Chapter 37 – Not saying goodbye
The last hours of endearment had only been caressing, because even though Numair had initiated the start of what could have been Daine's first time he had managed to hold back to such an extent that he was pretty sure that she was unhappy with him. She had almost begged him to take the final step toward making her a complete woman and even though she repeatedly had tried to push their under garments away, he had stopped her hands and instead locked them firmly over her head while his kiss had gotten immense pleasant sounds from her lips. Finally, and rather satisfied she had accepted that this night was not the time to go all the way and Daine had with strong pink cheeks gasping for breath declared that this had been her best night.
Numair had then moved so he lay with her burning body against his. Listening to her now quiet and stable breathing his hand had been around her hers, which was now covered by a special ring. He completed the spell so that her friends would always be able to see her, but to others who wished her evil would walk right past her even though she stood in front of them. He knew that he when the time was right had to have the ring again, but right now it was a question of preventing Inar Hadensra to achieve his desire to add Daine to his collection.
He let go of her hand and tried not to wake the sleeping young woman when leaving the bed. He couldn't take his shirt when Daine was still wearing this, but with a little glowing ball he lit up the room a bit so he could locate his pants. Finally wearing them Numair bent over Daine and covered her lips with the most gentlest and most tender kiss he could. He then took the bloody nightgown with him.
Numair closed the door slowly and silently. As he turned to walk toward the room where his clothes were packed into two saddlebags he walked straight into a waiting person who stood with her arms laid crosswise.
"Are you a complete idiot?" whispered the little woman whose face was lit by Numair's luminous ball.
"Hello Onua" he closed the door and stepped away from it while he gently grabbed the horse woman's arm and pulled her toward the room with his clothes.
Finally inside with the door closed he released her and turned to her "I'm sorry ... but it took some time before she fell asleep," he said and leaned down toward the bag and laid it on the table. He quickly placed the nightgown inside.
"Yes ... I heard" said Onua seriously. "When I asked you to take care of her when you had to get her back from the kidnappers this was definitely not what I meant" she pointed toward the wall to point out what had taken place inside the other room "I expected you, of all others were smart enough not to start on something that will only destroy her heart".
Numair, who was extremely calm in contrast to Onua, found a shirt and pulled it over his head "I will not damage her heart, Onua" he replied quiet "Moreover, you can't stop progress".
Onua leaned forward "You're right, I can't stop progress but if you so much as hurt her, Numair Salmalin, you not only get me on the neck, but also Alanna, Jonathan, Thayet and George ... I just want to be sure that you are sure this time and that you don't use her as you have used other women ".
He turned to his best friend, stunned "I didn't know that this was how you saw me?"
"I see you both as a woman, Numair, but also as her 'reserve parent'. She is my heart and you know it ... besides, you owe me an explanation!" Onua said and alluded to what he had said to her the first night in Elena's house. "How long has this been going on?"
"It actually started the night before she was kidnapped, Daine woke up and felt wrongness, the animals in the forest was quiet and she came to see me in the tent. When we came out into the clearing they were there, three men ..." he saw how Onua just stared at him baffled. He quickly added "I would have told you ... but because of everything with Daine" he let the rest of the words hang in the air. His hands had already begun to check the contents of his saddlebags of whether he had everything he needed when he come face to face with Inar. He pulled a stone and placed it in his pocket.
Onua relaxed "So it's relatively new" she commented "It was also what Daine explained to me."
He stopped his movement "What?"
She sat down in the empty chair "Do you remember this morning when you walked in and overheard the last of Daine and my conversation?"
Numair nodded and listened.
"She was afraid that she couldn't measure up to the women you had been in the company of while she was your student ... she followed you because she was afraid to hurt you ... when it could be the other way around ".
"I didn't know" he replied and sat down heavily in his chair "Believe me when I say that I love her. I haven't loved any woman such and I think that I will never do...when I first saw her in hawk form it was as if I have waited for something my hole life and right in front of me was 'that something'" I'm sorry that I'd kept you in the dark Onua".
Onua shrugged "Numair, I'm not condemning the change in your relationship, but I want to know what's wrong with her!"
Numair turned his face towards the window. It was still dark outside. He had time to explain Onua what was going on. He concluded by telling her about the special ring he had been holding since mid-winter and Daine carried it now, he also talked about Inar Hadensra. He told her about Daine's unknown Unicorn fever and Elena, who had been selected by Daine's mother to protect her. When he explained that Elena knew more than she said, Onua nodded. When the telling was finish he got up and went over to the bags. He took them in his hand as he heard how Onua told what she knew. When he turned around he found the woman silent.
"Where are you going?" she asked when she saw how he took his winter cloak on.
"I have a pest problem I must have exterminated" he explained, implying to Inar Hadensra and started toward the door. He didn't get very far. Onua was a quick woman and stood in front of him.
"Are you coming back?" she asked, putting her hand to his chest and looked up at him.
"I don't know" he replied and leaned forward and gave her a kiss on the cheek "Will you tell Daine I'm sorry to leave her and remind her of our agreement?" he asked, referring to the conversation about choosing other men. Onua nodded slowly and gave him a hug. "And remind Elena that she must practice every day."
"Of course Numair ... watch yourself" Onua stepped aside and saw how her friend disappeared down the hall and out into the dark night. "May the Goddess watch over you," she whispered and went to bed.
The silence was almost deafening around him. If anyone had been up on this godforsaken time they would have wondered why a man, alone, walked three times around the house where the town healer lived and drew a shining shimmering glow of black fire speckled with silver after him. Not far from the house was a gelding, which hung his head and seemed to send crooked glances to his master. There were no sounds around him as he swung himself into the saddle and took up a stone from the bag he had stuck in his belt. If you weren't so far from the rider and blinked, you would the next second believe that the rider had been an illusion for where the horse had stood was now absolutely nothing.
Hidden by the stone Numair rode through the city and when he reached the outskirts where the road transformed from stone to gravel he rose from his horse. He walked slowly over to a bush and with the tip of the foot he began to loosen the still slightly frozen earth. Once again he took a stone from the bag by his waist a handkerchief which contained a lock of hair. He pulled neatly a small lump of hair from the big lump and let Daine's hair fall down beside the stone he had placed. Then, the only sound one could possible heard was a hiss from the nearest bush. A bird scowled him for wakening her up in her nest when it wasn't even dawn. He whispered the words he knew so well and shaped the necessary spell. Ready he forced himself into the saddle. He led the spotted gelding away from the scene and turned the horse, so it every moment could put in the gallop out of the town.
He waited a long time. The first birds began to sing hallo to he sun when he heard the sound of hooves that struck stone. Numair took a deep breath and let only a spark of his gift search out towards a lonely rider. He hit solid energy and knew right away that Inar Hadensra had reached the town. He turned his energy to the place he had buried the stone with a lock of Daine's hair and far behind him one could begin to heard faint horse hooves that echoed. His spell had begun.
"Stop it Cloud" said a female voice suddenly. Numair smiled. He had over time practiced in making an almost too perfect simulacra of his student.
He turned in his saddle and was very pleased to see how the young woman was wearing a traveling cloak and the horse was packed with necessary things. The trick was complete when he added the stubborn undertone in her voice "nonsense ... I'm sure that Numair, Onua and Perin will think it's an excellent idea". The counterfeit Daine went ahead and came riding close past him. Even her scent of hay, horse and smell of her nocturnal visitors he added. Inar Hadensra didn't know that Daine was no longer in possession of her wild magic and Numair needed Inar to believe that this was the real Daine.
When she was past him and further up the road he gave sign to his gelding to move on. Numair had to be as close as possible to control his fake wildmage. The girl and the horse continued their conversation, but it was only the young woman's voice who could be heard "Well ... I think he looks very beautiful ..." He let her stop her flow of speech. Numair smiled coldly when he saw that Inar had discovered who rode to meet him.
They had come right up against each other and the fake Daine held her pony back. Numair smiled even wider when Inar leaned forward and saluted "Isn't it a beautiful morning?" asked Inar and leaned forward in the saddle.
Numair's Daine nodded and replied dryly "Yes ... if you are woken early because some people always experimenting at night." He let her refer to a habit of his. Since their acquaintance Daine had occasionally when she couldn't sleep sought his company with a desire for an early education before her duties for Onua. These had resulted in failed, magical experiments conducted by Numair alone at night when he knew that those with the most powerful gifts slept, so they couldn't feel his manipulation of certain things.
He had tried at one point to create a kind of 'voice-communication-bridge' to replace the use of speech balls. Daine had that night been uable to fall asleep and had therefore knocked first hard on his door to his study. When he didn't respond she had to come shrinking in through a mousehole.
She had obviously not expected that he had been awake and in the same second she was safe inside the room Numair had released his gift. The result was that Daine sat naked on the floor in complete surprise and Numair's attempt had succeeded, but the only drawback was that the bridge which should have been directed against Harailt, split up and attached itself to all surrounding people with the gift. The subsequent conversation between the black robe mage and his student had been heard by about 50 people including the king. Numair had after the incident stood in front of the king and listen to a long sermon about the regulations concerning experiments and the seriousness that had come out of his talk with Daine.
Not only had they talked about her annoying lack of clothing when she transformed, but the conversation had also led to more private details about the relationship between a woman and a man. Numair had made a long speech about the seriousness and wrongness that she sought his company at night, but had in the speech forgotten to point out that her visit was just pure educational context. And so was the foundation stones for the first rumors about Daine and him founded. A rumor he with his many resources hadn't been available to bury. It had only caused the opposite result, that the rumors were multiplied.
Numair was taken back to man in front of him by the sound of Inar's voice.
Inar smiled grimly and satisfied. She didn't knew who he was "Is that why you are out so early?"
Numair let Cloud fidgeting restlessly, which Daine looked down on the mare "Yes .. yes ... we'll move on." He couldn't hide the relief that Inar now was caught by his trickery. Inar reacted namely as he had hoped.
"Could it really be ..." Inar hesitated. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to be in front of the woman he had been told had been kidnapped and now sat on her horse before him "it is really Veralidaine Sarrasri?" he asked.
"That's my name" confirmed Daine hissing. Numair knew how she hated being reminded of her paternal ancestry. "Why do you ask?" she asked, raising her hand towards the bow hanging from her shoulders.
"Easy lass ... I was told that you would be here, I have some sick gyrfalcons who needs your help" Inar raised his hands in surrender. Numair was ready for the energy that would come with this gesture and sure enough ... his false Daine was hit one second later and he let the unconscious woman fall along the neck of her pony.
Inar got off his horse and secured with rope Daine to her now hot-tempered mare who tried to bite him. Numair let the horse put her teeth thoroughly in Inar's arm.
The mage gave an angry outburst from him and struck the pony on the nose. Numair grimaced and was at that moment glad that it wasn't the real pony, but one that was as false as Daine. He waited quietly and secretly he enjoyed that he would take the life of this red-eyed mage who had been so bold to kidnap the real Daine in the first place. But first Numair needed Inar to guide him to the place where he held the other women.
Inar, who was dressed in shabby clothes forced himself into the saddle and hold his horse. He had the fake Cloud's reins in his hand and without looking back he left the town. Numair, however, waited a few seconds and looked back. He knew that it might be months before he saw Daine again, but the thought of their night together was enough to get his mood up again. He gave Spots a light squeeze with his knees and the horse followed the two riders, the one who was conscious and the unconscious.