Serenity awoke feeling warm, comfortable and safe. As she came to awareness, she registered the small body tucked into her and the coolness of her face. Her eyes struggled open and as she looked around, the events of the last 48 hours rushed back. She looked down at little Osgar and decided that whatever was happening, it wasn't all bad. Trying not to disturb Osgar, she slipped from the bed and shivered in the cold air of the room. Her shakes weren’t just from the cold. Last night, she was frazzled and exhausted and so just dropped off into oblivion. But now, the reality of her predicament was staring her starkly in the face. The images of the battle, particularly, would not stop running through her minds eye.
Taking a deep breath, Serenity looked around. Knowing her history, she searched for the chamber pot and made use of it... with difficulty. As an archaeologist, she was well versed on how things in history worked, to an extent. However, knowing about such things and having to actually do them were two entirely different experiences. She was going to have to learn quickly. She couldn’t just think of herself though.
Osgar stirred and Serenity went to him, approaching slowly and calmly so he would not be startled. The child had been through so much and she wanted him to feel safe. When he opened his eyes, the biggest grin spread over his face when he saw her, and her heart melted. How he could be so happy after his ordeal, she didn’t know, but she want it to continued. She sat on the bed and opened her arms. Without hesitation, Osgar shuffled forward and climbed into her lap where he stayed for a while. Both felt content. After their hug, Serenity leaned back and looked into his little face.
"Osgar, it's time to get up. The chamber pot is under the bed okay?"
Osgar nodded and climbed down. Has he went about his business, Serenity looked for something to wear. Though her bed was warm, the room was colder than she expected. She wanted her modern cloths but she couldn't find them anywhere, and she couldn't figure out how on earth to get into the dresses of this time alone. Plus, if she was forced to wear a dress like this, she wanted her thin leggings on underneath. Thank goodness she was un-married and could refuse a wimple… ugh. She needed help. While she waited for said help, and for Osgar to finish exploring, she observed her room more closely. It was ornate, not ornate in terms of Georgian decadence but ornate in so far as the medieval goes. The tapestries on the walls that helped keep in heat were giant and she could see gold thread and purple silk woven in. The furniture was sold wood and there was a lot including the bed, desk and two arm chairs near the roaring fire. Lord De Montford was clearly well off, heck he was rich, but he didn't act like a typical rich Lord. He was more considerate and fair. She liked that.
As she was contemplating her host, a quiet knock sounded at the door, which opened to reveal a small blond maid. She seemed tentative so Serenity smiled at her and spoke gently,
"Good Morning"
"Good Morning My Lady. Do you or the little one need assistance?"
"Yes thank you…?"
"Hilda, My Lady"
"Hilda. Lovely name. Could you help us dress please Hilda? And do you know where my garments are, the ones I arrived in? I should like them close."
"As you wish My Lady. Your garments are being cleaned, they will be returned to you shortly. Your clothing for today is being warmed by the fires of the Kitchen. My Lord thought it wise, considering how cold a morn’ it is. I will fetch them for you M’Lady and some water for cleansing."
"Thank you Hilda"
Serenity smiled at the girl as she hurried away. She would have to speak with the servants, make sure they were happy. Lord De Montford had mentioned that not just Normans but those who worked willingly for them were attacked too. They might have some ideas about who was responsible for the antagonism and attacks.
Hilda returned shortly with a beautiful yet practical dress and a ewer of heated water for washing. Serenity pored some into the basin and, with a slightly rough wash cloth, set about washing Oscars face before giving him the cloth to clean the rest of himself. Finding another cloth, she discretely turned away from Hilda and the boy to wash herself as best she could. When they were as clean as could be, Hilda helped them dress. Thanks to Serenity's gentle coxing and easy manner, Hilda opened up and Serenity found she was a joyfully fun girl who liked working for De Montford. But she was scared, she had hear rumours and whispers from friends on other estates about the brutal killings. When they had finished dressing, Hilda took Serenity and Osgar down to break their fast.
***
Robert had had a busy morning. So much had occurred that he was struggling to handle it all. Checking on his men was his first priority, closely followed by the security of his castle. Having satisfied himself that both were as well as they possibly could be under the circumstance, his mind turned to his third concern, his unexpected house guests. He had had much time now, to contemplate the odd pair and had at least managed to dismiss any notions of spies. Yet everything about this girl, young woman, was a mystery. She was unlike anything he had encountered. How was she able to snap him out of his blood rage? Stay so calm in such atrocious conditions? How did she sooth and reassure his men when he could not and tend to their many wounds? Who were her people and, more importantly, where the blazes were they? She should not be alone.
Coming out of his musings, Robert caught a glance of his guests as they descended the stairs to join him. He restrained his gasp and had to remind himself how to breathe normally. He had known when they met on the battle field that she was special but looking at her now… she was beautiful. Stunning. Not that he hadn't seen many beautiful women during his service to King William. Still, she was different, enough for him to take notice. Perhaps she wasn't as harmless as he had first thought. He sensed trouble. Suddenly his chest felt tight and his heart beat erratically. A sure sign of the coming battle. Only danger and the prospect of battle could illicit such symptoms in him. Yes she was trouble, if not for him then certainly for his men.
***
In the Great hall, Lord De Montford sat at the long table near the fire with food and drink, waiting. When he saw them enter, he rose and gestured from them to join him. Breakfast was a delicious affair and wonderfully relaxed. No rush and good companions. Serenity got to see De Montford interact with his people, greet almost everyone that went by. And they were all very kind to her. It seemed word about the battle incident had spread quickly.
"My Lady -"
"Please, if it's alright with you, call me Serenity. My Lady is too formal, I can't get used to it. Besides, it seems like we have gone through too much to remain formal now." Serenity smiled shyly, unsure if he would be offended by her lack of Lady like behaviour.
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"Of course. Serenity, such a beautiful name it deserves to be used. Then you must call me Robert." He returned with his own charming smile and Serenity felt herself supress a blush.
"Is that not too informal, I don’t wish to offend your people or give them the wrong impression. What about Lord Robert?
"So I may call you by your given name but you may not call me by mine? Will you call me Sir Robert, then I'll be satisfied"
"But you are a Lord not a Knight"
"I am both, but, unlike my inherited title, I earned my Knighthood. I'd prefer you use it."
"All right, Sir Robert"
"There, now that's settled… Did you sleep well? Was all to your satisfaction? I do not have an abundance of female clothing for your rank but I hope my Cousins garments are suitable. She left them here on her last visit."
"Everything was fine thank you. Our room is simply beautiful. I'm not used to such clothing but they are lovely and quite comfortable."
"Good, I'm glad you are comfortable here. I'd like to extend an open invitation for you. You may think of my home as your own and you are welcome here indefinitely. I do not wish to upset you but I have no guarantee I can find your relatives, so I offer you my protection, chaperoned of course."
"… T-Thank you Sir Robert. You are far too generous."
"Hmmmm… Would you like to take a tour of my castle? It is newly constructed and has some unique features. I get the impression you may enjoy it."
A small voice piped up from next to Serenity, "Me too?"
Serenity looked at the sweet little angle next to her and couldn't help but smile at him. She stood from the long table and opened her arms for Osgar, lifting him onto her hip. Looking towards her host, she smiled even wider.
"Thank you, we'd love a tour."
Together the three spent the better part of the day touring the grand stone built castle and it's grounds. Sir Robert showed her the layout of the upper rooms, most of which were occupied, but he pointed out his room (the Lord's and Ladies’ chambers) and the rooms of the important people in residence. He showed her the bower, her bedroom essentially, for her use and to entertain visiting women of rank. He also showed her the solar, with wardrobe, which he made open to her should the bower not meet her needs, and the luxury of the bathroom, wooden barrel and all.
The mezzanine between the ground and first floor was used as a sort of gallery with paintings and other decorations. Downstairs he showed her the chapel, the common rooms and the large hall, called the Great hall which she had already seen. There was also the kitchen, buttery, bottlery pantry and storeroom. She explored the kitchens and met the staff, cooks, guards, housekeeper and steward. She would make sure to spend time some of her time contributing in the kitchens.
After a brief lunch, Sir Robert showed her the armoury (called the casemate) and the Place of Arms where the soldiers assembled before they went to the grounds. Within the castles walls, he had beautiful gardens but the majority of the outside bailey was given over to training grounds and stables. She loved the stable, immediately hitting it off with the head stable keepers and remembering the names of all the stable boys. She already had her favourite horse, a spirited yet soft footed grey gelding. She suspected she would spend a great deal of time here. There were even a couple of ponies that Osgar could ride if he wished.
As she stroked the geldings strong neck she contemplated her tour. It occurred to her that something was… off. If the Normans had only just arrived, they shouldn’t have been able to build such a structure. A castle would take decades to complete, at least to this extent. At best they should only have the earlier mote and bailey type structure so soon after their arrival. The castle looked new so it wasn’t Anglo-Saxon and the design was all wrong anyway. Could she be wrong about the date she landed in?
Tearing herself away from the horses and her thoughts, Serenity insisted they spend some time on the training fields. She was concerned about the men she had travelled with and was curious to know how well prepared and trained Sir Roberts men were. It would give her an idea of not only when she was, but also what sort of state the land around her was in. It wasn't good. He had enough equipment and men to stock half and army.
Not a lot was known from this time, but would all castles be so well equipped in a settled country? It would make sense I suppose after conquering a land and people she thought. King William was no fool, he had ordered the mass building of castles for fortify his new lands. It must have been some years since the initial battle. She hoped her presence wasn't distorting things. At least the men seem to be recovering well, though, she could tell, many still struggled with those events. Understandable. They may be soldiers, but they weren’t heartless. Turning to Sir Robert, an idea struck Serenity.
"Will you train me in the sword… or the bow? Please?"
"… The bow perhaps but not the sword"
"Why not?"
"When you have a sword in your hand, you immediately become a target"
"But what if I become a target and don't have a sword in my hand? With no one around to help me. I'm as good as dead."
"I'll make sure you're never in danger"
His eyes told her he was telling the truth…
***
That night, in her room, Serenity contemplated her position. It was the first quiet moment she'd had to really think things through. She was in the past. Or was dreaming of the past. Was any of this real? It felt real. "Okay, figure it out Serenity." The landscape was definitely British. She was speaking Norman French, in a Norman castle, with a Norman Lord so it must be after 1066. They seemed rather entrenched and the style of castle is advanced, so they've been in England for a few years at least. At this time, the native Anglo-Saxon population were a part of the serf system, possessions of their Norman masters, practically slaves. The Anglo-Saxon ruling class was either killed in battle or married off to Norman Lords to legitimise their new position on the island. Lord Robert made mention of King William, so he must still be alive. She was perhaps a generation into the Norman era? "Hard to tell, records from this time are sketchy."
Pacing and muttering to herself were not helping her figure this out. Sighing and easing herself onto her bed, she watched Osgar sleep, making sure her fretting hadn't wakened him. She could not figure out what the dig in her time had to do with her being here… in the past. Mass graves usually indicated an epidemic, famine or other natural disasters or prolonged battle, with large numbers of casualties. Each of these situations need speedy disposal of the large number of bodies to prevent them decaying in the open and spreading disease.
Battles with such large casualties should be long over by now, yet Serenity saw no evidence of plague, famine, floods or other disasters. Then there was the strange event she witnessed on her arrival. It made no sense. The use of drugs and such subtle manipulation of large numbers of people were sophisticated tactics that shouldn't be in effect at this time. Something was very wrong here. Is this why she was brought back? Which brings her back to the main question… is this real? It can't be can it? … regardless, she had no idea how she got here or how to get back. Real or not, she had to let it play out. There was no other way.
***
Serenity was woken by a small voice moaning. She became aware of the little body next to her thrashing about and the moans quickly turning to whimpers and cries. Quickly rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Serenity gathered Osgar up into her arms, holding his limbs and rocked him gently, whispering and soothing him as best she could.
"Shhhh, it's okay, it's alright. I'm here, your safe Osgar, your safe little one. Shhhh."
Eventually, he quietened and looking down, Serenity saw his eye lids flutter open. He looked up at her, his eyes brimming with unshed tears, yet loving trust shone from them as he watched her.
"A bad dream?"
He nodded.
"Do you want to tell me?"
He blinked and Serenity thought he would refuse. He pulled in a big sigh and closed his eyes, his little body relaxing into her. Serenity would let him sleep. She was stilled from lying them both down by his little voice.
"At home, the swords and noises were there. Mum and Sister running with me, but we couldn't get away. We fell and there was blood and angry men and I'm scared. Why did the men hurt us?"
Serenity's heart broke for the boy. How did she explain what had happened and why they were living with the people who had destroyed his home and his family. It was a wonder he was not scared still or had not yet run away. Hugging him close, she sighed and tried to explain.
"In your village, did you have a healer woman?" He nodded "Mhmmm and she had herbs didn't she. Herbs that make you sleepy, herbs that heal and herbs that can make you sick yes?" Again he nodded. "Right. Well, you see, the men who came to your village, the men who are looking after us now, they went to your village to make sure everyone was peaceful. Someone had told them that bad men were hiding there. They were just supposed to look but a bad man gave them herbs. Like the one you would find in the healer woman's hut. But these herbs made them believe everyone in the world wanted to hurt them. What do you think a warrior, a fighter would do if he believed everyone around him was trying to hurt him?"
"He'd fight them."
"Exactly, so that's what happened. Sir Robert and his men believed that everyone in your village wanted to hurt them, they couldn't even see that there were women and children around, because of the bad herbs. Do you understand?"
He nodded
"Osgar, I will never let anything bad happen to you again okay? You don't need to be scared of anyone in the castle. But if you are, you just let me know and I'll fix it okay?"
Osgar nodded again and gave her a lazy smile. His little eyes were drooping.
"Are you ready to sleep again? Let's settle down. We can explore more tomorrow if you like after breakfast. Would you like that?"
"Yes. Thank you Sery, love you."
Serenity smiled as they cuddle down to sleep and gently kissed his forehead.
"I love you too Osgar"