I hope that in this chapter you learn a little bit more about how Jadeite's
mind works. I got a review saying that the personality of Rei was great. .
.which means that I have portrayed her in exactly the light that I wished,
but I had also hoped that Jadeite would be described in a like manner. At
any rate. . .hopefully the next few chapters will help to make Jadeite's
personality a little easier to understand. I hope you enjoy it! Read and
review, please! ~Lady Hino
"I must go to Nephrite. . ." he said to himself when he woke in the morning. He pressed the dry silk swathe to his eyes and then folded it neatly on the table. "Nephrite will help me. . ." he whispered, ". . .it's all the work with the court and the tension of the fair coming to pass, that's what's bringing on the dreams." But in truth, it was not, he realized. It was not the anxiety and the lines of people, it was the same demons that had haunted his dreams just after Jason died, and they would not stop.
He shook his head to rid himself of the unwanted thoughts then pulled on his jacket. He silently convinced himself that being with someone who was frequented by the same demons that he was would be able to help him control his own. If only it were true, he later told himself as he scribbled a quick note to his friend. "Take this to Nephrite, Ares. . .and look for Tyche while you're gone," he told his hawk as he threw a pair of breeches into a trunk.
'His highness is packing alone?' Ares asked curiously after taking the note he had been given.
"Yes. . .now go. . ." he whispered back. This was the worst it had been. What he had seen in his dream was too much like reality. Jason was gone; he had to keep telling himself. Sora was over wrought with grief after discovering that his older brother had died in battle. Jadeite had comforted him to his best ability, but in truth, he wasn't sure that everything he told his friend was entirely true. Everything was not all right and things would not get better. Jason was still gone; Jadeite's best friend was dead. . .his brother was dead.
He couldn't stay in this room much longer. He and Jason had planned attacks in this bedroom, had practiced their shooting from that balcony. They had known each other for twenty-five years. Jadeite ran a shaking hand through his golden hair and sighed heavily. They would leave before the mid-day meal.
Resigned to that fact, he strode stiffly toward the goddess' room and knocked. "Reina. . .get your things together, we're leaving within the hour," he said softly. As he suspected, she opened the door, and her beauty once again struck him. "Hurry, Reina."
"Are we going to see the king?" she asked hopefully. Jadeite paused for a moment; did he hear a bit of disappointment in her words? Or was it that same anxious hope that he had been hearing before?
"No, we aren't. . .but it is imperative that we leave soon. . ." he said softly.
This has something to do about last night, Rei said to herself. "I'll get ready then. . ."
"Thank you," he managed quietly. She of all people did not need to know what possessed him to move as quickly as he was going to. "I'll send someone up to fetch you soon."
"Where are we bound for?" she asked softly.
Jadeite paused and looked down at her. She was a vision that he could not tear away from. He reluctantly backed away from her and put on the best smile he could. "Spain, Reina. . .to visit a friend of mine. He has a small palace near Granada. It will do you good to get away from England, I think. . ." he said.
Rei smothered a gasp and nodded politely. "I'll be ready when I am summoned," she said with a smile. She saw him nod stiffly then move away from her.
England. . .she silently breathed to herself. I'm in England. . .
After weeks of trying to discern where she was, it finally came out. She must be in the country, a palace near the forest? For it was obvious that there were not many city buildings. But exactly what part of England, she would not know. If she could just get him to tell her something.
Shaking her head at the insane thought, she grabbed the nearest gown she saw and threw it into one of the trunks that stood on its side in the dressing room. "I am being a fool," she said as she grabbed several sashes and folded them into the trunk.
Just as she was ready to tie another sash around her waist, there was a knock at her door. She ran to answer it, hoping that it would be Jadeite telling her that he had changed his mind and they were headed for Japan to visit the High King. She jerked the door open with a smile on her face, then faltered.
"So this is where you've been hiding?" asked a familiar voice.
She had wondered what happened to him. She hadn't heard about him in weeks. "Sora. . ." she breathed. She realized then that he had knocked on the door that led to the hall, and not the parlor separating her chamber from Jadeite's. "I-that is I have not been hiding. . ." she said quickly.
"No, you've not been hiding. Jadeite's been keeping you under lock and key. I was worried about you. . .when I went back to my room and discovered you missing."
Rei felt her heart go out to him in that moment.
"I almost sent out my dogs to try and find you. Of course, then I remembered that Jadeite doesn't appreciate having my 'wild' dogs run about while his birds are flitting around the palace. I was then tempted to search every inch of the palace grounds for you. It was then that I happened to meet up with Jadeite. He told me that he had you in his care. Imagine my shock. . ." he looked at her then with eyes that blazed in their brown fire, then he smiled stiffly. "I'm glad you found a higher lord to tend to your needs. I understand that you are departing for Spain at any possible moment. I will leave you then and allow you to finish packing and making yourself ready for the trip."
She felt a rising anger at his remarks but bottled the feeling away and looked after him as he turned his heel and stepped away from her door. His shoulders were squared and his hands gripped tightly behind his back. "Sora!" she called.
He turned with a frown.
"I'm sorry about all of this, Sora. I didn't mean to hurt you in anyway. . ." she said with a hand fisted against her breast. She hated knowing that she had upset this kind-yet perverse-man any more. "I pray we can be friends?"
Sora closed his eyes for a moment to block her beautiful image, the image that had been haunting him for the past fortnight. He couldn't get her out of his mind. He had seen her naked and touched her skin, it was too much to bear. "I bid you have a safe journey. . ." he forced out, then turned around again and was on his way.
Rei slumped against the doorway and frowned at herself. She had lost a potential friend.
* * *
Jadeite reined his horse at the small cottage he had set up for Lily near the edge of the village. He was carrying a small box with a gold chain snuggled inside. He had been planning this for the past few weeks. He would give her the gift then tell her it was over. It had been four years with her, yet it just seemed to him that lately things were not working out with the two of them. He had avoided her these past few weeks, unnerved by the fact that he felt guilty every time he was with her.
He breathed deep. This trip was an advantage for him. It would give him reason to put distance between them. He nodded to himself to reassure his guilty mind. This was for the best. They could remain friends of course; she had cared for his heir and his precious little girl. He would have to take Hawk with him and would work out a schedule out so that he could visit Isabelle every so often. He would miss the adorable little girl too much if he were separated from her. Thank the gods that the plan was for him to take both children back within a year.
He steeled himself for her lovely face then and knocked lightly on the door.
It opened slowly to reveal a darkened room that had been messed about until it looked as if fifty D'lnor soldiers had run through the place, knocking everything they saw to the ground.
A surge of fear leapt into his veins. It was much too quiet for someone to be alive in there. He pushed the door open fully then took a step inside. "Lily!" he shouted, stepping over an overturned chair.
There was no answer, only the sickening silence that dragged his heart into his stomach. "Hawk! Belle!" he yelled. He at least expected Belle to come running out from around the corner, her thumb in her mouth and her eyes bright, as she always greeted him. He became increasingly nervous when nothing happened.
Where was Lily? And what on Earth had happened? He searched his mind quickly. Whenever he requested privacy with Lily, she always sent the children to a neighbor's home. Which one, he asked himself with a snarl. It was close, of that he was certain. Mrs. . .Mrs. . .Mrs. Don. . .Mrs. Dov. . .Mrs. Dover! Mrs. Dover, the old widow who lived just a ten minute walk from Lily.
He dropped his gift then and rushed back outside and swung himself onto his horse. He turned Notus to the left and dashed up the road until he reached the old widow's small home. He jumped off his stallion without bothering to tie him up, then ran to the front door and banged loudly on it. "Mrs. Dover!" he yelled through the thin barrier.
He watched impatiently as the old woman opened the door a crack to stare at him. "Oh, sire!" she cried when her eyes met his. She instantly pulled open the door and moved aside to let him in.
"Where is she?" he asked quickly.
"Who, sire?"
"Lily! Where is she?" he yelled.
"Papa!"
Jadeite spun around and released a sigh of relief when he saw three-year- old Isabelle running toward him. He scooped her into his arms and hugged her as tightly as he could. "Gods, Belle! What happened to you?" he asked harshly.
The little girl smiled brightly at her father and wrapped her arms around his neck. She then rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, content that he was here with her.
"Papa!" Jadeite heard again. He looked toward the staircase leading to the second story and felt the tears of relief sting the back of his eyes. "Hawk." he breathed when the little boy threw himself at his father's legs. "What happened to Lily?" he asked when the little boy had let him go.
"Lily is gone, Papa," Hawk said with bright eyes.
"Lily's gone. . ." Belle repeated softly. Jadeite and Lily had agreed that Isabelle would refer to her as Lily rather than mother. Jadeite planned to take both of his children back to his palace after Belle turned four, then tell his parents that he had gone to pick up Hawk and Belle from Kat's family. He had devised the perfect story for them.
"What happened?" he asked Hawk.
The little boy looked nervously at Jadeite then shrugged. "She brought us here last night and told us to mind Mrs. Dover."
"Have you?" he asked.
"Yes, we have, Papa. . ." Hawk said carefully. "Then Lily left."
"That's all?" he asked his son, "There was no letter for me or anything else?"
Hawk turned concerned eyes toward Mrs. Dover. She nodded to him and stepped forward. "Miss Atler said only that you would come for them and that she had to get away. She didn't say when, or if, she would be returning."
Jadeite nodded slowly then sank down in a chair with his small burden. Belle simply cuddled closer to her father and stuck her tiny thumb into her mouth. Jadeite gently pulled the thumb out then turned to Mrs. Dover. "I thank you for all that you've done," he said softly. "I will take the children with me today." he said with his eyes closed.
"But, sire. . .surely. . ."
"Do not worry about us, Mrs. Dover. You have helped us maintain this secret for so long. I wish there were some way I could repay you. . ." he said looking up at her.
Mrs. Dover smiled warmly then tucked a strand of honey blonde hair behind Isabelle's ear. "I love these little ones to bits, sire. And your secret shall always be safe with me. I don't need anything in return."
Jadeite smiled faintly at the woman and stood. "I'll find a way to repay you, Mrs. Dover. . ." he said with passion. He then looked at Hawk. "Have you anything? Clothes and the lot?" he asked the boy.
Hawk nodded wildly. He would be living with his father instead of the woman who didn't care for him. "I've got a valise and so does Belle. Lily packed them very quickly so our clothes are all wrinkled," he said scrunching his nose. Jadeite smiled widely at that. He looked like his mother.
"Go and fetch them if you can. I'm going to get Notus ready," he said softly. He knew the stallion could bear the weight of two very small children. Notus had carried he and a wounded Sora many a time. He carried the drowsy Belle with him to the stallion and grabbed the reins.
It was then he realized that he could not show the children at his home. If his parents saw Hawk, they would instantly badger him with questions. He would have to sneak them into his room and keep them quiet. There was a very real chance that he could use one of the teleportation marks and send them to the ship and have them watched by the first mate. He shook his head. No, he would not leave them alone again.
He sighed heavily and pressed his head to Belle's. "Well, lovely, what am I to do?" he asked the little girl.
Lily smiled at her father then kissed his cheek. "Papa take Belle home?" she asked.
Jadeite considered the thought before responding. "Yes, I will take you home, lovely, but first I must take you on a ship and then I will take you to Madame Louisa and get you some pretty little dresses to wear. Then I will take you shopping for a new doll in Spain. How does that sound, lovely?"
Belle looked up and frowned. "Belle has a doll, papa. Mrs. Dover made it for Belle."
Jadeite smiled sadly. "But wouldn't you love to have a new one, lovely?"
Belle shrugged and rested her head against her father's chest once more.
Jadeite let out a sigh and shook his head. He was going to have to sneak the children into his rooms and then introduce them to Reina so that they could ride with her in the carriage. He could possibly pass them off as one of his servants children, but he feared that Belle would not understand.
"Papa!" Hawk cried as raced from the small home carrying two small bags. "I've got our things. Can we leave?"
Jadeite smiled at the boy. He was eager to please and eager to be with his father. "Of course we can, Garrick," he said to the boy. He led Notus to a mounting stone and helped his son climb onto the large stallion, then he arranged Belle in her brother's lap. Smiling softly at his brood he swung himself into the saddle and waved to Mrs. Dover. "I shall write to you," he said to her.
"Just keep the little ones safe, sire," she called back.
* * *
'Highness! You must be out of your mind to bring your children with you to Prince Nephrite's palace in Spain! They will not fit there!'
Jadeite glared hotly at the white owl and pointed to the window. "Go and find Ares, Tyche! He has been searching for you all morning. Seeing as how irresponsible you were in not even sending us word when you were gone for so long, I fail to see how your opinions on my behavior should move me."
Tyche spread his wings and looked toward the bed where the children slept peacefully. 'You will regret this thing you do.'
Jadeite silently agreed with the wise owl then turned his back.
'I will see you in Spain.'
Jadeite listened for the distinct flutter of wings before he advanced on the sleeping babes. He had cast a light sleeping spell on them, hoping for an easy transport to the ship. He prayed they would sleep all the way. He would explain to his first mate and every other on the ship what he had planned to tell his mother and father. But keeping them quite while he got them to the sea would be difficult.
He sat on the bed beside them and stared despite himself. They were lovely children. Garrick had inherited his mother's rich brown hair and pert mouth, but the eyes were his own, a deep sapphire blue with green fire. Jadeite smiled and smoothed a tousled strand back into place.
He then turned his attention to Belle. She looked like Lily more than himself. Her light golden honey hair was a blessing from him, yet her eyes were her mother's. They were the most appealing shade of green and they sparkled with golden flames when she became angry or mischievous. He had to smile at that. This was his precious jewel, the one thing he lived for.
There was a knock on the door just then, and before he had time to stop himself, he called for them to come. He immediately swore under his breath when the words were out then turned around to greet the trespasser. "Reina?" he asked in shock when he saw the lovely vision step into the room.
"I'm sorry to bother you, sire, but-" she paused when she saw the children sleeping behind him. "Who-who are they?" she asked stunned.
Jadeite turned around and sighed. Might as well tell her, he thought to himself. Soon everyone will know about them. Just stick the story and all will be well. "They are mine. . ." he said softly. Best to start off the story slow and with a frown. He had practiced this too many times in his mind when he and Lily had first come up with the insane idea.
"Yours?" Rei asked staring at the lovely children. "By. . .who?"
Jadeite took a deep breath-he had hoped this would make the story seem hard to tell-and looked at her with a sad smile. "By my first wife."
"Wife?" she echoed.
This was a bit harder to explain than he thought. It didn't help that she wasn't here six years ago when he had been married. "I was married at nineteen to a young princess from France. She was seventeen, I believe. The marriage wasn't my wish, but our fathers'. We had been betrothed since her birth. I was actually supposed to marry the girl when I was eighteen, but I had refused mightily for a year until I finally had to relent due to financial problems in our kingdom," he stopped to smile. At least that part was true. There had been no rain that year and no crops to be harvested. Despite the fact that his father was king over all of Europe- and more-he later found that the family Jadeite as betrothed to had several wealthy holdings in the west. They sold them to help bring money into the marriage.
Jadeite looked at the lovely girl to see how she was reacting. She had sat herself in a chair near his desk and was regarding him with a raised eyebrow. An extremely lovely eyebrow that Jadeite wanted to run his thumb across. He looked instead at the floor and continued. "I got her with child soon after and she bore me a son-Garrick. He was named after my grandfather, but nicknamed after Ares. His eyes always seemed to light up whenever he gazed at the golden hawk.
"Soon after my son's birth, I went back to another war to help Endymion. When I came back I had this feeling that she was hiding something from me. I thought nothing of it at first and treated her strangeness as a normalcy. Later I discovered that she was gravely ill. . ." he paused to take a deep breath. It was getting increasingly harder to tell the lie.
Kat had been ill, but not with disease. She had been ill in the mind. He had followed her on one of the coldest nights in winter for he feared that she was ill and something would happen to her. He had found her gazing up at a large estate, then noticed she shivered and ran. He followed her back to the palace and managed to corner her in the nursery where she was staring daggers at their son.
"What are you doing, Kat?" he asked with his fists clenched.
The lovely woman turned with an angry frown. "Nothing, your highness."
"You lie, Kat. I saw you at that large estate. What were you doing there?"
Kat looked into his eyes. They were blazing with the legendary blue fire that had scared so many soldiers in battle and that had made warlords quiver in their shoes. "I-I was just looking at it."
Jadeite stalked toward her as she cowered back. "Tell me what you were doing, Kat!" he demanded.
She couldn't lie to him now, she realized. He would know. He always knew. She snapped out of her reverie when he pressed her against the wall. "I was there to survey the house!"
"Why?"
"I'm going to make a lot of money, Jadeite. We need it, you know that!"
Jadeite ground his teeth. "We do not need money, Kat. Our country's crops were good this spring and I have managed to build up the economy during the war. You know that, Kat! You know we are not paupers. We have never been. . .Besides, what would looking at that house have to do with anything? Were you planning on selling it to Kunzite for a high sum?"
"The owners are a very wealthy couple who would pay anything to have children!"
"What are you trying to say?" he asked, though he suspected her answer.
"It would have been discreet, Jadeite. I would have announced that I found Garrick dead and that I buried him by myself because of my anguish. No one would have known. In fact, very few people have seen Garrick. They would not know him if they saw him."
Jadeite took a deep breath to calm his anger. It was no use, his own wife- a princess-was planning on selling his child.
He shook his head of the memory when he realized he had stopped speaking. "I'm sorry," he said softly.
"You loved your wife, then?" Rei asked carefully.
"No, but I. . .I felt her pain. . ." he lied. In truth he despised the woman. "Where was I? Oh yes.after I discovered her illness, I took my son to my former steward's home where he and his wife took care of him. I told my parents about my wife's health and they immediately agreed to send her home to be with her family. So, she left. . .very discreetly, might I add.
"A few months later we spoke to the bishop and had the marriage terminated," he paused for dramatic effect. He also paused to consider the next part of his wild tale. This was the difficult part. "Several months after Garrick's second birthday, a messenger arrived carrying a babe. He was one of my men, actually was the steward that had taken Garrick so long ago. He told me that he had gone to visit a relative when he discovered that the princess, my former wife, had given birth to a daughter. . .my daughter."
Rei stared at this handsome prince with something between disbelief and sympathy. She knew he was hiding something. His story had too many gaps in it to be true. "I'm sorry to hear this. It must be terrible for you to remember," she said gently. If it were the truth, she felt his sadness. If it were false, she would have to hear the truth to feel any sympathy toward him.
Jadeite didn't know whether to smile or blurt out the truth. This girl knew he was lying, but was kind enough to stay silent. "I have them now only because I have left them in the care of my steward too long. They belong with their father."
"Are they journeying to Spain, as well, sire?"
Jadeite nodded sadly. He felt extremely guilty that he had told this innocent girl a lie. A very big lie, at that. He shook his head, refusing to let that simple fact bother him, and then he stood. "Well, I trust that you came here to ask a question, Reina. What is it I can help you with?" he asked, all seriousness drifting away.
Rei stood as well and looked around her for a moment, trying to summon up what it was she had come to him for. "I-I have forgotten, sire. I am sorry. I shall be ready to leave within the hour, if that is all right with you."
Jadeite nodded slowly and turned back to look at the sleeping children. He waited until he heard the door close before he approached the bed. He closed his eyes. One hour before he could leave this palace.
"I must go to Nephrite. . ." he said to himself when he woke in the morning. He pressed the dry silk swathe to his eyes and then folded it neatly on the table. "Nephrite will help me. . ." he whispered, ". . .it's all the work with the court and the tension of the fair coming to pass, that's what's bringing on the dreams." But in truth, it was not, he realized. It was not the anxiety and the lines of people, it was the same demons that had haunted his dreams just after Jason died, and they would not stop.
He shook his head to rid himself of the unwanted thoughts then pulled on his jacket. He silently convinced himself that being with someone who was frequented by the same demons that he was would be able to help him control his own. If only it were true, he later told himself as he scribbled a quick note to his friend. "Take this to Nephrite, Ares. . .and look for Tyche while you're gone," he told his hawk as he threw a pair of breeches into a trunk.
'His highness is packing alone?' Ares asked curiously after taking the note he had been given.
"Yes. . .now go. . ." he whispered back. This was the worst it had been. What he had seen in his dream was too much like reality. Jason was gone; he had to keep telling himself. Sora was over wrought with grief after discovering that his older brother had died in battle. Jadeite had comforted him to his best ability, but in truth, he wasn't sure that everything he told his friend was entirely true. Everything was not all right and things would not get better. Jason was still gone; Jadeite's best friend was dead. . .his brother was dead.
He couldn't stay in this room much longer. He and Jason had planned attacks in this bedroom, had practiced their shooting from that balcony. They had known each other for twenty-five years. Jadeite ran a shaking hand through his golden hair and sighed heavily. They would leave before the mid-day meal.
Resigned to that fact, he strode stiffly toward the goddess' room and knocked. "Reina. . .get your things together, we're leaving within the hour," he said softly. As he suspected, she opened the door, and her beauty once again struck him. "Hurry, Reina."
"Are we going to see the king?" she asked hopefully. Jadeite paused for a moment; did he hear a bit of disappointment in her words? Or was it that same anxious hope that he had been hearing before?
"No, we aren't. . .but it is imperative that we leave soon. . ." he said softly.
This has something to do about last night, Rei said to herself. "I'll get ready then. . ."
"Thank you," he managed quietly. She of all people did not need to know what possessed him to move as quickly as he was going to. "I'll send someone up to fetch you soon."
"Where are we bound for?" she asked softly.
Jadeite paused and looked down at her. She was a vision that he could not tear away from. He reluctantly backed away from her and put on the best smile he could. "Spain, Reina. . .to visit a friend of mine. He has a small palace near Granada. It will do you good to get away from England, I think. . ." he said.
Rei smothered a gasp and nodded politely. "I'll be ready when I am summoned," she said with a smile. She saw him nod stiffly then move away from her.
England. . .she silently breathed to herself. I'm in England. . .
After weeks of trying to discern where she was, it finally came out. She must be in the country, a palace near the forest? For it was obvious that there were not many city buildings. But exactly what part of England, she would not know. If she could just get him to tell her something.
Shaking her head at the insane thought, she grabbed the nearest gown she saw and threw it into one of the trunks that stood on its side in the dressing room. "I am being a fool," she said as she grabbed several sashes and folded them into the trunk.
Just as she was ready to tie another sash around her waist, there was a knock at her door. She ran to answer it, hoping that it would be Jadeite telling her that he had changed his mind and they were headed for Japan to visit the High King. She jerked the door open with a smile on her face, then faltered.
"So this is where you've been hiding?" asked a familiar voice.
She had wondered what happened to him. She hadn't heard about him in weeks. "Sora. . ." she breathed. She realized then that he had knocked on the door that led to the hall, and not the parlor separating her chamber from Jadeite's. "I-that is I have not been hiding. . ." she said quickly.
"No, you've not been hiding. Jadeite's been keeping you under lock and key. I was worried about you. . .when I went back to my room and discovered you missing."
Rei felt her heart go out to him in that moment.
"I almost sent out my dogs to try and find you. Of course, then I remembered that Jadeite doesn't appreciate having my 'wild' dogs run about while his birds are flitting around the palace. I was then tempted to search every inch of the palace grounds for you. It was then that I happened to meet up with Jadeite. He told me that he had you in his care. Imagine my shock. . ." he looked at her then with eyes that blazed in their brown fire, then he smiled stiffly. "I'm glad you found a higher lord to tend to your needs. I understand that you are departing for Spain at any possible moment. I will leave you then and allow you to finish packing and making yourself ready for the trip."
She felt a rising anger at his remarks but bottled the feeling away and looked after him as he turned his heel and stepped away from her door. His shoulders were squared and his hands gripped tightly behind his back. "Sora!" she called.
He turned with a frown.
"I'm sorry about all of this, Sora. I didn't mean to hurt you in anyway. . ." she said with a hand fisted against her breast. She hated knowing that she had upset this kind-yet perverse-man any more. "I pray we can be friends?"
Sora closed his eyes for a moment to block her beautiful image, the image that had been haunting him for the past fortnight. He couldn't get her out of his mind. He had seen her naked and touched her skin, it was too much to bear. "I bid you have a safe journey. . ." he forced out, then turned around again and was on his way.
Rei slumped against the doorway and frowned at herself. She had lost a potential friend.
* * *
Jadeite reined his horse at the small cottage he had set up for Lily near the edge of the village. He was carrying a small box with a gold chain snuggled inside. He had been planning this for the past few weeks. He would give her the gift then tell her it was over. It had been four years with her, yet it just seemed to him that lately things were not working out with the two of them. He had avoided her these past few weeks, unnerved by the fact that he felt guilty every time he was with her.
He breathed deep. This trip was an advantage for him. It would give him reason to put distance between them. He nodded to himself to reassure his guilty mind. This was for the best. They could remain friends of course; she had cared for his heir and his precious little girl. He would have to take Hawk with him and would work out a schedule out so that he could visit Isabelle every so often. He would miss the adorable little girl too much if he were separated from her. Thank the gods that the plan was for him to take both children back within a year.
He steeled himself for her lovely face then and knocked lightly on the door.
It opened slowly to reveal a darkened room that had been messed about until it looked as if fifty D'lnor soldiers had run through the place, knocking everything they saw to the ground.
A surge of fear leapt into his veins. It was much too quiet for someone to be alive in there. He pushed the door open fully then took a step inside. "Lily!" he shouted, stepping over an overturned chair.
There was no answer, only the sickening silence that dragged his heart into his stomach. "Hawk! Belle!" he yelled. He at least expected Belle to come running out from around the corner, her thumb in her mouth and her eyes bright, as she always greeted him. He became increasingly nervous when nothing happened.
Where was Lily? And what on Earth had happened? He searched his mind quickly. Whenever he requested privacy with Lily, she always sent the children to a neighbor's home. Which one, he asked himself with a snarl. It was close, of that he was certain. Mrs. . .Mrs. . .Mrs. Don. . .Mrs. Dov. . .Mrs. Dover! Mrs. Dover, the old widow who lived just a ten minute walk from Lily.
He dropped his gift then and rushed back outside and swung himself onto his horse. He turned Notus to the left and dashed up the road until he reached the old widow's small home. He jumped off his stallion without bothering to tie him up, then ran to the front door and banged loudly on it. "Mrs. Dover!" he yelled through the thin barrier.
He watched impatiently as the old woman opened the door a crack to stare at him. "Oh, sire!" she cried when her eyes met his. She instantly pulled open the door and moved aside to let him in.
"Where is she?" he asked quickly.
"Who, sire?"
"Lily! Where is she?" he yelled.
"Papa!"
Jadeite spun around and released a sigh of relief when he saw three-year- old Isabelle running toward him. He scooped her into his arms and hugged her as tightly as he could. "Gods, Belle! What happened to you?" he asked harshly.
The little girl smiled brightly at her father and wrapped her arms around his neck. She then rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, content that he was here with her.
"Papa!" Jadeite heard again. He looked toward the staircase leading to the second story and felt the tears of relief sting the back of his eyes. "Hawk." he breathed when the little boy threw himself at his father's legs. "What happened to Lily?" he asked when the little boy had let him go.
"Lily is gone, Papa," Hawk said with bright eyes.
"Lily's gone. . ." Belle repeated softly. Jadeite and Lily had agreed that Isabelle would refer to her as Lily rather than mother. Jadeite planned to take both of his children back to his palace after Belle turned four, then tell his parents that he had gone to pick up Hawk and Belle from Kat's family. He had devised the perfect story for them.
"What happened?" he asked Hawk.
The little boy looked nervously at Jadeite then shrugged. "She brought us here last night and told us to mind Mrs. Dover."
"Have you?" he asked.
"Yes, we have, Papa. . ." Hawk said carefully. "Then Lily left."
"That's all?" he asked his son, "There was no letter for me or anything else?"
Hawk turned concerned eyes toward Mrs. Dover. She nodded to him and stepped forward. "Miss Atler said only that you would come for them and that she had to get away. She didn't say when, or if, she would be returning."
Jadeite nodded slowly then sank down in a chair with his small burden. Belle simply cuddled closer to her father and stuck her tiny thumb into her mouth. Jadeite gently pulled the thumb out then turned to Mrs. Dover. "I thank you for all that you've done," he said softly. "I will take the children with me today." he said with his eyes closed.
"But, sire. . .surely. . ."
"Do not worry about us, Mrs. Dover. You have helped us maintain this secret for so long. I wish there were some way I could repay you. . ." he said looking up at her.
Mrs. Dover smiled warmly then tucked a strand of honey blonde hair behind Isabelle's ear. "I love these little ones to bits, sire. And your secret shall always be safe with me. I don't need anything in return."
Jadeite smiled faintly at the woman and stood. "I'll find a way to repay you, Mrs. Dover. . ." he said with passion. He then looked at Hawk. "Have you anything? Clothes and the lot?" he asked the boy.
Hawk nodded wildly. He would be living with his father instead of the woman who didn't care for him. "I've got a valise and so does Belle. Lily packed them very quickly so our clothes are all wrinkled," he said scrunching his nose. Jadeite smiled widely at that. He looked like his mother.
"Go and fetch them if you can. I'm going to get Notus ready," he said softly. He knew the stallion could bear the weight of two very small children. Notus had carried he and a wounded Sora many a time. He carried the drowsy Belle with him to the stallion and grabbed the reins.
It was then he realized that he could not show the children at his home. If his parents saw Hawk, they would instantly badger him with questions. He would have to sneak them into his room and keep them quiet. There was a very real chance that he could use one of the teleportation marks and send them to the ship and have them watched by the first mate. He shook his head. No, he would not leave them alone again.
He sighed heavily and pressed his head to Belle's. "Well, lovely, what am I to do?" he asked the little girl.
Lily smiled at her father then kissed his cheek. "Papa take Belle home?" she asked.
Jadeite considered the thought before responding. "Yes, I will take you home, lovely, but first I must take you on a ship and then I will take you to Madame Louisa and get you some pretty little dresses to wear. Then I will take you shopping for a new doll in Spain. How does that sound, lovely?"
Belle looked up and frowned. "Belle has a doll, papa. Mrs. Dover made it for Belle."
Jadeite smiled sadly. "But wouldn't you love to have a new one, lovely?"
Belle shrugged and rested her head against her father's chest once more.
Jadeite let out a sigh and shook his head. He was going to have to sneak the children into his rooms and then introduce them to Reina so that they could ride with her in the carriage. He could possibly pass them off as one of his servants children, but he feared that Belle would not understand.
"Papa!" Hawk cried as raced from the small home carrying two small bags. "I've got our things. Can we leave?"
Jadeite smiled at the boy. He was eager to please and eager to be with his father. "Of course we can, Garrick," he said to the boy. He led Notus to a mounting stone and helped his son climb onto the large stallion, then he arranged Belle in her brother's lap. Smiling softly at his brood he swung himself into the saddle and waved to Mrs. Dover. "I shall write to you," he said to her.
"Just keep the little ones safe, sire," she called back.
* * *
'Highness! You must be out of your mind to bring your children with you to Prince Nephrite's palace in Spain! They will not fit there!'
Jadeite glared hotly at the white owl and pointed to the window. "Go and find Ares, Tyche! He has been searching for you all morning. Seeing as how irresponsible you were in not even sending us word when you were gone for so long, I fail to see how your opinions on my behavior should move me."
Tyche spread his wings and looked toward the bed where the children slept peacefully. 'You will regret this thing you do.'
Jadeite silently agreed with the wise owl then turned his back.
'I will see you in Spain.'
Jadeite listened for the distinct flutter of wings before he advanced on the sleeping babes. He had cast a light sleeping spell on them, hoping for an easy transport to the ship. He prayed they would sleep all the way. He would explain to his first mate and every other on the ship what he had planned to tell his mother and father. But keeping them quite while he got them to the sea would be difficult.
He sat on the bed beside them and stared despite himself. They were lovely children. Garrick had inherited his mother's rich brown hair and pert mouth, but the eyes were his own, a deep sapphire blue with green fire. Jadeite smiled and smoothed a tousled strand back into place.
He then turned his attention to Belle. She looked like Lily more than himself. Her light golden honey hair was a blessing from him, yet her eyes were her mother's. They were the most appealing shade of green and they sparkled with golden flames when she became angry or mischievous. He had to smile at that. This was his precious jewel, the one thing he lived for.
There was a knock on the door just then, and before he had time to stop himself, he called for them to come. He immediately swore under his breath when the words were out then turned around to greet the trespasser. "Reina?" he asked in shock when he saw the lovely vision step into the room.
"I'm sorry to bother you, sire, but-" she paused when she saw the children sleeping behind him. "Who-who are they?" she asked stunned.
Jadeite turned around and sighed. Might as well tell her, he thought to himself. Soon everyone will know about them. Just stick the story and all will be well. "They are mine. . ." he said softly. Best to start off the story slow and with a frown. He had practiced this too many times in his mind when he and Lily had first come up with the insane idea.
"Yours?" Rei asked staring at the lovely children. "By. . .who?"
Jadeite took a deep breath-he had hoped this would make the story seem hard to tell-and looked at her with a sad smile. "By my first wife."
"Wife?" she echoed.
This was a bit harder to explain than he thought. It didn't help that she wasn't here six years ago when he had been married. "I was married at nineteen to a young princess from France. She was seventeen, I believe. The marriage wasn't my wish, but our fathers'. We had been betrothed since her birth. I was actually supposed to marry the girl when I was eighteen, but I had refused mightily for a year until I finally had to relent due to financial problems in our kingdom," he stopped to smile. At least that part was true. There had been no rain that year and no crops to be harvested. Despite the fact that his father was king over all of Europe- and more-he later found that the family Jadeite as betrothed to had several wealthy holdings in the west. They sold them to help bring money into the marriage.
Jadeite looked at the lovely girl to see how she was reacting. She had sat herself in a chair near his desk and was regarding him with a raised eyebrow. An extremely lovely eyebrow that Jadeite wanted to run his thumb across. He looked instead at the floor and continued. "I got her with child soon after and she bore me a son-Garrick. He was named after my grandfather, but nicknamed after Ares. His eyes always seemed to light up whenever he gazed at the golden hawk.
"Soon after my son's birth, I went back to another war to help Endymion. When I came back I had this feeling that she was hiding something from me. I thought nothing of it at first and treated her strangeness as a normalcy. Later I discovered that she was gravely ill. . ." he paused to take a deep breath. It was getting increasingly harder to tell the lie.
Kat had been ill, but not with disease. She had been ill in the mind. He had followed her on one of the coldest nights in winter for he feared that she was ill and something would happen to her. He had found her gazing up at a large estate, then noticed she shivered and ran. He followed her back to the palace and managed to corner her in the nursery where she was staring daggers at their son.
"What are you doing, Kat?" he asked with his fists clenched.
The lovely woman turned with an angry frown. "Nothing, your highness."
"You lie, Kat. I saw you at that large estate. What were you doing there?"
Kat looked into his eyes. They were blazing with the legendary blue fire that had scared so many soldiers in battle and that had made warlords quiver in their shoes. "I-I was just looking at it."
Jadeite stalked toward her as she cowered back. "Tell me what you were doing, Kat!" he demanded.
She couldn't lie to him now, she realized. He would know. He always knew. She snapped out of her reverie when he pressed her against the wall. "I was there to survey the house!"
"Why?"
"I'm going to make a lot of money, Jadeite. We need it, you know that!"
Jadeite ground his teeth. "We do not need money, Kat. Our country's crops were good this spring and I have managed to build up the economy during the war. You know that, Kat! You know we are not paupers. We have never been. . .Besides, what would looking at that house have to do with anything? Were you planning on selling it to Kunzite for a high sum?"
"The owners are a very wealthy couple who would pay anything to have children!"
"What are you trying to say?" he asked, though he suspected her answer.
"It would have been discreet, Jadeite. I would have announced that I found Garrick dead and that I buried him by myself because of my anguish. No one would have known. In fact, very few people have seen Garrick. They would not know him if they saw him."
Jadeite took a deep breath to calm his anger. It was no use, his own wife- a princess-was planning on selling his child.
He shook his head of the memory when he realized he had stopped speaking. "I'm sorry," he said softly.
"You loved your wife, then?" Rei asked carefully.
"No, but I. . .I felt her pain. . ." he lied. In truth he despised the woman. "Where was I? Oh yes.after I discovered her illness, I took my son to my former steward's home where he and his wife took care of him. I told my parents about my wife's health and they immediately agreed to send her home to be with her family. So, she left. . .very discreetly, might I add.
"A few months later we spoke to the bishop and had the marriage terminated," he paused for dramatic effect. He also paused to consider the next part of his wild tale. This was the difficult part. "Several months after Garrick's second birthday, a messenger arrived carrying a babe. He was one of my men, actually was the steward that had taken Garrick so long ago. He told me that he had gone to visit a relative when he discovered that the princess, my former wife, had given birth to a daughter. . .my daughter."
Rei stared at this handsome prince with something between disbelief and sympathy. She knew he was hiding something. His story had too many gaps in it to be true. "I'm sorry to hear this. It must be terrible for you to remember," she said gently. If it were the truth, she felt his sadness. If it were false, she would have to hear the truth to feel any sympathy toward him.
Jadeite didn't know whether to smile or blurt out the truth. This girl knew he was lying, but was kind enough to stay silent. "I have them now only because I have left them in the care of my steward too long. They belong with their father."
"Are they journeying to Spain, as well, sire?"
Jadeite nodded sadly. He felt extremely guilty that he had told this innocent girl a lie. A very big lie, at that. He shook his head, refusing to let that simple fact bother him, and then he stood. "Well, I trust that you came here to ask a question, Reina. What is it I can help you with?" he asked, all seriousness drifting away.
Rei stood as well and looked around her for a moment, trying to summon up what it was she had come to him for. "I-I have forgotten, sire. I am sorry. I shall be ready to leave within the hour, if that is all right with you."
Jadeite nodded slowly and turned back to look at the sleeping children. He waited until he heard the door close before he approached the bed. He closed his eyes. One hour before he could leave this palace.