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The good thing about being unconscious was that you were probably dreaming about something pleasant. This was exactly what Richard had been experiencing, and had been rather enjoying it too. But someone had to go and put a stop to it by kicking him. Well that was just rude. He would have made some kind of vocal sign of his annoyance, but he remembered, just time probably, that in his current location that wouldn’t be quite a good idea. He just opens his eyes and stares forward. Caitrin de Archer stares back. Well, more glares back really. Confused, he tries to move, only his legs haven’t quite woken up and, even though they’re trying, his arms won’t move either. Caitrin just looks annoyed, and impatient, but then that’s nothing new. He tries again, and it’s only after the third time that he realises not only are his hands tied behind his back, but they’re tied to her. That was just brilliant.

He doesn’t reply to Caitrin’s question because she’s being facetious and anyway his brain is full of more important thoughts. The two men are asleep – that’s something. He tries to shuffle closer, but it’s rather difficult with his sleeping legs and Caitrin’s weight against him. How did he always manage to get himself into such ridiculous situations? He lets out a frustrated sigh. Everything had been going so well. They almost believed him about the sleeping draught, so what had gone wrong? He was supposed to be able to talk himself out of anything. That was how it worked, so how had he managed to get himself tied up and attached to Caitrin again? She wasn’t even a good person to be attached to.

The feeling was returning back to his legs, so he started tapping his foot because he needed some sort of movement and right now that was really the only thing he could do. He couldn’t think properly if he was just stood still, and something told him his companion wouldn’t be in a very good mood. Of course he didn’t need her help, but even if he did ask for it, she would probably just snap at him for it. Honestly, women some times. He was only in this mess because he was trying to rescue her. She could at least pretend she was grateful.

Still trying to formulate a plan, he ran his tongue over his front teeth, managing to make a rather attractive and squeaky noise in the process. No doubt Caitrin would appreciate, but she’d been rude so he didn’t care. Not that he cared much anyway. Nothing immediately sprang to mind, which was frustrating. He was not one to admit defeat, and definitely not one to ask for help. He turned his attention back to Caitrin. “I don’t suppose you can get your hands free? Or is that asking too much?”

Richard had been wandering through the forest for about a week. As far as his feet were concerned, that was not an exaggeration. No matter how much of his life he spent in the damned place it would never stop looking like the same ten metres or so just repeated over and over again. He sighed, leaning against a tree in order to collect his thoughts. This was supposed to be an easy job. All he had to do was find Caitrin and bring her back to Camelot. What he hadn't been expecting was having to battle against her very unwanted advances, bind them together with an "unbreakable" chain and then rescue her from bandits. The whole situation was ridiculous. He just wanted his money now. And then to go anywhere that wasn't Camelot or this forest. If he could avoid all forests for the next...twenty years, then everything would be fine again. And he needed a new cloak.

With another sigh he pulled himself away from the tree and stood in an annoyingly indistinctive part of the forest while trying to determine his next move. Normally he was rather good at finding people, but there was no one to buy or steal information from. There weren't any tracks to follow as the forest floor was covered in them. Frustrated and tired and actually starting to get quite hungry, he crossed his arms over his chest and stormed off in whatever direction he felt like. It wasn't going to make a difference, now was it?

**

Oh, look! A tree. Those were a rarity. Richard was still in a foul mood. It was dark, cold, and his favourite - and ruined - cloak was the only thing that was even attempting to keep him warm. He walked rather awkwardly, cloak and arms wrapped around himself and convinced he'd been walking in circles. Caitrin had better be grateful when he eventually found her. Of course he had no idea what he was actually going to do. Normally he at least had half a plan, but it was hard to formulate one when the only asset you had was about a drop of a sleeping draught. He shivered and rubbed his hands together. As soon as he had the oppurtunity he was going to have a nice, hot bath and stay in it for a month.

"Have you checked on her again?"

"She still won't say anything."

Richard stopped and, as quietly as he could, found a tree to hide behind. He'd found them! The two men were sitting either side of a small fire, but he couldn't see Caitrin. Trust her to make everything as difficult as possible. He shuffled closer, aware that he was in no position to defend himself. This was certainly going to be interesting. He would stay here for a few moments, and try and learn something about his newly found foes before endangering himself. At least then he'd have a very small chance, as opposed to no chance at all. Their conversation was not all that insightful. He was just going to have to go with this, which usually wouldn't be a problem. He was a master of just going with it. This time however he wasn't quite so convinced.

After taking a deep breath, he practically jumped out from behind the tree. Now that his view was no longer obscured he could see Caitrin, tied up. She was obviously loving that. He gave her a quick wink before turning his full attention to the two bandits. "Ah! There you are. I have been looking all over for you two." He stood there, every bit the confident hero, hands on his hips and a grin on his face. "Now, if you don't mind, I really need to get my sister back. As I said earlier, my mother does fret so. It's not good for her heart. I've told her. I've said "Mother you really shouldn't fret so." He shrugged, hopefully it wasn't obvious that he was rambling until he came up with a better plan. "But what can you do? Mothers, eh?"

An idea occurred to him. It wasn't one of his best ideas by far, but at the moment it was the only thing he had to go on. The first man was already walking towards him, so Richard kept grinning as he pulled out the small vial of sleeping draught. He held up the small glass object in one hand, while holding out his other to stop the man advancing any further. "I wouldn't come nearer if I were you." Richard began, his voice taking on a more serious tone. "My mother, you remember her - the frightful one. Well, she gave me this." Inclining his head towards the vial he continued: "I drop this, the glass breaks. Bang." He let the statement hang in the air before stepping forwards towards Caitrin. The two men appeared to be taking his threat seriously. He was surprised. Obviously he was better at this than he first thought. "Well untie her then."

The first man just raised his eyebrows. "I don't think so."

Alternatively, this could all be going wrong. He didn't have time to mentally slap himself, as his head collided with the floor. Again.

If he wasn't currently preoccupied he would have voiced his surprise at how Caitrin immediately surrendered the reigns. Again, if he wasn't currently preoccupied he would remember this and use it again, only when they weren't in probably danger. He hadn't actually heard her question, his mind was elsewhere: he was in Richard Defensive mode. There was nothing unusual about their surroundings, which made him even more suspicious. Forests weren't meant to be quiet - especially this one. He was now holding the reigns, and determined to continue doing so, and therefore only ventured forwards a few steps, besides, he didn't want to go away from the horse that much anyway.

Richard could have sworn there was a rustling noise coming from one of the bushes. Maybe it was just some nice, cute, fluffy woodland creature. If he just stayed where he was then everything would be alright, because that always worked. His eyes remained fixed on the bushes for a moment or two, the longer he waited, the more likely it became that nothing out of the ordinary had happened. He was just being over-cautious. Well, it seemed like everything was fine. Letting out a breath he turned back to Caitrin and the horse. Now he just had to put up with her for another two days.

He was just about to tell Caitrin not to worry and that he had been wrong - well, alright, maybe he wouldn't have been so vocal about that - when he felt something grab him from behind and pull him backwards. He lost his balance and crashed onto the floor, managing to smack his head against the ground.

"Well, well. What do we have here?"

From where he lay on the floor, Richard outwardly groaned. Brilliant. He would have got up, only he wasn't in any sort of position to defend himself and if he was going to die horribly then he might as well just stay where he was. He was going to end up there anyway.

"Looks like we found ourselves a noble."

Well at least somebody noticed. Wait. Were they talking about Caitrin? He sat up sharply, for some reason he thought it would be a good idea to confront the men from where he was now sat on the floor. He stared up at the two men - who really looked like they needed a bath and a new wardrobe - arms folded with a rather shocked and irritated expression on his face. "Excuse me, but I think you'll find she's my noble." That had been a mistake. The largest and ugliest of the men had grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him forward so Richard's face and his were mere inches apart.

"Your noble, ey?" The man laughed and glanced over to Caitrin. "She your sweetheart?

"Don't be absured." Richard replied, trying to wriggle free from the man's grip. "She's my..." he was struggling to think of a way to describe her without letting on that she was worth a good deal of money to him. She was his job, after all, and he wasn't letting these thugs anywhere near his money. "Sister." He decided on eventually, that was plausible. "Now unhand me."

"Or what?" The other man had joined them, he was slightly smaller than the first one, and, in Richard's opinion, just as ugly.

Hmm. What exactly was a suitable threat? From his current position he hardly looked like a formidable foe. "I do not answer to the likes of you." There. That was threatening. Sort of. Both the men just laughed at him, but the first one released him all the same. Presumably Richard didn't strike fear into their hearts. Well that was just rude. He remained sat on the floor as the first man walked over to the horse. Before Caitrin had time to protest - which was surprising - the man had pulled her from the horse and was now holding a struggling and very angry young woman in his arms. "This is why I drugged her..." Richard muttered under his breath.

Now that both men seemed to be occupied with restraining Caitrin, Richard stood up and brushed down his clothes. At least his cloak wasn't ruined. As he did so, he remembered the chain around his wrist. The chain which had seemed like an idea. Oh, this was annoying. He was either going to have to somehow rescue Caitrin or be kidnapped along with her. This was supposed to be an easy job. "Look, I see you're busy restraining my sister, but, as you can see there's a chain around her wrist." He paused to give the men time to see that he was telling the truth. "I hate to ruin your fun, but it's a magical chain. It prevents her from being kidnapped by thugs like you (our mother is so frightfully paranoid), so I'm afraid your attempts are futile." The first man let go of Caitrin, but she was still being held by the other, and regarded the chain. He held a section of it in his hand, clearly weary of it and yet seemingly determined to deal with it all the same. In one swift movement he had unsheathed his sword and cut straight through it. Richard just stared at him. But...that wasn't supposed to happen. He'd given his best hat for an "unbreakable" chain. "Right. I see. I'll admit that was unexpected."

The first man just grinned at him, before his fist collided with Richard's face and the young nobleman hit the floor again, only this time he wasn't so quick to jump up again.

There was a grin across his face, albeit a sarcastic one, and it dissolved rather quickly. Was there no end to her charms and flattery? And in response to her question - it was quite the mystery, but then no one spent that much time in his company to become bored of him. Richard liked to think of himself as entertaining, he certainly entertained himself.

It was probably a rhetorical question - one of those that young noblewomen were told would make them more appealing to the opposite sex. Well, Caitrin de Archer could be as "appealing" as she wanted, it made no difference to Richard.

He held the reigns as she mounted the horse, a gesture she'd probably be annoyed by, which was exactly why he did it. He had quickly learnt that the easiest way to annoy her was to treat her like the perfect noblewoman she so clearly wasn't, and so desperately tried not to be. It was a valiant effort, and yet, as someone who knew what a life of poverty was like, it was something Richard was convinced she did not truly desire. No, he supposed it was more the suggestion, the excitement of being unconventional that she liked, rather than a true desire to change her circumstances. Either way, it made it easy to make her that little bit more wound up.

No sooner has she settled the reigns were in her hands. No doubt she had ideas above herself. If she thought that he was going to sit behind her and let her direct the horse wherever she pleased she was sorely mistaken. He simply raised his eyebrows, a very unimpressed expression on his face, and held out his hand. "Reigns, if you please, or if you don't; I don't care."

Richard could not tell whether there was something more in the way Caitrin replied to his comment so casually. He had been a little surprised himself when Rouland had not shown that much interest in his young niece's state upon her return. From what Richard had seen he was the most...compassionate of people. But Caitrin had lived with him for many years, she was probably used to a lack of such outward affection. That was probably some of the reason why she appeared to crave attention so much, Richard though with a small smile. He didn't say anything more on the subject, after all, the time he spent with Rouland was fleeting at best, he didn't know the man at all and could therefore not comment on his opinions or actions. And, perhaps the main reason, it was of little concern to him. Rouland's seemingly negligent attitude to his niece's physical well-being just made his job that little much easier.

He didn't much care for her opinions. In his mind, his being able to catch her again was simply a fact and therefore not open for argument and debate. If she wanted to continue living in some kind of almost reality in which she was not aware of her own inabilities that was fine with Richard. He merely shrugged and watched as she wandered over to the horse. Presumably she no longer cared for anything to eat as she had stopped going on about it.

"When are we getting going? Can we leave sooner rather than later?"

After she spoke Richard looked up towards the sky, which, at present was obscured by leaves and tree branches. The plan had been to try and determine what time it was, but that was made quite difficult as he couldn't actually see the sun. He knew, or rather, assumed that it was morning. Somehow he doubted time would fly by quite so quickly in his present company, so it was highly unlikely it was yet noon. "Are you bored already?" He asked with a smirk, women like Caitrin were far too easily bored. He joined her by the horse. "There's nothing to be gained by staying here." He replied and looked over his shoulder at the remains of the makeshift camp. "Whenever you are ready..." he didn't finish his sentence, merely gestured towards the saddle. "After you, my lady."

Some bits and bobs I knocked up for Ifan. As I said before - if you want any more/any of them edited just let us know.

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Richard just smiled at the boy. He was certainly eager - but then who wouldn't be? It was a well-known fact that Richard de Calys was the best in the business, for the most part he was the only in the business, but that didn't stop him taking pride in his work. His customers came to him out of necessity, but they returned because he more than proved himself. He regarded Oseya for a moment, running a hand across his chin and jaw line. Morally speaking, he shouldn't be asking for any coin for him. Richard was gaining muscle and money out of this deal, whereas Oseya was only gaining lodgings - something which he could probably acquire on his own. Then again, if his sword waving was a particular habit, maybe not. "I shall think about it." He said suddenly, and perhaps a little too loudly. First he would see how much Oseya had to spare - see, he wasn't totally without empathy or morals.

Now that that matter had been dealt with he clapped his hands together and brought his feet together with a small, barely noticeable jump. He'd been standing still for too long - his legs ached for some excercise, and his cloak could do with a good swish. "Now then, dear boy," he began with a rather authorative tone. It was one that told all around that Richard was in charge, and it would do well for Oseya to remember that. Whilst Richard might not be the most well-built of men he was quick-footed and rather practiced with a sword, and then there were all those contacts of his... But that was for another time. Oseya seemed honest enough - if a little peculiar. Richard frowned, the young lamb had a curious expression on his face. One that Richard himself was familiar with. Quickly composing himself he decided not to say anything, but to store it away in his memory. "We need to find you some lodgings, after all, that was part of the deal. Do you have anywhere in mind?"

Hmm. She was awake. He wasn't sure whether he was happy about this or not. After being "woken up" a few hours ago he had rather been enjoying the peace and quiet that could only be acheived through her loss of consciousness. No doubt today would bring with it another round of her teasing, or flirting, well, probably both. Well, he was just going to ignore it. He was, after all, above that sort of thing. That was the plan anyway.

"Morning."

"Good morning." He replied cheerfully, it was a rather good morning as mornings go. The sun was shining, and although it was still a little chilly, it was enough to put Richard in a good mood. "I would offer you some breakfast, but we don't have any. Would you like some pretend breakfast?" He grinned at her, cupping his hands together and offering her what he imagined to be a rather warming bowl of porridge. He used to hate the stuff, until he ran out of money and walls and roofs and was forced to eat food for its practicality not its taste. "I made it specially."

Surely Caitrin already knew the answer to that question? Well, of couse she did, otherwise she wouldn't have that look on her face. He rolled his yes, tempted to just ignore her. His reply would only incur another bout of teasing, and he wasn't sure if he had the energy for that. Still, he folded his arms and raised his eyebrows and just looked at her for a second or two. "I trust you to do many things, Caitrin de Archer. Staying here of your own accord is not one." With that he lay down and tried to make himself comfortable, which was no easy task. No matter how many times he did it, he simply couldn't get used to sleeping outside. He had, after all, spent the majority of his life sleeping on the softest mattresses in Cantia. Slightly damp mud hardly compared.

When he had shifted and wriggled for a satisfactory amount of time and just accepted the fact that he was going to ache in the morning he said goodnight to Caitrin and reminded her to wake him up when she wanted him to take over. He closed his eyes and listened to her footsteps as she presumably went to get firewood. She could very well be trying to escape, but the chain was still joining them together and Richard had every confidence that it would continue to do so. He felt it pull ever so slightly as she became further and further away, but it showed no signs of letting him down.

The trick, Richard had discovered, to feigning sleep was to keep your mind occupied. It certainly wouldn't do for him to actually fall alseep, so he had no intentions of doing so. Instead he allowed his mind to occupy itself with thoughts that would definitely keep him awake. He was reminded of Caitrin's words, of her incredulity that he didn't need anyone. Well, that wasn't strictly true. There was a time in his life when he had definitely needed someone, and perhaps he still did. He certainly still thought about them, irritatingly so. It was not in his nature to become so attached to people. But he was certainly attached to one person in particular, whom it was unlikely he would see again, or at least not in the near future. He rolled over. While he did need to think about something, he didn't want to think about this. He was happy with his life. He was fine. And besides, it would never have worked anyway so there was no point in dwelling on it. Only now he couldn't stop. He was Richard de Calys, and this was ridiculous.