Dinner Is Served

Writers: AL, Anaria
Date Posted: 17th April 2011

Characters: Lyranel, Zathris
Description: Lyranel cooks Zathris a tasty meal!
Location: Amber Hills Hold
Date: month 1, day 24 of Turn 6

Zathris

Lyranel tried not to be disappointed at her failure at handling the
Hold stock, and instead focused on the meal that she was preparing.
She had been cooking at the cotholds ever since she was a little girl,
so perhaps kitchen worker was the right idea for her. She hummed
happily as she stirred the stew that she had made with leftovers from
dinner. The Head Cook had told her that Lord Zathris had gotten stuck
at his desk late, and hadn't made it down for the evening meal.
Lyranel was one of the few girls still working that evening, and had
volunteered to make him a quick bite to eat.

Lyranel spooned the stew into a bowl, grabbed some fresh fruit, a skin
of wine, and crusty bread to go with it. The Lord Holder wasn't going
to go hungry tonight, not on her watch! Balancing her tray carefully,
she walked up to the Lord Holder's office, and knocked lightly on the
door. "Lord Zathris, I brought you your dinner!" She called out. She
felt proud inside. She had added an extra special selection of herbs
and spices to try and make it as delicious as possible. If he liked
it, the Hold would have to keep her around as a kitchen worker!

"Enter!" Zathris' tenor carried easily through the door when he heard
the arrival of the worker with dinner. He was hungry, but he had far
too much to do to leave now. There was a pile of parchment on his
desk, neat piles stacked upon it. At least it wasn't the messy chaos
it had been. Thank goodness for Benani. He didn't know what he'd do
without his wife. The young Lord Holder looked up when the door
opened and smiled at the young girl. "Ah, thank you. I appreciate you
taking the time to bring it to me." He probably didn't have to give
such thanks, but it was only polite.

"It's no problem at all, sir," Lyranel said, as she curtsied. She sat
down the tray on one of the few clear spots on the Lord Holder's desk.
"Everyone deserves a fresh, hot dinner. I'm glad to do my part to help
in that. Is there anything further I can do for you?"

"Tell me what I'm having. It smells good." To be honest, Zathris was
glad for the break and the girl seemed pleasant. Pleasant
conversation would help ease the boredom for a few moments. He moved
a couple of stacks into a safe spot on a smaller table then pulled the
tray closer.

"Sure!" Lyranel said, her confidence growing. "The cook made roasted
herdbeast for dinner tonight, and I took the leftovers from that,
chopped some tubers and some root vegetables and made a stew. We had a
nip of Benden red that was a bit too little for a glass, so I added
that to the broth, and some herbs and spices that were popular at my
old cothold. Also I brought you one of the Vintner Hall's new reds,
and some fresh fruits and bread." Lyranel was practically beaming with
excitement.

"It sounds quite tasty. I thank you for bringing it to me. New red,
eh?" Zathris reached for the bread and tore of a piece, the crust
crackling with the motion. Then he dipped it into the stew and took a
bite. "Tastes good too. Are you a new cook?"

"I don't really have an official assignment here yet, sir. The
Headwoman is letting me try out a few different things to see which
one I take to the best. Perhaps cooking will be my strong point!" She
said excitedly. After her previous disaster with Wirnan and the
sweetsand, she was starting to fear that nothing at the Hold would
suit her. "My... my husband," she stuttered a bit on the word, "had
four sons, all around my age, so I felt like I was always cooking
there!"

Zathris caught the hesitation and his eyes flicked up to the young
woman. The bread was lowered and he watch the woman, concern echoed
in his expression. "Has he passed on?"

"Yes, but before you go apologizing, please understand that were I not
forced into the marriage I never would have gave the man a second
thought. Honestly, the only reason that I'm even slightly concerned
about matters is because if I can't find something I excel at here, I
will end up having to go back to that cothold. And his sons want
nothing to do with me," Lyranel explained.

Well now, that was a bit more information than Zathris had expected.
Some people were like that though, willing to tell their life stories
at the drop of a hat. If anything, it amused the Lord Holder and he
had to quickly hide that amusement behind his cup. "Well now." He
stated after he'd managed to wet his palate. "I don't think you'll
have to worry about that. Tell you what, if our Headwoman has trouble
finding a spot for you, you go to my wife and speak with her. Tell
her your situation and that I've requested we find something suitable
for you here in the Hold."

Lyranel flushed brightly, averting her eyes a bit so it wouldn't be
clear to the Lord Holder. "Thank you very much sir, that would mean a
lot to me. Y-your wife... she is very pretty!" Lyranel complimented.
"You must be so very happy with her!"

Zathris chuckled. "I am, though it has more to do with her being her
rather than her being pretty." Zathris knew that some probably
thought her beauty had a lot to do with it. Oh Zathris was no fool,
his wife was gorgeous. But physically, she could be the ugliest woman
in the world because it wasn't her physical beauty that attracted him
to her, but the beauty of her character. "What's your name? I don't
think you've told me yet."

"Oh! I'm so sorry! My name is Lyranel," she said. "I don't meet people
very often so I apologize if my manners are a bit rough," she said,
flushing even redder still. "It... it must be really great to be
married to someone you love." Lyranel was no stranger to the concept
of love, but had certainly never seen it from anyone in her life. Even
her parent's marriage was merely one of convenience.

"That's all right." She'd been pleasant enough and Zathris had to
admit, the food was good. He eyed the woman at her comment and
nodded. "It is. Originally I was intended to marry someone I barely
knew, but met my first wife and insisted that I marry her instead."
It had been probably one of the big things that his father hadn't
liked. "Perhaps you'll have a chance to find love here. There are many
men in the hold, and I will certainly not force you to marry someone
you do not wish."

Lyranel smiled at the Lord Holder, "Thank you, that means a lot. My
parents, they married me off to a man older than my father. But I was
the youngest of 6 girls, so the availability of suitors was pretty low
when it came my time around. I would really like to meet a nice man my
age and settle down."

"Perhaps you'll have your chance here." And with no one to force her,
she had a better chance at that. "Thank you again for the meal,
Lyranel." Zathris was enjoying chatting with the lady, but he did need
to get back to work and it was difficult to eat when talking! "I'm
sure we'll be seeing each other again soon."

"Thank you very much, Lord Zathris, and I am glad that you enjoyed
it!" She said, beaming. Taking her tray in hand, she skipped back to
the kitchens, fiercely proud of herself.

Last updated on the April 29th 2011

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

Dinner Is Served