Disclaimer: If you recognize it than you probably know already it's Tamora Pierce's and if you don't well – IQ test results must be traumatic for you.
A/N: Just for those interested, Baldwin is a type of apple that dates back to the beginning of apples. We have many varieties now due to hybridization but I wanted one that could be historical.
Mages Whisper: Sorry to make going to work even harder, but I'm glad you like my stories. I'll have to check out some of your stuff if I get the chance today.
Goldeneyedwildmage: Sadly, I liked that line. But I will entertain replacing it. Any suggestions?
Sarramaks: You've hit on one of the hardest things about doing stories like this. Numair and Daine are together a lot in this story too. Often I just type the book and then go back over and change things or add them. It can be tedious. It is much more simple to just write my own stuff. But this is a good exercise in discipline. The darking in the pocket is below.
Bitterosemary: Glad you liked that line. I love how perverse Weiryn is throughout. He does give a sort of blessing below, but it's done in the style only he would use.
Purple Eyed Cat: Temptation Lake is chapter 16. But you'll like the extras in here. I always thought there was a specific reason for bowing to the tree, so I included it.
Chapter 15 – Departure
Weiryn went to clean his brush and Daine and Numair stood waiting in the work room, still in awe of their weapons and the map and everything Weiryn had told them of what was to come. Numair looked at Daine speculatively. "I should – if you -- if you wanted to stay you still could," he said very softly, looking at his boots.
He could almost hear her temper flare. "We're going home – together," she said firmly.
He lifted his gaze to settle on hers and he smiled subtly. "It's very wrong for me to divulge this, but -- I'm glad," he said. Her blue eyes searched his and a smile lit her face. It was the closest he had been in a long time to confessing. "Your father is right though – you are safer here and …"
"You are fair strange sometimes, you know that?" she said looking slightly perturbed and amused all at the same time. "And have you forgotten the tauros?"
He reached to brush her hair from her face, but pulled his hand back. The words were all right there. He could just open his mouth and tell her. But his jaw remained stubbornly closed. Then Weiryn walked back into the room and urged them out.
Broad Foot was on the table of the main room, dripping wet. "Are we ready?" he asked.
Sarra stepped forward. Her face was, for the moment, dry. She held two cloaks, a smaller blue one for Daine, and a larger black one for Numair. They donned them, and then she produced packs.
Numair turned to the duckmole speculatively. This was not a creature made for walking distance. "How do you want to do this? You can't use your power to move us and – forgive me – I doubt that you can walk at our pace," he said.
The duckmole turned his gaze to Numair's shirt and he felt it squirm like something was crawling on him. He startled. The shirt twisted and a pouch formed right over his abdomen. Broadfoot disappeared in a cloud of silver and reappeared in the pouch. He looked back and up at Numair. "The view from here should be very nice," he answered. Sarra and Daine giggled. "Mind you don't bump me." It was a nice solution. Tkaa used a pouch to transport Kit around. Numair smiled down at the duckmole.
Numair watched Sarra hug Daine. "You'll come to stay a bit when your war is settled?" the goddess asked the girl.
"I will ma. I just don't know when that will be," she answered.
"We'll know. We'll come for you on the holiday that's closest." Sarra seemed to stare at her daughter. "You'll visit for a season or two?"
"I'll come ma.
"Promise?"
"I promise. We – we'll catch up on the time them bandits took from us," Daine said and squeezed her mother tightly. Numair watched them silently, dreading that time when Daine would come back and he would be without her. He saw tears glisten in both Daine's and Sarra's eyes.
Daine turned to say goodbye to Weiryn and Sarra turned to Numair – something he hadn't expected. "You take good care of my girl," she said fiercely.
"I will," he promised.
She looked up into his eyes and smiled warmly and whispered, "Don't worry about Weiryn. He likes you – even if he doesn't want to. You've been good to Daine and he knows it. Come see us again." She patted his shoulder.
"I have enjoyed meeting you, Sarra," he said politely.
Weiryn opened the door and they filed outside. Weiryn stared grumpily at Numair and then he heard Weiryn's voice in his head say, "Daine could do a lot worse than you." It wasn't exactly a blessing, but it would do. Numair smiled at him and bowed his head.
"Straight down the path," Broad Foot instructed. "We've a couple hours of light still."
Numair took the lead, glancing over his shoulder once at Daine. She looked slightly sad and he thought about putting an arm around her. It wasn't practical though and they needed to get as far as possible.
They walked quietly. Numair was nervously thinking about everything Weiryn had said would be along the way. He half wondered if he shouldn't be requesting permission from the path to walk on it.
The Divine Realm was beautiful, and it was amazing to see it this way. If the need weren't so desperate, he would have loved to really just study everything. They descended into a mountain forest. There were flowers of numerous varieties growing along the path. Trees and shrubs were scattered through the forests as if they had been planted by someone in an effort to landscape the perfect woodland scene. He could picture Volney Rain, an artist he and Daine both knew, setting up his easel and sketching madly in an effort to capture everything perfectly before the light faded. He could hear bird songs and the babble of a brook somewhere. It seemed like the perfect place to be on a warm June day. But he knew underneath it all was a war – or was that two wars? The war he was leaving for was one that was picking off friends, one by one. And then there was the Divine war. Uusoae was fighting with her sisters and brothers. He supposed it was a nearby bumble bee that had reminded him. He vaguely began to rethink the dream of the night before.
As he pondered it, he became aware that the light had dimmed much earlier than he expected. They were in a dark hollow shaded by the largest white oak tree he had ever encountered. It seemed to stretch into infinity. The bole had to be at least seven feet in diameter. "Goddess Bless," he said with awe as he stopped to stare.
"She is the first tree," Broad Foot explained from his place in Numair's shirt pouch. "From her acorns, the first mortal white oaks were born."
"Her?" Numair asked gazing down at Broad Foot.
"She is a god. She is aware."
Numair looked up again and wondered where the goddess of apple trees might be found. He stepped back, holding Broad Foot away from him so that he could bow reverently. He offered the tree a silent prayer. If I had known – I should have paid tribute to you for taking one of your kind and creating one of Tristan Staghorn.
He heard an answer in his mind that surprised him. It was slow, as if the speaker had eons in which to say it. –You are forgiven, human. Tristan has a century to learn of his mistakes. He would have poisoned all of mine and now he is one of us. But Baldwin, he has a strange existence. He is a gardener now.—
Baldwin? Numair thought. Is that the tree that is now a human? Where?
-Worry not. He has my blessings, as do you.-
Numair straightened, irresolute, unable to utter a sound or even move for his heavy thoughts. But they were interrupted by a strange squeaking. "What's that noise?" he asked.
"What noise?" chorused Broad Foot and Daine.
Numair moved closer to Daine, hand cupped around one ear and bent. "Easy there," Broad Foot cautioned. Numair thought the sound was coming from Daine's pack. So he gave the girl a half turn and pressed his ear against it. The squeak became a shrill that was loud enough for the whole party to hear.
Numair opened one of the pack's side pockets and removed a clay jar sealed with wax and the little creature that Daine had defended at lunch. He held the blot up to eye level and asked, "Now where did you come from?"
"Is it the one that's been following me about Da's?" Daine asked.
The little creature reformed itself liquidly until it had a head. It nodded.
"Were you in my pack by accident?" Daine asked the creature.
Now it shook its head vigorously.
"You wanted to come?" she asked.
The inky creature nodded again.
"Pop it in here then," she said, pulling open breast pocket and nodding to Numair. He hesitated. He didn't know what this creature was, and he felt like his hand shouldn't be anywhere near her breast pocket. It was one of those thoughts that led to all kinds of things Weiryn might put an arrow in him for thinking. He dropped the creature in her pocket cautiously. "Now we've each got a passenger," she said. She smiled, her mouth inches from Numair's. He could just lean forward a little and brush her soft pink lips with his own. He could almost taste the kiss that he longed for so much. Daine inhaled sharply and brought him to his senses.
He straightened abruptly. "We shouldn't dawdle," he said and forced himself down the path at a brisk stride. "We've got a lot of ground to cover."
-Nearly forgot I was here, didn't you?- Broad Foot said sarcastically in mindspeak.
"Yes," he whispered contritely. "And I nearly forgot my resolve."
-One of these days you will.-
"I hope you're wrong. I intend to be strong and wait." Broad Foot couldn't laugh, but Numair could have sworn the duckmole was doing just that.
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Up next – temptation lake