A/N: Wow...the votes have been tallied and it has come to this authors attention that Hayden is a brat. And the funny thing his namesake is acting like a superficial brat too. Coincidence? Probably, cause I didn't realize how much of a brat my friend was being until this week when he started blowing me off and shunning me. Anyway...I think I've become a Darin/Ribyyn shipper just like everyone else. But who knows...maybe Dasher will turn sweet (love/hate relationship --- lol Min). Maybe not. This chapter was such a pain in the ass to write...but it was necessary, and I can name at least 2 people who will enjoy it. ::wink::

DISCLAIMER: I own the characters but Tortall and it's surrounding areas are owned by Tamora Pierce.

Lady Ribyyn of Hadic

Chapter 10 - Another Adventure

Ribyyn exited The Bard only to be grabbed immediately from behind. A hand slid itself over her mouth and somebody whispered in her ear, "Was it absolutely necessary to be in there that long?"

Ribyyn seized the wrist the hand was attached to, pulling it off her and twisting around to look into the laughing green eyes of Darin. "You shouldn't sneak up on me like that! Didn't your mother teach you that?"

He grinned at her wryly. "I'm sure she did, but the real question is, did I ever listen?"

"Obviously not," she said in a huff. His grin broadened and he slid his wrist out of her grip and replaced his hand in her warm palm. "You're going to have to relearn your manners," she told him maternally.

Darin nodded, "Yes mother." He let his foolish grin fade into a happy smile. "So, are you going to show me around like you promised, or are we just going to stand here all day?"

Ribyyn smiled as an idea hit her. "Come on," she said tugging at his hand. "I have something to show you."

~*~

Jessalyn of Goldenlake looked up from the game she was playing with her younger brother Orlando. Two figures, one dressed in dark breeches and a pale shirt, the other, smaller, and in a pale summer dress, stood outside the gate of their townhouse. The smaller figure reached out and motioned with her hand as if to say, "Come here."

"Stay here Orlando," Jessa told the boy. Her younger brother glanced up and watched her walk towards the gate before turning back to his game.

"What are you doing here during the daytime?" Jessa hissed at Ribyyn.

Ribyyn only grinned. "Can we come in?"

"Are you mad?" Jessa had trouble controlling herself. A million questions flew into her head at once. What was Ribyyn doing here? Was she trying to get caught? What if she did get caught? Would she have to cover for the thief? And who was her cute friend?

"Probably," Ribyyn answered. "You never answered my question."

Jessa sighed and reached out to unlock the gate when a voice at her elbow said, "Who's your friend Jess?" Jessa jumped and glared down at her younger sister Karoline.

"Karo! Don't scare me like that!" The older girl opened the gate and admitted the two thieves. "They're friends," she told her sister, "Now go play with Orlando." Jessalyn watched as the seven year old skipped over to her older brother.

"Come on," Jessa said to Ribyyn and her friend. "Let's go inside."

~*~

Jessalyn opened the curtains in her father's library. Ribyyn immediately settled onto a comfy leather couch, spreading her skirts in such a way that Jessa was nearly jealous. How could a thief possibly be more lady-like than an actual lady? There had to be something she didn't know about her new friend.

Ribyyn's friend stood comfortably looking down at the young woman. The female thief looked up and smiled slyly at him. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

"Old habits die hard, huh?"

Ribyyn rolled her eyes. "At least my habits are better than yours, Mr. I-Snore-Like-A-Dying-Duck."

"Well, at least I don't giggle."

Jessa cleared her throat and looked pointedly at her friend. "Are you going to introduce me?"

Ribyyn sighed. "Jessa, Darin. Darin, Jessa. There, happy?" Ribyyn shot the young girl a look that said, "He's mine! You can't have him!" Jessa giggled as she eyed Darin, making him squirm under her gaze. The boy was quite handsome, for a commoner of course. He was tall and lithe, with beautiful blonde hair that, had it been untied, would have just brushed his shoulders. Where could Ribyyn have possibly found this jewel?

"Mithros," he sighed loudly. "Nobles are all alike." He busied himself by looking around the room and examining the books on the shelves.

Jessa sat down next to Ribyyn. "So, who is he?"

"The king of thieves."

Jessalyn nearly choked. "You brought the most wanted man in Tortall to my home? Don't you know how dangerous that is?" The fifteen year old's voice rose louder and louder with every word. She was quickly becoming hysterical. "Do you know who my father is?"

"Lord Alden of Goldenlake," Ribyyn answered simply. She heard Darin freeze behind her and knew immediately that there was something she was missing. Jessa stared at her as if she'd gone insane.

"Yes! And the head of the Royal Guards of Port Caynn!" Jessa opened her mouth to give Ribyyn the lecture of her life but was stopped when a large, calloused hand covered it. She felt a knife point at her throat.

"Darin," Ribyyn hissed at her friend. "Let her go."

"She'll rat me out, Rib," said his deep voice. Jessa, despite her fears, could only sigh. Here was this man, this beautiful man, holding her to him. This was the closest she'd ever been to a man really, with the exception of her father and brother. And that horrible boy that had attacked her in the alleyway.

"I promise you, she won't give you away." Ribyyn stood still as her friend slowly released the young girl, who immediately sat herself on the plush carpeting on the floor. She slowly let out a held in breath and then clenched her shaking hands. As much as Jessa had enjoyed being crushed against Darin's built body, the knife point at her neck had terrified her.

"Jess," Ribyyn said quietly, "we need to talk."

~*~

"You're a noble?" Jessa gasped loudly after Ribyyn had explained her story. "Why didn't you tell me before? Now it's not a problem if my father sees you here!" Jessa had gone through hell trying to keep Ribyyn's visits a secret from her father. Karo and Orlando both knew of their sister's friendship with the thief. This didn't help at all, since her siblings had some of the largest flapping mouths Jessalyn had ever seen.

"But it is a problem," Ribyyn explained. "He's seen me, Jess. He knows I'm a wanted criminal!"

"Then why did he let you go?" Jessa insisted.

"I don't know!" Ribyyn searched her brain for some reasonable explanation. "Maybe he felt sorry for me."

"Does he know you're a noble?" the young girl questioned. Ribyyn shook her head. "He has no idea that you're the missing noble from Hadic?"

"Missing?" asked Darin, who'd been quiet since his short-lived attack on Jessa. "What do you mean missing? I thought they said she was dead."

Jessa shook her head. "There was no body. They just assumed that the raiders had taken her." She saw Ribyyn shiver at the very thought of being kidnapped by raiders. They usually lead to rape and an eventual death, though the body would never be found then. No wonder they had jumped to conclusions about it. "But now you can go to Corus, and tell them you're alive. You can get your home back."

"It's not my home," Ribyyn said quietly with a shake of her head. "At least not anymore."

"But you have the papers."

Ribyyn snorted, "It doesn't matter. The fief is passed down through the male line. I am most certainly not male." Darin smirked and she glared at him.

"Jessalyn!" cried a masculine voice from down the hallway. "Supper's ready!"

Jessa rose and poked her head out the doorway a bit. "I'm not really hungry right now, Papa. Could I come down later?"

"Jessa," Lord Alden sighed, his voice was nearer the room than it was before. Ribyyn grabbed Darin and pulled him behind the sofa. "Lady Bryttany would really like to see you."

"Well, she'll have to wait till another time. I don't feel like seeing her." Ribyyn noted the bitter tone in the fifteen year old's voice.

"Jess, can't you do it for me?" He entered the room and closed the door behind him.

"I don't want to see her!" she practically screamed.

"Jessa, what would your mother say?"

"She can't say anything, she's dead."

Lord Alden sighed, realizing that he was not going to be able to get through to his daughter tonight. "Fine, come down when you're hungry." He turned around and exited the room. As he closed the door behind him he said, "And don't forget to let your friends out the back way. If Bryt saw them she'd faint." He smiled at his astonished daughter. She wasn't about to give her two friends away, and Alden knew this.

Jessa watched as her father closed the door. "Goodnight Ribyyn and Ribyyn's friend," he said, and the three of them heard him walk down the hallway and down to supper.

Ribyyn's head popped up over the couch to look questioningly at Jessa. The young girl only sighed and shook her head. "I'm going to hurt Orlando, and I'm going to steal Karo's doll. Maybe they'll learn a lesson that way."

~*~

Hayden strolled down the empty street, kicking up the dirt and dust that had gathered on the sides. He'd been miserable since this morning when he and Ribyyn had fought. Deep down, he knew his friend was in the right. There had been no reason to accuse the Rogue of anything. Damned jealousy, he thought. And then he realized, he was jealous.

He'd never been in a situation like this, so it was no wonder he hadn't realized the feelings that had been coursing through his body. It was just that he'd never had any competition when it came to Ribyyn before. He'd been her best friend since she came to live with them. And then there was the kisses, that at first she rejected with such passion, but afterwards she was the one giving them.

Hayden shook his head and decided that he'd never understand girls.

He continued to kick up dust, making the bottoms of his breeches and his soft boots filthy with brown dirt. His mother would throw a fit. He paused to look at the damage, trying to glare the dirt off. Suddenly he was shoved from the front and could feel himself falling backwards. He landed gracelessly on the side of the street, covering himself in even more filth.

Looking up to see who the culprit was he saw a girl sitting across from him who was just as soiled as he was. He stared at her for a moment, his mouth hanging open. Even covered from head to toe in filth she was quite pretty, with blonde curls that just brushed her shoulders and large, doe-like, brown eyes. But that wasn't why he was shocked.

The girl, though her face seemed mature, couldn't possibly have been anymore than thirteen. She was scrawny, and bony, and small, but with a rather over-developed bosom, at least for a thirteen year old.

He continued to stare until the girl looked him straight in the eye and said, "What th' hell are ye lookin' at?"

Hayden blinked, caught off-guard by her forthright language. "Huh?"

"Why're ye lookin' at me like that?"

"Who are you?"

"Name's, Min." She pulled herself up off the ground, dusting off her behind, and then extended a hand to help him up. "That's short for something ye'll never know about, so don't bother askin'." She pulled him up, quite strong for her small build, which would explain how he got knocked off his feet when she ran into him. "Who're ye?"

"Hayden Alexzander," he said as he shook the small, soft hand that was still in his.

"Alexzander, eh?" she questioned him, looking thoughtful. "Any relation to a Slyde Alexzander?"

"That depends on why yer askin'."

"Fer my own interests," she said with a smile. Her voice was so believable, but her eyes crinkled, and Hayden spotted the lie.

"Ye think I'm a fool? Yer lyin' through that lovely smile o' yers."

"Ye really think it's lovely?" she flashed him another grin.

He rolled his eyes and asked again, "Who wants t' know?"

"I already told ya."

Hayden sighed, giving in, and nodded his head in the affirmative. "Yes, he's my brother."

"Yer too cute, t' be related t' an ass like that."

"Pardon?" Hayden wasn't sure what he found more shocking, that the girl knew about her brother (and had called him what she did) or that she found him attractive. Cute, he reminded himself, she called me cute. "How do ye know Slyde?"

"I know someone who dislikes him. Forgive me if I've been fed the wrong information," she smirked and looked down at her boots. Hayden realized that she was embarrassed.

"I think ye have been fed lies, but I'll overlook that." He studied her for a moment and then came to a decision. "Join me fer a drink an' I'll tell ye what he's really like."

Min looked up at him, trying to figure out what his real motives might be. Unable to look past his dashing smile, beautiful eyes, and the soft curls that fell in front of them, she had to succumb. She nodded and followed him into a nearby tavern.

A/N: The people I know keep getting written into this story. Hayden, Jessa, James, Min who wanted Hayden and Bryt who wanted Alden. G. R&R