Redfork Menace

Imprisonment

Benjicot led her inside, to curious looks inside the castle. There were significantly more signs of life inside this great hall. And as her cursed luck would have it, full of people. Dinner was in full swing and upon their entrance the music stopped and it fell eerily quiet. Mercifully they did not linger, striding quickly through the room and into another. Shanda's heart was pounding. Her hands had grown slick with sweat and she felt lightheaded. She'd never been a prisoner before. Benjicot was wholly unaware of her falling apart on the inside as he led her deeper and deeper into the castle.
She kept thinking about Martyn and the horrible pale look he'd had on his face. And now here she was, stuck inside the enemies castle. There was no telling when she would see him again. And it was a when, she reminded herself, not an if. This whole thing was a ridiculous farce. What proof could he possibly offer up to condemn her? It wasn't illegal to cross the fucking river, Lord Grover Tully had ordained it so. Though, his word seemed to hold less and less weight as his health declined. His heir, Elmo had even less patience for the feuding houses. "You're all river landers, gods be damned. Start acting like it!" She could still hear his angry voice shouting, only weeks ago.
Shanda wondered as they walked deeper in the stone walls that weaved in an endless maze of nonsensical turns, if whatever reason had started the feud had been worth it. She'd pondered this many times over her life, always coming away with a different answer depending on the mood of the conflict. Usually she would brush it off, it doesn't matter why it started. The Blackwoods are bloodthirsty savages now. Who they were or what they might've done was nothing to her. She was concerned with weeping maidens found on the road between the two, with mutilated animals strewn across the borderlands. She was concerned with the vile, smug, holier than thou attitude they used to bully others. Hiding behind their "old gods" and feeding blood to the cursed roots of their idol.
The man in front of her had pulled up short so suddenly she bumped into him, so lost in her thoughts was she. He'd used a hand to steady her, before knocking on the door they'd come to a stop in front of.

"Coming!" There was the sound of something knocking over, a bowl maybe, before the door unlocked and a smiling girl answered the door.

Upon viewing the company waiting for her the smile slid right off of her face and was replaced with a scowl.

"Oh. Right. Go away, Benjicot."

"That's no way to introduce yours-"

As he tried to reply, the dark haired woman had grabbed her wrist and pulled her inside before slamming the door shut. Through it he could be heard saying, "You're an adult Alysanne!"

To which she replied quietly to Shanda, "And he's an ass." She smiled brightly at her, then crossed back to continue whatever she was doing before.

"No need to worry. This whole trial," She waved her hand about, trivializing it. "is nothing but men waving their dicks about. Nothing to do with you."

Shanda awkwardly shifted her weight before deciding to walk over to her. She'd been painting, and the sound earlier had been paint hitting the floor.

"Shouldn't you hate me by name alone then?"

"Maybe. Reputation is one thing to judge a person by, name another. But so too their words and deeds. All are a measure of a person, wouldn't you agree?"

Speaking obvious truths was a method for opening a conversation for deeper topics. State something easily agreed upon, then ease into the disagreements. This did not escape her mind as she agreed.

"Of course. But words are wind and autumn approaches."

If this was a dick measuring contest then the prize was timber, and flint. She knew how much it was costing her family to house their men, how many shipments they needed to survive. The Blackwoods numbers were similar to their and always had been. She knew they wanted more, to encroach across the river. That was the problem with appeasing beasts, their hunger never satiated. She thought again of Martyn and Royce, a harsh pang ripping through her. Why should they suffer so much over felled trees? She pushed those thoughts away as the woman replied.