Here we go again….
The couple lay snuggling on the bed for a few more minutes before they decided they had to get up and face the rest of the people at the fort. Lancelot wasn't in the least worried about their reactions, but Laney knew some of them would not like the situation at all. "Lancelot, can we go to the bath house before we face everyone? I think I'll feel better after a nice hot soak." Laney asked. Lancelot watched her out of the corner of his eye, "we can go, but that's only postponing the inevitable, you know." He finally answered.
Smiling at him, she thanked him for understanding and gathered her bag. "Shall we walk, or do you want to take your horse? I haven't ridden with you since we arrived." He returned her smile and told her they would ride. "I don't think I have the energy for such a long walk right now," he retorted, giving a fake groan as he tried to walk to the door. "I'll get my clothes and meet you back here. We'll take the back way to the stables so you don't have to talk to anyone until we come back." She ran over and hugged him for being so considerate. He probably didn't understand, but he was willing to play along.
When he returned a few minutes later, she was standing outside her door holding her bag. He had a pair of britches and a shirt slung over his shoulder and was whistling softly. As he stepped up to her she joined him and listened to the tune he was whistling. "That's a catchy tune. What's it called?" she asked. He finished the bar he had started and put his arm around her shoulders. "I don't know, my mother used to sing it to us when I was young. It always whistled or hummed it when I was happy." She snuggled into his side, "I'm glad you're happy because I don't think I've ever been happier in my life." He squeezed her shoulder and they continued walking. Laney looked up and realized she had no idea where she was in the fort. The 'back way' must be a lot longer than the regular way.
Just when she thought they were lost, Lancelot steered her around a turn and out into the open air. Directly in front of them was a side entrance to the stables. They walked in the door and Lancelot began saddling his horse. When he had finished, he mounted him in one fluid motion. Then he reached down and helped Laney up so she could sit in front of him and they slowly rode out into the courtyard.
Laney noticed that the air was a good bit cooler than she had expected and she shivered thinking about the ride back after being so warm at the baths. Lancelot tightened his arms around her and took the reins in one hand. He placed his other hand firmly across her stomach and pulled her back into his chest. She could feel the warmth through his shirt and stopped shivering. "That's better." He whispered into her ear, his breath bringing 'chill bumps' to her flesh. Smiling, she told him, "You'd better keep both hands on the reins. I'd hate for you to break your neck or something worse." His laughter rang out like bells and was the most wonderful sound she had heard that day, well almost the most wonderful. The three words he had spoken earlier that afternoon had been the most beautiful.
The tavern was lively with people that early evening. The sun had just gone down and everybody had gathered there to talk and drink. Gawain kept looking toward the way he thought Lancelot and Laney would come but so far there had not been any sight of them. He thought they would have rushed over here after he had interrupted them the way he had. Laney looked absolutely aghast at being discovered, but Lancelot had been smiling like he'd discovered riches untold. But then, if a woman as beautiful as Laney had just spent time in his bed, he'd feel the same way. He looked around at the women bustling around the tavern serving drinks. Some were pretty in their own way, but even the ones he thought the prettiest didn't compare to the beauty of the strange woman who had joined their little group.
He thought she had a vulnerability that made him want to protect and care for her, yet she was strong both in mind and body. It reminded him of the way his mother had been when he was young. He had seen her work hard all day and instead of being so tired and worn out that she went to sleep early, he had seen her sit by the fire and laugh and talk with her father for hours. He was looking for the same thing, he guessed.
Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be anyone around now that was eligible. Especially since it looked as if Laney had been spoken for. Gawain sadly lowered his head and looked into his cup of beer. Then shaking his head, he stood up to get another drink and saw Tristan come striding in. He hadn't told the scout what he had seen. For some reason he didn't want to be the one who burst his bubble. He might be good at hiding his feelings from them most of the time, but the only time he got as angry as he had the day before was when it was something that meant a lot to him. Well, they had all had their hearts broken at some time or the other. It was just Tristan's turn.
As Gawain headed toward the bar he saw Bors and Dagonet standing around talking. Bors was holding his latest, Number Eleven, and they both had big grins on their faces. Dagonet was the first to spot Gawain stumbling up. "I'm not drunk, yet. I just caught my foot on that chair leg." He defended himself as he pointed back to the chair he'd turned over. Bors laughed, "Yeah, sure G'wain." He slurred. It seemed he had quite a few drinks himself. They laughed and Gawain ordered another drink.
"Have either of you seen Lancelot? Or Laney?" he asked innocently. Bors scratched his close shaved head for a moment. "Naw, the last time I saw them was in Lancelot's room. He was still sleepin' and she was sittin' there watchin' him sleep. Why?" he wanted to know. Gawain pretended that it wasn't that important, but Dag didn't believe him.
"What you got up your sleeve? The big man asked. Gawain couldn't help it, he just had to tell somebody. He hadn't even told Galahad yet. He was hoping to tell everyone at the same time, when they walked in, and he asked them innocently what they'd been doing. "Okay, I'll tell you, but you can't tell anyone else until I get to tease them a bit. Promise?" He looked expectantly at the two men, waiting for their answer.
"Yeah, I promise," Dagonet said. Bors was a little slower to answer since he was trying to quiet the baby. "Vanora, come 'ere and get this loud bundle. I can't shut her up no matter what I do. I think she's hungry." Once Vanora had relieved him of his charge, he looked at Gawain. "I can't promise not to tell anybody," and he gestured toward the woman with the baby. "If she gets wind I know something she don't, she'll pester me until I tell." Gawain looked at him for a moment and told them, "Well, come closer so she won't hear anything."
The other two leaned their heads in toward his and he started telling his tale. "Earlier this afternoon I stopped by to see Lancelot, he wasn't in his room so I went to Laney's to see if everything was still alright. I knocked a couple of times and nobody answered. So I opened the door and stuck my head in to see if she might be sleeping and I found her and Lancelot all wrapped up in the bed clothes. They were both as naked as a newborn babe and Laney looked horrified that I'd caught them." He gave the other two a satisfied smirk at having found out something before they did.
Bors laughed, "I coulda' told you that. Haven't you seen the way Lancelot doesn't look at her when she's looking at him?" He made it sound like something any child could have seen. Dagonet interjected telling them about the encounter he had with Laney the night before Lancelot was hurt. "She sure was upset about something, maybe they had a fight, and that's why he was so angry the next morning." He seemed satisfied with the conclusion and looked at the other two waiting for confirmation.
"I don't know," Gawain started. "When he was attacking Tristan, he kept saying, 'you'd better take that back' like Tristan had said something wrong." He waited until he had thought back to that morning and then finished his thought. "You know, Tristan's been acting a little weird lately, too. Do you think they're both in love with her?" Bors finally spoke again, "Whew, I wouldn't want to get caught in the middle of that triangle! It could get dangerous." They stood there silently for a while, each in their own thoughts.
Galahad had been sitting at one of the tables entertaining one of the young women who worked when they were all at the fort. He looked over and saw the other three with their heads stuck together and wanted to know what the conspiracy was all about. He finally made it out of the chair after the second try and headed toward them. He looked to be walking sideways and it took him several tries to get to the place he wanted to be. By the time he got there the other men were silent and he'd missed all the excitement. "Damn it, why can't you three sit at the table and talk. I missed all you said."
Gawain looked up at him and said, "Sorry, Galahad. But I didn't want you to know while you're drunk. You get a little loud sometimes." Galahad gave him a frown and said he didn't get loud. Then laughing, he continued, "well, maybe a little, sometimes. But that doesn't mean I can't keep a secret if I need to. So what's going on?" He looked from one to the other and finally settled on Bors. Bors held up his hands in surrender, "Oh no, this isn't my secret and I'm staying out of it. Gawain, you tell him." Gawain looked at Bors and then let out a deep sigh. "Okay, Galahad, but if you let the cat out of the bag on this one it'll cause more trouble than any of us want to handle. Understand?"
Galahad nodded, his drunken state caused him to over-exaggerate the movement. He almost lost his balance and Dag reached over and grabbed him to steady him. Gawain told him the same thing he'd told the rest, only leaving out the final discussion that included information about Tristan. Galahad would more than likely just yell something stupid to the scout and there'd be another fight. Galahad accepted the information without giving any kind of expression. When Gawain asked if he'd heard what he'd said he only nodded his head. Then as an afterthought he told them. "I saw Tristan coming from her room early today. I thought that the two of them had something going on. Maybe that's why he was arguing with Lancelot yesterday."
Gawain decided if they all thought the same thing then it must be true. They couldn't all be wrong about what was going on. "Well, after this afternoon, I'll wager Lancelot won." The others agreed and they looked over at the scout who was sitting on the edge of the table munching on an apple and looking back in their direction. After he'd taken another bite, he stood up and headed their way.
They tried to make small talk to keep him from guessing what they'd been discussing, but Tristan wasn't the best scout for no reason. "Yeah, yeah. Now tell me the truth about what was said." He sounded tired and frustrated and they decided they didn't want to live with the man if he caught them in a lie.
Since this was Gawain's tale, he decided he'd better be the one to tell him. "I was telling them I found Lancelot in Laney's bed this afternoon. We were trying to decide when that little affair started." He waited to see if Tristan was buying that they hadn't been discussing him. He knew they had pulled one over on him when he said, "My guess is, when he saw her lying on the ground that day. He's been watching her like a hawk ever since." When he didn't say anything about his strange behavior, they decided to just let it be. "Have you seen 'em?" This time it was Dag that asked. Tristan looked at him and answered, "Not since I checked on him early this morning. Then I visited Laney before I left and came up here."
"Well, maybe they're still in bed." Volunteered Bors. The rest of the men just stood there and Tristan tried not to see it in his mind. Having no luck, he shook his head and went back to his place at the table.