White Star: Book 2 of The Making of a Mage King Series

BOOK TWO

White

Star

Training Horses and Men

When Sean and Charles arrived from the palace, Seth and his crew were already moving among the horses, slipping nooses over their heads and handed them off to one of the men waiting for them.

When all the horses had been handed off, Seth spread everyone out over the valley around the camp. The day was spent working with the horses. Fortunately, almost everyone had dealt with horses a good deal of their lives, so no one was utterly inexperienced. Thanks to the expertise of Seth and his men, the first day of lessons progressed with few hitches.

The goal of the day, and likely tomorrow, was to get the horses used to the men who handled them. From the moment they were lassoed and handed off, someone would care for the horse in every tiny way as often as possible so the horse would quickly get used to the activity. The horses were touched everywhere, they were pushed and pulled. They were led around then lunged in first one direction then another, then they were handled again. Their feet were picked up again and again. Seth and his men made their way through the throng and taught the men how to pull the horses to lie down on the ground where they were again handled and caressed, then they were let up only to do it all over again.

Those men who didn’t have a horse to work pulled camp duty. Firewood was gathered and a stew was prepared. When it was ready, everyone filed past, with their horse kept close, collected a bowl of stew, and then moved off to eat it; the horse grazed close by.

The afternoon was much the same as the morning, though the horses were all handed off to someone new. That night, the horses dozed next to their handlers.

Sean’s supply wagons started arriving near midmorning and as soon as they stopped, Sean set to making packsaddles. Elias and Ferris must have stripped every place in the city of every available piece of leather they could find. He worked all day and managed to turn out one saddle about every two hours. Having never made a saddle before, he took one apart so he could copy the parts. Charles helped him keep track of them so he didn’t make too many of one part and not enough of some other part. Seth pulled him away when supper was ready, and Larry saw to it that he went to bed after, rather than go back to the saddles.

Hélène had told him once that working magic was a lot like doing it with your own hands, it takes energy. It’s easier with magic, but it still takes energy. He could never have turned out a saddle every two hours with his hands if he was the best saddle maker in the—in two worlds, but he had still worked leather and shaped wood for ten hours almost nonstop. He was lucky he was making them from existing material; his turnout would have been somewhat less if he’d had to make them from nothing. He was wiped by the end of the day.

Elias had been able to scrape together thirty-two packsaddles and another dozen riding saddles. Sean was not sure why he sent riding saddles, but they would use them one way or another.

Seth immediately set aside two of those because he said they were broken, then he held up one that was less bulky then the rest. Looking directly at Charles, he said, Looks a little small. We’ll just have to find a horse that’ll fit it.

Charles looked like he was about ready to burst, though he hadn’t moved a muscle; his eyes were glued on Seth. Seth just smiled and waved his hand in a ‘come on’ gesture and they went looking for a horse that Charles could ride. They came up with a dainty footed little bay mare with long white socks. She pranced a bit, but it looked to Sean like she was willing to learn and willing to please.

They worked the horses with and without saddles every day for long hours while Sean made more saddles. More supply wagons came into camp every day. By the fourth day, the saddles were loaded with sand bags and extra tents or blankets and even some pots and pans so the horses would get used to flopping material and noise. Sean hoped they would never pack so sloppily, but Seth didn’t want their supplies packed and have the horse bolt because something worked loose and spooked him.

Seth kept Charles and the horse he named Dancer close by his side. Both Charles and Dancer were just learning how to ride, and he didn’t want anything to go wrong.

When Seth was finally satisfied that the young horses were trained well enough, they packed up their gear and headed west; further training could continue on the trail. At first, the men wanted to form up in a military block, but the need to tend the extra horses precluded that by a long shot. It wasn’t long before they were strung out in what looked like a loose herd. Larry thought it looked rather funny and chuckled every time he looked around to check their progress.

Their first night on the trail, as they were making camp and Larry was pulling his saddle off his horse, he put on his best western drawn and turned to Sean. Weel Hoss, this shore ain’t Noy Yok.

Naw, Festus, Sean replied in kind. It shore ain’t. He hooked his thumbs in his sword belt with an exaggerated swagger and spit. Then both of them burst out laughing.

Those closest to them looked at them as if they had suddenly gone stark raving mad.

That night Sean woke to the sound of Jenny crying. It might have been a dream, but it sounded so real. Jenny, can you hear me, he called softly in case she was sleeping.

He felt her startled surprise as soon as he spoke. Sean, is that you? she said. He could hear the tears in her voice.

What’s the matter, Jenny? Why are you crying?

"How did you know I was crying? I’m not crying." Then she broke down again. "I’ll never see him again. I just know it. When I kissed him goodbye the other day, I knew it would be the last time I would see him."

That’s nonsense, Jenny. You know I would never let anything happen to Larry.

"I know that. And I know he won’t let anything happen to you either. I can say the words and I can believe them with the front of my brain, but in the dark, this cold hard dread wells up from the back of my brain and I’m afraid, Sean, I’m terrified."

Jenny, I’d let you come along, but this is going to be one long, brutal trip.

"I did it before, when you took off on your wild ride. We all rode real hard trying to keep up with you. Mattie should come too; she was the one who was able to keep you in our sights."

Mattie’s there too, isn’t she, he said, feeling the rug being pulled out from under him.

After a short hesitation, she said, Yeah. So isn’t Armelle; she wants to come too. Did he detect a little humor?

No. Sean sat up abruptly and Charles muttered in his sleep. He had taken to sneaking onto the foot of his cot. Fortunately, he hadn’t kicked him. I need someone there with some authority. He knew that Elias and Ferris would be running things, but the thought of putting his little Armelle through what he was considering letting Jenny and Mattie do, was just beyond him, but Jenny was giggling now.

"Armelle has absolutely no desire to put that much time in the saddle, besides—you’re going to be a father in nine months. She says that you better be back here by then."

Sean flopped back down. He was going to be a father. His Armelle was pregnant. He couldn’t think. His brides were all pregnant too, but this was just—different.

"Aren’t you even going to ask what it’s going to be?"

I don’t care, he said, and meant it. His wife was having his baby; He was ecstatic. Then his euphoria was dampened by the echo of an old woman’s dying words, ‘Keep these two close to you. If you send them away from you…and there will be many reasons, good reasons to send them somewhere safe, somewhere you are not… But you must keep them close to you, for if you are separated, all will be lost. You will be lost. They will be lost. Everything will fail.’ You’re not pregnant too, are you? asked Sean, afraid that he already knew the answer.

"What? Do you really think I could keep something like that from you?" she said incredulously.

Yes, he did, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. For all he knew, Larry had been afraid to touch her since her miscarriage. Sean was reminded that there would be a reckoning when they reached Loire. He knew that Larry hadn’t forgotten either; he had seen him gazing off south a couple times when he thought no one was looking.

All right, I’m going to regret this, but at least you know what you’re in for; pack up and have Mattie get the white stone from Elias; I suppose we should have some kind of healer along. He broke the connection as he felt Jenny’s excitement. He was sorry for taking Armelle’s only friends, but he figured that he would call her often to make sure that his brides weren’t giving her any more hassles.

Sean’s night was shot, so he gave up and dressed as quietly as he could. Outside, he found Cordan stoking the watch fire; he was watch commander tonight. He waved to him and walked to the edge of camp to water a bush then he checked on the sentry posts. The cloud cover was thin enough for him to pick out the lights that were the moons, but they weren’t bright enough to cast any but the vaguest shadows.

Seth had the horses picketed all around and Cordan had a half dozen men riding casually among them and another dozen walking a foot patrol outside of that. The rest of the men were sleeping under small pup tents big enough for two bodies and little else.

Just as the sun was lighting the eastern horizon, he called Jenny again. By now, he was standing by Larry’s tent. Just as he completed the connection, he felt the turmoil. Jenny? What’s the matter? What’s happened?

"You happened," she said harshly. I thought you weren’t going to get us. What took you so long?

Nothing, I was just giving you time to pack a bag. Are you ready?

"Of course we’re ready. We’ve been ready for hours."

It hasn’t been ‘hours’, not very many anyway.

"Oh, just hurry up."

As soon as they appeared Sean put his finger to his lips and whispered, This is Larry’s tent. I didn’t want to startle him.

Jenny snickered quietly behind her fingers and peeked inside then she crawled the rest of the way out of sight while Sean glowered at Hélène who had come with them.

Sean led Mattie and Hélène back to the watch fire at the center of camp. Cordan watched their approach without recognizing them until they were quite close. When he identified Mattie, he did a stunned double take then said, What are you doing here?

I brought them. They had an irrefutable argument for coming, said Sean.

Cordan looked at Mattie for a moment longer then his eyes bore holes in Sean. You sure make it hard for a man to have a family.

Sean turned on Mattie; his frown was in high relief in the light of the campfire. Are you pregnant too? he asked.

She smiled sheepishly and nodded.

Mattie… Sean started, but she interrupted him.

My lord, riding a horse won’t hurt the baby; it’s not due for a long time. Besides, if I start to have problems, you can always send me back.

I’m going to send you back right now. We aren’t on a ‘ride’. What we will be doing can only be called a pounding.

She stepped up to him and touched his lips with her fingertips. I’ll be fine. I won’t slow you down.

Sean looked at Cordan. Your decision, man, he said, and waited for the signal for him to send her back.

He just shrugged and shook his head then he pulled her to him and gave her the kind of hug that said he missed her a lot.

Sean stepped away and almost ran into Hélène. What are you doing here? Who’s taking care of things back at the palace? he asked. He was more than a little peeved that she was here. Though she didn’t quite fall into his definition of ‘old’, she was no spring chicken.

Mattie said you thought you should have a healer along.

I intended that to be Mattie’s reason for being here, not yours, said Sean.

And if you get hurt again?

You said yourself that you weren’t strong enough to put me down, so what’s the point? I need you at the palace to help those people get well and go home.

Those people are in the hands of some of the finest healers in the land and I’m the only one I know who stands a chance of ‘putting you down’ as you say it.

I won’t wait for you; if you can’t keep up, I’ll leave you behind and you better stay out of my way; if you’re going to be the healer here, that’s what you’ll do, nothing else.

She shrugged then pointed to his forehead. Where’s your crown?

It’s the middle of the night. Everyone’s asleep.

Not everyone, she said.

Oh give it a rest. Next you’ll be checking to see if I wear it in my bed.

It was fortunate that the sun was rising because their shouting match was rousing the rest of the camp just in time for a quick breakfast before they hit the trail again.

Sean strode past the fire on his way to his own tent giving Cordan a meaningful look as he passed. The slightest cramp, the smallest problem, and Mattie would go back to the palace. He didn’t have time for old women or pregnant girls. Even if one of the men fell ill, they would be left behind at the closest village or farmhouse, or sent back to the palace.

A First of Firsts

It took Sean and his men eleven more days to reach the garrison city of Caen during which time nothing of much consequence happened. The horses settled down more, but then Sean was leading everyone at a pounding pace that alternated between a lope and a fast walk; nobody had much energy left over for trouble. They stopped for lunch for as long as he could stand still, then he made himself stop as soon as the sun touched the western horizon. It was early, but they needed rest. Sean was the only one with a fire up his ass, so while the rest settled the horses and relaxed, Sean tried to burn off his excess energy with his swords. Now that they were moving, he seemed to be driven. He felt like a wildfire running before a high wind, or a surfer caught in a Bore tide. If he had been traveling on his own, he felt certain that he wouldn’t have stopped until he fell from his horse or his horse fell from under him.

As soon as the city came into sight, Sean ordered camp set up then he authorized a rotating leave. He wanted his men to rotate through the town on whatever business they wanted, but he wanted them to listen and try to find out where the last of the nobility could be found. In the mean time, he headed directly into town himself; Charles came with him. When Larry, Jenny and Mattie noticed them leaving the camp, they dropped what they were doing to come too.

As the five of them entered the gate, Charles drifted away from them and was out of sight by the time they had reached the edge of the market square. Most everyone they passed stopped what they were doing to watch them go by; strangers were always interesting. When they merely strolled down the street doing nothing of interest, the people returned to their tasks.

As they were eating a small lunch at an open-air café, a man in light armor stopped at their table. You’re new in town. What’s your business? What’re you hanging around for?

We’re looking for some friends of ours, said Sean.

And who might these friends be? asked the man who might be a constable, his authority was difficult to discern since he wore no crest or mark of rank.

And who are you to need to know our business? asked Sean, with forced amiability.

The guard looked hard at Sean, then around at the rest of them. Jenny and Mattie were obviously women, but they were dressed much like their male companions, leather pants and leather shirt a little heavier than necessary for just clothes, and though Mattie and Jenny didn’t carry swords, they did have an evil looking knife hanging from their belts. You look like trouble to me and it’s my business to keep an eye out for trouble. How long do you plan to stay in town?

You’ll get no trouble from us unless someone else starts it, and we’ll stay as long as we have to, to find our friends, replied Sean as he lounged back in his chair.

Now look here, mister… Then he noticed the crest that was on all of their shoulders. Sean had elected to come here first as a common soldier in order to gage the reaction of the town’s people to his men. "You’re one of them, aren’t you? I don’t care what your business is; you get yourself and your friends here out of town. You’re not welcome here. You’ve caused enough trouble around here just by existing. None of them moved a muscle to comply or even to protest. The man stepped back and made as if to draw his sword. Are you going to leave?"

No, we’re not, said Sean. Why don’t you go get your commander? I think I might like to speak with him.

Captain General Basse ain’t going to want anything to do with the likes of you, said the man, his hand still on the hilt of his sword.

Sean almost burst out with a loud guffaw at that. Basse was exactly who he was looking for, but he wasn’t about to tell this oaf such a thing. Why don’t you let him decide that? My name is Seanad Ruhin; he should recognize the name. We’ll wait here.

After the man had huffed himself out of sight, Sean turned to Larry. I didn’t expect to find Basse on my first try.

You’re looking for the commander of the garrison? said Larry. Are you sure you have the right name?

It’s the right name, but perhaps it won’t be the right man; we’ll see when he gets here, said Sean.

Do you think he’ll come? asked Jenny.

If my name doesn’t bring him, curiosity will, I think, said Sean, hoping that what he said was true. When the barmaid came back, they ordered a pitcher of beer. At the moment, waiting seemed to be the best thing to do.

As they waited, Sean noticed several of his men filtering through the square sampling the wears and talking to the people. He was pleased to see that they seemed to be received amiably. There were a few smiles and some laughter, though he had no idea what was being said. He spotted Charles once too, but he wasn’t talking to anyone at the time.

After three hours, still no one came back to their table and the café staff was getting irritated at them just sitting there and not ordering anything.

They left the café and headed toward the port. The smell of fish greeted them long before the docks came into view. As they strolled along the length of the dock, Sean was impressed by the number of slips he saw. They were nearly all empty and the activity on the docks was at a minimum; apparently, the fishermen were all out fishing. Elias had taken Sean to the docks on the south end of New York City once and there is no comparison, but then the purposes of the two docks were also drastically different. The visible rocks out beyond the breakers were the reason there were no bigger ships docking here.

An old woman saw them and tottered out to meet them. White Star, White Star, she said, with some difficulty since it looked like she had no teeth. She came right up to Sean and patted her hands on his chest. White Star, will you bless my grandson? Both of his parents were taken by the sea and I’m getting so old. Bless him, White Star, for luck. Let him have a longer life than his father had.

A blessing, no one had ever asked him for a blessing before. Sean had healed people before, some of them deeper then anyone thought possible, but a blessing; how do you do a blessing? And how did she know who he was?

As he puzzled over this, he let the old woman pull him back to where she had come from. She led them into a narrow, two-story hovel. The building was squeezed between other buildings that provided an assortment of purposes connected to the fishing industry and this one was no different. Though the building looked like it didn’t stand a chance of remaining upright on its own; it was warm inside though.

The ground floor was hung thickly with fishing nets of all kinds. Most of them looked like they were here for repairs, but there was a few that looked to be new.

The woman led Sean through the maze of nets to a set of rickety stairs at the back. As she opened the door at the top, the smell of a hearty fish stew greeted them, but what also greeted them was the sight of a small boy of about five or six sitting in the middle of the floor.

A’ma? he asked, as he looked in their direction with sightless eyes.

Yes, Shim, said the old woman. I’ve brought the White Star; he’s going to bless you.

The boy stood and came over to them. As he got closer, Sean could see that there was no hope for his eyes. They were shriveled and wrinkled like two discolored raisins set in his head. Regardless, he approached them unerringly until he could grasp his grandmother’s skirts.

Sean knelt in front of him and cupped his cheek then suddenly he drifted in an otherness that left him in the background while another stepped forward. "Danio Shim, mahlē yōhō dō galêeo shumutàlē." With that, Sean touched his thumb between the boy’s eyebrows. Then the otherness was gone and Sean was forced to drop his hand to the floor to keep his balance. Dimly, almost like an indistinct echo, he understood what he had said, ‘Mr. Shim, may luck shadow all of your days.’ Mr. was a dim translation of the word ‘danio’; something more accurate would be ‘man of the family’.

As Sean pulled himself stiffly to his feet, he felt Larry’s fist grip his shirt from behind to lend him much needed balance without being noticed.

The old woman was hugging the boy who was still rubbing the spot between his brows. Left behind by Sean’s thumb was a light brown oval much like Hélène’s mark except for the shape. Oh, Lord, said the old woman in a reverent whisper, Oh White Star, thank you. Thank you so very much. Such a blessing will see him far from the docks and far from the sea. Thank you, thank you.

Sean cupped the boy’s cheek again. That it may well do, a’ma, but it is no guarantee of a long life. He was not sure the old woman registered his cautionary words. She was holding and rocking her grandson with tears rolling down her face. The boy was touching her tears with his small fingers and patting her cheek so Sean and his friends retreated quietly.

Larry kept his fist snagged in Sean’s shirt until they reached the bottom of the stairs. Once they were outside, he asked, What did you say? You did it again; you spoke that old language.

I need a drink, said Sean. All I said was ‘may luck shadow your days’, or something like that. Damn, that was weird. Sean shoved his fingers through his hair; it was starting to get long again.

They all made their way back to the main part of town to find that his men, those who were in town, had been rounded up and disarmed. They had been grouped into a single clump while the man who had spoken to them at the café dug through them roughly, looking for Sean, more than likely.

A quick glance at the situation revealed a man who stood slightly to the side and aloof from the proceedings. Basse, called Sean over the uneasy hubbub of the crowd. The man spun at the sound of his name. I’ve been looking for you. Sean strode directly up to him; his grandfather’s heavy swords were suddenly a noticeable weight at his hips. Sean didn’t stop until he was almost literally toe-to-toe with him. What took you so long?

I had a problem to solve, he said calmly, as he studied Sean’s face.

Did you get it solved? The two of them could have been twins if there wasn’t ten years difference in their ages.

Not yet. We need to talk, he said, for Sean’s ears only.

Sean reached up and rested a hand on Basse’s shoulder then he sent his men and their weapons back to the camp. They would likely suit up and return with reinforcements, but that was okay with him; it would keep Basse and his men honest. Basse swayed under his hand, Sean had used much of Basse’s energy to teleport his men; it put him at a disadvantage and brought him down a peg without advertising that fact to his men. I agree, lead the way.

Basse’s men were in confusion with the sudden disappearance of the men they had been guarding, but he waved them to silence, then led off down another street. When they reached the gates to the garrison, he dismissed his men completely and led his ‘guests’ into the building and to a room that could only be his office. He left again for a few moments to return with a couple more chairs, then he locked the door.

After they were all seated, he said, You’re him, aren’t you, the White Star? My uncle talks of nothing else. He says he saw you at the gathering outside of Ruhin; he says you danced the Dance, he says that only the White Star could do the things you did.

I don’t know what all your uncle saw, but yes, I’m him, I’m Seanad Éireann Barleduc-Ruhin.

The man rocked back as Sean recited his name, but it didn’t stop him. What are you doing here? What do you want with me?

It’s my intention to reinstate the political structure that was in place under my grandfather. If your uncle is the head of your family then I need to speak with him.

You can’t just reinstate the old nobility on your say so. There are too many people who like the way it is.

It’s my hope that I’ll be able to tell who such people are and eliminate them from the mix. Tomorrow, I’ll ride into town displaying my colors for all to see. You bring your uncle or your father here. Make sure your men are available to watch my entrance.

You think your entrance will spark off a fight? asked Basse.

Men who are loyal to you will gather to protect where you are. Men who are here for power and greed will, at the very least, push to attack, provided they don’t desert outright, said Sean.

You’re sure of this? asked Basse.

Sean rethought his plan then nodded. Pretty sure, he replied. He didn’t tell Basse that he would have several troops stationed in and around the town to forestall any other trouble.

What about me? asked Basse.

What about you? You’re in command here. I couldn’t ask for a better commander. Unless you have a problem with my rule, I’m happy to leave you in command.

They didn’t talk much longer; Sean didn’t want his men to come charging into town and find nothing. He was sure Charles would know exactly where he was, and he would tell them if they found him. Sean also wanted to hear what Charles had learned from the town’s underworld. I wonder just how different the truth of the underworld is from the truth I see.

Sean met his men on the edge of the market square. They brought spare mounts for all of them, but not Prince. When he took the reins from Cordan, he said, Your beast wasn’t in a cooperative mood and we were in a hurry.

Sean shrugged and mounted using the move to look for Charles. Everyone in the market square was watching them, but he saw no sign of Charles. He hoped he wasn’t in trouble.

Charles didn’t show up until well after dark. Sean was pacing around the watch fire and driving both Larry and Cordan nuts by the time he was brought in on the back of one of the sentry’s horses and dropped off, then the man returned to his post without further explanation. Charles strode up to the fire and held his hands out to the warmth. He didn’t look any worse for the wear, so they all watched him in silence until he felt the pressure of their eyes and looked around. What? What are you all looking at me for? I didn’t learn anything that you didn’t already find out for yourselves. The second son of the Basse family is the commander of the garrison. The eldest son was taken by the king…uh…Ludwyn…eight years ago and never seen again. Their father died three years later and the rest of the family went into hiding shortly thereafter. I think they’ve been coming around more often in the last few years, but no one uses their name, so everyone is protecting them. The commander holds his position by sheer guts and the rumor that his name is just a coincidence.

That’s a lot more than I learned, said Sean. Anything else?

Yeah, that kid you blessed—the whole dock side is talking about your blessing—anyway, he’s something like a third or fourth cousin of the family though not by marriage. He was the only survivor found in his parent’s fishing boat. He had just been born within hours of being found.

That means that he was another product of my uncle’s, said Sean. Ludwyn didn’t know that the boy’s mother was pregnant when he snatched them from their boat. Why else would there be a newborn infant out in a fishing boat. What was their name? Did you catch that?

It was Calvados.

Sean reached into the darkness back to the palace. Franklin, can you hear me? Franklin, wake up and answer me.

"Yeah, yeah, I’m awake. I’m awake. What is it?" Sean felt his desire to strike a light, then his confusion when he saw no one in the room.

This is not a dream; it’s Ruhin, now wake up the rest of the way. I need you to tell me if we have any survivors there by the name of Calvados.

Sean could feel him trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes, Calvados, Calvados, I don’t recognize the name. Just a minute, let me look. You told me to keep track of who wrote and who didn’t. Sean felt him move to another location. I still think you should let me keep track of what they wrote, but I haven’t transcribed anything bad. Calvados, Calvados, Calvados, he muttered. Then finally, Yes, I have a Calvados woman here; she’s one of the worse cases, though. No one can get through to her long enough to understand much of anything. I doubt if they ever will. I’m surprised we got a name out of her.

I see. Sean thought for a while. Franklin, I want you to sit with her tomorrow. I’ll be in touch sometime during the day. He broke the connection. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do, but he wanted to do something to help that little blind boy and his mother. They weren’t going to make it off the docks without some kind of help.

After they had all gone to bed, Sean lay awake. He dug out the hairpiece Armelle had given him. He wished for someone to play a little music. He wanted to dance with his wife. She always had such a glorious way of ending the dance.

He slipped out of bed without waking Charles and dressed in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt—his last pair. Maybe I’ll go back to New York City just to go shopping. Maybe I’ll take Armelle; I wonder what she’d think. Dressed, he took up his ancestor’s great sword. He hadn’t had very many chances to practice with it since he got it.

He slipped out of his tent and went to the edge of camp. He stood there for a few minutes looking at the two moons peeking through the clouds showing their freshly washed faces. The air felt wet enough to wring out, but there had been no rain. He saluted the moons and wished for some of the technology of Earth that could explain their two drastic differences. Legends and myths were all very exotic, but he was curious.

The moons were just below the horizon when the watch commander, a man by the name of Saris, found him. My lord, Lord Morgan is looking for you. Young Master Charles is having a bit of a fit.

Sean finished his set and looked at the man. It took him a moment to recognize the name ‘Morgan’; he had almost never used Larry’s last name in all of their friendship. He strode back toward his tent thanking the man as he passed. It was time to get ready for his grand entrance.

As he closed on the watch fire, he saw Larry raking his fingers through his hair with Jenny fussing over him for doing it with his fingers instead of a comb. Sean smiled when he looked up and saw him; he too smiled as he took the comb from Jenny and started to pull it through his hair. They both needed a haircut.

Charles burst out of the tent just as Sean was about to pull the flap aside and they collided. Fortunately, Sean wasn’t holding his sword in front of him, or the boy would have skewered himself. He hastily pulled himself together and said, You were gone. I was worried.

I’m frequently gone, why were you worried? asked Sean.

"I