Her father and aunt clamored at once "who is it?"

"Master Chubb with his delicacies?" Her father asked eagerly hopeful to have the mans sophisticated cooking as part of his daily life.

"Sir Rodney the knight and battle master of course or Sir Nigel he is well educated" her aunt stated matter of factly.

"No" Pauline said plainly. She could see her mother smiling coyly which she attempted to it hide from her obviously offended father and sister-in-law.

"The Ranger Halt it is then" her mother said touching her husbands arm to stable him as she saw the obviously affronted look on his face "dear you promised to let her choose between these men and chosen she has and a fine choice too my darling we are proud" her mother stated.

Her father sighed his wife had favored the Ranger as a suitor from the start though he didn't know why "yes my dear very proud, he has a reputation to say the least... though not all good" he added the last under his breath receiving a slight jab in the stomach from his wife.

Her aunt started to open her mouth but Pauline's mother was faster "we should go and tell the Baron then you will need his blessing if you are to be wed," she said as the group moved to converse with the Baron.

Halt stood a short ways away from the Baron with Crowley talking when he saw Pauline with her family.

"She must have made her choice then at least you came, ey? My money is on Sir Rodney, what do you wager?" Crowley stated.

Halt scowled at him as he sat stroking his beard prepared with a witty come back "Oh I don't-" Halt started but stopped mid sentence when he heard his name from the small group.

Crowley choked on his ale when he heard Halt's name "did she just say?"

"Ranger Halt would you join us please?" Pauline's father stated curtly approaching the men..

Halt was frozen for a second but moved when Crowley jabbed him in the back slightly. He approached and bowed his head respectfully.

The Baron spoke first "well Ranger Halt it would appear it is you who has won the Lady Pauline's favor tonight, though I am not sure how I cannot question her choice. When you accepted the invitation you agreed that if chosen you would thereby wed Lady De Lucy, to that do you hold true?" the Baron asked nodding his head. Halt looked past him to the Lady Pauline her eyes shown at him and she actually blushed slightly and looked down.

"I... er_" Halt fumbled with his words momentarily there was a fluttering in his chest for some reason this beautiful woman had chosen him though they had not said a word to each other his heart spoke before his head "I do."

The Baron let out a breath "good you two shall be betrothed then and you shall be married by year's end."

And thus was his sentence the small group that had gathered around them clapped pulling Halt out of his trance he suddenly found himself wishing he could hide in his cowl as the other suitors shook his hand and congratulated him.

When he was finally able to escape he went and stood in the garden overlooking the rocky shore line as the moon rose higher in the sky. After a short while he heard soft foot steps behind him.

"Ranger Halt?" came a soft voice.

He turned to see Pauline standing there the moonlight glowing off her light colored gown "my lady" he said softly bowing his head.

"I get the feeling you should just be calling me Pauline now that we are engaged" she said gently coming to stand next to him by the garden wall she looked up at the moon.

"Halt then" he said softly.

"Why did you say yes?" she asked him after a short while in silence.

He gave her a sideways glance "did you not want me to say yes?"

"Do you always answer a question with a question?" she replied.

"Do you?" he asked with a cocked brow, when she gave a slight huff of a laugh and turned her gaze back to the starry sky he continued "you did not wish to marry did you?"

She looked at him surprised but saw the honesty in his eyes and knew she could not lie to him "when I came here tonight I knew that I would have to choose one of four men my parents had chosen for me... I did not want to be forced to marry someone that I felt nothing for so no I did not."

Halt nodded softly "I am sorry" he said.

"But I did feel something tonight that I did not expect... it may be nothing but it may be something and if I will have no other hope of discovering it I hope that I can have at least what I felt tonight with you" she said tenderly touching his arm "I know you did not wish to marry either" he gave her a surprised look "I heard you arguing with Crowley" he gave a slightly embarrassed look.

"I didn't know the invitation was binding nor did I have the intention of marrying" he said she started to turn away from him again "but you are right I did feel something tonight and while I do not know what it is yet I did want to say yes" she smiled softly at him "I suppose we will have to figure out what this is."

She nodded with a soft smile "I suppose we will, Halt."

The words slipped off her tongue with ease as if they were supposed to be there. It wasn't a love story for the ages but there was something about the woman standing next to him that he knew he had made the right choice.

By the end of the night and slightly less disheartening conversation later the two had agreed to begin as friends albeit betrothed and soon to be wedded friends and would see where this took them. That night, Pauline lay in her bed, she had enjoyed Halt's company and she felt safe when he was close to her and she found herself slightly eager to see where time would take them.

That night Halt lay in his bed in his cabin and she was all he could think about. He had arrived at the party angry at the world and he had left it engaged and what was the other thing he was feeling? He wasn't sure he hoped time would tell. They were no fairy tale to be sure but there was certainly something there that time would surely make more clear.