A/N: First of all, I want to apologize for taking so long to have this updated. I meant to do it much sooner, but I had exams, and you know how that goes. Thanks to all my reviewers for their wonderful reviews! We're getting closer to wrapping up this story, I only expect three more chapters and possibly an epilouge, but I'm also planning a sequel, so you will see these characters again, along with some new faces.
A/N: I promise more fluff in this chapter than in the others. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: These characters are mine. Everything else belongs to Tamora Pierce.
Silence and Shadows: Chapter 9
"Alec?" Jamal poked his head into the Tortallan's room to find the knight sitting in an armchair, reading one of the many books from Shyam Alden's extensive library. The knight looked up at the Copper Islander's voice, and seeing who it was, closed the book.
Seeing he had Alec's attention, Jamal stepped into the room. Dressed in a pair of tan breeches and a green shirt, he looked every inch a lord of the Copper Isles.
"Have you see Kaelyn?" Jamal asked, and Alec shook his head.
"No," he admitted, and then fell silent, as if pondering something. Jamal shifted slightly as a silence fell over the room, coating the space between them.
The silence stretched out, and awkwardly, Jamal broke it. "I was looking for Kaelyn because I need to ask her—"
Alec cut him off abruptly, murmuring, "Come to think of it, I haven't seen Kei at all today. Have you seen her?" This question was directed at Jamal, who shook his head in reply.
"Did you try the practice courts?" Jamal questioned. "That's the last place I saw her."
Alec shook his head, looking concerned. He saw that same concern mirrored on Jamal's face as he replied, "I just checked the practice courts. She wasn't there."
"They might be in the library," Jamal told him, heading for the door. Alec stood up, placing his book on a small table, ready to follow, when something occurred to him. Jamal stopped as Alec spoke again.
"They might be in the library," he conceded, "but we should ask Shyam where they are." Jamal nodded and strode out the door, Alec at his side.
"Anything else?" Kaelyn asked, trying to read the glided book that rested in her sister's hands. Nisha balked at the movement, and Kaelyn gave up on trying to read it. She turned back to study the foliage around them asKei looked up from rifling through the pages of the glided history book.
"Not much," she admitted, closing the book and tucking it into her saddlebags.
Her gray mare, Whisper, undisturbed by the movement, snorted in surprise as Tacy leapt onto her back, a dead mouse in her jaws. In front of Kaelyn, Amaya's head shot up, pink nose questing as she found the other cat and the scent of dead mouse. With an inquisitive mew, the black cat leapt nimbly onto the gray mare's back, and both cats shared the meal, balanced precariously on Whisper's back.
Distracted from the subject for the moment, Kaelyn noticed that her twin no longer held her arm stiffly. "Did your arm heal?" she questioned, surprised.
Kei nodded. "My arm and my thigh healed soon after our Gifts were returned. I think it helped."
Kaelyn nodded, agreeing. "Those who have the Gift often have healing powers. But what about our pendants?" she asked, changing the subject by indicating her twin's figurine and grasping her own.
Kei frowned, fingering the figurine at her throat. "I don't know," she told the other girl. "I've thought about it, and at first, I thought they would melt away, now that we have our Gifts, but they haven't." She cradled the black pendant in her palm, as thoughsearching the sapphire eyes for answers to mysteries still unsolved.
Kaelyn inspected her own. In the morning sunlight, the gold gleamed, and the green eyes stared back at her. She thought that the emeralds had been dulled somehow, that they didn't gleam as brightly as before, but she couldn't be sure.
Kei drew her attention back to the present. "We should be inside the Tyran border in another day or so, and then it's a two day ride to Tyra," she said, referring to the capital of the country that shared the same name. Her blue-gray eyes gleamed with excitement as she turned to Kaelyn, and at her sister's stare, Kaelyn felt the same excitement welling up at the thought of their return to Tyra after seventeen years.
Kei turned in the saddle, blue-gray eyes dancing as a mischievous smile appeared. When Kaelyn glanced at her quizzically, Kei's grin became wider as she elaborated.
"I wonder what the boys are thinking now?" she grinned and at Kaelyn's amused grin, they both nudged their horses into a gallop, racing through the trees, towards their mysterious past.
"They're where?" Alec asked incredulously, blue eyes wide with shock. Beside him, Jamal's brown eyes were wide and horrified. Sitting before them in a large armchair was the Shang Wolf.
"Tyra," he answered calmly, and Alec started to shake his head.
"No," he murmured, "I don't believe you."
The Shang Wolf said nothing, just watched as the two men tried to wrap their minds around where their sisters had gone. There was a faint trace of amusement in his hazel eyes as he watched Alec pace across the library floor. Jamal seemed to be deep in thought,obviously pondering something. Alec had finished pacing the floor and had returned to stand beside Jamal in front of the Shang Wolf.
"You wouldn't lie," he murmured, "so they must have gone to Tyra." He gazed at the Shang Wolf, perplexed. "Why would they go to Tyra?"
"That is for them to tell you," the Shang Wolf replied quietly, and then pointed out the window towards the eastern border of Tortall. "They headed towards Tyra no more than two hours ago. If you hurry, you can probably catch them by sundown."
A relieved look crossed Alec's face, and the next second, Shyam Alden was alone in the library again as he heard the two brothers scramble down the stairs towards the stables. Minutes later, he heard the sound of hoofbeats on paved stone, only to be muted by dirt seconds later.
Glancing out the window, he saw two riders galloping for the eastern border. He settled back, opening his book with a smile. Yes, he decided, he would definitely go to visit them after they had regained the throne.
The small forest had given way to meadows and plains after awhile, and the riding was easy. As they grew nearer to the border, Kei thought more and more about stopping.
As the sun slowly began to sink and stain the sky pink, the two girls found a small clearing to spend the night in. By the time they had finished setting up camp, untacked their horses, built a small fire, the sky was blood red and they were hungry.
Kei watched as her sister headed off into the woods, armed with her crossbow. She wasn't worried about Kaelyn's safety; her twin had been trained in the fighting arts as she had been, and also had the Gift. A short time later, Kaelyn was back, carrying with her two plump rabbits.
After eating, they let the cats have the rest, and prepared for the night. Kei let her hair down from its bun, and Kaelyn did the same. Now, except for eye color, they looked exactly the same, dressed in a pair of brown breeches and a tan shirt.
The red sky was giving way to the first evening star when Kei heard the first crashing noise. Sitting up and listening closely, she recognized the sounds of two riders, neither of them being careful to hide their motions. Unsure if it was friend or foe, Kei pushed herself up. Nudging Kaelyn awake, she grabbed the crossbow and handed it to her twin. Arming herself with two daggers, and placingmore within easy reach, Kei planted herself in the middle of the clearing, Kaelyn at her side.
The two figures came closer, and Kei tensed. As the two horses and their riders broke through the trees, Kei relaxed and saw Kaelyn relax also, easily recognizing the bay and chestnut stallions, along with their riders. Stowing her daggers, Kei glared at her brother as he approached.
"How did you find us?" She demanded, blue-gray eyes flashing.
Alec winced; Kei's temper was formidable, and he didn't want to get on her bad side if he was to convince her that she needed to go home.
"The Shang Wolf told us where you were headed," he murmured, and watched in amusement as Kei cursed softly.
"We were supposed to be able to do this without you two knowing!" She growled, indicating Jamal.
Alec smirked. "So you're saying you don't want Jamal to get hurt?"
Kei blushed in the dying light of the sun. "I'm not saying that," she murmured, and then she became defensive again. "This was a mission for Kaelyn and I to carry out, not you two!"
"What mission?" Jamal asked, coming to Alec's side.
Kei blushed slightly and faced him. Kaelyn had come to her side, and quickly, they told them the story. They told them of how they were princesses, of how Shyam Alden knew the entire time, about their Gifts, their pendants,and the history book.
Alec and Jamal took this in silently, and stared at the two girls in astonishment.
"That's why we didn't want you two to know," Kei explained, finishing the story, "this was something we needed to do on our own."
Kei was still wondering how they took it a while later, when she noticed thatAlec had drawn Kaelyn to one side of the clearing, and that Jamal had her drawn her to the other.
Staring up into his dark brown eyes, she blushed at what she saw. She saw the obvious affection and...something else shone there. Jamal gazed down at her, concerned.
"Are you sure you have to do this by yourself?" He asked, and Kei nodded numbly, silenced by his close proximity.
Jamal sighed, dropping his head. Coming slightly out of the spell his nearness had caused, Kei noticed that their hands had become intertwined. Lifting her head, she stifled a gasp. His face was so close to her own…
His lips met hers, soft and slow and sweet. Kei felt the love and passion behind the kiss, and she kissed him back with equal ardor. Her arms were wrapped around his neck; he was supporting her back.
This time, no one interrupted them, and parting, Kei saw why. Kaelyn and Alec were wrapped up in the exact same embrace, and Kei smiled at the love she saw passing between the two. Jamal's hand on her chin drew Kei's stormy blue-gray gaze to Jamal's deep brown one, and he kissed her again, lingering this time.
When they parted the second time, his brown eyes searched her blue-gray ones. "I love you," her murmured, brushing his hand against her cheek.
Kei stared up at him for a moment before replying, "I love you too." She buried her head in his shoulder, comforted by his warmth as he held her close, running his fingers through her long black hair.
Kei looked up to see that Kaelyn and Alec were watching them, standing comfortably together. She blushed, and shivered as Jamal's breath whispered in her ear.
"I'm coming with you." All Kei could do was nod, comforted by the fact that he would be with her when she went to regain the throne.
As the four travelers settled down for the night, the stars appeared and the moon began to ascend. Kei was between Jamal and Kaelyn, while her sister was between herself and Alec. Kei was lying in her bedroll, not quite ready to let go off this perfect day, when a hand tapped her on the shoulder. She rolled over to find Kaelyn watching her. In the growing light of the moon, Kaelyn's eyes gleamed.
"Today was perfect, wasn't it?" She asked, and Kei nodded and glanced up at the twinkling stars.
"It was," she agreed. Kaelyn watched her, an amused smile playing at her lips.
"What?" Kei asked, noticing.
Kaelyn's gaze became serious. "Do you love my brother?"
Kei blushed. "Yes," she murmured, and then turned the question back on her sister. "Do you love my brother?"
In the light of the moon, Kei could see Kaelyn's blush. "Yes," the other girl admitted quietly. Kei was ready to drift off to sleep when Kaelyn's voice broke the silence again.
"Every queen needs a consort, right?"
Kei grinned and rolled over, meeting Kaelyn's gaze squarely. "Right," she agreed, and rolledto her originalposition,letting sleep overtake her. The last thing she remembered before drifting off to sleep was Tacy, curled up next to her head and purring.
A/N: In case you were confused by some things earlier, Tyra is the name of the capital of the kingdom of Tyra. Tyra shares a small part of the eastern border of Tortall, and is a very small country.
A/N: What'd you think? Good? Bad? Ugly? Please review, and no flames!