Ędegard
Ędegard stood as Liornung led Leafa and Bella toward them. Raefindan, Mellonin, and Mellondu stood as well. Ędegard took a step forward. Leafa looked very pale; he could tell that much even in the dim light of the fire.
"Leafa!" he said.
She glanced at him once, as if startled, then returned her gaze to her feet. Her cheeks were wet with tears and the sadness of her face pierced him. He closed the space between them, but did not touch her; at this time he was sure that he had no right.
"Leafa, I ...." Ędegard had been about to say that he was wrong, but the words stuck in his throat. "... I thought that I could not earn my bread as a wheelwright, because of my hand, so...."
"...You cannot keep me," she finished.
"No, no, no. That is what I thought. But I - I gave you no say. And that was - - - that was wrong. I see that now."
She looked up at him, seeming as if perched on the threshold of hope, not daring to step further.
"Would you have a man for husband who has but one hand?"
His question hung in the air between them, and Ędegard was suddenly aware of the listening ears all around them. He wished that he had spoken his words alone with her, away from all these witnesses. He sighed, waiting for Leafa's answer.
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