Disclaimer: Even though I wish I did I don't own anything except the plot.
The characters all belong to Tamora Pierce.
My story is set in-between the Circle of magic quartet and The circle opens quartet.
The Fifth Mage
Chapter One
Briar stumbled out of the tangle of sheets, sweat beading on his forehead and his breath rattling in his chest. He needed air. Quickly he pulled his nightshirt off over his head and yanked on a pair of breeches. He didn't bother with a shirt, the night was warm enough. The heat wave which had hit Summersea a week ago was almost unbearable, every day the harsh sun beat down and dried the gardens at Discipline cottage where Briar lived. Dry gardens also meant more work for Briar carrying buckets of water to and from the well to quench the plants thirst.
Briar nimbly climbed the ladders which lead to the roof. Briars past life on the street, working for the Thief Lord, had taught him to be quick and silent. Old habits die hard especially those that are beaten in to you. Briar had been caught twice stealing and so had the double x tattooed on to the web of skin between the thumb and forefinger of each hand. When Niklaren Goldeye had found him he was about to be sentenced to hard labour at the Docks after being caught for a third time. At first he had wondered if the Money-Bag wanted him as a servant but later discovered that he had green magic and Niko was taking him to learn how to control it at the Winding Circle Temple in Emelan. Once there though it was soon discovered that Briar did not get along with other novices and so was moved to live in Discipline cottage.
As he emerged Briar noticed Sandry sat with her back to him. A grin lit up his face as he silently crept towards her. When he was close enough he lent and whispered:
"BOO!" loudly in her ear. Sandry gasped and tried to stand and turn on the edge of the roof. One arm swung round and Briar ducked to avoid being hit. Sandry lost her balance and teetered on the edge, her arms wind milling in an effort to stop herself from falling. Briar grabbed the hem of her skirt and tugged hard. Sandry shot form the edge and landed on Briar, knocking him over.
"What, in Mila's name, are you two doing?"
A ruffled looking girl of the same age as Sandry and Briar managed to clamber on to the roof. Her red hair stuck out at all angles and the brass rimmed spectacles she wore where slipping to the end of her long nose. Trisana Chandler or Tris to most people was a very stubborn and short tempered weather witch. She was a Merchant by birth but her parents had given her away when she had started hearing voices on the wind, believing that she was possessed. After her disastrous stay at the temple during which she nearly blew the building down, she was moved to Discipline cottage.
"Sandry's practicing for a traveling show!" Briar exclaimed as he fought to keep his laughter under control.
"Ha Ha, very funny. He scared me and I nearly fell off the roof."
"Briar!" groaned the red headed girl.
"Oh don't be such a wet blanket Tris"
Tris ignored Briar and instead turned to Sandry.
"Did you have that dream again?"
"Yes"
"Me too" added Briar
"Me three" came a fourth voice.
Another girl climbed on to the roof. Her broad shoulders only just fitted through the gap. The many braids that captured her hair swung against her dark skin as she walked to them. Daja Kisubo was once again a Trader. She had been an outcast or a trangshi until recently after she was the only survivor in the shipwreck that killed her family. She was declared a Trader once again after she rescued a Trader caravan from being burnt to death in a forest fire. Daja would never claim to have done this by herself she always insisted that it would have been impossible without Briar, Tris, Sandry and her teacher Frostpine helping her. Daja had refused to travel with the caravan and returned instead with her foster brother and sisters to Winding Circle to learn more smith magic with Frostpine.
"The same one with the mage?" asked Tris
"Yes"
"It's so frustrating" sighed Sandry "I can tell it's important and that the mage needs us but I can see nothing else, not their type of magic, not who they are. I can't even tell if it is a boy or a girl!"
"Ok, calm down Duchess!" grinned Briar.
Lady Sandrilene fa Toren, great niece to the Duke of Emelan looked down her nose at him.
"Hah!" laughed Briar "That would work better if you had a nose!"
Sandry glared at him and tugged her short nose.
"We need to find this mage, if we are dreaming about them we need to know who it is at least." reasoned Tris.
"Yeah but how do we do that?" sighed Daja
Each of the four mages lapsed in to a thoughtful silence. Sandry reached in to the leather pouch which hung around her neck and clasped the circle of lumpy undyed wool there. This unimpressive piece of material was Sandry's first attempt at spinning and also what she had used to bind Daja's, Tris's, Briar's and her own magic's together during an earthquake. The four of them had been trapped underground in a small unstable cave with no way out. In danger of being crushed in a cave-in Sandry had used her thread magic and spun all their magic's to make each of them stronger and able to stabilize the cave until they were found. Since then they had all been closer than siblings and able to talk to each other through their magic. The wool she had used had somehow joined to form a circle with four evenly spaced lumps. Each lump represented one of them and contained some of their magic.
But tonight the wool felt strange and unfamiliar. Confused Sandry tugged it out of the pouch and stared at it.
"Oh my gosh!" she breathed.
"What?" enquired Daja.
"There are five"
"What? Five what?" asked Briar impatiently
"Lumps"
"What!? That's impossible!" cried Tris as she scrambled across the roof towards Sandry.
When she was closer she saw that the noble was right and the pale circle of wool now had five lumps instead of four.
"What does it feel like?"
As she tested each of the lumps Sandry felt something of her foster brother and sisters. Briars felt like cool damp earth and growth, Daja's of a fierce forge fire, Tris's was like lightening while Sandry's was of clean, undyed cloth. But when Sandry placed a hand on the new lump she felt like she was spinning around. Colour and images flashed in her mind. First a tall oak tree, then a feeling of weightlessness, she saw flashes of silver and finally in the middle of everything she saw the figure they had all been dreaming about. Sandry yanked her hand away from the wool.
"Well?" asked Daja
"I think" said Sandry slowly
"Yes? What?"
"I think, somehow, we have become bound to another mage."
I know this chapter isn't very good but it will get better but first I need reviews. This is my very first fanfic so please don't flame me. I can take constructive criticism though. Please, Please, Please review!!!
My story is set in-between the Circle of magic quartet and The circle opens quartet.
The Fifth Mage
Chapter One
Briar stumbled out of the tangle of sheets, sweat beading on his forehead and his breath rattling in his chest. He needed air. Quickly he pulled his nightshirt off over his head and yanked on a pair of breeches. He didn't bother with a shirt, the night was warm enough. The heat wave which had hit Summersea a week ago was almost unbearable, every day the harsh sun beat down and dried the gardens at Discipline cottage where Briar lived. Dry gardens also meant more work for Briar carrying buckets of water to and from the well to quench the plants thirst.
Briar nimbly climbed the ladders which lead to the roof. Briars past life on the street, working for the Thief Lord, had taught him to be quick and silent. Old habits die hard especially those that are beaten in to you. Briar had been caught twice stealing and so had the double x tattooed on to the web of skin between the thumb and forefinger of each hand. When Niklaren Goldeye had found him he was about to be sentenced to hard labour at the Docks after being caught for a third time. At first he had wondered if the Money-Bag wanted him as a servant but later discovered that he had green magic and Niko was taking him to learn how to control it at the Winding Circle Temple in Emelan. Once there though it was soon discovered that Briar did not get along with other novices and so was moved to live in Discipline cottage.
As he emerged Briar noticed Sandry sat with her back to him. A grin lit up his face as he silently crept towards her. When he was close enough he lent and whispered:
"BOO!" loudly in her ear. Sandry gasped and tried to stand and turn on the edge of the roof. One arm swung round and Briar ducked to avoid being hit. Sandry lost her balance and teetered on the edge, her arms wind milling in an effort to stop herself from falling. Briar grabbed the hem of her skirt and tugged hard. Sandry shot form the edge and landed on Briar, knocking him over.
"What, in Mila's name, are you two doing?"
A ruffled looking girl of the same age as Sandry and Briar managed to clamber on to the roof. Her red hair stuck out at all angles and the brass rimmed spectacles she wore where slipping to the end of her long nose. Trisana Chandler or Tris to most people was a very stubborn and short tempered weather witch. She was a Merchant by birth but her parents had given her away when she had started hearing voices on the wind, believing that she was possessed. After her disastrous stay at the temple during which she nearly blew the building down, she was moved to Discipline cottage.
"Sandry's practicing for a traveling show!" Briar exclaimed as he fought to keep his laughter under control.
"Ha Ha, very funny. He scared me and I nearly fell off the roof."
"Briar!" groaned the red headed girl.
"Oh don't be such a wet blanket Tris"
Tris ignored Briar and instead turned to Sandry.
"Did you have that dream again?"
"Yes"
"Me too" added Briar
"Me three" came a fourth voice.
Another girl climbed on to the roof. Her broad shoulders only just fitted through the gap. The many braids that captured her hair swung against her dark skin as she walked to them. Daja Kisubo was once again a Trader. She had been an outcast or a trangshi until recently after she was the only survivor in the shipwreck that killed her family. She was declared a Trader once again after she rescued a Trader caravan from being burnt to death in a forest fire. Daja would never claim to have done this by herself she always insisted that it would have been impossible without Briar, Tris, Sandry and her teacher Frostpine helping her. Daja had refused to travel with the caravan and returned instead with her foster brother and sisters to Winding Circle to learn more smith magic with Frostpine.
"The same one with the mage?" asked Tris
"Yes"
"It's so frustrating" sighed Sandry "I can tell it's important and that the mage needs us but I can see nothing else, not their type of magic, not who they are. I can't even tell if it is a boy or a girl!"
"Ok, calm down Duchess!" grinned Briar.
Lady Sandrilene fa Toren, great niece to the Duke of Emelan looked down her nose at him.
"Hah!" laughed Briar "That would work better if you had a nose!"
Sandry glared at him and tugged her short nose.
"We need to find this mage, if we are dreaming about them we need to know who it is at least." reasoned Tris.
"Yeah but how do we do that?" sighed Daja
Each of the four mages lapsed in to a thoughtful silence. Sandry reached in to the leather pouch which hung around her neck and clasped the circle of lumpy undyed wool there. This unimpressive piece of material was Sandry's first attempt at spinning and also what she had used to bind Daja's, Tris's, Briar's and her own magic's together during an earthquake. The four of them had been trapped underground in a small unstable cave with no way out. In danger of being crushed in a cave-in Sandry had used her thread magic and spun all their magic's to make each of them stronger and able to stabilize the cave until they were found. Since then they had all been closer than siblings and able to talk to each other through their magic. The wool she had used had somehow joined to form a circle with four evenly spaced lumps. Each lump represented one of them and contained some of their magic.
But tonight the wool felt strange and unfamiliar. Confused Sandry tugged it out of the pouch and stared at it.
"Oh my gosh!" she breathed.
"What?" enquired Daja.
"There are five"
"What? Five what?" asked Briar impatiently
"Lumps"
"What!? That's impossible!" cried Tris as she scrambled across the roof towards Sandry.
When she was closer she saw that the noble was right and the pale circle of wool now had five lumps instead of four.
"What does it feel like?"
As she tested each of the lumps Sandry felt something of her foster brother and sisters. Briars felt like cool damp earth and growth, Daja's of a fierce forge fire, Tris's was like lightening while Sandry's was of clean, undyed cloth. But when Sandry placed a hand on the new lump she felt like she was spinning around. Colour and images flashed in her mind. First a tall oak tree, then a feeling of weightlessness, she saw flashes of silver and finally in the middle of everything she saw the figure they had all been dreaming about. Sandry yanked her hand away from the wool.
"Well?" asked Daja
"I think" said Sandry slowly
"Yes? What?"
"I think, somehow, we have become bound to another mage."
I know this chapter isn't very good but it will get better but first I need reviews. This is my very first fanfic so please don't flame me. I can take constructive criticism though. Please, Please, Please review!!!