The Tears of Elios (18 page)

It didn’t take her long to interpret what the inappropriate thoughts were. She giggled nervously, and her cheeks filled with color once again. “Oh.” She turned away and began walking. “I suppose it's only, um, natural for him to have those thoughts. After all, he is a man, and I’m a woman.”

He trailed behind her. “You're not offended by them?”

“Not exactly. In a way, it's nice to be seen as a woman after all my years of having to pretend to be a boy.”

“I never saw you as a boy.”

“You were the first person who ever saw through my disguise.”

They walked the rest of the way in silence. Against his better judgment, he replayed Arlisle's thoughts in his mind, trying to see what was so natural about it. Humans were such odd creatures. Yet as he watched her ahead of him, he began to wonder if making love to her would be exactly as Arlisle imagined it would be. How would it feel to have her bare skin touching his? Would her dark eyes look up at him filled with the same passion? What would her skin taste like as his lips caressed the hollow in her neck? These thoughts filled his body with warmth, and his trousers tightened in the groin.

He was so lost in his thoughts that he narrowly missed colliding with her when they reached her tent. “Kira, have you ever? I mean, done that sort of thing?”

Her hand covered her mouth as she giggled again. “Oh, no!” She lowered her eyes and clasped her hands behind her back. “I mean, contrary to what Master Tyrrus thinks, I’ve have a pretty good idea what goes on between men and women, but as for me personally, I've never even been kissed before.”

She looked up at him through her lashes, and the familiar silver halo crept along the edges of his vision.

“When it comes to lying with a man, I think I will save that for when I am with the one who will be my husband.” She lowered her eyes again and lifted her tent flap. “Arlisle wouldn’t have gotten what he wanted—at least, not tonight.”

He stood paralyzed until the silver halo retreated. “I'm glad to hear that.” The words surprised him as soon as they left his mouth. That was one thought he hadn’t wanted to share with her.

Her dark brows knitted together for a moment before she stepped inside her tent. He was poised to turn and leave when she said, “Galen, I know you must be under a lot of stress right now, but I just wanted to let you know that you're doing a wonderful job leading the Resistance, and don't let Elisus or anyone else make you think otherwise.” She offered him a shy smile as her face disappeared behind the flap. “Goodnight, Galen.”

He stood outside for a minute and tried to clear his mind.
How could someone be so innocent at times and yet talk so openly about such an intimate subject? And why am I having these thoughts about her?
She was a human, little more than a child. Maybe he refused to see her as woman because she was a human, and if he did…

This is ridiculous. The Elders would never permit it
.

But as he remembered her last words to him, the doubts he had earlier about his ability to lead the Resistance slipped away. She believed in him, and that was all he needed tonight to renew his confidence. He would have to figure the rest of his feelings for her later.

CHAPTER 13

Ranealya awoke the next morning to Duke licking her face. She moaned and tried to push him away, but she found his hundred plus pounds difficult to budge. “Stop!” she snarled and elongated her fangs.

The dog jumped off the bed with a yelp.

“Someone's a little grouchy this morning,” Gregor said from across the room.

His annoying cheerfulness made her shoulders tighten. She sat up and ran her fingers through her hair, forcing out the tangles as she stumbled to the table. “You're not covered with dog slobber.”

“I asked Duke to wake you up, and it worked.”

She looked up at him through bleary eyes.
Asked?
“Ah, yes, you can speak to animals. I forgot.”

He placed a bowel of gray goo in front of her and sat across the table. She sniffed it. Nothing too offensive. She took a bite and noted that, like its appearance, it was bland.

“Sorry for the meager meal. I told Sal and Ben to go to my mother’s house. No reason to keep them here while we're gone. I made breakfast.”

She suspected he wanted for her to compliment him on his foresight or his cooking, but early morning pleasantries had never been her strong point. She pushed the bowl away. “Remind me to go hunting this afternoon.”

He frowned. “It's not that bad, is it?”

“It's not meat.” She grinned wide enough to flash her fangs.

“Well, Duke will eat it.” He placed the bowl in front of dog, but his reaction was the same. Gregor sighed and scraped the porridge out the window. “So much for my cooking abilities.”

“Where's Galen?”

He avoided looking at her directly. “He left last night. He said you knew where to find the orbs and where to bring them.”

“What else did he tell you?”

“Oh, nothing much more than that.” He ran his hand over the fireplace mantle.

“You're a horrible liar, Gregor.” Her brother always seemed to think he knew what was best for everyone without asking them if they agreed with him. “I’ll go with you to find the first two orbs and lead you to the location of the third one, but you will have to retrieve it by yourself.”

He nodded and dashed to his desk. “So what should we bring with us?”

“Are you making a list?”

“Of course. You and I are going on an epic quest, and I want to be prepared.”

She stood and snatched a quill from his hands. “I'll make it simple for you: the clothes on your back, a horse to carry you, and a weapon, if you know how to use one.”

“But what about—”

“We travel light. I don't want to attract any unnecessary attention.” She waited for him to accept her terms before she gave the quill back to him. She tried to sound casual as she asked, “Did Galen take anything back with him?”

“You mean the Scrolls of Corang? Yes, I gave them to him under the condition he would tell me more about them when I saw him again.”

“Good.”

“I have just one question for you. If you knew I had them, why didn't you just take them from me? You knew I probably wouldn't have missed them.”

Now it was her turn to avoid his gaze, but not because she was lying. There would be no living with him if he knew she might actually respect him. “I'm not a thief.”

“Ah, so you do have a conscience?” He grinned.

By the Goddess, is he teasing me? What did Galen tell him to make him so at ease with me all of a sudden?
“Occasionally,” she growled, trying to intimidate him.

He seemed unfazed by her threat, which irked her all the more. “That's good to know. So, is there anything else you think we may need?”

“Gregor, do you have any idea what you’ve agreed to do? The Tears of Elios are not only well hidden, they are well guarded. It's not going to be like picking an apple off a tree. Then, you'll be traveling with me, and even in human form, the Azekborn can spot me in a crowd. We'll be lucky to find the orbs without losing our lives.”

“Well,” he said after a few seconds, “that gives me some idea how to plan for our journey.”

She refrained from rolling her eyes until her back was to him. “What form should I take?”

“What form?”

“Yes, what form? I am a shape-shifter, after all. Animal or human?”

He removed his glasses, chewing on them while he examined her. She had never seen him without wire frames across the bridge of his nose, and she reluctantly admitted he was rather attractive, by human standards. The bright flecks of green glowed against the golden brown in his eyes.

“Human,” he replied at last. “That way I can talk to you without appearing to be crazy.”

“Male or female?”

He replaced his glasses. “I doubt I could ever think of you as a man, regardless of how you look.”

“What age? Old? Young?”

“Why are you asking all these questions, Ranealya? Just pick the form you'd be most comfortable traveling in.”

“I'll see what I can come up with.” She opened the window. “I'll be the back in a few hours. I need to find some clothes.”

“Wait,” he said as she stepped onto the ledge. “Where are you planning on finding clothes?”

“The sun is out. People probably have clothes drying on the line somewhere. I’ll just take whatever I think is appropriate.”

His mouth formed a half-frown. “I thought you said you weren't a thief.”

“Birds steal clothes all the time. Besides, you can't expect me to travel in your old tunic, can you?”

“Here, at least take this.” He reached for a chest on the shelves. It had always remained locked for her, but before his hand touched it, the latched unlocked, and the lid opened. He retrieved a few coins from inside. “Leave some money behind to pay for the clothes.”

“You're too noble, Gregor. It will get you in trouble one day.” She yanked the tunic off and stood unabashedly naked in front of him. Within seconds, she was in the air. She snatched the coins with her talons and flew out of the window.

It took her nearly an hour to find what she wanted. Outside a small keep, she spied a muted green dress flapping in the wind next to a dark brown cloak. After she made sure she wouldn’t become a target for some archer’s bow, she dove and released the coins seconds before snatching the garments.

She turned up to the sky, but her body snapped backwards. The clothes had been secured to the line better than she thought. A shrill voice sounded from inside the keep. She plucked the clothes pens from the line just as a scullery maid ran outside with a flour sack to shoo away the feathered thief. Ranealya laughed to herself and flew out of the reach, taking the clothes with her.

“I think these will do,” she announced when she returned to Gregor's cottage. She held the dress up for his inspection. “What you think?”

He looked up from his papers and nodded in approval. “You left the coins there, didn't you?”

“What do you think?” She tossed the dress and the cloak over a chair before donning the old tunic. “So, do you have any other preferences for my appearance?”

“Human, female, about my age.” He counted on his fingers. “That's about it.”

The “about my age” intrigued her. “And in what capacity will we be traveling?”

He flushed and cleared his throat as he shuffled some papers. “I think the most obvious choice would be as husband and wife.”

The most obvious choice?
He glanced up and waited for her reaction to his suggestion. In a way, it was a suitable situation. At least they could travel together as a man and a woman without attracting unwanted attention. But she wanted to tease him for a moment. “And what do you wish your wife to look like?”

His ears turned red. “Whatever you think is suitable.”

She was going to enjoy tormenting him. She recalled the odes in the green leather book. Coppery hair, loosely curled. Alabaster skin with freckles on the tip of her nose. A heart shaped face. A dainty mouth surrounded by full pink lips. As she slowly changed her features, she watched the color drain from his face. “Is this the wife you imagined for yourself?”

“I was wondering when you would taunt me with that.” His voice was flat.

“Is this what she looked like? The woman in your diary?”

“You’ve gone too far.”

She raised her voice an octave higher. “Is my voice musical enough to achieve ‘the dulcet tones of the nightingale’?”

“Ranealya!” Gregor stood behind his desk, his body poised to spring like an angry lion. Blue sparks glowed from his fingertips, and she knew he was seconds away from casting some sort of spell on her.

And most likely, not a nice one
. She’d been in the wild enough to know not to push him any further. She returned to her normal appearance, and the snarl relaxed from his lips.

“What happened to her?” she asked, keeping her voice quiet and soothing.

He closed his eyes, and a muscle rippled along his jaw. “I apparently wasn't the right man for her.” His body sagged with the memory of defeat. “Please don't ever mention her again. Some things are best forgotten.”

The husky timber in his voice formed an odd ache in her chest, and she nodded. Certain memories needed to remain buried in the past. “Plain.”

He opened his eyes in confusion. “Plain?”

“Yes, I should appear plain.” She turned to the mirror and watched her hair turn a limp, mousy brown. Her face filled out to a slightly rounder shape, and her skin became sallow. The only remarkable features of her face were her eyes, which still glittered menacingly. But that couldn’t be changed. She turned to him. “Will this do?”

He approached her as if he expected another attack on his past. He lifted her chin and searched her face. The pain faded from his hazel eyes. “Almost.”

His fingers warmed her skin. “Almost?”

“Your eyes don't look human.” He walked back to his desk.

“You know they never will. I can't change that.”

“But I can.”

She was about to tell him not to be ridiculous when he ordered her to turn around. He stood behind her and draped a necklace with a smooth blue stone set in a gold pendant around her neck.
It was pretty
, she decided.
Not elvan craftsmanship, but better than average for human jewelry
. She held it in her hand as Gregor fastened the chain. A soft hum filled her ears.

“Look.”

When she first glanced up in the mirror, she noticed the huge smile on Gregor's face. Then she saw her own reflection. The features were still plain as before, but instead of the wolfish gold she expected, her eyes were blue. Not just any shade of blue. They were cool and serene, like a glacial lake high in the mountains. She inhaled sharply as she stared into them but couldn’t convince her body to exhale. They hadn’t looked like that in centuries.

“Do you like the necklace?”

She turned to him. His hands rested on her shoulders, warm and comforting, and for once, she had trouble forming coherent words. Her lips trembled as a tidal wave of emotions ripped through her. Gratitude. Acceptance. Feelings she thought long dead. “It's beautiful,” she managed to whisper in Elvish.