((Jessie or Juliana? XD Or does she have split personalities? I went with Jessie on this occasion, but if you prefer Juliana, I can change it. Eh also....apologies for the book XD Also if you want me to play less kidnappers then let me know, I got a bit carried away. Will probably colour code paragraphs in future to save confusion))
Faron
Faron tilted his head back, squinting up at the sun that was swiftly beginning to heat the earth beneath his feet and sweat upon his brow. The thick, somewhat worn, woollen tunic that he had been wearing to fend off the early morning chill was pulled off and tossed aside. A thin vest was all that was left to cover his upper body, displaying the muscles that allowed him to do his tasks as well as he did.
Working on the land was a fine occupation; in fact he enjoyed it immensely. Certainly it was hard, backbreaking labour but within a certain length of time the rewards were evident – good, strong, healthy crops and the approval of his current master. He had only worked on two estates thus far, but his current Lord was pleasant enough, his daughter on the other hand was another matter all together. She was pretty, there was no denying that and, though Faron would never admit it, he had spent many nights thinking of the little madam.
With a grunt, he shook his head and returned to tilling the earth in preparation for this year’s crop, the heat of the sun beating down upon him. No sooner had he set himself into a rhythm, the thud of the rake and the rattle of the earth as it was forced into grooves, that little Miss Jessie arrived. A faint groan escaped Faron’s lips as she deposited herself upon a nearby bench and began her taunting.
“Ah, thank you m’lady.” It was difficult to be polite, but he dared not say anything that might offend his master’s daughter for fear he would receive a beating, or worse lose his job. He began to work with great urgency, perhaps if he finished this patch of earth he could move further away and Jessie would lose interest. Sweat trickled down his neck, muscle flexing and relaxing as he swung the rake in rhythm, doing his best to ignore Jessie’s unfaltering stare. Surely she had better things to do?
Unlike the finery which the young woman wore, Faron’s clothes were worn and dirty. His slacks were worn through in holes around the knees and now seemed to be a permanent dark brown thanks to the mud and earth he spent most of his days in. His shoes barely held together any longer, the stitching having come loose and the leather’s ability to keep out water all but gone now. His status in comparison to the nobles had never really bothered the young man, at least not until he had met Jessie. Now it irritated him how one could be so poor while another was so very rich.
~~~~~~
With Jessie’s attention so fixated upon Faron, and the boy’s attempts to focus entirely upon his work, it was little wonder that neither of them noticed the approaching men. Then again even if they had noticed it was likely that they would have marked them as travellers; it was not rare for such people to cut across fields and large estates to shorten their journey. However, as they grew closer they looked less like travellers – firstly they did not have the luggage required and their direction was aimed directly toward the two young people.
“Silence the boy, I’ve got the girl.” A tall stern looking male hissed, careful to keep his voice quiet so as not to alarm their targets. The faint scrape of metal turned the man’s lip in a snarl as he reached out sharply for the figure closest to him, a gloved hand closing tightly around the other’s forearm. “Don’t kill him, Aziel. He might be...useful. Caulton, help him.” Two figures broke away from the first, moving round on either side, ready to close in on Falon once their leader had made his move.
Aziel -
Kole
Caulton