Chapter Eight

"Come on, Coran!" Devona giggled, dragging the young prince across the back yard of the homestead by his arm. "I want to show you the Strider nest!"

"I'm coming!" The boy protested between yelps. "Do you have to run so fast?"

Devona could barely hear her mother's startled gasp, as it was mostly drowned out by her "Uncle" Adelbern laughing uproariously.

Devona dropped to her stomach at the edge of the maintained property, at the top of a hill that overlooked a trickling brook, in which at the banks rested her quarry… seven large, speckled Strider eggs nestled in a bed of twigs and leaves.

"See? Aren't they pretty?" Devona said, pointing towards the nest. "When they hatch I'm gonna have a pet. You can have one too!"

Coran frowned, clearly not impressed. "They've been snake eaten."

Devona boggled. "How can you say that?"

"We're halfway through the Season of the Scion." Coran explained. "Strider eggs hatch late in the Zephyr. Also, living Strider eggs are white, these are light brown, telling me they've been here a while. I'm just guessing they've been eaten by snakes; that's the most common way this happens."

The young girl blinked. "Where did you learn this? This 'tutoring' must be pretty cool! I hope I'm that smart when I'm ten!"

"My tutoring is boring." The prince answered. "I learned that on my own. The books in the Regal Library are much more informative than the stuffy old man my father has me try and learn from."

"Oh." Devona finished… with her surprise and carefully laid plans of Strider-rearing ruined, she was suddenly at a loss as to what to do next. "Want to get some cider? My mother and I prepared some this morning! It should be ready by now!"

Coran cringed slightly. He had never been fond of the taste of cider, a bit too tart for his palette, having been used to more exquisite beverages. Nonetheless, he didn't want to disappoint his friend, and with as confident a voice as he could manage, he replied, "That sounds like a brilliant idea."

But as the pair slowly returned to Devona's homestead, they noticed that the adults had moved back into the house proper, and caught a conversation they weren't supposed to hear, mostly because they heard Adelbern say, "While the children are still out of earshot, Allisette… there's something I'd like to discuss with you."

"Please, go on, your highness." Devona's mother said gently, as if afraid using her normal volume would somehow insult the king.

Adelbern sighed, "We aren't in public, Allisette. How many times do I have to tell you to stop calling me that?"

"I… don't think I'll ever get used to it. I know my dear Mordakai had the nerve… but you both were also dear friends long before your crowning."

"Yes, we were, won't we?" The king wistfully noted. "It's because of that friendship that I want to bring this to your attention. I'm not sure if Mordakai ever did… he might not have thought me too serious… but I was, and I still am."

His chest expanded with a heavy breath. "Devona and Coran certainly get along, don't they?"

"I would think so…" Devona's mother agreed with a slight smile. "He's on my threshold every day, it seems. I understand he doesn't have too many friends, so I suppose I'm honored that my daughter is deemed worthy."

"The noble life bores him." Adelbern explained. "He gets that from his father, I think. That, and he finds their 'haughty, ignorant excuse for knowledge' to be 'dreadfully and obnoxiously annoying.' Those are his words by the way. His intellect definitely came from his mother. It must."

"Now, I highly doubt you want to talk to me about my daughter and your son's relationship."

"Actually…" The king said, "I do."

Allisette stopped her half-hearted cleaning, and turned to face the King of Ascalon. "What about it?"

"Before Mordakai left for the fateful battle in Khylo, we had a long, deep discussion about the state of the Guild Wars, and how dangerous they were becoming. During that discussion, we made a promise that we'd take care of each other's families if something were to happen…"

"And you have, your highness. I have no complaints, you've done more than enough for Devona and I…"

"Well, there's a little more to that." He interrupted. "Granted, it was a tentative arrangement… but seeing how well Devona and Coran get along, I would like to make it official."

Allisette's eyes bulged. "You aren't saying…"

"I would like for Coran to be bonded to your daughter… with your blessing of course."

The woman boggled. "Devona's… hardly a noble child, your highness. I can't imagine the lords would approve…"

"Asking for the lords' approval is a courtesy. I can arrange whatever bondings I wish. Besides, I already have Duke Barradin's support on the matter… he was actually astonished I was taking so long to make a formal union. Mordakai has earned great honor and respect to the people of Ascalon. Even if it mattered, there would be no complaints."

Allisette tried to say something, but her voice and her lips did not seem to want to cooperate.

"So, do I have your blessing to proceed?"

Finally, Devona's mother was stirred to words. "Of… of course! Both Mordakai and yourself appeared to have thought of this a great deal… I, and no doubt my husband watching from the Mists, are honored that you have deemed our daughter worthy of the prince."

Just outside the open window of the kitchen, Devona turned to Coran, her eyes blinking in confusion. "What are they talking about?"

The Prince didn't return her focus, keeping his head inclined up towards the window in which the words of their parents had wafted through. "I do believe we were just engaged to be married."

"Married? You mean, like my mom and dad were?"

Coran guffawed silently, and answered, "Well, probably not exactly like they were, but the end result would be the same, I suppose."

"That's wonderful!" Devona exclaimed, causing Coran to panic, and pull her away from the window before they could be discovered eavesdropping.

"Wonderful, you say?" The prince answered in amusement when he felt they were a safe distance away.

"Well… I mean… we'd live in the same house, and you wouldn't have to walk so far to play, right?" She then explained nervously, now worried that maybe Coran knew something about this "marriage" thing that she didn't. He probably did… he knew a lot of things she didn't.

Instead, his lips turned upward in a rare grin, and he replied, "Yeah, I hadn't thought of it that way. You're right." He didn't want to have to explain that marriage was a bit more involved than that… and he wasn't supposed to know those sorts of things at his age anyway.

"Devona! It's time for dinner! Make sure you and Prince Coran get cleaned up before I begin serving!" Allisette's voice rung out in half declaration and half reprimand.

"Yes mother!" Devona shouted back, all enthusiasm of "marriage" dispelled by the thought of food. "We better hurry or the food'll get cold!" She then said to Coran excitedly before grabbing his right wrist in the vise like grip that belied her destiny as a true warrior.

Coran shook his head. "Ah… the fickle nature of the child's mind." He said with a soft snicker before he was nearly yanked out of his shoes by his eager friend…

* * * * *

"Devona! Wake up!"

She snapped out of her trip through long buried memories to find Cynn's face hovering right in front of hers, the elementalist bent over so she could peer directly at the sitting warrior.

"The Prince has been looking for you. I wouldn't keep your bondmate waiting. I mean, it's already been what… nine… maybe ten years?"

Devona sneered in annoyance. "Do not start that with me, Cynn. It's bad enough Vekk was trying to hang it over my head this entire time."

"It got the job done, didn't it?" The Asuran piped up, drawing attention to his presence at Cynn's side, and looking extremely smug while doing so.

"My relationship to Coran is none of your business, nor is my supposed bonding. Much has happened since the Searing, and a lot has changed. I will not have you drudging up old, forgotten agreements that may have no bearing on the present."

Convinced she had made her point; Devona stood and began to move towards the academy proper. But nary five feet separated her from her tormentors before she heard Cynn's voice say, "Of course, Princess. I shall do as you request immediately."

The warrior's head and upper body turned slowly, trembling with fury, to see Cynn stooped in a deep bow that was granted to royalty… save for the devious, teasing grin on her face. Further examination showed that Vekk had followed suit.

Before she could imagine too many ways that an Asuran could be permanently and painfully embedded into a human, the clacking of what sounded like talons on the smooth brick walkway caught her ear and eventually her eye.

Coran, sitting atop a massive specimen of a Strider and holding reins that attached to a bit in the bird's beak came to a stop aside Devona. "There you are, my friend." He said. "I suppose I was in err to come after you… Cynn did indeed locate you admirably. Nonetheless, we have a few hours before everything is ready to depart, and I thought to show you around the Academy in the meantime… if you would like."

She sighed in relief. "Oh, please… anything to get me away from these children."

He extended his hand, and instructed Devona how to mount the avian creature, settling in the rear half of its saddle, and wrapping her arms around Coran's abdomen. He gave one last parting look to the two elementalists, who had since straightened from their bow, and said, "You will find my patience for those who torment my friends to be painfully short, Lady Cynn... something Vekk should already be quite aware of. I suggest you remember that in the future."

He flicked the reins once without further word, and the Strider moved again into a gentle trot towards the barricade wall of Atal'Ra.