They continued on until they reached the road and then made their way back to the restaurant where they had dined. Ildri was feeling terribly guilty about the entire night. She supposed that she should have realized and she could not believe that she had been so dense as to spend time with him. To make matters worse, Charles was not quite meeting her eyes and she was very glad when she finally closed the door to her room.

Ildri's dreams were fitful and unpleasant and she was glad when the day finally dawned. The sky was covered in a veil of grey clouds and it was just gloomy enough to match Ildri's mood. She could not wait to go back to Wildwood where everything would be better. One more day.

The day dragged on and on it seemed. Ildri paced her room and felt generally dreadful about the mess that she had made of everything to do with Charles. She had quite liked his company and she hoped that she had not hurt him too much.

Really though, he would get over her. They had not known each other for long, there was no way that he could actually love her. Just like her and Ty.

Exactly.

Ildri decided that she would not sit in the bedroom for a moment longer. She might be a commoner in the royal castle, but she was still a person. A person who was tired of being idle. She jumped up from the bed and made her way straight to the door.

Even if someone did not like it, Lord Wildwood was there and they could deal with him. With that thought, she wrenched the door open.

"Ildri!"

"Charles!" she said, trying to keep the dismay and embarrassment from her voice. "Whatever are you doing here?"

Charles looked as discomforted as she was. His hand was still held in the air in a loose fist, as if she had opened the door just before he had begun to knock. She had clearly surprised him.

"I've come to fetch you to talk to Sir Geoffrey one more time, Ildri." His voice sounded subdued.

"Oh," she said carefully.

Charles spoke again and his words were sped up so much that they were also one. "I suppose I would like to talk to you as well," Charles said quickly.

"I suppose," she agreed uneasily. "Why don't we walk while we talk?"

Charles nodded and they began to move through the halls in the general direction of Sir Geoffrey's office. "I guess I just wanted to apologize," he said tentatively.

"Apologize? Whatever for?" she asked, trying to think of what he had done wrong.

"For making you uncomfortable, I suppose. I shouldn't have--"

"Of course not! I should be the one who should be apologizing, not--" Ildri began.

"Definitely not!" he said emphatically. "The responsibility was all mine, and--"

Ildri cut him off, "Let's just say that it was both your faults and call it even." She smiled a bit.

Charles smiled a bit sheepishly too. "Very well. Friends it is," he said.

"I'm really not a suitable match for you anyway," Ildri chided gently. She repeated him firmly for emphasis, "Friends."

* * * * *

Ildri felt a lot lighter by the time they reached Sir Geoffrey and Charles took his leave to work in his small office a few doors down. He had a few additional questions for Ildri. She answered them as accurately as she could even though she would have sworn she had told them the answers a thousand times before, as if they were trying to find any additional detail that might help them defeat their enemies or save Ty. It was a terrible thought if Ildri was truly their best witness.

Sir Geoffrey's questioning was interrupted by a short knock on the door.

"Come in," Sir Geoffrey directed.

The door opened, and Lord Wildwood walked in. He glanced questioningly at Ildri, smiled at her reassuringly and then turned to Sir Geoffrey. "Are you busy? I can come back later."

Sir Geoffrey did not look up from his notes for a long moment. Lord Wildwood waited patiently. "No, I believe we are almost done."

"Then there is no problem if Ildri returns home with me?"

"No, no, of course not. I just wanted to be sure that we had everything correct."

Lord Wildwood turned to Ildri. "We should be ready to leave just after first light."

"That sounds wonderful," Ildri said, relief surging through her. She would soon be home.

* * * * *

Lord Wildwood was as good as his word. Ildri was awake and more than ready to leave when the first rays of dawn broke the trees. She had packed her few things as soon as she had finished talking to Lord Wildwood the night before and on a whim she had packed the vials of potion that Ty had left with her. She was not sure what to do with them because she was certainly not going to try any random unmarked potions but she also could not bring herself to throw them away or to give them to someone else.

The caravan was almost ready to leave when Ildri arrived. She was led over to a familiar horse by a vaguely familiar soldier.

"Sarabella?" Ildri asked, confused. She had thought that the horse would be returned to her owners. There was no conceivable reason that the creature should remain with Ildri. She had no desire to be viewed as a potential horse thief.

Ildri let the soldier help her up onto Sarabella's back, but she felt really conflicted. As soon as she saw Lord Wildwood, she directed the horse towards him.

Lord Wildwood finished speaking to one of his men and then turned to her. "Ildri?" he asked with a concerned look.

"This horse, I thought she would be returned to her owners," Ildri protested.

Lord Wildwood seemed almost amused. "She will be, but for now we will take care of her. The king will deal with it."

"Yes, my lord," Ildri agreed, although she was in no way convinced that it was a good idea to keep Sarabella. She would be just as safe in the king's stables.

Lord Wildwood smiled again. "Don't worry about it. He has his reasons."

Ildri sighed and resolved not to think about it. She just wanted to go home.

* * * * *

Soon enough the entire group assembled itself and they began to move. Besides Ildri and Lord Wildwood there were a dozen men at arms and the stable master, Mister Allendale. He was married to chef and was an accomplished wizard in his own right. Their marriage had, at one time, been exactly the sort of life Ildri had hoped to find. She was not sure that was what she wanted any more.

They travelled for two and a half days to reach Wildwood. The trip went smoothly, whether due to the presence of the wizards, the presence of so many armed men or due to mere good fortune. The travelling did become rather tedious and Ildri was filled with impatience to be where she longed to be.

At last the tall towers of Wildwood came into view and Ildri felt an overwhelming sense of relief at the sight. At last she was at home, safe from all the frightening things that roamed in the world.

She smiled to herself. She would soon have her life back and everything would be as it had been before.

* * * * *

As they drew closer to the estate, Ildri noticed that things were not exactly as they had been and it amazed her how much had already changed in the month she had been gone. The beginnings of walls were being built around the estate, and the base for a new building on the grounds was already being constructed.

"What..?" she began to mutter out loud.

Ildri had not realized that Lord Wildwood had been close enough to hear her. He smiled but it did not seem very happy. "Your abduction brought to mind the necessity of more protection here," he explained. "It's not really necessary when I am present, but as the king's business draws me away more and more frequently I am not present to protect my own. I would have my wife and child and all my people live in safety.

Ildri nodded, feeling uneasy at his words. If even he felt...

"You don't have to fear, Ildri. I've brought more of my reserve men from other estates and Wildwood has never been more secure."

Ildri tried to smile. She knew he would do the best that he could for all of them. It was why she wanted to serve no one more than Lord Wildwood.

They entered the grounds through the partially built main gate and then moved towards the main doors. Lord Wildwood dismounted and Ildri copied his action mechanically. Stable boys came and took their horses and began to lead them away to the stables.

Lady Theresa came out through the main doors of the castle, carrying little Lillie in her arms. "I am so thankful you're safe," she said as she walked towards Lord Wildwood and threw her arms around him. After a few moments he lifted Lillie from her arms and carried his daughter up the steps. Ildri was amazed that the baby had grown so much in such a short time.

"I'm glad you're well," Lady Theresa said to Ildri.

"Thank you, my lady," she said.

"We were most worried about you," Lady Theresa said. "Especially chef and Matt. Hanna cried for days and was certain that you were dead. You should go and seek them out as soon as you can."

Ildri smiled and nodded. She was back where she belonged.