Gawain huffed out a sigh, a hand running through his hair as his frustration grew. "Look, ye did nae want to keep talking to me and trust me, neither do I. I’ve more important things to do than stand around and take yer horse shit behavior. The men who worked with me last night, I can vaguely remember one of them shouting for the other, the name was Hansel. Is there a Hansel amongst ye?"
"And if I choose nae to answer?" The guard inched closer to Gawain while his hand went to the hilt of his sheathed sword. Gawain shook his head, muttering an unhealthy number of curses under his breath before he held the guard's eyes.
"Is that yer attempt at intimidation? A wee English lass could scare me better, and anything scares them. Ye look like ye’ve nae gotten a shit out in days. I do nae have time fer yer games, I’m wearing thin on patience and me hand is itching to slap that ugly look off yer face. Do ye’ve a Hansel amongst ye or nae?" The guard stepped back, eyes wide and the unexpected reaction he received, but someone from behind them cut in before he could get out a reply.
"Sir Gawain? Ye wanted to see me?" Looking over the guard's shoulder, Gawain took notice of the young man as one of the guards he was looking for. Gawain pushed past the first guard to meet with Hansel. "Me apologies, I was just passing by when I heard ye calling fer me. Is there something ye need?"
"Aye, the rest of the men that helped us last night. The other two, do ye ken them?" Hansel replied with a nod. "Can ye take me to them?"
"Is there a problem, sir?"
"Nae, nae at all. I only want to speak with the three of ye. Take me to them, the four of us are heading into the village." Hansel looked unconvinced but still went ahead of Gawain, who followed closely behind him. The first set of guards was now forgotten to Gawain as he thought of recruiting the men.
On seeing the men, Gawain concluded that they were young, perhaps only twenty summers old. They were definitely a part of the newer recruits Davinia had spoken about earlier. What thrilled Gawain the most was that the three men were willing to please the clan, it did not matter who they were under, they wanted to work. Exactly as Davinia predicted. He really needed to appreciate that woman more.
"I’m in need of more men, but fer now ye three are the only ones I can find that will actually work with me. I cannae jump into conclusions just yet though, I do nae ken if ye will accept me offer to be in me own regiment." Gawain addressed the other two men Hansel had found at the entrance of the keep. Boris and Erin, as he recalled their names, were placed to guard the inner walls of the keep while Hansel was inside the keep.
Out of the three, Erin seemed the most skeptical, shooting Gawain narrowed stares. He took the longest to convince out of the three but he was also the one to suggest finding more men and reporting to Gawain later, which Gawain was thankful for. His work had been cut out for him, and all that was left was to step into the village. Out of the three, he chose Hansel to accompany him, entrusting the rest of the recruits to Erin and Boris.
"We will start with the market though we have to make haste before the morning market ends. We'll go from the markets to the residential area, and hopefully get some of the villager's opinions of what they think needs to change." Hansel nodded at the instructions as Gawain selected a horse for himself from the stables. After being refused a horse, the groom stood skulking in a corner after he was verbally shot down by Gawain. "What are ye waiting fer, mate? Pick a horse, and let us get to work."
"Oh, I never knew I would get one as well. I assumed—"
"Ye assumed wrong. If either of us walks the entire distance of our various destinations, we'll faint the moment we see a bed fer the night. Hurry up, lad."
The ride was silent other than the crunching of leaves and branches under the hooves of their horses and the sounds of nature as they rode through the forest. The sun was starting to get high in the sky, and Gawain had started to doubt they would meet the morning market. He momentarily raised a hand to shield his eyes from the sun's rays before a cloud aided him as a small animal dashed past the front of his horse, startling the mare for a second before Gawain was able to calm her down, his hand rubbing against her shiny coat. He looked behind him at the boy he had brought along with him and caught him staring. Gawain frowned as Hansel looked down, his dark hair coming to fall over his face.
"What? Am I that handsome that I’m causing a lad to flush?" Gawain smiled when Hansel chuckled at the teasing. The last thing Gawain wanted was a strained work relationship. It was one of the things his father ignored, but Gawain realized during his training. Mingling just enough with those under you would bring about more respect. When facing his father's idea that fear brought about respect, Gawain's idea was rejected once again. "Is there something on yer mind, lad?"
"Aye, I was just wondering why ye chose me. I’m nae the best recruit to choose from, and from time to time, I even wonder what Sir Hector saw in me. But that doesnae mean that I cannae fight! Seeing that ye chose me fer such a hard task, protecting the villagers, it must mean that ye saw something in me, did ye nae?"
Gawain looked over his shoulders, contemplating of he was to tell Hansel the truth or not. He did not want the boy to run off or kill the boy's spirit, but Gawain found it extremely difficult to lie to him. "Nae. The only reason I chose ye and yet mates is because ye stayed to assist me last night. Ye could have left with the others who did not want anything to do with me, but ye stayed to salvage what was left of the clan's food.
An effort, nae matter how little is still an effort. Even though what we gathered would never be as much as what we would have gathered if the men who left us hadn't chosen their dislike over the clan, but it was better than nothing. I did nae see anything special in ye. In fact, it took me hours to recall yer name. Ye did nae have the chance to display any of her fighting skills, but what made me choose ye was yer loyalty to the clan. That is what I’m looking fer amongst me men." Hansel's head dropped, and Gawain gently pulled his mare to a halt, turning around until he was facing Hansel. "Speak yer mind."
Hansel let out a nervous laugh, his hand going to the back of his head to scratch. "Well...the older guards often tell us stories about ye. There are still a few who admire ye, sir. They told us that ye were in charge of the men before yer exile, that yer training was so hard, just the thought of it would scare off the weak man, and that even still, you'd only select the best of the best. They said ye were a difficult man to impress when it came to brandishing a sword so when ye chose me, I thought perhaps I was worthy enough... perhaps I got me hopes a wee too high. Me apologies."
"I see." Gawain trailed off, wondering just what else was said about him in that keep. Everyone seemed to have a different type of him locked in their head. Agreed that he was very strict when it came to the guards and soldiers, only picking who he knew actually deserved the right to protect the clan but the way Hansel said it made it seem like those men were actually proud to have gone past Gawain's training and not Hector's. "Ye sound like ye all have made me out to be some sort of war deity. I’m just a man, Hansel. I also seek approval from people, and that is where we become equal. Listen to me words again. Ye did nae have the chance to display any of yer fighting skills, but what made me choose ye was yer loyalty to the clan. Hector got in while I was in charge of scouting and training me men. If he has deemed ye worthy of being in the clan's army then I believe ye to be a strong soldier." Gawain believed his little talk worked as he saw Hansel raise his head, a new determination shown in his eyes. The boy shot him with a shaky smile still.
"Ye are more considerate than I expected. Thank ye, sir."
"Thank me later. We still need to hurry." Gawain gave his horse a small nudge, directing her in their initial direction before the horse broke into a throttle with Hansel's fast behind him.
Much to Gawain's surprise, he was given a warmer welcome at the market than he had expected. Word of the laird's left-hand man defending a trader until the laird himself stepped in, had spread into just the right ears earning Gawain a little bit of their acceptance though there were still a few who kept their distance from him.
Luck seemed to keep shining on him as his work kept getting cut in half for him every time when the villagers themselves started to approach him with their problems. At that rate, Gawain was certain he would get back just in time to sneak in a short nap before he went to report his work to his brother.
So far, the villagers did not ask for much. Mainly that his men would not cause as many problems as Hector's, who had previously been in charge. A few made complaints about the taxes, which had risen all of a sudden after the last harvest.
Then came the dreaded complaints about the fire and the impending food shortage looming over the clan like a nasty storm cloud. Of course, the villagers would have put together what they needed to and come to a conclusion. The food shortage was inevitable, and winter was perhaps a full moon or two away. The villagers were distressed, and they did not try to hide it. Gawain wondered how Caillen was handling all of this though he had a feeling his brother was chasing after the wrong stick. Finding whoever beat up Hector could wait, and so could finding who set fire to their fields.
His brother's priority should be feeding the clan through the winter. If they could not provide proper food or water for the villagers during those harsh times, it was obvious that come spring, they would lose their settlers, reducing the taxes being sent into the keep. Their clan would reduce in numbers, and that would immediately alert other clans.
The clan would become easy prey if two large clans attacked after the other or at once. The other lairds were sadistic like that, and his brother was playing right into their hands.
Spring was the best time to conduct a raid on another clan. After spring and every harvest. Spring because there were clans who would suffer through the winter and would be weaker and easier to take over by spring. After every harvest, because then they could take as much as they would like from the weaker clan. Gawain could properly recall the Viking he had met on his way from England had told him this.
The Viking, much like him, was exiled as well though he had killed a man who threatened the life of their chief but was unfortunately roped in the worst way. A seemingly gentle giant, the Viking had a kind smile and a booming laugh that echoed through the forest, but even people like that had blood on their hands. Blood of the clans they had raided, taken their women and children, killed their men, and stolen their food and livestock.
