"Future"
by Mayetra & Beryll
Pain, like nothing Fahima had ever felt before, coursed through her arm. The bloody abrasion to her knee seemed hardly a scratch in comparison. Sitting on the roof of the tallest tower, she waited for Pet to come to her, as she knew he would. This was their favorite spot, the one place where the world left them alone. A new round of tears trailed down her cheeks and she was beyond trying to stop them, much to her shame.
She took some solace in the fact that she had managed to sneak back into the fortress without alerting the men to her presence. While she was grateful that they were not witness to her shame, she was angry that she had breached the defenses so easily. She would speak to Pet about it, but later, when her head was not filled with echoes of agony.
What was taking him so long? She needed a distraction from the throbbing in her wrist, which had decided to keep time with her heartbeat. She turned her mind to what it was that she had done wrong. Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she thought back past the moment of her injury to earlier in the evening.
Pet had stopped their training early because of a summons from Magnus. In Fahima’s opinion, Magnus was enemy number one! Magnus’ job had something to do with trade and other boring things that Fahima didn’t quite understand. He seemed to be unable to do it without Pet’s presence. Every time she turned around, Pet was being summoned to some stupid meeting or another, something she knew he hated.
An especially sharp spike of pain pulled her away from her tangent and she had to force herself to focus on the information she was trying to glean. Pet had left, leaving her free to do whatever she wished. Fahima had decided that she would investigate the rocky border surrounding the fortress. She had ventured further than she had ever gone before, close to the front of the fortress where the water was deep and the waves crashed with white fury against the jagged rocks.
That had been her first mistake, she quickly realized. Though a full moon hung brightly in the night sky, providing some light, it was not enough for her to make out the subtle dangers that crossed her path. She had been leaping barefoot from rock to rock, many of which were swathed in shadows.
She took another steadying breath and concentrated. She had paused, perched on the tip of one of the taller stones. In the shadowy jumble beyond her, she had caught sight of a small tide pool. Knowing that the waves often deposited treasures from the sea into them, she had leaned forward and focused all her attention on it. A wave had crashed over the rocks, filling the pool with white foam, but as the water retreated, she had caught sight of a white piece of coral shining in the moonlight. She had thought that it would be a perfect gift for Uncle Anthe, who adored rocks and always delighted in the ones that Fahima brought him. She had leaped toward a flat stone on the edge of the pool without hesitation.
That had been her second mistake. She had been so intent on the coral that she had not taken the time to really look at where she was jumping too. The rock had looked steady but it wasn’t. As soon as she landed, it had tilted sharply throwing her off-balance. She had waved her arms in a desperate attempt to regain her balance and might have recovered if not for her third mistake.
She had not timed her leap with the rhythm of the waves. She had spent enough time along the waterfront and in the water to know that waves come in cycles. You can count the time between them and there is always one in the cycle that is bigger and fiercer than the others. It was this type of wave that crashed into her lower legs, sweeping her off her feet. It had been large enough to unbalance her but not enough to cushion her fall.
Her knee had slammed into the rough side of a rock and slid, leaving a layer of skin behind. The salt water had set her knee on fire but the pain was short lived. Fahima had thrown her arms out to try and catch herself. Her left arm had connected with the uneven surface first and had borne the brunt of her weight. There had been searing pain that had overridden all other sensations.
A face full of saltwater had brought her back to her senses. She had rolled over carefully and taken stock of her injuries, the pain momentarily abated by the shock of her fall. Her knee, along with her right elbow, had been bleeding profusely but not life-threateningly. Then the pain in her left wrist had flared to life and brought with it tears that she had no control over. Somehow, she had the presence of mind to look for the coral but the wave that had knocked her over had also taken it. Perhaps the sea was punishing her for her folly.
As Fahima remember all the small details of her accident, a new reason for tears was added – sorrow for losing Uncle Anthe’s treasure. Well it would not happen again, she thought with determination. She would return first thing in the morning, as soon as the sun was full and bright. She would scour every rock, learn every nook and cranny, and find every hidden danger. She would not leave until she knew every inch of the rocks surrounding the entire fortress as well as she knew every inch of her and Pet’s chamber. Then she would take the money she had been saving for a new knife and go to the bazaar. There she would search until she had found Uncle Anthe a new treasure, better than the shiny piece of coral she had lost.
Movement caught her attention and she saw Pet pulling himself up over the edge of the roof. She hung her head allowing her hair to curtain her face and hide her tears. She said nothing as he settled himself next to her, his legs dangling over the edge. She tried to hold her breath in an effort to stop crying.
“Hey, Luv.”
Letting out the breath, Fahima sniffled and took a couple of hitching breaths. “Pet,” her voice was soft and broken, even to her ears. She winced slightly, wishing she could be braver.
She waited to see what he would say next, peeking at him through her hair. His eyes were sweeping over her with concern, resting briefly on her knee before returning to where her hair hid her face. He didn’t say anything but simply held out his arm in invitation.
Forgetting bravery in the face of much needed comfort Fahima cuddled into his side, taking care with her injured arm. She buried her face into his chest and cried, no longer caring if it was childish or not. “I fell down,” she managed to choke out between sobs. It sounded garbled and muffled but Pet seemed to understand her all the same.
He had wrapped his arms around her small frame and had just rested his chin on top of her head. “That happens sometimes, Luv.”
She struggled to regain her composure and after a few minutes, was able to lift away from his chest. “I think I hurt my arm badly. It hasn’t stopped hurting at all.” She held out her left arm with complete trust that he would know what to do about it.
Pet took her arm gently and examined it, carefully probing around the egg-sized knot at the wrist. “It’s broken, Luv.”
A new wave of tears met this announcement, and fear laced Fahima’s voice, “Can you fix it?”
Pet let go of her wrist and brought his own to his mouth. He bit into it and held it back out to Fahima, twin lines of dark blood flowed from two small puncture wounds. “Here, drink some.”
Fahima didn’t hesitate and pressed her mouth to the wound, her good hand cupping his to help stead it. She had drunk from him before whenever she had been seriously hurt during training. Her tongue lapped at the coppery liquid as she sucked gently. It never occurred to her that most people would find this act disgusting. For her, it was the ultimate display of Pet’s love. He was sharing his own lifeblood to heal her, giving of himself to make her whole again. She could feel her broken arm start to tingle, itching slightly as the pain receded.
“That’s enough, Luv,” Pet told her gently.
She wanted to drink more but knew that she had to stop. She lifted her lips and licked them, catching the last stray drops of blood. Looking down, she saw that the knot on her arm was gone and knew that it was healed completely. She raised it and wiped the last of tears away. “Thank you, Pet.”
He was licking the wound on his arm closed. It always amazed Fahima that he could make them disappear completely so easily. He smiled at her, “Better now?”
“Yes.” She wiggled her wrist so he could see that it was fixed. Her tongue traced the contours of her mouth and she thought about something that she had been meaning to ask him for some time. “I thought blood would taste like food.”
Pet chuckled. “It tastes like blood, Luv.”
“But you drink it like food. Does it taste like food to you?”
Pet pondered her question for a moment. “I can taste different qualities in it. Spicy, sweet… but, it still tastes like blood.” A rueful smile settled on his lips. “I guess I don’t really remember what food tastes like.”
Trying to be helpful, Fahima said, “Food tasted very good, Pet.” She paused for a moment and made a face. “Except for vegetables. Those are yucky.” Without missing a beat, she changed the topic. “Will I get powers now too?”
Pet grinned. “No.”
“Why not? I drank blood. You drink blood and you have powers.”
Pet lifted his hand and began to tick off the reasons on his fingers. “Because you used the blood you got from me to heal your arm, because it was my blood and not yours, because you would have to drink of my blood regularly to gain any powers but it would still only be powers borrowed from me.”
Fahima frowned. “But I want powers too.”
Pet grinned and ruffled her already unruly hair. “Yeah, I bet you do, but you would have to be Kindred to get any.”
Fahima grinned widely at him. “Okay, then I want to be a Kindred.”
“Really?” Pet asked with a smile. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” Fahima nodded enthusiastically. “I want powers. I want to be able to go really fast and out run Uncle Pax.”
Pet’s look became serious. “You know, you can’t be a Kindred now and go back to being a mortal. If you change, it will be forever. You will become like me, sleeping all day and never being able to eat food again.”
Fahima frowned. “Not even honey cakes?”
“Not even honey cakes,” Pet confirmed. “And you will forever stay like you are now.”
Fahima weighed the benefits of speed with her deep love of honey cakes. It was a hard decision and she asked just to verify, “But I’ll get to go real fast, right?”
“Yes, but you will never grow up and become a real warrior. You will be a child forever and everybody will treat you like one.”
Fahima sighed dramatically. “But it will take forever to grow up!”
Pet’s smile held a hint of sadness. “To me, it seems like you are growing up way too fast.”
Fahima gave him a tight hug. “Don’t you want me to grow up fast so I can be a Kindred like you?”
He cuddled her close. “Yes and no. I will love the woman that you will become but I will miss my little girl very much.”
“Is it hard to become a Kindred?” Fahima asked trying to distract him from his sadness. “Will I have to slay a Jinn or something like that?”
Pet laughed, the sound rumbling against her cheek. “No, Luv, nothing like that.” He settled her upon his lap before continuing, “But it will hurt a little.”
“Like a skinned knee?”
“Yes, about as much.”
Fahima puffed up trying to look rather dashing and brave but only succeeded in looking rather adorable. “That’s nothing! I won’t even cry then.” She remember her tears of minutes before and added hastily, “I only cried this time cause I broke my arm.”
Pet smiled and kissed her cheek with a laugh. “I didn’t think you would, my little warrior queen.”
“So, what will happen?”
“To become like me, your blood will have to change. I have to drink all of your blood and then give you some of mine to replenish it. Your body won’t like that, so that is why it will hurt.” He suddenly became very serious. He took her chin in his hand and locked eyes with her. “You will die, Luv, and then you will come back as something else. You will be a Kindred.”
Fahima was just as serious and this time there was nothing cute about the look on her face. For a brief second, the woman she would become stared back at Pet. “I am not afraid.”
Pet nodded. “Good, that will make the change much easier for you.”
Fahima broke into a wide grin, the little girl back again. “Then I will get powers?”
Pet laughed heartily. “Yes, Luv, but like any other skill they will only get better if you train them. You know I train every night to become faster and stronger. You will have to do the same.”
Fahima nodded. Training was already a part of her life and she could not conceive of it ever not being. “Symeon says that we will have grand adventures then. And he will teach me some Disciplines, like how to change the shape of my body.”
“I bet he will. He’s a rascal. He had to wait too till he was grown up before he could be turned.”
Fahima sighed and rested her back against him. “I wish I was grown up now.”
Pet nuzzled her hair. “I am happy that you are not. I am happy to have you as my little girl right now.”
Fahima giggled suddenly at a thought. “Was Grandpa Micheal crazy when he made you?”
“A little bit, not as much as he is now though.”
Lifting her head, she looked at him with a slightly worried expression. “Will you go crazy too?”
“I hope not,” Pet said with a grin. “But if you notice me doing so, then you’ll have to smack me real hard. That might help.”
“Don’t worry, Pet. I’ll hit you really, really hard,” Fahima promised solemnly. “Did he get you as a little boy too?”
“No, I was already grown when I met him.”
“Did you get to be a Kindred right away?”
“Not right away, I got to be his ghoul first. You know, like the servants Uncle Anthe keeps.”
Fahima nodded and pondered a moment. “Can I be a ghoul?”
“You won’t age anymore if you are ghouled now. So growing up will take a lot longer.”
Fahima sighed in frustration. “Well, I don’t want to be a ghoul if that is the case. Why don’t you have ghouls?”
“Because I don’t have a big house with lots of useless clutter that needs dusting off.”
“Good point. They ARE always cleaning. I don’t know how Uncle Anthe can stand it.”
Pet grinned. “Yeah, horrible isn’t it? Can you imagine having them under foot in our room?”
Fahima gave him a look of genuine horror. “They’d ruin everything!”
“Exactly! Therefore, no ghouls.”
Fahima was quiet for a few moments, simply enjoying having Pet to herself for once. Finally, she reached up and fingered his dark blonde locks before asking, “Did you meet Uncle Micheal here? Your hair is too light to be local, I think.”
“You are right. I meet him far to the north. That is where I come from. If you want to, maybe one day, when you are grown and Kindred, we will go there so I can show you.”
“Is it a desert there too?”
“No, it is all green and blue, covered in forests and lakes.”
“Forests?” Fahima pondered the word a moment, trying to remember what it meant. “Do you mean like lots of trees?”
“Lots and lots of trees, even more than the gardens around the palace.”
Fahima’s eyes went wide as she tried to comprehend that much greenery. “I want to see it. Can we go now? Please…” she pleaded with him.
“And leave the city open to our enemies?” Pet asked her. “We can’t just leave, Luv, we have duties here.”
Fahima was disappointed but she knew he was right. Duty came first. “You’re right, but how will we be able to go when I am grown? We will have enemies then and Uncle Pax and Uncle Anthe are useless when it comes to handling the soldiers.” Fahima scowled, “Uncle Pax would paint them to death and Uncle Anthe would be too worried about making them bathe and getting them new clothes.”
“We will have to find someone who can take care of the city while we are gone. That is why it might take a while. After all, we want to do it right. I will need your help in choosing someone capable.”
Fahima looked rather proud that she would be able to help choose. “I’ll help you find someone really good.”
“Keep an eye on the soldiers and tell me if you think someone has potential.”
“I will.” She thought a moment reviewing the men in her mind; already she was sorting them into those with potential and those without. “Definitely not the new soldier we just got,” she said with a sigh, half to Pet and half to herself. “He had his armor buckled wrong and I had to fix it.”
Pet grinned at her. “Give him some time, you had to be shown how to do it too.”
Fahima frowned. “Yes, but I was just a little girl and he is a grown man.”
“Well, you are a brilliant little warrior queen and he just a mere mortal. It is not fair to expect your men to be perfect. You have to be more patient with your soldiers than you are with yourself.”
Fahima laughed softly and kissed his cheek. “Yes, Pet. I will try.”
“Good,” he said with a proud look on his face.
He cuddled her close to him, wrapping his arms about her and resting his chin on her head. They sat silently watching the city spread out far beneath them. Fahima thought about telling him about how easily she had entered the fortress without the guards seeing her but decided against it. There would be time enough for that later. Right now, she had him all to herself and she resolved to just enjoy his company.
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