Barn at the Rock

[Lilith Royce]

The lad who dealt with the cows was not in the barn when Angala and her strange traveller arrived there, probably was playing bones again with the shepherds. The castle was going to seed under Allard's regime. Lord Baldwin would have never allowed such sloppiness. But for now, such laxity would be useful. The boy was careless enough that he might not notice he had another cow in the barn for days. Even the man's bizarre desire to ride a cow was useful...the stablehands weren't nearly as dim as the cowherd.

Angala plopped the stranger down on a bale of hay and gave him an old dry blanket to wrap around himself, then let the cow in to one of the biars and gave her some hay that she munched contentedly.

[Deleted]

"Thank you," Alliser said in relief, his teeth under control. It was warm and snug, and he wasn't shivering. He eyed the cow's hay almost hungrily as his stomach growled. He couldn't remember when he'd last eaten. The shock and terror of the blizzard had brought back old miseries, the death of his brother...suddenly, Alliser felt very tired, and not in the mood for singing. What had he been doing with his life? Who was he, really?

"My name is Alliser Redfort," he said, his voice quiet and sad. "Well...it was, once. I'm the Mad Singer now, or something. While my brother is the Dragonslayer." He gave a bark of laughter, uncharacteristically harsh and bitter. "The Mad Singer and the Dragonslayer! There's a song in that, don't you think? Would you like to compose the verses, and have me stick a melody to it?"

[Deleted]

He sniffed his blanket and started laughing. "Why, I'm at Casterly Rock! I can smell dirty lions all over this thing. Very different from the last time I was here, I must say. The last time I jousted against the best knights in the realm, watched a little boy die and a Spicer get murdered, and the Baratheons came calling. I dined with Lord Baldwin and Lord Caron, and our good Hand the Redspear, bedded a highborn maiden of...which castle was it now? Some westerland wench with a fancy name. And now here I am, with a cow, and a servant girl, in a barn, smelling lions on my blanket. All I need is cheap beer and the scene will be complete."

He began laughing again, mirthlessly and loudly, and finally he began to cry.

[Lilith Royce]

Angala just stared at the madman. Lord Baldwin had mentioned the Redforts, a fine family. This was the brother of the now toasted Ser Garrett. Angala wasn't sure what in seven hells she was going to do with him, but it felt like he had to have some part in revenging her Lord Baldwin.

Occasionally, the servant's hall hosted the lower sort of hedge bard, the kind that lords didn't bother with. Despite his claim to a fancy name he looked very much like a low life hedge singer.

"Come along," she said, "The cook will have a bowl of soup for you if you sing her a song or two." For the first time she smiled. "The dirtier the song, the better. Real gutter mind, our cook."

[Deleted]

"I'm not so much better," Alliser managed a watery smile. "I'll serenade him with My Pink-Bottomed Maid if it gets me soup. Pink-Bottomed is not so different from Pink-Cheeked."

[Lilith Royce]

Angala rolls her eyes at this but drags the still occasionally shivering Alliser over to the kitchen hall where all the servants of the castle spent what few leisure hours they have.

The cow stays behind.

[Lilith Royce]

ooc: oops, just had him in the Kitchen hall. Why don't you edit this and put it under my intro to The Cook. The Cook is way fun

[Ellinda]

An S is placed above one of the cow stalls.