-a/n- Hello again! Happy Olympics! I'm SO excited about London 2012 :D I went up there on Sunday to watch some hockey and the atmosphere in the park is AMAZING. Since then I've been watching on the tv/computer at any opportunity -sighs happily- "Inspire a generation" is the slogan plastered everywhere, well it's certainly inspired me :)
Much love, especially to you who reviewed,
Confusedknight xx
Ps Oh, and a couple of you mentioned in your reviews about Coram being unlikely to have ten children, I agree but it's canon! According to the Tortall wiki (endlessly useful source of information) they all have names! Who knew?
Raoul,
I hope this missive finds you in good health and that these godscursed Scanrans stay bedded down for a while yet. I had a visit from your friend, not three days hence. It was good to see her after hearing so much talk over the years. At first I couldn't have spotted her and my lass to be at all alike. So quiet, controlled in a way that Alanna never was! But when she got talking I began to see it, the same drive and focus, like when her mind was at something it wouldn't matter what was in the way. I hope the Mother guides her too, for all our sakes.
Following winter preparations, we're ready to receive up to a company of wounded soldiers for recuperation. I've a team of healers and beds to spare, as requested by the General last summer. I've included plans for transport from the field hospitals through the Grimholds.
Once this war is over I've a mind to make a visit south, it's been far too long.
Mithros guide your arm,
Coram
The commander of Steadfast looked up from the letter with a half-smile, pleased that the gruff guardian of the first Lady Knight approved of Kel. Raoul too had found the comparison between Alanna and Kel intriguing, but had quickly just learnt to accept them as two separate entities. They were however the start of a unique brand of warrior, one that Raoul had perhaps slightly overlooked; Kel was just not as good as a knight, she was also a Lady Knight. Maybe, if she survived this crazy mission, it would be good for Alanna and Kel to spend some more time together. Surely Alanna would have things to teach Kel that Raoul hadn't? Equally, if the Lioness could learn from Kel as Raoul had done, it would be no bad thing.
Raoul sighed, allowing his thoughts wander to a post-war Tortall. Familiar daydreams of making Buri his wife filtered in, being able to spend his days and nights with her without gossips running rife. Of having dinner with Gary, Jon, Alanna, Douglass, Sacherell and the rest of the old crowd, back in Corus not spread across the country holding it together. Roaming the land he knew and loved with Third Company, visiting the Bazhir tribe he'd neglected, introducing Buri to them-he knew they'd approve of her. Raoul's musings were interrupted by sharp rapping on the door.
'My Lord, raiders have been spotted North of the fort,' Lerant wasted no time in informing Raoul that he was required in the command room. The war was beginning again.
Freezing water drenched Kel, slapping her already dripping face. It made her gasp, and shut her eyes tightly. She was clinging to the wooden craft with numb fingers, afraid because if she went overboard death in the tumultuous Vassa was near-certain.
The noise of the churning river all but drowned out the sound of her squad's yells and prayers. Kel had no idea if the man in charge of the boat was even still in the boat, let alone in control. She tried to turn her head, but was slammed against the side of the boat even as yet another surge of water doused her. Wet hair was plastered across her face, which Kel tried to push to one side using her shoulder; there was no way she could let go of the boat and use her hands.
It seemed like an eternity before the buffeting became less intense and Kel chanced properly sticking her head up to wipe sodden locks from in front of her eyes. A quick head count told her that she'd not lost anyone overboard, although if the craft became any fuller of river water there was a chance that any of them might actually drown in the boat.
'Aye there she does,' grinned the toothy old man as he brought the skiff onto the gravelly Scanran shore, further westwards than they'd been on Kel's last visit to Scanra.
Kel was amazed to see that despite the assault on the boat, they had washed up directly opposite the shore they'd left.
'Whadda tell ya?' The mage shunted the boat properly onto firm land and hopped lightly from the craft, not a drop of water on him.
Kel's men almost tripped over each other in their haste to be on dry land again. Although it was harder to see now that they were wet, each now had hair died lighter than normal, more in keeping with Scanran folk, and they'd swapped army uniform for the drab brown and un-dyed peasant's garb.
Shaken, Kel helped unload their gear in silence, indicating with hand signals that Rees and Lyssa should keep watch. Their packs were carried off the open shore and into the scrub. Blending in with the darkened wood, Kel's squad disappeared one-by-one.
She handed the smuggler the gold coins as promised. He tested them for fakes with a small knife and, satisfied, pocketed them.
'Best luck with thee,' he cackled and set back off. Kel watched him briefly as the boat began its journey tossing and whirling in an unnaturally straight line as the mage's gift fought the power of the river.
Her skin prickling, Kel clambered into the wood and quickly located her squad, holed up in a thicket. Some of the men had removed their shirts and were wringing them out, displeased expressions on their faces.
'A bit rough,' muttered Bert, 'A bit rough.'
'Lady Knight?' Lyssa was looking to Kel for instruction.
'Fighting gear on.' They had two options whilst travelling north in Scanra; be protected in mail-studded gear and armed, or dress inconspicuously as peasants. The latter disguise would be necessary as they neared the capital, or travelled on well-used roads. For now, sneaking through the wilderness, it would be safer to be armed.
Full armour would have weighed them down, so each soldier wore a long mail shirt that protected down to elbows and thighs. A brown shirt over the top helped to camouflage the footsoldiers and prevent glare off of the metal. Other than their own daggers and swords, and a few bows to share, they were practically defenceless should they stumble across any of Maggur's army. Still, it felt more comforting to be moving through the forrest armed.
Even at their steady pace, the journey north was far slower than it had been the previous summer when Kel had been on horseback. They were also winding their way westwards, as Hamrkeng lay nearer the coast than Rathhausak. For the first few days the landscape was just dense forrest, ever shifting and rustling, every creaking tree making Kel's heart leap. They settled into a rhythm of tramping for four hours at a time, swapping scouts every hour. Even unburdened as they were it was a gruelling pace and their food supplies were stretched thin. Kel did her best to supplement their meals with wild mushrooms or caught rabbits, but cooking anything was a risky business.
Kel's maps were inaccurate to say the least, and several times they came across abandoned dwellings that simply weren't marked as ever existing. This made Kel more cautious than ever not to chance upon an unexpected barracks or outpost. Once they'd had to make an excursion for miles, tracking around a lake that didn't feature on paper.
When they unexpectedly came across a large dwelling, Kel had to wonder whether they had gone farther west than she'd thought. Rather than wander for days looking for roads and landscape that might not even be accurately charted on her maps, Kel decided to risk entering a town.
For this venture she chose Henry to accompany her. In his late twenties, Henry was broad-shouldered, round-faced and freckly. Hailing from Second Company, Kel could rely on him not only to have her back in a fight, but the placid face also hid a sharp mind.
They changed into their peasants clothing, and, in a brave gesture removed all their armour and even their swords. Armed with hidden daggers only, Kel felt completely naked without Courage. The rest of the squad looked on apprehensively as they adjusted their outfits. Both wore frayed undyed shirts, Kel's overlain by a brown worn dress and Henry's completed with breeches. Kel unwound her hair and they both swapped stout boots for leather slippers.
As the rest of the squad melted away into the thick undergrowth of the woods Henry picked up a fake pack and Kel took his hand.
'Hans, shall we?' Kel muttered in Scanran to the slightly nervous soldier.
As they made the fifteen minute walk to the village, Kel sunk into the mindset of Lia, a refugee from her home in Dundine, married for the past three years to Henry, a blacksmith. She changed her walk to a less purposeful trudge, displaying the exhaustion that she felt from their hard journey. Henry's grey eyes were observant, noticing how Kel slipped into character with ease. Even he had trouble acquainting the downtrodden woman next to him with their driven, athletic commander.
The village was decent in size, although many of the forty or so houses stood vacant. It was also unsettlingly quiet. Where dogs and the yells of children should've permeated the fresh air, there was just the constant rustling of the trees and twitters from the birds they contained. A few scrawny chickens pecked through the dirt of their large enclosure and fresh laundry flapped lazily on the line.
Kel could see stooped figures attending the fields that lay behind the village and wondered how many villagers were left out here, fighting for survival.
An old man emerged from the third house in, clutching what was clearly a hand-made bow.
'Who goes there?' he croaked.
'What you want with us?' snapped the woman who followed him out. Both villagers' clothes hung loosely off of them.
'Peace,' called Henry, his deep voice calm and confident.
'We come only for direction,' said Kel, allowing desperation to enter her voice. 'Please, we mean no harm. It's just two of us, me and my husband, we've been travelling ever such a long way' she let her words tumble out. Better for the villagers to think that she was the talkative one. Henry laid a calm hand upon her forearm. He was better at acting than Kel could've hoped.
'Lia means we're a bit lost.' He said simply.
The old man let down his bow and leaned upon it.
'This be Irongate town,' he said, 'or what's left of us.'
'How many of you are there?' asked Kel timidly.
'Bout thirty, most women,' the man replied. 'And us too old to die by sword, left to starve.'
He eyed Henry, 'How've you escaped? I imagine He'd want a strapping lad like you in the army.'
'I was out, when they came.' Replied Henry.
'Where're you headed?' asked the more suspicious woman.
'To family,' Kel replied, biting her lip as though worried about telling the strangers too much.
'Where's the next nearest town?' enquired Kel's companion.
'Brookbridge, not four miles hence. There's an army outpost there,' said the man with a look that suggested he wasn't sure whether or not he should be warning him about it.
'Thank you,' said Kel.
'Have you any food to trade?' asked Henry. 'We have coin.'
'Coin? Pah,' the old man spat onto the ground. 'As if that has any value out here. Food is more precious than gems. If we had some to spare, my grandchildren wouldn't have died this winter.'
Grief twisted the Scanran woman's pinched face. She turned and fled back inside.
'Be on your way.' He looked them up and down. 'And be careful, else you'll be wearing his Majesty's red, and you-" he focused his gaze on Kel, 'Will be left starving, a widow of this war.'
Kel and Henry retreated from the village, trudging back down the dirt track only releasing each others hand when safely out of sight.
'Did you see the graves?' muttered Henry in low Common.
Kel nodded, her throat tight. Fresh graves; those who'd not been able to fight another Scanran winter.
'They'd no livestock apart from those chickens,' he continued, 'and the fields...they'll not harvest for months.'
'They'll stay there till the end, because what else can they do? There's no overlord to run too, no Crown treasury to pay for the deficit...there's not even anyone to trade with because Maggur's taken everything. There's no farmers left in the south because they're all in the army, and any food from the plantations in the north is going straight to Hamrkeng or the army.'
After a few minutes Henry broke the silence that had descended.
'My family are farmers.' Kel looked around at him. 'On the borders of Veldine by a small village not dissimilar to that one.' He paused. 'It's a tough, inglorious way to make a living and our nobles have little regard for us...' he chuckled under his breath. 'You know sometimes I forget you, my Lord and others in the Own are nobles, because you don't look and see peasant, you see people. Well, that's by and by, but however little love there is between house Veldine and us, when the harvest didn't come in, or when the granary was burned by raiders, they provided for us. Even the Crown stepped in one year of bad floods...These people have no one, because them in power have no sense of honour or duty. And that's plain wrong, Lady Kel.'
Kel smiled, knowing, if little else, that she'd won at least one more heart for her cause.
Tor fingered his stump of a wrist absent-mindedly, feeling out it's many lumps and grooves. He was grateful to still be alive, and while his ragged stump disgusted him at times, it was a constant reminder that he had unfinished business to attend to before leaving the mortal realms. He would live to see the downfall of the man who'd destroyed all but a remnant of his Clan.
There it was! The low, hooting whistle. Tor replied in kind, making the two men beside him startle out of their watchful reveries.
'Stay here,' he whispered in curt Scanran, and crawled out of their hiding spot. Tor's bare feet felt their way silently down the slope to the stony path. Through the moonlit night, Tor could see movement ahead. His good hand went to the sheath of his sword, as his heart beat a rapid time.
'Friend, it's late,' Tor spoke through the soft night.
'It is,' agreed the stranger, 'but the right hour is upon us.' The man new the correct response and Tor had no choice but to trust that he wasn't an impostor.
'Where's the other?' said a man with a thick Western Scanran accent.
Tor whistled up to the two Tortallan soldiers Ingram and Marek, who hurried down the slope a lot less stealthily than he had done.
'How did you know when we'd be here?' asked Tor.
The slight Scanran peered back at him through the dark. 'I've been walking this bit of road once a night for two weeks now. He said you'd be here soon enough. I'm not expected to take the three of you am I?'
'No good friend,' replied Tor, 'I've somewhere else to be.'
'Good,'grunted the Scanran, 'I've only got two sons for them to imitate.'
'This is where we part,' Tor turned to two of his Tortallan men, Tortallan friends. 'Hopefully not for long.' He clapped them both on their broad shoulders and then saluted the Scanran. The small man looked at him, eyes flicking from his missing hand to his face. The man surprisingly bowed, before saluting him in reply. 'Torrien one-hand,' he acknowledged, respect in his voice.
Tor slipped away into the night.
'Luck of the gods be with you,' whispered Marek.
'Pah,' said the Scanran to his two charges, 'The gods have long forsaken these lands.'
Similar meetings and exchanges were happening in the lands all around Hamrkeng. Strangers meeting at exact locations that probably only Alex was aware of, each with an exact plan for smuggling Alex's Tortallan fighters into the capital city. It was a slick process due to Alex's immaculate planning over the last few years.
Kel knew the locations also, but was unaware of who they would be meeting at each spot. And whilst she knew where her fighters should be in theory, she was only there to see four of her men spirited away by a miller and his family. The rest would be making there way into the capital with her and the squad would rejoin in a safehouse in the city.
It was agonising for Kel to not know how the others had fared, but she kept her worst imaginings at bay by focusing on the present. Through the pitch-black night, they followed a short, stout woman up a winding path. They were almost at the crest of the hill when they came upon a ramshackle cottage in need of repair.
'In here,' the woman gestured. And Kel, and five of her men, ducked into the house.
'Let's have a look at you then,' pink flame sprung up in the woman's hands and by it's rosy light, she examined the six Tortallans, her gaze resting finally upon Kel.
'I know you,' she said shrewdly. 'I know your face.'
Now the woman had said something, Kel's memory sparked, 'Lanith?' she remembered the woman whose family had allowed her and Alex to spend one snowy winter in Sekholm in their cave.
The look on the woman's face confirmed Kel's guess.
'We met in the Retreat a few months before fleeing to Rokang.' Kel explained.
'Elinah, of course!' exclaimed the woman, her stern face breaking into a smile. 'Here's me worried about picking up a group of strange foreigners and here you are, a girl who was like one of my own daughters for a season.'
Aware that now she had taught her men Scanran, speaking in the northern language was no longer as secretive as it once had been, she stepped forward to embrace the older woman. 'My name is actually Kel,' she said awkwardly.
The older woman blinked. 'Were you working for him already?'
Kel nodded.
'So young,' the woman shook her head sadly. 'What times we live in.' Her face brightened. 'You were good with a sword back then, weren't you? Alex needs fighters like you.'
One by one, Kel introduced the taciturn Scanrans to Lanith, all the while assaulted by memories of that winter. Lanith had had a husband and two daughters back then, but Kel was almost afraid to ask of their fates.
'Here,' the lady lifted a well-disguised panel of flooring to reveal a dark hole.'You'll have to stay down here for a day or so, my husband's not back with the horse and cart yet. There's blankets and water down there. No food I'm afraid, but we'll have some soon enough.'
The five Tortallan men clambered down into the cellar, leaving Kel with Lanith.
'How long do you think he'll be?' she enquired.
'He should be back tomorrow afternoon,' Lanith made the sign against evil. 'Then we'll load you all up and set off the next morning.'
'How did you come to be down here?'
'My husband was injured in the flight from Sekholm. At the time it was life-threatening, but he pulled through. Twas actually a blessing, Maggur only looked for able-bodied men when he finally got to Rokang. We moved on to a town on the river west of Gelfunt. Till one day, into that very town came Alex and his men, most of them in a bad way, after a fight and a long trek through the forest. We recognised him as the man who'd saved Sekholm. We helped him and his friends and he explained... He sent us to Hamrkeng with fat purses to set our family up as fur traders, on the condition that we'd help smuggle things into the city. We've left our daughters in Gelfunt, one married, the other a village healer.' She sighed. 'It is my dearest hope that this can be all over so I can see them again.' Looking at Kel, Lanith returned the question, 'And where did you pick these Tortallans up from?'
'I am actually from Tortall.' Kel explained. 'I had to leave Scanra for a while and have been fighting Maggur in the Tortallan army. Alex needed soldiers and King Jonathan agreed to let me bring some men up here to fight.' Kel wasn't sure why she left out the part about her being a Lady Knight; Lanith would probably find out eventually and it wouldn't be anymore dangerous if she did know her true identity, but it would drive up another wall between the woman that she'd once been quite close to.
'Well you rest now, I feel that time is rushing on. We're close now.' The statement didn't need explanation, Kel could feel it too, the climax of a decade of rebellion, change was in the air.
Kel slept well, enjoying a night uninterrupted by sentry duty. She awoke and lay motionless for awhile. It was still dark in the cellar so she had no way of knowing what time it was. After tense days on the road, with the physical drain and the fear they'd be discovered, she was quite exhausted. Minutes slipped by, Kel too tired to be afraid of discovery.
When the trap door opened, the Tortallans sprung to their feet, swords drawn.
'Well ain't that a fearsome sight,' smiled Lanith. 'I'm just bringing you all some bread. And light.' A ball of her pink mage fire flew to a bracket on the wall. I'm afraid there's no privy down here, but I've charmed that bucket over there not to smell.'
After the meagre rations on the road, the freshly baked bread, served with dried meat and eggs, seemed like a feast worthy of kings. Lanith left them to enjoy, shutting the trap door again. Now they'd made it this far it would be foolish to be careless.
By the pink glow of the mage fire, Kel led her men through stretching routines. Then, individually they ran through various drills to keep themselves limber, one at a time for the space was limited. Kel dozed, drifting in and out of consciousness, feeling safe down in this dark hideaway.
It felt like late afternoon when Kel was perusing memories of her squire days; snatches of moments with Dom and hours spent with Raoul, when she heard voices upstairs. Instantly she sat bolt upright, her heart racing.
A minute or so later, the trapdoor opened and Lanith's husband came down to join them. He embraced Kel and shook hands with the other men excitedly. Despite a heavy limp, Johann was looking in remarkably good shape. Nowadays, she supposed, what really separated the merchants from the peasants was not clothes, but how nourished you were.
There was another meal bought down, this one even heartier than the last and Kel appreciated the couple's efforts to make them comfortable. She could only hope that the rest of her fighters were receiving similar treatment.
After dinner, the plan was reviewed one more time. In the morn, they would set off with the six Tortallans in the cart, disguised as slaves. Johann was an up and coming merchant, whose frequent visits outside the city had made him well known with the guards. For all their sakes, it was hoped that they wouldn't think too deeply about him bringing in six slaves.
Their swords would be bought into the city on another delivery; it was simply too risky to smuggle them in with all the men; if the weapons were discovered it would mean all their deaths.
The next morning, or at least Kel presumed it was; she had rather lost track of the time, the Tortallans went about readying their disguises.
Lanith and Johann had six metal slave collars prepared which Lanith magicked shut. Kel couldn't suppress a shudder as hers tightened around her neck. She still bore the scars, both mental and physical from her days as a slave.
The men pulled on their battered shirts and breeches and removed their swords and daggers. Johann looked troubled and pulled Kel aside.
'The story we've rehearsed is that I've picked you up from slave market at Port Canush.' Kel's face must've looked confused because he continued, 'You wouldn't have such clothes if you've come straight from market.'
'I'm sure I've seen slaves wearing clothes at market,' said Kel, not saying that she'd once been auctioned.
'Not at Canush. Most are newly caught, and the buyers like them in just underthings so they can see what they're buying.'
Kel sighed, accepting the reality of Johann's words. She relayed this information to the others, who reluctantly stripped to their loincloths. Fighting a flush of embarrassment, Kel followed suit, leaving only her loincloth and breast band on. She tried to ignore the eyes roving over her impressive collection of scars. They were horrid reminders of the past, but equally reminded Kel of everything she'd been through, everything she'd survived to get to this point. It gave her a grim hope for the next few days.
Lanith came around the group, creating subtle illusions that would improve their credibility as a group of slaves. She gave each man the appearance of a slave brand on their left arm. When she arrived at Kel, she was waved away; Kel's arm was one step ahead.
They piled their swords and fighting gear together and left any unnecessary packs in another group before saying goodbye to their temporary refuge and clambering onto a rough wooden cart. Johann chained them together by their collars and also manacled Henry and Bert's ankles to the cart.
The husband and wife sat on an elevated seat and rattled the reigns, jarring the horse into motion. Rees, Bert and Henry looked determinedly at the floor, arms wrapped around their knees. Either it was very good acting, or they genuinely felt degraded by the way in which they were travelling. It was dejecting, Kel wondered whether if more nobles could be subjected to this treatment, whether they'd be more interested in trying to stamp out the trade.
Seb on the other hand was gazing warily around at the countryside they travelled through so openly. Kel was going to remind him to be in character, but then she supposed if he was a newly caught slave, he might be gaping in a similar fashion.
The day was mild, but not hot, and the breeze from the brisk movement of their carriage chilled their exposed skin. Kel had wrapped her arms around her torso, trying to preserve both warmth and dignity.
At about midday they stopped to let the shaggy horse drink water and all the humans relieve themselves. It was quickly back on the road though. As they drew closer and closer to the capital, the roads became busier and busier. Peasants, beggars, animal traders, rich men, squads of soldiers and merchants all passed them. At one point Johann had to take the horse and cart off the road altogether to allow a company of red bedecked marching men past. Kel could feel the tension in her men. These were the enemy they'd been fighting for so long, now was the test of who could hold their nerve.
Just as the sun was setting, sinking beneath the horizon in a somehow appropriately blood red sky, the gates of Hamrkeng could be seen. Although she was stiff and sore from the cart ride, it was nothing compared to how she'd last arrived at the city; injured and exhausted from her flight from Somalkt.
They approached the sprawling city, which Kel noted had acquired a slum of sorts outside the outer walls. She could hear the fast breathing of her fellows.
'Steady,' she murmured, her first words for hours.
'Ho there,' Johann called to the guard on the gate, casually, confidently.
'Master Trader,' a red uniformed soldier ducked out of the hut. He frowned slightly at the six apparent slaves in the cart. 'Not your usual cargo?' He raised an eyebrow at the lack of furs and skins.
'Fresh from Canush.' Said Johann happily. 'Man was practically giving them away. I could do with some help in a few of my warehouses.'
'Well if you're thinking of selling, you'd get a good price by the army. Particularly for some of the larger ones.'
'I'll bear it in mind, master guardsman, I'll bear it in mind.' Johann had perfected the gleam in his eye of a man who had a whiff of a bargain.
'Mistress trader,' the guard ducked his head and disappeared back into his hut. The massive steel-enforced gate, ground slowly open.
Kel felt light-headed with relief as the cart made it's bumpy way into the capital city of Scanra. Moving through the city itself was a tense affair. Kel found herself recognising streets and was even surprised to see a new house standing where Vischnauct's had once been burnt to a shell. A shiver ran through her that had very little to do with the cool air; when she thought back to all the narrow escapes she'd had...Kel just had to hope that her luck hadn't run out.
They spent that night in another concealed room, this one in the very attic of a town house that Johann had purchased with money that Alex had given him. Kel was relieved to be dressed in proper clothes once more, but wished that she had Courage nearby. With any luck their swords and fighting gear would be delivered within the next couple of days. Until then, and until they'd had confirmation from Alex that all the pieces were in place, it was a matter of waiting, something Kel hated.
Johann disappeared off again, leaving Lanith in Hamrkeng with the soldiers. It was agreed that Henry and Bert would, as Johann had told the guard, start work in the warehouses, just in case someone decided to come checking. Kel helped Lanith around the house posing as a cook and maid. The other three men remained stashed away and were joined shortly by the other half of Kel's squad who'd been smuggled into Hamrkeng posing as a miller's family.
Kel felt fortunate to be kept busy and even judged it safe enough to go down to the market to shop on Lanith's helped her get a feel for the city, comparing the locations of the guard posts to the maps and diagrams that she held in her mind's eye.
She watched the Scanrans going about daily business, completely ignorant to the Tortallan's stashed in their city, for the uprising that was about to occur. Kel had no idea how many people in the city knew of Alex's plans, and neither did she know the precise identities of the loyal supporters who'd agreed to hide Kel's soldiers in their homes.
Four days after arriving in Scanra, when Kel was washing up the pans they'd used to cook supper, Johann returned, announcing in a tired whisper that their weapons were safely hidden in one of his fur warehouses. Lanith almost cried with relief at the sight of her husband; their part in the scheme was over. They'd delivered both soldiers and weapons safely into the heart of Hamrkeng itself.
Three days after that, a young man with blonde hair and the weight of a country on his shoulders, slipped into the warm, low-ceilinged kitchen.
-a/n- Sorry it's cut off a bit briefly at the end there, but I feel it's better to stop there, than in the midst of some action...
Speaking of action, who's watching the Olympics? Anyone out there as addicted to it as me? What did you think of the opening ceremony? The Queen, James Bond, J K Rowling, Mr Bean and all the other amazing scenes...awesome. I hope the rest of the world enjoyed it as much as we did :) I also hope you enjoyed this chapter -not long to go now!
So much love xxx