A/N–I have a very wonderful Beta who has been very gracious to help me with this story. Also... I'm sorry if this seems a "fill" chapter. Its really not, I'm just trying to show who these people are. Also normal disclaimers apply. I do not own, do not make money, have a few pennies if you really must sue...
Ailis 70–Welcome to the Wall indeed... I bet you can't wait either huh?
Tristanlover–well here we are, yet another update, hope you enjoy!
Lozcollie- Here's your update! Hope you like.
Jay-LOL I'm still laughing about the "mix up" hope you like.
Knightmaiden-I hope you are still enjoying yourself, and all I can say as to
Who she ends up with... well keep reading if you haven't already
guessed.
Cardeia-I hope I can keep your interest. Bear with me here, I'm in new
territory and am having to do a LOT of research. Even though I'm an
Arthurian buff I am also a history buff... so sometimes I forget more
than I remember.
There was cheering and yelling when they entered the gated area. Lancelot helped Delaney down and then another man named Ganis escorted her to a set of rooms and away from the people. He had smiled kindly and bid goodbye. She caressed the stones of the walls, the wood of the mantel and the fabric of the tapestries. She laid upon the feather ticking of the mattress and sighed.
Here she was in the middle of one of the grandest adventures in the history books and she was worried. The knights were nice enough. But, she knew history well enough to know women did not enjoy the same status in society. However, the myths of Arthur were fuzzy. The Woads held their women as equals; they even fought along side the men. The Sarmatians (which the men that she had just spent the last few days with were) held women as equals as well, in fact they were a matriarchal society. She was just going to have to sit back and observe she mussed.
She sat up and stretched. Then she smiled, at memories of exchanging barbs with Lancelot; along with a very basal sexual reaction to the man. "Oh come off it woman! He isn't going to give you the time of day." She rummaged through her purse and pulled out her brush and compact. When she caught sight of herself she winced. Her eyes were rimmed in black and blue, and one whole cheek was purple and swollen. The cut above her eye went from her temple to her eyebrow. Her lip had a lovely gash on the side of it.
"Oh yeah, like you're something to fawn over right now. NOT!" She began brushing her hair and caught a whiff of her own body odor. "Whoa! And I was giving Lancelot a hard time about smelling phew!" Just then there was a knock on the door.
She opened it and a woman bustled in, her graying hair twisted into a top knot upon her head. "Hello My lady." She said briskly as two men came in with a copper tub. The woman then set two large kettles of water upon the hearth of the fireplace. "Get some sleep and I'll have someone come wake you for your bath." With that the men and woman were gone and the door closed. Delaney shrugged and looked from the tub, to the kettles, to the bed. With a shrug of her shoulders she walked to the bed and slipped off her shoes, after laying down and pulling the blankets and furs tight about her she was fast asleep.
Delaney heard the door open and was suddenly awake, eyes blinking, gasping for air. A girl wearing an apron smiled and her hair tucked beneath a white cap at her demurely. "I'm here to help with your bath M'lady. I'm Ellen."
Delaney smiled at the girl, "Please call me Delaney or Laney for short. If you show me how to prepare the bath I think I can handle it from there."
"Oh goodness no, a Lady shouldn't have to bathe herself."
"Oh goodness yes, this lady does bathe herself."
"But, but--"
"It's a custom where I come from." Delaney offered not wishing to offend anyone. But all the same not wanting some stranger touching her.
The girl's eyes grew wide. "Begging your pardon." She said with a slight curtsy, she then poured the water into the tub from the two other pots and then pulled the chair from by the fire over to the edge of it. She placed a scrap of fabric, and a bar of lye upon it. "Here you go, Lady Delaney." She quickly scurried out.
Delaney touched the hot water with her hand and decided she could wait a few moments least she scald herself. She looked at the bar of soap and immediately decided that she valued her skin. She rummaged through her purse and only found a sample of shampoo from a hotel she had stayed at. Something was better than nothing she decided, upending the whole thing into the water. She waited a few moments more then climbed in. After awhile the heat from the water soothed her aching muscles and she sunk low into the tub, totally submerging herself. She came up to the surface and wiped her hair away from her eyes, tilting her head back and resting it upon the edge of the tub. She was just dozing off when she heard the door open again, She sat up immediately, clutching the edge of the tub, ducking down to hide her nudity.
Ellen smiled at her, "Here, Lady Delaney, I found these for you." She set a change of clothes upon the chair underneath the scrap of fabric. She then grabbed Delaney's clothes from the floor, "I'll take these and get them washed for you." She eyed the pile a moment and with that she was gone.
Delaney stared after her. She smirked to herself, wondering what the girl thought of her odd clothes much less the weird underwear. She relaxed until the water cooled. She then climbed out of the tub and quickly grabbed for the scrap of fabric to dry off with. She wrapped it about her head and quickly began putting on the clothes that Ellen had left for her.
First was the shift which she quickly slipped into. The shirt was a peasant blouse of an off white fabric and the skirt was a dark blue color. She was going to have to get used to the lack of underwear. She did a small circle as she twisted and looked down about herself. She wasn't a petite woman and she felt a bit uncomfortable about the lack of support for her bust. Nothing seemed to be puckering in the wrong places. With a final sweep of her hands down the skirt she decided she would just grin and bear it.
She grabbed the brush from her purse and began running it through her hair. Cringing every time she pulled through a tangle. Suddenly the image of a smiling Lancelot complete with his deep dimples slipped unhindered into her thoughts. "What am I going to do?" She muttered. Brushing through more snarls. "I mean the men keep hinting that he's a womanizer, but oh those eyes." She still remembered the intenseness of the look he had regarded her with when she had said she'd been through worse. It was almost like he cared.
She shook her head ruefully. A man like that uses and throws away. Brent taught you that. She looked at her image in her small compact. Brent beat that lesson into her. No one would want her now, she was so obviously used goods. But Lancelot would definitely make for a nice fantasy. She still remembered the warmth of his embrace and sighed. Dreams, dreams couldn't hurt her. She deftly plaited her hair and tied it back with a rubber band from around the handle of her hair brush. With a final brush of hands against the skirt she opened the door and there stood Arthur.
"My lady."
"Please, its Laney. My friends call me Laney and after riding with me for past few days I think we could call each other that."
"Lady Laney."
"No. No Lady. Just Laney." She had to get her point across now, or she feared she wouldn't be able to later.
"Laney, may I introduce my wife, Guinevere."
Delaney's gaze shifted over to the side of him and found a striking dark haired woman dressed in roman attire smiling at her. Something about her eyes were familiar. They were dark with a hint of amber, "I'm sorry, Guinevere, forgive my manners."
"You're fine, Laney. Would you care to accompany us to dinner?" Guinevere studied her. She had seen eyes that color before, in her memories. She would have to speak to her father and soon.
"I'd love to, being as I have no clue where I'm going." She stepped to the other side of Arthur and took the proffered arm.
Arthur seated Delaney to his right and Guinevere to his left. Lancelot was seated on the other side of Delaney sipping from a mug. He eyed Delaney appreciatively. Delaney felt herself blush to which his grin grew. He even bowed his head in her direction and winked. She sat down quickly. Lancelot leaned over and whispered, "You clean up well."
Delaney smirked, "You no longer smell."
"Does this please the Lady?"
Delaney caught his eye and felt herself warm again. "I would think it would please all concerned."
Gawain let out a hearty chuckle at the comment. "Good one, Laney, good one." He then turned to the cherub faced brunette next to him. "May I introduce Kensey. She is a friend of mine." There were some clearing of throats and hidden smirks at the comment. Gawain glowered at Galahad.
Delaney nodded at the young lady and smiled, "Kensey, pleased to meet you."
"Bors is here, we can begin!" Bors bellowed as he and a red haired woman came in followed by Dagonet and a pasel of children. Bors looked at Delaney and paused, "Well well, Lancelot, you sure you want men still?" He then smiled at Delaney, "I may still have to castrate him for ya, Lass." The woman next to him elbowed him in the ribs then smiled.
"I'm, Vanora. This oaf's wife."
"Pleased to meet you." Delaney smiled. Arthur cleared his throat and they all shuffled to their respective places quietly. Delaney noticed that the children had a table directly behind Bors and Dagonet and Vanora.
"Knights, and respected others. We have come back safe from our travel and with a guest. Let us welcome our honored guest, the Lady Delaney to the round table."
A mighty ruckus sounded about her as the knights pounded upon the table.
Delaney stood and bowed awkwardly as she studied the Latin writing etched upon the table. She quickly sat down again, running her hands lovingly over the writing. "Who did this?" She asked no on in particular.
"All of us." Arthur told her. "We each carved something about us into where we sat at the table."
"This place, was for a knight then. What happened to him?"
"Percival was killed in one of our many battles with the Woads." He looked sympathetically at Guinevere. "That was before we had an enemy in common and found out we worked well together."
"The Saxons." Delaney spoke quietly as she reverently ran her hands over the table. She noticed there was a figure of a horse and a small mouse on Lancelot's side.
"Yes, the Saxons."
"You know of the Saxons?" Gawain asked.
"Yes." Delaney stopped her hands and looked to all of them.
"They didn't---" Gawain touched his hand to his face.
Delaney smiled, self-consciously running her hand along her cheek bone, "No, the Saxons did not do this to me."
Guinevere watched the honey haired woman with a puzzled expression. Arthur had spoken to her about the fact she was of the future. How could she know of the Saxons? Did that mean she knew of Arthur? Guinevere smiled softly, "I'm sure when you are ready you will regal us with your tale, Delaney."
Delaney gave a nod of her head. Lancelot nudged her gently and she turned to look at him. He handed her a mug with a smile. Delaney smiled back and grasped the mug, mindful that his fingers pressed against hers second longer than needed. She felt her skin burn from the brief contact and quickly looked away.
Bringing the mug to her lips and drinking deep at the same time. She immediately started coughing. She set the mug quickly upon the table and covered her mouth. "Oh God, what is that stuff!" She gasped. Still smothering coughs with her hand.
"It's ale," Bors called raising his mug, "Puts hair on your chest!"
"I'm a woman, I'd rather not have a hairy chest." She sputtered. Ganis was suddenly beside her with a plate of food and a goblet of wine. "Thank you, Ganis." She sipped the wine and smiled, "Ahh much better!" Everyone smiled and chuckled. She noticed that there weren't any utensils. The food was what looked like a Cornish hen. She noticed how everyone was tearing into the meat and eating it directly off the bone. She daintily pulled a leg from hers and began to pull meat off.
Later on she found herself being lead out to the tavern. Guinevere telling her where everything was. Arthur adding his two cents about who owned what and introducing them to Delaney. Finally they broke into an open area with large tables and benches. Some Roman guards appeared to be playing a dice game and others were flirting with one of the waitresses. She noticed the large vessels made of clay sitting beside the bar.
Galahad went ahead and picked one up and sat comfortably on the bench. Lancelot grabbed one and refilled Delaney's cup first then drank from the pottery. Stories and jokes abounded and all Laney could do was laugh, and laugh some more. Wine kept coming and the stories got larger and more boisterous. Lancelot went to refill her cup but she put her hand over it and shook her head no.
He queried an eyebrow and leaned into her, "Is everything okay?"
Bors was in the middle of some battle story and talking loudly. She leaned back into Lancelot and turned her face so that she could talk into his ear. Her heart fluttered as she fought the urge to lick the outer shell, "I don't want to drink too much."
Lancelot smiled at her, suppressing the shiver her warm wine flavored breathe had wrought and rose from the bench, meandering his way over to one of the waitresses.
Delaney watched his easy manner with the woman and how she flushed as he smiled seductively. She felt her stomach clench as her mind said, "told you, no time for you." She quickly turned away, trying to listen to Bors.
Lancelot sauntered over with another mug and pottery vessel. He nudged Delaney as he sat down. She turned and was greeted with a mug being placed into her hand. He leaned into her and said, "Drink." She gave him a questioning look as she took a tentative sip then smiled when she realized it was water. She leaned into him, "Thank you."
Soon the party was winding down. Kensey and Gawain were the first to leave barely keeping their hands off each other. Arthur and Guinevere left soon after amidst smoldering glances. Bors and Vanora were cleaning up with help from Delaney and Lancelot and Dagonet. Galahad was softly snoring passed out as he was on the table. Tristan had disappeared.
Delaney stood surveying the tavern area with hands upon her hips. "I believe that is everything." She looked at Bors and Vanora. "Do you need any more help?"
"Go to bed. You've got to be just as tired as anyone." Vanora admonished.
"I'm not going to argue." She said good night to the couple then turned and found Lancelot waiting next to her. "Yes?"
"May I have the pleasure of your company?"
"To do what?"
"Walk you to your room."
"And then?" She raised an eyebrow, arms crossed over her chest.
"Now who's making a pass for whom?" he said with a smile.
"I wasn't trying-- I mean I --" She sputtered flushed with embarrassment. Lancelot smiled and gently placed two fingers against her lips. Delaney's eyes crossed as she tried to stare at the fingers she felt upon her mouth.
"You're going to hurt yourself between the crossed eyes and stumbling over that tongue of yours. I just want to walk you to your room, that is all." He removed his fingers and placed her hand upon his arm. He noticed how she touched her lips tenderly with her other hand before giving him a shy smile to lead on.