A/N: Hope you like it! Sorry it's been taking so long to get this up. Time is nonexistent for me at the moment, but I promised a friend I'd have this up by Tuesday if it killed me...So far, it's done that pretty darn good! So, here it is, Kildy, and don't rip my head off.
Chapter 7: Remembrance
Leena was still pacing when her alarm rang at 5:00 the next morning. She dashed to turn it off, knowing that Annie would be in a funk, to say the least, after last night. She plunked herself down on her window seat again, pressing her forehead against the cool glass, staring out past the yew trees in front of the house. Hmmm...newspaper must be here, if it was 5 already. She was about to go get it, but she jumped instead.
Somebody dressed in black was outside, placing something in the newspaper.
Leena watched closer, watching the stranger, trying to identify him...Blonde hair that looked so light that it caught the light and made it look silver. Tall, from what she could tell, which wasn't much given the rotten view she had. The stranger looked up at the window, and Leena gasped in surprise. Cold gray eyes were set in a glacial face and the thin lips were pulled back into a frightening smirk. The stranger straightened up to his full height, which was considerable, wiggled his fingers in a knowing way, and then disappeared on the turn of his heel. Leena was in shock; he looked so familiar. Not to mention that he had just evaporated into thin air. She shook her head, obsidian hair falling into her eyes. Much as she wanted to tell Annie what happened, she didn't dare. Annie was going to be annoyed enough at her after last night's caper and then there was a jousting match immediately after school that was an important win in the New England Stakes. Tension and temper would run high today. She sighed heavily, wishing that mysterious strangers and cryptic dreams would disappear like the man outside the window did. She heaved herself reluctantly off the window seat and started gathering her supplies for the day.
***
Lucius hadn't expected her to be watching from the window. "Damn, that was brilliant, Lucius! Why did you have to wave and smile like that?!?" he demanded of himself. He was nervous, that was why. He kept a close watch on the house from the trees on the side of the house; he didn't have to Dissaparate that far away. It was nearly time for the twins to be trotting off to school...Yes, there they went...Whatever that big yellow thing was just carried them off. Time to pay Annie a well needed visit. He strode over to the door and rang the bell. Annie answered, looking disheveled. "Good morning, Annika. Remember me?" Annie's jaw dropped, but she recovered quickly. "Lucius! God, it's been a while...Is it time?" she asked, recovering from the trauma quickly. "If I may step in, I have a few questions to ask of you..."
***
Mina threw down her pencil, rubbing her aching hand. Finished! She glanced out the window in a blissful state, thinking about the upcoming match in a half hour. She and Leena were in different divisions, thank goodness...and who was outside the window? She blinked, just to make sure she wasn't seeing things...no, there definitely was a person out there, leaning against the tree and standing there, staring. It was unnerving, the way the person just stood there staring. She turned her eyes back to her paper, then back out the window. Now there was nobody out there at all and the examiner was looking at her exasperatedly. She hastily turned back to her paper, checking for mistakes.
***
Leena sat upon her mount, feeling Annie's eyes on her, scrutinizing every detail of her armor. If it didn't fit in just the right way, the price to pay would be huge. It would also cost them the tournament, how embarrassing. The huge horse snorted once, straining against the bit, prancing in place. She tightened her grip on the reins and Necromancer snorted again, bobbing his head up and down in his impatience. "Easy, boy, easy...You'll wear yourself out before the tournament even starts," she thought. "If I can stand carrying you covered in tin as well as my own metal and a lance at a full gallop for a day, I don't think that I'm in any danger of wearing myself out anytime soon," he thought back. Leena smiled inside her helmet, grinning at his remark. She was amazed to find that from the first time she had met the giant black horse that she had been able to communicate with him through thought. She looked around for Mina, who was riding a feisty chestnut called Corona, Cory for short. His royal blue garment fit his coppery color perfectly. Mina was perfectly suited for the horse and the color scheme just complemented the relationship further. Each had a temper, which became exceedingly dangerous for their opponents. But that was the lightweight division; Leena was in the Knight's Guild, which was a more difficult level. Bigger horses, faster speeds, and heavier lances upped the competition and the danger. Necromancer was anxious to begin the Presentation ceremony and was showing it. "You are such a peacock..." Leena thought to him. "Likewise, I might add, considering the amount of shampoo that you used on me for my bath! I don't think I'll ever be properly dirty again...Can you fix my neck cloth? It's out of place and it's pinching the braids," he thought back. Leena giggled as she fixed the black cloth embroidered with silver stars and moons.
"Riders, take you're post!" the Master of Ceremonies called out. Mina and Leena lined up next to each other in their respective groups. Figured...front of the line, again..."Perfect! Time to show those fools what they're up against!" Necromancer told Leena excitedly. "Go!" the Master cried. Cory and Necromancer set out in a pair, matching stride for stride as they piaffed around the arena. Leena scanned the crowd and gasped: The silver-haired man was back and was watching with a knowing smirk plastered on his pale visage. Mina looked for Annie and saw the man, too. That was who had been watching her through the window in school, she realized.
***
Behind the curtain, in the stables, Leena went back to pacing, helmet off and armor clanking. "What are you so worried about? This is a pushover. Roberts is here; he's your biggest threat. All you have to do is remember to roll your shoulder back when he strikes and the lance will just glance off, therefore leaving his intact and give you a slightly more powerful thrust..." Leena tried to ignore Necromancer's prattle, but it was hard, as it was inside her head. "It's not that..."she started off and then proceeded to tell her mount about the last few days and the strange man with silver hair and grey eyes. Mina ran up and said, "I'm up next, wish me luck!" Leena smiled and they banged fists together with a clang. "Have a good ride and don't forget to cradle the lance this time!" she reprimanded. Mina smiled guiltily and crashed off to where Cory was waiting, eyes bright with anticipation. Mina checked the girth, placed her helmet on gingerly, then took a couple of warm up laps around the stable area. She took a deep breath and cantered imperiously through the dark doorway, ready for a match.
Leena heard the roar of the crowd and knew that Mina had won. Mina won her division and all that was left was the Awards Ceremony at the end. Change of armor was needed for both the horse and rider and Leena knew her sister: The more glamour, the better. Time was of the essence. Leena plunked her helmet on her head, mounted Necro, and proceeded to warm him up.
She felt Necromancer's weight shift towards his hindquarters...She knew what he was going to do, the show-off. Anything to impress the mares. She slid her mask shut, adjusted her shield, and picked up her lance. The blunted tip gleamed softly and the silver accents toward the handle perfectly suited her get up. The flag dropped and Necromancer reared, nostrils flared, laughing with glee as he landed and thrust himself forward like a rocket. The crowd gasped appreciatively and that just made Necro tuck his neck in more and fling his tail in excitement. Her lance cradled perfectly and she crushed it on the opponent's helmet, meriting 2 points. She grabbed her next lance, waiting for the Knight in Red to start the next joust. The knight gave a vicious kick to his palomino, who bolted forward, ears flattened. Necro laughed and charged, ears back and teeth bared, nose tucked in to his chest. Leena felt the Red Knight's lance slam into her shoulder, but she rolled it back just in time, causing her lance to smash directly on his abdomen, causing him to fall. 3 points won if you unhorsed a person. She won her division and took her victory lap, Necromancer chanting all the way, "Black rules, Red drools! We won we won we WON!!!" Leena galloped back through the gate to the stable area to change tack at the speed of light.
***
When the ritual of awards was over, Leena headed back to the stables, dragging Necro away from the crowd. He was big, beautiful, and flashy and he knew it, much to Leena's chagrin. She supposed things could be worse, so she kept her mouth shut. When she reached the stall, the man was waiting for her. "Annie forgot to give you this..." he said in a cool voice as he held out a parchment envelope, written in deep red ink. Necromancer stopped short and flattened his ears, eyes showing white rings around them. He planted his feet, shaking his head warningly. Leena took it cautiously, eyeing the man suspiciously. He must have been over 6 feet, easily. But she was tall as well, 5'8" to be exact. This man had a few inches on her still and used it to his advantage, staring down his aquiline nose with ice in his eyes. She felt her own eyes smolder into the inky black that they always did when she was upset or annoyed. Normally her eyes were a deep, crystalline blue, but they changed colors regularly. Green, grey, light to dark blue, it didn't matter, but they always turned black when she was perturbed. The man smirked and turned on his heel, walking away with a certain grace that she found to be almost feline. She opened the letter and dropped it in surprise when she read the contents: It seemed that the twins had a father who had been searching for them for a long time and finally found his "beloved daughters". She shoved Necro in his stall, who was still upset about the man showing up suddenly and went to find Annie and Mina. It was too good to be true.
A/N: I know, I know, it's another dreaded author's note, but bear with me. I just had to put this event in, I love jousting! Besides, it ties in with the story later, so of course I had to include it! Thanks to all those who reviewed and Chapter 8 is close to follow, never fear.
~~potionsmaster~~