A/N: I caught some time today! I've noticed that my writing has started to slack so I tried to add more... detail or 'meat' rather than what seems, to me at least, plain dialouge. I wanted to show a better picture without overloading the page with ''the rose shone in the summer light like crystalized blood upon an emerald stem'' craziness. I try to put enough hints into a scene but because this is a game (I assume) we have all played I figure that many of you know the areas that I describe... with adjustments, of course. ;)

A friend of mine read this over to see if I misspelled anything... I completely trusted her and went ahead and uploaded this chapter... hopefully she didn't let me down!

Tell me what ya think!

Oakhale.

Myra, Henry, Bryan, Freya, Christa, and Vicktor still slumbered within its halls for there were none who roamed the town of Kakariko in the earliest hours of the Morning. Goats could be heard bleating over the wooden fences of the nearby stable though the shepard boy would not wake until the break of Dawn to take them out into the green pastures of Hyrule Field.

Crickets chirped and cuccos lazily plucked at the earth but offered nothing but brief passing glances as the travelers crossed through their group. Link held his cloak about him tight for the cold, damp, Morning had not been forgiving. Navi was safe, warm, and secure inside one of the Lordling's saddle bags for the wind had proven too much for her tiny body. She was asleep, of that Link was sure, for she had not made a single noise for nearly an hour.

"He should be at the gate." Rowan's voice sounded from the child's left. The Knight led his own steed and Lincoln's as well. Thomas remained quiet with an uncommon steeled gaze seen only within the shadows of a hood drawn about his handsome face. He allowed only a glimmer of a smile as a shadow loomed ahead with a torch in hand. Rowan turned to his brothers, quickly, and pressed a finger to his lips in a silent command to allow him to do the negotiations.

A malformed face shined ghastily in the orange glow of the torch held in a large meaty palm. The man's bottom jaw jutted out in an almost agonizing way to reveal a set of mangled, yellowing teeth. His eyes sat back as far as his sockets would allow while a sickening dip in the skull hinted at past trauma as the skin grew taught and pink against the blue-white of the man's natural flesh. Dressed in a white cotton short sleeved shirt with brown overalls over it and dark boots, the man ushered the Hudsons closer with an odd sort of smile. "You boys are the Old Bird's, I take it?"

Rowan frowned at the casual way the man spoke to them though it did not seem to faze the younger Knight, Thomas. "We are. We have been led to believe you can grant us passage... at a price, of course."

"Well, heh heh, a man cannot do all his favor's for free, am I right, m'boy?" The deformed man chuckled, brown eyes moving to the boy atop the horse. "You there. You're to be our new King, aren'tcha?"

"He is the boy engaged to the Princess." Rowan spoke, returning the odd man's gaze to him. "You are... Dampe, correct?"

His skin twitched above his eyes where no eyebrows grew. "Yeah, I'm the gravekeeper."

"Then name your price so when can be on our way."

Dampe frowned. "You're a serious fellow, aren'tcha?" His brown eyes swiveled about as if looking for something far beyond their heads before he returned them to Rowan's face with a smile. "If it's a price ya want, Lord Knight, then it's a price you're gonna get." The flame upon his torched roared as he twisted, quickly, and ushered them to follow him with a mischievious smile that Link did not trust.

Thomas took the reins from his brother and glanced up at Link. "Stay on your toes, Little Link." His eyes danced oddly with a kind of exhilieration inside them but his mouth remained taught with lines of worry. "It may be best if you abandoned the horse."

Link nodded, slipping from his steed, and helped tie the creatures off to a nearby post where a trough awaited with what appeared to be clean water. The young Lord followed after Rowan with Thomas at his heels. Navi would be angry if she awake to find them gone but he hoped they would be back before then... "Thomas?"

Brown eyes glanced at him though the Knight did not speak.

"Why haven't I ever heard of Dampe before?" He whispered as quietly as possible though it was to no avail. He had been heard.

A throaty chuckle came from the deformed man at the lead and he turned to the boy with a snarl like smile. "That is because children have little buisness with Death." Their guide returned to his same pace taking them through a blunt path carved between the houses of Kakariko and so close to Oakhale that Link swore he saw Myra's face peering down at him from her window. "Ah, but that did not stop them from thrusting you within Its grasp, eh?"

"Mind your words, Gravekeeper." Thomas warned, brows tipping down to crease angry lines on his face.

"I meant no harm." Dampe smirked, leading them up a set of uneven steps parallel to the skeleton of an unfinshed house. "I've heard this is to be the good Bryan's new home... any truth to the rumor?"

"We have no time for chatting. Let us get to where we are going so we can access a reasonable price." Rowan spoke through teeth clenched in frustration. "We are running on short time."

"Then we are going to the right place." A left next to an empty cucco pen revealed a stone wall with a crude archway cut into it. It was large enough to bring a chariot through though it was clear that the stone was never intended to be hacked through for large chunks of the brick lay to the wayside.

"The graveyard?" Thomas frowned, brown eyes jumping to the green of Rowan's. "Why there?"

Dampe chuckled, a deep rattling noise. "Afraid you may see someone you know?" His brown eyes turned to the thirty year old and a sadness twinkled there. "The only things that move here are Ghosts, Young Hudson... Ghosts and Shadows." They continued onward while the coldness drew in around them... deeper and colder every step closer.

The sea of stones were not unfamiliar to the boy for he visited it nearly twice a year to pay respects to the previous Ladies of White Tower, Brienne and Johanna. It was a tradition though not an especially cheerful one for it was a painful reminder to Evangeline, Link's own mother, that she was not the only woman who held Raven's heart. This was not a place he enjoyed seeing for three years past he had buried a stillborn sister and two years before that another of Anju's own miscarriages. The graveyard loomed ahead... a place of nightmares and regret.

A large sign carved with words Link paid little heed to... it mentioned something of the Shiekah and of the Royal Family but all he could see was the white Masoleum with the name "Hudson" carved atop.

Two portraits of two lovely women hung with melted candles beneath them with wicks barely able to be burned though it housed more bodies beneath in the two story vault below.

"Lost in thought, boy?" Dampe asked, his deep smokey voice drawing the ten year old from his memories.

"My family is buried there." He managed to mumbled out. Red memories flashed... screams, pleas, silence, and blood... everywhere. "I h-have a sis-sister... there." Tears came unbidden to his eyes and Link let two of them fall before he wiped them away angrily. Rowan's hand settled with a comforting weight upon his shoulder and Link smiled, gratefully, at him.

"I've known your family through your misfortunes for many years, child Lord." Dampe nodded, the sad glimmer shining in his eyes once more. "That's not a fact that I'm particularly proud of."

"Thank you, Gravedigger... Now," Rowan continued, almost gently in the way he spoke though Link was sure it was because Rowan was feeling some of the same emotions he felt."If you would, please, tell us the price of our passage."

Link glanced backwards toward where he thought Thomas stood but found his brother was not there. A quick scan of the surrounding graves found the Knight kneeling before the family crypt in prayer. Lincoln dropped his own head in remembrance.

"My price is quite simple." Dampe spoke, shoving the torch into the holder at the gate. "You see, I made a wager many, many years ago with an uncle of yours, Varys. He died without paying me." The gravekeeper crossed her arms and nodded toward the place where Thomas was standing. "He is buried inside and within his tomb is a parcel wrapped in fine, silk linen. Retrieve it, return it, and I shall grant you passage."

"You ask us to desecrate a grave?!" Rowan cried, hand shooting up and into his hair. "That is bla-"

Dampe shook his head. "No, I'm not asking you to break in, sonny..." A large meaty hand slipped into one of his brown pockets and retrieved a ring of a hundreds different colored keys. He clamped a simple, silver one between two fingers and held it out toward the Knight with a smile. "I'm the Gravekeeper. I bury the dead, tend to the stones, and keep them safe. I, however, don't open them unless directed to do so by the King." His brown eyes glinted and he smirked. "He is your Uncle so you may do to him whatever you please. Go, now, and get my prize and you shall receive your own."

"And that is all?"

"That's all." He assured them, holding a hand out. "Do we have a deal, Lord Knight?"

Thomas paused as he turned and met Rowan's gaze. "Make it."

"It is a deal." Rowan took the meaty, calloused hand in his own and gave it a solid, rough shake with a determined look in his eye. The key was removed from the ring and placed in his hand. "I shall be back momentarily." The redhead turned on his heels and have a brief pause. "I shall go." His eyes met Thomas' and they exchanged looks that Link could not read. "I will be back within five minutes..." The brothers passed one another as they ascended and descended the hill, respectively.

Link watched with worry dancing on his face. "Becareful, Rowan."

"He is always careful, Little Brother." Thomas smiled, putting the hood over the boy's head. "Th-" The Knight scowled as his sentence was cut through.

"Oh," Dampe called, hands crossed over his weak looking chest. "A warnin' to you: the shadows are not always what they appear!"

Coblat eyes watched as shadows sealed in Rowan's fleeting form... the crypt was opened and the boy wondered what ghosts had crept out.

The room, carved of pale marble, smelled of dust and felt like ice. Green eyes could not pierce the blackness but the Knight knew were the torches were and did not falter in his calm steps to retrieve one. Spark rocks replaced the fire spell he was not comfortable attempting and soon a flame was born... shedding light upon the portraits of the lovely Ladies of White Tower.

Johanna and Brienne.

The Knight bowed his head before them, closing his eyes to their visage, and prayed. "Lady Johanna, I do not know the shadows that lurk below my feet and pray that you help guide me upon a safe path... I wish I could have known you, Mother." He took a short breath. "Lady Brienne, I knew your love since I was but a babe... keep me beneath your wings now as I venture down into these crypts..." He swallowed and rose he head. "I will meet you both, again."

For years he had waited for a sign that either had heard him. He did not have time for such a luxury as he turned his attention to the vault entrance. The door was ornate, carved rather then set with steel work, and proved heavier than the Knight would have otherwise thought he had not nearly dislocated an arm opening it. Rowan sighed, peering down into the dark depths, and offered one last glance at the faces of his two mothers.

Then into the pitch black he walked.

Calm rows of names were his path though faces and memories were few. The torch brough unwanted light to the realm of the dead and it was not long until Rowan's pointed ears heard their protest in the harbor of a phantom wind. They hissed and growled, called and cowered, some cried, and others questioned... Rowan did not answer them.

He remained strong on his path and closed his mind to the images he swore danced at the edges of his vision... The shadows were not what they seemed the gravekeeper had warned and the Knight was not foolish enough to ignore such advice. Twice, Rowan swore he saw Lady Johanna; thrice, Brienne's voice called; and four times each sang his lullaby... but their ghostly entrappings and found himself at his destination.

LORD VARYS

May he find the peace he fought for

Rowan red brows furrowed as he tried to dig deep for any memory of an Uncle. He called a mention of his Father having an Uncle who had died in the War but did not know if this man was the same. The Knight sighed. "I pray you do not haunt me for this, Milord." Then jammed his blade into the crack between the marble wall and Varys' stone.

The thirty-six year old toiled hard for several long minutes before he could pry the plate away but he was soon greeted with the smell of death and a shiver of revulsion. A decorative coffin sat wrapped in red satin looking largely undistrubed... a sight that unnerved the Knight for he would be the one to defile the corpse's peace. Murmuring one last prayer, he gripped the crimson sheet and tugged it away from the casket... he wedged his sword inside the lid and pressed down on the hilt.

The wood relinquished, easily, and a ghastly howl echoed through the tomb.

"Lordssss, shhhhould not sssssteal."

The words, that blood curdling whisper, moaned from the Knight's left... and soon green eyes meet the pale, yellow of a Poe. His sword tore away from the casket and pointed at the monster's face while lips snarled in a feral threat. "Begone from me or else I shatter you."

If a face could have been seen inside that dirty, grungy purple shroud then it would have smiled at him with little worry... the lamp clasped in its four, misty, black claws sprang to life with an audible 'WOOSH' and the yellow orbs swirled within the hood. "Can you shatter what you cannot sssssee?" His sword lashed out only seconds too late as the specter vanished before the Knight could blink. Its lantern spun in violent and heated circles, nearly maiming his face in the process as he ducked away, as it released a merciless, teasing laugh. "Sssscatter me, Lord, sssshatter me, cut at me, and claw at me."

Rowan growled, gripping his hilt strong with his right hand. "If you so wish it." The confines of the vault made it difficult for his hard swings and with each movement the coldness seem to rush into his body no matter how fast he worked to hack away the monster continuing to lash out at him. The Knight connected with the lamp striking out at his gut but his shoulder collided with the stone wall, jarring him. His green eyes squinted shut for the briefest moments but that was all the Poe needed.

The lamp jerked away and swung down without an pause... cracking across the man's skull, viciously.

His vision darkened and his jaw cracked together in the most painful of ways. Stars danced about his eyes but his sword stayed locked tight in his grip. Rowan had felt worse wounds... and so, sending out a quick prayer to Din, he stabbed out with his iron weapon...

Ragged breaths coiled out in white mist from the redhead's lips and the Knight of the Realm chuckled. "Thomas is not going to let me live this down." Groaning from the cold and the crack his skull was sure to have, he stood upon wobbly feet and returned to the opened grave of his unknown uncle.

Ignoring the bones the brushed against the tips of his fingers, he wrapped his hands about the item Dampe had described. Rowan tucked it in his belt without a second glance. He did not care to know what seemed so important to the gravekeeper that the man would keep Knights from offical Family buisness. Quickly, he put the grave back in order and turned to head back up to his brothers.

A second spared for another look upon his birth Mother, Johanna, and the woman who raised him, Brienne.

He wondered if he would ever look upon their faces, again.

Rowan stepped from the crypt, pressing down the lever to drop the marbel door back down to seal it, and smirked when he saw his youngest brother's face light up. His green eyes rolled to the gravekeeper who looked amused.

"You look like you saw a ghost." Dampe chuckled.

The knot throbbing on the top of his skull pulsed and the Knight frowned. "A 'ghost' is much different than a Poe."

The strange man closed his eyes and shrugged. "When you deal with them night after night then there isn't really a difference."

"Some would think differently." Thomas growled, "Ghosts are loved ones, Poes are corrupted spirits of concentrated hate."

Dampe chuckled. "We are all corrupt, Lord Knight, some of us just control our temptations better...or," His brown eyes settled into the cobalt blue of the ten year old boy before him. "you could say, learn to keep our darkness at bay." He smiled, sinsterly. "I wonder if that's what I see in those eyes of yours, boy."

Link scowled at the man. "What do you mean?"

"He is a old, crazy, man." Thomas spoke, gently pushing Lincoln behind him and provoking a glare from the gravedigger. "Now, Dampe, if you would unlock the gate so that we may leave. We are not here to play games."

Again, the man shrugged. "Of course, you aren't." He laughed. "After all, the Fate of the Kingdom isn't a game, eh?"

Link's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open, slightly, while his mind raced with a thousand questions quickly surprised with a simple: "What?"

"Your sister, Myra... I belive... though you Hudsons all look similar... told me about why you three would be passing through." He turned on his heels and men followed behind with various degrees of emotions upon their faces. "At least some of it."

"You have was-"

"For my services and keepin' my mouth shut she said I could request a prize." The deformed man shook the wrapped item at them with a toothy smile. "So, I got my prize." He threw the key at Rowan when they finally reached the gate and laughed. "Morning is going to be here in about an hour... you better get a move on then, eh?"

I wanted the crypt to be eerie but not ''campy''... then again I think I cramped it in too much... ugh, I'll learn to pace things right eventually.