Disclaimer: If you recognize it, it belongs to Tamora Pierce.

A/N: Okay, there's some stuff added that was just mentioned in passing here and more on his family. For all who wanted to know, yesterday's magic words were made up by yours truly. My imagination is a little too vivid at times.

I have to ask, has anyone noticed that Numair's dreams aren't the same. There's no scale and the creatures are different. No one has commented on that part.

Hoshi-ko88: Here's another good scene. You'll like the hug stuff at the end.

Nativewildmage: Thanks

Purple Eyed Cat: I look forward to it.

Silverlake: Thank you very much.

Blackandwhiteroses: I figured they did. But they aren't supposed to interfere in human emotions and free-will. Ain't I tricky?

Alanna Cooper: I assume that means you liked it.

Bitterosemary: I made up the language. It was a culmination of the bits and pieces of five languages I can speak some of and my own weird imagination. I'm glad you liked my interpretation. I was wondering how everyone would feel about being inside the enchantment.

Goldeneyedwildmage: Early birthday present. I'm a Gemini. I slid more stuff into this and it is consequently a long chapter for me.

Sarramaks: I know there's supposed to be a Numair Early Years and I've probably taken him an entirely different direction. But since I can't read how she's envisioned it for two years, I'm not going to worry. Maybe I won't be that far off. Thanks for rereading it and letting me know it flows like I hope. I do have mention of that little fact in this chapter too, so it was cool that you noticed it.

Narm's Briton 44: My book is going to be called "Something Special" and it is fantasy/sci-fi set on a planet similar to earth but with two moons. It's got the magic aspect and some of that will be familiar. I was dying to play with the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter thing. So that is what the main character is. But while everyone around her has magic, she seems to have none. Her mother gave her a name meaning special and then was disappointed severely when she wasn't. Thinking that maybe it was messed up because two of her sisters were twins, mom tries to have one more child and ends up with a boy and she dies in child birth. The main character and sibs were left to their aunt, who is a real bitch. She sells the youngest child into slavery and arranges a marriage for the main character who is 13. The girl overhears her aunt making these arrangements and says, "She's nothing special." So she leaves, intent on finding her brother and a place where she might be something special.

Numair didn't technically request temptation because he had no intention of drinking the water and when he followed Daine, he didn't even see water. He doesn't only think about her, but he does think about her most and he returns to thinking about her almost invariably. It's like having that prize that you want but aren't allowed to touch follow you everywhere. It makes you obsessive and it this point, he is a little obsessive. Don't worry, he will get over it.

I've been meaning to ask you, how crowded is Numair in your closet? I mean, if I kept him chained in mine he would be most uncomfortable (small space, low ceiling). Heheheee.

Chapter 17: The First Bridge

Numair went to change into dry clothes, deciding to save his magic in case there was another problem. While he changed, he kept thinking about the chaos demon in the lake. It wasn't supposed to be there. It seemed to him that there could be no alternative. Somehow, Chaos was winning. He wished there was something he could do. If she destroyed everything, he could do nothing but stand by helplessly watching, like all mortals. There would be no afterlife, there would be no world, and there would be no divine realm if she won this war. It was the kind of information Mortals weren't meant to carry, because if they were helpless to stop it, they could drive themselves insane while wondering when the end would come.

Daine was packing and began to fill Numair in on what he had missed. "Just before I woke up I had a dream about Ozorne. He was quarreling with some of the stormwings that follow him. They were unhappy about losses. But, of course, there's other groups that are just as crazy as he is that didn't seem to mind."

"It's too bad they couldn't rebel," he said from behind the tree where he was changing. "Our side needs a little good fortune."

"Don't I know it," she said. "So anyway," she continued, "when I actually woke up and realized you were up and packed I looked around for you and saw you striding into the water. The lady-thing was singing some kind of strange song to draw you in. I tried to stop you and ended up shifting to sea lion form."

"Did you crash into me?" he asked. There was evidence of that. Not only had he felt some kind of impact when he started to come out of his trance, but also his chest was badly bruised. Sore and swollen areas of dark purple had begun to form on his swarthy skin. Numair would likely be very sore by the time they stopped again. It was best to get going now and get as far as they could before the pain really set in.

"Yes, twice. Broad Foot thought it would bring you around. Did I hurt you?"

"Not too badly," he said stepping out from behind the tree. She handed him a cup of tea which he drank quickly. "I think we should get moving as soon as possible. The dreams I have here – they need us, Daine." He sat down beside her to eat his breakfast. She reached out and grabbed a lock of his loose hair, twining it softly around her fingers, and sending shivers down his spine. He stared too long again.

"You're tired," she said with a grin. "You're staring at nothing."

I'm staring at everything, he corrected silently. "Sorry," he said aloud, drawing his gaze to the ground.

"Would you like me to tie your hair back?" she asked.

He nodded and then came to his senses. "No, I can do it.

She laughed. "Can't decide this morning?"

"I think I should get moving. A little more of this conversation and you'll start to think my mental capacities are diminished. I'm just – I'm feeling foolish for getting enchanted by the chaos demon and I'm worried."

"That's okay. You can make mistakes and I won't think less of you – s'long as I get the same allowance," she said, smiling earnestly.

"Of course, Magelet." He beamed at her. He picked up a hair brush and began to straighten his hair. But she took over, while he tried not to react to her touch. She quickly put his hair into a horse tail. The badger watched them silently, sneezing once.

"Speaking of mistakes," the girl said. "I nearly got caught in a chaos vent. It's a bad idea to look into them. They draw you. If Broad Foot hadn't yelled for me to wake up, I probably would have crawled right in the thing."

The badger looked alarmed and went to examine the vent, while Daine and Numair cleaned up from breakfast and finished breaking camp.

Before long, Numair was ready to go, but Daine was still hunting for the darking. The small creature seemed to have disappeared during the night. He knew she'd hate to lose her new pet, but they needed to get moving. "We have to go," he warned apologetically. "We can't spend the day searching for it."

"I know," she responded. "I think it does too. I just hope it didn't fall in the lake."

When the badger rejoined them, Numair and Daine shouldered their packs and began to walk. But there in the path was a black, shimmering pool that stood out in contrast to the stand. "Is that you?" she asked. "Did you come back?"

It seemed to split in two. Half moved liquidly to her and reached up with small tentacles like a child begging for its mother to pick it up. The other thrust up a head and tilted it to one side as if studying the scene. Daine picked up the first one and cupped it in her hand. "You brought a friend?" she asked. The darking grew a head and nodded fervently.

"More of those?" grumbled the badger. "Don't they have anything else to do?" Both darkings shook their heads.

Daine gave Numair her bow with a big smile and leaned down to pick up the second one. "I don't know where you two will sit though," she said. The first one trickled up her arm and curled around her neck, like a strange necklace. The other rolled up her arm until it could drip into her belt purse. "I guess we're set," she told her companions.

Numair smirked as the badger grumbled some more. He returned Daine's bow and took the lead. He realized it was something they never discussed. He could always count on her to watch their backs and she knew that he would be watchful of the path. It was actually another sign of how well they worked together and one of those that made him think there was a small chance she might want to be with him someday.

It was another nearly silent trek. Numair was locked in his own head, contemplating people he had given little thought to in the last few years – his family. Seeing his father over and over in his dreams was strange. He had grieved slightly at hearing of his death. But he had not been there. He had stayed away as had been requested of him. The truth was he had been sent away at the age of ten, and though he had visited, he had never really returned. He had younger siblings he did not even know. He knew their names. He had a brother named Marid who was nine years younger, and a sister named Kalila who was the same age as Daine, though they were nothing alike. There had been another sister, Salmah, though she had died six months after her birth. That had been very hard on his mother and he had not been there to help her through it. He still sent money to his mother and they exchanged news though it seemed almost forced. Kalila had been betrothed and married at 14. Marid took over the family business and seemed to have inherited their father's gift for draping. He was so far removed from them, that he did not feel they were family and he hardly thought about them.

The realization that Kalila had been married for two years left him feeling strange. He had written to her a couple of times. She only responded once. She was not happy. He had never heard if there were nieces or nephews yet. He wondered if he could look in on them from here, or if he would even recognize them if he tried. Also, Tyra was at war too. They had been unable to send any troops to help Jon because they had their own battles.

He decided that if Daine left to stay with her family in the divine realms, he should go and see his family in Tyra. Maybe it was time to try to build some kind of relationship with them. And it might take his mind of Daine's absence.

They were nearly finished with lunch when Broad Foot returned to them. He was very frustrated. "They barely wanted to listen," he said pacing back and forth in the clearing they were seated in.

"But you did finally get to tell them? What was the outcome?" Daine asked.

"Not good, not good. They placed a ban on the lake, but they won't be looking into the matter of those who have been tainted. I think –" he came to a halt and sighed. "I think it is all they can do to hold the barriers against her."

Numair's mind reeled. This was really too much. He began to clean up furiously fast and suggested, "Then if we can do nothing here, let's be on our way. Daine and I would like to go home where we can do something."

They made good time that afternoon, descending from mountainous territory into lower elevations. There were less evergreen trees now and many more deciduous. Flowers growing along the path and wild grasses were more of the type you would find in the southern lands. By mid afternoon, as the sunbirds began to climb to make their daily homage to their point of worship, they were able to see the gorge in the distance.

A wide grass shelf allowed them to look at the drop. It seemed to be a canyon among canyons. There was the silver curl of a river just visible in the distance below. "Long Drop Gorge," the badger told them. Long drop was right. One would fall a long way before hitting the bottom. The badger nodded at two splintering logs planted upright in the ground at the gorge's edge. "And there's the first bridge," he said gruffly.

In the vision Weiryn had produced while making the map, this had seemed sturdy and strong. In reality, it looked brittle and ancient. Twisted and frayed hemp ropes secured wooden slats that had seen better days. More ropes, just as ancient, made up hand rails along its edge. They were attached to primitive and frail-looking logs. The hand rails were set at a good waist-height for most people. Numair could see that he would have to struggle for some sort of a hand hold and that it was low enough he could have stepped over to his death very easily. This was a long bridge too, spanning some 150 feet across the top of the gorge. There were no possible shortcuts, unless… no, he could not use his gift. They might need him to be at full strength.

"The first rope-and-wood bridge," the duckmole corrected. "The first rope bridge is further up. We didn't think you'd like that."

"First bridge or first wood-and-rope bridge, it won't break," snapped the badger. "It was set here after the first humans were done with it, and it's been here ever since. No force in the Divine Realms may break it, until the realms themselves are broken."

Numair would probably have been alright if the badger hadn't added the qualifier to that sentence. Now he was nervous. This bridge didn't look like it could support their whole party. It barely looked like it could support him. And hadn't the animals insisted that there was no way they could be attacked at Temptation Lake? It seemed to him that the glimpse he had gotten of Gods while here in the Divine Realms was one that humans should never see. Some gods ate trespassers, blackberries had a vicious streak, and the rules that were supposedly stone seemed to constantly be broken. The knowledge that Uusoae might be winning her battle against the Great Gods left a horrible image in his mind of stepping out onto that bridge and watching it snap in slow motion. "Is there an easier way to cross?" he asked. "Anywhere?" He felt a bit cowardly for asking, but he was compelled to.

Both gods shook their heads. "Long Drop Gorge extends several days' march in both directions," explained Broad Foot. "You did say you were in a hurry."

He turned to Daine and saw a look on her face that told him she was feeling as hesitant as he was. "Would you be able to carry our belongings if you and Broad Foot transported yourselves across?" Numair asked the badger.

"No," the duckmole answered for him. "Weiryn and Sarra both put some of their power into what you carry to help you. Those things are bound to you. If we tried to take them, they would not come."

Numair eyed the crystal in his staff. "I didn't know Weiryn cared," he said dryly. Weiryn had given him the staff, but that was to help Daine. He couldn't seem to forget the lightening that nearly hit him in the kitchen. Daine shot him a slightly perturbed look.

He watched her lean enough to look out over the edge to of the cliff again. She visibly winced and turned pale. He slid an arm around her shoulder, silently chastising himself because it was the second touch of the day. "Are you alright?" he asked her. "Heights don't bother you."

"It's the bridge as much as the height," she answered.

"I will carry our things if you want to shift," he said quietly. "A shape change is out of the question for me. We must keep our food and weapons, for one. For another, I would hate to use my Gift to fly across, then need it to handle trouble on the other side." It would be difficult to manage everything. He began to mentally rearrange things in his mind, trying to figure out how to do it.

"If we are going today, let us begin," urged the badger. "I would like to be across before anyone, or anything, else comes by."

The thought of being caught on that bridge by an unknown foe really set his stomach on end. "He's right," Daine said with a forced smile. "We'd best start walking."

Numair lifted the duckmole from the pocket in his shirt and set him on the ground. Silver fire bloomed and the gods reappeared on the opposite side of the canyon.

"Take the lead," Daine said. "I'll keep watch behind us."

"Are you sure?" He asked, thinking that since he was heavier, she might be safer going first.

"I'm sure," she said. She was obviously trying to look confident.

He rearranged his pack and staff and stepped cautiously out on the bridge. It felt fragile. It seemed to groan under his weight. And the hand rails were too low. He gripped the right side firmly, but had to grip the left around his staff. As much as he wanted not to look down, he had to. It seemed safest to keep his feet close to the supports and as centered on the slats as possible. They were widely set, but his feet were mostly too large to fall between. He worried for Daine though. Her feet were much smaller. He was out about 15 feet before Daine stepped on. The added weight made the bridge sway dangerously and he slipped slightly, making the bridge rock violently. His heart was pounding but he tried to reassure Daine calmly, "It takes getting used to."

"It's stood for time out of mind!" the badger's voice came from the air near them.

"That's what I'm afraid of," they both chorused. He looked back and grinned at her and she smiled back. Carefully he walked on, eyes on the planks in front of him.

A breeze began to push the bridge back and forth, making the trek across even more perilous. He tried not to think about what lay below. He began to mentally count spells that could have taken him across instead of this bridge. He didn't intend to use any, but it kept him from picturing himself tumbling off the edge and falling until his heart gave out of fright.

Suddenly the bridge began to rock even harder. He turned in time to see Daine struggling with something. She was about 40 yards behind him. "What's wrong?" he yelled over the wind.

"I don't know!" she yelled in response. "It's the darkings!" He turned and started back toward her but froze when she took her right hand off the ropes. If he caused the bridge to sway too much, she might plummet to her death. He thought he saw her drop a darking down her shirt and she held the other out at a distance. Then a look of pure terror crossed her face. She stuffed the thing in her belt purse and had just grabbed the hand-hold with her right hand again, when he saw her look up toward the sky. He turned his attention upward too and saw the sky ripple.

Winged shapes appeared. And when Daine called to him, Numair already knew they were hurroks. Eleven – she had said. These were enemies and they were coming at them on this damnable bridge. An unnatural mixture of hawks and horses, they were terribly vicious creatures. These immortals had no human components, but they had never responded to Daine's wild magic.

He saw Daine drop to her knees and ready her bow as the first attack wave made up of five of the things came at them. Numair planted his feet and raised his staff, still maintaining his grip on the bridge with his right hand. Daine would target the first one, he knew. So he aimed for the second and shot mage fire focused through the crystal on his staff. Numair's target burst into flame and dropped into the gorge, but Daine's was only injured. It had to be because of the wind and awkward positioning. He would have to find a more effective way to fight if he was going to keep her alive. But the second he thought it, Daine loosed her second arrow and it hit the attacking hurrok in the eye, dropping it effectively. That's my girl.

He aimed mage fire at another pair and heard Daine cry out. The hurrok she had injured had come up behind her and scraped her head with its talons. He tried to keep one eye on her to protect her while the second wave of hurroks attacked. He saw Daine shoot the one that had scraped her as he set another attacker ablaze. And now two hurroks were engulfed in silver fire. The badger and duckmole had joined the fight. It's about time, he thought ungratefully.

Numair sent a black net of his magic. It grabbed and held a pair of the monsters and they exploded from within, showering the sky with grotesque pieces. Two more hurroks, one nearby and one higher up, dodged frantically to avoid the badger's deadly silver fireballs. One caught a fireball in the throat, and burst into flame. Numair aimed for the other one, but Daine had already shot, hitting the beast in the throat. It flew right into Numair's mage fire and was charred to ashes that rained into the canyon.

Shaking from adrenaline, Numair stood and waited while Daine seemed to be struggling again with the darkings. "Daine," he called, "may we move on?"

"Sorry. Just a moment," she yelled in answer. He could see her say something to the darkings but couldn't hear it. He let her catch up to him, knowing that his weight would shake the bridge even more than hers.

When she reached him, he could see blood in her hair. "You're hurt," he said, touching the back of her head. She winced. It was obviously painful. He tried to sound calm. "I'll tend to it later though. Let's get off this thing," he said, wishing very much to be on solid ground now.

As he turned to lead them to the end, he heard her say, "I don't know. It seems like a nice little bridge." He turned and stared at her surprised. "It never dumped us now, did it? And it could've."

"Yours is a happy nature," he teased. "I confess, this is too much like excitement for me."

She giggled. It was a soft, musical sound. "It could be worse," she said. "It could be raining."

He chuckled lightly, barely noticing that suddenly crossing was not so difficult or frightening as it had been when they weren't close enough to talk each other through it. He shook his head dramatically. "I wonder if that hurrok struck your head a little too hard." The truth was if it had hit her a little harder, she'd be on the bottom of the gorge now. It was a thought that put his heart in his mouth.

"Nonsense," she teased back. "I couldn't have shot straight if it had."

He reached the end and stepped off to the lovely, solid ground with her right at his heels. He didn't think. He turned and swept her into a tight embrace. He clung gratefully for a few seconds before he realized what he was doing. So he began to examine her scalp while he held her, hoping she didn't hear how hard his heart was pounding. He had come too close to losing her.

"We should clean this," he remarked over her head, trying to sound like nothing more than a concerned teacher. "Didn't your mother give you ointment for injuries?"

Daine had wrapped herself tightly around his chest. "Mm-hmm" she said and rubbed her nose in the chest hair that peeked out above the v-neck shirt.

He was shocked at how fast his body responded to her. He was instantly aroused. He felt like a foolish 17 year old boy instead of a 30 year old man who was supposed to be able to control himself. He stepped back abruptly. "Stop it," he said too sharply. "I can't think when you do that." And I can barely breathe.

"You think too much anyway," she sassed.

The badger was sneezing again.