Pearl and Liam 7



Sean slept obscenely well for a man who'd gotten stone drunk and beaten to a pulp and was sleeping in a barn in a pile of straw. He had nightmares again, but they weren't enough to wake him, and he couldn't remember them when he'd woken anyway. When morning came, he had the joy of being awakened by a large wet nose and a blast of hot air--the person's horse who was curious about this odd-smelling stranger that was in his food. Sean stared up at him through bleary eyes, and painfully rolled out of the nest he'd been sleeping in. It hurt to stand--it hurt to breathe--but he managed, and stepped out into the pre-dawn gray, stiff and sore. He wandered over to this area's well and set about cleaning himself up a little, washing the whisky, blood, and vomit off as best he could. He'd wake up Artemis later. Besides which, he wasn't terribly personable at this time of day, especially hungover.

Artemis woke up and got out of bed. She looked out the window and decided it wasn't even dawn yet--her neighboor's probably weren't up yet. So Sean was still safe in the barn. But now would be a good time to go and fetch him--before anyone did catch him. She changed into a fresh blouse and pants and went outside to the barn next door. Once she neared it she looked around to see if anyone was watching her and saw Sean at the well getting cleaned up. She sighed and then bit the inside of her lip, leaving the barn door and walking over to him.

He glanced back, and gave her a slight smile, though his head was pounding. He'd been somewhat lucky the night before. He only had one scrape near his mouth, and the rest of the wounds were on his chest, hidden and easily ignorable. "Hi there," he greeted softly, running a hand through his wet hair--he'd dunked his whole head in a bucket and now it was running down his face and shirt.

Artemis's eyes flicked over him appraisingly. He hardly looked like he'd been beaten up at all, though she suspected the parts of his body hidden by his clothes told a different story. She didn't bother to ask how he felt right away, though he didn't look too terrible. "'Morning," she said quietly, knowing she always accused Pearl of screaming at her when she had a hangover. She smiled a little. "Feeling... somewhat human again?" she inquired, raising an eyebrow.

He laughed, and then regretted it, putting a hand over his eyes from the pain that it triggered there. "Nope," he replied with a moan, but then lifted his hand and smiled at her. "But I'll be fine. Mam always said, 'I don't care if yeh brats drink yerselves dumb, but don't come back ta me cryin' fer sympathy.'" He put the bucket back where it belonged. "If yeh're goin' ta whine about bein' hung over, yeh've got no right drinkin' the night before." He winced just a tiny bit. "All the same, I think some strong tea and food would do be worlds of good..."

Artemis tensed slightly but she nodded and turned around. "Come on, I'll fix you something to eat," she said, taking his hand and leading him to her house. She sort of hoped he wouldn't look at the stable connected to her neighboor's house and then look at her house and figure out that she'd snuck him in there. But it was pretty inevitable that he would, so she started thinking about how she should react when he brought it up.

Sean kept his eyes close to screwed shut, but he wasn't hung over enough not to notice that the house they went to wasn't connected to the barn he'd slept in. "So whose barn was I shacked up in?" he asked, and then scratched the back of his head, flicking water everywhere. "Did you tell me last night and I forgot?" He knew this wasn't the case, but he asked anyway. He had a good memory, and could remeber everything from the night before. Of course, this wasn't always a good thing, because it also meant he could remember what a moron he'd been.

Artemis stopped walking and flashed him a smile. "My neighboor's. I don't think they would've minded if they had found you..." She sounded pretty confident but she wasn't close friends with them so she couldn't really be sure. "You fell asleep before I could tell you." She dropped his hand and opened and closed the door behind him.

She had a nice house, similar to Pearl's but Pearl's house had a small room for Jade, a room for her, and the main room which was a combonation of the kitchen and the living room/dining room. Artemis's house was missing the small extra room but was pretty much the same in the other ways. It wasn't overly clean or overly messy, but it looked lived in. She had a table and a few chairs, and her kitchen was better than Pearl's since cooking was something that interested her. There were also supplies for making arrows, and stacks of high-quality arrows that she'd finished recently. She looked around.

"Take a seat, I'll make you something to eat. I'm not as bad at it as Pearl so you don't have to worry." She headed for the end of the main room that served as the kitchen.

"Nice place," Sean said, sitting, but then leaning over in his chair to pull out one of the finished arrows. Archery wasn't his forte--well, sure he could shoot, but he was a close-range sort of guy. He could slice anyone to ribbons with a knife, and was decent with a club too--but he still could recognize good workmanship when he saw it. He lifted it to his eye, sighting down the shaft. It was perfectly straight, and the feathers had just enough curl to send the projectile into a perfect spin when it was fired. "Mmm, hmm," he murmured to himself. "It's in the hands." He set the arrow back into the quiver that he'd pulled it from and smiled over at her.

"Thanks." She looked over her shoulder at him and saw him pick up an arrow and examine it but she couldn't hear what he said about it. She took out the things she'd need to make breakfast and got started. She tea he'd suggested earlier sounded like a good idea so she started making some of that for him.

Sean studied his thumbs, and then remembered something. "Have yeh heard about the tournament in Blackwater? They're doing the full line up. Joust, sword, archery..." he shrugged. He enjoyed festivals and tournaments, though he imagined that Liam probably still didn't. "Somethin' like thirty quid for the champion in each event." 

Artemis turned slowly around, lowering the wooden spoon she was holding. "Tournament..." she repeated with a glint in her eye. A smile twitched at her lips. "Blackwater? There's actually some good archers there." TOURNAMENT!!! Tourney tourney tourney! She had a big smile on her face, she loved competition. "When is it?!" 

"The fall equinox," he replied, rolling his eyes up as he tried to figure the days. "Two, three days from now. Blackwater's north of here, four or five leagues." He laughed at himself. "Though I guess you know that. I passed through on my way here. Seems like they're going pretty crazy with this tournament. Thinking about competing?" he asked, honestly curious how that would go over. Some people got cranky about the idea of women participating in the tourneys.

Artemis got breakfast started and then came over to him and leaned on the table. "Are you kidding?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. "I never could pass up a challenge. Pearl will want to come too. Will Liam?" she picked up one of the arrows and switched her attention to it, toutching the tip with her finger. "Hmm..." she said thoughtfully.

Sean smiled. "If Pearl goes, he'll go, and pretend ta enjoy himself," he said confidently. "An' if Pearl twists his arm hard enough, he might even enter. He's demmed good with a spear on foot." He smiled a little wider. "As fer m'self, I just love watchin' all the pretty ladies what can kick my arse..."

Artemis grinned at him but then stood and stepped on his foot. "'Long as I'm one of them." She'd rather be the only one he had eyes for, but she wasn't sure yet if that was too much to ask of him.

"Of course yeh is," he replied with a teasing smile. "And yer probably the one what'll actually be kickin' m' arse fer lookin' at the others," he said as if he'd read her mind. Well, really it wasn't that hard to surmise her thoughts. Sean reached over, snagging her hand and gently pulling her over. "I might look, but all I would see is that I've fallen for the most beautiful, amazin' of them all," he said, kissing her knuckles.

Artemis blushed. "Charmer," she accused with a smile. She looked over her shoulder. "I think that tea is ready now." She moved away from him to pour some for him and check on breakfast.

"Hopeless charmer," he agreed cheerily. While her back was turned, though, he lifted his shirt, peering down at the newest bruises. They looked worse than they hurt, and he poked gingerly at his ribs. Nothing broken either, though that was surprising. The darkest was a bruise just above his left hip, and he balled a fist, smiling thinly when he saw that he could match knuckles onto the bruise. He tried to line his hand into the marks, but the offender's fist was bigger than his. He glanced up sheepishly, seeing that Artemis had turned with the tea.

Artemis handed him a cup but stayed standing with hers. She decided he didn't need her pity, though his bruises did look nasty. "What a shame..." she said in a tsking-voice. She shook her head and sunk into a chair, then looked up at him playfully. "You looked so nice yesterday without all those bruises..."

He shrugged, pulling his shirt back down. "They'll be gone soon, love, I promise," he teased back, sipping at the tea. It was still very hot, and a little too sweet for his tastes, but he didn't let that show. He blew across it to cool the fluid, but then set it down. "Didn't yeh say yeh needed ta work taday?" he asked, frowning slightly. "Don't tell me yer missin' yer job 'cause of me."

Artemis looked out the window and shook her head, leaning back in her chair and sipping her tea. "No, it's still early." She looked over at the arrows. "Anyway, technically I don't 'go to work.' I sell my arrows to different shops... So what I meant was actually sitting down and making some arrows," she picked up one of the arrows again and looked at it. "I might sell these today... but I need to make a few more."

He nodded, sipping at the tea again. Once it cooled a bit, the sweetness didn't bother him as much. "I should probably make an appearance at Wil's," he muttered, but then sighed. "So he don't think I've jumped off a..." Sean trailed off, realizing that cliche wasn't exactly in good taste at the moment. He passed his tongue over his teeth. "... and tell him about the tournament. It'll be fun to see if he scowls. Old baffoon."

Artemis nodded, frowning slightly at the reference. "I'm sure he'll be glad to know you're alive and more or less well... After breakfast." She stood up and went to finish making it. "Make sure you tell Pearl about it."

It took Sean a moment to decide if she was referring to the cliff reference or the tournament. He decided it was the later after considering. "Right-o," he replied, and then considered telling Artemis the other reason why he wanted to go to Blackwater. Honesty is always a good thing... he tried to remind himself. "I will tell yeh, I've got another reason fer wantin' ta go to this tourney," he admitted. "Wil hit Blackwater pretty hard last time he went through, and the loot will be stashed somewhere near the town. With that, we would be able to buy land somewhere--not too much, but enough to live on..."

Artemis looked over her shoulder at him and considered what he was saying. She smiled slightly. He admitted that so freely, just as he'd admited he was a 'retired thief' within half an hour of knowing her. She nodded and then became thoughtful again. "Who's 'we'?" she asked, raising her eyebrows. 

Sean shrugged. "Well, specifically speakin' that money ain't mine... it's from a series that Wil did all on his own. Now, I got a good notion that he'd give it all to me, if I ask, but... When we was boys, we used ta lay on top of our house and dream of where we would live if we had the coin ta build our own house. Never got it done, but I ain't forgotten. A house with two stories and twenty glass windows, close to a river. Really, it'd be like two houses put together, with an indoor kitchen and an outdoor, and a greatroom downstairs. All the downstairs is one room, with the kitchen off ta one side. And then up the stairs, six bedrooms. One for Liam, one for me, and four for... well, we each decided that we'd have two girls and two boys apiece..." Sean realized that he was rambling, and stopped himself, grinning. "Of course, that was just boys dreaming, but I've always wanted to own me own home, and the land it was set on. Too many memories of the landlord comin' fer rent..." he took another sip of the tea.

Artemis nodded and peaked at the breakfast again and then walking back over to him. It'd be a little longer before they could eat. "So where do your wives fit into that picture?" she asked, one hand finding it's way to her hip of its own accord. She didn't know what Pearl would think of that house--though owning their own property by a river with lots of countryside is definately something that would appeal to her. But the extravagance of that boyhood dream-house probably wouldn't appeal to Pearl, and neither would the idea of her family and Sean's family living together in the same house. Artemis didn't feel she was involved in that yet, but she knew that if she was she wouldn't want to live in the same house as her husband's brother. "You couldn't build two seperate houses a decent distance apart?"

He grinned up at her. "Of course," he replied, blushing a bit. "We made these plans when there were ten of us livin' in a hovel half the size of yer place here," he reminded her. "And when Wil an' I couldn't imagine the thought of living in seperate places. Realize, we'd never been apart more than a day before I was arrested. Of course, we wouldn't build that house we dreamed up, it's just a memory. Two houses would be most intelligent," he agreed, but there was something just a little tight about his voice, something that seemed to protest the thought of living five minutes away from his twin. It was as if he wanted to be in physical contact, or hundreds of miles away. A 'decent distance' seemed like a terrible amount of space. Sean knew better than to mention that, though.

But Artemis knew it was there, although she didn't completely understand it. She wished he would explain it to her. "I can't imagine what it would be like to grow up like that... or to have a twin. I had a sister, but..." her voice had constricted so she paused, shook her head, and forced a smile. "I only had one sister. It's not the same as a house full of siblings."

"Siblings and cousins are nice," he said softly, smiling crookedly. "It's just there was something special about me and Wil, though. Somethin'... somethin' special." He laughed. "I wish I could explain it better, but I don't know if I can. I think the pagans can explain it best, though I don't know if..." He shrugged. "They said that the reason twins are so odd is 'cause they only got one soul what's split between 'em. When they're close, they can sense everything the other thinks. When they're far apart, it feels like yer walkin' about with half a heart. It's an ache--like an arrow grindin' inta yer back. Worse, actually." He drained the dregs of his tea. "Which ain't ta say, of course, that we can't live separate lives. I think we can, I just don't know 'xactly how."

Artemis nodded sagely and her lips straightened into a thoughtful line. But then she smiled a little. "You'll work it out. Breakfast is probably almost done now," she said rising, her attention split. Liam had been very adament about not wanting Sean to move away. But she wasn't sure what that meant for the two twins, or Pearl, and it made her feel a twinge of worry. What would Sean's presence do to Pearl and Liam's future? Liam wanted to be near his brother and Sean wanted to be even nearer. Sean's location might become a major factor in where Pearl and Liam lived, unless Sean was willing to just follow them around and stick close. From the conversation he and Liam had had last night she figured he felt like that wasn't right.

Sean was more worried about how it would affect Artemis than Pearl. He was only thankful that he'd decided to fall for his brother's girl's best friend. Just imagine how things would have been if Pearl and Artemis didn't care for each other! He gave a little sigh, and watched as Artemis prepared the food. It was unfortunate that he was so problematic. Artemis deserved someone who could take care of her right, not a dolt like him who needed someone to look after him. And he wondered about the little boy. Sean wasn't adverse to kids, but it took a good while for the little tykes to grow on him. "Maybe it'd be better just to stay here," he murmured, toying with the cup in his fingers.

Artemis straightened her shoulders against the uneasy feeling she was feeling. She wasn't sure what she wanted from a serious relationsip with a man, any man. Pearl had always known what she wanted for her future--a family, kids. Lots of kids. Artemis... She had loved her family, but she hadn't been as close to her them as Pearl had been to hers. She loved Jade, he was a sweet boy... But she didn't know how she felt about having and raising children of her own. She found it difficult to envison a future as a someone's wife, though she had been a wife once before. And hated every second of it... she thought grimly.

She added a tiny bit of spices (spices were expensive) to their breakfast took a taste. She decided it was ready and that it was as good as it was going to get. She fixed a plate for each of them and brought the tea to the table as well to refill their cups. Artemis had often done the cooking at the tavern she and her late husband had owned, and had grown up with a lot of pressure from her mother to learn to cook well (she had to make sure someone would marry her daughter and who would marry a girl with no domestic skills who only liked to ride horses and hunt?). And since it was a tavern she helped to run she knew a little something about dealing with the after-effects of too much alcohol.

Sean found that he was rather hungry, and dug in with realish. "This is good," he said around a mouthful, sipping and then burning his tongue on the tea. Sean wasn't too sure about a serious long-term relationship either. Long-term was fine, but he'd rather just concern himself with the fun aspects... those primarly taking place in the bedroom. Marriage? Marriage meant settling down: finding steady work, not spending time at taverns, being responsible, children... Too much work, though the idea might grow on him more if there was a woman that he thought he could stand that much time with. "Whaddya think about kids?" he asked around the food. "Me, I got nothin' against 'em, provided they go home with their parents..."

Artemis tilted her head. "Really?" she asked. "Huh." She'd gotten the impression that he wanted to have a lot of kids. She got the same impression from Liam--but she'd been noticing that Sean was unlike Liam in a lot of ways, so perhaps he wasn't such a good reference point. He came from such a big family and he seemed to have enjoyed it. But that didn't necessarily mean that he wanted to have a big family of his own. That last statement he made made it seem like he didn't want any kids of his own... "Honestly... I love Jade--I helped raise him--and I think kids are cute. But I find it hard to imagine myself having kids and raising them... I don't think I really want to. At least not now." She really would have hated being in Pearl's position--twenty years old with a baby and no husband. The prospect of getting pregnant and raising a kid was still distastful to her, even though she knew if it did happen she would face it and give her baby all the love she had. Like Pearl did. But she would rather avoid it...

Sean nodded. "I want ta see my children, eventually, but..." he shook his head. "Could yeh see me with half a dozen squalling brats?" He scoffed and shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm a bit too... wild... yet. I mean, last night was a good time, well, up to the passin' out in a neighbor's barn part. I don't have the right ta spend my nights out carousin' and gettin' banged up. My kids shouldn't have ta see new bruises on me face every mornin'." He shrugged. "I've got plenty of life left in me. I can wait."

Artemis thought for a moment. Hmm... I guess I can't see him with a bunch of kids running around him... And he's right. Going and getting drunk and beat up all the time doesn't make for a good father... She nodded in agreement. "But... you know... It doesn't always work out like that. Pearl didn't have any intention of getting pregnant. It just happened... the first time she and Richard slept together." She pushed the food on her plate around, shaking her head.

He nodded. "Sometimes it's that way," he agreed. "I think Connor was a first or second time for Liam. Fair enough, he was a cute kid. Bugger all if he couldn't tell the difference between us same as yeh can, leastways as a babe in arms. Liam was torn ta pieces when he died... The only time I've ever been worried that he'd harm himself."

Artemis grimaced. "I can't imagine what that was like for him..." She shook her head again. After a long moment she said, "I think Jade has a lot to do with why he was drawn to Pearl... At least, I think it's why they're moving so fast. Jade wasn't the reason he moved in--I think they would've gotten together anyway. But the way he is with Jade," she smiled. "It endeared him to Pearl and I think he originally he looked at Jade and saw an opportunity to take care of him and Pearl like he didn't with Connor and his mother." She forced herself to eat the rest of her food instead of pushing it around the plate and then pushed the plate itself away and leaned back in her chair looking over at him.

Sean nodded. "I figured the same," he agreed, scooping up the last morsel of food and pushing his plate forward as well. "And why I wish him all the best," he added, standing and picking up his plate. "Are yeh finished?" he asked, and then offered, "I'll do the dishes..."

She stood up as well. "You don't have to do that," she said, picking up her plate. She smiled slightly. "It's my house."

Sean smiled, walking over to take her plate from her in exchange for a rather naughty kiss. "An' I am a nice guy," he replied once their lips parted. He moved into the kitchen, poured hot water, and started to wash.

Artemis looked after him, raising an eyebrow and exhaling slowly. "You're a lot more than that," she murmured, turning and sinking into a chair. She looked over at the pile of arrows and decided to get started making a few more.

Sean whistled faintly as he got to work, humming the words to some of his favorite sea chanteys. Both of the twins were gifted in music; in truth, they'd spent most of their wandering times singing to each other, making up nonsense rhymes and putting them to music. "Got an apple in me cellar and an apple in me boot. Bendin' down an' diggin' round ta find a tasty root. Munchin' down on onions though they give me rotten breath. Don't yeh breath o'er here, yeh fool, it's like the breath of death..." He glanced over at Artemis a bit sheepishly.

Artemis turned a little and caught his glance. She laughed quietly. "What's that song?" she asked curiously.

"Uh, the bi-product of a game Wil and I used to play as kids. See, I would say a line, like... 'The fletcher fletches arrows and the drunkard cleans the plates," he sang. "And then you would add a line what rhymes and might makes sense, but prolly don't. And it goes on. Give it a try... The fletcher fletches arrows and the drunkard cleans the plates..."

Artemis gasped and shook her head. "Oh, no. I can't--" She bit her lip, blushing fiercely. But she seemed to be thinking about it. "But the redhead can think of nothing that relates..." she replied after a moment.

"Yer trying too hard. The pretty redhead tries so hard to make the words relate. But this is just a silly game that little kids did play...

"And how they managed quite so well, I couldn't really say..." she said without much emphasis, wanting to stop this game. She could see how it might be fun to play, but she'd never been poetic.

Sean laughed lightly, putting the last dish up to dry. "Very well, m' not-poetic love, we'll play a different game. Yeh may not spin a song so well, but I love yeh just the same." He smiled, moving to sit on the table near her, but out of the way. "It's a silly game, but it takes thinking and takes up time when yer walkin' fer days on end. The other thing we would do is come up with as many insults as we could, or play questions."

Artemis looked up at him and then stood and did something impulsive. She stood in front of him and kissed him.

He had no problem with that, none at all, and he draped his arms around her middle, drawing her close to the table between his knees. He licked her teeth, and urged her mouth open a bit more, invading it with his tongue. When he finally pulled away, he asked in a voice that was a little breathless, "What was that for?"

She gasped for breath. I think I love you she thought, but knew she couldn't say it, though she felt some of it register on her face. "Just because," she explained, kissing him again.

Sean stroked her hair, wondering how far a 'just because' would be allowed to go. There was no knowing without trying, though, and he reached his arms around her, sliding under her blouse to rest his hands against the bits of flesh that tried to escape from her stays as he kissed her back, making a soft, playful growling sound in his throat.

She smiled against his lips, and pulled on his shoulders. She broke her lips away. "You know, I've been thinking..." she said into the ear with the earring, and then kissed him quickly and moved to the other ear and took it in her teeth. "Let's not stop this time."

Sean felt a surge of elation, but he warned himself to temper his desires a bit as he took his hands off her and then pushed her back so he could see her face, although he'd far from disliked the treatment his ears were getting. Be the responsible one... he ordered himself. You don't want to have to deal with a baby... not now... "Are yeh sure?" he asked seriously. "We just mentioned that neither of us wants to do the baby thing just yet... Even if I pull out at the end, there's still a chance, so I want yeh ta be sure..."

Artemis frowned slightly when he pulled away, and felt a moment's panic at his response. But then she realized what he was doing. She kissed him quickly, sweetly. "Yes," she replied. "I'm sure." She looked up at him questioningly.

He grinned at her expression, sweeping her up in his arms again and sucking and kissing her neck. "Ah, I dreamed about yeh all night," he told her, and it probably wasn't a lie. His naughty hands snuck up under her shirt and deftly loosed the ties on her stays before tugging the restricting garments off. Her back felt so smooth under his rougher hands, and for the moment, he was content to carress her just like that, nibbling on her ears now, his nostrils filled with the sweet smokey scent of her hair.

She laughed, at being pulled into his arms and at the ticklish sensation of his sucking. "And I stayed up most of the nice thinking about you," she confided. She pulled on his shirt again. "Off," she pleaded, not content to be the only one so exposed.

He didn't mind either, and slipped the shirt off over his head. He smiled at her, then reached down to find her hands and place them on his rippling pectorals. He let go of them, and returned to kissing her, though his lips started to wander down her chest as his hands fell also, carressing her rear.

She frowned slightly again at his bruises, but ran her hands over his muscles and breathed shakily. She jumped slightly when his hands touched her butt and became even more aware of his lips on her breasts. Her breathing changed again, her body was on fire. "God," she gasped, her voice taking on a begging tone, "I want you so bad, Sean!"

Hearing her voice, hearing her beg for him... it was enough to drive him mad with lust. He took her by the waist, and pushed off of the table. Holding her in his thin but strong arms, he gently carried her to the ground and then followed, keeping most of his weight off her while still on top, his leg pressed suggestively between hers as he returned to kissing and caressing her.

Artemis reached down and pulled on the tops of his pants. "Off!" she demanded again, moving her hand and yanking on the ties to his pants and then starting to remove hers. She put her hand behind his head and pulled his face toward her, french kissing him again.



Liam woke rather late that morning, and groggily got up to see to breakfast, leaving Pearl in bed. He felt sorry for her, because he knew she couldn't have slept well with all of his turning and tossing all night long. Liam was sure he must have slept sometime in here, but not for more than few snatches, so he let her stay in bed as he whipped together something tasty for breakfast, trying to be quiet about it. And trying with limited success not to think about Sean.

Pearl opened her eyes and turned her head in time to see him walk out the door. She sighed. Sean hadn't come back and she knew Liam was torn up about it. She'd calmed him down and he'd stayed in bed all night, even though he couldn't sleep, but the tossing and turning was unusual for him unless he was having a really bad nightmare. She was tired but she was worried about him too, so after a minute she got up and went after him. She slipped her arms around his neck comfortingly. "Hey, you," she yawned.

He smiled and turned his head to kiss her. "Hi there," he replied quietly, pouring a glass of warmed milk for himself, though the taste was ghastly. It was something his mother would force down his throat when he was uneasy and his stomach upset. "I'm sorry if I kept you up all night," he said softly, taking a sip and setting the cup back down. Hands free, he turned to hold Pearl instead, burying his face in her neck.

Pearl made a face at the milk but then looked at him comfortingly again and put one hand on his head and one hand on his back when he hugged her. "That's okay," she said, "My dad always said a good night's sleep every night wasn't good for you." She smirked at that. Her dad had liked to prove he was tough... He missed out on a lot of sleep so he developed that saying to try to tell himself he shouldn't be tired. "Wanna talk about it?" she asked.

"What's there ta talk about?" Liam murmured, turning his head to lay on her shoulder facing away from her. "If he leaves, he leaves. We're grown men now, an' he has ta make his own decisions," he said quietly. It was clear that he'd thought about this a lot. "If I push him, he may completely cut me off an' I may never see him again. Even if it's just once a year, even if it's less, I have to stay in his life. After how I failed him, I have to... I have too..." He sighed, shuddering.

Pearl held him closer. "Oh, Liam," she said sadly, biting her lip. She felt tears prickling her eyes... thinking. If any of the people she'd lost were actually alive she'd feel the same way. "There's gotta be some way you can compromise," she said sort of desperately, and then reigned in her emotions and blinked a few times. This was about him, not about her, but it was good that she could sort of relate. "You didn't fail him, Liam. You're human. He was shot through the back he could've easily been dead from it like you thought..."

"I didn't check. I should have snuck into that prison, looked in every one of the cells. He was lying there with his heart shot out all alone. Yeh know how some folk swear ta each other that they'll always be there? Sean an' me never swore. We never needed ta, it was always just somethin' we knew. I left him ta die, Pearl. What right do I have ta ask anythin' from him now?" He straightened, tilting his head up and sniffing, trying not to cry. "He was right ta hate me..."

Pearl looked away. To be brutally honest, he probably should have looked until he found his brother's body--dead or alive, in a cell or not. He did dangerous things everyday back then--breaking into places and stealing things. And searching for his brother made the risk worth it, in a way that money didn't. But... she hadn't been there when was racked with grief, thinking Sean was dead and too shocked to find out for sure if it was the truth or not. She looked at him stubburnly. "I wish you'd tell him all of that. Talk to him when he gets back..." She hated trying to figure out what people felt and why they felt it, she'd rather talk to people and have them tell her from their heart what was wrong and how they felt. She wanted all the information so she could figure out how to fix it, instead of taking shots in the dark and doing things she felt were "best" based only on what she knew.

He nodded in agreement. She was right, of course, but it was a hard subject to bring up. He sighed, hugging her close again, and then kissing her cheek. "What would I do without you?" he asked softly, reaching down to give her rear an affectionate squeeze.

Pearl closed her eyes and hugged him back. She jumped a little when he squeezed her and then gave him a smile. "You'd be hopeless," she said, putting her hands on his face and pulling his lips to hers for a kiss.

"But would yeh have me any other way?" Liam replied smiling because he knew the answer was no.



Artemis hooked her arm around Sean's and leaned on him, looking up at him with a smile. She was still dizzy with happiness from what they had done... twice. She knew Pearl and Liam would take one look at them and know what happened but she didn't care. He was so sexy. She wanted him so badly. And she cared for him, which just made it all worse... or better. She didn't know.

If Artemis hadn't been holding him to the ground, Sean was pretty sure he would have just floated away. At every turn and corner, he wanted to steal a kiss, or one more touch, but he also didn't want to embarrass her. The gossip would be bad enough as is...

They were walking past a shop when a big guy lumbered out, looking hard at them with a mallet in one meaty paw. He growled, and moved quickly up to the pair, looking to be dangerous with that weapon. "Four days engagement, and you're already two-timing, you Irish bastard..." Hamnet roared, and Sean, rather wisely, ducked behind Artemis for protection. Bar fights with other drunks were one thing. Facing down Goliath was quite another...

Artemis was shocked out of her daze. Her eyes popped out of her head and she threw up her hands. "WOAH! Hamnet! It's not what you think!" she protested, taking one step back.

"What I think!" Hamnet yelled, reaching around Artemis for Sean, who ducked. "What I think is I'm going to beat some sense into this bloody Irish bastard! And you should be grateful that I won't do the same to you!"

Sean opened his mouth to try to explain, but he had to scurry out of reach again. "'Ey now!" he protested.

Artemis backed up again, but then took a step forward defiantly. "This isn't Liam! Liam's at home with Pearl! They're twins." She wanted to give him a fierce look, but she gave him a pleading one instead. "Rosa!" she called desperately, looking around him hopefully.

"What do you mean, he isn't Liam?" Hamnet demanded. Rosa wasn't home. He was feeling just a tiny bit of doubt now. "He's a spittin' image..."

"He's m' twin," Sean reiterated, standing still once he was reasonably sure the huge fellow wouldn't smash his head in. "Identical twins, we are. See, I have an earring..."

Artemis smiled faintly at that and looked over her shoulder at him. "And it's a lovely earring too," she said, taking one of his hands and lacing her fingers through it. She looked back at Hamnet. "Hamnet," she said patiently. "This is Sean. Sean, this is Hamnet, we met him a few days ago when Richard beat Liam up..." Her face lit up. "Yeah... See, this isn't Liam! He's not missing that tooth Richard knocked out! Smile at him, Sean," she said, giving him a nudge.

Sean smiled, but Hamnet was already realizing his error. "Well, bless me," he said, putting the mallet over his shoulder. "Sorry about that, friend... Honest mistake." He put out his hand. "My name's Hamnet."

Sean grinned, and stepped out from behind Artemis. "Sean Ditmer," he replied, pumping the man's hand once. "No hard feelin's. Happen's all the time."

Artemis sighed with relief and then smiled at Hamnet and moved to give him a hug once he dropped Sean's hand. "I'd never do that Pearl. She wouldn't do it to me either. But you're a good friend to all of us, Hamnet," she said giving his huge arm a squeeze.

Hamnet blushed. "Aw, I feel like a dolt. I know that, it's just... ten days, Artemis. And the inlaws are driving me up the wall..."

Sean's brow furrowed a bit, and one eyebrow lifted. "Ten days?" he asked. "'Til what?"

"I understand," she said moving back to Sean's side. She looked up at him with a smile. "He's marrying Rosa, the lady I called for before."

Sean laughed lightly, putting an arm around her. "It must be spring," he said with a little laugh.

It was Hamnet's turn to lift a brow, but he just grinned and said, "Well, I better get back to work. See you around, Arty. Nice to meet you, Sean." He turned back and vanished into the building.

Sean relaxed visibly, resting his head on Artemis's shoulder for a brief moment before starting to walk again. "I don't suppose you have any other friends you'd like to introduce me to. Maybe an ax murderer cousin...?"

Artemis watched him go and then looked up at Sean with a smile. "What is it with you and ax murderer's? Someone came after you with an ax when you were little or something?" she asked, recalling that he'd made a very similar comment the day before. "And no. But you and Liam might have to walk around town together for a day or so, until the gossipers spread the word..."

Sean grinned. "Nope, wasn't chased or anythin'. It's just... I don't know really." He shrugged. "Just somethin' I say a lot, I suppose." He sighed. "When we were younger, we just got to the point where we wouldn't tell people if they'd mistaken us. We knew everyone well enough to just respond as the other and inform him later of whatever the person had said. It was easier than always saying who was whom, or wearing a big sign."

Artemis smiled at him a little and put her arm around his waist. "Well, Pearl and I can tell you apart so you won't have to do that with us," she promised.

Sean smiled, wondering if he should mention the slew of girlfriends they had shared who couldn't. Probably not wise, he decided. "Really I don't understand people what can't," he admitted. "Sure, we may look a fair bit alike, but anyone who really knows us should be able to tell a difference after a minute of talkin'." He sighed. "Course, I've always been able ta tell the difference. He ain't me."

Artemis smiled. "Yes, I imagine that would make it easier for you to tell the difference," she said teasingly. Then she became serious again. "When I saw you... God, yesterday?" she asked raising her eyebrows. "24 hours ago," she amended with a smile, "I was struck with this feeling that something was different. Out-of-place... Like when you walk into a room where something subtle has been moved. Then you know to look for it and you find it. I imagine it was like that for Pearl when she came home and you were there instead of Liam, but she doubted herself at first... But if you walked like Liam, and had his bruises, and talked and behaved like him, I think it'd would've been harder for either of us to notice right away," she admitted. "Those people probably noticed something was different too and didn't care. Maybe they always felt like that around both of you," she suggested.

Sean shrugged. "My experience with people is most folk don't notice anythin' yeh don't tell 'em to notice, and then they only look if yeh remind them. Yer observant, most folk aren't, or just they don't care. In our hometown, everyone saw me an' Wil as a one. We were always together, an' if it were just the one of us, everyone was pretty safe in bettin' that the other was lurkin' somewhere close." He smiled. "When yeh get tired of me talkin' about our boyhood, yeh can whap me," he offered teasingly as they came up on Pearl's home.

Artemis smiled at him. "I don't mind. I'm curious how you grew up." She took his hand again when they reached Pearl's door and used her other hand to knock. "Hello... Pearl..." she called.

Liam was the one to open the door, wearing the infamous pink apron. "Sean," he greeted, a wash of relief pouring over him, though he noticed his brother's injuries immediately. "Artemis," he added, bending to kiss her on the cheek. He was so relieved that his brother wasn't in the next parish that he missed for a moment their closeness. "Uh, come in," he urged, getting out of the way.

Artemis smiled at him, though she was slightly tense because she hadn't seen him surmise anything, about anything, but she knew he must have. "Hi," she replied, looking around him for Pearl, whom she smiled at.

Pearl came over and flicked her eyes over the two of them. She smiled and shook her head slightly, subtlely raising an eyebrow at Artemis. "We were just making breakfast, come in." She ran her finger across her jawline, where she noticed Sean had a scrape and raised an eyebrow at him as well.

Liam didn't ask Sean what had happened, instead just walking up and turning his chin to examine the scrape. It wasn't so bad, though his piercing looked a little inflamed, as fresh piercings often do. "That needs tending," he said, nodding at it. "After breakfast."

Sean nodded. Liam had been correct in his description of their lack of communication sometimes. When they were younger, spoken words weren't necessary, but at this moment, Sean wished his brother would say something. "We already ate," he told them. "Got up early this mornin'."

Artemis smirked. Pearl held back a snicker and moved over to Artemis to murmur, "Sure you didn't do anything that would require you to eat again?" she asked innocently.

Artemis gave her an indifferent expression but smiled a little as she put her hands behind her back and turned, plopping into a chair. "I'm always hungry," she said, giving Pearl a look and a smirk.

Pearl laughed quietly. "So true," she agreed, but glanced at Sean casually. She'd ask Artemis for the details later.

Sean missed her glance, too busy studying Liam out of the corner of one eye as he prepared the food. No, after breakfast... second breakfast... he decided, and then turned to Pearl. "Was tellin' Artemis this mornin'... There's a tournament in Blackwater in two days. She thought yeh might be interested..."

Pearl's face lit and a grin spread across her face. But then Pearl put her hand behind her head and bit her lip. "You know, it's been a while, Artemis... A few days ago when we were fighting those guards... Years ago, I could've dispatched those guards at the caves a lot more easily, and a lot quicker too... Oh, but I'd love to go," she said.

Artemis shook her head. "We'll just have to practice then. Won't we? You could compete in archery with me... You've been shooting bows with me more than I've been practcing with you..."

But Pearl was shaking her head. "That's no fun, I can't ever beat you," she said. She turned to Liam. "Two days!"

Liam shrugged helplessly. Another festival? Hadn't they dealt with the pushing crowds and the noise enough for a little while. "It sounds like fun," he forced out.

"Aw, come on," Sean said, throwing an arm over his shoulders. "Try to sound a little more excited," he urged. "You can compete with the spear on foot and win lots of money like you used to."

"Used to," Liam agreed, frowning a bit. "I'm a lot older than I used to be," he protested. "I'm sure there will be dozens of boys that will poke holes in me."

Pearl smiled and went to the side that Sean wasn't on and hooked one of her arms with his. She tugged on the pink apron. "Just don't wear this," she suggested teasingly.

Liam pulled himself away from both of them. "No, no, and no," he insisted. "I'm not an egotistical teen that needs to thump his chest at the other males," he replied. "And I've got no need, or desire for the prize money."

Sean grinned at him. "But just think how proud Jade will be when his Liam proves he the fastest man with a spear," Sean said. "Imagine in fifty years Jade tellin' his gran'kids how his Pap moved faster and smarter than all the young blokes, defeating youth's power with wisdom..."

Liam glared at him. "Nice try," he growled. "But the answer is still no. Why don't you compete in something, if you're so excited?"

Sean scoffed. "Me? What would I complete in? Drinkin' contests and spinnin' lies. That's all I'm good at."

Pearl rolled her eyes a little. She would've liked to see him fight, with anything. But maybe he'd agree to practice swordfighting with her, he did have that ugly sword...


"That's not all you're good at," Artemis told Sean from her chair a few feet away, raising her eyebrows innocently.

Sean's ears blushed, and he rubbed his nose to try to hide it. Liam laughed at him. "But Artemis dear," he said teasingly, "They don't have competitions in that. Leastways, not official ones. Though I seem to recall Sean winning some of the unofficial ones..."

"[How about you put your foot in your mouth and give your head a solid kick?]" Sean growled sweetly. "[I don't give you crap about you and your girl shaggin' like rabbits anytime and anywhere you can.]"

"[We've been together six months, and I'm marrying mine,]" Liam reminded with a surprising lack of tact.

"That's settled then," Sean said with a smile. "We'll both compete with the sword on foot. An' I'll put yeh ta shame fer carryin' that rusted poker you call a sword."

Artemis blushed a little. She slightly resented Liam's lack of decorum, but decided it wasn't any more uncalled for than her own. Pearl started laughing so Artemis punched her in the arm and muttered something for only her to hear, which caused Pearl's laughing to become slower and slightly less sincere as she rubbed her arm. Artemis was okay with that. Both girls looked over at the men who were coming out of their conversation as well.

Pearl knew that wasn't what they had been talking about, but decided she was going to go with it if it meant they could get Liam to participate in this tournament. She looked up at him hopefully. "Really?" she asked, giving him a pleading, puppy-dog expression she'd developed just for him.

Liam looked at her, but there wasn't anything he could say to that expression. "Fine, I'll compete," he relented. "But you owe me somethin' special, Featha," he told her.

Sean lifted an eyebrow at that, but decided not to say anything. "Splendid!" he said. "We should start practicing after the meal."

Artemis moved aside with Sean, and Pearl turned to stand in front of Liam and give him a kiss. She rested her arms around his shoulders and smiled at him suggestively. "Don't worry. Jade won't be the only one admiring your fighting skills."

"Ho-ho," Liam said, draping his arms around her too. "Then I guess I'll need ta practice ta impress me lady," he said, backing off and falling to his knee as if she was a princess. "I trust yer valiant knight shall win your favor..."

Sean laughed quietly, and then likewise fell down before Artemis. "Hah! I shall thrash you, good sir knight an brother, ta prove that m'Lady Artemis is the fairest o' the land!"

Pearl and Artemis exchanged expressions and then started laughing. Pearl reached down to Liam and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "You already have."

Artemis looked at Sean with a smile and then back at Pearl and put her hands on her hips. "I don't know, Pearl, I kind of like this treatment..."

Liam grinned over at Sean. "Ha-HA! I have won fair lady's favor. Admit defeat, drunken sot!"

"Drunken..." Sean replied, frowning dramatically. "Yeh bilge-blasted barnical!" He turned to Artemis. "Never fear, m' exquisite beauty. I shall flog this knave an' prove yeh ta be the most lovely of all. Have at thee!" Sean cried, picking up a wooden spoon from the table and brandishing it like a sword.

"Scurvy dog!" Liam took the spatula from the pot on the stove, banged it once to remove any food left on it, and then likewise held it out. Jokingly, they began to spar, making quite a bit of ruckus.

Artemis and Pearl drifted together, all smiles, and watched them. "Boys at play..." Pearl said quietly, with a slight shake of her head, though she was amused. Artemis was even more amused, she smiled bigger than Pearl and sat on the table to watch them play.

Jade heard the noise from his room and came out, rubbing his eyes and grumbling, much like his mother at times. But then he saw what they were doing and got excited.

Liam and Sean carried on like that for a bit, but then nodded at each other, and shoved their weapons beneath their twin's arm, and they fell as if clutching the wounds. "Ah, m' brother, what fools we are!" Liam cried.

Sean agreed, crawling over to him. "Indeed, Wil. For how could we say which one is more beautiful when they each are the very meanin' of perfection."

"We could no more say one o'er the other than call one star more precious than the next."

"Woe is us, the poor, poor fools," Liam lamented, and they both fell lifeless.

Jade walked over, looking down in confusion, and Liam beckoned him down, whispering in his ear. The boy nodded, and then hurried over to his mother. "They say that the brave heroes will come backs to life if they get..." He frowned, and moved back to Liam for the second half of the message. "If they get kisses from their ladies."

Pearl and Artemis broke down into laughter again. Pearl smiled at Jade and gave him a kiss on the forehead first, and then looked at Artemis with a smile. "Ah... shall we?" she asked. She got a glint in her eye and knew Artemis shared the consideration. They both stood and walked up to the men--Artemis walked toward Liam and Pearl walked toward Sean, but at the last moment they switched, kneeled down, and quickly kissed their own men. "Just kidding."

Liam laid there passively while Pearl kissed him, but Sean reached up, keeping Artemis there quite a bit longer. When he finally let her go, Sean breathed out a sigh of relief. "Whoo, could yeh imagine the catastrophies if we'd been kissed back ta life by the wrong women?"

Liam laughed, rolling back to his feet. "The horror... I'd have to punch a hole in my ear and act like an idjet."

"Watch who yer callin' idjet, yeh dope," Sean replied after sticking out his tongue. "Well, that's all the practicin' we'll get outta that ol' man."

Liam glared down at him on the floor, washing the cutlery and filling plates with breakfast. "Two minutes younger don't give yeh right ta call me old like yeh ain't," he growled.

Pearl stood up after Liam and helped him pass out breakfast. She half wished they were alone for the moment because she was tempted to slide her hands across his back and tell him just how young he still was.

Artemis watched them for a second and then looked back at Sean with an amused smile. "You're not getting up!" she observed, with a little laugh.

He grinned back at her. "I guess yeh'll have to try again, then," he said teasingly, closing his eyes and puckering up.

Liam held a hand out to stop Atremis, and then knelt beside his brother and gave him a big wet one right on the lips.

Sean kissed back but then realized something was very wrong and looked up to see Liam. "Whah!" he protested, shoving his twin back and wiping his lips. "Yeh dirty bastard!" he howled, standing and rubbing his lips like they were contaminated, and maybe they were. "Yeh ornery son of a..." He glanced over a Jade and stopped there.

Pearl just shook her head. "That's what you get for calling him old... So don't do it again," she said warningly, instead of expressing her true distaste at what had just transpired.

Artemis was tugging on her hair and looked a little disturbed, but she was trying not to. She did know she didn't want him to kiss her for a while after that. She wiggled her shoulders in a kind of shrug to shake off the feeling.

Liam was laughing hard enough to bust a gut, but Sean was rather embarrassed. "Go n-ithe an cat thú, is go n-ithe an diabhal an cat," Sean growled at him, which is to say 'May the cat eat you, and may the devil eat the cat.' "[Do you think about what you're doing before you do it?]" he demanded hotly.




"[Oh, come on. The expression on your face was hilarious...]"

"[Yeah, and what about the one on Artemis's face? Or Pearl's? That kind of behavior isn't exactly normal Wil...]"

Liam looked at the girls then, and his cheeks flushed. "Look, it was just a joke," he protested. "I thought it was funny... sorry..."

Pearl shrugged after a moment and sat down at the table. Artemis straightened her shirt and forced her shoulders to rise and fall in a shrug as well. Pearl's gotta teach me that look of hers. How does she always keep a straight face? She nodded slightly and leaned on the counter instead of joining them or Pearl and Jade at the table.

Liam sat at the table, but Sean walked over to Artemis. "Hey," he said softly, in a voice meant just for the two of them. "Are you angry?"

Artemis smiled at him and shook her head. "No," she replied, then took his hand and laced their fingers. "Ready to eat?" she asked.

Sean nodded, and walked over to the table, noticing they were a chair short, so he pulled it out for her and motioned her over, bowing a little like the gentleman that he pretended to be sometimes. He leaned over, filling a plate for himself and then moving off to lean against the wall.

Liam smiled, and filled a plate for Jade, and then one for himself.

Artemis hesitated but took the chair, gave him a small smile and looked over her shoulder at him briefly before fixing her plate. Second breakfast of the day... I do this too often now that Liam is here to cook she thought ruefully.

Pearl looked at him too, briefly. "We should get another chair," she suggested and started to eat.

"Or another house," Liam replied casually, but Sean glanced over a bit curiously at him.

"Yer thinkin' that too?" he asked, munching thoughtfully.

Liam studied him for a moment. "A bigger place would be nice, though a demmed shame ta sell this house after all the fixin' up I done. An' tain't mine ta sell."

"An' it ain't like the coin is an issue," Sean reminded him, though there was a little of a question in his voice too. After all, Liam theoretically could have spent all their ammassed wealth, but Sean doubted it. Liam wasn't much of a spender.

He scoffed though, which was a good sign. "No, I suppose it ain't."

Pearl tensed slightly, but her face remained impassive. It was hard to tell if she reacted to the money or the suggestion of another house. She cast her eyes around the house, taking in the familiarity of it and remembering when she'd gotten it. She hadn't lived in a house since her parents were alive. She was beyond getting a chill from the memory of her parents, she was numb to the pain now. But it made her sad sometimes to remember. A new house? Did she want that? She was getting married... But this house didn't seem small yet. Then again, once she got married and had kids this house would probably seem plenty small. She suddenly got a satisfied expression her face. No more Pernelle... At least not next door. If we didn't move out of town... This gossipy, condescending town! She didn't have many friends here. Except for Hamnet and Rosa, and they were mutal friends for her. Horst was nice too, but he was her boss and kind of kept to himself around her. Where would it leave Artemis if she left? She looked up at her friend.

Artemis was looking at her with a sort of worried expression, but she didn't look as paniced as she might have. Clearly, she'd thought about what she would do if Pearl and Liam decided to move away. It made sense... They were getting married, having kids. Pearl would want to have plenty of kids... She smiled at Pearl a little. "Sean was telling me when you were boys you wanted a big house that you and your families would live in together," she said raising her eyebrows at Liam.

"Did he now?" Liam said with a slight smile. "Did he tell yeh about the secret passage that led from the bedrooms to the kitchen, so we could sneak down for a snack without bein' caught?"

Sean laughed, but the added, "Demmit, Wil. It was supposed to be a secret passage!"

Liam smiled at him, but then thought seriously, looking at the table for a few long moments. It was something to think about. Where would Sean fit in this new house idea? Where would Artemis? Though he had friends here, part of him longed to get out of this town, maybe back towards the ocean more... "It is something to think about though. Would have ta be a dem big house."

Pearl finished her breakfast and set down her fork, noticing that Artemis was already done.

Jade was usually subdued and bored whenever the adults talked about boring stuff like work and where to live, but this time he looked kind of startled. "Moving?!" he asked.

"It's just a thought," Liam replied soothingly. "What do you think? Would that be fun? To have a bigger room?"

Jade thought about it for a moment and nodded a little, but didn't seem particularly excited.

Pearl picked up her glass and swished the liquid around. "He should have more friends to play with," she suggested quietly. There weren't a lot of boys in this town that were Jade's age, and none of the mothers here thought highly of Pearl anyway. But if they got married and moved... Her reputation would be different in that community.

Liam nodded, thinking similar thoughts. "It would be different, but plans like these would mean yeh can't go vanishin' off on me," Liam noted, his gaze steady on Sean who looked back at him evenly.

"I reckon that's true," he agreed.

"No more Pernelle," Pearl pointed out, to lighten the mood. She looked pleased with the thought. The dowager's disposition had greatly improved due to the influence of Roger, but the old bag still got on her nerves.

Artemis looked to Sean as well, sort of questioningly. He'd spoken about leaving the night before, the fight that insued being his reason for going out and getting drunk, but he didn't seem to want that now. She was glad if he didn't. They had a good thing going, and if he was planning on leaving it would mess it all up. In fact, they had a really good thing going... She felt her body react to the memory of early morning and a slight smile presented itself on her face.

"Oh, I'm sure she would visit," Liam assured her, glancing at Artemis and seeing the glow. His eyes flicked over to his twin, noting a not-so-familiar look there to. So this wasn't like the other times, was it? Part of Liam was very very happy for his brother, but there was another part that was rather worried that if things went south with Artemis, Sean would take off...

Sean wasn't thinking about leaving though, not at that moment. He was thinking about that morning, and the night before. He knew most women wouldn't have been nearly so caring about a stupid drunk like him, but Artemis... She cared... He was falling for her, and he couldn't think of anywhere he'd rather be than by her side.

Liam stood, collecting the plates and taking them over to be cleaned.

Pearl raised her eyebrows at Artemis and sort of edged away from her and the table and followed Liam into the kitchen. "Ah, young love," she murmured with a spark in her eye. Jade had followed her and she patted his head.

Artemis's face flushed but she rose and went to lean next to Sean on the wall. "So, what are you going to do today?" she asked, thinking about those arrows again. She'd brought a sack that had some supplies for making arrows in it with her today, in case she got stuck over here for one reason or another, and was welcome. Pearl was probably going off to work again today but if Sean stayed around here that was plenty of reason to stay.

Liam smiled at Pearl, and leaned back to kiss her. "We weren't much different," he reminded her. "Don't harrass them too much." He poured hot water for the dishes, and started to wash up. "When will you be getting back from work?" he queried. "It'll take a while to get to Blackwater, and if we want a room in the inn, we'll need to get there a little early..."

Sean shrugged. "Whatever needs doin,'" Sean replied. "One of the nice things about bein' a ... you-know-what ... is all the free time."

Artemis smiled slightly and nodded, turning slightly to look over at Pearl and Liam.

Pearl smiled at him, sighing peacefully from his kiss. She leaned against the counter sort of sulkily. "I'll come back as soon as I can," she answered, not sure how soon she'd be able to get away. She'd have to talk to Horst about the tournament...

Sean sat down on the table near Arty. "So what are yer plans?" he asked her softly. "Fer the day, I mean," he clarified, though he'd really been asking more generally.

Liam nodded. "I understand," he told her softly, kissing her again, though his hands were still in the sudsy water. "I'll get the laundry taken care of so we have clean things to pack."

Pearl smiled at him thankfully. "I'm glad you're coming... and participating," she said. She moved and kissed his cheek with a smile and then decided to go get ready for work. "I'll see you later today then," she said. She paused to ask Artemis much the same question as Sean. "Arty, what are you doing today?"

Artemis looked between them and then looked over at the sack she'd left by the door. "I'll work on some arrows to sell... maybe a few more to use in the tournament. Actually, I could probably sell a few there if I found the right people." She gave her a teasing smile. "And I might practice a little..."

Pearl grinned and shook her head. "Like you've ever needed to practice," she scoffed as she breezed past the pair on her way to her room.

Sean smiled too, rubbing his arms. "Practicing might be fun," he noted. "Loosen up the body some... Whatcha say, Wil? A little one-on-one?"

Liam rolled his eyes. "Sean, I have no desire ta fight yeh, even in practice," he replied.

"Bah," Sean replied. "Yeh just don't want yer arse handed ta yeh," he challenged.

Liam smiled knowingly. "No, I just don't want ta embarrass yeh in front of Artemis..."

Artemis grinned. She actually wasn't sure who would win if the two brothers fought... Liam sounded pretty confident, but Sean did too. She thought of his beating the night before. If he kept picking fights, whether it was with his brother or not, he'd be in no shape to participate in the tournament. But she didn't think that would happen.

"Find sticks, brother mine, and we'll see," Sean said, egging his brother on. He loved to harrass him, and they hadn't sparred for quite some time. Sean though he had improved some, and he wondered if he would be able to beat his very non-agressive brother for the first time in their lives.

Liam sighed, putting the last dish away. "Yeh really ain't gonna let this go, is yeh?" Seeing his brother's answer in his eyes, he sighed a little deeper, and dried his hands. "Fine..."

Sean led the way outside, finding sticks of the correct length and throwing one towards Liam's feet. Liam bent and caught it before it hit the ground.

Pearl and Artemis and Jade followed them outside, watching excitedly from the sidelines, although as the battle progressed Artemis could see that Pearl was itching for some practice as well. However, she couldn't watch for as long as she would have liked, since she needed to get to work and explain the tournament to Horst...

The fight went about as Liam knew it would. His brother was just too impulsive to be a real swordsman, and Liam didn't hold back, letting his 'little brother' know just how tough this old man still was. After they were both good and sweaty, they wandered off to the stream together alone.

((Insert conversation between brothers here.))

There was plenty of packing to do, and the boys got it all done by the time Pearl got back from work.

Pearl worked twice as hard as she usually did at work, and managed to secure a few days away so that she could attend the tourament. But she worried slightly about the stability of her job. She was skilled at it, a bigger help to Horst than she knew, but between running of to save Liam from his brother that day and now--only a few days since--taking off again for a tournament... She couldn't imagine what made Horst so willing to let her go, although there were a few others who could help in her stead. She made it home as soon as she could, only to find everything already packed.

Artemis had disciplined herself and finished making the arrows she intended to sell, as well as a set she wanted to use in the tournament--if the archers weren't required to use whatever arrows they were offered, and she doubted they would be.

The brother-to-brother talk had helped the relationship between the two more than either would admit, and they were once again talking in a single steady stream of Galiage, interrupting each other and finishing the other's thoughts. They were really completely relaxed around each other for the very first time since they'd been separated, and it showed. "[You're sure you packed the leather thongs?]" Sean was shouting from the other side of the house.

["Yes...]" Liam yelled back, and then turned, seeing Pearl. "Hey there beautiful," he greeted. "Home already?" he noted with some surprise, kissing her cheek.

Pearl grinned at him. "You know I can't stay away from you for long!" she replied. She looked around and noticed her sword by the door with some of things they'd packed. "Done packing?" she asked.

"As soon as Sean stops fussin'," he said with a smile and a wink. "Reckon he expects me to carry all that garbage he's plannin' on bringin' along..."

"You'll thank me later," Sean said, coming down the stairs with his hair tied up in a kerchief, though there was an annoing strand that fell in his eyes to antagonize him. "Yeh always have."

Liam smiled at him. "Yeah, yeah," he replied, waving a hand. "Are we ready yet?"

Sean stuck his tongue out, but then nodded. "I suppose," he said.

Artemis entered along with Jade, who also had a small pack of his own. Artemis's pack was on her shoulder and she carried another for Pearl, which she held out to her. "Here," she offered, "I don't think I forgot anything..."

Pearl took the bag and shared an excited smile with her friend. "It's been so long since we've done this, Artemis, are you sure we haven't fogotten everything?" she replied teasingly. She left them and moved to the kitchen to find something to snack on before they left.

"There's a bit of cheese in the cupboard," Liam called after her, testing the weight of his own pack. It wasn't heavy, but it would feel worse as the day went on, he knew. "If we head out now, we should be able to make Blackwater shortly after dark," he noted.

"And have a day to recover and enjoy the opening festivites before things start in earnest," Sean agreed.

Artemis hooked her arm through the other strap of her bag and moved to stand by the door. Pearl got the cheese and a chunk of bread and moved to them, stopping to hook her sword to her hip and put on her own pack. She put her hand on Jade's head and smiled at him, offering him some of the cheese. "Let's go!" she said and Artemis opened the door.


The journey was easy, and Sean could keep a steady stream of conversation with a dead man, so the time passed quickly with several rounds of the making-up-rhymes game. Jade was actually quite skilled at it. They had arrived, as Liam predicted, shortly after nightfall, and had only barely managed to find an empty room in the inn. It had two beds, one for each couple, and a little cot that they drug in for Jade. Sean looked theatrically around the little closet of a room and noted, "It could be worse..."

Artemis surveyed the room as well and nodded. No fun for any of us tonight she thought to herself, moving to one of the beds and dropping her sack next to it. She was tired anyway, and yawned.

It'd be more appropriate for Pearl to sleep next to Artemis, instead of leaving the space for Sean, but she knew what had happened between the two of them. She was too tired to care either way and didn't feel like choosing so she stood where she was and yawned, half-noticing Jade slump into the cot on the floor.

Sean looked at the space beside her, and then over at the other bed, wondering what he should do. Liam wasn't any help at all, because no matter what, he'd be sleeping in the other bed. He moved over to Jade, helping him take off his boots and then tucked him in before moving to the other bed and laying down. Sean looked down at Artemis, and then at Pearl, feeling awkward. Everyone knew that they were sleeping together, and nothing would happen with all five of them in one room, but he still felt... He didn't know what. "Take yer pick," he offered to Pearl, waving a hand between the beds.

Pearl looked at him tiredly, and then at Artemis, and took off her sword. She sunk into the nearest bed, leaving the one with Artemis open. She just laid down and waved her hand at him. "It doesn't matter..." she murmured, yawning at the end. She'd sleep like she was, unless she couldn't fall asleep... but right now, she could.

Artemis got under the covers and laid down, closing her eyes, showing that she didn't mind if he slept by her and would behave herself if he did.

Sean nodded faintly, skinning down to his pants and sliding into bed next to Arty, feeling the aches of the day piled with the pain of the barfight the night before. His chest was about five different shades of yellowish-purple, but he didn't really care that much. He stretched out on his back, and quietly murmured his prayers before closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

Across the darkened room, Liam listened to his brother's voice, and then wrapped his arms around Pearl, happy that, for once, all was right with the world.

Pearl leaned back into his warmth and sighed peacefully, able to relax and sleep.

Artemis listened faintly to him murmur and realized he was praying before drifting off, too tired and unpracticed at it to do the same.



Continued at Pearl and Liam 9.