For the Honour Of My Clan

Nolee nodded, looking at him. "When...when are we to wed?"

"I'm not sure, I never thought that far ahead..." Sheamus admitted.

"What is to...to happen to my village?" she asked softly as she stood next to him, playing with the hem of her tunic.

"Um..." Sheamus said, realising he never really thought much of this through at all.

Nolee frowned. She had always been the leader that her people needed but now here she was, set to marry a man she had not seen for years and had only met once, in order to protect her family. "Make your man Finlay rule it." she decided, "He seems fair enough..."

"If that's what you want." Sheamus said, knowing Finlay would run it properly, though he was reluctant to leave him behind.

Nolee nodded, "He...he seems to be a good man." she stopped, "Now...now about the nights leading up to the wedding. I...I will not lay in your bed. I am to be given a guest room, with no supervision."

Sheamus stood there with a stunned look on his face at her demands. He didn't have a problem with most of them. "No supervision?" He asked. "How do I know yeh won't...?"

"You will have to trust me. And...and you can set the punishment if I do try to escape..." Nolee softly said. She sighed, "besides, I have no lay of your land...I wouldn't know how to get back here..."

Realising she was right about not knowing how to leave his land, Sheamus sighed. "Fine..."

Nolee nodded, still a bit unsure. The cold air of the mountains made her shiver but she was sure there was something else to it. "Now where is that proud leader who will announce to his warriors that he has found a queen?" Nolee asked. "I'll even play the part of the terrified woman if you would wish for this to make you look stronger."

Sheamus smirked. "Oh, they'll know soon enough. Just not right now...and yeh don't need ter do that...are you ok...?" He suddenly asked, seeing her shiver.

"Its cold up here in the mountains," Nolee replied softly. "And...and what do you mean they'll know soon enough..."

"Well I'll tell them like yeh suggested, just not yet." Sheamus shrugged, pulling off his thick green cloak and wrapping it around her shoulders.

Nolee smiled as he wrapped the heavy green cloak around her petite shoulders, "Thank you m'lord. I am unuse to the cold mountain air just yet. And warn me when you are to tell them. I imagine there will be a big feast?"

---Nolee's current outfit...

Sheamus smiled. "I've been out here fer years...and this isn't as cold as it gets. It takes getting used to. And yes, there will be, I can't deny my men a chance ter drink now, can I?" He asked, grinning.

Nolee frowned, "I can't imagine it getting any colder than this. Perhaps when it snows maybe. But this is very cold. And as for the feast, I expect that is where I'll be shown off like a prized horse."

"When it snows, yes it gets much colder." Sheamus warned her. "I wouldn't treat yeh like that. Yeh aren't a horse at all..." He frowned.

Nolee frowned, "Forgive me. It is just a figure of speech, m'lord."

"It's fine..." Sheamus mumbled. He ran a hand through his hair as he looked around at his men, who were still packing up the camp.

Nolee was silent, waiting until she was told what to do in order to make Shea happy. He was obviously not a man who had contact with many women and if he did, they were never of the same rank or even close to the same rank as he was.

"Yeh...can go tell Finlay ter let your two friends free from the trees...if yeh warn them about there being punishment fer tryin' ter flee..."

Nolee nodded, walking briskly to Finlay, "Kind sir, Lord Sheamus says that you can unchain Evan and Kofi, but that they are to know the punishment for fleeing."

Evan looked as if he had been struck by Nolee, "You bargained with him didn't you? Your selling us out?"

Nolee shook her head, "No, no I'm-"

Evan shook his head, "You gave in to him. I can see it in your eyes."

Kofi frowned at Nolee. "What did you offer him in return?" He asked, speaking to her for the first time since they'd been captured. He looked at Evan with concern, hoping she hadn't agreed to give Evan into something bad.

"I'm going to wed him," Nolee softly said, clasping her hands in front of her while she stared at the ground.