Sunrise.
Usually it was the beginning of a new day, but to Tarrin, it represented the dawning of another chapter of his life, and one which he was not entirely prepared to accept.
Tarrin sat on the porch rail on the east side of the house, whose door faced north, watching the sun rise in relative silence, with only the chirping of the birds to interrupt the continuity of quiet. Jasana and Jesmind were still asleep, still laying on the floor in the house, and that had been the first shock of the day. Jesmind had made herself very comfortable with him and their daughter while he was asleep, and her scent had conjured up dreams not entirely suited for sleeping next to his young daughter. If that hadn't been bad enough, he had felt a curious softness inside him when he had opened his eyes and looked at Jesmind's face across from him. When she was sleeping, when she was at peace and at rest, the hardness that limned over her face and eyes was gone, revealing the true radiant beauty that she possessed. Tarrin had been moved by that beauty, a beauty that had both haunted him and aggravated him since the day she abandoned him.
He wasn't prepared to give in to that quite yet. He was still utterly furious with his former mate, and looking at her like that, remembering how lovely she was and how good it felt when they-
Tarrin shook his head, shivered his tail, then looked back at the rising sun. There were other matters than Jesmind and Jasana to deal with, though they did occupy the majority of his thoughts. It had been eleven days since the Goddess had told him that the ki'zadun would be moving. That meant that they had been on the move for six days. Six days. That put them somewhere between Draconia and Tykarthia, and that meant that soon the Dal army in Sulasia was going to be moving to set up the trap that would destroy the Sulasian army not garrisonned in Suld. Tarrin's primary concern was Suld, but he also couldn't see just giving up on his countrymen sitting out there waiting for the jaws to clamp shut around their throats. Tarrin was behind the Dal army, and that was something that Keritanima had told him over and over was the best place to be when attacking an armed formation. He was still determined to reach Suld, but this was what the Goddess had meant when she said he would know when he could break the rules. She said he would know when it happened, and it had happened.
The Goddess had sent him on this path so he could be reunited with Jesmind and meet his daughter. The part about the daughter, he very much was happy over. The part with Jesmind was not. He didn't understand what significance they played in the grand design, but he had faith that the Goddess knew what was best. She hadn't been wrong yet.
That gave him free reign. He could move any way he wished, and that meant that he could now fly to Suld; or, more to the point, fly to wherever the Dal army was at at the moment in Sulasia. Probably around Ultern, or maybe even Jerinhold. The problem was that he didn't have an army. He only had himself, and though his magic was indeed potent, it couldn't defeat an entire army by itself. He'd have two or maybe three really powerful spells, spells that would kill off a sizable chunk of the enemy army, but he wouldn't be able to do any more than that. He'd need an army working with him to take advantage of the damage he could cause, to pour into that hole in the ranks and split the enemy army in two, then crush it.
If he could extricate the Sulasian army from its mess, that was that many more men that could defend Suld. Suld was what mattered right now. If he had to throw away the rest of Sulasia in the process, then so be it.
That meant that he needed help. He had to either dig up or divert some people to use as an army, but he had to gather an army that could move fast enough to hit the Dals and still make it to Suld in time to fend off the ki'zadun. Cavalry, Rangers, mounted warriors-
– -or Selani.
Selani. Of course! The Selani moved so fast, they could hit the Dals from behind, free the Sulasian army from its trap, and still reach Suld in time to battle the ki'zadun! Sarraya was bringing them in a direct straight line to Suld, and that put them on a perfect line for Ultern if they came out of the Frontier. Keritanima said that they'd probably set the trap at the Scar, to pin the Sulasians against something that they couldn't cross, so that meant that any time now the Dals would be retreating north, and that would probably cause the Sulasians to give chase. Or maybe the Dals would drive the retreating Sulasian army north, depending on who had the upper hand. Either way, he knew where they were going, and with some confirmation and planning, he could set a trap inside a trap.
North. No, that wouldn't work. The Sulasians wouldn't abandon the Ultern Road, that ran from Ultern to Suld. There wasn't anything up in the nothern sections of Sulasia worth defending, so the Sulasian army wasn't going to abandon the three largest cities in Sulasia to chase after the invading army. So how were they going to set the trap to crush the Sulasian army? The Dals could only try to drive them north, but the Sulasians wouldn't go north. They would retreat west, back towards Suld, and that was the last direction the Dals wanted them to go. How were the Dals going to get the Sulasians in a position where they would be pinioned between two armies?
North? No. South.
Tarrin stood up. The Shacean Marquis were fractured, all but independent states within Shace. The Shacean border was much closer to Ultern than the northern border was. Could the Dals be getting support from rogue Shacean nobles, or maybe even their own army coming through Shacean lands?
It made much more sense. He knew for a fact that the Dals and the Sulasians were fighting house to house in Ultern, thanks to the reports Jenna relayed to him. They were out of position to be crushed, and the Sulasian army was too close to Suld for them to be considered out of action. That meant that the Dals and the ki'zadun had to have some kind of plan to neutralize the Sulasian army, but what was it? Were they going to try to keep the Sulasians engaged until it was too late for them to break off and rush west to defend Suld? Were they going to try to march troops in from Shace to flank the Sulasians and break their supply lines?
Flanking action. Now that would work-no, no it wouldn't. Any attempt to get behind the Sulasians would cause them to break off and immediately throw everything they had at the army trying to cut them off from Suld. The Sulasians wouldn't allow-
– -Of course! They wouldn't allow themselves to be cut off from Suld! That was how they were going to do it! Fake an attempt to box them, make them commit to a westward attack, then hit them from behind and from the south! It was so obvious! That meant that they either had help in Shace or they had agreements to move troops through Shacean territory.
He had to talk to Keritanima. If he'd seen it, she must have seen it. From what he'd heard from Jenna, Keritanima wasn't counting on the Sulasian army, and that made Tarrin a bit suspicious that she had written them off. She was making her plans with what she had, and he had the sneaking feeling that that meant that she wasn't going to try to help the Sulasians. Not when the men she would have to send to do that would be men not available to her when it came time to defend Suld.
He needed to talk to her.
Tarrin looked around. The nearest strand was about fifty spans out in an overgrown barley field. He trudged over to it, then briefly paused to sweep the dew off the grass with Sorcery-he hated getting wet-and then sat down and settled into a comfortable position, legs crossed, paws resting on knees, tail wrapped around his legs, and then closed his eyes and pushed himself into the Weave.
It was something that had very nearly lost it wonderment. Tarrin flowed through the Weave quickly, easily, knowing the shortest path to the Heart by past experience, and once there, wasted no time seeking out Keritanima's star. Once he was close to it, he used that sense of her to discern her physical location; he knew she would be very close. The Heart's location in the physical world translated very closely to the Conduit of the Heart, and Keritanima was literally right on top of it. He wouldn't have to look long.
And he didn't. He immediately locked on to her physical location in reference to the Weave, and then cast himself through the Conduit, into a major strand, and then wove together an image of himself, set it into her location, and then pushed his consciousness into it.
He opened his spectral eyes and found himself in the Keeper's office. Tarrin found himself looking down at Keritanima and the Keeper, sitting on opposing sides of her desk, with the largest Vendari Tarrin had ever seen standing behind the Queen. Duncan, the aged secretary of the Keeper, stood to her left at the desk, and all four of them were staring at him. Three in shock, one in annoyance.
"Szath, stand at the door and don't let anyone in!" Keritanima said immediately, giving Tarrin a hot look. "Tarrin, have you lost your mind! You just missed revealing this little trick to the entire Council by about half a moment!" she said in a quiet, hissing voice as her massive Vendari bodyguard moved quickly and quietly to do her bidding, setting himself before the door and leaning against it. It would take an Ogre to move something that big and get in the room.
"Sorry, I should have made sure it was safe first," Tarrin said contritely, looking at the Keeper. She was a little thinner now, with some gray hair and sunken eyes that showed the stress of the Tower's position in her, but he had very little remorse. Looking at her reminded him that it had been the Council that had set Jesmind loose on him, had turned him Were. He understood the need for it, but he would never forgive them for it.
"Goddess, Tarrin! What happened to you?" the Keeper asked in shock, looking at him. "And how are you doing that?"
"I am what you made me, Keeper," Tarrin said in a hissing voice, his eyes narrowing. "And as to what I'm doing, let me just say that I know more about Sorcery now than you ever would have hoped in your wildest dreams."
So rubbing it in was a bit excessive, but sometimes Tarrin was a very petty person.
Turning immediately back to Keritanima, absently forming a Ward around the office to block any attempt to eavesdrop on them, he got right to the point. "How entrenched is the Sulasian army?"
"The Dals will kill themselves trying to dig them out of Ultern," Keritanima replied immediately. "They don't have the manpower to dislodge them now, because Ranger units have been wreaking havoc on the Dal supply lines."
"That means that the boxing action will come from Shace."
"I know. I've already identified the Marquis that's signed on with the Dals. I'm taking steps."
"Unless you commit reinforcements, they won't be enough," Tarrin told her.
"I know that, but I'm not sending a single man out of Suld," Keritanima said sharply. "Suld is more important than the Dals, the Sulsians, or even Ultern and Jerinhold. I'm doing what I can to give the Sulasians the best chance they have."
"I'll deal with it. Just tell me what you're going to do, so we don't step on each other's feet."
"I've sent agents into Shace to interfere with the Dal troops marching through Shace. I should be able to slow them down long enough to send the order to the Sulasian army for them to withdraw and come back to Suld before they can get surrounded. I can't call them back until the last minute, or the ki'zadun will know we know what they're doing. The Sulasians are as much a decoy and misdirection as they are potential reinforcements." She looked sharply at Tarrin. "What do you intend to do?" she asked.
"Kill the Dals," Tarrin said bluntly.
"And what masterful plan have you constructed to do that, eh, brother?" she asked waspishly. "Your plans are more spontaneous than a mayfly's wandering."
"Nothing extravagant, sister. I'm a simple man. I'll just ask the Selani clan about to come out of the Frontier to attack the Dal army from behind."
Keritanima stared at him for a long moment, then she laughed delightedly. "I didn't think of that!" she admitted. "Are the Dals going to be more or less in the Selani's path?"
Tarrin nodded. "Sarraya's guiding them, and she said she'd take the shortest route. That will bring them out in a virtual straight line with Ultern. The Selani would attack them no matter what, but I think I can convince them to hold off until a certain day, if it fits in with what you're doing here."
Keritanima laughed again, then leaned back in her chair. "That's pretty clever, but they'll know they're coming," Keritanima told her.
"Not entirely. I can give them alot more to think about than a Selani clan, sister. I'm about four days from the major artery of the Dal supply lines."
"Torrian?"
Tarrin nodded.
"You're in Aldreth?" she asked quickly.
Tarrin nodded again. "I just got here yesterday. There are enough people here to take Torrian back from the Dals, and if the garrison there is as weak as the one here was, I think a troupe of housewives with frying pans could manage to take it fairly well. I could probably destroy it myself."
"I think you have a good idea," Keritanima said, tapping her chin with a finger. "Cause enough chaos with the Dals, and the ki'zadun may start reconsidering attacking. I'd much rather avoid that war if I could."
"Forget it. They've worked for years for this, Kerri. They'll come, no matter how bad it looks."
"That's true enough, I suppose," Keritanima sighed.
The Keeper, who had been sitting in rather nervous silence staring at Tarrin, cleared her throat. "I think it's a very good idea," she agreed. "If we can free the Sulasian army and be sure of it, it will add that much more defense to Suld."
Tarrin glared at her shortly, but said nothing. "Have the Aeradalla arrived?" he asked.
Keritanima nodded. "About five hundred of them," she answered.
"Five hundred?" Tarrin asked in surprise.
Keritanima nodded. "They've caused quite a stir, and it's been hard explaining why they're here. Most of them are flying over the ocean, under the story that they're making sure that no ships attack Suld by sea."
"That's a rather thin excuse, Kerri. The whole world knows that not even a rowboat can get past a Wikuni fleet."
"Sometimes a good reputation can be a liability," Keritanima sighed in agreement. "The rest of them have been scouting the Dals and being very careful to scout the ki'zadun without being seen. Truth be told, they're why the Rangers have suddenly gotten the upper hand against the Dal supply lines. The Aeradalla tell them exactly where to go."
"I only asked for fifty."
"I guess you're a very influential speaker," Keritanima grinned.
"Have one of them come to Aldreth," Tarrin said. "I only need one."
"There are Aeradalla all over western Sulasia, as far east as Marta's Ford," she told him. "I'll make sure one of them gets there by tomorrow."
"Good. I'll need some aerial scouting if I'm going to take Torrian."
"Take Torrian? By yourself?" the Keeper asked in surprise.
"I'll find a way," Tarrin said grimly, flexing the claws on one paw in an ominous manner. "The Dals have killed my friends, innocent villagers. They're going to pay for it."
There was a loud, sudden banging at the door. The three of them looked as Szath leaned against the door more and more, then suddenly cried out as the door opened against him. The massive Vendari, who could have probably picked up a full wagon, was brushed aside like a child as the door split from the stress of being jammed between his immovable object and the irresistable force being applied to it. Tarrin took a step backwards, fearful that his secret was out, but it was Triana standing in the doorway, brushing some dust off her tawny-furred arm. That made Tarrin laugh. Triana wasn't even impressed with a Vendari.
"Cub, I've gotten very short with you for making these visits without coming to see me," she said hotly, striding past the startled Vendari. Szath reached for his battle axe, but a quick gesture from Keritanima stayed him. That probably saved his life. Not even Szath would be a match for the powerful Triana.
It shouldn't have surprised him that Triana knew. Triana seemed to know everything.
"Mother," he said with a nod of his head. "I'm sorry, but I didn't realize you wanted to see me."
"I always want to see my cubs," she said with uncharacteristic gentleness. "I see you took them off. You have no idea how happy I am to see that."
Tarrin looked down at his bare forearm. "I never really had a choice, mother," he said ruefully. "I had a pair of very determined goddesses making sure that I wasn't going to leave the desert with them on."
"The question is, cub, do you need them?" she asked intently.
"No. Not anymore," he said after a moment, which made Keritanima sniffle. "Mother, you have no idea how cross I am with you right now."
"And why is that?"
"I'm in Aldreth," he said bluntly, glaring at her.
"Oh. Ah, well, it was going to happen eventually. Did you kill her?"
"Not yet, but I'm thinking about it," he growled. "Why didn't you tell me!"
"It wasn't my place. It was Jesmind's secret. It wasn't my place to give it away."
"Damn propriety!" he shouted at her. "I nearly had an apoplexy, mother!"
Triana laughed, the stony mask breaking from her face.
"What are you talking about, brother?" Keritanima asked curiously.
"Jesmind left me because she was pregnant!" he said indignantly. "I have a daughter I never knew I had!"
Keritanima looked at him, then at Triana, then she burst out laughing. "That's just too rich!" Keritanima gasped. "I knew you had it in you, Tarrin! Congratulations!"
He ignored that rather base, crude innuendo, continuing to glare at his bond-mother.
"That information doesn't leave this room," Triana said dangerously, looking at the Keeper.
"I wouldn't endanger Tarrin's child, Triana," the Keeper said mildly. "I understand the danger."
"I absolutely have to tell Allia," Keritanima sniffed, recovering herself. "She'll keep it a secret, and she deserves to know. I guess that makes me Auntie Kerri," she giggled.
"She's just like you, Kerri," Tarrin said accusingly. "She's a cunning little devious sneak. At least I can thank you for showing me how to deal with girls like you."
"And what is this little Kerri-to-be's name?" Keritanima grinned.
"Jasana," Tarrin told her.
"Is she cute?"
"She's adorable," Tarrin said with a bit of fatherly pride.
"It's nice to hear this, but let's get back to Torrian," the Keeper said. "You can't just go and attack an armed complement, Tarrin. It's crazy."
"Sometimes crazy works," Tarrin shrugged.
"But you're too important to be risking yourself like that!"
"My importance has nothing to do with you, Keeper!" Tarrin snapped at her. "What I'm doing has nothing to do with the Tower! So don't ever think that I'll even listen to you!"
The Keeper shrank back in her chair, a hand going to where Tarrin had branded her, and fell silent.
"I've done well enough so far without the Tower and without you, so shut up," Tarrin said to her hotly.
"Cub, you're getting too full of yourself," Triana told him. "I'll put some humility back in you when you get here."
"You can try, mother," he said with a challenging glint in his eye. "I'll just add it to settling up with you over not telling me about Jasana."
"Bring it, cub," Triana suddenly grinned. "You won't be the first cub I've spanked, or the last."
"Let's keep the warfare out of the Tower, thank you," Keritanima said primly, standing up between the two towering Were-cats. "It would help us if you break the Dal supply lines, and have the Selani attack the Dals whenever they get there. They don't have to wait. In fact, the sooner they do it, the better."
"Alright. I'll figure out some way to tell Sarraya-"
"No, I'll tell Sarraya," Triana said. "I can get the message there in moments."
"Alright. With the Dals defeated, having the Sulasian army pull back to Suld wouldn't be reaching. It would be the logical thing for them to do-at least a portion of them. The rest would go out and restore order and pick off the Dal stragglers."
"But they won't do that," the Keeper reasoned. "They'll hide close to Suld, then be at hand when we need them."
"Exactly," Keritanima agreed with a nod. "If Tarrin can cause enough chaos in their rear areas, it'll interrupt the flow of information to the ki'zadun, and that will hide the Selani until it's too late."
"I can cause as much chaos as you need, Kerri."
"Good. Go for the throat, brother," Keritanima grinned. "Completely cut the Dal army off from its support."
"I can do that," he said confidently.
He was about to say something more, but he became aware of something powerful touching him. That power sought out his own, sought out a joining, but Tarrin realized almost immediately what was happening. It was Jasana! She had touched him, and somehow, she was trying to Circle with him! Tarrin's Illusory image suddenly distorted as Tarrin diverted a great deal of his attention to choking off that attempt. "Tarrin?" Keritanima called in sudden concern. "What's wrong?"
"Quiet!" Tarrin snapped, closing his image's eyes and concentrating all his attention on Jasana. Her power was incredible! And what was worse, she was already able to use her power! She wasn't unrealized, as he thought, she simply didn't have the mental capability to use the power she possessed!
Tarrin reeled as he drew on all his experience, all his knowledge to fend off Jasana's innocent attempt to Circle, but it wasn't easy. Her raw power eclipsed him, but she had no experience and very little control over that power.
How could he have been so wrong! How could he have underestimated his daughter so badly! She didn't have the same sense as himself or Spyder, that sense of impresson on the Weave; he realized it was because she had yet to cross over, to become sui'kun. Hers was a very light touch, a deceptive mask hiding the true extent of magical power that was hidden inside her, because only a portion of that power had been realized.
It was unbelievable! This child, not even two years old, was the most powerful Sorcerer alive!
Tarrin resisted that powerful attempt to join with him, pushing it away from himself, and then his illusory form solidified. "I have to go, now," he said shortly.
"Tarrin, what happened?" Keritanima asked quickly.
"My daughter happened, that's what," he said tersely. "If she was trying to get my attention, she certainly succeeded."
"What did she do, bite you?" Keritanima asked.
"Something like that," he replied, giving her a look that the Keeper couldn't see, a look that told her not to press the issue. "I have to go, before she does something worse."
Keritanima nodded imperceptibly, then chuckled. "You're right. She is as bad as I am," she grinned.
"I'll talk to you in a while, cub," Triana told him. "After you find out what Jasana wants."
"Alright, mother," he said. "I'll talk to you later."
He let his image dissolve as he abandoned it, then sent his consciousness back into his body in the blink of an eye.
He opened his eyes and found Jasana standing in his lap, tugging on his amulet fearfully, tears actually sliding down her cheeks. "Papa!" she cried out, collapsing against him. "I didn't know what was wrong with you!"
Tarrin enfolded the frightened little girl in his arms and comforted her. "Nothing was wrong, kitten," he said quietly, calmly, gently. "I was just talking to someone with magic, that's all. When I do that, I can't see or hear what's going on around me. That's why I wouldn't say anything."
"It was more than that!" she sniffled. "It was like you weren't there! Like you were dead!"
Tarrin was surprised. When he was joined to the Weave, it was apparent that he was breathing, but without his consciousness in his body, he may seem dead to someone sensitive to that kind of thing.
"That's a part of it, Jasana," he assured her. "It's nothing you should be afraid of."
"I wanted to find you," she said, her voice telling him that she was calming down.
"I know. I felt it." He pushed her out to where he could look her in the eye. "Promise me you won't try to do that again unless I tell you that you can, alright? You almost got lost, kitten. If you would have managed to come in to find me like that, I don't know what would have happened."
"Alright," she sniffled, wiping at her nose. "I'm sorry if I scared you, papa."
"Surprised me more than anything else," he smiled gently in reply. "What you did, kitten, it's something that I didn't think you could do. Do you know what it is?"
"No, not really," she replied.
"For now, it's best that it stays that way, kitten," he told her. "I don't think you're ready for that quite yet." He tapped her on the end of her pert little nose, making her giggle. "Are you hungry?"
"No, not really," she said with an adorable smile.
"Well, that's too bad, because you're going to eat anyway," he told her firmly, rising to his feet with his daughter in his arms. She put her arms around his neck, and Tarrin carried her back to the house.
One thing was for certain. He was certainly going to have his paws full trying to handle her if she started trying to touch the Weave. She had awesome power, but she had no training and no control. That was his only advantage. Dolanna had taught him long ago that raw power was only a portion of the true power of Sorcery. Dolanna's exceptional skill at Sorcery made her a stronger all-around Sorcerer than him-at least at that time-because of her many years of her experience. She could even handle his power for limited amounts of time, despite the fact that he was so much stronger than she was.
Jesmind was standing near the fire, a pan of sizzling ham steaks sending their delicious smell through the house. Seeing her like that both incited his anger of her, and reminded him how much he had missed her.
"It's about time," she grunted. "I was about to come out and get you two."
"I need to talk to Garyth," Tarrin said immediately. "Do you know where he is?"
"No, but he shouldn't be too hard to track down," Jesmind replied. "If we should even bother."
"Why do you say that?"
"Because if you killed the Dals, then the people in the village told him about it, and that means he'll probably show up very soon to talk to you. Odds are, he'll be dragging along all the important people in the village with him."
"Probably," he agreed, seeing the broken table still lying in the corner, where Jesmind had pushed it for the moment. Absently reaching within, through the Cat, touching his Druidic power, he Created a new table exactly like the old one, which appeared in the same spot the old table had been.
"Wow!" Jasana said immediately. "Did you do that, papa?"
"Yes, I did that, cub," he told her absently, sitting at the chair that was now in front of the table.
"I told you, cub, your father's a magician. He knows alot of magic."
"Can you teach me!?" she asked quickly and excitedly.
"I'll teach you when you're old enough to handle it, cub," he told her evenly. "You're too young yet."
"When will that be?"
"When you're old enough to know when to use your magic and when not to use your magic," he told her firmly.
"I know that!"
"Riiiight," Tarrin drawled. "And what just happened outside, young lady?"
Jasana blushed slightly, looking at the floor.
"Exactly," Tarrin said with an edge of finality in his voice.
"What did she do?" Jesmind asked curiously.
"Something that almost got her in big trouble," he said with a stern look at her. "Magic is not a toy, Jasana. If you do something wrong, it can hurt you very badly, even kill you. When you're old enough to appreciate that, I'll teach you. But not before."
"Yes, papa," Jasana sighed.
"Go wash up for breakfast, cub," Jesmind said sharply. "Hop."
"Yes, mama," she said obediently, scurrying off towards Jenna's old room.
"What happened out there?" Jesmind asked him in a low tone, coming over to stand before him.
"She tried to use her magic in a way I never dreamed she'd be capable of," he replied in a similar tone. "It's something that you can't do unless you're trained to do it, yet she very nearly pulled it off. She would have, if I hadn't have stopped it."
"Is it something I should worry about?" she asked nervously, concern for her daughter evident in her voice.
"No, I think it scared her, so she won't try it again," he answered, his anger towards her softening just a bit after seeing the worry in her eyes, worry for their daughter. He couldn't fault her for that. "I'm not quite sure what to do about her, Jesmind. Her power-" he shuddered. "She's stronger than me. If she learns how to touch the Weave and starts throwing magic around wildly, she could do some serious damage."
"Oh that's it, Tarrin, make me feel better," she said acidly.
"Truth is better than platitudes, woman," Tarrin said dangerously. "About all I can suggest is that if you see her starting to do that, knock her out. She can't use Sorcery if she's unconscious."
"I don't like the idea of hurting her like that," she said with a grunt.
"Better a bump on the head then burning herself to ash," Tarrin told her firmly.
"Amen," Jesmind blew out her breath. "Can you stop her?"
"Easily. At least for now."
"Then I guess the only real solution is to keep you near her," she reasoned.
"Are you insane?" Tarrin said immediately, jumping to his feet and staring down at her hotly. "I'm about to go wade headfirst into a war , Jesmind! There is no way in the nine hells I'm going to bring Jasana with me!"
"Well what do you expect me to do!" she almost shouted in reply.
"Keep your voice down!"
"Make me!" Jesmind said indignantly, crossing her arms and glaring at him.
He very nearly did. He would have, if Jasana hadn't rushed out of Jenna's room and firmly interposed herself between her parents. Tarrin glared down at Jesmind, feeling Jasana's paw on his stomach, almost holding him back, but his former mate showed no fear of him, glaring back up at him with the same intensity.
It hung there for a long moment, until Jesmind snorted and looked away from him. Her retreat allowed him to calm down, and he sat back down in the chair and put his chin in his paw pugnaciously.
"Don't yell," Jasana said to them firmly.
"Get back in there and wash!" Jesmind snapped at her.
The little girl understood that she'd better do it and do it quickly, so she darted back into Jenna's old room.
"I'm getting tired of this!" she hissed. "If you want to fight, fine! We'll go outside and beat each other senseless!"
"I can't think of anything else I'd rather do right now," he growled at her, jumping back to his feet and staring down at her with a malicious eagerness.
"If that's what it's going to take to beat all this hostility out of you, then let's do it!" she said in an ugly tone.
And she did. Tarrin never dreamed she's blindside him, so he was totally unprepared for it. She balled up her fist and planted it right in his belly, driving the breath out of him, using all her Were-cat strength to really make it hurt. Had he been a younger Were-cat, he would have doubled over that fist and been left incapacitated. But Tarrin was alot stronger and tougher than he used to be, and was able to shrug off enough of it to not be squirming on the floor. But it had slowed him down, stunned him for a brief moment, and that was all Jesmind needed to grab him by the neck, pull him aside, square him up, then punch him dead in the jaw.
Tarrin's body went flying through the closed door, shattering it, and he splayed out on the porch with stars dancing in his eyes. Jesmind stepped through that now empty doorway with an ugly smile on her face, her tail lashing behind her sharply. "You may be bigger now, but I'm not afraid of you, cub!" she sneered.
"I am NOT -" his tail lashed out, sweeping her feet out from under her-"a cub!" he finshed as she crashed to the porch.
Tarrin's anger exploded at that point, driving him to a fury that was almost a rage, but not quite. Tarrin had a great many reasons to be mad at Jesmind, and now that the cards were on the table, he found a release for all that pent-up emotion. He jumped to his feet at the same time she did, and then punched her dead in the jaw with so much force that she went flying across the porch. She hit the rail, bounced up and over it, then disappeared under the porch deck to crash to the ground below. He followed her over the rail, only to be greeted by her claws as she raked him across the face as he came over the rail. Tarrin felt the hot lines, felt the warm blood, and it made him that much angrier.
"Why you-!" he snapped at her, but all she did was grin evilly.
Tarrin more or less lost it at that point. Howling with sudden fury, he fell on the smaller Were-cat with unmitigated savagery. Claws flashing, Tarrin and Jesmind resorted to the natural method of fighting among their kind, claws and teeth. Much like it had been the last time they fought, they raked and tore at one another with mindless fury, with no grace or strategy or plan. Rolling in the yard, the two of them ripped at one another, as years of frustration, anger, loneliness poured out of Tarrin, taking it out on the woman who had caused all those feelings in the first place. He hated her for abandoning him, he was so mad at her for not telling him about Jasana! He was furious that she hadn't been there for him, with him, hadn't let him be a part of his daughter's life, hadn't let him be there! He felt so betrayed that she would do something like this to him!
Tarrin's fury gave him focus, gave him a power that Jesmind couldn't match. He eventually beat her down, pinned her to the ground, then punched her in the face once for every time that he had missed her, he had needed her, every time she had betrayed him. He took all his frustration out on Jesmind, took out all his pain and his indignation and his anger out on Jesmind, showed her how he felt inside with his fists and claws instead of with words.
Almost as quickly as it started, almost as quickly as it happened, it was over. Tarrin's anger drained away when he looked down at Jesmind, seeing her face bloody and bruised, her eyes glazed over. He had won. He rose up from her and sat down hard just beside her, a paw over his face, feeling the blood there. All the anger was… gone. Drained away, as if fighting with Jesmind had given it a way out of him.
Were-cats can try to kill each other, but once the fight is over, it's over, Triana told him once, so very long ago. The fight settles the matter. It's as if it never happened afterwards.
Yes, of course. Just like with Jula, and Jegojah. Tarrin fought them, beat them, and afterward, it was as if they hadn't been enemies. The fight had settled the matter, and it was no longer an issue.
Tarrin flopped down onto his back on the ground, his mind turning it over in his mind. Jesmind had been a little too quick to pick that fight. She had been spoiling for it. But not for her, for him. She had picked a fight with him to let him express all his anger, to give it a release instead of keeping it bottled up inside him.
Tarrin's opinion of her rose by several degrees. She had been willing to take a beating just to make him feel better.
"Ugh," she groaned, sitting up, spitting out a tooth. "Remind me never to sucker-punch you again. Tarrin? Are you alright?"
Tarrin looked up at her. She had blood on her face, dribbling out of the corner of her mouth, and her shirt had been ripped off her left shoulder, leaving her left side bare. He stared up at her woodenly.
"Feel better now?" she asked with a charming little smile.
"You are a witch," Tarrin grunted at her. "I can't even win for losing."
Jesmind laughed. "I thought as much. You needed some exercise."
"I hate you. Do you know that?"
Jesmind laughed again. "I've been Were alot longer than you, Tarrin," she grinned. "I knew you needed some way to let it all out. Unfortunately, this was the only way I could think of." She rubbed her jaw. "Furies, Tarrin, when did you get so strong? I thought you knocked my jaw off with that first punch."
He refused to answer. He felt… manipulated. Jesmind had robbed him of his anger for her by letting him release it against her, and now it was as if it had never been. It didn't matter now. He had showed her how he felt, and since that was done, there was no need to dwell on it anymore.
She had cleaned the slate between them.
Almost. He was still a little peeved at her at what she did, but he couldn't really blame her for it. But he didn't feel only irritation. He was impressed that she was willing to pick a fight she knew she couldn't win, and do it for his benefit. It showed him that she did care, and that knowledge softened the memories of the anger and betrayal he had felt before.
She reached down and wiped away a little blood from his face with the back of her paw. "I'm just glad you feel better, Tarrin."
"I will in a while," he grunted, sitting up. "You're one brave woman, do you know that?"
"Sometimes we all do things we don't like to do," she smiled. "Believe me, that was something I do not want to experience again."
"You are weird."
"Then we're a matched set," Jesmind grinned at him wolfishly. "Come on. We both need to get cleaned up, and I need a new shirt. Why is that whenever we're together, I always seem to end up out of my clothes?"
"Bad luck, I suppose," he answered.
"Depends on the circumstances," she said with a wink, then she climbed to her feet and sauntered back towards the house.
Tarrin looked at her for a long moment, then blew out his breath and climbed to his feet. Were-cat females certainly kept life interesting. Figthing one moment, flirting the next. And she had the nerve to flirt! Then again, she knew that the fight had settled him down, drained away his anger, so she could act the way she used to back in the Tower. Jesmind usually wasn't much of a flirter, though. Usually, Jesmind's idea of flirting was unlacing his breeches. But he wasn't the same male he was then, and perhaps she was acting differently because of it.
He started towards the house. Jesmind was certainly much different than he remembered her to be. He wondered what other surprises she had in store for him.
Tarrin used Sorcery to clean and fix his clothes, then replaced the door. He was busy hanging it when Jasana padded out in a little brown shirt with holes in it and a pair of sturdy little canvas breeches, grabbing hold of the end of his tail and holding on to it. Tarrin waved a paw at her quickly as he lined up the new door, then slid the hinge pin down into place to hold it.
"Why did you and mama fight?" she asked intently.
"It's what Were-cats do sometimes, kitten," Tarrin replied casually, bending down and sliding the other hinge pin home. "Your mother and I had some arguments in the past. Fighting is a way to settle them."
"I don't like it when you fight."
"I don't like it either," he told her honestly. "I'm sure she told you about when we met, didn't she?"
"Umm," she hummed. He'd learned that was one of her ways of saying yes.
"We fought alot back then, too," he told her. "Your mother and I have always seemed to been fighting, for some reason or another."
"Mama says it's because you're too stubborn."
Tarrin looked at her, then he laughed quietly. "I think it's because your mother is too stubborn," he said with a smile.
"I took the ham off the fire. It was getting burned."
"That was thoughtful, kitten," he complemented her, slapping the dust out of his fur. He spotted a broom in the corner, so he retrieved it and went about cleaning up the shards of wood laying all over the floor.
"Can we eat now?"
"I thought you said you weren't hungry."
"I guess I am," she admitted.
"Let me finish cleaning up, and we'll eat," he promised. "We have to wait for your mother in any case."
That made Jasana smile for some strange reason, then she bounded off towards his parents' old bedroom.
Tarrin had the floor cleaned up, and was scooping up the debris in a conjured dustpan when a hesitant knock came at the door. Tarrin didn't bother to look at it, using his tail to pull the latch, then pull it open. The scents coming through the doorway were unfamiliar to him, but he knew that they were human, and there was no smell of armor of steel about them, so that meant that they were friendly.
"Tarrin?" the voice of Garyth Longshank called out. "It is you!" he laughed.
Tarrin turned and looked, and saw Garyth Longshank standing at the doorway, but he wasn't alone. Jak Longbranch was beside him, a longbow in his hand, and Karn Rocksplitter stood on the other, his big staff in his hands. "Good grief, son, when did you get so tall?" Garyth asked immediately.
Tarrin was getting tired of that question. "It's a long story," he said mildly, looking at the three of them, broom in his paws. "Well, don't just stand on the porch. Come in."
"Yer lookin' alot different, boy," Karn told him gruffly. Karn had been one of Tarrin's friends and mentors. The grizzled Dal smith had taught him a little bit about blacksmithing, a little bit about life, and had taught him Arakite. His bald head wasn't quite so bald now, with some peach fuzz about it because he hadn't shaved it lately, but his beard showed alot more gray in it than had been there the last time he'd seen him. Jak was a little taller now, and had the lean-whiplike frame of a man who lived from his bow and backpack. He had a scar on the right side of his forehead, and his brown hair was longer, tied in a tail behind him. The smiles of the young boy were gone, replaced by a haunted emptiness in his eyes that made Tarrin feel sorry for him. Tarrin knew what he felt, knew what it was like to suffer that kind of loss.
"Sit down, gentlemen," he said briskly. "We weren't expecting company for breakfast, but I think we can accomodate you."
"Thank you, lad," Garyth said with a small smile, and the three men settled in after Jak closed the door. "Where is Jesmind?"
"Cleaning up," he replied. "You missed the fireworks."
"What do you mean?"
"We had a disagreement," he said mildly. "Disagreements among Were-cats usually end up with broken furniture."
Garyth chuckled, and Karn grinned knowingly. "That explains the wood laying all over the porch."
"Thank Jesmind for that. She hit me when I wasn't looking."
"That's the best way to hit someone, boy," Karn told him with a gravelly laugh. "I think Dumas is going to be very happy replacing all the things you break."
"I can do that myself, Karn," he said mildly. "So it's an expensive hobby we can indulge ourselves in."
"Well, it's good to see you, lad," Garyth told him. "I'm sure you know why we're here."
"I killed the Dals," Tarrin shrugged. "Now you're either coming to thank me for it, or berate me for doing something so stupid."
"A little bit of both, to be honest," Garyth smiled. "I'm happy to see them get theirs for what they've done, but you know they're going to retaliate."
"They won't be here to retaliate, Garyth," Tarrin told him, taking some plates out of the cupboard. They were the same plates he used to use. Jesmind had truly simply taken over the house. "You're not going to see an armed Dal column in Aldreth again." He set the plates at the table, and realized he was two chairs short to handle them all. Mother had had six chairs at the table, but two of them were missing. So he simply reached within and Created two chairs identical to the four at the table, making them appear in the holes.
"Karas' hammer!" Garyth said in a strangled tone, jumping when the chairs appeared.
"Sorry, I forget you're not used to that," Tarrin apologized.
"You really did learn magic in Suld," Jak finally said, looking at him calmly.
"Actually, that magic was taught to me by a Faerie," he admitted. He was still in contact with his Druidic power, so he Conjured forth a large breakfast for all six of them, ham steaks and boiled eggs and warm, fresh bread and porridge and a pitcher of chilled cow's milk, complete with cups made of clear glass.
"You must make Jesmind very happy that she doesn't have to cook," Garyth laughed as he looked at the food.
"I don't know, I haven't made her a meal like this before," he answered.
"Tarrin! Is that Garyth?" Jesmind called from the back room.
"With Karn and Jak," Tarrin replied. "Come to breakfast!"
"I'm glad you-well, I'm glad things turned out alright with you and Jesmind, Tarrin," Garyth said gently. "She told me that you didn't know about Jasana."
"I'm still not entirely happy with her," Tarrin admitted. "But that's one of the matters we've already settled between us."
"So everything's alright?"
"More or less."
"Are you here to stay, boy?"
Tarrin shook his head. "There are some very serious things happening, Karn. The Dals are only the half of it. There's an army marching on Suld, an army trying to destroy it. That's why I'm here."
"I didn't hear anything about that," Garyth said. "The men down Watch Hill way have been helping the Rangers, and they're passing along news."
"They don't know about it yet," he answered.
"Then how do you know about it? If you don't mind my asking," Garyth said quickly.
"I know alot of what's going on, Garyth," he said wearily. "If only because I'm probably the cause of it all."
That made the three of them stare at him. "What are you talking about, boy?" Karn asked.
"Have you ever heard of the Firestaff?"
"Of course. It's an old legend-" Karn's eyes widened. "You mean it's real?"
"Very real. Everything that's happening here with the Dals, the Ungardt, the wars and the chaos, it's all because of the Firestaff. It's why I'm here too."
"You're looking for it?" Garyth asked.
Tarrin nodded. "There's an army trying to destroy Suld to stop me, because if they destroy Suld's Tower, they can disrupt the Weave and kill most of the Sorcerers. That would finish me along with the rest of them. The Dals are an element of that plan, to weaken the army and make it easier for the other army to take Suld."
"You mean all of this is aimed at you?"
"I'm not quite that arrogant, Garyth," Tarrin smiled wearily, working himself around carefully to his real objective, seeing if Garyth and the villagers would help with Torrian. "Their real objective is to destroy the katzh-dashi. But they really want to stop me, because they're afraid I'll find it before they do. Destroying the katzh-dashi is the key to their success. That it will kill me with the rest of them is simply an added bonus."
They sat there a long moment, absorbing that. "What are you going to do?" Garyth asked.
"We've already planned a counter," he replied. "I have to take Torrian, no matter what it costs. Even if I have to raze it to the ground," he said with a grim look. "I have to break the Dal lines of supply and communication, and those run through Torrian."
"You? Take it alone?"
"Garyth, I can destroy the entire city if I have to. It's within my power," he said bluntly. It wasn't a brag or a boast, it was a simple statement of fact. "I'd rather avoid that, though. I don't relish the idea of slaughtering innocent Sulasians."
That seemed to take all three of them aback, staring at him wildly. Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to say something like that, but the damage was done.
"L-Lad, I'm sure you believe what you're saying, but certainly there's another way," Garyth said carefully.
"Unless you have an army around here, I don't see another way," he said bluntly. He had put it all out there on the table now. He just needed Garyth to see it.
"We have alot of men around here, lad, men willing to give back some of what the Dals handed out to them," Garyth told him.
"I don't have time to mass an army of villagers and teach them how to fight as a group, Garyth," Tarrin said urgently, hiding his relief and elation at that statement. He had been depending on just that, but he didn't want to look like he was eager to drag the men of Aldreth into a war.
"How about a brigade of Rangers?"
Tarrin stared intently at Garyth as Jesmind and Jasana came in. Jesmind had cleaned up and changed, even combed her hair, and she sat down next to where Tarrin was standing calmly. Jasana sat down on the other side of him, and immediately reached for the untouched food on the table, food that wasn't even there a few minutes ago.
"I told you, the Rangers are operating in this area," Garyth told him. "About five hundred of them. They've been wreaking havoc on the Dal supply lines running on both sides of Torrian. If I send out the word, I could get them to gather, and they could help us take Torrian back from the Dals."
"Us?"
"I have some issues with the Dals," Garyth said flintily. "They have some blood to answer for."
"Yes!" Jak said fiercely.
"And not just us. Nearly every man in Aldreth and Watch Hill would pick up a bow and march. All they need is the word, and a sense that they'll be able to succeed. I think we can give them both now." He looked at Tarrin intently. "If you can do magic like you boast, we have a good chance. The garrison in Torrian is about a thousand men. I think we could mass a force equal to that size."
"A force of farmers, not infantry," Tarrin countered, making sure Garyth understood the gravity of the situation. "I don't think the Rangers would like it if we sent them in to do all the dying."
"How about a pack of Were-cats to bolster that?" Jesmind offered. "If both mother and Tarrin called, we'd get at least twenty."
"I doubt they're close enough, Jesmind," Tarrin said. "I have to get to Suld. I can't wait more than a couple of days."
"I know of eight that are within two days of here, Tarrin," Jesmind said. "Since I moved here, a few of them have moved their dens, and the rest are watching the Dals to make sure that no more Goblinoids march into our territory. Rahnee, Kimmie, Mist, Singer, Jeri, Shayle, Nikki, and Thean are all close to here." She gave him a rueful smile. "Shayle, Nikki, Kimmie, and Thean like to visit me. Jeri and Singer's dens were always close, Mist's new den is pretty close, probably because of me, and Rahnee moved closer because Jeri and Thean are nearby. They're both males."
Tarrin considered that, considered it carefully. Ten-no, eight-Were-cats were an awesome force. They were the equal of a hundred human men in a battle, mainly because the average human soldier had no way to harm a Were-cat enemy. Tarrin didn't count Mist or Jesmind, because they had children. And he doubted that Mist would leave her child undefended to come fight. Add them to the Rangers, who would know how to fight as an infantry, the farmers, who were all very good shots with a bow, and his own magic, and they had a solid force that could succeed.
"How quickly could they get here?"
"How easily can you contact mother?"
"Easily."
"Then they'll be here not long after you tell her to call them."
"Then that's what we'll do," Tarrin said. "Garyth, call your Rangers. I'd rather take Torrian without burning it to the ground."
"I'm glad I came today," Garyth chuckled. "When I heard that Tarrin killed the Dals here, it made my day. Now my whole ride is looking better. What kind of plan did you have in mind, lad?"
"I'm not very good at plans, Garyth, especially when I don't know what I'm working with. Let's see what we've got before we decide what we're going to do."
"Fair enough," Garyth smiled. "Now then, on to a more serious matter."
"What?"
"Breakfast. I'm starved," he said eagerly, reaching for the ham steaks.
Tarrin gave him an amused look, then they all joined him in breakfast. The talk about the table during the meal was aggressively trivial, as if the decision they had just made could be addressed later. Tarrin was assaulted by questions of what had happened after he left, what had gone on out in the world, so he was more or less obliged to give them an abbreviated tale of his journey after leaving Aldreth. He was very general, glossing over most of it, focusing on places and events rather than the real happenings, with all the moral and humanitarian questions they would raise.
After he told them about crossing the desert, Jasana slapped him on the wrist with her little paw. "You lied, papa!" she accused.
"What?" he asked in confusion.
"You said you wouldn't have had time to do all those things, but you did, didn't you!"
"I never said I didn't do them, Jasana," he said with a grin. "I only said that if I did that, when would I find time to sleep?"
"You said-"
"Ah, you heard what I said. You didn't hear what I meant."
She fumed at him a moment, then crossed her arms and put on a pouting expression. "Does that mean the rest of it was true too? About the city in the clouds and the wicked winged lady and the bone man and the flying ships and-"
"More or less," he replied. "They're things that most people can't understand, so I don't make an issue of them."
"You're mean."
"I know I'm mean. Deal with it, cub," Tarrin said in a teasing tone.
"So what happened to make you grow like that?" Garyth asked. "Was it part of what-of what happend with Jesmind?"
"No," he replied. "This happened when I was attacked by a creature called a Succubus. Her attack aged me, and this is what happens when Were-cats age. I guess I should thank her, actually," he mused. "She helped me more than she hurt me."
"I don't see how."
"Were-cats don't die of age, Garyth," Jesmind told him. "We live until something kills us. We keep growing most of our lives, but the growing slows down as we get older and older. Only the very old ones, like my mother, reach a point where they stop growing, or at least grow so slowly that it doesn't matter anymore. Older Were-cats are much stronger and tougher than younger ones, the benefit of living to that age. I think Tarrin here is there now, too. He got the benefits without having to slog through a thousand or so years of boredom."
"A thousand years?" Karn asked curiously.
"Or so," Jesmind shrugged.
"Well, that's certainly interesting. How long are you going to stay, Tarrin?"
"Only a couple of days, and I think that's pushing it," he grunted. "I absolutely have to get to Suld before that army does. I can afford to delay a while, to deal with Torrian, but after that I have to drop everything and get to Suld as fast as I can."
"Well, we'll see what we can do to gather everyone up. We have to do it fast anyway. As soon as the Rangers pull back, the Dals are going to realize something's up, and they may try to reinforce Torrian. They must realize how important it is to their supply lines."
"I know." Tarrin set down his glass, then glanced at Jasana. "Eat," he told her.
"No. I'm mad at you."
"Fine. If you're not going to eat, you're going to go clean your room, do the dishes, pick up the porch, rake the yard, clean the barn, and do the laundry."
She glared at him, then picked up her fork and started on her ham steak.
Tarrin knew how to deal with rebellious little girls.
Jesmind gave him a knowing little grin, as did Garyth.
They finished their breakfast, and Garyth patted his belly and sighed. "It's been a while since I ate like that," he said with a sated smile. "I should visit more often."
"You're going to be too busy to visit," Tarrin told him seriously. "You have two days to get everyone ready. I won't wait any longer than that."
"I'll have everyone ready to go, but they're going to need some bolstering."
"I'm not a motivator, Garyth. The kind of motivation I cause in people tends to be terror, not inspiration."
Garyth laughed. "I'll take care of the rallying, lad. Are you going to be here?"
"I have nowhere else to go at the moment," he answered. "You'd better arrange a messenger to get out here and warn me if the Dals show up."
"I'll take care of it," he assured him. "I think we have alot to do, Jak, Karn. We'd better get moving."
"Aye. That was a good breakfast, boy," Karn told him with a small smile. "I ain't gonna ask where the food came from."
"That's a good idea," Tarrin replied with a slight gesture of his paw.
Jesmind showed them out with a few goodbyes of her own, then she closed the door and leaned against it, looking at Tarrin. "Two days?" she asked.
Tarrin nodded once. "I have twenty days to get to Suld, Jesmind. It'll take three to get to Torrian, so that leaves me with only fifteen days to get to Suld. And not getting there in time is not an option."
"It's not fair," she said with a frown. "You just got here, and you have to leave again."
"Blame the people forcing me to get to Suld," he shrugged.
"I'd rather blame you."
"You can do that all you want. It's not going to make any difference, though."
"Cheater," she accused.
"Among other things," he said, standing up and starting to pick up the dishes. Jasana was still eating, and the looks she was passing at her father were not very friendly. Jasana had heard his declaration about leaving, and he could see that she did not like it. But that was just the way things were. No matter how much she hated, Jesmind hated, and even he hated it, it wasn't going to change the fact.
He did hate the idea. Two days didn't seem like it was long enough. Not that he wasn't quite so angry with Jesmind now, calm enough to talk with her rationally.
"Are you going to contact mother?"
"Actually, I'm waiting her her to contact me," Tarrin replied. "She said she'd do it. She's overdue."
"She must have a good reason," Jesmind shrugged, helping him clear the table of the dishes not being used. "These aren't mine."
"They are now," he told her.
"Mother said you learned some Druid magic," Jesmind chuckled. "I hope you remember that I only have so much space in the cupboard."
"I can always banish them."
"No, I have room for them. No use wasting them." She looked at Jasana. "Hurry it up, cub. We have a garden to plant today."
"But I wanted to go hunting!" Jasana protested.
"Unless you learn how to hunt down wild tomatos, cub, we garden today."
"Papa can just make them appear."
" Papa should know better than to rely on things like that," Jesmind said sharply. "Your grandmother can do the same things, but you don't see her making things appear every time she turns around."
"Maybe gramma should learn from papa."
"If that happened, I'd put on a dress and live in the village," Jesmind snorted.
Tarrin gave Jesmind a cool look. Perhaps he did use his gifts a bit too much, but only because Sarraya had more or less taught him to do so, encouraging him to use his power so he could practice. Besides, he had good reason to do it, since they had no food to offer Garyth.
"I hope you brought some more clothes, Tarrin," Jesmind said. "You stay in this house, you pitch in. You're gardening today too."
"I'm so glad you think so."
"I know so," she replied. "That's where we'll be, and I'm not going to waste any of the short time we have." She smiled at him. "You'll get bored sitting in here by yourself. You're going to end up out there anyway, so why fight about it?"
Tarrin glanced at her, then chuckled in agreement. "I really hate you sometimes, Jesmind."
"I can live with that, if it means that you don't hate me the rest of the time," she said with uncharacteristic sincerity, looking up into his eyes.
He found a little more of his animosity for Jesmind fading away. "Not all the time," he said honestly.
"Those are the best times," she said with a sudden warm smile, reaching out and putting her paw on his shoulder. "Now then, cub, you're doing the dishes. I'm going to go change into clothes that I'm not too worried about, and we'll get started."
"Aww," Jasana huffed.
"Don't 'aww' me, young lady," Jesmind said crisply. "Now hop."
"Yes mama," she sighed, sliding out of her chair and fetching a bucket from the corner formed by the counter and the wall, then going out the door as Jesmind padded into his parents' old room. She was heading for the little brook just on the south edge of the meadow which held the Kael farm.
Tarrin had forgotten that their house didn't even have a wellpump inside. Keritanima knew about things like that… maybe she could explain to him how to install that plumbing she always talked about. Kerri said they had running water in her palace, both hot and cold. That sounded like something he wouldn't mind having in the house.
"Tarrin, could you come here for a minute?" Jesmind called.
Tarrin padded over to the open doorway, then stopped for a moment. Jesmind had taken off her breeches, and she had her back to him, holding up a very old pair of ragged leather buckskins, stained with dirt, torn up with multiple holes, and looking about two steps from falling apart. But his eyes were more interested in Jesmind's bare backside than those old buckskins, reinforcing the simple matter inside him that he still had those kinds of feelings for his former mate. No matter how much he may be angry with her, he could never deny that Jesmind was the most beautiful, sensual, attractive, desirable woman he had ever known, had ever seen. Even if he was blindly furious with her, he would always appreciate her beauty. He stopped at the doorway, stepping in enough to where he didn't have to hunch over, then leaned against the doorframe. She looked over her shoulder at him, then chuckled. "I'm not going to bite you," she teased, setting the buckskins on the bed. "And it's nothing you haven't seen before."
Jesmind had totally rearranged his parents' room. The bed, desk, chest, nightstand, and clothes locker were all gone. Now there was nothing but a new bed, a very large one that would fit Jesmind's long body, a single large chest at the foot of it, and a rather large nightstand that stood beside the bed. Jesmind bent over to get something else out of the chest, and Tarrin found himself almost overwhelmed with a feeling of discomfort he hadn't felt in a very long time. He took a big interest in the window at that point.
What was it about Jesmind that did that to him!
She came up with a shirt that had its left sleeve torn off, then threw it on the bed and shrugged off her shirt easily. "What did you want, Jesmind?" he asked. "I'm sure you didn't call me in here to watch you undress."
"Maybe I did," she teased, giving him a wink and a mischievious grin. "Actually, I wanted to ask you something."
"What?"
"If you were serious about what you said to Garyth, about being able to burn down Torrian."
"I don't make jokes about things like that, Jesmind," he said seriously.
"If you can do magic like that, maybe you could do something for me," she said speculatively.
"What?"
"I wanted a device that does what that amulet of yours does, Tarrin," she said. "Makes my clothes disappear when I change form. I tried to get the Tower to give me one, but they didn't like me for some reason. Could you make one of those?"
Her question caught him off guard. He bowed his head, putting a finger on his chin, considering it. He could isolate the weave that gave his amulet that ability. With a little careful study and inspection, he may be able to figure out how the weave was done. If he could figure out how it was woven, he could duplicate it.
That was the first part. The second was figuring out how to weave it into an object in such a way that it would become permanent. Magical objects were exceeding rare, and his own was so complicated that he wasn't sure which of the weaves within it was the one that made the spells used in its creation unending. He'd have to really study his amulet, try to discern which weave was the one that enchanted the amulet and sealed the magic within and made it permanent.
"I, I've never tried anything like that before, Jesmind," he answered honestly. "I don't think I could sit down and do it now. I'd have to figure out how to do it first."
"No hurry," she said dismissively, sticking a leg into the breeches, then cursing slightly when her claws snagged on it and tore a new hole in about where the knee was. She delicately freed her claw and tried again, managing to get her foot out the bottom without causing any more damage. It was a common trouble with all Were-cats, because their feet were so big, and the claws on their feet wouldn't completely retract for some reason. "But you think you could do it?"
"I'm pretty sure I could," he told her.
"Good," she said, putting her other foot through, then sliding them up over her hips. "Would you button me, please?"
Tarrin padded over and pulled her breeches into place from behind, then buttoned the button she had in the back, where the back of the breeches had been altered for her tail.
"Thanks," she toned, reaching down for her shirt.
A sudden pool of softly glowing magical energy appeared to the side of them, coalescing and focusing until an image of Triana became apparent within it. Triana was in one of those generic guest rooms common in the Tower, that had similar furniture and curtains and often confused one as to where exactly they were. She had Jula with her, who was sitting on a chair behind his bond-mother, drinking a cup of what looked like tea. "I see I called on you at a bad time," she said evenly, looking at the two of them.
"Not at all, mother," Jesmind told her, putting her shirt on.
"You're late, mother," Tarrin told her. "What took so long?"
"She did," Triana said, jerking a thumb at Jula.
"So that's the new one," Jesmind mused, looking Jula over.
"Jula, come here and introduce yourself," Triana said sharply.
Jula put the cup down, then obeyed Triana. "Hello," she said with a mild smile. "Mother's told me alot about you, Jesmind. Hi Tarrin," she said with a smile and a wave.
"You're looking fit, Jula," he said.
Jula chuckled. "Well, I've been getting exercise, that's for sure," she said wryly.
"I heard. Any luck?"
"No," she growled. "Whoever she is, she's gone so deep underground that I can't find her. At least not yet."
"That's starting to annoy me," Triana interrupted. "Finding that spy was one of the key parts of this plan. Since we haven't found her yet, that sharp-mouthed Wikuni sister of yours has been waffling a bit. She's getting on my nerves."
"What do you think, mother?"
"I think that so long as Jula keeps putting the heat on her, this spy isn't going to do squat," she said bluntly. "She can't give anything away if she's too afraid of being discovered to try. That Wikuni knows that, so all her waffling and indecision just puts her right back in with the rest of us. It makes her combative and irritating, though, so she'd been wearing on me lately. We do know that he spy's still here, though."
"How?"
"She's tried to kill Jula twice."
That startled Tarrin. "She did? I never felt anything."
"It was nothing I couldn't handle, Tarrin," Jula said calmly. "It wasn't enough for me to get excited over it."
That explained why he hadn't felt anything through the bond. "Oh. Alright."
"Are you going to be able to do what you said you'd do?" Triana asked bluntly.
"I've already gotten the village mayor to help," he replied. "Garyth will gather together the ones willing to go down to Torrian and kick the Dals out of Sulasia. But we could use your help."
"How?"
"There are a bunch of Were-cats near here, mother," Jesmind said. "Kimmie, Mist, Rahnee, Singer, Shayle, Jeri, Nikki, and Thean. Some are watching the Dals, some are just close at the moment. If we had some of them to help, it would make it alot easier on the humans."
"That's a good idea, cub," Triana said after a second of thought. "I won't try to call Mist, but the others would definitely come and give you a hand."
"That's what I was thinking. A pack of Were-cats would really mess up the Dals. They can't hurt us."
"You overestimate yourself again, cub," Triana said sharply. "I taught you better than that."
"Well, you know what I mean."
"I know what you mean, but stop thinking like that, or some human is going to prove you wrong," she said sharply.
"Yes, mother," Jesmind said obediently.
"I don't feel quite so abused anymore," Jula laughed.
"We're all abused equally, Jula," Tarrin told her mildly. "Mother is an equal opportunity abuser."
"You're just the one with the bad luck to be stuck with mother," Jesmind laughed.
Triana gave her daughter an ugly look, but Jesmind only winked at her playfully. "I'll contact them and order them to come give you a hand."
"Make sure they get here fast, mother. We're moving in two days."
"I'll do that," she assured him. "You can do something for me, too."
"Anything, mother."
"I want you to release Jula's bond," she told him steadily. "I want to take it from you, but I can't take it from you because you're not here. I need you to release it, so I can take it from her here."
Her request surprised him. "I thought you said that Jula was going to be alright," he said.
"She is, but I need her bond for another reason," she said calmly. "Me and Jula have a kind of idea, and I need her bond to make it work."
"What kind of idea?"
"Something you don't need to know, cub," Triana said sharply.
"Alright, alright," he said quickly. "I'll do anything you ask, you know that, mother."
"I know. So release her bond, and I'll have to release yours."
"Why?"
"Because we can only hold one bond at a time," Jesmind answered before her mother.
"Oh, alright. You never told me that."
"It didn't seem very important at the time, cub. We had other things to talk about then."
"True enough. How do I do it?"
"It's simple, actually. You just let it go. The bond will release as soon as it realizes that it's free, just like a caged animal."
"Sounds simple enough," he said, closing his eyes. He focused on that part inside him that was Jula, that was Jula's bond, felt where it had taken up residence inside of him. He willed it to be free, to be able to leave him, then kind of mentally shooed it away from him. It seemed to immediately react to that change of will, and fled out of him almost before he could urge it to leave. The sense of Jula that had been there faded away quickly, leaving behind a curiously empty hole. It had been there so long, he had become accustomed to it, almost like it was supposed to be there.
"I, I think he did it," Jula said uncertainly. "I felt something, something weird just now."
"He did it," Triana affirmed. "Alright then."
Tarrin felt a strange buzzing between his ears, almost as if something he never knew was lost suddenly found its way back to him. When it was over, he felt no different than before, making him uncertain as to what just happened.
He put a finger to his head. "I'll agree, that was weird," he said to Jula.
Triana chuckled quietly. "It never ceases to feel weird, cub," she told him. "I've passed, given, traded, and released bonds for a very long time now, and it never stops feeling like that."
"Well, I don't feel any different."
"You won't," Jesmind told him. "It's normal."
Triana nodded in agreement. "That's the main thing I wanted to talk to you about, cub." She glanced at Jesmind. "You two getting along?"
"We had an air-clearing this morning, mother," Jesmind said calmly. "We're alright."
"Good. If you two are going to fight, make it short and sweet. Jasana doesn't have the maturity to watch you two clawing at one another for very long."
"It was short, that was for sure," Jesmind laughed. "But it did what we needed it to do."
"Her doing that irritated me," Tarrin admitted. "I didn't know what she was doing until it was over."
"You gotta watch her, Tarrin," Triana said with a sudden smile. "Jesmind may not look it, but she's probably twice as underhanded as Jasana. Of all my cubs, she was the hardest to manage."
"I noticed," he said, giving Jesmind a look.
"Mother, stop warning him!" Jesmind objected.
"Warning me about what?" Tarrin asked bluntly.
"If you have to ask that, cub, you're not getting an answer," Triana said with a slightly amused look. "I'll call the others. They should be there in plenty of time."
"Alright," he said, giving Triana a suspicious look. What was she talking about? "I'll contact you after we take Torrian."
"We'll be waiting," Triana said.
"Bye, Tarrin. It was good to see you. Nice meeting you, Jesmind," Jula said politely.
"Take care of yourself, cub," Tarrin told her sincerely.
"Nice meeting you," Jesmind told her. "Jasana's going to be upset you didn't talk to her, mother."
"She'll get over it. I have to go now. Take care you two, and remember to settle things immediately. Jasana doesn't need to see you two tearing at each other all the time."
"We'll do that, mother," Jesmind said.
"Tarrin?"
"Alright," he told her, a bit petulantly. "Bye, mother. I love you."
"I love both of you," she said with uncharacteristic warmth, smiling at them gently just before the image of her faded into nothingness.
"Well, we have a garden to plant," Jesmind said crisply, smacking her paws together. "You're going to wear that?"
"It's all I have."
"I'll have to make you some new clothes," she said speculatively.
"I'll handle that."
"I know you can, but I'm going to make them for you anyway," she said. "I think you're getting soft for relying on magic like that. Mother doesn't do it, and you shouldn't either. If you stop doing for yourself, you're going to forget how. Besides, every time you do magic, it gets Jasana curious, and we don't want her getting curious."
She did have a point. He had to admit that. "Alright, no more cheating while I'm here," he said with a soft chuckle. "I'll do everything the old fashioned way."
"Good. Now let's go get the garden done before it rains."
It had been a long time since he had done that kind of manual labor.
Tarrin, Jesmind, and Jasana had spent the day planting her garden, and it turned out to be an all day affair. They had to plow the patch and prepare it, find the seeds that had gotten lost in her barn over the winter, Tarrin had had to fix a couple of tools-the honest way, since he'd promised that he wouldn't cheat-and then they planted seeds after a brief delay as a shower passed over them, a delay they utilized by having lunch. All of them got very dirty once they started planting, since the plowed dirt quickly melted into a thick, cohesive mud that clung to them as they carefully planted seeds and set up a low fence around the garden to protect the soon-to-be seedlings from the ravages of farm pests and grazing rabbits.
It felt… normal. Tarrin hadn't felt that way in a very long time, doing something simple, something that didn't have the fate of the entire world depending on his success. Simple things, things done long ago, back when he was human, a familiar pattern of labor that rekindled those old memories and feelings inside him. As the time passed, Jesmind and Jasana's newness seemed to fade away, yield to the sense of them, until by the end of the day, it felt like they had always been there, he had always been there, and this was nothing more than what they had done many times before. It was simply yet another day on the farm.
And Tarrin had been shocked at how good that felt to him. Despite everything that had happened, everything he'd seen and done and experience, maybe there still was the simple village farmboy inside him, a fellow that had been absolutely overjoyed to return to familiar surroundings and familiar chores. And return to a place which he identified as a place of happiness, surrounded by family.
Family. Maybe Jesmind and Jasana were family, the same way that his parents and sisters were. Jasana was for sure, but spending the day like that with Jesmind, talking with her about absolutely nothing of importance, working together with her on the garden, it caused even more of his animosity towards her to fade. The feeling of betrayal he had felt, a feeling that had provoked the feral nature in him to distrust her, was losing ground inside him. Jesmind was proving herself to him, and she was doing it by showing a side to herself that he had never seen before. She had always been a rather dichotomous figure in his mind, a being that both inspired fear and desire in him, someone he both loved and hated, liked and disliked, trusted and distrusted, wanted to both embrace and strangle at the same time. Those conflicting feelings had held within him for a very long time, but they were starting to die out now, as the positive feelings he held for her were slowly overwhelming the negative feelings.
He had seen Jesmind the bond-mother, Jesmind the enemy, and Jesmind the lover, but now he was seeing Jesmind the mother, Jesmind the homedweller, seeing her in familiar surroundings to her, seeing her in a place she considered her own, seeing her completely at ease. She was alot different than he remembered. She was more playful, for one, much freer with herself, and she wasn't quite so intimidating. Jesmind had always been very mysterious to Tarrin before, but now that sense of mystery about her was melting away, revealing the true woman beneath it. She smiled a great deal, and the shift in her stance and posture when she dealt with Jasana showed him how deeply she loved, was devoted to, their little girl. That shouldn't have been surprising, but he had never seen her behave like that before, even towards him, so it was something new, something refreshing.
It had been a day of eye-opening observations, and he was almost sad that it came to an end. But it did, and just in time, as it had started to rain again just after they managed to get the last of the fencing put up. Jasana squealed as the rain started coming down, racing for the safety of the porch, getting a blistering warning not to track any mud into the house from her mother. Tarrin and Jesmind hastily collected up the tools before they got too wet and stored them in the barn, which had been the old shearing shed. Jesmind had moved everything she used into it, using the pen as a storeplace for a bunch of old chests she had probably taken out of the house.
"You're a mess," Jesmind laughed as they set the rake and hoe in the barn.
"So are you. Your fur is gray now."
"Nothing a bath won't cure," she said with a dismissive shrug. "One of the few times I don't mind getting wet. We do have a bit of a problem, though."
"What?"
"You're not coming into my house caked over in mud," she said sternly. "The clothes stay outside."
"They're the only clothes I have," he protested.
"Then you'll be wearing one of those old robes I found in a trunk until I can figure out what to do," she said.
"I'll just clean them-"
"No cheating!" she reminded him sharply.
"Oh, right. Forgot about that," he apologized.
"Don't forget it again," she said sharply. "I have a bucket of water set up on the porch to clean our feet. Those old trunks are over there," she said, pointing to the far side of the barn. "I kept everything I don't use in the house. I knew you'd be a little annoyed if I threw it away."
"You're right."
"I think the trunk with those old robes in it is that one with the gold banding," she told him. "Right there."
"Alright."
"Remember, clean paws and feet," she warned. "If you track mud on my floor, we're going to have words."
"You sound like my mother."
"I hope so," she said imperiously, then she sauntered out of the barn.
Cleaning his paws on a pile of straw, Tarrin filed through the trunks. They held old clothes, very old clothes that his family hadn't worn in a while since before he left. Mother was a pack rat, and rarely threw anything away. He found one of his father's old robes, still fairly servicable but with an old bloodstain on the sleeve from where he had accidentally cut himself while wearing it. It was way too small, but it would do in a pinch. Tarrin shrugged out of his clothes and put it on. His father had liked baggy, loose robes, so that gave Tarrin's shoulders enough room-if only just- to fit into it. The hem of the robe ended at his knees, when it dragged the floor when his father wore it, and the sleeves ended almost above his elbows. He had to keep his tail down to keep it from riding up the back of the robe, but other than that it was good enough. He snapped most of the mud off his clothes in the open area of the barn, then bundled them up and trudged over to the house. Jesmind and Jasana's clothes were laid out on the porch rail neatly, and Tarrin realized that they had taken them off right there. Actually, out here, who was around to look at them? Then again, Jesmind wouldn't really care if someone was there to look. She was a Were-cat, she had very little concept of modesty. She was teaching that same indifference concerning clothing to their daughter, whom he had seen wandering around the house without clothes on once already. Tarrin's habits of modesty were ingrained rather than deliberate. He didn't often undress in public because he had learned other habits back when he was human, but it didn't change the fact that taking off his clothes in company bothered him just as little as it did Jesmind. He used what water was left to scrub the mud off his feet, paws, and his forearms and shins, then went inside.
He was greeted to childish giggling when he came through the door. Jasana took one look at him and laughed, and Jesmind had to suppress a grin. He knew he looked silly, but there was no help for it. "Alright, I know I look silly," he announced. "But it's the best I could find."
"Why don't you just magic up some new clothes, papa?"
"Because it's not good to magic things all the time, cub," he told her. "I only do that when I don't have any other way to do something." He held his arms out. "This may look silly, but since I found something that will do, using magic isn't needed."
"Oh," she mused.
"You do look silly," Jesmind said with a wry grin. "If you flick your tail, that robe's not going to be necessary."
"It's nothing you haven't seen before, Jesmind," he said mildly, using the same words she used before.
` "True enough," she agreed. "You could at least cut a hole for your tail. You're not going to be able to keep it down like that all night."
"I guess you're right," he agreed, reaching behind him with a claw extended.
"Let me do it," she offered, coming over. "I have a better angle."
"Alright, he said, holding still while she grabbed the robe with one paw and probed it with her fingers, finding the base of his tail. Then she sliced the fabric of the robe with her claw, as neatly as if she'd used shears. "There you go," she said, grabbing the fabric and holding it out. "Go ahead and thread your tail."
He did so, curving the tip his tail up and under the robe, sliding it along the fabric until he felt the new hole. Then he poked the tip through. Jesmind grabbed the end of his tail and pulled gently, surprising him a bit, helping him snake his tail down to where the robe was snugged against its base. Then she smoothed out the fur on his tail absently, ruffled up during the procedure.
"There," she said, patting him fondly on the back.
"Thanks."
"Any time. What do you want for dinner?"
"What do we have?"
"Not much," she admitted. "I have enough for some stew, since we didn't hunt today. Is that good for you?"
"That's fine," he assured her.
"Let me go get it out of the pantry," she called. "You know, that room you have down in the basement is unbelievably handy. Where did your family get that piece of metal?"
Tarrin had honestly forgotten about that. His father had brought that back from his days in the army, a very rare object of magical enchantment. It radiated intense cold all the time, so cold that it couldn't be touched with bare skin, and it served as a very convenient manner of storing food. The chilled food-frozen, if it was kept close to that piece of metal-kept a very long time, allowing the Kaels to stockpile an impressive amount of food. Elke Kael had worked out exactly where something needed to be placed in relation to that metal to determine if it would simply chill, get very cold, or would freeze. She had even put marks on the floor to show her children those zones of varying cold, so they'd know where to put what.
"Father brought it back with him from his time in the army. He said he found it in the ruins of an old tower out in the forest. Ruins like that are dotted all over Sulasia, from before the time of the Breaking."
"I know," she agreed. "He's damned lucky to have found something like that. Even more, to have kept it."
"He sorta didn't tell anyone what he had," Tarrin chuckled. "Though it was hard to explain why there was frost on his pack in the middle of summer, he used to say."
Jesmind laughed. "No doubt there. That would stick out a little bit. You know that some of that food down there is from when you were here?" she told him. "It's still good."
"I'm not surprised," he said calmly. "As long as it stays frozen, it'll keep."
"I had to throw out all the meat," she told him. "It all got tough and tasteless. It doesn't keep for a long time, even if it's frozen."
"I know."
"But I have a kill in there from last ride, enough for a stew." She gave him a smile. "I found an old room buried near that old brewhouse, a room that had casks of ale and wine in it."
"You found father's aging chamber?" Tarrin said with a laugh. "He had to hide it because some of the villagers would try to sneak over here and steal father's brews."
"Why did he tolerate it?"
"It was soemthing of a good-natured competition with them, Jesmind," he chuckled. "They'd try to find it, and he'd try to hide it from them. They didn't outright steal it when they found it, though. Father would go down into the aging room and find an empy spot in the rack, with a pouch of coins to pay for it hanging in its place. I got pretty annoyed with it. Every time they found it, Father would make me help him dig a new opening, and fill in the old entrance." He laughed. "The last time, we dug a twenty span tunnel that opened under the barn. It's been nearly two years-four, really, and I guess they never did find it."
"That's where I found it," Jesmind smiled. "Those casks down there have aged very well. Especially that apple wine. I think I'll go get some of it."
"Father's going to be very cross with you for raiding his stores, Jesmind."
"I'll make it up to him," she said with a grin. "Can you make wine like that?"
"Afraid not. I don't have father's passion for it. How much of it is left?"
"Almost all of it. I don't really drink much. Just for special occasions is all."
"This is a special occasion?" he asked.
"Of course it is," she said with a laugh. "It's your first full day home. If that's not a reason to celebrate, then there's something very wrong with the world." She smiled at him. "Then we can celebrate your second full day home, then your third, and then we'll really celebrate when you come back home later."
"That may not be a celebration. My parents will be coming home soon, Jesmind, and you know that this is their house."
"This is our house," she corrected. "I'm sure your parents and I can work it out."
"I'd like to watch that," he told her with a laugh. "My mother defines stubborn. If you think Triana is bad, you've never seen my mother when she has her hackles up."
"We'll see. Now let me go get dinner over the fire."
Tarrin sat down with Jasana, who had a book that had once been Jenna's out and looking through it. "What are you up to, kitten?" he asked.
"Looking at the pictures," she said, holding the book out. "What is this?"
"It's a dragon," he replied, looking at it. "That's a pretty good story."
"Story? This is a story?"
"Of course it is."
"Mama's never read it to me," she huffed. "What's it about?"
"Why don't you read it yourself?"
"I don't know how," she admitted. "Mama hasn't taught me yet."
Tarrin was surprised. Jesmind was really ignoring Jasana's education! He was about to go about teaching her, but then he rememebered that Jesmind had been worried about Jasana's magic. If Jasana could read, she would be exposed to a great many things in the many books in the Kael house that may give her the wrong ideas, may cause her to try to experiment. Jesmind had actually been very shrewd in holding that back, he realized, controlling the outlets of her child's imagination until such time that she could ensure that Jasana didn't do anything drastic.
He thought about it. There were two options. The first was to keep her in the dark, to contain her by restricting her possible motives to use it. The second was to go ahead and teach her now, while she was young, and ingrain into her the limitations and restrictions she would need to know to be a responsible Sorceress. But that was a dangerous choice, because Jasana was still a very, very young child, not possessed of the kind of discipline needed to know when not to use her magic.
Perhaps the choice had already been made. That close to her, he could fully assense her. He knew for certain that she had already used her power, and once it was used, it could be used again. Maybe he did need to train her now. At least then, the chance that she would have some kind of catastrophic accident would be minimized. Jesmind would just have to deal with a daughter that had the power to really make her life a nightmare.
Either way, it wasn't something he was going to do without Jesmind's support. He'd have to explain it all to her, let her make the decision. Jesmind was still Jasana's primary parent, the one who made the decisions about their daughter. He wouldn't violate that. After all, he had only been there for a day and a half. He wasn't going to interfere.
"Well then, since you can't read it, let me do it for you," he said, sliding her up onto his lap, then opening the book to the first place.
"What's it about?" she asked.
"It's an old story about a man who loved a princess," he told her. "Her father didn't think the man was worthy of her, so he told him to go bring him back the horns of a dragon as proof that he was worth marrying his daughter."
"He sounds mean."
"He's supposed to be mean. He's the villain. Now let me read it to you."
And so, Tarrin started reading Jasana the story. He had to admit, he did rather like this old romantic tale. About a young man named Aran, an apprentice to a cobbler and commoner who had fallen in love with the princess of his kingdom. He had met her while she was walking the streets in disguise, for she was an adventurous and strong-willed young woman. But he didn't know who she was. He befriended her, thinking she was a homeless girl, but had eventually fallen in love with her, and she with him. But her father, the king, had discovered his daughter's nightly travels, and was furious that she had fallen in love with a cobber's apprentice. He forbade them to see one another, but in an act of malicious cunning, he offered the young man an opportunity to marry his daughter, if he would bring the king back the horns of a dragon to prove his worth.
The young man, of course, accepted this challenge, and rode off into the countryside to find a dragon. The young man was no warrior, but he was smart and cunning, clever and quick-minded, so he was willing to try, because he loved his princess that much. After much hunting, struggling, and foundering about in the unknown forest, filling up a good part of the story with the young man's attempts to learn the ways of the woods and deal with the woodland's citizens, the young man did in fact find a dragon.
And this was the best part of the story to Tarrin. Instead of running in with a drawn sword, he politely made his presence known and asked to join the dragon for company. As all knew, dragons were intelligent creatures, horribly powerful, but also strangely polite, even the ones that humans considered evil. The dragon was intrigued by this strange human who had approached it in polite respect rather than with a drawn sword, so it accepted the human's offer of visit. They sat down and talked. The young man explained his quandary to the dragon, professing his love for his princess, and asked for the dragon's help. He pleaded with the beast for its horns, asking to be granted in humility what many would have tried to take by force.
The dragon was impressed by this, and agreed. It allowed the young man to cut off its horns, which would grow back, so the dragon wasn't really losing anything. It sent the young man off with its horns, so he could win the hand of his true love.
When the cobbler returned with the dragon's horns, however, the king had a furious fit. It had been his hope that the young man would die in the attempt to get the horns, and he had no intention of letting his daughter marry the young commoner. He arrested the young man and threw him in the dungeon, and then ordered him to be hanged the next day.
That day came, despite the pleading of the king's daughter, and the young man found himself standing on the gallows at dawn, with a noose around his neck. The king watched on with smug satisfaction as the young man cast his last goodbyes to his true love with his eyes-
"That's not fair!" Jasana cried. "After he did what he was told to do, it's not fair!"
"If you'd stop shouting and let me finish the story, you'll find out what happens," Tarrin told her mildly as Jesmind stirred the stew, watching on with a gentle kind of happiness. "Where were we?"
"You know where we were!" she cried out.
"Be nice," he murmured, finding his place. "Here we are. And so Aran stood on the gallows, with the executioner holding the handle that would send him under the platform, send him spiralling into the Realm Beyond, when there was suddenly a great crashing cry. The earth shook, and the sky darkened as the sun was blotted out. The crowd, the princess, the king, everyone looked up into the darkened sky, and they all saw a terrible sight. It was a dragon! A monstrous beast it was, taking up the entire sky as it descended towards them, smoke and fire billowing from its mouth.
"It landed in the square to the cries and panicked flight of the citizens of the town, taking up the entirety of it with its great size, and cast a baleful gaze at the king. The king stared at the beast in horror, and to his surprise and dismay, he saw that the dragon had lost its horns! The king realized that the young cobbler had managed to get the horns without killing the beast, and he feared that the dragon was there to take revenge!' Falling to his knees before the great beast, the king raised its hands and pleaded with the beast. 'O Great and Terrible Dragon!' he called in a pleading voice, 'please spare us your wrath! We have already captured the one the stole your horns, and were going to punish him! Please, take him and spare us!'
"The dragon, of course, fully understood what was going on. It rose up and gave a great cry, shivering its wings, displaying its mighty power to all who beheld it. It then looked back down at the king, its great red eyes burning, smoke issuing from its mouth and nostrils as it spoke in reply. 'Kind Aran came to me in humility and honesty, begging my horns so that he could be wed to his true love,' the dragon proclaimed in a voice that shook the town. 'I suspected your treachery, human, so I came to make sure that it was a bargain made in full faith! If you want to avoid my wrath, you will honor your promise and allow your daughter to marry!'
"This confused and shocked the king, who trembled and cowered before the great creature. But though his intent was foul and dark, the gentle light of the love that the young man shared with his daughter shone through the darkness of his plan, casting its warmth upon his soul, and he relented. 'As you command, O Great Dragon,' he replied to the beast with sincerity. 'I will honor my vow, and my daughter will marry him.'"
"Aww," Jasana hummed. "That's very nice."
"I've always thought so," Tarrin agreed, then he continued. "And so it was that Aran the cobbler was married to Princess Dianne in the very square in which he was nearly hanged. And among those present at that happy occasion were the king and the dragon itself, who had come down from its mountain peak to see the fruits of true love realized. The kingdom of Deepwell prospered under the kind rule of Aran and Dianne, and the little town of Deepdale was often visited by a kindly and friendly dragon, who became a great friend to all of Deepwell. And that's the end, kitten," he told her, closing the book. "Did you like it?"
"Umm," she hummed, putting her paws on the book. "I really liked the dragon. It seemed very nice."
"Yes it did. It just goes to show you, kitten, you can't always judge people by how they look. Aran didn't see the dragon as a great and terrible monster, it saw it as someone he could talk to. And he was right. It turned out that the dragon was a very kind and gentle creature, but he'd never had known that if he would have tried to fight it for its horns."
"I really liked that. I thought he was going to try to fight it."
"He knew he couldn't win, but Aran was smart enough to know that there's always more than one way to try to do something, kitten."
"Umm."
"Dinner's ready, you two," Jesmind told them, pulling the kettle off the fire with a damp rag to protect her paw from the heat.
"Alright," Tarrin replied, scooting Jasana off his lap. "Go put that book away and come to dinner, cub," he told her.
"Yes, papa," she said obediently, padding off into Jenna's old room.
"I see you enjoyed reading to her," Jesmind said as he stood up.
"I've never done that for my own child before," he said, kind of dreamily. "It's alot better than I thought it would be."
"It always is," she smiled. "Get the bread out of the oven, Tarrin. It's done."
Tarrin went over to the fireplace, to the door over the opening for the fire that held the brick oven. He opened it with a wooden dowel hanging on the hearth, then used a flatboard hanging by the fire to withdraw the piping loaf of bread. He set it down on the breadplate on the table, then hung the flatboard back on its peg on the hearth. "I didn't have an oven like that at my old cottage," Jesmind said. "It's very handy."
"You'll think it's primitive when I get one of those Tellurian stoves," he told her absently. "It's alot easier than cooking over a fire."
"Oh?" she said with a sudden smile. "Where will we put it?"
"We'll have to knock out some of the counter, but there's room for it," he answered. "Mother had been wanting one. Father was about to get her one before everything happened."
"So you're getting one for her?" Jesmind said with an edge in her voice that Tarrin didn't miss.
"I'm getting one for you," he told her calmly. "That mother will be able to use it is simply an added bonus."
"Oh, well, that's very nice," she almost purred, coming over to him and rising on her toes, then giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Be careful, or we'll start acting like a couple of old married humans."
"I think we already are," he admitted with a wry chuckle.
"I see you've calmed down alot since this morning," she smiled.
"I guess I have. I'm very glad I decided to stop over for a while."
"Well, I'm glad to have you, Tarrin," she said. "I'm always glad to have you."
"That's good to know," he told her. "I'm going to miss this place when I leave. This has always been home to me, no matter where I was or what I was doing."
"I know. That's why we're here."
"Why is that?"
"Because I knew this was where you'd come when you were done," she said calmly, but he could hear, sense, the admission, the emotion, tied up in that simple statement. She had her back to him, getting dishes out of the cupboard, and he stared at her for a long moment. What was more, for the first time since coming back, he really studied Jesmind's scent. A scent could not lie, no matter how hard one tried, and it told him a great deal. She was more than a little nervous, rather unsettled despite how calm she looked, and underneath it all was a continual, almost habitual attempt to lure him with her scent, a response she was trying with all her might to control, to hide from him. He could tell that too.
Jesmind was trying very hard to be as inauspicious as she could, about several things. About the fact that she was still intensely attracted to him, about how nervous she was about something. Nervous about him? No. Her scent and her body language showed him that she was comfortable with him. It had to be something mental, internal, anxiety over something. But what?
He thought he knew. She was trying to cover her desire for him, something that would have slapped him in the face with her scent had she not been clamping down on it. That was definitely out of character for Jesmind. She didn't play around about things like that, yet now she was trying to hide that, trying to suppress it. Why? It was simple; she was doing everything she could not to distract him or interfere with him. She was being as mild as she could, trying to keep her distance about things that really had her attention.
Simply put, she was acting against her instincts and her basic personality both, and that meant that it had to be unbelievably important.
She turned around, and then suddenly backed up against the countertop when she realized that he was right on top of her. "What's the matter?" she asked quickly, looking up at him.
"Scents don't lie, Jesmind," he told her in a quiet tone.
Jesmind actually blushed. Tarrin had waited a long time to see that. It was a kind of long-awaited, poetic revenge for all the times she had embarassed him.
"The only thing I don't understand is why you're holding back. That's not like you, even with Jasana here."
"I-Well-oh, hellfire," she muttered. "I didn't want to lead you on in any way, Tarrin. I wanted you to make all your decisions, about the house, about me, about everything, without feeling like I was pressuring you in any way. And inviting you to bed, you may have taken that as a form of pressure." She looked up at him with smoldering eyes. "Yes, I want you. I've had to all but cross my legs every time you've looked at me all day. I've never felt so, so… frustrated. But I'm not going to bring that back into our relationship until you feel you're ready for it."
Tarrin was mightily impressed. He hadn't noticed a thing, and that was saying something, because Tarrin was much, much more sensitive to things like that than most other Were-cats. It had to do with the fact that he was much more attuned to slight changes in his environment than most, a side effect of living in continual fear for over a year.
He looked at her, then actually laughed. "I'm impressed you hid it this long."
"So am I," she admitted with a wry grin. "So, Tarrin… do you want to?"
"Not on the kitchen counter," he said with a low purr, surrendering to his long held desire for his former mate.
Not former. His mate.
"I have a nice big bed in my room," she said with a slow smile, her eyes lighting up in comprehension. "I made it with you in mind. You'll actually be able to stretch out in it."
"That'll have to wait. We still have dinner to deal with."
"I've waited for over a year," she said with a laugh. "I think another hour or so isn't going to make much difference." She pushed him away slightly, letting her paws linger on his upper arms. "So, does this mean we're officially mates again?"
"Well, you may have to woo me, but I think I can be won over if you try hard enough," he said with a light smile.
"I'm a champion when it comes to wooing, my mate," she purred. "I'll prove it to you."
"We'll see."
"I guess we will at that," she agreed, rising up onto her toes and kissing him, kissing him with a passion that told him just how much she had wanted him. If there was any one thing he had always remembered out her that made his tail curl, it was how she kissed. He found himself surrendering to her in every way because of that kiss, and it took Jasana pulling on his tail to remind him of where they were and what they were doing.
Both of them were a little breathless when the pushed away from each other, but Jasana simply looked at them with a happy little expression. "Dinner's getting cold," she told them with a wicked little smirk, enjoying breaking them up.
Or maybe enjoying the fact that they were kissing in the first place.
"Dinner. Oh, yes, of course," Jesmind said in a slightly scattered manner, fanning herself by flapping the front of her shirt. "Tarrin, get the bread-no, wait, you did that. I guess we can eat now, I guess. Did I get the stew off the fire?"
Tarrin looked at her, then he laughed heartily. He took her paw and led her to the table, with Jasana humming to herself as she carried the plates behind them.
To: Title EoF