There has been a certain rumor circulatng around the Eored that the Campealdor and I are to be married. When, I have no idea, nor does Edelred. To be honest, I care greatly for the man, and I am rather certain he does for me and my son as well, but the thought of getting married so soon after our meeting seems a little ridiculous. Beyond that, its arranged, and we have little say in what goes on.
It seems that Miss Lillika and Sir Awiergan are our biggest advocates and have been planning the whole thing. Unfortunately for me, it is nigh impossible to avoid Awiergan as he is the closest thing to a best friend I have... Lillika however seems to spend a lot of time away from me... Perhaps it is all spent planning this... event. I haven't the foggiest idea. All I know is I have a dress and I know my wedding colors, and I know the groom.
I've known about the rumored wedding for a while, but the dress is a new thing. How I found out? Well, I evidently have a penchant for attracting the most unsavory of circumstances, and for some odd reason, some woman, who I recognize as someone from the Eored happened to be standing dangerously close to me... At least I should have guessed it was dangerous. Next thing I knew, she had shoved me, baby and all towards a fountain. I didn't make it to the fountain, and fortunately Raedan managed to stay in his sling (though I will say, he was quite fussy after that.)
I still have little idea as to what caused the shove, but nonetheless, a crying baby and terse words ensued. This seemed to attract the attention of Lillika quite quickly, who approached with who appeared to be some man she was courting. She tried to settle the matter, but it remained unresolved. She had determined that sit would be better to take me to do wedding things. Well that was lovely, absolutely lovely. She abandoned her beau, to take me dress shopping!
If it wasn't bad enough that she was planning this wedding for Edelred and I, she wanted to put me in a dress! I don't wear dresses. I wear tunics and trousers. Not dresses. I hate the things. But apparently, its forbidden for the bride to wear anything BUT a dress. I flat out told her that I would not wear a dress, and that I’d be wearing a tunic and trousers at my wedding. She would not take no for an answer to the whole dress issue!
I tried a different tactic then. I tried to tell her that she wouldn’t find a dress that fit me. I am tall and quite thin. Motherhood has been good to me up top, and on the hips. But otherwise, my body could be termed…awkward. I was certain she wouldn’t find something. But the woman was determined! She was determined to find me a dress. The worst part was the woman ogling at me. Eyeing me up and down as if I were a slab of meat at the butcher. Is this how weddings are supposed to go?
Finally, she stopped ogling me and walked up to hunt down dresses. Not a word to me. Which was fine. Maybe she realized I’d just say no to every dress. But it still seemed like hours as she looked through every dress people were selling. My only solace was Raedan on the floor trying to work on crawling as I played my harp. Every song I could think of, well except the ones that would lull both me and Rae to sleep.
An eternity later, she approached me with the dress she picked out… I could not believe it… It was the fanciest dress I’ve ever seen. Now, if there is one thing worse than putting me in a dress, it is putting me in a fancy dress. I don’t do fancy. I’m a poor woman. It isn’t me to wear fancy. The groom may have money enough to buy my whole village, but marrying him doesn’t change where I came from, and how I see myself. I do not see myself as a Lady, or that I’ll become one. I see myself as Rohweyna, a girl who made mistakes in her past, grew up knowing what it meant to work for what I want. I am Rohweyna, a girl who made a choice, who is not looking to marry to raise her standing, but marrying the man she loves, even if its not the time she would have chosen.
I tried to argue the dress didn’t present who I am, but Lillika refused to back down. She said that it was representing who I became. When I marry the Captain, I become a Lady. I inherit a family in the Eored. But that isn’t what I’ll become. I’ll be… me. Just married to the man I love. But I gave up. I told her to dye the dress whatever of my wedding color she chooses, and then after receiving her permission to dress my baby how I want, I walked out.
Maybe one day someone will see that I’m allowed to have the wedding of MY dreams, not the dreams of the Eored…
