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~Compiled by Alex~ When Mallory finally comes to, he finds Brother John and Rowena both kneeling over him, looking at him concernedly, and in his dazed state he mistakes Rowena for her mother. He blurts out the name "Mina" a second time, and then suddenly pulls Rowena's head down and kisses her passionately, while promising Mina that he will never leave her again. The kiss is quickly interrupted by Brother John, who physically intervenes and demands an explanation. Shocked, Rowena scrambles to her feet and unthinkingly tells the stranger that she is not Mina, but is in fact Mina's daughter. Ninnocha and Andy have agreed to keep eachother company for a while, and are finding out a little about one another before they set off. Ninnocha asks Andy whether he knows of Brother John, and in response to his questions, explains that she has seen the monk in her dreams and believes that he can help her. She is homeless, penniless and abandoned, she tells him. Andy recognises a similarity between her story and his own situation many years ago, and begins to wonder whether Ninnocha might prove to be a worthy member of the Thieves' Guild. It also occurs to him that he might find some personal use for her also... But only if she can be swayed before she finds Brother John. If Brother John were to take her under his wing, Andy's own chances with the girl would all but evaporate. But he keeps his thoughts to himself, and offers Ninnocha a share of what food he has, as they set off along the forest road once more. While Warren stands beside the mysterious basket hanging from the tree, with pine cones raining down on his head and shoulders, Bantam stands aside and watches curiously. He is nearly startled out of his skin, however, when the coyote Sanhedralite silently approaches and pushes her nose into his open palm. Hearing Bantam's shout of surprise, Warren spins around and sees behind him not only the boy he'd been watching a moment ago, but a coyote who looks very familiar to him. He had caught her scent on the air only minutes before hand, and it had reawakened in him memories of a coyote he'd had as a pet many years ago, whose name had been Amber. But Amber was long since dead. Nevertheless, he finds himself foolishly attempting to talk to the creature. Bantam seizes the opportunity to run for cover and hide himself from the man, but the effort of doing so is the last straw. Fear, hunger and exhaustion catch up with him, and he falls to the ground in a dead faint. Simon, meanwhile, has been negotiating with Audra the conditions of his employment. She has agreed to send him on a mission to locate Rowena, spinning him a story about the girl losing her mind after the death of her father, and how much she would like to bring her back into the fold of her family. Simon senses the deception, but finds it impossible to read the mind which Audra keeps shielded with her own powers. So he agrees to take on the mission, with the proviso that he be given complete freedom to undertake it outside of the castle grounds. Audra agrees, although she too senses some form of deception in the young man's words. She calls for a guard to escort Simon to the kitchens for a meal before the steward shows him to his temporary quarters within the castle. Mallory clambers slowly to his feet, still feeling a little dazed, and also feeling a little foolish at his behaviour. He has realised that the girl he kissed couldn't possibly be Mina. He hauls himself into a chair and apologises for himself, before asking John and Rowena for their names. Rowena, however, demands to know a little more about him before she reveals anything of her own history. John, on the other hand, does not sit, and finds himself hoping that Mallory does *not* reveal too much about himself. He has remembered where it was that he first heard the man's name - many years ago, as a young novice in the monastery, he used to eavesdrop on some of the confessions being heard by the other monks... and this particular confession was not one which he would like to see become public knowledge. On the far side of the forest, a young woman called Maeve has left her home for what she fears will be the last time, and is headed towards Ashby to try and make a living with her remarkable skills as a healer. She, like many others, is no longer able to afford the taxes imposed on her by the evil Countess Audra, and is forced to seek out her fortune elsewhere. Her journey is long and she has brought little with her, yet still she shares what little food she has with the animals she finds along the way. When she arrives in Ashby, she stops first at the Seventh Stranger Inn, which is the largest and most popular establishment of its kind in the town. The Inn's current owner Barbarella welcomes her, and although she has no use for Maeve 's healing skills, she agrees to let the young woman work in the kitchens for the price of a hot meal and a bed. Back on the outskirts of town, Warren has heard the sickening thud of Bantam 's collapse, and rushes to his aid. Nicholas, upon taking a closer look at the other boy, has allowed his curiosity to override his shyness, and emerges slowly from the cover of the trees in order to get closer still. Warren, cradling Bantam's head in his lap, notices Nicholas and demands his assistance. All the forest-dweller can think to do is attempt once more to give the boy some food, so he refills the basket with wild berries and cautiously brings it nearer to the two strangers. But as he does so, he suddenly realises that the unconscious boy looks familiar to him. He can't quite place where he knows him from, but he's beginning to suspect... In the back room of the tavern, Mallory has agreed to Rowena's demand that he tell his own story first. He hails from Ravenscrag, he tells her - a far distant city where he and a friend named Guy were once involved in the smuggling business. His story is interrupted, however, by Barbarella, who has brought food and fresh ale for the three of them. After her departure, John admonishes Mallory for the lack of respect he seems to show for the good woman, but in doing so he accidentally lets slip that he is aware of the fact that Mallory has been in Ashby before. Fortunately, neither of his companions questions him about it, and Mallory continues his story. He used to keep Mina's wolves for her, he explains, as she always loved hunting with wolves. And as for being here in Ashby now, well he is here to purchase the Seventh Stranger from Barbarella. As Rowena attempts to ask him further questions, John interrupts again and suggests that it might be best not to pry any further into Mallory's private past. Not far from the Inn, the faerie Minuet has entered into conversation with the small black cat who had been following her - both of them unaware that Maeve is watching them from her seat within the tavern. She asks him why he was curious about her, and then makes what she considers to be a hilarious joke about the length of time it seems to be taking him to reply. Sebastian is distraught at the sight of the delicate little creature rolling around in the dust with her laughter, and a little mortified at the thought that her desire to talk with him may not be genuine afterall. But he formulates a courteous reply, and is much happier when Minuet picks herself up and flies up out of the dust to hover in front of his face once more. She asks him for his name, but Sebastian has suddenly become aware of the fact that *he* is sitting in the dust himself, and wants nothing more than to wash himself and find somewhere cleaner to sit - and he is struggling to control that impulse. As he tells Minuet his name and asks for hers, she is distracted by his apparent unease, and being slightly unpracticed in the feline language, she mis-hears him, and calls him "Satin" instead. Then she becomes flustered at the realisation that she cannot translate her own name into his language, so on the spur of the moment she tells him that her name is "Pretty". Sebastian sees the signs of her discomfort and attempts to reassure her by telling her that he "is not the evil one in this place". But Minuet is too busy trying to cover her embarrassment to notice his hint, and she immediately reverts to flirting as her most sure-fire method of winning over any creature. "Would you like to see some magic?" she tempts him. Bantam slowly awakens to the sight of two faces looking down at him - one the face of the warrior who took the fruit from the basket, and the other the face of a young boy very near to his own age. It is upon this boy that he focusses his attention. "Nicholas?" he says after a moment. Startled, and suddenly feeling an emotion that he is not used to, Nicholas turns and flees back into his hiding place. There he remains, with tears streaming down his face and his mind full of confusion. Bantam only reaches out toward the place where Nicholas had been, willing him to come back so that he could hug him for the first time in years. Warren, however, tells Bantam not to worry about the boy, and helps him to his feet, suggesting that they head further into the town and find somewhere to get a hot meal. Bantam complies, hoping that Warren and Nicholas are somehow connected and that perhaps the warrior will allow him to see Nicholas later. As they walk, however, Warren becomes aware that they're being followed. He makes an attempt to coax out their follower, whom he assumes to be Nicholas, with the veiled promise of a big, hot meal. But his attempt is unsuccessful and eventually he stops in his tracks, and with frustration in his voice, he calls out to Nicholas to show himself. But as yet, none of the three is aware that they are now sharing their neck of the woods with yet another displaced person. Or displaced horse, as is the case here. Faran, a great warhorse who once belonged to the now deceased Earl of Ashby, had earlier that morning escaped from the drudgery of the farm onto which he'd been sold, and had set off in search of the woman whom he now considers to be his rightful mistress. But in his attempt to hide himself from the eyes of those who would re-capture him, he has wandered deep into the forest and is now finding himself feeling a little claustrophobic. The sounds and feel of the forest are disconcerting, to an animal who is used to wide open plains and the fields of a farm. So when he smells the scent of humans nearby, he hurries to catch up with them, knowing that he will feel much safer in the company of others. Rowena is not to be put off by the warnings of her friend the monk, whom she considers to be acting rather strangely. She prompts Mallory to continue, but just as he is about to share more of his story, he is suddenly distracted by the sound of utter and abrupt silence in the tavern outside of their room. He leaps to his feet and rushes out of the room to find out what kind of trouble is afoot. Without even taking a glimpse into the tavern himself, John shuts the door behind Mallory and turns to plead with Rowena to make her escape while she can. "There's more at stake here than you realise," he tells her. Finally, Rowena submits to her friend's judgement and prepares to make her escape into the side alley through the window. She pauses only to ask Brother John to send Minuet to her, if he can, and to meet her later at their usual spot near the abbey so they can discuss these things further. She begs him to be careful, and then squeezes through the little window and disappears. And as the day wears on towards evening, the Lord Nikolai finds himself in the chambers of his beautiful consort, unwilling to leave her before he takes his pleasure with her one more time. Her attendants have drawn a bath in her chamber, and she allows Nikolai to select his preferred perfume for addition to the waters. Then she turns her attention to undressing him, finding happiness and fulfilment in such simple tasks as massaging his feet. Nikolai relaxes, confident in the knowledge that Vanya's touch is expert in fulfilling his needs. The urgent call of his ally the Countess of Ashby is the furthest thing from his mind...
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