He nodded, and then the lass would be transferred quietly toward the nearest inn and a doctor sent for first thing in the morning.

It would be days later. She had been given a clean bill of health, enough for her to be able to work. Of course, she did not lose the job at the tavern, but was bid to take a few days to orient herself better in her surroundings. She had found her way to a more secluded beach, her hair hanging down over her shoulders, though pulled back out of her face with a tattered bow. She glanced around her, glad to see that there were no other souls hanging about before she shed the outer clothes she wore, dropping shoes and hose as well.

At last, she thought, she could stretch.

She moved to walk across a flat stone, one big enough to hang over the water. She started doing her positions and movements. Her form was graceful, practiced, precise. Each plie, arabesque and pirouette was done with her eyes closed in joy. A slight smile formed on her face.

She knew she was being risky, she knew that she could be set upon at any moment but she did not care. She was lost and alive and feeling the way the wind curled around her as if to guide each move she made. How she wished she actually had way to listen to music, but the surf and the wind served as sound enough to dance to.