Alanna finished packing quickly, throwing the last of her bags into a pile in a corner of the tent. Looking at the stack, she realized she would have to sacrifice some supplies to ride as hard as she was about to. Quickly pulling out her summer clothes, extra food, and miscellaneous other items, Alanna was finally satisfied. Leaving her tent, she went in search of Halef Seif. Even though she was free to leave as she wished, she felt she owed the man at least the knowledge of why, he had been such a gracious host, and she didn't want to think her decision had anything to do with him.

Finally, she found him in the center of camp. As she walked up to him, she took a deep breath and started composing a speech in her head, one that would explain everything. However, things didn't go as planned.

"You're leaving us, aren't you?" Halef asked.

"H...how did you know?"Alanna asked, clearly startled.

"After your prince left, the entire tribe knew you were going to leave soon after. It's no surprise, really. It's quite obvious you two were closer than friends." Halef informed her, smiling. Alanna took a step forward, still shocked.

"Godspeed, Woman Who Rides Like a Man." Halef gave her a smile, and walked back to his camp. Alanna, dazed, returned to her tent. Grabbing what little she would bring, she ran to the stables. As she saddled Moonlight, her horse stamped a foot anxiously.

"I'm sorry girl, but we're in for some hard riding."Alanna walked Moonlight to the edge of the camp. Swinging herself into the saddle, she kicked Moonlight into a gallop. It was a good half-day's ride to the palace at this point, and she wasn't willing to lose any more time than she had to.

Alanna finally reached the city. Moonlight was sweat-soaked and breathing hard from riding. "Who goes there?" asked a sleepy guard.

"Alanna of Trebond and Olau, King's Champion." Alanna crossed her fingers, praying she would be allowed through. After a delay that seemed like hours, the guard finally told her to proceed, and the gates to Corus opened. Alanna kicked Moonlight into a trot, conscious of what her horse had just done for her. Murmurs followed her through the streets of Corus. "Look at her, never thought we'd see her again." "I heard she turned down the crown prince!" "That girl gave up what every woman dreams of, and now she wants it back." Alanna ignored them silencing a few with a glare. Apparently even the townspeople had heard of her temper, and were all the wiser to avoid it.

For every 3 or 4 whispers about what she'd done, there was one welcoming her home. It was nice to know she had supporters. A few women curtsied as she passed, a few children waved.

As she rounded a corner, she kicked Moonblossom into a canter. The palace seemed to glow, her destination had arrived at last. Arriving at the stables, she gave Moonblossom an apple. Before handing her reigns to a stableboy, she thanked Moonlight. She thought she saw her horse grin and raise an eyebrow, but it was probably a trick of the low light in the stables. She fairly threw the reigns at the stableboy, and ran back through the stable doors. Frantic, she realized for the first time how large and daunting a place the royal palace was when one had no idea where the person one was searching for was. Stopping a rather tired-looking squire on her way through a courtyard, she asked him if he knew where the Crown Prince was. He was undoubtedly wondering what business the Lady Knight had with the heir, but he knew better then to voice his thoughts. He told her he "thought...last time he checked...Prince Jonathan may be...was probably..."he stuttered through several more sentences until Alanna lost her temper and demanded he tell her where he was now. The now frightened squire told her the Drawing Room, and ran off through one of the archways.

Alanna's heart pounded as she ran through the palace grounds. The only thing on her mind was that she had to reach Jon before it was too late. For what, she didn't know, but there was an undying sense of urgency regarding the matter.

Meanwhile, Prince Jon was sitting through a meeting with some Scanran officials. It was his duty, being the next King, to be there. His father and the officials were going back and forth on matters of borderlines, alliances, and a million other problems they seemed to discuss on a daily basis. His mother sat beside the King, a politely interested expression on her face. He couldn't help thinking about how that could have been him and Alanna one day. Suddenly, the doors flew open, hitting the walls harshly. The Prince's heart seemed to fail him as he sat even farther back in his chair. The one person he was nearly positive he would never see again was standing before him.

Alanna.

So, what'd you think? Suspense, huh? What will happen next? Will Jon be happy or sad to see her return? What will the King and Queen say? All of that will be included in the next chapter, but I want to know what YOU think. So, remember, review.