A Journey

Later that morning, the two men returned for the horse. Bronn was riding the horse around in the paddock, getting used to the feel of him, when Grace came rushing into the yard with a letter for Rowena's Uncle Bayard.

"It's from your brother," she said, breathless and looking worried. He and Rowena exchanged nervous glances, and he opened the rolled parchment and squinted to read what was written there. He grimaced, looked around for anyone else to turn to, but eventually his eyes settled on Rowena.

"What is it?" she asked, knowing something was wrong.

"The old dog, Bet, is missing, along with a pregnant ewe. He says he can't find either of them." her uncle spoke solemnly. "He's asking for you to bring Kip to help them if you want. Says he can't spare a dog or anyone to go out and continue the search."

Rowena was at once sad and angry. She knew that Averet, Uncle Bayard's brother, and the man she had once considered her father, would just as soon let the old dog die alone than spare the time to search for him thoroughly. The ewe and lamb, however, were valuable to him. The dog, he knew, was valuable to her. Bet was well past 10 years old now, and had been the first dog she had truly bonded with, learned to train and work sheep with.

"I won't let you go without me," her uncle said firmly. "Not there, not now." He was shaking his head and rubbing his forehead. He knew Rowena would want to go look for the dog, and he knew he couldn't make the journey himself on horseback.

"We'll take a cart," he said. But they both knew that the only hay cart that they owned was out, and wouldn't be back until the following day.

"It would be quicker to go on horseback, uncle," she replied, as gently as possible.

"I don't have a horse to spare today, Rowena," he said, not wanting to meet her eyes. He was running his hands nervously through his thinning hair. "I have two grooms out with horses, and the other boys are gone to bring the hay. I have no one to accompany you on horseback, and I'm afraid I just can't make that trip. We'll have to wait until tomorrow or the next day."

He sat down heavily on a nearby bench. She knew he didn't want to disappoint her or upset her. He looked up at her, eyes filled with concern. "Are you sure you would want to go there yourself anyway?" he asked, already knowing the answer. "I could take a pair of the boys with me, or send them alone on horseback in your place."

"But they don't know the dog, or the land," she cried, now close to tears at the thought of her old dog alone and hurt, or worse. "Kip can help me find him, you know he can."

"I've got a horse," Bronn said with a crooked smile, sitting on his newly acquired mount. "I'm sure I could be spared to accompany the young lady, " he continued, looking at Tyrion.

Tyrion gave him another exasperated look, but said nothing. Uncle Bayard looked skeptically at Bronn and then at Tyrion.

"I don't know, could be cause for an overnight trip. Can your man really be trusted?" he asked the Imp.

"I give you my word as a Lannister he will be on his best behavior," Tyrion said, stressing the last two words deliberately. He gave Bronn a warning look, but received only a smile in return.

But when the uncle looked to Bronn with concern, the sellsword put on a serious face, and nodded, "I give you my word, I will keep her safe."

"That's my concern," the older man replied brusquely, "How good is the word of a sellsword, alone in the countryside with my niece?" He suddenly looked exhausted, and was beyond niceties.

Tyrion was looking positively angry now. She thought it was directed at Bronn, but she was sure this whole situation must be tedious and annoying to him. The sellsword was oblivious to his employer by this point, and challenged Rowena's uncle. "Time is of the essence, is it not? It will make for the fastest trip, and there's nobody better to deal with your brother than me."

Rowena looked from Bronn to her uncle then, wondering how the sellsword would know anything about Averet. She was also slightly annoyed with Bronn for being somewhat disrespectful to her uncle. She did not want this discussion to go on without getting some say in the matter.

"But that's only one horse," She protested, looking at all three of them for any response. They couldn't consider traveling on one horse. "Surely we can find another horse?" she said, finally turning her pleading eyes to her uncle. Somehow she didn't think they would have much affect on Bronn.

"Not if you want to get there before dark," the sellsword responded. Rowena knew they had plenty of time to find another horse and get there before dark, but she had to admit he was being quite persuasive. She sensed her uncle was going to yield.

"Grace can pack some food for you," the old man finally said wearily, "Go and fetch it, and then you can set off."

Rowena said nothing, but she was happy to leave the yard and be away from them at the moment, and hurried to the house in search of Grace. She was also sure that her uncle had more he wanted to say to Bronn before they left. Just how much about her former life had he shared with the other two men?

When she returned, her uncle and Tyrion Lannister were speaking quietly together, but broke off as soon as they saw her. They both smiled politely as she approached, but she knew they had been talking about her. Bronn was down from his horse. He had collected jugs of water and wine, and a bedroll. Now he was checking his saddle impatiently and looking slightly annoyed. Well he wasn't the only one. She hated having things decided for her this way, but it seemed it was settled. She would not give her uncle any additional cause for distress, so she held her tongue for the moment.

She walked up behind Bronn and cleared her throat to get his attention. He turned and saw her holding a bundle, and he held his hands out to take the food from her and stuff it into a saddle bag.

"Your horse, m'lady," he said, with an exaggerated flourish of his arm, as he stepped back to give her room to mount the horse.

"Thank you, my lord," she said frostily, quietly enough so that only he could hear. Of course this only made him smile, and she wanted to say something else, but decided not to. Poor Uncle Bayard was already racked with worry. She could see it on his face, and she felt bad for him. He suddenly looked older to her than she had recently noticed. She didn't need to add to his stress by bickering with the escort that he already had his own obvious concerns about.

"I'll be fine, Uncle," she reassured him, once she was in the saddle, "I promise." And she smiled at him, wishing she could show him with just a smile all the love and gratitude she felt for him.

Bayard, looking tired and defeated, managed a smile in return. He seemed a little more comfortable with the idea that she was going without him. She knew he wanted to be there to protect her when she faced his brother again, and hated admitting that he was too old to make the journey on horseback. Rowena knew that she and Bronn alone could travel much faster. But still, she would've preferred her own horse.

She moved her leg forward so Bronn could use the stirrup and he swung himself up behind her. She was suddenly very self-conscious being that close to him with her uncle and the Lannister Imp looking on. But she thought of the missing dog and the poor pregnant ewe, and tried to concentrate on her purpose as they made their way out of the stable yard and headed towards the road that would lead them out of the city.

The sun was bright and it was going to be a warm day, made more uncomfortable by riding double for hours. She shifted herself, still irritated, trying to get comfortable.

"Best be careful there," Bronn warned, and when she turned to look at him scornfully, he cast his eyes down, to where her body pressed against his.

She cut her eyes at him, only more annoyed, and faced forward again. "It was your idea to bring one horse." She said, not bothering to try and hide her anger.

"Aye, it was," he replied, and she didn't have to look at him to know he was smiling.

She gave an exasperated sigh but decided she must ask, "How did you get my uncle to agree to this?"

"Oh it seems you have more than one person looking out for your interests, and your virtue." he replied. "And I'll let you guess who's been hired to do just that."

Now she turned so abruptly in the saddle that he shrunk back in mock surprise. He was trying not to smile, and failing miserably.

"You're not serious?" She said in disbelief. He only shrugged. "Guess your uncle let Tyrion convince him I was the right man for the job."

Rowena turned back around in a huff, only to hear him chuckling behind her. Obviously her uncle had shared the story of why she had left the sheep farm in the first place, and that was humiliating enough. She wasn't sure how she should feel about this. She wanted to object to this arrangement, to complain how unfair it was to have things decided for her. She wanted to tell him to let her off his horse this instant. But she couldn't very well do that now, so instead she shoved and elbowed herself into a comfortable seat and didn't say another word.

After several minutes of silence, he spoke. "If you're going to be like that for the whole journey, I could make you walk."

"Fine, I'll walk." She replied stubbornly.

Bronn sighed in exasperation now. "No. You won't." He said calmly, as he wrapped his arm casually around her waist. Eventually, she grew tired of being indignant, and let herself relax against his chest.

"See, that's not so hard now, is it?" He said, and this time he didn't sound like he was mocking her. Still, she wasn't ready to make small talk, so she didn't respond. Neither of them said any more, but gradually it was a comfortable silence that fell between them, and she was soon feeling sleepy. She let her head fall back on his shoulder, and felt him lift his chin, probably out of the way of her wild hair, and his arm tightened just slightly around her waist. She sighed lazily, and the rhythm of the horse's swaying walk soon had her dozing.