Just a few notes before the actual story...
-I don't have an exact year, but this story takes place around 200 H.E.
-This is unedited. I literally just finished this section and now it's up here. I usually don't do my major editing until I finish the story, but if you find some glaring mistakes, let me know and I'll fix them.
Hope you like it!
~Roki
Disclaimer: I do not own Tortall or the major Gods. However, this is a time period that she has not written so I do own all of the non-God characters and Denna. (Gods I plan on mentioning are Mithros, the Great Mother Goddess, Kyprioth, and the Black God, but I may include more.)
Prologue
Lord Rhonald of Legann and his wife, Lady Gennette, both woke with a start. The moon was high in the sky, but a bell was ringing through their home as if someone was very determined to get inside.
"Rhon," Gennette whispered, "Who is it?"
Rhonald shook his head. "I don't know any more than you do, my love."
They both got out of bed and headed down to the door. Only the regular nighttime servants were about. They all seemed confused as to what their master and mistress were looking so concerned about.
At the door to the front hall, Rhonald murmured his frustration at the night doorman, asleep in a chair by the door. Unable to rouse him, Rhonald opened the door himself, Gennette close behind him.
On the doorstep was a baby, completely silent. Gennette pushed her husband out of the way and swept the child up in her arms. The baby responded with a little gasp, but still refused to cry. Gennette gasped as well, taking the appearance of the child in.
"Rhon," she said, quietly, "look at her eyes."
Rhonald looked into the baby's eyes. "Goddess bless, they're purple."
They couple looked at each other, both wondering the same thing. Where did the child come from?
As a response to their unspoken questions, a figure appeared in front of them. The figure was difficult to make out, but it was clear that it was a woman.
"The child is a gift, from me to you," the figure said. Her voice pounded in their minds. Rhonald fell to his knees while Gennette cringed, trying not to let the baby go.
"No daughter of the Goddess should suffer like you are Gennette." The figure bent and kissed Gennette's forehead. Gennette jumped as a shock ran though her.
By the time she had recovered, the figure had vanished. "I think that was the Great Mother."
Rhonald nodded slowly. "Take the child upstairs. She will sleep in our room tonight. I want you to deal with arranging a room for her and a finding a nursemaid tomorrow."
***
"The master'll be very upset if he sees you like this again." The old nursemaid was pulling male leggings off of a young girl of ten years. "Covered head to toe in muck and in a man's clothes. I thought I raised you better Denna."
"But all my mates are coves. What's wrong with dressing like them?" Denna complained.
The nursemaid raised a hand as if to hit Denna, but Denna shot her a look eith her purple eyes and the maid put a hand down. "I keep forgetting you're not my own son. Especially when you dress like 'im. Don't be talking like that mistress. You're a proper lady, you best be acting like it."
"Them ain't me proper parents though," Denna replied in her worst port speech.
This time the maid really did hit her. "You don't be sayin' that. Never let me hear that you said that again."
The hit sobered Denna. "I'm sorry," she said, a genuine look of shame on her face.k
"They love you and they raised you. You're a gift from the Goddess, Dennari, and don't you forget it."
***
"Come on Denna, you can do it," a boy called.
15 year old Dennari of Legann glanced one more time at the two story drop between the roof she was standing on and the roof her friends were all on, waiting anxiously. "I know I can do it," she called back. "I jumped the last three no problem. I just don't think that it's smart to do this one two."
As if on cue, two Dogs of the day watch hauled themselves on to the roof where the three boys were standing. "We've got you this time!" one of them shouted, pulling out his baton.
The boys all shouted with a mix of fear and barely suppressed joy and jumped the gap between the buildings on to Denna's roof.
"Now look who's scared Josha," Denna said with a laugh as a boy with shaggy, brown hair grabbed her shoulder for balance.
"Well then, you've forgotten that if they catch us, my mom is gonna whip us good," he snapped back. Josha's mother was the nursemaid that helped raise Denna. She knew exactly what Josha was talking about because the two of them practically grew up together. Sometimes people would even think that they were twins because they both had light brown hair and light but tanned skin of nearly the same shade. Josha's skin had seen a bit more sun though, but not much more.
"Right, almost forgot about that," Denna said, all seriousness returned to her voice. "Run."
The two of them ran off to catch up with the other two boys. They jumped the roof to the next building just as the Dogs landed on the roof they just left.
Denna and Josha followed their other friends from roof to roof, trying to outrun the guards. Unfortunately, these guards were on the younger side, and much more determined than the average Port Legann Dogs.
The four of them finally reached the end of the line of buildings and looked behind them. They had put some distance between themselves on the Dogs, but the Dogs weren't stopping yet. The boy with dark caramel skin and dark brown hair looked around for an escape route and smiled.
"Down here," he said with an accent between that Common spoken in Port Legann and a Cartaki speaker. He jumped down from the roof and landed on top of the cabin of the boat docked just below them. Scrambling down, he opened the cabin door and called for them to follow him.
"But Diata," the last boy called. He was the smallest of them; pale as a ghost, no matter how much time he spent outside, and with short blond hair, the boy fit in with their group because, like the rest of them, he stood out in a crowd. "We can't just go on someone's ship like that."
"It's fine Tori," Diata called back. "Unless you want the dogs to catch you of course. Anyway, I know this ship."
"It's Turi!" came the familiar response. "My name is Turi!"
The dogs were almost on them when Denna, Josha, and Turi jumped down and ran into the cabin behind Diata and he locked the door behind them.
Denna put her ear to the door to listen for the guards and Josha turned on Diata. "You're a cracknob Di. We could get even more trouble for being in here than being caught by them Dogs."
"I'm not cracknob. Trust me. This is my grandda's ship."
Before he could say any more, someone tried to open the door. Denna jumped back with a silent start and Diata moved forward.
"You kids! This boat is not a play yard!" a man shouted, banging on the door.
"Calm down old man!" Diata shouted though the door in Kyprin. The other three understood what he way saying, he had taught them all when they were much younger.
At Diata's words, the banging stopped. A few seconds later, a response came, but it by no means calmer than it had been when the man shouted in Common. "Sundiata Kane!" he shouted back in Kyprin. "You get out here this instant!"
"You can't tell me what to do old man!"
"No, but your father can!"
Diata laughed. "But I thought you were a respectable trader. What business do you have with the Rogue?"
"Curse you boy. Get off my ship!"
"Give me a few minutes!" He turned away from the door, a smile spreading across his face. "We can stay here for a bit until the guards are gone," he told the others in Common.
Josha glared at him. "I think he was pretty clear that he wanted us off this ship."
Diata shrugged in reply. "Come on. What can he do about it? He won't go to the Dogs on his own grandson and the key is right here," he picked a key up from the shelf built into the wall beside him. "He was just arguing for the sake of arguing."
"Come on," Josha began, but Denna put a hand on her knee to silence him.
"I can promise you, we won't be caught," she said.
Turi nodded. "If Denna says that we won't be caught, I believe her. She has the Gift after all."
Denna shook her head. "It ain't like the Gift, Turi. I've told you before, my mother is the Goddess. Mayhap it's from her."
Thirty minutes later, Josha looked out of one of the window. "Mitros! Denna we've got to move. The watches are switchn' and if we don't get back home, we'll both be dead."
Denna swore and ran after Josha, leaving Diata and Turi back on the ship. They ran as fast as they could, out of the port area and up where the cityfolk live.
Josha was just about to open the door to the servants quarters of their home when Denna pulled him back.
"Look at what we're wearing," she hissed in his ear.
He examined the two of them a let out a groan. "Our clothes are at the Rogue Court."
They were both wearing clothes common to the rats around the port. Whenever they left the house, they went to the Court of the Rogue so Denna could change out of her skirts and Josha out of his servant's uniform.
Denna sighed. "It's too late to go back and get them. You have more uniforms, right?"
Josha nodded and put his hand on the doorknob. "Right. So I'll open the door and we both run. Don't stop."
"Good luck," Denna said with a nod.
"You too." With that Josha threw open the door and they both rushed inside to their respective rooms to change into proper clothing.