(A/n.) This chapter is dedicated to EJ101, who has been my most loyal follower for many years.

Chapter Four:

Come by the Hills

Later that same day, Kree was flying to Del, carrying messages for Lief from Jasmine and Doom. Though the messages both said that they would be leaving the forests in a few days and traveling to the Os-Mine hills to deliver Jasmine's hair to the dragon, both had wanted to send one. So Kree carried the message from Jasmine in his beak, and the message from Doom tied to his leg. As it happened, Kree had not wanted to stay in the forests for as long as Jasmine Doom were planning to. He wanted to return to the palace in Del, and Ebony. Ebony, who was now his mate. Not long before Kree had left Del, Ebony had laid several eggs, and Kree was to be the father of all their young. They had agreed that all the young would be trained as messenger birds, due to the fact that they were in such short supply because so many of them had been killed the day the sister of the south had been destroyed. Kree had not wanted to leave Jasmine in the forests, but he knew that it must be done. Ebony and the messenger birds needed him more than Jasmine did just now, so on he flew.

At the palace, Lief Sat in the library, reading a letter from one of the farmers who now supplied food to the palace. In his letter, the man was saying that he had discovered a plant that for some reason made some of his livestock reproduce more quickly, and thus increase his supplies. He was requesting that Lief speak with him personally, at the full moon meeting this month or some other time, to discuss getting funds from the palace to grow more of this crop throughout the land so that it could be enjoyed by all in Deltora, not just those at the palace. Lief liked that the man was thinking of all of Deltora's farmers and did not seem to want to make any profit from his discovery. Though he doubted very much that such a plant really did exist. It seemed strange that it was being discovered only now. Lief quickly penned his reply to the farmer, telling him that he would speak with him at the next meeting, and walked out of the library toward the bird room to send his message. In the bird room, there were only a few birds to choose from. Ebony was nesting, and so refused to carry Lief's message. Eventually, he chose Blackwing, the first bird he had saved from Paff's poison. As he watched Blackwing fly out of the window and away, Lief saw another blackbird flying toward the palace. He knew better than to hope that it was Kree, Jasmine and Doom had only been gone for a day and a night, so what could they have to tell him? But Lief was proved wrong when none other than Kree himself flew into the bird room with two notes. One was tied to his leg; the other was clamped in his beak. He dropped the note in his beak straight into Lief's hand, and allowed him to untie the other from his leg. Then Kree went to perch beside Ebony.

Lief found it strange that Kree had been carrying two notes, but he supposed that Jasmine and Doom had wanted to send a message each. He was proved right when he looked at the writing on the note that had been tied to Kree's leg.

"Lief,

I bring bad tidings. I fear that your dragon protection laws shall be tested soon. The dragon of the topaz found Jasmine and I in the forests, and it appears to want Jasmine's hair to line its nest. She and I will travel to the Os-Mine hills later today, and as hard as I have tried to convince her otherwise, Jasmine insists on giving the dragon most of her hair willingly. We will probably return to Del tomorrow, or if not then, the day after that.

Doom."

Lief felt his heart sink as he read the note. So, the dragon had wanted Jasmine's hair, and there really was nothing he could do to stop her giving it. He wondered if Jasmine knew what she was doing. What he feared most was that the dragon would continue to want Jasmine's hair, and insist that she cut it off each time it laid an egg for as long as it lived, and that would mean that he could forget his plans to marry her. If the dragon did want her hair for the rest of its life, Jasmine would need to remain a maiden forever.

To find out for himself if Jasmine knew just what it was she was getting into, Lief smoothed out the note that she had sent him.

"Lief,

I have decided to donate a length of my hair to the topaz dragon. If you have already read the note from Doom, you will know that we plan to travel to the hills today. Doom seems to think that it is a bad idea for me to give my hair, but I think he is wrong. If I am to be the queen of this land, then part of my duty to it should be to help its dragons. But I have no doubt that you will agree with Doom, because that is how things usually are.

Jasmine."

So, that was how it was. Jasmine was giving her hair to the dragon without speaking with him first, out of some strange sense of duty.

Later, in the kitchens, Lief sat with his mother and some of the cooks, sharing a midday meal. Sharn and the cooks were all quite cheerful, but Lief found that he just could not share their good spirits. He was still thinking of Jasmine, Doom and the topaz dragon. Jasmine and Doom were probably on their way to the hills, and when Lief had tried to send Kree with a message for Jasmine, telling her not to go through with giving her hair, he refused to go. It seemed that Kree was soon to be the father of the chicks that Ebony was soon to hatch, and he would not leave the nest, whatever Lief said. "Strange," he thought. "It seems that everyone is marrying these days."

As Lief thought this, Marilen and Ranesh came into the kitchens, and joined them at the table. Lief could see that Marilen was now very close to giving birth.

"Why, Marilen, you look wonderful!" Sharn exclaimed as Marilen sat down beside her.

"I do not feel it," she said, as one of the cooks handed her a plate with assorted sandwiches on it. Ranesh was looking at the tabletop, as usual saying nothing. Lief tried to catch his eye, but Ranesh did not look up. He looked very tired. Marilen, however, looked straight at Lief.

"What is wrong with you?" She asked. "You look as if someone has just died!"

"Ah, Marilen, if only you knew." Lief sighed.

"Oh, Lief." Sharn said, looking up from her own plate. "You are not still upset about Jasmine, are you? She said she would come back, and Jasmine is not one for breaking her word."

Without saying anything, Lief drew out the note that Doom had written, and handed it to his mother. As she read it, Sharn's eyes widened. "Well," she said when she was finished. "This is something new. But I suppose it does make sense, dragons do need the hair of maidens to line their nests, and Jasmine's hair is indeed something to be admired. When I think about it, I am not surprised that the topaz dragon should want some of it."

But Marilen looked indignant as she in turn read the note. "Really, Lief?" She asked. "Is this all that has gotten you so upset?"

"Well, yes." Lief replied.

"I think you should know, Lief, that right now I would give anything to be in Jasmine's position. She is lucky to have been personally chosen by the dragon to donate her hair, and I can tell you now, that is certainly more comfortable than my situation!"

Lief was puzzled. "What do you mean?" He asked.

"Well," Marilen began, seeming to become even more swollen in her anger. "I cannot imagine that Jasmine has been sick once in the past months, and I do not think it is at all a problem for her to look down and see her feet, and don't get me started on stacking those accursed bookshelves!" Upon hearing this, Ranesh looked apologetic, but Marilen had not finished. "Oh, and if Jasmine was sitting where I am just now, I am quite sure that she would have no problem doing so! I, on the other hand, have this huge belly in the way!"

With that, Marilen stood up rather awkwardly, and left the room as quickly as she could, leaving her untouched plate of food on the table. Lief made to follow, but Ranesh put a warning hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry about it, Lief," he said quietly. "She is always like this now; I don't think she meant what she said. Give her a few moments to herself and she will be fine."

Lief still did not quite understand what was going on, and he was sure that he was the only one in the room who felt this way. "Why is she like this now?" He asked.

"It is the baby," Ranesh replied as he picked up Marilen's plate, intending to take it to her once she had calmed down. Lief still did not understand what he meant, but thought better of asking further questions. The shadows under Ranesh's eyes were deep, and he seemed constantly exhausted.

When he left the palace that evening, Lief wandered through the city alone. Night had fallen, but still some people walked the streets. In the markets, people selling fresh foods were shouting their wares, hoping that they could sell what was left before they left. He found himself walking toward a small tavern, which was a short distance from the market square. There were lights shining in the windows, and music could be heard floating on the breeze. Lief quickened his pace, eager to see what was happening. He had never been inside a tavern before, and he decided that now would be a good time to see what it was like. He figured that the music (which was growing louder as he approached) would cheer him up, if nothing else.

But when he came closer and heard a woman's voice start to sing, he found that he was very wrong about this.

"Come by the hills, to the land where fancy is free,

And stand where the peaks meet the sky, and the lochs meet the see."

Lief stood rigid with shock. For a moment, he wondered if this was all a dream and he would soon wake up in his bed at the forge. But he knew it was not. The cold air blowing on his face, and the bright lights in the tavern windows made this all too real.

From where he stood, Lief could see that there were many people inside, sitting at low wooden tables. There was a pretty young woman behind the bar, and the singer was sitting close by at an old piano. Lief could only see the back of her head, but he knew that she had long brown hair, wore a simple dress, and the hands that were playing the piano seemed worn.

"Where the rivers run clear, and the bracken is gold in the sun,

And the cares of tomorrow can wait till this day is done."

The woman was singing her song in such jolly tones, that Lief could not help but wonder if she was mocking him with her words. Lief knew that people in the tavern would recognise him, but he did not care. He wanted to give this woman a piece of his mind. He closed the distance between himself and the tavern door in three strides, and pushed it open.

As Lief had expected, everyone in the tavern turned and looked at him as he entered. For a moment, every face in the tavern was smiling. As usual, the people were delighted to see King Lief among them. But the woman playing the piano did not stop singing, her fingers did not falter on the keys, and she did not even look up. It was almost as if she was ignoring him. Now, she was halfway through the next verse of the song.

"Where the trees sway in time, and even the wind sings in tune,

And the cares of tomorrow can wait till this day is done."

As she sang on, Lief took the opportunity to take a closer look at her. Now that he could see her properly, he realised that she was not much older than himself. Her eyes were staring straight ahead, and seemed to be completely focused on her playing. Lief also noticed that there was no music on top of the piano, which meant that she was playing completely from memory.

There was something on the piano though, where a music book would usually sit. Carefully, Lief moved a little closer to see what it was, and when he did, his jaw dropped. It was an old cane basket, which looked as if it might crumble into pieces at the slightest touch. There were many loose strands of cane where the weaving had come undone, And inside the basket, nestled among a small pile of gold and silver coins and wrapped in a blue blanket, was a baby, who was fast asleep.

Disclaimer: The lyrics used in this chapter were written by W. Gordon-Smith. They are sung to an Irish folk tune.