13th June, afternoon - Guards' camp

Her face crinkled into a grin. "Oh! I had tried to forget." She laughed at the memory and rubbed her earlobes. "Your face was so white. It was probably worse for you than for me. And it hurt like hell, and wearing them afterwards. They were so pretty though," she added wistfully.

Christian grinned despite himself. "Mebbe so, but I think I'll stick with nickin' rings from now on."

She laughed again. "Please do. And necklaces! You should bring me a collar of pearls next time." By now the tea was sufficient temperature to drink. She took a sip and closed her eyes. "Tea. So wonderful, thank you darling. We really are back. Just taste it!" She held the cup out to him, smiling.

Upon returning to his tent, Woodmarsh found he could hear voices coming from inside it. Not having heard the news of the prisoners' return--he was much too busy and important to be troubled by trifling news of that sort--he wondered if some vagrants had decided to make themselves at home in his tent while he was gone. Well that would not do at all. If there were some miscreant soldiers inside, he would have them strung up, by God. Yes he would. Throwing back the flap, he barged in.

"What in heaven's name is going on here?" he bellowed, "This is my private tent I'll have you--"

His tirade trailed off when he saw just who was there. "Well I'll be damned...Jenny! And Christian! Good God, where have you both been?"

Christian started so violently that the cup slipped from his hands, landing with a subdued splash on the floor of the tent. "Sir. Sorry, sir," he stammered, pulling himself to attention. "Frogs turned us loose a few days ago, sir, only we ran into 2nd Division first. We only just got back."

Jenny recovered from her own surprise by being overcome with emotion. "Gareth, darling!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around him and burying her face in his shoulder. "It was awful, so awful!" She was actually crying now, which was not what she had intended, dammit. "I was so scared and I missed you so much!"

Woodmarsh smiled to himself as Jenny threw herself into his arms and began sobbing. That was just how he had been expecting her to act. The poor dear. She must have been through a terrible ordeal, and without a man to protect her, it was no surprise she was so shaken.

"Shh, it's alright, Jenny dear," he said soothingly, gently patting her, "You're safe now. None of those blasted French are here to harm you any more."

Glancing at Christian, he added, "Well it's good to have you back, at any rate. Though I would appreciate if you would refrain from throwing any more tea around my tent."

Poor Christian and the tea. Jenny could not help wondering if she would be able to get another cup of tea as soon as this reunion was over. "What about you, poor darling?" she asked, looking at Woodmarsh with tearful concern. "It must have been so hard for you, to be without your servant and your loving sweetheart. And they stole your furniture and your things, and I lost Eris, your lovely little mare!"

Christian quickly busied himself cleaning up the mess as best he could. Though there was really little more to do than retrieve the cup. It was odd how quickly everything had all sprung back into place. It was almost a relief. However intensely he might have envied Woodmarsh at that moment, at least he was on familiar ground once more. He knew his place, how to act, what was expected of him.

Well, he certainly had missed Christian's aid. Fisher had been a satisfactory replacement, but Woodmarsh much preferred his regular batman, so it was a relief to have him back. Having Jenny returned to him was quite pleasant as well, especially when she was fawning over him as she was now.

"Oh, there is no need to fret over me, dear, and don't worry about such trifles as my belongings. I was much too worried about you to even give a thought to any old furniture."

In truth he was more than a little irritated at the loss of his furniture and his mare, and had probably been more concerned about them than Jenny, but even he was not foolish enough to say so in front of her.

Jenny watched Christian as he attended the mess he had made. "Gareth, dear, what have you been doing about food? Do you eat with the men?". And since Woodmarsh was too dull and self-absorbed to think of it himself, she added, "I could use a good meal. And a cup of tea. I expect Christian could too."

There was a scratch on the tent flap and Fisher stepped in, though he looked a bit sheepish on seeing Christian and Miss Ross. He gave Woodmarsh an awkward salute. "Here's that bottle you asked for earlier, sir."

The woman fixed on him with her wide blue eyes. "Ah, you must be that temporary servant. I'd like some tea, and see if you can find some warm water for me. And for this fellow," she added, indicating Christian with a careless wave. She gave Woodmarsh a coy smile and caressed the braid on his coat. "I wanted to get myself all cleaned up before you saw me, dear, so you could find me looking my best. But it's not too late, I hope." Then she laughed. "And as for Christian, he's filthy. Just look at him!"