It gets hard thinking of new disclaimers, y'know?

It took the pair a few hours of searching before they spotted another wagon on the road from Truce. Janus grinned and ran to catch up with the wagon. Lyn was confused, thinking that he planed to stop the cart, but instead he ran in the dust trail. It was hard going for a while. The wagon slowed down some as it neared the checkpoint, and Janus sprinted, grabbing the side of the cart and vaulting into the hay. He held his hand out for Lyn to catch, and pulled her into the cart as well. They nestled into the hay just as the wagon came to a stop.

"Where are you bound?" a guard asked in a bored voice.

"Porre, by way of San Dorino," the driver replied, equally bored.

The guard chuckled. "That mayor still needing to import hay for his horse?"

"Yep."

They had a good laugh over that, then the sentry stepped back and waved the cart through. From under the hay, Lyn and Janus watched the post recede. On the other side of the bridge, the cart wasn't even stopped, just motioned onward. Janus risked uncovering his head long enough to look around, then pulled back into the nest and tried to make himself comfortable. Lyn looked at him questioningly, but he just smiled and closed his eyes.

The sun was starting to go down, and Dorino was coming into view when Janus opened his eyes again. He slipped out of the hay and jumped to the ground, rolling a few times to kill his momentum. Lyn followed, but she didn't roll. Her right leg twisted under her, and she fell to the ground. The wagon trundled on, the driver unaware.

"Lyn, what's wrong?" Janus hissed.

Lyn shrugged and tried to stand. White-faced, using only her left leg, she managed to maintain her balance. "I…I think it's twisted," she gasped. She tried to take a step and almost fell. Janus ran to support her.

"How much longer are we going to be out here?" Janus asked, wrapping her arm across his shoulder.

"Uh…from Dorino to Algetty was…three days. From there… We made it in a night."

Janus looked confused for a moment, the realized what she was talking about. He decided to be matter-of-fact. "So…four days. Except…you can't walk."

"Yes I can!" Lyn protested. The step she took to prove her point nearly sent her face down on the ground, however.

"Yes…" Janus drawled. "So, about a week." He looked around, then picked up Lyn and started carrying her toward a patch of trees. "Let's make camp, and deal with tomorrow when it comes," he said, ignoring Lyn's sputtering.

This...kinda sucked, didn't it? Well, it WILL get better. I need to get back into my stride. Hopefully the chaps will get longer again, too, humm? RRRT....

Ollen70: Good, that's the way I want it.

Kevin: Good, you're gonna need it.