I know that I take forever to update and my chapters aren't really that
long, but I don't get a lot of time to write and stuff. I try but school
takes up a lot of time!
I just realised I made a mistake in the last chapter when I said that the lions had died out. I remembered that there were some lions in the Emperor Mage. Sorry about that!!!!
And this chappie *does* have some romance in it. I don't know what you'll think of it, so tell me! I hope you'll like it.
Please Review!!!!!
QUEEN OF KNIVES.
CHAPTER 4: BAD NEWS.
Galux Phoenix.
A few weeks after Golden had dragged her former teacher back to the Dancing Dove news came in. Bad news.
She sat in her chair, her feet on the table in front of her, tankard of ale in one hand and in the other she was twirling a knife between her fingers. Her gold eyes were unfocused and glazed over as she sat there staring blankly at the knife target that had been set up on the opposite wall. A couple of knives had already been thrown in order to see who was the best a throwing knives.
"I'm the best!" a male voice interrupted her thoughts and she snapped back to reality.
"No! I am!" another argued. She looked at the speakers. Both of them were about her age, they both were reasonably good thieves, just not the best.
One of them, Swiftness, was good at fast steals. His hair was black and cut quiet short, his eyes a starling green. Swiftness was renowned for having a temper and getting himself completely drunk on holidays. He was tall for his age, but he was lanky and looked uncoordinated, which was completely the opposite, Swiftness had grace.
The second of the two was Jackson. When people asked him why he hadn't got a thief name he would answer with a simple 'I like me name just the way it is,'. Jackson's eyes were a deep grey, his hair a sun bleached blonde that brushed the tips of his ears carelessly.
"You couldn't hit a target if you were sitting on it!!" Swiftness snapped.
"Yeah? Well you couldn't hit one if it bit you on the arse!!" Jackson retorted.
The two of them stood there yelled abuse and insults at each other with out a care in the world. A malicious smile broke over Golden's face as she watched them. after a few more minutes of their yelled the pair of them stopped to catch their breath.
"You two really want to know who's the best?" one of the server girls, Jerri, asked.
"Who then?" Swiftness snapped as Jackson drained his ale.
"Her," Jerri jerked her head at Golden who was still smiling maliciously. "Have either of you two seen her throw? I have. She's the best," Jerri's voice was matter of fact.
Golden knew what they were talking about, they didn't exactly keep their voices down.
"Are you sure about that?" Jackson asked before raising his voice a notch, "Are you going to prove Jerri right about this, Golden?"
She gave him a quizzical look before draining her tankard and standing up. "Three shots each. Both of you against me. Three metres from the target."
"Make it four," Swiftness interrupted.
"Ok, then," Golden said as she took out another two knives from her boots to add to the on still in her hand. "One of you can go first."
Jackson shrugged and stepped up to a line that was painted on the floor, four metres away from the target they were supposed to hit.
His first knife hit just below the centre on the target, his second an inch to the left of it and his third landed barley three millimetres off.
Golden tilted her head to one side, "Not too bad for someone like you."
Jackson totally ignored her comment as he pulled the knives from the target. Swiftness stalked over to the line pulled out three knives from his boots. He threw them in a fast succession. All three landed in the centre circle, two on the outer edges and one at its centre. He sent Golden a smug smirk.
"Beat that, if you're so good."
"You bet I will." Golden's smile was pure evil.
She settled herself on the painted line and threw her first knife, making it land in the centre of the target. In a rapid movement she had the other two knives barely a millimetre away from her first knife.
Her smile was smug as she looked at the expressions on her friends' faces. "I did tell you I would beat you, did I not?"
"I told you that she was the best!" Jerri exclaimed happily.
"I'm not sure about best in the country, but I give 'em a run for their money," Golden stated as she returned to her room.
~*~*~*
"You know that they were telling you the truth, don't you?" Nathan asked as she stepped into her room.
"What do you mean, Nath?" Golden wondered as she locked the door behind her.
"You're the best. And you know it well. Why do you deny the truth? You know as well as I that you could go back to the old place and show everyone who said you wouldn't make it that you did. You put yourself down to much, Alex. Do I have to make you feel better about yourself?"
"I don't deny it. Leo is better than me, and Alex died a long time ago," Golden shook her head at him.
Nathan took a few steps forward and gripped her elbows tightly. "Why do you lock me out? Why do you deny love? Why do you push away something that you know you want?"
"Because, you're my oldest friend and if it didn't work out, it might ruin our friendship. I don't deny it, love just messes up your senses. And what if I don't want it?" Golden replied her tone serious.
"Don't lie to me, Alex. I can read you like a book. I *know* you want it," his blue eyes showed emotions Golden had never seen before.
Before she could reply, Nathan leaned forward and kissed her. His lips caressed her own. She was stunned with shock for a moment before she wrapped her arms around his neck and started to kiss him back.
"I knew you wanted this," he said as they pulled apart, his smile smug.
Nathan picked her up and sat her down on the bed and kissed her again.
"I care so much about you, Nathan," Golden whispered as he pushed her gently onto her back.
He smirked down at her. "You think I don't know that?" he asked and kissed her again.
~*~*~*
Golden was polishing her favourite knife as she sat in the common room of the Dancing Dove. It was only an hour or two after dusk and the inn was only starting to get rowdy and crowded. The front door was slammed open with such force she almost thought it would be knocked off its hinges.
Half startled, her golden orbs snapped off her knife and went to the person standing in the door way, the man was breathing heavily almost as if he had been running or on a tiring journey. He half walk- half staggered over to her and handed over a sealed envelope.
"Get this man some water!" she ordered and a tankard of cold water was passed to him. Tearing open the envelope, she read its contents her eyes widening a bit as she finished.
"Is this true?" she asked the messenger.
" 'Fraid so, Golden," his voice was glum.
"This is serious bad news. They need to be warned," Golden muttered as she tapped the envelope against the table top.
"Wha' do ya mean, girl?" he quested.
Golden looked up at him. His hair was a vague shade of mousy brown, his eye a dull blue -grey. He was lean, but bordering on thin. She gave a sad sigh, "They're friends of mine. They haven't done anything wrong or anything that they should be killed for."
Golden put her knife back in its proper housing and left the common room only to go to the stables and bird cages. She wrote a short note on a slip of parchment before she tied it to the leg of a small -but quiet fast- bird.
"Take it to Neal, my love," she whispered to the bird as she let it fly.
"And here I was thinking, that I was your love," a voice behind her remarked softly.
"Well, Nath, you can be sure you have no major competition in your battle over me," she told him as he wrapped her in his arms.
"What about the bird? He seems pretty attached to you."
"Him? He ain't such a great kisser," she shook her head.
"Am I a great kisser?" his voice was whisper quiet, but was full of raw emotion. Golden shivered.
"I'm not sure. You'll have to give me a demonstration, I'm afraid."
Nathan bent down slightly and kissed her with passion she never knew existed. "That good enough demonstration for you?"
"I don't believe so."
~*~*~*
I hope you like the romance that was in this chappie. Please tell me what you think of it in a review.
Press the pretty purple button. You know you want to. Press it! Please?
Galux Phoenix.
The button you want is down there V.
I just realised I made a mistake in the last chapter when I said that the lions had died out. I remembered that there were some lions in the Emperor Mage. Sorry about that!!!!
And this chappie *does* have some romance in it. I don't know what you'll think of it, so tell me! I hope you'll like it.
Please Review!!!!!
QUEEN OF KNIVES.
CHAPTER 4: BAD NEWS.
Galux Phoenix.
A few weeks after Golden had dragged her former teacher back to the Dancing Dove news came in. Bad news.
She sat in her chair, her feet on the table in front of her, tankard of ale in one hand and in the other she was twirling a knife between her fingers. Her gold eyes were unfocused and glazed over as she sat there staring blankly at the knife target that had been set up on the opposite wall. A couple of knives had already been thrown in order to see who was the best a throwing knives.
"I'm the best!" a male voice interrupted her thoughts and she snapped back to reality.
"No! I am!" another argued. She looked at the speakers. Both of them were about her age, they both were reasonably good thieves, just not the best.
One of them, Swiftness, was good at fast steals. His hair was black and cut quiet short, his eyes a starling green. Swiftness was renowned for having a temper and getting himself completely drunk on holidays. He was tall for his age, but he was lanky and looked uncoordinated, which was completely the opposite, Swiftness had grace.
The second of the two was Jackson. When people asked him why he hadn't got a thief name he would answer with a simple 'I like me name just the way it is,'. Jackson's eyes were a deep grey, his hair a sun bleached blonde that brushed the tips of his ears carelessly.
"You couldn't hit a target if you were sitting on it!!" Swiftness snapped.
"Yeah? Well you couldn't hit one if it bit you on the arse!!" Jackson retorted.
The two of them stood there yelled abuse and insults at each other with out a care in the world. A malicious smile broke over Golden's face as she watched them. after a few more minutes of their yelled the pair of them stopped to catch their breath.
"You two really want to know who's the best?" one of the server girls, Jerri, asked.
"Who then?" Swiftness snapped as Jackson drained his ale.
"Her," Jerri jerked her head at Golden who was still smiling maliciously. "Have either of you two seen her throw? I have. She's the best," Jerri's voice was matter of fact.
Golden knew what they were talking about, they didn't exactly keep their voices down.
"Are you sure about that?" Jackson asked before raising his voice a notch, "Are you going to prove Jerri right about this, Golden?"
She gave him a quizzical look before draining her tankard and standing up. "Three shots each. Both of you against me. Three metres from the target."
"Make it four," Swiftness interrupted.
"Ok, then," Golden said as she took out another two knives from her boots to add to the on still in her hand. "One of you can go first."
Jackson shrugged and stepped up to a line that was painted on the floor, four metres away from the target they were supposed to hit.
His first knife hit just below the centre on the target, his second an inch to the left of it and his third landed barley three millimetres off.
Golden tilted her head to one side, "Not too bad for someone like you."
Jackson totally ignored her comment as he pulled the knives from the target. Swiftness stalked over to the line pulled out three knives from his boots. He threw them in a fast succession. All three landed in the centre circle, two on the outer edges and one at its centre. He sent Golden a smug smirk.
"Beat that, if you're so good."
"You bet I will." Golden's smile was pure evil.
She settled herself on the painted line and threw her first knife, making it land in the centre of the target. In a rapid movement she had the other two knives barely a millimetre away from her first knife.
Her smile was smug as she looked at the expressions on her friends' faces. "I did tell you I would beat you, did I not?"
"I told you that she was the best!" Jerri exclaimed happily.
"I'm not sure about best in the country, but I give 'em a run for their money," Golden stated as she returned to her room.
~*~*~*
"You know that they were telling you the truth, don't you?" Nathan asked as she stepped into her room.
"What do you mean, Nath?" Golden wondered as she locked the door behind her.
"You're the best. And you know it well. Why do you deny the truth? You know as well as I that you could go back to the old place and show everyone who said you wouldn't make it that you did. You put yourself down to much, Alex. Do I have to make you feel better about yourself?"
"I don't deny it. Leo is better than me, and Alex died a long time ago," Golden shook her head at him.
Nathan took a few steps forward and gripped her elbows tightly. "Why do you lock me out? Why do you deny love? Why do you push away something that you know you want?"
"Because, you're my oldest friend and if it didn't work out, it might ruin our friendship. I don't deny it, love just messes up your senses. And what if I don't want it?" Golden replied her tone serious.
"Don't lie to me, Alex. I can read you like a book. I *know* you want it," his blue eyes showed emotions Golden had never seen before.
Before she could reply, Nathan leaned forward and kissed her. His lips caressed her own. She was stunned with shock for a moment before she wrapped her arms around his neck and started to kiss him back.
"I knew you wanted this," he said as they pulled apart, his smile smug.
Nathan picked her up and sat her down on the bed and kissed her again.
"I care so much about you, Nathan," Golden whispered as he pushed her gently onto her back.
He smirked down at her. "You think I don't know that?" he asked and kissed her again.
~*~*~*
Golden was polishing her favourite knife as she sat in the common room of the Dancing Dove. It was only an hour or two after dusk and the inn was only starting to get rowdy and crowded. The front door was slammed open with such force she almost thought it would be knocked off its hinges.
Half startled, her golden orbs snapped off her knife and went to the person standing in the door way, the man was breathing heavily almost as if he had been running or on a tiring journey. He half walk- half staggered over to her and handed over a sealed envelope.
"Get this man some water!" she ordered and a tankard of cold water was passed to him. Tearing open the envelope, she read its contents her eyes widening a bit as she finished.
"Is this true?" she asked the messenger.
" 'Fraid so, Golden," his voice was glum.
"This is serious bad news. They need to be warned," Golden muttered as she tapped the envelope against the table top.
"Wha' do ya mean, girl?" he quested.
Golden looked up at him. His hair was a vague shade of mousy brown, his eye a dull blue -grey. He was lean, but bordering on thin. She gave a sad sigh, "They're friends of mine. They haven't done anything wrong or anything that they should be killed for."
Golden put her knife back in its proper housing and left the common room only to go to the stables and bird cages. She wrote a short note on a slip of parchment before she tied it to the leg of a small -but quiet fast- bird.
"Take it to Neal, my love," she whispered to the bird as she let it fly.
"And here I was thinking, that I was your love," a voice behind her remarked softly.
"Well, Nath, you can be sure you have no major competition in your battle over me," she told him as he wrapped her in his arms.
"What about the bird? He seems pretty attached to you."
"Him? He ain't such a great kisser," she shook her head.
"Am I a great kisser?" his voice was whisper quiet, but was full of raw emotion. Golden shivered.
"I'm not sure. You'll have to give me a demonstration, I'm afraid."
Nathan bent down slightly and kissed her with passion she never knew existed. "That good enough demonstration for you?"
"I don't believe so."
~*~*~*
I hope you like the romance that was in this chappie. Please tell me what you think of it in a review.
Press the pretty purple button. You know you want to. Press it! Please?
Galux Phoenix.
The button you want is down there V.