As midday approached, she noticed people gathering by the campfires that were dotted randomly around the base, stoking the fires and roasting or warming food. She passed one of the clearings as a large group were sitting down around the fire. "Princess Ana!” one of the men called. “Would you like to join us?"
Ana paused and raised her palms, shaking her head. "I don't mean to disturb you. Please, enjoy your meal."
"It's truly no problem, Princess," the young man said. "There is a rule ’ere that we all abide by, which is to offer a meal to anyone who chances to be passing by, even if they are heading toward their own camp."
The rest of the people around the fireplace nodded and beckoned her, and their smiles were so warm, she couldn't find any reason not to stay. It wasn't as though she knew her way back, or that she had access to food.
Ana headed to a space on the bench between the young man who had invited her and a young woman. Both looked to be about her age.
They both beamed as she sat down, then grinned at the other people at the camp who also seemed excited by her presence. The chatter began again, this time all of them talking to each other as they passed bowls and plates around the fireplace.
"We’re having a simple stew, Princess," a large Alpha with twinkly blue eyes called from the right of the fire from where she sat, his deep voice soaring over the small din. "But it was made by my Marjorie, and I can guarantee you is one of the best stews you will ever have."
He grinned at the slim brown-skinned woman sitting a few seats along from him, embarrassment and pride shone on her face. "I'm sure it won't compare to the kind of meals you have at the palace," she said hastily. "We make the best of what we have here."
"I'm sure it will be lovely," Ana said warmly.
When the bowls of stew were passed out along with rolls of fresh, crusty bread, everyone bowed their head while the twinkly-eyed Alpha recited a short prayer of gratitude. Ana peeked at them all while their heads were lowered. She would be surprised if any of them were warriors. Women and young children sat among them, and even the men didn't look like any had been training to fight. Maybe Maddoc hadn’t brought her to his base, after all. Maybe this was a village on the outskirts of the Oakenshire? The accent of the man beside her was familiar to a district she knew, but it wasn’t strong. She had to find an appropriate time to ask questions, but didn’t want to offend them when they were being so hospitable. She shook her head at herself—perhaps it’s not so easy to just become a new Ana after all.
As she pondered, she spooned the stew into her mouth and was shocked. An intense explosion of flavor, heat, and aroma burst into her mouth and nose at the same time. "This is amazing," she said to the woman. "I’ve never tasted anything like this before. Are you a chef?"
She beamed. "No, we’re exceptionally lucky to be able to grow such produce to flavor simple vegetables and meats.”
"No," the Alpha said bluntly. "It is because she is a genius with a stove. I told her she should be a chef."
“I might have, if I could’ve gotten out from under you for five minutes,” she muttered back.
Cries of “Oh, Mama!” came from at least three of the children, and Ana had to laugh with the rest of them.
She had to smile at the way the Alpha looked at his woman, and the way she grinned back at him. They were clearly in love. Her thoughts drifted back to her parents, and her mood descended. Lowering her face, she continued eating, keeping her attention on the food.
"How do you like the base so far?" the man next to her asked.
Ana’s head shot up in surprise. So she was at a base. "I’m not sure," she said slowly. “It’s different than what I expected. You all seem so….” She looked again at the people around the campfire, and suddenly began to see some similarities in their faces. "Are you all… family?"
The man nodded. "Yes, some of us are. All of the campfires are shared with other families."
Ana frowned. "What do you mean?"
"This base is organized into… Sort of, campfire circles. Each circle is surrounded by huts. So the families that live near that particular circle will share the campfire, and therefore share meals and the local well and anything that we need to live on."
"That makes sense," she said slowly. "I just didn't realize families would be here."
He nodded. "It's the only way we could have ever been together."
Ana frowned. “What do you mean?”
Before he could answer, one of the children on the other side of him demanded his attention.
Ana focused back on the fragrant stew, savoring each mouthful as she watched the families around the campfire. She began a mental guessing game of who was related to who, but soon she was distracted by their general demeanor. Everyone was grinning and smiling, teasing each other, yelling across the campfire and being told not to, chattering about their morning and their plans for the afternoon. They were… happy. And considering where they were, it was strange to her.
She turned to the young woman on the other side of her. "Do you know where we are?" she asked quietly.
The woman leaned in, her eyebrows rising. "Yes, the Oakenshire."
"And you came here… willingly?" she asked tentatively.
She nodded. "Of course, it wasn't as though we had anywhere else to go."
Ana frowned. "You couldn't live out in the kingdom? In one of the cities or villages?"
The woman shook her head, but her attention was drawn away by someone else as well.
Ana sat in her seat, with an empty bowl, wondering what was happening here. It felt drastically different to what she had read or what she had always heard the court say about Maddoc and his base and his people. These people were not warriors and they obviously weren’t being held captive.
"You clearly enjoyed your stew, Princess." The young man returned his attention back to her and took her bowl. "Would you like some cake and wine?"
She nodded and as he poured, she asked, "What's your name?"
"Joe, Your Majesty."
"And your family name?"
The man's gaze remained on her cup, but his hand trembled slightly. "We are nameless here, Your Majesty. We don't have family names."
"Only according to the kingdom," the large man across the campfire corrected. "We very much have family names here."
Joe handed Ana her cup of wine and a round, fist-sized sponge cake, looking a little sheepish. "Yes, but I didn't want the princess to feel uncomfortable that we, the nameless, were using family names here."
The big man nodded. "Are you uncomfortable by that, Princess?"
At that, the entire campfire quietened. Not everyone turned to look at her, mostly the children did, but they were clearly all waiting for her answer.
The nameless were commoners who'd been stripped of their family names and all property and land by the crown for some reason. Usually it was because they failed to pay a debt or a failure to keep up with one's farmland or crops, or any number of other discrepancies that would cause a man to lose his livelihood. The nameless weren't quite criminals, since they didn't commit any major crimes, but they were also not seen as part of society. As such, while they weren't scorned the way criminals were, they didn't have the same rights, and were shunned and rejected most of the time.