Alcapacien: I'm glad you like the plot, I do to!
FlamingKnight: You liked the e-mail, good. Yes, Alanna died. ::moment of silence:: Jon, not John. That would be the evil spellcheck! Charlamange is in there because the list looked sad with only Tortallan hero's in it. So I added other guys to make it look happy.
Lauren: Yes, Ria is based on me. Josh says hi, I'm on the phone with him at the moment.
ShnazzySpazzy: Consider it updated.
QueenofConnaught: I'm sorry if you're mad at me because of my review. You asked for my opinion, and I gave it. You write very well, it's just that I think that you could come up with a much better plot is all.
Alright, here is next chappie, I think it's dull, but cute. And I'll have you know that I went through and Formatted all of this so ALL the italics and crap would work, and then I uploaded it. And they showed up on the document, So I had to go back and un-do all the nice formatting, so, if anyone knows how to do it correctly could ya please explain it to me??
Chapter 3: In MotionHe awoke to her stomping in early in the morning. He opened one eye to watch her. Leaping to his feet he drew his only weapon, a tiny blade. She looked up at the slight sound he made.
"Hmm, almost soundless, that's good. You can put that wimpy thing away. It's not like it would do you any good in a fight." She said, rolling her eyes. She flipped long, dark red, almost black hair over her shoulder. He watched her for a few moments, not moving.
"Who are you?" He asked cautiously. She rolled her eyes again.
"Ria, Saturn, you spent all day with me yesterday." She said as she got out a few more pots and pans.
"Really? Yesterday you had Short brown hair and brown eyes. Today you have long red hair, and red eyes. How do I know you're not a shade or a mage or a different person entirely?" He asked suspiciously. He jumped as she looked at the now desolate fire and it burst into flame again.
"I am a mage. And If I were a shade I would probably have killed you already. I just don't have all those ridiculous, not to mention heavy glamour spells on. If we have to fix this idiot country I might as well look good doing it. Besides, I'll have more power this way." She watched him for a moment before continuing on with her work.
He sighed, "Alright. It's just weird, waking up and having you look completely different. Are you done screaming irrationally at the sky?" He asked, she glared. Dark red eyes boring into his, he felt she could see through him and through the wall behind him.
"For now. Come on, pack up." She said quietly returning to her work. She was wearing a black skirt and a white blouse, with a wide red sash around her waist. She pulled on a black, hooded cloak and settled it around her shoulders. Then she looked at him. "That won't do. We can't recruit anyone if you look like a peasant. Take your spells off; they won't do you any good.
"What? No! These keep me safe, if the city guards see me without them they'll arrest me on site!" He protested. She rolled her eyes.
"That may be, but, you won't get anyone to work for if they don't know you're their prince. People are more likely to listen to you talk about a revolt then some measly peasant. Now take them off." She demanded before pulling saddlebags out of her pile of belongings. She looked over at him, now sitting on her lone chair, dark shaggy black hair falling into his eyes slightly, sapphire eye's glinting, all highlighting place skin. "Hmm," She murmured, more to herself than him. "How about, this." She said quietly. "Unthgar, ilburan. Hmm, that'll have to do. Here" She said, throwing him a dark hooded, cloak. "Put that on." She said, before turning to resume packing.
He took the cloak and settled it comfortably around his shoulders. He slipped out of the cave. Heading for a still, shallow pool he knew was only a few feet away from the pool. Might as well see what she did to me. He thought. He arrived at the pool just as the sun fully broke from the horizon, a bright orb promising a new day. Unfortunately it sheds no heat. He though bitterly. Fall was arriving at its zenith and winter was fast approaching. And I'm going to be uprooted and moved around through its entirety. He'd never led a rebellion, seldom had he wanted to. Once he had tried it as a young boy, trying to convince his sister Lianne that it would be best for both of them to rebel against their lessons. Lianne had not bought it.
He looked into the pool and was pleasantly surprised. He looked almost like his old self. Grey pants, a clean cream shirt and the black cape. Almost normal, but not quite.
"Are your ready?" She asked, and thought she had snuck up on him he did not jump. She had a calming presence.
"To do what?" He asked.
"To play the game."
"Which one?" He asked carefully.
"The one of survival."
::_::
A week passed in a blur of time. Ria surprised Liam every few minutes, as Liam surprised Ria in turn. The two had very much underestimated each other. Liam had acquired them horses easily in the first village they came to. He had pulled a few favors and gotten them two very well bred horses. And they now found themselves in a drenching rainstorm. Both were cold to the bone and they were leading their horses through a virtual river of mud that had previously been called a road.
"Ria," Liam called. He gasped as the cold cut like a knife into his mouth and down his throat into his lungs. "We can't keep going like this." He said as he caught up next to her. "The horses can't take it. I can't take it."
"And just where, my liege, do you propose we stop?" she asked, a slight panic and crankiness deeply engrained into her voice.
"I don't know! I thought someone knew where we where going. He yelled. She glared at him, and winced, immediately chastised. Red eyes are very frightening when they're glaring 'die' at you.
"I did, but then this gods-all-cursed storm blew up and it's enough struggle to ensure we are not going in circles, your majesty." She yelled back.
"Why do you do that?" He cried, utterly exasperated, the wet and cold having fried his temper.
"Do what?" She screamed.
"My liege, your majesty. O Purple Mountain of glorious Kingliness." He said, naming all the things she had called him in the past few hours. She rolled her eyes.
"Oh, I don't know maybe because you're the bloody prince." She said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Yes but you're a princess and I don't go around calling you Mademoiselle, ladyship or pearl of the worlds eye do I?" he asked, and then smiled a bit as she broke out into riotous laughter.
"Pearl of the worlds eyes?" She asked before the cold turned her laughter into coughing.
"My brother told me that one." He said with a smile. "A love struck squire used to ay that of the Protector Of the Small."
"Really?" She said before smiling.
Liam was extremely on edge. He was sitting in a tree watching Ria climb up a tall stone wall. Why is she climbing up the wall? He thought as he realized he could no longer feel his rear end. Because she laughed hysterically when you offered to do it. The sarcastic part of him said. Oh yeah, why is it lately she does all the work and I sit back and watch when I'm the one who is supposed to be saving the world? He thought, weird things you think in a tree. He noted.
And she's over the wall. He heard nothing as she dropped off to the other side, he did see a small poof of white as she landed in a snow pile though. And now, we wait. He looked down at the horses who looked only mildly bored. "You guys don't look nearly as cold as I feel.
Almost an hour later he watched as a small girl walked up to his tree.
"What ya doin up there mister?" She asked innocently. She was wearing a ratty brown dress, and leather boots that were falling apart at the seams. She had soft copper hair that fell in ringlets around her shoulders and big blue eyes. He dropped down out of the tree.
"Watching the birds. Where're you from little one?" He said, using the name Uncle George had called him. She smiled.
"Th' fief. My daddy used to run it, but then he died and now Master Terim runs it." She said, swinging the small basket she carried.
"I'm sorry." He said, he noticed a fading ring of blue, black and purple around her eye. "How did this happen?" He asked, meeting her pale blue orbs.
"Oh, I dropped a hot pan on the floor, Mrs. Hatta, the cook, hit me with her spoon." She said, matter-of-fact. "Dropped it on my foot, wasn't to bad of a burn Mrs. Hatta said though, I thought it hurt like the Dickens." She said, eyes on her foot. "Doesn't hurt to bad anymore, th' eye hurts worse. But it's ok, cause, Mrs. Hatta said I weren't payin good nuf atten'ion." She said, smiling at him.
He was appalled. "How old are you?" He asked her. He had that feeling, the one that comes and settles in the pit of your stomach and makes you feel guilty building inside of him.
"Seven sir." She said with a small smile. "But I don' know fer sure any more. We used to celebrate it, but nit since me parents died."
"What fief did this used to be?" He asked, knowing he wouldn't like the answer.
"Dunlath Sir." She said with a wide smile. "Used to be one of the greatest. Not anymore. Maybe when the Redeemer comes it can be again." She said, spinning in a circle. "Have ye' eard about him? He and his lady, they say she's going to be the oddest woman ever to grace the earth, they goin t' set us free they are." She smiled again, he was melting, that innocent little smile.
"Redeemer?" He asked quizzically. "How do you know there's going to be a redeemer lass?" He asked patiently.
"Our old priest, the one for Rhialden, said that he was coming, that he would set us free." She answered back. Liam felt the air whoosh out of him.
"Oh my." He said, digging into the saddle bags he pulled out one of Ria's skirts. He pulled it out and held it up against her. "Here take this, don't show that Mrs. Hatta, just ask one of the serving girls to hem it for you alright?" He said quickly.
"Oh, thank ye' sir. I'll be sure not to show Mrs. Hatta." She said, taking the skirt and folding it into her basket.
"Now be off with ye." He said. She smiled and nodded.
"Goodbye sir." She called as she ran off towards the fief. Liam sighed and climbed back up into the tree.
"Liam, Liam!" He looked down, and half slid half fell from his tree. "In the gods names, how did you fall asleep in a tree?" She asked, she was all dusty, and she had a thin scratch on her cheek.
"What took ya so long Ri?" He asked, yawning he grimaced as his jaw cracked. "Gods, you look, well, what happened to you?" He asked, only just catching himself before he made a fatal error.
"Ri? Since when am I Ri?She asked, he heard slight displeasure but also amusement in her tone.
"Since I'm too lazy to add the other syllable." He said. "Did you get them?"
"Yes, we have official invitations to Midwinter." She said with a broad smile on her face. He grinned back, their plan was in motion.
Soo, not a very intresting chappie, but I liked it, I think it was nessecary. Gave Liam a purpose, actually seeing what he's working ti do. Anyways, review! Flames are always welcome, they a re used to heat my tower in the winter…Isn't it cool how I just cut it off there? Hehe…
Okay ladies, I wrote this while I was supposed to be writing my research paper. So be happy happy happy! AND REVIEW.
Also, every one who left me an e-mail address in their review or I found one from their profile I e-mailed saying a new chapter was up. If Any one doesn't want to be on that list tell me so I know not to e-mail you. Happy Holidays!