(A/N I just want to thank you guys for following and Reading this story! A special thanks to Drimali (who've read this since the beginning d who actually pushed me into doing this), JeminiaMoon, Markia Mayfields (who've been very enthusiastic about this story), Camilla Richards, xxmelusinexx, and lilwoodb.

Chapter 35: The Parting of Ways

Tantibus didn't know what to say about his daughters dissaperance. In a way, he understood her. He understood the urge to just want to dissapear. When he had lost Erianna, he had felt the same way. He had just wanted to dissapear. To just die. But at the same time, he had Cashmére. He hadn't been able to just leave little Cashmére alone. Tantibus had hoped that Cashmére would have reasoned like that. She would have her child, soon. That child would need her more than anything else as soon as it was born.

A horrable thought suddenly crossed Tantibus's mind. What if that child never would be born? What if Cashmére commited suicide? Losing his child, and his grandchild was too much for Tantibus. He settled down, barely acknowledging Lucian.

The rest of the Seven did acknowledge Lucian. Colum was held away from his uncle, as Naomi gently took of his shirt and inspected his wounds. It did not look good at all; the wound was deep, and infected with Darke. Naomi bit her lip. If Lucian didn't get the help he needed, soon, he was going to die. The problem was that they couldn't get him the help he needed, in time.
"It's not looking good, is it?" Lucian said.

"Well..." Naomi begun. For a short moment she thought about to lie to the man, but he was no fool. He understood that he was dying. That was one of the most horrable fact with it all. "No, not really."

Lucian tried to smile. "At least it doesn't hurt that much anymore."

Tantibus took of his belt, and used it as a bandage on Lucian. "It's useless, lord." said Lucian. "It probably won't even buy me a minute."

"No, but it looks as though we tried." Tantibus replied. Lucian chuckled, but that hurt and he winced.

"Luc?" It was Colum. Phileus held him back.

"No, Colum, you shouldn't looks at your uncle right now."

"Why not?" Lucian asked.

"Well-" Oberon begun, but Lucian cut him of.

"He is young," Lucian replied, "But he can handle it. He knows death."

Colum went up to his uncle. "Luc?" he had never stopped Calling Lucian 'Luc'. But Lucian liked it, so he had never protested.

"Yes, Colum?"

"You're going to leave us, aren't you?" with 'us', Colum meant him and Davilius, who at the time was too.

"I'm sorry, Colum." Lucian said. "I don't really have a choice."

"Why won't you stay?" Colum asked.

"Like I said, Colum, I have no choice." Lucian answered. Colum didn't seem to listen.

"Mum and dad left me, and you can't do that, too." he said.

"Colum!" Lucian groaned when he raised his voice, "Colum, enough. I am dying, and I'm sorry, but I can't do anything."

"Please..." Colum sobbed. He leant his head against Lucian's chest, and Lucian- even though it hurt- put his arm over him. Usually, he would have told Colum not to cry and to be a man, instead, but this was a special occasion, he thought.

"Will you take care of him and Davilius for me?" Lucian then asked Phileus.

"Of course." Phileus answered, and Lucian let out a sigh. Then he closed his eyes, never to open them again.

Cashmére didn't know where she was, at first. There was a lot of trees, then there was a big house with a sign outside which read: The Grateful Turbot.

It was snowing outside. Angela Portman was sitting down by the desk, in what she called 'the lobby' in the Greateful Turbot. She was thinking about what she would have for dinner, when a highly pregnant woman stumbled into the room. The woman was holding her hand over her stomach, and her eyes was wide-open.
"Help." the woman just said.

It turned out that the woman was going to give birth to her child. Several hours later, close to midnight, the little one had made it out. Cashmére- Angela thought it was a snobbish name- was clutching her child against her chest. Her eyes were wide open, and she didn't look as happy as a mother should look. She seemed to be more bothered by the child, which to be honest, she was.

Cashmére went through an inner battle. She so wanted to keep her daughter, her Odale, but she just couldn't. She wouldn't be able to. It would hurt. Her little girl looked so alike Joseph, so alike Lorea, it was impossible to ever take care of her. She sure had the money- even though she a several years later said she hadn't. But she couldn't take care of the child.

A thing sculked along a lonely path. Although it was winter and freezing cold, the longest night of the year, infact, the thing didn't care about the weather. Things usually don't. But it was hungry. Maybe a stry cat, a corpse or... anything. It wasn't that fussy. Suddenly, and finally, it heard a heartbeat. The thing stopped for a moment. It was a very faint and low sound, but indeed, it was a heartbeat. The thing sniffed in the air, and started to look around for whatever that could have caused the sound. At last it found what it had been searching for; a newborn baby. The thing hesitated. It wouldn't be very much to eat. It certainly wasn't eatable for the thing. It was... so tiny. Still hesitationg, the thing picked the little baby up, and blinked in surprise. How? A strong bolt of magyk had hit the things fingertips. It could see that even though it just was a little baby, it had great magykal potential. So, withour further hesitating, it took the baby away. To it's master, DomDaniel.

Still holding the baby, the thing tried to get it's master's attention. It grunted.

"What?" DomDaniel snapped, and turned around. He sighed irritated and looked at the baby which the thing held. The thing tried to give the baby to DomDaniel, but DomDaniel refused.

"Why do you have that with you?" he asked, "It certainly isn't necessary."

The thing grunted again and shoved the baby into DomDaniel's arms. DomDaniel widened his eyes as he felt a strong jolt of magyk. He suddenly realized that keeping it, maybe wouldn't be so stupid after all. He sighed, easily annoyed.

The thing hadn't been the only one being out walking that night. Silas Heap was also out. He had just fetched herbs to his wife and newborn son. And, just as the thing had done, he heard a heartbeat. He infact heard two. Silas had once been the ExtraOrdinary Apprentice, but he had quit. Mainly because that he had got a son, but also because... a whole lot other reasons. Back then, he had learnt a lot. He maybe wasn't the best wizards of all times, but, as said, he had learnt a lot. Hearing heartbeats was one of them. At first, he didn't think it was that strange. But, after a while, it did become quite strange. What were they doing out this time of the day, this time of the year? The more he thought about it, the more he found it rather suspicious. So, he went looking for the two... creatures (that Silas assumed to be human). And, just as the thing had done, he found... them. At first, he saw a little baby-girl lying on the ground. Alone. Or, well, not that alone. A few yards away, there was a woman. A woman with a cloak in a brownish colour. The woman was staring at the child.
"Hello?" Silas asked. The woman looked up, and shrugged backwards when she saw Silas. "Is it your child?"

The woman looked horrified. She ran of. Silas didn't know what to do, really. He picked up the little baby- it couldn't be older than his own, newborn son. He stared into the eyes- the violet eyes- of the little child, and knew that he should take it with him back home. And so he did.

Cashmére was running and crying. She had left her child- her Odale- in the snow. Then, a few hundred yards away she had spotted another one. She had almost felt tempted to pick that child up, then go back and pick her own little one up. But then that man had came there, and she had ran off. She didn't really know why.

Even though Cashmére didn't know it, she was running over the One Way Bridge. Then she reached the North Gate.
"Hello." the man guarding the Gate grunted. "That'll be twentyfive pence, please."

Cashmére blinked, and pulled out a few Ivory Moons from her belt. "I don't have any Castellian, but I have these-"

She tried to hand over the money to the man, but he refused. "I don't take foreign money." he said, "You may not pass."

"But-" Cashmére protested, but was silence by a familiar voice.

"Let me pay for that." Marcia. Cashmére turned around. She had not wanted to meet her. Not now. Marcia smiled at her.

"Hello, Cashmére." Marcia said, "So nice to see you, so much awful things have happend."

"Indeed." Cashmére mumbled. Marcia paid the man, and then she and Cashmére went into the Castle.

"So," Marcia begun, "Where's Joseph?"

Cashmére burst into tears. Marcia hugged her. "Hey, what's happend?" Marcia asked.

"It w-was the rebels." Cashmére sobbed. Marcia got paler and paler by every word. "They came and... and they came and set fire to the boat."

"Is Joseph okay?" Marcia asked anxiousley. Cashmére let out a loud, despaired cry and Marcia looked down. She understood the signals.

"A-and the Child?" Marcia stuttered. Cashmére shook her head again, and let out another cry. Marcia hugged Cashmére again. They stood like that for a while. Cashmére sobbed into Marcia's hair and Marcia, too, was crying. She had lost two familymembers, and on top of that, she had lost her mentor, Alther. The Queen had got shot, and Marcia had been forced to escape with the princess. She had left the Little girl in the snow, just by Silas Heap, so that he would find her and hopefully take care of her. And now, Marcia was ExtraOrdinary Wizard. Marcia let go of Cashmére.
"I have to go back to the Tower." Marcia said. "You really should follow..."

Cashmére nodded.

They finally arrived at the Tower. Marcia had told Cashmére that she, Marcia, was the ExtraOrdinary Wizard. Cashmére did, honestly, not care. Her world was in ruins.
"So," Marcia begun when they had settled down in a couh in Alther's- no, Marcia's- livingroom. She really did not want to ask Cashmére this; yet, because of her own sanity, she had to. "How did... how did the child die? Did the rebels murder her straigt away, or..?"

Cashmére shok her head. "The rebels didn't ever touch her. They didn't do anything to her."

"But-"

"It was me, Marcia, okay?" Cashmére supressed a sob.

"Excuse me?" Marcia asked. "No, Cashmére, I understand that you must feel that way, but-"

"I left her." Cashmére replied, "In the snow, Marcia."

"No." Marcia said, "No, you didn't."

"I did!"

"Why would you do that?" Marcia asked.

"You don't understand!" Cashmére snapped.

"Of course I don't understand!" Marcia yelled, "You are the most horrable mother I've ever heard of!"

"And you would be so much better, or what?" Cashmére hissed.

"I wouldn't leave my child, at least!" Marcia spat back.

"It would probably be a relief for your child if you did so." Cashmére snapped. She didn't know why she was being so rude, she just felt the need to.

"Get. Out." Marcia said, between gritted teeth. "Now."

"Fine!"

"And don't come back."

"Why would I want to?" Cashmére snapped up, as she jumped up and rushed out, slamming the door after her. Marcia sighed, and suddenly she felt an urge to just settle down and cry. And so, she did.

(A/N The End. There will be an epilogue, too, though. I hope you've enjoyed this story.)