"Father, what has befallen you?" Lady Alexandrine inquired greatly concerned after she had entered the chamber where the Baron lay upon the bed, pale-faced. She had actually sought him out as she wanted to talk to him about the upcoming journey to England. After all, they were to leave in two days. But she had now to realize that her father did not give the impression that he would be able to go anywhere, not even to the hallway outside of his chamber.

Just as he was about to reply to his daughter, he was shaken by a violent fit of coughing, which snapped the young woman out of her daze and led her to hurry to his side. The sight of him had startled her so greatly as she could not recall the last time the Baron had lain in bed during daytime. He was not one to admit defeat quickly, nor was he one prone to whining. Seeing him now in this state had scared her tremendously.

The moment she was about to ask him again how he was, the door to his chamber was opened another time. As she turned quickly, she realized that it was her brother who had just entered. He seemed not to be particularly worried, yet this changed rather abruptly as soon as he spotted their father lying in bed.

"What ...," he launched in, before getting himself back under control and continuing in a slightly more normal tone of voice. "You wanted to see me, my Lord?" Her brother tended to get formal, when he was not sure what was going on. But he was then in no position to hold back any longer, after all. "Father, please tell me what's wrong with you? How are you?"

At last the elder man was able to stop the coughing and to utter something as well. "The physician has already been in," he informed his children, "but he hasn't given me any hope that I'll be able to go on a journey anytime soon." He directed a stern look at his daughter. "But this journey can't be postponed, Alexandrine. It is imperative that you make your appearance in Nottingham to get acquainted with your bridegroom. I would so much have liked to accompany you, but I'm afraid that's not a possibility."

Next he turned his gaze to her brother. "You must take my place now, my Son," he urged him. When the younger one set to respond, the Baron quickly went on speaking, fearing that another fit of coughing might once again prevent him from talking. He had been in this state since last night, and by now he no longer believed that it could get better any time soon. For this reason, it was of uttermost importance to him that he talked to his son right now. There was so much that depended on the boy being able to understand what this was all about.

"I know this is not how you envisioned this journey, yet there is no other way. Alexandrine needs to get to Nottingham and also to get to know this man so the wedding can take place. I dare not to think about the damage caused to our family's reputation if something interferes with this."

"Father," his daughter uttered in an indignant tone, but he did not let her get a word in edgewise. Right now, he could not care about how she felt.

"I have made some promises to your mother on her deathbed. She hadn't wanted you to go into a marriage too early, Alexandrine, so I never pushed you. However, you then took full advantage of that, and in doing so you surely damaged our family's reputation. You know yourself that there is not a single family left in our neighborhood that would be willing to marry one of their sons to you. For this reason, you have no other choice but to go to England instead. This is all that remains for our family, but also for you. You can be sure that I wanted to do everything possible so no trouble could come up. Even though I have already negotiated every detail with the groom's mother, it is still possible that there will be further obstacles. I had wanted to get these out of the way, but now..."

The Baron did not get any further, for another fit of coughing shook him and prevented him from speaking on. For this reason, he was now unable to stop his daughter from expressing herself if that was what she wanted to do, but then he had to realize that his words had obviously caused her to remain silent. Was it possible that she had never before considered what her behavior would mean for the family?

"That wasn't Alexandrine's intention," her brother defended her, "It was just her way of dealing with Mother's death."

The Baron knew, of course, that his son loved his sister and would always try to protect her, no matter what she had done. He had still to learn that it was sometimes necessary to be strict in order to protect the family. He could not blame him, though, for he had not followed through himself when he made the promise to his wife.

"You two must now swear to me," Baron Jozelin de Challon went on after he had stopped coughing. "You must do all that is possible to ensure that the wedding will take place. Everything that is in your power. Please!" he pleaded with his two children.

"Yes, Father," Alexandrine promptly tried to reassure him. "I will marry the man you have chosen for me. I swear to you." She came off sounding sincere, yet he was not entirely sure if she would not still attempt to have her own way and impose her will. He was also not sure if she would not forget yet again that everything she did would affect her father and her brother as well.

"I will represent you in a worthy manner, my Lord, and see to it that this agreement is honored. I know how important this will be for our family and for you. And I will not hold back from reminding my sister should she forget. I will not fail you."

'It is not you who have failed me,' the Baron would have liked to tell his son, but with these words he would only have hurt his daughter, and that he did not want to do.

"Then go with God, my Children. I will join you as soon as I am well again," he told them instead.