I'm guessing that the events in the epilogues of the individual characters are not all taking place immediately after the general epilogue, so don't be surprised if a character who you thought died in their ending makes an appearance in this fic. I don't think that that's going to happen but... just in case. By the way... is a person from Pherae spelled "Pheraean" or "Pheraen?" The latter's in Sain/Isadora C... but... I'm confused...

I'm not exactly sure how the medieval inns worked, so I just kinda based it off the Stock Pot Inn in Majora's Mask. And if you start cringing at the bad grammar and spelling in some... alright... most... of the dialogue, then just remember that it's my attempt at writing "country" speech. It won't be used a lot, I promise!

A big thank you to everyone who reviewed! Hope you like this chapter!

Chapter 2: And So It Begins

It was a beautiful sunny late morning in the seaside territory of Pherae in the League of Lycia. The birds were singing, the bees were buzzing, and everyone in the small pub and inn by the name of "The Wildflower" was happily exchanging a bit of gossip or enjoying a quiet cup of tea. Well... all except for one person.

Chirp chirp. Chirp chirp cccchhhhhiiiirrrrrrppppp! CHHIIIII-RRRRRRPPPPP!

"Shut up!"

A pillow flew at the unsuspecting bird with deadly accuracy, but luckily for the little robin, it fell short three-fourths of the way. Twittering angrily at its attacker, the bird fluttered away from its perch on the windowsill, looking for some other late sleeper to arouse.

Matthew groaned as he slowly sat up in the hard inn bed. He had been enjoying a quiet dreamless sleep, until the blasted bird started singing its annoyingly loud song. The bright light streaming through his open window hadn't helped much either. He sighed and stared at the sheets lying in disarray around him, rubbing his eyes repeatedly to wake himself up. Once he was fairly sure that he was fully awake, he slid out of bed and set to pulling his boots onto his feet. He was in no hurry. Lord Hector had given him a week's leave for some rest and relaxation, despite his protests.

The master spy of Ostia grinned to himself as he recalled the results of Lord Hector's decree. Serra had nearly gone to tears and started begging for a leave of her own; Oswin had had to pry her off the throne and order her to her room. Hector, needless to say, had been very relieved. Matthew made a mental note to thank Lord Hector for the leave. It had only been two days and he was feeling better already. The thief grinned cheerfully as a sudden realization dawned upon him.

Haven't slept in for a while... Nearly forgotten how it feels...

But his smile quickly disappeared from his face as he recalled the... "events" of the previous night. Matthew clenched his fist tight, shutting his eyes, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall. He had promised her... and he would keep that promise.

But why? Why was it still so hard? It had been already... a year...

Shoving his grief to some dark corner of his mind, the Ostian spy set about his work of getting ready for the day, biting his lower lip so that he could concentrate on the physical pain and ignore the emotional suffering. He had to go somewhere, do something, anything... so that he could forget.

Once assured that all his things were packed into his dirty, well-worn bag, and certain that his hair was a bit more... presentable, Matthew pulled on his cloak and headed downstairs for the inn's pub, or as the owners liked to call it, the restaurant. The medium-sized room was already filled with people of all ages and walks of life, all engaged in healthy banter. The young thief sat down at an empty table, quietly asking for a glass of water and some bread for his breakfast. And of course, as usual, he kept his ears open for any interesting tidbits of news. It didn't take him long to find a conversation that attracted his interest.

"Haven't you heard? 'Bout that rich farmer family?"

"Nah. What 'bout 'em?"

"Place got raided and burned by a bunch of bandits. Killed a bunch of people, includin' the farmer and his wife. Bodies everywhere. Those bandits musta been drunk or somethin'. The old man were a pretty darn 'portant person, y'know? Heard General Marcus an' Sir Lowen be comin' here t'day t'get some news."

Matthew blinked at the mention of Marcus and Lowen but otherwise showed no other noticeable interest, as was expected of a master spy.

The conversation continued on. "General Marcus and Sir Lowen? Then we better be on our best behavior then. T'wouldn't want any trouble."

"Well. I heard that Sir Lowen is very compassionate. I'm sure he wouldn't mind just a bit of mischief. In fact, I'm sure he'd be glad to see the townspeople behaving normally."

"'Nuff 'bout Sir Lowen. What 'bout the daughter and son?"

"Can't find 'em. No bodies either. Probly carted off somewhere."

"'Tis a pity they ain't found. Heard the girl was pretty decent lookin'. Not nearly as pretty as Lady Lyndis of Caelin or our very own Dame Rebecca and Dame Isadora, but decent 'nuff."

"Aye. She were decent lookin', that she were. A bit on the plain side tho'... Saw her once. Looked real noble-like in that dress and feather fan. 'Tis a real pity. The boy were a nice lad too. Pretty scrawny but a happy little fella all the same."

"I heard they wanted the girl to be a troubadour and the boy to be a knight."

"Y'heard right. Problem was, neither of 'em were too great with their lessons. The old man weren't too happy with that."

"'Course not. Always expected the best from 'em, he did. Gave 'em quite the lecture, that's what I've heard."

"Bet the girl had a hard time takin' it."

"Why would ya say that?"

"Ain't she s'pposed t'be cold and mean and headstrong or somethin'? That's what I heard from the boys the old man hires to help durin' harvest season. And she never talks to anyone when she comes here."

"Dunno... I'd say that the boy probably had a harder time... But the girl's pretty proud of her status tho'... ev'ryone in town has t'call her "miss" and stuff."

"Yeah. Wonder if she's adopted or somethin'... Not like her brother at all."

"Nah. If anyone's adopted, it's gotta be her brother. The boy's nice and cheerful, but the girl's jus' like her old man, 'cept mebbe the old man's even meaner than her. And at least she's smiled once or twice..."

"The old man's smiled too before... 'fore his wife got ill."

"How did she get sick in the first place?"

"Dunno. All's I know is that he never talked to no one after that. Tended to her all the time, that he did, never cared much 'bout his children."

"I feel sorry for his son... he always seemed so afraid of his father the few times I saw them come here together."

"Yer right. I've heard that their father hated the boy 'cause he was too scrawny and weak to be a knight, so that's why he was always so scared of his old man. But he loved his sister, always would be clutching her hand, even if she told him not to."

"Methinks the girl loved her brother too. Always together, that's what I've heard."

"Wonder where they are now..."

That statement was followed by silence from all who had participated in the conversation. A moment later, an excited young man rushed into the room waving his arms frantically.

"Hey! Everyone! General Marcus and Sir Lowen are coming!" he yelled.

Within seconds, the previously peaceful room was in chaos as people hastily rushed about trying to tidy up various aspects of the pub. Matthew took advantage of the disorder to slip away from the scene unnoticed, remembering to leave a few shiny coins next to his empty plate as payment for the "breakfast."

He scaled the stairs to his room, locked the door, and knelt down in a corner with his ear to the floor. The spy had specifically requested this particular room as it provided the best spot to listen in on any conversations taking place below in the pub. Even though that... knowledge... had required a few nights of additional snooping around, Matthew decided that the work was well worth it when the familiar sounds of galloping hoofbeats and clanking armor reached his ear. Despite the fact that he was uncomfortably wedged between the bed and the wall, the Ostian spy could not help but smile as he heard Lowen's excited voice, followed by Marcus' deeper one.

The two Pheraen knights exchanged friendly greetings with the townspeople, asking about the harvest and commenting on the weather. The townspeople, in turn, praised Lord Eliwood's leadership and his kindness. Matthew listened to this part of the conversation with a bored expression on his face, quietly waiting for someone to mention the raiding incident. He was soon rewarded for his patience when Lowen suddenly asked for information on the manor and its inhabitants. When the townspeople launched into their explanations, Matthew quickly realized that they were simply repeating what he had heard earlier and decided that listening to the accounts again was not worth his time.

He freed himself from the cramped corner and brushed the dust off his clothes. The thief smiled wryly to himself.

If they can't give me any more information... then it looks as if I'll have to do it myself.

Once again checking that he had enough food and drink to last for a few days, Matthew quickly wrote a note to the innkeeper that told of his premature departure, left that and a few gold pieces on his bed, and stuck his head out the window to make sure that no one was watching. Satisfied that there weren't any people in sight, Matthew jumped out the window to a nearby tree, proceeding to climb down its thick trunk with the speed and ease of a squirrel. When he was back on firm ground, he swung his pack over his shoulder, whistled a soft note or two to himself, and set off in no particular direction.

Or what seemed to be no particular direction.

After he had wandered aimlessly for a little while, and certain that he was not being followed, Matthew discreetly directed his steps toward the raided manor, still taking care that he was not noticed at all, wondering to himself what sort of spoils he would be able to find in the ruins.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A/N: Like? See? It was longer! I don't know when the next chapter will be up... I guess you could say that I'm notorious for taking weeks to update... especially during the school year... Updates should come faster once summer's here! Well... Please R/R!