Hey. Apologizes for the wait, something called family history, a mother's
day musical at church and school got in the way. That and the chapters will
be coming slower now because 'Lady Knight' has had its release date pushed
back to August and I want to read it before I continue with the plot line
after 'Squire' ends. Over all, I'm thinking this is going to hit between 30
and 40 chapters in the end, but I'm not sure. And as for one quick fix, I
got some characters mixed up again. @_@ As for a mistake I made ~when Vixen
said they buried Grandfather, it was supposed to be Old Bart. Thanks to
those who called it to my attention. Go on and read now, I'm sure you're
all about ready to burst after that last 'cliffy'. Oh, and don't forget to
review.
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Vixen woke up suddenly, feeling very disoriented from sleeping sitting up and not sure where she was. Moonlight streamed in through the window across from her, bathing the familiar room in a soft glow. Wherever she was she must've been out for a while, last time she remembered it was afternoon....
She shivered slightly; it was cold in the room, her clothes not offering much warmth and no blankets insight. Something warm was behind and beside her, so she snuggled closer to whatever it was and closed her eyes, too tired to care. The whole mystery could wait until morning...
Vixen had just about dropped off when something occurred to her. She straightened up again and looked down, seeing an around her waist and certainly wasn't there from before. She followed the arm up to the sleep person beside her...Joe. Memories of the night before rushed into her head as she put her head in hands.
"Oh my gosh...."
****A few hours later****
Mouse sat eating her breakfast in the outer room of where they had put Joe, trays of food for everyone else beside her. She was just about finished when Allie walked in, rubbing her eyes with sleep.
"Where's Vixen?" she asked, sitting down and pouring herself some coffee. "She never came to bed last night. That or I was in a really deep sleep and she left before I got up."
Mouse grinned and pointed to the door. "Joe woke up after lunch yesterday, just about the same time she fell asleep in that chair. I came in and checked on him about dinnertime and she was still out so I let him eat and she woke up soon after that. When I checked on them about an hour later, she was up on the bed beside him."
"Whoa, she did not..."
"No, just making out. This *is* Vixen we're talking about. I peeked in right before I went to bed and they were talking quietly. It was so cute! They were so focused on each other that I could've walked in and back out and they probably wouldn't have noticed me. She probably fell asleep still sitting next to him because I slept right over there and haven't heard anything since."
"Do you want to go peak in on them?"
"Ok."
***In the other room****
"Joe, wake up. Come on, it's time to get up Joe." He wasn't responding, so she left him and went to the door, pulling on her boots and putting her daggers (which were on the table) away. She yawned and swung it open, very surprised when 'WHUMP!' two bodies fell over in front of her from the other side. She looked at them, very puzzled as the two scrambled to their feet, trying to act as if nothing had happened.
"Morning, Vixen," said Allie, straightening her shirt. "Sleep well last night?"
"Were you two spying on me?" asked Vixen suspiciously, eyeing the two who squirmed under her gaze.
"Um, no, what makes you say that?"
"Yeah. How would we know what you and Joe were up to last night."? Allie slapped her hand over her mouth, realizing what she had just said.
"Grr..."
"Allie...."
"Yeah, Mouse?"
"RUN!!!"
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Kyle fidgeted in his chair; hoping things wouldn't take much longer. He was supposed to have returned to the wolves over an hour ago, and they got very annoyed when they were kept waiting...he had to share a cave with them too...
The door opened and Kyle jumped to his feet, annoyance replacing his nervousness. You are not supposed to make anyone wait three hours to see you, whether or not you were a scout.
"I have your report, sir," said Kyle, taking out his notes when the General he was supposed to report to sat down.
"Yes, I'm sure you do," said the General, taking out his map. "But seeing as how we already know where the Scanrans are, we don't need yours."
"How?" asked Kyle, getting suspicious.
"Ours scouts picked up their tracks a few days ago and sent word of where they are heading, ok?"
"Which way?"
"South east towards Hempton."
Kyle took out the rough map he had drawn and looked at it carefully, tracing the lines he had drawn quickly. "Sir, your information is incorrect," said Kyle, showing him what he had drawn. "The Scanrans are camped right here and have been moving South west for three days now."
"Are you saying my scouts can't do their job?" growled the General, getting on the defensive all of a sudden.
"No, I'm saying that they may've gotten it confused somehow. Trust me, I saw them with my own two eyes this morning..."
"You're nothing more than a young whelp," sneered the General, packing up his things. "You're probably the one who got his directions wrong. Why don't you head back to school, little boy, until they teach you another thing or two about maps, ok?"
"Ok, that's it!" yelled Kyle, throwing his things down. "Every time I come here, it takes at least an hour until I can see you, and now you're insulting me for no freaking reason! Don't be expecting to get my reports anymore, because I won't work for someone who treats those under him unfairly!"
With that he stormed out, taking his notes and maps with him.
"I wonder what his problem is..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Jennifer rode up to Stephanie's house a few hours after dawn, completely exhausted from her trip and about ready to fall asleep on her horse. Here she was going to be a distant friend of hers who was, unfortunately, a boy. The boy had actually died recently, but no one knew outside of the immediate family so it worked out perfectly.
Stephanie was waiting outside for her and let her lie down while she took care of her horses and bags. Jenny didn't wake up for several hours, and when she did a small wet tongue was washing face... She opened her eyes to see Tigress on her stomach, surrounded by the others as well.
"It's good to see your up," said Stephanie from her seat in the corner. "How do you feel?" Jenny's stomach growled loudly as if on cue.
"Very hungry."
"So your stomach said. Get up and you can have some of this soup I made for lunch." Jenny did and sat by the small fire in the hut, looking out the door at the sheep that were grazing outside.
"When did my cats get here?" she asked, having thought Sean still had them.
"My brother isn't as well liked as you and they told him he had to get rid of them. I offered to take them in on a short visit to town, and some how several of your things came with it as well..." She motioned to a small trunk in the corner. "I got some hair dye and shears too, we'll have to cut your hair short and dye it to a light brown."
"Why?" asked Jenny, not wanting to dye her hair again.
"No one in their family has red or black hair, only brown. It's the weirdest thing...oh yeah. Sean also sent a bundle of his old clothes that are too small for him, but should fit you pretty well." Stephanie rummaged through a bag, quickly handing her some pants, a shirt, and an over tunic. "Change into these, and bind yourself flat with this." She handed her a length of cloth. "After you do that, we'll see about the hair. I'm gonna go check on the sheep, so you can stay in here."
She left immediately, and Jenny did as she had said, changing a quickly as she could, noticing the clothes still smelled like Sean as she did. Taking care that nothing that would prove her a girl would show, she walked out into the sunlight and sat on a stool that Stephanie had set up.
"Ready?" asked Stephanie, scissors in hand.
"Just get it over with."
"Ok..." 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' Jenny didn't look at her hair after she had finished, letting her put the dye in first to complete the look. When she looked in a mirror, she didn't even recognize herself. Her hair was up to the top of her ears in a way that was similar to Sean's and the brown brought out some colors she didn't even know her eyes possessed.
"Not bad, if I do say so myself," murmured Stephanie, putting away her things. "What do you think?"
"I, I don't know," said Jennifer slowly, as if waking up from a dream. "It looks so strange, but...."
"But what?"
"I kinda like it." Jennifer smiled at herself in the mirror before putting it down. "It's not as bad as I thought it would be. Definitely not what I'm used to, but it could look a lot worse..."
"I'm glad," said Stephanie, picking up one of her cats. "What say I teach you the rope of being a Shepard, hm?"
"Sounds good to me."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Amanda sat in her study with Alyse, Elizabeth, Levi, and Grandfather, eating her birthday cake and discussing some things to bring more money into the fief. "We could levy the taxes," said Levi, shrugging his shoulders.
"No, I don't want to force people to pay anymore than they already are," replied Amanda, leaning in her chair back behind her desk. "There has to be some way to willingly get them to pay us...maybe a service of some sort that costs us nothing..."
"There is nothing like that that we have the resources for," countered Grandfather. "Outside of planting their fields for them, but that is their life, and would take offense if we offered to do it for them."
"There has to be something!" cried Amanda, picking up the reports from her desk. "With all the renovations that had to be made, we don't have anything left for defense. If we can't defend our fief..."
"Then the Scanrans will over run us," finished Alyse, her face grave. Just then, someone knocked on the door.
"Go answer that," said Amanda, nodding at Levi. He opened it quickly and took the letter a servant handed to him, giving it to Amanda. She scanned it quickly, an idea forming in her head as she did. "Friends, I think I've found a way," she chuckled, handing the letter to Grandfather. "The Shang Lynx, who I met at the palace about a year ago, is making good on his promise and is coming to visit for awhile. He owes me a couple of favors, so why not use him and some others for money?"
"What's your plan?" asked Levi suspiciously.
"A competition."
"How will that get us money?"
"In a few weeks we'll hold a tournament which any person, regardless of rank or income, can join. The fee will be one gold noble to enter, and we'll take any number of entrants. Every day for a week we'll draw twenty names, those twenty will get to choose from a panel of three of four who they wish to fight ahead of time, which will be marked on their entry."
"What will they get if they win?" asked Alyse, "It defeats the purpose if we have to use part of the money for prizes."
"Elizabeth, would you be willing to kiss any who win?" asked Amanda, her eyes all big and puppy dog like. "Please?"
"Do I get to choose the kind of kiss?" asked Elizabeth, eyes shining, "Some of those guys are really hot..."
"Absolutely," said Amanda, shrugging slightly. "But you can't force them to do anything that they don't want to do."
"Darn."
Amanda grinned. Yep, that was her sister all right. "So, how does that sound, Grandfather?"
"Like a very solid plan, Amanda," he replied, picking up a piece of paper. Quickly writing something on it, he added, "I will have things set up immediately. Who will the fighters they can choose from be?"
"The Shang Lynx, that captain fellow who's really good with his twin axes..."
"You mean Jared?"
"Yeah, him. Alyse? Would you be one of the fighters?"
"No," replied Alyse with a shake of her head. "My gift sometimes comes though my fans without me knowing it, so it's probably *not* a good idea."
"Good point," said Amanda, nodding her head. "Then put Yosho, that hunter who can use a sear really well. That's only three, so I'll be one as well making it four."
"Do you want me to ask the two from the village if that is ok with them?" asked Grandfather, looking up from his notes for a moment.
"Yeah, if they can't fin someone to take their place. You know the fighters better than I do, so just inform me of any changes made. Have the men of the garrison set up a ring for me as well as several stands for the spectators. I want a bidding booth set up as well for bets made on who will win and such. We may just get lucky and cash in on a few folks."
"Where are they to register?"
"At the two booths we'll set up. One at the gate so those who pass through will see it and one at the fief for those who live closer. Send word out to the neighboring fiefs, there are some there who would probably want to enter as well."
"And that's how we're going to get money for the war?" asked Levi, eyebrows raised. "Good luck."
"Gee thanks for the support," growled Amanda, shooting him a death glare. "If no one objects to the plan..." No one said a word. "Then lets get started."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Lyssa looked over what the old fort had been turned into, very pleased with her work. The walls had been completely enforced until there were no weak spots in it at all. Some sturdy little huts had been built for officers to sleep in, and the four main buildings that had been there originally had been done over and looked brand new. There were the two bunk houses (one for guys and one for girls) and one was a stable/forge/armory The final building had been converted into a mess hall and was where all the meetings in the fort were held.
Oh yes, she had created a working military base out of some rotting buildings and crumbling walls. They had even built some platforms in the trees surrounding the fort that archers could shoot from. Well-trained scouts made rounds through the woods every three days and a watch was constantly kept from the trees and walls.
"Commander Lyssa!" said one of her seconds, riding up on his mount. "Are you ready to go? We have to be at the first collective meeting in a few minutes."
"Get my horse saddled up and meet me at the front gate in five minutes," she replied, heading back to her room for some things. "We'll leave then."
Five minutes later she and two others galloped through the woods to Hedgesville, were the first one was to be held.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Alyse sat quietly in her chair, Elizabeth standing behind her. They were attending in Amanda's place today, as she was busy with the preparations for the competition. The General of the fort at the river had arrived a few minutes ago, and now all they were waiting for was Commander Lyssa, who was situated between them geographically.
She walked in right then, two others behind her as she quickly took her seat.
"Hello Alyse, General Yorkshire. I hope you weren't waiting to long," she said, taking out her maps and such.
"Not at all," replied the General.
"It's good to see you again," said Alyse, smiling. "I'd like you to meet Elizabeth, my cousin and one of the ladies of Lynx mountain.
"Where's the other sister?" asked Lyssa when she had exchanged greeting with the girl.
"Home taking care of some arrangements," said Elizabeth, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Why?"
"I've just heard a lot about both of you from Alyse and was wondering," replied Lyssa, shrugging slightly. "Anyways, down to business."
"Yes," said General Yorkshire, taking out some sheets of paper. "Here's the location of the Scanrans according to my scouts and reports from Daine the Wildmage. They're more on your side, Lady Alyse, than ours, probably because looting Lynx mountain and Hedgesville would be more prosperous than trying to take out either one of the forts."
"Why were your scouts that far out?" asked Alyse, eyes flashing with annoyance. "I thought the agreement was not to interfere with the other's territories."
"My apologies," said the General, not having thought she would catch that. "I will make sure they stay in their bounds from now on." Alyse made a mental note to speak to Amanda about this before charging on.
"Show me where the scouts said they were," she said tersely, her opinion of the General having dropped greatly. He marked a few positions with his pencil and she shook her head, sighing loudly. "That is wrong. Our scouts just gave us a new position yesterday. They're farther south and west."
"Which puts them right in the middle." The General's forehead wrinkled up, eyebrows knitting in concentration. "Have they made any raids recently?"
"Not since that last one on the trade store right on the boarder, and we've completely withdrawn from it," replied Elizabeth, making a face. "That was a few months ago. What about in your area?"
"All of the towns have been fairly quiet, though I don't think it will last for long." The General shook his head, looking very grave. "The King is piling up his soldiers at Northwatch, so if the Scanrans are smart, they'll pull off to the sides at the less defended areas."
"Which means us." Everyone turned to look at Lyssa, who hadn't said much for a while. "I'll have my guard doubled and make sure everything is well in stock."
"We'll do the same," said Alyse, nodding her head. "After the competition we'll be able to afford to expand our fighting force and outfit them as well."
"Then everything is set for now," said the General, rising to his feet. "Then I will see you in two weeks ladies." With that he left the room, Lyssa soon following and saying 'good-bye' as well.
"Ready to go?" asked Alyse, gathering up her things.
"Yeah, lets go."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Libby sat inside her tent, as bored as anything. They had been here for two weeks now, the rain pouring down so hard that you could barely see. No one would try to attack in this sort of the weather, so all they could do was sit and wait.
Pinky hopped over to her, eyes huge as she stared into Libby's face. "What?" asked Libby, staring right back. "You want a carrot?"
Pinky shook her head.
"Is something wrong with the bunnies?"
She shook her head again.
"Then what?"
Pinky hopped over to a ribbon that was lying on the ground, nudging it with her nose.
"Huh?"
Pinky hoped up and down beside it, and then went back to pushing it with her nose. Libby picked it up, twirling it in her hand. Pinky hopped in time with in until Libby realized what she wanted her to do.
"You want to play jump rope with it?"
*nod**nod*
"Oh, ok!" Libby tied one end of the ribbon to a pole and the other she held in her hand. "Ready?"
*nod*
"Ok." Libby swung the ribbon slowly, watching Pinky as she hopped over it every time. *hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish* "Hey, you're pretty good at this!" *nodnod**hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish*
Dusty came over and looked at his mom, following the ribbon with his head before trying to jump in as well and getting tangled in the ribbon.
"Oh, poor Dusty!" Libby got him untangled and put him to the side, swinging the rope once more for Pinky. *hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish**plop!* "Dusty!" Libby gently scolded the young bunny as she removed him once more, putting him farther to the side. She was swinging the rope once more when Pinky jr came by and decided to jump in too, Except she didn't get tangled in the ropes.
Artman walked in right about then, rubbing his now-smooth chin since his facial hair refused to grow back. "Libby, what on earth~!"
"They're jumping rope, see!"
"Oh brother...."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Sarah looked out across the meadow, watching Mandy romp and play with the other younger horses. It was hard to believe she would be a year old this next mid-winter... Summer was flying by quickly, and soon they'd be making their preparations for the winter snows.
"Sarah!" yelled John from the barn. "Get in here, I need your help!"
"Coming!" She walked over quickly and peered in to see John sitting on the barn floor, one of those large, oval harnesses jammed over his arms to his stomach.
"I'm stuck."
"How in the world..."
"Snowmane chewed through the rope, and it fell on me. Get if off, will ya!"
"Maybe I should just leave you there..." Mandy came and trotted over; sticking her head inside to see what all the commotion was about. She laughed a horsy laugh as John sat there screaming and cursing for a few minutes, both things leaving him horse and not much better off. "What do you think, Mandy?" The young mare shook her head and trotted back to the field, head held high. "I guess that settles it. See ya later, John."
"Wait! Wait! Please, Sarah? Don't leave me here, I know you're nicer than that...please?"
"Oh, alright." A tub of butter and several hours later, they had him free. Very greasy, but free.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Trystan (the lady mage who's been out of the picture for awhile) sat down hard from laughing so much. "What's so funny?" asked a boy's voice as tears began to stream down her face, a body materializing beside her.
"Leave her alone, Ruben," said girl's voice, a body materializing on the other side. "We aren't even supposed to be here."
"It's alright, Grendal," gasped Trystan, trying to recover her breath. "You are both free from that restriction until I have to start pulling the groups together some more. These groups are hilarious, though. Wait until you're called to do this, it's really quite funny."
She turned and looked at her two youngest siblings, her favorites at that. Ruben looked like he was 7 or 8 and wore the Summersea version of a merchant's child, but then looks could be deceiving. He was actually a couple centuries old, still an adolescent. He had spelled himself so he would never appear to age, though, and used it to trick others quite often.
Grendal was a century older than him, not that much when you consider how old they lived to be. She looked like a teen-ager from the mid-west with her jeans, old t-shirt and dusty cowboy hat.
"When will we get our next group?" asked Ruben, sounding like a whiny 6 year old. "I haven't had anything to do since that last group left my area three or four years ago."
"Where's the book?"
"Locked up in some safe in one of the parallels," he replied with a shrug. "I'm not sure which one."
"Go find it and send it somewhere else," said Trystan, shrugging back. "It's not rocket science, little bro."
"Be quiet."
"How's your group going?" Trystan asked Grendal.
"Left about a month ago. No mishaps, they're all spelled to forget unless something triggers a memory for a short while until they forget again. Two or three of them had been through your world before..."
"Really? Will there be a group going from this parallel anytime soon?"
"Eventually. Mom and pop said we had to wait until something happened....I think they're planning something again...but I'm not sure..."
"Well, thanks for the warning," said Trystan, smiling gently. "I've got some work to do, so I'll see you later, ok?"
"Ok, bye."
"Yeah, later."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Vixen came downstairs for the first time since she had carried Joe up to his room, looking a little paler than usual and a bit thinner, but none worse for the wear. A cheer went up around the room as she took her seat, accepting a pint of ale from Bart's son (who was doing a great job at running things) and downing it quickly, even for her.
Joe followed her a few minutes later, his wound all but gone and much better off after his 'inner struggle' for that long month. He and Vixen had reached an 'understanding', though neither had realized yet that their bracelets had changed colors, or that they even had the same one.
"Should we hail him as King, or is it not official yet?" yelled a thief from across the room as Joe took his seat beside her. "After all, he's shared many things with us and you during your reign."
"Including her bed, from what I hear," came a shout from the other side of the room. That was enough for Vixen.
She got up and walked over to the thief who had made the rude comment, dragging him to the center of the room by his ear. "See this fellow?" she said aloud, quickly getting everyone's attention. "He decided to be rude to the queen. Here's what happens when you do that." She pulled out her knife and quickly split his lower ear in half so it was scared permanently for all to see. "Teasing is one thing, being blatantly rude is another. Understand?"
The rogue answered with one voice. "Yes ma'am."
"Good. I don't mind teasing; it's fun to laugh at yourself and others. Rudeness to me or those close to me I will not allow." She went back to her seat, cleaning off her blade as she went. "You don't think I was to harsh on him?" she asked Joe as she sat down, sipping the second pint she had been brought.
"No, not at all," said Joe with a shake of his head. "I am glad for one thing, though."
"What?"
"That I'm on that right side of that blade?"
"Said who?" asked Vixen, taking the dagger back out and toying with it. "Things can be very deceptive."
"Just like a Vixen would say..."
"Joe..."
"Yes, Vixie?"
"Grr..."
"Oh, and by the way...." Joe motioned for something that she couldn't see and Mouse and Allie came forward, a big cake covered with candles behind them. "Happy belated birthday, Vixen of the Rouge, Mouse and Allie."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Kyle lay back in the cave, completely exhausted from his work lately. A hawk swooped in, followed by the wolves as it perched on the ground beside him and began to preen its feathers.
'Hello, winged friend' he said to the creatures mind. 'How are you?'
'Just fine, thank you, Kyle.'
"Daine!" Kyle sat up straight, looking very shocked. "Last time I got a message from you, you were all way over to that canyon. That was just yesterday, how did you make it so fast?"
'I had motivation,' she replied, pulling out a note from the bag around her neck and handing it to him. 'Care to explain this?'
It was a letter from the General, telling of her 'insolent scout' who had refused to comply with his orders and hadn't reported in since.
"Oh, that...it wasn't my fault!" he protested, doing his best to remain calm. "They kept me waiting for hours for no reason at all and then said that my report wouldn't be needed. When I told him his information was wrong, he called me a 'young whelp' so I left. I'm not gonna work with him if he's gonna do that."
'So it wasn't entirely your fault?'
"It wasn't my fault at all!"
'Don't move from here. I'm going to go back and speak with him. Hopefully we can get this whole mess worked out, ok?'
"Alright. What about the scouting though?"
'One day or two won't matter. Just stay put, he's got a warrant out for you and they'll whip you if you're found.'
"Ok. Bye."
'Bye.'
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Jennifer had spent the last couple weeks learning to be a Shepard from Stephanie, and now had the ropes down pat. Every morning they would get up before dawn, her fixing the day's food and letting Stephanie round up the sheep. Then, she would carry their things to the field they had agreed on the day before while Stephanie would herd the sheep over there, running along beside them and singing loudly.
They would sit there and watch them all day, talking about whatever and playing with the cats and the lambs. Once in awhile they'd get to birth a sheep, but those were fairly common with the large group she was put in charge of and it didn't make much difference.
Sometimes they'd have to defend the sheep from a pack of wolves or a bear or a mountain lion, and they were always ready. Stephanie carried a sling with a pouch of smooth rocks, and Jennifer had the metal studded rod Sean gave her. She had learned to use it sometime ago, and had used it on more than one occasion.
She got up early one morning, just as always, and was preparing the day's food when she heard someone calling for her. "Jen! Jen! Come quick!" She dropped what she was doing and ran, grabbing her staff on the way out the door. "Help! Help!"
It was Stephanie, and six burly men were trying to tie her up and grab the sheep. "Tigress!" yelled Jennifer, swinging staff. "Tigress, help!" The gray tabby shot from the hut faster than lightning and latched herself onto one man's face, digging her claws in deep. Her siblings joined her, yowling and clawing as one as they helped Jennifer ~who was whacking the men left and right~ get Stephanie free.
"Gaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!! This isn't worth the pain! Let's run!" yelled one of the guys, blood streaming down his face.
"Are you alright?" Jennifer asked Stephanie, supporting her on one side as the cats chased the men far out beyond the pasture. "It looks like they got you good a few times. Who were those guys?"
"I dunno," replied Stephanie through a swollen jaw, looking around her dazedly. "They just came out of nowhere...said something about the sheep and somebody paying them..."
"Let's get you to the hut," said Jennifer, half-carrying her over there. "The sheep can stay in the pen today, that won't matter."
"Your cats..."
"Shhhh. Rest yourself, you need it. The cats are fine, don't worry. I'll take a quick head-count of the sheep after I fix you up, ok?"
"Fine..." Jennifer laid Stephanie on her cot, quickly checking to make sure she had no broken bones and was nothing more than roughed up before going out and checking on the sheep like she had promised. They were all huddled in a corner, and she quickly counted through them to make sure none were missing before heading over and sitting on a stool by the door to keep an eye on both them and Stephanie.
"Jen." Jennifer's head snapped up, the sun now low in the sky. "Jen, I need you to take a note to my lord...."
"What about you?" protested Jennifer, coming inside quickly. "I can't just leave you here."
"I have the cats. Go, he needs to know what happened..." She drifted off after pushing the letter into Jennifer's hands, leaving it to her. "Take it to him....please..."
"Alright, I'll go."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
The Shang Lynx sat with Amanda and the other two who were battling under an awning that had been set up for them. It had been three days since the battles had begun, each day every one of them had had to battle at least twice, usually more. The contestants ran from poor farm boys hoping to win Lady Elizabeth's favor, others brave warriors just wanting to test their mettle, and still others nobles who wanted to prove their worth. Not all the battles had been won, and Elizabeth did get to kiss some hotties that proved their skill. The only one left to be beaten was the only girl in the group.
The Shang Lynx had been there for a few weeks, but some reason he could not get along with Levi. No matter how much Amanda tried to get them at peace, they continued to hate each other with a passion. The oddest part was no one could figure out why...
Elizabeth was up in a 'box' that had been built, some other lady nobles sitting with her. To her side was a large glass jar filled with all the names that had signed up to fight. She reached in after they cleared the field from the last fight and drew out a slip of paper, eyes widening as she read it over to herself. Her mouth curled into a sly grin as she called it out to the rest. "The next contestant will be...Levi of Lynx mountain challenging.... Lady Amanda of Lynx mountain!"
Amanda's head shot up from where she had been resting, looking at Elizabeth to confirm this was true. Her sister came over, eye dancing merrily as she let her see the slip of paper. "Are you sure its our Levi?" asked Amanda, shading her eyes from the sun.
"Yep." Elizabeth pointed him out in the crowd, making his way to the front. "Toy with him before pounding him to the ground. It's more fun to watch."
"No can do," replied Amanda. "I couldn't figure out why he kept watching me at the practice courts, but now I know. He had the perfect opportunity to study my fighting style and would be a fool not to take it since he was entering the competition. My only chance will be to knock him out right away."
"Don't tell me you might lost to him~"
"Yes, I might," cut in Amanda. "I've never seen him fight before, so I don't know what weapon he's using or how he'll use it."
"You mean like that guy who covered himself in a metal ball and rolled towards his opponents until her smashed them?"
"Exactly."
"But you're going to try to win, even though you've never seen him fight before, right?"
"Of course, Liz," said Amanda, smiling grimly, "You'll never, ever see me lose willingly to a guy unless there is some great gain in my favor."
"Contestants in the ring!" called Grandfather, the judge of this competition since all respected and trusted him.
"Grind him to dust, sis." Liz squeezed Amanda's hand really hard.
"I'll try to." Amanda walked in the ring opposite of Levi, her sword in her hands and daggers hidden in various places. They were allowed as many weapons as they wanted, as long as they carried them on their body as they walked into the ring.
Levi was wearing a leather harness that held the two parts of his weapon on his back, a weapon that Amanda recognized from 'BeastMaster' (That was once the greatest show...) It was a staff with a metal ball at one end that would normally be bare, but he had covered it in leather to reduce the likely hood of someone getting hurt. The other end was a foot long blade that was joined seamlessly with the treated wood that wouldn't break for anything. The staff had a connector that could be released, giving you two weapons of equal value. She had seen it used on TV, but that had been years ago, and she didn't remember much from that time.
"Ok, you two know the rules," said Grandfather, rolling his eyes. They had helped write them after all. "Be fair, and remember~ No Killing! Alright?"
"Yes, sir."
"Yep."
"Good, may the best warrior win." Grandfather backed away, his right hand held high in the air. "Ready, set, go!"
Amanda practically leapt at Levi, sword flashing in the light. Steel met steel in a clash as Levi met her blade with his own, swinging one of his weapons (which were disconnected) over her guard. Amanda jumped back, his blade grazing her shirt before she pulled out a dagger and used it to block him. Both executed the same move, and found one of their weapons flying the opposite direction. Amanda lost her sword and Levi his blade.
They circled each other, Levi striking first this time. He feinted a kick at her middle and sent the balled end of his weapon at her middle, throwing her hard on her back. The air rushed from Amanda's lungs, causing her to let go of her dagger as she tucked and rolled, getting up a few feet away to find Levi's knife at her throat.
She had lost...or so it appeared...
"Give?"
"Never." Levi's feet were knocked from under him and he went down hard as she dove for her sword several feet away.
'Zip!' Amanda's left sleeve was pinned to the ground with a small dagger, too small to have done any damage but enough to go through the fabric. Other small daggers whipped past her as she got the handle of her sword in her hand, rolling over and flipping to her feet. The sleeves of her shirt were in shreds, but her over tunic of leather was still holding, so she kept on going.
Levi had gotten back to his feet, both his weapons in hand. They went at it again, attacking faster than either thought possible, and it was by near misses that either one didn't lose an arm or a leg.
Amanda finally knocked away both ends of the staff and charged at Levi, planning on knocking him over. Instead, he kicked the sword out of her hand and grabbed her wrist, flipping her over his back and letting her hit the ground with a 'Thud!' on her back. He held her sword to her throat, sweat dripping down his face.
"Now do you give?"
".... yes."
He helped her to her feet and gave her the sword, handing it to her hilt first. "Not bad, Lady Amanda."
"Not bad at all. Good fight, Levi."
"...............um, thanks." Amanda could've sworn she saw Levi blush as she gathered up the rest of her weapons, her back protesting every time she had to bend over. There was gonna be a bruise the size of Texas there tomorrow.
Elizabeth shot Amanda a death glare as she came down from the box seat. "You lost," she hissed, hiding her anger from everyone else.
"Really? I hadn't noticed..." Levi walked up, a large grin on his face.
"Lady Elizabeth," he said, loud enough for his father to hear. "I will not be redeeming my prize, seeing as you are my employer and it would not be right." Turning to Amanda, he added. "Thank you for allowing me to participate in this battle." He then headed over to where the Shang Lynx was sitting, a tankard of fine wine in his hands.
"Very clever," murmured the Shang master as he walked by. "Very clever indeed."
"What was very clever?" Levi asked him.
"Entering the contest like that, you've probably experienced being the closest any man will ever be to her."
"Many others have fought her."
"Yes, but none have challenged her so. That and I bet you got a good view down her shirt."
"WHAT?" Levi's mouth hung open in shock as he looked at the Shang lounging there in his chair. It was a good thing Amanda walked up about then.
"What are you two talking about?"
"Nothing," replied Levi shortly, stalking away through the crowd.
"What's wrong with him?"
"I haven't the faintest idea..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Lyssa stood with the Captain she had assigned to the night watch, feeling restless as the wind ruffled through her loose hair. They had yet to see any Scanrans in their area up close, but she could tell it wouldn't be long now...just a few more weeks maybe....
"Commander!" said one of her seconds, coming up with a letter. "A message from General Yorkshire."
"Let me see it." She quickly broke the seal and scanned down, taking in what it said quickly. "Go and tell him I'll be there," she replied, folding it up and putting it in her pocket, it was just another notice saying the date had been changed for the next meeting due to some unexpected occurrence.
The Captain got up suddenly, saluting as another came and took his place. "Nice night to watch the stars, huh?" said a familiar voice as the person settled himself or herself on the bench.
"Very nice, Eric," replied Lyssa, glancing over at him before turning back to the view above her. "Heard from Danielle lately?"
"Not since we got that letter from her announcing she and Derick had gotten married. I still find it hard to believe she's hitched for good..."
"Eric, she is older than both of us," Lyssa reminded him, punching him in the arm, "If we were in her position, we'd both be getting married about this time ourselves."
"Which why I'm forever glad that I wasn't born a noble," retorted Eric, rubbing his arm. "Speak of which, have you hear from Coram or Rispah lately?"
"Yeah, I got a note from them about a week ago. They've been having trouble replacing me, apparently the men are refusing to work...."
"Aw! They miss you, Lyssa..."
"Not if they remembered how hard it was the first few days I was there," she grumbled, keeping her head down for a minute. "I bet those lugs have gotten soft since I left."
"Remember when you made them stand at attention for three hours straight?"
"Yeah, they complained about that to Coram, and he just had me put them out there for another hour or so. No one dared to complain after that."
"What about when you beat Caleb for your job? I still think that was one of the best fights ever fought."
"Then you still think wrong." Lyssa leaned back, a small smile forming on her lips. "It was a great fight, though...."
"See? You think so to, you just don't want to admit it."
"Whatever...anyways, I'd better be getting to bed. Long day tomorrow."
"Yeah, and I have to get back to guard duty. Night, Lyssa."
"'Night, Eric."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Alyse descended gracefully from the carriage, Elizabeth following her close behind. A servant led them into the ballroom, formally announcing them at the door.
"Presenting Lady Alyse and Lady Elizabeth of Lynx mountain!"
"Behave, will you?" whispered Alyse to Elizabeth. "I'd like this to be a pleasant evening, if you will."
"I'll try," replied Elizabeth, wrinkling her nose. "Their son is ugly and annoying anyways. Do I have to dance with him?"
"If he asks you and there is no good excuse not to. Remember what Amanda said? We're doing this for her since both of us didn't get her anything for her birthday, so we have to behave."
"Oh, alright..."
Sir Twain swaggered up, a confidant look in his eyes. "Ladies," he said, bowing low to them. They curtseyed back, quietly replying. "How are you tonight?"
"Fine, thank you," replied Alyse, keeping her eyes downcast.
"Good, good. Where is your lovely sister tonight? It was to her I believe the invitation was sent..."
"Lady Amanda is sick with the flu," said Elizabeth, daring him to challenge her with a look. "She sent us in her stead to thank you for the invitation, but say she was sorry that she couldn't attend."
"Really? One of my servants was on an errand in your fief and saw her out working in the fields. Why would she be there is she were sick?"
"There is a worker who looks a lot like her," retorted Alyse, turning away. "If you are suggesting that we're lying, than just come right out and say it."
"I'm sorry," said Sir Twain regally, bowing to them again. "I did not mean to offend you, I just wanted to make sure I had everything correct. I hope I did not insult you too mu~ Uuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhh!"
Elizabeth had never had so much satisfaction from kneeing a guy in the crotch before.
"Are you sure that was a smart idea?" asked Alyse as they quickly made their escape.
"If he tries to blame it on me, I'll say he tried something with me and I refused," she replied, shrugging her shoulders. "It always works. I'm little and 'defenseless', making it so easy to blame things on others."
"Then I'm glad I'm not against you..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Libby and Artman were sitting in the rooms they had gotten at the fief, changing after having run off Scanran raiders once more and helped restore things to order.
*Knock, knock*
"Come in," called Libby, putting her hair up out of the way. It was the head of the fief, Sir Gaston. "Can I help you?" asked Libby, bowing slightly.
"In honor of you saving our home, we're throwing a ball in your honor tonight," said Sir Gaston, holding his head up high. "We wish you would attend as well as the guests of honor."
"We have nothing to wear..." objected Libby, trying to find some way out of it. "And we haven't rested for days. Wouldn't it be better to have this later?" [Or not at all] she added mentally.
"Nonsense. You can sleep in tomorrow and we have clothes that you have wear here in the fief. I'll send my wife and some servants up to help you dress in a few hours, ok?" With that he vanished out the door, leaving a very nervous Libby behind him.
"Libby, who was that?" asked Artman as he walked out of the bathroom, just having finished washing up.
"Sir Gaston"
"Really?" Artman rubbed his still smooth face (the hair was still refusing to grow back after the fire incident. "What'd he want?"
"He's throwing a ball tonight."
"So?"
"We're the guests of honor."
"Oh crap."
"Yup."
***four hours later***
Now, the lady of the fief was a nice lady, she really was. She just had once huge fault in Libby's eyes: she loved stripes. Libby hated stripes almost as much as she hated bugs.
"Here we are, dear!" said Lady Clementine, holding up a striped (of course) gown. "It's one of mine, but you can wear it for tonight."
"Can't we just wear our clothes since that's what people see us in everyday?" asked Libby, about ready to run for the door. Unfortunately there was a manservant outside with orders not to let anyone in or out unless he got the ok from Lady Clementine.
"No, silly! Those aren't clothes for a ball," she giggled, "You're such a kidder. Now come on, and put on this lovely gown I've brought you." Libby didn't exactly have a choice here. Artman had been taken away to be dressed, and now all she could do was obey this extremely unusual woman.
***mean while***
Artman stood at the head of the stairs, waiting impatiently for Libby to come. They had forced him to wear this ridiculously tight outfit of hose and a fine tunic because Sir Gaston's clothes were way too big and both of the 'guests of honor' had to be all dressed up.
Libby came right about then, striped dress and all. Things were not looking good. They walked down with the other nobles to the dinning room table and waited for the first dish to be served.
It was brought quickly, a plate hid under a silver dome, which the servant who was serving her elegantly removed.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!" Libby jumped out of her chair and fell backwards, hitting her head on the floor, which sent her into blessed darkness as the rubber spider sat dully on her plate.
"What?" asked Tommy, Sir Gaston's son as he got glares from his parents. "It was just a joke!"
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
John still had bruises on his arms from the last 'adventure' he had had, with no signs of fading any time soon. Onua had fallen out of her seat from laughing so hard when she had heard about it, and had then gone and counted up all the times he had gotten hurt since having taken this job. He didn't even bother to keep track anymore.
"John! Come out here and give me a hand with this hay, will you?" called Sarah from the loft, throwing it down just as he looked up. 'WHUMP!!'
"..........ow......." Sarah looked over the edge, seeing John flat on his back with the bale on his stomach.
"You were supposed to catch that," she pointed out as she swung down and pulled it off of him, helping him to his feet. "Not let it drive you into the ground."
" Ok. You know what? Shut up."
"No, that's not any fun."
".........that's not fair because I can't hurt you!" cried John, glaring at her.
"Why not?"
"Because you're the Sarah. No one hurts the Sarah."
Sarah rolled her eyes. "No, they just tickle her."
John's eyes shot up. "Oh yeah, I forgot about that." He began to poke her in the side and was rewarded by some giggles as he found her very ticklish spots.
"Ok...haha....not cool, John.......hahahahaha.........John seriou~ HehehAHAHAHAH!!!"
"This is too easy."
"Shut~ HEHEHAHAHA!"
"See? Told ya."
"Not fair."
"Is to."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Mouse and Allie were coming back late one night from another run of the local taverns, striding slowly down the almost empty streets as the moon shone softly over head. "What was that?" asked Mouse, stopping suddenly as she heard something that didn't sound quite right.
"What was what?"
Mouse stood there for a moment. "There it is again! Can't you hear it?"
"............um, no."
"AAAAAAAAAAAahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Mouse shot down the street towards the alley where the screaming was coming from. "Told you so," she said through gritted teeth as she drew her dirk and dagger set, which Vixen had given her for her birthday. The blades where engraved with the picture of an innocent mouse, a picture that was soon to be stained with blood.
Allie pulled out her whip and lashed out at the first thing she saw moving. It was three or four guys ganged up against a mother and her little girl, who were huddled to one side and trying to escape.
The pair of thieves didn't ask questions, they just attacked and decided to figure things out later. After all, what good could come from trying to question some guys while they hurt poor, innocent people?
One of the men was dispatched with a snapped neck (courtesy of Allie's whip) and another had his jugular slashed open to the point of bleeding to death. The last one Allie caught around the waist and threw to the ground, placing her heal on his neck while Mouse checked on the woman and her child.
The mother was dead. Mouse was very surprised to find a small pair of arms flung around her neck, looking to see the small girl had attached herself to her. "Oh no. Look, little girl...."
"Mommy told me to stay with you," whispered the little girl, looking up into Mouse's eyes solemnly. "She said you'd take care of me."
"How's the lady?" Allie asked, slowly applying pressure to the man's neck as he refused to answer her questions for the moment.
"Dead."
"Bastards. And the girl?"
"Around my neck, choking me." Allie glanced up, a smile on her face.
"Aw, how cute..."
"Shut up." Mouse picked up the girl, who was about 5 or 6, and carried her over to the man. "Why did you kill the lady?" she demanded, kicking him roughly.
"We were given orders to."
"By who?"
"Our boss..." Mouse motioned for Allie to let up on the pressure for a second.
"Who's he?"
"She's the girl's aunt."
"Name?"
The man stared at them in stony silence. Allie reapplied the pressure, leaving him with even less space to breath this time. "Answer the question or I will kill you," growled Allie coldly, glaring at him.
"Lady Isis of Knoxfort," he gasped right away, his face beginning to turn purple.
"Why does she want her killed?"
"And if you don't answer the first time I'll just cut off all your air completely."
".........the girl is the only living relative left of her father, who is the true owner of the estates."
"Making the girl next in line for his fortune," finished Mouse, thinking quickly. She had Allie put him under her spell and give him specific instructions. He was to return to his boss and tell her both were dead, and that there where no witnesses or bodies to speak of.
"Are you sure that was the right thing to do?" asked Allie as they made their way to the Dancing Dove, the girl still clinging to Mouse's neck and the dead woman being carried by Allie.
"No, but it'll have to do for now," replied Mouse, opening the door of the Dancing Dove. Now they had to go explain everything to Vixen. [Great] thought Mouse as she scanned the room. [What fun...]
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Kyle had long since gotten everything straightened out with Daine and that General (who she had chewed out severely for him) and was right now reading a letter he had received from his father at his last report to Northwatch.
It read:
Master Kyle,
Things have been fairly quite around here without you, and I do miss the way you made me laugh all the time, for I am but an old man who rarely does anything fun with his life. The King recently sent me news of you, saying that you were fine and are doing a great thing for your Kingdom. I most assuredly proud of what you have done, for few your age make that sort of an impression on the King. Still, I wish that you would return home.
Several of the young ladies have been asking about you lately, wondering where you've gone off to. My orders are to say you're visiting some family, but I think they're beginning to see through that excuse. If you would come back you could choose one and settle down. That or go back to spying, knowing that your property and estates were secure. Please, Kyle. For the sake of the old man here who just wants to see you again. Please come home.
Your (adopted) father,
Baron Emery
Kyle sighed and folded the paper up, lying back on the woods floor and staring up at the stars as the wolves he was traveling with settled down near by. It was going to be a long night...
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Jennifer sat inside the tent, eating the chili and corn bread that made up that night's dinner with pleasure. Stephanie sat across from her, next to her a set of bow and arrows they had gotten from the head of the fief. There was now a patrol that covered the perimeter of their fields on a daily basis, making sure no one could attack them. If they did manage to, though, Jenny (or Jen, as she was now called) and Stephanie both had real weapons that could kill a person very easily.
"Steph!" called a voice from a long ways off. "Steph! You've got some mail!"
Stephanie motioned for Jennifer to stay put and went outside, taking a staff with her. "Hey, Grant!" she called to the young boy running towards her. "What'cha got there?"
"Three letters, two for you and one for Jen!"
"Thanks, here's a tip." Stephanie gave him some cookies and he sped off, eating then as he did.
"What's that?" asked Jennifer as she entered the hut, pointing at the pack of letters.
"Some stuff from others. Here's a letter from Sean for you." Stephanie passed it to her and Jennifer went outside to read it, never being sure if Stephanie was looking over her shoulder or not.
It said:
Dear Jen,
Hey, how've you been? I'm all right; I miss you a lot, though. Things are pretty quiet around here, not much had happened since you left. I go and visit Roberto sometimes, he really misses you and so does his family. Your thieving pals said to say that they miss you to. Allie told me to put that Vixen's no longer oblivious, what ever that means, and things are finally going as they should. I didn't ask what she meant because I figured I didn't want to know.
Guess what? They think they've found your body a few miles out of a Corus and are no longer looking for you. The King's pretty upset with the whole deal, but couldn't do a whole lot about it. I've got some friends who work at the fief you were arrested at and they're looking into the matter. If you were framed by that one girl because she wanted something from the man, then we can prove you're innocent and you can come back to the palace to work.
Remember when we would watch the stars after working in the kitchen with the kittens playing all around us? I miss those times. Heck, I just plain miss you. Hopefully I can get some time off and come visit, but things are pretty tight around here and I'm not sure I can.
Write back soon, I'd love to hear from you.
Love always,
Sean.
"I miss you too, Sean," whispered Jennifer, folding up the letter and putting it in her pocket. "I miss you too..." *~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Amanda sat at her desk, working tirelessly on a stack of requests and complaints that had been piling up for the last couple months. There were about two hundred in all, and she had to write a reasonable reply to each on. They never talked about this sort of stuff in the books, all it seemed nobles had to do then was attend parties and have fun. Amanda knew better than that.
Levi poked his head in the door, an odd look on his face. She hadn't seen much of him since the fight, and she still had the huge bruise on her back from the falls. That, and coupled with the fact that the Shang Lynx was still here had just added more headaches than usual for her. Not that he wasn't an over all good guest, it just meant that she had to entertain him because Elizabeth refused to and technically he was her guest.
"Hey, Levi," said Amanda, glancing up from her work. "Haven't seen you for awhile."
"Yeah, Pa's been keeping me busy..."
"So I heard. What've you been up to?"
"I took a message for him to Sir Tyrone and Lady Hope. They sent their regards and Lady Hope said to say she plans to come and visit some times soon."
"Excellent! I was going to drag Elizabeth there sometime soon, but that saves me the trip. Any other news?"
"Lady Hope had her baby. It's a little boy." Levi grinned at this, remembering the fat little infant. "He looks like his dad and they named him Justin after his grandfather. I got to hold him for a minute while I was there."
"Oh, I hope she brings him when she comes." Amanda's eyes got a dreamy look to them before snapping back to reality. "Anyways, is that all?"
"Yeah." Levi started to walk towards the door, stopping at the entrance as he turned back and stared back at Amanda, for a second his face completely unreadable. It was a few minutes before she realized that had hadn't left yet, glancing up when she felt someone's eyes one her.
"Is there something you need, Levi?" prompted Amanda, eyebrows raised.
"Um...can we talk for a minute?"
"You know you can tell me anything," said Amanda, pushing back from her desk but staying in her chair. Levi shut the door and walked behind the desk, sitting on it so he was facing her after having moved all of the papers out of the way. "Well?"
"You remember the competition?"
"How could I forget?" replied Amanda, smiling wryly. "I still have a buries or two from it."
Levi grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, um, sorry about those..." he mumbled, turning very red.
"It's alright," she reassured him, leaning back in her chair. "If I didn't get hurt at all that means none of it was a challenge at all and that entirely defeats the purpose of the whole thing."
"True..." Silence hung between them for a few minutes, each remembering different things from the battles.
"Is that all you had to say?" asked Amanda at last, bringing the focus back to the present.
"Well, no...." Levi scrambled around for words for a minute, trying to figure out what to say. Some how all the things he had come up with while traveling just sounded stupid now. "Like I said, do you remember the fight we had?"
"And I replied 'yes'," added Amanda, "What about it?"
"Well, I won..."
"Trust me, I know Levi," she said, rolling her eyes.
"And I refused my prize."
"Yeah, I remember that too...." A look of disgust came to Amanda's eyes for a second. "You're not asking if you can go find Elizabeth and make out with her, are you?"
"No! It's not that," said Levi quickly, a look of alarm on his face. "There's something else I want."
"What is it?" asked Amanda, leaning forward. "You're welcome to anything I have, just ask. After a fight like that, you deserve it."
Levi went red again, not used to hearing Amanda praise him at all. "Well, um, what I really want is..." Levi stopped and scratched his neck.
"Yes..."
"I....I wanted to know if I could~"
"Lady Amanda!" Both young adults looked up to see the Shang Lynx and Lady Hope standing there, a small bundle in her arms. "You have comp~ oh, are we interrupting something?"
Levi went even redder as Amanda stood up and smiled warmly, shaking her head.
"No," she replied going over to greet her friend. "Levi was just asking about something."
"Really?"
"Levi, will you go get Elizabeth and tell her we have company? She is better at keeping them entertained than I."
"You do a fine job of it with all the funny stories you tell," Lady Hope assured her as Levi rushed out the door, thankful for a reason to leave. She gave her young friend a hug before heading over to the couch, her baby in her arms.
"Is this little boy Levi told me about?" asked Amanda, holding out her arms when Lady Hope was settled. She handed over the precious bundle carefully.
"Yes, his name is Justin."
"That's what Levi said. He's adorable." Amanda sat there cooing over the baby for a minute as the Shang Lynx got himself more aquatinted with the mother. When Levi walked in a few minutes later Elizabeth, he wasn't surprised to see Amanda take the baby with her as she got back to work. She seemed to have a knack for doing that sort of thing.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" asked Levi as Amanda settled down in her chair, the baby in one arm.
"Yeah, file those reports, will you?"
"Sure. Where do these go?"
"In the cabinet over there."
And so the afternoon passed, with Levi hoping he would get another chance soon before he lost his nerve and Amanda forgetting about it completely as she juggled the baby and her deskwork as she had done at home until her guests left. What a day.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Lyssa sat there tiredly in her chair. It was their next meeting, and it was Alyse and Elizabeth again with the excuse that their older sister/cousin was still very busy. General Yorkshire still treated the two nobles like complete air heads and once again mentioned that he had been patrolling their area.
"You were what?" exploded Elizabeth, eyes flashing dangerously. "I thought we told you to stay off of our lands.
"You did," admitted the General. "But obviously you aren't doing the work for yourself..." He stopped talking when Elizabeth tossed a piece of paper in front of him, eyes dancing. It was an exact chart of when his patrols had been and where they had gone.
"It seems your men are more concerned with the land near the fief than the land around the boarder," she said icily, words dripping with venom. "We did notice patrols coming through, and if we see them again we'll attack them as enemies, assuming they were as such."
Lyssa covered her mouth to keep the laughter from coming out as the General's face turned a bilious purple. "Yes, ladies," he said stiffly, trying to keep his own temper under control. "I'll be sure to remember that."
Lyssa took out her own map, where several marks had been drawn. "Oh, and General," she said sweetly, "Your men keep popping up in my area to. One of the groups was attacked because we assumed they were Scanrans. I'm sure you'll do better at keeping them inside your bounds from now on, correct?"
"Of course." The General's face looked like it was about to explode as he got up and quickly walked out of the room. "If you'll excuse me..."
Lyssa burst out laughing with Elizabeth as soon as the door was closed, Alyse sitting there with a bemused look on her face. "That guy is the biggest sexist," she commented, the undertones of her voice razor sharp. "What I would give to see him beat into the ground by a girl."
"That may happen very soon," murmured Lyssa, "I'm not sure how much more of his attitude I can take."
"Yeah, but that look on his face when he realized he was caught. Oh, that was priceless!" Elizabeth started laughing again.
Lyssa certainly had to agree with her there. "Oh yes it was..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Libby sat in her tent, reading aloud the letter she got from the fief they had been at a few weeks ago. She had been revived after the whole thing was over a few hours later and had left promptly after that, vowing to never go there again.
And so she read:
'Brazir Mages Artman and Libby, Greetings
You have our sincerest apologizes for the night of the ball, and hope that it does not have any effect on your relationship with this fief.'
"Yeah, right," snorted Libby, going on.
'In light of the fact that we never got to the party and celebrating part of the whole thing and things went so badly, we wish you to return so we may throw you another one~'
"Like hell," growled Libby, tearing up the letter and throwing it in the fire. "I wouldn't go back there if you offered me the world."
"What about a million pink bunnies?" asked Artman raising an eyebrow.
Libby's eyes got a huge and sparkly, thing about a million pink bunnies. They just as quickly squinted as she remembered the stripes and the spider in her soup. "Nope," she said shaking her head, "Not even for a million pink bunnies."
"Impressive."
"Shut up!" yelled Libby, throwing a pillow at his head. "You're not being very nice."
"When am I ever?"
"Grr…"
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Sarah and John sat on their front porch, waiting expectantly. Dom had written them awhile back, saying he was getting some time off and was coming to visit them after visiting his family.
"Do you think he's changed any?" asked Sarah out of the blue, leaning back on her elbows.
"Hey guys!" yelled Dom, a huge smile on his face. "Miss me?"
"Nope, he hasn't changed a bit," grumbled John, rolling his eyes.
"Be nice! Hey Dom, how've you been?"
Dom dismounted from Veety's back, landing neatly on his feet. "I'm alright," he said, giving the horse an apple. "How are you? It seems like ages since the last time I've been here."
"Maybe because it has," retorted John, dodging as Veety tried to bite him. "Ha! You missed."
"John, you're talking to a horse," Sarah pointed out.
"So? You do it all the time."
"…….." They all went into the house, Sarah bright red as John kept laughing. Dom just smiled all the more and followed them in, sitting down in the kitchen.
"So, what are we having to eat?" he asked, looking at Sarah expectantly. "That soup we had last time was great."
"I'm glad you liked it, but we're having something else this time."
"What?"
"Eggs, bacon, and toast. That alright with you?"
"Sounds great." John took a seat across from Dom, a mischievous look on his face.
"Had any problems with Veety?" he asked, trying to keep a straight face.
"Actually, no. We get along all right. He's a whole lot better than Raoul's Squire's horse, Peachblossom."
"Peachblossom?" asked John, about to fall out of his seat from laughing so hard. "What kind of a sissy name is that?"
"The kind that hides a very vicious gelding. The only one he'll let ride him is Kel, and half the time she's the only one who can control him. I think she got an agreement worked out between the two of them that he would behave if she never used the spur on him. A very interesting pair to say the least."
"Yeah, but you never do, do you?"
"John, will you be nice?"
"No, that's alright. He's no worse than the other guys in the troop." They spent the rest of the evening like this, eating and laughing away with several jokes and teases being thrown around between them.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Alyse rode by herself out of the gates of Lynx mountain, Amanda and Elizabeth waving back behind her. She was riding to Corus for Faleron's Ordeal, which was this mid-winter. The only problem was that she wasn't sure she could make the pass before it was closed with the early winter snows. After she got through it she wouldn't be able to return until early spring when the snow finally melted.
They had already had several light snows at the fief, and she could feel it crunching under Fern's hooves as they sped south. Despite the fact that Fern had been born in the desert, she seemed well equipped for the cold and it didn't bother her at all.
She had with her a letter from Amanda to the King about his 'royal reprimand' and yet another one of her insults towards him. Although Alyse had to agree with her this time, the King had gone too far in insulting her like that and deserved what he got for not taking her warning seriously.
Now all she had to do was get there, something that she was beginning to regret doing alone. After all, one could freeze to death out here if one wasn't careful, something she hadn't had to worry about for several years.
***A week later***
Fern galloped on, just ahead of them the pass. If they could get through it tonight, they would be able to make the palace in another two or three days. Alyse's hands were numb and her feet frozen as she entered the dangerous pass, watching for any falling ice and making sure to keep the sound at a minimum. An avalanche was the last thing she needed right now.
The last week had flow by quickly, the hours flying by as Fern used her never-ending energy to get Alyse back south. Things had been quite, with the occasional traveler going the opposite direction or patrol of knights she'd meet, but that was really it.
Fern skipped to the side as an icicle barely missed them, crashing into a million pieces. The noise caused Fern to rear, almost throwing Alyse from her saddle.
"Whoa! Steady, girl! Steady!"
'……..rumble…rumble rumble…'
"What was that?" Alyse turned around to see a wall of white coming towards them at a *very* fast pace. "AAAAAAAAAAAHhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!" Fern took off at the speed of light, her breath coming in gasps as she raced to make the end of the canyon before the snow caught them for good. "Come on, Fern! Go!" cried Alyse, urging her on even faster as the white came closer, and closer…
Fern barely made it, skidding around the corner and stopping there in a little cover outside the pass. The snow tumbled past them, taking out several trees before stopping completely. The pass was completely closed.
"That was close," whispered Alyse, trying to slow down her racing heart. Fern snorted, turning and trotting towards where she knew they were stopping for the night. Next big stop: Corus.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
There it is, now leave me be! Trust me, this could not have gotten up any faster with the time restraints I had. Next one will be up faster with the ending of the school year (yeah!!!) and no more huge church or school projects that I know of. Thanks for your reviews that I know you're doing right now *hint hint* and Happy Mother's Day~!
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Vixen woke up suddenly, feeling very disoriented from sleeping sitting up and not sure where she was. Moonlight streamed in through the window across from her, bathing the familiar room in a soft glow. Wherever she was she must've been out for a while, last time she remembered it was afternoon....
She shivered slightly; it was cold in the room, her clothes not offering much warmth and no blankets insight. Something warm was behind and beside her, so she snuggled closer to whatever it was and closed her eyes, too tired to care. The whole mystery could wait until morning...
Vixen had just about dropped off when something occurred to her. She straightened up again and looked down, seeing an around her waist and certainly wasn't there from before. She followed the arm up to the sleep person beside her...Joe. Memories of the night before rushed into her head as she put her head in hands.
"Oh my gosh...."
****A few hours later****
Mouse sat eating her breakfast in the outer room of where they had put Joe, trays of food for everyone else beside her. She was just about finished when Allie walked in, rubbing her eyes with sleep.
"Where's Vixen?" she asked, sitting down and pouring herself some coffee. "She never came to bed last night. That or I was in a really deep sleep and she left before I got up."
Mouse grinned and pointed to the door. "Joe woke up after lunch yesterday, just about the same time she fell asleep in that chair. I came in and checked on him about dinnertime and she was still out so I let him eat and she woke up soon after that. When I checked on them about an hour later, she was up on the bed beside him."
"Whoa, she did not..."
"No, just making out. This *is* Vixen we're talking about. I peeked in right before I went to bed and they were talking quietly. It was so cute! They were so focused on each other that I could've walked in and back out and they probably wouldn't have noticed me. She probably fell asleep still sitting next to him because I slept right over there and haven't heard anything since."
"Do you want to go peak in on them?"
"Ok."
***In the other room****
"Joe, wake up. Come on, it's time to get up Joe." He wasn't responding, so she left him and went to the door, pulling on her boots and putting her daggers (which were on the table) away. She yawned and swung it open, very surprised when 'WHUMP!' two bodies fell over in front of her from the other side. She looked at them, very puzzled as the two scrambled to their feet, trying to act as if nothing had happened.
"Morning, Vixen," said Allie, straightening her shirt. "Sleep well last night?"
"Were you two spying on me?" asked Vixen suspiciously, eyeing the two who squirmed under her gaze.
"Um, no, what makes you say that?"
"Yeah. How would we know what you and Joe were up to last night."? Allie slapped her hand over her mouth, realizing what she had just said.
"Grr..."
"Allie...."
"Yeah, Mouse?"
"RUN!!!"
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Kyle fidgeted in his chair; hoping things wouldn't take much longer. He was supposed to have returned to the wolves over an hour ago, and they got very annoyed when they were kept waiting...he had to share a cave with them too...
The door opened and Kyle jumped to his feet, annoyance replacing his nervousness. You are not supposed to make anyone wait three hours to see you, whether or not you were a scout.
"I have your report, sir," said Kyle, taking out his notes when the General he was supposed to report to sat down.
"Yes, I'm sure you do," said the General, taking out his map. "But seeing as how we already know where the Scanrans are, we don't need yours."
"How?" asked Kyle, getting suspicious.
"Ours scouts picked up their tracks a few days ago and sent word of where they are heading, ok?"
"Which way?"
"South east towards Hempton."
Kyle took out the rough map he had drawn and looked at it carefully, tracing the lines he had drawn quickly. "Sir, your information is incorrect," said Kyle, showing him what he had drawn. "The Scanrans are camped right here and have been moving South west for three days now."
"Are you saying my scouts can't do their job?" growled the General, getting on the defensive all of a sudden.
"No, I'm saying that they may've gotten it confused somehow. Trust me, I saw them with my own two eyes this morning..."
"You're nothing more than a young whelp," sneered the General, packing up his things. "You're probably the one who got his directions wrong. Why don't you head back to school, little boy, until they teach you another thing or two about maps, ok?"
"Ok, that's it!" yelled Kyle, throwing his things down. "Every time I come here, it takes at least an hour until I can see you, and now you're insulting me for no freaking reason! Don't be expecting to get my reports anymore, because I won't work for someone who treats those under him unfairly!"
With that he stormed out, taking his notes and maps with him.
"I wonder what his problem is..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Jennifer rode up to Stephanie's house a few hours after dawn, completely exhausted from her trip and about ready to fall asleep on her horse. Here she was going to be a distant friend of hers who was, unfortunately, a boy. The boy had actually died recently, but no one knew outside of the immediate family so it worked out perfectly.
Stephanie was waiting outside for her and let her lie down while she took care of her horses and bags. Jenny didn't wake up for several hours, and when she did a small wet tongue was washing face... She opened her eyes to see Tigress on her stomach, surrounded by the others as well.
"It's good to see your up," said Stephanie from her seat in the corner. "How do you feel?" Jenny's stomach growled loudly as if on cue.
"Very hungry."
"So your stomach said. Get up and you can have some of this soup I made for lunch." Jenny did and sat by the small fire in the hut, looking out the door at the sheep that were grazing outside.
"When did my cats get here?" she asked, having thought Sean still had them.
"My brother isn't as well liked as you and they told him he had to get rid of them. I offered to take them in on a short visit to town, and some how several of your things came with it as well..." She motioned to a small trunk in the corner. "I got some hair dye and shears too, we'll have to cut your hair short and dye it to a light brown."
"Why?" asked Jenny, not wanting to dye her hair again.
"No one in their family has red or black hair, only brown. It's the weirdest thing...oh yeah. Sean also sent a bundle of his old clothes that are too small for him, but should fit you pretty well." Stephanie rummaged through a bag, quickly handing her some pants, a shirt, and an over tunic. "Change into these, and bind yourself flat with this." She handed her a length of cloth. "After you do that, we'll see about the hair. I'm gonna go check on the sheep, so you can stay in here."
She left immediately, and Jenny did as she had said, changing a quickly as she could, noticing the clothes still smelled like Sean as she did. Taking care that nothing that would prove her a girl would show, she walked out into the sunlight and sat on a stool that Stephanie had set up.
"Ready?" asked Stephanie, scissors in hand.
"Just get it over with."
"Ok..." 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' 'Snip!' Jenny didn't look at her hair after she had finished, letting her put the dye in first to complete the look. When she looked in a mirror, she didn't even recognize herself. Her hair was up to the top of her ears in a way that was similar to Sean's and the brown brought out some colors she didn't even know her eyes possessed.
"Not bad, if I do say so myself," murmured Stephanie, putting away her things. "What do you think?"
"I, I don't know," said Jennifer slowly, as if waking up from a dream. "It looks so strange, but...."
"But what?"
"I kinda like it." Jennifer smiled at herself in the mirror before putting it down. "It's not as bad as I thought it would be. Definitely not what I'm used to, but it could look a lot worse..."
"I'm glad," said Stephanie, picking up one of her cats. "What say I teach you the rope of being a Shepard, hm?"
"Sounds good to me."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Amanda sat in her study with Alyse, Elizabeth, Levi, and Grandfather, eating her birthday cake and discussing some things to bring more money into the fief. "We could levy the taxes," said Levi, shrugging his shoulders.
"No, I don't want to force people to pay anymore than they already are," replied Amanda, leaning in her chair back behind her desk. "There has to be some way to willingly get them to pay us...maybe a service of some sort that costs us nothing..."
"There is nothing like that that we have the resources for," countered Grandfather. "Outside of planting their fields for them, but that is their life, and would take offense if we offered to do it for them."
"There has to be something!" cried Amanda, picking up the reports from her desk. "With all the renovations that had to be made, we don't have anything left for defense. If we can't defend our fief..."
"Then the Scanrans will over run us," finished Alyse, her face grave. Just then, someone knocked on the door.
"Go answer that," said Amanda, nodding at Levi. He opened it quickly and took the letter a servant handed to him, giving it to Amanda. She scanned it quickly, an idea forming in her head as she did. "Friends, I think I've found a way," she chuckled, handing the letter to Grandfather. "The Shang Lynx, who I met at the palace about a year ago, is making good on his promise and is coming to visit for awhile. He owes me a couple of favors, so why not use him and some others for money?"
"What's your plan?" asked Levi suspiciously.
"A competition."
"How will that get us money?"
"In a few weeks we'll hold a tournament which any person, regardless of rank or income, can join. The fee will be one gold noble to enter, and we'll take any number of entrants. Every day for a week we'll draw twenty names, those twenty will get to choose from a panel of three of four who they wish to fight ahead of time, which will be marked on their entry."
"What will they get if they win?" asked Alyse, "It defeats the purpose if we have to use part of the money for prizes."
"Elizabeth, would you be willing to kiss any who win?" asked Amanda, her eyes all big and puppy dog like. "Please?"
"Do I get to choose the kind of kiss?" asked Elizabeth, eyes shining, "Some of those guys are really hot..."
"Absolutely," said Amanda, shrugging slightly. "But you can't force them to do anything that they don't want to do."
"Darn."
Amanda grinned. Yep, that was her sister all right. "So, how does that sound, Grandfather?"
"Like a very solid plan, Amanda," he replied, picking up a piece of paper. Quickly writing something on it, he added, "I will have things set up immediately. Who will the fighters they can choose from be?"
"The Shang Lynx, that captain fellow who's really good with his twin axes..."
"You mean Jared?"
"Yeah, him. Alyse? Would you be one of the fighters?"
"No," replied Alyse with a shake of her head. "My gift sometimes comes though my fans without me knowing it, so it's probably *not* a good idea."
"Good point," said Amanda, nodding her head. "Then put Yosho, that hunter who can use a sear really well. That's only three, so I'll be one as well making it four."
"Do you want me to ask the two from the village if that is ok with them?" asked Grandfather, looking up from his notes for a moment.
"Yeah, if they can't fin someone to take their place. You know the fighters better than I do, so just inform me of any changes made. Have the men of the garrison set up a ring for me as well as several stands for the spectators. I want a bidding booth set up as well for bets made on who will win and such. We may just get lucky and cash in on a few folks."
"Where are they to register?"
"At the two booths we'll set up. One at the gate so those who pass through will see it and one at the fief for those who live closer. Send word out to the neighboring fiefs, there are some there who would probably want to enter as well."
"And that's how we're going to get money for the war?" asked Levi, eyebrows raised. "Good luck."
"Gee thanks for the support," growled Amanda, shooting him a death glare. "If no one objects to the plan..." No one said a word. "Then lets get started."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Lyssa looked over what the old fort had been turned into, very pleased with her work. The walls had been completely enforced until there were no weak spots in it at all. Some sturdy little huts had been built for officers to sleep in, and the four main buildings that had been there originally had been done over and looked brand new. There were the two bunk houses (one for guys and one for girls) and one was a stable/forge/armory The final building had been converted into a mess hall and was where all the meetings in the fort were held.
Oh yes, she had created a working military base out of some rotting buildings and crumbling walls. They had even built some platforms in the trees surrounding the fort that archers could shoot from. Well-trained scouts made rounds through the woods every three days and a watch was constantly kept from the trees and walls.
"Commander Lyssa!" said one of her seconds, riding up on his mount. "Are you ready to go? We have to be at the first collective meeting in a few minutes."
"Get my horse saddled up and meet me at the front gate in five minutes," she replied, heading back to her room for some things. "We'll leave then."
Five minutes later she and two others galloped through the woods to Hedgesville, were the first one was to be held.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Alyse sat quietly in her chair, Elizabeth standing behind her. They were attending in Amanda's place today, as she was busy with the preparations for the competition. The General of the fort at the river had arrived a few minutes ago, and now all they were waiting for was Commander Lyssa, who was situated between them geographically.
She walked in right then, two others behind her as she quickly took her seat.
"Hello Alyse, General Yorkshire. I hope you weren't waiting to long," she said, taking out her maps and such.
"Not at all," replied the General.
"It's good to see you again," said Alyse, smiling. "I'd like you to meet Elizabeth, my cousin and one of the ladies of Lynx mountain.
"Where's the other sister?" asked Lyssa when she had exchanged greeting with the girl.
"Home taking care of some arrangements," said Elizabeth, tilting her head slightly to the side. "Why?"
"I've just heard a lot about both of you from Alyse and was wondering," replied Lyssa, shrugging slightly. "Anyways, down to business."
"Yes," said General Yorkshire, taking out some sheets of paper. "Here's the location of the Scanrans according to my scouts and reports from Daine the Wildmage. They're more on your side, Lady Alyse, than ours, probably because looting Lynx mountain and Hedgesville would be more prosperous than trying to take out either one of the forts."
"Why were your scouts that far out?" asked Alyse, eyes flashing with annoyance. "I thought the agreement was not to interfere with the other's territories."
"My apologies," said the General, not having thought she would catch that. "I will make sure they stay in their bounds from now on." Alyse made a mental note to speak to Amanda about this before charging on.
"Show me where the scouts said they were," she said tersely, her opinion of the General having dropped greatly. He marked a few positions with his pencil and she shook her head, sighing loudly. "That is wrong. Our scouts just gave us a new position yesterday. They're farther south and west."
"Which puts them right in the middle." The General's forehead wrinkled up, eyebrows knitting in concentration. "Have they made any raids recently?"
"Not since that last one on the trade store right on the boarder, and we've completely withdrawn from it," replied Elizabeth, making a face. "That was a few months ago. What about in your area?"
"All of the towns have been fairly quiet, though I don't think it will last for long." The General shook his head, looking very grave. "The King is piling up his soldiers at Northwatch, so if the Scanrans are smart, they'll pull off to the sides at the less defended areas."
"Which means us." Everyone turned to look at Lyssa, who hadn't said much for a while. "I'll have my guard doubled and make sure everything is well in stock."
"We'll do the same," said Alyse, nodding her head. "After the competition we'll be able to afford to expand our fighting force and outfit them as well."
"Then everything is set for now," said the General, rising to his feet. "Then I will see you in two weeks ladies." With that he left the room, Lyssa soon following and saying 'good-bye' as well.
"Ready to go?" asked Alyse, gathering up her things.
"Yeah, lets go."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Libby sat inside her tent, as bored as anything. They had been here for two weeks now, the rain pouring down so hard that you could barely see. No one would try to attack in this sort of the weather, so all they could do was sit and wait.
Pinky hopped over to her, eyes huge as she stared into Libby's face. "What?" asked Libby, staring right back. "You want a carrot?"
Pinky shook her head.
"Is something wrong with the bunnies?"
She shook her head again.
"Then what?"
Pinky hopped over to a ribbon that was lying on the ground, nudging it with her nose.
"Huh?"
Pinky hoped up and down beside it, and then went back to pushing it with her nose. Libby picked it up, twirling it in her hand. Pinky hopped in time with in until Libby realized what she wanted her to do.
"You want to play jump rope with it?"
*nod**nod*
"Oh, ok!" Libby tied one end of the ribbon to a pole and the other she held in her hand. "Ready?"
*nod*
"Ok." Libby swung the ribbon slowly, watching Pinky as she hopped over it every time. *hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish* "Hey, you're pretty good at this!" *nodnod**hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish*
Dusty came over and looked at his mom, following the ribbon with his head before trying to jump in as well and getting tangled in the ribbon.
"Oh, poor Dusty!" Libby got him untangled and put him to the side, swinging the rope once more for Pinky. *hop**swish**hop**swish**hop**swish**plop!* "Dusty!" Libby gently scolded the young bunny as she removed him once more, putting him farther to the side. She was swinging the rope once more when Pinky jr came by and decided to jump in too, Except she didn't get tangled in the ropes.
Artman walked in right about then, rubbing his now-smooth chin since his facial hair refused to grow back. "Libby, what on earth~!"
"They're jumping rope, see!"
"Oh brother...."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Sarah looked out across the meadow, watching Mandy romp and play with the other younger horses. It was hard to believe she would be a year old this next mid-winter... Summer was flying by quickly, and soon they'd be making their preparations for the winter snows.
"Sarah!" yelled John from the barn. "Get in here, I need your help!"
"Coming!" She walked over quickly and peered in to see John sitting on the barn floor, one of those large, oval harnesses jammed over his arms to his stomach.
"I'm stuck."
"How in the world..."
"Snowmane chewed through the rope, and it fell on me. Get if off, will ya!"
"Maybe I should just leave you there..." Mandy came and trotted over; sticking her head inside to see what all the commotion was about. She laughed a horsy laugh as John sat there screaming and cursing for a few minutes, both things leaving him horse and not much better off. "What do you think, Mandy?" The young mare shook her head and trotted back to the field, head held high. "I guess that settles it. See ya later, John."
"Wait! Wait! Please, Sarah? Don't leave me here, I know you're nicer than that...please?"
"Oh, alright." A tub of butter and several hours later, they had him free. Very greasy, but free.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Trystan (the lady mage who's been out of the picture for awhile) sat down hard from laughing so much. "What's so funny?" asked a boy's voice as tears began to stream down her face, a body materializing beside her.
"Leave her alone, Ruben," said girl's voice, a body materializing on the other side. "We aren't even supposed to be here."
"It's alright, Grendal," gasped Trystan, trying to recover her breath. "You are both free from that restriction until I have to start pulling the groups together some more. These groups are hilarious, though. Wait until you're called to do this, it's really quite funny."
She turned and looked at her two youngest siblings, her favorites at that. Ruben looked like he was 7 or 8 and wore the Summersea version of a merchant's child, but then looks could be deceiving. He was actually a couple centuries old, still an adolescent. He had spelled himself so he would never appear to age, though, and used it to trick others quite often.
Grendal was a century older than him, not that much when you consider how old they lived to be. She looked like a teen-ager from the mid-west with her jeans, old t-shirt and dusty cowboy hat.
"When will we get our next group?" asked Ruben, sounding like a whiny 6 year old. "I haven't had anything to do since that last group left my area three or four years ago."
"Where's the book?"
"Locked up in some safe in one of the parallels," he replied with a shrug. "I'm not sure which one."
"Go find it and send it somewhere else," said Trystan, shrugging back. "It's not rocket science, little bro."
"Be quiet."
"How's your group going?" Trystan asked Grendal.
"Left about a month ago. No mishaps, they're all spelled to forget unless something triggers a memory for a short while until they forget again. Two or three of them had been through your world before..."
"Really? Will there be a group going from this parallel anytime soon?"
"Eventually. Mom and pop said we had to wait until something happened....I think they're planning something again...but I'm not sure..."
"Well, thanks for the warning," said Trystan, smiling gently. "I've got some work to do, so I'll see you later, ok?"
"Ok, bye."
"Yeah, later."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Vixen came downstairs for the first time since she had carried Joe up to his room, looking a little paler than usual and a bit thinner, but none worse for the wear. A cheer went up around the room as she took her seat, accepting a pint of ale from Bart's son (who was doing a great job at running things) and downing it quickly, even for her.
Joe followed her a few minutes later, his wound all but gone and much better off after his 'inner struggle' for that long month. He and Vixen had reached an 'understanding', though neither had realized yet that their bracelets had changed colors, or that they even had the same one.
"Should we hail him as King, or is it not official yet?" yelled a thief from across the room as Joe took his seat beside her. "After all, he's shared many things with us and you during your reign."
"Including her bed, from what I hear," came a shout from the other side of the room. That was enough for Vixen.
She got up and walked over to the thief who had made the rude comment, dragging him to the center of the room by his ear. "See this fellow?" she said aloud, quickly getting everyone's attention. "He decided to be rude to the queen. Here's what happens when you do that." She pulled out her knife and quickly split his lower ear in half so it was scared permanently for all to see. "Teasing is one thing, being blatantly rude is another. Understand?"
The rogue answered with one voice. "Yes ma'am."
"Good. I don't mind teasing; it's fun to laugh at yourself and others. Rudeness to me or those close to me I will not allow." She went back to her seat, cleaning off her blade as she went. "You don't think I was to harsh on him?" she asked Joe as she sat down, sipping the second pint she had been brought.
"No, not at all," said Joe with a shake of his head. "I am glad for one thing, though."
"What?"
"That I'm on that right side of that blade?"
"Said who?" asked Vixen, taking the dagger back out and toying with it. "Things can be very deceptive."
"Just like a Vixen would say..."
"Joe..."
"Yes, Vixie?"
"Grr..."
"Oh, and by the way...." Joe motioned for something that she couldn't see and Mouse and Allie came forward, a big cake covered with candles behind them. "Happy belated birthday, Vixen of the Rouge, Mouse and Allie."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Kyle lay back in the cave, completely exhausted from his work lately. A hawk swooped in, followed by the wolves as it perched on the ground beside him and began to preen its feathers.
'Hello, winged friend' he said to the creatures mind. 'How are you?'
'Just fine, thank you, Kyle.'
"Daine!" Kyle sat up straight, looking very shocked. "Last time I got a message from you, you were all way over to that canyon. That was just yesterday, how did you make it so fast?"
'I had motivation,' she replied, pulling out a note from the bag around her neck and handing it to him. 'Care to explain this?'
It was a letter from the General, telling of her 'insolent scout' who had refused to comply with his orders and hadn't reported in since.
"Oh, that...it wasn't my fault!" he protested, doing his best to remain calm. "They kept me waiting for hours for no reason at all and then said that my report wouldn't be needed. When I told him his information was wrong, he called me a 'young whelp' so I left. I'm not gonna work with him if he's gonna do that."
'So it wasn't entirely your fault?'
"It wasn't my fault at all!"
'Don't move from here. I'm going to go back and speak with him. Hopefully we can get this whole mess worked out, ok?'
"Alright. What about the scouting though?"
'One day or two won't matter. Just stay put, he's got a warrant out for you and they'll whip you if you're found.'
"Ok. Bye."
'Bye.'
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Jennifer had spent the last couple weeks learning to be a Shepard from Stephanie, and now had the ropes down pat. Every morning they would get up before dawn, her fixing the day's food and letting Stephanie round up the sheep. Then, she would carry their things to the field they had agreed on the day before while Stephanie would herd the sheep over there, running along beside them and singing loudly.
They would sit there and watch them all day, talking about whatever and playing with the cats and the lambs. Once in awhile they'd get to birth a sheep, but those were fairly common with the large group she was put in charge of and it didn't make much difference.
Sometimes they'd have to defend the sheep from a pack of wolves or a bear or a mountain lion, and they were always ready. Stephanie carried a sling with a pouch of smooth rocks, and Jennifer had the metal studded rod Sean gave her. She had learned to use it sometime ago, and had used it on more than one occasion.
She got up early one morning, just as always, and was preparing the day's food when she heard someone calling for her. "Jen! Jen! Come quick!" She dropped what she was doing and ran, grabbing her staff on the way out the door. "Help! Help!"
It was Stephanie, and six burly men were trying to tie her up and grab the sheep. "Tigress!" yelled Jennifer, swinging staff. "Tigress, help!" The gray tabby shot from the hut faster than lightning and latched herself onto one man's face, digging her claws in deep. Her siblings joined her, yowling and clawing as one as they helped Jennifer ~who was whacking the men left and right~ get Stephanie free.
"Gaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!! This isn't worth the pain! Let's run!" yelled one of the guys, blood streaming down his face.
"Are you alright?" Jennifer asked Stephanie, supporting her on one side as the cats chased the men far out beyond the pasture. "It looks like they got you good a few times. Who were those guys?"
"I dunno," replied Stephanie through a swollen jaw, looking around her dazedly. "They just came out of nowhere...said something about the sheep and somebody paying them..."
"Let's get you to the hut," said Jennifer, half-carrying her over there. "The sheep can stay in the pen today, that won't matter."
"Your cats..."
"Shhhh. Rest yourself, you need it. The cats are fine, don't worry. I'll take a quick head-count of the sheep after I fix you up, ok?"
"Fine..." Jennifer laid Stephanie on her cot, quickly checking to make sure she had no broken bones and was nothing more than roughed up before going out and checking on the sheep like she had promised. They were all huddled in a corner, and she quickly counted through them to make sure none were missing before heading over and sitting on a stool by the door to keep an eye on both them and Stephanie.
"Jen." Jennifer's head snapped up, the sun now low in the sky. "Jen, I need you to take a note to my lord...."
"What about you?" protested Jennifer, coming inside quickly. "I can't just leave you here."
"I have the cats. Go, he needs to know what happened..." She drifted off after pushing the letter into Jennifer's hands, leaving it to her. "Take it to him....please..."
"Alright, I'll go."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
The Shang Lynx sat with Amanda and the other two who were battling under an awning that had been set up for them. It had been three days since the battles had begun, each day every one of them had had to battle at least twice, usually more. The contestants ran from poor farm boys hoping to win Lady Elizabeth's favor, others brave warriors just wanting to test their mettle, and still others nobles who wanted to prove their worth. Not all the battles had been won, and Elizabeth did get to kiss some hotties that proved their skill. The only one left to be beaten was the only girl in the group.
The Shang Lynx had been there for a few weeks, but some reason he could not get along with Levi. No matter how much Amanda tried to get them at peace, they continued to hate each other with a passion. The oddest part was no one could figure out why...
Elizabeth was up in a 'box' that had been built, some other lady nobles sitting with her. To her side was a large glass jar filled with all the names that had signed up to fight. She reached in after they cleared the field from the last fight and drew out a slip of paper, eyes widening as she read it over to herself. Her mouth curled into a sly grin as she called it out to the rest. "The next contestant will be...Levi of Lynx mountain challenging.... Lady Amanda of Lynx mountain!"
Amanda's head shot up from where she had been resting, looking at Elizabeth to confirm this was true. Her sister came over, eye dancing merrily as she let her see the slip of paper. "Are you sure its our Levi?" asked Amanda, shading her eyes from the sun.
"Yep." Elizabeth pointed him out in the crowd, making his way to the front. "Toy with him before pounding him to the ground. It's more fun to watch."
"No can do," replied Amanda. "I couldn't figure out why he kept watching me at the practice courts, but now I know. He had the perfect opportunity to study my fighting style and would be a fool not to take it since he was entering the competition. My only chance will be to knock him out right away."
"Don't tell me you might lost to him~"
"Yes, I might," cut in Amanda. "I've never seen him fight before, so I don't know what weapon he's using or how he'll use it."
"You mean like that guy who covered himself in a metal ball and rolled towards his opponents until her smashed them?"
"Exactly."
"But you're going to try to win, even though you've never seen him fight before, right?"
"Of course, Liz," said Amanda, smiling grimly, "You'll never, ever see me lose willingly to a guy unless there is some great gain in my favor."
"Contestants in the ring!" called Grandfather, the judge of this competition since all respected and trusted him.
"Grind him to dust, sis." Liz squeezed Amanda's hand really hard.
"I'll try to." Amanda walked in the ring opposite of Levi, her sword in her hands and daggers hidden in various places. They were allowed as many weapons as they wanted, as long as they carried them on their body as they walked into the ring.
Levi was wearing a leather harness that held the two parts of his weapon on his back, a weapon that Amanda recognized from 'BeastMaster' (That was once the greatest show...) It was a staff with a metal ball at one end that would normally be bare, but he had covered it in leather to reduce the likely hood of someone getting hurt. The other end was a foot long blade that was joined seamlessly with the treated wood that wouldn't break for anything. The staff had a connector that could be released, giving you two weapons of equal value. She had seen it used on TV, but that had been years ago, and she didn't remember much from that time.
"Ok, you two know the rules," said Grandfather, rolling his eyes. They had helped write them after all. "Be fair, and remember~ No Killing! Alright?"
"Yes, sir."
"Yep."
"Good, may the best warrior win." Grandfather backed away, his right hand held high in the air. "Ready, set, go!"
Amanda practically leapt at Levi, sword flashing in the light. Steel met steel in a clash as Levi met her blade with his own, swinging one of his weapons (which were disconnected) over her guard. Amanda jumped back, his blade grazing her shirt before she pulled out a dagger and used it to block him. Both executed the same move, and found one of their weapons flying the opposite direction. Amanda lost her sword and Levi his blade.
They circled each other, Levi striking first this time. He feinted a kick at her middle and sent the balled end of his weapon at her middle, throwing her hard on her back. The air rushed from Amanda's lungs, causing her to let go of her dagger as she tucked and rolled, getting up a few feet away to find Levi's knife at her throat.
She had lost...or so it appeared...
"Give?"
"Never." Levi's feet were knocked from under him and he went down hard as she dove for her sword several feet away.
'Zip!' Amanda's left sleeve was pinned to the ground with a small dagger, too small to have done any damage but enough to go through the fabric. Other small daggers whipped past her as she got the handle of her sword in her hand, rolling over and flipping to her feet. The sleeves of her shirt were in shreds, but her over tunic of leather was still holding, so she kept on going.
Levi had gotten back to his feet, both his weapons in hand. They went at it again, attacking faster than either thought possible, and it was by near misses that either one didn't lose an arm or a leg.
Amanda finally knocked away both ends of the staff and charged at Levi, planning on knocking him over. Instead, he kicked the sword out of her hand and grabbed her wrist, flipping her over his back and letting her hit the ground with a 'Thud!' on her back. He held her sword to her throat, sweat dripping down his face.
"Now do you give?"
".... yes."
He helped her to her feet and gave her the sword, handing it to her hilt first. "Not bad, Lady Amanda."
"Not bad at all. Good fight, Levi."
"...............um, thanks." Amanda could've sworn she saw Levi blush as she gathered up the rest of her weapons, her back protesting every time she had to bend over. There was gonna be a bruise the size of Texas there tomorrow.
Elizabeth shot Amanda a death glare as she came down from the box seat. "You lost," she hissed, hiding her anger from everyone else.
"Really? I hadn't noticed..." Levi walked up, a large grin on his face.
"Lady Elizabeth," he said, loud enough for his father to hear. "I will not be redeeming my prize, seeing as you are my employer and it would not be right." Turning to Amanda, he added. "Thank you for allowing me to participate in this battle." He then headed over to where the Shang Lynx was sitting, a tankard of fine wine in his hands.
"Very clever," murmured the Shang master as he walked by. "Very clever indeed."
"What was very clever?" Levi asked him.
"Entering the contest like that, you've probably experienced being the closest any man will ever be to her."
"Many others have fought her."
"Yes, but none have challenged her so. That and I bet you got a good view down her shirt."
"WHAT?" Levi's mouth hung open in shock as he looked at the Shang lounging there in his chair. It was a good thing Amanda walked up about then.
"What are you two talking about?"
"Nothing," replied Levi shortly, stalking away through the crowd.
"What's wrong with him?"
"I haven't the faintest idea..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Lyssa stood with the Captain she had assigned to the night watch, feeling restless as the wind ruffled through her loose hair. They had yet to see any Scanrans in their area up close, but she could tell it wouldn't be long now...just a few more weeks maybe....
"Commander!" said one of her seconds, coming up with a letter. "A message from General Yorkshire."
"Let me see it." She quickly broke the seal and scanned down, taking in what it said quickly. "Go and tell him I'll be there," she replied, folding it up and putting it in her pocket, it was just another notice saying the date had been changed for the next meeting due to some unexpected occurrence.
The Captain got up suddenly, saluting as another came and took his place. "Nice night to watch the stars, huh?" said a familiar voice as the person settled himself or herself on the bench.
"Very nice, Eric," replied Lyssa, glancing over at him before turning back to the view above her. "Heard from Danielle lately?"
"Not since we got that letter from her announcing she and Derick had gotten married. I still find it hard to believe she's hitched for good..."
"Eric, she is older than both of us," Lyssa reminded him, punching him in the arm, "If we were in her position, we'd both be getting married about this time ourselves."
"Which why I'm forever glad that I wasn't born a noble," retorted Eric, rubbing his arm. "Speak of which, have you hear from Coram or Rispah lately?"
"Yeah, I got a note from them about a week ago. They've been having trouble replacing me, apparently the men are refusing to work...."
"Aw! They miss you, Lyssa..."
"Not if they remembered how hard it was the first few days I was there," she grumbled, keeping her head down for a minute. "I bet those lugs have gotten soft since I left."
"Remember when you made them stand at attention for three hours straight?"
"Yeah, they complained about that to Coram, and he just had me put them out there for another hour or so. No one dared to complain after that."
"What about when you beat Caleb for your job? I still think that was one of the best fights ever fought."
"Then you still think wrong." Lyssa leaned back, a small smile forming on her lips. "It was a great fight, though...."
"See? You think so to, you just don't want to admit it."
"Whatever...anyways, I'd better be getting to bed. Long day tomorrow."
"Yeah, and I have to get back to guard duty. Night, Lyssa."
"'Night, Eric."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Alyse descended gracefully from the carriage, Elizabeth following her close behind. A servant led them into the ballroom, formally announcing them at the door.
"Presenting Lady Alyse and Lady Elizabeth of Lynx mountain!"
"Behave, will you?" whispered Alyse to Elizabeth. "I'd like this to be a pleasant evening, if you will."
"I'll try," replied Elizabeth, wrinkling her nose. "Their son is ugly and annoying anyways. Do I have to dance with him?"
"If he asks you and there is no good excuse not to. Remember what Amanda said? We're doing this for her since both of us didn't get her anything for her birthday, so we have to behave."
"Oh, alright..."
Sir Twain swaggered up, a confidant look in his eyes. "Ladies," he said, bowing low to them. They curtseyed back, quietly replying. "How are you tonight?"
"Fine, thank you," replied Alyse, keeping her eyes downcast.
"Good, good. Where is your lovely sister tonight? It was to her I believe the invitation was sent..."
"Lady Amanda is sick with the flu," said Elizabeth, daring him to challenge her with a look. "She sent us in her stead to thank you for the invitation, but say she was sorry that she couldn't attend."
"Really? One of my servants was on an errand in your fief and saw her out working in the fields. Why would she be there is she were sick?"
"There is a worker who looks a lot like her," retorted Alyse, turning away. "If you are suggesting that we're lying, than just come right out and say it."
"I'm sorry," said Sir Twain regally, bowing to them again. "I did not mean to offend you, I just wanted to make sure I had everything correct. I hope I did not insult you too mu~ Uuuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhh!"
Elizabeth had never had so much satisfaction from kneeing a guy in the crotch before.
"Are you sure that was a smart idea?" asked Alyse as they quickly made their escape.
"If he tries to blame it on me, I'll say he tried something with me and I refused," she replied, shrugging her shoulders. "It always works. I'm little and 'defenseless', making it so easy to blame things on others."
"Then I'm glad I'm not against you..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Libby and Artman were sitting in the rooms they had gotten at the fief, changing after having run off Scanran raiders once more and helped restore things to order.
*Knock, knock*
"Come in," called Libby, putting her hair up out of the way. It was the head of the fief, Sir Gaston. "Can I help you?" asked Libby, bowing slightly.
"In honor of you saving our home, we're throwing a ball in your honor tonight," said Sir Gaston, holding his head up high. "We wish you would attend as well as the guests of honor."
"We have nothing to wear..." objected Libby, trying to find some way out of it. "And we haven't rested for days. Wouldn't it be better to have this later?" [Or not at all] she added mentally.
"Nonsense. You can sleep in tomorrow and we have clothes that you have wear here in the fief. I'll send my wife and some servants up to help you dress in a few hours, ok?" With that he vanished out the door, leaving a very nervous Libby behind him.
"Libby, who was that?" asked Artman as he walked out of the bathroom, just having finished washing up.
"Sir Gaston"
"Really?" Artman rubbed his still smooth face (the hair was still refusing to grow back after the fire incident. "What'd he want?"
"He's throwing a ball tonight."
"So?"
"We're the guests of honor."
"Oh crap."
"Yup."
***four hours later***
Now, the lady of the fief was a nice lady, she really was. She just had once huge fault in Libby's eyes: she loved stripes. Libby hated stripes almost as much as she hated bugs.
"Here we are, dear!" said Lady Clementine, holding up a striped (of course) gown. "It's one of mine, but you can wear it for tonight."
"Can't we just wear our clothes since that's what people see us in everyday?" asked Libby, about ready to run for the door. Unfortunately there was a manservant outside with orders not to let anyone in or out unless he got the ok from Lady Clementine.
"No, silly! Those aren't clothes for a ball," she giggled, "You're such a kidder. Now come on, and put on this lovely gown I've brought you." Libby didn't exactly have a choice here. Artman had been taken away to be dressed, and now all she could do was obey this extremely unusual woman.
***mean while***
Artman stood at the head of the stairs, waiting impatiently for Libby to come. They had forced him to wear this ridiculously tight outfit of hose and a fine tunic because Sir Gaston's clothes were way too big and both of the 'guests of honor' had to be all dressed up.
Libby came right about then, striped dress and all. Things were not looking good. They walked down with the other nobles to the dinning room table and waited for the first dish to be served.
It was brought quickly, a plate hid under a silver dome, which the servant who was serving her elegantly removed.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!" Libby jumped out of her chair and fell backwards, hitting her head on the floor, which sent her into blessed darkness as the rubber spider sat dully on her plate.
"What?" asked Tommy, Sir Gaston's son as he got glares from his parents. "It was just a joke!"
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
John still had bruises on his arms from the last 'adventure' he had had, with no signs of fading any time soon. Onua had fallen out of her seat from laughing so hard when she had heard about it, and had then gone and counted up all the times he had gotten hurt since having taken this job. He didn't even bother to keep track anymore.
"John! Come out here and give me a hand with this hay, will you?" called Sarah from the loft, throwing it down just as he looked up. 'WHUMP!!'
"..........ow......." Sarah looked over the edge, seeing John flat on his back with the bale on his stomach.
"You were supposed to catch that," she pointed out as she swung down and pulled it off of him, helping him to his feet. "Not let it drive you into the ground."
" Ok. You know what? Shut up."
"No, that's not any fun."
".........that's not fair because I can't hurt you!" cried John, glaring at her.
"Why not?"
"Because you're the Sarah. No one hurts the Sarah."
Sarah rolled her eyes. "No, they just tickle her."
John's eyes shot up. "Oh yeah, I forgot about that." He began to poke her in the side and was rewarded by some giggles as he found her very ticklish spots.
"Ok...haha....not cool, John.......hahahahaha.........John seriou~ HehehAHAHAHAH!!!"
"This is too easy."
"Shut~ HEHEHAHAHA!"
"See? Told ya."
"Not fair."
"Is to."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Mouse and Allie were coming back late one night from another run of the local taverns, striding slowly down the almost empty streets as the moon shone softly over head. "What was that?" asked Mouse, stopping suddenly as she heard something that didn't sound quite right.
"What was what?"
Mouse stood there for a moment. "There it is again! Can't you hear it?"
"............um, no."
"AAAAAAAAAAAahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Mouse shot down the street towards the alley where the screaming was coming from. "Told you so," she said through gritted teeth as she drew her dirk and dagger set, which Vixen had given her for her birthday. The blades where engraved with the picture of an innocent mouse, a picture that was soon to be stained with blood.
Allie pulled out her whip and lashed out at the first thing she saw moving. It was three or four guys ganged up against a mother and her little girl, who were huddled to one side and trying to escape.
The pair of thieves didn't ask questions, they just attacked and decided to figure things out later. After all, what good could come from trying to question some guys while they hurt poor, innocent people?
One of the men was dispatched with a snapped neck (courtesy of Allie's whip) and another had his jugular slashed open to the point of bleeding to death. The last one Allie caught around the waist and threw to the ground, placing her heal on his neck while Mouse checked on the woman and her child.
The mother was dead. Mouse was very surprised to find a small pair of arms flung around her neck, looking to see the small girl had attached herself to her. "Oh no. Look, little girl...."
"Mommy told me to stay with you," whispered the little girl, looking up into Mouse's eyes solemnly. "She said you'd take care of me."
"How's the lady?" Allie asked, slowly applying pressure to the man's neck as he refused to answer her questions for the moment.
"Dead."
"Bastards. And the girl?"
"Around my neck, choking me." Allie glanced up, a smile on her face.
"Aw, how cute..."
"Shut up." Mouse picked up the girl, who was about 5 or 6, and carried her over to the man. "Why did you kill the lady?" she demanded, kicking him roughly.
"We were given orders to."
"By who?"
"Our boss..." Mouse motioned for Allie to let up on the pressure for a second.
"Who's he?"
"She's the girl's aunt."
"Name?"
The man stared at them in stony silence. Allie reapplied the pressure, leaving him with even less space to breath this time. "Answer the question or I will kill you," growled Allie coldly, glaring at him.
"Lady Isis of Knoxfort," he gasped right away, his face beginning to turn purple.
"Why does she want her killed?"
"And if you don't answer the first time I'll just cut off all your air completely."
".........the girl is the only living relative left of her father, who is the true owner of the estates."
"Making the girl next in line for his fortune," finished Mouse, thinking quickly. She had Allie put him under her spell and give him specific instructions. He was to return to his boss and tell her both were dead, and that there where no witnesses or bodies to speak of.
"Are you sure that was the right thing to do?" asked Allie as they made their way to the Dancing Dove, the girl still clinging to Mouse's neck and the dead woman being carried by Allie.
"No, but it'll have to do for now," replied Mouse, opening the door of the Dancing Dove. Now they had to go explain everything to Vixen. [Great] thought Mouse as she scanned the room. [What fun...]
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Kyle had long since gotten everything straightened out with Daine and that General (who she had chewed out severely for him) and was right now reading a letter he had received from his father at his last report to Northwatch.
It read:
Master Kyle,
Things have been fairly quite around here without you, and I do miss the way you made me laugh all the time, for I am but an old man who rarely does anything fun with his life. The King recently sent me news of you, saying that you were fine and are doing a great thing for your Kingdom. I most assuredly proud of what you have done, for few your age make that sort of an impression on the King. Still, I wish that you would return home.
Several of the young ladies have been asking about you lately, wondering where you've gone off to. My orders are to say you're visiting some family, but I think they're beginning to see through that excuse. If you would come back you could choose one and settle down. That or go back to spying, knowing that your property and estates were secure. Please, Kyle. For the sake of the old man here who just wants to see you again. Please come home.
Your (adopted) father,
Baron Emery
Kyle sighed and folded the paper up, lying back on the woods floor and staring up at the stars as the wolves he was traveling with settled down near by. It was going to be a long night...
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Jennifer sat inside the tent, eating the chili and corn bread that made up that night's dinner with pleasure. Stephanie sat across from her, next to her a set of bow and arrows they had gotten from the head of the fief. There was now a patrol that covered the perimeter of their fields on a daily basis, making sure no one could attack them. If they did manage to, though, Jenny (or Jen, as she was now called) and Stephanie both had real weapons that could kill a person very easily.
"Steph!" called a voice from a long ways off. "Steph! You've got some mail!"
Stephanie motioned for Jennifer to stay put and went outside, taking a staff with her. "Hey, Grant!" she called to the young boy running towards her. "What'cha got there?"
"Three letters, two for you and one for Jen!"
"Thanks, here's a tip." Stephanie gave him some cookies and he sped off, eating then as he did.
"What's that?" asked Jennifer as she entered the hut, pointing at the pack of letters.
"Some stuff from others. Here's a letter from Sean for you." Stephanie passed it to her and Jennifer went outside to read it, never being sure if Stephanie was looking over her shoulder or not.
It said:
Dear Jen,
Hey, how've you been? I'm all right; I miss you a lot, though. Things are pretty quiet around here, not much had happened since you left. I go and visit Roberto sometimes, he really misses you and so does his family. Your thieving pals said to say that they miss you to. Allie told me to put that Vixen's no longer oblivious, what ever that means, and things are finally going as they should. I didn't ask what she meant because I figured I didn't want to know.
Guess what? They think they've found your body a few miles out of a Corus and are no longer looking for you. The King's pretty upset with the whole deal, but couldn't do a whole lot about it. I've got some friends who work at the fief you were arrested at and they're looking into the matter. If you were framed by that one girl because she wanted something from the man, then we can prove you're innocent and you can come back to the palace to work.
Remember when we would watch the stars after working in the kitchen with the kittens playing all around us? I miss those times. Heck, I just plain miss you. Hopefully I can get some time off and come visit, but things are pretty tight around here and I'm not sure I can.
Write back soon, I'd love to hear from you.
Love always,
Sean.
"I miss you too, Sean," whispered Jennifer, folding up the letter and putting it in her pocket. "I miss you too..." *~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Amanda sat at her desk, working tirelessly on a stack of requests and complaints that had been piling up for the last couple months. There were about two hundred in all, and she had to write a reasonable reply to each on. They never talked about this sort of stuff in the books, all it seemed nobles had to do then was attend parties and have fun. Amanda knew better than that.
Levi poked his head in the door, an odd look on his face. She hadn't seen much of him since the fight, and she still had the huge bruise on her back from the falls. That, and coupled with the fact that the Shang Lynx was still here had just added more headaches than usual for her. Not that he wasn't an over all good guest, it just meant that she had to entertain him because Elizabeth refused to and technically he was her guest.
"Hey, Levi," said Amanda, glancing up from her work. "Haven't seen you for awhile."
"Yeah, Pa's been keeping me busy..."
"So I heard. What've you been up to?"
"I took a message for him to Sir Tyrone and Lady Hope. They sent their regards and Lady Hope said to say she plans to come and visit some times soon."
"Excellent! I was going to drag Elizabeth there sometime soon, but that saves me the trip. Any other news?"
"Lady Hope had her baby. It's a little boy." Levi grinned at this, remembering the fat little infant. "He looks like his dad and they named him Justin after his grandfather. I got to hold him for a minute while I was there."
"Oh, I hope she brings him when she comes." Amanda's eyes got a dreamy look to them before snapping back to reality. "Anyways, is that all?"
"Yeah." Levi started to walk towards the door, stopping at the entrance as he turned back and stared back at Amanda, for a second his face completely unreadable. It was a few minutes before she realized that had hadn't left yet, glancing up when she felt someone's eyes one her.
"Is there something you need, Levi?" prompted Amanda, eyebrows raised.
"Um...can we talk for a minute?"
"You know you can tell me anything," said Amanda, pushing back from her desk but staying in her chair. Levi shut the door and walked behind the desk, sitting on it so he was facing her after having moved all of the papers out of the way. "Well?"
"You remember the competition?"
"How could I forget?" replied Amanda, smiling wryly. "I still have a buries or two from it."
Levi grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, um, sorry about those..." he mumbled, turning very red.
"It's alright," she reassured him, leaning back in her chair. "If I didn't get hurt at all that means none of it was a challenge at all and that entirely defeats the purpose of the whole thing."
"True..." Silence hung between them for a few minutes, each remembering different things from the battles.
"Is that all you had to say?" asked Amanda at last, bringing the focus back to the present.
"Well, no...." Levi scrambled around for words for a minute, trying to figure out what to say. Some how all the things he had come up with while traveling just sounded stupid now. "Like I said, do you remember the fight we had?"
"And I replied 'yes'," added Amanda, "What about it?"
"Well, I won..."
"Trust me, I know Levi," she said, rolling her eyes.
"And I refused my prize."
"Yeah, I remember that too...." A look of disgust came to Amanda's eyes for a second. "You're not asking if you can go find Elizabeth and make out with her, are you?"
"No! It's not that," said Levi quickly, a look of alarm on his face. "There's something else I want."
"What is it?" asked Amanda, leaning forward. "You're welcome to anything I have, just ask. After a fight like that, you deserve it."
Levi went red again, not used to hearing Amanda praise him at all. "Well, um, what I really want is..." Levi stopped and scratched his neck.
"Yes..."
"I....I wanted to know if I could~"
"Lady Amanda!" Both young adults looked up to see the Shang Lynx and Lady Hope standing there, a small bundle in her arms. "You have comp~ oh, are we interrupting something?"
Levi went even redder as Amanda stood up and smiled warmly, shaking her head.
"No," she replied going over to greet her friend. "Levi was just asking about something."
"Really?"
"Levi, will you go get Elizabeth and tell her we have company? She is better at keeping them entertained than I."
"You do a fine job of it with all the funny stories you tell," Lady Hope assured her as Levi rushed out the door, thankful for a reason to leave. She gave her young friend a hug before heading over to the couch, her baby in her arms.
"Is this little boy Levi told me about?" asked Amanda, holding out her arms when Lady Hope was settled. She handed over the precious bundle carefully.
"Yes, his name is Justin."
"That's what Levi said. He's adorable." Amanda sat there cooing over the baby for a minute as the Shang Lynx got himself more aquatinted with the mother. When Levi walked in a few minutes later Elizabeth, he wasn't surprised to see Amanda take the baby with her as she got back to work. She seemed to have a knack for doing that sort of thing.
"Is there anything I can help you with?" asked Levi as Amanda settled down in her chair, the baby in one arm.
"Yeah, file those reports, will you?"
"Sure. Where do these go?"
"In the cabinet over there."
And so the afternoon passed, with Levi hoping he would get another chance soon before he lost his nerve and Amanda forgetting about it completely as she juggled the baby and her deskwork as she had done at home until her guests left. What a day.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Lyssa sat there tiredly in her chair. It was their next meeting, and it was Alyse and Elizabeth again with the excuse that their older sister/cousin was still very busy. General Yorkshire still treated the two nobles like complete air heads and once again mentioned that he had been patrolling their area.
"You were what?" exploded Elizabeth, eyes flashing dangerously. "I thought we told you to stay off of our lands.
"You did," admitted the General. "But obviously you aren't doing the work for yourself..." He stopped talking when Elizabeth tossed a piece of paper in front of him, eyes dancing. It was an exact chart of when his patrols had been and where they had gone.
"It seems your men are more concerned with the land near the fief than the land around the boarder," she said icily, words dripping with venom. "We did notice patrols coming through, and if we see them again we'll attack them as enemies, assuming they were as such."
Lyssa covered her mouth to keep the laughter from coming out as the General's face turned a bilious purple. "Yes, ladies," he said stiffly, trying to keep his own temper under control. "I'll be sure to remember that."
Lyssa took out her own map, where several marks had been drawn. "Oh, and General," she said sweetly, "Your men keep popping up in my area to. One of the groups was attacked because we assumed they were Scanrans. I'm sure you'll do better at keeping them inside your bounds from now on, correct?"
"Of course." The General's face looked like it was about to explode as he got up and quickly walked out of the room. "If you'll excuse me..."
Lyssa burst out laughing with Elizabeth as soon as the door was closed, Alyse sitting there with a bemused look on her face. "That guy is the biggest sexist," she commented, the undertones of her voice razor sharp. "What I would give to see him beat into the ground by a girl."
"That may happen very soon," murmured Lyssa, "I'm not sure how much more of his attitude I can take."
"Yeah, but that look on his face when he realized he was caught. Oh, that was priceless!" Elizabeth started laughing again.
Lyssa certainly had to agree with her there. "Oh yes it was..."
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Libby sat in her tent, reading aloud the letter she got from the fief they had been at a few weeks ago. She had been revived after the whole thing was over a few hours later and had left promptly after that, vowing to never go there again.
And so she read:
'Brazir Mages Artman and Libby, Greetings
You have our sincerest apologizes for the night of the ball, and hope that it does not have any effect on your relationship with this fief.'
"Yeah, right," snorted Libby, going on.
'In light of the fact that we never got to the party and celebrating part of the whole thing and things went so badly, we wish you to return so we may throw you another one~'
"Like hell," growled Libby, tearing up the letter and throwing it in the fire. "I wouldn't go back there if you offered me the world."
"What about a million pink bunnies?" asked Artman raising an eyebrow.
Libby's eyes got a huge and sparkly, thing about a million pink bunnies. They just as quickly squinted as she remembered the stripes and the spider in her soup. "Nope," she said shaking her head, "Not even for a million pink bunnies."
"Impressive."
"Shut up!" yelled Libby, throwing a pillow at his head. "You're not being very nice."
"When am I ever?"
"Grr…"
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Sarah and John sat on their front porch, waiting expectantly. Dom had written them awhile back, saying he was getting some time off and was coming to visit them after visiting his family.
"Do you think he's changed any?" asked Sarah out of the blue, leaning back on her elbows.
"Hey guys!" yelled Dom, a huge smile on his face. "Miss me?"
"Nope, he hasn't changed a bit," grumbled John, rolling his eyes.
"Be nice! Hey Dom, how've you been?"
Dom dismounted from Veety's back, landing neatly on his feet. "I'm alright," he said, giving the horse an apple. "How are you? It seems like ages since the last time I've been here."
"Maybe because it has," retorted John, dodging as Veety tried to bite him. "Ha! You missed."
"John, you're talking to a horse," Sarah pointed out.
"So? You do it all the time."
"…….." They all went into the house, Sarah bright red as John kept laughing. Dom just smiled all the more and followed them in, sitting down in the kitchen.
"So, what are we having to eat?" he asked, looking at Sarah expectantly. "That soup we had last time was great."
"I'm glad you liked it, but we're having something else this time."
"What?"
"Eggs, bacon, and toast. That alright with you?"
"Sounds great." John took a seat across from Dom, a mischievous look on his face.
"Had any problems with Veety?" he asked, trying to keep a straight face.
"Actually, no. We get along all right. He's a whole lot better than Raoul's Squire's horse, Peachblossom."
"Peachblossom?" asked John, about to fall out of his seat from laughing so hard. "What kind of a sissy name is that?"
"The kind that hides a very vicious gelding. The only one he'll let ride him is Kel, and half the time she's the only one who can control him. I think she got an agreement worked out between the two of them that he would behave if she never used the spur on him. A very interesting pair to say the least."
"Yeah, but you never do, do you?"
"John, will you be nice?"
"No, that's alright. He's no worse than the other guys in the troop." They spent the rest of the evening like this, eating and laughing away with several jokes and teases being thrown around between them.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
Alyse rode by herself out of the gates of Lynx mountain, Amanda and Elizabeth waving back behind her. She was riding to Corus for Faleron's Ordeal, which was this mid-winter. The only problem was that she wasn't sure she could make the pass before it was closed with the early winter snows. After she got through it she wouldn't be able to return until early spring when the snow finally melted.
They had already had several light snows at the fief, and she could feel it crunching under Fern's hooves as they sped south. Despite the fact that Fern had been born in the desert, she seemed well equipped for the cold and it didn't bother her at all.
She had with her a letter from Amanda to the King about his 'royal reprimand' and yet another one of her insults towards him. Although Alyse had to agree with her this time, the King had gone too far in insulting her like that and deserved what he got for not taking her warning seriously.
Now all she had to do was get there, something that she was beginning to regret doing alone. After all, one could freeze to death out here if one wasn't careful, something she hadn't had to worry about for several years.
***A week later***
Fern galloped on, just ahead of them the pass. If they could get through it tonight, they would be able to make the palace in another two or three days. Alyse's hands were numb and her feet frozen as she entered the dangerous pass, watching for any falling ice and making sure to keep the sound at a minimum. An avalanche was the last thing she needed right now.
The last week had flow by quickly, the hours flying by as Fern used her never-ending energy to get Alyse back south. Things had been quite, with the occasional traveler going the opposite direction or patrol of knights she'd meet, but that was really it.
Fern skipped to the side as an icicle barely missed them, crashing into a million pieces. The noise caused Fern to rear, almost throwing Alyse from her saddle.
"Whoa! Steady, girl! Steady!"
'……..rumble…rumble rumble…'
"What was that?" Alyse turned around to see a wall of white coming towards them at a *very* fast pace. "AAAAAAAAAAAHhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!" Fern took off at the speed of light, her breath coming in gasps as she raced to make the end of the canyon before the snow caught them for good. "Come on, Fern! Go!" cried Alyse, urging her on even faster as the white came closer, and closer…
Fern barely made it, skidding around the corner and stopping there in a little cover outside the pass. The snow tumbled past them, taking out several trees before stopping completely. The pass was completely closed.
"That was close," whispered Alyse, trying to slow down her racing heart. Fern snorted, turning and trotting towards where she knew they were stopping for the night. Next big stop: Corus.
*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*~~~@~~~*
There it is, now leave me be! Trust me, this could not have gotten up any faster with the time restraints I had. Next one will be up faster with the ending of the school year (yeah!!!) and no more huge church or school projects that I know of. Thanks for your reviews that I know you're doing right now *hint hint* and Happy Mother's Day~!