Author's Note:
Thank you all for reviewing!
HORRORS OF HORRORS!! I realise that when I transfer my text onto , some of my markings and comments are MISSING!! Now I look at it, when I initially wrote my characters' speech in italics, the whole thing is gone! No wonder people are telling me it's wierd! > Anyway, you can look at a better copy of it on my homepage.
Yup, I noted the difficulty of understanding the speech thing. Ironically, a while back (when I say a while, I mean, years ago in my earlier fics) when I put "said", someone pointed out that it was kinda repetitive and boring, so I changed it. Anyway, I shall try and change it in the future. But for now, you would have to tolerate it since I have no time to edit my earlier work. Hee hee. When I start on Chapter three, will try and make it better!
Anyway, onto Part 2, some Evin and Miri action... I do like them as a couple!
Do check out my guestbook on my webpage about updates, yes, as you all know, my pathetic main computer finally died on me along with my webpage programme, so have to resort to that to announce updates.
Village Jehuin
Afternoon
Daine pushed back her hair back into the cloak, trudging her way sulkily up the path to the village. She needed to get some fresh meat for her new patient, an injured eagle. She used to hunt with the best of them, but a few years ago, she stopped this practice.
Normally, she didn't wear a cloak to the village, after all, the village had 5 years to get used to her looks. However, when it was after and before big celebrations, she took the precaution to wear it. This is because there were plenty of strangers about and the local boys felt restless and the need to prove their dominance to others during these occasions. She hoped to slip in and slip out unnoticed, especially by Numair. However, when she saw the gang of local bullies lazing around the village square, she knew that this was not to be.
She took in a deep breath and quickly walked towards the market. She knew they were jeering at her, laughing at her and she hoped they would do so passively. She walked past, unmolested to the market. She breathed a sigh of relief and bumped into somebody.
"Sorry," she muttered and a pair of strong hands grasped her shoulders.
"Is talking that bad?" a deep voice asked.
She recognised the voice even before she raised her head and scowled at Numair. "Why don't you just go and whisper sweet nothings to another village girl?" She demanded.
"Daine," Numair replied, surprised. "What I want to talk to you about is pertaining to your Wild Magic, nothing else. Let me assure you, I have completely no designs on you."
"Yes," Daine sighed, feeling a bit hurt and a bit crossed that she felt hurt. "Sorry, I was just being delusional." She walked around Numair and he touched her upper arm.
"I'm sorry, you're feeling hurt," Numair said gently.
"Ha!" Daine sniffed, alarmed at his accurate perception. "Now YOU are the one that is deluded."
She stalked off to the butcher's stall and felt him following her. She gave her orders to the butcher. "My," Numair remarked. "You are quite carnivorous."
"No silly," Daine scolded. "It's for an injured hawk I found. His leg is broke, he can't hunt."
"Yes," Bob the butcher rumbled in a bass voice. He was a big burly man with curly black hair and a bushy moustache. His apron was blood splattered and his sleeves were rolled up above his elbows, revealing muscular arms and calloused hands. "Daine here often buys for her injured charges," Bob supplied, handing over Daine a wrapped up bundle of meat. "That would be ten coppers."
Daine reached into her pouch for the money and to her embarrassment and surprise, she suddenly realised that she did not have enough money. Lisa had not given Daine her pay yet and Daine had spent her last pay on a new pair of boots. The worst thing was that Lisa was up at Duke Kelvin's castle showing Ruyina some wool. "Odd's bobs!" Daine muttered, thinking, 'of all the times I have to mess up…' She cleared her throat, breaking Bob's and Numair's conversation. She looked at Bob apologetically, "I am sorry, I, I, don't have the money yet. Lisa hasn't paid me yet and she is up at the castle…"
"That is alright," Numair interrupted, reaching into his pouch.
"That is alright," Daine said in a cold voice with a complete different meaning behind her words. "I will go borrow money from somebody else."
"Like who?" Numair inquired mildly.
Daine snorted, "Mama Em, the other villagers, you know, people I know and are friends with."
"They are all up at the castle discussing with Duke Kelvin on defences and emergency plans," Numair commented and in a quiet voice, "You can repay me later when you get the money from Lisa. I can wait, but the injured hawk can't."
He paused and waited patiently.
"Oh fine," Daine grumbled and wagged a finger at Numair. "Only because the hawk is at stake."
"Agreed," Numair responded with a straight face.
"Humph!" Daine sniffed, spun on her heel. She stalked off with the bundle, leaving Numair to pay the bill.
She stalked across the village square and was interrupted in her path by a stocky boy of eighteen. He was Ralon ahh yes, I am so unoriginal, the son of one of the merchants in the village.
"Where are you going, hag?" he mocked. He was mean, a bully and loved to wield power.
From experience, Daine knew it was best to be silent and ignore him. She stepped to the side, trying to avoid him. He raised his arm, blocking the way.
"Hey, hey," Ralon said. "Not so fast, my friends here," he gestured his head at them, a small group of teenagers, all from out of town. "Would like to have a glimpse of your pretty face."
Daine seethed, she hated it when people treated her like a side-show. "I just want to go home," she muttered, walking away from Ralon.
"Hey," one of the teenagers said, stepping into her path.
A hand suddenly appeared and pushed the teenager back. "Hey you too," Numair interrupted.
The teenager staggered back. Numair looked around and said coldly, "Why don't you boys just go and run off?" he said.
Daine stifled a gasp and kicked Numair. Was he trying to start a fight? She looked up to see Ralon strut up to Numair and tried to shove Numair. Numair barely flinched and looked down at Ralon with an upraised eyebrow.
"You don't want to start, or you will be simply over your heads in this situation," Numair informed him coldly.
'Well, yeah?" Ralon challenged, trying to bolster his 'tough' image.
"Numair, don't," Daine whispered, tugging his sleeve.
"What's it your business, hag?" Ralon sneered.
"That's it," Numair responded and he shoved Ralon, making him stumble.
They scuffled a bit and it ended up with Ralon on the floor holding his hand to his broken nose. Ralon sneered at Numair, "Let's see if we can even up the score a bit."
Daine's eyes widened as she saw the group of teenagers begin to crowd around Numair. "Need some help, Salmalin?" someone offered.
Daine glanced back to see Evin saunter towards them with Miri on his heels. "You think you can take us on?" Ralon smirked. "ten against two?"
Evin cast a droll look over to Numair and remarked, "They don't learn, do they?"
"Why you…" Ralon growled and a launched himself at Numair. A fight soon started.
"Stay here," Miri cautioned with a pat on Daine's shoulder and pounced into the fray.
Daine growled to herself, thinking, 'this is absolutely silly! The whole fight could have been prevented!' She called out to her four-legged friends.
Evin deftly dodged a red-haired stranger's punch. "Stop horsing around, with all the prancing," Evin taunted. "Even my sweet horse Sugar can do better than that!"
"Ha," the stranger sniffed, and drew out a dagger. "If your pretty horse is here, I would crave out my initials on it." The stranger was suddenly picked up by his shirt and roughly shaken.
Evin gaped at the culprit in surprise and smiled, "Why Sugar, I didn't know you cared."
Sugar neighed and tossed the stranger unto the ground unceremoniously. Evin looked around. The Riders' horses have broken free from their stables and were happily throwing their weight around.
Literally.
"Well Sugar, it looks like we better stop them horses before they seriously maim anyone," Evin commented. Sugar snorted in agreement.
Daine waded through the groaning bodies. She went up to Numair who had just knocked out an impetuous youth. She tapped on his shoulder. He spun around on the balls of his feet and only his quick reflexes stopped him from throwing Daine.
"Are you crazy?" they both said simultaneously.
"I'm crazy?" Daine screeched and pushed Numair in the shoulder, not considering the fact that if they came to blows she was definitely at the losing end. "How about you? You started a fight with ten people! What if Evin and Miri didn't come along? You could have gotten badly hurt!"
"Well, they did, but…" Numair continued, raising his hand to forestall any protest from Daine. "…even if they didn't, it would not matter. I could have handled them."
Daine growled at his arrogance and she drew back her arm and swung her fist at Numair. Numair grunted in both shock and pain when her punch hit home. She spun on her heel and walked a few feet before turning back and yelling, "Next time you choose to pick a fight, remind me never to interfere! Your ma fair dropped you on the head when you are young." Then she stalked off.
"Got a temper, that youngling," Evin remarked, coming up to Numair a few moments later.
Numair harrumphed, "I don't know why she is worked up over."
"Well," Evin responded dryly, "It is fair easy to forget that you are a soft, wimpy pacifist scholar unless one sees you in action."
Numair raised his eyebrow, "I didn't get my black robe for nothing, you know."
"Uh huh, and why didn't you just turn all these boys into pansies?" Evin said and waved to Miri who was walking over.
"A waste of magic. Besides, the pansies would come after me for insulting their kind," Numair answered.
"Hardy ha ha," Evin responded.
"Boys, boys, boys," Miri commented when she came up to them, shaking her head at them. She looked at Numair, squinted at him and laughed. "Really, Salmalin, you must be getting soft. To get a black eye from this minor skirmish."
Numair growled, "Daine punched me."
Evin howled in laughter while Miri nodded in approval, "Good for her. You better get that eye looked at." Numair stalked off while Evin put his arm around Miri for support as he laughed helplessly.
Miri felt a thrill down her spine, but she shrugged it off, both literally and metaphorically. Evin took his arm off Miri's shoulders and rubbed his face. "Salmalin got punched by that mere slip of a girl."
"Now would you like to be punched by another mere slip of a girl?" Miri threatened.
Evin immelediately sobered and put up his hands to placate Miri. "Now, now, don't you like the feeling when two dashing young heroes come running up to your rescue?"
"I wouldn't know, because I am not exactly a drop dead gorgeous damsel," Miri retorted a bit too bitterly that Evin noticed. "Anyway, I will go check if Daine is all right."
Evin looked at Miri consideringly as she walked off.