Gabby felt herself instinctively flush when Gareth grabbed her hand, suddenly thankful for the darkness of the forge. For some reason, the feeling of his rough hand holding her made all the blood in her body rush to her face.

Once they stepped out into the moonlight, the sudden contrast in temperatures raised goose bumps all over her body. She dropped Gareth's hand and wrapped her arms around herself to generate heat.

She stood still for a few minutes, scanning the tournament grounds before her. Torches and campfires pierced the darkness of the night, casting a soothing amber light on the grounds. Squires wandered between campsites, laughing together and sharing stories while their lords were off at banquet. It was Gabby's favorite time at every tournament, and what she would miss the most.

Gabby suddenly felt overwhelmed by emotion. There was still a lingering tingle in her stomach from her earlier encounter with Anton, and her cheeks burned from the feeling of Gareth's hand. Atop of all that, the pain of leaving the life that she knew was unbearable.

When Gabby dropped his hand, Gareth glanced down at her. With her arms wrapped around her chest, she suddenly seemed so small standing beside him. Protective instinct kicked in and he removed his jacket, wrapping it gently around her shoulders.

She glanced up at him, tears brimming in her eyes.

Gareth felt like he had been punched in the stomach when he saw the tears in her eyes. After eighteen years of friendship, he knew better than to press her for whatever was producing those tears.

He simply dropped an arm onto her shoulders gently, without even hesitating to glance around them. There were some that wouldn't take kindly to a blacksmith with his arm around a noblewoman, but at that moment, Gareth didn't care. He slowly led her toward camp, careful to guide her around the mud puddles.

By the time that they reached their small encampment, Gabby's tears had subsided and there was a small smile pulling at her lips.

Abbi's face lit up when she saw her friends approaching. She stood from her place in front of the fire and started toward them.

As Abbi approached, Gareth quickly dropped his arm from Gabby's shoulder, suddenly embarrassed. By the grin that Chaucer was giving him over the fire, he knew that he had been caught.

"It's about time that you two got here," Abbi called as she drew near. "We've been waiting for you."

"Just give me a moment to change," Gabby replied, removing Gareth's jacket. She handed it to him squeezing his hand gently as she did. "Thank you."

Ten minutes later, Gabby emerged from her tent dressed comfortably in a simple cotton dress, a think wool shawl wrapped around her shoulders to keep out the cold.

The three friends settled comfortably on a log near the fire, Gareth sandwiched between the two girls. As Chaucer began one of his stories, Gabby began to feel sleep quickly come over her.

When Chaucer finished his story, he glanced up at his audience. All three had fallen asleep, Gareth leaning against the tree behind him with one of the girl's heads on each shoulder.

Smiling, Geoff turned to Watt, Kate, Roland and Christiana, who sat behind him, tending the fire. "I seem to remember a time when they begged to stay up to the end of a story. What ever happened to that?"

Kate sighed, leading Watt toward the tent. "They grew up, Geoff."

When Gareth woke hours later, the fire was reduced to embers. His eyes still blurry from sleep, he shifted slightly. When he moved, a small murmur reached his ears.

Gabby was still curled up against his left shoulder, her shawl wrapped tightly around her. Aside from her slight adjustment, the campsite was eerily still. Apparently Abbi had managed to move from his side without waking him and had long since gone to her tent.

As he began to slowly become more awake, Gareth felt a chill crawl up his spine. The night had grown significantly cooler. As carefully as possible, he lifted Gabby up in his arms and carried her toward the tent which she shared with Abbi.

Trying not to wake Abbi, he laid Gabby into her bed. Unable to fight a sudden urge, he dropped a gentle kiss on her forehead before turning to leave.

"I saw that."

He turned quickly to see Abbi smiling up at him. Holding up a finger to silence her, he smiled and exited the tent.