Absolution (closed)

[heartofcourage]

Selena turned at the sound of her father's voice, looking at him first with all of the anger and disappointment that she could muster and then with a slow dawning that Abel would be there soon if he were coming to her.

"Yes?" Selena asked, turning back towards her mirror as she made a few last minute adjustments.

 

[KieranSoares]

"I, uh... I brought you somethin'..." Tamblin stepped over to place a small wooden box on her vanity. "Well... I asked yer grandfather t'get it for you." Inside, carefully protected in a wool cloth and padding, was a polished Skye shell on a silver chain.

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena turned to look at the shell that her father placed on her vanity, tucked carefully inside of a beautiful wooden box. She looked up at Tamblin, unsure as to why he was giving her a gift like that. He had never cared before, had never shown that he took any notice to her. She was simply the daughter that he never knew what to do with.

"Thank you." She said softly. "I'll be ready in a few moments."

She turned back towards the mirror, looking at herself in her new gown, her polished hair. She would save Inverness if she had to, but she hoped that it wouldn't come to a loveless marriage. Everyone deserved freedom, not just Durban.

"If I say no, it's nothing to do with you." She said before Tamblin could leave the room. "It's nothing to do with Inverness either."

 

[KieranSoares]

"... I know, love," Tamblin murmured as he paused at the door. His tone alone told her he knew she might flee, and he didn't seem ready to stop her. He looked back at her a moment, his brows furrowing as if troubled. "... You look beautiful." Still hesitating, he finally turned to Ghell and handed him an envelope before leaving Selena's room altogether. Ghell looked down and opened it to find a note inside, but he didn't share the contents before tucking it away.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I don't need his help, Ghell." Selena said as she saw him looking inside of the envelope and not sharing with her what he was given. "I don't want his money if that's what he just gave you."

Selena reached into the box that Martin had sent and picked up the shell. Turning it over in her hands, she let out a sigh. Martin only sent them if a marriage was on the horizon. It seemed that Tamblin wanted that one tradition to continue. Carefully, she placed the silver chain about her neck and let the shell rest at the hollow of her throat.

"I've never needed him for anything in my life." She reaffirmed.

 

[KieranSoares]

"It isn't money," Ghell said simply. "I know you hate him, eli. And you don't believe he could possibly still care. So I won't try to tell you otherwise anymore." He kissed her cheek and turned toward the door. "Abel should be here shortly. Are you ready? Or at least as ready as you can be?"

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena nodded, knowing that she at least had to meet Abel. She followed after Ghell, her eyes downcast and sad, walking through the halls of the only home that she had known since she was born. She wondered if her mother had felt the same way when meeting Tamblin for the first time before their marriage. She wondered how many other noble women had done the same. It was a terrible practice.

"I'd like to meet him alone, at first." Selena said finally. "And then Ma can come in...with Da if he insists."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'll be close by if you need me," Ghell promised softly, pausing in the hall to kiss her cheek before she emerged outside to see a small group of five guards dismounting from their horses, and a young man in fine traveling clothes taking his saddlebags from his own horse. He paused hearing the main doors open, and turned to face Selena, struck by her beauty.

Abel Dunland was the second legitimate son of Lochlan O'Hennessy, but unlike his half-brother Brennan that Selena had met years back, Abel looked nothing like the ruthless northern king. He entirely exemplified the traits of his mysterious mother, never seen outside Lochlan's castle. He was slender and tall, a bit on the athletic side despite his bookish nature, with an angular and handsome face, clean-shaven that morning before their final trek. His dark chocolate-colored hair was neatly tied back, and his blue eyes seemed friendly enough and curious.

"Lady Selena?" He asked, setting his saddlebags aside as he took a tentative step forward.

 

[heartofcourage]

"My lord." Selena said softly, her voice barely a whisper as Abel was there in the flesh, the letters that had been sent back and forth coming to life before her in an instant. "If you would like to follow me, there are refreshments being served in the main parlor."

She bowed her head towards him and escorted him on the way towards the parlor, glancing only once at Ghell before she disappeared into the room alone.

 

[KieranSoares]

"Thank you," he nodded, leaving his things to his men and following Selena. He went quietly, glancing around with interest at the keep's sparse decor. He was quietly comparing it all to what his father had said about the place, finding Inverness to be far gloomier and more civilized.

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena took a seat in a stuffed chair as Abel followed and the door closed behind them. She was so incredibly nervous about what was about to happen. Either there would be an engagement or she would be alone.

"Take a seat and make yourself at home." Selena said softly.

 

[KieranSoares]

Abel settled in a seat across from her, his posture perfect as he faced her with a calm and kind smile. "It's good to finally meet you," he said softly. "And let me be the first to apologize for whatever my father's put you through. I recently took all of this off his plate after what Meyer got up to."

 

[heartofcourage]

"I'm sorry for what happened to him." Selena said softly. "My brother was defending me and things got out of hand."

Selena glanced up at Abel as he gave her a kind smile, trying so hard to appear the perfect gentleman. She was sullen, rarely able to smile, but she wondered what he saw when he looked at her.

"Did...did your father give you a choice in any of this?" Selena asked him bluntly.

 

[KieranSoares]

Abel's smile faded a bit, and he shook his head. "Not... not really. He told me Inverness was an unnecessary tax on our resources and time, and that despite his feuding with Tamblin, he would like to have a strong line like the Ghis on his side. He would've liked to work with your elder brother, but he sees potential in Brogan as well. He has his interests in this arrangement... but I'm not out just for his sake. I told him I wanted to meet you and get to know you before he tried to set anything in stone."

 

[heartofcourage]

"So..****o children from warring households, trapped in a marriage that might not solve their families feud?" Selena asked, seeing this pairing for what it really was. "I'm only seventeen, and while my Ma was married and had a child by now, I don't want that for myself."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'm not blind to our circumstances," Abel murmured with a sigh. "But I've yet to find a solution that benefits everyone without destroying my own life in the process. And from what I've heard, the same goes for your family as well. But if we really are trapped... I'd at least want to be friendly if nothing else. I don't want the relationships my father's had, or the relationships most nobles have, where they're miserable or even hate their spouse."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Friendly." Selena murmured as Abel tried his best to bridge the gap between them. "So, we are supposed to go from friendly to married to children in a short amount of time to seal an alliance between our fathers, two men who probably have never cared for us a day in their lives."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I'm not saying you're wrong," Abel muttered. "But if you have a better idea... I'm all ears. I don't know how to change these ideals that have been in place for centuries, or how to change our fathers' minds. Honestly... all I want is to be free to read and learn. My little brother Arland would be a better king. But with Brennan gone off and me being the eldest left... I'm stuck."

 

[heartofcourage]

"Stuck as much as me." Selena said with a long sigh, shaking her head as she thought about the possibilities. "Abel, if I do say no to this, I need you to know that this isn't about you. This is about a promise I tried to get from my Da when I was younger. A promise that he was unable to give me. I want to have a choice, to find someone that I desperately love. Just because I'm a princess doesn't mean that it shouldn't be available to me."

 

[KieranSoares]

"I agree. And I take no offense at all. You don't know me, and our families have been at war for two generations. Any relationship we might have would always be strained either by discomfort, or by outside forces. And if Inverness and Wick did unite, it'd just mean we all turn our attention outward to other warring clans. The fighting won't stop, not on the larger scale. And there'll still be lords and nobles under your father and mine who feud and fight on the border on their own."

 

[heartofcourage]

"And I would never be safe in Wick." Selena answered truthfully. "No matter if I became the ruler there. I would always and forever be a Ghis. I would be the enemy."

 

[KieranSoares]

"To many there, yes," Abel sighed before rising from his seat. "I think we already know what's going to happen here, milady. There's no point in drawing it out anymore."

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena stood as he did, reaching out a hand to stop him. "Abel...I'm so sorry. We could try. We honestly could, I just....I don't think we are what each other needs."

 

[KieranSoares]

Abel paused, and sighed, murmuring, "... Could I be completely honest with you about something...? You don't strike me as the kind of person to be bothered by it... but... I do have someone back home... And I want to stay with him. I don't think I could marry you knowing I was leaving him behind."

 

[heartofcourage]

Selena was stunned when he admitted that he had someone at home, a man that he couldn't stand to leave behind. She took a step back, feeling guilty for having strung him along when he wasn't interested in women at all.

"Finding love for yourself is rare in our position. I wish the both of you happiness." Selena said softly, sincerely meaning those words. "And you are welcome to stay here for as long as you wish. There's no need to rush back home after a long journey."