The next installment of the Pearl and Liam series, and, provided you aren't numerically impaired, you can probably guess that it's continued from Pearl and Liam 6.



Sean woke first... or maybe it wasn't so much that he woke up as just decided to get up. He'd dozed a little here and there, but the night was not restful at all. He folded the blanket and set it aside, but then walked outside to relieve himself and draw water.

Liam heard his brother stir in some distant part of his brain, but he just tightened his hold around Jade, who had woken in the night and stumbled into their bed, shaking and crying. He took a deep breath, and drifted back to sleep.

Pearl woke up a few minutes later and frowned. She rolled over as calmly as she could so as not to disturb Liam or Jade. Then she furrowed her eyebrows and shut her eyes more tightly, trying to force herself to go back to sleep. She always slept better with Liam next to her but even in her sleep she couldn't entirely forget the miserable events of the day before. She reached up and adjusted the chain around her neck, which had tightened uncomfortably when she rolled over toward Liam. The rings came into view but she wasn't thinking about it she just wanted to sleep.

Artemis strolled down the street toward Pearl's house. It was early but she knew Pearl had always been an early-riser, though she claimed Liam's presence soothed her into sleeping longer most of the time. She smiled at the thought of those two, happy for them, and hoped she wouldn't be unwelcome for any reason. She hadn't seen them since Pearl had made a special trip to tell her about their engagement. She ran her fingers through her shoulder-length, fiery red hair and looked to the side, spotting Liam walking to the well to draw water. She slowed her pace, struck with the feeling that something was different, and puzzled over it as she neared him. Then she had it--this man's gait was entirely different than Liam's. He seemed slightly taller and as she neared she realized that he seemed to be walking on his toes, and he swaggered a little. She slowed to a stop and looked at him carefully, quick to note that he had Liam's face but not his bruises, though he did sport an earring from one ear, something she didn't think Liam would be interested in, or Pearl.

Sean wasn't much of a morning person, and he noticed the woman that was watching him now. He sighed, grumbling faintly. "Look, I know who yeh think I am, an' I ain't 'im, okay?" he said groggily, filling his buckets.

Artemis looked at him with a mixture of annoyance and amusement. "I know," she said in an entirely confident voice, keeping the irritation out of it. She supposed he must get mistaken for Liam a lot for that to be the first thing to come out of his mouth. "I'm Artemis," she said, offering his hand and wondering if he would take it. She wore an expression that said she wouldn't be insulted if he didn't take it. Her deep brown eyes were watching him casually.

Sean looked down at her offered hand, and set the bucket down to take it, but his hand was wet. He dried it on Liam's pants, and then took her hand, kissing her knuckles. "Sean Ditmer. W--Liam is m' brother, but I reckon yeh guessed that much." He took a better look at this stranger, his eyes drawn fast to the straight locks of shimmering auburn. The rising sun caught on her hair, making it shimmer gold in the early dawn light. He smiled, sheepishly this time. "Sorry fer snappin' at yeh," he said, a little embarrased for his conduct. He picked up his buckets, the heavier one in his right hand, the smaller in his left. "Yeh can really tell us apart?" he asked, heading back to the house.

Artemis smiled at him when he kissed her knuckles and looked surprised but pleased. She nodded, it was obvious he was Liam's twin, but she found it curious that he'd said his last name was "Ditmer" not "Dempsey". "It's still early," she replied, excusing him for his rudeness. "Besides, I can see how it would be annoying to be mistaken for someone else all the time." She watched him from the corner of her eye all the while she talked. "Yes. Your walk is completely different from Liam's and Richard really did a number on him a couple days ago. I can take one of those," she offered, though she knew he could handle both buckets.

Sean nodded, but he wasn't about to surrender a bucket. "Puh," he said, though he was smiling. "I may be a lout, but I ain't so lazy as ta pawn me work off on a pretty lass like yerself." His expression fell as he thought about Richard. The man was swine, but he didn't deserve to rot out there at the bottom of a ravine. He decided that he would go back out there that day to fetch his body in so he could get a decent burial. "Yeh should know," he said softly, staring out at the distant trees. "Richard's dead."

Artemis nodded and dropped her hand, smiling at his compliment. But her face fell in shock at his news and she halted. "What? But--God, where am I when all the exciting stuff happens?" she muttered, glaring, but not at him. She looked at him again, a hint of worry in her voice when she asked, "Is Jade alright? How did Richard die?"

Sean opened his mouth, and his lips twitched, but he closed it again after sighing. He sucked on a tooth, but then sighed again. "The boy isn't hurt, but..." he shook his head. "Me an' 'im was fightin' on the side of a cliff, and the ground gave way under us. Wil grabbed me, but..." He shook his head. "I was dressed like this, an' I imagine he thought he was fightin' Wil."

Artemis raised an eyebrow in a slightly interested expression. She puzzled for a second over something and then nodded. "Wil-liam?" she questioned. "Yeah, he /would/ think that..." She opened Pearl's door for him and held it open, shutting it behind them. "That bastard finally got what was coming to him," she mumbled. But she ran her fingers through her hair with a frown and said in a subdued, thoughtful voice, with an expression resembling a grimace, "Bad way to go though, even for him." She looked around the house, realizing that Liam and Pearl must still be sleeping.

"Yeah. William. Liam. Sorry. He went by Wil when we were kids." Sean nodded at her sentiments, feeling much the same way. "Yeah... I wish..." he shook his head and the thought away. "Well, at least W--Liam an' his family is safe now. That's what is important ta me." Sean set the buckets against the side of the house, and then leaned against the wall again. He was a professional house-leaner.

Artemis nodded and caught her eyes drifting to study his form as he leaned on the wall. "Yeah..." she looked back up at his face, "We were all worried about what Richard would do." She stretched her arms a little and walked into the kitchen. "Are they still sleeping?" she asked, pouring herself a drink. 

Sean toyed with his new earring, though that hurt. "I wouldn't be surprised," he replied. "Yesterday was rather rough."

Liam grumbled as he opened his eyes, and looked over at Pearl. "Artemis is here," he mumbled, snuggling back into the pillow.

Pearl nodded slightly, frowning. "Yeah... But we usually are up by now," she pointed out, though she really wanted to kick Artemis out and go back to sleep. She yawned and grumbled back. "I don't want to get up."

Liam was in agreement. "Sean will keep her company for a while," he was sure, letting his eyes drift shut again.

Pearl considered that for a moment and then drifted off to sleep again.

Artemis nodded and walked to the table and leaned against the edge of it, sipping quietly on her drink. To be honest, she'd half hoped Liam would've been up and made enough breakfast for her to have some. She had eaten before she came, but she could never turn down a good plate of food, though her toned figure didn't show it.

Sean looked over at her, noticing her shapely legs through her fairly-tight pants. She was a nice looking woman, not that he was any stranger when it came to that subject. He felt his stomach growl, and he put a hand over it. "Let's see if there's anything to cook. That migh' get 'em out of bed," he said with a smile, rummaging about in the cabinets. "Are yeh hungry?" he asked, finding dried meet hanging and old bread. There were eggs too, and he rummaged about for a pan, preparing to make the exact same bread and egg kiesh that Liam had made his first morning in the house. The two really did think alike.

Artemis was up in a flash, suddenly hovering near him. "Are you kidding?" she paused, wondering if she should've hinted at her healthy appetite with that comment, and wanting to make a way out for herself if he didn't turn out to be as good of a cook as his brother. "Well, actually, I ate before I came, but I'm still hungry," and her stomach growled in agreement. "What are you going to make?" She was a much better cook than Pearl, but not good enough to teach Pearl to be.

Sean nodded, looking over his shoulder at her. "Something m' mam used ta make. It's, um, day old bread, torn up inta little peices, with egg an' milk poured in. I like ta thrown in meat and put cheese on top. It's pretty good," he said, a litle uncomfortable with her nearness. "Mam taught Wil and me ta cook. Thought it was smart for boys ta learn how ta fend fer themselves if there ain't a wench what'll cook fer 'em."

Artemis seemed to sense that and took a casual step away with a slightly apologetic smile. "Wise woman," she commented with an approving nod. She turned and picked up her glass again, sitting down with it. "That sounds delicious," she said hungrily.

Sean smiled back at her. "It'll be ready in a bit," he said, filling a glass of his own and walking over to the table after setting the pan into the fire. He sat on the table--he was bad about that--and put his feet on the chair. "So, whadda yeh do, Miss Artemis?" he asked her, looking down at her.

Artemis smiled at him. "Umm... I'm a fletcher," she said, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm afraid I don't get as many customers as I would like--the people around here aren't big hunters, but they buy arrows in large quantites so it pays the bills. I've been doing it since I was little," she explained. "You can just call me Artemis... Does Pearl let you call her 'Miss'?" she asked curiously.

Sean opened his mouth with a soft laugh. "I, uh... I don't think she's uh, had a chance ta yell at me for it," he admitted. "I'm a theif," he told her. "Retired."

Artemis smirked. "She'll get around to it if you keep doing it," she promised. She looked at him for a moment in appreciation for admitting that so openly and shrugged. "Who isn't?" she asked with a smile before finishing her drink.

He smirked and nodded at that. "True enough. Spent five years in a cell fer it though," he told her, but then shrugged with a smile. "Fletcher, eh?" he said, reaching over and taking her hands again, noting her long, nimble fingers. "I'm sure yer skilled," he said, rubbing her calluses gently.

Artemis's lips parted slightly and then closed in a smile. She felt her heart flutter slightly and scolded herself for it. She barely knew him. "Oh, I am," she said with a hint of pride in her voice, though she was distracted by what he was doing to hands. "P--Pearl and I both had son-less fathers who taught us their trades instead." She gently took her hands away from him, finally, becoming slightly uncomfortable with him holding them like that, though she smiled shyly and averted her gaze.

Sean smiled as well, and got up to check the fire and peek in at the food. When he lifted the lid, wonderful smells filled the kitchen. "Somethin' of the opposite in my family," he noted, crumbling more cheese to throw in. "Our Pap was always gone, so it fell ta mam ta do most of the teachin.' Well, Mam an' our older brothers and sisters. Yeh get to learn just about everythin' that way."

Artemis felt her mouth start to water at the smell of the food. "Mmmm," she murmured. Coming back to reality, she toyed with her empty cup and asked, "How many brothers and sisters do you have?"

"By blood or by raisin'?" he replied with a smile. "Mam bore eight kids, but only six lived. W--Liam an' me were fourth an' fifth from the youngest. He's the older by five minutes or so. So there was Kael who was the oldest, an' out of the house 'fore we were born. Then Margaret, Peg, an' Kate Marie. Then Patriag, then Katie Rose, then William Dale an' m'self. Then Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael--Ralphie." He counted on his fingers again, coming up with ten since he counted himself and Liam together. "Yeah, that's right. Gabe and Ralphie were adoped, an' so were the Kates an' Margaret. They're cousins. My aunt's kids. Aislin had fourteen of her own."

Artemis lost count and figured she'd probably have to have that explained a few times before she really got it. "Damn. And I felt sorry for Pearl! Your aunt had FOURTEEN?" She shook her head and tried to remove the horror leaking into her face. She might like to have a few kids, maybe one or two. Birthing that many children was mind blowing.

Sean shook his head. "Eighteen," he told her. "Fourteen what she raised and four what me Mam did. Three sets of twins, an' somethin' in the oven every year she's been married. Fifteen years of marriage." He shook his head. "Mam's family was a might fertile." He laughed. "I'm afraid I couldn't deal with eighteen, or fourteen, or even eleven. Any wonder our mam couldn't tell me and Wil apart?"

Artemis paled slightly and shook her head, but that was her only reponse, she was almost sorry she asked.

In the bedroom Jade suddenly woke up. He yawned and started to squirm. Pearl's eyes creaked open and she glared at his back. Evil child, go back to sleep... she thought in annoyance. But then Jade rolled over and smiled at her. "Hi mommy," he said. So she forced a smile back and closed her eyes. "Mommy's tired," she moaned.

"Hey little man," Liam said sleepily, hugging him. "Artemis is here, why don't you go say hi?" he suggested, letting go and pushing him towards the edge of the bed.

Sean smiled, moving to check the food. When he lifted the cover, the kitchen was filled with mouth-watering aromas. "It was a fun way ta grow up," he replied. "Always someone at yer back if yeh needed them. Course, Wil an' me were never apart, so we watched each other's backs."

Artemis smiled at that. "I used to have a sister like that," she said quietly, and didn't elaborate. Jade came running out of Pearl's room. "Arty!" he squealed, happily. Artemis picked him up and squeezed him tight. She tweaked his nose. "Is your mommy up yet?" she asked. Jade shook his head. "She's sleepy," he answered. Artemis nodded. "That girl, she sleeps too much these days!"

Pearl took Jade's spot and snuggled up to Liam.

Liam pulled her close, lightly rubbing her back with one hand. The day before he probably would have made a move, but with things the way they were now, he didn't want to push. "Suppose if we just didn' get up they'd go away?" he murmured sleepily.

Sean seemed to sense what Arty didn't say, and did not press her for more details. He smiled when Jade came in, and laughed quietly. "I think that may be the company more than anythin' else," he suggested dryly.

Artemis smiled at him faintly and looked back at Jade. "Hungry? Sean is making breakfast!" she said. "Smells good, huh?" Jade nodded enthusiastically.

Pearl sighed. "They'd probably go away eventually..." she said. "Though, it sounds like Sean is cooking and I haven't really eaten anything since yesterday morning..." But by this time her stomach had given up on growling in protest, and she'd gone without eating for longer than this. Actually, it was probably why she was so tired. She pulled on the chain around her neck again and tucked it under her shift, wondering if Liam knew she had the rings. She didn't want to bring it up yet.

Liam's eyes flicked to the chain, though he didn't know what she had on it. He knew she hadn't worn it the day before though. He lifted his pillow, put his head down, and then pretneded to smother himself with it. "Don' wanna! Don' wanna!" he cried, doing a better than fair impression of Jade. "Can't make me."

"It's just about ready," Sean said, taking it out of the fire and carefully setting it out to cool. "How about something to drink?" he suggested, reaching into the cupboard for another glass.

Artemis nodded. "Sure," she said. "What do you want to drink Jade?" she asked. He thought for a moment and decided on juice.

Pearl rolled over and pulled at the pillow over his head. "Oh, come on," she said. "Don't you want some breakfast?"

Liam pulled the pillow off, making a face. "An' eat Sean's cookin'?" he asked, though he did sit up. He stretched, rubbing a new bruise on his ribs before getting up and putting some clothes on, his back to Pearl. "Weren't yeh supposed ta go ta work taday?" he asked, dropping his pants.

Sean poured Jade some juice, and looked at Artemis. "Water or juice?" he asked, fishing a handful of plates out and setting them on the table as he delivered Jade's juice.

"Juice is fine for me too," Artemis replied with a smile.

Pearl crawled out of bed and started getting dressed. "Yeah... Actually, I was supposed to go back after lunch yesterday," she sounded a little worried about the damage this might have done to the stability of her job, and sighed. "I think Horst will forgive me," she said. She felt like wearing a dress today, which was odd even though she'd been wearing dresses ever since moving to this town. But she couldn't wear a dress to work, so she put on a pair of pants and then a blouse, hiding the rings on the chain as best she could without drawing attention to it. She smiled at him, pulling her hair out from under her shirt and leaving it down for the moment. "Let's eat..." she said.

Liam nodded and followed her out, promising himself to talk to Horst if there was any trouble. He was pretty sure the fellow would understand a family crisis. Sean was handing Artemis her juice when they came out. Old habits returned quickly, and Sean gave his brother a peck on the cheek as the elder inspected the food. "Yeh covered it with cheese," Liam complained.

"I like it that way," Sean replied, slapping his hands. "Go sit at the table, yeh ninny," he said, shooing the other out of the kitchen. Sean took pads and moved the keish to the table, dishing out portions for everybody. "Somethin' ta drink?" he asked Pearl, even as Liam made a face at the cheesy goo.

Pearl poked Liam. "It's not that bad. I like cheese too," she said.

Artemis frowned the slightest bit, she wasn't a big fan of cheese either, but she didn't want to insult Sean and she wasn't really a picky eater anyway.

Pearl looked up at Sean and smiled. "You're the guest, you know," she said with some amusement. "I can pour my own drink..." She grabbed a glass and found some cider. "Would you like something to drink?" she asked. She looked at the table and realized that they neither had enough chairs or room for Sean.

"Naw, I've already got one," he said, holding up a half-empty glass. He took his plate and leaned against the wall as he started to eat. Now, this was how a family should eat. It just didn't seem right if there were enough spots at the table for every person present. Even with eleven kids and the parents, the family dinner table had room for no more than eight. Eating against the wall was normal for him.

"Good morning, Artemis," Liam said, smiling over at her. "I trust that ruffian didn't scare yeh too badly this mornin'?"

Pearl watched him lean against the wall and let it go, taking her seat. She was starving anyway and it was easier to stuff yourself sitting down.

Artemis smirked and glanced over her shoulder. And then she made a daring comment, "I think he's quite charming actually," she said casually, still eating innocently, with a slight smile.

Liam scoffed. "Heh, you don't know him yet," he replied.

"Tapadh leat," Sean grumbled back in Gaelic, and then resumed eating.

Liam smiled faintly. "Tá fáilte romhat," he replied, and then turned to his food. "Too much cheese," he mumbled again.

"Next time, get yer arse out of bed an' make it yerself then," Sean replied, and smiled. Sure, they bickered, but it was good-natured bickering like one would expect between close brothers. It made Sean happy that Liam was feeling okay enough to bicker with him.

Artemis shrugged and took a sip from her glass, turning to Pearl. "So... work?" she inquired.

Pearl shrugged. "After breakfast I'll go see if I still have a job," she said. "I think Horst will forgive me." She glanced at Sean but there wasn't much emotion in her eyes, she was just wondering how to explain yesterday to Horst. Maybe she would just be vague and promise not to do it again.

Sean met her gaze for a moment, but then looked down, unable to face her. He finished his plate and took it to the sink. "Same rules as before," he said over his shoulder, and then wandered outside.

Liam set his fork down, staring at the table. Sure he complained, but the food was fine. He didn't want anymore though, and he toyed with his glass, not meeting anyone's gaze.

Pearl watched him go with a frown. She put her hand on Liam's arm and then switched her eyes to her food as well. Artemis looked at them all uneasily, noticing Jade's subdued expression as well. "What's going on?" she asked worriedly. Her gaze flicked to Pearl's finger and her eyebrows furrowed sadly. She felt a touch of panic, where was Pearl's ring? Was she still getting married?

"Nothin'," Liam replied. "Just the person who didn't cook does the dishes, that's all." He looked over at Jade, and smiled. "Will yeh help me?" Liam asked, picking up his plate and standng to take it over to the sink.

Artemis turned her panicked eyes toward Pearl and bore them into her. She stared at her hand pointedly. WHERE IS YOUR RING? What's going on?.

Pearl hesitated and then pulled out the rings from under her shirt, showing them to Artemis. Jade noticed too as he got up to help Liam but didn't think much about it. Artemis looked relieved and Pearl tucked the rings back into her shirt, eating again. "Bad day yesterday. All is forgiven," she said quietly. But she knew she would have to tell Sean specifically that she forgave him. She shoveled down the rest of her food then stood up, dropping off her plate with Liam and Jade, and went outside to do so.

Liam put the water on to boil and started in on the dishes. Jade dried them.

Sean was sitting a bit away from the house, under a tree in the shadow. He was sitting facing away from the house so he didn't notice when Pearl came out. He was weaving a mesh of grass, one of his nervous habits. At the moment, it was about three inches square and growing bigger with the feverish movement of his fingers.

Pearl paused near him. "Um... Sean?" She walked a little closer and looked at what he was doing with interest. If he didn't act like he wanted her to leave she would sit down too.

He glanced over at her, but his fingers kept moving. "Hey there," he murmured. His finger slipped, and he tossed it aside. "One slip, and it's all wasted," he said softly. "It's so delicate, yeh can't go back and fix it... Rather like life, no?"

Pearl tried to pick it up and it fell apart in her hands. She frowned slightly. "Yes," she answered. She sat down facing him and looked at him. "I don't need anyone to explain to me why you wanted to kill Liam, because you obviously don't want to do it anymore. And I know that you only took Jade because Richard was involved. I forgive you." She plucked at the grass in front of her. "I'm sorry I've been acting like such a jerk to everyone lately. Forgive me?" she asked, hopefully.

Sean closed his eyes. Despite what she told him, he wanted to tell her anyway. "Of course," he replied. "Except yeh have nothin' ta worry about. But Pearl..." He trailed off, looking up at her finally. "I want yeh to know. Wil and me, we're both the Highwayman, right? So we were robbin' a place when... well, when someone saw us. We took off an' split up, but then I heard a twang and..." He turned and lifted his shirt halfway up, showing off a nasty scar in his back. "Arrow inta the ribs. The only reason they didn't hang me was I had not a penny, and Wil pulled a spectacular job the next night, so they knew they hadn't caught the Highwayman. I rotted for five years alone in a cold cell." He wrapped his arms around himself. "For the first few weeks, I knew Wil would be there to rescue me, I knew he'd come. But when the weeks turned ta months... I... I went crazy with anger. I thought he'd abandoned me... an' all I could think about was killin' him..." He was shivering now, despite the fact that it was quite warm. "That's why... That's why I stole his clothes an' his ring ta try to make yeh hate him. I wanted him ta suffer... my own brother... I just wanted ta cause him pain... I'm sick..." He ducked his head.

Pearl took all of this in, her expression showing more and more pity. She shook her head and then put her hand on his shoulder firmly. She shook him slightly to make sure he would look up and she could meet his eyes. "You're not sick. Being locked up like that can do things to people... When they've got nothing to think about but the people they blame. It can put some dark thoughts in your head. I forgive you, and I know Liam does too." She worried about Jade though. She looked at his ear and adopted a lighter tone, "The earring suits you," she said, dropping her hand, hoping he would allow the mood to lift.

Sean laughed, reaching up to touch it. "Heh. Yeh know I thought Wil was going to spill his cookies when he punched it through. Me, I was fine. Didn't hurt that bad." He dropped his hand, looking at Pearl more seriously. He understood why his brother had fallen in love with this woman, but he knew better than to think about things like that. He sniffed, then gave her hand a squeeze. "Yeh better get ta work," he told her, expressing his gratitude in his eyes since he was never any good at saying things like that out loud.

Pearl frowned suddenly. "Ugh... I suppose I do," she said. She twisted her hand a little to grip his more firmly and rose to her feet, pulling him up too and then letting his hand go. She brushed off the grass on her pants and sighed. "Horst is gonna kill me," she muttered, walking back to the house. She turned back to him once she was a few paces away. "What do you think of Artemis?" she asked, raising an eyebrow, a teasing smile on her lips.

Sean stared at her, wondering where that one came from. "Go ta work," he shouted back, but he was smiling.

Liam and Jade had finished the dishes, and Liam was actually contemplating a mid-morning nap. He was still really tired.

Pearl wandered back inside and smiled at everyone. She put her arms around Liam from behind and said. "Sean is a good guy," she said, lifting one hand to play with Liam's hair. She turned to Artemis to say something and smirked, Artemis had already gone outside. "I gotta go to work," she said sadly. "I love horses, but..." she shook her head.

Liam nodded. "I think we'll stay home today," he said casually, surmising that this was part of her reluctance to leave. He turned, holding her jaw gently and kissing her deeply. "We'll be here when you get back," he promised.

Outside, Artemis considered how to approach Sean, and decided to let him approach her if he wanted to. She gave him a casual wave though.

Sean glanced over with a smile at the pretty redhead, and stood, walking over towards her. He had a grisly task in mind, and while he wouldn't scorn her help, he wasn't exactly sure how to ask her if she wanted to offer it. Hey, want to help me go get a dead guy? He mentally shook his head. Oh yeah, that'd be a killer first date...

Artemis would be dissappointed with that. But and Pearl weren't exactly average women, either one of them could take it--well, because it was Richard Pearl might have a harder time with it. Perhaps it would be better if he chose Liam to help him. Artemis smiled back at him and put her hands behind her back. "They got all lovey-dovey again so I decided to come outside," she explained. She kind of liked this guy and she wanted to show her interest but she also didn't want to seem desperate. And it was a little weird that he looked just like Liam. She had to admit, she thought Liam was attractive, but he wasn't the kind of guy she would fall for. Was his brother?

Sean smiled. "An' just how did yeh know that it wouldn't be all 'lovey-dovey' out here?" he asked teasingly. "Yeh know, I made quite an impression on... on Pernelle yesterday... I could've been..." he started, but then laughed out loud and shook his head as if to rid it of some disturbing mental image. "On second thought, forget I even mentioned it..."

Artemis shuddered and turned slightly green. "It must have been dark when you met her," she grumbled, trying to soothe away the icky feeling that joke had given her.

He laughed gently, walking a little closer to her. "Have I traumatized yeh, darlin'?" he asked softly, looking down at her with a sweet, but ornery expression. "I can give yeh somethin' else ta think about," he said, and then beant down, and gave her a light, fluttering kiss. He backed right back out though, just in case she got angry and tried to hit him. Sean was very different from his brother, in a lot of ways. This was another example of the impulsive part of him.

Artemis gasped slightly and instantly flushed. And then she just got redder, as if her attempts to calm down had backfired or it might have been in response to a thought she'd had. She forced herself to look at him, not away, but she was smiling.

Sean still had his head ducked a bit, and his shoulders hunched up. "Are yeh goin' ta hit me?" he asked, grinning like a naughty school boy who had snuck a kiss from the schoolmaster's daughter.

Artemis thought for a second. "Yes!" she said and made a sudden move hoping to get him to start running so she could chase him.

Sean laughed, and took off running. He was a fast runner, but he was also barefoot, not that it mattered most of the time in the thick grass. That is, until he stepped on a rock, which hurt a bit. He looked back over his shoulder at his pursuer.

Artemis chased him. She was a fast runner as well and she was not barefoot so she had an advantage. She saw him react to the rock and then look over his shoulder, both of which slowed him down enough so that she should tackle him to the ground.

Sean saw how close she was, and slowed down a bit more, letting her catch him, and tumbling to the ground when she tackled him. He was laughing like a child and gasping a little for air. Artemis had ended up on top, and he stared up at her, lifting his eyebrows. "So what... now?" he asked, panting a little, and not all from the run.

Artemis thought for a moment and then smirked and kissed him on the lips. She was surprisingly good at it, though there wasn't as much emotion in it as skill. She'd known him what, an hour? She broke away with a gasp and then poked him in the chest with a smile.

He grinned back up at her, putting his hands behind his head. "Mm, now that was fun," he said lightly. "How 'bout yeh run this time an' I chase yeh?" he suggested, and then rubbed the spot where she'd poked him. "An' what was the poke fer?" he asked. Unlike Liam, he wasn't ticklish at all, it had just hurt a little... well, really not at all, but it was one of those things that guys overplayed, just to be ornery like he was.

Artemis grinned back but rolled off of him to lay on the grass next to him, looking up at the sky, briefly. "Just because," she said with a shrug. She turned her head and lowered her gaze to look at him. She wondered a little if either Pernelle or someone at the house was watching them, they hadn't run very far.

He looked back up at her, smiling. "I'm going to make yeh fall in love with me," he informed her suddenly, shocking himself a little with the declaration. "An' I'm goin' ta fall hopelessly in love with yeh." Impulsive and outspoken... not like Liam at all.

Artemis laughed. "Oh really?" she asked, looking over at him questioningly. "Well... I don't see anything wrong with that," she said calmly, with a smile. She looked back up at the clouds, and distracted herself by looking for shapes in them. Her heart was racing. It's not that simple to fall in love with someone. He just likes kissing me... she told herself.

He smiled. "Good, that's settled then," he said lightly. "I was afraid yeh were going ta tell me yeh were married or an ax murderer or sommat..." He propped himself up on one elbow. "Yeh ain't an ax murderer, is yeh, Fletcher? I mean, not that I couldn't fall in love with an ax murderer, though it might cause some trouble if yeh started whackin' at me wif a hatchet..."

Artemis looked over at him and propped herself up as well. She grinned at him and laughed. "No," she replied. She frowned slightly. "But I can do some damage with a bow and arrow," but that was an overly-modest claim, "so you might have to watch out for that," she warned him with a wink.

He growled playfully, rolling over and onto her. "Then I'll just have to keep you close, won't I?" he asked, his voice growing a little husky. "That way, I'll be too close to hit..."

Artemis laughed, feeling her pulse quicken again. She grinned at him. "Sounds good--" to me, she tried to say but was cut off.

"Eh-hemm."

Sean looked up to see Liam looking down at him, a half-mocking, half-playful expression on his face. When he spoke, he spoke in Gaelic, not specifically so Artemis couldn't understand, but moreso that Jade, who was now rolling in the grass next to Aunt Arty, couldn't. "[You know, I don't care what happens between the two of you, but you could keep it just between the two of you...]" he noted dryly, tilting his head towards Pernelle's house, where her gray-haired form could be seen peering out through the windows. He offered his hand down to Sean.

Sean took his hand, and then pulled down and swept his leg across to pull Liam down as well. "[And what will she think of this, brother?]" he asked, moving to sit on hs brother's stomach and tickling him mercilessly. It was particularly cruel for him to tickle Liam when he wasn't ticklish himself. The laughed the same laugh, though Liam's was a little more strangled-sounding.

Artemis was blushing. She turned to Jade and tickled him a little bit as well, mostly to distract herself, and then ruffled his hair. She stood up next to the two twins and prodded Sean with her foot, "I think he's had enough," she suggested.

"Naw, nope," Sean said, though he was going easy on his brother. He was hurt, after all. "He's got to say it first..."

Liam was hitting his arms, trying to slap him away. "Get off, yeh bastard!" he laughed out.

"Nope! Say it, say it..." Sean urged.

"Yers is bigger than mine, now get..." He was free, though, because Sean had gotten off and stopped tickling him.

Sean got to his feet, and offered Liam a hand. "An' don't insinuate things about Mam," he said, cuffing Liam on the back of the head playfully. "Yeh know perfectly well that we are both completely legit."

"I know I am," Liam replied, soothing his hair back down. "Yer prolly the spawn of Satan..." but he was teasing, harrassing his brother just like they always used to.

Artemis raised an eyebrow and shook her head... siblings. She ran her fingers through her hair to make sure there wasn't any grass left in it and turned to Jade. "Hey, kiddo," she said, patting his head.

Jade smiled up at her. "Liam told me to ask you if you could play with me at our house today," Jade told her. "Can you?"

Liam looked over at Artemis. "There's.... there's something I need to take care of," he said, trying to be subtle.

"We," Sean ammended. "[You're in no shape to be hauling his carcass back on your own.]"

Artemis turned to them. She hadn't asked about the language they were using, and thought it odd that Pearl hadn't either, but she wished she could understand it. She nodded. "Sure," she said to Liam.

The twins nodded in unison, and started walking back to the house. "I'll need to swipe some more of yer clothes," Sean noted.

"What? Didn't you bring any?" Liam replied, though he really had no room to talk, him and his two shirts and one pair of pants.

"Like you really expected me to," Sean replied. "It's crazy, though... you've matched two days in a row... Did you learn to see colors or something?" he asked teasingly, and it was Liam's turn to look a little embarrassed.

"Maybe I did," he replied, but Jade giggled.

"Mommy buys all Liam's clothes," he told Artemis in a conspiritoral whisper, as if not to let Sean listen in, though his voice was a bit too loud for secrecy.

Artemis grinned and glanced at the twins. Her smile changed a little when she looked at Sean. "That way, he's always wearing something she likes," Artemis told Jade, her arm resting around his shoulder.

Sean's smile stuck after Artemis looked back, and he sighed a little. Liam laughed softly at him, but let it go without comment. Once in the house, they both went to the master bedroom where Sean sat on the bed and waited as Liam rummaged around for some suitably old clothes. "[This isn't going to be pleasant,]" Liam said softly.

"[I can take care of it alone,]" Sean offered, though it would be difficult.

Liam shook his head. "[Hauling him back and burying him won't be the hard part. The hard part will be trying to explain it to Jade.]"

Sean nodded, taking the clothes Liam had pulled out and slipping into them and then lacing up the boots. "[I don't know. I mean, he was there. He saw that the wanker was trying to kill us and his mam... how much more is there to explain?]"

Liam shook his head, sighing. "[I... I hope it's that simple. Come on, let's take care of it.]"

Artemis was sitting in the main room playing with Jade. She looked up at them curiously when they entered, wondering what they had to do.

Liam smiled at her, but wouldn't elaborate while Jade was there. "We'll be back in a few hours," Liam told her, and Sean walked over, stealing a quick kiss. Liam hit him on the arm, and when Sean looked at him innocently, Liam pushed him towards the door. "Git!" he ordered, giving Artemis another smile before closing the door behind them.

Artemis blushed slightly but smiled. Jade was looking at her strangely, almost as if he were teasing her, so she tickled him to the ground and found a toy for him to play with. But her mind was on Sean.

[For simplicity’s sake, we will assume this entire conversation is in Gaelic.]

Sean sighed as they started off into the woods. “Ah, Wil, she’s the one,” he said, and if his shoes were a little lighter, he would have fluttered away.

“Do you realize how many times I’ve heard you say that?” Liam replied, unconvinced.

“Not that many,” Sean tried to protest, but Liam held up his hands, counting the nice ladies off on his fingers.

“Let’s see... there was Coleen... and Deidre, and don’t forget Erin...”

“I was a kid,” Sean protested. “Under the age of ten doesn’t count.”

Liam nodded as they slipped under the tree cover. “Fair enough. But what about the MacGee twins? What were their names?

“Grainne and Erline,” Sean provided sullenly, knowing where this was going. “Twins marrying twins still sounds like a great idea to me.”

“Except you wanted them both, and they couldn’t tell the difference.” Liam rolled his eyes. “And then was it Onora? And Kyna?”

Sean bristled. “It would have worked with Kyna,” he protested, “if her pigheaded father hadn’t married her to a fat, ugly merchant.”

Liam lifted an eyebrow. “I seem to remember you trying to still make it work even after their marriage,” he reminded the other. “And I remember having to sneak you out of town in a sack of potatoes.” Sean was pouting, and Liam smiled. “I’m just saying to take it slow,” he recommended.

“She could tell us apart, you know,” he said, admiration in his voice. “By the way I walk. How amazing is that?”

Liam shook his head, clapping his brother on the shoulder. “You hopeless romantic...”



Around mid-morning Pearl returned to the house. She walked in and found a place to sit. "Hello, Artemis. Where'd all the men go?" she asked tiredly.

Artemis smiled at her and brought her a glass of water. "They didn't say, but they seemed pretty grim. Jade and I ran around for a while outside but it tired him out; he's napping now." She looked at Pearl worriedly. "Pearl... What happened yesterday? Sean said Richard fell off a cliff... And why is your ring around your neck and not your finger? Why do you have Liam's ring too?"

Pear absorbed the information with a nod and then looked into the cup of water. "Oh," she said thoughtfully. She drank from the glass, set it aside, and looked at her friend. "Well, first I should tell you about Sean... What did he tell you?"

Artemis suddenly looked wary. She thought for a moment. "He said that his name is Sean Ditmer? But I thought Liam's last name was Dempsey--and he called him William," she replied, looking at her friend for an explaination. "He did say he was a retired thief," she added.

Pearl nodded, then looked surprised and impressed. "He admited that? It's true... He and Liam--William," she acknowledged, "are the highwaymen."

'Oh ho ho! The highwaymen' she thought. If she hadn't been concerned about Pearl's engagement status and how that profession had most likely effected it she might've said that out loud. Instead she just looked surprised.

"He changed his name to Liam Dempsey--which I like much better--to avoid capture, I suppose. Sean got shot from behind and captured one night. Liam pulled a heist the next night, so the captors were convinced that Sean wasn't the Highwayman. But Liam thought he was dead... He never tried to save him. You can imagine what it did to Sean, thinking his brother betrayed him." She interrupted the story with a sigh, "Yesterday when Liam and Jade went into the forest Sean captured them and took him to caves. He took Liam's ring and his clothes and came here to try to make me hate him... He told me Liam's real name and profession--he said that Liam got me to show him around town so that he could see which houses would be best to steal from... And he said Liam made up that stuff about his son dying of a sickness... And he had Jade. I didn't know what to do so I acted madder than I was and went with him. He took my ring off and I let him keep it, I probably shouldn't of though--"

Artemis was staring at her wide-eyed, feeling again like she was out-of-the-loop and missed everything important. She stayed that way for a few seconds as her brain filed the information. Maybe Sean... Pearl looked up at Artemis and smiled. "It's okay, Artemis, he seems pretty nice. He gave up on killing Liam when he saved his life--we were fighting Richard and his guards when the ground gave way under him and Sean," she shuddered at the thought. "Anyway, Sean appologized for everything he did and gave me back the rings on this chain," she said pulling the rings out. "I think he's safe enough for you to date--if that's your intention--but he might be a little messed up still, I don't know," she finished.

Artemis smiled. "I'll be careful... But I... He's nice," she explained.

Pearl grinned. "I saw you two out there today. It seems these Ditmer boys really do like to move fast, and Sean is worse about it than Liam--though I think that red hair of yours has a lot to do with it. But you only knew him for an hour before you kissed him! You really like him that much?"

"Hey! I might've kissed him within an hour of knowing him but Liam moved in with you within a day of knowing you!"

"Maybe so. But it wasn't like that for another few days, Artemis, and if you hadn't offered to babysit Jade it would've taken longer. Besides, I don't think you should model your life after mine," she said.

"Ah... Your life's not so bad. Wonderful kid, handsome man in the house, good job. What more could ya want?"

"Well, I could do with out all the gossip..."

"Bah. What do those people know... You shouldn't care what they say." Just there was a knock at the door.

Pearl stood up and nodded. "I know, but it's so hard--" She had opened the door. Artemis saw her body tense up. "Hello, Pernelle. Recovered from last night?" she asked.

"Yes, dear. I was just so surprised, you understand. I would've known it wasn't him if it hadn't been so dark."

Pearl smiled. "Of course. Well, Sean has an earring now so you can tell him apart by that... Is there something you needed?"

Pernelle smiled. "I came to teach you how to cook, dearie. Remember we talked about it?" Her eyes sparkled. "Hello, Artemis. Did you and Sean have fun romping around this morning?"

Artemis gave her a half-smile and ignored her question. "You're teaching Pearl to cook? That's wonderful! I've never been able to help her much. We can make lunch for the men," she said, happy to blame the food on Pearl if it didn't turn out right. She was a good cook, but not a spectacular one. But her food was good enough for taverns to serve and rebels to eat around camp. It helped that she had a natural aptitude for it, with even more potential if she had someone to teach her to be better. Maybe Pernelle could help her too.

Pearl moved out of Pernelle's way and the three women got to work.



The twins were tired by the time they got back. They’d been interrogated by the guard, but with Sean’s super-human smooth-talking ability, they’d managed to keep out of trouble. Just two upright citizens, yessiree. Doin’ their civic duty in bringing in the bones of some poor drunkard who’d tumbled off the mountain. Liam was dead tired still, Sean could see that, and draped his brother’s arm around his shoulders to help him along. Some people might have commented about their perhaps overly-physical relationship, but they didn’t let it bother them; they never had. They got back home around lunchtime, dirty and tired.

Quite a bit of rukus could be heard coming from the kitchen. Pearl, Artemis, and Pernelle were cooking and their efforts had heated up the entire house. Pearl wasn't hopeless but she was having a hard time and they were all pretty frustrated. However, part of the meal was already finished and it was good--which boosted all of their confidence. Pernelle was hard to get along with but she was helping Pearl immensely.

There was a certain, small boy sitting outside the house fiddling with a toy, driven out by the frustration and heat.

Liam forced himself to perk up a bit, walking over and kneeling down next to Jade. "What's goin' on in there, little man?" he asked with a smile. "Are they burnin' down the house?"

"Smells like it," Sean muttered, aiming for the door and not the boy. He veered off, and poked his head in through the window. "Well, well..." he said with a smile. "They ain't burned down the kitchen yet, Wil," he called over his shoulder.

Jade jumped up, happy to see Liam. "Yes!" he said.

Pearl looked out the window and glared at Sean. But Artemis looked up and beamed at him. Pernelle wacked Pearl on the head, causing Pearl to turn her flashing glare on the old woman.

Sean smirked, sniffing the air. "Well, it's smells marginally edible," he said teasingly.

"Sean, quit actin' like an arse," Liam said in his ear after scooping Jade into his arms and walking over to the window. "Is there anything we can do ta help?" he asked.

Pearl glared at Pernelle and then gave her a pleading expression. Then she turned and went to the window. She reached out and gave Sean a shove, and then grabbed Liam by his shirt and pulled him close enough to kiss. She pulled back with a smile and wrinkled her nose at his smell. She motioned for him to come closer again and whispered in his ear, "Mmm, you could come to the river with me in a little while..." she suggested, pulling back again to look at him questioningly.

Liam smiled. "I think I could go fer that," he said in an equally soft voice. Liam let Jade down, and he went back to playing with his toy. Sean elbowed Liam in the ribs, so Liam stood on his foot.

"[Now who's the hopeless one?]" he teased, but Sean was happy for them. Really he was. He prayed that their rings would reappear on their fingers by the time they got back. "Well, I suppose I can help wif summat, if yeh need another pair of hands," he offered.

Pearl turned to answer Sean but Artemis practically shoved her out of the way. She nodded. "Pearl is hopeless," Pearl elbowed her but Artemis went on, "You could help us finish up, since I get the feeling Pearl is going to dissappear for a while." Pearl only smiled at her and winked at Liam before walking off.

Sean shrugged, waiting for Pearl to clear the doorway before heading in. "Whaddya need?" he asked, looking around at what, as best he could tell, was a collosal mess.

Liam reached down, lacing his fingers through Pearl's. "It'll be a wee bit cold for a swim," he said softly, smiling down at her despite his exhaustion.

Pearl nodded. "Yeah, this'll be our last swim until spring..."

Liam nodded. "That'll be a little sad," he said quietly, putting his free arm around her middle and leaning on her a little. "But somethin' ta look forward ta when it gets warmer again."

Pernelle looked Sean over and turned picking up the apron she'd given to Liam--he still hadn't bought one of his own--and held it out to him. "Put this on," she said. Artemis stifled a laugh. That's something she'd like to see.

Sean laughed just a little nervously. "Granny, yeh must be off yer rocker if yeh think I'm gonna wear that," he replied, backing away. "There ain't a self-respectin' man livin' what would wear that."

Pernelle's eyes flashed at his insult. If she hadn't been looking at Liam's face saying the words she wouldn't have let him get away with it. "Liam wore it," she said.

"And yeh've made me point," Sean replied. "I'll help yeh cook, but I'd rather strip ta me knickers then wear that..."

Artemis had been on the verge of laughing but that instantly sobered her. She smirked and revised her earlier thought--that was something she'd like to see. "Tease," she accused playfully, though she had been catching the "naughty" looks and smiles he'd been giving her. She turned to Pernelle innocently, knowing the old woman had seen them running around that morning and that they'd make it into her daily gossiping. However, she didn't seem to care. "How about I pin him down while you put it over his head?" she suggested jokingly.

Pernelle gave him a withering look and raised her eyebrows at Artemis, giving her a small smile.

Sean looked between them, a harrassed expression on his face. "Fine," he said with a causual shrug, walking over to the table and sitting on it, arms crossed over his knees. "If yer goin' ta be mean ta me, I ain't gonna help. Though yeh should stir that sauce, or it'll burn."

Both women gasped and turned around, Pernelle shook her head and sat the apron aside as Artemis stirred the sauce. She looked over her shoulder at him, irritated that he'd gotten off the hook so easily, but she had only been joking anyway, so she sighed a little. Pernelle beckoned to him and put him to work.

Sean grinned playfully, and went ahead and stood, but he paused for a moment behind Artemis. "If yeh really want to see it that bad, I'll model if for yeh later, but jus' the two of us," he whispered, but then moved away, getting to work peeling and washing, but he glanced over at Artemis with a slightly naughty smile.

Artemis felt her heart beat quicken and she looked over at him with a tiny smile before Pernelle nudged her, putting her back to work. 

Liam let Pearl lead him to their swimming hole, walking along numbly. He was too tired to think clearly, leaning against Pearl as much as he could without knocking her over.

Pearl supported his weight without complaint. She wasn't sure exactly what he and his brother had been doing, but like Artemis she had an idea. She hoped the water would wake him up though, and she wanted to talk to him. She should actually be at work now but Horst was more good-natured than she'd realized--he'd insisted that she take the rest of the day off, but firmly told her that anymore "family crises" arose she would be in hot water. He'd actually complimented her on her ability--she was talented with horses.

They got to the water and Liam shucked out of his clothes without comment or decorum, and sat on a stone at the edge of the water so it was just sumberging his rear... and other places that didn't like the cold much. "Holy bejeeses," he gasped, carefully easing himself in a fraction of an inch at a time. "It's..." his voice was a little higher than normal. "It's toasty," he lied playfully.

Pearl thought about taking the chain off or twisting it around, but scolded herself for it. She wanted him to see the rings and know that she haven't given up on them and to bring it up, so she had to leave them in view. All Liam had done was get captured, she'd been the one to push him away. She should have just put the ring on last night when Sean gave it to her. She removed her clothing as well and stood in front of the water for a moment before diving completely under and coming up with a gasp and chattering-teeth. She nodded to Liam. "Yeah," she agreed, remaining under to her neck, and moving her arms gently around as her kicking feet kept her afloat. Liam was in shallower water so she swam over with a smile. "So... Gonna take the plunge or not?" she asked, threatening to splash him.

"I'm getting there," he replied, easing himself under. He was up to his waist now, and freezing, but he just smiled as he drifted towards her. Once the water was at the level of his chest, he went ahead and dropped under, re-emerging with a sputter and his hair all in front of his face. He reached up and pushed it back. "Mother of mercy, it's cold," he said, swimming over to her, treading water as well. The water had woken him up, at least, that was certain.

Pearl grinned at him as moved closer. "We won't stay long," she said. She found ground for her feet and poked him in the chest, "But you were hot and sweaty anyway," she said before giving him a kiss.

He kissed her back, but then noticed something that was colder--if that was possible--than the water and he looked down, seeing that necklace again, but now, nestled in her cleavage, he could see what she'd had on it. He reached down, lifting them up. "Our rings," he said softly, slipping the tip of his finger through them. "I'd thought Sean lost it..."

Pearl's lips twitched. "I'd've never forgiven him if he lost them," she said sincerely. "But... I wanted to talk to you before I put mine back on and gave you yours back. I just--you still want to marry me?" she asked, finishing lamely. She didn't know why she's started feeling so insecure since all of this happened, but she couldn't help it.

Liam let a tortured little laugh escape him, and he wrapped his arms around her, hugging her tightly. "God, Pearl. Of course I do!" he whispered into her ear. "I was afraid yeh didn't... I lied ta yeh, Pearl. I hid the truth from yeh... I... I don't understand how you could possibly trust me again..." He kept holding her tight, partially for warmth, partially for comfort, and partially so she couldn't see his the torture and relief on his face.

Pearl let him hold her tight and felt her eyes watering. "I guess I knew that," she whispered. She wriggled back from his tight hold and raised her hand to his face to cup his cheek and rub the stubble there with her thumb. "No, I understand... But I think it'd be good if we talked some more about our pasts. Your past is part of what shapes you, makes you who are... We should know that stuff--even the really hard-to-talk-about parts."

He bowed his head and nodded. "I'll tell you everything," he promised in a soft voice that was almost swept away with the current. He closed his eyes and sighed, slipping free of her grip long enough to dunk himself back under the water. He swam up, tickled her a little behind one knee, and then burst back above the surface, forcing himself to smile and laugh a little though he really didn't feel like it. He needed to laugh, though. He needed to feel better, even though he felt like shite at the moment and really wanted to just crawl into a hole and hide there for a while. It hadn't been easy to try to straighten Richards mangled corpse. It hadn't been easy to try to shut those accusing eyes, only for them to pop back open again. Without Sean, he knew he probably couldn't have managed. Right now, all he wanted was to relax and be happy, and if that wasn't possible, he wanted to pretend.

Pearl laughed with him and felt her spirits lighten. The world was starting to feel right again. She felt the rings at her neck. "I'm going to take this off for now, I don't want to loose them in the water," she said. She swam to the side of the river and nestled the chain in her shirt, dripping water on her clothes.

"Hmm, hmm," Liam said from the water. "What a view!" He drifted over and sat on the rocks, the water about at the level of his navel with his nobby knees sticking out above the surface. "So, I don't know how this'll turn out, but Sean says he's fallen in love with Artemis. Only took him, like, ten minutes to decide. But that's me brother..."

Pearl looked over her shoulder at him and grinned, moving back into close range and sitting on the rocks with him. She smiled with amusement now, shaking her head. "Artemis is the same way," she paused, "actually, she's had one or two serious relationships in the past... But she fell for Sean so fast it worries me," but she wore a good-natured smile that said she was joking, "She was quick to call you a stud that day, remember? Not that I don't whole-heartedly agree..." She walked her fingers up his chest, looking up at him with a quirked eyebrow.

He smiled. "Then I won't warn him away," Liam said softly, playing with her wet hair. "Though I probably won't tell him that she really fell for me and is settling for second-best either," he said with a grin, flexing and preening a bit, though he was wet and cold, and not terribly impressive at the moment. "But as much as I love me brother, I don't want ta talk about him right now..." he said softly, raising her lips to his and kissing her suggestively.

"If that's the case she just might be dissappointed," Pearl murmured. She kissed him back, feeling parts of her body warming in response. She ran her fingers through his soaking wet hair, distracted by their lack of clothing. The water didn't seem so cold any more, but she wondered if they might be more comfortable on the bank in the sun.



Sean sat outside the little hut in the shade. Everything was ready now. All they needed was Pearl and Liam to return, but that might be a while. Sean didn't mind. He was glad his brother was happy, really he was. Jade had gone in when Sean came out, though Sean wasn't upset or disappointed that the boy was standoffish; he'd never gotten on well with kids. He grabbed a handful of grass and started another weaving.

A little while later Artemis joined him outside. Pernelle was still hanging around, probably intending to gather more gossip from a closer range, and agreed to watch Jade for a little while. She leaned against the door casually and watched him as he weaved.

Sean turned back and smiled, carefully holding it up to show her. "It's me newest clothin' creation," he explained. "Yeh wear it just here," he set the two-inch by two-inch weaving over his crotch. "With nothing else on, of course." He smiled, but looked down again. "Needs ta be bigger, though..."

Artemis rolled her eyes slightly and shook her head. But she moved and sat next to him with a smile. "So..." she said, trying to think of something to say. "Other than inventing impratical, if sexy, clothing what do you like to do with your time?," she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Do you like to cook--or do you just do it because you can?" she added, trying to discourage playful comments by being serious.

He shrugged. "I'm good with me hands," he said in answer to both questions. My brother wanted ta be a swordsmith, I wanted ta be a weaver. We both ended up..." he shrugged. "Cookin' reminds me of me mother, an' that makes me happy. As fer cookin' itself..." he shrugged, sucking a breath between his teeth as one of the blades of grass cut him a little. He kept at the weaving, but the going went slower the bigger it got.

Artemis nodded, smiling slightly. She wished she had something to occupy herself with like he did, but even if she were to start making arrows, she would have to give it too much attention. She watched him for a while in silence, deciding he probably wasn't going to use the weaving for anything. "Can you teach me how to do that?" she asked.

He shrugged. "With hands like yers, I'm sure yeh can learn," he replied, beckoning her over. "The key," he told her as she sat next to him, "is patience." He grinned, glancing at his rapidly moving fingers. "Or so me master told me. This was his exercise ta get me ta sit still for five minutes. Yeh have to be very exact, and don't get discouraged when you're learnin' because..." He let his hands slip, and the weave started to unravel itself. "This weave is very beautiful, but delicate. Gentle, purposeful hands." He took up four strands, and started to explain the actual mechanics of the weave in detail, smiling at her as he did.

Artemis grinned back at him. His master, huh? Is it that difficult or is he exaggerating?. She watched the weaving unravel and frowned. "Oh," she said, nodding. She returned his smile and tried to learn what he was saying.

She was a fair student, but Sean was a lousy teacher. He managed to convey the general outline, but so much of weaving wasn't so much in the movements, but subtle tricks of pressure and poise. He got her started though, but then took off again, fingers working at a frantic pace until he had another piece that was about an inch square. He smiled at Artemis, and then finished in the edges and held it up to her. It was a heart, but Sean still held it carefully, like it was about to fall apart. "Give it a kiss. It's the only way for a heart to stay whole."

Artemis raised her eyebrows questioningly but she took the heart gently from him and kissed it.

It remained intact, and he smiled, giving her a wink. "My lady, yeh've stolen me heart," he said softly. He smiled at her for a while more, and then started weaving again, looking off in the direction Pearl and Liam had gone. "How long will they be gone, do you think?" he asked softly, putting clover flowers into the pattern this time, for variety's sake.

Artemis smiled at that, and then at him. She did think he was charming. She followed his gaze. "They proabably won't stay in the water long, it's gotta be cold. But that doesn't mean they'll be back soon," she said with a snicker, guessing what they'd were doing by now, since she knew Pearl intended to get that ring back on her finger today.

Sean smiled. "I'm glad," he said, and then looked over at her. "Really, I am. W--Liam... well... Let's just say, he's never been the popular one of the two of us. He's so.... cautious. Timid..." He shook his head.

Artemis tilted her head and smiled. "Yeah, I guess... But, you know, I think Pearl makes him more impulsive sometimes. She's pretty easy-going--he doesn't have to be on his toes around her, and he loves her..." He looked surprised so she elaborated. "He was pretty quick to tell her he loved her, and she didn't get the feeling he planned to say it. His proposal was pretty sudden too, though he had the rings already so we knew he'd been meaning to ask eventually. But if she hand't prompted it when she saw him loose his nerve he probably would've waited." She shifted and leaned back on her elbows, looking out at the trees. Pearl's had such a hard life, she deserves every good thing that comes to her, especially Liam.

"Oh, having things planned out, I can believe," Sean replied. "He could plan things for a decade before doin' anythin' about 'em. But..." His face darkened a bit. "After Connor--his son--died... I'm just glad he's happy now. The last time I saw him, he was only sober on a job, and then he'd celebrate by drinkin' even heavier than usual. He was real close to Con. I'm sure that's why Jade means so much to him." He looked down at his new weaving, and tossed it aside as well. "What about you? Why aren't yeh settled down with five or six of yer own? Yer pretty enough ta have any man yeh wanted..."

Artemis nodded seriously, she knew about Connor. It was so sad. Her eyes flicked back up to his face and she forced a smile. "Oh, well... I don't know..." She looked away and then back, looking intently at his face. "Just haven't found the right person I guess," she said. She shrugged, though she wasn't as detached from the subject as she tried to make it sound. Her eyebrows furrowed and she sat up, turning toward him, plucking at the grass. "Actually... I was married before. When I was a teenager my dad married me off," she waved her free hand dismissively. "He his name was Fredrick. He owned the local tavern. He didn't like me running off with my bow and hunting, didn't even like me to make arrows," she said huffily. "He was part of the rebellion, there were a lot of meetings held at tavern. I wasn't a part of it then, but it's how I learned about it. The only time he ever acted lke he cared for me was the day the got me out of there. They killed him and burned the building down. They burned a lot of buildings down--Pearl's house too. At least she got away with her horse."

He nodded. "Arranged marriages can be difficult," he agreed. "That was one of the nice things about being poor. No one wanted to marry any of my sisters for money, so they all got to marry for love. That's all I ever wanted for my brother," he said softly, smiling.

Artemis nodded. "So what about you?" she asked, tilting her head and smiling a little. "No wife--or kids--stashed away somewhere?" she asked.

He shook his head with a laugh. "I spent the last five years chained to a wall in a box smaller than that kitchen," he reminded her. "Put quite a kink in my social life. Before that..." He blushed a little and shook his head. "There were some, but nobody that I could make a life with." He shrugged. "But I've always had Wil, and while it might not be like a marriage, there's a sort of bond between us that is just as close or closer."

Artemis nodded, accepting his reply. She felt one of her eyebrows raise. "Ah, first I have to watch out for Pernelle, now I have to watch out for Liam too? Should I worry Pearl will be next on the list? What about Jade?" she asked with a teasing smile.

Sean raised an eyebrow. "We're not that close," Sean protested, though he could tell she was teasing him. He didn't really feel like going into detail about how he felt about Wil and their relationship, so instead he replied, "Don't worry, darlin'. The list stops after yeh." He beant over and snuck a little kiss.

Artemis was satisfied with that. She stayed were she was so he could kiss her as she looked over at him and then smiled, looking back at the trees.

Sean smiled, and glanced over at the house. The window was open, but the tree trunk could stay between them and that window, if he was careful about it. He scooted a little closer, and put an arm around her suggestively, toying with her hair.

Artemis looked over at him and smiled. She glanced at the window and had pretty much the same idea he had, that the tree would hide them pretty well. She raised an eyebrow Exactly what do you have in mind? She turned, moving in front of him. "Hmm... Wanna have a little fun?" she asked, ready to back off if he said no, but she didn't think he would... 

Liam blinked awake from his post-bliss dozing, mostly because it was cold. Pearl was wearing his shirt, and he was wearing his skin and nothing more. He looked down at his hand, where it fell over Pearl's soft curves, and at the ring glinting faintly on his finger. He smiled, and snuggled in a little closer and held her a little tighter, not ready to get up and go home just yet.

Pearl looked up at him and then pressed her head against his bare chest again. "I love you," she whispered. Then, with an accompanying yawn, "Let's stay here a while longer, we'll never get any sleep at home..."

Liam moaned happily, slipping his arms under hers and nuzzling the back of her neck. "Okay," he said.

Sean smiled. "Well now," he said softly, admiring her. "What exactly did yeh have in mind?" he asked casually with his playful smirk, but a chill had just raced up his back and he was shivering.

Artemis smiled and carefully sat on his lap facing him and slid her hands over his chest, looking up at him. "Nothing too... risky," she decided, "I don't think I want to have to raise kids of my own yet." She gripped his shoulders and kissed him.

Sean nodded, his nimble fingers working to free her of her blouse as he kissed her back. "I'm sure..." he said, tugging it off over her head, "that we can manage that."

Artemis shivered slightly from the wind. She snaked her hands across his chest and removed his shirt. Then she took a breath and pushed him to the ground, pressing her lips against his again.

Sean twisted his hands to get them free of the material, but then his hands went right back onto her. Her skin felt so soft under his calloused palms. He kissed her back, and then pulled his mouth away, biting and sucking at her neck as his hands carressed her back.

Artemis made a sound that was a cross between a laugh and a gasp, but smiled at the sensation. She pulled her neck away and moved her head back to his. She took his earlobe in her teeth and licked it. Then murmured, "If you're going to do that, at least put it somewhere that I can hide it... Come on..." She pulled back and rolled over, pulling him with her so that he was now on top. She looked up at him expectantly, lifting her arms and sliding them over the scars on his back.

He looked down at her, smiling with a dreamy expression at the beauty beneath him, and the beautiful red hair splayed out in the grass like the beams of the sun. He contained his lust for a moment just to look at her, to admire her. "Of all the riches I have seen," he said softly, reaching down to toy with a lock of that shimmering auburn gold, "Yeh are the most beautiful." He kept his eyes on her as he untied her stays and slipped the loops out until her bountious chest was freed. He put his hands on her then, and beant to kiss her deeply, his fingers never still for a moment.

Artemis felt her breath catch again. Her eyes softened at his compliment but little of her lust left them. She pulled him closer and felt her mind explode with bliss. She wanted to go further, but though their legs were tangled up and he was close their pants were still on, and she meant to keep them on... this time at least.

Liam had lied earlier when he said that Artemis was getting second best when it came to the act of loving. Liam was a thinker and an acrobat, but Sean was the talker and the better lover, if only thanks to years of diligent study and several very helpful partners to practice with. The tree did a decent job concealing them from view. Fairly decent anyway.

..If they remembered to stay hidden behind it.



Sean knew that they had set limits, but it sure seemed like they had hit those limits too damned fast. Stopping when she told him to was one of the hardest things he'd ever done. He forced himself not to look at her as she put her blouse back on, not because he was angry, but only because he doubted his self control. He blew out a long breath, and pulled his shirt back on. "I'm going to take a bath," he murmured without facing her, standing.

Artemis closed her eyes, and took a few deep breaths, hugging herself. She did want to go further, but now wasn't a good time to do it. Her body was screaming in protest at her choice, aching at the sudden lack of his touch. She groaned quietly. When they decided to quit she'd suggested that maybe next time they might go all the way, and at the moment her body wanted to know why they could do it then but not now, now when it wanted it. "Yeah," she said, noticing the way he wasn't looking at her, and realized that she'd been doing the same until he spoke. She let him walk away and stayed for a moment getting control of herself.

Sean found the river without terrible difficulty, and the cold water did him some good. At least it was possible to think now. He sat on the stones, his torso and his knees exposed as he leaned against a rock, and closed his eyes. He stayed that way until the cold was painful, and then got out to dry, shiveirng in the wind. The Liam-like part of him applauded his restraint. It was sensible to take things somewhat slowly... he'd only known the woman for a day after all. Of course, lately he hadn't needed to know a woman even that long. An hour, and he knew everything he wanted to know about her. But Artemis was different, and Sean desperately wanted her to be different. He thought about other things as he pulled his clothes back on. He thought about a place to live--he had no intention of sleeping on his brother's living-room floor for more than a few nights, and it didn't feel right to invade Liam's life any more than he already had. Moving in with Artemis, as pleasurable as that would be, he didn't consider an option. He would have to find a place of his own. "Tomorrow," he promised himself, lacing his boots back up and heading for home.

Pearl and Liam returned while Artemis was still outside composing herself. Artemis lifted her head and tried to give them an innocent, friendly expression. "Welcome home," she said with a smile. She pulled her shirt down a little, still trying desperately to keep the guilty look off her face. She was embarrassed, but it wasn't so much about their behavior as how strongly she'd come on to him. She felt bad that she'd excited him so much, only to stop short of what they both wanted to do.

But it didn't fool Pearl. She flicked her eyes over Artemis and gave her a guarded look. She nudged Liam to get him to keep walking. She walked with him into the house, intending to come right back out. She looked a little worried. She knew Artemis could be wild and that she was hugely attracted to Sean. She'd hoped that because Arty actually liked him that they would've waited to do anything drastic, she had a feeling they hadn't. "I'm just gonna go talk to her..." she said.

Liam nodded, wondering where his hornbag of a brother had gotten to. He might not be the wisest when it came to the ways of women, but he could only think of a few things that Artemis would look guilty about, and all of those included his brother. He glanced back over his shoulder, seeing Sean come out of the trees from the same angle he and Pearl had just come from. "Right," he said to his wife-to-be, and turned back to intercept is brother. "[Needed a bath?]" Liam asked, and got a glare in reply.

"[Mind your own business,]" Sean replied sullenly, not wanting his brother's advice at the moment.

When Artemis heard Pearl return she smiled a little, though Pearl couldn't see, both annoyed and glad that she'd cared enough to come to talk to her. "We didn't have sex," she said bluntly, leaning back on her elbows and trying to look casual. "We just had a little fun... that's all..." Though it hadn't turned out to be so much fun. Enjoyable while it lasted, torturous when it ended.

Pearl just nodded and sat next to her. She didn't want to give her friend advice or lecture her about what she'd done, not now. So she sat and let Artemis admit as much as she wanted to.

Liam raised an eyebrow. That wasn't the reaction he was expecting, and it told him what he needed to know. So they didn't go all the way. Interesting.... he thought. "[You never used to be so secretive about your other conquests...]" Liam reminded him.

"[Artemis isn't like the others,]" Sean snapped back, glaring at him briefly. "I'm hungry," he said, deliberately switching to the local tongue to tell his brother that their conversation about this was over.

Artemis spoke to Pearl bluntly about what had happened and how she felt about it. It was a short conversation. When it ended she turned to her friend and they hugged quickly. "Thanks, you're a pearl, Pearl," she said humorously as she pulled away. "I see you have your ring back on..."

Pearl smiled at her, knowing she was going to be alright. "Your welcome, you know you can always talk to me," she said. Her smile widened as she touched her ring. "Yep, the obnoxious chain is gone, and my finger doesn't feel naked anymore. All is right with the world..."

Artemis smiled back and pushed her a little. "I'm glad you're happy, Pearl. It gives people hope. I remember when you--" she was cut off as Pearl glared at her playfully and shoved her back. She let the sentence drop and smiled, feeling her stress ebb away. But then she looked over at the house. "Sean's probably back now..."

Pearl nodded gravely. "Think you can face him?"

Artemis looked at her for a moment and then nodded, getting to her feet. "I feel bad for what I did to him, but I like him, Pearl... I couldn't help it," she said as the two women walked back to the house. Pearl nodded. "I know."

The boys were sitting at the table, all three of them, though Jade sat on the side of Liam where Sean wasn't. They all looked up from their reheated food. Pernelle was all sorts of cross that she'd taken the effort to teach the girls how to make a decent meal, and then no one had eaten it. Sean's eyes stayed on Artemis a bit longer, and he smiled softly. He wasn't mad... aching maybe, but not mad. Liam glanced over at him, and then back at Artemis, but then returned his attention to the food. "Pernelle let in a bit of a huff," he admitted, wondering if the girls had seen her nearly storming back to her house. "Yeh might not be getting another cooking lesson anytime soon..."

Pearl exchanged a look with Artemis and then nodded. "We saw her... I'll apollogize to her later. But I do doubt that even then she'll be back over for a while." She motioned for Artemis to take the last empty seat, next to Sean. She fixed herself a plate and stood to eat as Sean had earlier that day. She didn't mind.

Artemis smiled at Sean as she fixed her plate and sat down. She was pleased that he didn't seem angry and reassured by his lingering gaze. She was tempted to rub his shin under the table with her foot, but she decided she needed to restrain herself, for both their sakes.

It was a good thing, because Sean knew he couldn't. He kept finding himself glancing over at her, or examining her hands. They were such beautiful hands, with long, nimble fingers. She'd make a great lockpick. "Cac capaill," Sean cursed. "[I cannot believe I just thought that...]" Liam lifted a brow, so, naturally, he had to explain. "[Artemis's hands. She'd make a great lockpick.]"

Liam snickered into his drink. "[You should tell her so. It's a great compliment...]"

Both Pearl and Artemis lifted eyebrows, and then exchanged looks, again. Pearl looked up at them and huffed. "You could speak so that we can all understand you every once and a while," she said. Artemis nodded, looking between them both. She kicked Sean lightly in the leg. "Especially if you're talking about me," she said, and it was only half a question as to whether he had been or not.

"Only good thin's, darlin'. Only good thin's," Sean replied, laughing a little and looking over at his brother. "We been found out, Cúpla," he said with a laugh.

Liam smiled as well. "It's Gaeilge," he explained, and then ammended, "Well, our own version of it. Even our mother and siblings couldn't understand us when we talk ta each other... it's--"

"--part of bein' a twin, we think. Bein' able ta finish each other's sentences." He smiled. "It's second nature to us--"

"--though we'd never say anything bad about either of yeh ta each other. That wouldn't be right," Liam concluded.

Pearl smiled lightly at that and resumed eating. Artemis's mouth twisted suspiciously but then she smiled at Sean and started eating again.

Sean turned to his brother. "I'm going to find a place to live tomorrow," he said, having to remind himself not to speak Gaelic.

"You don't have to do that," Liam protested. "You can stay here..."

Sean glanced over at Pearl, and then shook his head with a smile. "I'm too old to sleep on the floor," he replied.

Artemis was looking at him with interest, though she was trying to keep a straight face. Ohhhh, it would be fun to let him live with her... but then she'd really have to worry about getting pregnant because it'd just be too tempting. And she recalled that Liam's excuse for sharing Pearl's bed had been the effect of the floor on his back, much the same as what Sean just said, and she didn't have an extra bed at her place. She wondered if his getting his own place would give them more of a chance at a real relationship or not. She glanced over her shoulder at Pearl. 

Pearl nodded. "I think that's a good idea. But if you ever do need a place to stay, you can stay here," she promised. She looked over at Liam's distressed face and smiled at him reassuringly, "I'm sure he won't go very far, Liam." She gave Artemis a quick, sharp look when she saw her glance over her shoulder. Artemis, don't even... she thought.

Artemis gave her a briefly pleading look that no one else could see. Oh, come on..., she thought. She got an indifferent expression in reply. So she clamped her mouth shut and didn't say anything.

Sean glanced over at Artemis, but then stared at the floor with Pearl's comment that he wouldn't go far... To be completely honest, what he wanted the most was to grab Liam and run so it would be just the two of them again... just like old times. That wasn't fair to Liam, though, and terribly selfish besides. Liam had a place now, a family... It wasn't Liam's fault that Sean didn't belong here. They weren't boys anymore. They were men, well on their way to being old men. And if Liam wanted to have a family, Sean had no right to stand in the way.. not like he had with Connor and his mother... He sighed very quietly.

"You can't be thinking of leaving," Liam protested. "Sean..."

Sean turned away, forcing a little smile to give to Artemis. "See, the reading-each-others'-thoughts thing does have its downsides."

Artemis wasn't sure how to reply to that. "How far away do you think you'll go?" she asked quietly, mentally kicking herself.

Sean opened his mouth, but Liam loudly hit the table with his glass. "He's not going anywhere," he insisted.

"Wil..." Sean started to reply, but Liam cut him off.

"No... God da..." Liam glanced at Jade, who was looking at him curiously. "Sean, I just got you back. I am not losing you again..."

"This isn't my life, Wil. This place... it isn't my home. Maybe someday... But it isn't. An' I'm not so sure I want to spend the rest of my life being mistaken for you."

Liam felt a lump in his throat the size of a rock and about as hard. "It never used to bother you."

"Well, we're different people now," he replied shortly, standing and moving for the door.

"Sean, wait," Liam called after him, but he'd already slipped outside.

Pearl's empty plate and cup were discared on the counter she'd been leaning on. She was standing next to Liam with her hand on his arm. She sat in the chair Sean had vacated and moved her hand to take his. She glanced at Artemis who had trained her gaze on the table.

Liam pulled away from her--not being rude, just too distracted to notice. He folded his hands and put his elbows on the table, hiding his face behind his vertical arms. He mumbled something in Gaeilge that was unmistakably a curse, and then punctuated it with a fist to the table. "Stupid son of a..." he trailed off, leaning back. His eyes were dry, but his ears beet red in anger.

Pearl looked at Jade, happy that at least Liam was stopping short of his curses. "Jade, please go to your room. The grown-ups are upset," she explained. "Artemis can join you if she's not too upset too." Artemis looked up at her with a frown and went to Jade's room with him, freeing Pearl to turn to Liam. She considered what to do for a moment. She could pinch him to get his attention, or even kiss him. Instead she stood up and moved behind him, putting her arms around him and kissing his cheek. "Liam, calm down."

Liam knew she was right, and he managed a deep breath. "That bastard," he said softly. "How could he even think of leaving? We're finally together again after five years. Five years, Pearl! Five years! Five years when I thought he was dead. But now he's back--he's alive, and he wants to leave ?"

Pearl squeezed his shoulders and brought her head closer to rest the side of her face against his. "Liam," she said very carefully, "I don't think he wants to leave, I just think he feels like he should. Ask him about it... But give him a while before going after him. We don't know everything he's been through..."

Liam turned towards her, and gently pulled her into his lap, hugging her tight. It helped--his heart slowed and his ears stopped burning quite so badly. "I'd rather just hunt him down and beat his head in," he said softly, but he probably didn't mean it.

Sean wandered once he was outside, but not without direction. His meanderings took him towards the center of town and where he would find some source of alcohol. He stepped up to one tavern--the Tapped Barrel, apparently--and walked inside. He got looks from the other patrons, but glared at them enough to make them leave him be. He ordered a whisky and then took the bottle and went to a quiet booth in the corner where he could drink himself senseless in some semblance of privacy.

Pearl moved her arms to his sides to hug him back. She rested her head on his shoulder and looked up at him with a little bit of a sigh. She wasn't sure what to say to him. She hardly knew Sean, and she doubted that even Liam could understand the state of mind his twin was in. Liam thought his brother was dead for five years, and was overjoyed to find out he was alive, and mad and upset about the five years they'd lost. But for those five years Sean was in a small, dark, uncomfortable cell, hardly being fed at all, possibly with no one else to talk to, believing that his brother had stolen the money and left him to die. When she'd seen him first... he was mad. She'd forgiven him for his behavior and he seemed like an okay guy, but no amount of forgiveness could erase the effects those five years on either twin. But how could they help Sean? She dropped an arm to take Liam's hand and squeeze it. "Don't be too hard on him," she said finally, for lack of a better response.

Liam squeezed her hand back, and sighed softly too. "Yeah," he replied quietly, also for lack of a better response. For the moment, he seemed content holding her close and he rested his head against her, lost in his own memories of better days.

A few minutes later Artemis came out of Jade's room and Jade appeared at the door. Artemis took a quick look at the calmed-down couple and motioned to Jade that it was safe to come out, and approached them. She stopped within hearing range. "I'm gonna go..." She ran her fingers through her hair. "I need to go to work tomorrow... Are you going to need me to babysit or anything?"

Pearl lifted her head from Liam's chest and shook her head. "No, but you can still come over," she replied. She wondered if it was safe to make a joke about Sean, and decided against it, not knowing what she was feeling. "We'll see you later then..."

Artemis nodded and gave Jade a hug before slipping out the door into the fresh air. It was late now, not too early to be going home anyway. She felt her expression become sour and crossed her arms. Well, she'd met a charming, sexy guy today... but they may've moved too quickly and now he was thinking of moving away... She breathed a sigh on the wind and moved her arms to the back of her head, looking up at the stars. What she wouldn't do for a drink about now... She shifted her direction. It had been a while since she'd gone to The Tapped Barrel but the beer was pretty good and it was close so she headed there.

Inside the bar all was not well. The entire town knew who Liam was and that as an unspoken rule he was banished from this bar. The bartender was cleaning glasses angrily. The scoundrel hadn't attempted to set foot in here since that day, but it looked like he'd have to spell it out for the guy--he wasn't welcome here. His eyes flicked over his loyal patrons, the Regulars. One of him was the large man who'd been splashed by the beer intended for Liam and he was none-too-pleased about the guy's presense. The bartender could see that he was pratically seething. He was playing cards but his hand gripped his mug tightly and he drank repeatedly from it, his eyes burning a hole through the air at "Liam" in the corner. He watched the bastard order the waitresses around and saw him throw his glass across the room with a yell for silence. He threw down his cards, shoved back his seat and stalked over, cracking his knuckles and presenting his considerable bulk meanicingly. "Hey, why don't you get lost? What's the matter? That tramp of yours finally cut you loose?" he sneered.

Sean smiled, but it was an eerie, disturbing smile. "Yeh've made a misthake, pallie," he said, his speech slurred thanks to a fourth of the bottle of whisky and he oozed out of the bar, getting to his feet with apparent difficulty. "Yeh think I'm him, because yeh an idiot." Sean blinked, and woozily pointed a finger at the man. "Now, I diddn'th come here to start somethin'. So, go f*ck yerself, an' leaf me alone," he concluded, turning to sit back down.

The man looked over his shoulder at his friends. "Bastard's gone wonky," he said making motions around his head to demonstrate the state of Sean's mind. The other men chuckled grimly and rose to their feet. He looked back at him with a patronizing smile. "How about we take this outside?" he suggested.

Sean smiled at him. "No need for that," he replied, and threw a poorly aimed and poorly delivered punch that mashed the man's lips, but didn't do a lick of damage. He wobbled on his feet. "Now that yeh've learned yer lesson, how's about yeh leave me the hell alone," he said, turning again to sit back down.

The man's hand came down on his shoulder. He turned him around and punched him in the gut. "Wasn't really a suggestion, buddy," he said smugly, even as two other strong men grabbed his arms and dragged him out the door. He followed in their wake, nodding solemnly at the bartender who returned the nod and pretended to study a spot on one of the glasses he was cleaning. Sean's two escorts threw him to the ground a few feet from the tavern. "Get lost and don't come back. You're not welcome here," said the leading man, moving past the other two, who flanked him.

But the punch to Sean's gut seemed to have sobered him more than a pot of coffee would've. He hit the ground in a low roll, then ended up back in a crouch, both feet and one hand planted in the ground, the other wiping a thin trail of spittle from his lips. "Listen, shithead," Sean said, his words sharper, though still a little fuzzy at the edges. "I don't know what me bother's done here, but I ain't him. I paid fer that bottle o' whisky, right as rain, and I ain't leavin' without it." In complete honesty, Sean didn't give a lick about the liquor, he was just itching for a fight.

The man's eyebrows raised. "Twins are yeh? How convenient," he sneered, cracking his knuckles. "Well then, we'll just take that whisky as payment for your behavior. Didn't your momma teach any of her brats their manners? Or did she have none herself? Guess we can't expect much more from a lousy gyp--" he cut off with a cry as Sean launched himself at him.

The second punch Sean threw had a lot more power behind it than the first, enough so that Sean's fist popped in two places, and the man staggared, his jaw popped out of place and hanging onto his skull at a crazy angle. Sean had jumped as he punched, and when he landed, he fell into the same crouch that he had sprung from to launch the attack. "Insult an Irishman, insult his horse, his job, and even his wife, but don't insult his mother," Sean suggested dryly, even though he was landed heavily on a moment later by the other two, who pummeled him pretty merciliessly. Each time he turned to fight one, the other got him in he back or kidneys, and he couldn't worm free to get some distance.

This is when Artemis rounded the corner, showing up pretty close to the fighting. She'd heard the chaos before she turned onto the street so she was prepared for some kind of scuffle. However this was a little more violent than she'd anticipated. It was too dark to see much but she was able to see the two men gang up on one unfortunate man, with another guy in the background. She hung back for a moment and considered what to do. She was a pretty good fighter if she wanted to help the guy out. Somehow she doubted that she'd be able to break up the fight just because she was a woman--these men had no scruples about ganging up on that guy, even though it was three to one and entirely unfair, so they probably wouldn't be honorable enough to stop the fight. The thought just made her mad. "Hey!" she yelled, moving forward but still sort of keeping her distance. "What's going on here?" Her eyes widened when she saw that one man's jaw had been popped out of place, presumably by the man on the ground getting throttled.

Sean heard Artemis's voice past the sound of fists, and he slowed in his fighting back for a moment. Artemis... this was just how he wanted to be found by her... busted up and bloodied. Despite the fact that he hurt all over, and probably would be uriniating blood for a few days, he almost hoped that Artemis went on her merry way, ignorant of his troubles.

"Beat it," the one of Sean's left side ordered. "This ain't your affair, bitch."

Artemis removed a throwing daggar from her belt and brandished it. "Whatever this was about... I believe you've made your point," she said calmly, having witnessed enough of this fight too know that they were being unnecessarily rough with whoever that man was. "So I suggest that you avoid a night in the stocks and go back to your drinks."

The man growled. He obviously had no idea who Artemis was. "Eh, f*ck off," he replied, but the second guy smiled.

"Aww, now James, maybe she's lonely... You just want to play, don't you?" he leered, advancing on her.

Artemis took a step back and raised her throwing arm, slipping out another daggar with the opposite hand. "No, I don't--don't make me throw this through your neck," she warned, flicking her eyes around at the other men. "You know, you could at least leave him alone to tend to that guy," she said, jerking her head at the one with the broken jaw.

James looked over, and it was enough of an opening for even a battered Sean. He rolled out and punched the fellow hard in the throat--a cheap shot, but effective. As James gurgled, Sean reached over and drew out his knife, holding it in a knife-fighter's grip with the pommel of the weapon by his thumb and the blade sweeping back down the length of his arm. He glanced at Artemis, and then spat blood, throwing himself back up to his full height despite the pain. The lewd one didn't seem anxious to fight two people with knives, and scampered off, his injured friends close behind. Sean staggared a bit, but then walked back into the tavern, retrieved his whisky, and made it back out to the second step before his knees gave out under him and he sat heavily.

Artemis was leaning against the wall, with her daggars resheathed. She'd gotten over the surprise she felt when she realized it was him, and was glad that her interruption had turned the fight in his favor, not that she expected him to admit it. Stubburn men. She had a feeling that he came here to get drunk and picked a fight... But this was the Tapped Barrel and he looked just like Liam so it may've been unavoidable. She sighed and sat next to him, assessing his wounds quickly. "Pearl used to work here. Liam pulled her into his lap and it pissed her off so she started a brawl and got them both thrown in the stocks." She looked at the tavern door. "The guy who's jaw you broke had a lot to do with it's escalating though," she said offhandedly. "You okay?" she asked then, and forced some mirth into her voice when she added, "You swagger even more when you're drunk."

He scoffed at her, taking a hard pull at the bottle and then making a face as it burned the inside of his mouth. "Man can't e'en take a quiet drink in this demmed town," he said, spitting again. He glanced over at her, and then glared at the ground. "I could've handled them," he said sullenly.

Artemis grinned and stopped herself from shaking her head. "Well, you are the Highwayman, aren't you?" she said. "I wouldn't expect any less. But my interruption helped--you shouldn't begrudge a good distraction when you're fighting dirty." She leaned her head on the wall and looked up at the sky again.

"Wil was the better of us," he replied softly, glaring at the ground. "He always was... He could get from the ground to a roof in less than a minute without rope or a decent handhold. He's a great fighter... an' he's got a cool head. I never think things through..." He sighed. "An' I find him at last only ta lose him again..." Sean took another long swig from the bottle.

Artemis looked over at him and then away, pulling her legs up to sit "Indian-style". "That's how he feels. Just because he has Pearl doesn't mean he won't spend time with you... Pearl goes to work and she's usually gone all day. You have a lot of time to spend with him..." she pointed out. "Just because he's settling down and he won't break into houses with you anymore doesn't really mean you're losing him..." She looked at his bottle, thinking he'd probably had enough off that but not wanting to antagonize him by pointing it out. She risked touching the arm closest to her, the one that held the bottle, a gesture of comfort which also was intended to discourage the drinking.

Sean shook his head faintly at her words, but then looked down at her hand, his expression curious. He looked from it to the bottle, but it was only burning his mouth, and that was more painful than pleasurable. He pushed the cork back in, and then pulled his hand away, pushing himself unsteadily to his feet. He couldn't feel the pain from the beating yet--that would come the next day, when the booze had left his system. "I should fin' someplace ta sleep," he muttered, shaking his head as if to clear it.

Artemis stood a moment after him and put her hands behind her back. "You can always go to Pearl's. Liam's probably worried about you. Or you could..." she trailed of briefly. "I have an extra cot at my place that Jade sometimes sleeps on when he stays over. Pearl's slept on it before too and didn't complain," she offered. "There's actually not many inns around here..."

Sean considered her offer for a full moment before shaking his head--he was drunk, it took longer to collect a thought. "No," he replied. "I'm too wasted to go home with yeh. Knowin' yeh's in the udder room..." He shook his head again, harder this time, and tried to straighten, though he just staggared a step backwards to catch himself. "I ain't goin' ta talk yeh inta doin' nuthin' what yeh'll regret in the mornin'." He wandered forward another step. "An' I ain't goin' ta Wil like this... I'll sleep in the gutter wif the rest of the drunkards." He looked back at her, some part of his mind that was still thinking clearly knowing that she wouldn't like this arrangement. "I'll sleep in a gutter near yer house, if it'll make yeh feel better, but I wanna locked door between us..."

Artemis was silent. She'd seen the willpower it took him to stop earlier that day and knew that, drunk, he definately didn't have the self-control now. But if they didn't start anything he might have the strength not to start anything. But like he said--knowing she was in the other room...

She rubbed her forehead and sighed. "I can't let you sleep in the gutter, Sean, even one by my house..." She retreated to her thoughts for a while. None of her neighboors or friends would take him in--he was a stranger to them, and he was drunk, and it was late. It probably would be a problem for them if there wasn't a locked door between them. She might have to let him sleep outside... but she hated to. "Besides there's not really anywhere--" Artemis cut off, she had just remembered something. "Well... there is the stable..."

Sean shrugged. "That'll be fine," he told her, though he wasn't stumbling to terribly now. Of course, most of the booze hadn't really hit his system yet. Give him another hour, and he'd be downright miserable--or unconscious. Really, the second option would be easier at this point. "Lead th' way, bea--uuu--tiful." He smiled at her, a goofy but sweet smile. "Yeh're a demmed fine woman, Art'mis. Demmed fine. Yeh shouldn't have ta be out here with a lout like me... I'm sorry..."

Artemis ran her fingers through her hair. She wondered if she should tell him it was her neighboor's stable she'd be sneaking him into, and decided he could find that out once they were there and he was too tired to object. She felt a mixture of emotions listening to him. Part of her wanted to roll her eyes and say 'Oh, brother, what have I gotten myself into?' but another part of herself felt sorry for him. Well, either way she'd help him so it didn't matter. "Thank you," she said with a sigh, moving toward him. "Can you walk on your own for a while?" she asked, wondering if she would have to help steady him or not. She still hadn't determined the extent of his drunkeness yet.

He shrugged. "I can hold it pretty well," he replied, though he reached out a shaky hand to take hers. Amazingly, he left it at that. "I do mean it, though," he persisted, not too drunk to notice that sigh. "I am sorry fer actin' like a dope... now and earlier... I just..." He squeezed her hand a little. "I haven't spent much time dealing with people lately. I guess I was scared. Scared of gettin' attached again. I don't want to lose the folk I love..." He reached up, rubbing a hand over his blurred vision without really realizing why it was blurred. He laughed then, just a bit loudly, but not terribly so. "Fancy that. Some folk get stupid when drunk. I get morose an' thoughtful..." He smiled at her, but then had to concentrate to keep one foot moving more or less in front of the other.

Artemis squeezed his hand back and looked over at him with a softer expression. She wasn't sure how to respond to what he was saying so she just gave him a small smile and made sure to keep them moving at an easy pace rather than a quick or overly slow one. "You're not that bad at dealing with people... Pearl used to be worse," she said after a moment, with mirth in her tone. "She bottled things up and kept to herself. This was before she had Jade and everything changed. She was so closed off that she was boring. You seem like fun... even if you go out and get drunk and and pick fights." She wasn't sure how much of this he was getting but she was mostly talking to herself now anyway.

He scoffed. "If yeh'd lost as many people as we have, yeh'd get inta fights too," he said softly, but he didn't feel like going into detail. He just stumbled along as best he could, biting his tongue as he stomach tried to lurch. He tried to hold it back, but the churning didn't slow. "Hang a minute," he managed to mutter, and he detatched himself from her hand to vomit on the other side of a tree. He clutched the bark desperately as his guts purged themselves, and he could taste blood, though he didn't realize that he was expelling the blood that he'd accidently swallowed earlier. Using the tree, he managed to get back to his feet and wipe his mouth on his sleeve. He felt better now. "Sorry," he muttered sheepishly as he walked back to her, not reaching for her hand this time.

Artemis frowned after him and let him go. She gave him a pitying expression but didn't say anything. It was kind of awkward to hold his hand as they walked like this so she didn't reach for his hand either. He'd probably pass out once they got to the barn, but if he didn't she might be able to fix him something to drink that would help...

Sean managed to control his stomach until they got to the neigbor's barn, and he looked around at the piled hay. He smiled, and took a deep sniff of the familiar scent, and wandered over to the side where the hay was thickest. Like a cat, he stamped it down in a circle, and then curled into a ball, also just like a cat. He glanced up at her, and smiled. "Nice place," he said with a yawn. It felt so much better just to be horizontal. He yawned, but his eyelids were already drooping closed.

Artemis bit her lip. "Yeah..." she said slowly, watching him fall asleep. She hadn't gotten a chance to tell him this wasn't her barn, but maybe no one would ever know he was there... She just wished he hadn't passed out so quickly. Part of her wanted to stay and sleep next to him; just to be here in the morning if he did get caught so that she could explain, of course. But that'd be even worse than the arragement she'd come up with earlier. So she picked herself up and left the barn. These neighboors were pretty nice... hopefully they were understanding as well. She worriedly went over to her house and dropped into bed dressed as she was, minus the shoes, leaving the shutters open to let some air in.



Continued at Pearl and Liam 8.