an_alien_sky (![[info]](http://p-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} an_alien_sky) wrote,@ 2005-08-10 17:47:00 |
|
Spirals
Another outtake from the Kingdom's tales, set somewhere between "Dragon's Gift" and "Shattered Stone".
---------------
“Ye are no’ paying attention.”
Seth’s voice was gentle, but it jerked Steve out of his thoughts. “Sorry,” Steve said. “Just...thinking.” It was close enough to the truth.
“I can see tha’.” When Steve didn’t answer, Seth sighed. “Did ye wish t’ talk about it?”
Steve looked away. Everyone wanted him to talk about it. He was tired of talk. He wanted to do something, anything, but there was nothing he could do. He had to live with it, and he couldn’t.
He couldn’t live with the guilt.
“I do no’ want to pry,” Seth said. “But a break in attention as tha’ in magic is dangerous. Cat would skin me dead for blood on th’ walls.”
Blood on the walls. And it was Elena’s blood spilled in the fields of Kern, after Steve’d run out on her. After he’d left her to face the mess alone, rather than taking the responsibility he’d chosen.
His responsibilty. Her blood.
“Steve?”
Steve didn’t look at him. Seth had been teaching Steve magic after Neal’s encounter with that kid and the whole fiasco with Obsidian -- not that Steve had been a willing student. But Steve didn’t want another occurence of what’d brought Sid over, and he definitely did not want to find himself on the receiving end of a psycho like Jason, ever. So he fumbled through Seth’s lessons, week after week; he found Seth’s accent oddly comforting.
Which gave him a way to sidestep Seth’s question. “You’re from Kern.”
“Aye,” Seth said. And waited.
“Did -- do you ever go back?”
Mouth pursed, Seth eyed him for a long moment. “No,” Seth said finally. “Has been too long. No’ a thing is left there for me now.” Then, quietly, “Did ye want to go back, then?”
“You send him back and I’ll put dead frogs on your side of the bed.” Cat leaned in the doorway, glaring at Seth.
Seth ignored her. “Well?” he said to Steve.
“No,” Steve said to Seth. “There’s nothing there for me, either.”
“My god, he shows sense,” Cat muttered. Louder, “Sid’s getting a bit restless. She’s through that stack of books already.” She grinned. “You might want to take her to the library downtown, Steve. She’d move there permanently and you’d have your life back again.”
Despite his mood, Steve couldn’t help grinning back at her. He’d added three bookshelves to his condo in the past month, and they were already crammed full of books for Sid. Not that Steve minded -- a dragon’s horde of books was infinitely better than heaps of thief-attracting gold about the place. “Nah. She’d take ‘em all back with her and I’d have to pay the fines.”
“Sid not take!” The little dragon was suddenly on Cat’s shoulder, having jumped there, and somehow managed to look indignant. “Share knowledge. Knowledge good for everyone.”
“Now convince him of that,” Cat said, with a nod at Steve.
“C’mon, Foot-burner,” Steve said to Sid, and held his arm out so Sid could clamber up to his shoulder. He glanced over his shoulder, back at Seth, who watched quietly. “Same time tomorrow?”
“Tamalpais on Saturday,” Cat said, before Seth could say anthing.
“C’mon, Cat,” Steve said. “Give it a rest. What we did last week ought to hold good for a while.”
“Yeah,” Cat said, “and we’ll keep on doing what we did last week so it’ll keep holding good.” At Steve’s exasperated sigh, she put her hand on the opposite door jamb, blocking him from brushing past her. “Look, we’re not dealing with normal stuff here. It’s --”
“-- a natural gate,” Steve finished with her. “I know, I know.”
“No, you don’t know,” Cat snapped. “Or else you wouldn’t have said that crap. It’s wild magic, Steve, and it twists time and space to hell. It’d take three or four mages of Seth’s power to even start to shut it down completely, and even that’d be chancy. All it takes is one mage-talented kid up there, pissed off at whoever they’re with and wanting to go away, and that gate’ll react to them...”
Steve had heard all this before, too. “Cat, it’s just--”
“No,” Cat said. “It’s not just magic. Don’t even try that line with me, mister.”
“Changing the world around ye,” Seth said then, “is the essence of magic.”
“Shaper said it,” Sid said. “Careful what wish for, you get it.”
Steve glanced at Sid. His wish had started Sid’s situation...
Cat saw the look. “You’ve had one taste of what that wild magic does,” she said, nodding at Sid, “and you got off incredibly lucky. You really want some kid getting into something worse?”
“Saturday,” Steve sighed, resigned, and Cat moved her arm to let him pass.
But Seth spoke again. “Steve.”
Steve glanced back, over his shoulder.
“Ye are no’ th’ only one to stand between two worlds,” Seth said quietly. “And ye are no’ th’ only one to find home where ye were no’ born.”
Sympathy and attempts at empathy -- over the past few months, Steve had grown to hate both. “Don’t tell me that crap,” Steve snapped. “You were never king. You weren’t kidnapped and driven crazy. You never killed someone you loved --”
No. He hadn’t meant to say that.
“He sure as hell tried,” Cat said dryly.
Startled, Steve raised his head. There was no sympathy in Cat’s face, just flat appraisal.
“Aye,” Seth said. “An’ the lass ha’ some words for me, I tell ye.”
“You --”
“Wha’ is worth havin’ is ne’er easy,” Seth said, cutting Steve off. “Wha’ matters is whether ye will pay th’ price to ha’ it.”
“My home’s here,” Steve said, but the words were dry in his mouth.
Another outtake from the Kingdom's tales, set somewhere between "Dragon's Gift" and "Shattered Stone".
---------------
“Ye are no’ paying attention.”
Seth’s voice was gentle, but it jerked Steve out of his thoughts. “Sorry,” Steve said. “Just...thinking.” It was close enough to the truth.
“I can see tha’.” When Steve didn’t answer, Seth sighed. “Did ye wish t’ talk about it?”
Steve looked away. Everyone wanted him to talk about it. He was tired of talk. He wanted to do something, anything, but there was nothing he could do. He had to live with it, and he couldn’t.
He couldn’t live with the guilt.
“I do no’ want to pry,” Seth said. “But a break in attention as tha’ in magic is dangerous. Cat would skin me dead for blood on th’ walls.”
Blood on the walls. And it was Elena’s blood spilled in the fields of Kern, after Steve’d run out on her. After he’d left her to face the mess alone, rather than taking the responsibility he’d chosen.
His responsibilty. Her blood.
“Steve?”
Steve didn’t look at him. Seth had been teaching Steve magic after Neal’s encounter with that kid and the whole fiasco with Obsidian -- not that Steve had been a willing student. But Steve didn’t want another occurence of what’d brought Sid over, and he definitely did not want to find himself on the receiving end of a psycho like Jason, ever. So he fumbled through Seth’s lessons, week after week; he found Seth’s accent oddly comforting.
Which gave him a way to sidestep Seth’s question. “You’re from Kern.”
“Aye,” Seth said. And waited.
“Did -- do you ever go back?”
Mouth pursed, Seth eyed him for a long moment. “No,” Seth said finally. “Has been too long. No’ a thing is left there for me now.” Then, quietly, “Did ye want to go back, then?”
“You send him back and I’ll put dead frogs on your side of the bed.” Cat leaned in the doorway, glaring at Seth.
Seth ignored her. “Well?” he said to Steve.
“No,” Steve said to Seth. “There’s nothing there for me, either.”
“My god, he shows sense,” Cat muttered. Louder, “Sid’s getting a bit restless. She’s through that stack of books already.” She grinned. “You might want to take her to the library downtown, Steve. She’d move there permanently and you’d have your life back again.”
Despite his mood, Steve couldn’t help grinning back at her. He’d added three bookshelves to his condo in the past month, and they were already crammed full of books for Sid. Not that Steve minded -- a dragon’s horde of books was infinitely better than heaps of thief-attracting gold about the place. “Nah. She’d take ‘em all back with her and I’d have to pay the fines.”
“Sid not take!” The little dragon was suddenly on Cat’s shoulder, having jumped there, and somehow managed to look indignant. “Share knowledge. Knowledge good for everyone.”
“Now convince him of that,” Cat said, with a nod at Steve.
“C’mon, Foot-burner,” Steve said to Sid, and held his arm out so Sid could clamber up to his shoulder. He glanced over his shoulder, back at Seth, who watched quietly. “Same time tomorrow?”
“Tamalpais on Saturday,” Cat said, before Seth could say anthing.
“C’mon, Cat,” Steve said. “Give it a rest. What we did last week ought to hold good for a while.”
“Yeah,” Cat said, “and we’ll keep on doing what we did last week so it’ll keep holding good.” At Steve’s exasperated sigh, she put her hand on the opposite door jamb, blocking him from brushing past her. “Look, we’re not dealing with normal stuff here. It’s --”
“-- a natural gate,” Steve finished with her. “I know, I know.”
“No, you don’t know,” Cat snapped. “Or else you wouldn’t have said that crap. It’s wild magic, Steve, and it twists time and space to hell. It’d take three or four mages of Seth’s power to even start to shut it down completely, and even that’d be chancy. All it takes is one mage-talented kid up there, pissed off at whoever they’re with and wanting to go away, and that gate’ll react to them...”
Steve had heard all this before, too. “Cat, it’s just--”
“No,” Cat said. “It’s not just magic. Don’t even try that line with me, mister.”
“Changing the world around ye,” Seth said then, “is the essence of magic.”
“Shaper said it,” Sid said. “Careful what wish for, you get it.”
Steve glanced at Sid. His wish had started Sid’s situation...
Cat saw the look. “You’ve had one taste of what that wild magic does,” she said, nodding at Sid, “and you got off incredibly lucky. You really want some kid getting into something worse?”
“Saturday,” Steve sighed, resigned, and Cat moved her arm to let him pass.
But Seth spoke again. “Steve.”
Steve glanced back, over his shoulder.
“Ye are no’ th’ only one to stand between two worlds,” Seth said quietly. “And ye are no’ th’ only one to find home where ye were no’ born.”
Sympathy and attempts at empathy -- over the past few months, Steve had grown to hate both. “Don’t tell me that crap,” Steve snapped. “You were never king. You weren’t kidnapped and driven crazy. You never killed someone you loved --”
No. He hadn’t meant to say that.
“He sure as hell tried,” Cat said dryly.
Startled, Steve raised his head. There was no sympathy in Cat’s face, just flat appraisal.
“Aye,” Seth said. “An’ the lass ha’ some words for me, I tell ye.”
“You --”
“Wha’ is worth havin’ is ne’er easy,” Seth said, cutting Steve off. “Wha’ matters is whether ye will pay th’ price to ha’ it.”
“My home’s here,” Steve said, but the words were dry in his mouth.
