That was a pretty intense chapter right there - Pappy sure brings out the worst in Teresa!

And I agree with D. Foxy - if Teresa isn't a lisbian, that would have ended with a kiss. Nothing like anger/rage to get the hormones roiling!

And I really, really enjoyed the interaction! I'm looking forward to the training sessions - I bet Pappy is going to push more of Teresa's buttons!

I have some back-tracking to do, having missed a chunk of Teresa's story - reading the most recent chapters definitely makes me want to go back and get it sorted, to see why she is where she is. Nice emotional writing there, her frustration with what she sees as needles bullcrap.

I agree! Red does indeed have a temper. By the effectiveness of your writing though, I confess I was ready to hit Pappy too - even though we have to admit he makes perfect sense. Simply fascinatingly wonderful stuff!

Really, really well done! :read:




One tiny typo methinks -
The kitchen was a simple affair, with an ice box, a large stove, an oven, and numerous cubpoards {cupboards} along the walls.

Oh, same here. This was a great chapter. You really know how to get emotions across

D.Foxy: I guess my sixuality shows there, because I never imagined Teresa kissing Pappy. As cool as some men can be, I cannot imagine why any woman would want to do that.

I am glad you picked up on Pappy's wariness. In his position he has people lying to him all the time in order to get into to the guild. After losing so many of his people at Bruma, he is more determined than ever that the new chapter he is building be the very best it can be. So he is more ruthless than ever before at weeding out the ones who are full of imp chips.

mINX1: There are no cat-fights in the TF (unless maybe two Khajiit are fighting... ). That thing Teresa (not me) was doing with her arm was 'roostering' it back. Only the word I used started with the letter "c".


hauteecole rider: Maybe I should have made it Tadrose giving the entry exam? Then we could have seen some hot T-on-T action! :wub:

Pappy did bring out the worst in her. But that is because he was purposely trying to in order to judge her character as well as her abilities. When it comes to new recruits, he is actually more interested in their attitudes and how they handle themselves than their fighting abilities. He can always teach them to fight. But he cannot teach them to have nerve, or sense.


Leydenne: Hi Leydenne :wave: Long time without me sending you any racy material! I am glad you liked the most recent stuff, as it not only showcases Teresa's strengths, but also her weaknesses.


Acadian: Thank you Acadian. This was difficult to write, because one of the things I wanted to show was that in spite of how mature Teresa can often act, she is still eighteen years old and she has a lot to learn yet about controlling her emotions.

And thank you for catching my cupboards for me...


Jacki Dice: Thank you Jacki. I guess I have seen enough people angry with me that I know how to describe it!

What is "coostering?" Should I look it up in the Urban Dictionary?

:rofl: Cocking her arm back is fine. Dropping the 'ing' will trigger the censor however.

ROFL !!! Well, she said "roostering with a C" - ROFL !!!! ... OH! ...Wait, I think I get it now !!!! ROFL !!! (you would never know I grew up on a farm, lol) .

Welll, well, a rooster with a booster is as hard as a rock,
And to rhyme with that word, think of a lovely...er...sock?
The auto censor really cuts out words sometimes needed,
Why, when I tried to say Khajit ..er..putty.. its sensitive ears bleeded,
And sometimes when I mistakenly type .. cunn...instead of can't
I have no doubt the auto censor goes into a self-righteous rant
But then, I am a lover of language, a linguist in actual fact,
And a cunning linguist like me sometimes misses out on tact,
using words that may have entrende tres double out of my hat!
So beware, writers here, of the misused or pronunced word
It may look good on screen, but not quite when it's heard!

LOL...oh dear...warning to all: know that your keyboard is imperiled when you bring tea to your computer whilst reading a thread contributed to by the two Minxes, DFoxy, or Acadian!

:rofl:

Foxy, how you come out with these! I learned a new word this morning (early) - Rager !!! ... I ... let me explain, I saw it on a thread on here and looked it up...not what it sounded like.

Foxy, how you come out with these!

Remember the old musical "Annie get your gun"?
And that old song, which still gets me some...

"Grandpa Bill is on thar hill
With some-a-one he jes' married
Thar he is at NINETY-THREE,
Doo-in a-what comes natcherally!!!"

It just comes... naturally. :hubbahubba:

Lacking the ribald wit of the other verbal pundits here I will just say that your characterizations continue to be rich and totally absorbing. I was a big fan of the Wild Wild West and Baa Baa Black Sheep.

This just made me cackle aloud. Startled my cat.

No talk of "coosters" or coxswains, nor even poetry from me- just a long savoring of all the wonderful writing I have missed.



Although it certainly feels like it sometimes?.

Lovely descriptions, interwoven with the emotional encounter at the inn. No words of mine can encompass the "rightness" of your story. It simply?is.

The letter was wonderfully done- it still had Teresa's conversational feel, as well as showing her desire to avoid "difficult" topics.

Excellent view of Bravil- and a subtle insight into Teresa's changed perspective- asking the guardsman for directions. Which moment is quickly followed by the scene with Aia- showing that our elf has not forgotten her own early years.

Loved the meeting and interaction with Tadrose- and the "wall of infamy" was a brilliant touch.

I so enjoy training scenes, especially when the trainer is given such vivid life and realism.

Your take on the guild standards also rings true- much more so than the game system, which allows the player character to join whichever, whenever- and then quite frequently, not do anything. A guild is a trade union on steroids- you have to prove yourself worthy of admission, you have to agree to a pretty serious "non-compete clause," and you have to maintain your standing. And all of that is ably conveyed even as the story moves forward.

Forgive me for arriving late to the TF, but I am all caught up now and let me just say that I am thoroughly impressed. Now I have you to blame for ignoring my own fiction because I have been helplessly lost in Teresa's story.

Teresa is an extremely well-rendered character, but her impassioned plea to Pappy Vitellus perfectly sums her up to me:

"He showed me that I could be a better person than I was, that I didn't have to be a street urchin all my life. He showed me that I could make a difference in people's lives. I can still see him in my head, and hear his words. There is nothing I would not have done for him."

"I'm sorry that I don't have statues of me like Baurus does, or bard's singing about me, or a grass crown like you." Teresa went on. "I'm not a hero. I'm just a regular person. But that doesn't mean I cannot do my part to make the world a better place to live in. The Emperor believed in me, and if he did, then you should too."

I beg to differ, Teresa. I believe the passage underlined defines you as a hero.

I hesitate to bring up a conversation that already seems to be over, but I enjoyed the in depth discussion of Cyrodiilic politics as pertains to the City Guard, the Legion, and knighthood. I think your conclusion that the various City Guard serve as a type of police force appointed by the Count and loyal to him rings true. From my point of view, if you consider the Counts a vestige of interregnum, when feudal lords ruled their own fiefdoms in a divided Cyrodiil, then perhaps these Counts are possessed of more autonomy than at first seems apparent. It occurs to me that if the Elder Council were in fact the governing body of the entire Empire, then they should have had the authority to order local Counts to deploy their militias to Kvatch's defense. Posturing aside, it seems that the reach of the Elder Council does not extend past Lake Rumare. It also presents some very interesting possibilities involving conflict (mother's milk to every writer) between the City Guard and the Legion.

bobg: Thank you bob. It is nice to hear that hauteecole and I are not the only fans of R Conrad out there. Hmmm, I wonder if Netflix has Wild Wild West?


treydog: Woof! Thank you dog. It is quite a shift from Teresa thinking how there is nothing worse than the Imperial Legion in Not A Hero, to seeing her asking the guardsman for directions in the last chapter. She really has changed quite a bit since she started out. As one of my favorite song lyrics goes "Man I ain't changed, but I know I ain't the same."

I was always very disappointed with how lackadaisical the game treats the guilds and other factions, in that people can join the mages guild without knowing any magic at all, just to get access to the enchantment altars. Or join the FG just to get a place to sleep everywhere. Or join the DB just to get a few of their magic items like the Shrouded Armor, etc...

I am glad the FG is coming across in the way I was hoping (as we had discussed in PMs a while back). The Mages Guild will be even more of a commitment than the Fighters Guild. They will have people literally working all day, every day, churning out consumer magic items, potions, and scrolls. They will be more of a corporation than a guild. I am not sure where I will be able to get that across. Possibly through Teresa's relationship with a certain high elf in the Bravil MG...


Destri Melarg: Hi Destri, :wave: Welcome to the TF. Let me pour you a glass of Tamika's while you sit by the fire for a spell and relax.

Thank you. I am glad you liked Teresa's little soliloquy. I worked hard on that to try to make it both moving, but also appropriate to something Teresa would say (her being no master rhetorician). It needed to be something from that heart that would make a jaded and cynical guy like Pappy pause enough to give her a chance. I am glad it worked!

On the subject of heroism, and what qualifies as such, that is something I am going to tackle in a few chapters in a dinner between all the members of the Bravil FG.


All: I am putting the finishing touches on Chapter 13 now. Expect to see it in the next day or two.

This will be a short one, but I do not want to cut it in the middle of the next scene.

* * *

Chapter 13a ?The Lucky Lady


Teresa wiped the tears from her eyes and looked up to find that she was standing before the statue of the Lucky Old Lady. Why was she crying? she wondered. She did not feel sad. She had been so furious just a few minutes before. How could her emotions go from one such extreme to another?

As she looked on, one of the city guardsmen walked past her and stepped right up to the statue. Leaning forward, he pressed his lips to the stone of her skirt in a kiss. Then he smiled up at the statue's face high above and walked away. Teresa forgot all about her tears and the trembling in her limbs as she stared after him.

"See, everyone knows about the Lady!" The thin voice of Aia made Teresa start. Wiping her eyes once more, the wood elf turned to see the beggar was standing behind her.

"Oh goodness, what's wrong dearie?" The old woman's voice dropped to a somber tone as she saw Teresa's eyes, red and puffy from tears. "What did that man say to you? Did he run you out like all the others?"

"What?" Teresa stammered, wondering how the beggar knew. "I don't know?"

"That Vitellus, a hard one he is," Aia said with a reproachful sound in her voice. The old woman raised a trembling arm to brush Teresa's fiery locks from her face. "Near a dozen young ones like you gone into that guild of his looking for work, and turned them all away he has. Don't you feel bad 'cause of him young lady, there ain't no pleasing that one."

"Really?" Teresa said, thinking back to the rigors that Pappy had put her through. "What does he tell people he does not want? Does he say to come back later?"

"Oh no!" Aia exclaimed. "Tells them right out they ain't good enough for 'em he does. A lot of them was right big fellas too, and turns them away he does."

"Oh." Teresa murmured. Then maybe the guild commander had been telling the truth after all, she thought. She could not understand why he would offer to train her for free. Yet when he had said to come back in two weeks she had known deep down in the pit of her stomach that he was lying to her. She was just a prole, she thought, nothing but a street urchin. How could she ever be good enough to be part of a guild? He had just told her that to make her go away, had he not? She had felt so certain of it, how could she have been wrong?

"Is that what he told you did he?" Aia asked, "not good enough for 'em you was?"

"No," Teresa said. "That's not what he said at all." The tremble in her limbs was gone now, as was the urge to cry. Suddenly she was intensely aware of how bright the sun was overhead, warming her skin with its kind embrace. Now her ears noticed the gentle tones of birds singing, and her eyes saw the green leaves of the trees rustling overhead. Somehow the world seemed right again.

"Was it the evenin' he was invitin' you out to then?" Aia winked. "One for the ladies, that one is! Got a new one on his arm every week he does."

"No, not that either," Teresa shook her head. "I am sure I am too stringy, that is what everyone says."

"Oh you are the prettiest little thing ever!" Aia exclaimed with a smile, even though she was shorter than the wood elf. "And don't let anyone tell you different. Exotic you is with that pale skin, men like that you know?"

Teresa had to stifle the urge to laugh. Exotic was the last word she would ever use to describe herself, she thought. Looking up at the statue, she suddenly felt the urge to lean forward and kiss it herself.

"Have you ever kissed the Lady?" she asked.

"This morning I did," Aia said, continuing to grin, "and look how my luck's been so far!"

Teresa did smile faintly then. That was enough for her. Stepping forward, she pressed her lips against the cold stone of the Lucky Lady's skirt. She was not sure what she was expecting to feel, but nothing happened when she did, nothing dramatic at least. Not that she knew how it felt to be lucky in the first place, she thought.

"Now there you go my Lady Teresa!" Aia said, "your luck's about to change it is!"

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v90/subrosa_florens/oblivion/Oblivion295.jpg

Lovely! Yes, it is short, but sublimely sweet!

We will see if Teresa's luck is about to change, won't we?

:read: Ahah. I caught one faint smile and zero lip biting, so - a few tears notwithstanding - things are well. I found Teresa's tears, and her confusion over them, beautifully and realistically presented. She's such a girrrl!

It is wonderful that Teresa is discovering the wonders and subtle beauty of the City of Mara. I could hear the birds chirping and the leaves rustling on this beautiful day.

Just lovely, SubRosa. A precious interlude. With a character as endearing as Teresa, even the simple things are a pleasure to read. I quite enjoy learning her perceptions. You bring Teresa, and everyone/thing she touches to life beautifully.

I like Aia. I suspect that she may remind Teresa of Simplicia in some ways and I'm glad to see the two of them as friends.

Somehow, I see Teresa as unlikely to be swayed by the womanizing ways of Gaius 'Pappy' Vitellus. Wuddyathink?

Woo Hoo! Teresa is going to get lucky! Oops - I mean...er...That is the wrong statue. See, when you kiss the real "Lucky Lady," you get a boost. She is over there by the houses. ARGH! Tadrose to the rescue !!

In these quiet moments, Teresa (and her interlocuter) really shine... I loved the interior thoughts and the change in perspective that comes with hope...

This one is a gem. A roseate ruby, I suspect.

"No," Teresa said. "That's not what he said at all." The tremble in her limbs was gone now, as was the urge to cry. Suddenly she was intensely aware of how bright the sun was overhead, warming her skin with its kind embrace. Now her ears noticed the gentle tones of birds singing, and her eyes saw the green leaves of the trees rustling overhead. Somehow the world seemed right again.


And I felt like singing when I read that.

I suspect this will keep me smiling a goofy smile to myself at random times all day.

I like how you've written Aia's dialogue. It reminds me of Angela Lansbury in Sweeny Todd

Very nicely done...concise, elegant, and yet so enthralling!