A stroll through the courtyard

With his stomach filled, and his mind freed from the odd occurrence this morning, Moris set out for the courtyard to watch the sun rise over the horizon. Not only that, Moris suspected he'd find Elowyn near the mews, admiring the falcons as she was wont to do. Between paved pathways sat elaborately organized beds of flowers. The late Queen had arranged the gardens herself, and King Briant honored her memory by keeping it immaculately maintained. As Moris made it towards the edge of the yard, his earlier suspicions had been proven correct. He spotted Elowyn right as she was illuminated by the rising dawn. She wore a summer dress with a golden flower design, which flowed in the wind alongside her curled red hair. She stroked a beautiful hooded merlin that was perched atop her falconer's glove. Elowyn and Moris had known each other for as long as either of them could remember. Back when they were children, the two were practically inseparable. Though adulthood had split them apart, their fondness for one another had not dulled in the slightest.

As she cared for her raptor, Moris snuck up behind her to the best of his ability. "Who's a pretty bird?" Elowyn asked it before pulling off the hood. The merlin took off from her forearm, just before Moris grabbed onto Elowyn's shoulders.

"You are!" Moris practically shouted his own answer to the ginger's question, making her jump in shock.

Elowyn spun around and landed a hook to his ribs. While she wasn't as strong as any of the knights, Elowyn was no stranger to scrapping around with Moris, and she hit him just hard enough to make it hurt for a few minutes. "What was that for, asshole?"

"It's your fault for not paying attention, Lady Elowyn." He knew she hated being called that by him. Through and through, she was the tomboyish sort, even if her wardrobe no longer reflected it. On top of that, the two were as close as siblings.

"Oh shut up, loser. I was expecting you to show up kitted out like you normally are." She tried to play it off, but Elowyn's cheeks blushed ever so slightly as she responded. "So, what are you planning on doing with your free time?"

"Hmm, what to do? Perhaps I should investigate rumors of a ghost roaming the halls." Moris said ominously, trying to elicit a reaction from her. Moris thought of those late nights when he'd tell her scary stories under the full moon. Those were the days.

"Nope! I know you're just making stuff up again." Elowyn was not amused. Since Moris was coming at her with such heat, she felt it necessary to fire back. "Don't you think you should look for your dick instead? It'll be harder to find."

Ouch. That one stung, coming from her. While Moris didn't have the largest pecker, she was referring to a time when he nearly froze from falling into an ice-cold river. Elowyn was the first responder after he'd been fished from the water, which meant seeing him naked for the first time since they were adolescents. Not only had his penis retracted into his groin, but so had his testes. Unfortunately for Moris, no opportunity had risen for him to expose himself to her in a morally correct way. "Do you want to help me look for that then, El?"

"In your dreams!" She said with a snort. As the merlin had been circling overhead for a while, Elowyn raised her arm for it to land on. "For that comment, you've lost Elowyn priveleges for the day." With impeccable timing, the bird landed just as she raised her other arm to shoo Moris away.

"Aw, come on El. You know you like it when I mess with you."

"Ah ah ah! Shush." To drive the point home, she turned away from Moris and put all of her focus back on the bird.

You win some, you lose some. Moris thought as he strolled about the courtyard for a bit longer before heading back into the castle.