Twins of Fate
Disclaimer: The Dark is Rising Sequence and all characters contained therein are Susan Cooper's. I own only copies of the lovely books and, although I wish I'd written a masterpiece such as this sequence, I must say I haven't. Mrs. Cooper did and I commend her for it. The only things of mine here are the plot, Leon, Lireal and assorted other made up characters. And the word Confuzzlement. That's mine. Muahahahaha...
Summary: Will may have been the last of the Old Ones to be born, but not the last to come into his power. This story is about the final one of Light and the final one of Dark… Twins inseparable by time, distance or even the force of all the world and all the powers…
Prologue
The first day of the year, midnight…
Despite the loud crashing of thunder, the two newborn babes remained silent in the arms of the midwife. Their silence and lack of protest at the assaulting sounds and the chill of the room unnerved her, but their eyes made her tremble with fear and wonder. The male child possessed eyes of deepest black that seemed almost to suck in the light, while the female possessed eyes of shining silver that glimmered and shinned brightly, though the shack in which they sat was rather dim. The midwife glanced down at the twins, now contentedly sleeping, then looked towards the mother, just as strange, just as mysterious as the babies. The woman would not even reveal her own name much less that of the father.
"Let me hold them," breathed she, her weary eyes pleading. "I am dying and I would like to know my children before I pass on."
Hesitating only a moment, the midwife gingerly placed each child in the arms of the woman, aiding her in supporting the young things as she was too weak to hold them alone. The mother gazed into the eyes of her two children as they abruptly awoke, sensing a different set of arms about them. Still, they did not cry out, but returned their parent's stare.
"Are you going to name them?" questioned the midwife anxiously for the mother seemed soon to expire, though the children were healthy as could be.
"Yes," murmured the woman, looking first at the boy, then the girl. "Leon shall be his name and Lireal shall be hers. Please… Please find one to care for them…"
A sudden spasm of pain crossed the mother's features, then they relaxed into a peaceful mask. Only then did the children cry, but it was not a scream, nor a sobbing, but a soft wail of mourning. Though the children frightened her, the midwife picked them up once more and stood. In the arms of the living once more, the twins ceased their cry and slept.
The midwife poked her head into the only other room in the small hut and called softly to her husband. He had been sitting upon the only chair and now rose, turning to his wife.
"She's nearly dead, isn't she?" he asked, though the question was rhetorical. "The names of the children?"
"Leon and Lireal," was the reply. "The mother gave not her name, nor the name of the father. However, she requested that we find one to care for them."
"Tonight, we shall watch over them, but tomorrow," muttered the man. "Tomorrow, we will beseech the Callans. Their babe just died and they might be willing to adopt these in the child's stead. But what will they think of the eyes, I wonder?"
The midwife just shook her head. "Let us go home. We can send someone to bury the lady tomorrow for it is too late this night."
Little did they know there would be no body to bury. In fact, not a trace of the woman was to be found. Well, the next morning they did find a scrap of white fabric and the feather of a rook outside nigh to the tracks of a great horse, but how would the simple townsfolk know them to be signs of the White Rider?
Two figures watched from a distance, invisible to all mortal eyes. One, a tall man with deep eyes, bushy eyebrows, a shock of wiry white hair and a rather hawk's beak of a nose, sighed sadly and murmured aloud, "The children of no time, no parents, no home. What shall become of them? Are they to balance the scales or tip them? If to tip them, then which way?"
The other figure, an old, fragile woman of small stature, leaning upon a stick sighed as well and commented, "Twins, they are and so their bond shall be great. How will that play into this? Even I do not know, nor do you, Merriman, nor do any of us, even the High Magic for they deny the High Magic and yet are a part of it, but only for so long as they are together. The Dark will not influence them any more than the Light and in the end it will be their choice whether they each join their own circle or remain together, separate from all. Either way, they shall never truly be free of the bond to each other or to their respective powers."
The man nodded, then paused a moment as if he heard a distant sound. "The Black Rider is coming," he said, his voice devoid of emotion. "To join the White Rider, I suppose."
"He is, but we may not interfere even should they take the children. The High Magic won't allow us, nor will they allow Leon and Lireal to be taken outside of time again, though that is where they were born."
"Born? But this village is a part of the world within time," said another figure beside them. This one was a young man, a boy really. He had a stocky build, a mess of brown hair and inquisitive eyes.
"It is, Will, but it was taken out of time during the birth of the children that an ancient prophecy might be fulfilled. You know the one. It begins, When the last of the Circle stands alone, the Darkness finally cast back, the twins without time shall arise in power and the gateway of doom shall be opened once more," replied Merriman.
"I see. Those two are the twins, then?"
"Indeed," replied the old woman. "And now we must leave. To the Dark remains their part. We shall know not when or where the children shall be taken until they come into their power for it is the Dark's choice where they live, as it was our choice as to where they were born."
"Much choice we had," murmured Merriman with a surprisingly bitter note.
The boy blinked up in surprise, but had no chance to question the reason, because the woman put a hand upon Merriman's shoulder and murmured, "That doesn't matter now. Come."
Authoress' Notes!
So, this is the revised and not terribly different prologue (look! I spelled it right this time around). I did change a few things, details really, but they're kind of important. I promise I'll get the revised versions of the other two chapters posted soon. Oh! I have a scene partially written concerning the parents of Leon and Lireal. It would under the rating of at least PG-13 because it takes place right after they're.. em.. concieved, (The twins, I mean.) and, well, the two refer to what they've just done and... yea. So that's not really keeping with the PG rating I gave this fiction. Besides, I'm not sure where to put it... If you (the readers) would like me to either email it to you (yes, it reveals who the father is.. obviously, and the reasoning behind the, eheh.. interesting pairing) or post as an extra in one of my chapters, tell me in your reviews. Or email me. Thanks.