Xavier was offended. "Where exactly did you think I was going after dropping you off?"

"How would I know? I'm not a mind reader." Yehudit said. She unwrapped one arm from the horse's neck and tapped his rump, hoping to make him go faster.

"I'm not about to allow my best friend's bride to run off and leave him at the altar." He quickened his pace and prayed Warrior wouldn't go into a full on gallop.

Encouraged by the increased speed, Yehudit smacked Warrior's butt again.

"Stop it, Yehudit! Whoa! Warrior!" Xavier called out. Warrior was increasingly troubled by what Yehudit was doing, and was about to break free from Xavier. Warrior stopped but paced frantically. "He doesnt' like what you are doing. If you keep doing so, he's going to break free and go full on, and I won't be along to control him."

"But it would be faster, right?" Yehudit asked, the stick raised and ready for another smack.

Xavier reached up and grabbed her wrist. "Sure, and you risk being thrown, no matter how tight you hold on to him. He's barely tolerating that. And the keep is like two feet away besides."

Yehudit sighed. "Sileas better not get out of the keep while this old nag crawls the last two feet."

"If he goes full speed toward the keep, he'll crash into the wall."

"How did I wind up on a blind warhorse?" Yehudit asked.

"He isn't blind, he just wouldn't be able to stop that fast if he's going faster than a walk."

Yehudit sighed and slumped. "I'm never going to get there."

Sir Bran quietly rode up to the main gate, calling out, "Hello there! May I have a word with the Lord of this keep?"

Sir Excessive Force glared suspiciously down from the wall.

"Who are you? What do you want? Are you carrying weapons? What kinds of poisons are hidden upon your person? Did you come here to assassinate Lord Thornblade? What is the flight speed of an unladen swallow?" He demanded rapidly.

"My good sir, I promise you we mean no harm to anyone. We have no weapons. We are newcomers to this village and have some... more personal questions for the Lord. I am Sir Bran, and this is Sir Gareth."

"The lord is too busy to listen to your personal assassination!" Sir Excessive Force lifted a crossbow.

"Sir, we mean no harm. Please, lower the crossbow. We have no weapons nor poisons, and why would we want to assassinate Lord Thornblade? We only arrived here a week ago."

"That's what all the assassins say. That and, 'Oh that's not a weapon, I'm pregnant' woman would've birthed an assassin right in the gate if I hadn't sent her to the healer in chains." Sir Excessive Force grunted importantly. "Drop your weapons!"

"Sir! We have no weapons with us! Just the clothes we have on! Can you not see that?"

"Your lips say you're not carrying weapons. Your eyes say you're a merdemon who has come here to assassinate our lord, take our women and steal my boots!" Sir Excessive Force roared. "Get on the ground with your hands on your head!"

Bran and Gareth quietly did that, showing Sir Excessive Force that they did not, in fact, have any weapons or poisons.

"Are we free to go now?"

"Wait." Sir Excessive Force growled. He disappeared from the wall. A few minutes later the gate creaked open enough for the knight to come through. He walked around the two men on the ground, glaring at them.

"You swallowed the poison to smuggle it inside!" Sir Excessive Force accused.

"What? If we've swallowed the poison that we don't have, then how would we smuggle it inside? We'd be dead or dying from it."

Sir Excessive Force laughed.

"You fools did not think that through! Get inside! After you die in horrible ways we'll put your heads on spikes on the wall to warn others who come to kill my lord."

"If you say so." The two men got up, heading inside the gate, waiting outside the main building.