XVII

          “I don't think I can do this.” I look up at Cheviot in the distance.                            “Of course you can.” Douser stops his horse beside mine. “Just take a deep breath and... go in there.”                                                                          “You have no idea.” I groan. “I left in disgrace last time. And now I'm back...”                                                                                                      “... with an army to help fight. They'll forgive you.” Douser gives me a withering look. “Don't make me carry you again.”                                                “OK, OK. I get the point.” I sigh and click to my horse. I keep my head down. I can feel Douser trotting beside me. And then we approach the gate. The guard looks shocked as he recognizes me.                                                             “Open the gates!” He orders. The gates rise. I jump off the horse... and something flings its arms around my neck.                                                                “Gwen!” I laugh and then pull her off.                                                              “Leader Leisha! You're back!” She looks delighted. Andrie is dancing around my feet, equally as excited. I laugh, and then look up. My laughter fades. Seth stands a few steps in front of me. He's not smiling.                                         I can feel my mind empty of all my floury and prepared speeches. Everything fades away. It's just me and Seth, staring at each other. I take a step forward, my eyes never leaving his.                                                              “Leisha.” His voice sounds like it's struggling to stay calm. He clears his throat.                                                                                                               “Seth...” I'm ready to start my apologetic speech when suddenly, Douser walks past and gives me a meaningful shove. I stumble forwards, and then I feel Seth's arms around me. His eyes bore into mine.                                           “Seth I'm so sorry.” I feel a tear sliding down my cheek. He wipes it away, and then his lips touch mine. I'm completely in shock as he kisses me, but my shock melts in the magic of the moment.                                                                I couldn't tell if it was seconds, minutes or hours until I pull away, searching his face for any emotion that would betray his feelings. A blush starts to creep up his cheeks.                                                                                      “L... Leisha I'm s... sorry.” He stammers, blinking hard. “I shouldn't have...”                                                                                                                I put my finger to his lips. “Shh. You did and you should have.” I put my head on his shoulder and he pulls me tight. I could stay like that forever, but I feel a tap on my shoulder.                                                                         “Hadrian!” I look around and then surprise the old man when I fling my arms around his neck.                                                                                 He looks disappointed when I pull back, smiling. “Don't I get a kiss too?” He jokes.                                                                                                                 “Sorry, Hadrian – only kisses for those who are my own age.” I laugh.     Seth turns a brighter shade of crimson but I smile. And then I surprise myself when I turn around to see Alderan's brown eyes looking into mine.                           “Good to see you back.” he says softly, hand out to shake mine. Formalities aside, I push his hand away and then hug him. He staggers backwards slightly, and then returns the hug.                                                                 “While you're catching up, do you mind telling me where the food is?” Douser asks impatiently. “We've had nothing but bread and water for days.”         Hadrian laughs and then puts his hand on Douser's back. “Nice to have you back, aye?”                                                                                            Seth falls into step beside me. “I don't want to push this matter, but.. are you going to...”                                                                                         “Hey!” There's a shout from the guards. “There's a monstrous beast outside that wants to come in! Orders?” He comes running up, panting, and then looks at Seth, then to me, confused as to which he should take his orders from.     I jump in. “No, he's on our side. They're the mountain men.” Alderan, Seth and the guard both look at me in complete confusion.                                             “Just let them in, I'll explain on the way.” I start running towards the gate.  Seth catches up. “You went to the mountain men?” he asks in disbelief.          “Yes. Douser and I. They're going to help us out now.”                            He stops me. “You... you went to the Mountain men?” I'm getting confused at his particular pronunciation on mountain men.                                      “What? Why does everyone look like that when I mention them?”    “They're the most fierce breed of men ever! Vicious – renowned for their cruelty.”                                                                                         “Yeah... well I'm beginning to think that those stories were fairy tales. Because Zen happens to be quite nice.”                                                                      He frowns. “Zen?”                                                                             “The leader of the mountain men.” I stop as the gates rise. Zen leads his army, eyes bright and excited at the prospect of war. I watch as they file past. My army stops in horror, glancing at each other. “If you'll excuse me...” I push past Seth. “I have a rebellion to lead.”

***

          There's a knock on my door and Gwen and Andrie burst in, looking mischievous and ridiculously pleased with themselves.                                                   “Now's not the time for fun and games.” I glance at their faces. “What is it?”                                                                                                                    “Come and see!” Gwen can hardly contain her excitement. I put down the quill and follow her outside the back. In no time at all, I realize that we're heading to the back of Cheviot's castle, to the place where Seth and Douser fought a long time ago.                                                                                       “What are you doing?” I stifle a yawn and wipe my hand across my eyes.  “Just wait and see!” Andrie pulls at my hand, and we hurry on until I start to hear cheering. I look around, a little dazed, to see a crowd of people standing around an arena. I frown slightly, and then see Douser standing beside Alderan and Seth, who can't keep the smile off their faces.                                          I groan as we reach the arena. “Please tell me this doesn't have something to do with me?”                                                                                              “It does!” Gwen squeals. “We planned it all while you and Douser were away. Now that you’re back, and you’re leading us again, we planned a celebration! We want to see if you can beat him...”                                                       “Oh, no.” I shake my head. “Absolutely not. We're on the same side! I have a rebellion to lead! I'm very... very... busy... and… tired…” I trail off and look at Douser. “And did you have anything to do with this?”                                                “No.” Andrie breaks in. “He had no idea either.”                                               “I'm not... I won't do it.” I say. Douser shakes his head.                                 “I'm with her. I don't feel like fighting tonight. Let us go back to bed! What makes you think we would do it purely for your entertainment?”                 “Because we haven't had any fun in weeks, while everyone else seems to be going on adventures.” Gwen says in a bored voice. “It's about time we had some action going on around here. And, the young guards will be able to watch you and learn too, so that you don't have to have any issues with them fighting.” She points them out in the crowd.                                                                I sigh. I'm past being mad at everyone who thinks they should fight “Not them as well! Gwen and Andrie, what were you thinking?”                                      “Not just us!” Andrie exclaims like I'm the small child and he's the grown up. “But everyone!”                                                                                              They start to chant our names, stomping their feet. I have no desire to fight Douser, the main reason because I know I won't be able to beat him, and the second reason being that I don't feel much like fighting either. The crowd's chanting is getting louder and louder, and finally, Douser rolls his eyes and jumps on the stage. “Fine, then!” He crosses the stage and then puts his hand down to me. “What do you say? For them?”                                                          The crowd goes wild. Fighting is the last thing I want to do, but it looks like I might have a rebellion against me on my hands if I don't comply with their wishes, so I grudgingly hop up on stage.                                                              “Alright, I will be the referee.” Seth says, standing between us. “This is not a fight to kill each other, alright?” He grins while the crowd laughs, and I glare at him.                                                                                                         “Get on with it, Seth. I want to go to bed.”                                                 “Good luck... to both of you. But of course, I'm secretly hoping that Leisha will win.” He gives me a grin, and I put my hands together and look up at the sky.                                                                                                                  “I'll pray for you alright!” He says in answer to my gesture. “Go!”                             I'm waiting for him to make the first move, but surprisingly, he doesn't. “You know, I usually rely on the element of surprise... but since we're so much alike, I don't really know if that's going to help me now.” Douser frowns.                            “You mean I might actually be able to beat you?” I ask jokingly.               “Are you kidding?! No!” Douser sniffs.                                                         “Get on with it!” Seth calls laughingly. “It's called a fight, not a talk fest!”                  I decide that we've waited long enough, and push my sword forwards. I'm not surprised when it's stopped, but I'm expecting Douser to turn his sword immediately outwards in an attempt to push mine out of my hand, so I pull it out and his cuts through the air harmlessly.                                                                 We spend a few minutes sparring back and forth, but it's almost like I can read his thoughts. I may not be any better at fighting from the time we fought on the battle field, but I'm certainly good at reading my opponent's mind. From fighting him on the battlefield, I now have a sense of his fighting style.Frustrated, we bang back and forth. The sun sinks lower into the sky, and no one's getting anywhere. A few of the crowd have left. The others look bored.               “Alright, alright!” Gwen hops up onto the stage and runs in between us just as I'm trying to jab Douser. I pull the sword back in the nick of time and glare at her. “Gwen! It's very dangerous to...”                                                           “Yeah, yeah whatever!” She grins cheekily. “I have another idea. Andrie!” Her brother hops up, holding two pieces of cloth. “I propose that you both fight blindfolded!”                                                                                                           I gape at the twins. “You... can't be serious?”                                                   “With guides, of course – so you'll be relying on them to lead you.” Gwen hands over one to me, and I stare at it.                                                                      “I'm not going to blindfold myself, this is ridiculous! Let's just call a tie and go to bed.”                                                                                                     “Why? Are you scared?” Andrie asks.                                                     I sigh. “Fine. But I want a good guide. Whose it going to be?”                  “Me.” Gwen says sweetly.                                                                     I shake my head. “NO WAY! I do not trust you, Gwen – in a nice way, but...”                                                                                                           “Oh, I'm willing.” Douser pulls the blindfold around his head and ties it. “Andrie may be a little... boisterous sometimes, but he's not stupid.”               “Are you ready?” Gwen asks, giggling evilly. I nod, but I'm not quite sure what I've got myself in to.                                                                            “Right!” Gwen's voice cuts through the night air. I swing my arm right just in time. She's the perfect guide for all of five minutes before she has me swinging my arms around wildly. “LEFT! Up and to your right! Left again!” She's bawling out orders while I attempt to follow them and then catch my breath at the same time. Andrie is having as much fun as Gwen is, it seems, for I can hear him shouting out orders as well.                                                                               “Go up and to your left!” Gwen shouts. I do so, and feel myself bump into the railing. “Oops, I mean up and to my left. Sorry!” She giggles. Something in her voice tells me that she's not one bit sorry, but I shove it off.                                “Why did I agree to this?!” I grit my teeth, and then pause, hearing Gwen's orders but not doing them. She trails off.                                       “Leisha! You're meant to...”                                                                   “I am not dancing around like a chicken while you entertain the crowd and have fun at my expense!” I fire at her.                                                                 “Left!” She calls desperately, and I snigger.                                                         And then the sword hits me.