A/N: Change of plans – there were winds of almost 150km/h on the slopes, and it's going to be windy there for the rest of the week, so skiing has been postponed until that settles down. Good news for you guys is that you get the updates sooner! Yay!

.:':. .:':. .:':.

Liam hadn't quite realised the sheer variety of things for sale until he actually went to buy something. It was an assault on his senses - a cacophony of colour, noise, smells and even the tastes for various food items filling the air. Almost staggering from the sensory overload, he flitted from one stall to the next, everything catching his eye but nothing quite standing out from the others. His nose was burning and his eyes were watering after smelling a chopped onion without realising that's what it was when his noticed the blacksmith's workshop.

He threaded through the market crowd towards it, entranced by the rhythmic swing of the blacksmith's hammer and he worked a formless piece of metal into a horseshoe. Cringing back from the sparks and blasts of heat, Liam looked in awe at the swords, daggers, horseshoes and other metal apparel hanging on the walls. Dunking the finished shoe in a nearby bucket of water, the smithy squinted at Liam through the resultant steam. "What're you looking like that for, son? People'll think you'd never seen a sword before!"

Blushing slightly, Liam tore his eyes from the wall. "I haven't, actually."

The smithy gave him an odd look. "You're, what, sixteen, seventeen? Of course you've seen a sword before."

"Well..." Liam scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably. "I know what they are, what they look like and what they're used for. I just haven't seen one until now." He reconsidered. "Actually, I may have seen some, I just don't remember."

"Don't remember?" spluttered the blacksmith. "The sword is among the most majestic of weapons, if it's forged right. You don't just forget something like seeing a sword for the first time!"

"I don't remember anything of my personal experiences up until about a month ago," Liam retorted defensively, a little offended. The smithy scratched his stubbly chin thoughtfully.

"I think I heard about that. Let me see... Eve... No, it was Ava, Ava and David Newman. Those are your parents, right?" Liam nodded, and the blacksmith nodded along. "And you're Leo! No, wait, it was... Liam, wasn't it?" He seemed to be mostly talking to himself, but Liam nodded again anyway.

"That's right."

Sucking in breath, the smithy shook his head. "It's not right, just losing your memories like that. I can't even imagine, not remembering seeing my first sword..." His eyes grew misty. Liam glanced around, wondering if he could edge away without the blacksmith noticing. He was a bit of an odd man, and Liam was growing uncomfortable. Suddenly, though, he was back to business, and the window of escape was gone. "But I'm sure you didn't stop by just to talk about swords, did you, son? You want to buy one!"

Liam glanced again at the swords hanging on the wall. Somehow, he felt a single silver coin wouldn't cover the cost for any of them. "I'm not sure I can afford it."

The blacksmith waved a hand affably. "I wasn't really expecting you to." He pulled out a selection of daggers, each a bit longer than the smithy's forearm. "These are probably more in your price range. Two to three silvers each." Liam reddened slightly and muttered that he only had one silver coin. Without a word, the daggers disappeared under the bench and were replaced with a much smaller dagger in a plain scabbard. Liam said as much, not giving much thought to the words before they left his mouth.

A hearty chuckle rumbled through the blacksmith's entire body. "You're not exactly on the larger end of things yourself, son." Liam blushed again; certainly, when compared to the smithy's vast, muscled bulk, he did look something of a dwarf.

He leaned close to Liam, a conspiratorial glint in his eyes. "Son, I like you, and I feel sorry for you not remembering seeing your first sword. I'll let you have this dagger, and its scabbard and a whetstone for that silver coin of yours." Liam thought the smithy's offering was a bit strange, but he wasn't going to pass up a chance to get a discount on the dagger and its affects. He wasn't entirely sure why he wanted it, either; possibly to make himself feel a little more safe and protected in the crush of people present in the marketplace. He dropped the coin on the bench and the blacksmith scooped it up, pushing Liam's purchases towards him. "Have a nice day there, son. Make sure you don't stab anyone with that unless you absolutely have to." His eyes twinkled with laughter. Liam nodded, pushing the small dagger through his belt and slipping the whetstone into his pocket.

"Thank you." Liam tipped his head respectfully at the smithy, causing him to rumble once more with laughter. Smiling himself a little, and standing straighter with his new dagger strapped to his side, he made his way through the swarm of people and headed back in the direction of his family's stall.

"Adam, stop it." The female voice was strained and high, signalling her stress at the situation. Liam swivelled his head towards the sound and saw a girl, perhaps a little younger than himself, surrounded by three leering, hulking boys.

"Don't be such a baby. We're not going to hurt you," the blondest of the three replied in a tone that was probably meant to be soothing but came out greasy.

"Yeah, we're just having fun, aren't we?" another of the boys, this one dark-haired, added.

"Well, I'm not. Go away!" Her voice wobbled slightly, but she still managed to keep a brave face. This had obviously been going on for at least a few minutes.

Liam was torn. He really wanted to help this girl, but he was afraid the behemoths surrounding her would tear him apart if he tried. He doubted the dagger he had just bought would do much more than tickle them.

Then, the decision was made for him. The last of the boys, his hair a colour somewhere between that of the other two, grabbed her by the arm, nearly lifting her off the ground. She cried out in pain. "Let me go!"

Several of those nearby turned at the noise, and some started towards the group, but none were as fast as Liam. When the boy had grabbed her, Liam had thought, would a Ranger like the ones who saved me do nothing in this situation? and, without any consideration of the fact that he wasn't trained for fighting like a Ranger was, he'd snapped and launched himself at the boy.

Caught completely unawares, the boy released his grip on the girl and even stumbled back a few steps. Not wasting the edge the element of surprise, he punched the blonde one, Adam, in the stomach. He fell back a little, but so did Liam, his fist throbbing. He'd had no idea punching someone would hurt so much. By now, the boys had gathered themselves and faced Liam in a formidable wall of muscle. Gulping nervously, his hand dropped subconsciously to the hilt of his dagger. "Leave her alone!" he shouted, thankful that his voice didn't crack.

Adam laughed. "You see that, Clark?" he asked his dark-haired companion as he gestured to Liam's small dagger. "Give a kid a silver-painted toothpick and he thinks he's a knight!"

A man from the ring of people that had formed around the fight attempted to step in and break it up, but the third boy, Brendan, pushed him back contemptuously. Several members of the crowd jeered at him. Liam used the momentary distraction to his advantage; he kicked the side of Adam's knee, and then between Clark's legs. He hit his first target, eliciting a groan of pain as he buckled sideways slightly from the impact. However, Clark reacted quickly enough that he was able to catch Liam by the foot and twist it, sending him sprawling in the dust. Then, he raised his own foot, ready to stomp on Liam's leg - and, with his size, quite likely break it. Liam quickly rolled out of the way and tried to hit Clark in the shin with another kick, but his fall had winded him and it was ineffectual. Angered, Clark hauled him up by the scruff of his shirt, feet dangling a good few centimetres off the ground. Liam tried to shrink back from the blow he knew was coming, and the entire crowd cringed in anticipation. His hand brushed against the round form of the whetstone, still in his pocket. Oh, it can't get any worse, Liam thought.

He pulled the stone out of his pocket and smashed it against the side of Clark's head.

With a grunt of pain, Clark dropped him in the dust again and instead reached to touch his forehead. When he pulled his hand away it was stained with blood. Hastily pocketing the stone, Liam scuttled away from him, using both arms and legs to propel himself backwards. Clenching his hand around the blood, Clark glared murderously at the struggling boy in front of him. Liam scrambled to feet, now almost at the edge of the circle, and cast a panicked glance around. Some of those gathered realised that Liam could end up very seriously injured within the next few moments, but that was all the more reason not to interfere - Clark's fury might turn on them instead.

Suddenly, the older boy swung out, aiming straight for Liam's head. He ducked instinctively and moved out of reach. This only served to make Clark madder, and he swung several wild punches, the last clipping Liam on the jaw. His head rung from the impact. Galvanised into action by their friend's success in landing a blow, Adam and Brendan started circling Liam as well.

He felt like a hunted fox as they tightened in around him.

The blows came from all directions. However, they were fairly uncoordinated throws, despite the boys' bulk, and Liam was able to evade most of them. A few resounding cracks of flesh on flesh did sound out, though, the onlooking crowd wincing in appreciation. They circled ever closer, and soon Liam would have no room for manoeuvrability. He didn't really want to think about what would happen then.

Eventually, they wised up. Adam and Brendan each grabbed one of Liam's arms, holding him in place for Clark. Many gathered there wondered why they hadn't thought of it sooner. Perhaps they'd wanted to put on more of a show for the audience, but that somehow seemed unlikely. Liam felt tiny and weak stretched out between the two boys. He couldn't remember why he'd thought this was a good idea; then, he caught the eye of the girl they'd been picking on. He gave her a grim smile. At least they were leaving her alone now.

Clark took a few steps backwards to give himself more of a run-up. Both Liam and the crowd shrank back, knowing whatever Clark did, it would hurt. With an aggressive grunt, he charged.

Helplessly, Liam closed his eyes, gritted his teeth and waited for the blow.

.:':. .:':. .:':.

A/N: Back in society for one day and he's already having his ass handed to him? Liam needs to work on his people skills. Actually, I need to stop bashing up characters. Somehow, though, I have a feeling the former is far more likely to happen. :P

-pixie.