The Children of Claw, Chapter 1
Seldah and Eeli of Malven, the ten-year-old twins of Ralon
of Malven, also known as Claw, made their way through Corus's marketplace. They
were flanked by two men and women-at-arms, Azinn and Sammae, who also served as
the children's bodyguards. They were on their way to the palace, to start their
training as pages. They had been warned beforehand, by their foster-mother,
that being the children of Ralon of Malven might make the other pages see them
differently.
Seldah was about 5'1" with long, tawny-brown hair that
reached midway down her back, green eyes, a tan complexion, and a determined
chin. She was the first girl since Keladry of Mindelan to take advantage of the
declaration that girls could try for knighthood. She hoped to make friends with
Kel, who was now a squire. Seldah had the Gift, an emerald color, and used it
for healing. She had a quick temper, and was very dangerous when she was angry.
Her foster-father, Ingram of Malven, had taught both her and her brother
numerous fighting stances, as well as kicks, punches, and ways to get out of
many different holds. Seldah had practiced these stances, unlike her brother.
She was riding a mare, a rare three-colored paint that was very temperamental.
The mare's name was Sadie, and she had been reared as a war-horse.
Eeli was a bit taller than his twin, at 5'3", but his other
physical features were basically the same as hers. He, however, had his hair
chopped short. Eeli also had the Gift, but he used his to bring light and fire.
His Gift was a few shades lighter than his sister's, not quite emerald, about
the same color as the grass a few days after the snow has melted in the first
days of spring. Eeli was calm and good-natured, and he had been learning basics
from the Shang fighter that had stopped by the Malven castle, which is why he
hadn't practiced the stances taught to him by Ingram, his foster-father. His
stallion was black with gray socks and a gray muzzle, and was called Fargo.
Fargo had a mild temper, but was fierce in battle, for he, like Sadie, had been
war-horse reared. He had saved the twins' lives more than once.
The day after they arrived, both of them were shown around
the palace by their sponsors. Seldah was sponsored by a boy named Guerrin of
Queenscove, who was a second year page and Neal's cousin, and Eeli was
sponsored by Kamerin of Queenscove, Guerrin's older brother, a third year page.
Neither Guerrin or Kamerin had wanted to sponsor the children of Claw, the
person that had caused so much trouble for Lady Alanna, but Lord Wyldon had
talked them into it. Their foster-mother was right: the twins didn't fit in.
They also didn't know why. Their father had been killed before they were born,
and their mother had died when they were two years old. Their aunt, Caserne of
Malven, had taken them in and insisted that they call her mom. They knew her as
their foster-mother. She had told them that their father had caused a lot of
trouble for the King's Champion, Lady Alanna, and her husband, the former
Rogue, now Baron George, but she hadn't told them just how much, or what kind
of, trouble.
Seldah followed Guerrin, occasionally asking questions. He
answered her curtly, never meeting her eyes. Finally, after numerous short,
rude replies, she stopped and stood with her hands on her hips. Her sponsor
turned around and glared at her.
"What?" He
asked rudely, his eyes narrowed. "What do you want?"
"What I want
is to know what the heck is going on! Why is everyone so rude to my brother and
I? What in Mithros' name did we ever do to you?" She asked, her hard, glaring
stare meeting his own. She held it, without blinking, until he looked away.
"And you'd better tell me, Guerrin of Queenscove, or I swear by the Goddess
that I will find out any way I need to!"
The Children of Claw, Chapter 2
Eeli was having similar luck with Kamerin. He wasn't nearly
as outgoing as his sister, but being practically ignored for an hour while
someone, who obviously didn't want to be there, showed him around a palace
would bring out the worst in a person with even the mildest temper. He stopped
and spun his sponsor around to look him in the eye. Even though Eeli was two
years younger than Kamerin, they were about the same height. Eeli might have
even been a little taller.
"What is with you?
Why won't you just talk to me, instead of shrugging your shoulders and
going 'uh-huh' or 'uh-uh'? I'm so sick of it! Just talk to me!" Eeli screamed
in his face, backing him around a corner. The older boy's eyes widened in fear.
As Kamerin backed up into a hallway intersection, he bumped into someone.
Turning around, he saw that it was his brother, Guerrin, with Seldah. The
Queenscove brothers looked at each other in wide-eyed fear, and when each one
saw who the other was, relief crossed two tanned faces. They stood next to each
other, looking back into the faces of Eeli and Seldah with defiance.
"Tell us what's
going on, and we'll leave you alone." Seldah growled, instantly getting into
the tiger-strike position, her favorite, and a favorite of her foster-father.
"Y-y-y-you
honestly don't know?" Guerrin stammered, fear flooding his eyes.
"If she knew,
why would she be asking you?" Eeli snapped, anger very evident in every feature
on his face.
"Hey, newbies,
leave them alone." A commanding, female voice came down the corridor. Seldah
and Eeli turned around, and found themselves faced with Keladry of Mindelan.
"They only know what everyone else knows…your father caused a lot of trouble
for the Lioness and Baron George."
"Our father?
Ingram? How did Ingram cause trouble for Lady Alanna and Baron George?" Seldah
asked, fury giving way to confusion and her tiger-strike position faltering.
Kel smiled.
"No, Ingram of
Malven has helped the Realm greatly in compensation for your real father, Ralon
of Malven. He was also known as Claw. He was expelled from his training at the
palace, and then joined ranks with thieves, causing heaps or trouble for the
Baron and his wife. Alanna was also one of the reasons that he got expelled
from training. She fought him, under the alias of Alan, and he was expelled
shortly after." Kel explained, using her hands to emphasize certain aspects of
her story. "So, leave them alone. They have every right in the world to be
scared and uncooperative with you…they've heard the stories, most of which have
been blow up to outrageous proportions." She smiled at the four pages in front
of her. "Now run along, get along, and have fun. Training starts tomorrow. And
Seldah, I'll be looking forward to getting to know you. It's been lonely around
here, being the only non-proper noblewoman. See you four later." And with that,
she disappeared into a doorway. Seldah dropped her tiger-stance position all
the way.
"That was Keladry
of Mindelan," she gasped. "Keladry of Mindelan talked to me."
Her legs turned to jelly, and she almost collapsed. Her brother used his
lightning-quick reflexes to steady her before she fell.
"Just wait
until you meet the Lioness." Guerrin said, smiling up at her. "Then, I swear,
you'll faint, if just seeing Kel did that to you." He seemed more
relaxed. "You honestly didn't know about your own father?" He asked, suddenly
astounded.
"He died before
we were born. We never met him, and our foster-parents shielded us from the
outside world. They never told us about our real parents." Seldah replied,
looking up at the boy.
"Wow." Kamerin
said, his eyes filled with wonder and a new respect. "Are you glad that you
know now?"
"Yes. I think
that I can speak for both of us when I say that we are." Eeli replied, smiling.
"Yup." Seldah
said. "Can you continue showing us around now? I want to know where the
classrooms are. Do classes start tomorrow?"
"Yes…the
school-classes and the war-classes. The horseback riding classes are the most
fun…did you bring mounts, or are you being supplied one?" Kamerin asked.
"We brought
them. Both were reared as war-horses from birth." Eeli replied, following the
two pages.
"Good. Because
after the older pages got their mounts, there probably wouldn't be much left
for you two to chose from." Guerrin grinned, joking, his eyes glittering.
"Ha ha ha."
Eeli groaned, rolling his eyes at his twin. She smiled back. They had reached
the classrooms, and Guerrin and Kamerin were now busy pointing things out to
the 'newbies'.
"That's the
Immortals classroom. Tkaa, a basilisk, teaches it. He's cool, but really
intimidating at first. He's seven feet tall. Over there is mathematics class,
and reading and writing is over there…" They walked down the hallway, pointing
out the classrooms.
That night, Seldah and Eeli laid awake in their separate
rooms, Sammae, the woman-at-arms, with Seldah, and Azinn, the man-at-arms, with
Eeli. They were both excited and nervous about tomorrow, their first day of
training as pages. Seldah thought of the Lioness and Keladry of Mindelan, the
only other two females to walk the path of knighthood. Eeli thought of his
father, his real father, who had been expelled. Eeli was an eternal pessimist,
and Seldah was just the opposite, a diehard optimist. Eeli was very nervous.
The thought of getting up, packing his things, getting Fargo, and riding home
in shame crossed his mind more than once. The only things that kept him from
doing so were his foster-parents, who would be impossibly embarrassed, and the
fact that he know that Seldah, his sister, would be the next knight in
the family instead of him. He'd rather that they were both knights together.
The twins were best friends. A little nervousness on his part couldn't ruin
that. Could it?
The Children of Claw, Chapter 3
Guerrin shifted in his bed, awake. He couldn't keep his mind
off Seldah. She was gorgeous. He loved the way that her eyes sparkled when she
was happy or amused, and the way that she knew the tiger-stance, his favorite
position, perfectly, and especially the liquid grace of her furious attack on
him earlier. He loved her short temper. He loved the fact that she wanted to be
a knight. He loved that he'd get to see her again tomorrow. The thought
suddenly branded itself on his mind: he loved her. He had known her for about a
day, and he loved her.
Nealan of Queenscove, the older cousin of Guerrin and
Kamerin, tossed and turned in his bed. He shouldn't be feeling what he was
feeling. He really, truly shouldn't. She was his friend. Heck, she was his best
friend. And, she was 5 years younger than him.
"Darn you,
Mindelan." He whispered, strange emotions fluttering around in his stomach.
"Darn you." He sat up, his hands shaking, and lightly punched his pillow. He
knew that this couldn't last. He was feeling things that he had never felt for
anyone, ever. Not even his other crushes. He pulled on his breeches and left
his room, heading towards Kel's room.
Kel was sleeping soundly, for the first time in a while.
Most of her nights were occupied with thoughts of her best friend, Neal. She
liked him. Actually, she loved him. But there was one little, tiny problem. He
didn't like her back. He liked her fine as a friend, but when it came to love,
Neal fell for beautiful ladies, nobles, and girls like the wildmage, Daine. Kel
was nothing compared to them. Nothing. Why would Nealan of Queenscove, her best
friend, who was also 5 years older than her, like her, plain old Kel, for more
than just a friend?
The Children of Claw, Chapter 4
Neal stalked down the hall, his hands in his pockets,
thinking about what he should say. Kel was so out of his league. What made him
think that she could like him? She was the first girl, besides the Lioness, to
ever try for knighthood in the realm of Tortall. She was beautiful, strong,
graceful, and just…Kel. He reached her door and stood before it, staring. What
was he going to say? How was he going to act? It was obvious that Cleon of
Kennan, another friend of theirs', liked Kel. Cleon was younger than him, but
had had more training. Was Neal willing to betray that friendship? He was. He
could tell, like a giant hand squeezing his heart, that he needed to tell Kel.
And fast. At last, he reached up and pounded on her door.
Kel sat up quickly, awake. Something in the hall had made a
very large sound. She swung out of bed and quickly pulling on her breeches,
then lit a few candles as quickly as she could. She grabbed her Yamani glaive
and swung it a few times, getting the feel of the weapon back into her tired
arms. She slowly crept towards the door, her heart pounding. Her hand reached
out, then gripped the door knob. She yanked it open, and quickly sprung into a
glaive stance.
"Kel? Why are
you pointing your Yamani-thing at me?" Neal asked, his eyes confused. Kel
dropped the stance and carefully leaned the weapon against the wall, grinning.
"Queenscove,
why are you pounding at my door in the middle of the night?" She asked, shaking
her head and inviting him in. He smiled.
"Just wanted to
talk, that's all." He replied, his face flushing.
"Nealan of Queenscove,
I have never seen you blush in the whole time I've known you. Something must
be wrong. What is it?" Kel asked, her eyes lit with amusement.
"Um…well…" Neal
stammered, wringing his hands. He knew that this would happen! Why did he over
here in the middle of the night, only to make a fool of himself? Love, he
reminded his weary brain. I came here for love. "It's about you, Kel."
"Me? What about
me?" She asked, Yamani training taking over as her face changed from amusement
to stone.
"Don't use your
Yamani face with me, Mindelan." Neal said. It was his turn to be amused.
"Neal, what
about me? I don't care about my 'Yamani face'. What do you want to say?"
"You're acting
like you have something to say to me too, Mindelan."
"Spit it out,
Neal!" She yelled, her emotions overcoming her Yamani training. Her eyes
flooded with anger.
"Kel, calm
down. It's just…well…I, um…I…" He stuttered, his face blazing crimson once
again. "I…I like you, Kel." He muttered, almost under his breath.
"You what?" She
asked softly, her anger subsiding. "You what?"
"I like you. A
lot. I mean…I…" He stopped, his face flushing almost purple. His heart was
fluttering in his chest and his hands were shaking. He took a deep breath. "I
don't know what it is, Kel, or why. It's just something about you. I…I think…I
think that I…love you, Kel." He whispered, his voice shaking with utter
embarrassment.
"Neal, I…I
don't know what to say. I'll…see you at breakfast." Kel said quietly, staring
at the floor. Neal knew a dismissal when he heard one. He got up and left,
dragging his feel. Kel could hear it when he gave a yell of shame and pounded
the wall with his fist. How could she face him again? She had just dismissed
his feelings, and shamed him. But, on the other hand, what could she have said?
He had caught her by surprise. She hoped with all her heart that he'd forgive
her. Then, it suddenly hit her. Neal liked her. Her. Not some noblewoman in a
fancy dress. She walked back to her bed and slipped her nightwear over her
head. Removing her breeches and dumping them on the floor, she climbed between
the warm sheets and fell asleep once again.
Neal closed Kel's door softly behind him. All he felt was
sorrow. She didn't like him. She couldn't, not with a dismissal like that. He
took a few steps away from her door, then it hit him. He probably couldn't even
call her a friend anymore. He yelled in rage, anguish, and shame, and slammed
his fist into the wall. Silent tears ran down his face as he ran down the hall
towards his room.
The Children of Claw, Chapter 5
At breakfast the next morning Kel sat as far from Neal as
possible. This was noticed first by Cleon.
"Kel? Are you
ok?" He asked, concerned. She looked up from her bowl of fruit.
"Yes. Why?" She
asked, after swallowing a piece of melon.
"Just
wondering." He said, and turned back to his fruit. She did the same. "Kel?" He
asked again. She looked up again, slightly annoyed.
"Yes?"
"Can I talk to
you after breakfast? Just for a second?" He asked.
"Sure." She
said, and shrugged, digging her fork through the fruit bowl again. She was hungry.
A little while later, in Kel's rooms, she and Cleon were
having a slight heart to heart. Very slight.
"Kel,
something's wrong between you and Neal. I can tell. You two are best
friends…and you have never sat as far apart at any meal as you did today. What
is up?" Cleon asked, trying to keep his temper in check.
"Nothing." Kel
mumbled, not really feeling like sharing the late-night exchange between her
and Neal.
"Kel, I know
you better than that. Something is very wrong."
"No. Nothing's
wrong, Cleon. Everything is fine. Just fine." She sighed, looking at the floor.
"Keladry of
Mindelan. Everything is not all right. I can tell."
"Everything is
FINE!" She yelled, and stomped out of the room, her face beet red. As soon as
she turned into the hall, she bumped into someone. Looking up, she groaned and
shook her head. It was Neal.
"Hi, Neal." She
muttered and tried to shove past him. He gripped her arm.
"We need to
talk, Mindelan." He whispered, his eyes softening. "Please, Kel. It's really
important. I'm sorry, I--" He stopped when he saw Cleon exit Kel's rooms. "I'm
obviously missing something. What's going on?" Neal asked, looking from the
hurt look on Cleon's face to Kel, who was staring at the floor.
"Try finding
out from her." Cleon growled, pointing at Kel. "I sure couldn't." He
said, and stalked away.
"Mindelan,
everyone's getting angry with you, aren't they?" Neal asked her softly, leading
her back into her room. Tears flooded down Kel's face.
"Neal, I'm
sorry. I…you just took me by surprise last night. I mean, I was expecting
anything but that."
"I know, I
know. It's ok. But, Kel…"
"Yes?"
"About what I
said last night…Kel, I meant it."
"I know.
Believe me Neal, I know."
"How do you
know?"
"Because…because
I feel the same way. About you, I mean." She said, looking at him. He stared at
her, awestruck.
"Whatever do
you mean, Mindelan?" He croaked, looking confused.
"I mean, I
think that I might just love you too." She said, and fled the room, flushing
bright red. She heard Neal chasing after her, calling her name. However,
Keladry of Mindelan, lady squire, kept running with tears streaming down her
face.
The Children of Claw, Chapter 6
Seldah and Eeli were sorer than they had ever been in their
lives. They had just finished their morning classes in the practice courts.
They had been working with the Shang warriors, learning Shang punches, kicks,
and blocks. Then, they were taught basic staff work. Seldah had been paired with
Guerrin for the second half of staff work, and she couldn't help but think that
he was going easy on her.
"Queenscove,
you aren't going easy on me, are you?" She asked white teeth sparkling in the
sunlight as she flashed him one of her famous grins.
"On a Malven?
No way in this world." He smiled back at her, thrusting harder with the staff.
"That's more
like it." She replied, putting more force behind the blocks. He just grinned
again.
Eeli was paired with Kamerin. That didn't surprise him…no
one else wanted to do staff work with the child of Claw. He looked around to
find Seldah, and was rewarded by Kamerin's staff hitting his fingers.
"You're
supposed to keep your eyes on the staff, Malven!" Kamerin hissed, his eyes
reflecting fear. "Just be lucky that the Stump didn't see." Kamerin and Guerrin
had both adopted their older cousin's name for Lord Wyldon, who was still the
training master of pages and squires.
It was right then that they found out that the Stump did see.
"Page Eeli!"
Before Eeli knew it, the training master, with that old scar on his face, was
towering in front of him. "Why were your eyes not on your staff?" The training
master bent down to look in Eeli's eyes. That was when Seldah came over, her
staff in hand. Guerrin was following behind her, trying to hold her back. She
stepped right up behind Lord Wyldon and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned,
his eyes like stone. "Yes, Page Seldah?"
"Please, sir,
leave my brother alone. He was just looking for me. He worries." Seldah said
politely.
"He took his
eyes off of his staff, Page Seldah. I would just like to find out why."
"He was looking
for me, my lord. He worries about my training for knighthood. He just wanted to
make sure I was ok."
"You seem fine
to me, Page Seldah." The Stump's eyes were getting harder.
"Yes, sir, I
am, but my brother didn't know that. He was just making sure." By now, all of
the pages had gathered. Some were snickering.
"I hate to give
you punishment work on your first day of training, Page Seldah, but you to not
leave me much choice. Report to the armory for one bell's worth of scouring
mail. Now, get back in line, all of you!" He yelled to the pages. "Except you."
He grabbed Eeli's arm. "I am still waiting for your answer, Page Eeli."
"I'm sorry,
sir. I was looking for my sister. To…to make sure that she was ok." Eeli said,
his voice barely above a whisper.
"Fine. Get back
in line." He said to Eeli, releasing the boy's arm. "As for the rest of you, I
want to see those staffs flashing! High, middle, low! High, middle, low! I
don't want to count for you! I want your arms to ache after this. You have gone
soft! It is the first day of a new year, impress me!" He roared, the vein in
his neck bulging. The pages did their best to impress. They wondered if it would
be enough. The training master was stricter than the new pages had expected.
The older pages were expecting it, but day one of training was always the
hardest.
The Children of Claw, Chapter 7
Seldah had
expected to get punishment work for what she knew was insolence. She had wanted
it, to see what it was like. She knew that she wasn't supposed to question the
authority of Lord Wyldon, her teaching masters, or anyone else. She wanted to
see if punishment work was something that she could handle, because if it were,
then she would disobey more often, if only to have fun. It was fun today,
standing up to the Stump. That was what Guerrin called him. Guerrin was her
first real friend at the palace, besides her brother. Eeli was her best friend,
but he was her brother. Besides, she could have more than one best
friend. Training in the practice courts was fun, even though every part of her
was sore. School lessons weren't as good, except for Tkaa's Immortals class and
Sir Myles's History class. She knew everything in her other classes…her
foster-parents had been teaching her and Eeli reading, writing, and mathematics
forever. She knew that there was always more that she could learn, but what
good was mathematics to a knight? Oh yeah…maybe to count money for buying armor
and such. Wow. She could count. She didn't see what kind of help Algebraic
expressions would be to her. She sighed and sank down on her bed, balancing her
leftover classwork on her knees as she settled down to complete seven Algebra
problems, a paper on the proper uses of pine tree boughs, and to finish a map
of Carthak for Myles. She was swamped…and it was only the first day. The math
problems were easy, and she finished them quickly. The map was already almost
complete; she just had to add the animals in the menagerie. The essay wasn't
that bad. She wondered if the workload was always going to be this heavy. Had
she messed up when she decided to try for knighthood?
Eeli felt like
quitting. He ached all over. He had tons of leftover classwork, mostly because
he was talking when he should have been working. He had made quite a few new
friends; ones reassured by Kamerin that Eeli knew nothing about Claw. He was
happy for Seldah… she and Guerrin were really getting along well, and he was
only a year older than her. He, however, wasn't doing so well. The only one of
his new 'friends' that he really trusted was Kamerin…he'd have to get to know
the rest of them a little better first. Eeli was more cautious than his sister,
and it showed. His sister…he wondered what she was up to. Her room was a few
doors down the hall from his. He quickly put his work aside and strode out of
his room. He approached Seldah's door and knocked.
"Who is it?"
She asked, her voice muffled by the wood that served as the door to her room.
"Eeli." He
said, wondering why she'd even have to ask. Who else would be visiting her?
"Oh! Come on
in!" She yelped, as if surprised. As he was about to push the door open, it was
flung open by his sister, a big grin on her face. "Hi…come on in. What's up?"
"Nothing much.
You seem happy about something." He said, stepping into the room.
"Oh, I am! I've
finished all of my leftover classwork…I have the rest of the evening to enjoy
myself!" She cried, grinning wider. She flung herself back onto her bed, the
wooden frame creaking.
"And what do
you plan on doing? I haven't seen anywhere for anyone to enjoy themselves here.
It's just an old, musty palace, and I'm tired. I have heaps of work to do." He
said dully, his eyes downcast.
"Well, then,
maybe you should have done some work in class instead of talking. Then you'd
have it all finished."
"You sound like
the masters."
"Well, it's
true."
"I know it's
true! Geez, Seldah…you don't belong here! Knighthood is for men…women have no
place wielding a sword!"
"Eeli…I never
thought to hear you say that. Tell that to Keladry of Mindelan, or the Lioness.
See what they say. In the mean time, please leave." She said calmly. Eeli could
read the anger in her face, even though she was trying to mask it with the
calmness of her tone. He knew her too well to not be able to read it. When
she's mad, the skin on her cheekbones turns pinkish. Her lower lip trembles, as
if she's going to cry (Eeli hadn't seen his sister cry since they were about 5
years old), and her eyes get hard and loveless, while at most times they're
cheery, as well as full of life and joy. This was the angriest he had ever seen
her. Her hands were shaking. "Eeli. Don't stare at me. Leave, now. Please. I
don't want to hurt you." She growled, her voice like stone. Eeli, the coward
that he was, turned tail and ran.
The Children of Claw, Chapter 8
Kel raced around a corner, hearing Neal's feet pounding
behind her. He was gaining on her. She dashed into the pages wing, knowing that
she'd be in big trouble is she was caught here. She was a squire now…she wasn't
allowed in her old wing. Her feet skidded as she turned another corner. Now,
she was in her old hallway. She kept running, her feet pounding the stone
floor, her heart racing. She was on the floor before she knew what hit her. Or,
what she hit. As she turned, she saw that it was one of the new pages that she
had seen the day before…Eeli, she remembered.
"Hey, newbie."
She said, jumping to her feet. Neal was coming…she had to run. It was too
late…Neal was there. He grabbed her arm and kept her from running off again.
"We need to
talk, Kel. You know it as well as I do." He said. Kel reached down with her
free hand to pull the new page- Eeli! He had a name- to his feet. That was when
she saw that he couldn't get up.
"Hey,
newbie…you alright?" She asked, worried. Had she caused this?
"I don't know."
He whispered, holding his ankle, his face pale.
"Is it broken?"
She asked, bending beside him. "Neal…can you use your Gift?" She asked her
friend.
"Yeah. Hey,
kid! Is it broken?" Neal asked, wanting to talk to Kel.
"I don't know."
"Can you move
it?"
"I don't know."
"Can you try
to move it?" Neal asked, getting exasperated. Eeli did, and screamed in pain,
tears running down his face. "Ok. It's broken. One second." Neal placed his
hands gently on Eeli's leg, concentrating on his magic. "This may hurt a
little." Kel suppressed a laugh.
"Neal, tell him
the truth. Eeli--," she started, clearing her throat. Eeli looked up at her,
looking surprised that she knew his name. "Eeli, it's gonna hurt more than a
little. Dear Mithros…a broken ankle…never anything that serious for me. And on
your first day!" She shook her head. Green fire ran from Neal's hands up the
boy's leg, and Eeli bit back screams of pain. His face turned red, his eyes
bugged out of his head. Finally, Neal was finished. They helped Eeli to his
room and told him to try to go easy on it for about a week. Eeli's face was
still pale, but he agreed, and he seemed to be ok. Neal drew Kel out of the
pages' wing, his hand firmly grasped around her forearm.
"Ok, Kel. Now
we need to talk. Did you say what I think you said back there? That you, um,
you know."
"Yeah…I did."
"Did you mean
it?"
"Yes." She
replied softly, her eyes focusing on her boots.
"How long have
you felt this way, Kel?"
"I don't know.
A long time." Her voice was soft and her face was red. Her arms hung limply by
her sides. Neal gently put his hand under her chin, raising her head so that he
could see her eyes. They were brighter than they should be, moist with barely
contained tears. Neal reached up to brush hair out of her face, and smiled.
Just then, the worst thing imaginable happened. Cleon of Kennan, who also liked
Kel, turned into the hallway. He yelled, his face turning red with rage, and
barreled down the hall. He tackled Neal, and the two young men sprawled onto
the ground, screaming with pain and rage.
The Children of Claw, Chapter 9
Seldah sat on her bed, tears rolling down her face. How
could Eeli have said that? How? It just wasn't possible. Eeli was her brother
and her best friend. At least, she thought that he was her best friend. She was
better equipped for knighthood than he was. She could fight better, she knew
more about some basic weapons, she could ride better, she was more outgoing and
daring, and she was much more optimistic. So what if she was female? She could
even handle her Gift better than he could his! So, what was the big deal?
Anyways, she wanted to be a knight.
"I hate you,
Eeli. I sure hope you know that." She tumbled back onto her bed and fell
asleep.
Guerrin raced down the hall towards Seldah's room. She was
supposed to meet him in the library to help him with his mathematics work, but
she had never shown up. He was worried. What if something had happened to her?
He reached her door and skidded to a stop. Millions of what-ifs were running
through his head…what if she was hurt? What if she was lost? What if, what if,
what if. He pounded on her door with both fists, hoping that she was ok.
Seldah woke with a start. Someone was pounding on her door.
"Who is it?"
She asked groggily, blinking her eyes rapidly to clear them.
"Guerrin. Can I
come in?" He asked, relaxing at the sound of her tired, but unhurt, voice.
"Sure. I don't
think that it's locked." She said, remembering about her brother. Guerrin
stiffened up again. She sounded almost angry. He pushed open the door and
instantly saw that something was wrong. Her eyes were red and puffy, her hair
was a mess, and her hands were trembling.
"Seldah, you
look terrible. What's wrong?" He asked, closing the door behind him and sitting
down next to her. He wanted to put his arm around her, but he wasn't sure how
she'd react.
"It's my
brother…" She started, then had to stop as tears began to pour from her eyes
once again.
"What about
him?" Guerrin asked, his voice soft and comforting.
"He…he said
that I shouldn't be training to be a knight. That it's too hard for a female."
"That's
nonsense! Look at the Lioness! Look at Kel!" Guerrin was angry now, instead of
just worried. Her brother was supposedly her best friend!
"I know. That's
what I told him. Then I got mad at him, and he left very quickly. I think I
scared him. I hope I scared him."
"I'm sure you
did. You scared me yesterday." Guerrin grinned. Seldah did too, slightly. "Come
on. You can do better than that!" Guerrin said, pinching her cheek. Finally,
she laughed.
"I don't
believe this. I only met you yesterday, and you already know how to cheer me
up. It took Eeli ages to discover how to do that. When I get sad or angry, I
usually stay sad or angry for a while."
"Oh, hun, not
with me around." He replied cheerfully, winking at her. She dissolved in
laughter. Then, to his surprise, she hugged him. He looked at her, shocked. She
just smiled.
"Thanks." She
said, her eyes full of sincere gratitude.
"No problem."
He shrugged, smiling. "Can you help me with math now?" He asked, gesturing
towards the door. His stuff was still in the library.
"Oh. Right. I
was supposed to meet you there, wasn't I?" She asked, her face coloring
slightly with embarrassment.
"Yeah, but it's
okay. Let's go." He helped her up, still grinning. She followed him out of her
room, closing the door behind them.
The Children of Claw, Chapter 10
Kel watched in horror as her two friends threw punches and
kicks left and right. Finally, she unfroze her muscles enough to jump in, if
only to try to get them to stop. She grabbed Cleon's arm, keeping him from
punching Neal in the face. She then stepped in front of Neal, taking his kick
to her shin instead of letting him follow through and kick Cleon in the head.
Finally, with her taking more blows than they were, they stopped.
"Why the heck
did you do that, Mindelan?" Neal asked, holding his nose to hopefully stop the
bleeding. Kel saw him start to heal himself with his Gift. Finally, he got back
to his feet.
"Yeah, Kel. I
mean, why'd you jump in?" Cleon added, blood flowing from a real nasty gash on
his cheek. He tried to rise, grimaced, and slipped back to the floor. Kel bent
down and helped him up. He smiled his thanks.
"Because you're
both my friends, and there's no way in the world I'm going to let you tear each
other up over me." She said, supporting Cleon with the arm that wasn't bloodied
up from numerous hits. She felt Neal's gentle hands on her arm, and the pain
from all of her cuts began to cease. "What, may I ask, was that all about,
Cleon? I mean, why did you just jump Neal?"
"Geez, Kel, you
haven't figured it out yet, have you?" Cleon wheezed through a nose that looked
very broken. Kel shook her head.
"No, I guess I
haven't. Would either of you care to explain?" She asked. Cleon and Neal glared
at each other. Finally, Cleon spoke again.
"I love you,
Kel. I guess Neal does too." He said, coloring slightly. Kel stared at him. He
finally had enough strength to stand on his own, and she released his arm. He
stumbled for a second, then regained his footing.
"I don't
believe this." Kel said, wringing her hands. "I can't take this right now." She
said, then turned and fled towards her room. She heard both of her friends
calling her name, and Neal chasing behind. Cleon, she knew, was still too hurt
to run after her. She reached the door to her room, flung it open, dashed
inside, slammed it behind her, locked it, then flung herself onto her bed,
letting the build-up of tears loose onto her pillow. She heard Neal pounding on
her door, yelling for her to come out. A few minutes later, Cleon was there
too, pounding with hands that Kel knew were bruised and bloody. Finally, she
walked across the room and flung the door open.
"What?" She
asked, as they tried to stop their frantic beating of her door in time to keep
from punching her.
"I think that
all three of us need to talk." Cleon whispered, blood still flowing from his
broken nose. Kel looked at Neal.
"I'll talk once
you use your Gift to help Cleon." She said to him. He glared at her, but placed
his hands on either side of Cleon's head, healing his broken nose. Then, he
gently removed his hands and placed them on Cleon's shoulders. He concentrated,
and suddenly Cleon was standing up straighter, any damage to his legs healed.
He glanced warily at Neal.
"Thanks, man."
He muttered. Neal nodded and looked away.
"Ok, come on
in." She said, and closed the door behind them. Lord Wyldon had told her that
she could now have boys in her room with the door closed, but if he found out
that she was abusing that privilege in any way, she would instantly be expelled
from training. She sat down on her bed. Both sets of male eyes lingered on her
eyes, which she knew were red and puffy, then switched to her pillow, which was
saturated with her tears. Neal sat beside her, taking up and remaining space.
Cleon glared at him for a moment, then pulled a chair over. "Now. What do you
two want to talk about?" Kel asked, knowing the answer already. Neal rolled his
eyes, then glanced at Cleon, who sighed and shook his head. Neal's eyes
hardened, but when he turned to Kel, they instantly softened again.
"Um, Kel. Yeah.
Well, now you know, that, um, both of us, um--" Neal started, but was cut off
by Cleon.
"Kel, now you
know that both of us love you. Now, it's your turn. Which of us would you
rather go out with?" Cleon asked, his eyes fixed on her.
"Cleon, you
know that I can't answer that question."
"Why not?"
"Because…because
I don't want to ruin any friendships, mine with you or you with each other's."
"Well, you need
to let us know, Kel!"
"I think that
Neal already knows." She mumbled. Neal looked at her in shock, then met Cleon's
sudden glare with one equally as terrifying.
"Kel and I had
a little…chat last night." Neal began. "I told her that I loved her. The next
morning, after breakfast, after you, Cleon, left her room, she told me that she
loved me as well." Neal whispered, looking at Cleon with a worried expression
on his face. Cleon's eyes filled with rage, his face turned tomato-red.
"How dare you?"
He asked them both, his voice shaking with rage. "How dare you do this to me?"
He asked again, closing his eyes. He was trembling with what was hatred, rage,
fear, or a mixture of the three.
"I can't help
it, Cleon. I just don't like you like that. I'd like to still be friends with
you, but I just can't love you, Cleon. I'm so sorry." Kel told him. She walked
over and took his hand. He shook her off.
"But I want
more than friendship, Kel. I thought you knew that."
"I didn't. I'm
sorry. Can't we at least still be friends?" She asked. This time, he took her
hand.
"Yes." He
finally said, after a few minutes. "Yes, we can still be friends."
"Good." Kel
said, giving him a quick hug. "Neal?" She asked. He came over.
"I'm sorry,
Cleon." Neal said. "I didn't realize that you felt so, um, strongly about
this."
"It's ok."
Cleon said. "I don't want to lose you as a friend either."
"Then you
won't." Neal said, smiling. Cleon got to his feet. As he and Neal were heading
for the door, the bell for light's out rang. They laughed, and bolted for their
rooms, hoping that they wouldn't get caught.
The Children of Claw, Chapter 11
After helping Guerrin with his math, she headed back to her
room, fuming. She was still extremely angry with Eeli. As soon as Guerrin was
out of her presence, her world instantly smashed back down on top of her head
again, after lifting for a few hours. Her depression returned. The only thing
that she really wanted to do right now, besides sleep for as long as possible,
was to kick her brother in a place that she knew would really hurt him. After
that, she wanted to smash his nose, and break his cheekbones. Then, she wanted
to break every bone in his body, making his eventual death as painful as
possible. So much for him being her best friend. She figured that Guerrin of
Queenscove held that position now. When she came out of her daydream, she found
herself a few steps away from her brother's door. She clenched her teeth and
balled her fists, her rage doubling. Suddenly, something hit her. She grinned
evilly, then strode right up to his door. She knocked, the sound of her fist on
the wooden door reverberating through the empty hallway. She heard his
footsteps coming towards the door, and thought about how stupid he was to not
ask who was at the door. He swung it open, a smile on his face. As soon as he
saw who was standing there, his grin evaporated. Seldah shrugged her shoulders.
"Hello, Eeli."
She said, raising her fist. He saw it drive towards his face. A second after
she let the fist fly, she raised her leg and made to knee him below the belt.
Eeli's slight Shang training refused to take over, and he stood there stupidly
as his sister's fist made contact with his cheekbone. A second later, her knee
met his groin, and he doubled over in pain. "Still think I shouldn't be a
knight? Think again." And with that, she turned around and walked away, immensely
proud of herself.
"I swear to
Mithros that I'll get you back for this, Seldah!" He called after her, then
slammed the door and he went back into his room. Seldah just smiled.
"Of course you
will, brother. May I ask how?' She whispered to herself, then giggled.
Suddenly, an arm looped around her shoulders. She looked, startled, and saw
that it was Guerrin.
"Heya, Seldah."
He said happily.
"Hi, Guerrin."
She replied, a grin spreading across her face. "What's happened since the last
tine I saw you, oh, about five minutes ago?" She asked, playfully punching his
arm.
"Nothing
really, except that I saw what you just did to your brother." He whispered, for
her ears alone. She stopped and stared at him.
"So what?" She
asked. "He made me angry. I wasn't about to let that go."
"Yeah, but…oh
well. He deserved it."
"I know. That's
why I did it."
"I know. May I
escort you to your room?" He asked, joking.
"Of course."
She replied, playing along. It was then that the lights out bell rung. "Uh oh.
We'd better get back to our rooms." She said, her eyes dancing. He nodded, and
they started briskly down the hallway. They reached Seldah's door first, and
just as she was about to go in, Guerrin grabbed her arm.
"Seldah." He
said, stopping her. Her eyes narrowed.
"Yes?"
"I need to tell
you something."
"Yes?" She
asked again, slightly annoyed.
"I love you,
Seldah." He said, and quickly kissed her mouth. Then, he let go, leaving her
awestruck. She was ten years old! She watched as he headed down the hall, and touched
her lips. Then, shaking her head, she went into her room, doused the fire and
candles, and went to sleep.
The Children of Claw, Epilogue
Eight years later, Seldah of Malven received her shield. A
year after that, she was married to Guerrin of Queenscove. Her brother, Eeli,
wasn't so lucky. Eeli never became a knight. He was expelled from training in
his second year for a reason that is still undisclosed. Rumor has it that his
sister is the only other person who knows the real reason, but she claims that
she hasn't any idea. Kamerin of Queenscove also did not receive his shield. He
quit training as a fourth year page, and no one knows why. Some say it's
because he got too close to Eeli. Others say that the labor was just too much
for him. I guess we'll never know. Kamerin hasn't been seen since he quit.
Keladry of Mindelan and Nealan of Queenscove were knighted, than married a few
years later.
Seldah rode through the Great Southern Desert on her mare,
Milaca, and with her new husband, Guerrin of Queenscove, who rode astride his
stallion, Kalebo. They both carried shields, the sign of knighthood. They were
bound for Port Legann to start their lives afresh. Both were haunted by their
brothers, afraid that they would run into Eeli, Kamerin, or both. In the
Ordeal, Seldah had seen millions of Eelis, screaming that they would kill her.
She had also seen herself being trampled by a stampede. She was terrified of
stampedes. Guerrin had seen Kamerin, over and over, among other things. Both
Seldah and Guerrin had barely made it out of the Ordeal. Their lives were in
shambles, each trying to hold onto what was left. Both had passed their Ordeals
of Knighthood. Now, they would tackle life, together, and, hopefully, pass that
too.
