The Twins of Tintarfell

by James O'Loghlin

  She tried to pull herself together. The important thing was that she had saved her brother. That made her ­sacrifice worthwhile. She had to try to hold onto that thought.

  ‘You should rest, Dani,’ said Melindarah.

  Dani nodded, pulled herself to her feet and headed off to her room.

  Shortly afterwards, Bart entered the sitting room and sat in the chair Dani had just vacated, next to Melindarah. He licked his lips. ‘Can I ask you something?’

  ‘By all means.’

  ‘Randling – the man in the forest – told me my powers were inherited from my father. Would that be true?’

  ‘It would, yes.’

  ‘And he said that if a person had those powers, then all his children would inherit them. Is that true too?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Does that mean, then, that if I have these powers, and Dani doesn’t . . .’ He faltered. ‘Does that mean Dani . . .

  isn’t my sister?’

  Melindarah looked at him. ‘I think it does mean that.’

  Bart put his hands to his cheeks, as if holding his face together. ‘Oh, my.’ He looked up quickly. ‘You won’t tell her, will you?’

  ‘Not if you don’t want me to. Tell me, does knowing this change how you feel about Dani?’

  ‘No, of course not,’ said Bart immediately.

  Melindarah smiled. ‘Good.’ She paused. ‘She has been through a lot. You must be kind to her.’

  Bart nodded. ‘Of course.’ He stared out of the window. ‘How can I find out who my real parents are?’

  ‘The only thing we know for sure is that your father must have had the ability to communicate with animals. If he is still alive, he could be anywhere. To find him you may first have to find out who brought you to Tintarfell Castle when you were young, and why.’ Melindarah stood. ‘Do you want some time alone to think it all through?’

  ‘Yes, please.’

  Melindarah exited the room.

  Bart sat in a kind of shock. How could his beloved sister, the person he had spent every day of his life with, not really be his sister at all? Why had they grown up thinking they were siblings if they weren’t? Who were his real parents? Were they dead or alive?

  There was one more question, one he needed to answer quickly: should he tell Dani the truth?

  If he did, how would she react? No doubt she’d also feel confused and strange. A bolt of fear shot through him. What if knowing that they were not siblings made Dani feel differently towards him? He didn’t want things to change between them. Dani had taken care of him all his life. He needed her. Without her life was unimaginable. Who would he talk to? Who would he laugh with? Who would he tell his stories to?

  Besides, what good would come of telling her the truth? She wasn’t her normal self as it was. She had told him that the procedure on the castle roof might leave her tired and drained for a few days, and she did seem withdrawn, even unhappy. It definitely wasn’t the right time for a shock like this. Maybe later, but not now.

  Bart wished he had never found out that they weren’t siblings. In fact, the best thing would be to pretend that he never had found out. He would ignore what he had discovered, because it didn’t matter. Not one bit. In every way that counted, they were still brother and sister, bonded together forever. He wouldn’t tell her.

  Having made up his mind, Bart composed himself and headed to their bedroom. Inside, Dani was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling.

  ‘I can do it,’ said Bart. ‘We have an animal army of one warthog. I think my plan will work. Shall we tell Edward?’

  ‘You do it,’ she replied, and turned away.

  Bart looking worriedly at her, disappointed he hadn’t got a more positive reaction. He opened his mouth, but wasn’t sure what to say, so he shut it again. He stared at Dani’s back for a few moments and then left the room, made his way down the corridor to Edward’s room and told him the news about the warthog.

  ‘That’s wonderful, Bart,’ said the Prince. ‘We might actually be able to save the city. Shall I tell Melindarah that we’re leaving?’

  Bart hesitated. Normally, he wouldn’t make any sort of decision without Dani, but she seemed so despondent, and there was no time to waste. ‘Let’s do it.’

  Chapter 21

  A Quick Way Down

  A little while later Edward, Bart and Dani assembled in the sitting room. Dani had raised no objection when Bart suggested they travel back to Cranlon, but neither had she shown any enthusiasm.

  Soon Melindarah entered. ‘Edward tells me that you are leaving,’ she said.

  Bart looked at Dani, who remained silent.

  ‘We are, yes,’ he answered.

  ‘If you’re in a hurry,’ said Melindarah, ‘there is a quick way I can get you down the cliff.’

  ‘Great,’ said Bart.

  ‘All you need to do is jump off the edge.’

  ‘What?’ cried Edward.

  ‘Can you make us fly?’ asked Bart.

  ‘Oh, no.’

  Bart tried again. ‘Are you going to float us to the bottom?’

  ‘Not quite. At the moment I’m not strong enough to float you all the way down. Instead, you’re going to jump off the cliff and, just before you hit the ground, I’m going to slow you down so that you land safely. That way, I only need to use my powers for a few seconds. It should work . . . as long as I time it absolutely perfectly, which will be tricky. If I put the brakes on too early you’ll still have too far to fall, and if I put them on too late, well . . .’ She clapped her hands together. ‘. . . bang!’

  There was a long silence.

  ‘Have you, um, tried this before?’ asked Edward.

  ‘No, never. So at least it’s never gone wrong.’

  ‘I’m not sure about this,’ said Edward. Actually he was sure. He didn’t want to do it.

  ‘Come on,’ urged Bart. ‘We have to get back to the city as fast as we can.’ He turned to Melindarah. ‘Do you think you could drop one more thing down the cliff? A warthog?’

  Melindarah raised her eyebrows, but nodded.

  A short time later, they stood on one of the castle’s many balconies, their satchels full of nuts, cheese, bread, fruit and water that Melindarah had given them. Bart had summoned Flango and the warthog stood beside him. Melindarah approached a section of the waist-high wooden balcony wall, fiddled with a latch, and swung a section inwards, creating a gap wide enough for them to stand side by side.

  Edward eyed the warthog warily, and the huge drop to the bottom of the cliff even more warily. Far, far below was the narrow plain where they had met Gildarin, and then the forest stretched away. It was a spectacular view, and Edward would have been happy to admire it for hours. What he was far less keen to do was to jump into it. But how could he avoid it?

  He realised that he had got himself into a terrible situation. Jumping off the cliff was madness. There was no way he could do it. Perhaps, he thought, he should forget all about returning to the city.

  Melindarah stood at the edge of the balcony looking down, a look of concentration on her face. ‘I’m ready, I think. Who’s going first?’

  Bart looked at Dani for guidance. ‘D?’

  Dani turned to Edward. ‘We’re going back for you, Edward, so you jump first.’

  Edward licked his lips. His breathing was rapid and shallow.

  ‘If you feel uncomfortable, you don’t have to jump,’ said Melindarah.

  ‘No?’ said Edward hopefully. He could hear how thin and high-pitched his voice sounded.

  ‘You could just walk off the edge. Would that be easier?’

  Edward glared at her, and then took a couple of cautious steps towards the drop. He looked down and his knees nearly gave way. There was no way he was going over the edge. He had to get out of this. He turned to face the others, his back to the
drop.

  ‘Stop,’ he said. ‘I have to tell you something.’

  Suddenly, Dani was furious. She was angry at the bargain she had been forced to make to save her brother, angry about all of the years of her life that she had lost, and angry that she was now expected to lead them on a rescue mission of the city whose ruler had kept them as virtual slaves all their lives. It wasn’t fair. None of it was fair.

  ‘You see,’ continued Edward, ‘I, um, actually, wanted to say . . .’

  Dani’s fury found a focus: Edward. The spoilt brat who had never done a minute’s work in his life and who, now that they were finally free, wanted them to go back.

  ‘Shut up, Edward,’ she said. ‘We’re doing this for you, so be quiet and do something for once.’ She grabbed him by the shirt and marched him backwards to the edge of the ledge. ‘You want us to go back? Then you lead the way. Ready, Melindarah? Here goes the big, brave Prince.’

  Dani shoved him. Edward tottered backwards, whirled his arms and then fell off the balcony, screaming. Melindarah stepped forward, staring at his rapidly retreating body. ‘Wait, wait,’ she muttered to herself as he fell. As he neared the ground she extended her hands, fingers out, as if trying to grab him. ‘Now,’ she cried, pulling her arms back towards her body.

  Suddenly the tiny speck that was Edward slowed, and was lowered gently to the ground.

  ‘Well done, me,’ exclaimed Melindarah. ‘Who’s next?’

  Bart looked at Dani. ‘Are you all right, D?’

  ‘I’m fine,’ she replied tersely. ‘Go.’

  Bart wished he knew what was wrong with her, and how he could help. He sent a thought message to the warthog. ‘Off you go. Off the edge.’

  ‘What!?’ replied Flango.

  ‘Walk off the edge. You’ll be all right.’

  ‘But, but . . . I don’t want to.’

  Bart focused in on the warthog. ‘You’ll be fine. Off you go.’

  ‘Oh, boy,’ replied Flango, and walked off the edge.

  Melindarah stared down at him and again, as he neared the ground, extended her arms and pulled them back towards her body. ‘Got him. Next.’

  Bart turned to Melindarah. ‘Thank you for everything.’ He took a deep breath, and stepped off the edge.

  After Melindarah caught Bart and lowered him to the ground, she turned to Dani. ‘Your turn.’

  As Dani stepped forward Melindarah put her hand on her arm. ‘Dani, you have sacrificed so much. It’s natural to experience dark thoughts. Remember this. Whether we have a hundred years left or just a single day, life is all we have. I wasted many days in despair after my sacrifice. Please don’t make the same mistake. Make the most of your time.’

  Dani felt that she should reply, but didn’t know what to say. Of course what Melindarah said made sense, but she just didn’t feel able to be positive and motivated and all the other things she normally was.

  ‘Thank you for bringing my brother back,’ she said, and then turned and stepped off the balcony.

  The air raced past her and within a second she was travelling faster than she had ever gone before. The wind howled. Far below she could see the ground rushing closer. Blurs became trees, and three dots became Bart, Edward and the warthog.

  Dani felt no fear. She wished the fall could go on forever and that she didn’t have to return to normal life. As the earth rushed to meet her she wondered if she really wanted Melindarah to catch her, but then she felt herself slow and was lowered gently to the earth.

  Chapter 22

  An Unusual Army

  They all reacted to the fall in different ways. Edward was tingling all over. When he tried to get up, his body felt clumsy, so he stayed lying on the ground.

  Bart had started laughing about halfway down. The exhilarating sensation of the air rushing past him had squeezed great, hysterical bursts out of him and they kept coming long after he reached the ground.

  Dani lay still, feeling like a spectator.

  And the warthog thought, ‘WOOOWW!!!!! I WANTA DO THAT AGAIN!!!!’ And then he did a wee.

  Eventually they all climbed to their feet.

  ‘Why did you push me off?’ Edward asked Dani.

  Dani stared evenly back at him. ‘I was angry,’ she said coldly.

  They held each other’s gaze for a moment.

  ‘What were you about to say at the top, Edward, before you, um, left?’ asked Bart.

  ‘Oh . . . nothing, really . . . I was just trying to delay going over the edge.’

  ‘Let’s get into the trees,’ said Dani. ‘There might be soarers about.’

  ‘Should we go back to Gildarin’s to get the horses?’ Edward asked. ‘It’ll make the trip home quicker.’

  Dani shook her head. ‘It’ll take hours to get there, and if Bart assembles an army of animals, we’ll have to stay off the roads and in the forest so that we don’t terrify people, which means we’d have to lead the horses anyway.’

  They set off into the forest, heading away from the cliff. After they had been going a while, Edward turned to Bart. ‘Do you want to try? See if this animal army idea is going to work?’

  ‘All right,’ said Bart. He stopped, shut his eyes and concentrated. He sensed Edward, Dani and Flango nearby, birds above, and squirrels, rats, mice and lots of insects nearby. There was nothing bigger in the immediate vicinity, so he tried to broaden the area of his search. Some distance to his left he sensed a lion. He sent it a message. ‘You need to come to me.’ He kept concentrating, reinforcing the message.

  Nothing happened for a while and then Edward cried, ‘Yikes!’

  Bart opened his eyes. A lion was walking through the trees towards them.

  ‘Come here,’ he thought. The lion padded up to him and Bart stared at in wonder. It came up to his chest, and its body was massive. Cautiously, he gave its mane a ruffle.

  ‘You will follow us, stay with us,’ Bart thought. ‘We’re friends now. Yes?’

  ‘Sounds fine,’ replied the lion.

  Bart couldn’t resist giving him a hug.

  They moved on. Every so often Bart stopped, tried to sense animals and, if he detected any big enough, summoned them. By mid-afternoon two more lions, three lionesses, four tigers, two more warthogs and seven antelope had joined them. Bart was exhilarated and, as they travelled, he took turns walking beside each one and striking up a thought conversation.

  At the end of the day they found a clearing near a stream and made camp. Bart instructed the animals to look for food and then return, but not to hunt each other. The antelopes grazed nearby eating grass, while most of the others disappeared into the forest.

  The three humans ate, drank and then, as the animals began to return and lie down, collected grass to sleep on.

  ‘Are you sure they won’t attack us while we sleep?’ asked Edward nervously.

  ‘Well, they won’t attack me,’ replied Bart cheerfully. ‘They all really like me.’

  Edward looked uneasy.

  ‘No, of course they won’t,’ added Bart. ‘Don’t worry. I’ve told them they mustn’t attack you or Dani.’

  They lay down, Bart next to Dani with Edward a little way off.

  Dani was staring up at the sky. She had been quiet all day, often lagging behind the rest of them. Bart had an idea to cheer her up.

  ‘Hey, D, want me to tell you a story?’

  ‘No thanks,’ replied Dani, and rolled over so she faced away from him.

  Bart stared at her back, surprised and hurt. She had never said ‘no’ to one of his stories before. He wished he knew how to cheer her up.

  The next day they crossed the road they had travelled on to get to Randling’s cottage, and re-entered the forest. Throughout the day more lions, tigers, warthogs and antelopes joined them, as well as several panthers and large black bears.

  Bart was cons
tantly glancing about, sensing the animals and on the lookout for any tension or conflict between them. There were several scuffles, and a few times big cats started to stalk antelopes, but Bart quickly calmed them. With his own travelling zoo, he couldn’t have been happier. He talked to them all, eager to learn as much as he could. While he was concerned about Dani’s mood, he had to admit he enjoyed doing something on his own. Ever since he had been caught trying to escape with Adam three years ago, Dani had watched his every move. It felt good to have a bit more freedom and responsibility.

  By late in the day their company had grown to around thirty-six animals. They crossed a stream and another road that Edward recognised. Soon they would reach the city walls.

  ‘Perhaps we should stop here,’ he suggested. ‘The city’s not far.’

  ‘Shouldn’t we get there as quickly as we can?’ replied Bart.

  ‘Yes, of course,’ said Edward, ‘but we should scout ahead first to see what awaits us.’

  ‘Good idea,’ agreed Bart. ‘The animals are getting tired. They aren’t used to walking so far. It would be good for them to rest before they have to scare off the Northerners.’

  They made camp and Bart gave the meat-eaters permission to hunt. They sloped off into the forest and emerged an hour or so later licking their chops and looking satisfied. Bart directed them to a clearing a little way away to rest. Whilst he would have been happy to sleep among the animals, he knew Dani and Edward preferred a bit of distance.

  As it grew dark, Bart made a fire and they sat around it eating. Once again, Dani hardly said a word and as soon as she finished her food she went to lie down.

  Bart watched her go and then turned to Edward. ‘She’s so grumpy. It’s not like her. What is it? What can I do?’