Chapter 2: Ship Mates
As Diana bid her maid a final farewell, she thought about what she was about to do. She was going to be a dragon keeper! She grinned. She had always wanted to do this, and always talked about it, though never actually done something. Then she thought about Aradalon. What had he REALLY wanted? Was he the one who had killed her mother? She had thought so, but obviously couldn't prove it. Not yet anyway. As she walked to the ship, a cloaked figure about her size caught her eye. She continued to watch as the person, she couldn't tell if it was male or female. The figure stopped before her, and spoke in a child's voice.
"Excuse me, do you know which of these ships is headed to Tortall?" Diana nodded.
"All of 'em are, but the one leaving nearest is um." She looked around, trying to remember. She SHOULD know this but. The figure drew down it's hood, revealing a concerned face.
"I REALLY need to know." Diana bit her lip. She needed to know too!
"Tortall! Tortall! Leaving in ten minutes!" A man called, multiplying the sound of his voice with his magical gift.
"Oh!" Diana and the stranger chorused. They started to walk towards the ship together.
"So," They said in usion again as they boarded the ship. Diana laughed. The person, obviously feeling more comfortable, took off it's cloak. It was a young man, about her age with reddish blonde hair and blue- green eyes, and freckles.
"Lil- er, Leo of Roserny," He bowed. Diana stared in awe. Roserny was the neighboring kingdom of herself. It was nearer to Tyra, however.
"I didn't know the Baron HAD any boys," She looked puzzled. From what she had heard, in that family was a fifteen year old girl, and one her age. Leo blushed, but said nothing for a while. Finally he inquired:
"So what's your name?" Diana paused, dumbfounded. She couldn't really say Diana. She hadn't though of a boy's name for herself.
"Um, er, well that is, uh," She stumbled, trying to think quickly. She turned scarlet also.
"I won't ask if you don't," Leo says with raised eyebrows. Diana nodded and grinned.
"So, on to mare vague subjects, why are you going to Tortall?"
"Well my father and mother they said- Oh, I can't stand it anymore, I'm just going to tell you!" He pulled her into a corner further away from earshot. "Ok, I'm really Lilian," She sighed and took off her hat, making her reddidsh blond hair tumble down to her waist. Diana burst out laughing. "Well I don't think it's that funny!" Lilian put her hands on her hips. When Diana finally caught her breath, she explained:
"No, it's not that! It's just," She reached under her tunic and shirt and untied the breast band, for her hair was cropped short, "I'm a girl too!" Lily's eyes lit up.
"Oh, Mithros!"
"Would you call it fate?" Diana asked as Lily put her hair back up into her hat. She grinned.
"So, now that we know that, how 'bout we be free in telling each other our stories?" Lily made sure she was set before turning to Diana.
"Ok," Diana took a breath. This was gonna take a while, "I'm Diana of Syric, and my mother had just been murdured, and my father was kidnapped, and taken to the East. I'm going to Tortall to seek the help of the Wildmage, Daine. Or, well I heard she could help me." Lily nodded.
"I told my parents I wanted to become a knight, but I really want to be a Shapeshifter. We can travel together, because I'm looking for the assistance of Numair Salamin. The only reason I'm disguised as a boy is so people won't regognize me. Why are you? I mean, at first people thought there couldn't be lady knights, but the Lioness and Keladry proved them wrong. I'm sure you could do that with dragon keeping, anyway, Daine has a dragon, Skysong."
"Yes, but she isn't really a KEEPER. You have to train forever to become a keeper you have to be trained vigoursly through a service. There aren't many dragon keepers alive. Daine isn't a keeper, she just watches over Skysong. There is a difference. And you know what I've heard? That she doesn't have the right material to be a dragon keeper anyway," The two girls gossiped as if they'd known each other for years. "I have to disguise myself as a boy because if I try to do it as a girl, I will get lots of attention, just like Keladry did when it was said she was to become a page. I was little then, but I still remember." Lily raised her eyebrow's in agreement
"True, But you will reveal your gender after you are successful?"
"Not at all. I have to go to the East to rescue father, and if I reveal myself before that, it too, will get much attention. Then Aradalon might take me before I have the chance to go to the East."
"Aradalon?"
"He is a mage, and I believe it was he who killed my mother and arranged this whole thing about my father. He treid to get me to go with him before I left, but I refused. I fear he would've killed me f I did. Though he claims he would "Care for me like a daughter," I think he just wants to get out whole family out of the way. He started with my older brother, who's a mage and in the king's service, and assigned him to go somewhere. We haven't seen him for two years!" Anger was returning to Diana.
"That's horrible! I haven't any brothers. Only my sister." Lily said glumly.
"You two! What 'er you doing? Only women and children allowed to lounge!"
"We're children too!" Diana pointed out crossly.
"Yer both alone without a guardian. As I see it, ur indepentant, and you can work." He took the both of them by the collars.
"Where are ye going?"
"Nowhere," Lily said tartly.
"Oh, smart one are we? You!" He ponted at a cross Diana. "Stay here, if you want your skin, boy. I'm in charge of you now and I think that the two of you need to learn some manners, and I think I'll start by separating you." He walked off, dragging a squirming Lily behind him. He was much to burly for the girls to fight on their own. But that doesn't mean they didn't try.
"Oy! Put he- him down!" Diana exclaimed, going at him with the nearest thing that could possibly be used as a weapon, which, in this case, was a broom. She hit him in the back of the knees, which had no effect. Lily kicked at him.
"And you wonder how much you can eat before you can't walk anymore," Diana mutters. The man whipped her back.
"I said stay! You filthy little bastard!" Diana scowled, and vowed right there that when she got stronger, she would find this man and beat the living daylights out of him. Lily looked at her with a pained expression.
"Bye," She mouthed.
"Bye," Diana answered soundlessly.
As Diana bid her maid a final farewell, she thought about what she was about to do. She was going to be a dragon keeper! She grinned. She had always wanted to do this, and always talked about it, though never actually done something. Then she thought about Aradalon. What had he REALLY wanted? Was he the one who had killed her mother? She had thought so, but obviously couldn't prove it. Not yet anyway. As she walked to the ship, a cloaked figure about her size caught her eye. She continued to watch as the person, she couldn't tell if it was male or female. The figure stopped before her, and spoke in a child's voice.
"Excuse me, do you know which of these ships is headed to Tortall?" Diana nodded.
"All of 'em are, but the one leaving nearest is um." She looked around, trying to remember. She SHOULD know this but. The figure drew down it's hood, revealing a concerned face.
"I REALLY need to know." Diana bit her lip. She needed to know too!
"Tortall! Tortall! Leaving in ten minutes!" A man called, multiplying the sound of his voice with his magical gift.
"Oh!" Diana and the stranger chorused. They started to walk towards the ship together.
"So," They said in usion again as they boarded the ship. Diana laughed. The person, obviously feeling more comfortable, took off it's cloak. It was a young man, about her age with reddish blonde hair and blue- green eyes, and freckles.
"Lil- er, Leo of Roserny," He bowed. Diana stared in awe. Roserny was the neighboring kingdom of herself. It was nearer to Tyra, however.
"I didn't know the Baron HAD any boys," She looked puzzled. From what she had heard, in that family was a fifteen year old girl, and one her age. Leo blushed, but said nothing for a while. Finally he inquired:
"So what's your name?" Diana paused, dumbfounded. She couldn't really say Diana. She hadn't though of a boy's name for herself.
"Um, er, well that is, uh," She stumbled, trying to think quickly. She turned scarlet also.
"I won't ask if you don't," Leo says with raised eyebrows. Diana nodded and grinned.
"So, on to mare vague subjects, why are you going to Tortall?"
"Well my father and mother they said- Oh, I can't stand it anymore, I'm just going to tell you!" He pulled her into a corner further away from earshot. "Ok, I'm really Lilian," She sighed and took off her hat, making her reddidsh blond hair tumble down to her waist. Diana burst out laughing. "Well I don't think it's that funny!" Lilian put her hands on her hips. When Diana finally caught her breath, she explained:
"No, it's not that! It's just," She reached under her tunic and shirt and untied the breast band, for her hair was cropped short, "I'm a girl too!" Lily's eyes lit up.
"Oh, Mithros!"
"Would you call it fate?" Diana asked as Lily put her hair back up into her hat. She grinned.
"So, now that we know that, how 'bout we be free in telling each other our stories?" Lily made sure she was set before turning to Diana.
"Ok," Diana took a breath. This was gonna take a while, "I'm Diana of Syric, and my mother had just been murdured, and my father was kidnapped, and taken to the East. I'm going to Tortall to seek the help of the Wildmage, Daine. Or, well I heard she could help me." Lily nodded.
"I told my parents I wanted to become a knight, but I really want to be a Shapeshifter. We can travel together, because I'm looking for the assistance of Numair Salamin. The only reason I'm disguised as a boy is so people won't regognize me. Why are you? I mean, at first people thought there couldn't be lady knights, but the Lioness and Keladry proved them wrong. I'm sure you could do that with dragon keeping, anyway, Daine has a dragon, Skysong."
"Yes, but she isn't really a KEEPER. You have to train forever to become a keeper you have to be trained vigoursly through a service. There aren't many dragon keepers alive. Daine isn't a keeper, she just watches over Skysong. There is a difference. And you know what I've heard? That she doesn't have the right material to be a dragon keeper anyway," The two girls gossiped as if they'd known each other for years. "I have to disguise myself as a boy because if I try to do it as a girl, I will get lots of attention, just like Keladry did when it was said she was to become a page. I was little then, but I still remember." Lily raised her eyebrow's in agreement
"True, But you will reveal your gender after you are successful?"
"Not at all. I have to go to the East to rescue father, and if I reveal myself before that, it too, will get much attention. Then Aradalon might take me before I have the chance to go to the East."
"Aradalon?"
"He is a mage, and I believe it was he who killed my mother and arranged this whole thing about my father. He treid to get me to go with him before I left, but I refused. I fear he would've killed me f I did. Though he claims he would "Care for me like a daughter," I think he just wants to get out whole family out of the way. He started with my older brother, who's a mage and in the king's service, and assigned him to go somewhere. We haven't seen him for two years!" Anger was returning to Diana.
"That's horrible! I haven't any brothers. Only my sister." Lily said glumly.
"You two! What 'er you doing? Only women and children allowed to lounge!"
"We're children too!" Diana pointed out crossly.
"Yer both alone without a guardian. As I see it, ur indepentant, and you can work." He took the both of them by the collars.
"Where are ye going?"
"Nowhere," Lily said tartly.
"Oh, smart one are we? You!" He ponted at a cross Diana. "Stay here, if you want your skin, boy. I'm in charge of you now and I think that the two of you need to learn some manners, and I think I'll start by separating you." He walked off, dragging a squirming Lily behind him. He was much to burly for the girls to fight on their own. But that doesn't mean they didn't try.
"Oy! Put he- him down!" Diana exclaimed, going at him with the nearest thing that could possibly be used as a weapon, which, in this case, was a broom. She hit him in the back of the knees, which had no effect. Lily kicked at him.
"And you wonder how much you can eat before you can't walk anymore," Diana mutters. The man whipped her back.
"I said stay! You filthy little bastard!" Diana scowled, and vowed right there that when she got stronger, she would find this man and beat the living daylights out of him. Lily looked at her with a pained expression.
"Bye," She mouthed.
"Bye," Diana answered soundlessly.