A Life Less Ordinary: Chapter 3
By Sulia Serafine
[This is a Protector of the Small fanfic, all credit goes to Tamora Pierce. I'm broke, so you can't sue me. I've only read The First Test, but as I read the others, the story will fit into place with them. Well, it won't really, but it'll be as accurate as I can make it. I usually don't write fanfics of this style, so forgive me if I relapse into my angst/action Gundam Wing things again. 11-12-00]
Keladry yawned. She unconsciously stretched against the hard wood seat that she had fallen asleep on. The light peeked in through the tavern window and fell upon her face. With the sudden presence of warmth and light, Keladry opened her eyes slowly and tried to focus them.
"What… Where am I?" she asked quietly and sat up. Then all the events from yesterday came back to her in one big flood of memories. She groaned and put her head in her hands. "No… It's real. I'm in Freilan with Joren."
Her head snapped up at the thought. "Where is Joren?!" She clumsily got to her feet and ignored her stiff joints and muscles. "Ida? Miss Ida? Mister Jodus?" She hoped they could tell her where Joren was. "Miss Ida!"
Ida Leafson was busily cooking in the kitchen. When she heard Keladry's call, she walked in, humming a fancy tune. "How can I help you, dear? Are you hungry?"
"I was wondering where," she paused before saying the next few words, "my cousin is. Joren?"
"Hmm… I do believe he went off courting Marilyn, the Miller's daughter, last night."
Keladry rolled her eyes and muttered. "That figures. But wouldn't he be back by now unless he--" She stopped and would've slapped her forehead, but she smiled apologetically instead. "Never mind. Thank you, Miss Ida."
"Now, sit yourself back down and I'll bring you some food." She walked over and poked Keladry's arm through her thin jacket. "Just what I thought! Skinny and underfed. You need some good old fashioned cooking!"
"No, really, I've always eaten enough--" Keladry protested. Ida waved her off and went back into the kitchen. The senior page sighed and sat back down again. "Maybe Ida can tell me about the animals around here. There has to be purple dog-bear creatures. We definitely didn't dream it all up."
After breakfast, Ida showed Keladry where the washroom was and gave her a spare jacket.
"You look cold, anyhow."
"Thank you, so much. You've shown Joren and me so much hospitality," Keladry said and moved to bow, and then caught herself. She awkwardly curtsied.
"The dear thing curtsies!" Ida exclaimed with pink cheeks and a wide smile. "Why, what I wouldn't give to keep you here with me and Jodus forever, dear child!"
"You don't know how much that idea appeals to me," Keladry replied, adding silently, "Compared to wandering around a strange land forever." She cleared her throat. "Miss Ida, have you ever seen a purple creature that looks like a cross between a bear and a dog?"
Miss Ida burst into laughter. "What an imagination you have! But aren't you too old to be imagining things?"
Keladry blinked. "Ah…heheh…yeah. Please excuse my ridiculous question."
"Not at all, deary. I used to have the same imagination."
Keladry faked a polite smile and looked out the door. "Is there a Lord or a Duke near Freilan? I'm unfamiliar with this area."
"Well, yes there is a keep near here, toward the sea," Ida's expression became serious. "But I wouldn't go there if I were you. Baron Renimeo is very… eccentric. We all humor him when he comes into town, and he's been capable of producing obedient and successful children, but he's just such a strange old man. His soldiers are the best in the surrounding towns and manors, though. Your cousin Joren might be interested in joining."
"Did somebody say my name?" Joren asked as he walked in through the door. He tried to smooth down his messy hair and tied it back in a ponytail. "Sorry I was gone the whole night. I was…"
"Don't bother," Keladry said as she sat down. Ida burst into another round of laughter.
"So, what are you two doing today? I assume before you move onto the next town, you might want to get another map and earn some more money," Ida suggested. "Unfortunately, I can't think of any place to get horses for free." She laughed at her own joke.
"We appreciate it all the same," Joren replied, faking his own laughter. Keladry shook her head.
"Go down to Bostwick's General Store. It's that place with the bright green door." Ida reached into her pocket. "Here, take some money and buy yourselves some useful things for your journey."
"We can't take this money," Keladry protested.
"Yes we can," Joren muttered to her as he elbowed her aside and met Ida with another fake smile. "You don't know what this means to my cousin and me. We'll keep you in our prayers, always."
"I can't believe this," Keladry mumbled as the two walked to the place with the bright green door. Two girls carrying baskets of vegetables walked by, winking and blowing kisses to Joren. Keladry nearly gagged.
"Hello, ladies," Joren waved with some winks of his own. "Fair you well, I'm going to leave town tonight."
"Aw…" they said in unison. Keladry nearly gagged some more.
"I'll always keep your beauty in my thoughts," he grinned and walked away whistling. Keladry shook her head some more and jogged to catch up with him.
"Are you going to be serious about us getting home now, or what?" Keladry asked, slightly peeved.
"Don't worry. I want to go home, just like you, Lump," he replied coolly.
"Stop calling me that. Four years-- four-- and it still hasn't dropped," she said.
"Ah, don't take it so personally, Lump. Have a sense of humor. So, what has Ida told you about this land?"
"Well, purple furballs like we saw aren't common. She thinks I made it up."
"And?" His voice lowered as they entered Bostwick's store and smiled politely at the man at the counter.
"There's a keep not too far from here, towards the sea. It's owned by Baron Renimeo, who Ida has told me is eccentric, but he has the best soldiers around and sane, successful children. Want to head there? Maybe there's mage or a philosopher, or… a priest that can help us."
Joren nodded thoughtfully. "Good thinking, Lump. If that old man is eccentric, then he won't be hostile toward our question of a purple dog-bear creature.
He picked up and examined some waterskins. "Go pick out some rations for the road. And be sensible about it!"
"I know what I'm doing," she snapped and went over to the opposite shelf.
They bought some supplies and went back to the tavern. They spent the day packing things provided by Ida. Keladry couldn't stop thanking the kind woman and her husband, but they just encouraged them to come back and visit.
"One day, you're going to have to move back to this town so I can see you every day!" Ida grinned. "Such precious things, you both are."
"Now, the keep isn't much more than an hour's slow ride from here, so you can reach it before it gets too dark."
"Are you sure you want to enlist with Baron Renimeo?" Jodus asked.
"You did say you could enlist and be accepted on first meeting with the baron, didn't you?" Joren said.
"Well, yes, but what about your little cousin?"
"I'm sure I can convince the baron he's in need of a new serving maid," he smiled.
"Hmph," Keladry folded her arms. "I don't think so."
"Well, you two better take care. There has been talk of raiders from the Mira Empire across the sea. And the Raven's Keep is in as much as danger as any place along the coast. Even Freilan isn't safe." Jodus looked them both straight in the eye and sat back with a serious expression.
Keladry bowed her head. "We'll be careful, sir."
That afternoon, they left Freilan for Raven's Keep.
The purple dog-bear animal watched them amusedly from his favorite tree. "Perhaps they will be of use to me one day. But not now. Go, live, you stupid humans. You're just a bunch of toys for me to play with." His stomach grumbled. "I really wished I had caught that stupid rabbit."