See Chapter One (A) for Disclaimers
Chapter Three
Oh, now this was interesting! Amerys, also called the Sorceress, watched with amused interest as the BeastMaster cradled a tiny human in his arms. At his side was the ever-present Tao. But Amerys was fascinated by the tiny being in Dar's arms . . . and she secretly envied the small one.
She knew what babies were, of course . . . she had watched humans long enough to see them start as babies, tiny and helpless, and grow to become like Zad. Or Dar. Amerys smiled to herself . . . oh, yes, some babies became like Dar. Obstinate, unyielding, and very, very handsome.
However, what truly fascinated her, as she stared into her scrying bowl, even more than the small human cuddled in the arms of the BeastMaster, was the young man's expression. Oh, yes . . . this situation definitely bore watching.
~*~*~*~
True to Atalla's words, Dar and Tao found the tavern. As soon as they entered with the baby, they found themselves the focus of several females who were willing to feed the baby. And, Tao was willing to bet, more than just the baby. He couldn't resist teasing his friend about it, either.
"She had a crush on you, you know," Tao observed as a young serving girl brought them goat's milk from a local farmer. Dar frowned as he carefully fed the baby, and Tao explained, "Atalla. She had quite a crush on you."
His friend turned bright red, to Tao's delight, and Dar muttered, "She's just a child, Tao. Just a little girl. Could you see if there's a towel we can use to wipe Aveta's mouth? I'm getting more over her face than in her mouth." Tao rolled his eyes, but did as his friend asked, and fetched a towel to wipe the little girl's face. As Dar had said, she was getting less inside than she was getting outside. Tao briefly considered offering to feed the baby, then shook his head. Dar seemed to have it under control.
"Maybe to you, but I'm willing to bet young Atalla considers herself a woman," Tao answered as he returned to their table with a cloth. Dar accepted it and gently wiped the milk away, as Tao continued, "Why, in some of the tribes, a girl is a woman at twelve . . ."
His voice trailed off as he realized he had put his foot in his mouth. Dar would know that, especially given the circumstances of Mira's abduction. Among the Sula, she had begun her journey into womanhood. Instead, Tao said, "I'm just saying, don't underestimate her because she's young."
"I think I might still seek her out again, and offer to take her with us to the Varoni. She could benefit from Mira and Marinde," Dar observed and Tao cringed. Oh, that was an interesting choice. Mira, Tao could see. But there were times when her best friend frightened him . . . one of the reasons he had never approached her.
As if reading Tao's mind, Dar asked, "Why have you never approached her, Tao? Marinde, I mean, not Mira. I know you're attracted to her." Tao stifled a laugh . . . he would actually have an easier time approaching Mira, even though she was married and his best friend's sister.
"In the first place, I was warned about Marinde. I've seen her fight. In the second place, have you happened to notice the way she looks at you? Ahhh, never mind, I didn't ask that," Tao replied. Dar looked at him quickly, and Tao's suspicion was confirmed. His friend had never noticed.
"What are you talking about? How does she look at me?" Dar asked. Tao didn't answer, and Dar repeated, now sounding a little impatient, "How does Marinde look at me? You can't start something like that, then not finish it, Tao!" The other young man considered how to explain himself.
At last, he replied, "Well, you know while we're eating dinner, and Ari starts asking about dessert? The way she looks at dessert when it's finally served is about the same way which Marinde looks at you. Only a lot more . . . adult in expression." Dar looked at him, then turned bright red.
"I hadn't noticed," Dar muttered and looked back at the baby. Tao grinned . . . obviously! But it was just as obvious that Dar *had* noticed the way the Amazon Hypolita looked at him. So had Tao . . . he later teased his friend that placing kindling between the pair would have burned up the forest. "Well . . . if she's looking at you, she's definitely not looking at me," Tao told the other young man. Now Dar looked totally lost. While Tao knew his friend saw his reflection in the water sometimes, he also knew that Dar had no concept of his own good looks.
But before Dar could speak, Tao continued, "Now. We were discussing Atalla. I give it three months before her two brothers are either killed, or captured by Zad. Just in case, I'm making a map of this area . . . so the next time we're here, we can check up on her."
Dar didn't answer, he was concentrating on Aveta now. Aveta. Dar had said that it meant 'laughter' in the Sula tongue, and that it had been the name of his aunt. The scholar asked, "Dar, why don't you tell me about your aunt?" Dar looked up, pain flickering briefly in his eyes.
"Why do you want to know?" he asked, once more patiently cleaning the little girl's mouth. Aveta had decided that she wasn't hungry any more, and Dar shifted the little girl into his arms, until she was flat against his chest. He began rubbing the infant's back.
"I'm curious," Tao answered simply. The baby belched, rather loudly for such a tiny person, and Tao looked at Dar. The BeastMaster still rubbed the little one's back, and smiled broadly at the child. He murmured something in a language which Tao didn't understand. He asked, "What . . . ?"
"My aunt was a midwife, as was my mother, and she often nursed babies. Not so much for the Sula, as the other tribes. The Sula had some mothers die while birthing . . . as mine did . . . but other tribes had more. She showed me how to feed babies if no women are available," Dar answered.
He paused, then continued, "That's a good place to start. She was my mother's younger sister, by five years. There were many who believed my father would have wed Aunt Aveta, if she had been old enough. This I learned from village gossip when I was older. When people started whispering about Aunt Aveta's presence in our hut."
There was a trace of bitterness in Dar's voice. Tao didn't know what to say, so he kept silent. Dar went on, "She was beautiful, like my mother. She had glossy dark hair and brown eyes. And in all the time I knew her, she never looked at any men. Just took care of my father and me."
Here again, Dar paused, his green eyes growing distant, then he said, "She always used to tell Father that Mira was still alive . . . that if it were not true, she would feel it. She would know when Mira was dead, because she had brought Mira into the world." Tao kept silent and Dar went on, "My pledging to Kyra was coming. Aunt Aveta couldn't believed her 'baby boy' was grown up and pledged to a woman already. In some ways, I was more her child than I was my mother's. And . . . she talked about what she would have done for Mira's pledging."
Here, Dar paused as he once more adjusted Aveta in his arms, and Tao realized the babe was sleeping peacefully. After a moment, the BeastMaster continued, "I suppose that's why I was thinking about Mira so much that day. Why I asked Kyra if we could name our first-born daughter for my sister.
"And then the attack came. It was . . . I don't even know how to describe it. You saw it, at the feast. But . . . being there was different. I tried to defend my people, but you saw what happened." Tao looked away, then back again. Yes, he had seen what happened.
Dar continued, "When I regained consciousness, I was in the forest, where my father had left me. I don't know how long I was unconscious, but when I went into the village . . . everyone was dead. Everyone except Aunt Aveta. She was dying . . . a Terron lance through her ribs had seen to that."
"She held on long enough to tell you good-bye," Tao stated quietly. His friend nodded, the shine of tears just barely visible in his green eyes. The scholar again found himself speechless.
"Yes. I held her and asked her to hold on. That I would find some way of getting help, but Aunt Aveta knew she was dying. She told me that I was her own sweet boy, even if she hadn't given birth to me. And that no mother could have loved her son more than she loved me," Dar whispered.
Tao swallowed hard, feeling the sting of tears in his own eyes. His friend sighed, then went on, "She told me that it was up to me now. Whether the Sula tribe vanished from our world, or lived on, was up to me. As long as I held to what we believed in, the Sula would never die. A few weeks later, I found Curupira. And you know the rest."
Which wasn't entirely accurate, but Tao let it slide. He figured he had subjected his friend to enough distress for one night. While Dar's teasing sometimes hit too close to home for Tao, the scholar also knew that Dar would never deliberately hurt him. The least Tao could do was return the favor. Even if it meant putting a lid on his curiosity.
"We should probably pay the bill, and then find a place to make camp. I'm sure Ruh wouldn't enjoy a night in this place," Tao said, glancing around. A mischievous smile lit Dar's face, an expression Tao recognized immediately, and the scholar sighed, "What did he say this time?"
"Just that he was wondering when we would stop talking, and find a place for the night. I still have some of the currency which my sister gave me before we left the Varoni, we can use that. I'm sure she'll enjoy saying, 'I told you so' when we get back," Dar said dryly.
Tao laughed and Dar added, "He was also wondering if we would let him watch over Aveta while we sleep. Ruh's a tiger, but he knows I would watch over one of his cubs, if it was necessary." Tao nodded in agreement, though he hadn't realized that Ruh had cubs.
"I think that's an excellent idea . . . and I won't tell Mira about the currency if you won't," Tao said. Dar grinned and the two young men got up to leave. However, Tao was already thinking about what Dar had just told him. He wondered how much Mira would remember of her Aunt Aveta . . . she had been seven years old when her aunt left the tribe. Despite Dar's answers, Tao was still curious about the woman. And Mira seemed like the best source of information.
~*~*~*~
It was a beautiful night . . . the kind of night which Carrin had always loved. A night which reminded her of sitting underneath a starry sky, huddled against her mother's side. Etain's arm wrapped around her small daughter as she quietly, reverently pointed out the stars.
Carrin supposed the birth today had prompted those memories. The safe delivery of little Ethna, the Varoni version of Etain . . . but if Carrin was truly honest with herself, she would admit that her mother was never far from her thoughts. Even before Dar's return to her life.
Dar. Carrin smiled faintly, thinking of her treasured little brother. It still amazed her, when she thought about it. That her little brother had become such a glorious young man, and that he lived. That they were together again. After the last few weeks, it was something which Carrin still had a hard time accepting.
She wasn't the only one. Carrin knew that the revelations about her early life had driven a wedge between her and her husband. She understood that, and she understood that she hurt him. That was why she had asked him to remain during the birthing. At least, it was the other reason. Warriors did need to understand about childbirth. But there was another gulf which had to be crossed, and unfortunately, there was nothing Gereon could do. It was a decision which Carrin had to make for herself. And she hadn't even verbalized, to herself, what that decision was. At least, one decision. There were others.
Carrin sighed, closing her eyes. She lifted her face to the sky, allowing the breeze to gently caress her cheeks. The queen knew there were so many things during recent weeks which required forgiveness. So many mistakes she had made, in trying to protect herself and her family.
"You seem anxious tonight, little queen," a familiar voice said as Carrin opened her eyes once more, to gaze at the huts which made up the village. The young queen turned to face the source of the voice . . . and the source of the breeze only a few minutes earlier. It was, of course, the goddess Pelagia. It seemed she had been there every time Carrin needed her. The goddess asked, "What troubles you?"
"I've never been very good at hiding myself from you, have I? Even when I was a little girl, you could always tell what I was thinking, even when Rudianus could not. I always wondered if that was because you were a goddess, or a mother," Carrin answered.
"Both, little queen. And you didn't answer my question," Pelagia gently chided. Carrin smiled, then looked back out at the village. These were her people . . . her adoption by the Varoni chieftain had seen to that. But in her heart, in the part of her soul which remained a little girl despite the passage of years . . . she was still a Sula. And therein rested the problem. Therein rested at least one of the decisions which she had to make.
"How fares my brother?" Carrin asked instead of answering the goddess directly. She heard Pelagia sigh, and the queen continued, "I know you. I can tell when you've been watching over my brother. You call me 'little queen' after you've been to see Dar."
She turned to face the goddess, who smiled ruefully and answered, "You are more perceptive than I realized. And you still haven't answered my question." Carrin smiled sadly, and the goddess went on, "I do know. You're caught between two worlds . . . between the world of your childhood, and the world into which you were forcibly pulled."
"I've made a life for myself, Pelagia. I have a husband and a daughter. The Varoni see me as one of their own, and I am. I've been part of this tribe for almost twenty years. And yet . . . there is a part of me which remains Sula. A part of me which remains Mira, daughter of Ril and Etain," Carrin admitted. The goddess put her hands on Carrin's shoulders.
(Continued)
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