Even Vena seems surprised and has a shadow of concern when she looks back and sees him close, though that flits back out of sight. It's not remotely visible when he agrees. At that point, she grins broadly, any misgivings buried in the simple pleasure of not having to do the dishes and in fact making a boy do them. "Thanks!" she says loudly.

He does actually get less suspicion carrying the tray. Somehow, it's less threatening for a man with resting bastard face to be seen with something so domestic.

"I should walk you. They're not close close, but there's..." She pauses, trying to remember the phrase. "Line-of-sight. If it was cold these'd go to the enclosed one at the refectory but the summer scullery is open planned and you can watch me. Long as you're not really obvious about it."

Like the stables, the forge is away from the center of the compound. The noise of it in operation, the smoke, and in summer the heat are not things other people want to be that close to, especially since it's not particularly enclosed. The scullery, which doubles as a communal laundry space, is less removed and even less enclosed than that. It has a roof and no walls, just a long basin with some of the same warm spring water that goes to the bathhouse going through it.