satisfied.

Then she played a haunting melody which Gorse knew had to be a deadth(15) chaunt. The cruit had a sweet sound, and she replayed the melody for her own satisfaction. She then repeated the melody with variations of increasing complexity and sang to it in her own tongue. Gorse had never come across the concept of playing a stringed instrument with the finger nails before, and he loved the particular quality the technique gave to the sound. He recognised her song as one of six verses and identified the six variations of the basic melody. Gorse was an accomplished fiddil(16) player, and that Morgelle regarded herself as a good player who would only one day achieve excellence gave him a huge respect for the Mistress musicians of her Folk who played the instrument.

“It’s called Chief McFionn’s lament. According to history, a long time ago there was a battle over disputed land, a particularly fertile and productive glen, between my name clan, Clan McFionn, and Clan McNeill. Clan McFionn won the glen, but both clans lost so many clansmen the reality was they both lost. The McFionn chief of the time, Éoġan McFionn, had the best bard of the day, Fionn McNeill, compose a lament for the fallen of both clans and offered his daughter Niaṁ in marriage to Óengus the son of Ailein the chief of Clan McNeill, with the agreement that the disputed land was to be settled on their heirs, so as to prevent the clans ever warring again. Fionn McNeill’s name was considered so portentous as to make the joining of the clans absolute and binding, and it was agreed any who braekt(17) the blood peace(18) would be pronounced nithing(19) and outside the protection of all law. I am descended from Niaṁ’s and Óengus’ eldest daughter, Aoife, but there has been so much inter-marriage between the clans since then, so as to prevent war, there is only one clan now. It just uses two names. It’s still frequently played at home.” Morgelle’s eyes filled up as she said “at home.”

“My gratitude to you for giving me the privilege of being the first in a long time to hear the instrument and further gratitude to you for your song. I did not understand your words, but they were powerfully moving, and I suggest you continue to sing in your own spaech. It will keep what is important to you alive and generate powerful interest when you perform since there will be none to compare. Your debt for the new instrument will probably be covert by your first performance. You can of course sing in Folk and even on occasion sing a translation of songs from your own tongue, but my advice is be sparing and only do it rarely.

“Please be careful with your instrument, Morgelle. May I suggest you leave it here for me to make a befitting,(20) fitt(21) and padt(22) case for it? I should make all the drawings and measurements I need for your new cruit thisday(23) too. You will be able to collect this one this time nextday.(24) Once I have maekt(25) your new one, may I suggest you only use this one for special occasions and oil it frequently as the wood has dryt(26) out and is now very brittle? I shall provide you with a flask of oil which will fit in the case too.”

Morgelle had been moved playing the old instrument which had a truly superior tone, and she found it difficult to accept Gorse considered it to be naturally hers. “Of course, thank you for what you have given and done for me, Gorse. How long will it take to make the new cruit?”

“It will take me less than a tenner to make it, but possibly the same before I start to make it, since it will take time to select wood worthy of the instrument. Possibly a lune in all, but you must realise it will require frequent oiling in the first three years of its life as it gradually matures to acquire its full tone. Are their any changes you would like?”

“My own had three more strings at the high end than this one, and I often wished for two more above those. Is that possible, Gorse? Juniper was always uest for decorative inlay on cruits at home. Could you include some? For it was said it was a tree that had a special relationship with women and gave them the gift of fertility and easy childbirth. It would allow me to feel not so far away from what I have left behind.”

“Certainly. I usually use ironwood or yaarle for inlay though rowan burl would look impressive. Looking at the way the telyn is constructt,(27) it will be easy to give you an extra seven may hap eight strings at the high end and four may hap five at the low end, and still keep the body the same size. Shall I do that?”

“Yes please, but other than that a copy will be lovely, for the size is perfect. I am hoping to live as a member of Fritillary and Bistort’s clan and shall probably be at their holding by then. Shall I have to return for the new cruit?”

“Indeed no. I shall have it forwardet(28) to you by ship. I don’t like the idea of the shaking a waggon would give it. Please don’t take this one by waggon. Leave it with me, and I shall have it sent to you with your new one. The ship’s crew usually overnight with Fritillary, and if you play for them that eve you will probably never hear of any charges for delivery.”

Gorse’s concern for the antique instrument touched her, and she promised to do as he suggested. Morgelle left with Gorse for the Master at arms office thinking of everything he had telt her. This was a different world, but she suspected it was rather like that of her ancestors centuries ago, before changes from the Big Islands had degraded their lifes.(29) Gorse explained what had happened and why Morgelle was with him rather than still at the camp, and the Master at arms staff allocated her a chamber near to Gorse’s workshop. Gorse escorted her there. On their way he taekt her to the Refectory and explained that was where she could eat.

They then visited the chamberers office where he asked that someone shew Morgelle everything she would need to know. She was telt when the others came from the camp there would be a meeting in the Greathall where things they needed to know would be explained, and staff to guide them and shew them where bathing, showering and personal facilities were located. She was also telt the seamstresses would be there to assist those who had a need of clothing. It had been a stressful day, and when Gorse left her at her room, which the chamberers had only just readied, she had lain on the bed and slept, only awakening in time for a late eve meal. The chamberers and the seamstresses would have to wait for another day.

28th of Towin Day 1

Luke arrived on Castle wearing his police uniform. When he was awake sufficiently to think properly he realised the last thing he remembered was directing city traffic at a major junction of the overhead motorway where it met four other major roads with a woman police officer from a different division of the force. It was he recalled in the late afternoon as the rush hour traffic was building up and the faulty set of traffic lights had already brought traffic to a standstill. He hadn’t known the other officer, but he had noted she was an attractive brunette and not wearing a wedding ring. He was thirty-four, and he’d had a messy divorce eight years ago, and a few short term relationships since then. He still lived in the large house he had shared with his wife, and it felt echoingly empty at times. He had been thinking awhile of trying marriage again, and though he knew many married officers removed their rings when on duty he had wondered what the other officer was called, whether she was married and if not how he could meet her off duty.

Then shivering in the wind and looking at the large bonfire in front of him he was trying to make sense of it all when a woman of near his age passed nearby accompanied by at least a dozen younger men and women, some looked to be in their teens. They were walking close together abreast in a line, and all carried a small torch whose flames gave off a luminous sooty light. One of the young men espied a small child on the ground, and after wrapping the child in a blanket he picked it up and disappeared at a run without saying aught to the others who closed the gap in the line he had left. Luke noticed the others were all carrying blankets too and searching the ground intently in the almost darkth.(30) He asked the woman, “Where am I?”

The woman replied, “You are no longer on Earth. You are on Castle. My sorrow, but I can’t stop to explain. We’re seeking children to remove them from the caltth.(31) Someone will explain to you.” She said the last as she left hurrying to catch the others and take her place back in the line.

After Thomas’ address, Luke had gone to the other tent, and at his preliminary interviews had tried to explain what a policeman did, but it gradually became clear to him there was no need for such an organisation as a police force on Castle, and he telt them he could see no future in it for him. They asked him of his interests, and he telt them he maekt and played musical instruments. He had also custom maekt ancient instruments for a prestigious baroque music orchestra. He was asked if he wished to make a craft of it. When he realised that effectively meant a full time living he said he would enjoy that.

They had asked him of his personal placement desires, and if he had left any loved ones behind. He said no, but he had been thinking of marrying again. They asked him whether he would prefer older or younger children, and he replied he had never thought of children. The woman who interviewed on the first day him telt him, “You will not be able to attract a woman of the Folk if you are not prepaert(32) to be a father to her children, or at least have children with her.”

He had said, “It’s not that I don’t want children. It’s just I never thought of it. I had none with my wife, and I never had a relationship after that went far enough to consider having a family. I should like a good relationship with a family.”

28th of Towin Day 1

Erin’s life should have been a secure and happy one. Her parents were wealthy, and they both came from families that had had money, power and influence for centuries: old money. She’d had a nanny when she was little, private tutors after that, attended an exclusive and very expensive private school, and she’d attended an even more expensive finishing school in Switzerland. Her father, other than paying her bills and later furnishing her with a substantial allowance, had ignored her because she wasn’t the son he’d wanted to inherit his position. Her mother unable to have any more children took to charity work, golf, bridge, and too many cocktails. Never drunk, but never sober either, she blamed Erin for her lack of further children and the consequent lack of attention paid to her by her husband, but even before she had started drinking she had always been far too self-centred to have been a good mother.

As a girl, Erin had been a bit of a tomboy and the despair of her mother. Ironically, if he could but have seen it, other than her sex, she was everything her father had wanted in his heir. Erin, who was of reasonable intelligence, was prevented from doing anything she would have enjoyed or been successful at because, as she was told, “It’s simply not the sort of thing ladies do, Dear.” The only thing she had ever managed to excel at was archery, and even then she wasn’t allowed to do it competitively because as her mother told her, “As a lady, one just doesn’t do that sort of thing, Dear.”

Eventually, she married Percival, more to leave her parents than because she cared for him. He was from a similar background to hers, but was of much lower intelligence than she. After her marriage, she discovered Percival had acquired a taste for sodomy and flagellation somewhere. She suspected when he was at school, [boarding school] and she despised him for enforcing his tastes on her. Erin had decided she would have to leave him eventually, and she was grateful she had no children to complicate matters, and she made sure she didn’t conceive. In time, Percival grew more and more interested in drink and less and less interested in his directorships, eventually less than was necessary to keep them. He became violent and morose, and he enjoyed abusing her simply because he knew she hated it.

She left him, and knowing her parents would send her back to Percival she ended up in a refuge for battered wives where she met Eugenia who proudly referred to herself as a butch dyke. They left the refuge and set up home, and Erin was happy in this new relationship to begin with. It came as a complete shock to her when Eugenia became even more abusive than Percival had ever been. Eugenia also kept a much closer eye on her than Percival had ever done, and she couldn’t even dream of escape. She became depressed and stopped taking care of herself, and the bigger the mess she became the more abusive Eugenia became.

Then she awoke on Castle, dresst(33) in clothes that like herself hadn’t been washed for lunes, to hear a young man saying, “Come to the fire to warm yourself.” She went to Thomas’ meeting in the Gather tent, and she was happy to join the group that wished to become Folk. These Folk were kinder than any she had ever come across. She’d had to say at her initial interview she could think of no skills or abilities she had, but she was willing to learn.

She was taken to the Keep, and when she asked, “Where can I get a bath and some clean clothes to wear till I can wash what I’m wearing,” she’d been shewn a small bedchamber, another chamber with a bath a little farth(34) from her bedchamber and she’d been given some clean clothes. After bathing in two changes of surprisingly hot water and washing her hair, she felt happier with herself than she had for a long time. There was no shampoo, but the soap she had uest(35) was softer than she was familiar with and in a jar, almost like a thick shampoo rather than a soft soap, and it left her hair lightly perfumed with a floral fragrance. The dress she had been given was the traditional apron type she had seen worn by many Folk women, but, though she was sufficiently bosomed to fill the bib, she couldn’t quite understand how it was supposed to be worn. She put her head out of the bath chamber door several times before seeing a pair of guardians patrolling the corridors, one of who was a noticeably pregnant young woman wearing an apron.
She asked the woman if she would help her, and the woman on entering the bath chamber saw immediately what her problem was, and she explained, “You put the petticoats on, then the blouse, then you fasten the skirts. The bib top is lacet(36) loosely, you tighten the laces under your bosom first making sure your breasts are above the ties, then pull the laces tight at the back and tie them off under your bosom to the front, that way the bib supports your breasts both neath(37) and to the front. There is a lot of adjustment possible in the laces for different sizes of bosom.” The woman laught and continued, “I’m still wearing the same apron I was six lunes over, and I’m twice the size I was then.” She shewed Erin how her apron was worn, and explained again as Erin dresst.

“I understand now, and thank you very much for your help,” she said to the Guardian. “My name is Erin.”

“My pleasure to assist, Erin. I am Scythe, and my companion is my man Highforce, well come to the Folk, Erin.”

Scythe left her, and Erin undresst again, so as to make sure her new clothes didn’t become wet whilst she washed her own. After she had finally wrung them out she left them over the rail uest for towels and redresst,(38) this time quite quickly. She went back to her chamber and spent an hour combing out all the tangles in her hair with the brush and comb provided. Looking at herself in the mirror, for the first time in years she felt at peace with herself. She went in search of someone who could tell her where she could dry her clothes. She met Scythe and Highforce again and explained what she wished. Highforce suggested, “Come with us, and we shall find you a launderer to assist.”

They found Elk, a tall, late middle aegt man, who said kindly, “Leave them where they are, Mistress Erin, and I shall have them properly washt,(39) dryt(40) and returnt(41) to your chamber as quickly as we can. We do appreciate you have few clothes.” She expressed gratitude to him, but he demurred saying, “Not at all, it’s our craft,and we visit the bathchambers several times a day to replace the uest towels.”

She met a lot of incomers that day, but spent a lot more of her time having spaech with members of the Folk. She asked a lot of questions concerning crafting and family placements. In casual conversation, she mentioned to one of the guardians her only real skill was she could use a bow, and the guardian suggested she should join the huntsmen as a hunter crafter. She was telt it was usual for a hunter to be paired with a tracker, who could help her adjust to her new craft. By the time she went to bed, Erin had a reasonable understanding of the Folk, and she believed she would be happier on Castle than she had ever been on Earth. She knew she could work as a hunter, though she had only ever shot at targets before. The abuse she had suffered had toughened her and maekt her realise she wished to survive.

She knew she wasn’t a lesbian, and she wished a husband and children. Though Eugenia had offered a reasonable escape route at the time she had become just another trap. It was clear to her any who abused any one else on this wonderfully different world wouldn’t live long. She wished to be valued and cared for, to value and care for a man, and she wished children, to love and cherish as she hadn’t been. She went to sleep unafraid of the future and full of hope for a new beginning and a better life.

Word Usage

1 Saught, peace, ease of mind, also reconciliation.
2 Spaeking, speaking.
3 Teacht, taught.
4 Riandet, a matter of no significance.
5 Spaech, speech.
6 Telt, told.
7 Healt, healed.
8 Braeken, broken.
9 Spake, spoke.
10 Taekt, took.
11 Seeën, saw.
12 Cruit, lap harp.
13 Hearet, heard.
14 Playt, played.
15 Deadth, death.
16 Fiddil, violin.
17 Braekt, broke.
18 Blood peace, a peace created after blood shed by the joining of blood lines, usually by marriage or mutual adoption. With the previously warring factions now one family, one blood, killing was no longer honourable for it would be murder within the family.
19 Nithing, an exceptionally vile, despicable person, a person completely without honour. A term of utmost opprobrium especially uest in connection with oath braekers and murderers.
20 Befitting, suitably worthy.
21 Fitt, fitted.
22 Padt, padded.
23 Thisday, today.
24 Nextday, tomorrow.
25 Maekt, made.
26 Dryt, dried.
27 Constructt, constructed.
28 Forwardet, forwarded.
29 Lifes, lives.
30 Darkth, darkness.
31 Caltth, cold a noun.
32 Prepaert, prepared.
33 Dresst, dressed.
34 Farth, literally farness, distance.
35 Uest, used.
36 Lacet, laced.
37 Neath, beneath.
38 Redresst, redressed.
39 Washt, washed.
40 Dryt, dried.
41 Returnt, returned.