Lake Seiros - Noon - Balmy
Sorcha Blaiddyd
As the group made their way closer to the lakeside, Sorcha remained behind a moment to secure the picnic basket against bugs, then toed off her boots and rolled the legs of her trousers up to her knees. She supposed she might swim, later, but for the moment she just wanted to sit on the edge of the dock and dip her feet into the water.
Settling down at the edge, she let out a sift sigh of contentment as her toes hit the water and sank beneath the surface. Leaning back on her hands, she watched the others. Vridel and Professor Cyril stood on the edge of where the thin strip of sandy shore faded into the lake. The Professor was rolling up the legs of his pants in much the same manner as she had. He also took hold of his tunic by the collar and pulled it over his head, pausing to fold it before setting it down in the grass.
Sorcha knew it wasn't uncommon for men to swim in such a manner, but she'd sort of... forgotten. The Professor didn't seem to think anything of it, heading into the water and swimming out some distance. He was really... quite well-built, wasn't he?
Grimacing, she turned her eyes back to the shore, unsure if she hoped for or hoped against someone else making the same decision.
It seemed that even Mercer was following in Professor's footsteps. He didn't seem to want to roll up his pants, though he did remove his shirt. He blinked before his eyes landed on Sorcha. He waved at her with a grin on his face before he waded into the water. He didn't swim off too far, though, holding his hand out towards Amalthea. She looked a bit perplexed and almost hesitantly took his hand as he guided her through the water. She didn't know how to swim, after all, and it seemed the Mercer was trying to help her. He was nice, that way, always trying to help in some way or another.
“Sorcha," Senka's voice called out to Sorcha as she came into view. She took a seat next to her, and dipped her legs into the water as well, slowly moving them back and forth as she regarded Sorcha with an even gaze. “I... want to say thank you, for this. It... this is the first time I can say I'm actually enjoying myself," she stated, smiling softly in Sorcha's direction.
Honestly, she was glad Senka was there, for more than one reason. It enabled her to focus on her friend instead of the water, an opportunity she welcomed, as the verdict there had been rather... not in her favor. Sen's smile was more than enough to push all that to the background, though, and Sorcha returned it, genuinely warmed by her words. “I'm so glad to hear that, Sen. Really."
She had one more surprise left for the day, and the reason she hadn't already explained it was because, well... it wasn't really hers to explain. She just happened to be the person who'd figured it out. Hopefully it would go as well as she was expecting; Rodrigue was one of the best people Sorcha knew, and perhaps the only noble in Faerghus who'd never looked down on her.
Before she could say anything else, Vridel approached, plonking down on the deck on Senka's other side with a sigh. He glared out at the water for a moment before turning his attention to the other two. “Hello, Sorcha. Happy birthday, Senka. I hope you are finding your festivities sufficiently lacking in obnoxiousness, despite Mercer's presence."
Senka's smile softened somewhat as she nodded her head. “It has been a mostly pleasant experience, thus far. Though I do wonder," she stated, her eyes sliding towards Vridel, “does his presence upset you that much? He is only helping her to learn, you know. Perhaps you'd like to be her teacher, instead?" Senka's brow was lightly raised, almost as if she were teasing Vridel in that sense. Perhaps she was?
“It does not upset me, and I would not prefer that." Vridel frowned at her and sniffed imperiously. Sorcha suppressed a smile.
“Either way, thank you for joining in as well, Vridel. Your presence here, means a lot to me. More than I thought it would, so thank you," she continued, inclining her head in Vridel's direction. “I don't believe this day could be... any more pleasant than it already is." She shook her head, though, and huffed lightly.
That got a little half-grin out of him, at least. “Well, I'm glad I could be part of it then."
“Why aren't you in the water, anyway, Vivi?" Sorcha cocked an eyebrow at him. “You taught me to swim; I know you can." What was more, the Empire was warm enough that he'd have been able to do it much more often than they could in Faerghus, where it was usually limited to the two or three warmest months. She could remember him quite enjoying it, too, back then.
He shrugged, though. “I suppose I don't really feel like it," he replied. It sounded like an excuse for something, but something subtly cued her into the fact that she probably shouldn't ask. Normally Sorcha was terrible at picking up on such things, but this was Vivi. Even after all this time, she still sort of had a read on him, somehow.
“Hm, well you can at least enjoy yourself with us," Senka replied, repeating the slow movements of her legs in the water. She had stopped when Vridel appeared, but seemed content enough to resume. “We can at least enjoy and appreciate your company more-so than the others," she stated, her small smile returning to her face. She remained quiet for a moment, seemingly content.
Mercer and Amalthea seemed to be making progress, though. Mercer was helping her through some of the deeper parts of the water, showing her how to move her arms, and occasionally doing a display of whatever it was he was showing her. Amalthea seemed rather happy at the new experience.
The Professor, meanwhile, had sum what seemed to be several laps around the area, as if reacquainting himself with how it felt to do so. When he was done with that, however, he contemplated Mercer and Thea for a moment before swimming over to the dock instead. He had little trouble hauling himself up and out of the water onto it, pulling his legs up beneath him to cross them.
“This is relatively few people in the lake for a lake excursion," he noted, with what seemed to be a trace of amusement.
Sorcha huffed. She supposed it was. “I'll go in in a little while," she said. “You're not supposed to swim for a half hour after eating."
He blinked, clearly not aware of this rule. Truth be told, Sorcha wasn't exactly sure where it came from or why it was a rule in the first place, but she distinctly remembered it for some reason. “Ah. I see."
“Hm, but that doesn't seem to apply to some people, though," Senka replied, nodding her head in Mercer and Amalthea's direction before her eyes settled on the professor. “I suppose some people are just made differently than others," she continued, narrowing her eyes lightly. She brought her hand up to her hair, though, as if to check something before she dropped it. “I think I might exclude myself from the swimming, though. This is nice, being able to enjoy the water without being in it all the way," she seemed to explain.
“But please do keep swimming if that is what you all want. I can sit here with Vridel and watch you all enjoy yourselves. It'll make..." she paused, brows furrowing slightly before she smiled again, “It'll make me happy to see you all happy."
“Hey now! That's not fair. Everyone is sitting out while I'm here teaching! Teach! This is supposed to be your job!" Mercer shouted from the other side of the lake. He didn't look entirely upset, though, and Amalthea pursed her lips at him. She mouthed something to him, that made him laugh, though, and shake his head.
“Oh?" Cyril replied, arching his brow and raising his voice just enough to be heard. “It rather looked like a party of two. I'd hate to interrupt." The faint edge of amusement to his voice was reflected in his face. Sitting there, with little drops of water dripping off the end of his nose and a stubborn strand of hair refusing to stay slicked back by the water, he looked... like one of them, really. Like someone really around their own age, whose life experiences did not, for once, seem to put him in his own world apart. It was an odd thing to realize, maybe, but she couldn't help feeling it all the same.
Vridel laughed softly at the joke. “Entirely your fault for excluding everyone," he added.
“That is not what it is!" Amalthea shouted back, her face taking on a rather interesting shade of red. She glanced in Vridel's direction, huffed at Mercer, and made her way back to the shore where she plopped down, folding her legs beneath her. Mercer laughed and shook his head, glancing at the others as they all sat on the dock. Senka huffed lightly in amusement, however; something seemed to catch her attention.
“Is that... a banner? From the Kingdom?" she stated, glancing at Sorcha before nodding her head in the direction she'd spotted it. There seemed to be a small company of maybe five to six people. At the front was a man Sorcha easily recognized. It was Rodrigue. It looked like he was heading in the way of the monastery with only a handful of people. “What are they doing all the way out here?" Senka questioned, her head titled slightly in a curious manner.
Oh, he was early. Sorcha supposed that was to be expected from Rodrigue, though. “Ah, actually... I asked him to come visit. Was sort of thinking he might not get here until evening, though." Pulling her feet from the water, she stood. “I should go say hello."
Of course, the trickier part of this whole thing was the bit that came next. “Actually, uh... not to interrupt your day, Sen, but would you mind coming with me? I don't think you've met Rodrigue yet and I really think you should." She hoped this would be enough for her friend to understand the importance of it, though she would have to let Rodrigue do the explaining, for the most part.
Senka seemed confused for a moment, “Rodrigue?" She muttered the name as if she'd forgotten it, but maybe she had? It wasn't until her eyes went wide, and she quickly removed her feet from the water to stand. “I will accompany you," she stated, glancing towards Vridel and Professor. “We'll return soon, but please continue to enjoy yourselves," she stated, bowing lightly at them before walking beside Sorcha. When they were far enough from the group, Senka turned her attention towards Sorcha.
“Is it really un—Rodrigue?" she stated, pursing her lips together as she seemed to correct herself at the last moment. “As in, Rodrigue Fraldarius?"
“You know who he is?" Sorcha's eyes widened. “To you?" It was a curious thing. Sorcha knew both of these people very well, but it wasn't until recently that she'd figured out that Rodrigue's deceased sister was in fact Queen of Duscur, because he was modest enough that he'd simply said she'd married a man from there and died in the Tragedy, and Sorcha had of course never wanted to press. Nor had she pushed Senka to speak more of her family, including what family her mother was from. Sorcha had figured she was noble, but that didn't narrow things down much.
“Because I just figured it out. It's why I wrote him and asked him to come here. I figured he'd want to see you... and I thought you might want to meet him, so..."
“But... I haven't seen him in so long. I didn't even... I didn't even write to him to let him know I was okay, or that I was still alive. I couldn't," Senka stated, her brows furrowing lightly. She took in a soft breath, though, and glanced at Sorcha. “I'm certain he will be surprised to see me, though it has been a long time. I... wonder if he still remembers me," she stated fondly.
“I'm sorry I never told you, though. It's not that I didn't want to, I just..." she paused, pulling the scarf around her neck a little closer to her face. “I didn't trust you at the time. I didn't trust anyone, and... I was afraid of what would happen if I did," she shook her head at herself, it seemed, before she smiled softly. “I trust you now, though. Always will. Rodrigue is my mother's half-brother, which in turn, makes him my uncle."
“I know," Sorcha said quietly. And she didn't blame Senka for any of it. On the contrary, she was just relieved to hear that her friend trusted her now. “And he was surprised to hear you were alive, but you should have seen his last letter, Sen. He's so excited to see you again. He... he lost your cousin in the tragedy too, you know. Glenn. He doesn't have a lot of family left. He's been... he's been really good to me, actually. My whole life, but especially since my parents died. I'm... I'm really glad you two are going to get to meet each other again."
Senka deserved for things like this—good things—to happen to her. And so did Rodrigue. If Sorcha could play some small part in making it happen, well she wouldn't hesitate for a second.
“Hm," was the only reply Senka gave. “He has always been a kind soul. He... mother used to say that he was the epitome of what a Knight should be," she spoke softly, keeping her gaze in front of her. “I am... excited to see him, too," she added. It wasn't long before they approached Rodrigue's group. He happened to glance in their direction, and immediately called for the group to halt. He turned his horse in the direction of Sorcha and Senka, and made his way towards them. When he was close enough, he dismounted. At first, it seemed, he was moving rather fast, his steps hurried and almost impatient.
When he was close enough, he didn't seem to be stopping, and instead, continued walking in a hurried fashion towards Senka. The hug must have caught her off guard since her hands were partially raised to receive him, however; he seemed to tighten his hold on her. From the part of her face that was visible against his fur-lined cloak, Senka looked on the verge to be crying.
“Senka," he whispered, his voice soft and almost raw. “I thought I lost you, too," he continued. Senka finally managed to place her hands on his back, and returned the embrace. “I can't believe it's been four years since..." he didn't need to continue for Senka or Sorcha to understand.
“I'm sorry, uncle. I... I've missed you," she muttered between breaths. It sounded like she was trying to hold back the tears, but she was doing a rather poor job of it. Rodrigue finally pulled away, smiling brightly as he turned to gaze at Sorcha.
“Your Highness," he stated, bowing lightly in front of Sorcha. “Thank you for writing me. I see you are still well," he spoke in Sorcha's direction.
Sorcha felt her heart clench, a little smile for her friends crossing her face and also... also a tiny stab of pain. No one in her life had ever hugged her like that, like it was a profound joy just to see her, to know she was alive. She wished—
But no. This wasn't about her at all. Senka deserved this, and Sorcha was beyond happy that she got to have it, that after everything that had happened to her, she got to get one little piece of happiness back from the jaws of the Tragedy. She swallowed thickly, inclining her head slightly when Rodrigue bowed. “I am; thank you, Rodrigue." She smiled. “I'm sure the two of you have catching up to do, though; please, do not delay on my account."
“There is plenty of time for that," Rodrigue replied, smiling still at Sorcha. “Ah, but I was supposed to meet you at the monastery. What brings you here, to the lake?" he asked.
“It... is my birthday, today, and my friends..." Senka spoke, pausing to glance at Sorcha, “we were celebrating it at the lake. They are still there." Rodrigue seemed surprised at the statement.
“Is it really that time of the year? Well, I suppose I might have a bit of a gift for you, but that can wait until we return to the monastery," he stated happily enough. Senka nodded her head, but glanced over her shoulders.
“I would like you to meet them, when you have the chance," Senka stated, causing Rodrigue to nod his head. “I am sure you will take to them as I have," she continued, smiling just soft enough that her eyes seemed to brighten.
“I'd like that. Perhaps after my meeting with the archbishop, I can meet your friends. While there is catching up to do," he paused to smile at Sorcha, “your letter was not my only summons to the monastery. Lady Rhea has news for me that I must attend to. For now, I will let you enjoy your celebrations." He turned to Sorcha, then, and placed a hand on her shoulder.
“It was good seeing you, Sorcha. And thank you, again," he stated, patting her shoulder before he dropped his hands.
“You're welcome, of course," Sorcha replied, letting out a breath and feeling her shoulders relax. “Please, do come visit us when you're done." She'd have to warn everyone so their clothes would be dry in time.
Settling down at the edge, she let out a sift sigh of contentment as her toes hit the water and sank beneath the surface. Leaning back on her hands, she watched the others. Vridel and Professor Cyril stood on the edge of where the thin strip of sandy shore faded into the lake. The Professor was rolling up the legs of his pants in much the same manner as she had. He also took hold of his tunic by the collar and pulled it over his head, pausing to fold it before setting it down in the grass.
Sorcha knew it wasn't uncommon for men to swim in such a manner, but she'd sort of... forgotten. The Professor didn't seem to think anything of it, heading into the water and swimming out some distance. He was really... quite well-built, wasn't he?
Grimacing, she turned her eyes back to the shore, unsure if she hoped for or hoped against someone else making the same decision.
It seemed that even Mercer was following in Professor's footsteps. He didn't seem to want to roll up his pants, though he did remove his shirt. He blinked before his eyes landed on Sorcha. He waved at her with a grin on his face before he waded into the water. He didn't swim off too far, though, holding his hand out towards Amalthea. She looked a bit perplexed and almost hesitantly took his hand as he guided her through the water. She didn't know how to swim, after all, and it seemed the Mercer was trying to help her. He was nice, that way, always trying to help in some way or another.
“Sorcha," Senka's voice called out to Sorcha as she came into view. She took a seat next to her, and dipped her legs into the water as well, slowly moving them back and forth as she regarded Sorcha with an even gaze. “I... want to say thank you, for this. It... this is the first time I can say I'm actually enjoying myself," she stated, smiling softly in Sorcha's direction.
Honestly, she was glad Senka was there, for more than one reason. It enabled her to focus on her friend instead of the water, an opportunity she welcomed, as the verdict there had been rather... not in her favor. Sen's smile was more than enough to push all that to the background, though, and Sorcha returned it, genuinely warmed by her words. “I'm so glad to hear that, Sen. Really."
She had one more surprise left for the day, and the reason she hadn't already explained it was because, well... it wasn't really hers to explain. She just happened to be the person who'd figured it out. Hopefully it would go as well as she was expecting; Rodrigue was one of the best people Sorcha knew, and perhaps the only noble in Faerghus who'd never looked down on her.
Before she could say anything else, Vridel approached, plonking down on the deck on Senka's other side with a sigh. He glared out at the water for a moment before turning his attention to the other two. “Hello, Sorcha. Happy birthday, Senka. I hope you are finding your festivities sufficiently lacking in obnoxiousness, despite Mercer's presence."
Senka's smile softened somewhat as she nodded her head. “It has been a mostly pleasant experience, thus far. Though I do wonder," she stated, her eyes sliding towards Vridel, “does his presence upset you that much? He is only helping her to learn, you know. Perhaps you'd like to be her teacher, instead?" Senka's brow was lightly raised, almost as if she were teasing Vridel in that sense. Perhaps she was?
“It does not upset me, and I would not prefer that." Vridel frowned at her and sniffed imperiously. Sorcha suppressed a smile.
“Either way, thank you for joining in as well, Vridel. Your presence here, means a lot to me. More than I thought it would, so thank you," she continued, inclining her head in Vridel's direction. “I don't believe this day could be... any more pleasant than it already is." She shook her head, though, and huffed lightly.
That got a little half-grin out of him, at least. “Well, I'm glad I could be part of it then."
“Why aren't you in the water, anyway, Vivi?" Sorcha cocked an eyebrow at him. “You taught me to swim; I know you can." What was more, the Empire was warm enough that he'd have been able to do it much more often than they could in Faerghus, where it was usually limited to the two or three warmest months. She could remember him quite enjoying it, too, back then.
He shrugged, though. “I suppose I don't really feel like it," he replied. It sounded like an excuse for something, but something subtly cued her into the fact that she probably shouldn't ask. Normally Sorcha was terrible at picking up on such things, but this was Vivi. Even after all this time, she still sort of had a read on him, somehow.
“Hm, well you can at least enjoy yourself with us," Senka replied, repeating the slow movements of her legs in the water. She had stopped when Vridel appeared, but seemed content enough to resume. “We can at least enjoy and appreciate your company more-so than the others," she stated, her small smile returning to her face. She remained quiet for a moment, seemingly content.
Mercer and Amalthea seemed to be making progress, though. Mercer was helping her through some of the deeper parts of the water, showing her how to move her arms, and occasionally doing a display of whatever it was he was showing her. Amalthea seemed rather happy at the new experience.
The Professor, meanwhile, had sum what seemed to be several laps around the area, as if reacquainting himself with how it felt to do so. When he was done with that, however, he contemplated Mercer and Thea for a moment before swimming over to the dock instead. He had little trouble hauling himself up and out of the water onto it, pulling his legs up beneath him to cross them.
“This is relatively few people in the lake for a lake excursion," he noted, with what seemed to be a trace of amusement.
Sorcha huffed. She supposed it was. “I'll go in in a little while," she said. “You're not supposed to swim for a half hour after eating."
He blinked, clearly not aware of this rule. Truth be told, Sorcha wasn't exactly sure where it came from or why it was a rule in the first place, but she distinctly remembered it for some reason. “Ah. I see."
“Hm, but that doesn't seem to apply to some people, though," Senka replied, nodding her head in Mercer and Amalthea's direction before her eyes settled on the professor. “I suppose some people are just made differently than others," she continued, narrowing her eyes lightly. She brought her hand up to her hair, though, as if to check something before she dropped it. “I think I might exclude myself from the swimming, though. This is nice, being able to enjoy the water without being in it all the way," she seemed to explain.
“But please do keep swimming if that is what you all want. I can sit here with Vridel and watch you all enjoy yourselves. It'll make..." she paused, brows furrowing slightly before she smiled again, “It'll make me happy to see you all happy."
“Hey now! That's not fair. Everyone is sitting out while I'm here teaching! Teach! This is supposed to be your job!" Mercer shouted from the other side of the lake. He didn't look entirely upset, though, and Amalthea pursed her lips at him. She mouthed something to him, that made him laugh, though, and shake his head.
“Oh?" Cyril replied, arching his brow and raising his voice just enough to be heard. “It rather looked like a party of two. I'd hate to interrupt." The faint edge of amusement to his voice was reflected in his face. Sitting there, with little drops of water dripping off the end of his nose and a stubborn strand of hair refusing to stay slicked back by the water, he looked... like one of them, really. Like someone really around their own age, whose life experiences did not, for once, seem to put him in his own world apart. It was an odd thing to realize, maybe, but she couldn't help feeling it all the same.
Vridel laughed softly at the joke. “Entirely your fault for excluding everyone," he added.
“That is not what it is!" Amalthea shouted back, her face taking on a rather interesting shade of red. She glanced in Vridel's direction, huffed at Mercer, and made her way back to the shore where she plopped down, folding her legs beneath her. Mercer laughed and shook his head, glancing at the others as they all sat on the dock. Senka huffed lightly in amusement, however; something seemed to catch her attention.
“Is that... a banner? From the Kingdom?" she stated, glancing at Sorcha before nodding her head in the direction she'd spotted it. There seemed to be a small company of maybe five to six people. At the front was a man Sorcha easily recognized. It was Rodrigue. It looked like he was heading in the way of the monastery with only a handful of people. “What are they doing all the way out here?" Senka questioned, her head titled slightly in a curious manner.
Oh, he was early. Sorcha supposed that was to be expected from Rodrigue, though. “Ah, actually... I asked him to come visit. Was sort of thinking he might not get here until evening, though." Pulling her feet from the water, she stood. “I should go say hello."
Of course, the trickier part of this whole thing was the bit that came next. “Actually, uh... not to interrupt your day, Sen, but would you mind coming with me? I don't think you've met Rodrigue yet and I really think you should." She hoped this would be enough for her friend to understand the importance of it, though she would have to let Rodrigue do the explaining, for the most part.
Senka seemed confused for a moment, “Rodrigue?" She muttered the name as if she'd forgotten it, but maybe she had? It wasn't until her eyes went wide, and she quickly removed her feet from the water to stand. “I will accompany you," she stated, glancing towards Vridel and Professor. “We'll return soon, but please continue to enjoy yourselves," she stated, bowing lightly at them before walking beside Sorcha. When they were far enough from the group, Senka turned her attention towards Sorcha.
“Is it really un—Rodrigue?" she stated, pursing her lips together as she seemed to correct herself at the last moment. “As in, Rodrigue Fraldarius?"
“You know who he is?" Sorcha's eyes widened. “To you?" It was a curious thing. Sorcha knew both of these people very well, but it wasn't until recently that she'd figured out that Rodrigue's deceased sister was in fact Queen of Duscur, because he was modest enough that he'd simply said she'd married a man from there and died in the Tragedy, and Sorcha had of course never wanted to press. Nor had she pushed Senka to speak more of her family, including what family her mother was from. Sorcha had figured she was noble, but that didn't narrow things down much.
“Because I just figured it out. It's why I wrote him and asked him to come here. I figured he'd want to see you... and I thought you might want to meet him, so..."
“But... I haven't seen him in so long. I didn't even... I didn't even write to him to let him know I was okay, or that I was still alive. I couldn't," Senka stated, her brows furrowing lightly. She took in a soft breath, though, and glanced at Sorcha. “I'm certain he will be surprised to see me, though it has been a long time. I... wonder if he still remembers me," she stated fondly.
“I'm sorry I never told you, though. It's not that I didn't want to, I just..." she paused, pulling the scarf around her neck a little closer to her face. “I didn't trust you at the time. I didn't trust anyone, and... I was afraid of what would happen if I did," she shook her head at herself, it seemed, before she smiled softly. “I trust you now, though. Always will. Rodrigue is my mother's half-brother, which in turn, makes him my uncle."
“I know," Sorcha said quietly. And she didn't blame Senka for any of it. On the contrary, she was just relieved to hear that her friend trusted her now. “And he was surprised to hear you were alive, but you should have seen his last letter, Sen. He's so excited to see you again. He... he lost your cousin in the tragedy too, you know. Glenn. He doesn't have a lot of family left. He's been... he's been really good to me, actually. My whole life, but especially since my parents died. I'm... I'm really glad you two are going to get to meet each other again."
Senka deserved for things like this—good things—to happen to her. And so did Rodrigue. If Sorcha could play some small part in making it happen, well she wouldn't hesitate for a second.
“Hm," was the only reply Senka gave. “He has always been a kind soul. He... mother used to say that he was the epitome of what a Knight should be," she spoke softly, keeping her gaze in front of her. “I am... excited to see him, too," she added. It wasn't long before they approached Rodrigue's group. He happened to glance in their direction, and immediately called for the group to halt. He turned his horse in the direction of Sorcha and Senka, and made his way towards them. When he was close enough, he dismounted. At first, it seemed, he was moving rather fast, his steps hurried and almost impatient.
When he was close enough, he didn't seem to be stopping, and instead, continued walking in a hurried fashion towards Senka. The hug must have caught her off guard since her hands were partially raised to receive him, however; he seemed to tighten his hold on her. From the part of her face that was visible against his fur-lined cloak, Senka looked on the verge to be crying.
“Senka," he whispered, his voice soft and almost raw. “I thought I lost you, too," he continued. Senka finally managed to place her hands on his back, and returned the embrace. “I can't believe it's been four years since..." he didn't need to continue for Senka or Sorcha to understand.
“I'm sorry, uncle. I... I've missed you," she muttered between breaths. It sounded like she was trying to hold back the tears, but she was doing a rather poor job of it. Rodrigue finally pulled away, smiling brightly as he turned to gaze at Sorcha.
“Your Highness," he stated, bowing lightly in front of Sorcha. “Thank you for writing me. I see you are still well," he spoke in Sorcha's direction.
Sorcha felt her heart clench, a little smile for her friends crossing her face and also... also a tiny stab of pain. No one in her life had ever hugged her like that, like it was a profound joy just to see her, to know she was alive. She wished—
But no. This wasn't about her at all. Senka deserved this, and Sorcha was beyond happy that she got to have it, that after everything that had happened to her, she got to get one little piece of happiness back from the jaws of the Tragedy. She swallowed thickly, inclining her head slightly when Rodrigue bowed. “I am; thank you, Rodrigue." She smiled. “I'm sure the two of you have catching up to do, though; please, do not delay on my account."
“There is plenty of time for that," Rodrigue replied, smiling still at Sorcha. “Ah, but I was supposed to meet you at the monastery. What brings you here, to the lake?" he asked.
“It... is my birthday, today, and my friends..." Senka spoke, pausing to glance at Sorcha, “we were celebrating it at the lake. They are still there." Rodrigue seemed surprised at the statement.
“Is it really that time of the year? Well, I suppose I might have a bit of a gift for you, but that can wait until we return to the monastery," he stated happily enough. Senka nodded her head, but glanced over her shoulders.
“I would like you to meet them, when you have the chance," Senka stated, causing Rodrigue to nod his head. “I am sure you will take to them as I have," she continued, smiling just soft enough that her eyes seemed to brighten.
“I'd like that. Perhaps after my meeting with the archbishop, I can meet your friends. While there is catching up to do," he paused to smile at Sorcha, “your letter was not my only summons to the monastery. Lady Rhea has news for me that I must attend to. For now, I will let you enjoy your celebrations." He turned to Sorcha, then, and placed a hand on her shoulder.
“It was good seeing you, Sorcha. And thank you, again," he stated, patting her shoulder before he dropped his hands.
“You're welcome, of course," Sorcha replied, letting out a breath and feeling her shoulders relax. “Please, do come visit us when you're done." She'd have to warn everyone so their clothes would be dry in time.