"How will you get them?"
"They are cowards. When I face two, five or a dozen, they'll think they have the better of me and I will show them who the better man is. Then the countryside will be safe for everyone."
"But its dangerous, milord."
"To you perhaps. Not to me. Discussion over. Get my boots."
Ten minutes later, gloriously bedecked in garnet boots and pants, and a golden silk shirt, Cynwyd mounted up on Bucephalus. He always cringed when he heard the name, although secretly it did make him feel a bit more like the Great one. Riding away from the manor, he took a few roads that were infrequently traveled, and hoped the bandits would try to relieve him of his horse and weapons.
His luck was far from that. He was nearly hit by lightning during a sudden storm, and the ongoing rain drove him to some ruins. He thought he was being watched, but that might have been an electrical charge in the air.
Finding a quiet barn, he rubbed the horse down, and was just to the point of looking for someplace to lay down when he heard the scream. Damning the luck, since he had just changed into his last dry clothing, he raced out into the rain, saber in hand. The woman sprawled into the mud, and the two men chasing her stopped when they saw Cynwyd with steel in hand. They ran into the storm.
Cynwyd stuck his blade into the ground and helped the woman up. She latched on to him for dear life, and wept and laughed, telling a tale of bandits or rapists or bandit rapists or raping bandits. At any rate, he gave her some drink while she calmed, then he stood with her while she dripped and he dripped.
"Oh. You had other clothes. I…I caused you to ruin your other clothes, didn't I?"
Cynwyd nods. "Yes, but its okay. At least those cowards had the good sense to run. I'm going to barricade the front door, so we can sleep tonight."
That done, she walked to a stall where his gear was.
Cynwyd sighed. He was going to sleep there and now she was going to take his pile of hay. The day couldn't get much worse.
"Why don't you just sleep there and I'll find another place to…"
"No. Please. Sleep with me. I'd feel safer falling asleep in your arms."
And now he gets to sleep in wet clothes. Damn the luck.
She started taking her dress off.
"Well don't look. We can share that blanket. I won't look at you either."
True to his word, Cynwyd turned his back, and when she called out to him, he undressed and hung his clothes up, and nearly tripped over her as he got to her side. It was already fairly dark and the storm didn't help things any. He kept his dagger close at hand and his sword was next to him on the ground. He crawled under the blanket with her.
She immediately rolled towards him and rested her head on his chest and her arm was across his lower ribs.
"I'm sorry if I seem forward. Please. Hold me."
Cynwyd was thinking of something else he'd rather be doing. "I don't even know your name."
"Nor I, yours."
"Audrey, milord."
"Cynwyd. Nice to um, meet you."
She leaned up and kisses the line of his jaw. "Thank you again. I wish there were a way I could thank you."
Damn the woman. Good thing it was dark.
Lightning flashed.
The woman screamed. "I saw something." She swatted at it.
"OW!!"
"What?"
"What are you doing?"
"I saw something when the lightning flashed."
"That was me."
He felt her pull the blanket back. "Oh. Please. Let me thank you."
"You don't need to…"
"You could have had your way with me, and you didn't."
"I'm a gentleman."
"Mmm hmm."