Chapter 5 – A Royal Disagreement
Jonathan walked into his suit of rooms. He had asked one of the maids to prepare a new room for him after he and Thayet had fought all those weeks ago . He looked around and again saw all the differences between this room and the one he used to share with Thayet. This room just didn't have the same feeling and atmosphere as the other one did.
"I think I preferred being in the other room. This room is cold at night, even with all the heaters." The King mumbled to himself. No one heard him though, as he was alone in the room. Jonathan started to wonder around the room. Until, that is, he saw the light green top sitting folded on his dresser. The top was Alanna's and someone had put it in this room the day after he moved into them. Jonathan stoped walking when he stood in front of them; he took the top into his hands and went to sit down on the bed with his scrying mirror.
"Ohh. Where are you Lady Knight? Where have you run to? Are you still hiding from us on your father's lands?" Jonathan wrapped the top around his hands and then looked deep into the mirror.
Jonathan saw a woman with white-blond hair down to her knee's. She was facing Jonathan so he could see her icy blue eyes. Her eyes would have looked beautiful if they weren't so hard with hatred, distrust and emptiness. It was as if nothing was inside her. The woman was wearing a silver pendent in the shape of a heart above her low cut, floor length black gown. Jonathan looked around himself and saw he was in some kind of fortress. The woman walked over to the window. It only allowed a small amount of light in, and was only wide enough to let an archer's arrow through. The woman turned around just as Jonathan was about to look out the window. She smiled off into nowhere.
"Soon." She said to herself. "Soon, Jonathan and Thayet will die. Soon, Tortall will be mine!"
Jonathan came back to reality with a start. What had happened? Who was the blond woman? So many questions went through the Kings head. Jonathan looked into his scrying mirror again focusing on Alanna. He could see that the Lioness was sound asleep on her bed, her red hair tumbling over her shoulder. Jonathan again came back to reality; he sat on the bed holding the mirror and the green top that belonged to the blond woman trying to decide what to do. After a while he got up off the bed and went to find Numair, one of his best friends and also the realms best mage.
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A while later Numair was also scrying into his mirror with the green top. When his mind came out of the vision he had seen, he looked deeply worried.
"Well, what do you think? Was Alanna really telling the truth when she said she didn't know what I was talking about?" Jonathan asked of the mage.
"The blond woman seems to be the person you slept with that night, not Alanna. And as for what you saw, we had better find out where she is from. You said that when you saw her she was in a fortress somewhere?" Numair was looking hard at the King, waiting for Jonathan to answer.
"Yes, the blond woman was looking out the window. I didn't get to see outside of it though."
"Hmm. That complicates things a bit. We will find out who she is. We should also get Myles to come and visit. In the mean time, you had better tell Thayet. I'm sure that she would want to know- even if she doesn't like it." Numair got up and left the room he and Jonathan were talking in.
"Right," Jonathan mumbled to himself. "Time to go and tell Thayet about this little discovery," before he left the room in search of his wife.
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Thayet was in getting ready to go to bed when Jonathan came to their old rooms (now her rooms). He knocked hesitantly against the open door. Thayet turned around and saw him there before a scowl crossed her face and she went back to get ready, completely ignoring her husband.
"Thayet, I think we should talk." Jonathan's voice wasn't very loud yet it was loud enough for Thayet to hear him. Thayet didn't say anything in response.
"Look, I know you think I cheated on you with Alanna. I know you think you saw her. But it wasn't her." After trying to make Thayet talk for a while, Jonathan finally got a reaction out of his wife. She whipped around to face him, glaring at him.
"You're trying to tell me it wasn't her?" she started to ask him in a deadly whisper. "You say that I don't know what I saw that night? You're calling me a liar." Jonathan looked into her eyes before answering, thinking that she might believe him more if he looked straight at her.
"It wasn't her. It was someone else. I was tricked. The woman left a green top and I scried with it. I found a woman in some other country, plotting our death and the invasion of Tortall." Jonathan paused for a moment and continued talking after seeing that she wasn't going to interrupt. "I scried for Alanna after that and she was sound asleep. Numair also scried for the woman and he saw the same woman as I did. We both think that this woman planned all of this."
"You're sure then?" Thayet sounded like she was starting to believe him. She wanted to believe her husband; she hated not talking to him.
"Yes, I'm sure. Numair and I think that she used a glamour spell on herself. She looked like Alanna to you and to me she looked like you." Jonathan could see his wife believe him.
"Ok then. I believe you. We still have a lot of things to talk about though. And we need to find the woman." Thayet went and sat down on the bed and Jonathan went and sat next to her before filling her in on everything he and Numair had seen and done.
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The next morning at breakfast Jonathan and Thayet walked into the breakfast room only to find Roald and Shinko. As they were the ones who were late it was unlikely that anyone else would come.
"Where are Kally and Kadder?" Jonathan was the first to ask. He and Thayet sat down next to each other. Roald and Shinko looked at each other and sighed in thankfulness. It was easy to see that the royal couple were talking again.
"They left a few days ago to go back to Carthak." Roald answered his father's question.
"What? Why? How come nobody told us they left?" Jonathan was a little upset by this news. He had wanted to say goodbye to his daughter and son-in-law.
"Well, Kally wanted to say goodbye to you but you and mother were staying in your rooms all the time and wouldn't talk to anyone. They also had to go home because they wanted to set up the palace in Carthak before the babies come." Jonathan and Thayet looked at each other, realizing how much they had missed.
"My little girl, all grown up and about to be a mother herself." Thayet went to get some toast and started to butter it.
"Well, we have some good news." Shinko started saying. "Kally and Kadder aren't the only people in the family who are going to be parents. Roald and I are going to have a baby as well." Thayet and Jonathan looked up at the Crown Prince and Princess. Suddenly they rushed around to their side of the table giving the expecting couple hugs, kisses and lots of congratulations.
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Chief Lions Mane walked into his council room. The table was filled with reports from his best spies. Lions Mane sighed and sat down, ready to start deciphering everything. After half an hour he had found out that the Crown Prince and Princess were expecting a child and Emperor and Empress of Carthak were as well. Chief Lions Mane smiled at the news and continued his work. He worked for another hour and a half before he had finished deciphering everything on the table. He was shocked at everything he had learned. Chief Lions Mane stood and picked up all his files and packed them into a bag.
After another thirty minutes of packing things. Lions Mane was ready to leave. He had to go. His life and many other lives were in danger if he didn't leave. He hated having to leave his daughter, but no matter what he said to her. She would not come with him, even after he showed her all his reports and all the news he had. Chief Lions Mane was on his way immediately after he talked to his daughter.
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A man on horse back was galloping along the road. A pale man with black teeth looked at him and smiled at his friend.
"This be the man we be sent to kill." The man with the black teeth looked back at the rider.
"Are ye sure? I mean, she'll kill us bad if we don't kill the right man. She said it herself." The friend pushed his dirty brown hair out of his filthy face. The man with the black teeth turned on his friend.
"Are ye sure?" he imitated. "Yeah, I be sure. She, who paid us, gave me a picture of da man in my head. She told me as she did it. 'If you don't kill him. You won't get your money, or the rest of your life.' Now…shhhh. He's commin. I think its time we send this poor man to da Black God's realms.' The two men turned back to see the rider about twenty meters away. The man with the dirty hair stepped out of the bushes they were hiding in and took aim with his bow and shot an arrow. A second later, the rider screamed as he fell to the ground. The two men smiled and walked over to the fallen man.
"Quick. Lets get da papers and then we can leave." The man with the black teeth said as he started to look. The man with the dirty hair started to look as well. Finally, the man with the black teeth stood.
"I found it. Grab the horse, his clothes and any of his valuables. We can sell them later." The black teeth man and the dirty man got all they wanted then left.
(AN/ ok...so...i couldn't keep them mad at each other any longer... :(. I like J/T being together…sorry A/J folks. They are not getting together in this fanfic...But do you really think that I would leave Alanna alone for the rest of her life? Now now. I'm not that mean. I hope..and of course Review.)