Well, I decided to put up another chapter to this fic, even though I said in m last one that I wouldn't until De got me some of her chapters. The only problem with this is, she lives in another town than me, one that is about 15 mins away (driving), and I can't get convince my parents to drive me there, just to get some chapters! Lol. Well, I'm hoping that my one friend, who sees De everyday, will get them from her, and then give them to me.

So until then, I was wondering if you think that I should just continue on with the fic, and just add her chapters whenever I get them. what do you think? Please give me your answers in a review, or you can e-mail me the answer (it's on my profile page!) And I'll tally up the scores of Yes and No, then get back to you. This is best, because it is you guys who are reading it, I'm just writing! Thanks!

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Kaydence looked around the medium sized room, it was littered with items that Icewind had thought that she might need. The other boy, the Herald-Trainee, was sorting through them.

"I don't see why she brought some of these things here. I can understand the items that have emotional value, but some of these things have no meaning, as far as I can tell." the boy looked up at Kaydence. "So, you're the one who saved her the other day, Kaydence, right?"

"Yes, I was wandering near Companion's Field, and noticed her, an owl, and her Companion." Kaydence jumped slightly as Icewind's Companion shifted, and the floor creaked under the weight.

"Owl, oh, you mean Jana. Was the owl a bit oversized and completely white, except a few feather tips which are black?" When Kaydence nodded in astonishment, the boy added, "That was no ordinary bird, my friend. Have you not heard that the Tayledras have Bond birds, which are smarter, and large than the normal species?"

"Now that you mention it, I do remember reading that somewhere while studying the few books that we have on your type. So that owl that I saw, was Icewind's Bond bird, not some lunatic bird that for some odd reason seemed to care about a human?" Kaydence grinned slightly when he noticed how stupid he must seem to the other boy.

"Right, Jana, Icewind's Bond bird. The one who is hiding under the bed at this very moment. Bond birds are very sensitive to certain things, like being gated somewhere, or being fetched, in this case. She's a little shaken." He motioned with his free hand to the little lump at the base of the bed skirt, one that Kaydence had not noticed. "Oh, by the way, my name is Rainfall."

Kaydence shook Rainfall's outstretched hand. "I'm assuming that when Icewind came to Valdemar, you came as well, and that is how you two know each other so well?"

"Yes. It was all Icewind's idea to come here. She didn't feel right in the vale, so she decided, with her brother's help, that she would gate out of the vale, and go to Valdemar. I told her that I'd always wanted to go to Valdemar, and she invited me to come." Rainfall said between investigating a small piece of wood, and a large pile of papers. "Interesting, these are sheets of music."

Kaydence walked up to rainfall and took the sheets from his hand, and flipped through them. "I've never seen these songs before. The language is different, also, do you think that she brought them here with her?"

"I'm not sure, she didn't say anything about bringing music with her. Or a lute either." Rainfall bent, and picked up the finely carved lute that was lying on the floor. "This looks like the lute that her brother has, or maybe now it's had."

"I think that that last pretense is the right one. I don't think that someone could master this kind of workmanship twice, and have them both look this way. The detail on this lute is exquisite." Kaydence was lost in awe, the lute was magnificent, it's carvings amazing in detail, and it's sound perfect.

On the front of the lute, was a carved picture of a patch of lilies, surrounded by plants of all shapes and sizes. A lone strand of ivy wound around the sound hole, and then up and around the fretboard. On the back of the lute, the carvings were even more delicate. The image on the back, depicted an older man, most likely Tayledras, sitting on a large stone, playing his own lute, to a few small children, who were also most likely Tayledras. The carvings were finely detailed, and Kaydence couldn't see a place where even a leaf or stone looked to be out of place. The varnish kept the lute in tip-top shape, and it had no scratches, holes, or any other marks on it. The carver had even signed his name on the tip of the head, using the stroking pattern to disguise it in the ivy.

"This lute is amazing! Who could have created it with such precision, and not have gone insane with worry of destroying it?" Kaydence looked up at Rainfall, who was smiling, holding back laughter, at how awe-struck Kaydence looked.

"Why, Icewind's brother made it when he was a young boy. Icewind told me that he spent hours on it, day and night. He tried to finish it for his mother's last birthday, before she passed away, but ended up only having the front and the back half finished. Icewind told me that he strung it anyway, and played it for her while she lay in bed crying. She also told me that their mother told him to keep it, because she would not live long, and she wanted him to spread her cheer, with the lute, to all who would listen to him play." Rainfall sighed and looked up at the ceiling.

"Moondance would love your complement, he always enjoyed getting praise for it, it was his finest work." Rainfall looked down again at Kaydence. "He stopped carving after his mother died, partly because of sadness, and partly because his Mage Gift had started to show and he was too busy training. It was too bad that he had to get that darn Gift, he would have been a wonderful carver, the people of the vale would have all had his pieces, but you can't change that past, can you?"

"No," Kaydence paused and looked at Icewind, who was laying on the bed, pale, but more colourful than when he had saved her. "How long ago did she pass away?"

"Oh, years ago, I'm not even sure when, but Icewind was small, and she can't remember much about her mother now." Rainfall looked in the direction where Kaydence's eyes had wandered.

"How sad, I can see why she may have had some problems. Living without a parent can severely damage a child. My parents are both wealthy guilds people, living out in the city in that large house of theirs." Kaydence thought about his slightly greedy parents, and how worse off he might be if he had not had both throughout his life.

"Well, to Icewind, it was like living without any parents. Her mother died while she was young, like I said before, and her father was someone who is a little stereotypical. He didn't really care much for Icewind, since she did not have the Mage Gift, actually, at that point she didn't even have a Gift at all." Rainfall looked back into his wealth of memories, and examined the one when Icewind and he had discovered her Gift.

"Oh, that would have been horrible, living without parents that is." Kaydence looked back at Rainfall, and set the lute down beside the chairs that Herald Savil had had brought in for them to sit down on. That was when he remembered something that he had read in one of the books about the Tayledras. "Rainfall, I thought that most Tayledras don't leave their vales, not for anything."

"True, but I felt that this was something that some Tayledras should do sometime, so I went on an adventure. I'm really glad that I came, poor Icewind would have to get through this all by herself, well with only you. Icewind on the other hand, is not entirely Tayledras. She is half Shin'a'in and half Tayledras, and she had a tenancy to want to move, and keep moving. She doesn't like being in one spot for a large amount of time. this life will be good for her, always moving, being on circuit, and all." Rainfall smiled.

"Oh, well that makes sense. Her features are different from yours, and I figured that one of you were also part something else." Kaydence looked back and fourth between them a few times. To him, they look only slightly different, but to someone else who is more familiar with these people, could probably see a lot of difference.

"Yes, she's the different one, although the difference is minuscule. Anyway, enough about me and Icewind, what about you? All I know about you is that your name is Kaydence, you're a Bard, whatever that is, and that your parents live in town in a large house." Rainfall looked curious. Maybe Kaydence and he would get along really well, they both seemed interested in a lot of different things, and always want to learn.

"A Bard is someone who plays music very well, and we also have a very interesting attribute, we can make it so that when we sing, we can project those thoughts into ones mind. It soothes people in some circumstances, like one is emotionally hurt, we can project the feeling of happiness to them, and make them feel better. Do you get what I'm trying to tell you?"

"I guess that I get it. It's some what like when a person has Empathy, and they can project an emotion, and make that person swing one way or another, right?" Rainfall was trying to compare things to try and make it easier for him to comprehend.

"Somewhat, but we are not as strong. Anyway, I grew here in Haven, so I am used to the big city. I've never been outside of the walls that surround the capital. I am nearly seventeen, and I've been at the Bardic Collegium for around five years. I have no siblings, and any other relatives are too far away to know about." Kaydence let go of the breath he was holding when he saw Rainfall nod his head.

"You have an interesting life. I, like I've said, and Rainfall, from K'Sheyna vale. I'm sixteen years of age, I have both parents, and one very young female sibling back with my parents." Rainfall looked over to Icewind, "And that is Icewind, also form K'Sheyna vale, she has one older brother and no other siblings. she used to live with her father and brother before coming here. she's fifteen years old."

"You also have an interesting life, my friend, as does Icewind." Kaydence looked over to the girl in the bed.

"You like her, don't you, Kaydence?"

"I'm.... I'm not sure really. Sometimes I think I do, yet there are times, I don't think I do. It's all very confusing for me." Kaydence looked down at Rainfall, he was taller by a few inches. "I'll tell you when I know, since it seems that you are worried about her so much. You..... you don't like her, do you?"

"Not that way, no. and yes, I do care about her a lot and I would like to know, since I think that you won't tell her right when you find out if you do or don't. Am I right about that?" Rainfall grinned.

"Yes, you are right, but lets stop talking about all this serious stuff. Why don't I take this lute, and play some of these songs that are in your language. Mind you, I won't be able to sing, I'll just play, and I won't be that good, they are different than our songs, and I'm only sight reading for the first time!" Kaydence picked up the lute again, and sat down on one of the chairs, although wooden, they were comfortable.

"Fine with me, I can't even do that much!" Rainfall sat beside him on the other chair.

Kaydence pulled up the music onto his lap, and played over the notes in his head. When he got the just of the piece, he started to play, and the feeling of sadness and worry floated away.

Kaydence thought while he played. Yes, the two of them were going to get along quite well.