Inked

22

The clearing of a throat distracted Soleil from her observing of the sunset. She made no move to greet the visitor. She knew who it was -- rather, she knew all the people it wasn't. She had been expecting this visit for the past few days, had known the girl would come to her eventually. It was all part of the plan, even if Soleil hadn't discussed it with Devondria. All part of the plan...

"Soleil, right?" Soleil simply spared a glance backwards. The girl knew her name, she was just trying to appeal to Soleil, seem friendlier and not so direct when really she was itching to ask Soleil to help her, willing to beg even. Soleil really wanted to see that.

The girl approached Soleil, stood to her left and gazed out at the sun dipping into the water but not extinguishing its fire. Soleil liked to think of herself that way: a flame that could never be put out. After all, the sun was her namesake.

Soleil looked down her nose at Meggie, who was half a head shorter than her. Instead of verbally asking her what she wanted, Soleil just raised her eyebrows. She knew the girl was desperate and would start speaking whether Soleil acknowledged her presence or not. How stupid love made you, with its tingles and desperation and separation anxiety. Soleil wanted nothing to do with such a thing.

"I need your help," Meggie spoke, sounding surprisingly firm, as if she were giving Soleil only one option: to help her. She really was foolish, thinking a strong tone of voice would make her more intimidating. The only reason Soleil would do what she asked was so that her plans would work out and Her Ruthlessness would ascend to Ombra's throne, surely giving Soleil recognition and wealth of her own.

"What can I possibly do for you?" Soleil asked, her voice dripping with sincerity. She kept her gaze on the sun and watched it sink confidently into the waves, knowing it would return in the morning to rule the sky. She prayed for that kind of assurance.

"You're a fire-eater, right?"

"No, I do not eat fire. It lives within me, and in exchange for giving it a home, it offers to come out every once in a while and perform some tricks for my and others' entertainment." Soleil kept her voice as serious as possible, but inside she was giggling. She loved toying with people, especially those with emotional connections to other people. They were so easy to manipulate; they would believe anything if it got them closer to assisting their loved ones. It also made them extremely trusting, just like poor Farid. Thinking he was in love with Soleil made everything so much easier for her. But she wasn't so selfish; he was kind of funny and pretty good with fire. The only problem with him, and with most other humans, was that his heart was still tied to another, to this girl, Meggie. How utterly pathetic. 

"Er, okay. Sorry. So what do you call yourself?" The question caught her off-guard, but not for long.

"My...mentor...calls me Flame-Spinner," she said, proudly, hoping Meggie wouldn't ask her any questions about this "mentor" of hers. Not that she couldn't provide a clever story in answer, but things were moving too slowly now. The sun was already gone and they would be expected back for supper soon. "But what was it you needed from me?"

"Oh, right. I need you to locate somebody in the flames for me. Two somebodies, actually."

Soleil's face lit up with a wicked smile. "Why, of course. Anything to help."

The preparations took less than a minute. She crouched down by the circle of flames and Meggie joined her, eyes squinting at the fire, straining to see some sign of her loved ones. "Who would you like me to locate first? Your father, perhaps?" But Meggie shook her head.

Leaning towards the swirls of red and orange, holding her hair back with one hand, Meggie spoke clearly: "Show me Farid." Soleil's eyes were focused on the flames, which gradually developed into a shot of Argenta Castle, then zoomed into the dungeons where the boy lay, still unconscious, on the grimy stone floor. She heard Meggie let out a small gasp, but she didn't pay it much attention. She was impatient to move on to the next image, the one of the Bluejay. She already knew where Farid was, and proud to say she was the one who brought him there, but what she really needed to know were the whereabouts of the girl's father, Silvertongue, the Bluejay, Mo. He was the integral part of the plan; the rest was distraction and bait.

"Oh, god. Oh, god. What is he doing at Devondria's castle? What is he doing there? How did he get there?" These questions were directed at no one in particular, only exclamations of surprise and horror. Soleil put a kind hand on the girl's shoulder, but her expression was not kind. They were wasting too much time.

"Let's just see where your father is, yes? Maybe that will help us figure out what happened. All right?" Meggie nodded at her, eyes wide and blank, possibly thinking about the quickest way to Argenta or how to ditch her protective mother.

Lowering her head, Soleil whispered, "Show me the Bluejay." An image began to form, but before she could catch more than a glimpse of some trees, the image dissipated in a cloud of black smoke, making Meggie cough and making Soleil angry. "NO! No no no!" She quickly recovered her composure so as not to raise suspicion from Meggie, but inside Soleil was fuming. This close. She had been this close to finding out where the Bluejay was, but this stupid girl and her stupid worrying and her stupid, stupid love had wasted too much time. That's all love was: a waste of time!

"What happened?" Meggie asked, eyes even wider, glistening with tears from the smoke -- well, maybe it was the smoke, maybe it was something else. Soleil didn't care, she was too furious.

"Someone broke the connection before any substantial clues were revealed," Soleil hissed, and then temporarily dismissed her rage. "Look, it's not too much of a problem. You know where Farid is. You can go after him. I'll try again later and find out where the Bluejay is. Then I'll send him to go help you. All right?"

But the girl was shaking her head. Why did she have to make everything so difficult? "How will I get there? How will I get inside the castle? I'll be thrown in the dungeons too. I have to find Mo before I do anything, before--"

"No." Meggie snapped her head towards Soleil, startled by Soleil's brisk tone. "You must go now, while there is no one around to stop you. Trust me." She spun Meggie around by the shoulders and pushed her forwards. "Just begin walking. See if you can find a traveler to lend you a horse or a donkey."

"But--"

"Just stay close to the treeline. I promise I will find the Bluejay -- er, Mo -- and send him to you. Just go!"

Jaw setting in determination, Meggie straightened her dress and walked forward into the trees, towards Argenta, towards her doom. Once she was out of earshot, Soleil couldn't help but laugh.