Oh my God! I feel sooo awful! I know it has been like four months since my last update and I am sooooo sorry. I had mono and missed three weeks of school, so trying to make everything up has been hell! And then exams came and I found myself with absolutely no time to devote to writing. I know it's not much of an excuse, but it's all I can give you! Again, I am extremely sorry! Enjoy the chapter…

Chapter Four-The Captive Hawk

Maili scowled at the sleeping form of Guinivere. It had been nearly two days since they had departed from Marius' Estate and the girl had barely moved an inch. Her fingers had been reset by Arthur, and she'd found it in her to converse then; and to give him valuable information. The girl was very stupid sometimes; what if his intentions weren't so true? Maili would be out of the wagon keeping an eye on the knights and learning all she could, should they be forced to defend themselves against them. However, she had let Guinivere slip into the hands of the enemy once because of her inattentiveness, she would not allow it to happen a second time. She scowled once more at Guinivere, before turning to Luncan, who was clinging to Dagonet. The giant of a man seemed to be the healer of the knights, and ironically the most gentle. Luncan took to him as one would a father. Maili was weary of it at first, but after careful deliberation, she allowed Luncan this one last attempt at family.

The boy had been doing much better since when he was first brought out of the hut. His broken arm was healing nicely and his bruises were fading. His fever, while still present, had gone down considerably. Guinivere was also doing a great deal better. Her fingers were reset and her wounds bandaged and healing properly. Her bruises were also fading. Maili thanked Dagonet and Fulcinia mentally, without their aptness in healing, Guinivere would most likely have been lost. Her death then would have hung over Maili's head, and caused the woad tribe to turn against her. It was one thing to watch over a lady of battle and to allow harm to come upon her, but to allow harm to come upon a lady of battle and the daughter of Merlin was a death sentence. Maili sighed and turned her gaze out ahead of the wagon.

The knights rode somberly on their steeds and the villagers trudged wearily beside them. Maili's gaze hardened as she observed the knights. There was a distinctive air about them, and even the most imperceptive of beings could discern the source; they didn't like having to take care of the villagers. They wished only to leave them behind to the Saxons, as their only duty was to take Marius and his family back to the wall. All of Maili's preconceived notions of the knights had faded. There was no more respect or appreciation of them, the only ones truly skilled in battle on the Island. They were not the knights she had heard in tales. She nearly snorted at that thought. Is that not why they were called tales? Tales were not history, nor did the reveal true people. They were make believe and told only for the enjoyment of children. Perhaps the characters were real, but their deeds were not. It was foolish for Maili to have believed them. It made her no better than the village children.

The voice of the youngest knight, Galahad, ripped Maili from her thoughts, "Dag, go get some fresh air. I'll keep an eye on the boy." Dagonet looked at Luncan forlornly, but then nodded and handed the boy to Galahad. Maili watched as the knight made himself comfortable, leaning back against the wagon and closing his eyes. Somehow, this only furthered her belief that the knights were nothing like the people she had heard of in the tales of her village. They were different and yet the same in ways she could not describe even to herself. It was a feeling, one could only understand by feeling it. She turned her gaze back to the knights, now joined by Dagonet.

Her gaze turned cold once more as it fell upon Tristan. He was the one that had made her see how different the knights were from the fairy tales. She returned to the short confrontation they had when he and Arthur had visited the wagon the day before:

Maili had been sitting there, scowling at nothing in particular. She was angry with the village, the Knights, especially Tristan, but most of all she was angry with herself. She had allowed herself to believe the tales of the village and to believe that Merlin was right, that they would need their allegiance. Perhaps the whispers of the woads held some truth. Merlin really was losing his mind. Maili, however, was not given the chance to contemplate it further, as Arthur and Tristan had just entered the wagon.

After Tristan had convinced Dagonet to leave the wagon, both men turned their attention towards Guinivere. Maili glanced at her out of the corner of her eye and realized that she was awake. She groaned inwardly at the timing of the girl. She hadn't so much as opened her eyes once throughout the journey so far, but when Maili would will her to stay asleep, she chooses consciousness. Arthur knelt down beside Guinivere, while Tristan remained near the makeshift door. Arthur took her hand and looked at the fingers. He made a move to reset them, but Guinivere quickly pulled them away.

"You're fingers are badly broken. I will have to reset them or you may never use them again." Arthur said gently. Maili inwardly swore, as she was waiting for Guinivere to awake so she could reset her fingers. Damn the girls timing.

Arthur took her hand in his once more and this time Guinivere made no move of pulling back. Arthur looked at her sympathetically as he prepared himself to reset her fingers. Maili continued to look at Arthur, her face a mask of stone, revealing not one of her inner emotions. After Guinivere's fingers had been reset she collapsed against Arthur and began to tell him of her time in the dungeon.

"They tortured us with machines. And made us tell them things we didn't know to begin with…" was all Guinivere managed to get out before Maili silenced her with a growl.

"They do not have or deserve our trust. They are our enemies. I advise you to keep your mouth shut." Maili hissed. Guinivere looked as if she wanted to protest, but she did not have the energy. She simply slumped back down on the wagon and fell asleep. Maili turned her hard gaze from Guinivere to Arthur. "It was foolish of her to reveal such information to you. But it would be even more foolish for you to reveal it to another." Maili growled out, the threat clearly apparent in her voice.

Arthur looked as if he was about to speak, but the scout beat him to it, "Is this how woads show their respect for the ones who saved them? By giving empty threats?" Arthur looked surprised, as Tristan's outburst was totally out of character.

"I was not the one in need of saving. And you, Arthur, and the rest of your companions deserve none of my respect. The Romans at least would have taken the villagers with them, if only to enslave them once more." Maili stated heatedly, and then added in voice that dared Arthur and Tristan to speak of any of the exchange to another, "And the threat was not empty."

Tristan glared daggers at her, before quickly returning to the stoic scout façade and stepping aside so his commander could exit. Arthur stood and walked to the wagon flap, before pausing and throwing over his shoulder, "I am sorry you do not think we deserve your respect, but you cannot hold this against my Knights. They only desire their freedom."

"So do those villagers." Maili said stonily as Arthur and Tristan exited the wagon. "And so do I." she added in a whisper that thought only she could hear. But years of scouting had caused Tristan's hearing to become above that of a normal man.

Maili pulled herself from her reverie. She scolded her subconscious for allowing her thoughts to wander to Tristan once more. It seemed that the more she told herself she hated him, the harder it was to stop her mind from wandering to thoughts of him. She allowed herself to blame it on the lack of fresh air, however. Maili did not do well sitting in cramped spaces for an extended period of time. She needed to be in constant proximity of the fresh forest air. It was all she had known since leaving her village as a young child.

Maili's eyes suddenly became aware of the darkening wagon. She thought perhaps a cloud was covering the sun, but when she flicked her gaze to the opening at the front of the wagon, she saw that the sun was nearly below the horizon. She hadn't realized that she'd let her mind wonder for so long.

"We will be stopping soon." The long blonde haired Knight, Gawain, said, peeking his head through the flap and startling Galahad. "Sleeping on the job? Perhaps Bors is right about you…" he added good naturedly.

Galahad threw a glare at him as he said, "Well it's not like I'm in the most exciting of company." Gawain raised an eyebrow at him, and Galahad cringed as he thought about what had just passed his lips. They both turned their gaze to Maili. Maili, however, was still staring out of the front flap of the wagon. Gawain followed her gaze and saw she was staring at the hawk circling the procession of people.

"It's Tristan's." Gawain said simply, thinking she was wondering why it was there. However, Maili's mind was wondering something completely different.

"I know it's Tristan's." She said shortly and then added slowly, "But hawks are hard to tame, for the soul reason that they aren't meant to be so."

"She speaks in riddles like our scout." Galahad whispered to Gawain. Gawain nodded in agreement, his face showing openly his confusion. Maili scowled at them, her patience wearing thin.

"It was not a riddle." She said, her tone flat, "It was a question."

"I'm sorry, but I think I missed the question. Or perhaps my idea of a question is different than yours." Galahad said, his tone sincere.

Maili looked him in the eye and said very slowly, "Why did Tristan capture the poor creature?"

"He didn't capture it. At least I don't think he did. Actually I really don't know how he came about the hawk. One day he didn't have it, and the next it was perched on his shoulder, quite content not to leave." Gawain said thoughtfully.

"Yeah," Galahad agreed, "No one ever really bothers to ask Tristan how he comes about things."

Maili nodded curtly and shifted her gaze to the stirring form of Guinivere. Her eyes fluttered open and then a loud groan escaped her lips. "You haven't stretched your limbs for four months or so. They'll be sore for a while." Maili told her flatly.

Guinivere nodded at her. "Got anything to eat?" she asked. It dawned on Maili that she was not fed in the dungeon and that she hadn't eaten in the two days she'd been free.

"We will be stopping shortly. I will find Fulcinia and ask her to find you something to eat then." Maili said shortly. Guinivere nodded once more and closed her eyes to rest until then. Maili settled on watching the forest pass outside of the wagon. It was the closest to home she could feel in the cramped wagon.

Just as the stars began to appear in the sky, Arthur called the caravan to a halt. The villagers, and even the Knights, were weary after two days of traveling with no rest. Maili sighed and stepped carefully out of the wagon, as not to disturb Guinivere or Luncan. She smiled as she felt the cool air breeze past her. She had missed that. After carefully stretching her sore and cramped limbs she walked toward the form of Fulcinia.

"Guinivere is awake." Maili said simply. Fulcinia nodded and headed toward the wagon, Maili close behind her. Fulcinia stepped lightly into the wagon and smiled when she saw Guinivere had propped herself against the back of the wagon. Maili just sighed, knowing she'd most likely aggravated her injuries in the process.

"How are you feeling?" Fulcinia asked softly.

"Sore and hungry and dirty." Guinivere said honestly. Fulcinia nodded and handed her a piece of bread.

"It's all I can give you for now, but after you have bathed their may be meat somewhere within the camp." Fulcinia said, and then added, "I will go retrieve a dress for you and then help you to a wagon to bathe."

Guinivere nodded and Fulcinia left the wagon in search of a dress. Silence fell between Guinivere and Maili, neither feeling the need for words. However, Maili's body and mind were growing restless, and she felt another minute spent in the confinement of the wagon would drive her over the edge.

"I'm going to leave you in Fulcinia's care for now. I will return before sunrise." Maili said quietly. Guinivere just nodded, sympathizing with Maili's need to be out of the wagon. Maili glanced at Guinivere wearily once more before exiting the wagon and treading softly into the woods.

She hadn't gone far, when she heard the loud booming of the Knight's voices. Bors, Galahad, Gawain and Lancelot were easily discernable and they seemed to be having yet another argument over the parentage of Bors' children and why Galahad had never bedded a woman before. Maili rolled at her eyes, as she would never understand why these men spoke of such lewd things. It was not something woads would partake in and Maili found it extremely despicable. She passed by the group of small camp fires, glancing over to the one the Knights were sitting around. She noticed that three had gone missing in the time it took her to break into the camp area. Arthur, Tristan and Lancelot were no where in sight. Maili furrowed her eyebrows for a moment, but quickly scolded herself. She was pondering the well being of her enemies; Maili knew she had to shake away the effects of the wagon air. She took off running into the forest, doging trees and branches, and enjoying the feel of the wind from the forest blowing all around her. But something in the distance made her stop short. A soft glow, at the most 50 feet ahead of her. She glanced behind her and saw the glow of the campfires she had just passed, and then realized it was probably one of the missing Knights. She walked cautiously toward the camp fire, doing her best to keep her foot falls silent. When she was within 6 feet of the fire she saw the outline of a man and a hawk pecking at the ground in front of him. She inwardly groaned; she should have known it would be the scout. She tried to turn and leave before he would notice her, but in a hurried attempt to turn she broke a twig upon the ground. The snap echoed in her mind and she cringed, knowing that the sound would not have escaped his hearing.

"You shouldn't be this far away from camp." Tristan said, not even turning to see who it was.

"I am capable of looking out for myself." Maili said coldly. She was about to turn and leave, but something in her mind urged her to ask him the question that had been burning in her mind for the last two days. She sighed inwardly, caving into curiosity, and walked over to his fire. Tristan still didn't spare her a glance, but simply continued picking at the meat and throwing small pieces upon the ground for his hawk.

"Why did you capture him?" Maili blurted out, feeling no need to build up to the question.

"Are you hungry?" Tristan asked, completely ignoring his question. Maili sent him an annoyed look and shook her head.

"Just answer the question." She said, in an irritated voice. She did not like her questions being ignored or overlooked.

"I don't have an answer. I didn't capture him." Tristan said shortly. Maili could feel her ears burning with anger and irritation.

"Hawks do not come freely." She said.

"He was wounded. I saw to his injury." He said, once more his words short.

"If he was wounded, he was better off dead. Hawks are not meant to be kept as pets."

"I am not keeping him. He does not want to leave."

"He doesn't want to leave, because he does not know or remember what it was like to be free. Hawks are not meant to be tamed and held down. It is not the way earth intended it. He was better off dead." Maili said heatedly. The earth, nature, and all her creatures were sacred to the woads. They had a peace with them. One did not disturb the other. Maili felt personally bound to the freedom of the animals. She had been a prisoner in her own mind to long; she did not like to see the same happen to an animal. Tristan however surprised her with his next words.

"Many things are not the way Earth indented them to be." Tristan said flatly. Even though his words had nothing to do with the hawk, Maili could not argue with his words. They were true, and nothing she could say could prove them otherwise. Maili simply let out a breath she had not been aware she was holding and turned, walking lightly back to the wagon. Not to sleep, but to sort the thoughts insistently buzzing through her head.

Ok, there you go. Chapter Four finally. I know it's been like four months and I'm really sorry. Hopefully I didn't lose y'all. Sorry for not leaving reviewer responses, but it would take to long and I want to get this posted for you. Again I am extremely, extremely sorry for the very long wait. I'll understand if you feel the need to yell at me.Just leave it in the review you were about to send. :-D

Oh yeah! And if you noticed and got confused, or maybe you have no idea, I did change my pen name. I get bored easily.