A Calf Named George (RP - Krsna, Vel, Rhia, Zera)

Vel entered the hall, letting the heavy doors slam behind her, humming an off key tune, she didn't seem much bothered by the dirt on her dress. Reaching into a basket in passing, she pulled out an apple, giving it a quick glance before biting into it, the juice running down her arm. Her eyes twinkled when she saw her sister.

"Krsna! Come see what’s happened!"

Krsna turned from where she trimmed the wild thyme she had
just picked from where it grew in bunches around the back door. Glancing at Vel she smiled, turning back to her task.
"do not yell, Vel, and for heaven sake, you are trailing dirt on the floor."

Vel looked down at the floor and pushed at a leaf with her toe.

"I'll clean it later! Come see!"

"one moment." *Krsna trimmed the ends of the last bunch, and deftly wound twine around the stems. She walked over to the drying rack and hung them carefully, then replaced the small knife in its sheath, tucking it into the pocket of her kirtle. She smoothed down her
skirt and looked up. "you must learn patience... now, where are we going?"

Vel laughed. "Patience is for the patient." She headed for the back door calling over her shoulder "I promise to work on that... later"

Krsna sighed and followed, wiping her hands on her skirt. They crossed the rolling green that led to the barn and the fields beyond, Vel several paces ahead as she laughingly
urged Krsna to move faster. As they rounded a small copse of trees, a gentle whickering met their arrival.
Vel ran over, calling to the horse. She gave it the rest of her apple, thenturned back and headed into the barn "In here Krs!"

Rhia, the milk maid, stood inside one of the stalls staring at a cow before gently reaching over and patting its hind quarters. "Aye Daisy, it's hard being you." She laughed a little as the beast's leg shot out to kick. Rhia jumped away just in time. "Silly cow, kickings are for kids" and laughed at her own joke.

Krsna entered the barn at a more sedate pace. She stopped at the threshold, looking in,
then lifted her skirts and stepped inside. "good day Rhia," she spoke genially as she passed.

Rhia turned around with a start , then visibly relaxed when she aw both Lady Krsna and Lady Vel. Offering a kind smile, Rhia stepped out of the stall wiping her hands down the front of her skirt "Good day to you both as well, hope it's finding to be a nice one?"

Vel stopped in front of the stall Rhia had just stepped out of. "Krs! we have a new calf! I think we should call it George." She looked back at Rhia "you haven't named it yet, have you?

Krsna looked past Vel to the small calf that trembled on unsteady legs next to its mother. "what have we here?"

Rhia nodded her head towards the new born calf "Well, I dare say we have a heifer but Lady Velveeta insists on calling it George, but I don't think she would mind too much." She leaned in to kick a bit of straw around underneath it "She'll lay down soon enough after she nurses. This puts the milk supply up a bit once I move her."

Krsna nodded, taking stock silently in her head. Veal would have been most welcome for the table, but another milker will be better in the long run.

Vel shrugged her shoulders as she looked at the calf "I was too excited to tell you... I didn't look."

"I have another that should be butchered as soon as I talk with Zera. She'll know if it's definitely ready" Rhia glanced at Lady Vel and smiled "George it is, she won't mind at all. And it's
more interesting then yet another Daisy, don't you think?"

Krsna looked thoughtfully at the calf. "Zera, I have not seen her for several days, is she gone
to the forest yet again?"

Vel reached out and patted the mother on its hindquarter "Call it Georgette. And we call name her first son George." She turned, not giving the two a chance to comment and went
out to see the horses.

Rhia shook her head as she watched the girl walk away and dto herself "Some day, she'll just have to accept where her meals come from" turning towards Lady Krsna, Rhia spoke a bit
louder "Yes, last I saw Zera, she had her cross bow and was heading towards the forest. "
The two women walked slowly from the barn in a moment of companionable silence.

Krsna looked out into the distance, then spoke as if an afterthought. "ah, then perhaps there will be venison." She looked at the field of waving grain. "The barley is coming along well. We are
blessed in our bounty." Then glanced past the field to where the ever present mist encroached, studying it for a long moment, then looked away, watching a lamb gambol across the grass.

Vel gave the horse one final scratch on its head and hearing her sister, went over to her. "I saw the herbalist today. She found something new in the forest and was trying to figure out what it
was. I suggested she see you."

Krsna Samsara nodded... "though, Zera might be the one she should see, she knows every plant in the forest... if you can coax her into telling you."

Rhia watched the sheep grazing outside the barn and mumbled something about fences before they tore apart the grains before harvesting or the make their way to the orchard.

Krsna Samsara looked at the sheep as well. "their coats are coming along fine... twill soon be time to shear and I shall have good wool to spin and weave.

looking down at her skirts Vel ran a hand over them in an attempt to brush some of the dirt off "I know.. but she's so....." She let out a small sigh and looked up, having given up on her skirt ever being clean again "I just thought you could talk to her."

Krsna Samsara looked back at Vel and smiled. "I shall, indeed. Yes, our Zera can be truculent, but we must be charitable toward her nonetheless."

Rhia nods and asks quietly with a frown on her face "I suppose I shall be shearing alone again Lady Krsna?" with a resigned sigh remembering the fiasco last time she had to sheer and the
animals running from her and off through the fields

Vel perked up at Rhia's question "I can help you Rhia!" She had a smug look on her face as she thought that helping Rhia shear would get her out of household chores

"Of course not, we shall all lend a hand on shearing day." Krsna was not afraid to work and was no stranger to the peasants as she often worked along side them to bring in the harvest or see to
the livestock. She spun and wove cloth for them with her own hands.

Rhia breathed a sigh of relief and absently rubbed the head of a lambthat wandered over and pressed itself against Rhia's leg. "Thank you Lady Krsna, I certainly didn't want to have that task all my own" she glanced towards Velveeta and frowned for a moment "You know, maybe
waiting until after the grain is harvested might be a good idea?"

Vel nodded and turned her gaze out to the fields "how soon until that happens?"

Krsna looked at the heavy heads of grain. "not long.... " she looked up just as several large raindrops began to fall.

Rhia felt a drop land on her head and sighed "Great for the crops and livestock, not so much the hair" and quickly ducked into the barn for cover before the rain became heavy'

Vel felt the first drops of rain just as Krsna looked up. She let out a sigh and let her shoulders drop. Rain meant she would have to go back into the house and one of her sisters would most likely try to get her to do something they considered "proper." She looked up to the sky to see how black the clouds were and started off in the opposite direction from the house "Ill go find Zera!" she called over her shoulder

Krsna smiled as she saw Vel's attempt to dodge housework. "I was thinking of walking to the alehouse for a cup of warm beer..." She let the offer hang in the air. "Perhaps there will be mulled ale."

Rhia walked over towards the stall with the new calf in it. She noticed that was laying down and not feeding. She dropped to a knee and rubbed its side. Leaning in she whispered "not hungry yet eh?" and glanced up at the Daisy that birthed it

Vel stopped in her tracks and slowly turned to Krsna "I'm sure Zera is capable of finding her way back. Perhaps I'll go with you. "She looked back to the sky as more drops began to fall "But
we should hurry. Rhia? What about you? Will you come too?"

Rhia stared at the cow for a moment and frowned calling over her shoulder "I better not Lady Velveeta" then let out a gasp "No way!" She quickly stood up and ran around the mother cow and felt her belly, pressing on it hard.

Krsna Samsara turned back to the byre hearing Rhia exclaim. "what is it?"

"It's another freaking calf!" She called out as she made her way back to the hind quarters and shook her head. "breach, already coming out..." She looked around for a rope.

Krsna Samsara looks with interest at the cow then back to Rhia. "is there anything we can do?"

Vel followed inside the barn, the promise of visiting the ale house quickly forgotten as she watched Rhia examine the cow. Rhia gestured to a coil of rope laying on a pile of hay. "Here!" Vel said as she grabbed it and gave it to the woman.

Rhia grabbed the rope and quickly tied it onto the legs protruding from the cow and nodded "yes, you can grab the rope and help me pull!"

Without hesitation Krsna tucked her skirts up into her belt and rushed over, grabbing the rope and looking at the woman for a cue when to pull

Unlike Krsna, Vel didn't tuck her skirt into her belt, it was already soiled beyond repair. She grabbed the rope behind Krsna and waited. Rhia jerked the rope slightly to bring it taut and said "On three, pull! 1.....2......3...NOW"

Krsna pulled with all her might, looking worriedly over Rhia's shoulder at the cow. Vel felt her muscles strain and the rope cutting into the palms of her hands as she pulled. The cow made a low grunting noise and strained against the backward tug of the rope, they could see the muscles in its side rippling, and they felt the calf move and inch or two.

Rhianon Evans contorted her face and grunts "keep pulling, she's gaining!" and yanked on the rope even harder knowing that the calf hadbeen in the mother too long since the first birth and getting it out would be its only chance for survival. Vel planted her feet firmly against the ground as she tried to gain some leverage and once again, pulled with all her might. The three of them heaved back on the rope, and again the cow made a strained sound, this time her front legs dropping to the knees.

Krsna looked alarmed. "Rhia, she is going down!"

Rhianon Evans looked at the cow and a look of consternation crossed her face "Damnit, pull on the rope now!" and desperately starts pulling it with all her , wishing Zera were there to help as well. Hearing the tone of Rhia's voice, Vel dug deep and pulled as hard as she could. The beads of perspiration trailing down her face with the exertion. Krsna pulled as hard as she was able, clenching her jaw and squeezing her eyes shut with the effort. The cow lowed with a strained, mournful sound and the hindquarters of the calf began to show.

Sweat dripped from Rhia's forhead and roll down her face as she tugged the rope with every ounce of strength she had. "Come on Daisy....you know you can push the baby out" she said between clinched teeth "just a bit more sweetheart."

Vel pulled again, her muscles crying with the strain "Is it out?"

The cow's head dipped, her sides heaved from the exertion. They pulled with all their strength, and with a great gush of blood and matter the calf expelled out upon the straw. The cow lurched over onto her side and lay heaving, the calf lay still. The women fell back onto the straw, so great was the force they exerted. The cow's breathing became shallow as blood pooled in the straw.

Rhia flew back and landed on the ground with a thud as the calf finally separated from its mother. Scrambling to her knees, she quickly crawled over to the small thing and pried open it's mouth shoving her hand inside of it and dragging out some blood and ooze. Without paying
attention she flung it out of her hand towards the ground and suddenly punched the belly to try and get it to breath. Vel fell back onto the ground and watched, fascinated, as Rhia tried to save the calf . Krsna landed in a pile of limbs and skirts with the other women, then quickly scrambled up, watching Rhia tend to the calf.
"Rhia, what can I do?"
She looked over at the cow, now laboring to breathe and crawled through to straw to its head, smoothing a hand along its jaw.

Rhianon Evans continued punching the calf as tears fell from her eyes. Punctuating with each hit, she cries "Make...it....breath....it....has...to..." when suddenly, the calf lifted it's head and gasped for air "....breath" Rhia finished and dropped her fist to it's head to rub it down with very fast motions. Taking a breath, she asked "How's Daisy?"

Krsna watched as the large, brown eyes glazed over and the cow breathed its last. she looked up at Rhia.."she's died. Best bleed her quickly Rhia, we can still save the meat" she gave the big head a final pat, then stood, pragmatically ."

Vel scrambled to her feet and made her way to the calf. Picking up a handful of straw, she started to rub it. "Will it be alright? " She looked to Rhia for the answer and unconsciously held
her breath as she waited for it.

Rhia glanced up from rubbing the calf and looked at Velveeta, nodding,
her voice raspy. "It has a chance, as long as it's fed." She glanced between Lady Krsna and Daisy. Dropping her head for a moment, she pulled herself up and walked over towards the hay. Wiping the slime from her hands onto the hay pile, she grabbed a knife and made her way back
to the stall. Stopping she stared at the dead cow for a moment before dropping her shoulders in resignation and moved towards it's head.

Krsna Samsara heard a commotion near the gamekeeper's hut and made her way out, wiping her hands on her skirts. "Its sounds as if Zera has returned, I will have her come in and see to the cow. Rhia, stay with the calf, we can not loose them both. "

Rhianon Evans wiped the tears from her face with the back of her sleeve and nodded in relief. Setting the knife down for Zera, she went back to the calf and said to Velveeta "We need to clean it up and get it moved to another stall"

Velveeta Biedermann watched as Rhia set the knife down. She turned
her head not wanting to know what she was planning to do next instead
she took in a deep breath and wiping the tears from her eyes, stood to
help the maid move the calf..

Rhia shook her head and knelt back down by the calf "We can't move it yet, we have to clean it up" and took a handful of hay and began to rub the calf down with it "Like this, and when the hay is dirty and bloody, toss it into the stall and grab more. Keeps the mess here instead of all over the barn"

Vel nods at the directions and without another word, and continues to rub the calf down. Zera quickly strode in, a surly expression on her face, mud encrusting her boots and breeks. She looked down at the cow then back up at the milk maid with a look of disgust. She shook her head and sighed. "I'll have to go down to village and get help. Have to drag her out, cant
bleed her in the barn."

Vel's head snapped up and she looked at Zera "Bleed her out? What do you mean?" Her gaze shot from Zera to Rhia, waiting for the answer.

Rhia caught the look from Zera and straightened her shoulders. Leaning back on her heels, she told Velveeta "We've gotten it as clean as we can, help me get it to stand up" and glanced at the
other calf in the stall then back to Zera. With a cold voice, she said"Breach and delayed birth for the second one born at least an hour later"

Zera Caradoc looked at Velveeta like she was crazy. "You daft? can't let all that meat waste." she nodded at Rhia's words then bends to the calf and takes it by the tail, pulling it up.."swear.. lady Krs is only one born with sense. up ye come lass *she talked much more civilly to the calf as she prompted it to rise*

Rhianon Evans suddenly pulled herself away from the calf and threw her hands up in the air "You know Zera, if you had bothered to stick around knowing a cow was about to give birth, it would have been helpful" standing up she turned to face the very tall woman "As it was, the three of us did our best and if that's not good enough for you then...- you-....deal with the aftermath" turning on her heel she moved to the other calf and pulled on it's ear to get it to turn around and walk towards the other stall.

Zera looked unimpressed with the outburst and continued shoving the newborn calf into the stall. "you see to cows." Was all she said with a grunt.

"Then stop swooping in all sourly ass and cranky when you don't think I do a good enough job" Rhia responded as she moved the one calf over to the other stall.

Zera made a noncommital noise in her throat.

Vel lowered her head as she followed Rhia, not wanting Zera to see the tears. "Rhia, how will the babies eat?" she asked quietly so Zera couldn't hear her.

Glancing at Velveeta, she replied. "By hand of course"

Zera got the calf into the pen with the other then turned without a word, striding out of the barn and down to the village to get help with the cow.Vel watched Zera leave and with a shake of her head,turned her attention back to the calves. "I'll help you Rhia. Just tell me when."

Rhia nodded gratefully at Vel "it's going to be often" and then offered a grin and laughed "but it will get you out of household chores"

Vel gave the maid a rueful grin "Is it that obvious that I hate housework?"

Rhia patted the calf gently on the head and leaned over to scratch the other one behind the ears "Just a wee bit, but it's ok" she lowered her voice and quietly said "I do too."

Brenhines Wen

Brenhines Wen, the White Queen, grows deep in Selcouth forest. A white Birch of great age and beauty, she rises in a majestic pillar towards the sky, even as her weeping boughs sweep back to the earth again. She is a tree of ethereal loveliness, and some say mystical power. Look there among her gnarled and ancient roots and you will see offerings left there by the peasants and villagers. It is said that if one sleeps in her shadow, Brenhines Wen will grant the sleeper lucid and prophetic dreams... but beware. If She does not accept your offering, you may never wake, and shall walk in the dreamland forever. The common folk believe her to be home to the Bendith Y Mamau, the fae folk of Wales, and so give her great honor and offerings on holy days, but give her a wide berth the rest of the time, lest they be drawn into the otherworld. Some swear they have seen the Will o’ the Wisp dancing in her branches, while others have sworn they have heard the howling of the Cwn Annwn, the death dogs, and seen their shadows creeping across her roots

The Story

1415
The Stables were abuzz with excitement and the doors to the dairy were firmly shut against the noise as not to upset the cows. The clink of armor and stamp of horses echoed in the cold, dewy morning as the Lord of Selcouth Manor and his men readied to ride out and join the forces His Royal Majesty, Henry V, against the French.
His three daughters stood close by, each one holding a precious family relic as the procession to the main road began. The eldest held a hunting horn, bound with gold. The youngest carried a golden cup, encrusted with jewels. The middle daughter, brought by the lord from a far away land, held a dagger of fine workmanship and set at the hilt with a blood red ruby. The few peasants and household staff followed solemnly behind the mounted men who trailed the somber Lord and the three young ladies.
As they approached the boundaries of Selcouth land, a strange tingle of magic could be felt in the air. This was not strange to those who followed, for it was well known that this was a magical place, and it was well accepted. The Lord raised a staying hand, and all who followed came to a halt. The three daughters approached him along with the surly gamekeeper, who carried the squirming body of a hare.
The Lord snatched up the Hare by the ears and took the jeweled dagger. He deftly cut the small beast’s throat, and the cup bearer brought her golden vessel to catch the blood. The gamekeeper retrieved the hare and stepped back into the watching crowd. The Lord took up the cup and the horn and then his deep voice boomed in the morning mist.

“We, your men, are away to war. Be kept safe until our return. The mists shall shroud you and keep you in safety. Do well until they again part.”

The mounted men crossed the boundary, gathering behind the Lord. He then poured the blood out onto the ground at the place where Selcouth land came to an end. He muttered quiet, ancient words of magic, then blew the horn a resounding blast. The fog closed between him and his daughters like a heavy curtain. The daughters stood for a moment, then retrieved each their item, and turned back toward the manor.

Henry's war eventually came to an end, but the Lord and his men did not return to lift the enchantment from Selcouth Manor. His daughters dwell there still... The enchantment holds Selcouth fast in its grasp, and so, as time passes for the outside world, it moves not for those within the mist. The land exists in between our world and the one beyond, and as such... one may encounter all manner of magic folk who come and go through the mist as they please. An occasional unwary mortal traveller will, from time to time, stumble upon the place, but once the mists have closed upon them, they can not escape for the land appears to them as an island with impassable fog and waters at every side. Many are the secrets and mysteries that lie in this magical place, and much is there to be discovered. Weclome to Selcouth Manor.

Seldan Cuth

On the border of England and Wales, directly North of Chepstow by 30 miles, lay the Estate of Selcouth, or so local legends say. A grand manor presided over by its lord, whose name has now been lost to antiquity, and his three daughters. But, like Avalon, and Atlantis before it, Selcouth faded into the mists, and its disappearance has been shrouded in mystery and speculation ever since...

Long, long ago, when Britain was still a land of warring tribes, and Wales was called Cymru, Selcouth land was known as Seldan Cuth. The Silures, a powerful and warlike tribe, built their hillforts across Seldan Cuth, and there they worshipped their gods and made sacrifices to them. They felt the strange currents of the land, which sat on several converging lines of power, and discovered many of its mysteries, guarding them fiercely from the Roman invaders. Eventually the Silures were subdued by Rome. Seldan Cuth changed hands many times, but its secrets were honored and protected by the local Welsh countryfolk. In 1066, William the Bastard conquered Harold the Saxon, and England fell into Norman hands. By 1100, Wales too had come under William’s strong control, and his Earls were settled all along the borderlands. The lords of Seldan Cuth were established, and the name transformed to Selcouth on the Norman English tongue. Though, in the eyes of the local people, the Normans were ignorant brutes, there were a small few among them who could recognize old ways and old powers. Such were the lords of Selcouth. The first Earl built his manor house of strange stones that held a green hue not seen in any quarries for hundreds of miles. It took many years to bring the unusual rocks to this remote place, but finally a grand house was built. Legend has it that any who lay their hand upon the stone could feel a strange tingle, as if something living inhabited the very rock itself. Legend also says that the lords of Selcouth were skilled in mystic arts and upon being granted their land, kept to themselves, caring for their peasants, and letting the wilds that surrounded their estate grow into a thick barrier that deterred any who would come to call.

This is all legend of course, and search as you may, from Chepstow to Abergavenny, you shall find no trace of Selcouth or its grand manor house. Just beware the mists.