Young Icel is an orphan in the Eagle of Mercia Chronicles, his mother dying when he was born. He knows very little about her, but there are a number of mother-figures in his life. Lady Cynehildis one of them, and she’s the one to spill the beans about the identity of his father, but Wynflæd is perhaps more important, providing him with some stability and the opportunity to pursue his chosen path, before he must cast it aside and become a warrior.
Wynflæd is perhaps not the kindest of mother-figures but what she lacks in outright affection, she makes up for in supporting him in his endeavours. That she also knows the truth of his mother’s identity causes a ruction in their relationship, but also accounts for why she’s so involved in his life. The interplay between the two characters has provided moments of light relief throughout the series, but I don’t think it can be denied that the pair are fiercely fond of one another, even if neither of them is very good at showing it. The quote below perhaps summarises their relationship in the best way possible, voiced by Icel.
‘She was not my friend through the ties of family, but because she wished to be.’
I suspect Wynflæd’s character possesses a great deal of my grandmother’s fortitude. She was a slight woman (who only grew shorter as she aged) but crikey, she was stubborn, and incredibly skilled in needlecraft (I believe her mother was a milliner) as Wynflæd is in healing. She was also argumentative, she and my grandfather often arguing about politics, to which I was told ‘the ruling party always needs a strong opposition’.And to her dying day, she stuck to a long-running and bickering relationship with one of her sisters in law, which even now we marvel at.She also insisted that Mother’s Day be correctly identified as Mothering Sunday and it was always with relief that we could find a card with Mothering Sunday on it each year.
She also endured great sorrow, her first child dying at birth (and she never knew where the baby was buried as seems to have been the way these things were done in the 1940s (neither were we able to find any details later on)), and then losing another child (my mother) when she was in her 50s. Despite this, she showed her love through her actions and not through any monetary bribes such as pocket-money. I believe it’s in this regard that she and Wynflæd are most alike, and so I hope she won’t mind that I was so heavily influenced by her in creating the crotchety character of Wynflæd.