04.03c - "Breakfast Biscuits"

Bismark watched the campfire clear out and then walked over to Brynne. "figured. maybe i ought to just go back."

"Bah. We'll all work it out. At least give it tha' four months. Tha's nothin" Brynne told him.

"i don't even know if they still want me now" Bismark said.

She squinted at him. "You ever make lemon curd?"

Bismark took a minute to figure out if she actually had said what he thought she said. "Curd? isn't that when the stuff goes bad?"

Brynne waved her hand. "Hells no, boy! Tha's stuffs delicious! Good fer a Thane!”

"never really cooked much myself, other than meat over a fire" Bismark replied

Brynned leaned in and said, "Sometimes... Sometimes ya got ter work at somethin' afore it all comes together. See now lemon curd, when yer firs' get all the parts in tha' pot---it's righ' nasty. Egg 'n lemon 'n sweets all floatin' in thar. Looks a bit like vomit, really" She made a stirring motion as Bismark watched. "But if ya get the heat jus righ' and yer patient, and ya keep up yer stirrin---slow n steady; well, ya git a righ' treat. It's like a lemon got shagged by a honeycomb. Delicious"

Bismark looked quite confused. Brynn sat looking at Bismark expectantly. She sighed, scooting closer. "Mebbe son. Mebbe this group's jus' a wee bit sour now, but if we're patient, it'll turn out somethin' to be proud of"

Bismark took a bite of his biscuit, so he wouldn’t have to respond to that. However, on taking a bite, he realized that Brynne had snuck his 10 gold into the biscuit. He looked up at her, and half grinned.

She took a sip.

bismark finished chewing the actual biscuit part of his biscuit and swallowed. "well, maybe." and then with a slight look of confusion asks "who's the honeycomb?"

Brynne erupted in raucous laugher at Bismark's question. "Well, tha'd be me, o'course! Never a sweeter ol' maid yeh'll ever meet," she said with renewed laughter, wiping tiny tears from her eyes.

Bismark started to smile, barely. "you're good people, Brynne.”

She said, now calming to a chuckle, "Nah, I'm a righ' fuckup, boy-o. I like people, tho. And I've had tha benefit o' a couple o' centuries under me apron"

Bismark looked shocked. "how old are you?"

She smiled, widely. "Aroun' two fifty, las' i checked."

A minute of silence passed, and Bismark perked up a bit. "hey, you're good with a bow - did you see my girl almost take down that hobgoblin?" he said proudly.

"I heard! Tell me abou' it. I was pretty far back wit Tyjit" Brynne replied. Bismark explained he took Orvuestra to the battle to give her a taste of what life on the road is like, and she nearly scored a hit on one of the hobgoblins. He sounded like a father recounting a trip to take his kid hunting for the first time

"You know, I didn't want Apos to pay for that stuff, Brynne. they were gifts. and definitely not worth what she threw at me"

She sipped and nodded. "I could tell from yer face. Made ya mad, tho, didn it"

"mad? no, just hurt." He said.

"Whadja do tho, after she hurt yer feelins?” Brynne said, watching over the bottle as she drank.

Bismark nodded "well, okay, she had me riled up a little, but when she threw the gold at me, i mean"

"Easier ter be mad than hurt, innit" She asked, and Bismark looked away. Brynne stood up, clapped a friendly hand on Bismark's shoulder, and said, "Tis easier fer -everone- ter be mad when they're hurtin'. Think on it." And then she'll walk over in direction where Tyjit is set up. "See ya at dinner, son."

Blak checked over by the animals for A'postofae, finding her speaking to animals prior to their departure.

"A'postrofae, hey, I uh, brought you this share.  We're getting ready to move I guess. Do you want me to just put it with your other things?"

"Sure, just throw it on top." she said, looking back over her shoulder.

He sets it gently on her pile.

Blak made as if to say something, then paused and instead, said. "I'll be starting to tour most of the wagon areas today as an entertainer.  Maybe I can gather some information on if those others have joined the train or not."

"I walked the length of the train several times yesterday and I saw no signs of cultists.” She told him. “I am starting to think this is a fool's errand. Perhaps you can see something that I did not."

"I was thinking if they hadn't joined yet, at least it wouldn't look suspicious to everyone else in the train that going all around is just a thing I do." Blak said

Apostrofae nodded. "That is a good idea."

"Thanks. Seems you beat me to it already.  Not surprisingly" Blak said smiling

"Blak..... I don't agree with what you did to Bismarck...but I understand why you did it. After people gave gold to help Able get his armor, what Bismark did seemed to be a slap in the face." Blak nodded. "When I talked to the soothsayer in Elteril she asked me how I had learned to trust people again. I said that I trusted people to do what was in their own self-interest. Maybe I was wrong when I said that. Maybe I was beginning to trust people again. Why else would I be so mad when Bismarck did exactly as I said people would act? Lesson learned."

"Or," Blak told her "maybe the lesson is just beginning.  Maybe for us all. Anyway. I'll let you get back to the animals, I guess.  See you later A'postrofae." And with that he headed out.

"Later" she said, glancing over at the parcel, and seeing a piece of parchment attached to that bag that Blak brought in with her name on it in Elven script.

She went back to dealing with the animals for a while then went over and read the slip.

She smiled at the note, then looked in the bag it was attached to and laughed. Loudly. No one had heard her do this before and those that could hear her felt it a bit scary. Then she closed up the bag and packed it away.

Elsewhere in camp, Brynne looked up, thinking "oh shit she just hand fanged someone!" Looking around and seeing no bloodshed, she relaxed slightly. Able assumed the hideous sound was another of his auditory hallucinations and pretended not to hear it. Bismark just looked up and then continued packing