Sorry it's taken so long to update, I've been having some computer problems that never seem to end.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except my imagination.
Thanks to all who have reviewed this in the past, I really look forward to knowing what you think. And, as amazing as this may be,vocabulary lessons acually came in handy when writing this chapter.
Unlike previous ones, this chapter actually GOES somewhere, and so far I like how the story's going.
Mother, if you're reading this, quit it now.
For all those who are not my overly-obsessive parent, please read.
Chapter Six
The Visitor and the Following.
Kit led the way: her sweat-damp midnight curls pressing tightly to her face, her eyes still smoldering with impatience and anger, her lips pressed together in a firm expression of resolve. Raistlin, keen brown eyes intently searching the corner, face carefully cold, was on her heels, steadfastly ignoring his brother's whispering. Caramon skipped beside Raistlin, cheerfully whispering inanities in his twin's ear, tears forgotten.
They reached the corner: Kit flashed the man - for now Raistlin could see it was a man, wrapped all in black cloak - one of her most charming smiles.
"Good morning, Vielleicht." her tone was carefully charming and respectful. Placing both hands on the table, she leaned forward slightly, her brown eyes fixing on the man in front of her.
Raistlin also studied the man intently. Now that he had sat up, Raistlin could see that he wore a black shirt, a gleaming red vest, and a heavy black woolen cloak, even though it was fairly warm in the summer afternoon. The hood was drawn up over his head, shadowing all but his eyes.
His eyes. They were the feature that caught Raistlin's attention and held it. Rubious in color, they had the hard look of a ruby and an unnatural gleam to them that set Raistlin's gaurd on instant alert. Caramon, standing close besides his twin saw the eyes too.
"Raist!" he whispered in awe. "That man has red eyes!"
Raistlin opened his mouth, but wheather the unuttered words were scolding or not was never found out. Before Raistlin could reply, Kitiara stepped casually upon his and Caramon's feet with an iron-shod boot; Caramon yelped slightly and Raistlin, glancing at the ruby-eyed, was sure he saw the thin lips twist in an amused smile, a smile that sent a shiver up Raistlin's spine.
"Fair morn, uth Matar." the mananswered Kitin a soft, coldvoice.
"My brothers, the twins I told you about." Kit swept a hand in her sibling's direction. "The big one is Caramon; a soft nature and not the brightest of the various peoples I have met, but relatively handy with a sword for one so young and quick to obey, but easy to distract and none to apt to keep a secret well. Raistlin, the smaller one, is a secretive kid and a good bit of smarts and wits on his shoulders, though with atongue that'll get him in trouble someday. Can't wield a sword--can't lift one, come to think of it--but I've sent him to mage-school for the past six or so months, before summer hit, and he's done reasonably well."
Kit's tone was sharp, quick, and to the point; the man studied the two boys intently as she described them. "How old did you say? Four, five?"
"Six." Raistlin said curtly, disliking the fact that Kit was giving so much information about him away to a stanger.
"You keep your mouth shut." Kit snapped to Raist, then turned back to the man. He had drawn his hood back, and Raistlin could see his face now: lean and bony, with thin lips and narrowed red eyes, pale skin, and a sharp nose. Gray hair framed the picture.
"They'll do." Vielleicht nodded towards Caramon, though his eyes remained upon Raistlin.
"I'll meet you in the morning, then?" Kit said in a cool, professional tone.
"The morning." the man's words sounded like the slamming door of a tomb.
They shook hands--the man's bony, white hand stark against Kit's tanned one--and Kit, without a backwards glance, left the Inn, moving at a quick pace with a sharpness to her steps. Caramon and Raistlin hurried after her; Caramon because he wanted to know about the strange red-eyed man, Raistlin because he did not want to be left alone with the strange man with the blood-colored irises.
"Who was that, Kit?" Caramon asked inquisitively, skipping to keep up with his older sister's quick pace.
"A man, Little Brother." Kit's tone warned Caramon to say no more. However, Caramon failed to notice.
"He had funny eyes, Kit. All red, like that ruby that a kender showed me once. Why were his eyes like that? Raist, do you know?" Caramon glanced back at his twin, who was lagging behind."Anyway, he looked like a ghoul, Kit. He made me shiver and feel cold inside. You shouldn't hang around with people like that, Kit, Father said so."
"Father won't know if you keep your mouth closed!" Kit stopped, turned around, and glared down at her younger brother. "Which you will, Caramon. You will not tell anyone–I mean anyone–about this. Swear to me."
"Aw, why?" Caramon asked childishly.
Kit raised a hand, her eyes sharp and angry at Caramon's insolence.
"OK, OK. I promise." Caramon stated obediently, skipping back a pace to walk with Raistlin. When Kit, satified that Caramon would not spill his guts, was out of earshot, having moved away towards the outskirts of town, Caramon turned around and asked his twin "Why didn't Kit want me to tell?"
"Because it's her business, brother." Raistlin replied simply. "And she sees it fit not to have Father learn of it."
"She didn't make you promise, though." the twins reached an intersection in the rope-bridges and took the left bridge.
"She either believed that I wouldn't tell, or simply forgot to make me promise. Either way, it works out well for me." Raistlin mused, almost to himself.
"Oh." Caramon, seeing their approaching home, skipped ahead, leaving Raistlin to stared at the bright azure sky, mulling over his own endless questions.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
It was some time later: Raistlin was seated on the shadowy ground beneath a vallenwood, the stone, the note, and one of his own books-a journal. Studying the necklace and noting every detail in the journal, Raistlin was fascinated. What mysteries did the note and the paper contain? So far, they seemed endless.
Flipping the page, he began to write questions, questions he wanted answered.
What is this strange necklace? Where did it come from? Is it magical? What do the runes mean? Is it in any way connected to the note? Is the necklace an instrument of good or evil?
All of those questions, and more, were still unanswered.
Frowning, Raistlin turned to a blank page and began to copy the runes from the paper into his journal.
mîxD âZDX, Lbî lDb Lxîâ DxíîbD "BtPçPZB, îDíü çëînî bîáf zäBbü, bî çBFPâëDíPD WPrBLBëB VxîíPLBDb DxDç îbíîZPbDëüíî líîé öDVP YîëPíBxP, ZFBbîé Z âîërDáZbâîX "BtPçPZB P îáîäxDíífé Z VxîZüáBXP UBëBäPí.
Almost every rune was identical or similar to a letter in the Common language, save for the marks above or belowalmost all the smallerrunes-espeically the ones that were similar to vowels. Raistlin turned to the necklace, peering through the dark mist that shrouded the sapphire with the silver runes. He began to copy them down:
YîëPíBxP, ZFBbîé Z âîërDáZbâîX "BtPçPZB P îáîäxDíífé Z VxîZüáBXP UBëBäPí.
The runes on the necklace matched the last line of runes on the note.
"Huh." Raistlin ran the tip of the quill across his lips. "Now this is getting interesting."
So absorbed inhis work was Raistlin that he failed to notice the approaching boy.
"Hey, Raist!" Caramon's cheerful voice startled Raistlin, breaking into his thoughts and annoying him to no end.
"What do you want?" demanded Raistlin, not looking up from his work. Caramon, however, did not notice.
"I'm going to go play with some of the other boys, Raist, call me if you need me."
Raistlin lowered his head, turning from his brother. Caramon, not noticing this, skipped away.
Raistlin lifted his eyes and found his brother, getting ready to pitch crab apples at the other team, easily. Good, he's busy, so he won't bother me, Raistlin thought with satisfaction.
Turning back to his work, Raistlin spent the rest of the afternoon in study.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
A woman stood. He knew he and he didn't know her. She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, and yet, at the almost-seen glimspe of her, his soul tremble in awe. Had he been standing, he would have fell to his knees before her . . . the Queen . . .
And then she, whoever she had been, was gone, and in her place was a dark, dark smoke, and a sapphire in the shape of a cresent moon, carved with runes. A fair, gentle woman wept in the corner, and Raistlin felt his fear leave by just laying eyes on her. And then . . .
A black creature, like a bird only thousands of times bigger, flew into the room, spinning in a circle around the smoke. Fear such as he had never known coursed through Raistlin's veins, freezing him. There was a brief flash of black light that was more blinding than any other light Raistlin had ever seen, a triumphant, dark laugh, and then silence . . .
AHOOOOOOOOOWWLL!
A howl broke the stillness of the night, shattering Raistlin's dreams. Opening his eyes, he blinked away the mists of the nightmare, for he was sure it was a nightmare: he'd had it before, but he could never truly remember it when he tried to. Shaking his head, Raistlin recognized the howl of a wolf.
What were wolves doing so near Solace?
Raistlin got up onto his bed-after checking to see if the unearthly howl had awakened his twin. It had not. Not surprising, considering that Caramon had been known to sleep through a thunder storm. Nodding to himself, he-with the help of the sturdy window ledge-stood up on the small bed and, parting the curtains, the little boy stared searchingly out the small window.
It was night: well, almost night. The smooth, iridescent light of moonless midnight had faded to darkest indigo, the horizon lit with the tiniest spark of golden dawn. Shadows were long and lengthy, far outdoing their masters. Raistlin's large brown eyes skimmed the ground below the airborn town, looking for the howl's birth. He saw nothing.
How strange.
And yet, how not.
His thoughts were inturrupted by a noise behind him.
Startled, the six-year-old turned around, expecting to see a monster born of his darkest dreams waiting to devourer him. Instead, he saw a shadow: a shadow in the form of a teenage girl.
Kit.
She moved quickly, silencing Raistlin with a hand to his lips. "Ssst." she hissed, grinning her crooked grin, a smile that was meant to be reassuring. Raistlin let himself relax, though he was curious of why she'd come.
"Kit-"
"Hush."
Kitiara whisked he little brother of the bed, thrusting a cloak into his arms. "Quick, put that on. Now." her tone held no argument. Turning abruptly from him, she moved to the dresser where his and Caramon's clothes were. Silantly yanking the dawers open, she began to place leggins, shirts, tunics, vests, and other clothing into a sack. Raistlin dumbly watched her, than pulled the cloak on quietly. It was dark and long, much too long for his little frame. He tugged it around him and, carefully, moved over to the bedside table and slipped the pocket that held the journal, necklace, and note around his self, under the light cloak.
Kitiara, her work finished,shook Caramon awake. Raistlin, watching from the shadows, saw that his sister's hand was to his twin's lips before Caramon had opened his eyes. "Ssst, hush up. Put this on and wait with Raist."
"Kit," Caramon began in a confused tone, staring at his elder sister in surprise and confusion.
"That was an order, soldier." Kit answered in clipped tones, thrusting a cloak similar to Raistlin's into Caramon's hands. "Obey."
Caramon obediently hopped out of bed--first glancing remorsefully at the warm covers, for the morning was chilly--and tugged on the cloak. Kitiara, without missing a beat, handed both her brothers a pair of shoes.
"Aw, but Kit, it's summer!" Caramon piped up.
"Hush up!" Kit hissed, her eyes flashing. Glancing warily at the curtains separating Gilon and Rosamun's bedroom from the rest of the house, she held a finger to her lips. "Put them on, and no arguments!" she snapped in a sibilant whisper.
Caramon, chagrined, tugged on the shoes, and came to join Raistlin by his bed in the corner. Raistlin noticed, as he pulled on the pair of shoes he'd been given, that they wereboots made of soft, dark leather, not the hard, cracked boots he and Caramon usually wore in the winter.
"Raist, are we going somewhere?" Caramon asked, fiddling with his cloak.
Raistlin was silent, remembering the words 'in the morning'. But before he could answer, Kit inturrupted. "Yes. We are. Come on." Pointing to the door, she laid a not on the table, pinning it down with a rock. Raistlin, who was near, saw that it read:
Dear Gilon,
I have taken my brothers and myself on certain business that I need not detail here. I will bring them back someday in the near future. Do not worry. I have done this for the good of my siblings, and, I assure you, they will be quite safe and cared for.
She had not signed it.
Raistlin thought briefly of his parent's reations to this note, to finding all three of the children's beds empty, and felt a twang. Of what, he was not certain.
"Where are we going?" he asked as Kit hustled Caramon and him out the door, taking care to bolt it after they left, stepping into the shadowed realm of pre-dawn.
"I'll tell you later." she answered curtly.
Kit moved them down the bridges, down the ladders until they stepped upon the dark, damp ground. Caramon was still sleepy from the sudden awakening. Raistlin was not.
Swiftly they traveled towards the stables, where they waited in the dark cover of the tall trees. Kit tapped her foot: no one came, nothing happened.
Then a shadow, barely seen, flitted through the trees, and a cloaked figure appeared, leadingthree horses. The first two were lean and fast: the thirdwas smaller, quicker, used to bearing little weight. The cloaked man nodded to Kit, and Raistlin saw a flash of ruby eyes. It was the man from the Inn, Raistlin realized, the red-eyed man--Vielleicht.
"Fair morn to you, uth Matar." Vielleicht said in a cold tone.
"Good morning to you too, Vielleicht." Kitiara answered in a carefully pleasent tone, but Raistlin's sharp ears detected a cold steel beneath the sweet honey of the words.
Without a word, she and the man took hold of Raistlin and Caramon and hoisted them onto the smaller horse, moving quickly so that they had no time to resist. The remaining two then climbed onto their own horses.
"Say good-bye to this boring town, baby brothers." Kit said in a cool, simple voice. "Isn't likely you'll see it for a month of two."
"Bye." Caramon said sleepily. Raistlin was silent.
Kit, taking the reigns of her brother's horse, pulled sharply. Without another word, the four rode away form Solace.
And, Raistlin thought with a shiver, he was certain another howl split the silence just before he slipped into darkness.
Soooo . . .
What do you think about this one? Good, bad, awful, wonderful?
Please review.