AN: Hey thanks to everyone who reviewed that last chapter! All my personal comments for reviewers are at the end of the chapter like last time. Like I said before I really didn't like the last chapter but I'm glad that you thought it was okay. Anyway here is the next one. I don't own any of Tamora Pierce's characters and places blah blah blah. Ummm, I actually don't mind this chapter and that is saying a lot. I am very very critical of my own work. So yeah here it is I hope you like it. As usual I love reviews… (Hint hint)
Griffith and Kylaia stared soundlessly at her before Kylaia stood up briskly. "Well if we are getting up before sunrise I want sleep," she announced. The other three stared at her. What? Kylaia glared at the two men. "Out. Now." They stood up hastily and left. But before he closed the door Griffith told Tanya softly, "Thank you for being honest. Even if it took you awhile." Then he grinned. "And remember your promise." The door shut tightly behind him. When Tanya turned around Kylaia was slipping into silk pyjama bottoms, like the ones men wore to sleep. They were not unlike her silk pants she wore during the day, except for the fact they were lighter silk and weren't heavily embroidered.
"Kylaia?" Tanya said nervously. The older woman turned her head causing her hair tie to jump out and her long black hair to cascade down her shoulders.
"What?" she replied softly as she leaned over to retrieve the said hair elastic.
"I'm sorry," Tanya whispered putting her head down and letting the tears flow down her face. "I only wanted to be Shang." She jumped when she felt a pair of very strong and surprisingly slender arms envelop her. She could feel Kylaia's own tears dripping into her hair.
"It'll be alright youngling. It'll be okay." Tanya was surprised at the vehemence in her voice. But they continued to stand there, clinging to each other and crying until they collapsed on the appropriate bed and slept.
The next morning they were awoken by Griffith quietly shaking them. Kylaia, used to getting up before the sun was awake and getting dressed in seconds. But Tanya was used to sleeping in and being woken by her maid with a nice breakfast. Even after spending a month with the two Shangs and Kylaia's cousin she wasn't used to getting up so early.
"I'm awake," she grumbled before turning over and promptly falling back asleep. Griffith shook his head and picked her up and turned her upside down, dipping her head into the now very cold washing water they had used the night before. He waited until she started screaming making bubbles rise and kicked him in the head before setting her down. She glared at him. "Don't ever do that to me again!" she ordered. He raised his eyebrows and she blushed. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I'm awake." He nodded.
"Good, get dressed. I convinced the innkeeper to make us breakfast. We leave within the hour with or without you." Tanya nodded and got up, shrugging the covers off and standing up, amazed at the warmth and humidity in the air. After Griffith had left the room Kylaia smiled at her.
"You'll soon get used to the difference in temperature," she told her. "It's much warmer here." Tanya nodded as she pulled her green tunic over her head and buckled a belt around it, her small oilskin pouch containing her book and a small stone she had used to pour magic into when it had been too long since she had last used it dangling on her right hip.
"Kylaia?" she inquired. The older woman turned to her, quickly tying off her loose braid and throwing it over her shoulder. "Where are we going now?"
The Shang Unicorn smiled softly. "We are going to the Shang's one and only centre of learning. There we will meet with the Elders and speak to our Gods, telling them of the good-and the bad- deeds we have done in their name. There will be many other Shang warriors there," she finished quietly. Tanya stared at her blankly.
"Are you allowed to tell me that?" she asked tentatively. Kylaia turned to her and smiled widely.
"Nope," she said briskly. "Come on, I'm really hungry," she said, grabbing her bag and leaving the room. Tanya sighed and followed her out, grabbing her own bag on the way.
"Then why did you tell me?" she pressed, struggling in vain to keep up with her while carrying the none too light bag.
"That is for me to know and you to think about," Kylaia answered, smiling down at the girl struggling to keep up with her and grabbed her bag. "Here let me carry that." Tanya let out a sigh of relief and followed her down the stairs and into the dining room. Many people were their already, conversing quietly in Yamani and glancing up at the new arrivals before turning back to their food. "Griffith," Kylaia said sharply when they sat down at a table in the corner that was already occupied by both Griffith and Tarak. "Why are their so many people up before sunrise?"
He stared at her blankly, masking his grin. "I don't know, why don't you ask them?" She sighed in frustration and began eating. Tanya followed her example and in less than twenty minutes they were out the door and saddling the horses that Tarak had bought the day before. Tanya swung into the saddle, her loose hair whirling in an arc around her head. She grimaced and pulled at her breeches which fit snugly compared to the ones she had stolen from her older brothers.
"Stop fidgeting," Kylaia ordered as she mounted her own blood bay mount. "We have quite a ways to go yet." They rode through the city, reaching the large metal gates leading to the road before the sun had completely risen above the horizon. Griffith spoke quickly to the gatekeepers and they were opening the large gates in minutes bowing and silently saluting to the Shang warriors.
Tanya looked on, wide-eyed at the wonders of the jungle surrounding them as they rode along the dusty street. She could year the sounds of monkeys and other animals not to far away from them. Suddenly a large snake slithered onto the road badly spooking her horse. The Palomino was a gentle animal but she began rearing and neighing frantically. Tanya held on tightly to the reins, struggling to keep on the horse. She watched amazed as if in slow motion as Tarak jumped off his own horse and grabbed the bridle of Tanya's horse pulling its front legs back down to the ground. By the time the horse had quieted down completely the snake was nowhere in sight and Tarak was speaking softly to his own mount, calming it down.
He looked at Tanya but she couldn't read the look in his eyes. Griffith took a deep breath and turned his horse back to the road. "We should continue," he murmured. Kylaia nodded and inquired as to Tanya's health.
"I'm fine," she assured the Unicorn. "Absolutely fine." But her eyes never left Tarak. Why had he risked his life to save her if he hated her? Turning her eyes to Kylaia she smiled. "Truly." Kylaia didn't look satisfied but she nodded and they began riding at a faster pace, Griffith leading and Tarak bringing up the rear.
That night they slept in a small clearing about 20 or 30 feet in from the edge of the jungle. Griffith had had the decency to blush when he asked if Tanya could put a protective circle around their camp so he could keep his magic tools for a time when he didn't have her. She sighed and eventually agreed, using a thin string around the edge and whispering a few words of protection to seal the barrier.
Tarak had begun to gather wood the second they arrived, careful to take only the branches on the ground. "Why isn't Tarak taking any of the branches off the trees?" Tanya asked Griffith. "It would be so much easier." Kylaia nodded.
"Yes it would," she answered. "But to break a branch off a tree for no reason other than to save a life is to break the code of Amarante. She is the goddess of the forest. To break her code would be blasphemy." Tanya still looked confused but she nodded as if she understood. They sat in silence, listening to the sounds of the forest mixed with the quite noises of Griffith and Tarak preparing camp.
"Why is Tarak so scarred?" Tanya asked finally, her curiosity getting the better of her. Kylaia was silent beside her for so long that Tanya began to think she wasn't going to answer her question. "How old do you think Tarak is?" Kylaia asked finally. Tanya shrugged.
"I know the scars and eye patch make him look older than he is. If I was guessing according to my brothers and cousins I would think he was around 20, maybe 25," she estimated. Kylaia shook her head. "He's 17." Tanya gaped at her. The older woman nodded. "He was only just born when I became the Unicorn. I was the youngest Shang to ever be raised to that level." She let out a long sigh as if just remembering what had happened so long ago was painful. "As he was growing up, he and his twin Leiko were always the first to greet me when I came home for a few days. That wasn't very often, every 3 years at most." She let out a deep sigh and rubbed her forehead. "The last time I went home was when I was 26. Tarak and Leiko were 9. They had abandoned their dreams of being Shang like their older cousin when they learned they had the Gift." Tanya looked up at Kylaia and then over to the still-working Tarak, completely startled. "Not much mind you," Kylaia continued, "barely enough to light a candle. But it was enough that they weren't allowed to register as apprentices. Then that day when I came home, Griffith came with me. He hadn't met my family before although I had met his numerous times." Kylaia brushed away a small tear, refusing to let that obvious emotion enter the expression on her face. "The Shang Masters were there, the Elders and they disapproved of us traveling together. They always thought that such strong warriors should travel alone and spread their knowledge. But we never listened. Anyway while we were there Tarak and Leiko begged to come with us on a hunt for a group of mountain bandits. Just once they said. And I let them," she whispered and her voice broke. "I let them." She started to cry silently, putting her hear in her hands.
"It's okay," Tanya said awkwardly. Kylaia wiped her eyes. "No, no it's not." She took a very deep breath and composed herself. "While we were traveling they begged me to teach them a little hand to hand combat. They knew some obviously but they wanted to know a few new tricks. Griffith advised against it. He was always smarter than me. But for some reason I still taught them. I went farther than I should have, farther than anyone but an apprentice Shang should be taught. And when we found the bandits they insisted on helping." She coughed lightly and shifted her weight onto her other side and was silent for a minute. Tanya kept the silence, not wanting to break Kylaia's concentration. When she finally began again her voice shook with unshed tears, "Leiko died. He died fighting an enemy not his own, because of me. I found them Tarak was standing over his twin's body fighting the last couple of bandits, blood pouring from wounds all over his body." She swallowed and continued. "His clothes were tattered, hanging loosely over his young body and his eye was hanging from the socket, obviously causing him a lot of pain. I killed the bandits quickly. And I barely saved him from the same fate his brother had." When she finished she hung her head, taking a minute to think about things she had not spoken of in years.
Tanya hugged her tightly. "It's okay. It wasn't your fault," she whispered. Kylaia pulled away quickly. "Yes. It was my fault. If I hadn't let them come, if I hadn't taught them what they should not have known or been taught then they would have gone back to the village after we found them and Leiko wouldn't have died. And Tarak would be back there. Probably happily married and with a child or at least one on the way." She shook her head ruefully. "Thank you but nothing can change the fact that Leiko would still be alive if it weren't for me." And with that she stood up and walked away, curling into a ball beside a rock near the edge of the barrier.
The next morning Tanya was awoken by Tarak who frowned at her and silently handed her a plate of hot food. She smiled at him only to receive a frown in return. Ok be that way, she thought. She saw Kylaia and Griffith standing beside the only tree inside her barrier deep in conversation. Eating her food quickly she stood up and snuck toward them slowly, carefully making sure that Tarak was engrossed in something else. "… I want to take her with us," she heard Kylaia say and she grinned. "…register her…Book of the Shang…teach her myself." Then she heard Griffith's angry reply.
"Don't even think about it," he said fiercely. "Helping her will not bring Leiko back do you hear me?" Tanya looked quickly and saw Griffith shake Kylaia. "Do you hear me?" Tanya didn't hear Kylaia's reply. "That doesn't matter. Leiko is gone. He died. And there is nothing you can to do bring him back. Helping Tanya will only get you killed."
"I've lived longer than any Shang Unicorn in two centuries," Kylaia replied icily. "Maybe it's my time to die." Griffith let out a string of very strong curses in several languages only two of which she understood. But the tone of voice along with the curses she understood was enough for her to interpret most of what he was saying. "If you die I die," he told her aggressively. "Do you want my blood on your hands as well?" Kylaia didn't reply and Tanya was sure she was crying although she heard no sound. "Look," Griffith said more kindly. "I love Tanya too, I do. But this is not the best path. It can't be," he almost whispered. Tanya could hear fear and uncertainty in his voice.
"I am taking her with me," Kylaia said, no emotion entering her voice. "And you can come if you want but either way, I'm training her. She may not be Leiko but I can make it so she never meets the same fate he did." It was then that Tanya's shoulder was grabbed roughly and a hand put over her mouth. She knew who it was. Struggling in vain against the hold Tarak had over her she gasped when he dropped her, finally allowing her to take breath.
"Don't ever…" she gasped, "do… that again." Although the scarring on his face made it hard to tell what race he was, Tarak was a Yamani and therefore not extremely tall. So with Tanya standing on tiptoe and him having his knees slightly bent they were almost the same height and he stared solemnly into her eyes, apparently missing the death gaze she was sending him.
"Don't eavesdrop," he whispered in her ear before standing up straight and walking to the other side of the camp.
"What did Tanya drop?" Griffith asked, feigning cheerfulness, coming out from behind the tree and obviously not hearing all that Tarak had said.
"Nothing," she answered quickly at the same time as Tarak said, "her shoe." The Griffin and the Unicorn's eyes shot up but neither of them said anything. They broke camp quickly, Kylaia and Griffith carefully avoiding each other at the same time as Tarak and Tanya managed not to come within six feet of the other.
That night when they stopped Kylaia called Tanya over and gave her a lesson on punching high. "If your opponent is taller than you are and you don't want to rely on weapons there will be a time when you will need to throw a high punch," she instructed, demonstrating and putting a small nick in a tree for Tanya to aim at. Griffith watched for a few minutes, his lips pursed so tightly there was a white line around them. Then he turned away and did some training of his own, completely ignoring them. Tarak watched solemnly before continuing to cook what looked like a rabbit for their dinner.
Three days later and a boat ride across a narrow channel later they stopped in front of what looked like a large cliff jutting out of a mountain. Tanya stared up at the large mountain, convered in thick jungle and at the small river making its way down the side. Griffith and Kylaia slid of their horses in one fluid movement. Tanya sighed, once again wishing she could do the same. She slid of her own horse which she had named Alanna and took the reins of Griffith and Kylaia's horses; Fayola and Kaida. Gently stoking them she led them towards their master and mistress.
"Why are we stopping?" she asked, tying lead ropes to the horses bridles and tying the lead ropes to a tree.
"Ask no questions you already know the answers to," Kylaia responded, continuing to brush her hands along the wall of the cliff, searching for something. When she eventually found it she took a bright blue stone out of her belt pouch and pressed it into the small hole. It began to glow and a small door opened up in the side of the cliff. Big enough for the horses to fit through but the top brushed their ears. Once they were all into it Kylaia grabbed her stone back and jumped as the door slammed shut. "I hate that thing," she muttered quietly. Then she proceeded to lead them down the passage which got wider and taller as they went along. When they reached a door she began to chant in a quiet voice, Griffith joining her. They sang lowly, in a language that Tanya did not understand when suddenly the barrier of rock in front of them disappeared completely…
Lady Genevieve: Thank you! And you're welcome. It really is quite a good story, you have to update. I'm so glad to hear that people like my story! *Blushes* I never really thought it was that good and then people started reviewing. *Brushes away a tear* I was so happy. Anyway I hope to update soon, thanks again and I hope you update soon too! J
mystic fire demon: Thank you for the review! The thing you have to understand about Tanya is that she is from a family (the haMinch family) that is quite large and she has had to watch brothers, cousins, uncles etc. go off to become knights and soldiers and so on for years and she has grown up knowing the King and Queen personally and has met Alanna and seen the Queens Riders in action. She is just like Kel, always ready for adventure, taught by her brothers to use a bow and a knife and so on and so forth. So for her to become a lady at a convent is unthinkable. She just doesn't want to do it. And the same with magic. She doesn't want to be a mage. It gets in the way of her dream to be a knight. And when that dream is shattered she turns to another- the Shang. But the Shang don't take Gifted students. So she begins to hate her Gift, begins to try to forget about it. I mean if you were extraordinarily good a piano but wanted to be in the Navy or the Army for example it has nothing to do with your dream. Your parents want you to be a concert pianist but you just want to go and join the Navy without having to worry about other things. *_* Whew, sorry I didn't mean for that explanation to be so long. And as to your other question, yes we will be seeing at least 4 or 5 more characters that we know and love from Tammy's books in a few chapters. I'm thinking that we will be seeing the first of them probably by chapter 8, maybe chapter 9 depending on how long I make the next chapters. Thanks again for your review and I hope my answer wasn't too long!! ^_^
Queen's Own: You're welcome! Yeah I know that feeling, I like my life too! Lol, anyway I hope this was up fast enough for you. I'm not sure when the next chapter will be up but keep your eyes open!