As we were preparing to leave when a group of ten men showed up. I was very confused. "Sam, these are some of my friends," Andrew said, waving his hand then singling out three of them. "These three were with me as Dragons," He said.

I stood in awe for a moment. I had just met four Red Dragons in one day. I bowed my head slightly. "It's an honor to meet you," I said, still not fully believing that I was standing in front of members of the Red Dragons.

"It's good to meet you too Sam. My name is Chase and I want to say that I am truly sorry for what happened," One of the Red Dragons said, stepping forward and shaking my hand.

"Thank you Chase," I said quietly, looking down at the ground. After being introduced to the rest of the men we headed back to Hillsdale.

I stood at the edge of the village biting my bottom lip, trying to prepare myself for what was to come. I felt an arm go around my shoulder and one around my waist. I looked to my left and Ally had her arm wrapped around my waist and Peter had his arm around my shoulder.

"We'll be right beside you during the whole thing," Ally said.

I nodded my head slightly and pulled away. I walked down the hill listening as the group followed behind me. When we entered the town I took a deep breath and closed my eyes tightly. The sight, the smell, and the memories were just too much. I felt my knees giving out, but before hitting the ground a pair of arms caught me. My eyes shot open and I saw Chase holding me up. With a small smile, I gave him my thanks before hurrying to where I knew Papa would still be laying. I fell to his side, trying to keep my tears away, but it just made them worse. I stayed by his side for a few minutes while those who had come with me started to dig the graves.

"Papa, I found friends. People who are helping me make this right, well at least as right as it can be," I whispered looking up and around me. "I think I'll be okay. I will find my brother and I will live on for you and for our village," I said quietly before slipping away from Papa and going to help with the graves. It was a quiet work day. We didn't stop working until dinner time. I led the group to my house where Ally and I prepared dinner. I sat with the men and Ally outside my house.

"Sam, do you want to have your parent's funeral tonight?" Andrew asked.

I quickly shook my head. "No, they would want everyone to have theirs first. Papa would not want to be put first," I said, looking around at the men.

"Your father sounds like he was a very respectable man," Andrew said smiling over at me.

"Can we have Jack and his family's funeral first?" I asked, everyone turned and gave me a questioning look. "Jack and I were pretty much enemies, but the night all this happened we made up and I want to do this to show that I meant what I said," I whispered. After dinner, we had a funeral for Jack and half of the families in my village. I wanted to keep working after that, but Andrew made me stop and we stayed in my house that night.

The following morning we dug the rest of the graves and had the rest of the funerals. Papa and Mama were the only ones left. I led a few of the men to where Mama was still laying and watched as they carried Mama back to the village and laid her next to Papa. The group stepped back to give me time with my parents.

"Don't worry about me Mama. I will be fine. I promise to be as good as possible. Papa, I will continue to practice my swordsmanship daily. I actually got to meet members of the Red Dragons," I told them as I sat between them. "I love you both and will never ever forget you," I cried, falling between them. Andrew gave me time to be with my parents before we laid them in their final resting place.

"I'm sorry Sam, but we need to head home otherwise we will be camping in the wild," Andrew said, walking over to Ally and I.

"Okay. Let me go grab a few things," I said freeing myself from Ally and running to my house. I grabbed a necklace from mom's dresser and a dress from Chloe's room. Then I walked to my father's part of the room and slowly opened the trunk that he kept his sword in. I felt the tears running down my face as I drew the sword from its place and ran my finger down the edge. "I will treasure this forever," I said, taking a deep breath, before exiting my house for the last time. I walked to the place where the men and Ally were waiting. "Okay, I'm ready," I said quietly, mounting my horse and following the party out of my village. Tears running freely down my cheeks as I passed through my village. I had the group stop at the edge of the village and turned in my saddle, silently staring at the village through blurry eyes. "I love you all and you will always be in my heart," I whispered,0 then turned and rode after my new friends.

The ride back to Andrew's home was quiet. I think that Andrew told the rest of the group not to bother me; which I appreciated. I wasn't in the mood to talk. I had just buried everyone I had ever known and now was at a loss of what to do. Andrew made it clear that I was welcome to stay at his house as long as I wanted to, but I didn't feel right being there. They had done so much for me in the short time I had known them. I could not ask for them to keep me for much longer. I knew that my next step would be going to Jarrow. I could find a job, at least I hoped I could. I regretted not paying attention all the times Chloe tried teaching me to do household chores. All I knew how to do was fight and work in the fields and no one would want a girl working for them in the fields, they would not even give me a chance. However, I had to go to Jarrow. It was the only place I could think of where I might have a chance at locating my brother or information about him. Once we arrived back at Andrew's home we said our goodbyes to the men and I once again thanked them for all they had done for me. They wished me the best of luck with life and went their own ways. The sun had already set as we walked into the house to the sweet smell of tea. Lucy was sitting at the kitchen table and around her were four cups.

"I thought you might be in need of a cup of tea before heading to bed. It will help you sleep,''she said, giving us a small smile. We all nodded our thanks and took our places at the table. I listened as Ally and Peter talked to their mother about the trip.

I could not trust myself to say anything about my village without crying. Even if I wished to cry I don't think I had any tears left. I sat staring into my cup watching the liquid slowly lessen as I took sip after sip. I would not cry anymore. If I cried I would be weak and if I was weak I would not stand a chance in any town that I came across. They would just see a pitiful girl. I had to be strong for all those I had lost. "I'm going to bed, thank you for everything," I said quietly, pushing my chair out and rose to my feet.

"It's the least we could do," Andrew said, smiling up at me.

"We are so glad that you have come into this house Sam," Lucy said, quickly walking over to me and pulling me into a hug. "We are here for you and will help you with whatever you need," She said letting go of me.

I simply nodded and walked to the room I was staying in. I quickly changed and slipped into the bed. "Tomorrow I will leave for Jarrow," I told myself before slipping off into a restless sleep.

La Fray's POV:

"I am glad you have found your way home Nate. I was afraid that you had been arrested with the rest of those hooligans," I said, placing a hand on Nate's shoulder. He had returned three hours ago in horrid shape. Dirty, hungry, and tired. I had sent him straight to his room to clean up and get some rest, before quizzing him on the past few days. He had told me everything from not wanting to hurt anyone and helping the young girls escape. I was not happy about this, but he assured me that the girls were young and not near the age range of the Princess. He had gone on to tell me that the men in the group had let a girl in the age range fall into the river instead of killing her. I would not take my fury out on Nate though, he was my reasonability, but the other men, the other men I had no reason to keep safe. We were preparing to head for dinner when the two blockheads that I had hired to run the attack came barging into the room. I was angered to see the two men who had failed me standing at the entrance. "What are you two doing here?" I yelled.

"We came as soon as we could. You told us to report after we were finished," The man who led the attack stammered.

"You were arrested. How could you possibly be back so soon?" I asked walking over to the two idiots.

"How did you know that?" Will asked. I reached out and slapped him across the face. How could he be so stupid?

"Your young apprentice, Nate, came back hours ago and filled me in," I said, then turned towards the shadows where I knew Nate would be watching from. He slowly walked out with his arms crossed over his chest and eyes downcast. "No need for fear Nate. These men will not cause you harm," I told the boy, as I glared at the two men in front of me. "He has told me everything that has happened in the last few days from your failure at wiping out Hillsdale to being captured," I said, walking back to my seat as the two followed.

"All that we left were two young ladies. They can't do us no harm," Will said. How stupid could these two be?

"Two young ladies! Two young ladies are all you left alive?" I cried standing to my feet. I glanced over and saw Nate take a step back. I sighed. I hated to lose my temper in front of the boy. I didn't want him to be afraid of me. "First of all those two young ladies could identify you if seen in the public again and secondly did you remember I had told you to finish off all the girls in the village. One of those young ladies you left alive could possibly be the one I am after, the one that will ruin my plans," I stormed over to the two.

"We killed all those in the age range you gave us," The other man said, stepping forward. I let out a low chuckle as I shook my head and grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him slightly off the ground.

"I was told that you let a girl in that age range fall into the river! She could be alive and could be the one," I said, tightening my hold on the man. His color was draining from his face.

"She could not have survived the fall or if she did she must have frozen to death in the river," Will gasped.

"I told you to kill all in that age range and any who got in your way," I said, giving him one last shake before shoving him to the ground. "Is that really that hard of an order to follow? Let me have your sword," I ordered, holding out my hand. Once it was in my hand I grabbed Will's shirt again. "All you do is grab," I said holding tightly to his shirt. "Stab," pushing my sword through his chest. "And push," I said shoving the man away and pulling out the sword as he crumpled to the ground. I then turned to the other man. "See it's not hard at all," I said with a smile. "Let's review," I said quickly, grabbing the man's shirt as he struggled to free himself. "Grab, stab, push," I said repeating the steps and tossing the sword on top of the men. "Nate, come here," I said, stepping away from the bodies. Nate shuffled over and stood in front of me. "Does this make you uncomfortable?" I asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. He nodded, but kept quiet. "Nate, my lad, I know you do not like to take a person's life. However, there are times when it is needed. If I had let these fools live, others would think they could disobey my orders," I said, walking Nate further away from the bodies. "If you let others take control of you, then it will lead to your destruction," I sighed looking down at the boy. "Now why don't I clean up and we will have some dinner," I said patting his shoulder. "Yes Uncle Robert," Nate said, giving me a small smile. "Nate," I called before he could exit the room. "A soft heart is what brought your father to an end. I will not let the same come to you. That is what I promised your father, my baby brother," I said, nodding that I was finished. Nate said nothing more as he exited the room.