Finduilas, thank you for your review ;) Eh, yeah I guess that Matteo took after his father in more than his adventuring career ;) It was good to tease him a bit by Calandra's wit; I hope I showed him timid a bit, but not too immature? As for Anomen… nope, he's going to die :in the end, so he's got a few chapters yet to go, don't worry.

Chapter III. Jour de corvée (if anyone can translate that, I'd be grateful… dictionary's no help at all)

"Seriously?", Matteo asked, his face full of hope. "Oh, Coreen, this is just… so great!"

"Don't go all around telling it's me that got you a place on that one," she advised threateningly. "Nalia will strangle me if she ever learns that I have lowered myself to do my brother a favour to help him with his love life."

ooooo

Calandra was carrying two heavy buckets of water as she walked the uneven path. She had been walking for quite some time now, and she was quietly praying as she went, struggling to carry the heavy charge and not spill water.

She was very relieved when she reached the site of the new mill. It was today that they were pitching together to bring the walls up. There was even some exterior help that had been provided by lady De'Arnisse. A swarm of bare-chest men were turning cement, transporting stones, or driving nails in the soon-to-be palms of the mill. A swarm of women was gathering wood, preparing fires and transporting food to cook the noon meal for the men. She had been sentenced, with a few others with no particular skill at cooking, to carry water for the men. Thaycree and Laura were cooking.

The men saw her arrive with fresh water, and many turned around and started to come towards her. She set both her buckets on the ground, and rolled her shoulders with relief.

Then she saw him. At first she thought: an half-elf here? There's no half-elf living in the De'Arnisse lands, who is he? Then he half-turned, and she saw it was Matteo. She had to concentrate to keep her mouth from hanging open. What was he doing there? And, oh, my, the sight… He had beautiful, powerful and round shoulders. His arms were well defined and big enough; in fact, he almost did not look like an half-elf when half-naked, so obvious his fitness was. The line of his chest was a perfect sub-triangle, complete with hard abdominals, tight buttocks, powerful thighs, and defined calves. His tan was perfect all over, and his skin was glistening because of the sweat. It took her less than a second to drink it all in.

The first man reached her, and politely asked to drink. She smiled, and gave him a cup of the water with Lathander's blessings. She then continued to distribute the water to everyone down the line that was quickly forming in front of her. People were gathering around her, and were talking quietly, discussing if this should be done this way or that.

Eventually Matteo reached the front of the line.

"Good morning, Calandra," he said with a smile.

Sweat was dripping from his face and he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.

"Good morning, Matteo. I had not thought I would see you here today. Are you not kept in Athkatla by your duties?", she asked as she poured him the water.

"The Order leaves us a little free time for volunteer work such as this one," the knight answered, taking the offered water. He stepped aside to let the next one have his turn. She did not stare at him drinking down hungrily his glass of water.

"Thank you very much, Calandra," he said when he was done. She nodded respectfully, and continued to distribute water. "I will not disturb you in your task any longer. If you need help to carry the water, I can help you if you wish."

"Thank you, Matteo."

And he turned around to walk back to the work. His back was as well-defined and shifting beautifully as she had imagined… She hoped her workout with the buckets of water was hiding the burning of her cheeks.

ooooo

After four other trips to the river, she could not take it anymore. She had stopped three times in the last trip. Hopefully she had a break for the noon meal, and she said the thanksgiving to the gods for this beautiful day and the food on their table and everyone's help.

After the end of the meal, she decided that she would do at least one other trip to the river. In the end, she made three, but at the end she was exhausted and her hands were all blistered from the handles of the buckets. She could not take it anymore, but she couldn't really stop. The men needed to drink.

"My lady, let me help you," she heard suddenly, as she was turning around for another trip, trying to hold back her tears. She might be born a peasant, but she had not subjected her body to the hard chores of agriculture for many years now.

She blinked twice to chase the tears. When she turned, Matteo was half-walking half-running to catch up with her as he was yanking a shirt over his head.

"Thank you, Matteo," she finally said. "But I can ask…"

"Yes, of course you can ask one of the cooks, but let me help you still. The others at our "cement factory" can manage without me."

She nodded, and started walking. "You can give me those, you know," he said with a smile in his voice. Without a word she handed him the buckets. She was very tired. He seemed to understand, because he didn't say a word, and just walked besides her until they reached the river. Then he let down the buckets, and sank his head in the river.

Calandra found the vitality in her to laugh at the sight, then. A knight of the Order of the Most Noble Radiant Heart, kneeling on a river bank, his head in the water. She was still laughing when he pulled his head out of the water.

She walked next to him, and put her hands in the cool water, sitting on the cool grass and gathering her robes around her. She sighed as the coolness eased the burning of the blisters. Gently, Matteo's hands reached for hers under the surface. She watched his hands coming closer, then gently taking her wrists and pulling her hands out of the water.

He started to chant. He held his hands palms up, the back of her own hands on his palms, and his thumbs were carefully wrapped around her thin wrists. When he finished his spell, her blisters were gone.

"Why didn't you heal yourself, my lady?", he asked. He had not let go of her hands. He looked up to her. She had been staring at his wet hair, and thinking that she wanted to let her hands run through his moist locks.

"I still have this bucket to transport many times. The blisters will come back, and I did not want to waste a healing spell."

Matteo slowly nodded, then he turned her hands, taking them into his. He gently brushed his thumb across the back of her hands, looking her in the eyes.

"You can ask me to heal you again if you wish," he said.

"There is no use in wasting another spell," she answered.

He smiled. "Looking at you now… I do not feel like I have wasted a spell."

Suddenly he blushed. It was becoming obvious that he was the timid sort, already embarrassed to have said this much, and that nothing else would happen unless she was the one to make it happen. Heart pounding, she slowly lifted a hand, and put it on his cheek. She removed a drip of water that was dangling from his nose with the tip of her thumb. She saw him close his eyes briefly. She wished she could touch his ear, but she knew it was intimate for an half-elf. She just pressed her hand on his cheek, and after a few seconds he opened his eyes and smiled. He turned his head to kiss the palm of her hand, and her heart made a jump. Then his free hand moved to cup her hand on his cheek and took it gently, and he kissed her wrist. Her heart jumped again, only stronger and faster.

"Such lovely hands you have," he said, low.

"Will you let me taste those lovely lips you have…?", she said. She felt stupid the very next second. By Lathander, she barely knew him. What would he think of her? She was about to move, but one of his hands slowly let go of hers. He gently stroked her face with the back of his fingers. Then he slowly moved towards her, until their lips were inches apart. He had been staring at her eyes all the time, and he could hear her breathing faster. Finally, he saw her eyes move slowly to his lips, and suddenly she closed her eyes and seized the front of his shirt to yank him towards her.

He closed his eyes, and let the feeling of her lips on his go through him. He did not move his hand from her cheek and the other that was still holding her hand. He was nervous, wondering if this was right, if it should be happening, if he shouldn't get to know her better first, if she just wanted a kiss or… At the same time he wanted to wind his hands through her beautiful hair, and to hold her close to him, closer than during the dance, and he wanted to lie besides her on the green grass of the riverbank. Just lie to listen to the water and taste of the sun on their skin. Yet her lips were lingering, and her hands slid on his shoulders.

Finally he pulled away gently. He looked at her with dazed eyes. Her eyes were at least as much confused. He took her hand, and kissed it again.

"We should return with the water, lest the others wonder what we are doing," she said, showing no intent of standing up.

"No doubt," he answered with a smile.

He helped her up, and of course used it as an excuse to take her into his arms. He carefully hugged her. "Yes, you are right," he said, not daring to turn his head to smell her hair. "I will look forward to another occasion of spending time with you."

She smiled, the head on his shoulder, when he said that. She should have known that a knight of the Order would be nothing short of an absolutely perfect gentleman. She laughed a little as they started back towards the mill, Matteo carrying both buckets apparently effortlessly.