Bittersweet Symphony =open=

[Aida Benn]

The sun was directly above, illuminating the grayish blue sky and clouds. It wasn't completely overcast, though one could call it an almost gloomy day. Aida on the other hand found these days to be quite beautiful. She did not prefer a flawless blue sky as others did, but found beauty in the imperfections. Beautiful was a word that was hard to define. Ask a person what they thought was beautiful and it would be different from someone else's idea. But on this 'beautiful' day it was neither too cold nor too hot. The sun seemed to only provide light and little warmth as it greeted each stone and crack in the open hallway. Aida, who had time off away from Lady Liselle, was walking through the hallways, enjoying the small bit of freedom she had.

When Aida was younger living in her family's home, she would go ouside to escape her sisters and brothers. She would sit on a bench and look up at the clouds, imagining she was far away, somewhere else where there was not responsibility and time was nonexistent. This dream only lasted so long. When she fancied herself in love, she found there weren't enough hours in the day to stay occupied so she wouldn't think about the young soldier. When he died, Aida set her mind on helping her family, only allowing a few thoughts to be spared for him. She had not loved him by that point, but she still could feel the pain of loss. It was something strange and foreign, though she knew everyone lost something within a life time. Walking through the hallway was close enough as it was the safest place in Nottingham that she knew of.

Aida sighed as she walkeds. She was wearing a dove gray dress that was scoop neck and long sleeved, though it did not scoop down very far. Her long dark brown hair was done up in simple braids, pinned to stay out of her face. She was looking up at the sky like she had done when she was younger, a smile on her face, her eyes wide with wonder at the ideas she came up with. One day she would leave the castle and her mundane life.

[James Blythe]

James was feeling a little panicked. A few members of the castle staff were ill, and despite their fervent desires to not displease the residents of the castle (lest they end up in the dungeons), they simply couldn't manage to force themselves out of bed. One of the local medicine women suggested they take some herbs and rest, tutting - flu like symptoms, probably from bad air or something of the sort.

He didn't care, as long as he didn't get ill too. He was likely to be exhausted by the end of the day, anyway - having to cover other people's work and do your own, all to the Sheriff's high standards, was a tough job. He hadn't even had time to stop for lunch, and he was still going. Right now, he was supposed to be making sure the horses had been fed, as one of those affected was one of the stable lads, but he also had to fetch food for some of the castle's residents, those fussy few who liked to eat in their quarters. Currently, he was carrying a large glass of wine and a jug filled with more of the stuff on a silver platter, running down the corridors.

He hadn't seen the castle so busy in years, and on the one hand he liked it - it gave him something to do, and new people to watch, but on the other...

He wouldn't half like a nap right now.

Despite the reasonable temperature, James was sweating from exertion, and it was as he was wiping sweat from his bow that he collided with something quite solid and also quite human. Reeling backwards and rubbing his head, he looked up to find a lady before him - a proper lady, not like the old women who yelled at him in the castle kitchens. She wasn't a local.

Oops.

"I'm sorry!" he exclaimed, realising he'd managed to spill the wine on her.

He knew he disliked red wine for a reason.

[Aida Benn]

Aida was lost in thought about running away when suddenly a body slammed into her. And to top it off, the collision had caused wine to be spilled over her dress! Aida was not materialistic, despite the fact that it was her second best dress and her favorite, so her first reaction was not to yell or berate the person who had done it. It was quite obvious that it was not done on purpose and through further observation, she realized who had bumped into her. It was the young lad James. He was a handsome kid with an innocent face and a sweet personality. She had scarcely spoken three words to him since she had been at the castle, though she always wanted to. She did notice, though, how he sometimes stared at her. It was cute, though he was a few years younger than her. Still, instead of frowning and throwing a hissy fit like her mistress would do, Aida smiled and let out a small laugh.

"It is alright, though you better watch where you are going," Aida said with a small smile as she looked at the boy. She then inspected the damage. It wasn't too bad. Most of the stain was at the hem and with clever sewing she could take care of that. The dress always wanted for a lace hem. She then looked up at the boy again. "James, wasn't it?" she asked. "Now, I think we should go back to the kitchens and refill that cup before the person the wine was meant for gets annoyed that it hasn't come, what do you say?" Her tone wasn't patronizing. It was rather sweet, the way she would speak to her younger brother. And in someways he reminded her of her younger brother. He must be James' age by now. Thinking of her family made her sigh. What was she doing in misery lane when she could have been married with children of her own.

[sorry it took so long!]

[James Blythe]

(No worries dude~)

James would have turned a bright red if he'd known Aida knew he sometimes watched her as she went about her own duties for her mistress. While he was certainly far too young for her, she was the first woman that had managed to turn his head. That sort of thing didn't get through to him easily - he just let life float by. But Aida... He liked her. He wasn't the poetic sort. He didn't know the fancy words that would describe how he saw her.

So he generally settled for pretty.

She laughed as she smiled at him. He didn't understand why, but he went with it. Well, he didn't laugh or smile or anything, that would be rude and even if she was a lady in waiting, not anywhere near the same prestige as her mistress, it was still rude of him. She was of a far higher rank than he was accustomed to actually talking to, so this was a bit of a new experience for him.

"I'm sorry, I got distracted m'lady," he muttered, grabbing the fallen goblet and the tray, clutching them tightly to his chest. It didn't matter if he stained his own clothes, they were entirely black anyway, no one would notice. She didn't seem that bothered about her dress, and he was kind of relieved - he would never have been able to afford to pay for it, but he did know a trick that might salvage it if they were quick. "Er, if we get some white wine that might come right off?" he asked more than suggested, still nervous. It had worked on the cook's sleeves, anyway. Partly. Though that last bit might have been blood stains. He'd never know.

He nodded frantically. "Um, we?" he couldn't help but ask. Him, surely? She didn't have to demean herself by accompanying him, and besides, it would make him feel worse. Then again, he'd already suggested they go get some wine for her dress, so he'd pretty much started it. "Um, are you sure? Are you alright?" She was sighing, and he was extremely nervous as it was. He hoped she wasn't going to snap at him or something. He wasn't sure he didn't deserve it, but he didn't want her snapping at him. She seemed too nice for that.