Update A/N: Don't worry, nothings been changed except to edit a few mistakes—Riders form Groups, the Own for Companies! Thanks for reviewing and correcting me!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters which Tamora Pierce created, nor the world they inhabit. I have taken liberties with said characters and world, and invented a few of my own original characters—if the story sucks, or the players are out of character, it is entirely my fault. Please don't sue—I'm a college student taking a year off to work on my writing (a novel), so I don't even have pocket lint—that was breakfast.
Lingering Ghosts
Himura Seraphina
Chapter 2) Journey
"I have a request to ask of you both." Jonathan of Conte, King of Tortall, possessor of the Dominion Jewel, and the oddest ruler the EasternLands had seen in living memory—and beyond—spoke to the small assembly in his study.
Daine and Numair, well rested after two days of peace, sat together on a small sofa near the king's desk. Buriram Tourakom, or Buri as she preferred, a small, sturdily built K'mir with more character than beauty to her features, and the Commander of the Queen's Riders, sprawled in and armchair beside a matching seat which held the giant known asSir Raoul of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak, Commander of the King's Own. Evin Larse, the handsome, blonde-haired Rider who commanded the 7th Rider Group, sat upright, formally, on a padded bench near the hearth. He, unlike the others in the room, was not used to being the presence of the king.
Behind Jon, leaning on the back of his chair, was Thayet, Queen of Tortall, founder of the Queen's Riders, and considered among the most beautiful women in the world. Both rulers seemed unusually solemn as they looked at the famous mages. "This is a request—not an order by any means. One of our allies has, as part of a treaty negotiation, requested our aid in defending a part of their kingdom from a large, formidable group of bandits," Jon explained. "The 7th Rider Groupp, the 5th Group from the Dunlath region, and a small Company of the Own, led by Commanders Buri and Raoul, will go to their aid in fighting this threat, and in demonstration our tactics and methods—but not all of them," he added with a smile. "Daine, Numair, your help would be valuable, but can be spared. The bandits have been striking a series of villages; more disturbingly, this area is a buffer zone between our ally and their enemy. King Rochar of Galla is concerned about the threat."
It was at the mention of Galla that Daine realized why the king was not ordering her to do anything, and from the stiffening of his frame, she knew Numair had reached the same conclusion.
"Snowsdale."
Jon nodded as Thayet, worriedly, spoke. "Daine, please don't feel pressured—you both deserve some rest after the last few months—we can't, won't, demand this of—"
"Alright."
The queen froze, and the rest of Daine's friends looked to her, worried, curious. Numair took her hand, squeezing, and spoke gently. "Daine, you needn't do this."
She looked up into is beloved, concerned face. Even as her stomach tightened in protest and memories fought to surface, she smiled at him. "Yes, I do. Hear me out," she went on before he could protest. "No matter what I've done, what I've become, some small part of me still believes I am what the folk of Snowsdale thought me—the bastard daughter of a hedgewitch, without even the Gift to redeem her, who went mad." She saw the anger on his face, heard the murmured protests from Buri and Thayet—and was grateful for such friends. "For thirteen years all I heard was that I was Sarra's bastard: less than anyone else in the village, that nothing good could come of me, that no respectable man would have me—not that you're particularly respectable," she added with a smile.
"Thank the gods."
Her smile faded. "After—after the bandits, I was hunted by them, like an animal. Anyone else, even one who went mad, they might have tried to help. But me, with no family left, when I 'went mad', they tried to put me down. That piece of me, the piece that was nothing to all of Snowsdale, is still here, and I can't silence it, can't put it to rest unless I face it."
Numair searched her eyes, concern and love shinning in his own gaze. She smiled faintly and added, "I need to go—but I can't do it alone."
"Never, magelet," he whispered so only she could hear him. He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead before turning to the king, who smiled. "When do we leave?"