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Even as everyone else disappeared from the table bearing the broken body of Rilef, Kara remained there still, unable to tear her eyes away from the scene in front of her. From a young age she had been schooled to believe that death was a natural and necessary part of life, but not death like this, needless and dealt by vicious hands. Finally she closed her eyes and turned from the table, fully intending to make her way back to the kitchen, but as she opened her eyes again she felt hot tears spring to them and instead made her way out of the Hall, looking for somewhere quiet to shed her tears in private.
Frodides meanwhile had been picking herbs in the little garden behind the kitchen, hoping to give Ginna and Kara time to get to know each other. It was no good having two girls in a kitchen if they didn't get on or there would be jobs done half heartedly as one would think the other should be doing it. No, she thought to herself, best to let them hammer out any issues now rather than later. And with that sage advice she had gracefully settled herself onto one of the benches out the back and tilted her head back in the sun.
Which was exactly how Kara found her a little while later, having grieved as much as she needed to at that moment. The sight of Frodides snoring gently, completely unaware of the sad event that had taken place, brought a smile to her face and it was with sorrow that she reached out a hand to wake her up. For however peaceful she might look Kara knew that her temper would soon be up if she was allowed to nap the afternoon away.
"Frodides?" She said quietly, shaking the older woman's shoulder.
"What?" Was the frighteningly immediate response.
"I'm sorry, I thought I should wake you. There's something - "
"Wake me?" Frodides didn't give her a chance to finish. "How can you wake a person if they're not asleep? I was resting my eyes that's all, giving you and that new girl some time alone. Haven't fallen out already have you?"
"No, but - "
"Well that's a blessing. Now so long as some fine fellow doesn't come along and get the two of you fighting over him we should all be happy!" She stated, a frown of disapproval crossing her face at the thought of it. "Now, what is this something that was so important?"
Haltingly Kara told her of what had happened and almost broke down again herself as she watched Frodides' normally stoic face fall. She was one who naturally allowed her emotions to show but Frodides kept things to herself, so to see such pain and bewidlerment on her face was startling.
"Why would they do such a thing? Those two were no threat to anyone that was clear enough." She asked, and though no answer was expected Kara gave one anyway.
"I don't know. Lord Eodwine has locked them up inside I think, perhaps he'll question them."
"Locked up? Here? But there's nowhere safe to put them and there are young children about! Come on girl," she said, leaping to her feet with far more agility than Kara would have given her credit for, "let's go see what solution has been found."
Kara followed, hoping that Frodides wasn't about to barge in and rip into poor Eodwine before he had a chance to deal with the outlaws, but as they reached the kitchen she found herself worrying a great deal less about that and more about Ginna, who was currently being helped onto a stool by Harreld and looked decidedly the worse for wear.
"What in the world happened to you?" Frodides apparently agreed, and was taking the direct approach to getting answers. A few moments later and she had the full story, reported by a very shaky Ginna and a distracted Harreld, and it was clear to all that she was now on the warpath.
"Right. Kara, you stay here and keep an eye on young Ginna here, she needs no more excitement today so I want you both to stay out of harms way. You, Smith, where's Eodwine?"
"In the courtyard, or he was last I saw him." Came the reply, and Frodides marched off in that direction, muttering to herself as she rehearsed what she was going to say when she found Eodwine. However, when she finally came upon him talking to another girl who didn't look as well as she might, she had come up with nothing better than:
"My lord, just what exactly has been going on? I find one of my girls in tears and the other telling a tale of being an inch away from death! How did this happen? And what happened to my kitchen? It's a mess!"
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