Peace, at Last

[Vylrath]

This is the time when he cursed women. Fuck it. He got rid of the telepathy:

“I wish you to marry another and gain back your rightful place.” The new power was exciting and he began to notice its effects on nature itself. He felt a great connection with humanity- something he had always feared. Everything spoke to him, especially the presence of Kahlan. He believed her to be his true mate, but they had never fully expressed love or longing. “I am too strange, we are too strange. I don’t think I could even leave you in peace and join the Fae realm. I was changed there as well, but I became my old self once I stepped onto this soil…” He stood, thoughtful about his time with Isabella.

“I don’t think you really loved me. I married you to save you from that asshole! You could even think of me as a token husband. We never had anything in common, except our children- my spawn. I regret that they have my blood.” Another question plagued his mind. It was a question that he was sure she would be outraged to hear so bluntly.

“Should I bless Caela and the children? She will never understand you or be close to you. You can forget the close ties unless she is in likeness to us!” He spoke as a radical leader, trying to make a radical change. He knew it would never reach the plateau he had schemed up a moment ago.

“We need to leave. We have enough power in our veins to move an entire fucking village. I don’t see why we hesitate! The young ones are strong enough, especially if they have our blood! I say we move to another point, leave Kahlan and tell her our plans later...” He bore his eyes into a tree, just a few feet from them, wishing it would catch flame with the slightest notion. “I made the mistake of summoning her during my…condition.” The only thing humans had been good for was creating strong liquor. He wished for a flask to appear, but he was no magician.

“We leave tomorrow before daybreak. Caela will have to be strong for her children. They will need to learn to be strong, should you not have any children, and Caela refuses the crown.” He looked young, ready to battle. “Gaar” spoke as if they were planning a simple outing, but he knew the dangers behind this trek- they could lose their lives.

“I will have to start calling you my Mother.” He smirked at the mere thought. It just occurred to him, that this new lifestyle would require him to obey her every command.

[Jen]

Kahlan smiled at the man seated before her. She looked as if she had just stepped out of legend itself (and it was true there were legends about her, moreso now that she spent most of her time in the Faerie realm). All the man could think about was asking her to teach him how to gain the upper hand in his Draconic half. With a wry smile on her lips, Kahlan remembered how she had struggled for decades before she could even force the creature within her to calm. It was during those years that she had her first and only rampage. It had been for a good reason, in the end, but she was not proud of it. There were still small forsaken places smoldering in Ulster where, centuries later, her rage still burned as a reminder.

"I will not lie to you. It took me well over two and a half centuries to control what you are able to see. I still have problems keeping it when my anger slips, or my worry is too great. The essence within you is highly aware all of the time. You may be unable to rest at night because it is constantly taking notes -- but that has saved my life on more than one occassion."

Kahlan smiled as the small silver wyrm curled up in her lap like a tiny lap dog. She had control of this situation and it was obvious that it had taken a very long time to get to where she was.

"I spend most of my time in the realm of the Faerie since the Apocalypse. The world is different and desires a different brand of legend. I have spent my very long life with gods, legends, and mortals. I can teach you only so much as you are willing. However, if I teach you then you must know that what was easy for me may not be so for you. I have mixed blood and none of it is mortal."

-------------------

"Mother. That is a term that will take some getting used to coming from you."

Isabella glanced at Vylrath, staring at his sillouette for a brief moment before sitting up. He spoke of leaving, husbands, rebuilding a kingdom. There was a part of her that wanted that to happen, but she wasn't sure if it was the darker part of her. Should she even come within spitting distance of Xexoria, much less become its queen once more? The other part of Isabella wanted nothing more than to stay here, in this moment, staring at her ex husband. She had missed him when she was gone. He had infuriated her beyond compare -- but that was Vylrath at his core. He couldn't help his actions because they were part of him as a demon.

"As you wish." Isabella leaned over and kissed Vylrath on the cheek and then again on the forehead, letting that kiss linger a moment longer than was proper for a "mother and son" relationship.

"You are not allowed to touch Caela and the children with your power. Leave them be, they will have enough hardship in their lives because of what they are and what they can do. Caela will understand, eventually, she is my daughter. I am confident in my child and her children -- they will do as we ask."

[Titan]

She looked as if she had just stepped out of legend itself. All the man could think about was asking her to teach him how to gain the upper hand in his Draconic half.

Last words of a captured Eldar Ranger(subsequently executed): Some of you call us your allies. You are not allies, any more than a butcher’s knife is his ally. You are tools, nothing more. To be used and expended to protect our race, that is your fate.

Even with so little time the boy was able to spend with his mother, he developed a deep and unshakeable love for and loyalty to his own kind. This caused him to place everything below that which could aid him or his people; wherever they might be in the galaxy. Truth be told, if he had no deeper need for her wisdom than her appearance he might indeed have found himself staring just to allow his eyes such a treat. Yet, he realized that his other nature was not something he could rid himself of, so instead, if he could learn of it and further develop its might to preserve his life, then at least he could show the people of this planet what it meant to be an Eldar. If he were to die, he would be sure to leave his mark upon the world.

"I will not lie to you. It took me well over two and a half centuries to control what you are able to see. I still have problems keeping it when my anger slips, or my worry is too great..."

Farseer Eldrad Ulthran of Craftworld Ulthwé: What do humans know of our pain? We have sung songs of lament since before [their] ancestors crawled on their bellies from the sea.

There were a number of reasons I felt such a passage of time might not be the case with me. A confident and perhaps arrogant faith in my species was highest amongst them. While humankind evolved more as lumbering, clumsy beasts of burden who used their fledgling intellect to compose primitive works that aided in their development, I knew from mother that when the Eldar had first come into being, we already possessed the strength of mind to affect our surroundings. In comparison of our beginnings, while a human would have used a thrown rock as weapon against foe we could have commanded the forces of the world to strike down our enemies. Even as human developed rock, sinew and stick into clubs to hunt for food we could just have easily willed our prey to lay down and die. Time had only strengthened what we were naturally gifted with, and we took great pride in our ability to focus our minds as needed; to hide emotions that were best left in check.

My unknown and thus uncontrollable nature had its hand in breaking my fortitude when it managed to flare up, but mostly it was kept in check by that unnatural part of me. Such a strange existence, it was as alien to me as the blood I did not know, but something I felt I could come to understand on my own with time. Despite how foreign is was to be, it was so much easier to read and study, similar to what trace amounts of my people's technology mother had kept with her when she settled amongst the elves so long ago. This thing, in conjunction with my own mental strength and discipline assured me I could maintain the reigns over myself, especially as my understanding grew. I had to learn to cotnrol it, lest it manage to control me.

As he performed his temporary reflection on that newer part of his life, Kahlan's draconic side would better be able to sense it. What first may have seemed scars or a form of birth defect high on his back shivered in response to his thoughts as if alive and self-aware. It would be a most odd thing for her to encounter, seeming to both be and not be a part of him. Something that he was not born with but now was fused with his being.

You may be unable to rest at night because it is constantly taking notes -- but that has saved my life on more than one occassion."

She spoke; I listened. Many might think to dignify themself with a response to everything she said, but it was not necessary for myself to confirm or deny her statements. I knew what was and what wasn't, and such was good enough. Though we Eldar did sleep as others tended to, it was more likely that we would enter a state of being others would call meditative, almost to the point of seeming comatose. This allowed us to remain aware of the world around us, even if we did not use our more base senses to be so. Even so we could rest without worry, being some of the most lucid of dreamers; though they whom tread the path of the Farseer were more inclined to seeing that over which they had no control.

The movement of her creature was acknowledged only as one might another person moving through the room with the corner of their eye, keeping attention solely on the woman I felt could be my saving grace. If she would to teach me what I was willing to know, then I would ask her for everything. What use was there in not knowing all that was possible? Grateful for this opportunity I was being presented, I asked her the question to start it all. That which would allow me to begin on my road to enlightenment.

"What am I?"

Would she answer me and guide me down this road into the history of dragonkind? Maybe the third piece of my existence would be enough to make her instead delve into my origins and try to learn more of me rather than supplying what I needed to know. I could only wait, my face drawn into a mask of stone, as if all form of emotion had been sucked from my mind.

[Jen]

There was a brief moment where the air became thickly charged with some unseeable force, some thrill of power on the verge of erupting, and then it was gone. Kahlan rested her chin in one hand and watched Titan for a full minute after the sensation passed. Her eyes were unreadable and darkened slightly, as if a cloud had passed over the sun. When she sat back, the tension in the room released, and the fire behind Titan would spark back to life -- having dimmed itself a little in the brilliant woman's dampened mood.

"I do not know what you are. I can feel the dragon in you, but for whatever else you are I cannot say that I have experienced it before." That was saying something for a woman with so much influence. Kahlan tilted her head to the side and smiled softly, her intelligent eyes never leaving the man seated before her. There was so much to her that this one creature did not know and likewise she knew very little about him. Her desire was not necessarily to become his teacher, his guide, as it was to become a recluse. She had lived a life for milennia that none but the strongest of heart would envy. Then again, those that play with Gods rarely live long enough to think about the effect their lives have had on others.

Kahlan moved slowly, so as not to startle her guest, as she moved from her chair to the heavily draped window that would look out over a moonlit beach. As she pulled the curtains back the moonlight filtered past the glass and exploded into a myriad of soft silvery beams. For the briefest of moments, the span of a heartbeat, Kahlan sparkled with a radiance that seemed to come from within her core and not the moon. As she turned to look at Titan, her movements slow but graceful, Kahlan smiled and every single draconic aspect of her (including his perception of her extra sense) would be gone. Kahlan's hair was longer and more golden in color. It fell in ripples down her back and pooled like spun gold over her shoulders. Kahlan had the reputation of being one of the most beautiful women in Utopia, and as she watched Titan with brilliant emerald green eyes, the eyes of Ulster's shores, it would not be hard to understand why.

"You are not the only one with multiple races in your blood." Kahlan smiled prettily and came back to sit in her chair. Her original and first aspect would remain hidden from Titan unless there was great need for it. Kahlan's form now, however, was Faery. "The dragon aspect that you discern from me, when I am not in complete control, was introduced into my body. I was not born with that essence." Kahlan in fact, had been reborn as a Fae creature after her long stint in the Hell. It was only after a reawakening that Kahlan's true nature was revealed. It was not likely that Titan would stay with Kahlan long enough to discern her original aspect.

[Titan]

The woman stared at me like a hungry predator, and a strong presence began to fill the air; air which seemed to have been replaced by a faint purple haze that was gradually filled with soft electrical currents originating from her. The spirit of the beast had tested the limits of her control, subdued by a flexing of her will. When she had the proverbial reigns back in hand the mildly oppressive force abated, and she watched me more like a woman stunned than a monster ready to pounce. Heat flared at my back when the fire was freed of her dominance as well, burning a bit brighter as I gifted it with trace amounts of focus, learning through observation of her that it was possible to affect such a primal essence.

I do not know what you are.

And unless she were to spend a significant portion of time with me, I doubted she ever would know.

I can feel the dragon in you...

That, was what I had been searching for. Now I had a name to call my unknown spirit. I had a means with which to find information about my heritage and learn better how I might use it to my advantage. Then she moved from the chair, looking to me like a slug making its leizurely way along the floor, uncaring of the time it took for it to ultimately reach its destination. To the window she crept, scattering the blinds to allow the beautiful moon's light cast down upon her so that she might radiate with her own power in hopes of contending with it. When the illumination died from her it left her different, but in the end unchanged.

Though Tanis could see the new body she had claimed as clear as day, it was still possible to perceive the form she had previously revealed to him. It was if a ghostly image of her pseudo-dragon self was overlapping her, like that person had simply become out of phase when replaced by the woman he saw now.

She seemed quite content to display herself like some harlot hoping to attract the most endowed, both in purse and in pants, suitor. It was such that I turned my eyes to the wyrm she had left in the seat if only to keep the disgust from showing on my immaculately stone-cold visage. Returning my eyes to her face once more after the darling creature coiled about a thigh of her's to reclaim her lap, I listened to the next words to leave her lips. The shift of eyes turned out to be little more than a glance as her words proved to be unimportant, my attention held more by her familiar. One would not be false to assume I did not care whether she was born with the dragon or not; I merely wanted to know what the blood could do for me.

"What, then, is the dragon capable of?"

[Jen]

Kahlan laughed, harsher than ever before in this man's presence, and she looked directly at him. The dragonling in her lap went limp as one hand wrapped around it's neck. Kahlan smiled briefly and squeezed the creature until it imploded on itself in a fine silvery mist. She leaned forward and looked at her guest, his very demenor one of disgust, and if he thought she couldn't feel that -- then he was sorely mistaken.

"The dragon can kill you if you do not get it under control." Humorless eyes watched the man at her feet. Kahlan was not amused by the man's obviously disgusted attitude at her change. She was not here for his pleasure or his informing. He had come to her and had the audacity to seem disgusted by one of her true forms. She had no desire to continue their conversation if the man was so close minded as to allow his feelings to slip.

"If that is all, I would take my leave of this place." Kahlan got to her feet and shook out her skirts, the petals fell away to reveal a soft forest green silk fabric. It looked more like a greek robe with the fabric of the dress over one shoulder and spreading around her in a manageable fall of cloth. Kahlan looked more like a Fae Goddess than the woman that had opened the door not long ago. The dress did not hold fast to her figure or expose any unseemly amount of flesh. Ever the modest Queen and woman, Kahlan bowed her head slightly to Titan.

There would be no doubt that Kahlan was offended, the offense would be in every stiff movement she executed. Titan would not be able to follow her, should she leave, because she was leaving the plane altogether for her home in the Faerie. The only other person with the ability to follow her, at this time, was her daughter Igraine.

[Titan]

Her insight into the feelings of others was astute indeed, being able to to pick at my thoughts even if there was no facial display, not tale-tell sign in my eye, a change in my posture or even a variation in the scent my body didn't even emit. If such were truly the case, then I would have no need to hide the next rush of emotion that surged through me. An arrogant smirk curled the edge of my lips enough to part them, revealing those teeth of mine so white they seemed to shine with the moonlight gleaming in through the window. I was quite pleased that I had managed to hurt the pride of one such as she, a youngling like myself getting the better of a woman whom thought herself so ancient, beautiful and wise. Upset that her flaunting had not gained my attention but spurned it. She even went so far as to change her state of dress as if it could undo thoughts of the past.

While her actions were strained, clumsy and rigid, my own remained unaffected by any feeling which might have come across me. So fluid was the grace of my kind that, while before I had been kneeled upon the ground before the chair, in but a blink I was already standing with no more than a foot of distance separating us two. My grin faded to a more friendly and appologetic smile. If she didn't move from me then my bared right hand would come to lay on the shoulder her dress left revealed, the action parting my cloak then to show my current lack of apparel. But oh did those white pants of mine fit so well with the creamy hue of my flesh, seeming as if they might have been grown from me.

"I wish that you might forgive me for being so focused in my judgement of you. I fear it is instinct that causes me to judge others before truly I may yet know them, often turning any thoughts of friendship astray. If it is an affirmation of your beauty you seek then you have it, for there is but one other I ever would consider to be of greater pulchritude. Sincerely would I find glee in you remaining here just a moment longer, if not to talk of my infantile dragon nature, than merely to stay in your presence that much longer."

[Jen]

She shrugged his hand off her flesh and took a step back. Kahlan was full of pride and her intentions had not been to flaunt anything. He may not have spoken, breathed, or even cracked a smile -- but before his disgust he had looked at her face. The man could no longer bring himself to look at her face, and had focused keenly on the embodiment of her dragon essence -- carefully trying to keep his gaze off of her. Indeed, the creature itself had not interested him much in the moments before his disgust.

"You will not touch me. I am no friend of yours that you may presume to touch me." Kahlan was stiff and then she laughed as he spoke. "Gods but you are a young man! Do you think I intend to sway your lust for me? I am the Queen of Ulster! You overstep yourself if you think I would make a move for your hand. It is easier for me to take on this aspect because I have been in it for so long."

Kahlan turned from the man and looked at the door behind which her daughter slept. Emotion welled inside her for a moment before it was replaced with an emotionless mask. Kahlan took a deep breath before turning back to her guest. She was having some trouble not letting the dragon run rampant now. It was not happy with the turn of events. The woman had never thought to seduce this young creature, and her clothing was not indicative of any seduction ploy. The heavens alone knew that if she had aimed to seduce anyone she would not have come dressed in a thick gown of flower petals.

"You have no knowledge of who I am, what I have been through, or where I come from. You would do well not to speak as if you are familiar with me." Kahlan covered her face with her hands for a moment, obviously in pain over something -- but this man would not know and would not be able to feel what it was. When the moment of weakness passed, the woman straightened and crossed her arms over her stomach.

Kahlan's beauty was an extremely sore and soft spot for her. Kahlan didn't try to be beautiful, but it was innate in her multitude of natures. Every man that had come and gone was very forthcoming with compliments of her beauty and power -- most of all her once lover Theoren. He, above all others, was the softest spot in Kahlan's otherwise hard exterior. The longer she thought about it, the more Kahlan realized she was not sure it had been wise to show this man two of her three natures. She wasn't even sure she could trust him.

It was enough that she had interposed herself between him and the door that lead to her daughter.

[Titan]

That cast aside hand of mine stayed not where it was, nor did it fall to my side. Instead it was merely gone, the closing folds of my cloak the only sign that my arm had retreated into its confines once more. The amiable clutch on my features visually devolved into one of disgust, a bit of disappointment intertwining with such clear feelings; a change so drastic and severe it was a shame my face must look so. It was not at her these thoughts were directed but myself. I had been avoiding looking into her face, giving away what I had thought she might have seen were I to do so. I should have better been able to keep my wits about me and leave hidden my ideals. If for nothing more than the pride of myself and my own people.

The vestigial indications of my recently revealed blood were lost, repressed and subdued. All traces of silver had vanished, and though my pupils no longer were slit or encompassed by the dazzling speckles of gold still where they blue to the point of appearing to glow. Such was the natural hue of my irises. Still would she be able to know what I was and feel my presence there, even if I could not her's; this act a choice of my own. After the minor shift in cosmetics I mustered up my head to meet her, eye-to-eye. Were she to look at me there would be no alluring effect, no tug at her mind as a result of the dragon's taint. It was if merely knowing a name by which to call it had given me a greater degree of control over its nature. And indeed it had. My voice, when touching the air, was entirely void of its existence. Only that of my Eldarin heritage was revealed, my soothing tone accompanied by the ghost of mystical lyrics.

"I did not mean to cause you such distress and for it I indeed am sorry. My intent never was to strike down your character but rather to implore you help develop my own. Possible will it be to learn elsewhere I am sure, but your guidance would have been a much more welcome one. Could you find it within yourself to forgive my transgression, maybe we could speak in a place that leaves you less apprehensive." My gaze did not break from her when I made mention of this latter part, as not to turn her passive defense between myself and the door an aggressive one.

"I shall be on the beach, where I might better bask in the moon's grace." Should I not be impeded in my departure, a movement of dexterity and grace would return my set aside pack to my right shoulder and I would make way to the door. Then, in the same moment my hands would rise to tug up my hood would have I taken out the third of four plump strawberries gathered earlier in the evening, depositing it on the counter near the portal meant for me to make my exit through.

[Vylrath]

Willow flocked to the portal like a lost lamb. She knew that it was the creation of her mother –she could feel the essence and it curdled her blood. Why did the hatred exist? Her mother had been nothing but kind and gentle with her. However, this new child by her and the demon, created a new energy of hate: why was she so ready to replace her? Wasn’t Willow the true Princess?

Such arrogance had not left her when she travelled with Mikael. He had been kind to her and she promised to return to him. She had to confront her mother and let her know that she was very much alive.

Arriving at the quaint hut- she saw the man exiting, looking perplexed. She strolled past him, neglecting his presence at first. Finally, she pivoted back toward him. Her face solemn, strained with thoughts.

“A woman…calls herself Kahlan…have you seen her? I will pay you, if you can tell me where she is!”

Willow wondered if her mother would react harshly, or with welcome arms. She doubted it would be with welcome arms when she explained who she was in love with. She had been away for at least a year on a ship with a strange man- demonic- no less.

She stood in front of the young man (unless Titan left?) and waited for a response. It was the first time she had ever been polite. Her young features would give away her age. She was mortal, so he might be able to sense he vulnerability too.

“Forgive me for intruding- but I must see my mother.” Her heart sang with loneliness and her mind was still swollen with stubbornness. She sent a telepathic message to Mikael, knowing that he would catch her thoughts:

Don’t worry, I’ll return to you. I promised I would be with you. I just need to see my mother.

[Jen]

The strawberry confused her. She would admit to that if anyone asked. She stared at it perplexed for a moment before walking across the room and picking it up. It was ripe and plump and a beautiful shade of red. It was perfect as any strawberry might be. Having been in the Faerie for so long the symbolism of outsiders' use of plants often left her a little perplexed. She understood the exchange of flowers and some various fruits, but the single strawberry caused her to frown in thought.

"Interesting." She muttered to herself as she set the berry back down and headed for the door. She would just have to tell the man she couldn't do it. She couldn't teach him. She wasn't in the right frame of mind to be a mentor and she needed to be honest with him. Besides, other dragonlings often left her feeling drained, as if all they wanted to do was judge her and battle with her over some little thing. Dragonkin were a fussy and irritating lot. Kahlan tossed the door open and stepped outside.

It was what she saw that stopped her dead.

She had known Willow hadn't been dead. Kahlan was more all encompassing than Willow would ever realize. The sight of her though was like a knife through Kahlan's heart. The girl had ever been a thorn in everyone's side except Kahlan's. She'd done some wrong things, surely, with this child that would make the girl hate her as much as she did. Kahlan rested a hand on her heart and fell to her knees in the sand. It felt as if a barbed blade was lodged in her heart and would never be removed, as if she had been reminded of what this child had done to escape her mother.

"Willow?" It was all Kahlan could say, all she could whisper. Her eyes flickered toward Titan. He would feel the strange broiling of emotions under her skin. There would be no hiding it from him. This girl, before him, was important and extremely powerfully hurtful to Kahlan.

"Momma? Momma! What's wrong!" Kahlan felt her heart jump at the sound of Igraine's voice. She turned and caught her young daughter in her arms just as she came flying from the door. The girl was everything Willow had never been. Imagine! A daughter from a demon better behaved and loving than the daughter of a human! As Igraine rested her wheat blonde hair against Kahlan's heart, as if to mend what she didn't even know was broken, Kahlan kissed her forehead.

"Ah, Igraine. Your older sister is here to see me. I want you to go home, go back to the Faerie." When Igraine began to protest, Kahlan smiled and kissed her forehead. "It will be okay my little dove. I will come to you when all is done." Igraine had her father's reserve however and her little features, though delicate, were set.

"I will stay Mother. I cannot let you be all alone here. She will just break your heart again and again. I have no love for my half sister." In truth it was Igraine that was due the throne when Kahlan passed it over to her. She was technically the child of two monarchs and she was very much schooled in the art of diplomacy and war. She was physically capable of handling everything that came her way, not unlike her mother.


"Willow, what have you come to tell your Mother?" Kahlan slid Igraine behind her body. Willow couldn't kill Kahlan but she could hurt Igraine. Kahlan had the most disturbing thought, that she would have to choose between daughters very soon, and that one might have to die -- and it wouldn't be Igraine. Willow might be surprised, after her moment of weakness, how Kahlan's exterior would harden to her.

[Vylrath]

The beautiful child…such beauty could only come from her mother!

Willow did a surprising thing: she weeped. She heard the words spat by the angry child, knowing that her kingdom new her actions well. She had felt trapped in her own Kingdom. Royalty was not for her- she had in fact, relished in the travel with Mikael. They had been able to experience worlds together. It wasn’t that her mother would not have let her, but she knew she would –always-have to return to her kingdom.

The kingdom life wasn’t for her- she didn’t know what was for her. Maybe Mikael would be a welcoming comfort when she left Kahlan. How badly she wanted Mikael to turn her- she hated this mortal body! She would gladly become his dark slave.

“My little sister hates me so much?” It was the hallow-ness in her voice that might shock Kahlan. She had been with Mikael for a year, only to learn how to speak and act like him- unnatural. “Where did she spawn from? You have not had a man since my father and he is dead…” She would kill the man who bed with her mother-even if the thought wasn’t fair to her sister.

“I am half, little one, but I am still your blood.” She said coyly, unafraid. If there was one good thing about Willow, she was never afraid. Maybe that was why Mikael had chosen her company.

Something had aged in her. The youth that once rested in her chest was now gone. She wasn’t an ancient creature, by no means, but she had changed dramatically. She looked tired, exhausted, as if she had been searching this entire time for Kahlan.

She knelt down to her sister’s eye level. The garment she wore, had been for Mikael’s enjoyment. It was charcoal colored, almost a mourning gown, but with enough elegance to be called tactful. The hood falling across her shoulders revealed her mature beauty. She looked like the splitting image of Kahlan, but not in soul. Bluntly, she asked: “What is she? Whose blood does she carry? Why would you let such taint enter our blood?” She stood up, looking at Kahlan with an intent on getting a proper answer. She felt betrayed, hurt, the longing for her mother stabbing her in her chest.

Weapons did not have to be used against these two- actions and words had been enough to parry with.

“The man…Mikael, seduced me. I was travelling with him and ordered him to make stop here. We have seen so many things, mother! Glorious architect, people, cities! I wish to experience more. He is not….mortal. I wish to have a life with him. Maybe even children! Say you will be in my life again…this position is not meant for me! I have my father’s soul in me! I do not wish the throne, but I can not stand this barrier I have created.”

Mikael had never seen her cry. Should he appear, he would be in shock from the fresh, pearl-drop sized tears that flooded down her porcelain cheeks.

She cupped her mother’s hands, just to feel her closeness again. She watched her sister, ready to depart into the Fae realm.

“Dear sister…you will find no competition in me.” said Willow, pleased with her truth revealed. “Please ,find it in your heart to forgive my cruelty.” Perhaps being with Mikael had changed her for the better. She was mortal still and could not read emotions in the mind, or converse with her mother through the mind. Everything had to be met with physical transition. Travelling had not been easy for her. Her mother was not always an easy woman to find.

“How did you come to be with a child? Did a man…rape you?” She asked Kahlan, honestly, and fearing the answer. She could not fault Igraine for being what she was, especially if she was travelling with Mikael, who was no golden angel himself.

“You will love Mikael mother! I’m sure you two will get along…” She stood by her, anxiously awaiting a conversation that had been long overdue.

[Titan]

What progress I had made in distancing myself from the place in which the draconic woman resided was to be all for the moment, as another woman had found it in herself to call for my attention after passing me by like some beggar unworthy of prior notice. By Khaine, it seemed this place was truly a realm of worship for The Great Enemy, pitting against me any manner of alluring woman it thought could possibly catch my fancy and draw me into the hedonistic acts which had first spawned She Who Thrists. If before my resolve had seemed steeled it was now quite adamant. There would be no manner of stray thought or emotion to slip beyond me, denying even the shape-changing woman a glance into my mentality.

This younger female, looking and even smelling more of the Mon'Keigh's blood than the few individuals I had met in such a brief period of time, asked of me a question. There was even the promise of dues in return for a helpful answer to her inquiry. Even had I the desire for such an offering, it would not become mine. The dragoness and myself had never bothered to share with one another our names and I had no idea who this Kahlan was. Just as I was nearing the point of letting her know such, a sensation of thoughts left the young one and the door through I had left to be where I now was opened again. A quick series of events revealed much information to me.

Following the initial rush of disturbing emotions from the woman I learned to be Kahlan, I found out she was the mother of both this young Willow and that child's half-sister Igraine. I merely stood aside from the whole affair, like some ghost who was present only in mind and spirit but did not actually have a physical presence amongst the living. An observer of the occurances transpiring, which with Willow was a cascade of feelings traversing through marvel, sorrow, joy, anger, sadness, rage, nonchalance, confusion, heartache, happiness, longing, regret, hopefulness, fear, elation and anxiety.

The progression was so rapid and muddling that were I a normal man it likely would have been overwhelming in its expression. As it was my own nature, one capable of vastly more intense feeling than a Mon'Keigh's, found it merely the dull and uncollected mental rambling of a human's mind. And it was that which helped to clear my own and return me more to my current whereabouts. The life of these three and what they did with it was no business of mine, so I had no right to be eavesdropping on their conversation. Sparing Kahlan an inquisitive emote, being my face was still hidden by mine hood, I waited to be sure there would be no problems with me leaving.

If not, then I would be gone from them.

[Jen]

Kahlan watched Willow's cascade of emotion and then looked at the little seven year old girl standing next to her, her small hand resting on Kahlan's shoulder. Igraine was ever so different from Willow. She had been a quiet and contemplative child, willing to do everything that Kahlan asked. Perhaps it was that the child had not been exposed to the human court life like Willow had. Perhaps it was that Kahlan had not sought a husband or love beyond Vylrath. There was no demonic taint in the child. Igraine's growth and current immortality came strictly from the Faerie realm.

"I am quite capable of taking lovers as I will. I am also quite capable of still becoming pregnant. Do I look ancient and withered, Willow? Have I aged since you have been gone?" Literally, no of course not. Kahlan was ancient, she was immortal, and she was physically capable of doing just about anything she wanted to. However, she was care worn. Time had its toll on all creatures, and the High Queen of Ulster was no exception. Kahlan shifted her dress robe, the colors of forest and earth sparkling over her body for the briefest of moments before the fabric settled.

"Igraine's father is Vylrath Xanathi of Xexoria. He was a half demon, but now he is changed -- and I am not sure it is for the better." Kahlan frowned as she thought, the gesture took nothing away from her beauty as it might a mortal woman. The Queen of Ulster looked no older than twenty five years, the wear of years took their toll on her heart and her mind, though there were several severe scars that -- if Titan could not reign in his dragon sense -- he would find riddled over the woman's back and stomach. There was one scar that Willow herself had played with as a toddler quite often, a soft iridescent scar in the shape of a sickle, just above Kahlan's heart. It was one that would never fade, much like the others, and it was from the God of Death himself. It came from a time when Kahlan had been less than free and the One God and Death spoke of freeing the one being capable of salvation. Hell had never been a place where Kahlan ever thought to land herself. Perhaps that was why she felt drawn to Vylrath in a sense.

As if thinking of the memories, Kahlan's fingertips brushed her sickle shaped scar briefly illuminated by the moonlight.

The woman pulled back her long blonde hair and tied it back. Her eyes, blue grey in the moonlight, watched Willow briefly. She was everything that a monarch should be and more. There was no end to Kahlan's regal bearing.

"Your sister is going to take your place in Ulster. She has been taught, and will continue to learn, what it takes to be a Monarch. I will be harder to find after the next winter. I will return to the Faerie and only come when called. I will come to you, if you desire it -- wherever you are. I have seen everything you have, and more. I have seen the evolution of culture and society like no one else. I have helped where I could. All you had to do was ask, Willow, and I would have let you go."

Kahlan turned her head and looked at Titan. She raised her hand and motioned to the two girls.

"My daughters. Willow and Igraine." Kahlan kept her gaze on Titan but something in the way she looked at him changed. Her gaze softened just a fraction -- one he undoubtedly would not miss.

"I want to apologize. I take affront too easily when my dragon is loose."

[Vylrath]

Anger began to course through her. It was just who she was and what she had become. She glared toward Titan, who sat as if entertained. The air about this young man irritated her entirely. Willow addressed her mother, bluntly and without hesitation. She would have been a great Queen- albeit too dark for her people- she would have certainly destroyed her proud heritage.

“You bed with a demon? You’ve completely let go of father…” Glaring, she took stance in front of Titan. Something was odd about him- something unnatural. He was too still, too thoughtful for a natural being.
Was he a creature like Kahlan? She smirked at her thought, hoping it was true.

“You are but a whelp to my mother! Look at you! Mewing for her attention! I’m certain you were the one who sought her- I don’t know why she would seek such an infantile being- she could crush you. Hell, my sister could wipe you of your existence and she is but a child!” Leaning against the frame of the doorway, she stopped any from leaving and unless, Titan felt daring enough to push past her, she would certainly call for her demonic mate.

The human girl had no dragon in her, nothing fantastical, but her mood was crazed to be certain.

“It seems we have one thing in common mother- our taste in men. You also keep company with spoiled, arrogant children, who think too highly of themselves to properly speak to women-women of royalty!” Willow said, with words laced in acid. “Unless he is the Lord of this house, I don’t understand why you apologize to his mannerism.” Moving from the door frame, she marched around her mother, her tone in light of an interrogation. It irritated her that her mother could be so weak and cowed by men.

“The Fae realm should be disgusted with you…bedding with a demon! It would seem that Her Majesty is trying to throw her kingdom away. Her Majesty doesn’t care who she lies with, as long as it has the same working parts as father!” said Willow, her face wrought with emotion. She called out for Mikael, who would feel her intense reaction.

“The man you bed with will die- I will hunt him down until I am too old and weak! Once I tell Mikael of the effect it’s had on me, I am sure he will aid me in hunting this rogue demon. It will be ironic to use one, to hunt a past lover of yours of the same nature, but I will protect my father’s honor!”

Mikael, hear my thoughts…I need you at this hour! We must leave this place! My mother has gone insane...we must hunt the man who has done this to her!

If she could not kill her sister, she would kill the thing that helped spawn it! Without letting her mother finish a protest, she left the hut to be with Mikael. He would understand her- he would feel her pain. He was the only one who could relate with her inner turmoil.

She had given up so much to be with Mikael. Wllow knew that he would aid her.

Pushing past Kahlan and Titan, she made her way outside, awaiting the arrival of Mikael.