The sun was setting by the time it reached six. Willy and Maddie made their way through the darkened forests and to the coast, where they promised to meet Horace. From a distance, They both took notice too the dark forms of three ships, gliding into the cove. Maddie kept Willy back, telling him to keep quiet. She took a slip of paper out of her pocket and tied it carefully around the shaft of one of her arrows. She quickly notched it onto her bow string, drew, aimed and released. The arrow landed with a thump, penatrating the thick wood of the mast. Some of the men near it shrunk back, all but one. He was tall and had broad shoulders. He walked confidently and had his hand on the hilt of his beautifully crafted sword. He untied the paper from the arrow and read it quietly. He then ordered the captain of the ship to bring them to shore.

   Maddie ran down the coast and into her fathers arms as he stepped down off of one of the ships. He let out a small chuckle and returned the embrace.

"How is everyone?" He asked.

"We were caught up in a small battle. Only a few were wounded." She told her father. Willy came out to meet them, joining Maddie and Horace at the bank.

"Hello." Horace said, raising an eyebrow.

"This is Willy, Dad." Maddie said. "He's MJ's brother." Horace gave Willy a smile and shook his hand firmly.

"Nice to finally meet you." Horace was friendly, which surprised Willy since he was suppose to be a feared knight, one that no one would want come across on his bad days.

"You too, sir." Willy said clearing his throat.

"Come on Willy. Let's show dad where camp is set up." Maddie said, trying to ease Willy's nerves. He nodded and Horace followed his daughter and Willy up the mountain as his small army he brought along with him, set up camp on the beach where they were docked.

***

The camp was a bustle of excitement as they all rushed around to get a glimpse of Sir Horace, Husband to the Queen of Araluen. It wasn't their everyday encounter in Hallasholm. Aarah and Lynn stayed in the cabin as Horace greeted the ones he knew. After a while though, he entered the cabin to greet an anxious MJ. MJ was exhausted from having to stay in bed all day, and Lynn could see it in her master's eyes that he wanted to be outside. Horace greeted MJ eagerly, since he had gotten to know MJ quite well when he was an apprentice. Horace considered him the son he never had, which was a different feeling given he was his best friends grandson.

"I have several troops that are fit and ready for battle. Figured you lot could use some help." Horace told MJ.

"We'll need as much as we can get. Jackson we keep hitting us." He said dully.

"Don't worry about it, Mik. We'll have it under control in no time." Horace gave MJ a grin that made his childish side show. Lynn and Aarah sat next to each other on Lynn's bed, watching the exchange between the two men.

"I didn't expect the Queens husband to be anything like that." Lynn whispered to Aarah. The young Arridian nodded, smiling to herself.

Erak and Halt entered the cabin.

"Come, Horace. We have things we must discuss and MJ needs to rest." Halt said. MJ glared at the old ranger, but said nothing against it. Horace bid them goodbye with a nod of his head, and left the room with the Oberjarl and the ranger.

"He's different." Lynn said to her master. MJ smiled a bit.

"Now you know why Maddie is so weird." The two girls laughed Aarah stood, telling them she needed some fresh air before walking out of the cabin.

Aarah walked around the cabin for a while before sitting down on a tree stump and staring at the ground. The Skandians had given her a chance here, and she was happy for the opportunity to keep her baby away from Jackson. But she was worried that he might find out, and kill the baby or take it away. She couldn't bear the thought.

   Footsteps startled her out of her thoughts and she looked up to meet the eyes of a blond Skandian boy with bright blue eyes. He gave her a smile and she gestured for him to sit.

"You're Aarah, right?" He asked. She nodded. "I'm Tristan." She vaguely remembered seeing him around the cabin with Willy every so often.

"Nice to finally meet you." She said. They sat in a slightly uncomfortable silence before he stood.

"Well I better get back to sentry duty. My shift starts in a few minutes." She nodded.

"Alright. I'll see you around." She said cheerfully. He grinned, nodding before heading back the way he came. Aarah headed back towards the cabin and laid down on her cot, facing Lynn.

"What's with the smile?" She asked, causing Aarah to blush.

"Nothing, just hopefully made a new friend."

***

Sorry this is crap. My kindle kept dying on me so I was scared to write encase I lost something. So I got a new kindle last night. It's a little boring, but I couldn't think of anything. A family friend died in a car crash last night, so was a bit preoccupied. Thanks for reading.

~Avis