"Today, I thought we might go on a picnic." Alison's eyes shone with the light of adventure as she watched Luned help Bella dress in a simple green gown and kirtle with a plain-dyed plaited belt.

"A picnic?" Bella could barely believe her ears. Something a little like an activity she might do at home? She was there!

"Yes." Rosalind smiled, closing the lid of one chest and shifting something behind her back suspiciously. "There is a lovely pond in the woods we thought you might like to see…"

"Rosalind, what are you hiding?" Bella demanded. Luned grinned widely.

"It is not important. Hurry and dress. Alison and I are going to visit Samuel and acquire some custard pies…"

Rosalind and Alison's giggles could be heard even as they moved quickly down the staircase. In her desire for another taste of the heavenly treat, Bella tried to help Luned with the dress.

"My lady, that is the arm hole." Even Luned was laughing. "You will be dressed much faster if you just remain still and allow me to continue with my work."

Bella sighed, unsurprised that again she had managed to muck things up, and let Luned release her head from the spot she had caught it in.

"Are you always so…" Luned began.

"Awkward?" Bella finished for her. "Yep. Since as far back as I can ever remember. Only I could knock the whole row of dancers over at my one and only dance recital…"

"Dance recital? You do talk so strangely my lady."

"Mmm." Bella sighed sadly. "I suppose I do."

"Don't be sad, lady," Luned said as she tied the belt artfully around Bella's waist so it fell in an attractive v low on her hips. "Lady Rosalind and Lady Alison have a wonderful surprise planned…"

"So it seemed." Bella smiled. "Are you going to let me in on it?"

"No, lady. But I will tell you I get to join in!" Her face glowed with happiness. "It is not very often I…well, you will have to see!"

* * * * *

For the millionth time since arriving in this place Bella's stomach rumbled and she cursed the foolishness that had them eating so infrequently. 'What I wouldn't give for a huge block of milk chocolate, oh…' she shook her head, trying to forget the memory of her favourite treat, and focused instead on her good fortune to be having some of Samuel's custard pies, which were almost on par with the smooth flavour of…no. No more.

No more thinking about…

"My lady, we can leave now. The others will be waiting for us in the courtyard." Luned gazed at Bella mildly, her eyes shadowed.

"Oh, yes." Bella responded in a fluster. "Of course. I'm coming."

The two women descended the staircase to find James awaiting them at the bottom. Beside Bella, Luned stiffened.

"My lady." He murmured, leaning over Bella's hand, which she struggled to pull out of his too quick grasp.

"What do you want?" She hissed in return, finally snatching her hand from his.

"Nothing more than a while in your beautiful presence."

Luned snorted, and his pale eyes turned to Bella's new maid. "No one asked for your interference." He growled.

Luned stood still, her hands clenched into fists at her sides. "My lord." She ground out.

"Do you not have something to attend to, Luned? After all, I am sure there is much to do in the castle with the imminent arrival of our lady's father in the coming days."

Luned flicked her distressed gaze to Bella, before spinning on her heel and stalking off.

Bella watched her, horrified. "What the hell do you think you are doing? Isn't she my maid?"

"Yes, but of course, any task set by the lord of the castle or his sons overrules every other. Which allows me my time with you, doesn't it, Isabella?"

'Oh, joy.' She grit her teeth.

"Shall we?" He held out his arm for her. She glared at it, refusing to move.

His expression changed from a look of distant enjoyment to ferocious anger. "Do not make this any harder, Lady Isabella. It will not bode well for your future as my wife." He grabbed her arm in a vice like grip that felt like it would shatter her bones. "You are coming with me. I would sample before I make my final purchase."

"Not a chance!" She yelled, pulling backwards. There was no way she could break his grip. In fear, she turned to find some help, but there was no one. It seemed as though all the servants had disappeared. She wondered briefly whether they ran as soon as he arrived, or when they saw what was going on.

Quickly, she realized what this meant; there was no one to help her. The grip on her arm was unbreakable. She yanked desperately, panicking, and James laughed. "You are going nowhere but upstairs with me, Lady Isabella. I had heard you have seen my brother's room, now it is time to see mine."

Using his overwhelming strength, he dragged her back up the stone steps.

* * * * *

Edward shrugged into his surcoat, his squire eyeing him doubtfully.

"Is it appropriate to practice on a Sunday, my lord?"

Edward rolled his eyes. "If the Lord did not want me to practice on his day, he would not allow there to be wars, Jacob."

"Is that not sacrilege?" Jacob's wide black eyes seemed to reflect his terror, and expectation of some dreadful punishment for what the two men were doing.

"Jacob. You ask me the same question every Sunday, and every Sunday we are not struck down. I think God understands."

Jacob nodded quickly, grabbing his lord's helmet from the dark wooden chest in the corner of the room. He tossed it to Edward, and looked at him sheepishly. "Ah, Sir Edward?"

Edward chuckled lightly. "No, Jacob. I have not yet spoken to my father. I do not doubt his answer, though."

"You truly believe he would allow it, my lord?" Jacob seemed so young, much younger than his 20 years as he looked at Edward hopefully.

Edward laughed uproariously. "Yes, Jacob. I truly do. But I think you should ask the lady yourself…" Their discussion was interrupted by a high pitched, clearly feminine scream.

Edward froze; Jacob spun around staring at the door as though expecting to see right through it. The scream came again.

Edward hissed.

"Your brother?" Jacob asked quietly.

"Undoubtedly." Edward ground out. "He has always had a problem with following rules. I had better to see to him, before our father does."

Edward started to the door.

"My lord, you don't think…" Edward turned back to see Jacob's face, crumpled with misery. "It couldn't be…"

"I will see. If it is, I vow I will stop him."

Jacob nodded tersely. "I shall wait for you here."

Edward stalked out the door, slamming it forcefully behind him, before stepping deeper into the corridors shadows.

A few doors down he stopped, listening carefully to the scuffling sounds coming from inside. He knew he had promised Jacob he would halt things if it was Luned, but…there were some things beyond his ability to control. The willing tumblings of the castle's servants were certainly one of those things.

"Get away from me you disgusting moron!"

Edward's fury flared as he realized it was not Luned his brother was after; it was Lady Isabella. He shook the door, found it to be locked, and stepped back quickly to kick it open with his metal plated boot. The hinges splintered under the power of his blow, and he flew into the room, roaring like a mad man.

His first sight was of Isabella's flushed and furious face, her eyes glistening with tears of rage and frustration. Edward's temper swelled higher, and he rounded on his brother.

"What do you think you are doing, James?"

"Merely claiming what shall soon be mine, brother. Surely you can not fault me in that." James raised his hand to smooth his tousled hair from his eyes.

"And is the lady willing, brother?" Edward's eyes flashed a warning.

"Yes, of course." James said blandly at the same time Bella yelled "Not bloody likely!"

Edward frowned.

"It is beside the point whether she agrees or not." James continued smoothly. "She will be my wife, therefore it is my right."

Edward growled. "It is not your right until your and Lady Isabella's wedding night, if that should ever come to pass."

"It's never his right, you pair of chauvinistic, scum sucking…" Edward silenced her with a look, and Bella crossed her arms over her chest, her breathing heavy with the words she hadn't managed to get out.

"How would it not?" James raised an eyebrow at his brother. "What man could possibly rival the sum I will offer her father for her hand? None around here."

"None other than myself." Edward interjected softly.

James eyes bulged, and then narrowed. "You would not dare."

"Try me brother. I find myself…strangely intrigued by Lady Isabella. And it is about time I settled down, married, and sired heirs to Cullen Castle."

"I saw her first." James hissed.

"Ah, but the foremost interest of her father's is who can offer the most coin? I believe that would be me." Edward smirked.

"Father will not gift you with any more than he would me." James' cheeks burned red, and his jaw twitched.

"He would not, in that you are correct. However, my years as Lord of the Tourney's has added much to my own purse, more than you can speak of, which I would be happy to add to whatever father gifts me with for my future bride."

With that, James lunged at his brother. Unfortunately, his anger dulled his senses, and with one solid back hand from Edward's mailed fist, he was sent staggering to the floor, blood pouring from his nose.

The hatred in James' eyes was unmistakeable. "You will not best me this time, brother, no matter how much coin you throw at Lord Swan."

Edward laughed bitterly. "I beg to differ. Do not bother Lady Isabella again, or a broken nose will be the least of your injuries." With that, Edward held his hand out to Bella, and, though it repulsed her in that moment, almost as much as James' would have done, she took it, believing it to be the lesser of two evils, and followed him quickly from the room.

She tugged her hand away once he led her into his room where Jacob stood precisely where Edward had left him.

"Lady Isabella?" Jacob asked, confused.

"Do I know you?" Bella frowned, trying to pick his face out of the crowd of people she had met so far.

"No, you do not know him, Lady Isabella. He is my squire, Jacob." Edward waved his hand in Jacob's general direction.

"Lady." Jacob nodded slightly in greeting, still with the confused expression.

"Clearly, it was not who you were concerned about Jacob. You can leave us." Edward sighed, moving his helmet from the bed, where he had thrown it before chasing James down, back onto the chest where he normally kept his armor.

Jacob nodded stiffly, and slid out the still open door, closing it quietly behind him.

"So it's out of the frying pan and into the fire for me, is it?" Bella glared at the vast expanse of Edward's back. "Are you really that much of a--"

"I never quite understand what it is you are trying to say, Lady Isabella."

She frowned, noticed how his hands were fisted at his sides, the knuckles showing white. "I mean, do you plan on taking over where your brother left off?"

"No."

"Then why did you drag me into your room and tell your squire to leave? Are you hoping if you wait a while I might be so relieved I'll just give in freely?" Red splotches broke out on Bella's face.

"I would never use a woman in that way." He said it so softly, she had to strain to hear. She scoffed when she caught his words.

"That's not what I've heard."

"People gossip."

"Gossip isn't always wrong."

Finally, he turned so he was facing her. "Lady Isabella. What I do with willing women in this castle is no business of yours. Or anyone else's for that matter."

"Oh," She scowled. "Do I have to wait until I am your wife before you will tell me?"

Edward's eyebrows rose. "Even then, my…actions are not any concern of yours."

Bella fumed. She didn't know what made her angrier; the way he assumed that she would ever marry him, or the casual way he informed her that if he decided to sleep around, it would be none of her business. "You are one right royal--"

"I am not royal, my lady. There is rather a large gap between a lord and a royal."

"Grr!" Bella stamped her foot. "You are truly infuriating!"

Breathing deeply and walking slowly back and forth, she tried to focus on the point at hand. "If you don't want your wicked way me, what did you bring me here for then? To your room, I mean."

He watched her as she paced in front of the door, breathing deeply. "Jacob was concerned you were someone else. I sought to relieve him of his fear."

"Is that all?" She asked.

"No."

She smiled, satisfied to get something right.

"I did not want to leave you, not until I was sure you were…safe." His green eyes softened briefly, and then his face returned to its usual stern expression.

"Thank you." Bella said finally, amazed at the moment of gentleness she had witnessed.

A second passed before she remembered the other thing that was bothering her.

"So you have decided to bid for me, have you?" She said bitterly.

He seemed surprised. "Yes, I have."

"Why?"

"It is as I said; at some point I must marry and produce heirs," his eyes raked her body. "You seem healthy enough."

"What am I? A dog in heat to be bred off?" The heat rose again in her cheeks, this time right to her hairline.

"No. You are a woman. Your job is to run a household and bear your husband's children. You seem like a spirited woman, capable of directing servants and raising strapping boys."

"I will not." Bella's hands clenched until her nails dig into her palms.

He raised his eyebrows at her imperiously. "You have no choice, my lady. Better it be me than some man like to mistreat you."

"You arrogant prick! Don't you think forcing me to marriage would be considered mistreatment?"

Edward looked confused. "No."

"Argh." Bella stamped her foot. Somewhere in the back of her mind she was surprised by how often she had acted like a child since she had come to this place. "You men here, you are all idiots, I swear!"

"I dislike your insults, lady. I will ask that you stop them before we are married."

"You imbecile!" Her anger was out of control now, her breathing heavy, her flush heating her body from toes to scalp. "I will do nothing of the sort! I will not marry you, or any one else in this ridiculous era!"

She stomped to the door and yanked it open, narrowly missing knocking herself out with the wood.

"You will marry, Lady Isabella." Edward said softly behind her. "You should only hope James does not find a way to obtain you."

With one final growl of frustration she exited the room.