A/N: Ta-Da! The next chapter is here! Enjoy!

Chapter Five: In the Dove

"George, what are we doing here? I want to go home." Alanna sat on the edge of Beka's bed as George looked around for something.

"I know, lass, and so do I."

"Then why are we here?"

"We have no other place to go." George chuckled. "I bet the palace healers just love dealin' with you."

Alanna folded her arms over her chest.

George sighed. "Alanna. You're hurt. We're not goin' anywhere until we get your leg looked at."

"And how do you suppose we do that, George? We have no money, and the healers we know live two hundred years in the future! Besides, I could heal myself if I thought I needed to, which I don't." Never a fan of inactivity, Alanna pushed herself off the bed.

"What are you doing?" asked George.

"I'm getting out of here."

George watched with raised eyebrows as she determinedly made her way to the door. She did well to cover her limp, but George still saw the slight hitch in her walk.

"Oh no you don't." His long strides caught him up to her in a second and the next thing she knew, Alanna was lifted bodily into the air and seated right back on the bed.

She glared at him. "I don't know who you think you are, George Cooper, but I'm sure your mother taught you not to manhandle women like that."

"You're speakin' of the same woman who taught me to restrain ungrateful patients." Finding a roll of bandages, George knelt down in front of Alanna. Taking hold of her ankle, he carefully slipped off her boot.

"What are you doing?" she asked with alarm.

"I have to look at your leg."

"I'm not bleeding! My leg just got twisted!"

"I still have to feel the muscles."

She all but jerked her leg out of his grasp as he slipped one hand up her leg. He kept a firm grasp on her leg, however, anchoring it on the top of his thigh as he expertly moved his hand over her muscles.

Alanna's face burned. She fidgeted but complied until he reached her knee. Then she bolted up in a flash, and this time George was forced to let go unless he wanted to twist her leg again.

"Alanna-"

"Don't start, George. I am going home where your mother or Duke Baird can fix me properly!"

She pulled on Beka's door, only to find her way already blocked. Rosto the Piper stood in the doorway.

"Leaving so soon? We've made a good impression on you, haven't we?"

Worried about what he had overheard, Alanna looked back at George.

To Rosto, he said casually, "She objects to my healin' abilities."

With understanding showing in his eyes, Rosto said to Alanna, "I understand. I'm a bit of a bad patient myself when it comes to healings."

"I'm not a bad patient," Alanna mumbled in response. "I just don't like being poked and prodded."

"It all depends on who's doing the prodding," grinned Rosto. "Speaking of which, I know someone who can be of some help."

Alanna leveled a pointed look at the Rogue. "Don't tell me you claim to bea healer too."

He laughed. "No, but I have a close friend that is."

George nodded. "We'll go see your healer." Seeing Alanna's face, he reminded her, "It's either his healer or me."

She turned back to Rosto. "Okay. Where does your healer live?"

Rosto smiled. "Follow me."

Kora jumped as her door swung open and Rosto presented himself in her doorway. Moving away from the table piled with herbs and stone bowls, she came at Rosto. "You had better be grateful that Ersken has already left for training and I am here alo-" She stopped as Rosto moved aside and she saw two people standing behind him. With the mot's bright red hair and purple eyes, and the cove's intelligent hazel eyes and trim form, Kora knew she had not seen them before. She looked to Rosto for explanation.

"Kora, this here's Alanna Smythesson and George Swiftknife. They're new to Corus but had the unfortunate chance to meet with some rats in an alley."

"We didn't meet them, we followed them after they tried to steal something from me," Alanna piped up. She didn't want it to sound as if they had walked into a trap!

"Yes, and apparently did a good job of getting it back and helping the Dogs hobble them," Rosto grinned. "They've become quick friends of our Beka," he told Kora.

Understanding began to dawn finally on Kora. Though why Rosto had brought them to her rooms she had yet to find out.

The lean cove named George seemed to recognize her confusion and told her, "My friend's leg is twisted. She's been limpin' the whole way here."

"Oh!" exclaimed Kora, already turning back to her herb table. "Take a seat and I'll see right to that leg."

Rosto moved to leave, but before he did so, he turned back to Kora. He talked to her quietly for a moment. When he was finished Kora nodded and returned her concentration to the herbs laid out in front of her. "And Kora?" She looked up. "Make sure you don't confuse the herbs and give her a third leg." Seeing the look on Alanna's face and Kora's glare, Rosto grinned before Kora quickly shooed him out of the room.

"Don't listen to him," Kora reassured Alanna, returning to her table. "I know my herbs and you only need a salve for your leg." Kora turned around and gave George a look. "I know you're worried, but there's no need for observers. Your lady friend will be just fine."

Alanna smiled to herself as George interpreted the small woman's words. "Don't think me one to question a healer," George told her. Then with one reassuring glance at Alanna, George left the room.

Seeing Alanna's face, Kora smiled as she picked up the salve. "My Ersken would be just the same," she confided. "He's a protector. The Dogs are lucky to have him."

It took Alanna a moment to process what she had said. "He's a Dog?" she asked as she took the salve from Kora's hands and undid her breeches. Rosto had called Beka a Dog…

"And a mighty fine one at that," Kora affirmed.

"But you…does he know you live here? With the Rogue?" she asked as she rubbed the salve in.

Kora turned to look at Alanna from where she stood again at the herb table. "You really aren't from around here, are you?" she chuckled. "Yes, he knows I live here. He lives here too. He just left for training."

Alanna tried to hide her surprise but judging by the amused smile on Kora's lips as she turned back to her herbs, Alanna was certain she had not succeeded. A guard- a Dog, she reminded herself- and the Rogue's healer, lovers? A member of the Provost's Guard living under the same roof as the city Rogue? This was far too strange!

As Alanna passed the salve back to Kora, she grinned. "I suppose we better let your cove back in before he wears down the wood in front of the door from all his pacing. Rosto would not be pleased." Kora laughed.

She opened the door to find George right where she had predicted. Then she motioned for Alanna to follow her out. "Come now. Rosto told me to see to getting you some rooms."

Alanna glanced at George as Kora led them down the hallway, but he was looking around and she failed to get his attention. She was becoming annoyed that he would not meet her gaze when Kora stopped in front of a door.

"Here we are. Alanna this is your room. And the other room is just down the hall-"

Alanna was unsure of what to do before George stepped forward and interrupted. "This room will be fine. We don't wanna be overcrowdin' you." He smiled at Kora.

Kora grinned and looked between George and Alanna, "I thought not." Then she turned to walk back to her rooms, saying over her shoulder, "Let me know if there's anything you need, you know where to find me."

When she disappeared down the hall, George let out a sigh. Then to Alanna he said, "Alright, out with it, lass."

"What are we doing here? We are not staying here! And we are definitely not sharing the same room, George Cooper!"

George glanced up and down the hall before pulling her inside the room and shutting the door behind them. Alanna was still ranting. "I don't know what kind of scheme this is, George, but if you're trying to share my bed, then you have another thing coming to you-"

"Shh, lass, it's nothin' of the sort. No need to be worryin'."

"Oh," she replied with a small frown. Then she watched as he walked around the room, looking around as he had in the hallway. "Then why did you want the same room?"

"It's safer this way."

Alanna started into how she could take care of herself when George quickly interrupted her. "Bein' together is much safer than bein' apart."

"Oh," she said again. Then she added, "Then what are we going to do now? We can't just sit around here. We have to figure out how to get home!"

"Speakin' of homes…" George pushed his hands against one of the walls- and Alanna watched as it moved and opened. A hidden door. George grinned. "Lucky for us this is mine of the future."

Alanna watched as George disappeared through the passage. "Oh no you don't. You're not leaving me behind," she said and quickly followed him.

A/N: So I've decided that I need to find a portal into the Harry Potter world so I can steal Hermoine's time-turner so I have time to get everything done. Then I need to find the portal into Tortall just because :) I hope you enjoyed the chapter, I'm not sure when the next one will be up. I'm working on a lot of different writing projects right now (Unfortunately not all fun writing projects either. Bleh.). If you have any suggestions for what you would like to see next in this fic, by all means let it be known! I'm not sure how in depth I want to take this yet. Sadly, I was kind of hoping I could incorporate Mastiff into this story, but unfortunately that doesn't look like it's going to happen :( So I don't think I'm going to make this too long or intricate (I have my other Rogue fic I'm writing for those kinds of detailed plot bunnies). So if you have any ideas, I'll be welcome to them! But I do have a feeling that George and Alanna are about to run into more trouble- call it a hunch ;)