A/N

this is an original story and i hope to use it later. the plot is my creation, and(though it is a bit twisted)i hope to use it later and really publish a version of it.

not so much fluff YAY! and now we can get to the main story. double YAY! i just wanted to thank kyra-maRia the second reviewer(which is sad) but BIG UPS to you! thanksand hopefully some others will take a hint! it's cool to review!


Chapter 4

Hadsworth

10 Years went by, and Garron never returned. Anyé and Tara grew up, changing from giggly young girls to beautiful young women. As they got older they were given further boundaries, the woods opened up to them, and new paths led them farther and farther away from their safe valley.

At 19, Anyé was allowed to leave the village for a few days at a time. This freedom excited her, she was able to roam wherever she wanted, no limits. It had quite the opposite effect on her uncle. Saul's hair was beginning to show his concern; the silver weaving its way through his thick brown hair. He worried constantly, that the truth might be discovered. People in the village had already asked him where her parents had grown up.

Seth's answer to his troubled friend was to turn her in. "If we turn her in; Henric will do anything to make his rule legit. We could marry her off and save the country in one move!"

Mary told him not to stress himself over it, 'When it happens it happens, Saul, there's not much you can do about it.'

As for Anyé, her visions grew in clarity year by year; she seemed to be taking a step forward to the figures every time they appeared. She soon realized that the two shadows in the flames were fighting, and the third was waiting for the victor to emerge. She longed to know what had started the argument, if that was the reason for the fire, and who would win the fight. They came less frequently than they did when she was a child, but she still did not protest when she felt the sticky fog of the vision enveloping her.

She had also learned to create her own visions, like replaying time, but she could not change her mistakes. She could only see what she had done, and heard what she had said. She could watch her own reaction and attempt to understand where and when she had gone wrong. It was useful to be able to control the magic.

Anyé and Tara went to town as often as they could. There was so much more to see and do in town than at the village.

As Anyé and Tara left for Hadsworth, one morning, Saul shouted to them, 'don't get into any trouble! I mean it! The Icelings have come back; you know how many problems they have caused! And Do NOT go east! That path leads in to the Charmed Forest. You know what is there!'

Anyé replied mockingly 'don't get any more gray hairs while I'm gone, you can stop worrying for a few hours can't you?'

'You do worry too much Saul' added Tara.

The two of them rode off into Hadsworth Forest, the trees enveloping them after a few moments. Saul sighed; he did worry too much.

After they were out of sight of the village, Tara and Anyé began to race trough the forest, when suddenly, a small-frightened puppy dashed in the way, spooking Anyé's horse, which reared and threw her. Anyé stood up carefully and brushed herself off, watching as her horse took off home. The small puppy cowered in the bushes, shaking like a leaf. 'I'm all right. Don't worry. Oh! Tara, look!' Anyé called to her friend, 'oh I wonder what scared him, come on out I won't hurt you.' she coaxed the tiny timid creature out of the brush.

He was a reddish color, with shaggy fur, and small pointed ears.

'He can't be more than a baby' said Anyé

'Anyé, leave him, he'll go home on his own. His owner is probably worried sick.' advised Tara, getting off her horse.

'He doesn't have a collar. He's a stray. He probably wandered into the forest from town.' answered Anyé, 'lets take him with us, at least to see if any one is looking for him.'

'Fine' Tara crossed her arms. 'But he's your responsibility. How are you going to get there with no horse?"

'Oh, that stupid horse! It doesn't matter, I can walk, he can find his own way home, and no doubt some one will let him into the stables. And the puppy will follow me, wont you fella?'

The little dog wagged his plumy tail and barked.

'See, he agrees with me! What peculiar eyes he has though…'

Anyé commented on the puppy's strange pale green eyes.

They continued on their way, Anyé walking alongside Tara's steed.

Anyé produced some purple bubbles out of thin air, and bounced them along the road for the delight of the dog.

"I've been getting better." declared Anyé.

"Because you take every available moment to show off" replied Tara with a slight frown on her face, but she knew how hard Ailise had to work to get her magic to be perfect.

The two friends continued joking along the path with nothing more eventful happening until they split up to do they're shopping.

Tara returned to the village a few hours later, asking if Anyé was home yet, but nobody had seen her since the morning, and as far as any one else knew, she was still in the village shopping.

The next morning was wearing on, and still no one had seen Anyé, Saul was beginning to worry. Pacing around his study in the fort, he looked up as four men walked in.

'Tristan! Have you found any thing?' he interrogated the exhausted leader of the scouts,

'Saul, the boys and I took three hours, and searched all of Hadsworth,' He panted out wearily, 'No-sign-of -her. We found Iceling tracks about a week old north of the village though.' he coughed.

'All right, we'll wait for an hour and then you can head out again, that gives you plenty of time to rest.'

Tristan and the other four scouts groaned, they were supposed to have the day off today, there was a hunting festival in Tollone in five days, and double duty had not been in their plans.

Saul began mumbling to himself, something he did a lot these days, just thinking aloud. Mary came into the room then, taking advantage of Saul's musings.

'Here you are boys, drink up!' she passed out cups of water, pausing to scold a few in a motherly fashion.

'Drink slower all of you! I don't want you sick again after Tristan's last bout of the flu! You ate my kitchen pantry clean! Just lying about! Lord knows you probably gained at least 50 pounds!'

Tristan scowled 'yes mother, the children will drink slower!' he mocked. The scouting party laughed jolting Saul back to reality.

'You're absolutely sure you searched every where? Left no building unsearched?'

Saul was starting to feel the walls closing in; he knew what Tristan was about to say.

'Well sir we couldn't search the tower...' Tristan didn't need to finish his sentence, Saul knew immediately what had happened, and Ailise had let herself get caught.

Saul looked at Tristan and paled, he knew how captain Kenton dealt with the thieves from the valley.

He started to shout exasperatedly, 'Where is Seth! Someone goes and gets Seth for me now!'

All four scouts scrambled out of the study,

Mary looked back at Saul and said 'we knew it was going to happen sooner or later.'

Saul slumped down behind his desk, "I had really hoped it would be later."

Mary nodded; knowing full well what sort of danger this could put the camp in.

When Anyé awoke, she was in a very strange room, 'hmm' she thought, as she looked around, the small puppy looked up at her in adoration from the floor.

'One window-with bars, a solid looking door-with a food flap and one oh-so-uncomfortable cot Damn it, I'm in one of old lord carter's cells.'

Not knowing how she got there she began an instinctive damage assessment. Flexing each limb in turn, she said aloud 'arms: left, right. Legs: left, right...'

Finding no broken bones, she picked herself up off the floor and walked over to the window. As she looked out a voice from out side of the door answered her unasked question,

'Your in the northwest tower, 3rd floor' the guard said ' with all that I know of the guard Capitan, this is where he puts 'special guests', as in' he lowered his voice and glanced around, 'Guests who will soon be checking out...permanently.' Anyé whirled around, 'What did I do?' she asked not remembering anything. 'I didn't think you would recall it, that was quite a fall down Stroller's Hill that you took.' he laughed. 'I never seen anything as funny as that in all my life!'

Anyé tried hard to remember, but her head pounded with hundreds of tiny pinpricks, giving her the odd sensation of pins and needles across her temples.

The guard frowned, 'I've never seen the captain that angry though, you sure hit him hard with that bag!'

He turned to go, and said "Lunch will be up in a few hours, I'd get some sleep between now and then."

Anyé nodded, she took one last glance out the window, and tried not to think about when the captain would decide she could 'check out'


i just wanted to make those of you who did not review know that that is not cool.

be cool like these people,(yes the list is small, but i am grateful that they understand english and know what PLEASE R&R means)

kyra-maRia

Gigi the Dancer

thanks you guys! i really apreciate it! makes me feel almost fluffy inside.

so be cool like those guys and REVIEW!

thanks again.

DL Shores