This takes us to the end of Day 2

Word Usage Key is at the end. The brackets after a character eg CLAIRE (4nc) indicates Claire is a character who is 4 years old. nc indicates new character not encountered before.

29th of Towin Day 2

Ella and Kestrel left hand in hand after donning coats, but none who saw them leave knew who Kestrel was. Kestrel had chambers in a nearby curtain wall, and he explained a niece was sleeping there looking after Serenity. The niece and child were sleeping when they arrived, so they were quiet and sat down in the main living space. Kestrel poured a small glass of brandy and said, “We’ll both drink it later. It’s a family tradition.”

Ella understood later to mean after they had maekt(1) love. “I’m thirty, how old are you Kestrel?” she asked.

“Thirty-eight.”

“Why me? I asked you to sit with me because of you bumping into me and escorting me back to my table, but what made you pursue the matter? There were plenty of prettier women there than me? Why me?”

“I can’t say I considert(2) it in those terms,” he explained. “I’m not particularly intelligent, but I’m highly organiest.(3) I have to be to manage the breed records, but some of my family make fun of me for not being overly bright. Not nastily you understand, it’s just how it is. I suppose, not being overly bright, I’m impresst(4) by folk who are. You lookt(5) intelligent that’s what I seeën,(6) naught else. I realiest(7) when spaeking(8) with you that you are much brighter than I. I know things, but you can reason your way to a solution. That’s what I see when I look at you.”

Ella didn’t enjoy her brutal introspection, but neither was she upset by it because deep down she had known the truth of it for a long time. ‘You asked and were given the truth. He admires cleverness not prettiness. He didn’t even try to tell you he thinks you’re pretty because to him it doesn’t count. How many times have you told yourself, you’d rather be clever than pretty? I wonder if you’ve been deluding yourself all this time? It doesn’t matter, you’ll still be bright decades hence, but then again, maybe that’s part of the delusion too, but you knew that didn’t you, Ella?’ Referring to herself in the second person was how Ella oft coped with the difficulties her life had been fraught with. Things didn’t seem so bad if they were happening to someone else.

“Why me then?” asked Kestrel.

“I thought you were knowledgeable, patient with my lack of knowledge, a good dancer and not in the least bothered by my poor dancing. You may not be too bright, I’m not sure about that by the way, but I have had fun in your company, and you are an interesting man. I suppose your total honesty impressed me, it still does. I know it is a characteristic of the Folk, but it was you I thought about sleeping with tonight, and your honest request and desire to sleep with me took me by surprise and a little while to come to terms with. So bring your brandy glass for later. Right now is now.”

After sharing the brandy, Ella had come to the conclusion Kestrel was an interesting and a caring man. Kestrel, thinking of her self-depreciating remarks of her looks, genuinely thought she was beautiful. Her face he seeën in terms of the cleverth(9) he had remarked on, she had a lovely smile which he had seen a lot of in between going to bed and sipping the brandy and she had a full woman’s body which he enjoyed looking at as well as enjoying. They both fell asleep thinking of a future together and feeling pleased they had found an agreän(10) they knew they were falling in love with which was some thing neither had considered possible so quickly.

29th of Towin Day 2

When they arrived at Tress’ chambers holding hands Sloe said, “I bethinkt(11) me you would be later, Tress, but I’d better go any hap. I have to have an early start.” She looked knowingly at Bryony, hugged her, kissed her cheek and said, “I do hope you will both be happy, Sister.” Sloe put her coat on, and as she left said, “They all were in bed on time. We had an early supper here, but they all willen(12) to know why they couldn’t go to the dance too.”

After Sloe had left, Tress snuffed the candles nearest the doorway and said, “I really must use the facility I don’t drink that much oft.”

“Me neither,” said Bryony.

When Bryony returned to the main living space Tress had poured them both a small glass of amber liquid. “Joseph’s peach brandy,” she said, “may hap I’m not as confident as I appear.”

“I know I’m not,” said Bryony. Tress patted the settle next to her, and Bryony sat down holding her hand out. Tress held Bryony’s hand, and they sipped their brandy for a few minutes, neither of them sure what to do or say next. Bryony taekt(13) the initiative by saying, “I should like to be kissed first, and then I should like to ask some personal questions if I may?”

They put their glasses down and reached for each other. Their kiss became more than one, and those more and more passionate. Their hands caressed each other whilst they began to undress each other. The physical contact assuaged loenth(14) on their parts as well as gratifying their most immediate physical needs. They braekt(15) off happily aware they had started a sexual relationship. As they reached for their glasses. Tress said, “Ask what you will. I’ll answer what ever I can.”

“You know I wanted to be with children. I had expected to find…,” Bryony hesitated then remembering Castle usage continued, “a wife who had the care to orphans of her kin, or one who had adopted children, but you implied you are the boys’ birth mother. How is that? Also if possible I should like to have children. How did you manage it?”

“As you sayt,”(16) replied Tress, “those are personal and intimate questions. How would you feel discussing them in the personal and intimate surroundings of my, soon I hope to be our, bed?”

Bryony replied, “What a good idea.”

Tress led Bryony to the bedchamber where after she lit the oil lamp they helped each other to finish undressing. They undresst(17) slowly enjoying the process of assisting each other and continuing with their kisses and caresses which became more and more intimate. Tress was fascinated by Bryony’s contortions as she unfastened her brassière, and even more so when Bryony explained every woman on Earth wore one. “How long does it take a girl to learn to fasten and unfasten one?” she asked.

“Not long. Wearing her first brassière is a rite of passage through puberty, and girls learn quickly because it’s a woman thing, like learning how to apply cosmetics using a mirror. I think I learnt both within a month, a lune that is.” Bryony laught, “I certainly practised often enough.”

As they slid into bed Tress pointed to a press and said with a chuckle, “There are night clothes in that drawer, you never know, you may need them, but I haven’t uest(18) them for years. However, let’s answer the questions first.” She sat up in bed holding Bryony’s hand and started to explain. “It is not oft there are children available to adopt for long here. They’re usually adoptet(19) by their own kin immediately there is a need to do so. Most women are able to have children irrespective of what kind of family arrangements they have. Women who prefer women just need a coöperative man. Grove and Ghyll, who are Masters of leisure, have fathert(20) many children for any number of women who have requiert(21) such a service. Of course it is much more difficult for men who prefer men to have children to rear. Some women prefer a family member or a close male friend to father their children, and that was how Balsam and I feelt of it.(22)

Tunn is the son of Balsam, and a cousin of hers is his father. She became pregnant six lunes after we marryt.(23) She had a difficult pregnancy, and we decidet(24) it would be her last. Whin and Plane are my sons. Their father is Gordon my sister Livette’s husband. Livette and I had a difficult task to persuade him to father them. He feelt uneasy being in another woman’s bed. He’s devotet(25) to Livette. He was also my daughter Lavender’s father. Balsam and I were quite happy he should have no obligations to our children, but he wouldn’t hear of it. He telt Livette, Balsam and me unless we should accept his parental responsibility I could go and find another man. He wasn’t prepaert(26) to father children under any other circumstances. He also refuest(27) to spend a night with me, and he would only bed me in the afternoons. For some reason that maekt him feel better. I have to say being bedd(28) by him was pleasant, exciting even, but I am the way I am. I take it you have had a man?”

“Yes, several,” replied Bryony, “and also not without pleasure, but as you said I am what I am.”

“As for you having children,” said Tress, “We can always ask Gordon, he’s gentle and caring, and may hap most important of all he’s kin and Livette will help persuade him.”

Their loving was satisfying, and both women were aware of the void it had filled. For Tress the loss of her wife and for Bryony the solitary life of the outcast. Tress started to fall asleep much later feeling happy her frustrations had been relieved and with the awful feeling of loenth and solitary responsibility for the boys gone. She sleepily reached over to touch Bryony to check she was still there and she hadn’t imagined it all. She found Bryony’s hand and eventually fell asleep holding it. Bryony as she was falling asleep was thinking not just of Tress and the boys, but also of what Tress had telt her of Gordon. Finding the society she was in now was if anything better than finding Tress. Total acceptance was something she had never even dreamt existed, on Earth it didn’t.

Castle’s equatorial circumference is a quarter greater than Earth’s and hence it has a greater oblate character. It has a greater inclination of its axis than Earth and a more perturbed motion due to having two moons and belonging to a more complex solar system. This causes a more extreme and erratic variation in its day length and seasonal temperatures. Its tropics are proportionately closer to its equator than Earth’s since the area where the sun may be directly overhead is small. Correspondingly its polar circles are proportionately farther away from its poles since the area that experiences no sunset in summer and no sunrise in winter is large. It takes four hundred and thirteen days for the planet to orbit its primary and a year to pass.

The planet’s two moons, Dimidd(29) and Lune are very different from each other. Dimidd, the farther one, appears small, faint and even when full barely casts a shadow, Lune, the closer one, appears larger, bright and when full provides enough light to render artificial illumination unnecessary. Lune has a higher albedo than Earth's moon and a much higher albedo than Dimidd. The Castle calendar is based on the movements of Lune, which waxes and wanes fourteen times in a year. There are thus fourteen lunes in a year, each of twenty-nine and a half days. Women of the Folk refer to their menstruation as their lunetime. Ten days are called a tenner, and there are nominally three tenners in a lune, though in every other lune the third tenner has only nine days.

The days in a tenner have names, which are derived from ages old counting words whose origins are lost in the mists of times over. The counting words are no longer in common usage having been replaced by more Anglicised, modern English, versions long since, and the day names themselves are rarely used any longer other than as personal names and occasionally as day markers for events that occur once a tenner, for example the Seamstresses hold a meeting on each third day of the tenner which is callt(30) the Treday meeting. They are: Yanday,(31) Tvåday,(32) Treday,(33) Fyrday,(34) Femday,(35) Sexday,(36) Sjkwuday,(37) Otday,(38) Ninday(39) and Tioday.(40) In a nine day tenner Ninday is missed, and the ninth day becomes Tiodet.(41)

Each lune is named, and in order they are: Faarl,(42) Luval,(43) Vilar,(44) Minyet,(45) Svertan,(46) Haldol,(47) Towin,(48) Chent,(49) Darrow,(50) Uernith,(51) Stert,(52) Larov,(53) Von(54) and Topal.(55) The lune names, like the day names, are used as personal names. The current year is year five hundred and sixty-eight after the Fell Year, which was also yclept the year of the Great Fevers. The Great Fevers was preceded and followed by exceptionally long and harsh winters. The combination nearly wiped out the Folk, and much was lost including virtually all of the little that had remained of their known history.

First Quarterday marks the spring equinox and falls on the fifteenth of Minyet. Due to the cold weather, it is usually celebrated in the Greathall and the courtyard rather than on the Gatherfield, which is the name given to the sheep grazed plain beyond the settlement of Outgangside. Second Quarterday, also yclept All Fallows Eve which is the high point of the year, marks the summer solstice with twenty-one hours and twenty-four minutes of daylight(56) at the Keep, and falls on the first of Chent. According to the archives it has always been celebrated on the Gatherfield. Third Quarterday marks the autumn equinox and falls on the fifteenth of Stert. It is usually celebrated on the Gatherfield, but if the weather is unseasonably cold the courtyard and the Greathall are used in its stead. Fourth Quarterday, also yclept The Sun Return, marks the winter solstice with two hours and thirty-six minutes of daylight at the Keep, and falls on New Year’s Day, the first of Faarl. Due to the extreme cold it is always celebrated in the Greathall and elsewhere in the Keep. The courtyard has only been used in historical times. The records shew that though the twenty-second of Luval is well past The Sun Return it is the expected date of the coldest day of the year.

Due to Castle’s perturbed motion day length on any given day of the years can vary by as much as half an hour from year to year which also means its tropics and polar circles move with subsequent movements of the areas which experience equal day and night length and those that experience no sunset in summer and no sunrise in winter.

Each day is divided into twenty-four hours with sixty minutes in each, but an hour is sixty-seven minutes and forty-seven seconds of Earth time. Time is not accurately kept and is, in the main, provided by sundials and special candles which are maekt by pouring molten wax into moulds berount(57) the wick rather than by wick dipping. Incomers with time pieces have in the past provided information for comparison purposes. A Castle year is approximately a quarter longer than an Earth year, more exactly 1.2774 times longer than an Earth year. The Castle mode of telling the time is like on Earth, but the twenty-four hour clock is not used, and in common with many places on Earth half means half an hour to or before not half an hour past or after, thus half to ten, usually said as half ten, is equivalent to 9:30 on Earth. The expression past is not used but rather over, thus twenty past two is twenty over two. Minutes before the hour are the same thus twenty to two is the same on Castle as on Earth, though twenty fore two is also used.

An interesting observation is the Folk seem to have adapted to the year length in strange ways: most pregnancies are still of two hundred and fifty-nine to two hundred and ninety-four days(58) whilth,(59) women’s lunecycles(60) are still of one lune’s whilth or so, and children’s growth rates are the same as on Earth. An Earth child of five Earth years is roughly equivalent to a Folk child of four Castle years in terms of physical and mental development, this parity continues through puberty and lasts till maturity. Unexpectedly may hap, once adulthood is reached the Folk have adapted to the longer year, and Folk life expectancy is longer than that of Earth. This is assumed to be due to a healthier environment and lifestyle since the younger an incomer is at incursion the more nearly their life expectancy becomes that of the folkbirtht,(61) though incomers live significantly longer than they could have expected on Earth.

Average age of menopause onset is usually ten years later for the folkbirtht than incomers though as with life expectancy the younger an incomer is at incursion the more closely their biology becomes like that of the folkbirtht. Folkbirtht women’s fertility does not significantly diminish till the end of menopause which frequently does not occur till women’s middle sixties, and seventy year old pregnant women are not unknown. A forty year old member of the Folk is physiologically equivalent to a bit less than a forty year old from Earth, in spite of having lived eight to ten Earth years longer.

Distances are usually measured in strides, an imprecise unit, and a farth(62) of a thousand strides was archaically referred to as a mil.(63) Longer distances are usually quoted in terms of the time it takes, known as whilth,(64) rather than distance, known as farth. The word distance is used but in the sense of spacing or separation. Small lengths are measured in wiedths,(65) spans and feet. A wiedth is nominally as wide as a finger, a span a nominal hand’s span and a foot likewise the length of an average foot. There are eight wiedths to a span, three spans to a foot and three feet to stride, and standards are kept to ensure the units uest(66) remain the same and don’t drift over time. Smiths and such crafts have no need of absolute measures, since what matters to them is not exactly how big a component part is, but that it fits it’s mating parts.

Area is not oft referred to, but when it is it is done in square strides, approximately a square yard. This is a loose measure with approximately five thousand square strides equivalent to an acre or approximately twelve and a half thousand square strides equivalent to a hectare, though neither acre nor hectare are uest on Castle.

Units of capacity, or measures of fullth,(67) a similar word with a slightly different meaning is fillth,(68) have evolved from the larger measures used by brewers, the sizes of their barrels, which are standardised by the coopers in their manufacture. Gallons, pints and gills are common sizes of domestic and craft equipment, with four gills69 to a pint and eight pints to a gallon. A pail is used as a loose measure, the average pail being of two gallons. The healers and herbals use blown glass vials as measures, which are standardised as accurately as is possible in their manufacture, and then calibrated gainst(70) standards kept for the purpose. These are specialist measures not in general usage.

Mass is standardised on the weight, and the various multiples and fractions of it. A weight or one of its multiples or subunits is an over sized piece of lead cast by the plumbers, which is then filed by the smiths, such that its mass matches that of a test standard using a balance scale. Spring balances are not uest so in strict Earth terms the Folk use mass not weight. Again the healers and herbals use smaller versions, not in general usage. The Folk for convenience generally measure, for example, food receipts, by volume rather than by mass though balance scales are available. A weight(71) is just a little more than two Earth pounds and a thousand weights are approximately equivalent to a ton, though both the units ton and tonne are unknown to the Folk.

Temperature is measured using thermometers containing dye in ultra distilled alcohol thermometers. The zero point is the freezing point of water, and the boiling point of water is set to one hundred heats.(72) The scale is thus a nominal Celsius scale, but the inherent inaccuracy in the bore of the thermometers is such as to make different instruments vary by as many as three heats, and the better ones are calibrated gainst standards kept for the purpose. Pure, dry ethyl alcohol freezes at -114°C, so in theory the thermometers work down to that. In practice they are reliable down to -80°C, and below that just exactly how cold it is is not really important. The thermometers are known to freeze, but it is possible that is due to a trace of water in the ethanol which would elevate the freezing point considerably.

Due to Castle’s perturbed motion day length on any given day of the years can vary by as much as half an hour from year to year which also means its tropics and polar circles move with subsequent movements of the areas which experience equal day and night length and those that experience no sunset in summer and no sunrise in winter.

The following time are averages of sunrise and sunset times as kept by the candlers since the Fell year. Sunrise and Sunset are referred to as Firstlight and Fulldark in Folk.

Lune----Date---Firstlight---------------Fulldark---------------Daylight
Faarl----1st-----48 mins over 10------24 mins over 1-----2 hrs 36 mins--------Winter Solstice
Faarl---15th----41 mins over 10-------31 mins over 1----2 hrs 50 mins
Luval----1st----20 mins over 10------52 mins over 1----3 hrs 32 mins
Luval---15th----46 mins over 9-------26 mins over 2----4 hrs 40 mins
Vilar-----1st-----2 mins over 9---------10 mins over 3----6 hrs---8 mins
Vilar---15th-----8 mins over 8-----------4 mins over 4----7 hrs 56 mins
Minyet--1st-----9 mins over 7-----------3 mins over 5----9 hrs 54 mins
Minyet-15th----6 mins over 6-----------6 mins over 6----12 hrs 0 mins--------Vernal Equinox
Svertan--1st----3 mins over 5----------9 mins over 7-----14 hrs 6 mins
Svertan-15th---4 mins over 4-----------8 mins over 8-----16 hrs 4 mins
Haldol---1st--10 mins over 3-----------2 mins over 9-----17hrs 52 mins
Haldol--15th--26 mins over 2---------46 mins over 9-----19 hrs 20 mins
Towin---1st---52 mins over 1----------20 mins over 10---20 hrs 28 mins
Towin--15th--31 mins over 1----------41 mins over 10---21 hrs 10 mins
Chent---1st---24 mins over 1----------48 mins over 10----21 hrs 24 mins-------Summer Soltice
Chent--15th--31 mins over 1----------41 mins over 10---21 hrs 10 mins
Darrow--1st--52 mins over 1----------20 mins over 10---20 hrs 28 mins
Darrow-15th-26 mins over 2----------46 mins over 9-----19 hrs 20 mins
Uernith--1st--10 mins over 3-----------2 mins over 9-----17hrs 52 mins
Uernith-15th---4 mins over 4-----------8 mins over 8------16 hrs 4 mins
Stert-----1st-----3 mins over 5-----------9 mins over 7------14 hrs 6 mins
Stert----15th----6 mins over 6-----------6 mins over 6------12 hrs 0 mins---------Autumn Equinox
Larov----1st----9 mins over 7------------3 mins over 5-------9 hrs 54 mins
Larov--15th----8 mins over 8------------4 mins over 4-------7 hrs 56 mins
Von------1st----2 mins over 9-----------10 mins over 3-------6 hrs---8 mins
Von----15th---46 mins over 9----------26 mins over 2-------4 hrs 40 mins
Topal---1st----20 mins over 10---------52 mins over 1-------3 hrs 32 mins
Topal--15th---41 mins over 10---------31 mins over 1-------2 hrs 50 mins
Faarl----1st---48 mins over 10---------24 mins over 1--------2 hrs 36 mins--------Winter Solstice

Word Usage Key

1 Maekt, made.
2 Considert, considered.
3 Organiest, organised.
4 Impresst, impressed.
5 Lookt, looked.
6 Seeën, saw.
7 Realiest, realised.
8 Spaeking, speaking.
9 Cleverth, cleverness.
10 Agreän(s), the person(s) one has marital agreement with, spouse(s).
11 Bethinkt, thought.
12 Willen, willed, wished, wanted.
13 Taekt, took.
14 Loenth, loneliness.
15 Braekt, broke.
16 Sayt, said.
17 Undresst, undressed.
18 Uest, used.
19 Adoptet, adopted.
20 Fathert, fathered.
21 Requiert, required.
22 Feelt of it, felt about it.
23 Marryt, married.
24 Decidet, decided.
25 Devotet, devoted.
26 Prepaert, prepared.
27 Refuest, refused.
28 Bedd, bedded, made love to by.
29 Dimidd, the terminal dd is pronounced as th in then, thus Dimith, (dimið).
30 Callt, called or named.
31 Yanday, day in the day names is pronounced dee, thus Yandee, (jandi:).
32 Tvåday, pronounced Tu + vor + dee, thus Tuvordee, (tvɔ:di:).
33 Treyday, pronounced Tray + dee, thus Traydee, (treidi:).
34 Fyreday, pronounced Fear + dee, thus Feardee, (fi:rdi:).
35 Femday, pronounced Fem + dee, thus Femdee, (fɛmdi:).
36 Sexday, pronounced Sex + dee, thus Sexdee, (sɛxdi:).
37 Sjkwuday, pronounced sjkw as ch (as in Scottish loch) + oo + dee, thus choodee, (χu:di:).
38 Otday, pronounced Ot + dee, thus Otdee, (ɐtdi:).
39 Ninday, pronounced Nin + dee, thus Nindee, (nindi:).
40 Tioday. pronounced cho (tuh + you) + dee, thus chodee, (tʃu:di:).
41 Tiodet, pronounced cho (as above) + debt, thus chodebt, (tʃoʊ:dɛt). The meaning is derived from little Tioday.
42 Faarl, pronounced f + ah + l, thus Fahl, (farl).
43 Luval, pronounced Loo + val, thus Looval, (lu:val).
44 Vilar, pronounced v + eye + lar, thus Veyelar, (vailar).
45 Minyet, pronounced min + yet, (mɪnjɛt).
46 Svertan pronounced sver + tan, (svərtan).
47 Haldol pronounced Hal + doll, (haldɐl).
48 Towin, pronounced T + ow (as in expression of pain) + inn, thus, Towinn, (taʊin).
49 Chent, pronounced shent, (ʃɛnt ).
50 Darrow pronounced Da + roe, (daroʊ).
51 Uernith pronounced oo + air + nith, thus Ooairnith, (u:ɛərniθ).
52 Stert pronounced stir + t, (stərt).
53 Larov pronounced La + rov, (larɐv).
54 Von pronounced Von, (vɐn).
55 Topal pronounced Toe + pal, (toʊpal).
56 For mean sunrise and sunset times at the Keep see Table 1 at the end of this section.
57 Berount, around.
58 Two hundred and fifty-nine to two hundred and ninety-four days i.e. of thirty-seven to forty-two weeks
59 Whilth, duration.
60 Lunecycle, menstrual cycle.
61 Folkbirtht, Folk born.
62 Farth, literally farness, distance, pronounced far + th, (fa:θ).
63 Mil, a Castle mil was thus somewhat more than a kilometre, though the term has passed out of use.
64 Whilth, distance expressed as the duration to cover it, pronounced wh + isle + th, (hwailθ).
65 Wiedth, pronounced wide + th, (waidθ).
66 Uest, used.
67 Fullth, volume usually a specific quantity, as in a fullth of three pints.
68 Fillth, volume usually uest as a relative term, as in it has a greater fillth than the barrel it replaced.
69 Units of capacity are more or less equivalent to imperial units with a little more than five Earth fluid ounces to the Castle gill.
70 Gainst, against.
71 Weight, a weight is a little less than a kilogram, but a little more than two pounds.
72 Heat, a heat is thus nominally a degree Celsius or Centigrade.