Lisieux Family/A New Home

She rode on Crow, following Count Amaury at a painstakingly slow pace. They plodded on, and she heard her men yawn behind her. Turning in the saddle, she glowered at them and told them to be quiet and polite. She turned back to watch Amaury, and was about to ask him how long it would be until they got there... when she saw a mansion of sorts before them. They approached, and soon Danielle found herself dismounting, and handing Crow off to a stable boy. Crow looked like he was about to bite the boy's hand off, but with a few soft words Dani calmed the stallion. She followed Amaury up to the entrance, and stepping inside, looked around with a look of awe on her face.

Danielle turned to her liege and smiled. "Well, m'lord, what a fantastic home you have! Where might I be staying?"

Lady Danielle Lisieux

(Dame of Ciarin Tut)

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Amaury looked at Danielle, then motioned for a servant to come. He told the boy to collect her belongings and have them taken to the guest quarters, and to make sure the stablemaster tended to her horse personally. The boy nodded and left, and Amaury turned back to Danielle.

"M'lady, I hope your men won't mind sharing the barracks with mine.", he said, "Otherwise they'll have to stay encamped outside, and straw mattresses are more comfortable than grass, are they not?", he added with a smile.

Danielle nodded politely. "That'll be fine, m'lord."

He clapped his hands together and smiled again. "Excellent. My servants will see to it that your quarters are made ready post haste."

He paused for a moment, and worked up the courage to add "In the mean time... would you care for some tea in the gardens? The flowers are all blossoming, it's quite a lovely sight."

Amaury Capet

Count of Ciarin Tut

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She nodded and agreed that her men could bunk with his in the barracks. A man took her things and hurried them off to another part of the building. Well the service was certainly nice.... Danielle turned back to Amaury, and found that a small blush had colored his cheeks. She smiled and curtsied as she accepted his invitation to tea. He seemed so, so shy about it!

"Of course m'lord, I would love to join you for tea. It is nice to know a man can appreciate natural beauty."

She smiled with a bit of girlish charm and held out motioned for him to lead her on. "Let's be off then!" And then, Danielle giggled.

Lady Danielle Lisieux

(Dame of Ciarin Tut)

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Amaury failed to suppress a grin. He quickly turned his head and walked out of the entrance hall, leading Danielle through a maze of hallways, both narrow and wide, until they reached the gardens. A massive wall, three feet thick and fifteen feet high enclosed the space, which was filled with lawns, trees, ponds and flowerbeds, and a spacious patio with a large table. Amaury called one of the servants, and told him to bring tea and light snacks, before inviting Danielle to sit down. After he had followed her example, an awkward silence fell over the patio. He felt like all six guards nearby were looking at him, and decided to break the silence.

"So...", he said, hesitation in his voice, "I hope you don'y mind being confined to my estate for a while. This region has fallen in disrepair before I became Count, and your estate is not fit to be inhabited... I expect it will take a few weeks, perhaps a month before it is ready."

He had said it a bit too eagerly... but even as he realized this, his eyes fell upon her body. An uneasy feeling gripped his belly as he stared a bit too obviously at her chest... her dress was low cut, revealing too much skin for any man to ignore, and her body made sure his eyes stayed glued in one particular place for much too long...

Amaury Capet

Count of Ciarin Tut

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