Marian looke at the man that was leadeing her. "How long has Max been here?" she had to ask.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

"Couple 'a years," Jonah said gruffly. "Two, maybe three. Almost as long as I have." He kept his tone low; Max strode only a couple yards in front of them, and he didn't like to be talked about.

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~

Marian nodded. "How did he het that scar?

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Jonah looked uncomfortable, as though he didn't want to talk about it. "We... When Max first... 'joined'.... Our last brethren leader sorta... roughed him up a bit. I don't really know all the details. I've heard it was an accident, but I don't really buy that..."

Max cast a subtle look back at them, as though he'd heard his name spoken, and Jonah hushed up. He looked at the girl and gave a look that clearly said "Later..."

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~

Marian nodded. she had to know, she had t know why he could not remember.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

The encampment turned out to be just that. The brethren were wanderers, never bothering to make a proper headquarters. Campfires smouldered, filling the air with the acrid smell of smoke and whatever had been roasting that morning. Various tents were posted within the clearing. Men milled about, while others sat around the fires, discussing quietly, some of them turning their attention to the small party returning. There was even a handful of women in the motley crew, though they were just as rough and dangerous looking as the men.

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~

Marian looked around, and clenched a hand over the ring, her most precious belonging.

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Max nodded to Jonah, and at the signal the man let Marian go.
"Might as well make yourself comfortable, I guess. But I must warn you, any of my men can shoot you down if need be. So, let's be wise and not run, shall we?" He smirked at her, crouching down beside the nearest campfire.

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~

Marian felt her self blush angain as he smirked. She turned away and and looked at Jonah. "I need to know, what hapened when he joined, before he joined. I need to know."

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

He nodded, glancing over at Max a moment before leading her over to the edge of a clearing. He leaned his massive bulk against the tree trunk, speaking in a hushed tone.

"Max came to us a few years back, a traveler. He was alone - a perfect target. Our crew was lead by a man called Jekel at the time. Jekel was an oppertunist - he like a quick profit and little fight. So, naturally, when he saw this man down by the river drinking, we moved in to rob him. He seemed... official. Jekel thought it'd be a good idea."

Jonah shifted slightly chuckling. "He was wrong, though. Next thing I knew, the man and our leader had tumbled into the river in a full-out brawl. The water turned red with blood, and myself and one of the other men jumped into the river after them. What we found was Jekel, his own knife shoved into his gut by the man. That man was Max. We pulled Max out of the river, half-drowned and with a fierce gash across his brow. We thought he was dead, but... Fates above, he's got some sorta strength in him."

He looked up at the treetops, watching them sway. "Brethren law demands that only a man who kills the leader of the crew can become so himself. And, well, Max had already done that. We asked him to join us after he was well again, and he took to it as if it'd always been..."

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~

Marian smiled. "My Maxelle. He never did like to lose, even as children." she felt a tear fall down her cheek. "I never thought I would see him again. I was told he had been killed, and now I found him, and he doesn't know me."

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Jonah stared at her curiously. "You weren't lying then?" Unless Max is right, and she really is mad...

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~

Marian smiled again. "Max had been asked by the king to dliver messages and gather trading information." She looked back over to Max. "he gave me that famous smirk of when he said he would be fine. It always made me blush, that smirk. And I know his his name, I have called my self Marian Greenwood so many times, to imagine what it would be like after we married."

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

Jonah's lips tightened and he frowned a bit. "He doesn't remember you, lass," he said quietly. "For the past three years, until this hour, he never even knew you existed. And, with all honesty, I don't think he will... His mind is very ill, it would seem..." He seemed a bit sympathetic. "He's lived a life without you, Marian."

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~

Marian nodded. "Only three years out of a life time. We gre up together." She laughed. "we hated each other at firts, taking turns to make the other made, until we ended up laughing at the same thing and it eventually gre into love."

_________________
Where do you go when your running away,
The cost of stopping is too great to pay.
~Amanda (saw this written in a washroom stall at a movie theater)

"Nice to see one o you has such fond memories, at least," he noted, glancing over at Maxelle. "Shame..."

_________________


~*~ I am the Patron Saint of Lost Causes. ~*~