Feast at Sarum

[Geoffrey]

"Other than causing me trouble, your guess is as good as mine."

[Cedwyn]

Cedwyn shook his head. His father had always taught him that a landholder was as tied to the land as his peasants but with different bonds. He was their lord in matters temporal so that they would be free to attend to the Lord in matters spiritual. And they made the land work, a lord of the manor despite his skills could never do that alone. That meant peasant had to be taken care of, especially on a holding as small and poor as Winterbourne Stoke.

"I'm guessing they picked Falt thinking it was an easy target. None of your peasants right?"

[Geoffrey]

Rodric shook his head.

"Not that I'm aware of at least."  Rodric paused a moment.

"It may be that they think Falt is an easy target, but it's more likely that it's because we're right on the edge of the forest.  It provides plenty of places for them to hide and at least some shelter from the elements."

[Cedwyn]

"They must be taught a lesson, but I should like to know who their lord or lords are. If many are from one lord's lands, then the Count would surely like to know something is going on."

Cedwyn sighed, "But that is for another day. We ride on the morrow to teach the Saxons a lesson."

[Geoffrey]

"You have the right of it, it is for another day."  Rodric looked around at the thinning crowd.  A part of him wanted to share what he'd heard over the course of the evening, given the events earlier, there may be at least some small snippet of truth to it.  But on the other hand he may just end up adding fuel to the rumor fire.

"You handle yourself much better than I in these surroundings." he said, giving an honest compliment to his friend.

"I have yet to understand many of the nuances and social graces that situations like this call for.  And the stories one hears, likely more fiction than fact."

[Cedwyn]

Cedwyn nodded.

"It was ingrained in me. 'Pay attention to people and the rest follows' Father always said. Look to what they do and not what they say, the Bible says as well."

Cedwyn smiled and added, "It also a few passages about rumormongering but I fear too many rumors contain grains of truth."

[Geoffrey]

"It is exactly that which concerns me." Rodric replied to Cedwyn's remarks about rumors containing grains of truth.

"Ear to the ground I guess." Rodric thought out loud, deciding he'd have to do his best to pay closer attention to certain things.

"Well," he said, taking the last sip from his mug.  "We have a long march ahead of us.  Perhaps it's time to call it a night."