And Kestrel did too. Although he had come to the tavern expecting to find a lesser quality of entertainment, he enjoyed listening to the woman while he tried to figure out what was going to happen the following day. He ate his bowl of stew and drank his juice and sat with his back against the wall and his eyes closed while he listened and thought, until he smelled a lovely fragrance, and opened his eyes to see three elven maids and two men with them gathered around his table as one of the girls leaned down and gave him an unexpected hug.
It was Malindaree, the girl who had been on the run from North Harbor to Kirevee with him, the lovely girl he had awoken with in the healing spring, and talked to in woods afterwards.
“This is him! This is the greatest elf alive today! He’s the one I told you about,” she said over her shoulder as she pressed herself against him. “Can we join you?” she asked as she unbent and motioned at the empty table he sat at.
“Yes, please do,” Kestrel replied, as they all slid into place.
Malindaree proceeded to give an abbreviated retelling of the story of the group that had been ambushed in the forest, with the imps and the healing spring featuring prominently.
“Just like that, we were at this magical place in the Eastern Forest! Can you believe it? I wasn’t even sure there was such a place as the Eastern Forest,” she told her tale. “But when you hear Kestrel’s accent you can’t doubt it. Go ahead Kestrel – tell them something,” she urged.
Malindaree received a significant nudge from the girl sitting next to her.
“Kestrel!” she exclaimed before he could utter a word. “We’re on our way to a party for a friend, and as you can see, I don’t have an escort. Would you go with us and help make all the other girls jealous? Please?” she wheedled charmingly.
“I don’t know anyone in Kirevee,” Kestrel declined. “I’d be boring company.”
“No! you’d be a man of mystery! You’re perfect. Please, as a favor to me. I let you save my life once; can’t you return the favor?” she made Kestrel laugh with her outrageous turn of logic.
“Will Exmoor or any of his people be there?” Kestrel asked. He had no desire to walk into another confrontation, but a casual visit to a peaceful social event in the Northern Forest kingdom did tempt him as an opportunity to see have the elves of the land lived.
“No, trees branches no!” one of the boys laughed. “That would be like putting the fox among the chickens.
“And with that green and white, you’ll fit right in.”
“I’m awfully worn out,” Kestrel hedged, “but I’ll go with you for a little while, as long as you’ll let me leave early.”
“You can leave early, if you want to be an old man, but you have to promise to sneak out discreetly so no one thinks I’ve scared off my date,” Malindaree grabbed his good shoulder and squeezed it in appreciation.
“Scared off another date?” one of the other girls joked, drawing a threatening petite fist waved in the air.
“Well, let’s go. I’ve only got this boy for a little while so I might as well get as much good out of him as I can,” Malindaree said.
“You can call me ‘Ree’ tonight,” she told Kestrel as they rose from their seats.
The girl was not any younger than Kestrel was himself, but he had the feeling that she had little depth of personality, at least none yet. She was pretty, but without life experience to give her guidance in life, he realized, whereas he had had extraordinary amounts of life experience crammed into the past two years. He thought of Lucretia, the Lucretia in the Eastern Forest, who he had recommended as an ambassador to the humans of Hydrotaz. She too had gained considerable life experience, but in a way that was even more direct and brutal than Kestrel, and he wondered which was a better way to live. Perhaps the gods chose different people to walk different paths for sound reasons, but he only shook his head at the disparity of events thrust into the lives of his acquaintances.
“You’ll have to talk to me sometime tonight,” Malindalee was holding his hand and squeezed it as they walked down the street with her friends, arousing Kestrel from his reverie. “You might as well start now. What have you been doing today?”
“I was in the tournament, the archery contest, at the palace today,” he answered.
“It’s good to see that you’re still alive,” one of the boys walking with one of the girls just ahead of them spoke back over his shoulder to Kestrel. “Talk of the town is that it was a murderously brutal time on the grounds. I’m not sure many people are going to go back tomorrow to watch; I think they’re worried about their safety.
“Are you going to return tomorrow to see who wins?” he asked Kestrel.
“I am,” Kestrel answered simply, not volunteering that he would be a competitor in the final rounds.
“Oh, be careful Kestrel,” Malindaree urged.
They soon arrived at an entry drive that led up to the front of a large chateau, and joined a steady stream of people arriving at the home. They entered and passed through the luxurious furnishings to where most people were congregated, at a series of terraced patios on the back of the home, lit by lanterns that hung from trees and poles, while servants passed around with drinks and food. Whatever Kestrel was going to learn about the lives of northern elves, it was not going to be the lives of the ordinary people.
Kestrel stayed next to Malindaree as she began to flit from group to group, introducing him and exchanging gossip with the others as Kestrel politely listened, usually losing the trail of the conversation as the speakers rapidly uttered their accented words and phrases.
“Thank you for joining us,” a man’s voice suddenly spoke on Kestrel’s far side, and he turned to see a familiar face, a human one that he recognized after a second’s pause. It was Count Stelten, the Count of the Grey Fjord, who he had been briefly introduced to at the royal banquet the night before.
“It’s a pleasure to be here,” Kestrel said carefully. The Count had spoken as though he was the host. “Is this your home?” he tried to speak correctly, in the local accent.
“Yes, it is. This is our city home for when we come to court, something that I’m not sure we’ll do very often in years to come,” the Count answered. “Thank you for putting on such a wonderful performance today.”
Kestrel nodded his head, as Malindaree turned her head to observe the conversation. “What did you do today, Kestrel? You didn’t mention anything besides the tournament,” she spoke up.
“Ah, little Ree, don’t you know that you’re standing next to one of the favorites to win the tournament tomorrow?” Stelten asked. “I was sure that was why you had brought him, and I intended to express my gratitude to both of you for coming, given the disfavor our family is in.”
Kestrel looked at Malindaree inquisitively. He remembered that Tewks had taken him away from a further acquaintance with Stelten at the banquet the night before. “I’m sorry we didn’t talk last night,” Kestrel said.
“Were you at the banquet?” Malindaree asked Kestrel, tugging on his sleeve. “I would have gone if I had known you were going to be there!
“Ah, there she is,” the girl switched topics suddenly.
“Kestrel, I’d like to introduce you to one of my friends, the reason the count is putting on this lavish party,” Malindaree spoke, maneuvering herself between the two men, and turning them all towards the main body of the party.
And as soon as they turned, Kestrel felt his knees turn weak. Standing at no great distance, close enough for him to observe the flawless skin and unsurpassed beauty, stood Moorin, another, identical version of the girl he was fated to meet and rescue.
Chapter 15 – Things Go Astray
“Come Kestrel, let us introduce you to my daughter, Moorin, the light of my life,” Stelten spoke up, and together he and Malindaree made it impossible for Kestrel to hang back from coming face-to-face with this apparently original incarnation of the girl who he had seen copied so many times.
Moorin was wearing an elegant gown,
one that was silver and gray, sheer in places, and opaque in other spots, a collection of fabrics that accented her partially human, partially elf figure to her best advantage.
Moorin dear,” Malindaree called, “let me introduce you to my mysterious escort for this evening. Your father knows him better than I do!” Malindaree spoke with mock indignation.
Moorin and a human man by her side advanced to meet the trio that was approaching them. “Hello father dear,” she spoke in a low contralto voice that thrilled Kestrel because it sounded so familiar, so like the voice of the imposters that he had taken to be her in the past.
“Ree, sweet Ree, are you bringing strange men to our engagement party?” Moorin turned to Malindaree and spoke. She was holding hands with a human man, one who was saying little, and smiling less.
“Moorin, he’s strange in a good way!” Malindaree declared. “Let me introduce you.
“Moorin, this is Kestrel, he’s an elf from the Eastern Forest,” she said.
“Actually a nobleman, or so he was introduced,” Stelten added.
“You didn’t tell me that either!” Ree lightly slapped Kestrel’s shoulder.
“Kestrel, this is Moorin, the Countess of the Grey Fjord, and the fiancé of the Prince of Seafare,” the girl turned to the rest of the introduction.
Kestrel stood silently, staring at the beauty of the girl. She was incredibly familiar to him, yet he was meeting this version, what he believed was the true version, for the first time.
“You have such beautiful eyes,” Moorin said softly, staring back at him intently. He felt her hand squeeze his, and realized that somehow their hands had come together between them. “How did you come to have purple eyes?” she asked.
“I lived with a village of gnomes in the Water Mountains one winter,” he answered, “and they adopted me as part of their tribe.”
“Have we met before?” she asked. “I feel like I know you.”
“Ahem,” the man beside her cleared his throat.
“Excuse me,” Moorin said, “I don’t know where my manners are. As Ree mentioned, this is my fiancé, Ruelin, the prince of Seafare.”
“Charmed,” the man spoke the one word as though it were the expression of all that he needed to say. He was a pleasant-looking man, Kestrel thought, though his expression conveyed the clear impression that he was bored with the evening’s proceedings.
“Moorin and Ruelin will be sailing back to Seafare tomorrow for the wedding,” Stelten explained. “So this is our engagement party for all of her friends here.”
“Has it been a long engagement?” Kestrel asked faintly.
Moorin blushed faintly, the color in her cheeks appear all the more beautiful to Kestrel.
“The engagement was arranged by my ambassador to Kirevee just a month ago, and we’ll be married in another fortnight,” Ruelin answered. “I see no reason to wait around to collect my prize,” his hand crept forward and disconnected the grasp that Moorin and Kestrel still held, then pulled Moorin’s hand away.
“Come my dear, let us mingle elsewhere,” he said, and he started to stroll away without another word. Moorin looked over her shoulder at the others for a moment, then followed along in her fiancé’s wake.
“Let me introduce you to someone,” Ree told Kestrel. “Pardon us; we’ll see you later, my lord,” she said to Stelten as she led Kestrel away.
“Moorin is marrying a prince on the rebound,” she told Kestrel once they were out of earshot of Stelten. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“Was she engaged before?” Kestrel asked faintly. “Did her fiancé cheat on her?”
“Yes! How did you know?” Ree looked at him with large eyes.
“Just a lucky guess,” he muttered.
“What did you say?” Ree asked him, not understanding his accent. “You were his guest?”
“No, I just made a guess. What happened?” Kestrel asked.
“She was engaged to our own prince, York. But he went on a hunting expedition with Exmoor, and there were several women along with them for entertainment apparently,” Ree told him. “Moorin found out and immediately cut off the engagement. She rushed into a new engagement just a fortnight later, and Prince Ruelin is already here to pick her up and take her home. They’ll sail back to Seafare tomorrow night.”
“Are you alright?” she asked, seeing Kestrel’s pale face.
“Could we go sit down for a moment so I can rest?” he asked.
“Certainly, certainly,” she immediately agreed. “You must be exhausted after competing in the tournament all day. Why didn’t you tell us you were one of the day’s winners?”
Kestrel smiled and shrugged, as they turned and walked back towards the house, and went inside through the patio doors. They found a quiet parlor, unoccupied by anyone else, where only a single dim candle flickered, and sat down on a divan.
“Would you mind if I went out and chatted? I haven’t seen some of these people in ages?” Ree asked after fidgeting momentarily, as Kestrel sat back with his eyes closed and his mind clouded with confusion.
“No, you go right ahead. I’ll be here, or someplace nearby,” he agreed, and remained motionless as she silently slipped away, leaving him pleased to have a moment of quiet solitude to collect his thoughts.
What was he to do? Kestrel’s mind wandered through a fog of doubt and indecision as he tried to piece together the strands of memories and prophecies and emotions that roiled together in his soul. He had found the true Moorin – perhaps, he told himself with a caution he didn’t truly feel. He was confident that this was the true Moorin. He was under a prophecy from a goddess, one that said he was supposed to rescue and save this girl. He had met false copies of the girl, and already knew parts of her life story through those false imitations. He had fallen in love with one of the copies, and he knew as he thought of her loveliness that he was ready to fall in love with the genuine woman as well.
There was a soft sound at the door behind him, and an ineffable change in the atmosphere of the room wafted over him.
“Moorin, how did you know where to find me?” he asked, his eyes still closed, but his soul certain that it was her.
“How did you know it was me?” she softly asked as she silently glided around the furniture and came to sit next to him, not quite touching him, though she was close.
He paused before he answered. “I came to the Northern Forest looking for you,” he replied. “I came all the way from Graylee, through the mountains and over the water, on the chance that you might be here.”
“I think I’ve seen you in my dreams, or some other place not in this world,” she answered.
“I was in love with you, in a different life, a life you never lived,” Kestrel told her. “The goddess told me to rescue you, and to save you. I never realized that she meant I should rescue you from an unhappy marriage.”
He felt the divan shift as she moved. “It’s not an unhappy marriage yet. It may not be,” she replied, but there was doubt in her voice.
“What am I supposed to do?” she asked, and Kestrel heard the anguish in her voice. “I just broke off one engagement because my betrothed played false. Should I break off this engagement, now that Ruelin’s traveled all the way here? Wouldn’t that make my own heart just as false as York’s? And what guarantee is there that I’ll be unhappy with him, or that you’ll make me happy?” She asked as she astonished herself with her revealing questions.
“There’s no guarantee,” Kestrel acknowledged. He opened his eyes and looked at her in the dim light of the candle. There were glistening tears on her cheeks. “I don’t know that I’ll make you happy. I just know that I’m supposed to save you.”
There was another sound at the door, and Moorin turned to look. It was Ruelin.
“Your father’s guests are looking for you,” he said in a strained voice. “Is everything alright here?”
“Yes,” Moorin answered smoothly, rising from the seat. “I was just checking on Ree’s guest.”
She walked around the furniture and left the room with the prince, leaving Kestrel alone once again in the room, unable to imagine what he should do. Moorin wasn’t in danger; her life wasn’t at risk. He couldn’t bring himself to believe that he was supposed to break up her engagement, and he didn’t know what he was supposed to do to save her.
He sat and watched the flame flicker while the candle burned a half inch lower, while time passed and his soul churned in turmoil, then he got up and left the room in search of Ree, feeling unsettled and ready to leave.
Out on the patio the crowd was still large and congested and noisy. Kestrel gently shouldered his way between groups, looking for Ree to tell her he was finished for the evening. After several minutes of fruitless searching he saw Count Stelten, and worked his way over to the host of the evening.
“I’m looking for Ree. Do you know where she is?” Kestrel asked. “I think I’ll turn in for the evening and I wanted to let her know I was going.”
“Where are you staying?” Stelten asked.
“I’ve got a room in one of the towers on the palace grounds, but I’m not sure I’ll risk going back,” Kestrel told him. “I’m sure I can find a good inn that will be safe.”
“Would you like to stay here this evening? We’ve got several guest rooms, away from the noise and the people,” Stelten offered.
Kestrel paused, then nodded his head. “Thank you, that’s very generous.”
“Just promise me you’ll not do anything foolish with my daughter,” the count told him. “She’s been watching you ever since you came out of the house.”
Kestrel turned slowly and saw that Moorin and Ruelin were standing upon a step above the patio across the way, and Moorin was indeed staring in his direction until their eyes met, and she shifted her gaze.
“Is there something I need to be aware of?” Stelten asked.
“I think it is my destiny to be involved in your daughter’s life,” Kestrel said softly. “If you’d rather I not spend the night here, I understand.”
Stelten looked at Kestrel, then looked away. “You seem like a very honorable person, and so I will trust your truthfulness. If you were me, would you have yourself spending the night?”
The Inner Seas Kingdoms: 04 - A Foreign Heart Page 27
