Welcome

Ho there, friends! Welcome to A Country Between, a world-hopping fantasy tale.

This is the story of young lady Lunessa and warrior-in-training Rosalynn as they flee their home and find themselves in the Grand City of Midway, the place where all of the realms intersect. In that sprawling mish-mash of a million cultures they will find adventure, love, and betrayal as they forge new lives for themselves in the place where everything is possible.


Begin reading: Here


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Chapter Five: You've Gotta Look Out For Yourself

Lunessa woke to the increasingly familiar sight of Rosalynn's slumbering form. It was probable, Lunessa mused as she watched her raven-headed friend sleep, that she herself was not the best bed-mate. It happened every time. They had started out, quite primly, on opposite ends of the large bed. But sometime during the night, Lunessa had wriggled her way across, and upon waking found herself pressed up against Rosalynn. Her leg was entangled among the other girl's, her arm draped across her ribcage. Lunessa thought to rouse herself, but she feared waking Rosalynn.

Body heat had done the job of the covers in warding off the chill of the night, and thus they had been thrown to the foot of the bed. With the lightest of touches, Lunessa traced a finger around the yellowing edge of the bruise on Rosalynn's ribs. She wondered if it still pained the girl; she didn't complain, but then she hardly complained of anything.

Slowly, by inches, the girl woke. She turned her head to smile sleepily at Lunessa. “Good morning, milady.”

“Good morning, Rosalynn.”

They had been staying with Edenion for four days now, not counting the night spent unconscious after Falling Through. Lunessa supposed that it was nearly time that they made their way back to their home Realm, to face that which they had fled to here from, but Lunessa couldn't work up the enthusiasm. It was all too easy to rely upon Edenion's apparently boundless hospitality. Especially since they had hammered out a deal regarding the jewelry that had gone missing from her dress.

She could tell, however, that Rosalynn was getting impatient. There was a faraway look to her that was growing more and more common, and Lunessa knew just how far away and in which direction, so to speak. If distance and direction actually meant anything when it came to Midway and the Realms. Lunessa was still having trouble grasping how it all worked, and Edenion's lectures on the topic were no help at all.

“Milady, I think...” Rosalynn began as they dressed.

Lunessa felt like she knew where this was heading, and, not particularly wanting to have that conversation right then, deflected. “Rosalynn,” she interrupted, “I really think that all this formality is just too much.”

Rosalynn blinked, her mouth half open. Her jaw worked for a second as she brought herself on to the new path the conversation was taking. “Just...” she said, “just what do you mean, milady?”

“Just what I said,” Lunessa retorted. “There is no need for you to be flinging 'milady this' and 'milady that' at me all the time. I am not even sure that I really count as a lady here.”

“But, Milady...” Rosalynn seemed to flinch even before Lunessa felt herself frown. “...it would hardly be proper. I mean, what else am I to call you?”

“By my name, I should think,” Lunessa said as gently as she could. “Rosalynn, my dear, we have been sharing both a bed and personal space for the best part of a week now. I think propriety has already seen its way out.”

Rosalynn flushed red, but she smiled. “If that is what you wish, Lunessa.” She seemed to savor the name as she said it. Lunessa thought it sounded a little funny, even as it set a little shiver in her core. They returned to dressing without saying anything further – they had grown more accustomed to Midway's fashions, but the clothes still required some concentration to get into – until Rosalynn broke the silence with a deep breath.

“Mi- Lunessa, I really do think...” Rosalynn started again.

“That we should go home?” Lunessa said, and at the same moment: “...that we should go home,” Rosalynn finished.

The raven-headed girl stared at her for a second. “Yes.”

“Oh, Rosalynn, I know you are right,” Lunessa said as she smoothed out the skirt of her soft lavender dress. “But it is so nice here! No one to bother us. No dancing lessons....”

“But, Lunessa, your family...”

“”I know! I know.” Lunessa sighed. “I said you are right. When do you think we should leave?”

“Today would be best, I think.” Rosalynn finished tucking her shirt into her trousers, did up her belt, and regarded Lunessa earnestly.

“Yes, why tarry any further?”

* * *

Downstairs, Edenion stared at them. “Dis is kinda sudden, ain't it?”

“Yes, but we believe we have imposed upon you for long enough, Master Edenion. We would like to return home.”

Edenion set down his coffee, and gave them a long look. When neither backed down, he put up his hands. “Alright, alright. Sure, I'll take yez back ta yer portal.” He stared down at his cup for a moment. “But... yez gonna want supplies and such, right? Yez ain't gonna get too far without some food, at least.”

Lunessa had to concede the point. Edenion gallantly offered to gather things for them. ”Sit yezselves down, have a cup a coffee, and I'll get yez the stuff.”

He was gone for over an hour. In the mean time, Lunessa and Rosalynn laid out their plans. The journey, once they were back in their Realm, should be fairly uneventful. After several days, any pursuit was certain to have died off. Money was still a problem, but Lunessa was confident that she could convince Edenion to assist with that as well. That bracelet with the sapphires had been very very nice, after all. Not that the scraps of bright cloth the Midway populace used for currency would have much value back home, but there was enough gold and silver around to work something out.

Edenion returned with a satchel for each of them, and the problem of money was brought up and indeed resolved quickly. And generously too. Lunessa was surprised at that. She'd expected to have to spend many minutes haggling with the elf. He buzzed about, setting them on their way with almost unseemly haste. Lunessa hadn't thought that they had been such terrible guests as to need ushering out so quickly, but it worked in their favor.

“Alright, the two a yez ready?” Edenion asked, fidgeting impatiently by the front door.

Lunessa glanced at Rosalynn, who was shrugging her satchel in to place. The girl nodded, and so Lunessa turned to Edenion. “We are.”

Edenion led the way through the streets. The omni-present mob was not lessened by it being early in the morning. Or Bright Time, or whatever it was they called it here. Lunessa looked all about her. They had spent all of their four days here making Edenion show them around the city; he had taken them to little cafes and markets and even to a playhouse where they had seen an odd, very philosophical play about a man who couldn't die. And yet Lunessa felt as though she hadn't seen a fraction of what even the Rat Warren had to offer, let alone Midway at large. She realized that in her short time there she'd fallen in love with the city, and now leaving it was heartbreaking.

She turned her head this way and that, trying to take in as many details as she could in her last moments in the city, and was nearly kicked in the head by a young sylph man for her trouble. He flew off, shouting back either a curse or an apology.

And then, without warning, they were there. Edenion waved them into an alley mouth, and he took up a position behind them. “Ta watch yez backs,” he said. “Don't worry. Jus' go dataway.” Lunessa picked her way carefully through the rubbish of the alley, holding her skirt up out of the muck. She saw Rosalynn make a face, and Lunessa didn't blame her in the least. The smell was terrible. Edenion directed them down one turn after another, and Lunessa quickly became totally lost. Without the sun to guide them, it was difficult to even know which direction they were facing. She could only hope that Edenion had some way of keeping 

track.

“Wez here.”

It was a dead end. There was no huge floating, translucent thing here, but perhaps the portals worked differently on this side. She turned to ask Edenion about the matter, then stopped when she saw him standing stock-still, arms raised and eyes closed.

“Look, I'm sorry,” he said, quietly, as if he didn't really intend for them to hear.

“Whatever for?”

“I got a job to do, y'know? Here in Midway, yez gotta look after yezself, see?”

Sweet Dreams.

Lunessa had just enough time to realize what was happening. Her whole body felt like someone had tied lead weights to it, and they drug her to her knees. Drowsiness flowed through her head, blotting out her thoughts. She heard Rosalynn cry out her name as the girl fell to the ground. Gritting her teeth, she held on to consciousness just long enough to snarl at the elf. “You sodding...”

Then she was gone.

* * *

Lunessa was cold. And the ground was hard. For just a second, she wondered why she was sleeping on the ground, and then it came back to her. She felt like a cursed fool for being so thoroughly taken in by the elf. She opened her eyes, and regretted it immediately. Her head throbbed, and she groaned as she rolled and pulled herself up to her hands and knees.

“Rosalynn?” She located the girl a few feet away. Still unconscious, she didn't so much as stir.

Lunessa looked around to see where they were. The room was dimly lit by what little light could squeeze through the bars of a small window high on one wall. The walls and floor were the same rough stone, which was rarely a good sign, she thought. Then she looked toward the other end of the room, and realized two things. They were not alone, and they were naked. Lunessa, pain forgotten in a sudden jolt of fear, scrambled to her feet, covering herself as best she could.

“Rosalynn!” she hissed, trying to inject as much urgency as she could. It seemed to work, because the girl woke and quickly pulled herself to her feet.

“Hey, don't rush yourselves on my account,” the person at the other end of the room said, stepping forward so they could see her better. It was a woman, a little older than the two of them with a dusky face, wearing black leather and a sneer. “Trust me, I'm not going anywhere.”

“Who are you? Where are we?” Lunessa demanded. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rosalynn slowly edging away. Lunessa moved a little bit herself, trying to keep the woman's attention occupied.

“Who I am ain't important,” The woman said, cupping an elbow in her hand. “Neither is where we are. What is important is you know who you belong to. You are both now the property of the Baron, and your purpose in life is to please him. I suggest you get good at it. Quick.” She gestured at Lunessa who stood rigid with shock. “Now c'mere, darlin'. Let's see what kind of product Ed got us this time.”

Lunessa hesitated. Rosalynn slowly, silently crept around behind the woman, and so Lunessa did as she was bade, in order to give Rosalynn her opening. The woman's arm came out like a snake, grabbing Lunessa's chin and turning her head back and forth. The woman made a satisfied sort of humming noise. “Ohh, Ed did good.”

Rosalynn made that her moment to move. She came up behind the woman quickly, reaching her arms around the woman's neck. And then the woman let go of Lunessa's chin, and slammed her elbow back, into Rosalynn's midsection. Then she stepped neatly out of the way as Rosalynn fell to her knees, gasping for air. Lunessa jumped as the woman pulled a knife from somewhere and held it to Rosalynn's throat.

“Not a good idea, sweetheart.”

Lunessa, far too slow, reached out helplessly. “Please don't hurt her!”

The woman hmphed, and put the knife away. “I'll give you that one, but try it again and I'll gut you.” Without warning, the woman grabbed Lunessa's wrist and drug her to the room's only door. “C'mon, darlin'. The Baron'll want to see you right away.”

“Wait, no! Rosalynn!” Lunessa extended a hand toward her friend. The girl, still coughing, reached back toward her.

“Hah, I'll be back for her soon enough, never you fear. Now let's go.”

The door slammed shut behind them.

Chapter Four: The Grand City of Midway

Heat. Body heat, and the softness of another's skin pressed against her. Rosalynn's eyes opened, and she took in a dimly-lit, unfamiliar ceiling. She decided to hold very still until things started making sense.

She was laying on her back in what after a moment's thought she decided must be a bed. This in itself was a new and strange experience. Thus far in her life a cot and a thin blanket had been the upper echelons of luxury. Between the soft mattress and the thick coverlet, Rosalynn wasn't certain she ever bring herself to leave.

But there was something else that held her where she was. A soft weight pinned her left arm in place. Turning her head, her breath caught when she saw Lady Lunessa in the bed next to her. The young lady's arms were wrapped about Rosalynn's, and held it close to her chest like a small girl with a doll. Something very like panic began to rise in Rosalynn, and she started to pull away. But even as she did, Lady Lunessa tightened her grip, and a soft groan of protest slipped between her lips. Rosalynn paused, and then relaxed, letting herself sink back down into the mattress. She looked over at the young lady again, smiling fondly at how wonderfully peaceful she looked. A lock of strawberry hair had fallen across her face, and without really thinking, Rosalynn reached over with her free hand to brush it away.

“Mhmm...” Lady Lunessa murmured at the contact. Her eyes fluttered open. Rosalynn froze. “Rosalynn?”

Rosalynn snapped her hand back to her side hard enough to hurt, and hoped against hope that the searing heat on her face wasn't visible in the faint light of the room.

“Is something the matter?”

Rosalynn sputtered for a moment before she could remember words. “Uh, I, um, no, milady, nothing at all!” She forced her mouth into something that was probably a smile. “Good morning, milady!”

Lady Lunessa arched an eyebrow, but to Rosalynn's eternal gratitude she did not press the subject further. “Good morning,” the young lady yawned, casting her eyes about the room. “Now, if I were to ask why we were in a strange bed in a strange room wearing nothing but our small clothes, would you have an answer for me?”

“I... would not, milady,” Rosalynn said, realizing belatedly that she was in fact undressed. She still had her trousers, but her shirt was missing, leaving only the leather band she wore across her breasts in place to preserve modesty. “The last thing I remember,” Rosalynn mused, her forehead pinching in thought, “is jumping into that... thing in the Spirit Wood.”

“It is the same for me,” Lady Lunessa said. “Oh well, at least the bed is comfortable.” She wriggled under the covers, sighing contentedly and reminding Rosalynn suddenly that the young lady still hadn't let go of her arm.

They laid like that for a few more moments in companionable silence, before Lady Lunessa spoke up again. “Do you suppose that we are dead, and this is Paradise?”

Rosalynn gave thought to the idea. “But wouldn't a bed be a silly thing for Paradise to be?”

“Can you think of anything better right now?”

Rosalynn had to admit that she could not.

A door on the far wall opened, and a blonde head with odd, sharply pointed ears poked through to look at them. Lady Lunessa quickly disentangled herself to sit up in the bed, pulling the coverlet up to her chest. Rosalynn followed her lead a moment later. Once the figure in the doorway saw that they were awake, he – Rosalynn thought the figure was a man, though his features were far more delicate than any man she'd met before – stepped into the room to regard them. He spoke, but the words were alien, and made no sense to Rosalynn.

“I beg your pardon?” Lady Lunessa said. She caught Rosalynn's eye, but all Rosalynn could do was shake her head.

The man spoke again; it sounded like a question this time, but once again the words were so much nonsense to Rosalynn.

“I am sorry, sir, but we can't understand what you are saying,” Lady Lunessa said, speaking slowly.

The man nodded as if he had confirmed something, and held up a single finger. Apparently he was telling them to wait. He closed his eyes for a second, and held his arms up, fingers outstretched toward them. Then he spoke once more, and the words seemed to echo, as if there was more than one person speaking. Rosalynn felt a chill wash through her body, as if a bucket of cold water had been dropped on her.

“What in the Saint's holy names did you just do?” Lady Lunessa asked. It seemed that whatever it was had affected her as well.

“Just a language charm, doll. Nuttin' ta worry about,” the man said, and Rosalynn realized with a start that she'd understood him this time. His accent was strange, but his words were now perfectly clear.

“Now, how yez feelin'?” the man said, “Da two a yez were in pretty bad shape when I dragged yez in here last cycle.”

“I would be faring a great deal better if I knew where my clothes were,” Lady Lunessa said archly, holding the coverlet tight to herself.

“Dem tore up things? Pitched 'em. Weren't even fit for rags. I'm sure I got somethin' around here dat'll fit yez, though.”

“And was it you that removed our 'tore up things'?”

“Dat's right. Heh, I can see what yer thinkin', but don't worry. Nuttin' I ain't never seen before.”

“Really? Do you make a habit of undressing unconscious women?”

“Nah, usually when I undress a girl she's wide awake and tellin' me ta go faster.” The man winked. Out of the corner of her eye, Rosalynn saw Lady Lunessa start to turn an ugly red.

“Excuse me, sir,” Rosalynn said, hoping to turn the conversation before things could really get bad, “but who are you, and where are we?”

“Oh yeah, I'm bein' kinda rude, ain't I? Da name's Edenion L'Kevvious. Call me Ed,” the man said with a ridiculously formal bow. “And dis is my shop, right on da top end of da Rat Warrens.”

“The... Rat Warrens?”

“Ah, yeah, yez are a couple a New Falls, ain'tcha?” The man, Edenion, put his hand to his forehead. “Look, dis is gonna take a while. Why don't you get yezelves cleaned up, I'll bring yez some clothes, then wez can talk like a bunch a civilized hominids, yeah?”

He departed, and somehow Rosalynn and Lady Lunessa managed to drag themselves from the bed. They shared a long glance, and Rosalynn saw that Lady Lunessa was nearly as lost as she was. Edenion returned with a basin of water, and then he was gone again, to come back with an armload of cloth. He laid out a selection of clothes in unfamiliar styles on the bed.

“Help yezelves,” he said with a wave.

Rosalynn grabbed a piece of clothing and held it up for for inspection. It was a pair of trousers made of some soft material, but far too short, ending well above where her knee would lay. Lady Lunessa picked up something else, like half a shirt with laces up the bottom, and peered at it with her head pitched to the side. Then, with a shrug, she set the bit of cloth down and turned to Rosalynn.

“Rosalynn, could I get you to help me?” She seemed embarrassed as she gestured at her side. “It... still hurts.” Rosalynn frowned with remembered guilt, even as she hastened to help the young lady. They managed to peel the thin shift off of her. The pained expression on Lady Lunessa's face and the livid red line on her pale flesh were like twin shots to Rosalynn's gut.

Rosalynn also helped to wipe the blood and grime from Lady Lunessa using a soft cloth and water from the basin. She put a lot of effort into trying to keep her hand steady as she worked. Lady Lunessa offered to return the favor, but Rosalynn wasn't at all sure she could deal with that, so she demurred. Then, freshly scrubbed, they turned to the problem of getting dressed.

It took some time, but they managed to puzzle out the strange clothes. Lady Lunessa quickly divined the purpose of the half-a-shirt, and directed Rosalynn to hold still while she put it on her and did up the lacings. The cloth touched her in unfamiliar places, but she had to admit that over all it was quite comfortable. It was all fairly easy from there, and, sticking to what she knew as much as was possible, Rosalynn slipped into a pair of dark colored trousers and a white shirt that buttoned up in front.

Lady Lunessa, after a fair amount of dithering, eventually picked out a pale pink dress with white frills on the skirt and sleeves, and Rosalynn aided her in getting it on. It fit her quite well, and she looked beautiful in it.

“Why, thank you Rosalynn,” Lady Lunessa said, and Rosalynn cringed as she realized she'd spoken aloud. “You look very nice as well.”

“Ah, th-thank you, milady,” Rosalynn said, and then managed to keep her mouth shut for the rest of the time it took them to dress.

* * *

Out of the door and down a flight of stairs, they found Edenion again in his parlor. He bade them each to take one of the large chairs that dotted the room, and offered them a drink that he called 'coffee'. Lady Lunessa graciously accepted, and Rosalynn followed, though she had no idea what to expect. The drink smelled pleasant enough, but the brown liquid didn't look particularly appetizing. This impression was borne up when she actually tasted the hot, bitter drink. Rosalynn watched Lady Lunessa sample the drink, saw her very carefully not make a face, and then watched her discreetly set her cup aside. For her own part, Rosalynn continued to take sips, and thought that this 'coffee' might grow on her.

Once he saw that they were comfortable, Edenion began to explain where exactly they were. It seemed that the place they had come from, the place they'd lived their lives, was called a 'realm', and they'd 'fallen' through a 'portal' into a place called 'Midway'. She did remember a sensation of falling – or maybe floating – when they'd stepped into that thing in the Spirit Wood.

“Da portals, dere like weak spots in reality, see? So when ya fall through 'em you end up at da point a least resistance, which is Midway, right?” All of which meant nothing to Rosalynn.

“So,” Lady Lunessa spoke up after a moment's thought, “how many people are there here in Midway? Do they all come from these different realms?”

“Oh, dere's lots a people here. I don't think anybody knows how many. Most o' dem come from da Realms, yeah,” Edenion said, leaning over the back of a chair. “Usually people runnin' away from somethin', like da two a yez.”

Lady Lunessa sat up straighter in her chair, and Rosalynn tensed slightly. “And what would make you think that we were running from anything?”

“Oh, nuttin'. I'm sure da tore up clothes and all da blood was cuz da two a yez were enjoying your picnic too much, yeah?”

Lady Lunessa flushed, and took a large swig of her coffee to cover her embarrassment. This time she did make a face as she nearly choked on it, coughing frantically. Rosalynn half rose from her chair before Lady Lunessa waved her back down. “Go on,” she muttered, glaring up at the man.

“Ain't much more ta say, doll.” The man was grinning widely at the spectacle that Lady Lunessa was making of herself. “Midway's a pretty facinatin' place, but I don't think da two a yez wanna hear da whole history. It's a long one.”

A question tugged at Rosalynn's mind. “Can we go home?”

Edenion regarded her, and his grin grew a little friendlier, tinged with something she couldn't quite place. “Of course, doll,” he said. “Yez just gotta go back through da portal you fell in from. I can take yez dere if you want.”

“I think,” Lady Lunessa interrupted, “that we should discuss the matter first. Master Edenion, if you would leave us for a moment?”

“Sure, sure. I gots work ta do anyway. Come find me if yez need anythin'.”

“Milady?” Rosalynn said, after the man had gone.

“Rosalynn, do you truly want to return right now?” Lady Lunessa had relaxed her posture, and stared off into a corner of the room as she spoke.

“Well, of course, milady,” Rosalynn replied. “What else is there to do?”

“Think about it, Rosalynn. We're in a place where no one can bother us. Not even my thrice-cursed brother.” Lady Lunessa smiled for a moment, then it faded like a snuffed candle. “At least I hope not,” she added, with a faint frown. “In any event, we should take advantage of it while we have the chance.”

For the second time in as many days, Rosalynn had the feeling that this wasn't going to go as well as Lady Lunessa envisioned. But there was little purpose in arguing. The only thing to do was go along and try to keep matters from going too poorly. Because that had worked so well the previous time. Rosalynn sighed, setting down her cup to bury her face in her hands, a touch depressed.

She didn't rouse herself until she felt Lady Lunessa's hands on her shoulders. “Rosalynn, come on,” the young lady said, tugging at Rosalynn. “We will have to go back soon enough. For now, let us have some fun.”

Rosalynn allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. “As you wish, milady.”

* * *

It didn't take long for them to find Edenion again. It turned out that the front room of the house was dedicated to small shop that sold a random assortment of odds and ends. It didn't seem to be the most popular place, since it was empty aside from the three of them. As Rosalynn wandered through the shelves and display cases, looking over the wares, Lady Lunessa struck up a muted conversation with Edenion. Rosalynn, caught up in her inspection could only make out a handful of words. Jewelry... Dress... Foot...

Before long, Lady Lunessa came to collect Rosalynn. “Master Edenion has graciously offered to show us around town,” she said, and took Rosalynn's arm. “Shall we?”

Rosalynn was gently but inevitably steered out of the shop. Edenion led the way, and as he opened the front door, he gestured grandly out at the scene that laid outside. A city street under a gray sky. He was forced to raise his voice to be heard over the crowd as he told them, “Welcome, ta Midway!”

Rosalynn boggled. So many people! The crowd filled the street from one edge to the other, like water filled a river bed. All of the people she had met in her life could disappear into that river without a ripple.

And then slowly, almost unwillingly, details began to filter through to her. Some of the people were far larger than any human she'd ever seen. Some were far smaller. Some were stockier, some more slender, and some flew above the heads of all the others. Her eyes traced the movements of a great hulking thing. It towered over a foot above the next tallest members of the crowd, and it walked hunched forward on its knuckles. It must have felt her eyes upon it, for it turned to regard her curiously. It's face was just human enough, between the over-large ears and the granite complexion, to seem all the more alien. Rosalynn, realizing that she was staring, blushed and averted her eyes.

“Will da two a yez close yer traps? Yer drawin' flys.”

Rosalynn did so with a click, which was echoed to her left. She looked over at Lady Lunessa, who just shook her head.

Edenion looked up at them impatiently, arms folded. His attention focused on them, he was nearly trampled over by a huge figure. “One side, elf,” the figure said, glaring down at him. Its expression shifted to wary surprise when steel appeared in Edenion's hand. “Watch yezself, ogre,” Edenion said. “Plenty a room ta go around.”

The – ogre? Rosalynn guessed from Edenion's use of the word – proceeded to do just that, with a snarl to preserve its dignity. “Damn big bastards, think dey own the damn streets,” Edenion grumbled. “Heh, have I got news for dem.” The knife disappeared again, just as suddenly as it had arrived. Rosalynn would have really liked to know where he kept it. “The two a yez wanna hurry up? Wez burnin' bright time.”

They followed him out into the street. Lady Lunessa kept a tight grip on Rosalynn's arm, and they followed closely behind Edenion, so as not to lose him in the swirl of bodies. “What was that he called you?” Lady Lunessa asked him as they traveled. “An... 'elf'?”

“Yeah, ya gots pointy ears, dey call yez an elf. Big and fat: yez an ogre. Little, with bug wings: yez a sylph. Maybe a pixie, dependin' on how little wez talkin'. Everybody's gotta have a label. Just how people work, I guess,” Edenion said.

“Then what would we be?” Rosalynn asked, curious.

“Humans. Normals. Dere's a lot of yez types around, so yer what everybody else gets compared to.” Rosalynn wondered if she was imagining the touch of irritation in Edenion's voice.

They didn't speak much more as they walked. For their parts, Rosalynn and Lady Lunessa were too busy trying to see everything they could. Rosalynn craned her neck this way and that, looking at buildings and people and what seemed to be hundreds of little market stalls. Lady Lunessa, on the other hand, was a touch more restrained, but her eyes darted back and forth just as much as Rosalynn's.

The buildings were what Rosalynn marveled at the most. Each and every one was built in a different style, and with wildly varied materials, from it's neighbor. Sloped roofs hunched up against box-like constructs and domes and more than a couple of large, colorful tents. There was no order to it. It seemed as though a person was just given a plot of land and left to do whatever they wished. The effect was a little eye-watering, but Rosalynn found that she liked the free-spiritedness of it. She wondered how one went about acquiring a bit of land here.

Occasionally Edenion would point out a building or a statue, and explain it's historical significance. He rattled off a number of names and dates which Rosalynn forgot nearly the moment he said them, but she got the gist of things. The area they were in was called the Rat Warren, and as the name would suggest, it was one of the poorer cantons. “Though don't yez be thinkin' dat it don't have a lot a cultural depth,” he admonished, though neither of them had suggested that might be the case. The cantons, he explained further, after a little prompting, were the dozen or so different districts of Midway, each like a city unto itself. Each canton had its own culture, its own mindset, and its own way of doing things.

“It seems a very strange way of governing a territory,” Lady Lunessa remarked.

Edenion shrugged. “It works,” he said. “People in Midway, wez not da type dat likes bein' told what to do, see? So, everybody does their own thing, looks after demselves, and everybody's happy.”

That seemed to be all he wanted to say on that matter. He talked for a little while about how Midway was laid out, but aside from Founder's Square being in the city's center, and Rat Warren being not far from there, it all went quite over Rosalynn's head. She doubted it would be important anyway.

He led them to a small open air market, and they browsed among the stalls. Each one sold a different assortment of items: clothes and trinkets, produce and fresh baked goods. They found one selling weapons, and Rosalynn stared longingly at the blades on display for a moment before she was whisked by. Another had dresses for sale, and Lady Lunessa ran her hand over a couple with a wistful sigh as they passed it. At some point they lost track of Edenion, but Lady Lunessa said not to fret. He would likely find them again soon. Rosalynn certainly hoped so, for she was quite sure she would never be able to retrace their steps without help.

As they continued their circuit of the market, they came across brilliant blue tent with a sign hawking ale and wine, and a number of other beverages which Rosalynn didn't recognize, but could hazard a guess as to their content. The place seemed to be popular, judging from the crowd milling about, outside it as well as within. Lady Lunessa, distracted by their conversation, stumbled in the path of one patron and the two collided solidly.

“'Ere now, why don'tcha watch where yer goin'?” the other party slurred. He towered over them. Even Rosalynn, who was used to being able to look most men in the eye, had to look up, and then further up at him. His complexion and build were much like the man who'd accosted Edenion earlier. Rosalynn supposed that this one was an ogre, too.

“I am terribly sorry, sir,” Lady Lunessa said, retreating a step so as not to have to lean backward to look at him. He took a step forward to follow her, and his expression changed from a surly scowl to a broad grin. Which was far more terrifying. “I was talking with my friend here,” she went on, taking another step back, which was again matched, “and did not see you. I do apologize.” The ogre glanced at Rosalynn for a fraction of a second, but dismissed her almost instantly to return his attention to Lady Lunessa.

“Oh, that's okay, dollface.” The ogre reached out, and put a hand on Lady Lunessa's arm. “Now wot's a pretty little thing like you doin' all alone in a place like this?”

Rosalynn snarled, and moved without thinking. She stepped between the ogre and Lady Lunessa, and slapped the hand away. “Don't touch her.”

The ogre regarded her with amazement, and it was at this point that she actually considered what she was doing. The ogre stood head, shoulders, and most of an arm above her, and likely weighed more than three of her put together. But there was no chance of backing away now.

“Outta the way, scarecrow,” the ogre growled, and shoved her aside. She tried to stand her ground, but with was like trying to stand in the face of a rolling boulder. She stumbled a handful of steps, and then spun, bringing her hands up in the process. She wasn't sure that, given the monstrous man's bulk, that he would even feel one of her punches, but she had to try. Then, without looking away from the ogre, Lady Lunessa stopped her with a gesture.

“Oh, sir, I am not alone. My fiance is in fact close by,” she said, pointing off across the crowd. Rosalynn followed her finger, and saw that Edenion was standing not far away, engaged in conversation with a couple of men. She tried to signal him over, but he didn't seem to notice her.

“Wot, the elf? Hah! Bring him over 'ere, I'll kick his arse and show you what a real man is all about,” the ogre said, thumping his chest.

“Oh, no sir. I know that he is nowhere as much of a man as you are, and you would in fact leave nothing of him but a bloody smear on the pavement. But I do love him terribly,” Lady Lunessa said, clasping her hands together, “so I must beg that you be as merciful as you are... handsome.”

The ogre scratched at the back of his head, and his grin grew even wider, showing off a great number of crooked yellow teeth. “Haha, if you want, doll. But if you ever get tired o' that pansy, you can find me right 'ere.”

“Surely,” she said. The ogre turned to head back in to the tent, and Lady Lunessa wasted no time in gathering Rosalynn up and marching her toward Edenion.

“Thank you, Rosalynn.”

“For what, milady?”

“For protecting me.” Lady Lunessa smiled at her. Rosalynn beamed back.

As they approached, the men Edenion had been talking to melted into the shadows. As he turned to face them, Rosalynn noticed something pinched about his expression, and he shifted his weight back and forth nervously.

“Is something the matter?” Lady Lunessa asked. Edenion looked like he wanted to curse.

“Ah, nah,” he said, smoothing his face. “Just some bad business. Look, wez should be headin' back. Cycle's almost up.”

“Lead the way,” Lady Lunessa said.

Chapter Three: Away

Lunessa had never been terribly comfortable in the library, her father's sanctum, but she couldn't recall the air in that little room ever being quite so fraught with tension. Lord Deheubein hadn't looked up from his tome since he had bade her to enter. His words had been clipped, and she tried to remember the last time she had seen him so obviously angry. The emotion seemed alien coming from him.

They had reached the castle shortly after the sun had come to rest on the horizon, and Lunessa had been swiftly force-marched up to the library and instructed to wait on Lord Deheubein's pleasure. However long that took. Two of the guards from their party waited stiffly at attention by the door.

Lunessa was conflicted; she certainly was in no hurry to begin the inevitable confrontation with her father. She had known that he would be upset that she had snuck out of the castle, but this went far beyond what she had anticipated. But whatever punishment Lunessa faced was the least of the concerns that filled her mind. Rosalynn was down in the dungeon, and that was completely unfair. Rosalynn hadn't done anything wrong! Lunessa wasn't really sure she herself had done anything wrong, either, despite the way everyone was acting. But all Rosalynn had done was gone along with Lunessa's plan. She didn't deserve punishment.

“Um... Father, I–“ Lunessa began, taking the plunge. Lord Deheubein's gaze snapped up, and at the fury on his face Lunessa's words died in her throat.

“Lunessa, do you have any idea...!” Lord Deheubein shouted. Lunessa shrank away. Her father had never shouted at her before. He stopped, shook his head, and with visible effort brought himself under control. “Do you have any idea what kind of danger you put yourself in?”

“I...” But Lord Deheubein was in no mood to let her answer for herself.

“What if you had gotten lost? What if you had been attacked? By wolves, or worse! Never mind that a young lady such as yourself would make all too tempting a target for ransom! Did you think of that? Did you?”

“No, father,” Lunessa said, eyes downcast. “I did not.”

“Hah, clearly!”

“But,” she managed, licking her lips, “I had Rosalynn with me, surely she could protect me from any of that!”

“Some mere squire, and a slip of a girl at that...!” Lord Deheubein paused, and something about his expression chilled Lunessa to her core.

“That's it, isn't it? That thrice cursed peasant girl is at the root of all of this, isn't she?”

“Father, no!” Lunessa cried. The path of her father's reasoning unrolled itself before her, and the place it led was terrible indeed. “It was all my fault! Not hers!”

Lord Deheubein wasn't listening. “I never should have brought that girl into my castle. Well, an easy mistake to fix. We'll pack her back off to her village at first light.”

“No,” Lunessa whispered. Everything was going wrong.

“She is too young yet to be married, but a long betrothal never hurt anyone. We can afford to put up a small dowry, so I'm sure some man in the village can be persuaded to take her and keep her out of trouble.” And away from you, he didn't say, but he hardly needed to. There was an air of finality to his words; Lunessa could tell that in his mind, the matter was decided.

“Father, you can't!” she said anyway. “Rosalynn didn't do anything wrong! You can't send her away!” On the verge of tears, she forced herself to remain as composed as she could. Rosalynn needed her.

“You are in no position to tell me what I can or cannot do, Lunessa.” Lord Deheubein said, a trace of heat returning to his voice. “You will remain in your rooms until further notice.”

Lunessa trembled with impotent anger. “ You are so unfair! I hate you!” she screamed as loudly as she could. She took some petty satisfaction at the way her father's eyes widened in shock.

He did not relent, though. He gestured at the guards that waited by the door. “Take her to her rooms.”

* * *

Lunessa passed the hours miserably. The guards remained outside her door, and gently but firmly enforced her father's edict. Wracking her mind, she searched for some avenue of escape, some means of setting things right, but nothing presented itself. She felt terribly alone, as if the entirety of the world had set itself against her and Rosalynn. She wondered if they'd let her see the girl again before they took her away. Likely not.

Outside, the sun crept down below the horizon, and the sky gave over to night. Lunessa watched distantly through a narrow window – hardly more than a slit in the wall – as the moon climbed through the air.

Earlier, a maidservant had been allowed in to help her change out of the now ruined and bloodstained green dress, and to change her bandages as well. The cut hadn't been deep, and it had already mostly stopped bleeding, but it had hurt like anything when she was changing. It had taken a good deal of help from the maid to struggle into the simple linen shift she now wore. The maid had hardly said a word during this entire process, and when Lunessa attempted to provoke conversation, the girl had told her that she was under orders to do her work and leave as quickly as possible.

This was confirmed later when another servant brought up her evening meal. Lunessa chastised herself for not knowing the name of this one either. She knew the senior staff well enough. Most of them had been around the castle since before she was born. But the rest all seemed to come and go with the wind. It didn't help that all of them seemed either too terrified of her position or too exasperated at having to chase her down to speak more than a handful of words to her at a time.

All of which was a shame, since perhaps if she'd known this girl's name it would have helped the poor thing to relax a little. Or perhaps not, since when Lunessa had asked for it the girl had just stared at her with a certain pleading air. And so Lunessa had backed down, feeling slightly ashamed of herself and not quite sure why. The girl had been told to wait until Lunessa had finished, and had stood stiffly against the wall as Lunessa ate, desperately avoiding eye contact. Out of mercy, Lunessa had eaten as quickly as she could, and as much as she could stomach. She hardly tasted the food, and could scarcely even recall what it had been.

As the maid hastily collected the dishes in order to make her retreat, Lunessa had tried once more to speak to her, inquiring after Rosalynn. The maid pretended not to hear, and nearly ran out of the door. Lunessa sighed, though in truth she wasn't sure what she had hoped to gain by asking.

As the hours dragged on, and there were no further visitors to her chamber, Lunessa began to toy with the idea of sleep. She was in no hurry to see the dawn, but exhaustion was beginning to weigh down her limbs, and she could see nothing else she could do. Just as she rose from her perch near the window to douse the lights, her door opened.

Lunessa stared at the vision that stepped through the doorway and carefully closed the portal behind her. It was her cousin Mabyn. It could be no other. For one thing, no other woman in the castle would wear a dress with a neckline that low. (Oh cousin, it is all the fashion in the capital, she would say, as if that meant anything when they were hundreds of miles from both the capital and its fashions.) So the purpose of the hooded cloak, pulled well forward in order to hide her face, was inscrutable.

“Cousin,” Mabyn said, pulling the hood back, “how are you?”

“I am surprised you need to ask, Mabyn,” Lunessa hardly even tried to keep the bitterness from her voice. “Didn't you hear what has happened? What is going to happen?”

“I've heard bits and pieces. Rosalynn's down in the dungeon, but the guards are saying she won't be there for long. I couldn't find out any more than that, though.” Mabyn's face was nearly the same picture of misery that Lunessa imagined her own to be. “I'm so sorry, cousin!” Mabyn threw her arms around Lunessa, buried her head in Lunessa's shoulder. Lunessa, absently noting the irony, patted her cousin comfortingly. “If I hadn't helped you, if I hadn't gotten you out of the castle, none of this would have happened!”

“It is not your fault, dear cousin,” Lunessa murmured. “I did not know father would react this way, either. I only wish that poor Rosalynn wasn't caught up in the middle.”

Mabyn took a deep breath and looked Lunessa in the eye. “So? What will you do?”

“What will I do?” Lunessa raised an eyebrow. “What is there for me to do but wait? I can not even leave this room!”

“And if you could, what would you do then?”

“Well, I suppose I would try to get to Rosalynn and free her. I can not let her be punished like this, not when I am the one at fault. But it matters not, the guards will not disobey my...” she trailed off as Mabyn began to undo the laces of her bodice. “Um,” she said intelligently.

“We're about the same size,” Mabyn said by way of explanation. Lunessa was going to need more than that, however, and the blank look on her face must have said as much. “It is late,” Mabyn said patiently, “and the guards are half-asleep. A girl wearing a red dress and a cloak entered the room...”

“...And a girl wearing a red dress and a cloak will leave it,” Lunessa finished the thought, the twin mysteries of the shawl and what in the world Mabyn was doing unraveling together. “Oh, dearest cousin, what would I do without you?”

“I'm sure I don't know,” Mabyn replied from within a cavern of red velvet as she worked at extricating herself from the dress, “but for this instant, would you help me with this?”

Together they managed to pull the dress off of Mabyn, and, with rather more effort, get Lunessa in to it. Mabyn had been right; they were about the same size. The dress was a touch too tight in certain places, a trifle loose in others, but it was not uncomfortable. The draft over the tops of her breasts and the fact she was showing off rather more decolletage now than she had in her entire life put together did discomfit her somewhat, though. She tried to arrange matters to provide a touch of modesty, but it was a losing battle.

Mabyn eyed her critically. “I think you'll pass, as long as they don't get a good look at your face.” Clad only in her small clothes, she stepped forward and hugged Lunessa again. “Promise me you'll come back,” she whispered.

“I will,” Lunessa said. “As soon as I have gotten Rosalynn away, and I know she will be safe, I will return. I know what my duty is.” Mabyn slowly, unwillingly, ended the embrace. Lunessa looked her in the face, saw the tears start to well up in her cousin's eyes, and knew she had to be away before emotion overtook her as well.

After a moment's consideration, she grabbed a few small items of jewelry from her dresser and tucked them into the only hiding place she had readily available. She offered up a brief prayer to the Saints that the pins would not prick her too badly. She felt a little guilty at this act of theft, but Rosalynn would need money to make a life for herself outside, and Lunessa did not have a lot of coinage laying around.

In the mean time, Mabyn had tucked herself in to Lunessa's bed, just to add another layer to the deception if someone checked the room. Steeling herself, Lunessa pulled forward the hood of the cloak in order to make sure that her face was hidden, and opened the door gently.

One of the guards outside perked up as she stepped out. The other was clearly asleep on his feet.

“You were in there quite a while, Lady Mabyn,” the guard said. Lunessa risked a peek out from under the hood. He was a slender young man with shaggy brown hair and quite delicate facial features. He looked more like a poet than a soldier, despite the livery. He seemed somehow familiar, but Lunessa didn't have enough attention left to puzzle out why. “Is Lady Lunessa well?”

Lunessa cursed inwardly. Somehow she hadn't anticipated actually having to talk to anyone. Still, she spent more time around Mabyn than anyone else, mimicking her voice should be easy. Just drop the pitch down a little, and...

“Um, she's very upset, yes. Went to bed early. Cried herself to sleep, the poor dear,” Lunessa said. There, perfect. Mabyn's own mother couldn't have told the difference.

“You don't sound very good, Lady Mabyn,” the guard said, his face scrunching up with concern. “Is something the matter?”

“I– uh,” Lunessa managed. Curse you and your blasted curiousity! Just shut up! she thought. “I suppose I am just a little overcome myself. It is– it's just so terrible, what my dear cousin is going through.”

“I don't think it's all that terrible. I mean, she pretty much brought it all on herself, right?” Lunessa's head snapped up to glare at the young man, before she remembered she was supposed to hide her face and fixed her gaze on the floor. Just who gave the guards permission to talk back to nobility, anyway? “Now who I feel bad for is Rosalynn,” the guard went on blithely. “Locked up like that. It's not like she can do anything about Lady Lunessa dragging her all around, right? Oh, no offense to your cousin, Lady Mabyn.”

“Of course,” Lunessa muttered. She felt a stab of guilt. She didn't really drag Rosalynn around, did she? Well, maybe she did, but Rosalynn had wanted to go along, hadn't she? Lunessa shoved those thoughts aside for the time being. There were better times for introspection.

“So,” the guard said suddenly, and Lunessa noted with some alarm the change in his tone. “My relief will be coming soon. How's about we meet at the usual spot, and I'll do that thing with my fingers that you liked so much last time?” Lunessa didn't need to look up to know that the guard was leering at her. She could practically feel it through the cloak.

Lunessa stared at the ground in equal parts shock and righteous anger. Why he seemed familiar was suddenly clear. She'd heard this young man described before. He was Jakob, one of Mabyn's many conquests. She tried to come up with some reasonable way to excuse herself, but she realized she really had no idea how to act in this kind of situation. Cousin, with the Saints as my witness, if your slatternly ways have ruined this for me I will strangle you myself!

“I, um, really can't,” she stammered out. “I, um, have other things I must attend to.”

“Ah,” Jakob said knowingly, “you've already made arrangements with someone else. I see. I'll just wait my turn, then.” He seemed strangely cheerful about the matter.

“Yes, well, you see how it is,” Lunessa said quickly. She resolved to have words with Mabyn about propriety. Which in terms of futility was like admonishing an oak tree to stop being so tall. “Good night, Jakob.” She turned and walked down the hallway with just slightly more speed than might have been necessary.

“Good night, Lady Mabyn,” the young man called after her. 

“Hmm,” he went on, apparently speaking to himself now, “Didn't Lady Mabyn have a mole...?”

Lunessa picked up her pace.

* * *

The Saints were smiling on her: the guard on duty in the dungeons was also asleep at his post. This was not particularly surprising – Lunessa couldn't recall the last time the dungeons been used, and was mildly amazed that they'd bothered to post a guard at all – but she chose to take it as a good omen anyway.

As she crept down the steps, she heard voices. And she realized with some genuine surprise that there was more than one prisoner down in the cells.

“I'm just saying, it's hardly fair, is it?”

“Mhm.”

“I mean, takin' bribes? Okay, fine. But when it's one of the lord's 

brats givin' it to you, is that really a bribe? Seems more like... like a bonus! Right?”

“Mhm.”

“Yeah, I was just getting a little bonus pay. Not something to shove me into a cell over, is it?”

“I'm sorry sir, but could you please be quiet? I just want to sleep.”

Lunessa moved carefully past the table where the guard napped. Her slippered feet were all but silent on the rough stone floor.

“Eh, I dunno if I'd be so eager to see the dawn if I was you. My mate told me that his lordship is right skivvy with you.”

“Mhm,” Rosalynn's voice sounded like despair itself. Lunessa's chest tightened at hearing it.

“Hah, not that it's your fault. That little girl leads you 'round by the nose, don't she? Kinda reminds me o' me wife, actually....” The voice broke off for a moment. Lunessa made her way down the row of cells. “But what're you gonna do when his lordship's brat tells you she wants something, right? Tell her no? Eheh, she done you one right up the nethers with this, didn't she?”

“If you are going to be like that,” Lunessa said airily as she approached the cells that contained the two, “'his lordship's brat' is going to leave you there to rot.”

“Eh?” Morcant's face appeared between the bars of the little window in the cell door. As his eyes fixed on her, she was suddenly grateful that she was holding the cloak closed around her. Dealing with the weaselly man was unpleasant enough without giving him a show, too. “Ah, uh, beggin' your pardon, your ladyship. Ehe, didn't know you was listening.”

Before Lunessa could respond to that, Rosalynn spoke. “Milady? What on earth... I mean, what brings you down here at this hour?”

“Oh, you know, just came to visit, see how you were doing. Are you comfortable?” Lunessa said, and then felt guilty about it. Fatigue, worry, and fear of being caught had left her dangerously short on patience, but there was no need to be sarcastic at Rosalynn. “I am here to rescue you, Rosalynn.”

There was a long pause as this statement was digested. “I... don't think that's a very good idea, milady,” Rosalynn said finally. She spoke carefully, picking her words almost as if her life hung in the balance. For some reason, that irritated Lunessa all the more.

“Why not?”

“Well, aren't we in enough trouble? Do you think it's wise to do something that will make Lord Deheubein even more angry?”

“She's got a point there, miss,” Morcant put in. “I ain't ever seen his lordship so pi– upset.”

“Shut up,” Lunessa told him. “Rosalynn, you don't understand. He's going to send you away! He even said that he would marry you off to some man in the village!”

“Ehe, is that all? Could be worse,” said Morcant.

“Shut up!” Lunessa snarled. She could feel her already tenuous grip on her temper slipping by the second. “So you see, Rosalynn,” she said, “I must get you out of here. I won't let you be punished for something I asked of you. If I get you far enough away it won't be worth it to my father to track you down.” She tried to smile. “Maybe even to the capital! Then you could come visit me, after....” She stopped, not particularly wanting to finish that thought.

There was no response from Rosalynn's cell. Lunessa waited for a dozen heartbeats, but Rosalynn remained silent. “Rosalynn, please.”

“I don't know...” Rosalynn's voice trailed off as if someone had dropped a wall between them.

“What? What do you mean you don't know?” Lunessa said, disbelieving.

“I don't know if I can protect you, milady,” Rosalynn said in a hushed voice. Lunessa thought she'd never sounded so vulnerable. “I don't know if I can keep you safe.”

“What are you talking about, of course you–”

“You got hurt.” Rosalynn's voice was still soft, but somehow her words cut right through Lunessa's.

Lunessa sighed. “It was just a scratch, really. It's nothing to get so worked up about. And besides, no one could expect you to fight against my brother anyway.”

“But–”

“Rosalynn, we can talk about this later. Right now I have to get you out before we are discovered! Or do you want to be sent away? Do you want to never see me again?”

There was a sharp gasp from Rosalynn's cell, and Morcant mumbled something to himself. But he didn't actually speak aloud, so she let it be. “Very well, milady,” Rosalynn said eventually. Lunessa nearly collapsed from relief. “I'm coming out.”

The cell doors weren't locked. There wasn't much point, in truth. Where could they go? Even the guard at the table was just there as a formality, and to make sure they got fed. Rosalynn's cell door opened with a rusty creak that echoed in the narrow stone corridor. Lunessa flinched at the noise, glancing over her shoulder and praying the guard slept deeply enough that the sound wouldn't rouse him. When no demands to know what was going on echoed down the stone corridor, Lunessa breathed out.

Rosalynn came out into the torchlight. Her clothes and face were smeared with dirt, but otherwise she seemed to be no worse for wear. Lunessa took a firm hold of her friend's hand, then addressed the man in the other cell. “What about you, sir?”

“I think I'll stay right here, if it pleases your ladyship. I'm getting a wee bit too old to go gallivanting about. And me wife'd kill me if I lost this job. They'll leave me down here a day or two to think about what I've done, then I'll be back on duty neat as you please. But,” Morcant grinned conspiratorially, “I'll tell you what: I didn't hear or see nothing tonight. 'Slept the whole way through, did I, milord! Dunno where Miss Rosalynn went.'”

“Thank you, sir,” Lunessa said. “I wish I had some way to repay you.”

“Just make sure you both come out of this hale and whole. It'd be a real shame to see a couple kids like you get hurt over something stupid.”

* * *

After they said their goodbyes to Morcant, Lunessa pulled Rosalynn past the guard, and up the dungeon stairs. She was gripped with the fear that if she didn't keep hold of the girl at all times, Rosalynn would balk again, and Lunessa wasn't sure if she could deal with that.

The dungeons laid underneath the northwestern tower, and thus mercifully close to both the western gate and the stables. Lunessa explained her plan, to take a horse and make for the King's Highway in the west, and from there the capital. She'd made the trip a few times with her father, and she could mostly remember the way. Rosalynn said nothing as Lunessa told her all of this. She didn't argue; she just looked at Lunessa in a way that made Lunessa hurt. She wanted so much to just take the girl in to her arms and give her the comfort she so sorely needed, but there was no time.

They scurried through the night and the empty hallways. The castle seemed almost deserted at this late hour. There was one close call, when Rosalynn pulled them both into a cross passage just ahead of being spotted by a lantern bearing squire meandering through his patrol. Lunessa squeezed Rosalynn's hand in gratitude, and was rewarded by something that came very near to a smile.

The stables themselves were a giant mess of shadows. Slumbering horses were amorphous masses in the gloom. Lunessa grabbed the lantern that hung near the entrance, but she didn't dare light it. Thankfully though, the moonlight spilling through the doors was enough to navigate by, mostly. She stepped right past Whitewater, Roliff's horse, who was in the stall closest to the entrance. He was identifiable by his size if nothing else, the largest horse in the stable by far. He was fast and strong, but, much like his owner, he was unpredictable, and a complete and utter bastard. Besides, despite Lunessa's general rule of antagonizing her brother whenever and however possible, she felt that stealing his horse would be perhaps a step too far.

“This way, milady,” Rosalynn said. Lunessa started; these were the first words Rosalynn had spoken since they'd left the dungeons. She let the girl lead the way to one particular stall nearly at the back. 

“Moonbeam isn't the fastest horse, but she's good and gentle.”

Rosalynn gave the mare a pat on the nose, and the animal woke with a snort. Lunessa could see the silhouette of Moonbeam raise it's head, and she imagined that the mare was eyeing Rosalynn curiously, wondering why she had been awakened and if it was time to eat yet. Rosalynn had just begun the process of opening the stall gate and preparing the horse for travel when Lunessa noticed, just a little too late, a shadow slip through the stable door.

“Now what might ye lasses be doing here at this hour?” Lunessa recognized the voice as Sir Rhydderch's, and the shadow resolved itself into the old knight's bulky form. “Especially since neither if ye are supposed to be walking about anyway.”

Lunessa's stomach dropped right through the ground. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Rosalynn freeze. Sir Rhydderch loomed at them, arms folded across his chest.

“G-good evening, Sir Rhydderch. Would you believe I just wanted some fresh air?” Lunessa stammered, stalling for a chance to think.

“And takin' the horse out for some exercise while you were at it?” She couldn't see the old knight's face in the darkness, but his tone suggested that his tolerance for games was at an all time low. So Lunessa decided to take a different tack.

“Sir Rhydderch, have you heard what my father plans to do to Rosalynn?”

“Aye, he's sending her home at first light. Bit of a waste, but who am I to argue with a lord?”

“That is not the half of it! He plans to have her married off to some man in the village!” Lunessa said. “What we did today was all my idea. Rosalynn doesn't deserve to be punished like that for it!”

“Some might say that ain't so bad a punishment on the whole of it.” Lunessa started to argue, but Sir Rhydderch went on right over top of her. “But,” he continued, “I guess I can see why ye wouldn't see it that way.” He was silent for what felt to Lunessa was a long time. She glanced at Rosalynn, and saw that the girl was poised on her toes. Though what Rosalynn could have thought to do, Lunessa couldn't say.

“There ain't a cursed thing I could say to change your mind about this, is there, lass?” Sir Rhydderch said finally. Lunessa, confused, just shook her head. Sir Rhydderch a deep breath, let it out slowly. “Well, far be it for an old knight to stand in the way of a couple a' young fools. Ye'll be coming back, right lass?” he said, addressing Lunessa.

“I will,” Lunessa said. She very carefully didn't allow her complete amazement at this turn events show in her voice. “Just as soon as I know Rosalynn will be safe, I will return.”

“Right then, you two get out of here before I come to my senses.”

Lunessa didn't need to be told twice. Rosalynn also took her cue, and grabbed ahold of Moonbeam's reins.

“You two take care of each other, now. And afore ye think about doin' anything stupid, just you remember that this old man ain't long for Paradise himself, and if'n I find either a' you there ahead of me, I'll give ye a beatin' even the Saints themselves couldn't match.”

Lunessa smirked at the threat. “Thank you, Puff-cheeks. With any luck, I will see you again soon enough.”

“Ah, I'm gonna have a demon of a time explaining this to Colwyn,” Sir Rhydderch said quietly, almost to himself. “But Saints, he did enough fool things himself when he was young. Especially when it came to Gwynnad.” Lunessa wondered at the reference to her mother, but before she could work out a question, they were already out the stable door.

Leaving Sir Rhydderch and the stables behind, they led Moonbeam through the yard to the western gate. Used by messengers, it was just big enough for a horse and rider, and the road that led away from it shot straight across the western moorland to the King's Highway. It was an obvious route, but Lunessa was not about to risk getting lost.

Rosalynn had lapsed back into silence, as they waited in the shadow of the wall for the guard atop it to pass. When the way seemed clear, they hurried to the gate. The bar across it was heavy, and mounted solidly. Together they struggled with it, trying to muffle the sounds of their exertion, and slowly the wooden bar slipped from it's brackets. Then they dropped it; it hit the ground with a resounding thud.

“What's going on down there?” came the cry from the top of the wall.

“Blast!” Lunessa hissed. “Hurry, Rosalynn!” she said, giving up the pretense of stealth. They rushed to swing the gate open wide.

“Halt! Stop there!” the guard shouted down at them. His cries were beginning to wake the rest of the castle, and shouts were coming from what seemed to be every direction.

With a boost from Rosalynn, Lunessa scrambled up into Moonbeam's saddle. She spent half a moment cursing her lack of foresight as her skirts rode up, revealing bare leg up to the knee. Then Rosalynn swung into the saddle behind her and, grabbing the reins, urged the horse forward. As soon as they were through the gate, she gave the reins another flick, and Moonbeam took up a pace that tugged at Lunessa's cloak and quickly left the shouting voices behind them.

“Now what is the plan, milady?” Rosalynn asked in her ear, raising her voice slightly over the rushing wind and the horse's hooves.

“I had thought to make straight for the King's Highway, but...”

She felt Rosalynn shake her head. “Moonbeam's not that swift, and overloaded besides. We will be caught long before we reach the highway.”

“Then what?”

“The woods,” Rosalynn said after a moment's thought. “We can can try to lose ourselves in the forest, and then circle around.”

Lunessa, stuck for a better idea, nodded. “Very well,” she said, and Rosalynn guided the horse on to a path leading north, toward a tree line barely visible by the light of the moon.

* * *

They made good time, but sounds of pursuit closed in on them with every passing moment. As they entered the woods, and the trees closed in around them, they were forced to slow. Lunessa lit the lantern, and the light of its flame helped to push back the darkness a little. But even so, they could hardly move at more than a walk. The lack of speed chafed at Lunessa, but as Rosalynn explained, in the dark the horse might trip or stumble if they tried to go any faster, and that would be bad for all of them. The hope was that the group that was behind them would be forced to do the same.

Rosalynn picked trails, seemingly at random, in an effort to throw off the pursuit. Lunessa soon became quite thoroughly disoriented, but she trusted Rosalynn to guide them. But the shouts and the flickering orange glow of torches remained close behind, too close for Lunessa to relax. She glanced about nervously. The trees that had seemed so pleasant in the light of day, now menaced in the dark.

Said trees grew closer and closer together as they headed deeper into the forest, and the path grew narrower until Lunessa felt as if she were being smothered. Branches slapped and scratched at them, and Moonbeam whickered as her hooves bumped against thick roots that rose out of the path. Finally, Rosalynn brought the horse to a halt. “Moonbeam can't go any further in this. We'll have to go on foot,” she said.

Lunessa hated to leave the horse behind, but she saw the wisdom in what Rosalynn said. Moonbeam was more suited to broad highways, not little deer tracks like this. Rosalynn dropped smoothly to the ground, and helped Lunessa make a slightly less graceful decent from the saddle.

“Will she be all right here?” Lunessa asked.

Rosalynn nodded as she tied Moonbeam's reins loosely to a low-hanging branch. “We'll leave the lantern here and make our way by the moon. The light should keep any wolves at bay for a while. And,” she went on, “it will not be long before she is found.” Lunessa glanced back, and saw the glow of torchlight might be just a bit closer now.

“Let us go, then.”

Rosalynn led the way as they hurried, single file, along the trail. As much as they tried to cover ground quickly, they were slowed by having to duck branches and untangle Lunessa's skirt from thorns. A shout behind them, far closer than Lunessa would have liked, told them that the pursuing party had found their horse. That lent them a little speed, but that was quickly sapped as Rosalynn slowed, then stopped.

“What is wrong?” Lunessa asked, confused.

“Milady, we are near to entering the Spirit Wood.” Rosalynn pointed off somewhere in the shadows. Lunessa couldn't see a thing, but she believed Rosalynn anyway.

“Rosalynn, I'm sorry, “ Lunessa said. She remembered the abject terror the place had inspired in the girl earlier, and that had been in broad daylight. “But,” she continued,” I don't see that we have much choice.”

Rosalynn nodded, slowly. Lunessa wasn't entirely comfortable with entering the place, either. Superstition it may have been, but Lunessa hadn't seen anything ever before that scared Rosalynn so much, and that fear was infectious.

Then, suddenly, time was up. “Lunessa!” Roliff stepped around a bend in the path and in to view. Half a dozen men, each bearing a sputtering torch, marched along behind him. They peered into the darkness as if they expected something to leap out at them at any moment.

“Oh, sod it all,” Lunessa growled under her breath, then thrust Rosalynn behind her. She straddled the path, arms outstretched, and stared her brother down. “Why can't you just leave us alone?” she screamed at him.

“Lunessa, what in the Saint's holy names do you think you are doing? Have you lost your cursed mind?” Roliff slowly advanced toward them.

“Father wants to send her away. I'll never get to see her again! I can't let that happen!” Lunessa took a step backward for each step Roliff moved forward.

“Fine, fine,” Roliff said, raising his hands, palms outward. “Calm yourself, 'Essa. We can talk about this back at the castle.”

“No,” Lunessa said. She reached behind her, and without taking her eyes from Roliff for a moment, managed to close her hand on Rosalynn's wrist.

“'Essa, you're coming back to the castle if I have to drag you. Now be reasonable.”

“No!” Lunessa yelled, and spun on her heel. “Run!” she shouted at Rosalynn, and pulled the girl along behind her as she did just that, dashing for the deeper woods.

“'Essa!” Roliff called after them. “After them!” There was a pause. “What are you waiting for?” Another pause, where there might have been a muttered response. “Cowards!” Then any further words were lost in the crash of brush and the pounding of blood in her ears.

The flight was darkness, and pain. What little moonlight that found its way through the leaves above was just enough to keep her from charging headlong in to a tree, and not much more. Branches tore at her; she was sure they drew her blood more than once, and turned her skirt to ribbons. It was all she could do to not trip and fall. A stab in her side told her that she had likely re-opened the cut there too. And yet all of that was secondary, a minor nuisance compared to the burning in her lungs and her legs. Only willpower and knowing what the cost might be if she stopped kept her moving.

Then it was bright. Lunessa squinted, shielding her eyes, as they stumbled into a clearing. The light from the moon and stars seemed positively blinding after the shadows of the forest. The trees stopped, in a perfect circle, as if there was a line they dared not cross. But that was not the curious thing. Lunessa stared, bent over with her hands on her knees, gasping for breath, and tried to understand what she was seeing. It looked like water, but it hung in the air in the precise center of the clearing like a tapestry. It was oval, and translucent, and utterly impossible.

“What... is it, milady?” Rosalynn asked, transfixed by the bizarre object. With a touch of jealousy, Lunessa realized that Rosalynn wasn't even winded. Lunessa shook her head, wanting to tell the girl that she didn't know, but not yet having the breath for words. After a minute of gulping air, she felt well enough to stand up straight. She walked towards the thing that hung in the air, and with great hesitation, reached out to touch it. There was the faintest resistance, and then her hand passed through. With a hiss, she jerked her hand back. The air, water, whatever was on the other side of the thing was unbelievably cold. She heard Rosalynn move to stand behind her, the sound of her boots on the grass was loud in the deathly silence of the clearing.

“Milady, we should...” Rosalynn began, but whatever else she was going to say was trampled over by the sound of Roliff crashing into the clearing.

“What in the world...?” He was staring at the thing, just as they had. The bastard wasn't short of breath, either. “'Essa, get away from that thing.”

Lunessa, still not quite feeling up to speech, shook her head again. She looked from her brother to the thing and back again, the beginnings of an idea forming.

“Essa, don't do anything stupid now,” Roliff said, edging toward them. Lunessa grabbed Rosalynn's hand, interlacing their fingers, and looked into the girl's eyes. Rosalynn met her gaze, and Lunessa saw the faith there. She was waiting for Lunessa to take the lead, as was the usual arrangement. Lunessa looked back at the thing once again. Roliff was probably right; this was probably stupid. But one thing Rosalynn had said earlier rang in her mind. People came back from the Spirit Wood.

“'Essa!”

Lunessa threw herself into the thing, and the continued warmth of Rosalynn's hand in hers told her that the girl had followed. Lunessa focused on that as she plunged into the icy place past the thing. Her lungs strained, but whatever existed in that place, it wasn't air. She couldn't breathe. A sensation of what she could only describe as evil washed over her, and there were whispers in her mind that in her panic she couldn't comprehend. And then she gave up the fight, and let herself fall in to unconsciousness.