Hello everyone. Thank you for continuing to read.
(IMPORTANT NEWS: I am going to be in Sweden this summer. I will be leaving in three days, so I am posting the rough beginnings of chapter three. I will try and sneak on my Dad's laptop if I can, but expect a month-long hiatus.) Now…
Here are a few more holes to fill. Since the year is 471, I thought I would catch you all up on statistics. Alanna, by now, is about 51 years old, while George is 58. Raoul is 56. Neal is 33, and has been married to Yuki for eleven years. Their daughter Kioko-anne (named partly after Roxanne of Queenscove) is about 8 years old. I made up her name, so do not think it is official! Kel is 29 and Dom is at least 36 years old. No specifics on that one, sorry. Daine is 35 and Numair is 49, still in his prime. Coram is ancient! He is in his eighties by now, but he is still in good shape. Aly and Nawat's triplets are about seven years old, and Alan of Pirate's Swoop has long since completed his training under Raoul. Myles of Olau has passed to the Peaceful Realms, bless his soul. It also looks like Peachblossom and Hoshi should be going into retirement soon, but Kel has back-up. Hoshi produced a splendid stallion, named Leiko (Yamani for arrogant!)…no, Peachblossom is not the father. In case you do not know, a gelding is a castrated horse. A special thanks for this chapter goes to abyssgirl! Thanks for your input.
All characters are ©Tamora Pierce.
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Keladry awoke from a gentle knocking on her door. It was early, probably three hours past midnight. Keladry guessed who could be knocking at her door, and her suspicions were confirmed by Yuki's smiling face.
"Good morning! Let's train!" She spoke in Yamani. Before Kel could respond, the voice of a young girl echoed through the empty hallway of the finest palace suites. A young girl with raven-black hair and emerald eyes rounded the corner, sprinting towards Yuki while hugging a bundle of glaives.
"Ma!" the young girl exclaimed. "Lady Shinkokami sent me to tell you she is ready."
"Already? I just woke her up ten minutes ago," Yuki said thoughtfully. "Kioko-anne, I told you not to run with the naginata. You're not invincible." Yuki turned to smile at Kel. "She's lucky her father is always there to patch her up, but I fear she'll be immune to healing at an early age."
Kioko-anne looked at the ground as she impatiently mumbled her apology. Kel noted Neal's resemblance in his energetic daughter, and she saw the same mischievous look flashing in the child's gem-like eyes.
The three made their way down to the training courtyard, making sure to stop for sweetbreads and sliced cheese on the way. Yuki and Kel took their time in selecting the right food from the kitchens, but Kioko-anne had no interest in filling her stomach. She spent the whole time skipping and hopping on her toes, constantly adjusting her bundle of scarves as she waited for her mother. Yuki's daughter seemed anxious to train the whole time, though she repeatedly looked towards Kel with awe. Kel felt rather uncomfortable, but was reminded of her younger years, when the mere thought of Alanna the Lioness sent her into her dizziest daydream. Once they reached the training yard, Kioko-anne started to sprint across the crisply frosted grass, towards Princess Shinkokami. She ran with the bundle of glaives, clearly forgetting Yuki's previous reprimands.
Yuki merely laughed, her breath rising like smoke in the frigid air, and ran after her daughter. As Kel picked up her pace to catch up, she was assaulted by a group of sparrows. These were not sparrows she knew, but Kel welcomed their happy chirping as they excitedly flittered about. Kel was touched.
"You cannot blame them," a voice called from behind. "Their parents told them of the Protector of the Small."
Kel turned around, beaming at the woman who spoke. Daine Salmalin was smiling serenely, holding the hand of a daydreaming eight-year-old boy. He was of normal height and build, though his layers of coats made him seem wider. Kel looked at the hair escaping his wool cap, and saw the child inherited Numair's black hair with Daine's curls. His eyes were also his mother's, and he was using them to follow the stealthy movement of a palace cat. Rikash Salmalin was known for being the quietest child in court, quite the opposite of his brash older sister. He was studious like his father, but lacked Numair's charming charisma.
"Hello, Daine. What are you doing up so early?"
"I need to talk to you, and Rikash wanted to see the sparrows react to meeting you." The young boy turned his eyes to Kel and gave her a sleepy stare before finally giving a slow nod. He must not be used to waking at this hour, Kel deduced.
"Oh…okay. What do you need to talk about?"
Daine prodded Rikash forward – before long he was sprinting toward the cat snoozing on a pile of warm hay, conversing with the feline as she tried to begin her nap in vain.
"It's about Peachblossom. And Hoshi. I think it's about time they retired. Or at least Peachblossom… That one had a rough start, he did, and he's not as young as he used to be." Daine licked her lips before continuing. "I get the horrible feeling he's not up to the return trip."
Did I know? That silly old boy is much too proud to show any signs of weakness. He won't be around forever.
"…You're right, Daine. I'll saddle up Leiko when the time comes. He can carry Peachblossom's burden."
Daine blinked. "Leiko? So he's the stable newcomer. My friends tell me he's arrogant, for being no more than a foal."
Kel snickered in agreement. Leiko was as cocky as they came. He was a fine and sturdy horse who stood at sixteen hands, and his strut was well-known amongst the stable boys back in New Hope.
A sudden yowl sounded out, and Daine's eyes flicked toward Rikash's corner of the courtyard as if on instinct. Rikash sat cross-legged on the ground with an extraordinary pair of cat's ears poking out of his hat. In response to the blazing look on his mother's face, Rikash simply pointed to his feline friend. She was mewing behind an aggressive-looking male cat, whose black tufts of hair were standing up straight all over his arched back. Daine sighed, though it was quite easy to tell she was amused beneath her show of exasperation.
"Rikash," she began, concealing a smile. "Have you forgotten that Snippet is carrying Roughpaws' kittens? No more flirting, lest you become involved in another catfight."
Rikash's face slowly changed to a brilliant shade of rose before opening his mouth. "I was just practicing cat form."
"So you really do speak," said a smug and teasing voice. Kioko moved to the space between Daine and Kel in two strides, using her glaive as a walking staff.
Rikash looked up, no longer rosy-cheeked, but pale as milk. "Why don't you just go back to play with your stick, Kio," he said in calm recovery.
Kioko's face turned instantly sour. Her eyes flashed emerald, burning in the early morning sky's darkness. "It's not a stick, you little piglet. It's a naginata, an ancient weapon with a blade at the end."
Rikash let out a huffy breath and stood up, midnight curls fluttering about him. "It's a glorified butter-knife!" His face reverted back to a deep pink hue before he continued. "And pigs aren't stupid. They're quite smart, unlike the chickens, creatures you could easily relate to." The bottom of his face flickered and a chicken's beak slowly formed. He squawked, stony-blue eyes dancing from the satisfaction of mockery.
There was silence as both Daine and Kioko stood there, stunned, until three seconds later when Kioko howled in rage. Daine raised her voice.
"Rikash Arram Salmalin!" Daine exclaimed with a look of surprised anger. "You hardly open your mouth all week and next thing I hear is a string o' insults! You're the real chicken if you think I'll swallow this sort of fool-talk." Kel knew Daine was truly angry when her carefully-learned palace talk was replaced with the less-dignified Gallan dialect.
"Ma," Rikash squeaked, turning his face away from Kioko.
"Kioko," Yuki said suddenly in Yamani. "Apologize for your harsh tongue, or I'll send you back to your sewing."
Kioko looked horrified, but quickly complied. She bowed deeply from the waist and begged Rikash's forgiveness. The cat-eared, chicken-beaked boy nodded and changed back to his normal appearance. He, too, apologized to Kioko and left for the stables with his mother, whom looked slightly satisfied but still kept a watchful eye on her son.
It was finally time to train, and the four ladies proceeded to do so with renewed vigor. Kel saw Kioko was especially training hard, working her hard-earned arm muscles through intricate, fluid-like patterns with her glaive. As splendid as her arm placement was, Kel noticed that Kioko's legs were positioned without much thought at all – the tumble she took proved this. She was still rubbing the tail of her spine when Kel decided to approach her.
"Kioko-anne. Your positioning's a bit off," Kel said as she strode towards her, noticing the how girl's face fell as she spoke.
"Please, your ladyship," Kioko-anne said with a rather awkward curtsy. "Call me Kio."
Kel wrinkled her nose at the title the youngling had given her. "Only if you call me Kel. Or anything else, really. Anything besides your ladyship."
Now I know what it's like for Raoul when I address him like that, Kel thought as she sighed.
"Now, you were mentioning my positioning, your la-"
"Kel."
"Kel," Kio echoed as if she were sampling a new and exotic dish.
"Now about your stance..." Kel said as she began circling Kio. "It may be firm and steady in the beginning, but I noticed about halfway you started placing more emphasis on the force and movement of an arm."
Kio nodded, clearly following Kel's words with rapt attention.
"When using the naginata, legs are actually half of the force. When in battle, you may not have much room. Therefore, you must adapt to the situation. You may need to be light on your feet, dodging attacks that may seem to come from all directions. On the other hand, you could find yourself facing a much stronger opponent, one-on-one. This would demand strong leg power to propel your glaive forward, the whole time circling through the dance. Either way, you must know exactly where your feet are. An enemy will not hesitate to strike you if you trip over your own feet."
Kio bowed, and her face revealed a surprisingly brilliant smile. "Kel. Do you think you could show me a few tips with leg movement?"
Kel smiled broadly, pleased by the young girl's eager attitude. And here I was almost afraid I'd become as harsh as Mistress Nariko. She's as spirited as her parents, though not as dramatic as Neal.
After more than two hours of solid legwork, Kel left Kio and sat under the shade of a birch tree to take a well-deserved break. She began to wipe sweat off her brow with a cloth from her waist pouch when a group of young sparrows circled her with even more high-pitched chirps than before.
"Gods, Kel. They never get tired of you, do they?" Neal shook his head as he walked towards her from behind.
"What have you come here for? Surely the king has kept the Duke of Queenscove too busy to walk the grounds in the morning."
Neal gave her a pained expression. "Don't you think for a minute that I haven't been busy. The Lioness alone has been the source of half my weariness! She had just arrived when she decided to test my fencing skills – without asking my consent, of course."
Kel shrugged. "Maybe she just misses having you as a squire."
Neal snorted and placed a hand on the tree, leaning against it in a tragic pose that would have made the finest player in Corus slightly intimidated. "Well, I certainly don't miss those times. But I suppose you are right. The Lioness is aging, and she's probably lost her touch anyway…getting all sentimental and whatnot."
Before Kel could even think to respond, a strong arm dislodged Neal's supporting arm with shocking speed.
"Lost my touch, have I? Did you learn anything from our lesson yesterday? Silly lad," Alanna the Lioness sighed as she crossed her arms. "But I guess I do miss those good old days, knocking you around to my heart's content."
She was short as ever, with graying hair that may have lulled an underestimating opponent into a false sense of security on more than one occasion. Her amethyst eyes still shone brilliantly, now framed by a few healthy wrinkles around the corners. She turned her back on a sprawling, dirt-covered Neal to address Kel.
"Hello, Kel. It is good to see you again," Alanna said before continuing. "I'd like to ask you to accompany me on a visit to Raoul, which I'm sure Neal was getting to before he went off on a tangent. Hmmph...lost my touch. With talk like that, he won't live to see me when I do lose it."
Kel set off with the two, catching up with Alanna and ignoring Neal's jokes along the way.
"Where's your husband now? Couldn't he make it?"
"Oh, no. He and Jon have made an agreement. George runs things at home while I get sent to fulfill my courtly duties. You know, I think the both of them really enjoy torturing me like this."
The three knights soon arrived at Raoul and Buri's conveniently-situated suite; it was one level: no stairs, with one room and a small but cozy kitchen. It was also located near a quick route to the main hall and another passage to the stables. Alanna sighed as she knocked on the door.
"He gets this while my lodgings are immediately to the side of a corridor from the festivities. Maybe I should have run into some bandits on my way here."
It was Buri who answered the door. The K'mir was plainly relieved.
"It is good you are here. Now I can finally leave him to good hands and join the training. Make sure he doesn't sneak off." And with that she was off, crossbow in one hand and bag full of bolts in another.
Neal raised an eyebrow, looking to his former knight-master, who shrugged and walked through the main room and poked her head through an archway.
"Are you in such a pitiable state that Buri has to keep you in check?" Alanna asked, stepping into what must have been Raoul's and Buri's bedroom. "She's not exactly the ideal nursemaid."
Kel and Nealfollowed. Raoul still looked a bit sour as he lay on an enormous feather bed, but he managed a smile for his three visitors.
"You'd think I'd got my whole leg lopped off, the way I'm kept prisoner here. She won't let me out of bed 'til I heal. Thanks to the Duke of Queenscove," he added with a scowl at Neal. "I might as well retire."
Neal caught Kel's eye with a subtle glance and proceeded to ask the question that was on her mind.
"Are you retiring? You could settle down and raise a few babies. It's not that hard, old man, trust me."
Raoul stared at Neal. "I'd forgotten you were a father. You seem as though you could be my grandson…" Raoul shook his head before continuing. "I don't know if Buri would want children. She isn't exactly young. It could be rough on her."
"Oh, I think Buri would like a youngling she could train up," Alanna said slyly. "And I have connections with the patron of childbirth."
"Well, I'd just have to talk about it with Jon. And Dom, of course. If anyone's to take over, Mithros knows he'd be the man for the job," Raoul reclined on his bed and suddenly looked at his friends with a panicked look on his face. "You're not going to leave me here are you?"
"And what, get murdered by your wife?" Neal asked incredulously. "Kel and I will stay and chat while Alanna finishes her courtly duties."
"I think my Lord's wife would attack him first," Kel remarked.
"An excellent point dear Lady. You and I shall keep watch over the Giantkiller, lest he receive more wounds for me to fix," Neal said with a very serious tone.
Chapter Ends Here