Yet another bit of my story... and if you haven't read the first part, you probably should as this will make no sense.
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That night, she thought about what she had overheard L'quir and the other nobles saying. It was a strange thought, having L'quir be the new king. Siri hadn't ever known a time when the current king wasn't on the throne, and the prospect of having a new one was, well, unimaginable.
Eventually, Siri drifted off to sleep. After she had woken up, she remembered vague dreams of new kings and herself being constantly told "not to tell anyone". However, her dreams did not last for very long, as she was woken up by a quiet voice, shaking her awake.
"What!" Siri exclaimed, half asleep. "Who are you?"
"Sir L'quir," The man said in the dark. "And there is no way that I am going to leave you here with the knowledge that you have. You are coming with me, in my voyage across Asreokn."
"No…" Siri said, her voice quiet with sleep. "I don't really want to Sir."
"You have no choice, Siri," In the dark, Siri could have sworn that L'quir's lips curved upwards with the satisfaction that his plan was working. "I am a noble you see, and you have to do as I say. You might as well get packed. I would pack light though, as we are going far, and travel isn't pleasant with too many bags."
"You have[MSOffice1] a lot of bags, Sir," Siri mumbled. "How can you tell me what I should pack?"
"I am a noble, and have other people carry my things."
"Ah," said Siri. "Well, sir, I suppose that I'll be coming with you when?"
"Fairly soon," L'quir said. "We don't want the others in the house to wake up at your leaving Siri. It might… worry them at your not being there for much more. My travels are dangerous, Siri. You don't want your family to keep you from coming with me, do you?"
"Surprisingly," Siri said. "I actually would like that. I'm not looking forward to coming with you Sir L'quir."
"Hmm," said L'quir. "Well, you have no choice Siri. I'll send a messenger to tell them where you are, and all will be well. Don't worry Siri, alright?"
"I… I won't," Siri stood up and walked to her dresser. "Just, you should leave, I need to get dressed. And pack my things."
"Alright Siri," L'quir stood and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him. Before he closed it, he said "But don't you get any ideas Siri. I am a noble, and disobeying my will is against the law. Remember." L'quir shut the door.
Siri rubbed her eyes. It was dark, as it was not yet day. She pulled out a dress. It wasn't meant for traveling, as Siri had never meant to travel, but it would do. She packed several other things into her bag, which was a small felt traveling bag that she had always used to carry her things for school. She packed a blank book, a pencil, a few more dresses, (she had hardly anything else to wear. A daughter of a rich man and woman should never wear anything less.) A bar of soap, and a compass. It was hardly a decent traveler's bag, but it would do. Doubtlessly, L'quir would have the rest of the supplies that they would need.
Siri wondered about why exactly L'quir wanted to take her with him. She could have always sworn under a royal oath, or something of that sort. But no, L'quir wanted her to come with him. Perhaps even a royal oath wasn't good enough of insurance that Siri wouldn't tell. She sighed, and took out a scrap piece of paper and another pencil. She wrote her family a letter, telling them why she had left, without exactly telling them what it was that she had heard. With a pang, she set the letter on her table beside her bed. She would miss her family, and the house, and perhaps even the city with it's snobby neighbors. She stood up, gathering up every bit of bravery that she had within her body. She had never gone anywhere away from home before.
She crept down the stairs as silent as a mouse. The stairs only vaguely creaked, of which Siri was thankful. If they had creaked very loudly, the family would have woken up to find her leaving with L'quir. It would be easier to leave without having to say good bye. L'quir was standing by the door, with his thousand suit cases set neatly on the floor beside him. Siri thought better of asking him how he had gotten them down the stairs, and was silent.
"Are you ready to leave?" Siri nodded, and L'quir pulled open the door. She was surprised to find that there were two footmen waiting outside the door, and immediately began to pick up L'quir's bags and bring them to a nearby coach. "Thank you," L'quir said to the footmen, and handed them each a small amount of coins. Siri and L'quir climbed into the coach, Siri clutching her bag close to her. L'quir seeing that the footmen had not offered to take her bag, went to the footmen and took from each of them one coin. He pointed to Siri's bag. They each nodded, and one of them came forward and put her bag on the back of the coach where the bags went. They scurried away then, eager to get away from L'quir for fear of losing more of their pay. "How could they forget you?" He said. "I'm happy about it though. Another way of keeping my money."
Siri said nothing and the coach rolled away. Apparently, as L'quir told her, the coach was paid to bring them all the way to the next town. They would stop at each town as they came to it, and find a new coach. Apparently, they were on their way to Basnd, a town famous for its library. Apparently, there was a book that L'quir needed that could only be found in this specific place. Basnd was 100 miles away he told her, and that it would take at least a week to get there.
The rest of the ride was relatively silent. Siri watched the land roll away as the rode on, but could not shake her mind away from home. When she had been woken up in the morning, even though she had been sad, she hadn't fully thought of how she wouldn't be coming home for a very long time. While she had been at home in Ream, she had never thought of how much she would miss it if she ever left. The lands that they rode over were unfamiliar to her, and Siri longed for the feeling of knowing that her parents were only on the other side of the wall. But she had lost that feeling, perhaps forever. She had no idea of how long she would be traveling with L'quir, and he himself had said that traveling with him could be dangerous. Siri had no idea of how this could be, but she did not doubt it. Perhaps others had found out about L'quir's plans to overthrow the king, and he was at risk of being caught. Siri had no idea what L'quir was afraid of. She pushed the thought away and focused on the window.
During that day, they came through about four towns. Siri was exhausted from the traveling, and was glad when L'quir rented two rooms from a local inn. L'quir being a noble, had quite a bit of money, which is not to say that he was willing to spend very much money on Siri. She ended up with one of the cheapest rooms, while L'quir had the finest room in the inn. Siri's room had a tiny bed with moth eaten sheets. L'quir's bed was large with flannel sheets. Siri felt cheated.
"Well, here we are," said L'quir jubilantly. "This is all we can manage; we've got a long way ahead of us." Siri said nothing. "Well?"
"It's…" Siri trailed off. She didn't want to tell him how annoyed she was at having such a cheap room, but she couldn't say anything in praise of it either. "A place to sleep."
"Yeah, well Madame Snob, this is all that I'm willing to get for you. You wouldn't even be here if you didn't have such a flaming curiosity!" L'quir almost shouted. "Just think; if you could have held yourself away from that door last night, we wouldn't be here! Well I would, but you'd still be at your quaint little home. When Wedsmon, Hadneck, and Mullvox get here, I'll have to tell them not to jump to conclusions on 'unassuming' families."
"What?" Siri said. "What are you talking about? You picked my family because you thought that we were too stupid to figure anything out!?"
"To put it like that, yes," L'quir said, recovering his calm. "We couldn't go and stay somewhere where the family would have found us out like snap. And yes, we picked your family because we thought that you weren't about to try and figure things out. We thought that you were a respecting family. But stupid… not quite."
"Ah, thanks," Siri snapped. "'Not quite.' We're not quite stupid? Thanks! Well, you were wrong. You're stupid enough to think that my family's stupid! 'Sir' L'quir."
"Why does everyone always seem to doubt my sirness?" L'quir seemed to be quite calm. "They always say my name as if it's not really my name. I ask you, please don't do that Siri."
"What?" Siri almost screamed. "Do you think that you practically deserve the title? You're a stupid traitor, planning on replacing the king! You don't deserve that stupid name! Did you think of it yourself? It most certainly doesn't fit you. You must have been born with some other name. Fit for a peasant." Siri placed emphasis on the word "peasant." She practically spat the name. The best way to anger a noble is to compare him to the lowliest in society, therefore a peasant. This made Siri feel quite proud of herself, as she had been told this a very long time ago during one of her grandmother's sparse visits. Everyone always said that "the old bat was insane," but Siri remembered every bit of advice that she ever gave her. She told her things that no one else would ever tell her, the best way to protect yourself with words, how to anger a noble. These things always made her feel superior to others in her knowledge.
"What. Did. You. Just. Call. Me?" L'quir said the words quite slowly.
"I called you a peasant." Siri said, reveling in her sudden power. "Or at least you're equal to one. Only a peasant would be cheap enough to get me a room like this."
"No," L'quir said. "Only a man who knows what it is that a stupid girl from a stupid family deserves. You don't need a different room. This one suits you."
"I'll just have to call you cheap for eternity," Siri said coolly. "I do have to come with you all the way to Basnd you know, maybe even farther."
That did it. L'quir said nothing as he went back into the main room of the inn and bought a new room. He got a discount on the other room, as they wouldn't be using it and someone else could stay in it if they desired. The new room was very much nicer than the old one, with an actual toilet, and warm sheets. "Are you better now?" L'quir seemed to be irritable. "You should be. This costs money."
"Yea, much better," Siri looked around the room happily. "I can't call you cheap anymore, Sir L'quir."
L'quir managed a small smile. "Well, that's good to know. You… I'm going back to my room now. Good night Siri. We're leaving at dawn tomorrow morning."
Siri nodded and said, "Well, good night then Mr. L'quir." L'quir left, and Siri sat down upon her bed. She looked around the room. It was simple, if nothing else. There wasn't much to see in the room: A bed, table, bathroom, and a book laying upon the table. Siri sighed and put her bag by the door. She was missing home very much now. She missed her own room, and her own bed. She wondered if her parents had found her note by now, or if they were still wondering where she was. Siri tried to shake away the thought of her family waking up and finding her gone, but to no avail. She wondered if and when L'quir planned on sending out a messenger, if he ever did at all. Siri hoped that he would, and her family would know that she was ok and safe. She attempted to push away the thought again, and turned out her room's light and climbed in her bed.
The feeling of the bed was strange, as she had never slept in any bed but her own. It had scratchy sheets, making her itch all over. The bed made her feel even more homesick, and she began to cry. Very quietly, and carefully, but she cried all the same. She missed home very badly and wanted nothing more than to see her family again, and be able to be in her own home where things were familiar.
After a long bit of crying, and another long bit of lying awake, Siri finally drifted off to sleep. She felt as if she hadn't been sleeping for very long when there was a knock on her door, and the sun began to seep through her window. "Siri!" It was L'quir's voice. "It's dawn Siri! Get up!" Siri sleepily managed an "alright" and made her way towards her suit case which was waiting by the door. Not bothering to change out of her clothes from the day before, she met L'quir outside.
Once again, his many suit cases were being loaded into a coach by two footmen. Siri had seen this sight at least four times the day before, and was growing tired of it. "Sir L'quir," she said, "Do you actually need so many bags? How can you tell me to pack light, while you cart around at least one thousand suit cases?"
"To say that I have one thousand suit cases would be an over statement." L'quir replied. "I have only thirty one. They have all that I need inside of them, no more. If you were a country representative, you might understand this. But you're not and you'll just have to leave me as a mystery."
Siri sighed and handed her one bag to one of the footmen, and they gladly took it as it was much lighter than L'quir's. Siri climbed into the coach, and waited for about thirty minutes as the footmen loaded up L'quir's things. When L'quir came into the coach, she said "If you didn't have so much stuff, this traveling would go quite a lot faster."
"You are such an annoying little child!" L'quir said. "Will you ever just sit and be happy with what you have? Yesterday was a dream!"
"You wish," Siri said coldly. "If you didn't take me out of my house in the first place, and if you weren't a traitor, I might actually be nicer to you."
L'quir sighed and said, "When we get to Basnd, I'm leaving you alone. If you tell anyone about me, I'll…" He trailed off. He obviously didn't know what he would do. Siri raised her eye brows and stared out of the window.
"You'll do what?" Siri was enjoying being rude to L'quir. "What will you do, 'Sir' L'quir?"
"Hey!" L'quir said. "I thought that we were on good terms last night. As for what I'll do, I'm not entirely sure. I'll have to think about it until we get there. Trust me; what I come up with won't be something that you'll like to happen to you."
Siri snorted and ignored L'quir and continued to stare out the window. That day, they talked very much more than they had the day before.
"Why exactly," Siri said at one point while they were leaving the town of As. "Do you want to take over this country? There's not much special about us really..."
"This is the strongest country in the world," L'quir had replied. "If I have control over it, everywhere else will follow me. Do you pay any attention to politics Siri?"
"Not much," Siri admitted. "The happenings of other people that I didn't know have never really interested me much. Why?"
"Because," L'quir said. "If you did, you would understand what I'm talking about. The current king has been terrible for our country." Just as Siri was about to protest, L'quir held up his hand and continued on. "He hasn't cared about his people, and-"
"Wait!" Siri stopped L'quir from saying anything more. "You don't seem to care about anyone either, even though that's your job!
L'quir sighed. "I do care Siri, I've just been very busy. If you pay any attention to the lower class, they've been suffering terribly. I may not seem to be helping them now, but once I am king, they will be in good hands. A king must care about all his subjects Siri and not just those closest to him. And a queen as well, in Sermont's case."
Siri said nothing, contemplating this. She didn't want to believe in L'quir, but what he had told her made her trust him more. Perhaps L'quir wasn't so much of a stupid noble after all.
"Breaking the law isn't easy, Siri," L'quir continued. "But at times, it has to be done for the better of the country."
"Breaking the law?" Siri responded. "For the better of the country? How is that?"
"Sometimes, law isn't for the good of everyone," L'quir said. "Sometimes, measures have to be taken in order to stand up for yourself." Siri disagreed.
"It is possible," She said. "To stand up for yourself without[MSOffice2] having to break the law. Perhaps by voicing your opinion. You are the representative of the people after all."
"Perhaps," L'quir said. "But this way, people will have to listen to me. The other way around, I'll be ignored. Siri, you have much to learn before you can understand what I am doing."
"What about Sir Mullvox and Hadneck?" Siri said. "What is their reasoning behind taking over the throne?"
"Ah," L'quir said. "Mullvox and Hadneck. They are merely hungering for the power of being king. I don't plan to keep them- I'll drop them as soon as I can."
"You cheat!" Siri was amazed at L'quir's sudden change in personality. "You tell them that you'll help them all that you can, and then you plan to drop them! How exactly do you plan to do this, 'Sir' L'quir? That's ridiculous! I can't trust you- nobody can trust you, L'quir! You don't even deserve the title of a noble. You represent all of Asreokn, while you go about cheating and lying to the representatives of other countries! How can I even trust to travel with you all the way to Basnd?"
"Calm down Siri!" L'quir said in an assertive tone. "I'm not perfect, alright? I may be a noble, but that doesn't mean that I know exactly what to do and have to do the best thing all the time. What do you want me to do if I don't get rid of Mullvox and Hadneck? Just let them become the happy kings of Sermont and Reall. That would be perfect, wouldn't it? Two kings who care nothing for their countries or their people, who only care about power? There is more to being a king than power Siri, which I expect you know. Mullvox and Hadneck expect things in life to merely fall into their hands… But it won't be like that!" Siri had nothing to say. She couldn't decide which was best: L'quir lying and cheating Mullvox, probably gaining distrust from Sermont and Reall, or having them be on the throne, throwing the life of all those who lived there into utter turmoil. She couldn't pick. "So you see? How do you plan that I become king anyhow, hey? I must have their help. Without them, I wouldn't have the support that I need. I don't know what's in it for Wedsmon… perhaps to have a behind the scenes pick in what goes on, I don't know. But you see, Siri, there's absolutely nothing else that I can do." Siri didn't respond.
They reached Basnd in less time than they had expected. As their coach clattered into the city, Siri looked out the windows in pure awe at the place. It was unlike any city that they had gone through thus far, with stone buildings covering the city and people hiding in corners, flipping through the pages of a book. Taller than any of the other buildings, the great library could be seen towards the center of Basnd. It was larger than any other library that Siri had ever seen with books from all across Asreokn. In Siri's home town, the library was average size, with only books that were printed in the immediate area lining its shelves. People came from all across the world to view the library and read its books and many authors would travel here with more books for them to put upon their shelves. Siri was amazed.
She turned to L'quir, who was looking through the window uncaringly, as he had already seen the city. "What book do you want from the library?" Siri asked him. "Or do you just want to see the library of Basnd? This place is amazing! I've never seen anywhere like it before…"
"You haven't seen very many places either Siri," L'quir said, turning towards her. "This one is only one of the three great library towns. The book I need is in this one only however, and don't expect me to go telling you what book it is. It's none of your business .About the libraries, the others are in Reall and Sermont, so don't expect yourself to be going there any time soon. This one is, well unique, but nothing so out of the ordinary that you have to gawk at it."
"But I've hardly been anywhere away from home in my life!" Siri exclaimed. "This place is so different from anywhere that I've ever been… It's a city mostly made out of stone. How do you expect me to react? And the book… whatever. You just go about finding it or whatever you'll be doing, and leave me be. This would be a perfect time for you to send a messenger too, you know."
"Messenger?" L'quir looked surprised. "What do you mean, I need to send a messenger, and to who? And why?"
"But you told me that you would send a messenger to my family, telling them that I'm with you!" Siri said. "Don't you remember? You can't have forgotten, you must remember."
"Ah," L'quir said with a remembering expression. "I remember when I told you that. But it's too dangerous for them to know that you're with me, that might try and find us. No one should know that I am traveling with you: no one should know that I'm traveling at all for that matter."
"What?!" Siri yelled back at L'quir. "But you told me that you would send a messenger! You're an absolute liar! Worse than a peasant. However… I did write them a note before I left telling them where I was going."
"I told you to stop calling me peasant, you stupid girl!" L'quir shouted back at her. "I am not a peasant, and I will not have you call me by that name. And you sent a letter? I just can't believe you! Now they will know where I am. Unless, you didn't tell them where I was going, did you?"
"Of course not!" Siri said to him, as if he were a stupid pig. "How could I if you hadn't even told me yet? They have no idea where I am, thanks to you, and probably worried to death!"
"Worried maybe," L'quir agreed, calming down considerably. "But much better off now, not knowing where you are. When I am king, I'll make sure that your family is well taken care of."
"We are taken care of!" Siri shouted, insulted. Why was L'quir telling her that he would make sure that they were well taken care of? They were rather wealthy, after all. "What do you mean? We're not guinea pigs! We can take care of ourselves. What do you think?"
"I'm sorry Siri," L'quir said. He had completely recovered himself. "I didn't mean to say that. I really meant that I was going to make sure that you are well protected, and that there is nothing that you need to fear. If there is a war, I'll ensure that there is nothing need worry you. Even if it puts me in an uncomfortable position, I'll make sure that there's nothing to worry you."
"I hope that it puts you in an uncomfortable position," Siri said coldly. "After what you're taking me through." L'quir ignored her and looked out of his window, and Siri grudgingly followed suit. There were people watching them travel through the town, as they were going through the peasant area of the place. They must not have very many people riding through in coaches, and perhaps they were one of the only ones. Siri embarrassed at staring at the people, looked down at her hands.
The coach stopped at an inn, an inn much nicer than any that Siri and L'quir had stayed at up until then. Siri supposed that L'quir had stayed somewhere nicer than this before, but to her it was a new thing. L'quir paid the two footmen that were of course, waiting by the door to the inn. They brought in L'quir's bags, and L'quir and Siri stood outside of the inn, thanking the heavens for at last! A decent place to stay.
Siri and L'quir each were brought to a fine room, overlooking the city. Siri's room was small, but not shabby. It had stone walls and all of the accessories inside of the room were made of a deep colored wood that Siri couldn't identify. Her bed was covered in red satin sheets, making it look warm and inviting. There was an arm chair in the corner, sitting beside a small coffee table. Siri fell down into the arm chair, looking at her room from a new angle. She happily thought of the time that she would be spending here, off the road and able to relax. If L'quir took much time in finding whatever book it was that he needed, Siri would be able to spend quite a lot of time in the room.
There was a knock on the door, followed by L'quir's voice. "Hey Siri? Can I come in? I have to tell you something about the trip." Siri got out of her chair and went to the door and opened it.
"Yes, L'quir?" L'quir walked into the room, looking around.
"You better enjoy the room, I'm paying good money for this place."
Siri smiled and said, "Don't worry, I will. It's a nice break from cheap inns anyhow."
"But what I'll tell you about our stay here in Basnd," L'quir sat on the bed. "While we're here, I don't know you. If anything happens and we have to be together at any time at all, you're my daughter, and I'm a rich man from Reall. You understand?"
Siri nodded. "What will I do while I don't know you though? And how are you possibly going to keep people from knowing who you really are?"
"With this," L'quir pulled a crumpled orange and blue piece of paper from his pocket. "It's a spell- to keep me hidden. People won't notice me, and if they do I'll appear to be a man with a goatee and very long thick bangs. And I'll be at the library most of the time, so you'll have to be on your own exploring the city. And my name is Rodshyi." Siri covered a giggle.
"Come on!" L'quir looked insulted. "It's all that I've got. I spent weeks coming up with that name… something that no one will suspect me of, of course."
"Now I know that you really didn't come up with your title," Siri laughed. "Rodshyi? You're kidding, right?"
"Be quiet," L'quir stood up. "I'll be gone through most of tomorrow, so you'll just have to figure out what to do on your own for the day. I'll check in with you around lunch."
"Exactly how will you find me?" Siri said with a sarcastic tone.
"I'll use this other spell," L'quir held up a bright green piece of paper. "It'll tell me where you are, and take me there. Good night Siri."
Siri mumbled a good night, and L'quir left the room.
. very good!
