Peace in Houseldon
Hello all… first I’d like to apologise for talking so damn long in coming through with this.
Been very busy. Heh, And second I want to thank Danlo… who enabled me to do this dissection by sending me the book,
Cheers Danlo 
, and… 
Anyways… On with the dissection
Sorry about the poorness of this dissection… Blame Danlo, he was once again foolish enough to allow me to do it, heh, when will that man ever learn?
Terisa is thinking about how she would like to help Geraden, But has no knowledge of how to deal with his withdrawal. And she also thinks about her talk with the Domne (The previous chapter)
She was determined to do something for Geraden.
Unfortunately, she didn’t know what.
In an odd way, her conversation with the Domne had crystallized her resolve. At the same time, the things he had revealed about his family and King Joyse hadn’t shed any useful light. So she wanted to help Geraden. Good: so what? When she got right down to it, what could she actually say to him? Don’t be so hurt, it isn’t worth it? Nonsense. Snap out of it, you’re just feeling sorry for yourself? Ridiculous. I’m sure you can beat Master Eremis if you put your mind to it? Perfect.
Thinking about him wrung her heart, but she didn’t know what to do.
I wondered how she was going to get past his… and considering I’m a bit of a wuss when it comes to a decent love story, I was interested… What would you have done under these circumstances? I have no idea…Next Terisa is pretty much left alone as the Domne falls to sleep. And then she goes to leave the house, but she meets a man there. Another one of Geraden’s brothers
This brother is aptly named Minick, probably the shyest of Geraden’s brothers. He has been sent to Terisa by Geraden. Terisa greets him, saying she is pleased to meet him… at first their conversation is a little awkward.
I liked this part for several reasons. Firstly, because of the love that is shared between all the Domne’s sons, I mean, out of seven males, you’d think one of them would be a jerk… though Nyle comes close, his heart is in the right place.But when he smiled - shyly, almost deferentially - and his smile pulled his features into definition. Immediately, it became obvious that he was one of Geraden‘s brothers.
He glanced at the Domne, saw that his father was asleep. Gesturing for silence, he put a hand on Terisa’s arm and drew her outside. As soon as they reached the porch, however, he let go of her as if he felt his touch was presumptuous and had only risked it to avoid disturbing the Domne. He even backed a step or two away from her.
“Hello, Terisa,” he said earnestly, without quite meeting her eyes. “I’m Minick. Geraden sent me to get you.”
“Hello, Minick,” she replied. “I’m glad to meet you.”
As if she had surprised him, he asked, “You are?”
She nodded. “I’m glad to meet Geraden’s family. I’m glad to be in Houseldon - in the Care of Domne.” This was so true that she didn’t know how to explain it. “I’ve wanted to meet all of you for a long time.”
Minick seemed to recognize the inadequacy behind her words. “Well, I’m glad to meet you, too. I wasn’t sure before. I don’t like it when Geraden’s unhappy. But now I am.”
He baffled her a bit. “What makes you sure?”
He indicated the house with a lift of one shoulder. “You were in the room with the Domne,” he explained, “and now he‘s taking a nap. He trusts you. So you must be all right. You aren‘t the reason Geraden‘s unhappy.”
Minick‘s confidence was so unjustified that Terisa felt compelled to say, “It’s probably more complicated than that. Sometimes I think I am the reason he’s unhappy - Sort of. I have a lot to do with a lot of things that hurt him.”
“No.” Minick shook his head mildly. “It isn‘t complicated. You‘re like him. He always thinks things are complicated. But they aren‘t. Important things are simple. He needs someone to love him. That‘s simple. The Domne trusts you. That‘s simple. So now I can be glad to meet you, when I wasn’t sure before.”
And the second reason I like it is it shows Terisa concern for geraden, how much she loves him, that’s sweet. Onward.
Terisa presumes that Minick is there to take her to see Geraden. However, our Geraden is very upset at the moment. “Let’s go se Geraden.”
“Oh, no.” Minick became suddenly serious. “That isn’t what he wants. He’s too busy.” For a second, the brown man almost shuddered. “When he gets like this, he yells at people a lot. He thinks they’re fast. He’s fast, and he thinks they are, too. But they aren’t fast. They’re just farmers and shepherds. They’re like me. They like having things explained to them.”
The thought of Geraden ranting with impatience was so incongruous that Terisa nearly laughed aloud. At the same time, it gave her a pang. Poor man, he must be almost out of his mind.
A wee bit sad. I wonder how Donaldson would have written Geraden shouting and ranting, if the person who’s point of view it was from was present. I think it would have been difficult. But again, we see Teresa’s love for Geraden come through. 
So Geraden sent Minick to Terisa, so he could give her a tour of Houseldon. Which he proceeds to do.
On the tour, Terisa finds out there is a lot more to see than she first thought. Though plainly not large, or complicated, Minick seems full of much information on Houeldon. She think about Geraden’s family.
Interesting, but what does she exactly mean by “Middle ground”?In a short time, Terisa realized that she had only two choices. She could cut off the tour now, before he drove her to distraction. Or she could relax and let him do whatever he wanted. With him there wasn’t any middle ground.
Well, that fit, she mused. In their separate ways, Geraden, Artagel, and Nyle were all intolerant of middle ground. Wester was said to be a fanatic about wool. Stead couldn‘t keep his hands off women. Geraden had called Holden a compulsive fertilizer. The Domne himself had given up on middle ground when he met Kinf Joyse. Why should Minick be any different?
How are the Domne’s family intolerant of it? In what ways? These questions, I leave to you.
She continues on the tour, and when Minick has finished, Terisa has liked to like him much.
Minick takes her back to the Domne’s house, and he starts to leave. Cheating scumbagSo when he brought her back to the Domne’s house and started to say goodbye, she didn’t want him to leave. “Where are you going?” she asked to forestall him.
This time his grin was shy in a new way, self conscious about things which hadn’t come up before. “I like to go home before supper,” he murmured, “and play with the children for a while. It gives their mother a chance to cook. And it uses up some of their energy so they go to bed more easily.”
The thought of this earnest brown man playing with his children delighted her - and reminded her that during the whole afternoon he hadn’t said anything personal about himself or his life. Maybe he would have considered it presumptuous to talk about himself. Impulsively, because he had done her so much good and hadn’t asked her for anything, she leaned forward and thanked him with a quick kiss.
His eyes widened; he stared at her a moment. Then he ducked his head as if he were blushing.
“I think I’m not going to tell my wife you did that,” he said softly. “She might not be pleased.” It was obvious that he was enormously pleased. “I like her to be pleased. She’s the only other woman who’s ever been so patient with me.
“Good-bye Terisa.”
I think this is a mark of how much Terisa has been changed by her experience’s in Mordant.
She wouldn’t have done something like that when she lived her old life. I like Minick. Though his character isn’t that exciting, he’s a good guy. Wish we could have got to meet his wife though. Terisa enters the Domne’s house, and finds it noisy . And is startled, however when she looks at Quiss, she is calmed.
But then Quiss raised her head, saw terisa, and smiled.
Quiss’ pleasure changed the meaning of the gin altogether. Or changed the way Terisa saw it. All this noise and activity wasn’t angry, distressed, or alarmed, didn’t represent pain: it was just loud. As soon as Quiss smiled, Terisa knew that Tholdon’s wife was in her element, flourishing precisely because her family and her household were so busy, so noisy; so full of themselves and each other. And then Terisa understood that the tumult was just another form of peace - hot and hectoc, of course; not particularly restful to a novice like herself; but completely without fear.
I felt kinda sorry for Terisa, though she has changed much since her translation to Mordant; she still finds it difficult to understand what a good loving family is like, which she never had. I wonder if this impinges on her future life with Geraden…. Hmmm… Discuss between yourselves
Quiss and Terisa discuss her afternoon with Minick, and what he is like. Quiss says that most people aren’t willing to listen to Minick as long as Terisa did. Terisa disagrees, saying they should give it a try.
Tholden invites Terisa to see what they have ready, for the Care’s defence, as all of them seem expect an attack very soon. Tholden also wants Terisa to tell him if he’s missed anything important in regards to the defence of the Care.
Tholden began to describe his specific arrangements for the possibility of battle.
She couldn’t absorb them. In fact, she only heard every third word; the rest of his explanation was lost in a chorus directed at the Domne: Da, it’s her fault, No, it’s his fault, she did it first, he did it first! And she couldn’t help noticing that even the Domne appeared more interested in the bickering of the children than in Tholden’s preparations. Feeling vaguely irresponsible - but not enough to worry about it - she said once, “Maybe it’ll be quieter after supper,” then drank her ale and stopped trying to listen.
I must say, I was certainly impressed with the children’s arguments.
Heh
Next a load of children come in, just come out of the bath, running around, and Geraden follows in after them (Fully clothed, thank god.
) and he’s trying to dry them.
”Come back here, you little monsters!” he roared. “I‘m going to towel you until your heads fall off!”
:hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs::hairs:
Geraden will be a great dad someday, that’s really sweetSquealing with delight, small, naked bodies scattered in all directions.
Terisa hasn’t seen Geraden for most of the day. She looked at him eagerly and saw at once that he was still clenched and dour, knotted inside himself. Perhaps for the sake of the children, however, he had pushed his hardness into the background. Or perhaps they elicited that response from him involuntarily: perhaps it was something they did for him, rather than he for them.
It was enough. She could wait for more until they had a better opportunity together, Giving him her best smile, whether he noticed it or not, she relaxed and let the clamer continue to grow on her, like a milling and vociferous form of contentment,
Geraden collects the kids up with a couple of servants and leaves the room, and Terisa yearns to go after him:
Again,If he hadn’t been so busy - and if she hadn’t been so comfortably settled with her tankard of ale - Terisa would have gone after him. She felt an unaccountable desire to kiss him far more serious than she had kissed Minick.
Sweet. ]
Geraden comes back soon afterwards. And 6 other men come and join the household, to discuss battle plans. They ask Geraden what they’re likely to come across, and he describes a few uses of Imagery in which Eremis has already used against Mordant. And this lowers the confidence of the men. Ad they ask if there is anything Geraden can do to help. And Geraden replies that he can’t do anything against it until he has a mirror.
At this point, Terisa leaves the room; and heads to Artagels room.
And goes to sleep. *******************************
She woken up by the feeling of someone kissing her. The infamous Stead has taken an interest in Terisa, and kissing her in her sleep, and touches her breasts. She is startled, and she strikes out, hits Stead on the collarbone, which is where he is injured. (he earned that injury through sleeping with a man’s wife, and the man expressed his gratitude by breaking Stead’s bones with a pitchfork)
Subtle, not?Looking uo at her and panting carefully as the pain receded, he murmured, “Terisa,” in a woulded tone, “What’re you doing? I just want to make love to you. You don’t need to hurt me.”
Now that she could see his whole face, she couldn’t mistake his resemblance to the rest of the Domne’s sons. Judging by his nandages, his cracked or broken ribs and collarbone, his crooked features, he must be Stead.
Glaring down at him angrily, she said the fist thing that came to her head. “I thought you had too many broken bones to get out of bed.”
He gave up sounding wounded and experimented with a smile instead. “So did I. But that was before I saw you in the hall- outside my door. So I waited until everyone was asleep. Then I gave it a try. I guess a man can stand almost anything if he wants it badly enough”
He asks help off the floor. Terisa declines to do so, saying if he attempts to get up, she’ll kick him where he really wouldn’t to be kicked. He replies that it wouldn’t be so bad, given that she wouldn’t be able to do so without revealing her body to him; saying that he has never been turned down by a woman who’s let im catch a glimpse of her breasts.
Deeply amused now, but not showing it, she replies that she’ll just throw the lamp at him instead. He doesn’t take her seriously, saying that all she wants is a man.
Again, this with what I love about Geraden’s family, they’re all so affectionate to each other. I actually thought Stead was a bit of a jerk up to this point. But he shows a side that I wouldn’t have believed him capable.She stared at him. “I do?”
He nodded. “Every woman does. That‘s what men and women are for. First they want each other. Then they get into bed and enjoy each other.”
That sounded dangerously plausible. She countered by asking, “what about Geraden? He‘s yout brother, after all. And I came here with him. Don‘t you consider him a man?”
“Ah, Geraden.” Stead’s smile seemed genuinely affectionate. “Of course I consider him a man. If you want my opinion, he’s the best one of is all. Oh, he isn’t half the farmer Tholden is. He isn’t half the shaphard Wester is. He isn’t half the swordsman Artagel is. And he sure doesn’t know anything about women. But he’s still the best.”
I often question on how the story would have went if Stead had not in fact gone to Terisa that night. Think about it, Terisa wouldn’t have gone to Geraden. He would have been still knotted after the attack that’s going to happen. Probably would have gone with the Domne and rest of Houseldon to hide in the Closed Fist, and not gone to help… I mean wow, Stead is the real hero of this book
Anyways, continued from the last quote:
I want you too reread the above passage again, and think about it. Terisa certainly did seem to like him. I think, on another day, she might have even made love with Stead. I know you Geraden-Terisa lovers out there will probably want to kill me by shooting me in the face with projectile diarrhea than think this… *shrug* I’m just trying to give you something to discuss.”But that‘s not the point, is it?” he continued rhetorically. It was remarkable how little arrogance he had in him, how little assumption od superiority. He didn‘t belittle anyone. “The point is, you don‘t consider him a man.”
Terisa‘s mouth feel open. She closed it with an effort. Suddenly, the situation wasn‘t funny anymore, “I don‘t?”
“You came here with him. He worships every inch of you. If you thought of him as a man, you‘d be in his room right now.” Nothing in Stead‘s tone suggested the slightest criticism of Geraden - Or of her. His view of the situation was essentially impersonal.
“there must be someone else you want.”
Holding her gaze, he began to ease himself up from the floor. Every movement was obviously painful to him, but the pain only accentuatd the appeal in his eyes.
“I think you want me,” he murmured. “I certainly want you.”
There was something of Master Eremus in the way he looked at her, an intensity of interest which hypnotized. And he had distinct advantages over the Master. He wouldn’t demean her. He wouldn’t do anything cruel.”
As I said, subtle, is he not?”I started wanting you as soon as I saw you,” he said as he got his feet under him. “Your lips cry out for kisses. Breasts like yours should be fondled until they give you bliss. The Place of passion between your legs aches to be pierced. Terisa, I was you. I want to revel in you until your joy is as great as mine“
Terisa, however, rejects Stead, thinking instead of Geraden. She gets up from the bed, and gets her clothes. She asks Stead to take her to Geraden’s room, though at first he objects; he eventually complies; and seems happy about Terisa’s choice.
See, he’s decent really”He seemed sadder than she‘d expected - and happier.
“Quiss always refuses me,” he said, breathing carefully. “I don‘t understand that. I‘ve tried to tell her how much I want her. That‘s all that matters. But she always refuses.
“ I have to admit though” - by degrees, his happiness took over his face - “she certainly makes me think well of Tholden.
“Geraden’s room is that way.” Grinning, he pointed down the hall.
She enters Geraden’s room, to find him asleep. However, the lamp wakes him up. He gets up. He mentions he spoke with Minick.
Terisa objects straight away to this statement. Geraden says he see’s pain when he looks at her. She asks him what does he think she’s doing here. He answers that she thinks he is wrong, and he can still fight Master Eremis. She asks why does he think she thinks he is wrong. He says he see’s the pain in his eyes.”After supper - after you left - I went to see Minick. I wanted to apologize for yelling at him. People shouldn‘t yell at him, even though he never get‘s angry about it.
“Do you know what he said? He said, ‘I spent the afternoon with your Terisa. She‘s nice. If you make her unhappy, you won‘t be welcome in my house anymore.’ Minick said that, my mild brother who never gets angry.”
Geraden shrugged. I didn’t tell him that I’ve already made you unhappy.”
They start discussing Teresa’s translation. Geraden seems to open up a bit. To Terisa sadness, he closes himself up again. Saying:
This hurts Geraden. Trying to unknot him, she asks how did she became an Arch-Imager. Geraden replies thus:She hung on the change in his tone, hoped for it to continue. Almost at once, however, he closed himself again. “Terisa, you didn‘t come here in the middle of the night to debate the ethics of Imagery.”
“Is that right?” Pained to feel the side of him she wanted to nurture slipping away, she made a mistake. “To you it‘s just a debate. To me it‘s my life. I can‘t make sense out of who I am unless I know the truth.”
Now Geraden raised his eyes. Studying her closely - and holding himself completely still, as though he feared what she might do if he moved - he replied, “I created you. When I shaped my glass, I made you.” Almost silently, he caught his breath in surprise and recognition; the implications took him aback. I have the capacity to create arch-Imagers.”
Geraden realises he could create a whole army of arch-Imagers. And Terisa says that’s not all, how does Master Eremis know that Geraden know that he doesn’t have a mirror at Houseldon. How did Eremis know that Geraden wasn’t busy creating an army of Arch-Imagers right now.
This horrifies Geraden. He says he has to get out of Houseldon right away. Knowing Eremis will do his best to kill him right away.
Geraden doesn not yet know that Terisa has told Master Eremis that he does know where Geraden is. Teris tell him now:“He‘ll send everything he‘s got after me. If he catches me here, he‘ll reduce Houseldon to rubble to get at me.”
In doing this, she is trying to persuade Geraden that none of this is his fault. Shaking Terisa hard, he tells her that people he has known his whole life are going to die. He asks her why she didn’t tell him. She says that’s not important. And say’s the thing that is: Why did she chose to be here?“He know‘s you‘re here,” she said. “But he won’t know it when you leave. Unless he has a mirror that lets him see you here. If you run, he won’t know it until he’s destroyed Houseldon looking for you.
“I did that.” For a moment, her eyes feilled with tears. She blinked them back fiercely. “It’s my doing. When I told him about seeing the Closed Fist in your mirror, I set you up”
Terisa tells him to think, why did she chose to comes here, to Houseldon. He answer that she wanted to warn him. She answers yes. But why did she bother.“Geraden, listen to me. Why do you suppose I chose to come here?”
He was so angry, so frightened for his home and family and friends, that he could hardly refrain from raging. Involuntarily, he bared his teeth. Yet he was still Geraden, still the man who had alwayd done everything he could imagine for her. Panting at the effort he made to restrain himself, he said, “You tell me. Why?”
She succeeds in the thing she has been trying to do for him all night, he opens himself up.
Awww…“Oh, she had him. She wanted to shout it out: she had him. He wasn’t iron now, closed and bitter. His fury had receded. He was scrutinizing her intently: perplexed, almost dumbfounded; fundamentally baffled by her; touched by hope.
“Think about it,” she murmured to keep herself from crowing aloud.
He opened his mouth, but no words came.
“You idiot. I did it because I love you.”
Geraden is at first shocked by this, then starts kissing Terisa with fervour. After a while, Terisa undresses herself. Following suit, So does Geraden, they proceed to the bed.Then she reached her arms around his neck and pulled herself up to kiss him.
And yet Geraden conveyed an intensity that moved her deeply. She fely that she had spent most of her life waiting for this time in bed with him. She could do without assurance. They would learn what they needed to know together.
*******************************
Sadly, it all goes wrong for Geraden. His worry for his family, his inability to stop Eremis, his inexperience with women lets him down. He rolls off Terisa, and attempts once again to withdraw into iron.
She watched him lock himself away from her, and her joy began to crumble. For a moment, she thought about weeping.
Then she got an idea.
With the tip of one finger, she stroked the hard line of his jaw. “Guess what,” she said as if they were engaged in a casual and even bantering conversation. “I’ve just thought of a reason to believe I’m really real.”
“I already believe it,” he muttered from the opposite side of the world. “you know that.”
“But you don’t know why,” she returned playfully. “That’s the trouble with you. You don’t have enough reasons. You just have your ’strongest feelings’ - you do everything on faith.
“I’ll give you a reason.
“People like Eremis say I was created by Imagery. I came out of you and your talent when you made that mirror. But if that’s true, don’t you think you would have created a woman you could have an easier time making love with?”
She took hi so entirely by surprise that he couldn’t help himself. As unexpected as a shout, he burst out laughing.
And once he started to laugh he lost control.
Nice one Terisa
Geraden laughs until the sorrow and self pity is cleaned out of him. Saying Terisa’s name with an ache, he begins kissing her again.
He said her name as if it made him ache. Rolling back to her, he put his hands on the sides of her face to hold her and began kissing her again.
Unquestionably, his kisses lacked Master Eremis‘ assured passion. But they were sweet and compelling, like the remembered call of horns. And when she remembered horns, the music came back to her.
This time, it went right
And the rest was history.
*****************************
Terisa and Geraden are sleeping when the attack from Eremis comes. And are woken by the shouts of other people in Houseldon
(btw, I’m not going to bother quoting anything from this battle, there isn’t really a point, nor go into too detail; There really is not much point)
Anyways, Eremis is sending Imagery against Houseldon. Sending packs of wolfs in from the west. Tholden’s forces kill many of them. But a few wolfs get through the defences. A wolfs comes down the street towards Terisa and Geraden. The Domne strikes at the wolf, and the wolf then goes for the Domne. Alarmed, Geraden kills the wolf and saves his father.
But the wolfs were just the vanguard of the attack. Tholden and his men see a cat the size of a horse coming at them from the west. And everywhere this cat runs, it leaves behind fire.
Knowing that if the creature coming into the Care, Houseldon will burn to the ground. The Cat breaks throught the lines, as men cannot go anywhere near it without bring burnt. It goes towards terisa anf Geraden. Burning Houseldon all the way.Then he noticed that wherever the cat put it’s paws the new grass and old leaves caught fire. It had already left a smouldering trail away into the distance
The Firecat seems unstoppable, however Tholden devises a way to stop it.
Arriving to where the Firecat is, Minick throws sheepdung at it. The sheepdung is a fuel, and burns the Firecat, and many more men arrive with more sheepdung, and eventually the Firecat is killed by it’s own fire.
Good thing I say.
He deserves it. Knowing that the everything in Houseldon, including the Domne’s personal house, is going to be destroyed, its people pack everything they can; in preparation to barricade themselves in the Closed Fist.
Geraden, on the other hand, has other plans. Telling Terisa that his people will go to the Closed Fist, and makes it clear that he had no intention of going with them.
Awwww…. Isn’t it amazing how much healing love can give you?Terisa didn’t understand him at all. Dimly, it occurred to her that the Closed Fist would bean impossible place in which to work glass. “You keep saying ’they.’ Aren’t you going with them?”
He shook his head and tried to hide the gleam in his eyes.
She studied him as if she had become stupid. His home was in flames around him. Soon Houseldon would be reduced to asjes and cinders. The survivors were being forced into hiding. One of his brothers had been seriously hurt. People he had known his whole life were dead. Really, it was astonishing how much his mood had improved.
He was hard and strong, she could see that; but the grim iron was gone, the bittirness. Last night, he had remembered how to laugh. The shine in his gaze promised that he would be able to laugh again.
Terisa asks him when won’t he go with the rest of Houseldon. He answers that he wants to fight Eremis, Because attacking them right away means he is scared of the damage they could do. And he plans to warn the Fayle and Termigan, and try and bring them to the King’s aid.
She couldn‘t help herself; she jumped up and kissed him, hugged him so hard she thought her arms would break
Stead (a little jealous I think) snorts and tells them to leave the house, as it will be next to be burnt down.
Terisa and Geraden leave the house laughing.
*************************
By midmorning, all of Houseldon is burnt down. From his stretcher, Tholden weeps, as if he had failed the Domne, his father assures him that is not the case.
“Don‘t be silly, boy. You saved all our lives. Houess can be built again. You saved your people. I call it a great victory. Nobody else could have done it“
What a great father
Geraden kisses all his family. And in front of all of Houseldon’s people. Domne says:
I wonder what she does to make sure he doesn’t “Forget”“Now it‘s your turn, Geraden,” the Domne announced in front of all the inhabitants of Houseldon. “Make us proud of you. Make what we‘re doing worthwhile.” Then he added, “And in the name of sanity, remember to call me ‘Da’”
Helplessly, Geraden colored.
Terisa wanted to laugh again. “Don‘t worry, Da, I won‘t let him forget“
And to end it all:
Well, that’s it. My head is brain-dead. Hope you enjoyed it.When the Domne‘s people began cheering, she and Geraden rode away to meet Mordant‘s need.
Heh.
For whatever reason, I have always pronounced his name as Steed, which begins a chain reaction in my head where Steed=Stallion. 
