A Place to Stay

Writers: Estelle, Suzee
Date Posted: 10th March 2019

Characters: Jayzine, Lirena
Description: Lirena asks Jayzine for a place to stay until her husband's trial
Location: Emerald Falls Hold
Date: month 7, day 6 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentioned: R'fal

Jayzine

Lirena faced the Hold at Emerald Falls, gazing up at the tall stone
walls built up against the soaring cliff face and the immense doors that
stood open before her. Stewards, drudges and even one finely dressed
lady bustled past her without a glance, intent on their business.
Although she'd lived all her life in the territory, she had never been
to the main Hold before and she couldn't help but feel that, small and
insignificant as she was, there was little she could do here to save her
husband from his fate.

After leaving her brother-in-law's cothold, she had traveled most of
the way in the company of a group of traders. The caravan master had
insisted that she stay with them, mentioning the rumors of a band of
robbers in the area. They clearly hadn't heard about the capture of the
bandits yet, and Lirena had kept quiet about it, only saying that she
was going to the Hold to visit a relative.

Once they were in the relatively safe lands within a few hours' ride of
the Hold, she had parted with them and ridden on ahead, unable to wait
any longer. The guards and their prisoners would be a day or two before
her, and there was no time to be lost.

If she hadn't already seen the Weyr, at R'fal's Hatching, she might have
been completely overwhelmed by her first sight of the Hold. This was not
so big, she told herself, and the thought of her son reminded her that
she was here for a reason.

She found her way to the stables easily enough, where a young man took
charge of her runner and suggested that she go to see the Headwoman if
she wanted to stay. After taking a moment to gather her courage, Lirena
approached a guard and asked him where the Headwoman could be found.

"That way ma'am," the young guard pointed toward a side door. "Go past
the guard room and take the first left. That will lead you right into
the kitchens. But her office is the door just before the kitchens. If
she's not in there she might be anywhere in the Hold. You can ask one
of the cooks."

"Thank you, sir." Lirena bobbed her head in acknowledgement and followed
the directions. The noise level grew as she approached the kitchens,
making her grateful once again that she'd already experienced a visit to
the Weyr. It was all so very different from her home. "The door before
the kitchens," she murmured to herself, and knocked, hoping that the
Headwoman would be in her office.

"I'm not in there right now," a chuckle came from the direction of the
kitchen. Jayzine leaned around the corner and realized this was
someone new. "Oh, hello," she said. "Can I help you?"

Lirena turned, startled. "Oh - yes, Headwoman." She smoothed down her
skirts. "I'm sorry to bother you. I'm visiting the Hold on family
business, and I wanted to ask if there was a place I could stay for a
few days? I can work," she added hastily, not wanting to seem like she
was asking for free lodging.

"How long a stay?" Jayzine walked toward her office wiping her hands
on her apron. "We have places here for visitors depending on your
needs. How many of you are there?" She walked over to her desk and
pulled out her log.

"It's just me." Lirena followed her into the office. "And - I'm not sure
how long." She had no idea how much time it would take to organize the
trial, and supposed it would depend on the Lord Holder's decision.
Perhaps she should have asked the guards. "I should be able to find out
soon, though."

Jayzine nodded and ran her finger down the page. Judging from the
woman's attire she wasn't of first quality, but she was clean and her
clothes were well made so she wasn't some escaping drudge but likely
had real business here. "I do have several guest rooms open up on the
visitor's floor. Would you like to take a look?"

"Thank you. That's very kind." She made a slightly awkward curtsy,
hoping it was the right way to show gratitude, then hesitated before
turning to leave. She'd spent much of the journey considering how much
to say about her reason for being in Emerald Falls, and she was tempted
to keep quiet unless asked. But on the other hand, she wouldn't have
wanted anyone in her cothold who wasn't being honest about their
business there.

"Headwoman, I - I feel you ought to know." She took a breath. "I'm here
because my husband has been accused of a crime and brought to the Hold
to stand trial. I came to support him, if I can."

"Of course you are," Jayzine said supportively. "And that makes no
difference to where you should stay," she assured the woman. "So just
follow me." She the way out her door and up two flights of stairs.
"This floor is for holders and their families and we have some extra
rooms here for guests." She came to a door and used her keys to open
it. "This one has a double bed and a nice sitting area," she stood
aside to let Lirena in to look around. "The linens are changed in all
the rooms every few days."

Lirena took one step into the room and came to a halt, stunned. The
room had to be twice the size of the bedroom she had shared with
Terren, back at the cothold. Bright sunlight shone through a wide
window, which looked out over the Gather square and the fields beyond.

"Ma'am, there's been a mistake," she said softly, embarrassed. "I'm
not a lady. I'm just a cotholder. I'm sorry if I gave you the wrong
impression."

Jayzine's eyes gentled and she held up a hand. "It's alright," she
said. "This is a Holders room. It is meant for a couple but as we
don't know when your husband might be released we'll just have to be
prepared. Now, the bathing room is down at the end of the hall. It has
a locking door for when you need to use it. The ladies rooms are on
the next floor down. The dining hall is down on the ground floor where
you came in. Have you had lunch?"

Lirena shook her head. She had been so anxious to get to the Hold that
she hadn't even waited for breakfast, and she suddenly realized that
she was very hungry. She felt ashamed about that, since she had no
idea what kind of conditions Terren was being held in. Surely they
would have given him food, but would it be good quality? "I haven't. I
can pay, or work for my meals."

"The Lord's Court doesn't usually take a long time," Jayzine tried to
assuage the woman's angst as much as was possible in the
circumstances. "There is no need for payment or work for at least a
sevenday. After that, we can talk."

"Oh, thank you," Lirena said in relief. She had marks, both her own and
the contributions of her sister and brother-in-law, but she would also
need them to hire a harper to represent Terren. "I'm very grateful. I
don't mind working, as long as I'm here, but I might need some time to
arrange for my husband's defense."

"Not to worry," Jayzine nodded. "Harper Hall is just the other side of
the main square. You should have no trouble finding them."

"Thank you. You've been so kind." The holder put down her bag, which
looked rather small in this spacious room, and made an effort to
collect herself. She was not going to break down in tears in front of
the Headwoman! That wouldn't help her cause at all. She told herself
that it was a good sign that she'd been welcomed here. With luck, the
Lord Holder would be equally sympathetic towards her family.

"Do you know how I can find out when the case will be heard? This is
all new to me," she said apologetically.

Jayzine nodded, "I can find out for you from the Stewards staff if you
like."

"If it's no trouble?" She knew that the Headwoman must be busy. It was
important to know how much time they had, though.

"Not at all," Jayzine nodded. She reached into her pocket and withdrew
a key. "Here is your key to this room." she said. "Let me show you
down to lunch.

Last updated on the March 19th 2019

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A Place to Stay