Note: I know this is a short chapter! But I've got a little monkey here who
refuses to leave me be so I can write. It wants internet access
immediately, and so I either relinquish the computer or put up with her
foul odor.
Again: I don't own Dragonlance or any of its related stuff. I do own Alira and all of my original ideas, and taking them is against the law! I SUE YOU!
Chapter 8:
When Alira awoke, she had forgotten where she was. Sunlight streamed through her huge window, glistening in the glass and casting shadows. She coaxed herself out of bed, half-asleep, and found that none of her stuff was anywhere in the room. Upon opening the wardrobe, though, she found a clean set of clothing just like the ones she had before, only much nicer. This time, there was a set of red robes. She thanked Lunitari as she dressed. There was no need to bathe, and she felt that if she did she would never want to leave. Alira had a fleeting desire to meet the Speaker, the Elven King, but decided against it. If she got attached to this place in any way, it would make traveling with Raistlin more tedious than it used to be.
When she opened her door, an Elven woman greeted her warmly, and then silently escorted her back to the main gates, where their horses and supplies would be waiting them.
"Thank you very much for your hospitality." Alira said politely, seeing that Raistlin was already there, waiting until she arrived to prepare to mount his fresh horse. There were different horses this time. Raistlin had a large, gorgeous bay stallion, with a coat touched by honey, leaving the sleek black for her. The horse she was on was a mare, like the one she had ridden before, but larger and with a racer's blood in her. She was gorgeous, a truly black horse that would melt into shadows and night. Raistlin greeted her with a smile, waiting until she was ready to get on the horses.
After exchanging, for a second time, parting proprieties, they rode off again.
Elven horses are superior to others, Alira noticed at first. They were smarter, for one, and much more powerful.
"They threw out all of our old things, save our books." Raistlin commented, bringing it to her attention. She was surprised; she hadn't noticed that even the saddles were new. Everything was fine, and of superior make to the older ones that they had used before. Alira could tell this would be a fresh, clean start.
The storm was gone, and now Krynn blossomed. The grass seemed greener, everything smelled fresher and looked brighter, and a cheerful feeling became contagious. Even Raistlin had a gleam in his eyes that wasn't greed or anger. Alira sang softly to herself, some nonsense song that she didn't truly know the words to.
And all the girls from miles around,
Will fight like wild cat and hound,
But when he marries.she'll be bound,
To Dark-haired Jimmy Owen! (A/N: This song was borrowed, all credit goes to Scartaglen!)
She sang to herself softly, an entertaining song that she had heard often, though she could not remember when. Alira nearly fell off of her horse when she noticed Raistlin crooning with her, his voice deeper, adding a strange harmony to the simple country remedy. They both broke off, turned to look at each other.
"Where did you hear that?" Alira asked.
"At a fair." A painful memory, golden-red curls bouncing in his mind again, pricked him, but he refused to think of it while Alira was with him. This girl, he knew, was better than that. "You?"
"I'm not too sure. When I think about the lyrics, I can't remember them." She replied, with a chuckle. He laughed with her.
It was fun, Raistlin found. Laughing. It wasn't nearly as painful for him as it used to be, when he was a strange, unhealthy child with an acrid scent of illness about him. Now, however, he felt fresh and changed. As though the storm had cleared from him his faults. The storm, or Alira? Raistlin's mind taunted. He hushed it with an inward backhand blow. He knew the truth of it now, but refused to move yet. Raistlin had no experience whatsoever when it came to girls. He was not going to be his brother, and lumber into it with the wit of a bull. He would do it the way the stories went. Sweep her off her feet, or at least make sure it was a mutual feeling first. Raistlin knew that girls could hurt as much with a smile as they could heal, and kept inside his shell for fear of pain.
Alira, herself, had about as much experience as Raistlin, though she had never had her heart broken. She didn't know about his pain, else she probably would have attempted to comfort him, as was her nature. Strangely, she thought of Mishakal and Paladine. They are the God of Good, and the Goddess of Healing, the parents of Solinari. Lunitari, Alira's goddess, was the only natural daughter of Gilean, god of Neutrality, though her mother was unknown to all but Gilean. Meanwhile the other god of magic, dark Nuitari was the son of Queen Takhisis, Her Dark Majesty, the Goddess of all that is Dark and Evil. For some reason, the thought of Takhisis sent shivers up her skin, where they never did before.
"Enough of the gods," she muttered to herself.
"Pardon?" Raistlin inquired.
"Nothing, just thinking about the gods." She said, promising herself that she would never make the mistake of muttering in front of him. He listened well.
Raistlin was silent, Alira was silent, but the air was full of sounds. Everything from the whisper of wind through tree limb, to the cries of birds on wing permeated the air. The perfumes of flowers and aromatic greenery filled the senses, trying to allure you to calmness. They enjoyed the outdoors, the warm sun bathing their cloaked bodies. It got warmish, under the robes, but they did not mind. They basked in the glory of youth, still in the forests of the Elves.
It didn't take very long to get to Solace, and the rest of the trip was filled with silence and mild conversation about irrelevant things.
Finally back in Solace, Raistlin took charge of their direction. Alira followed Raistlin uneasily. She hadn't been to Solace before, though the little town was famous. Raistlin maneuvered to a local inn, The Inn of the Last Home, where he insisted they would find good rooms and food. He got them two rooms, then ordered a large order of spiced potatoes and brought it upstairs with them. In his room, they ate, and Alira soon found why the ale and potatoes of the inn were famous. They laughed and ate, Alira ignoring the fact that he kept a black cloak on and refused to bare any flesh in Solace.
"They know me here." He counted that a good enough explanation. A young, too-pretty barmaid with amazingly red bouncing curls sparked jealousy in Alira, though she couldn't understand what she was jealous about. Raistlin obviously didn't give her a second look, and she paid no attention to him. (A/N: according to someone I know, these paragraphs are incorrect b/c certain teachers told them ages ago that all paragraphs should have five to six sentences. Oh, well, they can tell that to the guy who's gonna publish my books!)
They slept that night in their separate rooms, and Raistlin decided that night that he would find a way to force her to stay in Solace one extra day, so he could show here the place he grew up.
That night, Alira had the strangest feeling that someone was watching her. But it wasn't that usual, over-your-shoulder type of watching, but more of a divine type of watching.
The eyes of the gods were upon her, and there was nothing she could do about it. They watched, finally dipping their hands in mortal affairs, for they knew that if they didn't, the souls of two mages would be destroyed.and with their souls, their hearts.
Another note: Yes, at this moment, I am branching off from Dragonlance's original books and purposes. I am now taking charge and doing what I want. Doing what I feel is necessary to "save their hearts and souls". Keep reading, and perhaps you'll see what I mean. For those of you who want me to say it easier terms, here I go: I'm changing everything right now. Meaning, it's possible that things you enjoyed in the real Dragonlance books may not happen. However, the whole deal with Crysania and Raistlin and Takhisis will happen, just not the way it did in the books. Enjoy, and I appreciate all of your comments greatly! Yes, I know this is a bit of a spoiler, but I wanted to give you guys a bit of a warning so you don't start hating me. To all of you people who have reviewed my story: I really appreciate all of your comments, (as I said before) and I look forward to hearing from you guys every day! I promise you here and now that I will turn out at least one chapter a day. Enjoy!
Again: I don't own Dragonlance or any of its related stuff. I do own Alira and all of my original ideas, and taking them is against the law! I SUE YOU!
Chapter 8:
When Alira awoke, she had forgotten where she was. Sunlight streamed through her huge window, glistening in the glass and casting shadows. She coaxed herself out of bed, half-asleep, and found that none of her stuff was anywhere in the room. Upon opening the wardrobe, though, she found a clean set of clothing just like the ones she had before, only much nicer. This time, there was a set of red robes. She thanked Lunitari as she dressed. There was no need to bathe, and she felt that if she did she would never want to leave. Alira had a fleeting desire to meet the Speaker, the Elven King, but decided against it. If she got attached to this place in any way, it would make traveling with Raistlin more tedious than it used to be.
When she opened her door, an Elven woman greeted her warmly, and then silently escorted her back to the main gates, where their horses and supplies would be waiting them.
"Thank you very much for your hospitality." Alira said politely, seeing that Raistlin was already there, waiting until she arrived to prepare to mount his fresh horse. There were different horses this time. Raistlin had a large, gorgeous bay stallion, with a coat touched by honey, leaving the sleek black for her. The horse she was on was a mare, like the one she had ridden before, but larger and with a racer's blood in her. She was gorgeous, a truly black horse that would melt into shadows and night. Raistlin greeted her with a smile, waiting until she was ready to get on the horses.
After exchanging, for a second time, parting proprieties, they rode off again.
Elven horses are superior to others, Alira noticed at first. They were smarter, for one, and much more powerful.
"They threw out all of our old things, save our books." Raistlin commented, bringing it to her attention. She was surprised; she hadn't noticed that even the saddles were new. Everything was fine, and of superior make to the older ones that they had used before. Alira could tell this would be a fresh, clean start.
The storm was gone, and now Krynn blossomed. The grass seemed greener, everything smelled fresher and looked brighter, and a cheerful feeling became contagious. Even Raistlin had a gleam in his eyes that wasn't greed or anger. Alira sang softly to herself, some nonsense song that she didn't truly know the words to.
And all the girls from miles around,
Will fight like wild cat and hound,
But when he marries.she'll be bound,
To Dark-haired Jimmy Owen! (A/N: This song was borrowed, all credit goes to Scartaglen!)
She sang to herself softly, an entertaining song that she had heard often, though she could not remember when. Alira nearly fell off of her horse when she noticed Raistlin crooning with her, his voice deeper, adding a strange harmony to the simple country remedy. They both broke off, turned to look at each other.
"Where did you hear that?" Alira asked.
"At a fair." A painful memory, golden-red curls bouncing in his mind again, pricked him, but he refused to think of it while Alira was with him. This girl, he knew, was better than that. "You?"
"I'm not too sure. When I think about the lyrics, I can't remember them." She replied, with a chuckle. He laughed with her.
It was fun, Raistlin found. Laughing. It wasn't nearly as painful for him as it used to be, when he was a strange, unhealthy child with an acrid scent of illness about him. Now, however, he felt fresh and changed. As though the storm had cleared from him his faults. The storm, or Alira? Raistlin's mind taunted. He hushed it with an inward backhand blow. He knew the truth of it now, but refused to move yet. Raistlin had no experience whatsoever when it came to girls. He was not going to be his brother, and lumber into it with the wit of a bull. He would do it the way the stories went. Sweep her off her feet, or at least make sure it was a mutual feeling first. Raistlin knew that girls could hurt as much with a smile as they could heal, and kept inside his shell for fear of pain.
Alira, herself, had about as much experience as Raistlin, though she had never had her heart broken. She didn't know about his pain, else she probably would have attempted to comfort him, as was her nature. Strangely, she thought of Mishakal and Paladine. They are the God of Good, and the Goddess of Healing, the parents of Solinari. Lunitari, Alira's goddess, was the only natural daughter of Gilean, god of Neutrality, though her mother was unknown to all but Gilean. Meanwhile the other god of magic, dark Nuitari was the son of Queen Takhisis, Her Dark Majesty, the Goddess of all that is Dark and Evil. For some reason, the thought of Takhisis sent shivers up her skin, where they never did before.
"Enough of the gods," she muttered to herself.
"Pardon?" Raistlin inquired.
"Nothing, just thinking about the gods." She said, promising herself that she would never make the mistake of muttering in front of him. He listened well.
Raistlin was silent, Alira was silent, but the air was full of sounds. Everything from the whisper of wind through tree limb, to the cries of birds on wing permeated the air. The perfumes of flowers and aromatic greenery filled the senses, trying to allure you to calmness. They enjoyed the outdoors, the warm sun bathing their cloaked bodies. It got warmish, under the robes, but they did not mind. They basked in the glory of youth, still in the forests of the Elves.
It didn't take very long to get to Solace, and the rest of the trip was filled with silence and mild conversation about irrelevant things.
Finally back in Solace, Raistlin took charge of their direction. Alira followed Raistlin uneasily. She hadn't been to Solace before, though the little town was famous. Raistlin maneuvered to a local inn, The Inn of the Last Home, where he insisted they would find good rooms and food. He got them two rooms, then ordered a large order of spiced potatoes and brought it upstairs with them. In his room, they ate, and Alira soon found why the ale and potatoes of the inn were famous. They laughed and ate, Alira ignoring the fact that he kept a black cloak on and refused to bare any flesh in Solace.
"They know me here." He counted that a good enough explanation. A young, too-pretty barmaid with amazingly red bouncing curls sparked jealousy in Alira, though she couldn't understand what she was jealous about. Raistlin obviously didn't give her a second look, and she paid no attention to him. (A/N: according to someone I know, these paragraphs are incorrect b/c certain teachers told them ages ago that all paragraphs should have five to six sentences. Oh, well, they can tell that to the guy who's gonna publish my books!)
They slept that night in their separate rooms, and Raistlin decided that night that he would find a way to force her to stay in Solace one extra day, so he could show here the place he grew up.
That night, Alira had the strangest feeling that someone was watching her. But it wasn't that usual, over-your-shoulder type of watching, but more of a divine type of watching.
The eyes of the gods were upon her, and there was nothing she could do about it. They watched, finally dipping their hands in mortal affairs, for they knew that if they didn't, the souls of two mages would be destroyed.and with their souls, their hearts.
Another note: Yes, at this moment, I am branching off from Dragonlance's original books and purposes. I am now taking charge and doing what I want. Doing what I feel is necessary to "save their hearts and souls". Keep reading, and perhaps you'll see what I mean. For those of you who want me to say it easier terms, here I go: I'm changing everything right now. Meaning, it's possible that things you enjoyed in the real Dragonlance books may not happen. However, the whole deal with Crysania and Raistlin and Takhisis will happen, just not the way it did in the books. Enjoy, and I appreciate all of your comments greatly! Yes, I know this is a bit of a spoiler, but I wanted to give you guys a bit of a warning so you don't start hating me. To all of you people who have reviewed my story: I really appreciate all of your comments, (as I said before) and I look forward to hearing from you guys every day! I promise you here and now that I will turn out at least one chapter a day. Enjoy!