Author's Note: Thank you Rebecca for reviewing. More advice is welcome! This chapter here, I'm kind of winging because I lost the plot while I moved but I do remember what happens somewhat.

Chapter Two: Unexpected Guests and Death

The knights climbed off their horses, all tired and stiff. Galahad and Gawaine finally sobered up and were in a worse mood than anyone because of their headaches. They set about making a fire, bickering about how cold it was, and Tristan was sent to hunt for the food. The others busied themselves with trivial things.

Before long, they were well fed and getting sleepy. Arthur had just gotten up to find a good spot to sleep when Tristan jolted to a stand. The other knights heard it too; hurried hooves, more than one set heading in their direction. Everyone stood now, alert, weapons out and at the ready. When the galloping did not seem to slow in the slightest, Lancelot jumped onto his horses back and prepared to stop them. In a matter of seconds, a hooded figure on a huge horse came round the corner. Lancelot reared his horse into the path, making the rider's horse rear as well. It stamped its feet nervously, wanting to continue running. The horse's panting breath, visible in clouds because of the cold. The rider's breath was puffing silently upwards as well, also very winded and chest heaving. All weapons pointed at the individual cloaked in black.

"Lower your hood and get off your horse." Arthur ordered. The rider did nothing, the horse still stirring to leave. "Do as I say or my scout will kill you." Arthur ordered again in a voice of deadly calm. The rider glanced at Tristan from under the hood; he could feel the watchful eyes, feel the connection of both, then…

"Your scout will not harm me." A woman's voice spoke from the depths of the cloak. He didn't recognize the voice, but still he felt the strong connection.

"Tristan, kill her." Arthur commanded. Tristan, not taking his eyes away from the stare, lowered his bow and arrow that was fitted beside the string.

"I can't." He stated simply. He had the weirdest feeling. But it couldn't be her, she would surely be dead by now, she couldn't possibly have survived.

"If he won't, I will!" called Lancelot from atop his horse and fitted an arrow into his bow. Tristan dropped his bow and forgotten arrow on the ground and in a flash had his sword out near Lancelot's neck.

"Tristan!" Both Lancelot and Arthur yelled in surprise. Gawaine, Galahad, and Bors all stood staring on in shock.

Before anything else could be said, a strange whistling filled the air. Everyone looked up and a single arrow flew through the clearing behind the rider and struck her in the shoulder. Everyone drew weapons and the mysterious rider pulled the arrow out of her shoulder and leapt lightly off her horse, drawing a pair of weapons from inside her cloak, two curved swords, much like Tristan's. She showed no sign of the pain that must be caused by the injury in her shoulder. From amid the trees in the wood came hundreds of Woads. The knights rushed into battle and so did this woman, never once letting her hood fall and expose her face. The battle was wild. It seemed that when a Woad was killed, thrice as many appeared behind that one. They fought fiercely. The woman was having a slight problem lifting her arm to any oncoming strikes and so had to reverse her tactic and began using the other hand to defend and strike out with the other. All her blows had to be exact and calculated, clean cuts across the chests of the blue people, painful gashes that they would not recover from. Most of the time, she had the honor to kill men quickly, less pain, but it had been so long since a man had physically hurt her that she wanted to hurt them all back. Tristan and Galahad were fighting next to her, Tristan moves were smooth and quick, but she noticed he was playing the same game with these men as she was, killing slowly. Galahad was just trying to fight the all off, they seemed to gang up on them and the other knights were beginning to cluster on the offending forces. She was trying to fight three men and had just managed to kill one of them when her feet came out from under her and she went down to the ground, cracking her head on the sharp rocks surrounding the field, losing consciousness. Any Woads that were left were beginning to run back toward the tree line and into the forest. The knights sank onto the ground, exhausted and covered in blood. Tristan moved over to the woman and felt the back of her head to make sure there was no bleeding. Once he was sure she was fine, he sat down beside her, wiping his hand on the inside of his tunic, he pulled a juicy, green apple out of an inside pocket and began chomping silently on it.

"How can you eat after all that?" asked Gawaine disgustedly. Tristan looked down at his apple through his mat of dark hair in front of his face and then back up at him.

"Killing makes me hungry." He stated simply. Bors laughed heartily and the woman jolted awake but he paid no attention.

"It also makes you relaxed." He shook his bald head. "You're a funny one you are." All former thoughts of Tristan turning on Lancelot with his sword were forgotten. Every eye in the camp was on the woman again. She stood up and moved her head right and then left, Lancelot cringed as it cracked. She rubbed her neck and moved toward her giant black steed. Arthur stood quickly.

"No, wait, who are you?" He asked, putting a hand on her shoulder, forgetting that it was injured. She shrugged it off swiftly and went about making sure that her bags were set on it back sturdily. Another set of hooves was heard coming towards them in the darkness. Everyone drew swords yet again and steadied for another fight. The woman walked back to the place where she had fallen near Tristan and picked up her swords, it was a surprise to see her put them away. Another giant brown horse came around the bend of trees and stopped at the sight of the mutilated corpses and then at the armed knights in front of him. Then to the girl behind them getting ready to mount her horse.

"Girl, what have you done now?" He seethed. He looked around at the knights again; his eyes feel on Tristan, who was now putting his sword away, all suspicions confirmed. The man spoke again.

"Son?" He asked, hardly believing those words, his mouth agape. All knights were watching apprehensively, everyone had shared stories of home but Tristan; they forgot he must have a father as well. They all watched as Tristan inclined his head slightly. The man gave an almighty leap from the horse and ran to him, swallowing in a great bone-crushing hug. Tristan hardly returned the embrace. He most obviously got his mannerisms and looks from his mother, because they looked nothing alike. Bors was still trying to comprehend this with Galahad but Gawaine was starting to catch on.

"Hang on, if this is your father," In his pause he turned to the silent girl who was trying to shrug off to the side. "This must be," He paused again, closing his eyes and opening them again. "This must be your sister?" He completed finally. He sounded as if he hardly believed it himself. Galahad chimed in.

"Of course! That's why he wouldn't kill her, because he knew it was his sister. She was now trying to hide behind her horse, and doing a good job of it, standing, she only reached the middle of the horse's belly. Tristan called to her quietly.

"Aurora, come here and show me your face." Slowly, almost hesitantly, she sidled towards him and the knights and brought her hands up to her hood. As she lowered it, a dark curtain of hair fell in front of her face, exactly like Tristan. Then she took the entire cloak off to reveal a dirty brown tunic over a well-worn gray dress. A few strands of her long hair were in uneven braids and the majority of it fell down her back in a lose plait. She had the same markings on her cheeks as Tristan; but there was one difference. Only one of her eyes was dark brown, the other was a bright, almost clear blue. Her face was smeared with dirt and some blood from her own nose (the blood was not fresh), and her left eye was bruised, making the blue stand out all the more vividly. She looked to the ground. Tristan moved towards her and put his hand to the back of her neck in an affectionate manner. She hugged him tightly. Even more surprising to the knights, Tristan hugged her back.

"Well, it was very nice to meet you both, and your welcome to ride with us. It is time to rest now, we've had a long day and it is quite late already." Arthur broke the ice. The knights mumbled in a shocked tone but tracked off to find a place to sleep. Aurora broke away from Tristan first and found herself a tree to sleep under. She through her cloak over herself and closed her eyes. Tristan and her father picked a spot near her and she noticed that her father went to sleep instantaneously and started snoring but Tristan stayed awake. She stayed silently awake with him as well, mulling over everything that had happened that day, especially, getting her brother back; that was her last thought before she fell into a peaceful sleep.

AN: Sorry, I know this chapter is probably going on forever for you and I know it was shorter than the last one but I have a headache, I'm tired and I have a cat itching to climb onto my last and press the keys on the keyboard so I'll have to call it a night. It's only about ten o' clock here but last night the cat wouldn't stop yowling all night so I was up quiet a bit playing with her. Anyway, I'll write more later.

Alyssa