Disclaimer: I'm not Tamora Pierce. If I was I wouldn't be writing fanfics as fun as they are. I don't own the characters in any way.

Eternity

Jon sighed as he looked at his Champion. Alanna was a mess and no one was surprised. Her husband had just been killed three days ago and he had been buried earlier that day. No one had been expecting his death least of all Alanna. George was only supposed to be meeting with one of his agents.

Alanna had not been expecting to get news of her husband's death and when she had the Lady Knight had promptly locked herself in the chambers she shared with her husband at the palace and refused to let anyone in. When Jon had used his magic to break in to her rooms Alanna had thrown anything she could get her hands on at him until he left.

Alanna looked up at Jon with tear stains evident on her face. She hadn't even attempted to hide her feelings from the conservatives. It didn't matter anymore. Not now that George was gone. She had just lost her husband and could care less what the conservatives thought. At least they had the decency to not make any comments to her or her two children.

They had sent word to Aly in the Copper Isles but wouldn't be able to wait for her to arrive to bury George. Thom and Alan were both standing next to their mother and keeping a close eye on her. Neither of them wanted to lose their mother because she had done something without thinking about it in her grief of losing their father.

"Jon, take Alan and Thom back to the palace with you, please. I want to say my goodbyes to George alone and in peace. I won't do anything stupid I promise but I want to say goodbye to my husband alone."

Jon nodded his head and began to herd Thom and Alan towards the horses waiting for them while ignoring their protests about not wanting to leave their mother alone. She had given them her word that she wouldn't do anything reckless such as kill herself and Jon knew she wouldn't simply because George would be disappointed in her if she did something like that.

"We'll leave you alone, Alanna. Take your time and come back to the palace when you've said your goodbyes. We'll see you in a few days," he said.

Alanna nodded at Jon and shot a reassuring smile to her sons. "Wait at the Palace for Aly to arrive. She'll want to say goodbye as well. If I'm not back by the time she arrives bring her out here," she told her sons, who reluctantly nodded their heads. George had been buried at Pirates Swoop because Alanna had said he would prefer to be buried there to anywhere else. He had worked hard restoring the Swoop. It was one of the things he was very proud of because it was the home he shared with his wife and their children.

As soon as Jon and her sons were out of sight Alanna turned her attention to George's grave. "Why did you have to go and get yourself killed, George? This wasn't supposed to happen. It was going to be like most of your other meetings with your spies. You were going to get the information they had to give you and then you were supposed to come back to me and the Swoop. I'm not ready to say goodbye to you. We were supposed to have more time together, Laddybuck. You weren't supposed to leave me…

"I was the one that was supposed to die first. Falling in battle or dying of old age in your arms but you weren't supposed to get yourself killed, George! I don't know how I'm going to get on without you. Ever since I first came to Corus you were a big part of my life and were there for nearly all of my biggest events and achievements. You didn't care that I was a girl and you never expected me to change. My temper amused you and you encouraged me to keep going for my shield. I was your lass and you waited for me until I came to my senses…"

Alanna paused for a breath as the tears came pouring down her face again. She wished this was just a nightmare and she would wake up in George's arms. How could the Gods take him from her? Did they want her to go insane without her husband? She was told to open her heart and love and the one person she loved above all else was taken from her cruelly and before he should have been.

Her heart had been broken beyond repair the minute he had died. She hadn't needed anyone to tell her George was dead - she had known the minute it happened. Her heart had lurched and started beating rapidly before breaking as she realized her beloved George was dead.

"I love you, George, and I will never get over your death. Most of the conservatives will probably think I'm insane now and they won't be that far from the truth. What am I going to do without your calming presence to keep me from killing all those idiot conservatives that make me so mad? One day soon I'll be with you again and we'll never be parted again. My love for you will last for eternity and beyond. Watch over Thom for me and make sure he doesn't get into to much trouble in the Peaceful Realms. Don't you get into to much trouble either, Laddybuck. You better be on your best behavior until I see you again," Alanna told her husband before the tears made her incapable of talking anymore.

She felt like she was going insane every minute she was here without George. How could she possibly survive without George's reassuring presence? How could the Gods do this to her?