Author: Triane

Disclaimer: Not. Mine. Except Iona. Everything else belongs to someone else. Even more so now, that we're into movie territory - if you recognize dialogue or action, its because it's. Not. Mine.

Summary: Iona makes a few realizations.

Iona stood at the chamber window, lost in thought as she gazed down into the courtyard. Dagonet had gone to arrange for bath water, leaving his wife to her scattered thoughts. The bishop certainly weighed on her mind, but there was something else, something... something so obvious it was staring her right in the face, so glaringly close that she could not make out the features of it.

Turning away from the window, Iona began to unbuckle her armour, laying it on the trunk at the foot of the bed. When she was finished, she returned to the window and again stared sightlessly down. Dagonet and his freedom... leaving the fort... younger wives... seventeen children... She smiled and waved, one of Bors and Vanora's brood from the courtyard catching her eye and giving her a cheeky grin.

We'll have a ways to go, to catch up with those two. Iona smiled again as she thought of the blustery knight and his flame haired lover. Of course, we could be lucky just to have one.

Iona's hand, absently playing with the thick drape, slowly stilled as a single, horrifying thought started to dawn.

Lucky just to have one...

Lucky...

Her hand dropped from the drape to her hip, to the beginning of the ugly scar that ran across her midsection.

Not that an injury matters, of course... Dagonet and I were sleeping together for months before that. And never once did I... never once did...

"Oh God."

Iona's mouth was suddenly full of cotton as she sunk to the window seat, her heart beating loudly in her ears.

And of course there was no thought of birth control. If we haven't by now, then it must mean we...

A subtle shifting in the doorway alerted Iona to someone's presence, and as she waited for them to speak, she tried to school her face into its normal impassive features before she turned. God, please let me be wrong.

After a quiet moment, her brow furrowed. A maid or Dagonet would have walked completely into the room, and anyone else would have immediately started talking.

Her heart, already in her boots, sank even lower as she turned to see Bishop Germanius standing in the doorway, his smile and manner as oily as before.

"I do hope I am not intruding." Iona inclined her head slightly without replying, looking at him through her shaggy fringe of hair. The bishop stepped further into the room, his eyes predatory and his accented voice smooth.

"I wished to thank you personally for your actions today. Rome is glorified through your allegiance, brave sir knight."

Understanding dawned instantly, and Iona recoiled slightly, trying to keep the disgust from showing on her face. What a... perverted creep! The entirely English phrase sprang to mind as she cleared her throat, pitching her voice slightly lower than usual.

"No gratitude necessary, Bishop. I was performing my duty." The bishop smiled greasily and moved a few steps closer, which made Iona wish that he wasn't between her and her weapons.

"And you will soon be rewarded for performing that duty, young knight. Tell me, are you planning to travel to Rome when your term of service is over? I would be honoured if you would be my guest so that I could give you my thanks... more appropriately." The look in his hooded eyes made Iona's skin crawl, and it was all she could do to keep from trying to scale the walls to keep away from him. Her voice almost shook with the effort of keeping it level.

"And where would Sir Dagonet be during this visit, Bishop?" A split second of confusion crossed the man's face before he shrugged dismissively.

"Oh yes, that brute. You will have no need of him anymore, I am certain. You have been his since childhood, I assume? Any pederastic arrangement can surely be broken in favour of a more... advantageous one." Iona grimaced, ducking her head to hide the expression behind her hair. There was a steel edge in her voice that she didn't try to disguise.

"You think I am his catamite?" The bishop shrugged, uncaring, his voice indifferent.

"You are not?" Iona stood, in one smooth motion squaring her shoulders and tossing her hair out of her face. Her voice was a lash between them.

"I am his wife."

Had Iona been any less angry, the bishop's reaction might have been almost comical. As it was, she only clenched her fists as he took a step back, shock and then disgust written across his face. She took a step forward, her voice forceful.

"You observed my relationship with my husband, and saw what you wanted to see - that I was a young man instead of a woman. You then assumed that your... advances... would be welcomed, and admitted yourself into my private quarters to force them upon me. How many unsuspecting young boys have you forced yourself on, Germanius?" The bishop began to sputter.

"You... are an affront to God and to the empire of Rome!" Iona tilted her head slightly.

"That is interesting. A few minutes ago Rome was glorified through my allegiance. And I do not think that I am the one who is an affront to God." The bishop paused, his anger choking him as his face turned an unhealthy shade of red.

"You... you witch! You are an abomination! An unholy creature of deceit! The Holy Father shall hear of your treachery!" Iona shook her head, taking a step towards him.

"I am married to a Sarmatian man, in whose culture women are prized as warriors." She laughed wryly. "I married pagan, and am following pagan traditions. While you, Bishop Germanius - you are a Christian man, a leader in the Christian church, following pagan traditions. Who do you think the Holy Father would frown upon more?" Bishop Germanius' lip curled back into a snarl, and he took a slight step back as Iona took another forward.

"I will see you punished! I will have you flogged on the ramparts so all can see your wilful disobedience to the laws of God!" Iona sprang forward, her face inches from his, her eyes fierce.

"A knight and wife of a knight? A knight under the command of Artorius Lucius Castus? A knight that Castus himself conscripted?" Her teeth bared in a savage smile.

"I would like to see you try." The bishop sputtered, his face purple, his eyes bulging. Down the hall, Iona could hear the heavy steps of someone approaching. Bishop Germanius paused, hearing the sound as well, then grimaced, pulled his ornate robes around him and walked to the doorway, his eyes never leaving Iona's face and his features full of hate. Iona stared him down without blinking, watching him slink away until he was out of sight and his hurried footsteps were retreating down the hall.

Once he had gone, Iona heaved a huge sigh of relief and looked towards the chair in front of the fireplace, her legs suddenly unsteady. She took one trembling step towards the chair and immediately felt someone grasp her arm, holding her up and helping her towards the seat.

"Tristan." The scout looked at her, his dark eyes knowing. She sunk into the chair with another sigh, looking helplessly up at him.

"How much did you hear?" The corner of his mouth twitched slightly.

"All. Shall I kill him now?" Iona laughed helplessly as he crouched beside her, his impassive face and guarded eyes betraying... concern... that was gone almost before she could identify it. Anything he was about to say was lost as Dagonet entered the room, taking in the scene at a glance and immediately striding towards Iona and crouching beside her. Tristan rose and took a step back as Dagonet took Iona's hands in his own.

"Iona? Is everything all right?" Iona laughed breathlessly again, not even knowing where to begin, so Tristan spoke from his new position at the window.

"The bishop. Thought she was a boy, and wanted to make her his." Dagonet immediately looked to Iona, anger in his blue eyes.

"Did he touch you?" She shook her head, smiling in what she hoped was a reassuring manner.

"It is fine, Dagonet. He will not bother me again." Dagonet glared in the general direction of the door.

"He had better not. You are mine." Iona laughed again, this time full throated and full of life.

"Yes, yours. Your woman, which would be the deterrent. And you are just as much mine as I am yours, husband." Dagonet smiled, leaning forward to claim her lips in a soft kiss. Iona sighed and leaned into him, thrilling in how safe he made her feel.

A throat cleared, and Dagonet leaned back to cock an eyebrow in Tristan's direction.

"Yes, Tristan?" The scout folded his arms across his chest.

"What happened during battle, Iona?" Dagonet's eyes swung back to Iona's face, the question again on his lips as they both remembered her near-miss. She shook her head, the face of the Woad-as-a-Saxon again appearing in her mind.

"Everything... everything was going fine until... I thought I saw a Saxon. It was a Woad, but he looked... he changed. It looked like it was a Saxon, and I didn't... I didn't know..." she sighed again, not knowing if she was explaining it properly. Dagonet and Tristan both looked at her steadily, waiting.

"It was just my mind playing tricks on me, but I wasn't expecting it. It just surprised me, really." She finished lamely, ducking her head and staring down into her lap. Dagonet squeezed her hands gently, and Tristan cleared his throat.

"Not surprised." With a soft look in Iona's direction and a pointed glare in Dagonet's, Tristan stalked out of the room on silent feet, closing the door behind him and leaving the couple together. As soon as he was gone, Dagonet stood, gathered Iona up and sat on the chair with her in his lap. She immediately snuggled into the strong circle of his arms, tucking her head onto his shoulder. Dagonet's voice was a rumble in his chest.

"I am not surprised either, Iona. Your first battle since... since the Saxons. You were bound to have some flashbacks." Iona sighed, her pulse speeding up slightly, feeling very much like a child who was about to be punished.

"You're not... you're not going to try and forbid me from fighting again, are you?" Dagonet shook his head, and she could feel his smile where his cheek was resting against her head.

"I know better, now. Besides. The best way to get over it is to fight through it." She nodded, closing her eyes and breathing in the scent of his skin, her mind suddenly returning to the thought she had before Germanius had entered. Her heart back down in her boots, she slowly sat up and turned to face Dagonet, holding his face in her hands. His eyes searched hers, worried again, and she cleared her throat. Her voice was soft, heart broken.

"I need to tell you something."