Disclaimer: I do not own Deltora Quest. I am also NOT a high school student who is best entertained with a good Deltora Quest fanfic and loves reading the books over and over again . Of course not, what gave you that idea... ho hum.
Pairing(s): Mostly Lief/Jasmine. Some Barda/Lindal if you squint.
Lastly. I have only read through Isle of the Dead. I live in the middle of nowhere, and we don't get our books until a year after they're released in Australia. Do not flame me for what I do not know, for they will simply be forwarded to the kitchen to make chicken fajitas.
¤
Perennial a short story
¤
Under the patient eye of a group of her fellow Dread Gnomes, Gla-Thon inspected the fruits that had just recently been harvested. They were large and plump, and an appealing shade of green, but they were still so sour than the gnomes that had been doing the harvesting snickered when she took a bite of one.
Gla-Thon shot them a dark look, and they quieted, but their eyes still sparkled with mirth.
She shrugged, closing the lid on the box that held the harvest. "It does not matter," she said. "There are many more crops blooming with fruit that can be eaten without a grimace. Tell Nee-Pan that these will be made into candies, as they were last year."
The gnomes grinned at her. They clearly remembered the stricken, surprised looks on the other gnomes' faces when they tasted the sugared candies for the first time. Some had even enjoyed the rush of sour taste.
But Gla-Thon remembered when these fruits had been stunted and sickly and all that there had been to eat. She was grateful they could afford to be turned into candies now, instead of the main course in the dinner halls.
She watched the gnomes as they trundled off down the well-lit hall, carrying the box between them.
She also remembered a time when those boxes had been heaped with dead flies by the thousands. She shuddered, rubbing her rough hands up and down her arms as if experiencing a chill.
The great white tree that had once been the toad Gellick had been standing in the immense treasure chamber for many years now, but his evil will and horrible memory still crawled in the rocky walls. Each year, they retreated further and further away. Especially when...
"Gla-Thon!"
The aging gnome spun. At the door to the entrance hall stood one of the recently assigned messanger gnomes. His young eyes shone with excitement. His voice squeaked uncontrollably as he exclaimed, "Za-Van's little one spotted horses! On the eastern mountain path, heading for the mountain!"
Gla-Thon's heart leapt in her chest. Gnomes did not use horses, nor did the Kin. She could think of only a few people who would willingly come to Dread Mountain on horses.
"Does a blackbird fly with them?"
She almost cried out with joy when he nodded yes.
¤
Gla-Thon had managed to get a hold on herself by the time she had reached the procession coming up the east mountain path. It was a motley slew of people, and if not for the blackbird that circled overhead or the dragon's roars she had heard earlier that morning, she would have dismissed them as a ragged band of travellers and let the simpler of the gnomes have their fun with them.
The honey-colored horse who was in the lead snorted in fear when she saw Gla-Thon, and the man who sat in her saddle leaned forward and patted her reassuringly.
Then he lifted stark green eyes to meet Gla-Thon's gaze, and a broad grin of recognization spread across his face.
"Good day, Gla-Thon of the Dread Gnomes! How do you fair?"
"You do not have to be so formal, King of Deltora," the gnome replied, but there was fondness in her voice. "You are among old friends now."
¤
It was not much later that the horses had been lead off by a group of curious gnome children to drink in the clear waters of the stream, and Lief, Barda, Jasmine, and the rest of their party were sitting with Gla-Thon in the empty dining halls.
"Word will spread quickly of your visit," she told them, seeing Jasmine open her mouth to inquire about the lack of life. "Soon many will come in from the terraces to greet you. It has been a long while since the last time you came."
"Deltora is a large place," Jasmine answered evenly, her face clearing. "So your crops are growing well?"
"Better than we could hope for! We have more food than we know what to do with."
One of the smaller members chose that time to speak up, pale eyes flashing, "Can we have some? We are really hungry!"
Both Lief and Jasmine hushed him in the same breath. The child looked confused, not seeing the harm in what he had asked for. Nor did Gla-Thon, for she laughed. In her mind's-eye, she remembered the faces of those who had tried the green sugared candies without knowing what a punch it had.
Barda saw her way too, because he grinned underneath his beard and said, "What you do not ask for, you do not get, as a certain shopkeeper likes to say." And the child looked smug and nodded.
Quieting, Gla-Thon took the time then to really scrutinize the party. The three companions really didn't look any different than she remembered. Lief still looked as young as the day he had turned Gellick into the tree that still stood in the treasure chamber, but his eyes told other stories. The Belt of Deltora gleamed about his waist as brightly as ever, and the residue feeling of Gellick was lifting further away the longer it shone. There were flecks of gray appearing in Barda's beard, but when Gla-Thon commented about it, she learned that the man's growl had lost none of its force. Jasmine, too, had flashing eyes and her fierce grin was no different, though the face it was set in looked the smallest bit older. Kree was outside with the horses, but Filli was perched on her shoulder, nibbling cautiously on a berry he had been given.
Then the gnome noticed that there was another face that had not been there the last time the companions had visited. The child it belonged to stared at her unflinchingly with green eyes, safe in her father's lap. Gla-Thon smiled, careful not to bear her teeth, and after a moment, the little girl ventured to smile back, only revealing two tiny teeth and an expanse of gums. She was very unattractive, but then again, what did Gla-Thon know of human children?
"I heard the dragon of the emerald this morning," she said, just to keep conversation going.
Lief grimaced, and tightened his grip on the child in his lap. "It still has not forgiven us for bringing the dragon of the lapis lazuli into its territory so long ago. It reminds us of that every time we see it. The other dragons are more courteous, even friendly, but not the emerald."
Suddenly, the boy who had asked for food made a noise, his eyes growing wide. A gaggle of gnome children had clustered around the doorway, and were staring at the companions with immense curiosity, for many were too young to remember the last time the king had visited. One of them waved.
Jasmine glanced quickly at Gla-Thon, who bent her head in a slight nod. The tangled-haired woman then told the smallest of their group that they were allowed to play. The gnome children whooped with delight at this, and within moments, the doorway was deserted, and Gla-Thon was alone with Lief, Barda, and Jasmine.
"Human children grow more slowly than I thought," she commented idly.
"Fast enough for me," growled Barda. "And are nasty little vermin besides. More trouble than I ever thought possible, especially when there is more than one. They seem to get themselves into danger every time we turn our backs." He shot a look at Lief and Jasmine, who rolled their eyes in unison. This was plainly an old arguement.
"The sooner they learn about danger, the sooner they learn how to avoid it or get out of it," Jasmine said from experience. "Besides, I would rather they travel with us than stay at the palace with Father and Sharn. It is better they learn all they can. We are more than apt in defending them, when danger does strike." She tilted her head, as if daring the big man to argue further.
"And the people surely appreciate it that you visit them all," Gla-Thon put in smoothly. "You get to know them, and they get to know you as friends interested in their welfare, instead of just the distant royal family."
"Besides, Barda, if you are so tired of us, you are very welcome to return to Broome," Lief said slyly. "And Lindal."
Out-numbered, Barda just grumbled, "Looks like I am destined to be your nursemaid forever. How my mother would laugh."
In the companionable silence that followed, Gla-Thon clapped her hands together. "Would you like to see for yourselves more of what we have done with Dread Mountain?" she inquired, eyes sparkling.
¤
While she was showing the three of them the magnificent halls of the Dread Gnomes, which were really beginning to show what their glory had been, the aging gnome watched Lief and Jasmine out of the corner of her eye. Her kind may be different from humans, but no one had to explain their relationship to her.
They were both listening to her intently, but their hands were clasped with a small manner of defiance. Gla-Thon knew that Lief's choice for a queen was not what most of the people would have liked, and how much trouble it had stirred in Del. Yet, she could not picture things being any different. From what she had heard, Jasmine would not stand for living the life in Del, nor could Lief do anything to make her unhappy. Shortly after their marriage, they and Barda had travelled throughout the kingdom, for once not on a great and life-changing quest. And just never stopped. Affairs in Del were left to the king's mother and the scar-faced man whose blood made a message on a wall at the base of the mountain. The people no longer had to travel to the southern city for a meeting, for if they were patient enough, the king would come to them.
Of course, it made contacting them difficult in emergencies, but it was partly for that reason the messanger birds had been trained.
There was always danger, for even though the land had been cleansed of the Shadow Lord for many years now, centuries worth of neglect was hard to get around. Yet, Gla-Thon had not known Lief, Barda, and Jasmine to turn down a challenge, or to fail, no matter the odds. Or how many children.
"Have you not destroyed these?" Jasmine inquired suddenly, picking a jar from one of the shelves they were passing. The familiar purple liquid inside oozed against the glass, causing Filli to chitter with fear, and Lief and Barda to shudder.
Gla-Thon shrugged. "Fa-Glin, rest his soul, said we should keep some around. The water and Boolong sap concoction is completely harmless, as you know, but it serves as a reminder that we must not let ourselves be drawn into laziness by how well our lives are going. That evil still lurks, especially this close to the border."
Lief smiled. "I doubt we will ever have to fear the Dread Gnomes being caught unawares."
The gnome grinned, this time not fearing to bare her sharp teeth.
She continued to show them the interior of the mountain, and although their responses were appropriate and level as proper etiquette called for, she could tell they were as personally pleased as she was by their progress. They remembered how things had been. But to Gla-Thon, what had been done on the inside was not important compared to how well they had built their terraces on the outside.
She heaved open the heavy door that sealed away the tunnel to the terraces, and gestured the three of them through it. She moved to follow, eagerly preparing to speak, but at that moment, she caught a sharp scent. She forgot everything she was going to say.
It did not matter, because the moment the three companions stepped, blinking, into the light, they were excitedly hailed from above by a giant, familiar Kin form.
The terraces were a hive of activity, for it was plainly harvest time for the gnomes. Five great level gashes had been carved out of the mountain which had been too steep to grow anything on previously, and hosted a variety of fruits and vegetables, some of which were new to Lief, Barda, and Jasmine since their last visit. A few of the nearest gnomes raised their hands in greeting to the three of them as they emerged from the stone, but most were occupied with the great shadow cast by the Kin. Kree swooped silently alongside.
"Prin!"
Calling their names, her voice squeaking high with delight and the youth she was not quite ready to let go of, Prin circled once before making her characteristically clumsy landing. Though fully grown, Prin clearly had taken her time in growing out of the novelty of being the Kin's Little One.
"I knew you had come!" she exclaimed, pressing her forehead to Lief, Barda, and Jasmine's in greeting when they reached her. "It has been so long since your last visit! Or, at least, too long for me. The others claim it could not possibly be you, but I think they are as aware of the passage of time as the rocks are. Oh, it is so good to see you!" Blinking, whiskers trembling as she was suddenly reminded of something, she looked around. "But where are your little ones?"
"They are being shy. See?" Grinning, Jasmine gestured towards the nearby line of trees. Tiny, oval faces peered out from behind the tree trunks. They vanished as Prin began to approach them, and she paused, looking rather hurt.
"Do they not remember me?"
"Probably not, Prin," Lief answered, his voice reassuring, as curious eyes began to appear amongst the foliage again. "The memories of our children are not as good as those of Kin children. I am sure they would be delighted to meet you again, but let them get over their surprise first."
"Indeed," Barda added. "After the spectacle with the emerald dragon this morning, I cannot imagine them being too willing to come greet you." The three of them laughed at the almost insulted look that crossed the Kin's face.
"What shall be your next destination? I want to accompany you!" Prin wanted to know, after all the courteous questions about family and well-being had been exchanged.
Before Lief, Barda, or Jasmine could answer, Gla-Thon spoke up, her voice strangely quiet. It had been the first time she had uttered a word since their emergence onto the terraces, when she had identified that odd scent. "Where ever it may be, I suggest it be with friends. Jasmine will need the company of women she knows soon."
Jasmine felt the heat rush to her face, and ducked her head to hide it. Her first reaction was to be mad at the gnome for giving away what she had kept to herself for some time now. She had planned to tell the other two when there was no travelling in their immediate future, because even after the children she already had, she was still quite certain that nobody worried about her quite as much as Lief and Barda did. Simply because she was expecting a child did not mean she was helpless! Yet, she could not bring herself to be upset with Gla-Thon.
It was worth it, just to see that look on Lief's face.
Barda was the first to recover, and did so with a loud groan. "Not another one! Do we not have enough hotheads on the loose already?"
At that moment, the branch that was suspending one of the children over the group snapped under the pressure, and the big man just barely managed to catch him in time.
"See what I mean?" Barda grumbled, setting the child down on his own two feet. He smiled sheepishly and darted over to his parents to hide behind them. The others were beginning to creep out of their hiding places to gather around Prin, green eyes wide and eager questions on their tongues.
"Come now, Barda. Surely we are not that bad," said Lief, his arm wrapped securely around Jasmine's waist. Their heads were touching.
"Oh, you are. No doubt about it."
Gla-Thon left them to their bickering. Even though Lief and Jasmine's love was something she could plainly see, she could not claim to understand how the friendship between the three of them worked. They scarcely had anything in common except the secrets and the memories that made their bond too strong for her to completely get her mind around.
Later, after food had been shared and stories passed around until the halls were ringing with laughter and happiness was a tangible thing caught in the crevices of the wall, she walked by herself along one of the gnome paths that had been there since before time. Above her, the sun set in splendor behind the towering figure of the mountain. A family of field mice scurried across the road in front of her, plump from good living that even extended to them and the lowliest of creatures.
Gla-Thon smiled.
It really was a happily ever after.
¤
la fin
¤
"Just trust in the good times no matter how long it takes."
((A/N: I kept any mentions of the children vague on purpose. I'll let your imagination fill you in on the blanks.))