I told you I'd update this one soon. I know I took a bit of liberty with the amount of time Numair spent away from the Swoop, but I had to in order to make this work. So, sorry, but it is what it is. Anyway, thanks to anyone who's read and reviewed this story, I know it takes me forever to update, but it's hard to come up with new ideas for it. :S
Disclaimer: I own nothing, unfortunately. Because I am not cool like Tamora Pierce, alright?
A pair of crows settled on the window ledge, eagerly picking the breadcrumbs from Aly's outstretched hand. She listened to their cawing with interest, wishing she could understand what they were saying. Behind her, Maude was busy taking care of Alan, who had a cold, so she didn't come to reprimand the girl for touching the birds, as she usually did. Aly was glad. They were her favorite birds, the crows, but she never got the chance to feed them.
When they finished with Aly's crumbs, the birds took flight, screeching to each other.
Aly watched the sun glint off their glossy feathers. The playful birds flew in circles, twisting, diving, soaring circles, until they reached the stables, where Aly knew Daine was. She was accustomed to seeing all types of animals in that area, and didn't think much of it anymore. What she did think of, however, was the mysterious girl that was the cause of it.
As if her thoughts had called her from her hiding place, Daine emerged from the stable, fiddling with something dangling about her neck. Quickly adjusting her Sight to both dim Daine's Gift's glow and to bring her into sharper focus, Aly squinted at the older girl. Even at this distance, the bored and distant look on the odd mage's face was clear. She had been that way for a few days now, ever since Uncle Numy had left for his tower.
"Aly," Maude called, sounding tired and exasperated, "don't lean out of the window. What will I tell your mother if you fall?"
Reluctantly, Aly stepped away from the window, throwing wistful glances at it every so often. She amused herself with her doll for a time, but in the back of her mind, Daine's behavior lingered, though Aly didn't know why. It wasn't as though the older girl was obviously different; in fact, Aly had the feeling she was the only one who had noticed, including Daine herself. But in the brief moments when Aly had seen Daine, the mage had definately looked vaguely distracted, and her eyes wandered, as if looking for something. Or someone.
Before she could pursue this thought, a maid opened the nursery door. "The baron says to bring the children downstairs for dinner," she reported to Maude. "He'd have come himself, but he's busy rounding up the other guests."
"Yes, alright," was Maude's distracted reply, and the maid disappeared, leaving the door open. Aly skipped over to it to wait for Maude and Alan. In the hallway, she could hear the distant sounds of maids, servants, and house guests making their way to their meal. Finally, Maude walked up with a sniffling Alan, and they followed the maid downstairs.
After dinner, Aly sat with her family, some of their guests, and Maude, listening to the adults chatting and watching the young royals squabble over something. When Thayet walked over to serve as mediator for her two children, Aly's attention drifted to the other guests in the room, specifically Daine, who had come along with Onua tonight slightly reluctantly. The glow that emanated from this strange mage hardly bothered Aly anymore, after she had grown accustomed to it and dimmed it in her Sight.
But that didn't dim her curiosity about Daine. The girl was seated beside the horse mistress, who was deep in conversation with Aly's father. Neither George nor Onua seemed to notice their neighbor's inattention, but Aly certainly did.
The four-year-old watched as Daine's blue-grey eyes roamed over the faces of everyone in the room, with that strange, almost bored look on her own face. Trying not to be obvious, Aly shifted so that she was nearer to Daine, under the cover of approaching Alan. On closer inspection, Aly determined that the look that she had mistaken for boredom was discomfort, as if Daine wasn't sure why she was there. Aly was intrigued. The older girl had no problem getting along with the current inhabitants of Pirate's Swoop, and they all liked her enough. What was there to make her uncomfortable?
A lull in her father and Onua's discussion provided Aly's answer. Turning her gaze to the baron, Daine politely—if shyly—called his attention to her.
"Have you gotten any word from Numair?" she asked easily, letting her eyes drift in Aly's direction. The four-year-old looked away hurriedly. "Has he said when he plans on coming back?"
"Haven't heard a word," George responded cheerfully. Aly risked a quick glance up to find that Daine had returned her attention to George. "But I don't doubt he'll be back within the next few days. You can't keep a man like him away from his experiments, and you're as fascinatin' as any I'll wager he's ever had the pleasure of workin' on."
"She's more than just an experiment, George," Onua reprimanded her friend, mock-scowling as Daine blushed. "Gods only know why, but he enjoys her company, and she his."
Aly stopped listening, only vaguely hearing Daine's laughing response in the background as she thought about what she had heard. She could tell the adults thought nothing of Daine's curiosity about Numair; but then again, when did adults ever understand something as important as this? But Aly could see the brief disappointment hidden beneath innocent curiosity in Daine's eyes when she heard that Uncle Numy hadn't sent any news, even though he'd only been gone for two days. She could see the happiness that came with hearing he would be here soon replace that disappointment easily. And she could still see the look of self-conscious awkwardness written across the mage's face.
Aly tried to picture Daine when Uncle Numy was around, and found she could do so easily. The expression that now shadowed Daine's attractive face was usually nowhere to be seen, Aly remembered, replaced by an eager, contented one that was often mirrored in Uncle Numy's features. Something seemed to connect the pair, much like something connected Aly's parents, or the king and queen. Whenever Aly saw the two mages together (which was rare, and almost always at a distance), they were absorbed in the other's presence, but didn't seem to notice their own fixation. It seemed to happen naturally, so that no one who wasn't looking for it would notice.
But Aly was certainly looking. And she was beginning to understand what she was seeing.
A sigh from Daine brought Aly's attention back to the girl. The mage was staring out of a window blindly, clearly not paying any attention to the view beyond it. Aly inched still closer to her. Another sigh brought Aly to her feet, and she approached Daine boldly, smiling in her charming, little girl way. Daine's blue-grey orbs fixed on the small child curiously as she stopped before the mage's chair, looking up at her almost sympathetically.
"It's okay," Aly whispered, loud enough for George and Onua to hear in addition to Daine, "I miss Uncle Numy, too."
Obviously confused, Daine's brows knitted on her forehead as the baron and horse mistress beside her chuckled. "Uncle Nu—? Oh." Understanding lit in Daine's eyes as she realized who Aly was talking about. The young mage tried valiantly to hide her grin at the nickname. "Er…really?"
"Yes," Aly assured her, brimming with four-year-old understanding. "But he'll come soon. He always does."
Daine only smiled awkwardly for reply, clearly not knowing how to respond. But she was saved the task of having to come up with a way when Aly turned and skipped cheerfully towards her brother, smiling sweetly back at the laughing adults and Daine. The only notice Alan gave his sister of her approach was to sneeze, his face buried in a handkerchief, but Aly didn't care. She plopped herself down on the ground beside him, watching as Maude checked his temperature again.
"And what have you been doing?" the nursemaid asked, barely glancing in Aly's direction. "Terrorizing the guests?"
"I was talking to Daine," Aly supplied, grinning. "She misses Uncle Numy."
"So does everyone else," Alan grumbled. He was in a foul mood with his fever, however low it was. Aly shook her head significantly.
"No," she said with a meaningful glint in her eye, "I mean she really misses him."
Aly's twin only looked confused for a second. Then, something passed between the two that even Maude, who was watching them like a hawk, couldn't comprehend.
"Oh," breathed Alan, with all the solemnity a four-year-old with a running nose can muster. "Ooh." Maude looked from one all-knowing young face to the other, frowning slightly.
"I don't know what this nonsense is," she said, crossing her arms, "but it's gone on far enough. Aly, it's bad enough we have to tolerate your antics. Try not to torture our guests."
Aly rolled her eyes at her nursemaid. She didn't mind the reprimand. She got them often enough, and besides, Maude didn't really mean it; the old woman loved the twins, however much she tried to hide it. But still, she couldn't see what Aly, and now Alan, saw.
Adults, thought Aly with an impressive amount of scorn for a four-year-old, are they always so blind?
Hmm? Like it, or not? I thought I'd try it. I can't say when the next update will come, but it will come. Eventually.
Is getting her new half chaps soon!,
Brighteyes