Blade of Erogrund

Chapter 21- To Kill a King

When the last hungry mouth had consumed the last delicious morsel and the sounds of eating gave way to even more animated conversation, Ennor stood once again before the several hundred or so seated.

"Friends!" He paused a moment to wait for the banqueters to quiet. "As tonight is a night of celebration, let us continue the evening with dance, for do even the stars shine has brightly as the face of one who dances?" This sentiment seemed to please the assemblage as they responded with thunderous applause and whistling, despite the phrase sounding like an exaggeration to Godric.

"Very well then," Ennor replied, smiling. "Guards, open the doors so we may not be alone in our celebration!"

Bowing has they had before, the guards that stood beside each door into Rae-Oiron hefted the large gates and drew them open. Behind stood every collection of women, children and men that burst into the room, enthusiastically lining the edges of the Hall and around the tables until they stood precariously close to the pits that surrounded the chamber. It took a remarkably brief time for the additional hundreds of people to pack themselves in, whispering, smiling, and standing as solemnly as they could before the presence of their nobility on such an exciting night. Even several dwarves made their presence known in the front rows of the writhing crowd, but any others were lost among their human counterparts who possessed an unavoidable vertical advantage.

The crowd's appearance was a startling difference to the people Godric had grown so accustom to seeing in the dank streets of the city. All burdened mothers, angered watchmen, filthy children, seething merchants, and exhausted laborers made no presence in the Great Hall. In their place stood every assortment of proud men in their finest - a term that greatly varied from man to man - tunics as proper lords of their house, women in adoring dresses that varied from the finest silk to the plainest cotton with eyes shining excitedly, and children as clean as their mothers had been able to scrub them in fresh clothes standing wide-eyed at the glorious display of grandeur.

As the crowd found its place standing around the Great Hall, Ennor took Saraycir's hand and helped her from her chair, the two making their way to the vast space around the coffin that remained in the center of the room, surrounded by the crowd.

From somewhere a fair melody of flutes, harps, and other, less familiar, instruments began to play. The song they wove was sweet and quick, winding among the excitable people like a banner inspiring its army. The captivating music continued until it filled the room and the hearts of those within.

At once Ennor held the fetchingly lithesome elf that stood beside him and they began to dance with the music. Everyone watched noiselessly while their King swayed and stepped with the spry elf. The couple turned and spun fluidly in what Godric recognized to be one of the most popular dances of the Niron, if his memory of Agatha's lessons proved correct.

"They're beautiful, aren't they?" Agatha murmured, her eyes fixed on the scene.

"Um, Yes?" Godric stuttered. Suddenly seeing Ennor's confidence and poise made him only imagine how much worse he would be.

"Don't worry," Hilthwen said from several seats away. "Everyone is nervous their first time."

"There's nothing to it," Matthias added, swinging back a drink of something from his goblet. "Just don't screw up too much, and you'll be fine." His partner shot him a dark look, but he effectively ignored it by inspecting the crowd.

"And remember," Thain muttered,

"- keep my head down, yeah, yeah," Godric mumbled.

The dwarf scowled and crossed his arms.

Ennor and Saraycir stopped as the music ceased. There was hardly a pause, though, before again the unseen musicians struck up their instruments to commence another dance.