Alright, I know that I am going to late updater hell, so I decided to treat you all to a nice dose of fun. I also really needed to focus, cause I kinda have an extremely evil amount of work to deal with.
Daydream1- umm, where did you get the idea that Damara and Gawain have to marry? That one kinda came out of nowhere and smacked me in the gut. And there's no need to hypnotize me, I'll update… soon (laughs evilly)
SpectralLady- thanx for the compliments on the last chapter, it's appreciated!(P.S.- her horse's name is Magnus, not Mangle, but it's all good)
Sarmatian-woman- you don't know for sure if I'm greek or not! Mwahaha! Anyways, past that creepy little moment I just had, that was really astute of you to know that word was greek. And, ahem, SCORE! I have officially made it onto a favorite story list, hahaha.
MORWEN12- that was really straight to the point, so props to you for that!
Disclaimer: yes, sadly, it is true, I own nothing.
Damara rode slowly into the fort, contemplating all that had happened. Two days ago she had been stuck in a pitch black carriage with a dislocated limb. Now she was flirting with a knight belonging to the camp of her sister's enemy. Sometimes her enemy too.
As she passed under the gates of the fort, she sensed something was different. There seemed to be a kind of commotion going on in the center courtyard.
Pulling Magnus to a walk, she observed all that was going on from his back as she entered the courtyard gates.
All of the knights were out here, even Arthur. Jols was leading a group of horses into the stables off the courtyard, all of them covered in a sheen of sweat similar to the one that comes only after the horse has been ridden hard, to cover a great distance. Such as the one that covered Magnus now. She could see the heads of all the knights, crowding around the back area of the courtyard.
Scowling slightly, Damara stopped Magnus and dismounted, leading him over to where Hana and Kirima were leaning against a pillar.
"What's going on?" she asked the two, never taking her eyes off of the backs of the knights.
Kirima answered her, her eyes taking in and assessing all that was around her.
"Other knights. They were out scouting, to the west when we were brought in. Arturius sent them on some mission to a Roman village in that direction. They bring news to their commander and bawdy stories to their comrades" she said, her voice as serious as it ever got.
Hana snorted.
"Men".
Kirima and Damara snorted at that as well.
They were cut sharply from their thoughts at the sound of Arthur's voice. He stood amongst his men, looking at Damara.
"Come join us, Ladies. I would like you to meet the rest of my men." He said in that constantly somber voice of his.
Damara didn't nod her acquiescence, merely moved towards the group. Hana and Kirima fell in behind her. They approached the men at a warrior's walk, wary, yet assured in their strength. Dagonet and Galahad opened the circle to them, revealing six other men besides the knights that they had already met. Two of them sat, and the other four stood.
Three of the four standing were covered head to toe in mud, and smelled as if they hadn't bathed in weeks. They also seemed slightly out of breath. Damara almost laughed at the way they stared at the Amazons as though they had three heads each.
She had forgotten that she and the girls were all wearing their work outfits. The trews were known to be worn by men, but when her father had first come to court, he had worn them. Lillithia had taken a shine to them and it simply became a permanent court and working class fashion. The entire Amazon nation had taken on the style to wear the leather pants when working or relaxing. The girls also had on leather tunics, although the tunics were tightly fitted so as not to impair the wearer's movement.
The strangers continued to ogle the girls to such an extent that Damara looked to Arthur for help, only to find him looking at her pointedly, as if to say "it's your own fault, don't blame me".
She puffed air at him, like a horse. He lifted a brow sardonically. Finally, he turned to the other strangers and motioned to them.
"Knights, these are some…guests…of the Wall and of us. They are Amazon…envoys…who have been peacefully roaming Briton for a time and now they are staying here until the morrow". He said with all the grace of a Roman commander. Because Roman commanders have grace. Yeah, maybe when they're dead.
Damara grimaced inwardly. This was not the first time that she had heard that kind of tone coming from a roman. Nor would it probably be the last she knew. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Gawain looking at her intently.
Oh great, she thought, the man who I find impossible to resist has found me. Although if a girl is going to have a stalker, it's better that they're insanely appealing like this man.
Oh great. New dimensions for my insanity, she thought hysterically. Get a hold of yourself! You're a warrioress, not a hapless barmaid! you can't even allow yourself to have any kind of feeling for this man! EVER!
"Milady, had we known that there were gentle ladies such as you were here, in this barbaric wasteland of a land, we would have returned more speedily than we did" said a large knight with brown hair, bending as he said so to kiss Damara's hand. His hair however, might simply have been brown owing to the amount of mud caked into it. He grinned cheekily at his own gallantry and winked at her.
Damara lifted an eyebrow, smirking slightly.
Bors shoved the man, laughing along with the rest of the knights, right back into the mud. "This idiot, I am ashamed to say my lady, is my brother, Lionel. He thinks he is a lady-charmer, like Lancelot." He said, looking disapprovingly at his brother who lay sprawled in the mud at his feet.
"I am a lady-charmer, you callous oaf" Lionel said with as much dignity as he could muster while lying in a pool of mud.
"The only ladies you charm are the ones down at the pub asking for money if you want to charm them" Bors shot back, which set off the rest of the knights guffawing. Except for Tristan. He just smirked.
"Lady-charming aside, Milady, these are the rest of my knights. The two covered in mud are Cador and Perceval, who have been away on business with Lionel for a fortnight. The knight next to them is Pellinor, who has been ill in our sick hall. The three seated were recovering from wounds. The one on the left is Kay, who had sprain of the foot. The one on the right is Bedivere who had a head wound. And the one in the middle is Erec, who possessed a rather nasty gash from a woad." Arthur stated, in his deep voice, ignoring the antics of his knights.
Damara inclined her head slightly to Arthur in thanks for his introductions. She said nothing, merely at a standstill with his impossible roman politics.
Arthur turned to his men.
"Knights, these are the Ladies Kirima, Hana, and Damara."
Kirima snorted.
"Lady Damara…." She said in a small voice.
The knights looked at her with puzzled expressions. Damara chose to ignore it. Lionel still lay in the mud, wide-eyed.
"Sir Lionel", she inquired politely, "May I help you?"
He looked at her strangely. "If you wish my lady", he said hesitantly.
He held out his mud-encrusted hand to her pink, smooth hand. He looked surprised to feel the rough calluses on her hands, but he chose to say nothing. As she bent down to help him up, she brace her free hand in the mud as a support. Using next to none of her muscles, she helped the dirty knight up.
"Thank you, Milady" he said with a puzzled expression.
"My pleasure Sir Lionel" Damara said pleasantly.
Turning abruptly on her heel, she walked towards the gateway. As she passed Kirima, her arm moved suddenly up and forwards, a complete blur. The next thing the knights saw was Kirima spluttering, with a face full of mud, and Damara walking very fast, away from the knights and Kirima. Hana stood hunched over laughing uncontrollably. Kirima turned quickly, spluttering, to chase after Damara, but not before she socked Hana right in the stomach. Hana's breath came out in a whoosh as she crumpled to the ground.
Bors broke out in amused laughter, inspiring the other Knights to break out into laughter as well.
Sometime later, Damara thought about her situation. The sun had set a few moments ago, and she was slightly bored. She had less than half a day left at the fort.
Less than half a day before these men again became her enemies.
Sighing heavily, she looked in the mirror of her room for the night. Or rather, Gawain's room. The young knight had again given his bed to her for the night, although without the obscurity of the night before. It was in no uncertain terms that he would sleep elsewhere, with him making no attempt to change that situation in the middle of the night if he was feeling lonely.
Damara had been fighting her feelings for the attractive knight all day. She could not deny that she had been feeling far more than kindly towards him since her arrival as a prisoner. But as much as she desired the man, there still lay the fact in a matter of hours, he would be her enemy.
"Athena guide me, I cannot decide" Damara offered up.
Only silence met her prayer to her patron. Suddenly a knock sounded at her door.
Damara leaned over and opened it. Hana stood in the doorway. She looked up as her queen stared at her.
"Good. I needed to speak to you anyways." Damara said. She returned to making sure all of her belongings were where they should be before turning to where Hana had seated herself on the bed. Closing the door, she looked over at her second-in-command.
"I have news for you, and orders, Hana" She started.
Hana visibly straightened. Her look serious, she queried "So we're goin' back then, are we? To your…" Ever present of spies, she chose to phrase her words carefully "relations?"
Damara was only slightly eased by the discretion that her lifelong friend had held for their relationship and Damara's status since childhood.
"Yes, Hana, back to my relations. In the south. I know that you meant to visit my relations to the north but apparently they are unable to host anyone at present. We shall rejoin the southern part of my connections and simply have to impose upon their hospitality again." Damara stated.
"Alright then, if we must. And , when shall we leave?" Hana asked, getting up to go.
"About two hours past daybreak please, Hana" Damara said, about to usher her out the door. She reached for the latch, but Hana beat her to it.
She looked up, not really surprised, just dreading what she knew was coming. Hana reached for some linens hanging over the hipbath, and proceeded to stuff them into the crack under the door.
Damara sat on the bed with a sigh. Hana turned, and stood over her with her arms crossed, just the way Lillithia had when Damara disobeyed orders as a child.
"So we have our orders, and that's nice and pat for Hana, now is it? You better tell me what's bothering you, because I know it damned for sure isn't about returning to your long-lost sister whom you've only just met for the first time a week ago. So come on, what is it?" Hana demanded, staring down at her princess and commander who looked like a child caught stealing a sweetie.
"well…" Damara began, clearly unwilling to offer up her feelings.
"Oh for heaven's sake Damara!" Hana shouted, throwing her hands up in supplication for divine help in dealing with her difficult leader. She knelt quickly, and looked intensely at Damara.
"If you wish to take the Sarmatian to your bed," She paused, grinning. "Or rather, back to his own, then you do it. Amazons take only captured warriors, nameless and worthless except for their fighting prowess and breeding potential to their beds. Surely our tribe has not become so weakened that you have not forgotten that?"
Damara shook her head, more than a little shamefaced.
Hana smiled a little at that.
"You mustn't ever forget that you are a queen Damara. You have the right to have what you wish, although you mustn't forget that after this night, it must be over between the two of you. I don't think that I need to tell you what that means for you." She said.
Hana's words struck a chord with Damara. She knew that after they left the fort, she would never be able to see Gawain ever again, yet she was so powerfully attracted to him that she didn't wish to know him and then end their relationship within a span of hours. However, she was always first and foremost a warrior, then a queen, then a woman. And nothing could reverse that order for Damara.
She looked up at Hana.
"Thank you for aiding me in this Hana. My pathway is now clear from the fog of my mind. Your guidance is not given in vain" Damara said, knowing it would ease her warrior's burden of mind.
Hana nodded, and knelt before Damara in a sign of fealty. Without speaking she rose, and left the room.
Giving a sigh, Damara turned to her trunk.
Now, she thought, it is time to play.