Only slightly.

I have full confidence that the horse that the livery was Supposed to have prepared for me is a steadfast and well-tempered beast, but the mount I had was a fussy nag with a penchant of attempting to feed on any fruit unfortunate enough to be just beyond biting distance, and would not be dissuaded, no matter how many times I kicked it. By the sun, I estimated myself to be a half-hour late to tea when I finally arrived. Upon sighting me, a man with hair the same color as the wheat, stood up from the step and tapped out the ash in his pipe. "You must be Mr. Mckay," he frowned, tucking his pipe into his pocket.

"I am. And apologies for my tardiness," I replied, dismounting and taking the horse's lead. "This creature was giving me no end of grief."

The man raised his eyebrow at me and chuckled. "Yeah. That's Izzy for you. You're a stubborn old bint, aren't you, girl?" he smiled, patting her neck. The horse chortled and nodded happily at his touch. "Head on in, Mr. McKay. Diane and the other two are waiting. I'll see that she's properly settled in." I nodded my thanks but before I could take another step, his hand landed on my shoulder and he whispered to me. "It's going to be a little... hectic in there. Just tell Diane that they gave you Izzy and step back. Anthony will handle the rest." Raising an eyebrow at him, I thanked him again and went through.

"Hectic" was a gross understatement. The moment I entered the house, I heard instructions being barked and the scrabbling of feet to obey them. Following the sounds of chaos, I made my way past the dining room and into the kitchen where Mrs. Nesbeth was busy running a couple of men, both with brown hair, but one of them was a head taller than anyone else, ragged while tapping her foot angrily. Hearing my entrance, her head whipped around, annoyance quite evident on her face. "You are late, Mr. Mckay." she snapped.

"My most deepest apologies, Mrs. Nesbeth. But in truth, my mount Izzy was quite peckish and kept trying to eat on our way here." I said, following instructions.

Annoyance gave way to rage. "He gave you Izzy!?" she shrieked, her voice jumping an octave. The two men looked to each other and the taller one leapt up to stand in front of her, muttering at her to calm down while she started vibrating in anger, while the other pulled me back beyond the doorway, whispering that I was within plate throwing distance.

Begging pardon for the impropriety, but seeing as she has three husbands, I shall be referring to them by their first names for ease of identification. Ian returned after Roland had told me the story of how Izzy had earned her disrepute, informed me that she had been stabled with their carthorses, and has been given feed and water. Anthony appeared a few moments later, and after a brief introduction, spoke to the other two privately while I dared to peek into the kitchen. Mrs. Nesbeth was leaning over the table and drumming her fingers on it, before letting out a long sigh.

A strong clap on my back returned my attention to the men. "Diane's going to need a few minutes to settle down enough for us to go back in there," Anthony smiled, guiding me to the dining table where Ian was packing his pipe with fresh tobacco and Roland had brought out a few bottles from the cellar. "Which gives us all a bit of time to get to know each other before dinner, Mr. McKay."