Warning: This contains slash, nothing big.

Disclaimer:I do not own any of Mercedes Lackey's work or anything that may seem familiar.

italics-thoughts
:italics:-mindspeech
"talking"- natural speech
(8)-point of view change

Chapter three

The guard motioned at a small, slightly isolated tent, and gave a short nod. This was it. The girl sat on the cot with her head down, eating some bread with honey. She was thin, to thin for one her age and height, and very pale like she had never before been exposed to sun. Her small hands, busy pulling apart the bread and stuffing it into her mouth, were covered in small cuts and scrapes. Her shoulder length hair was dirty and matted. Vanyel cleared his throat to get her attention. Surprise and a small amount of fear registered on his face as he looked into her eyes for the first time. Her eyes were the palest colour of blue they looked almost white. If someone walked past her in some remote village they would have believed she was blind. Her small face was littered with tiny cuts and a bruise right above her left eyebrow.

Vanyel regained his composure immediately. He walked further into the tent and spoke in a low voice to the Herald. "What all has happened here?" Van stressed his question by placing a hand on the man's arm. "Has anything unusual happened in the last three days with this girl?"

"Nothing has happened Herald-Mage. She awoke this very morning. She drank water, I escorted her to the privy and other then that she slept." He sighed as he made a frustrated motion with his hand. "Look into her eyes! They are white, and her skin is so pale that you can almost see her veins. Vanyel you know more about these parts than anyone else, what is she?"

"Langel, I don't know everything about this place, no one does. The only ones who do know anything about these lands are the Tayledras clans and they don't usually share knowledge." What are you girl? What have you done to disrupt Langel's peace of mind? Van looked over the girl once more, she had been openly staring at them during their small discussion. He dropped to his knees so he was eye level with her. "Girl, who are you?" She blinked and frowned a bit. After a minute of a staring contest she broke into a grin and laugher laced with bitterness filled the small tent.

She began to speak simply almost as she was speaking to an infant. "I don't understand your tongue, when will any of you understand this?" She laughed again, as if she was being witty. She had spoken in a dialect of Tayledras. It sounded old and rolled off her tongue like water. When she spoke slowly Vanyel was able to understand, but he also had the feeling that if she were to speak fast with emotion the language would be just as foreign as it was before he learned it.

"Can you understand this tongue? It is similar to yours." She blinked again and seemed very much taken aback. She replied with a soft "yes" and Vanyel tried once more to question her. "Who are you?"

"Mari" was all she said. Mari looked stubbornly at the blanket that covered her small frame. This is going to take awhile. Love, what is the best action to take do you think? Vanyel "heard" a mental sigh coming from 'Fandes and new she was taking in the situation. Try Truth spell! Not you but get Langel to do basic Truth spell, it'll encourage her to talk more openly Van did as suggested and could see a faint blue haze fall over the girl. She twitched violently then settled as if nothing had happened. She knows. Interesting that she is not upset. Vanyel nodded at Langel and tried to question once more.

"Who are you? What were you doing in the Pass?"

"I am called Mari, that is what my master named me. He needed my support." She had an air of innocence and Vanyel wished more then ever that he could look into her mind. Support? Why on earth-

Vanyel scratched his chin, which he just realized was growing a beard. "Why would he need your support?" Her eyes drooped slightly and her mouth hung slack for a moment.

"I was bound to him, he said he needed me, and my strength. He never told me more then that." Her voice faded to a whisper and the bread Mari had been holding dropped to the ground. Her body went slack as she collapsed to the cot.

Langel yelled for the guards to get a healer and he quickly dispatched Truth Spell. Vanyel heard none of this and saw nothing. A bright light flooded his vision and a roaring deafened him. Vanyel felt nauseous and lightheaded, strong and willful all in the same instant. He was assaulted by the overload of power that flooded his channels and invaded his senses.

By the time the invasion was complete, Vanyel found himself on the ground with a Healer kneeling over him and Langel watching over the girl. The healer peered into his eyes and looked into his mind and body. She has green eyes, and red hair, how odd. Vanyel cocked his head slightly at his bizarre thought. I must still be out of it, there is no other explanation. Mainly by habit he examined the stray thought a little closer. It didn't carry his tone at all and the more he thought about it the more convinced he became. He was Thoughtsensing.

The thought came from one of the on lookers crowding the tent entrance. "Get them out of here. Now!" Van snarled at the healer who yelped and jumped up to do as commanded. The girl was apparently unharmed but still unconscious. The healer, satisfied with Vanyel, began to examine the girl. Mari, her name is Mari. I feel her pain. Huh? Pain? My empathy! I am finally regaining all of my strength. Vanyel left the tent feeling perplexed and slightly confused. He was absolutely dumbfounded, and it was mostly because of that girl! He entered his tent after realizing he had been standing before it for a good while, thinking. Stefen was sitting on the cot and tightening the fastenings on some boots.

"Van! Here you are, try these on." And with that he threw another pair of boots at Vanyel's head…..Ouch.

Authors Note: Welcome back. There you have it. Ch. 3. Hope you all enjoyed it. Thank you to those who have reviewed. Makes me feel special. Who ever is looking forward to reading this story (if there is anyone) I will be going to Italy fairly soon. I'll try to update once more before I leave but there is still plenty for me to do. If I don't, I'll be gone for a year and I'm not to sure what the rules are between my host family and the Internet is as of yet. I'll try to update as often as possible.
Responses:
Sage-serenity: the girls relationship still has to be worked out. I have a few ideas but I'm not too sure how to do it. Just be warned it may be tragic and full of horror or very lame.
Tim Kent: I'm glad to hear it (or see it...) thanks.
Esarea Silvermoon: Vanyel is also my favorite character and I was so annoyed that Lackey just left the story at that. Well I am going to try to change it in this wonderful world of Fan Fiction and hope for the best.

Have a wonderful year everyone.
lilnicky21