A/N: Wow, two chapters in one day! I'm on a roll! Please enjoy this chapter, and I hope it'll interest you.
Disclaimer: None of this is mine.
Everything She Ever Wanted: Chapter 3
Nara stared. "Your son is a thief?" Althea nodded, still smiling for some reason. Shadow glanced from his mother to the girl, confusion written all over his face.
"Ma," he asked, "what's going on?" The trio sat before a glowing fire. After Nara and Shadow's spat, they had retired to comfortable chairs in front of the fire to sort it all out. Nara yawned and blinked, trying to stay awake.
Althea looked at her son. "She is going to stay with you." She told her son, her voice brooking no argument. Shadow blanched, then glared at Nara.
"Ma," he informed the healer, "it's not my decision. The king has to decide whether she stays with us or not."
"Then ask him." Althea made it clear that her son was not going to wriggle his way out of this one.
Shadow sighed and slumped down in his seat, looking defeated. "Fine."
Althea grinned, happy with the way things were turning out. "Good, now that that's settled, everyone back to bed."
Nara stood before the King of Thieves, waiting. She had told her story, and now she was waiting to hear his verdict. Behind her, Shadow shifted impatiently.
The king sighed and settled back in his chair. "If you wish to join the Rouge, you will need to know how to defend yourself. Do you know how to use a dagger?"
Nara lowered her head. "I once was trained in weaponry, Your Majesty. I think I can defend myself." She was dressed in black breeches and a gray shirt, and her blue-black eyes were hard. Her hair was pinned up, and she stood ready. Behind her, she heard Shadow's derisive snort at her last statement, but she ignored him.
The King of Thieves, or Malik Sword as he was known to some, was a tall, lanky man, with blonde hair and gray eyes. His worn face showed the scars of many battles, and he looked past the girl to his thief. "Shadow, you train her."
Behind her, Nara heard Shadow choke in surprise. He stumbled forward, as stunned as she was. "Your Majesty, I can't train her!" He glared at Nara. "It wouldn't work."
Nara glared right back, but her gaze flew to Malik as he said sharply. "You can and you will train her, Shadow. Is that clear?"
Shadow lowered his head in submission, his black hair falling in his face. "Yes Your Majesty."
Malik turned his attention back to Nara and she met his gaze squarely. "In addition to training with Shadow, you will have a job as a barmaid. You will serve the customers, in exchange for a room. And who knows?" He murmured, grinning, "Maybe soon you'll be going on your own raids with Shadow's help."
Nara lowered her head. She didn't know how comfortable she would be with stealing, but she had to survive somehow. She finally nodded, blue-black eyes hard. "I'll do it."
Malik nodded his consent, and so began Nara's life as one of the Corus Rogue.
A week later, Nara wove her way through the crowded Dove, her ears ringing with the laughter and cheers of the patrons. There was a lot for her to get used to, but she was handling it. She stopped at a table, and looked down at the man sitting there.
"What do you want?" She asked brusquely, not in the mood to be polite.
"Hello, girlie," the man said pleasantly, looking her up and down. He leered at her, but Nara ignored him, repeating, "What do you want?"
"You know what I want," the man said, grabbing hold of her wrist. Nara's blood boiled at the contact, and her free hand strayed to her dagger, the one Alex had given her. The man watched the movement with keen eyes, and then laughed.
"None of that, now, girl," he warned, suddenly yanking Nara onto his lap. Enraged now, Nara drew her dagger, stared into the man's face, and stabbed him in the soft muscle of his shoulder. The man's howl of pain silenced the tavern, and all eyes were on them.
Nara pushed herself out of the man's lap, and turned to face him, wiping her bloody dagger on a filthy cleaning rag. "Don't ever touch me again." She hissed coldly, her eyes chips of obsidian.
Shadow pushed his way out of the crowd, glaring at the man. He slung a protective arm around Nara's shoulder, all the while shooting murderous glares at the offending man. "Come on, Lady Ice," he said, putting distance between her and the man. Nara rolled her eyes at the nickname but let herself be pushed along.
Shadow stared her, noticing she was a bit pale, but he said nothing. "Come on," he repeated, dragging her outside, "It's time for some weapons practice."
"Swipe! No, not with that arm, the other! Now dodge! And sweep!" As Nara swung helplessly, Shadow danced out of reach, his hands empty. Nara glared, her black hair in disarray. Shadow's emerald eyes sparkled, and he eyed her critically after a moment.
Forgetting the pattern for a moment, Nara slowed to a stop, letting the daggers rest by her sides. Her blue-black eyes were snapping with anger, the only other emotion she ever showed.
"You need to learn to follow your opponent," Shadow said after a moment, "and you should learn to use those daggers properly." Growling in frustration, Nara swiped at him, but Shadow once again danced out of the reach of her juvenile hands.
"Lady Ice," he drawled, slowing to a stop, "you need to learn to control your movements if you ever want to make it anywhere in the thieving world."
Nara's blood boiled at the nickname, and she swung out blindly. The resistance of her blade and Shadow's hiss of pain told her she had made contact. Shocked, she dropped her blade at the sight of blood dripping down Shadow's arm.
"I'm so sorry!" She gasped, hurrying forward while pulling her handkerchief out of the sleeve of her shirt. She wrapped it around the gash, soaking up the blood. She looked up to see Shadow looming over her. Her breath quickened as she noticed how close they were, and drew back slightly.
"Do you always carry that thing with you?" Shadow asked as the blood flow stopped and Nara stepped back, bloody handkerchief in hand.
"Of course," Nara replied automatically. "A lady must always have her--" She stopped at the look on Shadow's face. She was no lady, only a mere thief. The thought made her shiver, and she turned back to Shadow, scooping up her knife.
"Let's try again," she told him, and he nodded, taking his position. Nara again replaced her feet, and the fight was on. Nara swung again, but she missed, and Shadow now began to taunt her.
"How did you ever manage to defend your home with skills like that?" He wondered aloud, as Nara hissed with rage and tried to attack him. He smirked at her attempts and continued. "Or did you stay home while your poor husband did all the work?"
Nara stiffened at the insult to Alex, and she saw red as something inside her snapped. The next few minutes were a blur, but when she was finished, Shadow was sitting on the dirt of the courtyard, bleeding from numerous cuts and staring up at her with something like respect and awe shining in his green eyes.
"I didn't know you could do that," he murmured, staring up at her.
The corners of Nara's mouth flickered upward in the barest hint of a smile as she replied, "Neither did I." She headed back into the Dove, leaving Shadow to stare after her, wondering if she was always like this.
Malik stared at the two young thieves in front of him with surprise. "You want to go on a raid?" He turned his gaze to the woman. "But she's only been here a week!"
Shadow spoke before Nara had a chance to open her mouth. "Your Majesty, she has amazing sword skills. She bested me right now, and I could barely defend myself!"
Nara lowered her head modestly as Malik turned his gaze to her. "Nara?" She jumped at the sound of her name; she had gotten used to Shadow calling her 'Lady Ice.'
"My mother trained my in sword fighting and how to defend myself," she told him, "and I just remembered how to use those skills now." She looked at Shadow, who smiled down at her, remembering the battle. Malik looked between the two, confused, but in the end he shook his head.
"You can go on a raid, but remember," he warned, "I'm sending others with you. I don't want this mission messed up. Haunt and Lightning will go with you." He told them, and Shadow nodded, pleased; he knew them both.
"You leave tonight." Malik informed them, then waved them out of his rooms. Something occurred to him, and he called, "Nara!" The girl stopped at the door, confused, and looked back.
"Nara," Malik told her, "when you go on a raid, you have to have a thief name for others to call you by. In our line of work, the fewer people that know your real name, the better."
Nara thought for a moment, and then she looked at Malik, inwardly smiling. "Lady Ice." She told him, and the King of Thieves looked startled, then nodded.
"Lady Ice it is then." He said, and waved her off. Nara slipped out, back downstairs, hoping that she wouldn't mess up this first chance to prove herself.
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