<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 150%; line-height: 116%;"><span style="color: #8040FF">House of Ostergaard</span></span><br/><span style="font-size: 130%; line-height: 116%;"><span style="color: #8040FF">Castle Ofertha</span></span><br/><br/><a class="postlink" href="http://aidanmoher.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/the-huntress-by-s-ross-browne.jpg">[ img ]</a><br/><br/><span style="font-size: 150%; line-height: 116%;"><span style="color: #8040FF">Valkyr Thyra Ekundayo</span></span></div><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="color: #8040FF">"It's one of Felix's horses. Freya would not appreciate it if I ran off with hers, considering where she'll find herself when she wakes up,"</span></span>Thyra said with a grin. It was too bad she wouldn't be around when Freya and Felix woke up together. She mounted her own horse and they were soon off.<br/><br/>Melina seemed hesitant in something, constantly cutting glances to Thyra, her eyes thoughtful. Thyra was just about to snap at her to get on with it when Melina finally spoke,<span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="font-style: italic"><span style="color: #008000">"When you speak of your past it sounds very bitter. As it is obvious that you are not from this region, am I save when I assume that it was your past that lead you into this area and that you didn't do it out of free will?"</span></span></span>Thyra was not surprised by the question, but Melina danced around her words so politically that Thyra couldn't help but be mildly annoyed.<span style="color: #8040FF"><span style="font-weight: bold">"Do you mean was I a slave? Yes. I was taken and molded into a fighter--an exotic, woman fighter. I made my lord a lot of gold, but what gold he made he paid with his life in the end,"</span></span>Thyra replied. She had decided to be honest with Melina as she felt it would have been hypocritical to preach without proof or example.<br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold"><span style="color: #8040FF">"Next time, girl, be straight forward. Your fancy dancing around words and topics may suit your lords and ladies just fine, but I am none of those things. I like honest conversation with honest questions. You burrow around for little morsels of information when you could just simply ask me out right. It's a deceitful way to have a conversation and I think you know that. From now on, be up front with me and keep that in mind as you engage with Lord Robert Cadell. He's a dangerous man, girl,"</span></span>Thyra said in reprimand, though not unkindly. She had a feeling Melina was used to speaking in code and often used mind games on people to get them to say or do whatever she wanted, but Thyra didn't care for all that. She was willing to feed Melina whatever she asked for, if she'd simply just ask.