Ignacio woke later, and his princess was gone. A note lay where she had laid next to him. He sighed, as he reached for it.

Dearest Ignacio,

I do not regret what happened between us earlier today. I have no accusations to throw at you. I will always love you. I will always dream of your kiss and the way you held me. I can't stay near you. This was a perfect morning, but it mustn't continue in any way.

You will forget me. You will move on. You will remember me with fondness, and you will smile at my memory in time. I will never see you again, my love.

I will write to you again, just like before. I need to know you are safe and well, and getting that pueblo back to normal. I will not provide my return address, so you will not be able to pursue me, as your heart would want to. You may forward your letters through the Colonel.

Tell Marcela, that I will write to her as well. Give her my love and kiss the baby for me.

All my love,

Gushing Stream

He crushed the piece of paper in his hand. He'd rather she didn't write to him, if he couldn't touch her again. He frowned, and didn't notice Diego standing in the doorway again, staring down at him.

"You got hot?" He said sternly. Ignacio wondered what he meant, and realised he was still naked in the bed. Diego crossed over to the bedside and laid a hand on his forehead.

"Normal," Diego said softly. He tossed him his discarded shirt, and considered the man for a moment. "Get that on, before you freeze."

"She's gone," Ignacio breathed, unfolding her letter carefully. He passed it to Diego, not really caring about what was written. He made no move for the shirt.

Diego read the crumpled piece of paper, and glanced at him quickly, and then read it again. He smoothed out the paper silently for a moment.

"What happened? What did you do?"

Ignacio shrugged. "It doesn't matter."

"She speaks of accusations…" Diego said sternly. He raised an eyebrow and his voice died away. "Accusations…"

"As she says, she has no accusations, Diego. It's already forgotten. Whatever happened, means nothing at all. To either of us," he murmured, flinching at the lie. He would never forget it.

Diego stared at him for a moment. Then the man sighed, and reached for the cup of cactus tea.

"This time you will need it," he said, as he handed it to Ignacio. "Drink it."

"I'm hungry," Ignacio said softly. He drank it, and he managed to force the whole lot down his throat. Diego raised his eyebrow.

"I have chicken broth. Ignacio," he said, and paused. "What are you planning?"

"What?"

"You have that look in your face," Diego said, and folded his arms loosely. "A plan is growing in your mind. To do with the lady," he added.

"Why ever would you think that? I have a lot to do in the pueblo, Diego. I have no time for a woman who has no time for me. I have to get things in motion. Can I rely on your continued support? In every way?"

"As far as I am able to."

"Ignacio," he began. "It is alright for you to rest and recover. Gushing Stream was important to you. It is alright to grieve the loss of a close friend from your life."

"I have laid here for an eternity," Ignacio said softly. "A school needs to be built, and another doctor hired to help the pueblo. Poor Dr Hernandez has to rely on your skills to prop up his patients."

"I enjoy using my skills, Alcalde," Diego said with a touch of annoyance. "It is not an issue for me."

"If Zorro could be persuaded to help me train the lancers for a while, it would be greatly appreciated. At my limited strength, it would be very draining."

"I am not about to allow any strenuous activity. We were planning your funeral three days ago. I don't want to have to accept that my patient will need those plans."

Ignacio sighed. "Well, Zorro may well have to arm himself, because I am not staying in bed anymore," he said with a spark of anger. Diego frowned, and watched as Ignacio swung his legs on the side of the bed. "Are you going to help me?"

"Doesn't sound as if I am welcome here right now," Diego said with a huff. He sighed, realising Ignacio meant what he said. He offered a hand for the man to stand and helped him to the chair. He stood back and gazed down at the chair thoughtfully.

Ignacio could see cogs working in Diego's mind, as he waited for the man to say something.

"The chair needs wheels," he said softly. It made no sense to Ignacio. Perhaps Diego was sleep deprived from all of his doctoring.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, a compromise. I could rig a Bath invalid's chair with a few bits and pieces, and we would pad it and everything," Diego said softly. "If I added cushioning to the wheels themselves, it would be smoother than an actual Bath chair."

"Compromise?"

"Yes, you sit in the invalid's chair, and I wheel it where you want to go."

"I'll be dependent on you?"

"Get Mendoza to help then," Diego said. "I'll get you back into bed, and tomorrow we will have a fully functional mobile chair."

"With wheels? Like a cart?" Ignacio said with a frown. He felt the edges of sleep intrude again. The cactus tea was powerful, he remembered. He let the man move him again. "If it has wheels, I could just roll away somewhere."

"There is not many hilly areas in the pueblo, Ignacio," Diego said with an amused twinkle in his eyes. "Somehow I don't see it happening."

Diego stood over him and watched him yawn. "Go back to sleep, Alcalde. You can get on with the job at hand tomorrow."

ZZZZ

The wheeled chair was rough but with the extra cushioning on the wheels, Ignacio could see the benefits quite quickly. He didn't have much access to his world, but the Alcalde's office and the rest of the cuartel was at his disposal. With a few soldiers to lift, resettle and push the chair, Ignacio felt much more at ease. He was tired, but he was satisfied that he wasn't wasting his time, and his life stuck in bed.

Zorro arrived, and made the soldiers uneasy as he strode into the cuartel. He kept his arms up and away from his sabre.

"As you know, Zorro has been given a full pardon. He is at our service to put people through their paces, while I am unable at present," Ignacio said firmly. "I trust you will show him what this garrison is capable of, and do yourselves proud." He truly doubted them to be able to do much, but a seed of hope was there.

Zorro drilled them as a group, and then singled out the best individuals for one on one fencing drills. Mendoza was gestured forward, although he protested softly.

"What, my friend? I will not hurt you, sergeant," Zorro said with a smile. "Now we are on the same side."

"Si, mi amigo." Mendoza tried to lunge, and Zorro tut tutted.

"First, you salute," he said.

"It's not a gentleman's club," Ignacio said with annoyance.

Mendoza did a quick salute, and Zorro smiled more. "Slowly," Zorro said softly. "Block me," he murmured, lunging slightly. Mendoza did as he was told. "And again, sergeant," Zorro said.

Ignacio watched from his chair, and shook his head. Mendoza would never make a swordsman. Never of Zorro's calibre anyway. He yawned a little, and Zorro was instantly distracted, glancing at him. Mendoza lunged suddenly with his sword, and Zorro's reflex kick had him sprawling on the dirt.

Zorro glanced down with surprise and sighed. "Mendoza. Sorry about that, it's not good to try to catch me unawares," he said, offering a hand to help the man up. "I am well practiced in my own defence."

"That may be enough for the day," Zorro said, looking at the exhausted lancers. "What do you think Alcalde? Once a week? Twice a week?"

"Twice a week," Ignacio said quickly. He didn't want to push his luck, but his lancers needed to be at full strength. "How is the bandit problem at the moment?"

"Moderate," Zorro said, sheathing the sabre. "Armand has a few elite troops at his disposal and they are dealing with it for now."

Ignacio nodded thoughtfully. "Ignacio, it is alright to be sad about Gushing Stream leaving you," Zorro said softly. "You love her, and your heart must be breaking…"

"It won't stop me doing what needs to be done," Ignacio said, steeling his heart against Zorro's words. He had managed to pretend for most of the day, but he could fall into despondency quickly. "What else needs to be done today?"

"Lunch, and some cactus tea," Zorro said, pushing the chair towards Ignacio's quarters again. "Rest and then you may read some correspondence," he added. Diego had rigged a portable ramp to facilitate the wheeled chair in some areas, and it was used to get the chair into the building.

"Don't push your luck," Zorro said, as he helped him into bed again. He knew that Ignacio was fighting to do more and more, and to resume his normal duties as soon as possible. Ignacio glanced at him acting more and more like Diego as he fussed in the room, and had to stifle a laugh. Zorro handed him the cup of cactus tea, with raised eyebrows, watching him drain it quickly. "Sleep, and after that lunch," he added with a smile, seeing the Alcalde's eyelids droop immediately as the cactus tea took effect.