(A/N: OMG, I found the perfect theme song for Jander. "Cast No Shadow" by Oasis. Here're the lyrics:
Here's throught for everyman
who tries to understand what is in his hand
he walks along the open road of love and life
surviving if he can
Bound with all the weight of all the words he tried to say
chained to all the places that he never wished to stay
bound with all the weight of all the words he tried to say
as he faced the sun he cast no shadow
As they took his soul they stole his pride
As they took his soul they stole his pride
As they took his soul they stole his pride
As he faced the sun he cast no shadow)
Chapter Three
Pa'das and Jander got two rooms in the local tavern, while Eckerd stayed with his cousins. Pa'das wasn't going to risk staying there - it could become ugly if they realized whom she was; they had been her worst tormentors - and Jander would not let her stay alone.
Eckerd laughed as they got the two rooms. "Are you sure you'll be needing two?" he said with a sly wink.
"Now, wait a minute Eckerd," Pa'das said with an easy grin, sliding her arm around Jander's waist. "Don't go foisting your depraved sexual fantasies on us."
Jander laughed. "No sane woman will come near him, so who else would listen, but us!"
Pa'das switched Korrieana to the other hip and picked up her pack. "I'm going to put my stuff up in my room. See you later, Eckerd?"
"Yeah. I'm going to my cousin's now. Talk to you guys later." He whisked out the door, humming.
"I swear," Jander said as the door swung shut, "he was meant to be a bard, not a mage. The music is always playing for him."
"'Scuse me, miss," the bartender said to Pa'das, "but do I know you from somewhere?"
"Nope, sorry, I've never been here before." Pa'das left as fast as she could without seeming weird.
Jander followed her up, dropping his stuff quickly in his room, and then going into her room. She had settled quickly, and was lounging on the bed, keeping one eye on Korrieana.
"I do believe I am going to hide out in here until Eckerd's ready to leave."
Jander sat next to Pa'das, putting up his feet and leaning back against the headboard. Pa'das sighed and moved her head to rest on his chest.
"What was so bad about living here that you don't want anyone to know you're back?" Jander asked softly as he gently stroked her auburn hair.
Pa'das sighed and groaned at the same time. "You mean beside everything? My parents died when I was seven. Before that I didn't really have any friends - after all, who would want to be friends with the witch girl - but nobody was particularly mean to me. So, after they died, I was sent to live with another family. I had to do a lot of chores to earn my keep, but they weren't that bad. It was just the rest of the town. From then on, everything bad that happened was my fault."
"Wait," Jander interrupted. "Since you were 7, everything was you fault? How did you get through that without…?"
Pa'das nodded. "I went were no one knew me so I could pretend to be a different person, and pretty soon I became that self-confident person. And then, after Sarrasor, I met this really cute elf named Jander who made me feel special and wanted." She grinned at Jander, and he returned her grin. Then she continued. "I was the brunt of every joke from everyone. I was downright ugly," Jander snorted, "so no boy would come near me and the girls made fun of me. It was a living hell."
Jander was silent for a moment. Humans - no, not just humans, everyone, including elves - sickened him because they did things like that. He silently applauded her for her bravery in coming back. "So you left as soon as you could?" he finally asked.
Pa'das shook her head. "They drove me out when I was 18 - I was chased out by a mob. They didn't want the 'witch girl' contaminating their children anymore."
Jander sighed. "What horrors you have been through."
Pa'das laughed a little. "Oh, come on. Being ostracized then and abused later? It wasn't that bad." Her cheeks felt wet, and Pa'das realized she was crying. Memories buried that deep could not rise to the top and be spoken aloud benignly. Jander took her in his arms - more than she already was - and just held her comfortingly. He murmured sweet nothings in her ear as she cried silently on his shoulder, rocking her like a baby. Jander envisioned different ways of seeking revenge on the town. How anyone could do that to another - much less a whole town doing it to one person - was beyond him. Pa'das had been robbed of her childhood because people were too afraid of what they couldn't understand. As Pa'das' tears slowed and stopped, Jander realized that in all the times he had seen Pa'das cry, she had never once made any noise. Her breath would catch, but there was nothing beyond that. Jander surmised that she had had years of practice, hiding her tears from the world.
Pa'das sat up and slid over to sit next to Jander. He gently brushed away the tears still left on her cheeks, a profound sorrow for her showing in his eyes.
"Thanks," she said softly. Then she sat up straight. "Crap! Korrieana!"
Jander put a gentle, restraining hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, she's fine. I've been keeping an eye on her." That was true in a roundabout way. He had been using the force of his will to keep her playing happily with her toy horse. He figured that using his power was justified because Pa'das needed to cry, and needed a shoulder to cry on.
Pa'das scrubbed her face with her hands. "I need to go wash my face. Be right back."
She went into the bathroom and splashed water on her face. She looked in the mirror and groaned. Her eyes were all red and puffy - she looked awful. She hated this town so much. All it did was bring back bad memories. She hoped Eckerd would be ready to leave soon. She hadn't even been here for a day, and she was already ready to put the town behind her.
Back on the bed, Jander was holding Korrieana. The instant he had relaxed his will, she had crawled over and wanted to be picked up. Jander prayed fro Pa'das' sake that Eckerd would keep his visit short. He did not like the effect the town was having on her in such a short period of time. It had been less than a day, less than an hour, and Pa'das was becoming visibly more timid. But, Jander thought, woe to the person who recognized her and said anything nasty when he was around. Jander laughed softly as Pa'das came back into the room. Elves were the rulers of social (and verbal) slights, and gold elves were the masters of them all. That was one feature of the elven race Jander still retained.
"What are you laughing at?" Pa'das asked.
"Nothing," Jander said. "Just humorous thoughts."
"Oh well. I only need to handle a tenday or two of here, right?"
Jander nodded as Pa'das sat on the bed next to him and Korrieana. She would only have to suffer through one tenday at the most, if he had anything to say about it. He would talk to Eckerd as soon as he saw him next. In the meantime, he held Pa'das close, an arm about her shoulders, giving comfort for the memories he could tell were still on her mind. It was early afternoon, but Pa'das fell asleep anyways, leaning against his side in the protective embrace of his arm. Korrieana, too, slept, between the two of them. Jander was content just to sit there, holding the two of them.