A/N: This is my second generation fic. The pairings are mine; you know, how I’d do it.

Been a while, yeah...Just thought I'd wait a bit. BTW, I now have a website (w00t)!!

Read- Enjoy- Review!!!!!

Hello.

My name is Kiara Cloud. Don’t ask me how I got that name; I don’t know. Anyway, I have fair skin, long white hair, brown eyes, and I glow in the dark ever-so-slightly (which makes trying to sneak out of the house pointless). I’m short and slender, and when I wear white, Mom says I look like a little ghost. Yes, little. I’m about seven right now.

Speaking of my parents…Mom’s a healer and Father’s a mage…and a diplomat. If that’s the case, then why the Hells do we live in the Grand Forest in a giant, hollow tree? I live in the upper levels, where Father says his room used to be, and sometimes, I can hear them talking about this ‘Four Pillar’ stuff. Father’s one of the Four, apparently.

You may have heard of my parents. Ezelyn and Nia Cloud. Yeah, them. Part of the group that went to Aris, led by Queen Amirilla (who was a Princess back then), rescued King Jeris (back when he was a Prince, of course), and defeated the evil Arissian Emperor Izreik (how and for what reason, they never told me). Yep, it’s them. You can imagine that if I played with village kids (which I don’t, and only because their parents fear mine and me) it would give me some pretty high expectations to live up to. I mean, my parents saved the country! Wouldn’t their daughter do something equally drastic?

My friends are few. Very few. I mean, I live in the Grand Forest. Most people think I’m cursed or something, even if they live in the Forest too. Idiots.

My friends, you ask? Who are they? I’m getting there; hold your horses.

My friends…ah, my dear, dear friends. First and foremost, Wulfira Windsong. Yes, she is a shifter. How ever did you guess? We’ve known each other forever and a day; she’s seven, too. She has dirty-blonde hair that goes to her waist, and she’s very tan. Her eyes are the color of dirt; the rich, dark kind that Mom always has in her gardens. And she’s a stocky little critter; whenever we fight, she always knocks me flat on my butt. And then Father laughs.

More pals are Princess Alanora, age nine, and her younger brother (by two years), Kade. Both are fair-skinned and have long brown hair (yes, both the boy and the girl), but Alanora’s is more red-gold and Kade’s is more…gray. (Yes, gray.) Alanora is a cheerful little girl with gray eyes that are always laughing. Always. I don’t know how it’s possible for eyes to laugh, but believe me, they do.

Kade takes after his father in a lot of traits; he’s silent and brooding a lot of the time; Mom tells me that’s how his father used to act. In fact, she says that he looks like a miniature Sorlo, what with his hair up in that ponytail. He’s even got his dad’s glare (although it’s not as impressive because he’s so young). He’s got his mother’s extravagant blue eyes, though.

Speaking of siblings, there’s always mine, Lyam, age three. He’s got Mom’s hair and Father’s eyes, and everyone always says he’s so cute. But he’s just annoying.

And then there’s eight-year-old Timith. We don’t hate each other, Gods no! We just……have a tendency to get into yelling matches. Mother says we like each other. That just gets us even more worked up because, believe it or not, we are just friends. We have another tendency, all five of us.

We reenact our parents’ adventures. But it’s even sillier because there are only five of us and there were ten when our parents and their pals battled the Emperor. So we split up the parts. I’m usually Mom and Father. Alanora gets the parts of Amirilla and Kaida; Kade takes Sorlo’s and Dae’s (which is really funny, because Mom says the two fought a couple of times, and it’s particularly funny to watch Kade yell at himself). Wulfira is Mirrenia and Acuzzy (she wanted to be him!) , and Timith is Jeris and Phez (I’ll admit, he makes a really good goddess). We rotate being Izreik and all the other bad guys.

Today, we’re going over the part where they get kidnapped by the evil mercenary Bozn. Our audience consists of Lyam (too young to appreciate it), Dae, and all our parents.

Right now, all five (or ten, whatever) of us are ‘asleep’, lying there on the nursery room floor. We’ve divided the room in half with a wiggly line drawn in chalk, and we’re on the land part. Then, Wulfira, who is also playing the part of Bozn, gets up and puts a large, stuffed bear where she was, then runs across the room to our ‘boat’, a large, unused crib.

Pushing it across the floor, she stops near the land-line and leaps onto ‘land’ again, holding a lot of string. She them proceeds to walk over to me and tie two loops of string on both of my ankles (one for Mom, and one for Father). Then she heads over to the bear, sits down, and ties string around her ankles. (Only once has she ever tripped over the string.) Then she gets up and goes to first Timith, then Kade. She gets the string around his left ankle and goes onto his right before he begins to ‘struggle’.

At this cue, we all begin to ‘struggle’ as well against our invisible adversaries, and I lean over and rock the bear as well.

Then we all get up and shuffle over to one of the ‘land’ corners, where we have someone hold up a stick and Wulfira-as-Bozn ties up to it. Then she resumes the rolls of Mirrenia and Acuzzy.

Seeing as we don’t know what was said that night, we just start mumbling amongst ourselves, hoping we look like we’re plotting something. Then, we act like we fall asleep.

Here comes the weird part. Our parents and their pals were carried onto the ship when they were asleep, but since we don’t have any extras to ‘carry’ us on (we don’t want the originals involved), we just act.

We pick ourselves up off the floor, heads lolling, eyes half-closed, top halves semi-limp. If I could see us now…I can only imagine how we look. I hear Father stifle a laugh. In fact, I think they’re all laughing at us, inwardly.

So we pick us up and carry ourselves to the ‘boat’. One or two of us clamber in and the skit ends.

Father gives in to a roar of laughter, soon joined by Dae. Although both are slender, delicate men, Father has a deep voice, but not as deep as Acuzzy’s, and Dae has a voice that is slightly less deep than Fathers. Amirilla runs over and collects her two children in a hug (which Alanora returns and Kade tries to wiggle out of). Sorlo is grinning like a maniac, shaking his head slowly, and I just spot Kaida grabbing Timith and swinging him about in the air before I am swept into my Mom’s hug.

“One day,” she whispers in my ear, “You will be great. I can tell.”

10 YEARS LATER

It’s been about 22 years since Izreik was defeated, and I, in the meantime, have become—

A dancer. Yes, a dancer. I’ve hardly grown, so it’s kinda ridiculous, but I’ve got the moves. My brother’s a bard, of all things, and as for the others? Oh, Wulfira…well, no one really knows what she does. Timith’s become an excellent swordsman and is thinking of joining the Kings Guard (you must be nineteen to join, though), and Alanora and her brother are still Royalty. Actually, Kade’s becoming a very talented mage, but he’s still Royalty, so…yeah.

We still act out the adventures, and we still are who we usually are. Only now, we have other friends as well, so we’ve kinda become separate.

My new friend is Kian-wa, a dancer from across the sea, a land called…um…well, I never can remember it. She has long, ebony hair (which I am extremely jealous of), fair skin, and a sweet disposition. She’s graceful and slim and willowy, all the things a dancer should be.

Today, Kian-wa’s troop of dancers (which I am in; it consist of us two and, oh, ten others) is performing in the capital, in an inn/tavern. I don’t know the name, so don’t ask. So all the tables have been pushed to the sides, leaving a nice clear spot right in the center.

Looking about before the show starts, I spot a couple of people sitting at one of the tables near the back. Gathering my skirts, I wander over, recognizing them.

“Kade, what the Hells are you doing here?”

He simply shrugs and gestures to his blonde companion. “He put me up to it.”

I smile as I meet the coal-black eyes of the heavy, blonde, bearded man. “Acuzzy. I should’ve known.”

He grinned. “Shoulda, but didn’.”

“You accent is still atrocious as always.” Duh.

Within moments, Kian-wa is calling me back. I get changed in a second or two, then we wait. After being announced, Kian-wa flounces onstage, and we soon follow.

The first dance, a tribute to the Gods, goes by in a whirl of white and gray silk (that’s what we’re all wearing, by the way) and silver beads (what we have on the hems of our lovely outfits). After that, we change into our fire-dance outfits. No, we are not actually messing with fire, but using the motion of our bodies and the red, orange, and yellow ensembles, we’re supposed to look like dancing flames. It actually looks really neat, or so I’m told. Following that is the Fight. This is actually based off of the Arissian/Dendurr incident that Mom and Father were in.

I’m lucky. I got the part of the tigress. Another dancer, Dailorn, she’s the dragon. We don our costumes (everyone has a part. Kian-wa is the unicorn); I’m wearing a black-striped, blue costume, and she’s got a scaly red one. The Queen helped design the costumes, so they’re pretty damn accurate. We put on the matching headdresses (they match our outfits, not each other), as well as the cloth on our wrists and ankles. Then we wait.

There it is; the gong. (Yes, we have a gong.) Everyone except me, Dailorn, and someone else heads onstage and begins.

“Good luck, Kiara,” Dailorn murmurs to me.

“Good luck, Dailorn.”

Our cue. We both slink onstage, me from the right, Dailorn from the left.

The music speeds up and we meet in the center and begin circling around each other. I step up and right, she goes down and left. Seeing as I’m the cat, I have prowling steps and gestures, head high. She’s crouching, with low slouching motions.

The music speeds up and we both leap in, clapping our hands five times in succession (onetwo-three-four-five) to signify a crash, although we don’t actually touch at all. Leaping out again, we circle one more time before leaping in again. Kian-wa takes the cue and leaps in as well. Dailorn snaps out her hand, and Kian-wa leaps back, slumping (very dramatically) amongst the audience. Collana, wearing the Cerberus headdress, and Tianu, wearing the long snake-dress and veils, vault to the sides. All the remaining dancers, wearing drifting white silk with the symbols for Fire, Water, Earth, and Air on them, jump onto the tables (much to the amusement of the audience) and begin a fast beat on the wood using their feet.

I am ‘swiped aside’ and fling myself onto one of the tables. Dailorn proceeds to first ‘swipe’ Tianu into the audience, then as Collana turns on her (dancing very well even with the heavy three headed dog headdress), Dailorn pulls a length of red silk out of a pouch and throws it on her. Collana ‘collapses’ into the spectators.

Here we’ve altered it from the real fight, but only slightly. I leap from my perch and land in front of Dailorn. She lunges forward and gently grabs the front of my outfit. In a controlled fall, I lean back, she leans forward; it’s very convincing, looks like she is actually ‘choking’ me. I lean back farther, bending my knees and gently resting my weight on a hand I place on the ground.

She leans forward as well, and I fall (heavily. Oof!) onto the floor, then she strikes a single dramatic pose. Then, Thurinalse leaps out in a flurry of gold silk. She’s playing the part of Mira. She grabs Dailorn’s hand and, with much play-struggling, drags her offstage. The dance ends.

We all get up (and off) and stand in the center facing out. We bow and rush off, to much applause.

After the performance, we all change into our regular clothing and mingle with the audience; I beeline to where Kade and Acuzzy sit. There is another person seated at their table; a person in a heavy black cloak with the hood up. I can’t see anything but—

White hair. White hair like mine. It’s longer than mine, and falls from beneath the hood in long, straight strands. Kade glances over, then, spotting me, turns and introduces his companion.

“Kiara, this is one of my friends from the Academy.”

“I can introduce myself, Kade.” The voice that comes from beneath the hood is light and feminine, with dark undertones that are somehow not unkind. A pair of indigo (not violet, not sapphire, indigo) eyes stare at me from beneath the hood.

“I am Kassix Moridox. Your performance was very well done.” I blush at the compliment.

“C…could you take off the cloak, please?” Odd. I’m usually bold, not meek. This person must be something.

The person in question chuckles. “No, I’m afraid I can’t. People would stare,” she (I’m sure it’s a she!) pauses and seems to consider something. “Unless…”

Something seems to change; I’m not sure what. She closes her eyes and takes off the cloak to reveal the drabbest girl I have ever seen.

Dirt brown hair goes to her shoulders, hanging limply; her skin is tan. The clothing is what would catch attention, but then something seems to change within and without, and her attire is just as drab as the rest of her; a plain, brown cotton dress.

Her eyes, when she opens them, are a brilliant and intelligent mahogany, contrasting strongly with the rest of her.

She sighs. “There.” Then she latches onto my arm and, after a glance at Kade, drags me away. I called out, “Tell Kian-wa I’ll be gone for a while!” He nods.

Now, then. How long would I be gone? I turn to my companion and was startled to see that the drab girl was gone, replaced by a girl with ebony hair that was the same length and brown skin. The mahogany eyes were the same though.

“Oh, I’m sorry…” I trail off. Was this the same girl?

She smiles. “Sorry to have startled you. Come, we need to talk.” Oddly enough, she appears to be.

I shiver as everything seems to ripple, changing without and within again. There I go! I’m not even sure what I mean by within and without! Or at least, it’s really hard to explain.

When I look around again, we’re in some sort of room. I’m positive it’s very big, but I couldn’t really tell. You see, it was pitch black inside of wherever-we-were.

I hear footsteps, then a light flickers into being, soon followed by another, and another, and another. A large (what did I tell you?), airy room is revealed, with pillars lining the walls like guards. Glancing to each end, I see some sort of raised platform with an altar at one and a very big set of double doors at the other.

Finally spotting my companion, I am startled once again.

Her hair is mid-back length, tied back loosely, and dusty white. (Not pale gray, dusty white. There is a difference.) Her skin is a matching shade, like an albinos’, but it was her eyes that caught me.

Indigo.

Yes, indigo. Like that glowing set she had earlier.

Her clothes, you ask? Fine. She had wide-legged pants (it looked kinda like a skirt) that were black, gathered at the top but not at the ankles. Her shirt was wrap-around with broad sleeves that were open around the hands. A black sash completed the outfit. (no shoes.)

She walks toward me and begins to speak.

“Kiara,” she says, “I’m one to be blunt, so I’ll get directly to the point. I am a Shifter.”

“A shape-shifter, or a shifter?” Apparently, she spotted my blank look (or my question, or whatever) and continues.

“No. A Shifter. One who can completely alter shape, appearance, and size. Immortal, or practically so.”

I don’t believe her. “How old are you? Where are we?”

“I’m older, and younger, than you are. Something…keeps me eternally sixteen, but I’ve been sixteen for about…12 years? Does that answer your question? Oh, and we’re in the Temple of Silence, dedicated to the Goddess of Solitare.” Odd. She seems utterly serious. Either she’s insane, or telling the truth.

I guess I’ll go with the latter.

“Why do you wanna talk to me?”

She sits down and gestures for me to sit next to her. “We don’t have time for everything, so…”

Obediently, I sit next to her. I wonder why…I was never obedient before.

“I’m going to be perfectly blunt.” She sighs. “There’s something wrong with me. Kiara, I want you to kill me.”

What? “What?”

“I want you to kill me,” she repeats.

“Why?” No, really, I wanna know. “Why me?”

“I have my reasons.” Humph. Yeah, that’s going to make me wanna kill you.

“Can we please go somewhere else? This place is starting to creep me out,” I whine. No, really, it is. It’s a creepy place.

She nods and her eyes meet mine. Everything around us shifts. Next minute, the two of us are standing next to Kade. How the Hells we got there, I have no idea; but there we are, and the oddest thing is that Kade appears to be perfectly okay with two white-haired girls popping out of thin air. We did pop out of thin air, right? Wait! She’s back to the drab girl, so it’s not white hair…

“Ah, Kassix.” He greets her like an old friend, with arms open. Well, they probably are old pals, but me ‘n Kade are older pals. Right?

“You two are just on time. I told Mother that I’d have a couple of guests to meet her and Father.” Am I the only one who doesn’t know what’s going on?

“How long were we gone?” she asks, falling in step with his long-legged stride easily (he’s gotten tall). I hurry to catch up, not even noticing the scenery.

“Oh, only a couple of moments. I’m surprised you didn’t take longer. Kiara’s usually very hard to persuade.” He’s smiling???

I run up and interject hotly, “She didn’t persuade me. All she did was confuse me.”

Kade and Kassix exchange looks over my head. Sometimes, I really hate being short!!

We come across Amirilla and Sorlo in (where else?) the library, poring over some old, smelly book with what appears to be bloodstains. They, of course, are not bothered by it. Adults.

The Queen looks up from her research with a smile, while her spouse is apparently unaware of the fact that we are even there. I always said he was odd.

“Ah, Kade. Nice to see you home. And Kiara, good to see you. How have you been?” Amirilla sweeps up with extreme grace. I’ve always been envious of her. Long, thick red-gold hair, currently in a loose ponytail, and creamy skin accent her brilliant blue eyes, which are kind. She’s a nice woman, not too tall, not too short, but just right in-between, but she has a terrible temper. Or that’s what Father says.

I curtsey smoothly. “I’m very good, your Highness. I’m a dancer now.” She probably knows that already, but hey, no harm done in repeating it.

Sorlo finally looks up. In contrast with his wife, his light brown hair brushes his shoulders, straight as ever (he doesn’t have it in his trademark ponytail at the moment). Imposing dark gray eyes stare out from a clean-shaven face tanned by sunlight. His features, like his wife’s, border on delicate, and at the moment, he’s smirking. Not smiling, smirking. Why is he smirking??? Whatever. I’m kinda glad he didn’t start talking to me. I mean, it’s not that he frightens me breathless…okay, maybe it is. Frankly, he scares me.

“Kade. Kiara.” His gaze settles on Kassix. “You I think know. Who are you?” He props his elbow on the table and his head on his fist, waiting for the answer. The smirk, thankfully, is gone, replaced by one of the things that makes Sorlo so intimidating; his stare.

She’s not unnerved and falling to pieces. Why is she not unnerved?? Instead, she bows (bows, mind you) and smiles. “I am Kassix Moridox.”

“Ah. That name I do know, and not for a good reason. Why are you here?” Just what I want to know!

She’s blunt again. “I want Kiara to kill me.”

Ohhh……baaaad thing to say.

Both of the adults immediately lock their stares on her. Amirilla’s wasn’t as freakishly probing as her husbands’, but still…both of them. And they’re pretty intimidating already.

“Kade…” Sorlo’s voice is low and extremely dangerous. His son bites his lip. Yes, burn, you dirty little trickster.

“Yeah?”

“Get Ezan. Now.” Kade scampers off. Hey, with that tone of voice, I wouldn’t have argued either, and that’s saying something.

Awkwardness. When Father finally arrives, Sorlo is perched on top of one of the bookshelves (yes, I said on top of), reading something (well, I’m not sure. He may have been watching us.); Amirilla was back to translating what she was reading; Kade is stuck in the prongs of the chandelier, put there by his mother; and yours truly is hiding back in the bookshelves, hoping that when Father gets here, he won’t chew me out for wandering off with a stranger.

“KIARA!” Damn. When the Queen calls, I come. And wander over I do, creeping out from behind a shelf.

“Yah?” What? Is that all I can say?? Yeesh.

Father is standing by the table. I mumble something incoherent and lower my head. When he speaks, it’s that low, disappointed tone that I hate so damned much.

“Kiara. I would have thought you knew better than to wander about with a stranger.”

“Kade introduced us!” I reply hotly, raising my voice. Father turns his gaze upward and makes a twirling gesture with his finger. The chandelier Kade is stuck in slowly begins to spin. Sorlo leaps from the bookshelf with a soft, “Ezan, please don’t do that.”

“Fine.” Kade stops spinning, then is ungracefully jerked from the chandelier’s grasp by the air and dropped on the floor. Serves him right. Amirilla winces and looks up, saying, “I put him up there for a reason.”

“You want him back up?” Yes! Yes! Get him outta our hair for a while!

“No, it’s okay.” Drats. I try to sneak off, to no avail; I bump into an invisible wall. One of Amirilla’s wards. Yeesh.

Sorlo murmurs something to Father; Father narrows his eyes and turns away to glare at Kassix. O insanity, take me away.

“You,” he advances upon the shifter menacingly, “Stay away from my daughter.”

“You don’t understand.” No, we don’t. Kindly enlighten us.

“Then make us understand,” Father replies through gritted teeth. I attempt desperately to escape. Attention I can stand, but when it comes to life or death, count me out!

“I……” she hesitates. Bad idea.

“Please tell.” Oh, Gods. Sorlo’s so creepy. No, with that tone of voice, and that look, he really is scary. Extremely scary.

“She’s innocent. Completely innocent.”

Father slams her into the ward. “And you wish to destroy that innocence by forcing her to kill you?!” Eek. Father’s as scary as Sorlo, or at least, more violent.

“No,” she snarls. “I can’t explain it, but I need one of good blood and pure spirit.”

It appears that Sorlo understands what she means, because the whip he is so famed for is suddenly wrapped around her throat. He tosses a little, red leather book at her, face emotionless.

“Pages thirteen though fifteen.” Huh? He wants her to read something?

She puts her hand on the book and closes her eyes. What’s she doing? Whatever it is, she nods and opens her eyes. At her reaction, his eyes narrow, those eerily dark gray eyes.

“Blood matters?” he murmurs, disregard showing on his features. Shaking his head, the whip disappears (how in all the nine Hells does he do that?) and he stalks over to her, hissing something in her ear and snatching the book from her at the same time. My, but isn’t he intimidating.

Father glares at Kassix as the King waves a hand over the ward and steps through. I try to follow, but it’s already reinforced. Fire-Forsaken Hells!

I turn to discover Amirilla trying to hold Father back from Kassix, who is sitting against the barrier calmly.

“Oh, no point. He can’t kill me.” Arrogant bitch.

Father’s retort? “I’ll try my best.” Oooh, good one, Pop.

My sarcasm’s going to get me killed someday.

Wulfira found me (where else?) in my fave spot. It was an abandoned cottage in the Grand Forest that was kept in good condition.

I love it there. The entire place breathes rest and relaxation, a place where one could ignore all their woes and worries. Yeesh; I’m starting to sound like my brother.

Anywho, she finds me and (somehow) persuades me to come down off the roof, which I do. Duh. Then, she persuades me (again! How does she do it??) to come with her. She leads me to…someplace. Fine, I’ll tell. We went back to Cirrion (it’s a nice city, but I much prefer quiet places) and wandered about one of the bazaars. I could tell that Wulfira was much more uncomfortable than I was; I mean, she’s a horse.

“Why are we here?” I ask for the third time, but she just shakes her head and leads me down a shaded street, then down an alley. Why are we going down here? I don’t want to go down here!

Before I know it, we’re standing in front of an open booth. Sitting on the other side, one wrinkled hand on a crystal ball with a faint blue sheen, is a grandmother-looking old woman. Her hair is white and swept past her shoulder in a tight braid, and her tan skin is wrinkled and leathery-looking, but her laughing green eyes look as youthful as ever. Hm. Don’t see many people with green eyes that bright. Wait…are they glowing?

The woman grabs my hand and looks into my eyes, smiling gently.

“I got my brother to pull a few strings,” she murmurs. What the Hells? Why am I not running by now?

“My, my, dearie, no need to be nervous. You do remind me of him, though.” She sighs. Remind you of who? Of course I’m going to be nervous!

“Wulfira, what were you thinking?!?” I hiss through clenched teeth. She laughs, laughs, I tell you! And tells me that she thought it could help.

“Mm…you’ll have a very difficult decision to make soon,” the old woman says, half-closing her eyes. “But no need to worry until then. You need to relax, then you will make the right choice. All will become clear soon.”

WHAT?!? What the Fire-Forsaken Hells is going on???

“Go home, little one, Keeper of the Names. Comfort the pale girl.” Kassix? And I may be short, but you have no right to call me little, missy!

Yanking my hand from hers, I stalk off, followed by Wulfira.

“Kiara, wait!”

I ignore my best friend and try to remember how we got there. When I stop at an intersection, she catches up and grabs my arm. I try to pull away.

“Leave me alone!” I snarl.

She looks slightly hurt, but hangs on. “Kiara…”

“What?” I look away, tugging on my arm.

“What’s wrong? Can’t you tell me?”

I turn to glare at her, but my anger withers and dies as I stare into her warm brown eyes. Wait! I can’t not be angry with her! I turn away again, yank my arm out of her grasp (regardless of how much it hurts) and stomp off, back out of the city, with her following me all the while like an obedient little lapdog.

We reach the hut again before she suddenly calls out:

“Why do you think you can’t tell me things anymore, Kia?”

I halt in my tracks. The sound of my old childhood nickname… ‘Keep a stiff upper lip, Kiara…’ Why is it not working, dammit?!?

When I feel her hand on my shoulder, I spin about and bury my face in her shoulder, crying.

Oh, Wulfira. I’m sorry I kept secrets from you; I’m sorry I kept to myself! I’ll tell you. I’ll tell you it all.

I relate the story to her as I have told it to you. Only, I’m weeping into her shirt and talking in a shaky, hiccupy voice frequently interrupted by harsh sobs. She strokes my hair softly and we sink to the ground.

“It’s okay, Kia,” she coos soothingly. “Let it all out.”

“A-an’ I dunno whu-what to doooo,” I finish, bawling. We sit in silence, only disturbed by my crying.

When we return to the palace, we look as if we were simply walking. It took me a while to look normal; I’m not one of the people who looks pretty when they cry.

A guard pulls me aside as we pass him.

“Yes?” What is it?

“Lady Kiara,” He hesitates, and I assume he stumbles a bit on what to say next. “His—Lord Sorlo would like to see you in the library.” Oh yeah. He said he hated being called Highness, and if they had to call him something, then call him Lord. Wait, what!?!?

He wants to see ME???

Hiding my anxiety behind a passive mask, I nod graciously. “Thank you.” Turning to me friend, I smile ruefully. “See if you can find that brother of mine, Lyam. Mom wanted to see him in the gardens.” Wulfira nods and we head our separate ways.

When I reach the library, I hesitate before turning the knob. Closing the door gently, I look about. Sitting at the table are the two monarchs; Amirilla is looking through a sheaf of papers, and her mate is writing in a small dove-gray book. They don’t notice me, but confer in low voices.

“It has something to do with blood matters, Ami. Check the pages near the back of—wait, better yet, check Jessith’s tome of Dark magic. That’ll have something.”

“Have you seen my pages on sacrifices? I haven’t seen them anywhere and I’ve got a feeling that they’re what I want…”

“Didn’t you lend them to Kai?”

“No, those were the pages about—” She stops, having looked up and spotted me. “Oh! Hello, Kiara.”

Sorlo mutters something and continues writing. His wife glances at him reproachfully and mutters back. I stay standing by the door, completely unnerved as the two hold a fierce argument in whispers. He appears to win; she stalks toward me and I quickly move so my back is against the wall.

Amirilla opens the door. “I’ll get her,” she sneers playfully. “But don’t expect me to stick around. I can’t believe you’re doing this with her around.” She storms out, slamming the door behind her; I wince.

I stay by the door, and the Kind stays at the table, writing. The only sounds are the grandfather clock in the corner and the scribbling of his pen. We remain like that for a while, then, during a lull in his jotting, the King sighs and leans back, setting the pen down and rubbing his eyes.

“I’m not going to bite, Kiara Cloud, daughter of Ezelyn Cloud.” Wow, he used my full title. I shake my head, look down, shuffle sideways and mumble something incoherent, even to me.

“Kiara, look at me. I don’t want to talk to your hair, nice as it is.”

I look up and meet his eyes. That stare…so creepy, so hypnotizing…

“You don’t understand what’s going on, do you?”

I shake my head again. Nossir, I don’t. Care to enlighten me? My voice has abandoned me. Traitor.

He shuts the book he was writing in before I can peek at the contents, a thoughtful expression on his face. Holding my gaze with his own, he asks softly, “Do you know what blood matters are?”

I shake my head again and, miraculously, my voice returns. “I don’t have any magic, so I never felt any need to learn about it.”

“Not a terribly wise decision on your part, young lady. If you don’t know what you’re up against, how will you counter it?” Oh, shut it, smarty.

I shrug, then curiosity gets the better of me. “What ARE blood matters?”

He closes his eyes and sighs heavily. “Blood matters are…” Rubbing his temples, he glances over at me before continuing. “How can I put this…blood matters are, I suppose, a certain…category…of magic. If a spell is a blood matter, that means it need blood. They’re dangerous because they either require sacrifices or the users blood, usually to enhance. If someone isn’t careful, however, the spell can drain the user of their life-energy.”

I cringe at the thought. Who would want to do that??

Spotting my disgust, he smiles ruefully. “Usually it’s hard to explain, but it looks like you got the idea. The trick with it is to use as much as you need, no more, no less.”

Shuddering, I ask, “And how do you know this?” Although I’m not too sure I want to know.

Luckily, the door opens at the same time his mouth does, and a sharp command is issued. “Sorlo, don’t go scaring the girl with talk.” Amirilla stands in the doorway, hands on her hips and eyes narrowed dangerously.

He shrugs and gets up from the table. “We need to go to another room, dear; the books are too valuable.” What? We’re going somewhere??

Kassix peers into the room over Amirilla’s shoulder. Catching my eye, she mouths, ‘What’s going on?’

I shrug.

Sorlo advances and, reaching his wife, pulls her close and whispers into her ear. Frowning, she shakes her head.

“I can’t believe you’re going to do this. Why?”

Sorlo stared over her shoulder and met Kassix’s eyes. The two silently glared at each other before he finally replied. “I have an old score to settle. A very old score.”

Numbly, Kassix and I follow the monarch; his wife stays in the library and calls out, “I’ll look through Jessith’s tome. Kiara had better return unharmed, Ravenwing!”

Ravenwing?

I lose track of where the Hells we’re going, but due to the many staircases, I can safely assume we’re headed to the dungeons. Wait, the dungeons?? That means---

Spiders! EEEEW!!!

We finally reach the dungeons, and I’m on sharp watch for any nasty little spiders. The king gestures into a room, and Kassix enters first; I follow, not wanting to anger the scary monarch. He follows me and shuts the door, locks it, and pockets the key. WE’RE LOCKED IN?? WITH ALL THE NASTY SPIDERS?? NOOOOOOO!! LEMME OUT!

Sorlo suddenly moves with a speed I have never seen before, and I leap backwards into a corner, forgetting the bugs and dust as I watch the scene unfolding:

He strikes her fiercely across the face and she staggers with a yelp.

“Dammit, how dare you! How dare you!!”

He pummels her and she sinks to the floor. I am horror-stricken and my feet appear to have grown roots, since I am fixed to the floor.

“Come out and fight me, coward! How dare you!!”

Kicking her, he stands back, and I suddenly get the feeling that I REALLY shouldn’t be here.

Kassix shivers, then looks up, grinning.

“Oh! This is an unexpected surprise.” What is? She sits up and stares at the King. What? What am I missing out on??

“Dear Korem. I forgot to thank you for letting me out. Thank you, my first pet.” Pet? Letting who out? I turn to look at Sorlo. As expected, his fists are clenched and he’s glaring at the girl.

“Shut up,” he hisses. “I was never your pet.” What is going on???

“Oh?”

“I never should have released you. You betrayed me!” What? I don’t get it!

She tsk-tsk’s him, shaking her head like Father used to when I was little and had silly ideas.

“I never betrayed you. I tricked you, and believe me, it was fun.”

I STILL don’t get it.

“Shut up!!” He raises his hand to hit her, but as he swings, she calmly catches his arm. Tightening her fingers around his wrist, she grins.

“That’s right, you never got to know me fully. Pity. If you had—” Her fingers tighten even more, and he winces. “—You wouldn’t have tried anything—” She stands up and shoves him to the floor, hanging onto his wrist with, what I could see, a vise-like grip. “--Stupid.”

She quickly grabs onto his arm with her other hand, so that she had one on his wrist and one up near the elbow. I shudder; she has a calm smile upon her lips, looking for all the world like a saint. Her actions show otherwise, however; her hands bend his arm like mine would a piece of wood. I quickly look away, figuring out what would happen next.

“Dear Kassie doesn’t really fight me anymore, and it would be best for you to follow her example.” The smooth voice was tinted with malice.

“Nnnnggg…st-stop it…”

“Don’t order me about, pet.”

A loud crack, accompanied by a yell of pain, made me shut my eyes. Yep, just like a piece of wood.

“What’s better than death? Pain. The slower and longer, the better.” I heard a thump as she released the monarch. “Do you know how I came to dearest Kassie, Korem?”

I clap my hands over my ears in a desperate attempt to block out the whimpers of pain and the soothing, malevolent voice, but to no avail. Is it drilling into my head??

“She was lonely, and she wished for someone who would never leave her alone, someone who would always be with her, at her side… I heard her pleas. I came, and I twisted our spirits together, so that we would never truly be apart. She was herself and I was myself, but we were one.

“There were always attempts to separate us, but they were pathetic. Those fools never seemed able to grasp the concept that she and I were pet and master; you wouldn’t separate pet and master, would you?” Her voice became silky smooth and unnervingly close. Her victim had become frighteningly quiet.

“The one time someone actually succeeded in pulling me from her, I took her with me and she became comatose. They had to let us back.”

I heard footsteps, but they didn’t come close to me, appearing to be circling. I could only assume that Kassix, or whoever she was, was walking around Sorlo, or Korem, as she had called him.

“You can’t banish a divine demon; only bind it. And bound I am, by this girl and her powers. I could kill her, but then I’d be lonely and take another pet, and you wouldn’t like that, now would you, Korem?”

Something falls heavily; the sound was soon followed by another loud CRACK, as well as something clattering across the room.

“A dagger is a nasty thing to play with, dearie,” she snarls. “Try something witless like that again and I’ll break your leg like I did your arms. But you know what I love best about Kassie? Her powers. I can break both your legs, then heal them and your arms and start all over.”

I wince, and hear a whimper.

‘Kassix, stop it, stop it, please, oh, stop it don’t hurt him anymore don’t hurt me Kassix come back come back please Kassix come back—’

The door is blown, literally, off it’s hinges and hits the wall behind me. My eyes snap open and I take everything in at a glance. A terrified, darting glance, but a glance nonetheless.

Amirilla in the doorway, with Mirrenia and (EEP!) Father behind her; Kassix with her back to the trio, standing above Sorlo, who is huddled on the floor like a small child.

Father spots me and moves as if to push the Queen to the side; I hold my arms out and whimper, “Daddy…”

Gods, I feel like a two-year-old.

Kassix smirks, never taking her eyes off the wounded figure on the floor. “Well, Korem, looks like your reinforcements have arrived. I’ll be back later for some more fun.”

She collapses to the floor at the same moment he yells, “D’nethra--!!!”

That name sounds familiar, and not in a good way. But I don’t care. Father and the others run into the room. He runs to me and we embrace; I’m bawling like a baby. Amirilla flees to the two fallen figures, her comrade close on her heels.

As sleep, blissful, sweet sleep, creeps up and shuts my eyes, I hear a lot of junk, none of which really registers. Well, except for one thing:

“Kiara, I’ll see you in the library at midnight.”

I don’t know how long I slept. Well into the night, I suppose, because when I awoke, it was dark. And I don’t mean twilight shadows; we’re talking deep midnight here.

Sitting up, I realize I’m wearing my day clothes; no one bothered to put me in my nightclothes. Whatever. They did take my shoes and socks off, however; I discover this once I put my feet down and they touch the icy stone floor; I yelp and pull them back up onto the bed. Where the Hells are my slippers?!

After a semi-frantic search with much leaping from bed to floor and back in record speed, I found the missing items (which were hiding under my bed like cowards!) and slip them onto my feet. Leaving the room and shutting the door silently, I head down the corridor, slippered feet padding along like a cat’s. I may not be tall or beautiful or have magic, but I’m quiet, being lucky to have not inherited Father’s clumsiness.

‘Library, library……that’s upstairs, right?’ I pull up a mental map and check where I am. ‘Left my room…keep going until I hit the staircase on my left. Go down… okay.’ I think I think in images as opposed to words or, oddly enough, numbers.

Shuffling along in the dark, one hand against the wall (my left one, so I’ll feel the opening of the stairs), I close my eyes. Hey, what’s the point of having your eyes open if you can’t see a thing? Besides, I can visualize where I am on my map.

‘I should meet up with the stairway any moment now…’ My thought comes not a moment too soon; my hand slips into a gap. Turning to the left, I stumble down the flight of steps.

In no time at all, I’m down the stairwell and shuffling down another hallway. Opening my eyes, I spot, horror of horrors, a SPIDER on the sleeve of my outstretched arm. Stifling a scream, I brush it off and hurry down the hallway, which is lit with moonlight streaming in through strategically placed windows along the passage.

‘Library, library…aha!’ I reach for the knob, but freeze as I hear voices from inside the room. Placing my ear to the door, I hear them; muffled, but understandable.

“I can’t believe you did that. How could you?” The questioner sounds weary and on the verge of tears.

“Don’t question me, dear. You were the one who left me in charge, so you can’t talk about what I did.”

“But—”

“No ‘but’s, darling,” the other person snarls. I hear a thud. “We had an old score to settle, as he put it.”

“You broke his arms!”

Another thud. “Don’t get tough with me, PET. I’ve never gotten angry with you before, and I’m pretty sure you don’t want me to.”

“Angry?” A bitter laugh. “How much angrier can you GET? You’ve beaten me; tortured me emotionally, physically, mentally AND spiritually; killed me and brought me back only to suffer more! You can’t tell me none of that was done in anger!?!”

“Oh, but I can. That was all for my amusement. It’s fun to break my pets. The only ways you can escape are death and acceptance, and death doesn’t work.”

I tremble and my hand rests on the doorknob. Who IS this person Kassix is talking to?? I know it’s Kass; who else could it be?

“Accept you?!? I’m at my hardest trying to Balance all your evil as it is! I can’t just leave my friend to your wickedness, not after all they’ve done for me, and I for them! I can’t leave Cat or Rose or anyone else; not to you!”

Cat? Rose? I can’t help it; my hand slips. The one that I have a death-grip on the doorknob. The door, oddly enough, flies open, and I catch a sight of Kassix and--- Kassix?!? Two Kassix’s?!?

I blink and there’s only one; one Kassix, looking angry and sad. She watches me slip inside and shut the door wearily before asking softly, “Did you see her?”

Numbly, I nod, not knowing what else to do. She slumps back onto the floor and lay there. The image with the two Kassix’s flashes through my head, along with a name:

D’nethra clasped Kassix’s chin gently, staring into her eyes.

“I do a lot for you, you know. You should appreciate me,” she whispered benevolently, a kind smile growing on her face.

“You always hurt the people I care for. How can I appreciate you?” Kassix asked softly, sadness filling her eyes.

Kassix glances up at me. “Well, aren’t you going to sit down?”

“Are you the person who told me to be here?” I counter. She nods. Okay then. I sit next to her. “Why did you ask me here, and at this time?”

She sighs heavily.

“You forget; they hurt you first. Anything I do is merely in retaliation.”

Kassix’s indigo gaze traveled downward to the floor. “Why can’t I just run away?”

D’nethra pulled her chin up, forcing her captive’s gaze to meet hers. “You tried that once,” she stated. “Aolitiyu let you go, remember?”

“You have a right to know what’s going on, Kiara. I’ll tell you the full truth. Do you want to know why I want you to kill me?”

Hesitantly, I ask, “Do I want to know?”

“Maybe not, but it’s best you know, because it all boils down to your choice.”

It’s my turn to sigh heavily. “Very well. Tell away.”

“SHE tells me that she already told you most of the story—”

“Who is SHE?” I interrupt, frowning.

“I’m getting to that. SHE is what others might call my ‘alter ego’, but she’s not. She’s the divine demoness D’nethra, released from her Bind by Korem Kayden na Vierrn of Aris, right at the end of the Five-Year War.”

“You CAN’T be THAT old!” I exclaim, eyes wide.

“I’m not. I’m actually about 43 in human years. Will you be quiet?” No, it’s not in my nature to be quiet. But I’ll shut up anyway.

“I want to reBind her in the divine realms, but it’ll take QUITE a bit of power, and a rather nasty spell. Simplified, if you killed me, I could take her up to the Council of Gods, where I would finally rest and she would be reBound. BUT, if you did this, you would have to pay the blood price AND live your entire life with the knowledge that you killed.”

I shudder. “Can’t you get someone else to do this?”

“No. It must be someone innocent with good blood and a pure spirit, as I said earlier, and you, obviously, have all three traits.”

“Leave me alone. I can’t stand you.”

“Don’t lie. I can’t leave you, and you know that. You’re mine, precious.” D’nethra leaned in and kissed Kassix gently. “All mine.”

Next thing I know, I’m sitting on my bed, and Kassix is sitting next to me. I, oddly enough, ask the first thing that comes to my mind, which is even odder.

“Kassix, what was that score that you and the King had to settle?”

She stares at the floor.

“We met once,” the white-haired girl begins, voice low. “I can’t remember everything, but…SHE was in control, and I think he tried to stop us from doing something bad, or he tried to hit us…but she grabbed his arm and—” she falters and clears her throat before continuing, “—she broke his wrist.”

I wince. “How can she be that evil?”

Kassix doesn’t answer. Boldly, I announce, “I wish I had magic. If I d—”

“No you don’t,” she interrupts. I don’t? I blink and shut up; she looks up at me, a warm, sad smile gracing her features, which have an ethereal glow from the moonlight shining on her face.

“Magic only complicates things. Not only must you learn to control it and your temper, you have to learn how to use it properly, too. It’s nothing but trouble.”

“But I DO want it!” I protest.

“No you don’t,” she repeats.

I gave up. She was obviously very set in her ways and nothing I said would convince her that I truly wanted magic powers, like my Mom and Father. I mean, if I had their abilities, then it wouldn’t matter that I was short or was afraid of spiders or sarcastic; I would be able to fly up and meet someone’s eyes and blow the spiders away from me and wash my sarcasm away with a burst of wind over my mouth.

And she didn’t understand what it was like not to have powers like hers. She was a Shifter; not a shifter like Wulfira, who could only switch from one form to another, or a shape-shifter, who could only change forms and had no other magic. Shifters could change their forms and appearance to anything, even mist, and had incredible powers besides; they lived pretty long too. And they were extraordinarily rare.

“You don’t—” I start, but she cuts me off. Again.

“Will you do it?”

I blink. “What?”

“Will you do it?”

“Do what?” Is she purposefully making me feel stupid?

“…kill me.”

Oh, THAT! Why yes, you’ve been so kind and sweet to me I’ll have to kill you! What a wonderful idea! Biting my lip, I look away, out the window.

“Well…”I start slowly before trailing off.

Do I? I don’t want to kill anyone. But if I don’t, then D’nethra will stay, and she might hurt someone; she might hurt Kassix again, or kill someone. The divine demoness was probably the cause of some of the bloodshed and wars and crimes over the past few 1,564 years. Maybe all of it. Did I really want to keep such a terror in the world?

But would it be worth the blood-price?

I had heard about Korem. He’d been killed by breaking the Bind on D’nethra, summoning her, and ordering her to kill. Wasn’t that the blood-price he had to pay? Would that be my blood-price too?

I doubted it…but I was willing. If I had to, then—wait. How would my parents react? And my friends. I couldn’t.

D’nethra could hurt them!

What if she doesn’t? There were plenty of other people!

Did I really want ANYONE to get hurt? I’ll admit, people mess up a lot of the time, but do I want ANYONE to die?

I didn’t realize I was crying until Kassix put a hand on my shoulder and asked, “Is something wrong?”

“What would the blood-price be?” I ask weakly.

“Well…you’d probably get very, very ill for a while, something that magic couldn’t cure, and it might be deadly, but you’d probably get better. Why?”

Relief fills my mind.

“I’ll do it.”

I saw something in her eyes as she stood up. Pity? Relief? Sorrow? She shimmers and I flop down onto the bed, suddenly exhausted.

“Go to sleep; I’ll see you tomorrow. Good night.”

Two voices drift through my half-awake mind, and I wonder:

‘Didn’t Kassix and the King hate each other?’

“I had to tell her. The final decision is hers.”

He sighs. “Yes, I know. Why didn’t you explain earlier?”

“To her?”

“To me. I spent days hating you; why didn’t you tell me about her?”

“I’m sorry.”

Is this one of those freaky prophetic dreams that people get sometimes?

The door creaked, and his voice came through a little more clearly. “She’s still asleep. What did she say?”

“She’ll do it.” Oh, they’re just standing outside my door.

“I can’t believe you’re going to go through with this. Have you told her father yet?”

“I was going to leave that to you,” she chuckles sadly.

“He’ll hate you, you know.”

She sighs. “…can I please speak to Korem?” Korem? As in dead guy?

“Fine.” Silence. Then he speaks, in an ever-so-slightly lower tone of voice. “What do you want?”

“I—“ she chokes up slightly. “I just want to say that I’m sorry.”

“A Shifter, right?”

“Yes.”

“Do you know all the names of the divine demons?” His inquiry is sharp.

“Y-yes.”

He swears vividly and something slams against my door, causing it to fly open and crash against the wall. I sit straight up, eyes snapping open in time to catch both culprits running down the hallway in opposite directions.

“What the Hells?” I blink blearily. I don’t know why I woke up; I’m still tired. So I flop back down onto the bed.

“She’s so peaceful, just sleeping there.” Why does it seem that I have the special ability to hear people in my sleep?? And of all people to hear!!

“Shut up.”

A shuffling sound. “What if I were to…oh…break her finger? Or perhaps something bigger?”

“Don’t touch her!”

“Recite them.”

“What?” I could hear the nervous confusion in Kassix’s voice.

“Recite the names of my trapped siblings. Do it or I hurt her.”

She gulps and recites shakily, “Niscre. Annora. Qiskue. Trizz’th. You, D’nethra. Firith.”

“Now their doubles.”

“Azmei. Dueth. Vanus. Seirr. The Dark Lady. Sortil.”

“Good girl.” D’nethra suddenly leans down and brushes my cheek, whispering, “I know you’re awake, girl. Remember those names.”

I shudder at her touch, but keep my eyes shut tightly. This was the evil I had to get rid of. I WOULD get rid of her. I HAD to, I just knew it. It was like I was coming into my destiny.

The very air suddenly freezes; I couldn’t move. I don’t use the word in the meaning of ‘cold’, but ‘unmoving’. It was a tight, immobile feeling, and if I could have, I would have shuddered. There was a strange, sick-sweet smell in the air, but I couldn’t for the life of me identify what it was. Then, I hear, but don’t hear, a voice rumbling with power:

“BIND”

The air snaps, and I hear something land heavily on the floor, and the sound of someone taking deep breaths. Then, Kassix’s voice.

“I’m sorry.”

I can’t help it any longer; I sit up and stare at her. “Sorry for what?” She’s crouched on the floor panting, her long white hair falling in a curtain between her and I.

“Tonight, Kiara. I’m sorry for everything I’ve done in the past, and what I’m forcing you to do tonight.”

“You aren’t forcing me.” Tonight? “Can’t you just heal everyone with your power?”

She finally looks up at me. Tears glimmer in her eyes, and one spills over and slides down her cheek; a small, sad smile graces her features. “I can’t. No one has the power to heal the world, not even the Gods. And no one should; it’s wrong. I’M wrong.” Had her smile been bitter all along? I looked at her, and saw that there were lines on her face that I had not seen before: they were harsh, sad lines. Laughter and smile and scowl and tears; she had seen them all.

“If I could, I would, but I can’t, so I won’t. And how would I save myself?” Kassix sits back and stares sadly at the ceiling. “I was a fighter once. I enjoyed a good fight, and hunted for blood. I made friends, yes, and they’re good friends. But then SHE came, and I left my friends for the Temple of Aolitiyu, where I would be in solitude and wouldn’t hurt them.” She sighs, and I could tell that this was a sort of purging for her, as if she was somehow lightening the weight of her past by telling it.

“Things happened, and I was released. I still go back there quite often…but no matter.” Shaking her head, she looks down at the floor and continues, “I changed a lot. I turned away from fighting and towards healing; I improved my shielding and dabbled in potions, never carrying a weapon. I kept my friends, but we grew apart…curses do that to a person.”

I felt so insignificant. My problems, compared to hers, were nothing, and I myself began to see that I had had a pampered and soft life, so unlike the one she had lived, and was still living. If this was the only thing I could do, then I would do it.

“Tonight, then.”

“I’ll take you to the proper place,” Kassix sighs. “And then,” she whispers, raising her hand to her face and staring at it, “All will be well.”

The day passed in a blur. I went about my life as usual, but nothing really seemed to hit home anymore; I was extremely preoccupied. Tonight would be it. I think that I was silently, mentally preparing myself as the day progressed; I was going to kill someone!

Once, I came across Kassix staring out a window. As I pass, she holds out a hand, turning towards me.

“Wait, please.”

I wait, since it’s apparent she wants to talk. “Yeah?”

“Are you sure you want to go through with this?”

I nod. About to leave, I double-take. “Hey, you okay? You look a little pale.”

She nods, her mind obviously elsewhere. “You smell like rain,” she whispers, vanishing from sight. Unnerved, I stare, then shiver. I’m starting to think she’s crazy, like the first time we met.

That night, I go to the spot where she was supposed to meet me to take me to the Temple; she isn’t there. I pace back and forth, waiting; once an hour passes, I give up. Returning to my room, I spot a piece of paper on my bed, shining slightly in the dark; picking it up, I find a source of light and begin to read.

“Dear Kiara,” it began,

“I’m sorry. You might be ready to do this, but I’m not. I thought I was, but…I can’t burden you like this. When I said you smelt like rain, I meant it: you’re young and innocent, pure through and through.

You might never see me again, but I’ll see you. If I ever get the chance, I will visit, don’t worry. Tell the others goodbye for me, okay? You’re the only one I wrote a letter to.

I know you remember those names: NEVER TELL THEM TO ANYONE. Those names need to be forgotten, and I wish you could forget them, but you never will; you will remember them until your dying day. Don’t tell those names. Never, ever, ever,tell those names.

Keep dancing; you were wonderful, no matter what anyone says. You might not have the flashy powers of your father, but aren’t your talents a kind of magic in their own right? You certainly enchanted me.

I love you all and will miss you greatly.”

Signed, “Kassix Moridox.”

The fortune-telling hag was right, I realize with a jolt. I AM the cheesy-sounding ‘Keeper of the Names’, whether I like it or not.

Raising my head, I whisper, “Thank you.”