Gemini grinned as she walked through the door into Numair's study. She sat down in a wooden chair at his beckoning, and looked around. Windows opened up, looking into the Royal Forest. The noontime sun cascaded into the large room, lighting up shelves after shelves of books and ingredients for complicated spells. She grinned at the room beyond, filled with tanks and cages of creatures; she could see a large swamp-like tank in which turtles and fish swam. Farther on, she could hear the faint chirps and trills of an aviary filled with birds. Numair passed her and browsed along his vast collection of tomes. He stopped, and reached about his nose-height to a thick hardback book with yellowed, fragile-looking pages. He brought it to the desk and gently placed it down. He sat, and leaned back slightly into the cushioned chair and grinned at Gemini.
"So, Little Mage, how much do you know about animals?" He asked. Gemini grinned happily; no one she knew could beat her when it came to animals!
"Well, I know some," she started off modestly. "I've always loved animals; back in Terra, I have two pet cats, two dogs and three birds. I've always done really well in classes at school when we're learning about animals, and I love watching TV shows on them, like Wild Discovery and Kratt's Creatures and things." Numair looked confused, and opened his mouth to ask. He closed it again, and then opened it and closed it again several times. Gemini giggled at how much he looked like a giant fish with a long nose. Numair closed his mouth and shook his head.
"Let's get started, hmm?" he said genially.
Gemini traced the bindings of the book Gainel had given her reverently. She grinned. "Let's get started. So, what do I do?"
Ignoring her question, Numair stared at her book. "Where did you get that?" he asked after a moment of silence.
"Gainel gave it to me. And he gave Elspeth a sword and Charri a pouch of stones." Numair peered at it; Gemini let him hold it and look through it.
"Well," he said after studying it for a moment. "It's far more advanced than the one I have given to Daine so many years ago There is more in it as well. It will come in very handy for you, Little Mage." He handed her the book back gently.
Numair got out of his chair and sat on the balcony in the sun. Gemini followed tentatively, leaving the marvelous book on his desk. Numair sat in a tailor style, and then beckoned Gemini to do the same. Gemini grinned, and sat, nearly losing her balance in her eagerness. She sat the way he did, and consciously relaxed her muscles. Numair grinned, and closed his eyes.
"Okay, so close your eyes and breathe in and out," He said, his voice soothing and comforting. He breathed in slowly, then out again as slowly. "In, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, hold, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, out, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven." He continued to breathe and speak in that tranquil voice. Gemini did as he did. She nearly fell asleep, but repeatedly pinched herself to keep herself awake. She emptied her mind, but random thoughts kept straying into her head. Her back would cramp; she'd have to reposition and try again. She'd wonder about what her friends were doing; she'd have to put it out of her mind. At last, she seemed to focus on nothing. She counted in her mind, and concentrated on her breathing. At last, after what seemed to be hours, Numair spoke out.
"Okay, that's enough for now. We're both relaxed, and tomorrow you'll be able to do it quicker. But now, let's go see some animals first-hand." He stood up, and offered her his hand. She took it, and stumbled up. She followed Numair into his workroom, and gasped.
She was surrounded by every kind of cage-able animal she could think of. Birds, reptiles, fish and others. She rushed to the hamster tank and touched her fingers to the glass. There were similar conditions to what they would have in the wild. Loose dirt was formed into a series of tunnels she could see, like one could see in an ant farm. A female waddled up to the surface and the food bowl. Gemini grinned, and walked equally eagerly to the aviary. As she stepped through the gateway into the small room that they lived in, several animals in cages nearest her looked out at her, intelligence sparkling in their eyes. Gemini grinned at Numair, and then tucked her hands behind her back so she wouldn't be tempted to reach out and invite the birds to perch on her hands. She grinned ruefully at her lost efforts as the birds flocked to her, covering her shoulders, arms and head.
'I'm really happy to see you guys,' she thought forcefully, hoping that they could hear her as they could Daine. Maybe she really had heard that sparrow this morning; maybe it hadn't been her imagination. 'But if you need to go to the bathroom, could you not do it on me? It's hard to wash out.' A few birds beside her nodded like humans, and fluttered off. Within moments, they were back, chirping noisily to one another. Gemini turned to Numair, who watched her with a grin and curiosity in his eyes.
"I can see they like you," he said in a slow drawl. Gemini inwardly shook her head. If she wasn't too careful, she could develop a major crush on her teacher, the husband of one of her idols. She grinned weakly back, and returned her attention to the birds.
She relaxed slightly, and tried to open her mind. 'Can you hear me? I'm sort of new at this, and I don't know if I can Mind-Talk with you guys.'
A parakeet chirped and flew up to her face. Gemini automatically jumped back to avoid collision, causing several birds to screech and have to fly off, but the parakeet hovered near her face for a few moments without trouble. Finally, he tired and landed on her hand, which she brought up to her face.
'You can understand us?' The parakeet cocked his bright blue face at her. 'I thought only the Daine-girl could do that.' Intrigued, all of the other birds started bombarding her with questions and comments. Each talked about something different, thinking that she was listening to only them and not the rest of the birds. Finally, Gemini put up her hands.
"Stop! Please," she added. The birds stopped and looked at her guiltily, crestfallen. Gemini bit her lip and said, "You see, all of you were talking at once. I couldn't hear all of you at the same time, and trying to was really overwhelming." The birds as a whole gave a human-like crouch, showing that they felt guilty. A few flew up to preen her hair. She grinned, and sought out each bird at a time, asking questions and comments about their habitat. In turn, they each gave startlingly intelligent answers and comments. Finally, nearly an hour later, she stepped out, a little woozy from the past events. Numair grinned.
"So, Little Mage, how is your first day talking to animals?" Gemini smiled weakly in return.
"Tiring, but wholly worth it." She grinned at him. This new power was like nothing she had known before, and she basked in the knowledge that she had it like a housecat basks in the warmth of the afternoon sun. Finally, she neared the lioness cage. It, like she remembered in the Emperor Mage book, was magically controlled to be exactly like the habitat in which the lions flourished. She walked in confidently, but stayed near the door, preferring that great felines come to her than she to them.
The alpha female walked stiff-legged up to her, her ears forward and tufted tail boldly up. The lioness studied Gemini who squatted to be closer to the lioness, yet kept her eyes down as a sign of submission. Finally, the lioness trotted closer and laid her head on Gemini's knee.
'You are like the Daine-girl, are you not, strange human?' came the powerful voice in Gemini's mind. It seemed ancient, but through just talking, she could sense that the young alpha was in her prime.
'Yes,' she said hesitantly. 'I suppose I am.' Gemini made a quick decision. 'May I look inside your mind? I'm sure Daine has already done this, but I would like to. Is this okay?'
The lioness seemed to grin; her mouth open and her tongue lolling out in quick pants. 'As you wish, strange one.' Gemini grinned, and sat down. The lioness came forward and lay beside her, her head in Gemini's lap. Gemini leaned back against the tree that had been brought in to make it seem more like their habitat, and closed her eyes.
'Now let's see,' she thought to herself. 'Something about concentrating on her thoughts and hers alone.' She ignored the quiet chatter of the other lionesses and the other animals in the air, and lay her hand on the lioness's flank to concentrate better.
Suddenly, everything seemed different. She looked up and saw the others of the pride. By scent and by look, Tari, for that was the alpha female's name, could identify the others. Rana had a nick on her left ear and a scar on her flank where she had once been kicked by a wildebeest before she came to Tortall. Khufu had nearly her entire right ear torn off; her shoulders, like Tari's, were decorated with a strange array of scars. Curious, Gemini looked inside Tari's mind to see why.
Tari and Khufu were sisters, and each battled for the place as alpha. Tari had won, but could not afford to lose such a good huntress. When they were brought to Tortall, the caged habitat was large, but not so large that the two lionesses could stay apart. So, Tari dealt with Khufu accordingly and left it at that.
Tari jumped up and play-stalked the carcass of the wildebeest before jumping on it, her razor-sharp teeth tearing up the throat even more then it was before. A bitter-sweet taste filled Gemini's mouth: the blood of the wildebeest. She winced at the taste, and nearly lost contact. But she hung determinedly on, swearing that the only time she would ever break contact with someone was when she wanted to!
Done playing, the lioness crouched by the wildebeest and tore into its abdomen. She ate slowly and leisurely; she had time, and no competitors. Gemini retched as though it were she who tore out hunks of the flesh, and she who swallowed it. Feeling more than a bit ill, she returned to her own body, and ran off a ways. Just beyond a large boulder, she threw up, futilely trying to rid herself of the sensation of eating raw meat. She spat out the bile, but its taste, as well as the wildebeest flesh taste, remained with her. She sat down hard, tears filling her eyes. 'I'm doing a lot of crying lately,' she told herself disgustedly.
'Why do you weep, strange human-cub?' asked a timid voice in her mind. Gemini looked down to see a half-grown lioness cub. Gemini tried to smile, and failed.
"I've never eaten raw meat before, is all." 'Liar,' she told herself. 'It's more than that.' The cub padded over, and laid her head on Gemini's lap, trying to comfort her. "But," she added. "It's more than that. I've never seen death before. I know it's a way of your life, but, still . . ." She trailed off. Pulling her knees up, she wept into them. A few minutes later, she pulled herself together, and stopped.
'That's better, strange human-cub,' said the cub. Gemini grinned ruefully.
"Couldn't you just call me Gemini? That's my name." The cub agreed.
'Call me Tupi, then. That's my name.' Gemini grinned, her face still a little blotchy from crying.
"Actually, there's one more thing I want to try. You know how the Daine-girl can become like you?" The cub nodded, again startling Gemini in how human it was. "Well, I want to try that." Confident, she went between two boulders where Numair wouldn't see her should he come in, and stripped off her clothes. She sat on them, tailor-style, and closed her eyes. She remembered how Tari thought, how dominant and commanding she was, yet, at the same time, motherly and gentle. How she was an incredible huntress. How she could rip into a wildebeest without a second thought; how she could fight her own sister for the crown of the plains. Gemini opened her eyes.
She looked down at herself. Tawny fur met her eyes, fur a golden russet that puffed out softly. Spots decorated her sides and belly, not as prominent as those on a leopard, perhaps, but she had them. She held a paw up to her face. Four four-inch long, razor-sharp claws met her vision, as well as the furry, rounded toes to which they were attached. The dewclaw was about a fourth the way above the paw; just slightly above where her wrist would be.
She itched to get up and run. Wasn't there a wildebeest carcass somewhere? She was hungry. And Tari... Gemini stopped and gave herself a mental shake. 'I may be a lioness, but I'm still human. Now, stop it!' That cleared her mind. She padded out, her large paws sinking slightly into the sand and leaving subtle imprints.
Tupi was by the boulder, staring cross-eyed at a rainbow-colored butterfly on her nose. The butterfly flew off, and she looked around. 'Gemini? Is that you?' Gemini nodded. 'Wow. Well, let's go see the pride!' With that, Tupi galloped off, leaving Gemini far behind. Gemini mind-grinned, and put on more speed, nearing Tupi. She pumped her legs, relishing in this body that, like Daine's experience, was more familiar than strange. Her long tail whipped as she used it for balance as she ricocheted around bushes and rocks. Tupi looked back and saw Gemini closing in. She ran faster, but Gemini, with her longer strides, soon caught up with the cub and passed her. They both continued racing. Finally, Gemini, unused to running so long, fell back. She still ran, and, turning a corner to beat Tupi... slammed into Tari. Dismayed, she lay down with her belly up, a sign of submission. Tari frowned at her.
'You should be more careful, strange lioness. Where did you come from?'
'No, no! This is Gemini. Remember me? The human cub? I shifted to become a lioness.' Tari nodded. Apparently Daine had done this before, so it was nothing new to the lioness.
'You have much to learn about our ways, then. Just, be more careful in the future!' Gemini nodded as Tari trotted off, and went back to the door. She clawed at the handle, trying to get out. 'Oh, drat it. In this form, I don't think I can. But, maybe I could, hmmm...' Gemini concentrated on changing her hands, just her hands, from paws to human hands so she could open the door and surprise Numair. She concentrated long and hard. The paws lost their round shape, grew longer and less furry with shorter claws. Gemini sighed and reached forwards to open the door. Suddenly, all the shape-changing caught up with her. Exhausted, Gemini lost her grip on the lioness form and turned human once more. "Odds bobs!" she swore, using Daine's favorite exclamation. She blushed, realizing her undressed state, and ran back to her boulder, not wanting to be caught unclothed. She dressed hastily, yanking on her breeches as tears formed in her eyes. 'Idiot!' She told herself. 'You should be happy you made it this far. Remember; it took Daine almost two years to learn how to shape-change!' Still, the pain of not being able to hold onto the form was there, snarling and ripping her skin with claws that poisoned.
She returned to the pride and bade each lioness a polite farewell. 'Come back again sometime, strange one,' said Tari. 'You have yet to learn our ways!'
'Yes, please come back!' echoed Tupi in Gemini's mind. Gemini grinned, and waved to Tupi, who inexpertly tried to do so in return. Gemini turned the handle, and walked out to meet Numair, a sad look on her face, even though she fought to hide it.
"What's wrong?" asked Numair, concerned. Gemini shook her head.
"It's nothing. I'm just tired," she responded, doing her best to be bright and chipper. Numair raised an eyebrow at her, clearly disbelieving her. Finally he sighed.
"You should probably go back to bed. It's been a tiring day for you. Go on." He handed her the book of anatomy. Gemini sighed, and turned out of the workroom, the book under her arm. She didn't notice the strange look on Numair's face as he saw that, not only were her eyes slit-pupiled, but her hair was, instead of its usual chestnut brown, a bright golden, tawny color. Numair shook his head and sat down. This human was going to be a lot more interesting than he originally thought.
* * *
Meanwhile, Elspeth followed Alanna down a series of corridors into a sunny classroom filled with desks and materials for the use of magic. She had been given a plain sheath for her new sword, and Starflame was constantly at her side. Alanna had had many questions about the gift, and Elspeth did her best to answer them.
Elspeth looked around the room in wonder; this was amazing! Alanna motioned for her to take a seat, and did so herself at the front desk. Elspeth chose a desk in the very front. Alanna grinned.
"Okay, so I don't know very much about teaching how to use the Gift, but I'll do the best I can," she confessed.
"But you taught Kourrem and Kara, and Ishak before he died, too!" protested Elspeth. Alanna frowned thoughtfully.
"I did, but that was a while ago. Also, I didn't do a very good job doing it. I mean, look what happened to Ishak. I could have stopped it, somehow..."
"Alanna, stop it. Ishak was too prideful and he got what he deserved. If he had lived, maybe he'd have been another Roger or Ozorne or somebody," concluded Elspeth. Alanna blushed, and turned to look at the blackboard to hide it.
"But..."
"Alanna, stop feeling sorry for yourself. It's doing neither of us any good." Alanna blushed.
"Okay, come here," she said, walking over to a stone-floored area, grateful for the change of subject. She gathered some tinder, and set it up in a teepee fashion; the form used for making fires. "As everybody knows," she said, grinning lopsidedly. "The fire-starting is something all Gifted people can do. Some do it more quickly, with less effort than others; some need incantations and runes and the like. For now, let's just try the way I was brought up with. Sit." Elspeth did so. "Okay, as I'm sure you know, the way to ignite a fire is to simply will it to happen. You want it to burn, so you make it." She demonstrated on another pile, which burst into flame and was burning merrily within seconds. "Your turn."
Elspeth nodded happily. She pointed to her pile of twigs, concentrating.
Nothing happened.
Elspeth shrugged and concentrated harder, ignoring any noises around her. Her head was starting to hurt. In a final try, she threw raw power at the pile. A meager puff of smoke drifted up, and faded as the wind dispersed it. Elspeth's eyes pricked with tears. Why couldn't I do it?! She swallowed a lump in her throat and turned away. Suddenly, anger boiled up. Why couldn't she light the fire? She had the Gift; the Mother had said so. She gritted her teeth and whirled on the twigs. She glanced at a book on the edge of the room and yanked. The book flew off its perch to smack into the wall at the opposite side of the room. Elspeth, in horror, watched the book fall to the ground in at least three fluttering pieces. 'How could I be so careless with a book?!' she wailed mentally.
Alanna blinked at the spectacle. "Hmm, " she murmured. She raised an eyebrow at the youngster who cowered, trying unsuccessfully to make herself invisible. "Not bad. You got a, er, reaction, which was more than I could do when I first tried." Elspeth gave a weak smile, still frightened of her Gift.
Elspeth took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. She would not let this fear rule her, as it had Alanna. She would master this Gift, and nothing would stop her.
Alanna smiled, and got more twigs. "Keep practicing. You'll get better at it." She nodded, and then went to talk to a novice who had called her aside. As Alanna talked, Elspeth struggled with her fire-starting.
"Try calming down," advised the returning Alanna. "And try almost meditating. You'll get it." She stopped to watch Elspeth. Elspeth took a deep breath, and closed her eyes, stretching. She opened her eyes again, and stared at the twigs. A smell of sulfur danced about her nose; a reddish glow came from the pile.
"Burn, baby, burn!" cried Elspeth excitedly. Smoke drifted up, and suddenly, a fire was burning merrily. Elspeth grinned as a huge man kneeled beside her and gave her a slap on the back, throwing her off balance and nearly causing her to pitch forwards into the new fire.
"Great job," said Alanna. "That'll do for now. Elspeth, I suppose you know of Lord Sir Raoul?" She jerked her head to the enormous bear-like man who dwarfed the objects and furniture around him.
"Yes, I do know of him," replied Elspeth solemnly. "M'lord," she said respectfully, after standing up and dipping a bow. Raoul grinned.
"Just call me Sir Raoul. I'd like you to call me Raoul, but," he made a face. "I doubt the my old etiquette teacher would approve. Anyway, I'll be helping Alanna teach you the basic fighting arts, along with the Shang Horse, known as Hakuin. But, for now," he stood up, bowing slightly. "I'll let you return to your lessons. Carry on," he called over his shoulder as he retreated. Elspeth grinned.
"So, let's work on fire-starting," she chirped, and, now that she had the hang of it, easily lit another batch of twigs into a bright fire.
* * *
Charri followed Duke Baird into a small library. She blinked a few times, running her fingers lightly over the spines of a few books nearest her. Baird smiled slightly. "Do you like to read?"
"Hell, yeah!" She exclaimed without thinking. She did a double take, and blushed hard. "I, uh, mean, ummm, yes, I, uh, do. Sir. Duke Baird, sir. Ummm. You know, I'm going to stop now, and go curl up under my rock and die now."
Baird's face turned a deep scarlet. He bit his lip, and his shoulders shook with silent laughter. He gave up, and threw back his head and laughed. After a few moments, he wiped the tears away from his eyes and gave a last watery chuckle. "I haven't done that in years," he admitted ruefully. "Not just let go and laugh like that." Charri gave him a big, sunny smile.
"So, how much do you know about healing, Charisma?" Charri grimaced at her full name, but let it slide.
"Not much, I'll have to admit. I do know that you sort of will it to happen, and you will this fire or something into the other person, healing them. I'm not really sure..." Duke Baird smiled.
"You've heard about meditating, right?" he questioned. Charri nodded. "Well, let's try it." Baird sat, cross-legged, and closed his eyes, his hands in his lap. Charri followed suit hesitantly. She took a deep breath, and let it out, slowly counting to ten.
The next thing she knew, Baird was shaking her shoulders slightly, an amused look on his face. "Charisma? Wake up," he mock-commanded her. Charri blinked and looked up at him.
"What's up?" she asked. Baird chuckled.
"You fell asleep." Was all he said. Charri looked horrified, then amused, then a combination of both, obviously wondering how she was supposed to react. Baird shook his head ruefully.
"Okay, so you're obviously relaxed," he said wryly. |
