I shook my head. We would probably never know what really happened that night, or why. We would only ever know the aftermath, and hope we could reach past it.

Chapter 18

"ZANE! Danica!"

I groggily lifted my head as I heard A'isha's and Valene's excited cries. Danica did the same beside me, blinking sleepily as we were both awoken. Judging by the otherwise silent nest, it was probably barely before dawn.

A'isha brushed aside the bits of writing we had been working on when sleep had taken us, and she tumbled to sit in front of us.

"I kept thinking last night that Rei was my student, one of my dancers, and so I should be able to protect him. Like I said yesterday, the guild has always dealt with its own. Nest justice always comes before outside rule. With very few exceptions, even the Cobriana have acknowledged that."

I found myself wondering whether she ever slept, as my own sleep-deprived brain fought to catch up with her thoughts. "Unfortunately, serpiente tradition won't stay a falcon's hand," I said.

"That's what I first thought, too," A'isha answered. "Valene thinks otherwise." The raven's voice was excited despite her obvious fatigue. "The dancer's guild originated with the

Nesera'rsh, a powerful group from the time of Maeve's coven. From what I can tell, they're the modern equivalent among Anhamirak's followers of the falcons' Mercy. I didn't think much of it until A'isha found this." Valene began to read the flowing, slippery words of the old language excitedly.

"Maeve'kena'o'Dasi'mana-La'pt'hena'o'itilfera'alistair..." Danica and I both blinked at the incomprehensible language. Valene translated swiftly.

" 'Maeve stands as leader to our thirteen, and we as guides and guardians to the village. We speak our rituals to the realm of the divine, but it is the Rsh who hold the records, and speak law and justice to the land. Each'  -  the closest translation I can think of is nest

-  'is a realm unto itself, and its rule over its own is undisputed even by our voice.' " I stared at the page, desperately wondering if what I thought was true. Valene confirmed my suspicions. "The original was written by one of the thirteen members of Maeve's coven. Specifically, by the hand of shm'Ahnmik'la'Cjarsa  -  the falcon Empress. Kel could be a trickier case, but Andreios was studying with A'isha. Cjarsa herself acknowledged the independent law of the

Nesera'rsh, and in current day, that means this guild."

Their excitement was infectious, but I struggled to stay reasonable. "These words were written thousands of years ago. Much as I would like to believe them, it seems unlikely that the falcons will relinquish Araceli's only child because we discovered words that were written before the Dasi split."

Valene listened to my doubts, but spoke calmly once I was done. "There's a line in the old myths about how

'Ahnmik turns all vows true, all lies apparent, and the written word as blood in stone.' It would seem reasonable that some of that would carry over into their magic. I would have mentioned it earlier, but I never imagined we would find proof of any vow we could possibly hold the falcons to."

Still, I found it hard to believe that these powerful creatures could be so easily manipulated by ancient texts. "You sound more certain than I would be, if I had only that one line of myth to go on." I tried to make my voice gentle, because I did not want to destroy what was so far our only hope, but I also could not let them charge into a plan with no basis in fact.

"I've seen for myself how a falcon treats promises as irrevocably binding, whether she wishes to or not..." Valene took a breath and continued, "Erica was thirteen and Kel sixteen when Kel first came to us. The night Erica's brother died, Kel held the girl and told her, 'The sun will rise tomorrow, and life will go on. It will still hurt. You will still miss him. But eventually things will get better.' Erica asked her, 'You promise?' " Valene shook her head. "Kel just turned away, and I was furious. She told me later that she couldn't make that promise, because we were in the middle of a war. We could all be killed, and even if we weren't, she wasn't sure things would get better. I told her Erica needed hope. I asked her, 'Would it have killed you to make that promise?' She looked away from me and said, 'Maybe.' "

The raven's lip began to quiver. A'isha went to her and held her hand as she drew several deep breaths.

A'isha spoke while Valene composed herself. "If it's true that Annmik's magic forbids even that kind of white lie, then maybe it really would hold Cjarsa to these laws. No matter how long ago she wrote them, she signed her name and made them her vow." Something else occurred to me as A'isha spoke. "When you gave the Ahnleh to Danica, you said the charms used to be worn by the

Nesera'rsh.

You thought there was a time when even enemies at war wouldn't harm someone who wore one." A'isha nodded, and I turned to Danica. "None of us could have stopped Araceli from threatening you at the Keep, but after she saw the pendant, she backed off."

Danica nodded. "It seemed like a miracle at the time, but maybe..."

"If our charm could stay a falcon's hand, then the word of the descendants of the Nesera'rsh could be enough to bring one of our own home. It's still a long shot," A'isha said, though her voice was light with excitement. "It would require the royal house first listening to our petition, and then acknowledging Rei as one of ours  -  which I imagine they'll be reluctant to do if it means they will lose him. But it seems the best chance we have."

Valene had recovered enough to add, "I can speak for us, as a dancer and a raven, so they can't deny Rei's place in the nest because of his feathers. As for Kel  -  " Again she hesitated. "You said Syfka would have pardoned her?"

"She was willing to leave her with us," Danica replied. "She believes exile in our lands would be as great a punishment as any the Empress would level." Valene nodded. "I understand Kel was once a favorite of the Empress. If Cjarsa was willing to release her once, perhaps she will allow Syfka's sentence to stand." The hope still hung on magics we did not understand, but it was better than none at all, and every moment made it seem more possible.

"Valene, you are willing to do this?" I asked. Though Valene had not spoken of any danger posed to the messenger, I did not count on benevolence from any creature who would carry away our loyal guards and hold a blade to my queen's throat.

"I am the only dancer you have who is capable of flying to Ahnmik," she pointed out.

"Further, no one in this nest is as fluent in their language or as versed in the etiquette of falcon society. I

have to do this  -  for Rei, and for Kel."

"Very well, then. When do you wish to leave?"

"As soon as possible. It will take me a few days to get there, and I do not know how long I will need to wait before I am allowed an audience."

"I have one question before you go." Danica's eyes were focused on the paper the dancers had found. "Valene, would you read this line again?"

"La'pt'hena'o'itiljcera'alistair."

the raven answered.

"That's the line about guides and guardians?" Danica asked. A'isha finally made the connection Danica had as her finger hovered over the letters.

"Yes. This word is alistair."

"And this?" Now Danica pointed to a series of symbols at the bottom of the page. Valene answered,

"A'le-Ahnleh.

It is a blessing, and means, more or less, by the will of fate. Ahnleh is hardly legible anymore on the ancient coins, but it is the Snakecharm on your pendant, from the nest. Among the serpiente, it is used at the bottom of many documents, as a mark of promise, truth. As you can see, it's also nearly identical to the Seal of Alasdair, which has always been used on binding works among the avians." Her joking tone poorly masked a certain resentment as she warned, "Though be careful not to point it out to the Tuuli Thea. The last one exiled me from the courts for daring to point out the similarity." Danica smiled slightly, lifting her gaze from the page. "I will be sure not to let her know. Is it coincidence?" she asked.

Valene shrugged. "Your mother wanted it to be. I prefer to think that our records are wrong  -  that, before the wars, perhaps Kiesha's and Alasdair's people lived together peacefully. Something went horribly wrong somewhere, but before that, there must have been a time when the serpiente and avians were close enough for words and ideas like

Ahnleh and alistair to become shared."

"Our history books say that the word 'alistair' is a variation of Alasdair, as she was the first true protector of her people. Perhaps it was the other way around, and she was named protector from this word," Danica theorized.

The glow was back in her face, and she was not hiding her excitement. Abruptly, she turned and kissed me. "Zane, if this is true..." She trailed off, her golden eyes so wide and bright that I drew her closer to me. "Can you imagine what kind of world it might have been?"

I tried to picture a time when avians and serpiente lived side by side. Not as they did in this wary peace we held, in which intrepid scholars and merchants sometimes dared to visit the other side, but coexisting in one land where they weren't afraid of each other. I wondered if re-creating that world was possible.

It seemed like such an incredible idea, but I couldn't help entertaining it. "We were worried that our child would need to be either avian or serpiente, because the two lands she would rule would be separated that way. What if we could let her be both, and give her a world that is blended just as surely as her blood will be?" A'isha asked, "Just build somewhere that isn't Keep or palace, but both?"

"Why not?" Danica asked. "A'isha, your nest has serpents, falcons, ravens and hawks sharing it now. If that is possible, then how impossible could it be to re-create a world where they don't just dance together, but live together? "We're stymied now because people are afraid to immerse themselves in another world, leaving the Keep for the serpiente market or the other way around, but a third court wouldn't be specifically one or the other. We could design the court so it's only a small step from home to... to a land where a queen can be both cobra and hawk, because her people are just as mixed." A'isha paused, contemplating, and we all waited for her response. If she refused, then this hope was all but lost. The dancers were among the most tolerant of my kind; if their leader could not imagine that this place Danica and I had suddenly invented was possible, then no one else would.

"I would join a dragon's nest," A'isha affirmed finally. "If only for the challenge."

"Dragon?" I asked.

"A dragon is a winged serpent, isn't it?" A'isha replied.

"I've always thought of them as winged lizards, though I've never seen one myself."

"A wyvern, then," A'isha corrected. "Wyvern's Nest. Perhaps some of your avian scholars could share their myths and stories for a she'da;

I should like to create such a dance someday, maybe one that will rival the famous Namir-da." She frowned, adding seriously, "Though it would have to be very subtle to be acceptable to an avian audience."

"Do you think the rest of your nest would be willing?" I asked.

"Honestly? Not all." She shrugged. "But you do not need all; you need only a few, who have the courage to try to show our beliefs to a feathered audience so they can understand and perhaps join us. Give us a nest, give us a fire and the audience that would come with your new land, and we will be honored to dance for a Wyvern's Court. Sha'Mehay has become too small, anyway."

I continued pondering. "Merchants would come if there was a market for them. If we dedicated some land for schooling, we could bring in the scholars of both our courts  -

who, hopefully, would be willing to try to learn from each other." Danica echoed my thoughts from her own perspective. "The avian court follows the Tuuli Thea. They would be hesitant to bring their families so close to the serpiente, at least at first, but hopefully future generations won't be as frightened. And if we let it be known that we will raise our child there, I think that plenty of avian scholars would be willing to go, if only in hopes of 'protecting' the queen's heir. Then of course there may be those who simply wish to curry favor with their monarch, even if it means supporting what they will doubtless see as another mad scheme by their Tuuli Thea."

"Another?"

"Of course," she answered sweetly. "You may recall the last one, since it involved announcing you as my alistair."

Chapter 19

Our animated chatter awakened the rest of the nest, most of whom took it as a cue to rise and begin their rituals to greet the day. Danica and I were each drawn into the simple, slow-moving dances. As soon as those morning dances were done, Valene left for Ahnmik. We watched her take to the skies, the rising sun on her heels, as powerful black wings carried her into the west.

Afterward, Danica and I sought breakfast in the market. It was a slightly more peaceful place to pause and contemplate the ideas the night had brought us.

"It seems like such an incredible plan, I find myself wondering if it is even possible, and struggling to conceive of how to begin such a project," said Danica. Testing the sounds for not the first time, she sighed, "Wyvern's Court."

"We'll need to speak to Irene, and your mother," I asserted. "If either one of them rejects this idea, there is no way we will succeed. Any potential heirs to either throne  -  hawk or cobra  -  must be raised in the same mixed-blood land, or people will feel they can still choose to be apart."