Hope you enjoy the story still… same disclaimer, unfortunately.
Just as he thought, Gawain and Laney took Lancelot to his room. After a couple of minutes Gawain came back into the hall but Laney stayed inside. Gawain headed down the hall and Tristan thought he had been wrong. He was about to turn around and head away when he saw Gawain quietly open the door to Laney's room and step inside. He waited a little longer and saw Laney sneak out of Lancelot's room. She opened her door and Gawain stepped out into the hall and they quickly headed outside.
Tristan kept a few paces behind them and saw Laney look over her shoulder a couple of times as they walked across the stable yard. Once she even stopped and stood still for a minute as she looked directly where he was standing. He knew she couldn't see him, but he didn't move until she turned around and started walking. Once they went into the stable, he stood outside and listened. "No, that's too long. Is there a shorter one?" he heard her say. There was a little bit of silence except for the sound of practice swords being swung through the air. Finally he heard Gawain say, "That'll have to do. It's the shortest practice sword we have. Swing it a few times and see if you can handle it." Another moment of silence, "that's it. Are you ready to learn a few simple blocking moves?" He didn't hear her answer but shortly after he heard the sound of wooden practice swords as they were hit together.
Gawain spent the next couple of hours showing Laney the different moves she should make when she wanted to advance and when she was defending. She caught on quickly but she wasn't aggressive enough and Tristan thought she needed someone to prod her along. Finally, he saw Gawain make a move to advance. When Laney turned to block him, he immediately ducked down and swiped her feet out from under her. She fell backwards and landed on her backside. Gawain, tried to tell her he didn't mean for her to actually fall, he was just trying to show her how easy it would be to change tactics and fight without using the sword at all if that was what it took to get the upper hand.
He reached down to help her up and as she grabbed his hand she jerked him forward. He wasn't expecting her to react that way and he fell forward throwing his practice sword to the side to keep from falling on it. As he fell, she rolled out from under him and jumped up onto his back. She held her sword against his neck and asked innocently, "like that, Gawain?" Tristan almost laughed at the look on Gawain's face. Then he saw him take on a stern look. "That worked on me because you knew I wouldn't really hurt you, but you won't usually find an opponent that is willing to help you up when he knocks you on your ass!" They both began laughing and Gawain stood up. "Do you want to try again?" Tristan saw Laney shake her head, "No, I think I'll have enough bruises for one night. Maybe I can put Lancelot off tomorrow and we can try again tomorrow night?" The last was put in the form of a question and Gawain answered, "Don't you think Lancelot will get suspicious if he passes out two nights in a row? You know he usually doesn't drink that much."
"Oh, well, I guess you're right. Maybe we can find some time tomorrow when he's busy doing other things. Thanks Gawain, I really mean it, you've helped me more than you know." Gawain took the two swords and returned them to their places. Then the two of them started toward the sleeping quarters chatting like long lost friends. Tristan decided as they walked out the door that he would not tell Lancelot of Laney's scheme. It might be good for her to get one up on the knight. Besides, if what she had told them and what Merlin had said were true, she would probably need to really know how to fight. At least enough to save her own life if she couldn't do anything else.
The next morning when Lancelot woke up he couldn't believe that he heard Laney singing softly as she moved around the room. He opened his eyes slowly and saw the bright sun shining through his window. "Argh," he moaned. "What the hell happened to me last night?" Laney came into his view of the slits he called his eyes and smiled. "Why dear Lance, you had a little too much to drink last night. When we came back here you passed out before I could get undressed and into the bed." Her innocent tone made him a little suspicious, but thinking back he thought he remembered her and Gawain helping him into the bed.
"Was I horrible last night?" he asked solemnly. For a minute she thought about telling him the truth, but he was asking for this. He had his agenda and she had hers. He had to realize that although she was totally innocent to the ways of this age, she had to learn to take care of herself. He had his duties and she might need to protect herself or heaven forbid, their children someday when he was away. She steeled her heart a little and smiled at him, "No Love, you slept like a baby and held me like one all night." He watched her eyes and decided that maybe she was telling the truth. She saw him sit up in the bed and swing his feet over the edge. She could tell he was in a lot of pain and she felt sorry for that.
After watching him sit there with his head in his hands she walked over and sat down gingerly next to him. She moved behind him and told him to lean back into her lap. Slowly and gently she began to massage his temples and jaw line. After she felt him relax a little, she moved her fingers down his neck and massaged his shoulders. She used a little pressure, but from experience she knew too much would only aggravate the situation. It didn't take long for his muscles to relax enough that she could begin to use her fingertips to gently rake across his skin to rejuvenate the nerves. He slowly began to enjoy the relaxation and when she stopped rubbing he opened his eyes. "My head no longer hurts, but my stomach feels like it's been beat with a big stick for a long time. One minute it hurts and the next I feel ill."
He sounded so pitiful she felt guilty that she had helped cause the pain. "What you need is a couple of big drinks of water. Alcohol causes your body to get dry and the sickness is a sign of that. If you'll let me up I'll get you a drink." He didn't move, he just slowly shook his head. "I don't want you to move. You feel so good taking care of me that I just want to lie here and enjoy it." He closed his eyes and she began to gently run her finger tips across his face, outlining the frown lines. As she did this, the lines relaxed and she felt him breathing more steadily. When she realized he was asleep, she pulled a blanket to cover his chest. She sat there holding the sleeping man for a long time. She felt so good knowing that he could sleep so soundly as she held him.
When Lancelot began to stir, she started her massaging once more. Only this time she was gently rubbing his scalp and playing with his hair. As he woke up he reached up and tried to take her in his arms. She took his hands and folded them across his chest. "Just lie still, I'm enjoying this." She told him quietly. She felt his shoulders relax and she kissed her fingertips and placed them on his lips. "I love you, Lancelot." She whispered. "Hmmm, I love you too." He replied. She could have stayed like this forever, but the knock on the door broke the spell.
"Come in, " she called. Lancelot made to sit up and she held him down with her arms across his chest. Arthur stepped into the room and quickly turned his head. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to disturb you." He seemed to think he had to look away. "We're dressed, Arthur. Lancelot has a headache and I was trying to massage the muscles to relax them." Lancelot added, "And it worked. My headache is gone now. Thank you, My Love." Then looking at Arthur, "What's up? You look like you've got something on your mind."
Laney looked at Arthur's face and saw that he looked pained about something. She waited and when he didn't say anything she asked, "Arthur, does this have anything to do with me or would you like to talk to Lance alone?" Arthur raised an eyebrow at her shortened version of Lancelot's name. It had a certain rightness about it and Lancelot looked pleased when she said it. "No, Laney, this doesn't concern you. But you don't have to leave unless Lancelot wants you to."
Lancelot glanced back at Laney, then he told Arthur that he didn't want to keep secrets from her. Arthur pulled a chair close to the bed. "Lancelot, the fifteenth year will be here in a few months. I expect to hear from Rome at any time regarding our discharge papers." Laney felt Lancelot tense up again as he raised forward so that he could understand more what Arthur was getting at. "I've been thinking about what this will mean to all of us. We will go our separate ways and probably not see each other again." He paused and Laney saw the sadness in his eyes. Lancelot must have seen it too. "Arthur, there's no reason we can't stay together. We all want to go home and see if our families are still anywhere around. But to be honest, they probably won't be. As much as we've cursed this island and talked of going home, this is probably the best home for us."
Laney felt like she was intruding on a special moment. These two men had been together for half their lives. They had depended on each other for guidance and friendship and they were as close to family as they would ever get. She made to move so she could quietly leave the room. When she had slipped from behind him, he reached over and wrapped one arm around her waist. She looked at him and he was looking back at her. "Arthur, you know that Laney and I will marry some day. We haven't decided exactly when, there didn't seem to be a rush, but if we all stay here we can continue to live as we live now." He looked at Laney and she smiled. She would stay here with him or go with him to Sarmatia. It didn't matter where they were as long as she was with him.
She looked at Arthur and saw his pensive look. Suddenly it hit her, he was lonely. Since she had joined their little family she had not seen Arthur with a woman. She had thought it by choice and hadn't even thought much about it, but now, she wondered if there was another reason for it. After a minute she told him, "Arthur, you will meet a woman here that will steal your heart and you hers. You will live happily together for many years. There is more, but I can't tell you any of it. Just suffice it to say that this is where you belong." He listened to her and nodded his head as if he were finding something he could agree with. "Thank you, Laney. I guess I was just feeling melancholy about the possibility of such a big change. I've always planned with great anticipation the trip to Rome. But somehow the closer the time comes, the less I think about Rome and the more I think about the people I've grown close to since we began our service." The last was said as he looked into the face of his friend.
Laney saw Lancelot grin at his friend. She snuggled her head into his shoulder and heard him say. "We'll all feel that way as the time gets closer. It's just natural that we would miss what we've built between us." Arthur stood up and looked about the room. "This place will be awfully empty when we all leave. It will seem like we're being dragged away from home again. I don't like the idea of deserting those of our friends that lie in the earth. There will be no one to visit them and they will be forgotten after a time." Laney was beginning to feel depressed at the thoughts he was sharing with her and Lancelot. Finally she had heard enough and decided she had to come up with something to change the subject. She was glad she had been able to see this side of these men. They might kill like heartless soldiers when the need arose, but they could love and show compassion greater than anyone she had ever met. That was what she loved about this time, everything was done whole heartedly. Nothing was done by half measures.
Clearing her throat, she changed the subject. "Arthur, Lancelot wants me to take lessons in fighting today. He will teach me the sword, of course, and he asked Tristan to teach me the bow. Would you like to join us later and watch whether I can get the hang of all this new stuff?" Before Arthur could answer, she felt Lancelot tense, "There's no need in that, Arthur. I'm sure you have other things to do."
Arthur looked at them, "No actually, I'd like that very much. Lancelot is good with his swords, but since you will probably be using only one instead of two, maybe I can give you a couple of hints that will help." He headed toward the door and when he got there he stopped and turned around. "Thank you both. This was what I needed to get my head straight." Lancelot told him it was nothing that any friend wouldn't do for another and Laney nodded her agreement. "If you can't depend on your friends and family, there isn't much worth fighting for, is there?"