Some things are a little different

4th Amansdae, the 30th day of the month of Semens (Sem), the 3672nd year of Salvation's Landing

Everything that happened at the beginning of the shift was standard enough for Reglin, aside from the fact that he had to report to Govren first things first. He would have to meet up with Lim and Boll after that unless there were other tasks to arise.

Grahm reminded everyone that their duty for the following day was to be at the city arena no later than the fifth Halfmark. The drill was to start at the sixth Daybell. So Reglin’s first day off was not truly a day off. That made him think about the following day. He had been meaning to talk with someone in regards to possibly borrowing a horse for him to take to his family’s farm. Perhaps he could ask the house steward if that would be possible.

After some good-natured ribbing, the watch had head out to their duty stations. Reglin headed to the steward’s office at the back of the palace. Arriving at the door, he knocked on the doorframe of the open door.

The gangly, severe looking man behind the desk looked up from his parchments to regard Reglin. The guard noted the momentary popping of the man’s eyes at his first sight. “Master Reglin…” He squinted slightly and nodded to himself, “Yes, Master Reglin… You look… different, lad. Come in.”

Reglin bowed his head with permission to enter, “Thank you, Steward. Yes… Seems the field was starving me of all the nutrients I needed to fill out.” The tall man stepped up to the front of the desk and stood at rest. “The kitchens are doing me a wonder. As well as getting as many workouts as I am able to now.”

The long-limbed man looked at Reglin with a gauging eye still, “It must be. I cannot recall seeing such drastic changes in a young man.” At that, he looked down at a rolled parchment. “But we have business to be about. First item: I have just received noticed just moments ago that you will be a member of the King’s Guard, escorting his Highness and his coterie to the arena. That means you are to be dressed in your Dress uniform and ready to depart at the fifth Daybell. The king will be driven around the neighborhood of the arena. You will have to be mounted… I hope that you are comfortable enough on those beasts.” The man looked uncomfortable at the thought.

Giving a curt nod, Reglin responded, “Understood sir. If I may ask though, could I possibly make use of the palace tailor? As you say, I have… changed. I fear that my dress uniform will be bursting at the seams if I were to try it and were it now.” Camilla and Freighla had only been able to alter his Service uniform, which was his usual daily apparel.

Nodding distractedly, like he was ready to move on already, “Yes, yes… I will let her know that you will be needing a rush fitting and alteration. Now, onto the next… Lady Wilmyna has made a request for your presence this day. Mistress Freighla made note of it being as early as possible. So, I would do so immediately. Even with your increased stature, she seems a woman I would not trifle with.”

The Nordling noble wanted him once more. Reglin’s initial thoughts were that the northern women wanted to go over his Nord guard uniform, but in the end that was only speculation. He nodded again in affirmation. “Is there anything more, sir?” Govren looked over his notes for a few before shaking his head. “Then, if I may make a request? You were the only person that came to mind to ask this.”

That caused an arch in the man’s bushy brow, his usual taciturn demeanor still intact though. “Oh?”

“My first day off will be this Feridae.” The day after the next. “And I was hoping to head down south to the farms to see my family.” Reglin petitioned the Steward, “It has been over five year without seeing them. I came to ask if there would be some way to borrow a horse from the stables for the trip.” It was a two-hour walk. That would be cut down significantly if he had a mount. With the frenetic pace that life was coming at him this week, he had not had much time to really contemplate on seeing his family and what changes may have come to them in the past years.

Govren appeared contemplative, steepling his forefingers in front of him while he peered at the big guard. “I have heard from around the palace that you may be the favorite to represent House Polivander at the counsel tournament coming next week. I will offer a proposal… How confident are you in your chances?”

Pouting his bottom lip, Reglin squinted in thought, “I can only speak anecdotally. I have only faced my fellow watch guards, but unless there is a subtle, but formidable champion amongst the other watches, I feel relatively confident. But that means little truly. Take what you will from that.”

Nodding, there was a turning up of the Steward’s lips. If that was some facsimile of a smile, it was spooky to see in Reglin’s mind. “Okay, Master Reglin. If you win Drill day tomorrow and represent this house, you may have an available horse on retainer for you. If you do not… Well, you will have to find your own way to see your family…”

Giving a curt nod to the Steward, Reglin agreed, “That is fair enough, thank you. If that is all for me this morning, I will be on my way…” The two men made the proper farewells and Reglin turned and left.

Instead of heading straight to Lady Wilmyna’s quarters, Reglin headed to the Watch room. Going to his locker, the gathered up his Dress uniform and placed it in a duffel that he then took with him. The guard then got under way to the Nord woman’s chambers.

Hearing a knock on the door, Freighla was startled from her stitchwork. She looked over at her charge. Wilmyna was working on the trousers of the uniform and wore a red dress with an exposed cleavage that was somehow more scandalous than the previous days. “I am willing to bet that is our favorite guardsman.” She muttered with a small grin.

Wilmyna’s eyes came up to regard her maiden, but her head stayed down over her work. She donned her own sly smile, “Well, would you be so kind to let our comely sentinel in please?” The white-blonde woman straightened her back, accentuating her marvelous bosom. Freighla’s own breasts were larger, but she recognized that Myna’s were gorgeous. The slightest pang of envy struck the amazonian handmaiden while she got up to go to the door, but she let it go as quick as it came. It was no one’s fault that she was as prodigious as she was, but Freighla still fell to insecurities every now and then.

Setting the vest down, Freighla rose and made her way to the chamber door. Opening it, she saw the man a few feet from the door standing at a military rest. He was a nice chunk of man to look at, and she let herself take him in for a moment. To his credit, Reglin noticed and his own eyes reciprocated the gaze. Freighla felt a flushing in her cheeks as she recognized that smile and those eyes. He was looking at her as a woman. With his stature, she allowed herself to feel like a woman next to him. “Guardsman Reglin, I thank you for your timeliness. I pray that you are well?” She couldn’t contain a nervous smile from forming on her lips. What was that about?

Not tempering his measuring gaze in the slightest, the man must have seen the smile for what it was and pounced, “Mistress Freighla, I have only gotten more well by being your lovely presence. It is always my delight to offer whatever I can to you…” He bowed gallantly to her. “And of course, the Lady Wilmyna. You ask, and I answer.” His eyes still poured over her, making the tremendous woman feel… Excited? By glances?

Freighla bowed her head in as stately a response as she could muster, taking the opportunity to not look at those feasting eyes of his. She stepped back into the chambers and offered him passage, “Please, come in…”

The man strode in with a confidence that was completely at odds with the initial stories they had all heard from Princess Katya on that first day they made his acquaintance. This man did not carry himself as some farm boy. He was more akin to the northern nobles. Confident, proud, and more than capable of holding their own in a scrap. She watched as he walked toward the sitting Wilmyna and offer a bow that was an exact copy of what he had offered her. It would be a misstep in high society, but it the way that he had accorded the handmaiden too much respect. That was something for her to think about later.

The Lady gave a seated bow in kind. Freighla watched as the two did almost exactly what she had just done with the man. Obvious leering over one another. The subtlety was gone, and the maiden was more than a little pleased to see Wilmyna’s pale cheeks color in spite of the airs she was putting on. ‘Good. It’s not just me that he makes feel like that.’ She thought.

In no time they had informed him that they were needing him to do another fitting as they had added more elements to the uniform. In response, he showed them the duffel on his back. “I am needing alterations of my House Dress uniform and have been told to head to the tailor. I believe she will need to have me stripped down for measurements. I understand if this would not be to your liking, but would there be a way to consolidate and I could try them on down there?”

The women conferred with one another. As much as they liked to have Reglin all to themselves, they didn’t see any issue. It sounded like the man was being pressed for time this morning. Perhaps another morning soon they might be able to monopolize his time. And so, they agreed to join him. He stood in his stately guard manner while she and Wilmyna made sure they were presentable for court. Once satisfied, they joined him. Offering his arm to Wilmyna, the man actually gave Freighla a looked that seemed almost apologetic. Was it because he could not do the same for her? Or was she taking to fancy? Damn this man, she thought.

Strolling through the halls of the palace, Freighla stayed a few steps behind Wilmyna as the noble made small talk with Reglin about what was to come in the next day. Asking if he thought he would win the honor of representing House Polivander in the Counsels tournament and if he did, how did he think he would fare against the champions from the three other duchies. Reglin carried no false bravado that she could tell. After seeing him give account of himself in the arena herself, Freighla thought he was being quite self-deprecating.

Once arriving at the tailor’s apartments, Reglin announced Lady Wilmyna’s presence as well as Freighla’s before telling the woman what had brought them all. The tailor was a middle-aged woman named Shonda. She was tall enough for a woman, though a good bit shorter than Freighla still. Long wavy tresses hung down in Red-brown locks with strands of silver in their midst. She was very slender, her long fingers looking perfectly normal for the woman. Wearing a gown of House Polivander livery, she had apparently made some adjustments to her own dress compared to the normal garb.

The woman gave deference to Wilmyna first and foremost for obvious reasons, curtseying with aplomb before doing so for Freighla. She gave a much more abbreviated curtsey to Reglin, though the fact that she gave one at all seemed odd. Shonda seemed very friendly and smiled easily. She had been expecting Reglin’s alteration order and took the unusualness of the two northern women’s presence with little worry. When told why, the tailor was more than interested in seeing what kind of Nord-inspired uniform they had created, but they assured her that they were far from a finished product, and that this was a personal project of theirs.

Reglin had been asked to strip down to his underclothes for measurements once Shonda had taken his Dress uniform in hand. The women talked amongst themselves while he did so, yet Freighla noted that all eyes would inevitably wander to the large man’s form while he disrobed. More than a couple of times did sentences end with a trailing off of words.

Shonda looked to Freighla and Wilmyna and smiled, “Pardon me, Lady, but I can see why you chose this man as your model. The men of your region are a particularly large ilk. Reglin does seem to fit the mold rather well… Whoever would have thought that he would become so… formidable, from when I last saw him?”

Wilmyna’s brow arched in interest. “Oh? You knew him from before? I forget that he was a messenger boy for the palace staff…” The noblewoman’s eyes went back to looking at Reglin as he was folding up articles of his uniform to keep from wrinkling, “What do you remember of him?”

Seeming to be embarrassed at the attention she had drawn to herself, Shonda blushed, prettily enough Freighla thought. “Oh, he was already into his adolescent years when I came on as staff. I missed his youthful times as a messenger. What I remember though was a boy, small in stature for his age, but carried himself with a sincerity that was without question. I was told that he was a driven young man then and saw nothing from him to deter that notion.” The tailor’s eyes had wandered onto Reglin once more herself. “To see him now, it boggles my mind that he is the same person.” She gave a small shrug and a sigh, “People change, I suppose. Some much more than others…”

Both the Nordling women nodded at that and watched as Reglin finished up his caking care of his uniform. He turned and approached them in his long breeches and nothing more. It was a layer more than they had seen him the night before, but perhaps he was feeling shy for the tailor. Still, the slabs of muscle that covered him seemed to be growing daily. The rippling of said muscles spoke of his body composition. There was little in the ways of softness to the man. Freighla was happy to see that his beard was coming in, filling out nicely with its dark brown hair with occasional red notes in it. That same dark brown was peppered about his chest in a small amount. Another thing that both she and Wilmyna appreciated. He came to a stop a few strides from the three women and took a deep breath. That breath caused all kinds of muscles to contract, drawing Freighla’s eyes to his chest and abdominals. When her eyes went lower still, she saw a very intriguing bulge. She had to shake herself mentally then to not get caught up in some daydream.

Shonda had quickly grabbed her measuring strings and approached the guard with a spring in her step. No doubt that the woman was anxious to get a closer look at this man. Freighla took a glance at Wilmyna and saw her looking on Reglin with a hunger that Freighla knew in herself. The Nordlings were content to remain quiet as Shonda went about making all the necessary measurements. Freighla thought that some of those numbers were slightly different from just last night. This was the third time she had seen this take place. What was this man eating? He looked a man that could make another man shiver in fear, and at the slightest of changes, make a woman’s loins run wet. The latter she could attest to along with Wilmyna.

Reluctantly, Shonda had finished her work and had taken the Dress uniform back to her tables to begin alterations. She gave them free use of the facility. Reglin had retrieved the Northern style uniform and was donning it. Shonda was still glancing up rather frequently, seeing what they were going to drape over the guardsman.

Once dressed, Reglin looked like he could be at home on the deck of a Nord longship. The vest was open enough to see that wonderful chest of his with its hair. His arms looked great with their corded muscle exposed. The trousers were as they should be unfortunately, hiding much of the rest of physique. The two women made slow circles around him and discussed where the seal-skin would end and what other adornments they could use that would still be seen as regal for the King.

Shonda had risen and joined the women, looking at the apparel with genuine interest. She asked questions about the stitchwork and nodded in their response. She apologized beforehand, knowing that this was the northern women’s project, but then proceeded to offer suggestions on what may work aesthetically. They took Shonda’s offerings with skepticism at first, but after a few more, Freighla realized that the woman did have a more than fair grasp on the Nord customs and culture in regards to garb.

Reglin took it all in a stoic fashion, acting as a dressing dummy for the most part. It did not take long in the grand scheme of things. The guard was then disrobing once more while they watched him do so. This voyeuristic thrill was new to Freighla as well. Another thing to contemplate on later, she thought. He dressed much quicker than he had in stripping and was ready to escort the two women back to their quarters whenever they were ready. Wilmyna and Freighla bid a fond farewell to the tailor, who did the same in return. She then told Reglin when to come for his Dress uniform. With that, the Nord women and the guardsman headed back, Reglin once again offering his arm to Wilmyna, and once again offering a conciliatory look to Freighla.

Once back in the living quarters, Freighla was about to say her farewells to Reglin when the thought was interrupted by Wilmyna, “Dear Freigh, would you be so kind as to head to the kitchens. I am feeling parched and a bottle of red would not go amiss. And perhaps some fruits? Something to tide us over until midday’s meal?” Freighla was mildly startled by the request. Wilmyna was in no subtle way asking to be along with Reglin. And though she could not fault the girl, another pang of envy hit the towering woman.

She let the feeling go once more, and bowed her head to Wilmyna, “Of course, my Lady…” She then turned to Reglin, “In case you are gone before my return…” She made that sound more than a suggestion, “Thank you once more for allowing us this fancy of ours. Though, I am sure that it is not without its own benefits…” She allowed herself a flirtatious smile for him at that and was rewarded with one of his own in return, the man giving her a gracious nod and a farewell. And then Freighla was out the door and off to the kitchens…

~This is knowledge for the Reader~

The Affection Multiplier

~Mana: 496 (+39) 535~

~Mana Channels: ~Labiae Passionii (Lips of Passion) free, ~ Corpu Vigorii (Vigorous Body) 100, ~ Uirtau Proelium (Martial Prowess) 100, ~Mensu Lucidae (Bright Mind) 100, ~ Tactu Beatae (Blissful Touch) 100, ~Plurem Amatrixae Normalii (The Normalcy of Many Loves) 500, ~Corpu Libidaem (Lustful Body) 100, ~Corpu Spectabilum (Intimidating Body) 100, ~Mentulae Potencii (Potent Cock) 150, ~Limbu Infinitum (Endless Loins) 100, ~Voluptae Gustatum (Delightful Flavor, Gratify the Appetite), ~Figurae Cultura (Shaping Culture), ~Vulgum Venerae (The Love of the Masses), ~Corpu Vigorii Magii (A More Vigorous Body) 400

~Lovers~ A: 200 E: 200 L: 200
~Tabitha~ Affectionae: 100 Erosii: 100 Libidae: 100 (Effective 61)
~Asha~ A: 100 E: 100 L: 100 (Effective 54)

~Royal Polivander House~ A: 74 E: 43 L: 80

~Nobles~ A: 104 (+4) 108 E: 8 (+1) 9 L: 64 (+5) 69
~Lady Wilmyna~ A: 63 (+4) 67 E: 8 (+1) 9 L: 49 (+5) 54
~Lady Falina~ A: 16
~Lady Vidala~ A: 25 L: 15

~Royal and Noble maidens~ A: 187 (+5) 192 E: 7 (+1) 8 L: 119 (+3) 122
~Maiden Caterina~ A: 18 E: 1 L: 2
~Maiden Gwynfuir~ A: 15
~Maiden Erynna~ A: 5
~Maiden Oliyah~ A: 29 L: 19
~Maiden Iridia~ A: 4
~Maiden Freighla~ A: 71 (+5) 76 E: 6 (+1) 7 L: 64 (+3) 67
~Maiden Deela~ A: 12
~Maid Camilla~ A: 30 L: 34

~Day watch~ A: 238 (+11) 249 E: 3
~Grahm~ A: 40 (+1) 41
~Lim~ A: 62 (+1) 63 E: 3
~Boll~ A: 40 (+1) 41
~Halpern~ A: 29
~Nimit~ A: 22
~Gamil~ A: 9 (+1) 10
~Magnurs~ A: 12 (+2) 14
~Canith~ A: 12
~Yohan~ A: 9
~Sebestin~ A: 3 (+2) 5
~Yorick~ A: 4 (+1) 5

~Evening watch~ A: 22

~Night watch~ A: 6

~Palace Staff~ A: 55 (+9) 64 L: 6
~Lina~ A: 48 L: 6
~Govren~ A: 7 (+4)
~Shonda~ A: 0 (+5) 5