A/N Hello, once again my fans. I want to apologize for taking to long to put up a new chapter. I just haven't had the time to and I know that it sounds like I'm avoiding the subject but I assure you that you mean much to me. Muchos amor.

There is no remedy but to love more. — Henry David Thoreau

Lena gazed amusedly as Airen whipped Lancelot's, Gawain's, and Faye's butts at throwing knives. They didn't seem to understand that her aim was better then theirs. Lena laughed quietly to herself before walking towards Vanora. As Lena approached Vanora stopped what she was doing to look at the girl. "Hi! I was wondering if there was anything that I could do to help you out around here."

"I've got nuthin' for ya to do love. Sorry I didn't catch your name," Vanora replied picking up some mugs that were sitting on the table in front of her.

"How rude of me," Lena whispered to herself looking frustrated for a second before saying aloud, "I'm Lena."

"Well, Lena, I'll call ya if there's something you can do for me," Vanora smiled.

"I'll hold ya to it," Lena said smiling back watching Vanora walk back to the bar like area in the tavern.

While Lena and Vanora had been talking Dagonet quietly approached the two talking women. Lena hadn't seen him, so when she turned around to continue watching Airen, she bumped into him causing her to fall backwards onto her rump rather undignified. She shook her head before looking up at the "wall" that had magically appeared in front of her. She wasn't very surprised to see the gentle giant, as she liked to call him, standing in front of her looking down at the undignified heap that she was.

Dagonet stared at the girl who had ridden with him on the way back to wall and who had sat next to him during the meeting with Arthur. He hadn't meant for her to run into him, he hadn't thought that he was that much in the way, but then again he hadn't meant for a lot of things to happen. Dagonet offered her his hand hoping that she wouldn't be stupid and continue to sit there on the dirt and stone ground that made up the tavern. In fact he rather hoped that she would take his hand because he wanted her to see that he was there for more than his muscle and skill in battle. He wanted her to see that he was a rather sincere and calm person.

Lena stared at his fairly large hand before grabbing the calloused appendage. She had to admit that his hand seemed relatively huge her own hand seemed to fit perfectly into his, almost as if it was made for his. She also couldn't help notice that his hand was sending off sparks throughout her body, but she wasn't complaining because she liked the way he made her feel. She had read many a romance novel where the whole sparks thing meant that she loved him, but she knew that, that was way off base. "Thank you," whispered Lena when he had pulled her up. "You didn't have to help me," she told him as she broke the connection.

"It was my fault," he replied wishing that her hand was stilling enclosed in his.

"It wasn't your fault. I'm not the most graceful person there is. My friends sometimes joke around saying that I should have been named Grace and not Lena," she explained to him turning her attention back to the losing group of people, she realized were her new found friends. Lena chuckled before saying to Dagonet, "They're never going to win and Mandi knows this except she insists on playing Airen."

"Why do you say that missy?" Lena heard Bors say to her.

"They won't win because Airen has the deadliest shot I know."

"Then you haven't seen Tristan," Bors replied adding his own two cents with a rather loud and disgusting belch.

Lena rolled her eyes leaning into Dagonet, who stood behind her. She felt so safe in his presence; it was almost like being wrapped in a warm blanket. Bors looked at the couple, knowing that at the very first moment that they had seen each other, they were meant to be. Dagonet had all ready changed, not that it was noticeable, but the change was there.

Lena had been so wrapped up in her thoughts that she was startled to hear someone yelling. "Why'd you hit me!" she heard Lancelot yell at Airen.

"Do I have to have a reason jerk off!?" Airen yelled back brandishing a somewhat deadly looking dagger, a dagger identical to one each of the girls had.

"Yeah ya do!" Lancelot yelled back, stepping away from the dagger pointed his way.

Lena couldn't help herself, she burst out laughing. Everybody turned and looked at her like she was crazy. Apparently they thought this was a serious situation. "What are you laughing for?!" yelled Lancelot, annoyed at the sudden interruption of his argument that he was positive he was going to win.

"Don't yell at her!" Airen nearly screamed smacking Lancelot so hard that he stumbled forward some.

This only caused Lena to laugh some more, making some not so pleasant sounds. She was laughing so hard that she didn't notice the hand that had come to rest on her waist. "Seriously Na-Na, what has gotten you so worked up?" Airen asked surprised at her friend's loud laughter and the snorting that was accompanying it.

"I'm laughing cause Airy hits everybody she meets, usually it's guys that she hits. And your reaction, Lancelot, made me think if one of Ana's boyfriends," Lena explained giggling.

"You mean . . ." started Faye.

"Yeah," nodded Lena.

All three girls busted out laughing and giggling get even more looks than Lena had gotten by herself. This caused men to feel as though they had missed out on something important and this annoyed some of them, Lancelot being the main contender for this annoyance. "Will someone please tell me what's so fricking funny," exclaimed Lancelot exasperated at the three girls.

Lena stopped laughing long enough to explain their laughter. "Several years ago, before Ana met Rafael, she was dating this one guy who hadn't known what to except when it came to meeting Ana's friends. She'd brought him to meet us a couple weeks after she started their relationship because he'd had to work. Normally, she brings the guys over right away so they have a feel for her friends. Anyway, he'd said something incredibly stupid and Airen hit him over the head, but she hit him so hard that he fell forward and hit his head on the door. He then stumbled backwards, caught his foot on the rug, fell backwards, and hit his head on the table. In the end he'd sprained his ankle and gotten a pretty nasty bump on both sides of his head."

By the end of her explanation everybody in the tavern was laughing. Airen stood there sheepishly, blushing beet red to her roots. "We heard laughing," everybody heard as the gasping words of Galahad broke the haze of laughter that surrounded them.

Gawain turned to see his brother red faced and gasping for breath, while Liliana stood next to him grinning from ear to ear. "What did you two do?" asked Faye looking between the two people that stood before her.

"We didn't do anything but have a race," explained Liliana fingering her hair.

"Uh huh and why is there straw in your hair?" asked Airen smirking.

"After our race I fell in the straw in the stable," Liliana stilled explained straight face, pulling out another piece of straw from her tangled hair.

Lena closed her eyes trying to prevent the oncoming headache that Ana was causing. Lena loved Ana dearly but she could sometimes cause others to fade into the shadows and that always seemed to happen when the two of them were in the same room together. Pulling away from Dagonet, Lena left the tavern hoping she'd be able to find some peace and quiet elsewhere. Maybe then she could dislodge the headache that would eventually have her cowering in a dark room away from any noise.

Sneaking past a Roman guard, by the gate, Lena wound her way past trees and bushes that made up the forest near the gate. Coming upon a stream that looked rather cool Lena decided to take a break. Taking off her tennis shoes and rolling up her flared pants, Lena sat on a rock and dipped her feet into the stream, reveling in the coolness and flow of the water. She sat there for a while in complete silence until she started crying. She missed Lucan so much and she was furious to the point of tears of the treatment that he was currently undergoing. She only had three months before she could hold her son again. Lena stayed like this for several hours before eventually falling asleep on the rock, her feet in the stream.

Back at the tavern Dagonet had noticed that Lena had yet to come back. He had been disappointed when she had pulled away from him earlier but had thought nothing of it. Now though he was getting worried about her. As thought back he realized that she had been missing for several hours now. Clapping Bors on the shoulder Dagonet left in search of Lena hoping that she had come to no harm.

His search led him to the forest outside the wall, a place he had never expected Lena to go. Slowly he made his way through the overgrowth, bushes and trees that littered the area. It was at a time like this that he wished that he had a torches or something to light his way. What seemed like hours later, Dagonet noisily stepped into a stream. This caused Lena to wake abruptly. Dagonet soon found himself the recipient if Lena's staff. "Who's there?" she called knowing full well that someone was in front of her because her staff was resting on them. She felt before she saw the person in front of her.

"Lena? It's me Dagonet."

"Dag?" he heard her say her voice waterlogged.

"Yes milady," he replied smiling.

Next thing he knew he was being hugged. Awkwardly he put his arms around her, feeling her shake, and hearing her muffled sobs as she cried into his shirt. They stayed like this for several minutes before Lena stepped back to look at him, staying in his arms. "Are you all right?" he asked gazing down at the short woman.

Lena nodded before replying, "I'm all right. I'm just sorta emotional right now. I miss my son and Renna."

This caused Dagonet much alarm. "Son?"

Lena moved out of his arms, standing away from him. "Yes, I have a son. His father died before he was born."

Dagonet looked at her before saying, "How? Who?"

Lena looked at Dagonet before saying, "You know how and as for the who'll I'll just say that it was a marriage of connivance. Meaning, he needed to marry someone to get his money that he was promised to and I wanted someone that I could talk to when the girls weren't around. I only slept with him once and I got the most amazing gift from that one experience."

Dagonet nodded, satisfied with her explanation. One thing still lingered in his mind though. "How did his father die?"

"Some old friends of his killed him for his money. Of course they got none of it and I got all of it. Dag would you mind staying out here with me? I don't want to go back quite yet." Lena's reply was Dag opening his arms for her stand between them. She gladly stepped forward waiting to be enveloped in his arms. He held her as he sat down on the rock that she had previously occupied and there they sat in companionable silence.