A/N: I have to say – I love this chapter!!! Enjoy

Chapter 35: The Owl with Glistening Feathers

"What are ya doin down here?" A voice hissed in my ear.

The cold steel pressed harder against my throat, so that I was forced slowly away from Rye. I would have risked disarming the person had it been only my life on the line, but I had Rye to think about. There was no way that I would leave him.

I stood stock still, assessing my situation. I have to say it looked bad. Very bad.

The voice hissed again, "What's your name, boy?"

Ok. So right then was not the time to be indignant, but I couldn't help it. I'll be the first to admit I was hysterical and worried and that is not a good mix of emotions. To my horror, I heard indignant words escape from my lips, "Boy? I'm insulted."

To my complete astonishment, quiet chuckling escaped the lips of my captor… there was something about that sound that stirred a memory within me. When the voice spoke again, there was a feminine edge to it that I hadn't noticed before, "Atta girl, Ady. Ya haven't changed since last time I met ye."

All of a sudden the blade was removed from my throat and the presence at my back disappeared as my previous captor stepped around me, reaching down to Rye. I started forward out of reflex, and grabbed the person's wrists. Now that I could see her face – for this was clearly a woman – I realised that I knew her. Releasing her arms, I cocked my head to the side while observing her land beside Rye. I watched as she carefully ran her fingers over his wounds, which began to knit together with the help of brown magic.

"What are you doing here, Iola? Last time I saw you, you were on a boat to Carthak. Don't tell me my Ma has the Chain spying on me; I thought Shard was doing a bang up job." Now that I could see up close, it looked like Rye had been healed before. Somehow Iola had managed to sneak down here and heal him just enough to keep him alive without raising the suspicions of Justin.

Iola pushed some black hair out of her eyes and continued healing Rye. Not looking at me, she shook her head, "Is this really the time to worry about how I got here, rather than be glad that I am? This Grenike guy is insane; Rye here would have been dead if I hadn't contrived to get hired into this house as a war mage."

Rye seemed to stir, and I dropped down next to him despite the protests from my ribs. Fresh scars were visible all down his arms, although they were not healed all the way, and Iola was now working on his back. It looked even worse than it had in the scrying fire. Dried blood stuck to the wounds that were red and angry. I unhooked a water skin that I stole from one of the guards and used some of it to wash the blood off his back. I felt Rye tense and then all of a sudden he was unconscious. It was probably just as well, because healings hurt when you were conscious for them.

A few minutes later a sweating Iola wiped her forehead and withdrew her magic. I immediately handed her the half empty water skin, which she gulped down thirstily.

When she had finished, I was biting my lip, nervous about what she would say about Rye…he was still in a bad way, although from the looks of it Iola had managed to heal the broken bones and the worst of the cuts and burns. She finished the water with a flourish and her gaze snagged my own grave face.

Her face held more lines than had been present at our last meeting, and they all showed in the strained but reassuring smile she offered me. "He'll live, but only as long as you don't run into Grenike or any of the guards on the way out; they all know what he looks like. I can help you with that, if you could carry him."

I nodded quickly and bent down, and with Iola's help managed to drape his arm across my shoulders. Blessing my crow abilities, I stood up while supporting Rye awkwardly. I couldn't stop the wince that came from the pain in my chest, reminding me that I had been an idiot. Iola started forward with her hands, but I shoved them away, "Come on, we've gotta go."

Iola stood for a moment in indecision, but then moved to the wall on the other side of the dungeon. She ran her hands over the flawless stone, and I could see traces of her Gift probing the wall. It stopped and gathered around a large stone, and to my immense surprise it shot out of the wall and into the dungeon, falling neatly a fair distance away from the opening that was now present.

Iola pointed to the hole, "Go through there and you'll come out a fair way away. Darni and I made this a week ago, when Rye said he knew ye. We could not stand by and watch what Grenike was doing, and if you hadn't come in a few days we were gonna smuggle him out ourselves, though we didn't think it would work. This is your best bet of getting out here alive."

I furrowed my brows, "How did you know I would come?"

Iola grinned with some amusement and raised her own brow, "It's not like you to sit around twiddling your thumbs while someone's in trouble. Specially not someone who loves you."

I felt red tinge my cheeks, and Iola laughed and suddenly pushed Rye and me through the hole. I was worried about how small it was, until all of a sudden it widened out and I could get to my feet.

I heard something shift behind me, and suddenly the passage was totally black. Iola must have replaced the damn stone, but all could do was stand still, listening to Rye's shallow breathing and my own, which was coming in short rasps due to the pain from my ribs.

I was frozen in fright. The walls seemed to be creeping closer, even though I hadn't moved and moments before I saw that the tunnel was quite wide. I swore under my breath. Crows were meant to fly above the ground, not be trapped under it.

The blackness was immovable. It beared down on me, ominous and menacing. I could feel the yards of earth pressing down on me until I wanted to scream. My heart was racing, and all I could feel was the icy grip of fear around it.

All of a sudden, the weight on my shoulder shifted slightly, and a rough hand found my face, caressing it. Shocked, my gaze snapped to Rye, and I could see the glint of white that was his eyes. He didn't say anything, perhaps he couldn't, but I could feel his love for me. I could feel it, as if it were a physical force.

I closed my eyes and counted to ten, gathering my wits. I had been a fool. How was I supposed to save Rye while I was frozen in terror? Biting my lip, I braced myself to walk forwards into the darkness.

Opening my eyes although they did no good, I put a hand to the side of the passage and took a hesitant step forwards. And then another. I could still feel the metres of earth pressing down on me, and the menacing blackness was still present. Only the weight on my shoulder kept me focused, kept me taking the next step.

.xXXx.

When I finally exited the tunnel, taking a large breath of fresh air and smelling the wonderful aroma of trees and flowers… both scents that I had been afraid I would never experience again, it seemed as though my sense of time had been muddled. It had been early in the night when I entered the house, and by the position of the sun, it was very late afternoon right then. I had spent a night and a day in that gods curst tunnel. No wonder I was so damn tired.

The whole way Rye had said not a word, and now I could see that he was asleep. The tunnel had led to a little hollow underneath a rock that jutted out. The cut passage had ended some time back, and it seemed that Iola had just connected the dungeon to a pre-existing cave. Scrutinising the clearing, I saw that it was hidden among a thick covering of trees, and decided that this would be as good a place as any to sleep. It would also be better for Rye to sleep without being jostled around.

I lay Rye down on the ground, careful to avoid placing him on a tree root, and covered him in the small blanket I had contrived to obtain. Standing up, I shook out my arms and shoulders, suddenly feeling much lighter. I scanned the trees once more, and upon seeing an owl, I was relieved. 'Would you please wake me if people come close to this place?' I asked it.

The owl sounded old and motherly as she said 'Yes I will. Now get some rest, foolish crow.'

I managed to scowl at the owl half-heartedly. Why did almost every animal that I talked to call me a foolish crow? I huffed. That was discrimination that was. Oh, well, at least now I could get some sleep.

Dropping to the ground a little bit away from Rye, my eyes closed, and the last thing I saw was the sky.

.xXXx.

When I woke, I was warm. This seemed extremely strange, as it was generally cold in the foothills of the Grimhold Mountains - even in the summer. Especially if you were unfortunate enough to be bereft of a blanket, most likely being chased by an army of foot soldiers who were under orders of an insane but powerful mage, and trapped out in the wilderness, with only an owl as a lookout. Well, the second part just made things uncomfortable, not cold; accept if you blame the being trapped outside part on our chasers, which I do.

I was groggily becoming conscious of the world, and started to realise why I was warm. There was a presence at my back, and a blanket was draped over me. I also felt an arm around my waist, and my legs were tangled with someone else's. I stirred and tried to get up, but the arms tightened. I felt a warm breath at the back of my neck, and Rye whispered, voice heavy with emotion, "A few more minutes, please, Adalia. You have no idea how much I have wanted you this past week, how much I have missed you. Grenike said…he said you were gone and wouldn't come…"

I turned my head so that our gazes met, and what I saw in Rye's stormy grey eyes made me shiver agreeably, although my blood was boiling from his touch. I gazed at him and said seriously, "Nothing could have kept me away. You should have known that."

He held my eyes, seeming to be looking into my soul. We both understood each other completely. It wasn't enough to say we had missed the other. Rye's voice was husky as he said, "I did…I did." He then kissed me lightly, so lightly as to be teasing. My blood was churning and I turned into the kiss, deepening it.

I didn't have a grasp on time, so there was no telling how long we were like that. Rye had moved on to kissing my neck, which was extremely distracting. My hand went to his, which was resting on my neck, when I noticed that something was missing.

I wrenched myself away from Rye and stumbled back a few steps, to clear my head. He started towards me, eyes filled with heat and desire, but I put hands on his chest to stop him. I could feel the heat of his skin through his shirt, but forced myself to focus on Rye. Silently, I pointed to my neck. He raised a brow quizzically, and I sighed. Flicking hair out of my eyes, I said, "I changed into a crow to get here so fast, leaving my clothes and necklace behind."

Comprehension dawned on his face, and I couldn't help but laugh. Soon I sobered and said teasingly, "I fear we'll have to continue this later, my most noble mage."

He sighed and looked at the rising sun. I looked as well, and decided it was still moderately early in the morning. "Ok, now how do we get out?" I asked looking at Rye expectantly.

He ran a hand through his hair, smiling slightly. "How am I supposed to know? You are the Knight in Shining Armour that came to rescue me, you're supposed to know!"

I scratched my chin, a small smile touching my lips, "Opps, forgot about that part. And you're wrong. I am a squire and I'm certainly not in shining armour. Remember that I came here in feathers? Anyway, I thought that guys had to come to the rescue of maiden in distress."

He raised an eyebrow, "You are hardly in distress."

I put on a sad face and sniffed, "You don't know that! I might be distressed on the inside."

He rolled his eyes and tapped me on the nose, "You, my dear, have to learn to think things through."

I opened my mouth to reply, but to our horror, a deep voice replied first. "Oh no, she doesn't. Not when she doesn't have enough time to learn it in."

I jumped away to stand by Rye, and we both narrowed our eyes as Grenike, short and round with a red face and a vicious expression, appeared out of the cave. At his back were four guards, two of which had large red bruising on their foreheads. One of them held Iola at dagger point, and another held the small man that I recognised as Darni. They both sported ugly red bruises and even burn marks on their faces alone, and as I met Iola's eyes, I could see that she hated her captors and certainly didn't tell them of her own volition. I also saw the fiery rage her gaze held.

"What do you want, Grenike?" I snarled.

He smiled in a simpering way that was damn annoying. "My dear, I want to know how you bypassed all my security, but I would settle for just killing you."

I spat at his feet, "That will never happen."

He raised a mocking eyebrow and looked around, "Oh really? Because it looks like I've got you beaten. These two will die if you don't give me back the mage's son. There is no one to help you, and I seriously doubt that you could take us all, and even if you tried your friends would be killed instantly."

I swore at him furiously in every language I knew, damning him and his ancestors, all the while my fingers were itching to close around his flabby throat.

The mage looked impressed, "How does such a young one know so many ways to curse my name? It does not matter either way, so I will reward your creativity. I am going to destroy Tortall. I will be able to do it with all the power Numair will give me, and no one will be able to oppose me. We will rule the World."

I rolled my eyes, "No one person can rule the world. You are insane."

His eyes were flinty as he focused on my face, but he laughed mockingly, "Nothing can stop Us, it's already in motion."

'Foolish crow, get ready to attack!'

I was distracted by the scolding voice in my head, and realised that it was the voice of the orange cat that had helped me when I infiltrated the castle. I immediately felt bad that I had forgotten her so easily, but had to push that away, as there were more important things on my mind. I couldn't help some confusion creeping into my face as I questioned the mage, "Us…?"

He opened his mouth, but at that moment a very loud yowl ripped through the clearing, and something orange leapt on Grenike's face. I jumped forward, releasing daggers as the owl from the night before swooped down and yanked a dagger out of one of the guard's hands, and a crow was doing likewise for the other. Iola and Darni knocked out the guards that had been holding them and accepted daggers from the animals, backing away from the fighting.

I threw myself into the thick of it by taking down the other two guards in one fell kick. I turned to Grenike just as he viciously removed the cat from his head. It yowled and ran off, stopping near Rye, who was standing in front of the worn out Iola and Darni, lest they attempt to interfere, or were killed by one of the guards. He trusted me to kill this atrocity of a mage, and I would oblige more than willingly.

Levering my dagger at him, I just had to ask one more question. "Who are Us?"

He gave me a scalding look and opened his mouth. Suddenly, he started turning purple, making horrible chocking noises. He fell to his knees, gasping desperately for air. And then he keeled over and breathed no more.

I sheathed my daggers and glanced back at Rye, "That was unexpected."

He was staring at the dead man and said, "It was a spell, which was triggered by you asking who Us are. Maybe this is something more than a lone madman."

I tapped my chin and moved towards them, but almost tripped over the orange cat, which was at my feet. She mewed indignantly and clawed her way up my leg, settling around my shoulders. I had not noticed the cat's presence, and heard Rye snickering as I turned to her, brows raised. 'What are you doing?'

She started purring and said in a clipped voice, 'Adopting you. I think foolish crows need a keeper, and I will take that job. My name is Sati.' And with that, the cat sunk in its claws and fell asleep.

Rye was laughing, and I've got to say I was shocked and indignant. Fancy a cat thinking that I needed a keeper. Sati had managed to get herself into the thick of the fighting, not to mention being wounded. I had to admire her courage, but still, the fact that a foolish cat had said that I needed a keeper… ironic. Oh well, I did owe her for helping me find Rye, as well as helping me get out of a tricky situation. Plus, if I really was honest with myself, I kind of liked the cat. She was entertaining.

I shot Rye a warning look as I approached them, and stretched my arms, "So, have you thought of a way to get us out of this mess yet?"

He shook his head and said sorrowfully, "Ady, Ady, Ady, we discussed this before. I am the one being rescued –"

- 'Follow me; I will take you to your companions. They aren't far away, for when the bad man died the barrier broke fully. Even now, many of the men who were hiding in our forest are running away.'

I looked up at the owl and smiled my thanks, then turned back to Rye and said soothingly, "All solved. Now we can both be rescued by the Owl in Glistening Feathers."

Iola and Darni snorted their laughter, and Rye struggled to stay silent by helping Darni to his feet. I helped Iola up, and we followed slowly behind the owl, which was careful to stay in sight.

After a while of winding through trees, we came upon a clearing. "Have we missed much?" I asked innocently, while taking in the sight of about 30 men tied up with men of the Own guarding them, as well as Kel, Raoul and Numair seemingly arguing in the centre of the clearing.

.xXXx.

All three heads snapped up, and Adalia couldn't help but laugh at the expressions on their faces.

Numair shot towards Rye, and the two embraced. Adalia noticed a few tears at the corners of Numair's eyes, and she was happy that she had been able to save him from an impossible decision. She was extremely surprised to find herself caught up by Kel, which reminded her of the broken ribs, and could not disguise a yelp of pain.

Kel let her go quickly and worriedly scanned Adalia for injuries. None were visible, and Kel opened her mouth to ask, but Adalia cut her off by muttering, "Broken rib. Grenike died. I didn't get a chance to kill him; there was some kind of suicide spell that did it for me. I think the owl will show you where."

The owl hooted in consent, and Kel hurriedly gestured to some of the Own to go and get them. Iola and Darni were taken over to the healers, and Adalia went to follow them, but Kel caught her hand, "You are in a lot of trouble, squire." She said sternly.

Adalia gazed at the ground sheepishly, and then back up at her knight master. Kel was trying to stifle laughter. Adalia raised an eyebrow, "So you're not going to feed me to cats?"

Kel rolled her eyes, "No, I dare say I will, but I think some jousting would be just perfect."

Adalia flinched and sighed, "If I must…"

"You must." Said Kel firmly. Adalia slouched her shoulders and walked over to the Healers, and had even got a few metres away when Kel said, "It looks like you have a hitchhiker."

Adalia spun around in confusion, and then noticed the cat on her shoulders. She sighed miserably, "Not a hitchhiker. Sati says she is my keeper, so I think you can rest easily now."

Kel actually laughed, as did the members of the Own that had heard her answer. Adalia sighed loudly and raised her hands to the heavens, and with the theatrical voice of a Player proclaimed sorrowfully, "It is my curse to always be misunderstood."

Kel just laughed louder, and Adalia, with one last glare, hunched her shoulders and walked over to the Healers.

.xXXx.