Rising of the Moon - Chapter Nine

@ Ravenia James: Thank you very much. : D I'm glad you like it. I'll try posting it faster.

I have a feeling like I should be speeding up the story, but I like when events are slower. What do you think?

@ Jesse G: Thanks! : ) I love putting in a lot of descriptions. Sometimes I'm not sure if I'm overdoing it. Hope you'll enjoy this chapter.

@ Cherry Shab: Oh thank you very much! That's a huge compliment really, cause I love "Hell angels", I'm also reading it and I'm so sad she won't have time to post for the next month... But I'm happy you're comparing me to Xara Tipton. : D I'm really glad you think mine is equally interesting. And yeah, I like putting a lot of descriptions and can be very detailed sometimes, just so that I would try to put an image in readers head, to try to portrait it the way I see it.

Chapter nine

- The agreement -

She blinked once again, eyes wide in wonder. Her parents... They were close with the queen. Her mother and father did tell her about queen Leana like they knew her, but she only assumed that everyone knew about the queen cause she was well loved and known by all. Sorcerer. Magic. Words appeared over and over again in front of her eyes. Everyone in her village thought she was gifted, but no one ever made an effort to teach her. All the Sorcerers were killed or captured after the queens death. There was no one left to teach her magic, so her parents probably considered it safe if she remained ignorant in that skill. But she did use magic on occasion. Some small amounts, something that she discovered by herself, and only in the valley when she was alone. Young mans words brought her back to reality:

- "I am to bring you to the palace. It's the last place king will search for you. We will spread out the word that you're dead. We... "

- "Wait a moment. " she interrupted him. "Who's we? Why do you want to take me there? Why does the king want me dead? "

- "Queen Amera... My stepmother. She was the one that discovered these letters. She decided to act. Listen, we have a man skilled in moon people magic. No one but queen and me is aware of that. He is one of the rare sorcerers that survived the slaughter because he was still an apprentice then. He will be the one to train you in secret. Together, with our powers unite, we will be able to help the land. "

- "Together?? You are sorcerer? "

Prince smiled. - "Yes... And my teacher said that I could be one of the most powerful ones that ever lived. But we are yet to see that. Just, come with me. Help me clean up the mess that my father made. Do it for your people. They are out there, still alive, but to afraid to show themselves being hunted by my father's troops. I want to change that. We will need every single man and woman available when the war starts. No one is aware of it yet. You will learn the details when we get to the palace. "

He took her hand gently in his:

- "Please, trust me. " he said simply.

And she did. Looking in his eyes, she saw security, confidence, trust and... something else. She shook her head, clearing her thoughts.

- "When are we leaving? " she finally asked.
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Ranels face brightened. He was relieved that he managed to convince her.

- "We can leave right away if you are ready. But you will have to say goodbye to your friends. If they see you with wolves, they will know who you are. "

- "I understand. Let me ask you something. Aren't you afraid of them? "

Ranel was surprised by the question.

- "I guess I am. But I'm not afraid of death. So I have nothing to loose. And I know that, as long as I'm with you, they won't harm me. And I think that they are even cute. They look magnificent. I would be honored to have them as friends. "

She seemed to like the answer. Wolves seemed a bit friendlier too.

- "Am I allowed to touch them? " He asked suddenly.

- "If you dare to, yes... " She gave a small wink to the pack leader. The animal seemed to smile while looking at the girl. Ranel really wasn't sure in what way they communicate. It was all so confusing to him.

He turned to the pack leader. He was a beautiful wolf. The biggest one in the pack. He loved the silver line that was going all the way from wolves neck to the top of his tale. His fur was fluffy and soft looking. Probably from this mornings swimming to reach the island. He was looking the wolf straight in the eyes, then he lowered his eyes looking at the ground, acknowledging the leadership. He saw the dogs at the palace doing that, when they came to a stronger dog. That's how they acknowledged that the other dog is superior or showed respect. Then he raised his eyes and knelt. The big wolf came to him, sniffing him lightly. Ranel was perfectly calm. He slowly raised his hand to Ruths nose. Wolf sniffed it carefully. He could probably feel the smell of Leanas hair on his fingers too. Next moment Ruth jumped on him playfully, giving him one big lick over his face.

- "Eeeeeeww! " he said, not being used to that kind of affection. But he was laughing at the same time as the wolf lay down on his back expecting of Ranel to pet him. And he did so. It was like playing with a puppy.

- "I think he likes you. " the girl said while laughing.

- "I'm glad. How about the rest of them? " he asked and looked at the rest of the pack. It was a wrong thing of him to do, for they all jumped playfully at him that moment and in no time he was covered by wolves who were trying to lick him and play with him. He was losing his breath and laughing didn't help much either. At least he had fun, even though he was choking. The girl called them then, so that he could catch some breath. As soon as they moved off him, she started giggling. He could tell she was laughing at him.

- "What? " He asked with a confused expression on his face. He raised his hands to his head. He could feel the mess of his hair. He ran to the water and saw his image. He really did look like a mess. He started laughing at himself too. Couple of cuts were on his face that looked slimy from all the licking. He was red in face too, his fine clothes torn in couple of places, his hair going in all directions. He took off his clothes and jumped in the cold water of the lake. Wolves followed. And soon, they were having fun, diving and splashing all over, while Leana was just watching that from the shore.