Guardians of the Prophecy

Chapter Twelve: Duty

Note:  This story is almost at halfway!  Yayyyy~  Very important scene in this chapter.  Would really appreciate comments and votes despite my absence!  Thanks!

They had to be more cautious.  It had been, after all, a few days since their first official encounter with demons and already they had to constantly be on the lookout for the prowling creatures.

Twice they’d had Shaheen scout ahead: Rima could tell whether the roads were safe or not just by reading the falcon’s body language.  If the bird dropped into an aggressive bow, fluffed her feathers out and hunched her back as soon as she landed then there were demons near the direction she was in.  If she blinked slowly and nibbled at their ears as soon as she landed, then the path was safe.

The second time the bird had scouted, there were demons, and an odd burning smell had accompanied her when she soared back.  As soon as Shaheen had landed, she huddled close to Rima and trembled.

After cleaning her singed feathers the Guardian knew she wouldn’t be able to bear sending her Perien falcon to scout anymore.  

When the group had finally reached Fenkai, the last city in Han before the border, Caleb insisted they split up into two smaller groups just in case.  Shaheen had to go with Laurel and her Protector as a precautionary measure, lest any hidden demons recognize the bird as being Rima’s.

“What if this doesn’t work?” Rima whispered to Alistair and Shan as they weaved their way in and out of the throngs of people milling about in the wide street.  Her hood was drawn over her face as far as possible and her hands were tightly clenching her cloak. 

“It should work,” the monk said.  Though he sounded only cautiously optimistic, his deep timbre provided some comfort to her nonetheless.  “I don’t think the demons would be so stupid as to show themselves here in broad daylight.  It might ruin their plans, whatever they are.”

“If something does go wrong, then I’ll make sure nothing happens to you,” Alistair murmured, looking down at her.  His tone sounded genuine, and the way his green eyes bore into hers made Rima flush.  Her lips twitched into a small smile before she averted her gaze to Shan.

I wonder how he feels without Laurel, she thought.  I think there’s something going on between them, so he’s probably on edge too, but hiding it really well.

~*~

Rima glanced up from her book when the door opened.

Shan stood in the doorway, his hair wet from the bath he had just taken.  His skin looked pinker than usual, almost as if he had scrubbed it.  His body seemed tense; even as he stalked over to the chaise longue to retrieve a shirt and towel, his movements were stiff and jerky. 

“Are you worried about Laurel?” she asked softly as the monk tugged on his shirt and plopped himself unceremoniously onto the upholstered sofa.

Shan sighed and looked over at her with a rather sheepish smile.  “That obvious, huh?”

“Your body language is like an open book.”

He chuckled.  “That’s what Laurel would tell me.”

Rima widened her eyes.  “Really?”

The monk nodded.  After a moment, he stood again.  “I’ll sleep on the sofa tonight.  You should go check on Alistair.”

Rima closed her book and set it aside.  “Are you sure?  I can sleep there.  You’re a lot bigger than I am; won’t you be uncomfortable?”

Shan smiled again.  “I don’t think I’ll be getting much sleep tonight anyway.  But I’ll be fine.”  He stepped forward and ruffled her hair.