There was a problem with the doors in the Enchanted Forest, they could not close without some sort of dramatics: a slam, a creak, a woosh, or something equally showy. It did not lend itself to stealth, but I figured the residents of the castle probably got so used to it that they tuned it out and probably wouldn't give me away. I listened for footsteps just in case.
"Shiara?"
I jumped about a foot in the air and whirled around to glare at Daystar, who was staring at me quizzically from the window seat.
"What are you doing here?" I demanded.
He shrugged "I wanted a quiet place to write". He indicated the small desk on his lab and the huge stack of papers beside him. "What are you doing? I thought you and Telemain would be experimenting with his new theory on fire resonance."
"We were, and then Morwen came in talking about fittings for something and Telemain insisted that he didn't have time and why couldn't he just wear his robes. And then the two of them started bickering again and your mother came in and I had to escape or I would have been drawn into the whole mess."
Daystar blinked at me. "Since when do you mind arguing?"
I glared again. "When it's about weddings. I don't know what I'm doing. Part of the whole not-being-a-princess deal is that I was never taught how to arrange big party deals."
"Morewen isn't a princess either." He pointed out, sensibly, "Nor are most people who get married and they still manage to organize big party deal, I'm sure you'd be fine."
"I don't want to" I muttered
"Ah, the root of the problem." He turned his face away but I could hear the smile in his voice.
"Don't look so amused, you're just as at risk. If they find me here they'll drag you into it too."
"Maybe, but I'm already occupied, doing legitimate work."
"What work?"
"Writing my account of the war with the wizards for Willin as promised. Actually as promised by you for both of us."
"I think my exact words were 'yeah all right, we'll do it, whatever' I didn't say promise in their anywhere. And that as just so he'd stop reading off of that stupid list of things-you-had-to-do so and let you help with the experiments. We needed someone from the ruling family!"
"You said 'yeah alright, we'll do it, as long as you shut up and let him take part in these important experiments.' It was a conditional thing and he fulfilled his end of the bargain."
"He didn't exactly voluntarily fulfill his end…"
"But he stopped talking and I got to go help with the experiments, so we should fulfill our end and write up our reports for the history books."
"Hmph." I plopped myself down on the window seat across from him. "If I was the one who agreed, and without your consent, you shouldn't have to do it."
He shrugged, "a little late for that " he said, indicating the stack of paper next to him. "I'm almost finished."
"Well then I guess you ought to finish"
"It can wait." Set his pen down. I gave him a blank stare. "For later" he clarified. "When you're not visiting."
"Oh for pity's sake" I muttered and grabbed the top sheaf of papers. "Look I can entertain myself for a little while, while you finish."
"You don't have to. We can…"
"Yes I do," I interrupted. "Because I have to know if you said anything bad about me, before its put in the history books. And while conveniently here so I can singe your eyebrows for it."
"I didn't. But go ahead and check for yourself."
I knew the story of course, he'd told me most of it in the beginning, when there was nothing to do on the road. But it was different to read it all set down in his nice, neat script.
"You sound so formal." I commented
Daystar shifted slightly, "Well it's a history. I don't want to be do conversational and accidentally offend someone out of lack of respect. And if I become king I don't want people to think I don't take things seriously."
Of course this was Daystar I was talking to, everything had to be fair and balanced. I muttered something about how if someone wanted my point of view on history then they had to be prepared to not like some of my opinions and just deal with it, and went back to reading.
That came back to bite me in the rear quite quickly. I winced.
"Did you really have to include all this?"
"What?"
I jabbed a finger at my introduction to the story. "I sound like a total weepy milksop" and so over-emotional it was sad.
"We did because I heard you crying."
I groaned.
"But under the circumstances, getting kidnapped by wizards and all, most people would be fairly distressed. Plus it does explain the rest of your behavior."
I snorted "You mean how horrifically rude I was and jumping down your throat at every little detail?"
"Actually I was referring to the fact that you got trapped in a hedge circle. But if you feel you were inordinately rude I'm sure we can put that down to your distress as well." I glanced up sharply, he had a perfectly sincere face but his eyes were dancing. I grabbed a nearby pillow and threw it at him. He ducked.
"You left out most of our conversations, too." I noted.
"Well, that wasn't necessary for people to know to understand the story. And you told me a lot of your life, which I didn't know if you would want me to share with the rest of the world. Those conversations are, well, more personal."
I smiled at him and there was a long period of just sitting in companionable silence.
I winced at the description of Daystar's wounded hand but, Daystar appeared to be writing furiously and I didn't think he'd want me to interrupt by apologizing yet again.
A few pages later I couldn't restrain a sharp bark of laughter.
"You were being so careful about being taken seriously and you intend to leave this in." I pointed to the besotted description of the idiotic princess.
Daystar read it and colored slightly. "Well she was beautiful."
"Very, very beautiful." I read.
"Well, I didn't have much of a basis for comparison. Not many girls come through the Enchanted Forest, and the ones who do are normally, well enchanted."
"You'd met me."
"Yes…"
"So, I'd be a main part of your basis for comparison."
"Umm…"
"And by going on about how beautiful she was you meant how much more beautiful than me." I raised an eyebrow. I wasn't actually angry about the comparison. Well not that angry. I know I'm no gorgeous princes. I don't particularly like having it rubbed in my face. And I thought Daystar was an idiot for falling for that twit. But it was really funny to watch him stutter and stammer and put his foot in his mouth.
"I didn't mean it like that…"
"I didn't merit quite such a lengthy description, as I re-call. You described the color and my hair and my tunic, you went into her flaming foot position."
" To be fair, you had just been crying, after falling out of a tree, after fleeing from the wizards who kidnapped you. You may not have been looking your best." I had to fight back a grin at his horrified expression as he realized what he'd just said. "And besides the circumstance – your story somewhat distracted me from your appearance."
"You seemed to find her story quite fascinating, too."
He glanced over at me sharply, then threw the pillow back at me. "That wasn't nice. I thought you were actually upset."
I stopped trying to hold back my grin. "I'm not nice" I declared. " I do think you should take it out, it makes you sound silly. Though I suppose it explains why you were stupid enough to promise her sword."
"Thank you for that."
"Any time."
I read on. I will admit that my handling of the dragonet had been embarrassingly ham-handed, threatening to burn his nose off, indeed, I sounded like a stupid knight. But Daystar was still overly formal and really quick to assume dragons would eat anyone. I almost suggested taking it out but most dragons seem to like the idea that humans think they're ten times fiercer than they really are.
I got to the section about the fire-witch's castle and sucked in a breath. It really wasn't something I wanted to re-live but I'd been a statue for part of it so it was probably a good idea to fill in the gaps as much as possible. He hadn't told me that the witch had offered to let him go or that he'd almost died. It seemed that King Mendebar was right about Enchanted Forest royalty being lucky.
And then came the discussion of turning me back. He'd liked the idea of kissing me. I wasn't sure how to take it but, there it was in black and white. I could feel my ears going red. I hadn't really thought about the time, I'd just been talking to the fire-witch from where I'd standing so the feeling of lips on mine had been really creepy. I'd thought it was her. And what with being helpless and stuck as a statue and remembering people tortured to death, mind was not exactly in a good place at the time.
But if I ignored everything around it the actual sensation hadn't been…bad. And if I realized it was Daystar and thought about it knowing he was the person who'd been kissing me it was…nice was the wrong word. Sure it felt…safe but it also made me feel…strange, nervous and jittery.
Daystar looked up and noticed me staring at him. "What"
I shook my head, glad that my hair hid my burning ears, I didn't want to be thinking about kissing Daystar or thinking about him thinking about kissing me, it made things confusing.
"No, something's wrong. What part are you at?" His eyes fell to the paper I was holding.
"Oh" he said quietly, then his eyes widened with a different sort of understanding and he blushed bright red "Oh!"
"Yeah" no avoiding it then "You sure you want to leave that part in ?"
"Well, I mean if you don't mind. I just…it was part of the enchantment…but I didn't want to make it seem like the only reason I, or anyone, would kiss you was because they had to…because that seemed wrong." He looked at me nervously "I can take it out if you want."
"It's your story."
"Okay."
There was a moment of awkward silence.
"But given your last performance. I think you should modify it to include all the awkward stuttering that was obviously part of it."
He laughed and the tension dissolved. "As long as I get to make similar edits when you write yours."
"I already did." I declared loftily.
He grinned. "Well then, it's only fair that I should begin my commentary of your account. Did you bring it?"
"No, I burned it."
"What!" He gaped at me.
"I burned it. I told Willin that I'd write the stupid thing but I never said what I'd do with it after."
I hadn't actually. But, unlike Daystar, I hadn't written formally, I'd written what I'd thought and I didn't want a whole bunch of strangers poking around and commenting on my thoughts until I was a few years dead. Maybe I'd show Daystar later once he wouldn't feel obligated to give Willin a copy like maybe, after Willin had published his big book of history. Future generations would just have to make do with Daystar's formal, fair, and balanced account.
