Chapter Five
Elainne
While the dwarf - I still have to ask his name at some point - twins with me, I feel his presence inside like a steadying force. The magic he sends to calm and comfort me is like lying in a field in summer. Warm, soft, and beautiful. Comforting like the sun beating down on you while a breeze blows your troubles away.
"Thank you."
"You are welcome, child. When you have lived as long as I have you will be equally as wise."
I smile down at him and squeeze his hand.
"We haven't been formally introduced. I am Elainne, Queen of the Elvin people, daughter of the former king and his deceased wife. Niece of the Queen and her deceased husband, rulers of the human kingdom. And you are?"
"Argyle, one of the ancient families of the dwarven people, and ambassador to the outside world."
"Will you stay the night with us, Argyle? We would welcome you to our camp for dinner, at least."
He scratches his chin and nods.
"Aye. I would be honored, your majesty."
"Thank you, my lord."
Talon jumps down and unpacks our food, starting a fire without using an incantation. It seems to cement his power is not the only thing he gained. I am sure there will be a story forthcoming and I am glad for it. I need a distraction. I accept what Argyle says, but I need time to tell myself that sacrificing my freedom will benefit everyone. It is not an easy pill to swallow, even if logically you agree. The head and heart do not always see eye-to-eye.
"And then he said, how do I give her my magic? Like it wasn’t as easy as just opening yourself up to the goddess."
I laugh as Talon blushes, and Argyle regales me with embarrassing moments that I missed out on while mourning.
"It is not Talon's fault. They did not even believe gods existed. The mages are people of great pride and accomplishment. I do not believe they could bring themselves to believe in anything but their own power unless shown otherwise."
"That is why they turned so bad. They have been cursed for so long. They do not know so much about themselves. They were our counterparts from the goddess, you know. We worked below the earth and them above. Two sides of the same coin, cousins, and they didn’t even know it."
Talon and I both stop at that. Wow. Well, now I will need an ambassador for the dwarves, and it will have to be a mage. Aiden serves as a go-between for me and the Elvin people, when they are particularly stubborn because of my human heritage.
"I suggest you take your dragon with you when you visit the firebirds and unicorns. Otherwise, you might not get an audience."
I sigh. Not what I want to hear. Aiden is not strong enough to hold the throne on his own.
"I cannot. I need him at home. My steward… he is a good man, but not noble of blood so many do not support him as my stand-in. Especially those unhappy with me ruling anyway. Avren needs to be there to remind everyone of my presence."
Argyle nods.
"Your Kemp has the blood of the dragon, does he not? Take him. Such a mixture. Human, mage, Elvin and now dragon. He is an even bigger puzzle than you."
At the mention of Viktor, I squirm. I am not proud of it. I am known for my court face. I feel so comfortable with Argyle that I can’t hide my reaction. It has to be because of our connection earlier. I can’t keep myself in proper form.
"This young one here tells me you have a Kemp and yet he is not with you. Does it not hurt to be separated?"
I look down at my hands, twiddling them together. "More than I can express."
"And yet you do not keep him with you."
"He has taken over the Elvin army, to train and make them loyal to me. He feels this is the best use of his time."
Argyle strokes his chin and smokes his pipe, keeping his eyes on my face. Watching for any sign of emotion. I am not sure why he cares or what he thinks, but I can’t stop my face from showing the pain I feel.
"Argyle, tell her about slapping me upside the head when I tried to talk to…"
"Shush, boy. We speak of more important things."
Talon is a good man, he tries to help, even after the scolding.
"She doesn’t want to speak of it and you shouldn’t try to make her. She does outrank you."
I can hear the snarl in his voice. He is so displeased, and all for my sake. Argyle glares at him, his eyes burning like red hot coals. I hold up my hand and both back down. Good to know I still have some presence.
"Viktor will choose his path."
"He is Kemp. You choose it for him. If he has taken up the army, it is because he feels he is no longer welcome by your side and he must do something to keep from thinking on it. I have seen many Kemps come and go. The meaning has been twisted in recent times, with so much conniving and trickery, but you should not be like that. He should be your Kemp in the true sense. It is a mating of souls. You should be bound in every way possible."
Talon has a chance to respond before I can even get my thoughts together in order to respond…. I can’t even wrap my head around what he is saying.
"Are you saying they should be a couple?"
Argyle nods like it is a well-known, natural thing.
"Love has always bound the Kemps and their charges. It used to be a true soul binding. Soul mates, in every sense. Their children always bound for greatness as well. It all changed later, in more recent times. Not recent to you, I suppose, but to me. The ancient races do not measure time the same. Life is so fleeting for humans. Both of you are touched by the gods though. Life will be neither short nor easy. I do believe the gods chose wisely. Still, you should keep your Kemp with you always. It is important, it is destiny."
I sit back and nibble on some of my leftovers, to avoid responding. Destiny. I hate that word, and I love it. I always wanted to make a difference, and here I find out that’s what I am born for. Still, I hate others not having a choice, having to go along with what the world decides for me… for us. Even Avren, as powerful as he is, is powerless to stop it. We are all caught in the cog of time and we can’t escape. Viktor and I have been through so much and we have a long way to go if I truly accept my destiny. Will I be able to do it? Can I forgive and accept him? Can he truly accept me? I love him still and I hope he still loves me, but some part of me hopes he doesn’t. I don’t want him sad or angry. If what Argyle says is true, we will be miserable until we are together in every sense of the word.
Talon
Elaine avoids responding by going back to the food she’d forgotten more than half an hour ago. I don’t blame her. Things are tense between her and Viktor. Argyle, while he means well, is not helping. She can defend herself, I have seen the verbal spars between her and Avren, but I don’t think she truly wants to. It is no secret that she is in love with Viktor; at least, Avren, Aiden, and I all know. I am fairly certain Aldamon does as well.
"Elainne, we should rest. We have a long journey back. I will take the first watch. My magic is energizing me right now and you have done so much magic today, you should rest."
She smiles and stands, patting my head.
"You worry too much, Talon. I will accept your brotherly concern without argument this time. Wake me when it is my turn to take watch."
I nod; Argyle and I wait until she is asleep before saying anything else. She forgot to bid him goodnight, which means she is truly disturbed and troubled by his talk.
"Argyle, I know you mean well, but please do not mention Viktor again."
"How did they come to not be one anymore?"
I sigh. I am not sure how she will feel about me sharing, but I have a feeling if I don’t tell him he will ask her and that will be worse.
"He confessed his love to her when she faced him about his betrayal. Then he told her that, despite his feelings, he was willing to throw them away to make her the empress that Avren says she is destined to be. She confessed she only wanted a life with him and he made it clear her feelings made no difference.
"She didn’t send him away. He took over
the army without her consent or even her suggestion. He abandoned her. It has not been easy for her. She has been forced to take over the Elvin kingdom, destroy her father, and ignore her aunt's pleas for her to return home. All this, only months after defeating the merpeople who invaded her new home. This was only her home after her mother died and her father sent her away.
"Her life has already been too hard, so when I say not to mention Viktor again, I mean it. Do not add any more stress to her. She deserves a little break. It’s the only reason I let her travel with me when I knew it wasn’t entirely safe for her to be around me or out of the palace."
Argyle nods. I sigh in relief.
"Will you camp here tonight?"
"I will return home. I need to gather the council. They will wish to know what I have learned of the new queen and the state of affairs on the surface. I have learned much from you, Talon. Thank you. Do not let your queen make you a spy, however. I now know her Kemp is a weakness for her and that you are loyal to her feelings, not her best interests."
I glare at him. "You won't betray our confidences, I am sure."
"You feel at ease with me because of my magic, but you know nothing of me personally. Yet you both opened up and told me everything I needed to know. Avren and Viktor are what she needs. Calm, logical heads to balance out your and her bleeding hearts."
I try to protest, but he holds up his hand and I am powerless to ignore the silent command.
"Do not misunderstand, I am glad she is kind and caring, but it also leaves her open to influence and traitors. You take care of her heart, but let them take care of her. She needs strong people with her best interest in mind around her. She is strong, to survive so much and not be bitter. She is also weak for allowing others to have an opinion on her rule. Everything you do and do not want in a ruler. She needs balance. The scale will have to tip in favor of the logical sometimes. You need to learn when to push them away and when to let them win. Do you understand young mage?"
I nod. I don’t entirely, but I have a feeling that experience will teach me more. I will learn over time. I will be better. I know he is right, too much emotion will get us both killed. But I also think it unfair that everyone will be happy and get the life which they crave, except her. Argyle seems to understand that because he smiles and shakes my hand.
"You are a good boy. She will need your support, young one. She has so much responsibility and she is still a child. When she is older she will hold an entire world in her hands. It is likely not as far off as she would like. She will have to accept it. Help her through the pain and hold her up when her responsibilities are too much. But remember, her Kemp should shield her heart. She is spoken for, the gods have deemed it so; do not disappoint them, boy."
With that, Argyle walks to a hill. He stands before a mound of dirt, which opens into a staircase that he walks down. The earth swallows him and closes up behind him. I have to rub my eyes and pinch myself to make sure I am not dreaming. All right, well that is different.
I look over at Elainne and determined to let her sleep all night. Come morning she will wake a queen once again. She has much to think about and much to plan. We will start our journey back; most likely magical travel will be involved, so she is not away too long. It is terrible; her time away has made her life more stressful.
Argyle is right. I have to learn to help, to make things easier and better for her. I have to work to balance head and heart. He is wrong about one thing though. I have no plans to interfere with Viktor and Elainne. I love Elainne, true, but it is as she said earlier, more of a brotherly love. She looks out for me and I look out for her. Much like siblings. We argue but we are always there for each other. It is entirely platonic and I don’t want that to change.
I make sure to feed the fire and keep it lit. If she wakes, I will make her tea. It's what she usually uses to help her sleep; once she told me she was coming I had gone to the kitchens and packed some. Who knew the kind of nightmares we would face, making her uneasy. Only it hasn't turned out to be as dangerous as I imagined. Instead, it is just more courtly drama. I think, for Elainne, that is much worse.
Chapter Six
Elainne
I wake to birds chirping. It is light out. That means it is morning. Which means I slept through the night. It has been so long since I’ve slept through the night without being woken by a counselor, or Avren because the kingdom needs something. I glare at Talon, trying to be grumpy and intimidating. But I know I fail, as he smiles and holds out a steaming mug.
"Tea? I packed your favorite."
I instantly drop my remaining annoyance and move closer to the low burning fire.
"Thank you. You have no idea how much I love you right now."
He laughs and stirs something in a pot.
"Well, what are big brothers for, but to take care of their little sister?"
He is right. Biologically speaking, we are not even in the same class of human, and that is neglecting my Elvin half entirely; but he is rather like a brother to me. Talon has quickly become the one person I can count on to take my side and my feelings into consideration, always.
"I figured breakfast would be welcome before we returned home."
"You should have woken me so you could sleep."
Talon shrugs and smiles. He looks tired but not angry.
"You need it more. Once we teleport back, as I assume you have every intention of doing, you will get so little sleep again. The least I could do is let you sleep one night out on the trail. I sleep plenty back home."
I nod. Well, he does get to bed before me. I have been training with Avren and I am up at all hours with Aiden going over finances and ways to fix all of my father's mistakes. When Avren is with me - needing sleep only once every few years is a big help to him - Talon and my other guards are allowed to sleep. I mean, who will fight a dragon? Even in his smaller form, he is a worthy opponent.
"We should head home. I have the letter from my father waiting, I need to respond to my aunt's correspondence, the fairies already sent a missive, and the council and I need to decide if we are going to take a stand in the ruling of the human kingdom…"
"Stop thinking and drink your tea. You have a limited amount of time where you do not have to think about all of that. Take advantage of the peace and quiet, and enjoy it."
I smile and sip my tea. "You are right. I have plenty of time to be queen, but so little to be me."
He smiles and nods.
"That’s right."
I chuckle and finish my tea, holding out my cup for more. He refills my mug and then stirs the pot again. I smell it. It smells almost sweet but still earthy. I can’t figure out what it is.
"I give up, I have been playing a guessing game with my nose, but I cannot decide what that is."
He laughs and lifted the spoon. It looks like soup… well, sort of.
"That doesn’t answer my question.”
"It’s a breakfast soup. We have always lived in a bad climate. The mountains are harsh. So, we had to learn to make warm food in the winter with what we had. Certain plants and berries grew most of the year-round. So, breakfast soup was invented. When you taste it, it’s like mint and jam. But in soup form. Warm and delicious."
"That is either disgusting or genius."
He shakes his head and spoons some into a bowl, smiling like a cat with a canary.
"You will see once you taste it."
I take a bite and the flavors exploded in my mouth. He is right. There is all manner of berries in there and the slightest taste of mint. There are roots in there, but they don’t influence the taste any. Everything combines to make a filling and delicious breakfast.
"You mages are complete geniuses."
He laughs and eats his own breakfast.
"Lucky for you, your big brother here is the biggest genius of all. I have figured out a way to take the usual bitterness of the roots out of the tasting pool, without omitting them."
"Well, aren't I special, to have such
a smart brother?"
He laughs and nods. I can’t help but laugh too. For just a bit I am going to eat breakfast with someone I consider family and pretend we are out camping. Having fun and joking around as family should. Soon, I will be queen again, but not right now.
Talon
Breakfast is a fun and laughter fills affair. Something neither Elainne nor I have experienced in a long time. I am an orphan, winter is harsh on the mountains, and many don’t survive. Now it is different. Elainne ensures we have everything we need, but neither she nor I ever get to just enjoy life. Her father disowned her; her aunt is using her as a pawn… or trying to. My family is unpleased with my decision to agree to this blood oath. We are both alone and we can fill the void for one another. Not that we ever really get to have any fun. A girl of sixteen should have more fun in her life.
"Talon?"
She looks at me questioningly, and I drop my train of thought before she magically picks it out of my head.
"Elainne, I think we should bring some heather home. It would look pretty in the throne room. Don’t you agree?"
I can only imagine the fit the court and Avren will have about the common wildflower being in the palace, for all to see. Elainne smiles, her thoughts the same as mine. She finishes up, cleaning off her bowl and cup.
"I do believe you are right, Talon. Heather would look beautiful in the throne room. The purple is a particularly breathtaking shade, isn't it?"
I nod and clean up; making sure the fire is out for good.
"Yes. If we are teleporting back, they will be so fresh, they will last a good while. I bet you could find a spell to preserve their freshness to make them last a bit longer too."
She laughs and spins, holding her arms out. She looks so free. Just as a girl should be.
"Talon, you are completely devious. I love it! Let's go pick as many as we can carry."
Champion Complete Series Page 44