Prologue: The Barony of Harkenwold

Carlos grins and raises a hand in greeting - "Greetin's Mr Amblecrown, name's Carlos Jalapeño de Muerta an' i'd be a lyin' if i said i hadn't imagined now and then what Kat's dad would be like. And from the way ya two just barely restrained yerselves from huggin' i can totally see the fam'ly resemblance, though i beg don't hold back on my account!"

Kathryn and her old man manage to look even more self-conscious when Carlos points out they haven't hugged yet even though they want to. John quickly says, "Hello again, Gareth. It's good to see you."

Gareth nods and says, "John."

Jojo raises a hand in greeting before saying, "Nice to meet you, sir. Joshua Jordstad is my name and I'm a merchant by trade, but my friends call me Jojo."

Zoe waves at Gareth and says, "Hello. Gareth is it? I'm Zoe Tahlavia. It's so nice to finally meet you!"

Gareth is about to say something else when the door of house comes flying open and a group of children and teenagers come running out. With a collective cry of "Kat!" they all power hug her at once, threatening to knock her over with their collective weight.

The two oldest at sixteen are twins, brother and sister, both holding hunting bows and almost as tall as Kat.

Alizah and Brian Amblecrown:

The next oldest is 14, with light black hair, green eyes, and the look of a tomboy about her. Her dress is ripped in several places and she has a surprising amount of dirt on her. She gives Kat a mighty hug around her waste, though Kat's armor goes a long way towards thwarting any possible damage. She says, "I can't believe you're home! Just like Alex said you would be!"

Edith Amblecrown:

After that is another sister, age 12 and she's the complete opposite of her tomboy sister, her hair and clothes meticulously clean and cared for and her black hair perfect, her brown eyes sparkly and framed by long lovely lashes. She takes Kathryn by the arm, hugging her sister while trying to keep Kathryn from touching her dress. She's more interested in John and Jojo, who she smiles at. They politely ignore her.

Rose Amblecrown:

The final kid is the smallest and youngest at eight, his curly brown hair mussed up and his brown eyes full of tears. He immediately glomps onto Kathryn's right leg and cries.

Erin Amblecrown:

Of her ten-year-old brother Alex, Kathryn sees no sign. But before she can say anything Alizah and Brian both smirk and push her into her father, forcing him to share in the family hug. While surprised, he doesn't argue and those tears finally start falling from that stoic face.

Kathryn yelps and almost falls down to the ground when her siblings tackle her from all sides. Judging by the way she laughs about it however, she doesn't mind the barrage of hugs one bit. She also makes sure to pat the head of each of her brothers and sisters at least once. "Careful, careful! Or I'm gonna fall! I'm happy to see you too, everyone. Have you all been good?"

Her face softens when she looks at them, and her eyes even begin to well up a little. When her redheaded siblings push her into her father's arms however, numerous tears of joy roll down her cheeks and she happily hugs her old man back.

Once her family members finally let go of her, she asks the obvious question. "Where's Mom and Alex? Are they both inside?"

Hunter smiles at the family reuniting in tears of joy. He thinks about what it will be like when he returns to Fallcrest, and strokes Noble's fur.

[This is Kat's family. They're our friends.]

Carlos can't wipe that smile off his face either, for some reason.

It takes everything Zoe has to not jump down from atop Paprika and rush to join in the massive family hug. Instead she distracts herself by following Hunter's example and getting off of her horse. That's almost like a hug, right? Jojo and John follow suit.

Noble meanwhile is super engaged by the reunion, holding his tail straight up. After being reassured that they are friends Noble asks Hunter if he can go say hello.

Zeiss wrote:

Once her family members finally let go of her, she asks the obvious question. "Where's Mom and Alex? Are they both inside?"

Edith says, "Alex is in bed reading a book. He said to come find him after you and Mom are done being weird."

"Yes, he wouldn't want any competition then, right?" says an exasperated Brian.

Alizah says, "Mom is fussing in the kitchen." Instead of saying hello to you, she doesn't add. That's when Alizah notices Hunter. Her eyes go wide in surprise and she elbows her twin to get his attention. He follows her line of sight, his mouth falling open so wide that it might come to rest on the ground if he keeps it up.

Gareth says, "That's enough gossip you lot. Please, come in everyone. We were getting ready to eat the midday meal and we'll share what we have."

Jojo says, "That is most generous. Thank you."

Gareth sniffs, his form of shrugging it off, and says matter-of-factly, "Kathryn's friends are our friends."

Eni:

Zeiss:

Hunter explains to Noble that the hyena is still new to them, and frankly a bit exotic. He should wait for them to say hello first.

Hunter smiles at the twins as he always does when he meets someone new, or anyone who looks like they might have some hangups with him based on his looks. When Brian's mouth starts gaping, he can't help stifle a giggle that reveals his pointy teeth.

"Thank you, sir. Do you allow pets inside? Mine is begging to greet you all."

Kathryn is still happy to be back home, but she falls understandably silent when Alizah explains where their mother is. The talk of eating with her family does lift her spirits however, and she picks up her younger brother Erin in her arms so she can move again. "I guess it's time for everyone to see Big Sis be scolded by Mom. Come on everyone."

She ruffles Erin's curly hair, kisses him on the cheek, and starts heading toward the farmhouse.

Lady Eninahes of the White Well:

As Carlos dismounts - and once again fails miserably to wipe that smile off his face, he silently rates this as the most adorable thing he's seen all year.

Gareth nods and says to Hunter, "Just clean up after him is all I ask. And keep him away from the cows, don't want him spoiling their milk."

The two Strong brothers take your horses, while Edwin and the rest of you go inside single file through the big, reinforced oak door. Inside you find yourselves in a small hallway where you pass through yet another reinforced oak door into the common room. It's modestly furnished with chairs and a couch, with a small book shelf, mostly full of classics, though Kat's father occasionally buys a book or two every few years for general family education and entertainment. The inside is lit by small, high windows, made to allow as much natural lighting as possible during the day without sacrificing the defensibility of the structure. There's a stairwell in the southeast corner leading upstairs to the beds and arrow slits.

The kitchen is in the northeast corner, not separated by walls but instead delineated by two large archways which let anyone pass through. There's also two bench tables to accommodate the Amblecrowns and their tenants in times of danger like right now. Four women are putting the finishing touches on lunch, while two women and a man sit on the bench, the women both holding babies. Kat recognizes most of them. The two women on the bench with babies are Angus' and Callum's wives, Margaret and Gemma, both brunettes of modest looks at 20 and 22 respectively. The man is Tom Strong, age 44, the head of the family and Garreth's oldest friend. He's lost more hair since Kat saw him last but his blue eyes are as sharp as ever and his mustache just as neat and waxed into curls as always.

The four women getting the food together are Jenny Strong, Tom's wife, a lanky blond with streaks of gray wearing work pants and a shirt as is her want; Edwin Thatcher's wife Brenda, her brown hair in a pony tail and her bodice doing nothing to hide her large breasts; Edwin and Brenda's daughter Endra, now 14 with hair like her mother's but with a more modest bust size; and finally, Judy Amblecrown, directing everyone towards an efficient completion of tasks. Her white hair is up in a bun and she is wearing a flattering blue dress.

Judy Amblecrown:

 

Tom smiles when he sees Kathryn, saying, "Welcome home stranger. Long time no see. Have a seat everyone, but leave your weapons near the door. You won't need them to slay rabbit stew and salad."

The entire kitchen comes to a halt now that everyone is inside. There's a combination of wonder and shyness at the lot of you, with Judy noticeably continuing to ladle stew into bowls.

The eyes of the white-haired knight wander over every nooks and crannies of her home as she reminisces about her life here and notices how very few things have changed since she left. Although she's happy to see the rest of the Strong and Thatcher families—she waves and says hello to them—it's her mother that she's preoccupied about. She nods at Tom and does as he suggests by putting her sword against the wall and showing to everyone where they can put their weapons. Once all of that is done, she lets her companions and siblings sit down first while she waits for her mother to finish serving lunch.

With her head kept low, she shuffles next to her mother and says to her, "Hi Mom..." Her companions would notice that her apologetic tone and demure demeanor is very much unlike how she usually is. "I'm really sorry for leaving like that... And for not saying goodbye... And for not coming home sooner too..."

She tries to remember what else she should be sorry for, but comes up short.

"You got it. He'll be good."

Hunter pets Noble. [Crap out here if you need to before you go in. You can say hello now, and leave the cows alone.]

Hunter lays down his pack and his weapons next to it, and hefts his bag of owlbear jerky with him. He's looking for a spot to sit down when his attention is drawn to Kathryn and her mother when they meet.

Carlos unfastens Isabella and sets the hammer to rest against the wall, alongside Pike and his throwing axes, aptly dubbed the Expendables. He spares a curious glace at Zoe, wondering how she's handling all the cuteness overload.

Zoe has just finished setting her bandoleer of throwing darts on the ground next to her backpack when she notices Kathryn and Judy. When she looks at Carlos there's worry there in her eyes, but she turns back to the reunion and watches quietly. John and Jo also wait, watching closely. It seems almost every eye in the room is watching the two now.

While Kathryn is apologizing, Judy finishes ladling stew inside of a bowl. She's about to put it on the counter for the other women to bring over to the tables, but she stops for a good three heart beats before handing the bowl to her daughter instead. She says, "Lunch is on, you know? Get that delivered and then go fetch the extra bowls for you and your friends. Go on." And the look she gives Kathryn is we'll talk later, okay? Judy and Kat's voices are remarkably similar, they could probably pass for each other if they needed to.

Kathryn relaxes a little when her mother speaks to her, and she nods and smiles at her when being handed the bowl of stew. She very deftly takes out new bowls from the cupboard and helps setting down the table. It rapidly becomes obvious by looking at the way she moves the bowls, utensils and mugs around that she's done this an incalculable number of times before, and being away for three years hasn't dulled away her habits even one bit.

Once everything is ready, she will sit down between Zoe and Erin—her youngest brother just doesn't seem to want to leave her side.

Hunter's eyes get bigger when he hears Judy talk. How does she sound so much like her daughter? A cloud hangs over him as Kathryn goes to grab some bowls, but he brushes it away as he picks a spot just one bum away from the edge of one of the tables, and forces a smile.

"I've got some salted jerky that would go with lunch, if anyone's interested in trying it."

-------

https://thedreamlands.forumotion.com/viewtopic.forum?t=42