The Vampire & Her Witch-Chapter 1308: Managing the Camp (Part One)
Lady Eira moved through the camp with purpose, her cloak drawn tight against the morning chill as she made her way from the cooking fires to where a group of servants huddled near one of the supply wagons. The sky was beginning to lighten overhead, though the sun had not yet crested the horizon, and the camp was alive with nervous energy that reminded her of a beehive that had been poked by an unruly child with a stick.
"Margaret, Bronwyn," Eira said warmly as she approached the two women who were arranging breakfast supplies into manageable portions. "How are you both holding up? I know this morning has been difficult."
Margaret, a stout woman in her forties who normally ran the kitchen in Sir Padraig’s manor with ruthless efficiency and a solid wooden spoon, looked up from where she was ladling thick lentil porridge into hollowed-out bread rolls. Her hands were steady, but Eira could see the tension in the older woman’s shoulders and the way her eyes kept darting toward the edge of camp where the knights and soldiers stood watch.
"We’re managing, your ladyship," Margaret said, though her voice was quieter than usual. "It’s just... well, it’s all a bit frightening, isn’t it? All this talk of demons and dark witchcraft," she said nervously, glancing around as if she was afraid that the Inquisition would pop out from behind a stew pot to denounce her for speaking of witchcraft.
"Truth be told, your ladyship, I’d feel better if we were away from this place," she said honestly. "I’ve kept a knife handy," she added, pointing to a large cleaver sitting on the table that had claimed the lives of countless chickens in a single blow over the years. "But it won’t do much good against demon soldiers if they has armor an’ the like, now will it, milady?"
"I know that it’s hard to be here right now," Eira said, placing a gentle hand on Margaret’s arm. "I want you to know how brave I think you are. How brave all of you are," she added, raising her voice slightly so that the other servants nearby could hear her. "The soldiers have armor to protect themselves and weapons to fight back with if danger comes."
She paused, looking around at the faces of the cooks and kitchen helpers who had gathered to listen. Most of them were women, though there were a few young men among them who were too old to be pages but too young to be soldiers. All of them looked frightened, and Eira’s heart ached for them.
She was certain that there wasn’t any real danger, not with Sir Ollie on their side, but she couldn’t explain that to anyone, not even her closest friend, Morwen, who had been helping her all morning. No one could know the secret about their alliance with Lady Ashlynn and the Eldritch, at least, not yet, and so she had to find another way to keep their spirits up while they nervously glanced past her, in the direction of the purple smoke that had been taken as a sign of ’demons and dark witchcraft.’
"It’s very brave, you know," she continued firmly. "To focus on your duties when danger feels so close. But I want you to remember something important. If it comes to a fight, the soldiers will fight better with full bellies than they will on empty stomachs. What you’re doing right now, is more than just cooking. You’re helping to protect the camp and everyone in it, just like the soldiers and the knights," she said, bowing her head and lifting her skirts gently in a deep curtsy.
"On behalf of my father, and Baron Dunn as well," she said solemnly. "I thank you for having the courage to help others at a time like this, when lesser people would have fled instead of helping our soldiers to fight. Truly, thank you."
"Milady!" Margaret said in a panic, nearly dropping a half-filled roll in her haste to reach the young lady of the manor. "Please, don’t go making a big fuss out of it," she said, placing her hands on Lady Eira’s shoulders and helping her to straighten up. "What would your father say if he saw you bowing to the likes of us? We’d be in for a right scolding, we would, your ladyship!"
"If he saw you working so hard, with the threat of a demon attack looming over you," Eira said, straightening up and dazzling the gathered servants with a bright smile that felt warm enough to take the chill out of the air. "Then my father would salute you, too. Since he can’t, I will in his place."
There was a moment of silence, and then Margaret’s shoulders straightened slightly as she found herself smiling in return.
"Thank you, my lady," she said, and this time her voice was stronger. "It’s good to know that what we’re doing matters."
"It matters more than you know," Eira assured her. "Now, let me help to get this breakfast passed out to the men, and make sure you take a roll for yourselves as well," she reminded them. "The men are going to need it, and I know they’ll be grateful for the effort you’ve put in, but you have to take care of yourselves too, or you’ll be dropping from hunger before the day is half done."
The camp breakfast was simpler than it would normally have been. All of the leftover meat from the night before had been chopped into small bits to mix with the lentil porridge, with some butter and herbs thrown in to give it a bit more flavor. It would have been better if it stewed longer, and if they’d had time to fry off fresh bacon or even to slice winter apples and hard, yellow cheese to go with the stew.
Even though they still had several leagues of travel to go before they reached the Village of Maeril, the servants of the camp would have seen a good meal prepared for everyone, with people taking turns to eat while they broke camp. There might even have been a keg of cider to share once the packing was done.
But today, the most they’d managed was a hearty porridge with meat mixed in, stuffed into rolls so the soldiers could eat it with one hand while they stood on the line and prepared for the worst to happen. It wasn’t close to ideal, and it was yet another small injustice that the common folk of the camp suffered in order to keep the secret of their alliance with the Eldritch secret, but Eira did her best to make up for it by showing her appreciation for everyone’s work and helping where she could.
She spent the next half hour helping to distribute the simple breakfast, moving among the soldiers and knights with Lady Morwen at her side. Every man they passed offered words of thanks, some brief and gruff, while others bordered on being inappropriate between a vassal and his lord’s daughter. Most, however, were genuine words of thanks, and more than one soldier commented on how good it felt to have something warm in their belly on such a cold morning.
