For archane: "Camelot, in the days of King Arthur. The Britons and the Saxons have only recently extablished and uneasy peace. Chris is a knight of the Round Table. Joey is a Saxon prince."

Sir Christopher's sword-work was praised throughout the kingdom, and everyone who saw him fight said that the king was blessed and fortunate to have him. He was noble of heart and pure of faith, and his blade was guided by God Himself in every stroke.

Or so they said. Christopher himself thought that his guard to the left was slightly weak, and he could probably do with a little bit of practice with a heavier blade than his own Aster, because his arm was getting a little slow in his declining years and he knew that someday soon, someone else would notice; he could only hope that it would be in tournament, and not in the field of actual battle.

He lowered Aster and wiped the sweat from his eyes when he felt the eyes on his back in the yards. It was Joseph watching him, Lord Joseph to give him his proper title, Lord Joseph of the boisterous laugh and the cheerful smile and the deadly footwork. Lord Joseph, who raised one eyebrow and said, "Your left guard is sloppy. Were you injured?"

"Last winter," Christopher said, and ran the back of his hand over his brow again. He didn't know why Lord Joseph had come to Arthur's court, and he didn't know why Lord Joseph stayed, and he didn't know what he was supposed to think of him and quietly, when no one else could hear, wished that he would just go away again. "I was eleven weeks abed when the fever took me after it."

"Ah," was all that Lord Joseph said, and then there was that long silence that stretched out uncomfortably between them again. "Would you care for a partner, to test your strength against?"

Christopher didn't, but the relations between their two people were strained and near-cracked enough already, and he knew that diplomacy often called for individuals to do things that they felt disinclined to undertake. "With your indulgence," he said, and brought Aster up in salute. Lord Joseph stepped into the circle, and when their eyes met, Christopher knew that his days of his swordwork being famed in song and story were numbered indeed.

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