A/N: This is the second chapter . . . as you can see. Thank you so much for the reviews on the last chapter! I see some like the prospect of a sequel and others don't but thats okay. Eh, its been five days, you guys can have another chapter. lol.

Chapter 2: A Proposition

The man stood surveying the streets of the Yamani town near the port where a new boat had just arrived. Most that came off the boat were not Yamani, needless to say, but he wasn't looking for most. He was looking for a certain one. Leon Tiroth had business here.

His companion—or perhaps that wasn't the right word, he shrugged—had made it clear who they were looking for. All he had to do was be vigilant enough to spot them.

The shorter man, not shorter by much, shifted next to him. Leon looked at him. His gaze was set intently. Leon looked. Ah, there she was, just as he had described her.

She was a fairly tall young woman. Her body willowy with just enough curves. Her thick hair was coal black and stick-straight. She held herself upright and somewhat proud. Her hazel eyes flitted here and there as if trying to take in everything at once. While her face was composed, her eyes gave away that she was excited.

She wore a green cotton shirt and brown sensible breeches. Across her person was a strung bow, perhaps it was easier to carry when it was strung.

Both of the young men near her were at least half a head taller than her.

The first one he noticed had dark hair, definitely not black when compared to the girl's. The hair flipped out and away from his head here and there as if it couldn't decide whether it wanted to be straight or not and simply wasn't long enough to choose. He had a wiry build and a mouth used to to smiling. His eyes were a sharp crystal blue.

The other young man was taller than the other two (only taller than the first youth by a very small margin). His face was held sternly and his hair was clipped close to his skull. From the hair that was there he could tell it would have been insufferably curly. This one was more broad shouldered with youthful muscles at his call. He looked slightly sick with a pale face. He owned the same crystal blue eyes but these looked out upon the world carefully.

A slow smile spread over Leon's face. He turned to his companion, "Are those them?"

He tore his fixed gaze away and looked down to the ground. His voice was barely a whisper, "Yes."

When Leon looked back the girl's afore darting hazel eyes were fixed on him. Had she noticed his stare? Her hazel eyes sparked with something before she turned away pointedly. Leon's eyebrows rose. Now, she was an interesting one.

"Are we following them or not, Zain?" Leon asked his companion. Zain turned and focused those damn eyes on him. Leon's jaw tightened. Zain was an alright sort of man, but those eyes of his . . . they weren't natural.

Zain was a half-breed, a hybrid of Yamani and non-Yamani. His skin was not really that dark but it was lightly tan, that came from the sun though, not his heritage. His hair was very dark brown and long enough that he kept it tied back in a braid.

But those eyes . . . the ones fixed on him now. They were out of place, even in his half-breed face. The odd very light gray that almost matched white and might have blended in with the rest of his eye if there wasn't a very dark gray outline to the iris.

Zain closed his eyes momentarily and Leon knew he was thinking. His eyes moved under the lids. Finally he opened them slowly and sighed. His voice still sounded unsure but resolute, "Yes, we'll follow them."

This time Leon grinned. That was why he traveled with Zain. Things were hardly ever dull with him and he had a feeling this would be anything but dull.

Iolana of Silver Crest—Lana for short—followed her two brothers who had walked ahead of her. Vincent had suggested, and rightly so, that they find an inn for Damien. While Damien was strong on land his stomach was incredibly weak over waters.

They found one quickly and settled in. Lana was fully ready to be there for a day or two, just to give Damien time to rest.

She herself was buzzing with excitement. To be out on her own!

When she was younger stories had always been interesting. Especially the ones her mother told. She realized--somewhat later on—that most Queens did not usually spend so much time with their children, but her own mother seemed to make a point of it.

Her stories had always been the most interesting. Of course, her father tried and she loved him dearly, but the stories her mother told had something about them. Something that was missing from her father's. It was a few years she learned that the thing that was missing was that her mother had lived those stories.

Lana wouldn't lie and say that that fact had nothing to do with her wanting to get out and find her own adventures. There was, after all, no use in denying truths.

Presently, Lana was sitting in the common room of the inn. She closed her eyes and listened to the sounds. The bustling of a maid. People chatting quietly. The door opening and then closing. Her eyes jerked open when a hand settled on her shoulder.

It was her youngest triplet, Vincent. "You aren't regretting this already, are you?" He didn't sound as if he thought she did.

She rolled her eyes as he took a seat at the table. They had forced Damien to eat something and go to bed already. "Of course I don't."

Vincent would have said something but two strangers walked up to their table.

One, the taller one, had short blond hair and light brown eyes. The second one was only a bit shorter. He was tanned and had long dark hair pulled into a braid. His eyes stood out on his face. Light gray with a dark gray border. Both men were handsome in their own rights.

Lana stifled a gasp but couldn't stop her eyes from widening. The blond one was the man who had been staring at her at the port! When had they even entered the inn? Why hadn't she noticed?

Suddenly Lana wanted to hit herself in the forehead. Maybe they entered while she had sat there with her eyes closed.

Almost as quickly as her eyes had widened with shock, her hazel eyes narrowed.

The blond man's mouth twitched with a smile as he took a seat casually. Lana noticed he spoke common, not Yamani. "So I see you remember me."

Lana flicked a glance towards Vincent who was glaring outright. All of them had been trained to fight by their Shang mother and Lana could see Vincent was tense just in case he would need that training now. He would be just a touch rusty, she thought silently.

"What do you want?" Lana asked warily.

It was still the blond man who spoke, "We, my companion and I, have a proposition to make."

A/N: I realize this chapter is pretty short . . . the next few will be, sorry about that. But please don't let that stop you from sending a REVIEW!