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A Coerced Conversation
Jan. 23rd, 2005 11:06 pmKarl POV
I wander around the house, my promise to Théodred weighing on my mind. Finally I head outside to the garden, thinking an afternoon of turning topsoil will clear my head. I got home too late to put in most things, but I’ll set out some lettuces and perhaps cucumbers.
After dinner, I wash up and head outside again to the patio with Ire and a beer. No use putting this off any longer. I lay back, staring at the stars, and then close my eyes, wondering what the stars look like in Rohan. Middle Earth was supposed to be Europe before time . . . right, so northern hemisphere constellations then. I draw them in my mind, the stars flung on a field of black velvet. Would he be out there in that deep night?
I picture him on a horse and call his name and then I can see him coming towards me. I take his hands as I did before, but this time I just stand there, not leaving, not pushing him away.
Théodred ordered me to talk to him, but I have nothing to say. I don’t want to talk to him. I wait, hoping that he will say something himself, anything. But he just looks at me silently. So . . . not a sparkling wit, this horseboy. Just a big, dumb blonde. I have to wonder what Théodred sees in him.
I don’t know how many minutes pass, and we just stand there quietly. Finally, I’ve had enough of this bloody nonsense and I let go of his hands.
“Goodbye.” There, I talked to him. Théodred can go screw himself.
Éomer POV
I am riding a patrol up near the Entwash when I hear the call as Théo promised I would. I slide off of Firefoot and close my eyes, picturing him. I open them again to see him and I walk towards him and he takes my hands. We stand quietly together.
I know I have mishandled him from the very start of this strange link that we share. The things that Théo has told me about Karl’s feelings have shamed me. Karl is my responsibility, mine to protect, mine to care for, and I have failed in that. I did not take his feelings into account with my actions, and now we must start anew.
I have tamed many wild horses in my life and there are two ways to do it. The way that works best for the long term is to let the animal agree to be tamed by you, to be in partnership with you. This is what I will try with Karl, I will not try to force him into anything, I will let him come to me on his own.
So I stand there with him silently, letting him get used to me, doing nothing to upset him, letting him realize that he has nothing to fear from me.
When he releases my hands at last, I am hoping that we have taken the first small step towards understanding each other. But taming wild things takes patience and perseverance and I know that we have far yet to go.
I wander around the house, my promise to Théodred weighing on my mind. Finally I head outside to the garden, thinking an afternoon of turning topsoil will clear my head. I got home too late to put in most things, but I’ll set out some lettuces and perhaps cucumbers.
After dinner, I wash up and head outside again to the patio with Ire and a beer. No use putting this off any longer. I lay back, staring at the stars, and then close my eyes, wondering what the stars look like in Rohan. Middle Earth was supposed to be Europe before time . . . right, so northern hemisphere constellations then. I draw them in my mind, the stars flung on a field of black velvet. Would he be out there in that deep night?
I picture him on a horse and call his name and then I can see him coming towards me. I take his hands as I did before, but this time I just stand there, not leaving, not pushing him away.
Théodred ordered me to talk to him, but I have nothing to say. I don’t want to talk to him. I wait, hoping that he will say something himself, anything. But he just looks at me silently. So . . . not a sparkling wit, this horseboy. Just a big, dumb blonde. I have to wonder what Théodred sees in him.
I don’t know how many minutes pass, and we just stand there quietly. Finally, I’ve had enough of this bloody nonsense and I let go of his hands.
“Goodbye.” There, I talked to him. Théodred can go screw himself.
Éomer POV
I am riding a patrol up near the Entwash when I hear the call as Théo promised I would. I slide off of Firefoot and close my eyes, picturing him. I open them again to see him and I walk towards him and he takes my hands. We stand quietly together.
I know I have mishandled him from the very start of this strange link that we share. The things that Théo has told me about Karl’s feelings have shamed me. Karl is my responsibility, mine to protect, mine to care for, and I have failed in that. I did not take his feelings into account with my actions, and now we must start anew.
I have tamed many wild horses in my life and there are two ways to do it. The way that works best for the long term is to let the animal agree to be tamed by you, to be in partnership with you. This is what I will try with Karl, I will not try to force him into anything, I will let him come to me on his own.
So I stand there with him silently, letting him get used to me, doing nothing to upset him, letting him realize that he has nothing to fear from me.
When he releases my hands at last, I am hoping that we have taken the first small step towards understanding each other. But taming wild things takes patience and perseverance and I know that we have far yet to go.
