Kingmaker

Fireside #2

"I find it quite distressing, Neville. This whole situation. For many years have the House of York and House of Lancaster been peaceful. But the past few weeks there have been hints of trouble. Was everyone but Ava blind to what was happening? Including us? We saw the trouble brewing, but we did nothing about it. Ava has made a move in this, and it could be the defining move for the years to come" sighed Plantagenet softly as he cupped his hands around his mug. The night had since fallen, the sky littered with specks of light; the moon full in the sky. "The House of York gave up on Ava, Plantagenet. It happened several months ago, actually. The moment she showed interest in the House of Lancaster... They tried for a single month to sway her back to the House of York. With little success. It only fueled her eagerness to come to us. But this is not all about Ava. And yes, maybe we were blind to all of this. Even with the hints we were receiving from Ava at the jousting tournaments. We remained blind. But we cannot take back any of that. It is too late for that. But we can change, or at least be prepared for what is to come. Even though we are not sure, we can still prepare ourselves for the outcomes that we know can happen" replied Neville in a sigh as he leaned back against the wooden stump once more.
"What of Henry Stafford and John Howard?" questioned Plantagenet as he drank deeply from his mug, resting it upon his knee when he was done. "Those knights will do whatever they can to get close to us. They may target us first in order to get to their ultimate goal, which is Ava. Should they target us, we try to reason. If they do not see reason within a few minutes. We strike back. If Ava joins the fight, we allow it. We must remember that she comes from a strong family, with strong jousting routes. So she will also know how to defend herself on foot. But regarding Stafford and Howard. We deal with them depending upon how they act. They fight. We fight. They talk. We talk. There is no other way around any of this anymore. One man we have not put into consideration yet, is the King. This could rest heavily upon his shoulders should someone die unlawfully. Of course, there will be many unlawful deaths should a war come of this. But we cannot cause a death if they do not have the intentions of fighting. If we do, the King will face judgement from the church. And though he has some standing, the church will look down upon his rein. Plantagenet. In our actions. We must defend the King at all costs. Keep him, as well as Ava. At the centre of our attention. They are the important ones right now. And until we know the standing of the House of York and Ava, we will continue to do as we have been; and we will continue to gather as much information as we can from Ava and any outside sources. I believe she has information that we could use, and I believe that she will share it without having to be asked twice. And without any bribery" Neville spoke like there was going to be a war tomorrow. But he spoke with truth in every word. As he gazed into the sky for a moment, he gripped his mug tighter subconsciously. "The House of Lancaster will be wise to accept Ava. But she will have to swear by the Bible that she is loyal to us. Should she break that, she has also broken a swear under the Lord. But I believe that she knows this"
"Will she not need to ask for forgiveness for breaking the swear to the House of York? The Lord is forgiving, but will he forgive her? And will she ask for forgiveness?" questioned Plantagenet as he gazed upon the embers of the fire now. "I believe she does not need to ask for forgiveness. She fled for a reason, and the Lord will see her reason. My friend. The night has grown old. And we must sleep now. Tomorrow will be a busy day, and we cannot afford to be restless" commented Neville as he now stood, just as Plantagenet did.
"Goodnight my friend, and sleep well"
Once the pair had bid eachother goodnight, they moved to their respective quarters of the tent for sleep. With Ava still sleeping silently among the pillows and cushions; and Neville sleeping nearby.
The camp fell into silence and darkness; the moon bathing the castle nearby in a gentle white light.
Tonight was a quiet night at least.

[Authors Note: This. Took. 5. Hours. To. Post. Not happy. It took far too long. But it's up now. And I hope it saves. The stuff in here about the Lord, and the church. I won't be speaking much about it. Not because I don't like it. But because my knowledge of it has since faded. I studied it in highschool, and took a GCSE on Religious Studies. Came out of my exam with a B grade. But that was over 5 years ago now. I do not wish to speak loads of that which I do not know much about. I need to do my research before I write any more on the religion side of things]