His Mistake, a song of the lioness fanfic

His Mistake (Note: Daine is about 19 yrs old)

Lonely Day, system of a down

"Such a lonely day, and its mine, the most loneliest day of my life.

And if you die, i want to die with you.."

She ran. She ran as fast as she could out of that burning pit, with the smells of hunters everywhere. She was pack, once more. Her flank still hurt from the knife she hadn't seen but Wolf fang had helped her. Now still trying to remember she was no wolf, Daine walked as quietly as she might into the ruins of her home. After many hours of burning her family and collecting what she might take with her, she set out Snowdale in search of anywhere else to be in the world. Tortall. The word came to her suddenly making her stop. Could she? Of course she could, she had no one left in Galla why not start fresh, where no one had ever heard of her or would recognise her. It was the end of winter turning into spring, but the cold during the nights was still painful.

Two weeks later, Daine had still not crossed the boarder. Having left her pony Cloud to roam while she had washed one day, had been a bad idea at first. Cloud had eaten through a farmers crops and Daine having but the clothes on her back and a few mere possessions from home had to sell Cloud at the market to pay the farmer. That night Cloud of course had made her way back to Daine where they left that town in the middle of the night once Daine had eaten and rested properly for the first time in weeks but the mere money left from Clouds 'sale' had not been enough for two weeks later when they finally got into Tortall. Faint with hunger and fatigue Daine had lost consciousness while walking into a clearing to rest. Try as Cloud might, she could not wake the girl. But the gods smiled upon them that day...

Numair was hungry, mind you, he was always hungry but his thin figure showed none of it. It was dark and it was late and he knew he shouldn't have left the last town so late in the morning. As dark fell quickly, Numair sent out his power to find a nice clearing with water near by. Finding one he quickly urged his horse into a trot but as he came into the clearing a shock of power hit him like a smiths hammer. Breathing deeply, Numair focused on the power to locate its source. Sharply he withdrew, shaking his head.

'Its not possible' he muttered, slipping off the horse and tethering it to a nearby tree. Walking softly through the wet foliage, he moved into the area near a small pond. This was the water supply that his power had found. And next to it was the being that he had sensed.

'Sweet Mother' he gasped, as he looked at the girl at his feet. She wore fading and tearing breaches and turnic while her arms, legs and face her covered with scars and bruises and bit marks. About to move forward, a form surged out of the shadow and latched its self to Numair's arm. About to fry it with him gift, Numair stopped realising it was a pony. Connecting the bit marks with this pony that had belongings strapped to it back, he realised that this pony must be the girls. Sending a shock through his arm, the pony let go and tired to bit him again but Numair was faster, grabbing the lead rein he pulled the pony away from the girl and tied her up quickly.

'Don't worry girl I'm not going to hurt her' he said quietly as Cloud pulled against the rope. Walking over to the girl, he searched through her body with his gift, he found what he had sensed. Magic. Wild magic, more than any other human he had ever seen or met. But she was dehydrated and starving. Numair sighed, he had finished his mission for the king 2 months earlier than predicted and been hopping to get to Corus for some well earned rest, but this girl. This amazing girl, was going to die if he didn't do something.

It was early when Daine woke. At the sound of the birds, it was nearing just past dawn. Looking through blurry eyes at her surroundings, Daine realised she was in the clearing she and Cloud had made it too, but...she didn't remember anything after that. Sitting up she gasped, she was so stiff, all her muscles ached from her continues walking for the past week. Swallowing hard, Daine realised she was not alone. Looking over at Cloud she asked the pony what had happened. You fell down, she said continuing to eat the grass around her. Then the man came up and fixed you up and fed and watered you. Who's the man? Asked Daine, picking her self up and finding her bow the was attached to her pack. This was the one possession that she couldn't and wouldn't sell at any cost. If she sold her bow, she might as well lay down and die because without protection she was a dead girl walking. But even the preparation at having a bow had been cynical the last few days as she was only strong enough to keep walking, let alone fight someone.

Numair washed off in the pond at dawn that morning, then dried himself and walked off the stiffness in his muscles. He wasn't really used to sleeping on the ground. Stretching the great amount of him he walked back into the clearing yawning with his eyes closed. The sound of a bow string being drawn made him open his eyes while his arms remained above his head. In the middle of the clearing stood the girl that had been unconscious for the last 12 hours, standing like she had been awake for hours not minuets with her feet spread apart evenly, her weight balanced perfectly on the balls of her feet, her loaded bow pointed straight at him her eyes squinted.

'Whoa!' said Numair shocked at this suddenly sight. The girl pulled the loaded arrow back a bit further as he stepped forward, hastily making Numair stop.

''Who are you?' she asked her husky voice with sleep. Numair lowered his hands slightly.

'I'm Numair, I've looked after you the past few hours' he said looking her over carefully.

'Why?' she shot at him not even letting her arms shake after holding her bow in the same position pointing at him. Numair wondered how much strength it took to do something like that. Numair shrugged.

'Because if l didn't, l didn't know what was going to happen to you and that would be on my conscious for the rest of my life' he said simply, praying that this girl wouldn't shoot him. He could stop the arrow but at this hour of the morning there was no telling what his power might do to her. But amazingly she lowered to bow but released it, making the arrow shoot faster than Numair could see into the ground at his feet. He jumped back with a gasp of shock.

"What if you'd hit me?" he spluttered out. The girl shrugged and unstrung the bow.

"l wasn't going to hit you stork man" she said walking away to sit against the tree that her pony was tied to. About to ask where the name 'stork man' had come from, Numair realised she was breathing hard. Apparently that bow took more strenght than she was ready to give away so easily.

"You need to eat" said the man simpley as he walked away to his bags. Taking out a bundle of cloth, and two bowls. Numair set a pot boiling on top of the fire he'd kept alive during the night. While pre-paring the meal, the girl watched him. Watched him through haunted eyes. She had moaned and cryed while she had slept. What could make a girl her age cry like that? More importantly, why was she out here all alone with only a pony and a bow she could bearly lift for protection?

He sat over the fire, shaking the contents of the cloth into the water. She wouldn't eat it, ma alwa- had always told her never to accept anything from strangers. But it did smell good...

"Who are you?" she suddenly shot across the fire at him. Numair slowly looked up into those haunted eyes.

"I'm Numiar and you are?" he asked politley. She stayed silent.

"Why are you out here looking after me?" she asked again in the same sharp tone.

"I was on my way home when l found you" Numiar said calmly, ignoring the tone of her voice, as he poured the soup into the two bowls, leaving the rest of the pot full as he knew she was probably going to need it. Carefully he stood with the bowls in his large hands and moved over to her and held one out to her.

He held a bowl of awesome smelling soup out to her and she was sooo hungrey. But she couldn't accept it, what if he'd drugged it or something? He made it right in front of you she told herself, its not like he's a mage or anything and slipped something into it.

"Please take it" said the man kindly, "I know your hungrey, and you saw me make it, i put nothing into it and l'll even eat mine first if that helps" He gently placed the almost over flowing bowl of soup in front of her and sat down some distance away and ate his own breakfast without hesitation. Once Daine saw the man, Numair he called himself, eating the soup she dug in. Obviously he wasn't going to drug or poison himself. Soon enough the bowl was empty and Daine was wishing she has been nicer to this man, for she wanted some more. Numair looked up and saw that she had finished.

"Would you like some more?" he asked. Shyly Daine nodded. Numair stood and walked over to the pot, and brought it over to her.

"Eat it all, you need it" he said and went back to his bags and settled down to read.

And so it became routine, they would wake, Numair would cook food, Daine would eat until she was about to burst and then fall asleep and then it would start all over again. A month passed by this time, the girls face had become fuller, her body more healthy. When she slept Numiar would work healing spells on her bringing her back to full health quicker than normal, making her strenght return, bringing more life to her. With this new strenght she began to talk. Small talk to begin with but soon, she sat and spoke with him for long periods of time. When Numiar thought she had begun to trust him, he asked questions which she answered with stoney faced resolve that he told him everything, poured her soul to him and soon enough a month was gone. With a new moon starting, Numiar knew he should start heading back to Corus, but he didn't know what to do about Daine. He wanted to asked her to come with him, but he didn't know if she would. So he told her he was leaving soon. She was quiet, too quiet She should have been upset, he knew she was attached to him. But she just said 'ok' and 'sure', later that week when she was grooming Cloud Numair came up to speak with her.

"Will you come to Corus with me?" he asked gently, she looked up at him suprized. "I know its sudden but l know lots of people at the palace and they will gladley give you work" he said while hoping dearly she would say yes. He hadn't said anything to her yet, but he had found magic inside of her. And from what she had told him, he knew that she didn't know about it. But he couldn't say anything yet, from what she had said about her mother always testing her. Daine wanted nothing to do with magic. Daine looked at him closely, there was something there, something he wasn't telling her but suddenly it didn't seem important. Corus! She could start again. And whether she wanted to or not, she trusted this man who had been kind and looked after her. She nodded shly.

"I'd love to go" she said in a quiet voice. Numiar beamed and stood up briskly, brushing dirt from his pants.

"Wel we'd better start packing" he said as he turned on his heel and strode away. Leaving Daine with but her thoughts and dreams whirling around in her head. That night as they packed final items away to be transported tomorrow, things got complicated. Daine had been helping Numair the pack up his writing desk, but as she'd turned to take the items over to him he'd moved back to pick up more items, eventuating in them walking straight into each other.

"Owch!" Daine cried out as she hit the ground hard, Numair had been a little luckier being the bigger of the two, he'd just stumbled back.

"Are you alright?" he said kneeling down in front of her, helping her to sit up, rubbing her back.

"Mmmm" she said as she rubbed the back of her head. She turned her head and looked at him, noticeing now for the first time that his chocolate brown eyes actually had tiny specks of green in them.

Then things had got crazy. Numiar didn't know why he did it, just that he had to right then otherwise he might die from never knowing. But at the moment Daine had looked him in the eyes, so close up with her beautiful brown hair around her face, he'd needed to kiss her. And thats what he did. He'd crushed his mouth down upon her soft, warm one and took that warmth. He'd waited for the slap, the shove or cry of protest but none came. It was then he realised he wasn't just kissing, but being kissed back. Things stayed controlled until he'd gently slipped his tongue into her warm mouth, it was when her low moan escaped her did things get out of control. The moan had been like electric to water, sending the shock rippling in every direction through him, unable to control himself he'd pushed her back against the ground he'd helped her up from and made love to her there on the ground.

It was only the next morning did they realise there might have been consiquences.

Three weeks later

Why had he done it? Numair kept asking himself over and over. Having the wild and crazy sex on the ground in a forest wasn't the problem. He'd enjoyed that very much and he knew Daine had too but the problem was why? One moment they'd been travling companons the next they hadn't been able to get enough of each other. They were still sharing a bed now that they were in Corus and that wasn't a problem either the problem was he realised. In a few weeks short of two months, he'd gone and do the one thing he'd swore never to do again.

He'd fallen in love.

Not only that but with a 19 year old. A girl more than 10 years younger than him, but that would eventually be accepted the other problem was Daine didn't feel the same.

Since coming to Corus a number of young men around her own age had taken considerable interst in her. So how could Numair convince her to love him back? Espcially when he kept the one thing from her that would hurt her more than anything. Her magic...

Hi Everyone!!!

Sorry it took so long to write again! But i'm bak now, please let me know what you thought of this one, i'm not sure about it at the moment but i thought i'd let u see it anyway. I want to write A PART TWO but if no one likes where is going i wont bother so let me know!

Lots of Love!

Warrior of the Future