In Light and Darkness [Goblin]

[Juno]

"What, me?" she asked, a bit surprised by the question. She would have thought the information common knowledge to him given his position and involvement in her recent trouble with the law. "Sadly, no. I'm sure my parents would have preferred a son, but they had no other children besides myself." Noticing his leisurely pace, Maddie fell into step with him instead, as much to prolong the time she could spend with him as it was to make conversation easier.

"I try to make up for that by being useful. I've dabbled in just about everything so my mother can lean on me when my father is away. I would not fault her if she's never noticed the small things, though," she told him, smiling fondly for how oblivious her mother could be on occasion. "I'm sure her only care is that I can restock our shop, not what goes on at home."

She stuffed her hands into her pockets as much for warmth as it was to stop herself from fidgeting so much with them. "And...is your brother your only sibling?" she wondered, figuring it a fair question given what he'd already asked. "Or do you have others and he's just who you live with?" she guessed.

[GoblinFae]

Lorcan hummed softly to show he was listening but kept otherwise quiet as she shared some of her personal life with him. He did not wish to add his opinion to the matter for fear of causing insult or tension especially as he did not know Madeline or her mother well, if at all, very well.

"Aye Ma'am he most certainly is. He was a bit of surprise I think to my parents as they were getting older when he decided to come along. He's been a handful ever since," he chuckled in memory. "I was just starting out as a Mordecai when he was born if you'll believe it. I suppose that's why he'll always be the baby in my mind."

[Juno]

The image she'd constructed of his brother was so easily shattered. The young woman gave a nervous laugh as she tried to envision what he described. The timeline seemed so odd, but definitely possible. "When he was born, you say? Oh my that's... That's quite different than I'd imagined," she admitted. "I thought you might have been more similar in age, but... That would make him just a boy even today, am I right?" she asked, eyes alight with wonder for such an age gap between brothers.

Maddie paused at the steps, not wanting to leave so soon but also not wanting to seem too eager to get to her door as she certainly found his company more appealing. "My, you must be quite a sight together. If I had not known I probably would have guessed you to be father and son," she added, shaking her head slightly. Their voices attracted a pair of eyes peering through the window by candlelight: Madeline's mother was alerted to their presence but left them alone for the time being.

[GoblinFae]

"You would be far from the first Ma'am and I highly doubt you'd be the last either. Such is the way of things though I suppose." Lorcan noticed the watching eyes but chose to politely keep quiet about them. Stares were something he was used to and given the hour he would have been more concerned if who he assumed was her mother did not take an interest as to what was going on. Instead he offered the tray out to her gently. "Is there anything else I can do for you Ma'am or should I be headed off on my way and out of your hair as it were?"

[Juno]

And so was the end of their evening signaled, pleasant as it had been. Maddie smiled in thanks and took the tray back without complaint. "Only the favor I asked of you. Whenever you receive a response I would like to know the outcome. Good or bad," she assured him, nervous to know her fate was at the hands of seemingly everyone but herself lately. "Until then I wish you well," she bid him, bowing her head to him with sincere respect before turning to go up to her door. Once she was through it she turned to wave in a more final goodbye before closing it.

Her mother watched her daughter with slight skepticism once she had returned from her visit with the Mordecai. It was clear they had talked and by the slight color to her cheeks she guessed she was a bit smitten with the soldier even if the young woman would not admit it. "Did he enjoy dinner?" she wondered, smiling slightly for the obviously empty tray.

"What? Oh, yes! It seemed like he did, yes," she answered, trying to keep the excitement from her voice for she knew he as likely within earshot if he had not bolted from their door. "He will be asking on my behalf if I could be given leave to travel," she explained again as she stepped the short distance to the kitchen that was open to the rest of their main living space. "I hope they will let me go visit father with you," Maddie sighed as she cleaned up all of the dishes from the evening meal.

"We can only hope," the older woman yawned, turning to look out the window once more into the darkness of night.

[GoblinFae]

Lorcan bowed gratefully to her. "A good evening to you and yours then Ma'am. I will see to your request personally." He waited until she was through the door and had waved back to her before he took off to head back up the path to the main road. The Mordecai did hear some of the conversation between mother and daughter but did his best to ignore it despite the smile that curled his lips.

With his work done for the day, he marched himself home to his rebellious brother and their small home. A thousand questions, a few swats, and a brotherly hug later the pair went to bed exhausted. The dawn came far too soon for Lorcan though who rose with the sun to fulfill his promise to Madeline to submit her request for passage.

Over a week passed before he received an answer and by then he had nearly all but forgotten that he had made it to begin with. Madeline was cleared to travel with an escort for a fortnight including the time it would take her to get to her destination and back. Lorcan himself was the Mordecai assigned not only to inform her of the news but to also travel with her to ensure she upheld her probation.

[Juno]

The week was fairly uneventful for Madeline and her mother. The young woman eagerly awaited another visit and her mother could tell she seemed disappointed every day that passed that did not yield one. They went about their affairs as always, though, Maddie doing what she could from home to assist her mother. When the time came for her mother to leave so she could take full advantage of the time her husband would be more or less available Maddie saw her off with a promise to follow if she would be allowed to.

The house felt colder than usual with her gone, a fact that had her keeping the fire roaring more than usual and several more candles lit about the rooms, but otherwise she still anxiously awaited the Mordecai's return daily. With more time passing, though, she was beginning to lose hope that she would be allowed the small freedom.

[GoblinFae]

By the time he was given his orders to escort the Mage it was already long past noon as the sun was beginning its descent through the sky. Lorcan had to hurry home to pack for his journey quickly so that he could make his way to her country home. He did not think she would take too kindly if he dwaddled when her time with her family was already limited. It was for this reason that he was knocking on her house door long after the sun and disappeared and the moon had risen in the night sky.

[Juno]

It seemed that day might have been yet another without any news. Madeline had been so certain that she was preparing her bed for sleep when she heard the knock at the door. It was startling, being so late, but she hoped it was who she thought it might be considering the hour.

She peeked through the window, catching the briefest glimpse of him that had her hurrying to get the door open. The cold night air rushed in to steal the warmth around the doorway to send a slight shiver down her back as she studied him, taking note of the bag in his possession. "Good evening," she greeted him, cautious with trying not to seem overly happy to see him in case he brought her bad news. "Would you like to come in? It's warmer in here," Maddie offered, stepping slightly to the side to stop blocking the doorway as she gestured to the fire within. "I can take your things if you'd like."

[GoblinFae]

Lorcan fidgeted in the doorway for a moment before bowing his head in greeting. "My apologies for the late hour Ma'am. I thought it prudent to come as soon as possible. Thank you for the invitation, I'll just leave my things outside here if it's all the same. I would hate to clutter your family home with my intrusion."

Gently allowing his pack to fall just outside the doorway, he finally allowed himself to enter and her to close the door. "Thank you again, Ma'am it truly is warmer in here," he acknowledged while rubbing his hands together in hopes of warming them without offending her. "I have news concerning your request. A decision has been made regarding it-" Lorcan paused as if remembering something. "Forgive me I should have asked prior, is your mother with you or any other family? I'm sure you'd like to share the news with them all in one go if that were the case. I don't wish to be rude."

[Juno]

"Of course, welcome, Mister Dempsey," she greeted again, hurrying to shut the door against the cold before turning to face him again. His hesitation to speak, however, made her feel as though he thought some support for her necessary, as if she could not handle bad news on her own. The assumption alone was enough to give her a crestfallen look about her, her eyes no longer bright with hope as she accepted her fate.

"You have not been rude, I am the only one at home. My mother left a few days ago," Maddie explained gently, moving to sit by the hearth to keep warm and avoid looking at his face while receiving the answer to her request.

"There's no need to delay the news, I understand that these things are not always...possible," she added, gesturing beside herself to welcome him to the fire.

[GoblinFae]

"Ah 'tis a shame then, Ma'am but all the better I have been sent to you then. Wouldn't do to have you all on your own. That's what I'm trying to tell you, you see. Your request has been cleared and my orders are to escort and accompany you for the fortnight you've been given. I do apologize again for the late hour but I didn't think you'd want me wasting any of your time what with you being given so little as it includes travel time there and back. It's all really a mess if you ask me. They certainly could have gone about it a bit better with the informing you but then I'm sure they get hundreds of requests that they have to deal with daily," he chattered on nervously. The adrenaline from rushing to get to her in a timely manner was still pumping through him and making him as jittery as a leaf in the wind.

[Juno]

The actual news was surprising enough that for a few moments Madeline could only stare at him waiting for him to say it had all been a cruel joke of some sort. "Truly? I'm quite surprised, I was certain they would have said no by now, but that's wonderful. Thank you so much for coming... is that why you brought a bag?" she asked, glancing to the front door. "I'd like to go very soon, but you didn't need to rush out here for my sake," she scolded gently, thinking it silly a Mordecai would care for wasting any of a mage's time despite how the gesture brought warmth to her smile.

"A fortnight isn't much time, but I swear I will make the best of it. Thank you. We can definitely leave at once," she agreed, standing up again quite quickly to begin packing her things. "Please make yourself at home, this shouldn't take too long. Is your...brother okay with you being away for so long, though?" she wondered aloud, frowning to herself at the idea of a young boy being alone for such a long period of time.

[GoblinFae]

He nodded bashfully as his cheeks took on a rosy hue in the firelight. "With all due respect Ma'am if it was me in your position I would want to leave as soon as possible too. We don't get enough time with family before it's too late."

Lorcan continued to stand tensely in place, unsure of what to do despite her invitation to relax. The balance between soldier and guest was too fine a line for hom to abuse or be comfortable around. "is there something I can do to assist you Ma'am? I feel rather like a cad being useless while you bustle about, he admitted sheepishly.

Her mentioning his brother made him laugh though. "You neediest worry about Luke but thank you all the same. I've arranged for him to stay in the barracks while I'm gone. Last thing I need is for him to develop a sudden desire to attempt torch juggling and burn the place down whole im gone."

[Juno]

"Well that's a relief." She smiled genuinely, not wishing to inconvenience his small family for her sake, orders or otherwise. Maddie noticed the slight color to his cheeks but blamed it on the cold weather from the outdoors in her mind. It was, of course, perfectly reasonable for him to react that way right after coming into the warmth.

"You could help, actually, um... I'm getting my personal belongings together but it would be a great help if you could maybe put together provisions for our trip since we will probably spend most of it traveling anyhow. There's a fruit bag there you can use," she pointed at the empty brown sack hanging beside the hearth.

[GoblinFae]

"Of course, of course!" he replied, hurrying to follow her instructions. Lorcan quickly scooped up the sack and after a quick assessing look about the kitchen, began to fill it carefully with provisions that would not only last long enough to not spoil over the journey but would also be hardy enough for their traveling. He did his best with the packing, placing heavier items on the bottom and softer items on the top all the while hoping he was doing it right. It was moments like this where he wished his mother was still alive to laugh at him and show him how to do it properly. That thought brought a small half-smile to his face. "Will food be all you need, Ma'am or is there something else you want me to be packing for you?"

[Juno]

Maddie peeked out to observe his progress, uncertain of what might have been in the bag but trusting he knew what was food and what wasn't. "The waterskins, if you haven't found them already," she told him, pointing to the small barrel in the corner and the two containers tucked between it and the wall. "And there should be some water in the barrel still, we'll get more along the way. Thank you so much for helping." She breathed a relieved sigh, happy to have a seemingly competent person to aid her for once. "If you'd like to rest I wouldn't mind leaving in the morning. I'm sure you've had a busy day, right?"

[GoblinFae]

"Uhh," Lorcan around hurriedly before spotting the waterskins. "Aha! Got them, Ma'am no worries and think nothing of it. As I said the last time we met my Ma would be rolling in her grave if I didn't." He busied himself with filling them each one by one while attempting not to spill any of the water and make a mess.

"You needn't worry over me, Ma'am. It is my job to go with you whenever you're ready. Today, tomorrow, it makes no difference to me as long as you're back when you're needed back. I wouldn't want you getting in trouble and me having to do more than just escort you." He coughed awkwardly as he thought about having to detain her for being late while cursing himself for failing to keep the mood light.

[Juno]

"I don't want that either," she sighed, hating the reminder of her demoralizing arrest. "Perhaps tonight, then. And we'll rest when we need, I doubt I'll last very long anyway," Maddie admitted, knowing she was not accustomed to travel. "Too bad we don't have horses. Would make the journey so much shorter, but walking is good for the soul." With that she returned to her packing, hurrying to get her things together to not delay them any more than was necessary. Once she'd gotten her bag packed she moved to leave it by the door while pulling on her coat, cloak, and boots.

Once fully dressed she moved back to the hearth to put out the fire that had been keeping the house warm all night. "Is there anything else you need? Do you need to stop by your home before we head out?" she asked.

[GoblinFae]

He nodded in agreement to her suggestions. "Very good then, Ma'am." While she bustled about getting herself put together, Lorcan headed back to the door which he left slightly open as he lifted not only his own onto his shoulders but also the two waterskins and the foodsack.

"You needn't worry yourself so for my sake, Ma'am. I collected all I'd be needing before I came. I truly did not wish to burden and delay you. I can understand how anxious you've probably been waiting on an answer in addition to the amount of time you've been given. Please consider me nothing more than an extension of yourself on this trip. I am but your shadow. I go where you go and stop when you stop," he told her with a friendly smile.