(-a/n- Wow! Thank you all, I love my reviewers so much –hugs everyone- :D It's my birthday tomorrow :D –dances happily- as I'm in such a good mood you get an update ;D Also I thought it would be rather appropriate – sixteenth chapter for my sixteenth birthday :D hehehe. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, I've got big plans for it :D :D :D :D Lots of happy faces -author is grinning broadly- :D :D :D :D :D :D )
Erytha I know! I suddenly looked at it the other day and thought wow! It's so long already!
Aly the Spy Thanks :D
Grace of MasbolleThanks !
x17SkmBdrchiczxxI know! Learning languages is soooo hard. For my French oral exam I have to memorize the answers to 110 questions!! It kills me. Yeah latin is a nasty language too, although I took the exam last year so I don't have to do it anymore :D hehe. We had to study Virgil and it killed me! What do you have to do? I'm sorry I don't have any star shaped cookies, but I did make chocolate Easter nest things so you can have one of those:D Thanks as always :D
ElementalmoonNope, there will definitely be some romance later on but she's only twelve at the moment, so I'm going to wait a while :D
brezzybrezIn answer to your question, look at the review answer above! Lol, thanks for reviewing :D
Mrs. Dom MasbolleThanks, I'm glad you like it. I simply can't wait until Kel and Neal meet again, but I've got a hell of a lot of stuff to write in between! Lol, I'd better get typing quickly ;D
violingrl07Thanks! I'm honoured to be your first reviewed story :D hehe, thanks, it really is very nice to know that people are enjoying my writing :D
inuyashaswife12I'm going to be 16! Yay I can't wait :D Thanks for reviewing…I know…poor Neal…
Lady Sapphireaum…about 4 months since she ran away. Well noticed about Liam's punch, no Alex isn't Shang but you'll find out the significance of it all later on. I was referring to the Lioness and Liam mainly as in the books both of them fight with both their left and right hands.
Devouring Sarcasm Phantasmyay! No bones is good indeed :D But Alex isn't her lover, just to clarify. She's only just turned twelve so no romantic interests at present. Their relationship is more brother/sister.
Lady Highschoolnerdhehe thanks :D
truffletruffle01yay! Thanks !
Kat1132Thanks :P
ErynfaerYay I'm on school holidays now so I slept for more than seven hours last night!! Lol ;D Please don't die, -shakes fist at school who tries to kill reviewer- hehee :D Thanks for finding time in your busy life to review :D
theknightofkonahaThanks ;D
HasamakiDon't worry, I will, I love ice cream and cake :D
bookworm-4-ever2012hehe :D thanks!
Fjk Thanks :P
Me I find the songs hidden away on my computer or mp3 and suddenly I think 'AH HA!' and little lightbulbs light up in my brain and then I fit the song into this fic. However the main song this is all based on is Fallen (which I still haven't tired of listening too despite the fact the play count on my mp3 is well into the 300's :D ) lol :D Thanks for reviewing :D
Hello Joe hehe, thanks :D Yeah I know there does always seem to be a 'but'. I tried a new layout, so that the review replies take up less space but the site wouldn't let me when I uploaded the chapter it changed it... The idea behind the song is that music is an inspiration to some of my writing so I post the lyrics when they fit with the plotline. This whole fic popped into my head whilst listening to 'Fallen' but anyway, sorry if you don't like the lyrics.
the. dead. addict.Hehehe Thanks ;D –sighs- I can't wait for Kel to get a little bit older, then I can have some fun writing romance :D
YabberliThanks for reviewing! I'm glad you like the pace, that's always one of the things that I worry about. You've put my mind at rest! Lol ;D Have you ever played underwater Frisbee? That's good fun too :D hehee
SavingSaturn Thanks ;D
Covered CloudsNope Alex isn't George, he's a lot younger than George. But he does work for George. Thanks for reviewing, I'll try and sort out my 'there' and 'their' 's but it's one of those things that I tend to miss when spell-checking ;D
Saz cool :D Thanks!
I love Fallen! Well Alanna and Liam both fought with both there hands and they are probably the best ever mentioned in the Tortallan universe, although it is a bit of interpretation on my behalf ;D Thanks for reviewing ;D
Golden23Thanks!
ella plain and simplehehe, thanks!
SarahE7191Thanks!
epobbpCool! I've been playing the flute for seven years too! The tuba must be great fun to play, but I'd imagine quite hard to carry around with you…still it could be worse I guess…imagine if you played the double bass! Hehe. Thanks for reviewing ;D
Bertie Botts Thanks :)
Pie of Doomehlol :D tee hee hee, read on to find out :D Thanks as always :D
queenoftheostlersum…excuse me! How dare you excuse me of including Eragonness !! lol Alanna fights with two hands !! lol :D I'm so excited about tomorrow, it's gonna be so good :D (Lots of chocolate shall be consumed :D)
The Sherberty LemonThanks :D
Penguins stole my marbles thanks ;P
JaBoyYamaybe…she has to be a bit older though for romance :D
Justanotheraddiction hehehe :D please don't stop reading, you'll have to wait for a long time for it's completion…oh good I'm glad you're too clingy. Thanks ;D
ElentarielThanks!
waterdancer15Thanks for reviewing ;D
manicpony24aww…thanks ;)
All Hail BooksHappy Birthday! This is obviously a good birthday week ;P
tsudratsyay! Thanks for reviewing ;D
katiebug123 I'm really sorry for missing you off the list last time, you must have reviewed just after I wrote all the review replies. Thanks for reviewing x 2 :D
Confusedknight xxx
As they travelled ever southwards the already hot weather became increasingly warmer. By now Kel's skin had gone past the 'burnt' stage and was tanning nicely in the summer sun. It was at times like these that she wished she was a boy and she could just take off her shirt. As it was she cut her shirt sleeves off, trying to make it as small as possible to cool herself down.
Surprisingly Alex didn't take off his shirt until one exceptionally hot afternoon, when the temperature soared higher than Kel ever believed possible. They were both covered in sweat and dust from the road. Kel had swept her hair up into a rough ponytail, to stop it from sticking to her neck but despite her best efforts to stay cool, her shirt was soaked with sweat and she was feeling irritable and uncomfortable.
When Alex did take off his shirt, it revealed a muscular physique. What made Kel stare was a scar, as big and as nasty as her own, running from his right shoulder to his left hip, marring the unblemished, sweaty skin.
Kel's curiosity almost made herself forget their promise about not asking each other personal questions, but she caught herself just in time. She now realised why Alex was reluctant to take off his shirt.
Kel's Scanran was progressing steadily and she could now have a, somewhat stilted, conversation with Alex. The most important thing, for now, was that she could understand spoken Scanran. They would work on her conversational and written skills later. When Alex was instructing Kel in the art of spying, he tended to slip back into Common as Kel needed to be one hundred percent sure of her instructions.
But Kel's other lessons also continued, unhindered by the heavy travelling that they underwent each day. For the majority of the time the roads were empty so Alex could teach her things as they rode, or in Kel's case as she ran. The continued running had almost killed her in the first couple of days, but Kel's legs and cardiovascular system were rapidly adjusting to her routine and in turn her increased fitness helped with her swordplay.
Most evenings Alex would fence with her for an hour or so. Without fail, Kel lost every single time, marvelling at Alex's skill. She never became disheartened, it merely made her all the more determined to master the blade. She still couldn't believe her luck at finding such a good teacher and Kel thanked the Great Mother Goddess for it every night.
The latest addition to Kel's busy day was a slightly strange mix of tumbling and agility training. Kel's flexibility had come on in leaps and bounds and the previous evening Alex had reckoned she was ready to start working on her agility. To demonstrate Alex had flipped himself over backwards with the ease of one who has simply turned around. He also demonstrated how to drop from a height and land in a position which would prevent the shattering of leg bones.
Kel's eagerness to learn how to tumble quickly wore off when she realised how hard it was. Even with Alex supporting her she barely made it all the way over and she dreaded the day when Alex would make her do it unaided.
Perhaps the favourite of Kel's lessons, (with the exception of swordplay) was dagger work. She had nimble feet and found the exercise to be similar to that which the Yamani's did with fans. Of course she wasn't tossing the daggers around, but the Yamani fan's could and were used as weapons, and when they were, the results were usually quick and painful for the enemy.
Alex revealed little about his work, but any information which he let slip, Kel filed away in her mind. Not that she thought Alex spoke carelessly, Kel figured that he was far to careful to do that, but by feeding her little scraps of information he was also testing her abilities to remember and recall that information.
One afternoon, nine days after they had met, Alex spoke to her for the first time about who they were on their way to meet. Kel was running along side Prince, her face red and hot, re-tying up her hair for what seemed like the hundredth time when Alex stopped abruptly and dismounted. Kel also stopped running and together they made their way to the side of the road.
When they got to the small grassy bank at the side of the road, they scrambled up it. Kel could now see what she hadn't been able to previously; a small stream running alongside the road. It would be a good chance to let Prince have a drink and a short rest, as well as drinking themselves and filling up their leather water skins.
'We're about to arrive in the small village of Greenpond, one day's ride north of Corus. The man we are to meet is the Whisper man himself, the very top man. I've only had the privilege of meeting him once before, when I had just started the job. He runs the Spy network for Tortall with an iron fist. He alone knows the exact location of probably hundreds of agents in all sections of society in all countries. As you've probably guessed I work in Scanra, as a matter of fact I work in the Capital. The trouble is, somehow the network has been intercepted and communications have been made damn near impossible.'
'So you're here to report the problem?' surmised Kel.
'Amongst other things, yes,' said Alex.
'Firstly there are some things you should know about the Whisper man. He can smell a lie a mile off and he's probably the best spymaster Tortall has ever had. Of course the majority of the Tortallan nobility are completely clueless about the true nature of his pastimes, but his father-in-law plays the role of spymaster, which distracts the public gaze from his work. He knows all the tricks in the book when it comes to spying and he is a man unto himself when it comes to daggers.
However I don't think it wise that we inform him of our arrangement. For one thing he has a daughter, who must be slightly younger than you and he might disapprove of me allowing you to help, especially when things are so dangerous at the moment. He might also feel that you would be a hindrance to my work. All in all, the less we say the better.'
Half an hour later, as the sun began to set, Alex and Prince entered the small village, apparently alone. Kel was following closely behind, under the instructions to remain hidden outside.
Kel watched from a distance as Alex stabled his huge chestnut horse and entered a small, run-down tavern. She absent-mindedly scuffed her foot in the dirt, what was she going to do for the next few hours?
She had half a mind to bed down in Prince's stable but she might be discovered by a hostler or stable boy. Deciding that she had nothing better to do, she let curiosity lead her back across the street, keeping low in the shadows until she was round the side of the pub. Somehow Kel didn't think that Alex and his boss would be meeting in a rowdy bar, it was probably far more likely that they were in one of the private rooms at the back of the Inn.
Kel crept around to the back of the Inn and climbed up into a tree, hidden from view by the thick foliage. She could hear the murmur of men's voices but couldn't discern any words over the hubbub of noise coming from the bar. That's probably why they chose a pub for a meeting place thought Kel.
Just as she was wondering what to do next a small voice called out clearly,
'What are you doing?'
Kel almost fell out of the tree with shock. She looked down wildly but couldn't see anyone.
'I'm up here,' called the voice.
Kel looked up. Leaning out of a first storey window was a small girl, but Kel couldn't distinguish anymore than that in the poor light of the evening. She had two options; either she ran away fast and hoped that the girl didn't tell anyone, or she could climb further up the tree and talk to the girl.
Led by her curiosity, a position which she found herself in more and more frequently these days, Kel climbed higher and crawled along a branch until she was practically on the girl's windowsill.
'Would you like to come in?' asked the smaller girl pleasantly, as though Kel had merely knocked on the front door of her house, instead of climbing up a tree to her bedroom windowsill.
'Um…it might be safer,' replied Kel, act stupid she thought.
And Kel scrambled ungracefully into the room, bringing a great many leaves and twigs with her.
The girl was alone in the small bedroom and Kel could see her more clearly now, by the light of an oil lamp. The girl looked to be about nine or so, with reddish-blonde hair and dancing hazel eyes, which were much greener than Kel's own.
'Um…hello,' said Kel lamely, standing awkwardly by the window, ready to make her escape should the occasion arise.
'You came with Alex,' it was not a question.
Kel wondered whether she should deny it, but looking at the girl before her, Kel sensed that she was a lot cleverer than she was letting on and as the girl knew who Alex was…
'How do you know Alex?' she asked.
The smaller girl shrugged,
'He came to meet my Pa. I'm Aly.'
'Kel,' she replied, slightly unnerved by the girl's bluntness.
If this girl was the Whisper man's daughter that Alex had mentioned earlier, then surely the meeting couldn't be all that secret. Alex had always emphasized the spying game to be highly dangerous, but here Aly stood, probably knowing a lot more about the meeting than Kel.
'So…' said Aly, launching herself onto one of the dank, mouldy-looked twin-beds that took up most of the room. 'Can you use those daggers?' she said, gesturing towards Kel's person.
Yet again Aly surprised Kel, perhaps Aly knew more about spying than Kel had thought. When the small girl slipped out two daggers of her own, Kel decided that nothing more about the girl could possibly shock her.
Kel pulled out two of her own daggers and nodded. Aly gestured that Kel take a seat on the other bed. She absentmindedly balanced a dagger, hilt down on her finger as she began the conversation again.
'Pa didn't tell me that there would be a girl coming with Alex. In fact he doesn't know, I spotted you as you entered the village,' said Aly with a hint of pride. 'You really shouldn't sneak like that; you look soooooooo obvious, as well as the fact that you stood watching Alex's horse and then considering the Inn for ages. It really didn't take a genius to work out that you were with him.'
'And I suppose you could do better?' asked Kel, irked by the younger girls comments.
'Well, yes actually.' Said Aly, 'Pa's taught me all there is to know about spying, code-breaking and lock-picking and he's the best.'
Just then Aly flicked the dagger up, caught it one handed and sent it spinning away, until it landed with a dull thud, right in the middle of the window frame, where it stayed, quivering, centimetres away from being out of the window. Getting up Aly yanked it out of the wooden frame with the air of one who had done so many times before.
Kel was impressed. Aly's boasts about lock-picking and code-breaking didn't interest her much, but dagger throwing was listed under one of the more exciting aspects of spying in Kel's opinion. Forgetting her pride for a moment Kel asked excitedly,
'Can you teach me to do that?'
'Sure,' said Aly, brightening at the prospect of something to do. 'You don't know how bored I've been all day. Keep out of sight and don't attract attention to yourself, were my objectives for the day, and it's been goddamn boring.'
Aly fetched a piece of charcoal from the out of use brazier and drew a target on the opposite end of the room from the window. Then stepping right back she sent her own two daggers flying into the middle of the target.
She then pulled out a third dagger from under her breeches and demonstrated the correct technique of how to throw the dagger.
Kel's first few throws were awful, some bouncing uselessly off of the walls as their hilts hit the wall first and others not even making it the complete distance to the wall. Aly politely refrained from laughing and by the time Kel was on the fourth round of throwing all the daggers, some of them were actually going near the target.
'You've got the hang of it now,' said Aly, 'You'll just have to practise.'
Kel sighed, 'My entire life seems to be made up of practising various things,' she said ruefully.
'What else do you practise?' asked Aly interestedly.
'Fighting; hand-to-hand and swordplay, languages, spy work, to name just a few…'
'Are you good at fencing?' asked Aly.
'I'm okay…' said Kel, unsure of what was classed as 'good.'
Kel had left her sword in their packs; a twelve-year-old girl with a sword attracts far too much attention.
'My Ma's the best,' said Aly matter-of-factly, 'she never loses…except when she was much younger of course.'
A bell suddenly went off in Kel's head as she realised who Aly's mother must be. She remembered Neal once telling her that Sir Myles of Olau was the King's spymaster. At the time she hadn't thought much of it, but her whole life seemed to have been changed and now that she was dipped into this web of intrigue and secrecy, it mattered a great deal who the King's spymaster was.
So if Sir Myles was the spymaster, then according to Alex the real leader of the network, the one who did all the legwork, was his son-in-law, George Cooper, the Lioness' husband.
Suddenly a horrible thought struck Kel; Baron George Cooper would surely know all the news from Court. Know that she had been kicked out, and had then run away. What if he found out from Aly that there had been a 'Kel' with Alex, one who knew how to fight? What if he made the connection? Her blood ran cold at the thought; she was not ready to return to Corus.
Before she could dwell on this chilling thought any longer, Aly's eyes had suddenly lit up.
'Do you want to find out what they're talking about?' she asked excitedly. 'I may have a way…'
'Come on!' said Aly as she scrambled up and ran to the window.
Then, beckoning Kel to follow her, she hurried out of the room. Instead of going downstairs, as Kel would've expected, Aly ran upstairs. They passed a man on his way down and Kel cringed inside, waiting for him to say something or drag them downstairs, but he walked on by completely ignoring them. Aly was right thought Kel, no one notices you if you act normally. Soon Kel and Aly were on the top floor of the Inn.
'You're not scared of heights are you?' asked Aly grinning as she ran to the end of the corridor.
Kel swallowed, she was scared of heights, but she didn't say anything. At the end of the corridor was a window, which Aly opened, silently. She peered out.
'I'm going to stand on the ledge and pull myself up, using the trellis that's on the left here.' And she did just that, climbing up like a monkey until Kel could no longer see her dangling legs.
'Come on,' called Aly. 'We haven't got all night.'
Kel breathed in deeply and peered out, down to the floor three storeys below them and to her amazement she felt no fear. OK, she was slightly nervous about the drop beneath her and what would happen if she fell, but it was no longer the mind-numbing, body-freezing fear she had felt before. Kel wondered what had changed. Then in her mind's eye she saw the Tauros, it's monstrous figure and burning eyes. She shuddered. Compared to what the Tauros had done to her, a simple height was nothing to fret over. She copied what Aly had done and soon sat on the thatched roof of the Inn.
Aly's eyes were still shining with excitement.
'This is so cool!' she exclaimed in a whisper. 'You're so much more fun than other people my age, not even my twin would do this with me!'
And she was off again, scrambling up the roof, gripping the twigs of the densely woven thatch, Kel following close behind. They reached the peak of the roof and shuffled along. Aly stood up when they reached the large chimney.
'I happened to notice earlier,' said Aly that the only room in the Inn with a fireplace was the one in which Pa and Alex are meeting.'
'You can't seriously be suggesting that we climb down the chimney!' whispered Kel.
Aly's grin was answer enough.
'If we just prise the grate off the top, there should be some sort of ladder inside, which the chimney sweep uses.'
Sure enough, when they carefully pulled the metal mesh off of the top and balanced it carefully on it's side, there was enough space for them to climb down inside, using a series of metal rungs inside the chimney. A grown man wouldn't have been able to do it, but Kel and Aly were considerably smaller than most men and fitted down it easily. Aly went first, Kel following close behind. Just above the grate was a ledge on which the chimney sweep could place his equipment. It was just big enough for both girls to squeeze onto. It was perfect; as it was summer there was no fire in the grate and apart from the cramped conditions they were in the perfect place to listen to the conversation between the men in the room.
Kel recognized Alex's voice immediately and therefore presumed that the lilting voice belonged to Aly's father, Baron George Cooper. She could hear the chink of cutlery and realised that the men must be having a meal.
They spoke in hushed tones and Kel wondered whether the names being mentioned in the conversation meant anything to Aly. They spoke a great deal about a person called 'Maggur', there was also a 'Blayce' mentioned and a lot said about private armies, warring clans and a 'Marcus'.
They must have been eavesdropping for about twenty minutes when their luck ran out. The metal mesh must have become unbalanced by the summer breeze and clanged noisily against the chimney. Immediately both George and Alex fell silent.
'What was that?' asked Alex.
George stood up and walked over to the fireplace, examining it carefully.
'It sounded like it came from up here,' and he peered up the chimney. Of course, now he was actually looking up the chimney he couldn't fail to notice two pairs of skinny legs and he pulled on them, hard.
Both Aly and Kel fell into the empty grate in a large cloud of soot and dust. George stood back, coughing and wearing an exasperated expression, somewhere between anger and amusement.
'Well, well…' said George, the corners of his mouth twitching at the sight of his soot-covered, sheepish-looking daughter.
At that exact moment all hell broke loose in the room next door and a second later three burly men, who were clearly drunk burst into the room. Through the open door Kel could see a massive tavern brawl occurring in the main room. Glasses were flying everywhere and all over the place men were punching each other. The terrified bar tender was cowering underneath a table and over in the corner, where it was getting really nasty the men had drawn daggers and were attempting to stab each other.
George drew Aly behind his back, daggers appearing in his hands as he did so. Alex too pulled out daggers and unsheathed his sword, which he tossed to Kel. Kel hefted his sword, it was slightly longer and heavier than what she was used to, but no where near as heavy as the sword with which she had tried to slay a Tauros in the Temple.
If George was surprised that Alex handed over his best weapon to Kel, he didn't show it, or indeed any sign of surprise that Kel was there at all.
'Ah, we meet again,' said a man with a strong Tyran accent.
George nodded curtly and attacked without warning, sending his dagger whirling into the chest of the first attacker. If Aly was good with her daggers, it was nothing compared to her father. Alex launched into the fight after George and Kel and Aly followed suit.
Kel used the sword to simply smash the dagger out of her opponents hand, she then slashed low at his legs, impairing him, but not aiming to kill. A further two men rushed into the room, with the same slanting eyes of the first three attackers.
Kel once again began to attack, not paying any attention to the other fights going on around her. Unfortunately her second opponent had a sword, not just a dagger, which he drew and began to slash at her. He was good, but no where near as good as Alex and Kel quickly found openings to weave her sword into. Finally she succeeded in disarming him. Looking around she saw that Alex and George had dealt with their attackers and even Aly stood proudly over a dead Tyran.
Of the five men, only three were left alive. Kel's two were screaming in pain, clutching their cut legs. Alex disposed of them quickly and effectively, but George had managed to subdue his opponent without injuring him, much and was now attempting to question the man. Without warning the man slumped, dead.
George cursed colourfully,
'Suicide charm,' he muttered angrily, 'Let's go.'
And the four of them climbed out of the window, escaping into the cool night air.
'Don't tell your mother that we were involved in a fight,' said George seriously, 'she'd kill me, I told her we were visiting an old friend to pick up a package.'
'If you don't tell her that I climbed up onto the roof of a three storey building and down a chimney,' countered Aly.
'Deal,' they both said simultaneously and George slung an arm around his only daughter's shoulders in a hug.
(-a/n- Omigosh! Yay! It's officially my birthday 00.01 am!! Please review, I've been working on this for hours! ;D )
Confusedknight xx