Private Tales A Gift for Company

A private roleplay only for those invited by the first writer

Acteon Cass

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"Where are we going boy?" Hector demanded as his walking cane clicked on the paved stones of Alliria.

"I told you already old man. We are going to see someone about a special item you will need soon." Acteon said with a frown as he lead his father where they were going.

"And why do I need this item? What are you up to this time?" Hector tried to avoid a bit of filth someone had left out in the street. "How dangerous is this business you are dragging me into?"

"None once we get this item made and I am not up to anything. Just someone will be staying with us from time to time. She has trouble controlling this power she has that charms those around her and she does not wish to accidentally do it to you." Acteon said with a bit of a sigh.

"A woman that charms unintentionally? Is it magic or do you just mean she has curves and looks hard to ignore?" Hector asked glancing at his son. "And why are am I the only one that has to worry about it?"

"Both and I do not have to worry about it for my own reasons. And no I will not tell you what they are. A son is allowed his own secrets." Acteon responded in a bit of a curt tone.

"Do not take that tone with me boy. I imagine you have a reason for involving her with us so I will trust you, but know I will make my opinions heard and will not change how I live for her." Hector said as he straightened his back and pulled ahead of his son for a moment as if to retake the position of head of the pair. "Aside form this trinket you wish to have made for me. That goes without needing to be said yet your head is so thick I felt I had to."

"Silence makes you smarter old man and you could as much help in that area as you can get." Acteon retorted back moving ahead of him and then stopped. He motioned towards the door of a shop and said, "We are here. Now please let me handle this. You do not know the details."

The Cass family entered the establishment.
 
Miriel had finally got her workshop sorted after the past few weeks of trouble after trouble. First an assassin trying to take out her apprentice and then some thieves had attempted to make off with some of her more valuable pieces of work. She stood back and admired her work with her arms folded over her chest. Maybe now she would stop procrastinating on the order for the Guard she was supposed to be doing. It was just so... dull compared to the more intricate pieces she got to make. Of course she was happy to have won such a contract it was good for her business but there was only so many identical swords she could make in one day before she began to doze off.

Even balancing the books was beginning to look appealing.

With a deep sigh she went back to the hearth where five of the swords were still heating up ready to be tempered. It was there that the two new comers would find her. Miri was not the average slender and waif like elf most people were used to. Her muscles were well defined from hours over the anvil and on the field of battle. Her two stark blue tattoos down the side of her face were also a sharp contrast to the way most elves presented themselves. Everything about her screamed someone you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of.

As the two men entered the workshop she glanced over briefly, finished with what she was doing and then stood up wiping her hands on the towel she had tucked into the waistband of her breeches.

"How can I help you both?"
 
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As Acteon walked in he noticed the swords on the forge. They might not be done yet but he could recognize the basic shape of them. So this person was making swords for the guard. Perhaps he had used one of the woman's blades in the past.

While the son was looking at the weapons Hector was looking at Míriel Fëanorna as she walked up. It was clear he was taking her in but his exact thoughts were a mystery. Eventually he held out a hand and said in a polite merchant-to-merchant tone, "Hector Cass, a pleasure. I can see how well you run your shop and how serious you are with your work. I am impressed."

Acteon looked back at his father and raised a brow. It was not the first time he had heard his father speak in that tone with someone as his father made a point of always being polite and respectful, unlike Acteon, but it was the first time he had heard his father give out so much praise to someone he had just met at once before. It was strange but not so much in the sense he disagreed as much as to why his father had done so.

The younger Cass walked up and said with a smile, "Acteon Cass. Forgive my father. It seems he is a bit smitten with you and your work." The son glanced over at his father to find a hard look directed his way. "We are here to inquire and perhaps even commission a special item from you. An enchanted item."
 
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Miriel wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her forearm and then squinted very slightly at the older man. There was a memory at the back of her mind. Like with all elves they got a bit jumbled after a while and it just became one long continuous stream of simply living. She could never tell how long ago something happened truly. When he introduced himself it slotted into place.

"Cass... You're not Edward's son are you? Edward Cass?" she shook the mans hand firmly though minded just how much strength she put into it. Humans could be fragile after all. "Nothing to forgive," Miriel's eyes flicked to the younger man and then back to Hector "you do me a kindness by complementing the forge, if you had been here last week you probably wouldn't have been as impressed. The festival drawing so close seems to have brought some of the less pleasurable company to town," she wiped the cloth around the back of her neck and down her chest. Sweat clung to her dark skin. Despite the sleeveless short and light weight leggings she could never stay cool for long.

"Let's discuss it outside shall we? I could do with some air," she motioned to the small little courtyard out the back of her forge offering views over her fields where the horses grazed. A small picnic table was sat out there. She grabbed a wad of parchment and her flask of water on her way outside then took a seat.

"Right. What exactly are you after?"
 
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The elder Cass actually smiled to Míriel Fëanorna as she spoke to him. He said back in that tone from before, "Yes I am. You knew my father?" A chuckle escaped his lips. "I have no doubt your forge would still show your skill and dedication even in such a state. Things get untidy after all but passion will always remain clear as a cloudless sky."

Acteon raised a brow at his father as he spoke. Was the old man actually flirting? The idea seemed impossible to Acteon. The older man was far too serious and work focused for such things. When he was younger he remembered a few maids that got fired for attempting to bed the older Cass and disturbing his work. What was it about this woman that had his father's attention so much?

The younger Cass studied her over for a moment and then just smirked a bit. It made sense now. If it was a day or two before the full moon he might have been a bit flirty himself if his desire for such a thing was running high. But it was not and his desire was not so his interest for the woman in that way was about the same as it would be for any other being.

When the owner offered to go outside to speak Hector offered her his arm so that he could walk her out there. It was the gentlemanly thing to do and it just had Acteon watching with some amusement. They were here to request an item to prevent charms and enchantments from working on his dad yet here he was already enthralled to this elf woman. The irony was delicious.

Once outside Hector would sit the closest to Miriel while Acteon just sat wherever was the easiest for him to speak. When she asked what he was after he spoke up before his father could derail this trip with his awful flirting attempts. "An item that can be worn at all times to prevent charms and enchanting effects. I have a guest that will be arriving some time soon and she is cursed with accidentally doing this to men and some women. Depending on if they can be attracted sexually to a woman or not. I have my own way of dealing with the effect but since she will be staying with us I need something for my father. Would you be able to help us with this request?"
 
"I did, me and Edward were well acquainted. It's nice to see he found himself a wife after all," Miriel was rather bemused by the older Cass before her. She was no lady, she was a warrior. The gentlemanly touches were simply theatrics to her but she had grown used to the odd way humans acted when they held more wealth. Edward had been a little different in his youth but not entirely. She could see a lot of him in both the men before her. But that was history long ago. She offered Hector a friendly smile before returning her attention to the younger one - his son - and what exactly it was he was after.

It was an odd one that was for sure. Very slowly she arched an eyebrow at him.

"You want something that can stop someone being emotionally manipulated?" she decided to simplify the request just to make sure she understood. It sounded like that or that he wanted his fathers sexual desires to be contained - an amusing concept given the way he was looking at her. "It's a tricky enchantment but I can do it - I'll need some of your blood," her gaze moved to Hector again. "Willingly given."
 
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"Yes and perhaps no. I am not a scholar of such things but the effect enthralls people. They begin to crave her attention and will do whatever she says. It seems it causes extreme jealousy as well so had lead to many fights. The effect happens through the sound of her voice and through direct touch. It pulls on both emotions and sexual desires from what I have seen although the desires could just be a side effect of the emotional infatuation it causes." Acteon said in response to her. Hector listened to them closely although his gaze shifted from Miriel to her horses to his son and then back again in the cycle on what was most interesting.

Once Acteon had finished speaking Hector took his chance to speak as well. "I am willing to give some of my blood for it to be made, although I still do not know what my son's relation with this woman is. You would think the boy would have more respect for his father and not keep secrets this dangerous from him."

"I will tell you when she arrives old man, and you do not need to know everything. I am an adult not a child." Acteon replied giving his father a bit of a sneer.

"Bull shit. If you are an adult then stop acting like a child and just tell me already. What is even the point in keeping it a secret?" Hector said giving his son the same look back.

The pair of Cass seemed to have forgotten about Míriel Fëanorna for the moment. They continued to bicker back and forth about the most mundane and petty little things back home as the conversation went on.
 
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Miriel listened and as she listened she began sketching and making notes. She barely paid much attention to the bickering. This was way more interesting. She had an inkling what kind of creature this was meant to protect again but she would not voice it out loud. Such creatures were dangerous but it was this mans business who he associated with. At least he was taking the proper precautions. After a while the idea that was simply an idea began to take shape on her pad.

The smithy was not one to make an object an ugly thing and the sketch of the single torque style bracelet. Along it ran a series of runes entwined with a series of intricate and bold patterns.

"How would this suit your aesthetic?" Miri tilted her head to the side a little as she looked to Hector.
 
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When Míriel Fëanorna held out the parchment both of the Cass stopped their bickering and looked at the design. Hector held it and looked over every single detail about it. The older man even began to mime out where and how it would fit. The seriousness he went about it was as if he was judging a new item he wanted to sell and so was doing his due diligence to maximize his potential profit. Acteon, while not miming out things, had very much the same look in his eyes as his father. It was clear the two of them were going at this as objectively as they were subjectively.

After a bit Hector said, "Is this exact structure for the design on the outside important to the function of the item? Could you make the artistic focus of it be more on this somehow?" The older Cass pulled off a ring on his left ring finger and held it out for Miriel to take. On it was a pair of otters holding up spears or perhaps dock poles with a tower or lighthouse between them. She would recognize it as the signet of Cassica and the symbol the Cass family often used to mark their ships and wares.

When Miriel went to look at the ring Hector would continue on, "Also is it possible to make a matching bracelet to this one? It is for aesthetic reasons as well as to hide the importance of it from others. A single bracelet would bring up questions but a matching pair for each arm would just be a fashion statement after all."

Acteon just sat back and decided to let the two of them sort this out from here. His father was the one having to wear it and the man was more in his element now that the subject was away from magic and more on the mundane. It was something he knew his old man had been missing. Decades of being a merchant had been cut short before he was ready to give it up after all and this filled a bit of that void in his life.
 
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Miriel removed the piece of paper the first design was on and slid it to the side. Carefully she turned the ring round in her fingers, her eyes roving over every aspect of the design before she set it down in front of her and began to draw again.

This time the design were two metal bracelets in a short vambrace design that seemed to be fashionable at the moment. Miri half paused, counted back in her mind and then nodded to herself slightly. Yes definitely currently fashionable not one she was remembering. This time some of the same pattern from the last design was there but the a little of the design from the ring was incorporated into it. It looked almost as if the two otters were swimming, the runes made intricate little waves and a lighthouse stood in the middle of the design for it to repeat again on the other side.

She turned it back towards Hector.

"I need some of these markings for the functionality of the object - I can enchant mental with my magic but adding runes like this to it stop another mage from interfering with it," she tapped the symbols. "These runes have my Signature so it will be near impossible for someone other than me to undo the work. It will be important for the type of magic you want it to combat."
 
As Miri worked on the next design and Hector watched her go about it with some interest, Acteon got up. He wandered over towards the fence to examine the horses. His own horse had come from Salitra, one of the former Emir's personal war steeds. These horses were different though and were staying away from him. Unlike the people of the city they could sort of tell what he was. It was less they knew he was a werewolf as it was they saw him as a predator to be avoided. That did not bother him. He had gotten use to it. Instead he just enjoyed watching them and got a bit of an idea.

Hector looked over the new design when Míriel Fëanorna was done. It was not exactly the same as the Cassica seal but it was easy to tell the inspiration. The way the runes around it looked like waves was also a very nice touch and the older Cass smiled at it.

"I like this design very much." Hector said looking to Miri. "You have my thanks for it and this knowledge on how such items work. I did not know before that enchantments could not be undone or altered if you did the work right. It reminds me of chefs, alchemists, and others crafts. Surely you have a similarly unique touch to all of your smithed goods as well by using techniques you do not share with other smiths."

Acteon walked back over to the pair as the sounds of the conversation lead towards an agreement on the design. As he approached he looked to Miri and said, "So we have the design and you know what you will be doing on making it. For the payment is it possible to pay in other ways than coin as well? I have a male steed from a famous breed of horses out of Amol-kalit that could be used as a stud from time to time."
 
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Miriel smiled and eased back in her seat with a small bit of satisfaction about her; she liked getting objects like this right. A customers satisfaction was a rich reward especially when it came before any real work had been done. She listened to his comment about the way runes worked and then scrunched up her nose a little debating how best to correct him.

"You're not far off. It's not that other smiths do not know how to do this," she motioned to the runes and then on a separate paper she split them apart from him, the runes and then her own flourishes. Together they created the woven work on the braces she would be making for him. "You see these are elvish runes so for a start, the rune master would need to know these but that is not too difficult to learn, but what stops it being undone are these flourishes," she traced her quill across them. On the image of his design the runes were split basically down the middle with a little of her 'flourishes' joining and embellishing them. "Adding these in means it turns the runes almost unrecognisable - it would merely take a long time to decipher them even for a trained mage. A lot of people use this technique but everyone's Signature is different. Sometimes you can also hide magics within the Signature so this," she tapped one bit on the sketch. "For example, if someone were to take your gift and try to break it and undo this section they would find themselves with a rather unfortunate curse."

When Acteon came over she stopped her small lesson and glanced up to him. She accepted trades though when he mentioned a horse as a stud she raised an eyebrow. Perhaps a little more unusual a request than she would usually get. There was no guarantee how a horse would cover a mare after all.

"I would want to see the state of the Stallion but perhaps," her eyes drifted over the mares. Most of them had recently foaled and once weening was over it would be something she would begin to be thinking of again. "It is an offer I am willing to consider, but I would want the Stallion here for a full season. My mares are picky. For a piece like this I would usually charge around 400 gold - it's intricate work."
 
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Acteon began to mule over what Míriel Fëanorna said about the potential payment method. He could do without his horse for a season. Already he had spent enough time without having one anyways so what would the problem be to go a bit longer. With that line of thought settled he smiled to the owner of the shop and stable.

"Very well. I can get my steed and bring him back here if you wish. Get a look at him and decide if you wish to use him as a stud or not for the season." Acteon said as he kept an eye on the woman for her response.

Thankfully the stable Acteon kept his horse at was not very far away. It was one used by many retired guards so the likelihood of theft was extremely low. Everyone knew the patrons were former guards and the guard had a habit of taking care of their former members with an extra bit of zeal. Anyone who crossed the guard would find their door broken down and crossbows aimed at them before they knew it was coming. One of the few perks he did not know he would have when he first joined the guard. But it also meant he had to be a little careful himself not to lose favor or he would find a massive target on his back from the criminals of the city.

"We will pay regardless so you can start what you need to do with my father whenever you are both ready."
 
"That sounds good - go get your horse and then we can discuss payment from there. I'll do what I need to do with your father whilst you're gone," Miri stood and motioned for him to leave through the forge again. "I'll be right back," she would say to Hector before she followed Acteon back into the forge then saw him out. Then she set about checking she had the right materials for the job she would need. It took a few moments but she laid them all out on one of her work benches and then took a small vial and walked back outside with that and a knife.

"This shouldn't hurt much," she sat back down beside Hector and gently took his hand in her own rough one. Gently she drew the blade across the back of his hand - she never did understand why people cut their palm it always stung - and she let let it drip carefully into the vial. "I won't be using your blood for any nefarious means," her lips twitched, it was a common question. "I just need it to ensure the bracelets will only work for you - you cannot let anyone else use these because they will not work. If you die they will stop. If you gift them to someone else they will stop. If they're stolen they will stop. Does that make sense?"
 
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Acteon nodded to Míriel Fëanorna when she mentioned getting the horse. The stallion could use a bit of walking around. Unlike most of the horses at the stable, his was an actual war horse. The animal liked to be active and sadly his owner had been stuck in the city for several days now with little need for him. Getting out and getting to see other horses he did not know might perk him up a bit. So the younger Cass went through town to pick up his mount.

Hector watched Miri as she got out everything she needed for the job. It was always curious for him to see what craftsman worked with. Some tools seemed to be rather universal, such as hammers and needles, but others were far more specialized. Soon enough she was ready to get his blood and he did as she directed. Outside of a bit of a wince when the knife first began the cut he made no real reaction to it. The middle aged man could be rather stoic at times.

A grin was directed the woman's way when she made her little joke. The older Cass knew his son would not have left him here or agreed with he felt there was danger of magic involved with giving up blood. He also needed the items made for this mystery woman. Just what kind of person would his son go to so much effort just to invite to their home? It just made him more curious. An explanation was given and it got him thinking a bit. The things would not work for anyone else because of the blood so would that mean....

"What about my son Acteon? We share blood so would they be able to work with him?" Hector said thinking out loud a bit.
 
"No," the horse mistress was quite firm with her response and she shook her head. "He is only of your blood, not your blood." She said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world but then humans attached more gravitas to children than her people did. Her attention was too focused on what she was doing to be able to soften her words like she might have for other though. Once the dagger dripped the last little drop of blood into the vial she moved back to her workbench inside to begin the process.

Blood runes were a complicated thing and it was easy to make a mistake.

She set the little vial in a glass cabinet and locked it with a small key and then moved back to the ore of metal she had chosen and threw it into the fire to begin melting it down.

"I should have them done in the next four days," Miri spoke as she began to pump the heat up on the furnace again to get it to the right heat. The metal glowed white. Once she was done she grabbed a tape measure and motioned for him to hold his arms out so she might be able to take the proper measurements. "Do not take these off around this woman if she has such a gift as your son describes."
 
Hector had gotten a bandage secured around the cut then watched Míriel Fëanorna as she worked. The whole process was this odd mixture of familiar sights and foreign ones all at once. The older Cass had always been curious and so had spent some time watching crafters and other producers of goods in their work. As a merchant he was more focused on selling them or transporting them than he was on making them himself so he had grown an appreciation for those who made his livelihood possible.

After the silence of letting her work Miri finally spoke up. It was time for Hector to get measured. He pulled back his sleeves and held out his forearms for her. He would watch her still as he said, "Understood. The boy will not be able to pick them up so I will be showing up personally. He has business out of town with some other woman he found. I swear he just seems to be finding strays everywhere he goes of late and feels the need to bring them home with him."

The man paused as he thought a bit more over the last thing she had said before they began the measuring. With a slight frown he said a bit slowly at first, "About this woman.... What do you think about her? What do you think she is?"
 
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"Your father was much the same," Miriel hummed slightly, the corners of her lips twitching up at the corners of the fond memories. "It makes me think you were not far off either. Perhaps it is a Cass family trait," she noted down all of the measurements she needed and then tucked the tape away into a pocket of her apron. She was glad that he took her words seriously - despite people coming to her for the desire of enchanted objects a lot of the time people did not truly understand what it was they asked of her and left disappointed when she would not sell to them. There was no point wasting her time nor her efforts with elaborate works that would be mere trinkets.

"I wouldn't like to cast aspersions," the elf sounded a little wary of answering the question. Of course she had some notion but why the boy chose to keep it from his father she was not sure but she did not want to be the one who told him. "I think it is a question you should ask your son, but if she is what I think then these should at least help you make up your own decisions about whether she had him under a spell."
 
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As Miri mentioned the habit of bringing home strays being something his own father had done and likely what Hector had done himself got a bit of a frown from the grumpy middle aged man. He just made a hmph sound then said, "I wish it was just him bedding some young women. No, he is finding these roamers and then doing who knows what. Did you know he bought the one he brought in recently new clothes? Sounds like she might be a sweetheart or one of those friends you have some lustful benefits with, but no. It is something else going on. They may even be bedding him but that hardly seems to be his goal. I do not know what he is up to as he will not talk about it. He just says he is 'finding some helpers' and then gives me one of those fake smiles of his. It is infuriating."

Everything seemed to be sorted out. Hector was glad about that but what Míriel Fëanorna had to tell him in response to his question bothered him. He just mulled it over a bit then sighed. "I suppose you are correct. Best to let him speak on it when he wishes. If he speaks on it at all. The boy still has yet to tell me what caused his eyes to change and his teeth to become so different as well. I have my suspicions but still waiting on him to confirm them or not."

It was not long after this that Acteon returned with his stallion. He had taken the horse around to the back and then called out for Miri.
 
Now that was curious - he didn't know his son was afflicted with the disease? Miriel quietly moved to behind her desk where a stack of books were haphazardly organised. Running her finger down them slowly she found what she was looking for and then passed it to him quietly. It was a small soft leather bound book on different 'monsters' throughout Arethil. Perhaps he would connect the dots himself about what his son was and this woman who was coming to visit. Of course her hunches could have been entirely wrong but it was worth him bearing in mind.

Afterwards she wandered back into the courtyard where Acteon was calling her. She approached on silent feet and then gently rubbed the horse down his neck and forelegs, testing the muscle and looking for any obvious signs of issues in his composition.

"May I?"
she motioned about getting on the horses back.
 
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Acteon lead the horse over to Miri when he heard her exit the forge area. The warhorse only had a casual riding setup on him. When the elf was at them Acteon held onto the reigns while she began to inspect him. She would find that while he was leaner than local warhorses by nature his muscles were no less impressive. They were more compact and better built for stamina if losing some power. He just stood there and let her do her work without any issue as well. He was a well disciplined good boy.

When Miri asked to get on his back, Acteon nodded and handed the reigns to her. The man then moved over to help her up. It was less because she needed it and more of a show of respect and being polite. This was her home after all and they were in the middle of a business transaction. After she was up he would back off and let her do as she pleased.

What the woman would find was a mount quick to respond to commands and very comfortable with a rider. If anything he seemed more comfortable now that she was on top of him rather than feeling his muscles over. He had yet to get his ride in today so she would also find him eager to run and jump. Whatever she chose to do he was ready to do it and would respond right away to any command.

Acteon smiled as he watched. After a bit he said, "Want to try practicing with a lance? He enjoys the practice. But he is a war horse so it makes sense."

Míriel Fëanorna
 
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Miriel accepted the help though she had little need for it, her own stallion and pride and joy was a large bastard she could get on from the floor with no tack to help her. She had been born for the life on a horses back. Her seat was relaxed once she settled into the saddle and experimented to the horses responses. Of course these things were trained and not bred but if he had been an ease to train that temperament might also pass to his offspring. Leading him out of the courtyard and into the field beyond the horse mistress worked in in a few simple circles at varying speeds though she could feel his muscles bunching with the itch to go faster. It was admirable he didn't despite that. After a good 10 minutes she reigned him up on the other side of the fence to Acteon and gave him a pat.

"A war horse huh?" Miriel scratched under the horses mane whilst also getting a feel for the muscle in the neck. "Alright boy let's see what you've got," she held her hand out and weapons floated over Acteon's head to Miri's person. She slotted her throwing knives into her thigh holsters, the bow and arrows over her back and then settled the lance against the toe of her boot. With a click and subtle movement of her form she turned the horse on a dime and took him up to the course she had set up around the perimeter of the ground.

"You can watch from over there if you like," she motioned to a slightly raised platform that would give the pair a better view over the whole field. She set the horse up at the start and leaned down to whisper something in his ear. The horse gave a snort and pawed the ground and she laughed before spurning the horse on. He bolted from the start line with a surprising burst of speed and Miri brought the lance down with ease. The first length of the field saw it skewer a straw man, shedding him in two. She let the lance go and pulled her knives as they rounded the bend along the next straight. The elf dropped the reigns entirely this time and with confidence took her feet out of the stirrups to flip herself so that she was facing backwards. Odd targets hung here and there at odd angles, different sizes and shapes and her knives thudded home into everyone one of them. She pivoted back in the saddle as they rounded the bend but the horse showed no signs of stopping. This time she pulled her bows and arrows.

One, two, three...

As they rounded the final bend to come onto the home straight Miriel leaned out of the saddle to get one target that sat in a slight ditch. Her body moved like water as she bent her back over the curve of the horses back and fired three arrows into the target. Instead of staying in the saddle however the momentum kept her going and she landed with cat like grace on the ground and whistled. The horse came to an abrupt stop, panting.

"He's wonderful," Miri called as the horse trotted back to her covered in a sheen of sweat. "You have yourself a deal."
 
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Hector had stayed inside of the forge after Miri had left to join Acteon so was not present when she took the stallion through her inspection routine. Acteon however caught the full show. He just watched as she went about warming him up through some exercises for about ten minutes, but the mention of the steed being a war horse had caught her interest. After that she made weapons coming floating over to her likely using some kind of magic, which only made sense given the item she was making for them. Once she was equipt and ready her little show began.

And it truly was a show. Acteon watched as the woman not only went about lancing a target but then proceeded to swing about the horse like a mad woman as she used knives then her bow to hit targets placed around in difficult to hit angles. Like wind and water she flowed about the horse as the pair continued through the course till its finish. Acteon just shook his head as he watched knowing it was a feat he would not match. He did not have the years to dedicate to the art and was not a knight or cavalry soldier so had no reason to. Being able to hold a lance and shoot a bow well enough was good enough for him.

As she came to the end with her fanciest of moves, Míriel Fëanorna announced that she was pleased with the steed. Acteon smiled as he walked out towards her. He held out his arm for her to shake as he said, "It is a deal then. Let me know when you want him here and for how long. I will see to the arrangements swiftly."

Hector finally came out of the forge holding a book in his hand. Noticing this Acteon raised a brow. The older Cass ignored it and instead directed his attention onto Miri. "I believe we are finished here correct? We will be on our way and let you get back to your work. I will return in four days as discussed."

With that the Cass men left back home so the owner of the shop could return to her crafts.

=======

Four days later Hector returned to the workshop. As he arrived he knocked on the door frame and announced, "Mistress Miriel, it is Hector Cass. I am here to pick up my order. I do hope I am not disturbing your work."
 
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"You can leave him here if you like, I'll be starting the covering for next year in the next few weeks so it will give him time to settle in first and get to know the rest of the herd," she patted down the horses neck. When he agreed she shook his hand and then followed the pair back to see them out of the forge.

As she had discovered the horse had no name so she had given him one herself and he had begun to settle in nicely to the little dynamic of the herd under the watchful eye of her own horse, Thorlion. She had even taken him out for a full ride across the lands outside of the city walls to let him have a proper run. He was a good strong horse and she was eager to see how the foals came out of the two mares she had selected.

When Hector returned to her forge she was finishing off the order for the Guards, casting the last few bits of enchantment over the blade before sheathing them and packing them into crates which someone was meant to come by and pick up soon.

"Not at all, I'm just finishing up," Miri set down the final blade and made a note in her books before sealing the last crate shut with a thankful sigh. There wouldn't be another order like that for a year at least. "Bracelets, right?" she raised an eyebrow then moved to the shelves over her workbenches. Clicking her tongue she took down a black box and then set it on the wooden table and opened it. Inside were a beautiful pair of silver vanbraces. They were ridiculously light to pick up but they didn't feel flimsy. The patterns were beautiful but instead of subtle engravings they were actually blood red in colour - a hint at where exactly his blood had gone in to her work.

"Try them on for me and I can adjust them if need be."
 
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Hector watched as Miri finished up her work on the order for the guards. As a life long citizen of the city he recognized what their swords looked like. He was just glad to know the guards used local smiths rather than attempting to import impractically expensive ones from a place renowned for their metal, or some other such none sense. The best was not required for mass orders but rather good quality that could easily be replaced. The expensive stuff should be saved for individuals looking to spend coin.

As the bracelets were brought over to him, Hector took them and put them on so they were touching his skin. He examined them for a bit and moved them around to see how they fit. With a nod he was satisfied and looked to Míriel Fëanorna. "They fit perfectly. No need for further adjustments."

Hector then reached into his satchel and pulled out the book she had lent to him when he had placed his order. He held it out to her as he said, "Thank you. For both these braces and lending me this book."

Once she had taken it back from him he said, "Which creature were you thinking this woman might be? Siren, vampire, or succubus?" After a moment the older Cass seemed to remember something. "Did we still owe for the work or has the payment been fully settled?"

The man would listen to her answers to both questions. She would get a simple hmmm on her thoughts about the woman and he would deal with the payment if anything was still owed. After he would hold his hand out to Miri.

"It has been a pleasure Mistress. I will be sure to patron you in the future with further work. You can be sure there will be further work." Hector said to Miri with a smile. Once that was all done he would say his good bye and leave her to her work.
 
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