Ultimate Decades Challenge - 1308

1308 - Flowers in Bloom

The new year started off nice and peacefully as the Chapmans took shelter from the cold frost outside. Like many previous years they spent more time together as a family, playing games with the little ones and warming up with some stew by the fire, hiding away in their large stone farmhouse. There were many moments when the children would get bored with the same routine but they took some time to look out the boarded windows and get excited when spring would come again.

In their waiting they celebrated Linyeve's fifth birthday! Before the winter began in 1307 Byrhtnoth took some of the money he saved up from his successful day at the annual Praaven keep market and spent it on some flour, honey and nuts for any future birthdays that would come around. And so with these materials Olyff conjured up another delicious honey cake as it really felt like a major milestone for her children to get one step closer to independence.

The family gathered around to watch Linyeve blow out her candles on her birthday cake, playing with some noise makers that Olyff and Pipa made from straw, leaves and snail shells. Olyff held her daughter up to the honey cake they placed on the table and helped her blow out the thin candles, urging her to make a wish! Linyeve closed her eyes, scrunched up her nose and tried her best to wish for her to go fishing with her father.

Every time Byrhtnoth would come home from a fishing trip, no matter how long or short his departure, Linyeve was the most enthusiastic out of her siblings to ask how many fish he caught. Her father recognised her enthusiasm and once everyone gave Linyeve a hug he crouched down to her with one hand behind his back.

"I've got a very special present for your fifth birthday," he smiled. Linyeve's face beamed with excitement and she erupted into cheers and laughter once he revealed that he had a small fishing rod that he made by hand hiding behind his back. Although traditionally he would be teaching his son to fish alongside him The Watcher had only given him daughters but this wasn't going to stop him from passing on the skill to one of his offspring.

Linyeve boasted about how she was going to reel in the biggest and most prettiest fish in all of Praaven while waving her child-size rod above her head before being told to place it down and enjoy some cake that her mother made. Olyff served a slice to each member of the family and they all sat together munching away at their portions.

"When will we go fishing?" muffled Linyeve with her mouth full, getting a disapproving glance from her mother.

"When it finally gets warmer outside," answered Byrhtnoth. "Hopefully in a month or so, but it really depends on the weather."

Linyeve groaned with impatience and said in a high pitched voice, "but I want to go now! Why did you give me the fishing rod then?"

"It's your birthday. Birthday presents are given to people on their birthdays... not when the weather gets better!" 

Linyeve crossed her arms and looked down at the table with disgust. She felt like everything her father said was against her in particular, like he was punishing her for being eager to use her present at a moment's notice.

"I'm sorry, my love," reasoned her father. "I can't control the weather but let us pray to The Watcher that spring comes early this year." Olyff smiled at his comment but Linyeve rolled her eyes.

"I've actually got one more present for you," spoke up Pipa as she finished her honey cake slice. She stood up and ran to her room to retrieve it and did the same as her father once she returned, hiding the present behind her back. Linyeve stood up, a few inches shorter than Pipa, and waited for the reveal.

Pipa presented a knitted headband to her younger sister and said, "I made this myself for you to wear." Linyeve took the headband from her sister and tried it on. A perfect fit, and it kept her dark straight hair out of her face. Even though she wasn't excited about this gift as much as she was about the fishing rod she was still very thankful and gave Pipa a hug.

"Thank you, sister. I love it," she said softly. Pipa embraced her tightly and commented once she pulled away,

"It really suits you!"

The frost took a little longer to melt away this year but it didn't stop Olyff from teaching Linyeve the chores she would begin doing now that she was old enough. Pipa joined in on the teaching and got Linyeve up to speed quicker than expected. The two of them would group up in the mornings and feed the farm animals, collect the eggs and wash the dishes after breakfast, quickly making these chores their morning routine.

The last few weeks before spring finally settled into the land Byrhtnoth spent lots of time with his two youngest daughters. Eddida was still small but her fifth birthday was ready to be celebrated at the end of the year, while Teffan still had over a year to go before she was five years old. The both of them were very chatty and enjoyed playing with their father while their two older sisters learned the ways of farm life.

As the last of the ice melted away from the grassy hills of Praaven everyone had a lot of work to do across the farm. Olyff got straight into working on their crops, sowing new ones and maintaining any dormant ones in their field across the road. The parents agreed that more work would be accomplished if Pipa and Linyeve handled separate chores and so Linyeve had to learn how to clean the stables, which she complained about and attempted to avoid every time.

Byrhtnoth had not yet begun his fishing travels as the spring time was still young and instead helped out with some outstanding house work that needed to be done. He watched over his two eldest daughters completing their house work and scrubbed any dirty laundry and when he had some free time he minded his youngest.

After a dreary and rainy week the sun shined bright in the cloudless sky and Byrhtnoth decided that it was the perfect time to take Linyeve on her first fishing experience! He approached her after breakfast one day, once their chores were out of the way, and delivered his plan to her to which she responded,

"Yes! Yes, finally! Thank The Watcher, I've been waiting for this day to come!" She jumped up and down with excitement, her white linen dress bouncing with her and her father laughed with joy.

He prepared a pack with bait, some food and their two fishing rods and swung it onto his shoulders. He extended a hand out to his daughter and said,

"Come now, we will travel to a small, calm pond not far from home for your first fishing day."

Linyeve grabbed her father's hand with enthusiasm and they left home, walking approximately an hour before they reached a wild pond. There were reeds and bushes surrounding the pond's perimeter and thick trees granted some shade from the bright sun above. And so began Linyeve's first lesson in catching her first fish.

After many long hours of learning to hook on some bait, throw the line into the waters and reel in the fishing line Linyeve finally felt a bite on her rod. She began pulling it in with fervent strength and grabbed the fish once it was out of the water. She looked down at it and her face melted into disappointment... the fish was as small as her hand! 

She stared at it and heard her father stifle his laughter beside her. He tried not to make eye contact with her as he could feel her annoyed glare burn through him. 

"Throw it in the bucket and try again," he encouraged her, chuckling only through his first few words.

Once the both of them got into the groove they caught enough to make a dinner out of the fish to feed the entire family. The sun started to touch the horizon and they decided it was time to pack away their belongings. Byrhtnoth asked what Linyeve thought of the day and she responded,

"I can't wait to do this again, dad." Her smile was soft and genuine but she was clearly tired so Byrhtnoth took her hand in his once more and off they went trudging on home.

They were happy to see that Olyff had not started to cook dinner yet, even though the sun had fully set once they stepped inside the home. Olyff complimented their catch and Linyeve was delighted to be the one boasting about the fishing instead of her father. Olyff fueled her daughter's passion by helping her use her fish to cook a family meal: stew a la Chapman! 

Linyeve absorbed every compliment and praise she got around the table and dreamt only about fish that night. She was a little disappointed that she couldn't go fishing every day with her father but their little local fishing trips became a monthly occurrence after that day.

Now that both Eddida and Teffan were old enough to walk with confidence Olyff was happy to accompany Pipa to the local market and support her with selling various baked goods that she learned to make in the last few years. One day Pipa met a local boy that was only half a year younger than her by the name of Frank. Olyff watched over her market table while she socialised and played with Frank and she grew excited to see him almost every time she sold her baked goods.

Olyff especially approved this friendship as the boy's father was the pastor from the Lughaven church, Father Bruceus. When she first met him at the market she greeted him and thanked him once again for his service at the funeral last year, adding that she never knew he had a son a similar age to Pipa. They had pleasant conversations while their children grew closer to each other and Olyff couldn't help but wonder if Frank would be a future suitor for her eldest daughter.

It was also funny to know that this year was the first time that the Chapman farm was vacant. Linyeve would often accompany her father on local fishing trips while Olyff carried her youngest daughters to the market to help Pipa and her marketing. With this arose the worry of their home not having a lock on their front door and so Byrhtnoth installed one with haste.

This year hosted a brilliantly warm summer, the warmest summer that had graced Praaven in some time. The Chapmans spent as much time under the sun as they could, warming their hardworking bones with the sun's blistering rays. The farm was coming along nicely and Olyff had a lot of work cut out for her this year and in those moments she was glad she wasn't expecting a child; she was as energetic as she ever had been.

It was under this bright sunlight that Byrhtnoth noticed his wife's hair feature a few grey streaks here and there. When he pointed it out to her she was surprised but wasn't too concerned,

"It has been a stressful time what with the losses we faced. At least I'm still youthful in face!" she joked and her husband agreed, giving her a little peck on her soft cheek.

With this summer heat came a few tall tales that the parents had to endure from their eldest daughters. Linyeve was becoming very well versed in fishing and she got permission to go fishing at the local pond only a thirty minute walk from their home.

One day she stayed out longer than she had expected and the summer sun began to set. As she packed her equipment a wild horse approaches the pond and bows its head for a drink of water. Linyeve noticed the steed and gasped, grabbing the horses attention as it looked in her direction. She was dumbfounded to see that the dark horse had a long protruding horn sticking out of its forehead! She didn't know what to do so she grabbed everything she could and scurried on home.

Before she could explain herself her mother gave her a right scolding for staying out so late, "You could have been kidnapped or worse, young lady!" Olyff shouted, her voice reverberating across the kitchen.

"I saw a unicorn mother!" pleaded Linyeve, hoping she would believe her. Olyff blinked a few times before placing her palm on her daughters forehead.

"You're burning up. I hope you didn't get a heatstroke from all the time you spent outside today."

"But mother, I'm telling you the truth!" whined Linyeve, motioning with her arms.

"Sit down for dinner and head straight to bed," commanded Olyff before getting busy with some chores before retreating to her own bed.

Linyeve successfully convinced her mother to let her visit the pond again after a week of pleading, this time obtaining a carrot to possibly feed this magical unicorn. She didn't meet the horse right as she reached her destination but in the middle of the day, as her rod was tightly gripped in her hands, the fantastical horse approached again. She gazed at it with bewilderment, it looked so different to her family horse at home... and this horn that it had was just like it was described in the fairytales her mother told her as she grew up.

She gently set the fishing rod down and took small steps towards the unicorn and it met her eyes once again. The way it looked at her was with pure intelligence like any other and even when it shook it's head there were sparkles that rained from its mane. Linyeve got close enough to be able to reach into a pocket and fish out her stolen carrot, offering it up to the horse's mouth.

It accepted it with pleasure and nibbled it, tickling Linyeve's hand. As fantastical as it was it was extremely gentle with her and she didn't know how she would be able to prove this sighting to her mother. The unicorn stayed with her that day and watched her fish and before she packed to head home the unicorn raised its head and horn and conjured a fabulous rainbow that hung over the pond.

No matter how much Linyeve tried to explain this story not one person in the Chapman family believed her. She thought that maybe little Teffan would believe but she decided to copy her mother's reaction and shook her head. Linyeve was frustrated with how she wasn't being listened to and began to act out more often because of it.

But this wasn't all for Olyff as one evening when Pipa returned from the market one weekend she told her a story about how she met the king. Olyff was unable to accompany her on a trip to the market one week and now her eldest daughter is telling fibs too?

Pipa described how the King and Queen of Praaven perused the Tovar village market and that the pair bought some of her homemade biscuits as she jumped for joy. She even described how the King remembered her from the town market last year and asked her to send his regards to her father. Olyff remained skeptical, even with the last comment that Pipa made, and she wanted to believe what her daughters were saying but she felt in her heart that this was just a phase of make-believe for the two of them.

Once the harvest season arrived Byrhtnoth spent a little more time at home and helped his wife with any remaining chores she couldn't finish up. She spent this season growing their crops to perfection and collecting their bountiful yield in increments. With this brilliant harvest her husband made sure to ride into Praaven keep and deliver their finest vegetables to the King as promised.

It was at this visit that the King asked Byrhtnoth, "Did your daughter pass on my regards to you?" to which he positively responded with a stutter. Perhaps one of the stories that their daughters told was true... or were both of them the honest truth?

As the weather slowly grew colder Linyeve was helping out more on the farm and at home rather than fishing like she did during summer. She still tried her very best to convince everyone that she had seen a unicorn and constantly harped on about it to her father. He listened gently and with care but never denied her story, even if deep down he was just as skeptical of it as Olyff was.

And once again the farm went dormant and the windows of the bungalow were boarded up once more. But it wasn't all gloomy and boring inside the Chapman home as Eddida was just about to turn five years old! It felt like they had just celebrated a massive milestone but it's because Linyeve and Eddida were born in the same year.

Linyeve contributed to the cake making process along with Pipa and even Teffan, helping with licking the wooden spoon! The cake was baked and aptly decorated and the family gathered with lovely Eddida to have her blow out her birthday candles.

Olyff held her up to reach the cake on the counter and everyone cheered as the candle flames turned to smoke. Everyone gave her a big hug and congratulated her on turning five years old and Olyff shared a slice of honey cake with everyone. All of their children were old enough to comfortably sit at the table now and the parents felt comforted by the scene, even if they lost some children over the years.

As their tradition went, Olyff gifted her daughter a new dress which looked quite similar to the one she wore herself. She made sure that the corset she wore was made from wolfskin as it was bitter cold out and she wanted her to stay extra warm. She tried it on and it was a perfect fit!

Byrhtnoth opened up about sneaking off to his parent's bungalow in the last few months to collaborate with his father in building an easel for Eddida as he noticed how much she liked to draw in the dirt and dust in the farm. Olyff piped in and explained how she would help her make paint with berries and flowers and that she could paint to her hearts content.

They set up the easel in the shared living space near the fireplace and let Eddida have a go at painting on a thin sheet of scrap wood. She took her brush and the small selection of paint her parents had mixed up and let her imagination run wild on the canvas.

Her parents stood behind her and watched with interest and pride. Byrhtnoth took his wife's hand and gave it a kiss and she smiled back at him warmly before she put her head on his shoulder. And as this moment was experienced the first snow of the winter began to fall outside their window.

The Chapmans

1307 - 1309

Ultimate Decades Challenge - 1307

1307 - Saying Goodbye 

CW: mourning, grief, death

The Chapmans barely noticed the new year begin. The entire family was in mourning, even little Teffan being the youngest wasn't her happy self with everyone grieving around her. Their usually loud home had become quieter now that two voices ceased to exist. There was no better way to describe it other than that a tragedy had happened.

Olyff was the one who handled it the worst. The winter months felt long and cold, with only house work and child care to attempt to distract her, and most days after her chores she would lay in bed and stare at her thatched roof ceiling. Her heart felt hollow, she had just lost two young children in the space of a month and it felt like she would never move on.

CW over.

The renovated house had now settled and each room was adequately decorated for each purpose. They had turned what was once a small stone bungalow into quite a large farmhouse. The kitchen stayed in the same place but now featured a separate living area in the center of the building. At the end of the home was the few cribs they had left, one for each of their toddlers. This room featured a ladder that went up to Pipa's separate sleeping space with a fencing that opened up to look over their new living area. From Pipa's room you can see the parent's bedroom, which was accessible by ladder through the kitchen.

CW: funeral, infant death, grief

With Olyff's absence while grieving Byrhtnoth took responsibility with organising the funeral for his two children. He made frequent trips to the local church and graveyard to finalise all the details with the local pastor, paying the burial fee in full quite quickly to their surprise. The funeral was scheduled midway through January and eventually the day arrived.

This winter had been graceful to Praaven as it was missing any snow over the fields, only a nip of frost here and there. Even in Olyff's misery she felt a thought cross her mind that the crops would be happy and bountiful in the summer as a result.

When the morning of the funeral arrived Byrhtnoth let his wife sleep in and rest up for an emotional day. He and Pipa got everyone ready and set for the occasion and they planned to leave the youngest children at his parent's place for the day; they were delighted to spend time with their grandchildren afterall. Byrhtnoth had also delivered the bodies of his deceased children to the church earlier in the week so all they had to do was travel to the village.

The Chapmans were far too poor to afford any funeral attire, even if they managed to pay for the funeral and burial service in full. After the home renovations and survival through the winter they were back to the usual savings any peasant family would have. They put on their best gowns however and Byrhtnoth found Olyff sitting on the bed just before they left.

"Olyff, dear," he gently called out, "it's time to say goodbye." He walked slowly towards her from where he stood, the wooden floor creaking underneath him. Olyff felt him get closer and awaited his touch, and he delivered. He sat behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders, kissing her cheek and waiting for a response. A laboured sigh followed.

"The girls are waiting downstairs, we don't want to be late... It's inevitably going to be a tough day today but I will be right beside you every moment we endure." She looked at her husband as he finished his sentence, tears welling up in her eyes already. Olyff looked down and tried to blink them away, Byrhtnoth gave her forehead a soft kiss before taking her hand in his. They stood up and walked slowly to the ladder, Olyff hesitated to go downstairs.

"Don't worry about being strong for the girls," explained Byrhtnoth, one foot on the ladder. "They all understand the loss we have gone through. You're allowed to cry, my love... please do." 

And she did just that. She tried to keep herself together on the walk to her husband's parent's home but she didn't stop any tears from rolling down her cheeks. Once at their destination Byrhtnoth's parents said their condolences to the parents and hugged Olyff tight. They were sorry to not attend the burial but they were happy to watch their little ones. 

Pipa was asked again if she was sure she wanted to go to the church but she nodded with assurance. She may have not met Eawulf at all but she took care of Mabel and felt it right to say goodbye to her sister with her parents. They said their goodbyes and continued on to the village graveyard, only a short walk from the grandparent's bungalow.

On their quick journey there the sun brightened the greenery around them, peering from behind the grey clouds that loomed over Praaven every winter. The parents couldn't help but think that this was The Watcher looking over them as they went through a tough situation, consoling themselves that everything had to happen for a reason.

As they arrived the church's pastor was waiting in the grassy graveyard behind the holy building. He greeted the small group and commented on the brilliant weather. The ceremony was very short, it wasn't common for a peasant family to have a ceremony at all, but the small coffins containing the three deceased Chapman children were lowered into the dug up holes by Byrhtnoth and the gravekeep one after the other. 

The three graves were placed next to one another and small headstones were erected in the freshly patted dirt, each reading their name, year of birth and death and a short description of the person. The pastor said a prayer and left the family to mourn. It was only after the priest left did Olyff burst into painful sobs, the realisation of never seeing these children again had settled and her once hollow heart now felt full of grief once again.

Her husband rushed her into his arms and held her tightly as she cried into his shoulder. He felt a few tears trickle from his eyes too, it was impossible to not feel sadness when a life is taken away far too soon. Pipa watched her parents grieve and couldn't hold back the tears either which her father noticed and motioned to her to join their hug. She clung to his side, gripping at his winter tunic and wiping her salty tears against it. 

Their eyes eventually became dry and they stood in silence for a short while, glancing at each grave and thinking fondly of each relative they had lost. Pipa spotted some wildflowers growing near the cemetery walls and asked her parents if she was allowed to pick them. They gave her permission and moments later she set some down on each grave. It made Olyff crack a smile.

And so, there they were. The first to go, Cyneswith Chapman back in 1302, had not been forgotten by her parents but it was still unusual for them to bury old remains. And then, one after another, Eauwulf Chapman born asleep and Mabel Chapman too weak to thrive in 1306. They had now been placed to rest and life had to go on. The family looked at one another with soft expressions and agreed that it was time to leave.

CW over.

Before venturing back to collect their youngest children Olyff and Byrhtnoth decided to stop by the local pub that was just a few steps from the church. It had been so long since either of them relished an ale, with Olyff being pregnant every year and Byrhtnoth working hard to keep the family fed, so they thought a moment in the tavern would be pleasant. 

The Lughaven pub was quite old and musty and there were few patrons inside early in the day but it was just what the Chapmans were looking for. Olyff ordered two pints of their house ale and a small glass of mead for Pipa. The family sat near the bar and enjoyed their drinks before venturing off again.

"Why can't I drink any ale?" asked Pipa with a slightly annoyed tone.

"It has alcohol in it, love," answered her father. "Alcohol makes water safe to drink but it's not very good for children your age." Pipa pushed back her mead with a huff and she slumped down.

"If you drink enough mead you would get the same effects of our ale," Olyff commented as she swirled her drink in her pint glass. "And besides, mead has honey in it which will make you grow big and strong." She winked at Pipa and ended up changing her mind on the mead with her gulping down every drop!

Before they left the pub Byrhtnoth decided to check in on his wife, she seemed to be smiling more since they left the church but he wanted to hear it from her instead of making assumptions.

"I feel more at ease," confessed Olyff, "whether it's because they were all finally laid to rest or if I've just ran out of tears to cry... I feel better. I hope to continue feeling better too." 

The Chapmans went back to Byrhtnoth's parent's bungalow and collected the young ones and skipped on home. The sun was setting soon and they would make it home right on time before sunset. Although it was an emotionally charged day it was still a successful one and it started the tradition of burying relatives with the Chapman name at the Lughaven graveyard.

As the weather began to grow warmer the family spent more time outdoors. Chores had to be taken care of and children had plenty of growing to do. Pipa continued to be a great help in the home as she cleaned up after every meal, fed the farm animals and spent some time playing with her sisters. Linyeve was growing to be her favourite as she was the newly chatty one.

Linyeve had just passed her fourth birthday and was confidently walking and talking but the parents decided she is still far too young to join Pipa in various responsibilities; let her have just a year or two more of pure childhood bliss!

Eddida and Teffan were getting close in skill to Linyeve but were still a little too immature to follow in her footsteps. They continued to be happy little babies and especially thrived after the heaviness of grief subsided from the oldest of the Chapmans.

Olyff still spent some time grieving after the collective funeral but once she was fully energised like her old self she found their farm, right across the road from their home, in a state of overgrowth! She got right to pulling out any weeds and unwanted shrubbery from the ground and sowed new vegetables that would nourish them this year.

CW: miscarriage, infant death.

It was around this time that Pipa noticed her mother was doing better and she wanted to ask a deep question. She found her in isolation as she scrubbed some dirty laundry in the washbasin as she came out to feed the chickens in the morning. They exchanged greetings, spent a few moments in silence before Pipa broke it,

"Mam, may I ask you a sad question?"

"What is it my dear?" asked Olyff, slight concern piercing through her voice.

"What happened the last time you were giving birth?"

Olyff froze as her daughter finished her sentence and let go of the washing. She slumped forward and looked down at the linen articles swimming in the water, feeling a flood of unwanted emotion rush into her chest. She cleared her throat, collecting herself in the process, and replying,

"I lost your baby brother."

Lost? thought Pipa to herself, lost where? Her premature mind couldn't fathom how you could lose a child that you carried for nine months, she had to press for more.

"What do you mean by... lost?"

These words were striking Olyff harder than she expected, just as she started to ease on her grieving it seemed to all come back but she knew Pipa wasn't to blame for these feelings. She turned to see her daughter waiting for a response, the chicken feed slowly sprinkling out of her cupped hands.

"How can I say this..." she began, "as your brother was coming out into the world something went wrong inside of my body. I was in a lot of pain and when it was over... he was asleep."

"Asleep? Why didn't he awake?" Pipa's mind raced with all possible reasons before being met with the harsh reality from her mother.

"Asleep is a prettier word than dead." A chill ran down Pipa's spine as her mother uttered the words and she didn't know how to react other than continue to scatter the oats and barley seeds with her head down. Olyff continued scrubbing and continued talking,

"When I finally held him in my arms he looked like he really was asleep... but he just wasn't breathing. This tragedy can happen to anyone anywhere and unfortunately... it happened to us." The mother and daughter didn't say another word until they both finished their respective chores.

CW over.

On occasions Pipa would go to the local markets to sell her baked goods, just like she did towards the end of 1306. There was one special occasion where she joined her father in going into the Praaven keep and bartering at a huge market that happened once a year in the town center.

There Byrhtnoth received the honour of meeting the King of Praaven, King Edmund, as he perused the various stalls of this momentous annual market. He sampled various vegetables, fish and even Pipa's baked delicacies and complimented the Chapmans for their hard work, spending a handsome amount of coin on their produce.

Byrhtnoth was ecstatic, this was the recognition he hoped and dreamed of but never could even imagine becoming a reality! It was in that moment that King Edmund's advisor shook hands with Byrhtnoth and sealed a deal that he would deliver a large batch of produce quarterly to the Praaven keep as their catch and yield was deemed a higher quality than any other peasant's in the land.

As the sun set behind the keep walls the Chapman's packed away what few items they didn't sell and counted the money they had earned. Byrhtnoth was gobsmacked and couldn't fathom what to do with all this coin, it was even more than what he had earned last year for the renovations!

His mind found a certain thought as he looked at his oldest daughter and realised that in 10 or so years he would have to start paying dowries for all of the daughters he had. Perhaps sealing this money in a lockbox and hiding it away for emergencies would be best and so he did just that as soon as they arrived home.

As summer came, summer went, with nothing astounding happening. Byrhtnoth continued his fishing trips and brought home food and any spare coin he earned from his fishing, staying closer to the Praaven borders than he did last year.

The girls all got along well and grew splendidly, though Linyeve was becoming a more grumpy child often criticising her younger sister Eddida for copying her in various ways. Eddida was hurt but loved her sister too much to sulk for long.

Olyff was happy to refrain from pregnancy after her loss last year. She would get intimate with her husband more as the year went on but they both stopped any deeds before they got anywhere close to trying for a child. It was a joint decision as they truly just wanted to look out for whatever family they had left over.

The harvest month arrived and the yield was bountiful. Olyff attempted to preserve some veggies in a similar fashion to how they preserved their fish for the winter, taking some cabbages and carrots and pickling them in a salt brine to hopefully snack on in the dreary months that were creeping up ever so quickly.

Once her farm work was over with she continued to care for the home and the farm, cleaning the stable when Byrhtnoth was out riding Beauty and making sure everything was neat, tidy and tucked away inside the house. But even with all of this she found plenty of time for her daughters.

And with that the first frost had arrived. Byrhtnoth spent less time fishing and more time indoors with his girls. His daughters had gotten used to the colder months meaning more play time with their father and they were more excited to wake up every day. He loved lifting them up and spinning them in the air as they giggled with glee, their laughter bouncing off every stone wall of their home.

Olyff enjoyed her warm baths during these long winter nights and even struck up some interesting conversations with her daughters, especially Linyeve.

"Why is dada not fishing anymore?" she asked one night.

"It's too cold outside," explained Olyff as she scrubbed her body in the bath, "all the fish hide away in the cold water."

"I want to see a fish swim!" exclaimed Linyeve as she held up an apple in the air. Olyff chuckled.

"I promise you, when you're older, your father will bring you on a fishing trip and you will see many fish swim in rivers and lakes across the land."

Linyeve smiled a half toothy smile and proceeded to babble a make-believe story as she bounced her apple along the ground.

The Chapmans

1306 - 1308