Queen Kianna

Chapter 9| Stories (filler, obviously)

Chapter 9

"Do you have to go?" Kianna almost whined one sunny morning. She was hanging from a tree branch using her legs, doing upside down sit-ups.

It happened last year too, he was gone for a few months or so and then came back, this time with bruises and cuts lining his arms. She almost fainted when she saw that.

He was lying on the ground, so that every time she went down their foreheads would almost touch. "You know I have to, Kianna," he sighed.

"No, actually I don't. You know why?" she panted, coming back up again and swinging to sit up on the branch.

"Why?"

"I don't know anything about you. Nothing."

He stood up to join her, and leaned against the tree trunk. "I could say the same for you."

This was an old arguement between them. One side commented on how much secrets they kept, and the other would say something along the lines he just said. Neither one of them won, and at the end of the game they would give up, because even though it was never brought out to the light of day they both agreed that it just wasn't time yet.

Kianna decided to give up then and there, knowing that it would have been no use anyway. She sighed and looked into the woods, "It gets lonely, you know."

"I do know," we were both quiet for a moment, wrapped up in our own thoughts. It was these times when she would think and wonder about mother, or sometimes even Aidan. She would have surely picked a birthday for him now, and he'd probably learn how to walk already.

Kianna snuck a look at Jivan. I wonder what his mother is like. Or does he even have a mother? Maybe not.

Her glance turned into an open gaze. He looked back at her steadily. I really don't know anything about him.

A cold, heavy feeling filled the bottom of her stomach. Jivan was the only friend she had that was close to her age. It was rare to catch them getting in an awkward moment, and even rarer to find them completely furious with each other. The fact that they weren't able to share their depeest of secrets bothered her even more than those times Jack would deliberately keep from saying anything so that she wouldn't find out.

The subject of those thoughts chose that exact moment to burst out of the hut.

Jack paused, noticing the distance between them. "Kianna, what happened to your exercise?"

"Sorry Jack," her voice was insincere, "I had to take a break for a moment."

Her mentor thought for a moment. Press further, or ignore? Then he saw that Jivans normally relaxed face was tense. Kianna had gone back to her upisde down sit-ups without a groan.

He decided to ignore it. "Jivan, I have a horse waiting for you outside."

"Of course," Jivan nodded, and taking one last look at Kianna, he left.

Jack went back inside the hut, wondering what was going on in between them. Then he shrugged, muttering, "Children. So confusing, maybe even more so than teenagers." The thought of Kianna reaching that stage of her life made him shudder.

≈≈≈≈≈≈

Kianna ran downstairs, her long braid flying behind her, and a practice sword in one fist. She entered the kitchen, thinking someone had broken in, only to find Jack sitting on top of a wooden chair in front of the fireplace, staring into its flames moodily. A large, out of tune song came out of his mouth.

An empty cup and bottle was at his feet, causing her to groan. "Not again, and after today?" It had been three weeks since Jivan left and Jack, noticing Kianna's melancholy, persuaded Mara to come over and help keep her company (since some of the children in the village was afraid of the young charge and therefore no use in that situation. So the better alternative was to ask the middle-aged bakers wife.)