Chapter Fourteen: In Which the Assassin is Confronted

They left two days after the incident. They were all there to see them off. Rolf didn't see at as too dangerous; they had three griffins with them, a wizard, a knight, seven armed guards, and a sergeant. Beatrice was hissing, held in Thalia's arms as she wouldn't see anyone else. Queen Celina was fussing over Bran, and even over Pogue, whose own mother had simply kissed his cheeks and wished him good luck. Bran embraced Rolf, and then both of his sisters, Lilah being much more affectionate whilst Celie was a bit grumpy knowing she couldn't go with them. Pogue embraced both Rolf and Celie, and nodded and bowed to Lilah. It was still a bit awkward between them, no matter how many times Lilah and Pogue denied it.

They watched as the caravan swung their legs over horses and were off. The griffins bounded next to them as they became dots in the distance. Rolf slung an arm around his younger sister.

"Guess we didn't make the cut, Cel," he said glumly, a bit miffed himself.

"Stop being so dramatic," the Queen clucked. "He can't very well send his two heirs, one of which being the very one threatened and the other being a thirteen-year-old princess, on a search for an assassin."

Rolf had heard this logic from his wife, and it made sense. He would've done the same thing. But still. He never really got to do anything adventurous. Besides being hunted and almost murdered by an evil prince, going to Hatheland, and finding the Well. It was all in perspective.

They all filed back into the Castle after that, duties forgotten. Well, not for the king and queen. The rest of them sat in the griffin tower, silently petting the griffins. Dagger had plopped down right in front of Kalys and Rolf, satisfied to be petted by both of them. King Glower had taken away Kalys's guard after awhile, since she was spending most of her time with Rolf, Pogue, or the griffins. And Arkwright had been nothing but helpful. Unless he was lying and was really in cahoots with Casper. No one really knew.

"I am thinking the best of the luck will be with them."

Leave it to Lulath to be positive.

"Unless it isn't," Rolf piped up, and Kalys rolled her eyes. He looked over at her and made a face. "We have to be prepared for any outcome."

They were all silent after that.

...

Kalys hated fittings. Like maybe more than Celie did. She hated just standing there in a slip with people poking and prodding, pulling and picking. Unfortunately for her, all of her gowns had been destroyed. Not that that mattered, though, she had already grown out of most of them.

So she stood there. Sighing as the let out out seams, started hemming and sewing. The gowns, as she had requested, were light and practical, and would hopefully last throughout her entire pregnancy. She didn't care for fancy things, though there was a slight puff to the fabric at her shoulders, and embroidery on the sleeves. It had been insisted upon.

Finally she was able to hop off the box she had been standing on and patter our of the room with a word of thanks. She hurried down the hall; the cold, textured stone feeling very nice on her rather sore feet. Dagger was at her heels, at Rolf's suggestion. He didn't really like being without his rider, but he was adjusting to Kalys; mostly because she gave him a lot of attention, and usually treats. She knew she shouldn't spoil him, but he was such a good griffin, and he was very muscular. Dagger was the best fighter they had; certainly a very kingly griffin. Probably the future king of the griffins.

Kalys ran right into Rolf, the habit of keeping her head down in the halls starting to get inconvenient. Rolf steadied her, though he kept his hands on her elbows and shot her a concerned look.

"Don't run straight into a wall," he said, raising his eyebrows.

"Sorry, I was just lost in thought," she apologized, moving her hand to tuck a curl behind her ear.

"You have that look," Rolf accused, his other hand still resting on her arm.

"What look?" Kalys asked, a little confused and annoyed. She had places to be.

"The look you had when you cooked up that little plan to see Casper," Rolf told her, a hint of bitterness in his voice.

Kalys winced. Though he had defended her to his father, that was still a sore spot in their relationship. They had never fought about it, really, but it was still looming over both of them.

"I just have to get these notes to Thalia," Kalys explained softly, watching as Rolf glanced at the papers in her hands.

"Oh," Rolf said, grinning. He turned, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "So I was reading this epic poetry the other day and I found a name that I liked."

Kalys smirked. Rolf had a habit of reading war poetry. It had started, Celie said, when Rufus had hatched, though Rolf didn't know about it, and the school master had recommended griffin poems to him. It was a funny thing to her. Her husband often seemed to goofy to be interested in poetry. Then again, war strategies were a part of kingship, and perhaps reading a lot about war would help him along.

"What is it?" Kalys asked, as they began to walk in sync. She could feel people's eyes on her and it made her uncomfortable. Dagger was still clacking along beside her, so she focused her eyes on the gold and brown feathers and fur.

"Magnus." Rolf looked at her, his eyes bright. "Magnus Maximus Glower has sort of a noble ring to it, don't you think?"

Kalys curled her lip. "If you live four countries north of here. Besides, was this Magnus Maximus praised for the raiding, plundering, and capture of villages?"

Rolf shrugged. "I guess, but that's not the point. He was a king who fought back for his country, thus giving his subjects a better life. It would be an excellent choice for a king. Rolf and Owen aren't very dignified the way I see it, and I want my son to have a kingly name."

"I just don't really want to name my child after a king who probably had a hundred wives, some he took forcefully both body and soul, and most likely killed children," she responded. "Besides, what if its a girl?"

"Alright, I suppose that's a valid point. But still, Magnus is such an awe-striking name. And I thought we'd already narrowed a girl name down," Rolf said.

"Even if Magnus is an awe-striking name, he's still going to go by King Glower the Eighty-First anyway," Kalys pointed out, and Rolf nodded. "I didn't know that Eleanor Cecelia was final, though it does have a nice ring to it."

"I suppose that's true. But even if it is a boy, how are we supposed to know if this one will be king?" Rolf asked.

"You're planning on more?" Kalys questioned, looking up at him.

Rolf blushed. ""You don't only want one child, do you? I mean, I always assumed we'd have more eventually."

"You're not the one pregnant," Kalys muttered. "I suppose that's a valid point, though. If he's not king, than he's stuck with his name forever. We'd want him to have a good name."

"Yeah, wouldn't it just be the worst if you were stuck with the name 'Bran' for the rest of your life? It's my theory that Mother and Father assumed Bran would be king so they named him that in honor of some important dead person, thinking that he would be known as Glower the Eightieth so it wouldn't matter. I will not be so cruel and naive to my eldest," Rolf snickered. "Seriously, his name always reminded me of a breakfast food."

Kalys cracked a smile. "And Magnus sort of reminds me of a cow."

Rolf laughed. "Alright, if you don't like it. It was just a suggestion."

"What was just a suggestion?" Queen Celina walked over to join them, a concerned look on her face.

"The name Magnus for a boy," Rolf told her.

Queen Celina made a face. "That was a poor suggestion."

"Hey, I wasn't the one who named my child 'Bran'!"

...

Kalys ran her hand over the new comforter. Rolf was already in bed, his poetry book in hand. It seemed nice enough, but she wasn't one for change. Then again, the sheets hadn't changed and that was the most important part. Slowly she climbed to her side, picking up her own book on Grathian mythology that she had found in the library. She opened it, smoothing the worn pages.

"Malkin," Rolf said. "What about that name?"

"After the Builder's griffin?" Kalys asked, confused.

"Really? That was the griffin name?" Rolf shut his book. "We should seriously consider the name then."

"That griffin ate a lot of people," Kalys said. "And what's with you and 'M' names?"

"Everyone has flaws, Kalys, even griffins," Rolf stated, rolling over to look up at her. "And I don't know. Just all the boy names I like start with an'M'."

"Malkin is better than Magnus," Kalys reasoned. "We're getting there. But it's not the name."

"Will we ever find a name?" Rolf groaned.

"We still have four and a half months left," Kalys told him. "Besides, Eleanor is a good name."

"How many middle names are we going to give our child?" Rolf asked. "I have three, but my sisters only have two. Three just seems like overkill if you ask me."

"Two would be fine with me. Which means we have to come up with three names that all sound right together," Kalys said, putting down her book to look at Rolf. "But we really don't have to stress about it now, I mean we have quite a bit of time left."

Rolf sighed, his hand coming to gently touch hers. "Did Thalia get the notes on all of the legends?"

Kalys nodded. "Yes. She says she feels close to cracking something."

"I still don't see why someone can't just stab him while he sleeps," Rolf reasoned.

"Because he's too powerful, and the magic he lets off would kill the person," Kalys responded.

"So then have Arkwright do it," Rolf decided. "Who cares if he dies?"

"For all we know he could team up with Casper since he knows he's going to die," Kalys countered.

Rolf scowled, though he knew Kalys was right. She really hoped Bran would be back soon, not that there was anything wrong with Thalia, she just seemed a bit lost without direction.

"Well, I hope she finds whatever she's looking for," Rolf said sleepily, blowing out his candle.

Kalys followed his suit, putting down her book. She looked up in the darkness, rolling to her side when her back started to ache. She could see Rolf's eyes were still open, his lips parted a bit. She kissed him, his lips warm and dry like most of the time. Her head hit the pillow his head was on, and his arm drew her closer. This was normal. Because of all the days sleeping alone in the Found, waking up alone, simply being alone, and because of how okay she was with that, she never thought this life of not being alone would be suited towards her. She didn't know she could be so wrong.

...

Bran's back ached. He didn't remember the last time he had ridden a horse for so long. Two days in, now, and the tracker said they were getting closer. He was feeling awful. He was exhausted, hungry, annoyed, and he had a headache that hadn't left him since he left the Castle. Not to mention his mind was not on the task in front of him, something that was very uncharacteristic for him. His mind was on Thalia. And the fact that she had kissed him before he left that morning.

He had never kissed anyone before that, much less been kissed. It had been nice. He had been rather awkward, just standing there, hands outstretched, feeling his face heat up and not doing anything. Then they'd said their goodbyes and he was off. He was still analyzing the situation. Remembering each detail; what she was wearing, what she had smelled like, how her lips had felt...

"Bran!"

Pogue's sharp voice sent his brain in spirals. He looked right towards the knight who was pointing to a tent that was set up against a tree. Bran nodded, and looked at the device in his hand, the blood was at the top of the vial, itching to find its master. It seemed as if it was trying to get out, a sure sign the assassin was near. He slowed the horse, holding up his hand at the others. He could see a light at the tent from a lantern and he lowered himself off his steed. He nodded to Pogue who slipped to the ground, quietly drawing his sword. Bran himself was muttering a simple protection spell as they stalked to the tent.

If Bran was honest, the last thing he expected to find was the dead body of the man he had been looking for.

...

Celie underestimated the cold winds whipping in her face. She was already wearing many layers, but in the air riding through the clouds atop a griffin. It was nice to be flying; there had been some awfully cold days before in which her mother wouldn't let her out. But it was still biting, bitter spring air. She squeezed her legs tighter against Rufus. There were so many things going on her mind, and she finally had time to think.

There was a heaviness about the Castle that no one was doing a good job hiding. There was something about Bran an Pogue being gone that made the family antsy. They were all coping as they did; King Glower was rather irritable and rash. In fact, he was the reason Celie was out here. He had snapped at her for moping in the throne room. Then she heard him yell at Rolf for tardiness as she walked out. It had not been a very good day.

It was starting to get better, though. Now that she was with Rufus. She still didn't know what to think of what was going on. Especially since the Castle had been so silent. But then again, the Castle was what was the debate currently. It was scary having Arkwright and Casper in the Castle, even if they were locked up. Not to mention the assassin incident. Celie had started hanging out with the griffins most of the time. Then again, there really was never a time when Rufus wasn't with her.

She had often felt left out of important decisions, it was something she was used to. But this time, she really did know what was going on (besides what had happened in the dungeons with Bran and Kalys) right away. And what she heard was making her gut ache with uneasiness. It just felt all wrong. And she had no idea what to do. Normally by now she would've come up with an idea, but nothing seemed to come to her. She felt like it was all a lie, like her whole life she had heard this voice in her head, telling her, guiding her, but now it had been replaced with emptiness. Leaving her alone with her thoughts. It was horrible.

She landed Rufus, nearly falling off of him at his rather energetic landing. She shivered, pressing her gloved hands to her cold cheeks. Rufus was already bounding inside the Castle and she had to hurry to keep up with him. It was warm and all the maids seemed to be bustling very busily. Suspiciously busily. Celie narrowed her eyes, determined to find her father to see what was going on.

Her father was in the throne room, as she had suspected, but so was everyone else. Queen Celina stood at his side, and Rolf and Lulath were at his other side. Celie squeezed in between Lilah and Kalys who were both staring as the king addressed the stranger in front of him. The man was colored similarly to Kalys, though his olive skin was a touch lighter than hers, and his hair much darker. Not to mention, Kalys had radiant blue eyes, and this man had dark eyes. He was smiling and the king seemed to be at ease, but the others were not. Then again, King Glower had perfected his court face.

"What's going on?" She whispered, clutching at Rufus's harness.

"It's an ambassador. He claims he's looking for Grath," Lilah whispered back. "He's from some country I've vaguely heard of."

"What does Lulath think?" Celie asked, still keeping her voice very low.

"By the looks of it, he doesn't seem convinced," Lilah said, and Celie glanced over at the prince. His blue eyes were narrowed, and he really did not look convinced.

The an was speaking Sleynth, something that surprised Celie. Then again, he was an ambassador. She couldn't really hear all that he was saying, but he seemed to be innocent by his body language. Maybe it really was an honest mistake. But wouldn't he have a map?

"Maybe Thalia knows something," Celie suggested. "She came from the unknown parts of the east."

As if on cue, Thalia billowed in, her red braid swaying. She was carrying an obscene amount of papers and some of them looked like they were about to fall. She looked surprised to see so many people, and she set down her pages on a little table when Rolf beckoned her over. The girls watched as Rolf and Lulath whispered fiercely to her, filling her in on what was going on.

"Thank you, my lord ambassador," King Glower said graciously. "We are very happy to serve you. One of the maids will show you to your rooms for the night."

The man bowed to the king and queen, then to Rolf, and then to Celie and Lilah. He followed the maid out of the door. The door to the throne room was closed, leaving just the family, Thalia and Lulath, and a handful of Glower clasped his hands, looking at everyone.

Thalia cleared her throat. "I have heard of the country, Your Majesty. It's one of the neighboring ones to my own. They have always been rather sneaky, and have tried to take Khalan multiple times."

King Glower stroked his chin thoughtfully. Then he frowned. "Does the kingdom of Khalan know where Grath is?"

Thalia nodded. "Of course. Everyone knows where Grath is. It's the wealthiest, largest kingdom on this continent. Besides, the much faster way to get to Grath from where he claims to be from is to go south and avoid Sleyne completely."

"That's exactly what I was thinking," Queen Celina said.

"What kingdom did he say he was from?" Thalia asked.

Lilah took a step forward. "He said he was the ambassador of Jhanlia."

Thalia's hand came up to smack herself. "I'm so stupid! I don't know why I hadn't realized this before."

"What?" Rolf questioned, his dark eyebrows knit.

"I knew there was something I was forgetting," Thalia moaned. "Jhanlia used to be known as Jedgia."

...

They had found the man who murdered their prisoner three miles south of the scene. He had been a local Sleynth and had told them the story.

"He threatened to kill me and my family, Your Royal Wizard," the man confessed. "I let him stay on my property, but there was something off about him. I know I shouldn't have done it, Your Highness, but I came to question him and he pulled out a dagger. It was instinct."

Bran nodded. "You have done nothing offensive, my good sir. The man committed treason. You will be let off."

"How can you do that so easily?" Pogue whispered, and Bran looked around to see the guards shifting uncomfortably.

"The man tells no lies," he said simply. "I can just tell."

"He's not very bright to just leave him there," Pogue grumbled. "He would've been caught and the story would have looked false."

"The kill was fresh, Pogue," Bran muttered. "Unfortunately, there's really nothing more we can do."

Bran turned to Sergeant Avery. "We need to head back to the Castle. Hopefully I can start some research on this all, though everything is so complicated right now."

The sergeant nodded, and started barking orders. Bran oversaw the wrapping of the body and it being laid on a horse. They thanked the Sleynth man, who still looked rather nervous, despite Bran's assurance. The man had done what was right for his family; no doubt the spy would've slaughtered them.

Bran groaned as he swung upon his horse. This would be a long two days.

Yeah, yeah. This was sort of boring. But hey, it's a chapter, right? School really sucks, honestly. So that's where I'm at, lol. Hopefully I'll write more, but I've sort of sizzled out. Like the first chapter of this I put out there as sort of an experiment, and then I didn't write for months until someone reviewed. Then I got a whole-bunch of reviews and that really pushed me to where I am now. But now it's sort of fizzling out. And I know there's a least a couple of you silent readers, so this one is for you. Until next time,

-geeky34