Polinues Marines, the would be mage.

Chapter 42.
Title: Polinues Marines, the would be mage.

Chapter Title & No.: #42. Man on a Mission.... ok, I need a better name for this chapter....

Author: Darkling Willow

Pairing: Non.

Rating: NC - 17
Abuse, Anal, Angst, BDSM, Bi, B-Mod, Bond, Death, D/s, H/C, HJ, Humil, Language, M/F, M/M, Minor, N/C, OC, Oral, Preg, Rim, Spank, Violence, Voy, VS, WD, WIP.

Archive: Originals > Slash – Male/Male.
Feedback: Yes thank you very much. An author can only improve with criticism. Please rate if you do not want to leave a review.

Disclaimer: This is an original work of fiction. Any resemblance of places and characters to actual persons, living or dead, and places is purely coincidental.
The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.

Authors Notes: Got the flu. Am a day late due to snot brain… sorry.
For review replies, comments and thank you's go to: http://www2.adult-fanfiction.org/forum/index.php/topic/14530-polinues-marines-the-would-be-mage/

Summary: Polinues is a man on a mission… many missions, actually.

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Chapter 42. Man on a Mission.

Easing the hangings apart Polinues slipped through them as quiet as a whisper, and reaching out a gentle hand he touched the teen’s shoulder, the hard muscles under his faded tan twitching at the touch.

“Owain? Are you awake? Owain? I brought you something from the kitchens. The pastry chef was baking and I weaseled some scraps out of him. Your mother told me you like sugared violets. Owain? Please, talk to me.”
Polinues begged quietly, gentle fingers tugging at Owain’s shoulder.

Owain’s voice was so cold that Polinues could feel the sting of frost with the words.
“Go away. I don’t want anything from you. You’ve done enough. Just get lost, you bastard.”

“Owain. Please. How many times do I have to say I’m sorry? I promised you that I would figure something out to help you. Just give me a chance.”

“I don’t need your help. I don’t want it. You’ve done enough damage.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say. I’m sorry. Here. I’ll leave the violet cakes on your nightstand. I’m sorry.”

“I don’t want your stinking cakes. I don’t want your fucking apologies. Get the fuck away from me, you freak.” Owain roared as he rose up in the bed and punched Polinues so hard in the face that he fell backwards to the floor, instinctively grabbing hold of the hangings which did not support his weight and with a loud rip came tumbling down.
Polinues gasped in pain, tasting blood in his mouth, the pure hatred in Owain’s eyes shattering his heart. Owain drove the message home as he picked up the small box of violet cakes and threw them straight into Polinues’ face.
Alina and another healer came rushing down the quiet Hall, but before they reached him Polinues climbed to his feet and fled, tears pushing at his eyes.

Owain fell back on the bed, swallowing his own tears, and ignoring the two healers.
The muscles in his right arm twitched unpleasantly, and he swallowed a lump as he felt the tug in his wrist. The wound had healed well, and he had been told he would be allowed home soon. Polinues had not stopped in his attempts to make amends, but Owain had found a convenient target for his fears and pain in the younger teen.

“Hey, you kid? What’cha doing up here?”
A new voice echoed between the short battlements of the Temple wall, another voice cutting it off,
“Don’t bother. It’s just Polinues. He’s ‘bout all hours of the day and night. He don’t mind us so we don’t mind him. Morning, Polinues. Sorry ‘bout him, he’s new.”

Polinues hardly bothered looking around as he nodded at the two sentries, sending the new recruit a limp wave as the two men passed him by.

In the ten years he had been at the Temples Polinues had worked up a habit of wandering around the grounds when he couldn’t sleep, and by now the sentries and other Temple workers were so accustomed to his late night rambling that noone payed him any heed.

His arms were crossed ontop of the battlement, resting his chin on his wrist Polinues turned back to staring out over the dark forest across the highway, a heavy fog rolling over the ground, the twin moons the slightest slivers in the night sky.
Muting his sniffles in the sleeves of his robes Polinues was grateful for the voluminous hood, for it hid his tearstained face, as well as the black eye and bloodied nose. His heart ached desperately, both from Owain’s harsh words as well as from the guilt they had invoked.

It had been five moons since Owain’s accident, and Polinues had made absolutely no progress in gaining the young man’s forgiveness.
He had been fighting his guilt but his resolve was wearing thin now, and his mind was on the verge of giving up on Owain. Leyjen had urged him on through the moons, and it was only by Leyjen’s encouragement that Polinues persisted.
But this had been the final straw. Now Polinues was certain that Owain would never forgive him for saving his life.

A movement in the fog startled Polinues and peering out into the gloom he trained his eye on the line of trees.
Something appeared between the trees, only to disappear just as quick.
Inching his way along the wall Polinues stared into the fog, catching the flickering shadow from time to time, but never quite seeing what it was.
In the shadows of one of the guard towers Polinues stopped and stared into the darkness, thinking he had lost whatever it was that was lurking in the forest.
Something a little whiter than the fog darted across the road below the wall, and curious Polinues leaned over the battlements to peer into the sea of fog.
All sound was muted around him, the mist so thick he could not see the next tower, save for the ghostly orange glow of the watchman’s lantern, and yet from below there came the gentlest whisper.

His eyes were trained on the ground below, mechanically he crawled up onto the embrasure, and yawned.
There was a scent in the fog that felt heavy, and Polinues felt his eyelids droop, a comfortable daze entering his head. The whisper became more persistant, and Polinues couldn’t help but agree, a nap would be quite nice right now.
His eyes fell shut for a breath, and he screamed in pain and shock as someone yanked on his belt hard enough to hurt, smacking his shoulder into the merlon beside him.
He hung suspended over the twenty meter drop for a few seconds, arms stretched towards the ground as if to ward the fall, and a tall shadow disappeared into the mist and the forest, then he was hoisted back over the wall and onto the alure.

“What the Hell, kid. Are you crazy, going crawling up on the embrasure like that? You could have fallen over.” The new sentry shouted in his face, his partner running down the alure towards them.

“I almost did. Thank you. Thank you. You saved my life.” Polinues panted, squeezing the man’s arm tightly, his heart racing hard enough to hurt.

“What were you thinking?”

“I’m sorry. I thought I saw something down on the road, and I was trying to see what it was. There was someone or something hiding in the fog.”

“Polinues. You know better than that. I think you should run along now, the Sergeant is on his way over.”

“I’m sorry again. And thank you again, sir, you really did save my life.” Polinues bowed slightly to the new recruit and darted off down the stairs on the outside of the tower, as the heavy footsteps of the Sergeant approached from behind them.
Under the cover of the fog Polinues ran towards the cloisters as fast as he could, fear at the feeling that the scent had invoked in him growing with every step, the shadows of the grounds contorting into hideous monsters that stalked his steps.

“Alrigh. Alright. I’m coming.” Leyjen grumbled, scratching his sides as he tiptoed over the cold stone floor, the pounding on his door insistant and impatient.
Yanking the door open, he did his best to glare at the person in the hallway, but he had not been expecting Polinues, so his glaring failed him.

“Ilithil? What the Hell… What are you doing here? It’s the middle of the night.”

“It’s only two hours past midnight actually.” Polinues’ voice was tiny, timid, and he kept his head low.
Reaching out, Leyjen pulled him into an embrace, shocked to feel his entire body shaking.

“Hey, it’s alright. You’re with me now. Come inside. What is it? Another nightmare?” Leyjen soothed him, and led him inside the room, Polinues shaking his head a tiny bit as he dashed into the safety of Leyjen’s room.
Leyjen latched the door, taking Polinues by the shoulders and turned him around gently, Polinues tried to resist, his body tense with fear.

“What is that? Are you bleeding? Why do you smell so strange?” He asked, quickly tugging at the laces that held Polinues’ hood in place, and revealing the dried blood covering his pale face.
Without a word Leyjen wetted a washcloth and started washing Polinues’ face, asking with great concern.
“What happened? Why are you covered in blood?”

“It’s nothing. I just got a bloody nose. I was trying to talk to Owain and he punched me.”

“And threw violet cake at you apparently. You’re getting a black eye as well. Man, that’s swollen. You’re going to be a pretty sight at your Life Day party. What were you doing visiting him after midnight? And he can’t be the reason you’re so scared.” Leyjen smirked as he picked a small piece of the sweet cake out of the neckline of Polinues’ robes, Polinues grinning sheepishly, as he answered,
“Oh, I thought I’d gotten all of it. I went to give him some cakes I got from the pastry chef. He likes sugared violets so I thought I’d give him something to make him smile. But he chased me off.”

Polinues tangled his fingers in Leyjen’s nightshirt, fresh tears glazing his eyes, and his chin trembled, as he drew a deep breath, and continued.
“I went out on the wall to calm down before going to bed. I was looking out over the forest and the fog when I thought I saw something, and started following it along the wall. Whatever it was came running over the road and I leaned over the embrasure to get a look at it. Leyjen, it was so scary. There was this scent, Leyjen, it was so heavy and soothing, and this voice in the darkness that whispered to me to go to sleep. I almost fell off the wall, because I became so drowsy. It was so heavy and so soothing. It was like a drug.”

“Lavender and hemlock. Hell, you smell like lavender and hemlock.”

“That’s what that scent is. Hemlock. I knew I should know it.”

“Polinues. You have to promise me that you will not go out of Temple grounds after dark. And not across the creek either. Not without me.”

“Yeah, I’ll promise. What is it, Leyjen? You know who that was, don’t you?”

Leyjen tugged Polinues’ robes down from his shoulders, and pulling him into an embrace, rained kisses down his shoulder, while he backed up to the bed. Leyjen sat down slowly, trailing kisses down Polinues’ chest until he had one nipple between his teeth.
Polinues arched his back slightly, pulling off his robes as he climbed up into Leyjen’s lap, pressing his ass down on the semi hard in Leyjen’s trousers.

“Leyjen?” he spoke quietly, pushing at Leyjen’s forehead with his shoulder, and Leyjen sighed against his chest, leaving the wet nipple to harden in the cool air of the room.
“I don’t really want to talk about it.” He started, the words had hardly left his lips when Polinues jumped up and threw himself on the bed.

Arching his back deliciously, Polinues tugged at the laces of his trousers, and seductively licked his lips.

“Tell me.” Polinues purred, the look in his dark grey eye making all sorts of illicit promises.
Leyjen smirked, and shook his head at his own inability to resist the wanton little whore.

“It was after the fire. I didn’t leave your side for more than three moons, not once. Back then it was enough for me to hunt every four to six weeks or so, and I had last gone five weeks before your intiation.”

“The Bloodlust wasn’t more than that?”

“No. It gets stronger with age. But even then four moons without hunting was dangerous. I got sick, could barely hold myself upright. Somehow, on the night that you woke up, I made it to Amraeen’s house. He took me to a blood bar, and there I met a bleeder who scared the living daylights out of me. He was young, only a little older than me. I’ve forgotten his name.”

“Not that it really matters, Leyjen. What about him?”

“He smelled like that. Like lavender and hemlock. And when I was with him I felt like that, like I could just close my eyes and fall asleep, and I needn’t ever wake up again. It was like I was going under in this dark warm water, and my brain was being drowned. The feeling got stronger and stronger the longer I let him touch me, and I could feel him pulling me under.”

“Shit. That must have been scary. What broke the spell?”

Leyjen looked away, gnawing at his lower lip, and he whispered his answer,
“The sight of Amraeen with someone else. He had a taste for aroused blood, and seeing him pleasure someone else just killed me.”

Polinues made a soft sound of understanding and they sat quiet for a few minutes, then Polinues rose to his knees and draped himself over Leyjen’s back, nibbling at the back of his neck.

“So, you do know how I felt when I saw you drink from other people.” He whispered cautiously, and Leyjen twitched under his body.

“Yes. I always knew that it would hurt you if you found out. But I never thought you would find out about me.”

“Come on, Leyjen. When have you ever been able to keep a secret from me?”

Leyjen twisted around on the bed, crawling on top of Polinues and between heated kisses he whispered,
“Only once, Ilithil, only once.”

A fleeting look of anger passed over Polinues’ face, but Leyjen ignored it as he wetted his fingers and pressed them against Polinues’ pucker, making Polinues arch his back with a moan.

They worked together in complete silence, Polinues pulling Leyjen’s clothes off him and reaching for the vial of oil in Leyjen’s nightstand, while Leyjen licked and bit every sensitive spot on Polinues’ abdomen and chest, working him open with demanding fingers.
Soon both were gleaming with sweat, their eyes glazed and their breath hot on each other’s skin.

Polinues whined softly as Leyjen sank into him, the tight muscle giving way slowly until Leyjen was buried inside him.

Claiming the boy’s lips in a hungry kiss, Leyjen pulled out almost all the way and then slammed into him hard and fast, his skin slapping against Polinues’ thighs with a loud sound. Leyjen misunderstood Polinues’ cries as pleasure as he kept pounding into the tight ass, but suddenly he noticed that Polinues was clawing at his chest begging with a tearfilled voice,
“Stop, please stop.”

“Ilithil, my sweet Ilithil, what is it? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“You didn’t, I just don’t want it that way. Not tonight. Make love to me, Leyjen, please. Keep me safe.”

Leyjen kissed him tenderly, withdrawing slowly and sinking in even slower, making Polinues moan from the bottom of his stomach.

“I’m sorry, Ilithil. I’ll keep you safe. You’re my burden to carry. I’ll keep you safe.”

Their pace was slow and languid, Polinues mewling with every thrust, his back arching and his pink lips parted in silent gasps.
Leyjen relished the sight of such unabashed pleasure, angling his hips to stroke the boy’s prostate with every thrust.

Leyjen could feel the heat rising in Polinues’ body, and knew that he was close himself, their bodies moving together in perfect sync, Leyjen’s name ghosting over Polinues’ lips with every breath.

“Why do you call me that?” Polinues asked in breathless gasps, his grey eye trained on Leyjen’s face.
Leyjen decided to play dumb in the hopes it would not ruin the moment.

“Call you what? Ilithil?”

“Your burden to carry. Why am I your burden?”

“Because you weigh on my heart. Every breathing moment you weigh on my heart. My life depends on your well being, on your sanity. You are my life. I am here to protect you, so you weigh on my heart, every moment of my life.”

Polinues’ grey eye glazed over slowly, his face flushed dark pink and Leyjen could feel the round muscle clenching around him, a sticky warmth spreading between their abdomens.
Leyjen thrust a little harder, smothering Polinues with a kiss, the tightness in his balls almost too much to bear, and moments later Polinues arched his chest into Leyjen’s moaning loudly.
Leyjen’s muscles quivered with the orgasm and the taste of Polinues’ blood, the teen’s ass still clenching around him, pulling him in as he spilled himself into the tight channel.
Leyjen collapsed on top of Polinues, both winded yet sated, and Polinues trailed his fingers up Leyjen’s back, brushing his lips over the sweaty forehead resting against his shoulder as Leyjen licked the bitemarks closed.

“Can I make love to you?”

Leyjen rose up on all fours, his muscles shaking with the effort.

“What? Didn’t you have enough? You think you can go again right away?”

“Yeah. Just give me a couple of minutes and I can go again.” Polinues chuckled, pushing Leyjen down on the bed before he jumped out of it and wetted a washcloth in the basin.
Leyjen let him wipe the drying come off his abdomen, then watched Polinues wipe himself clean.
Once he was done he tossed the washcloth onto the vanity and climbed into the bed, straddling Leyjen’s chest.

With a playful smile on his face he thrust his hips towards Leyjen’s face, his already thickening cock nudging against his chin, and demanded,
“Suck me, Leyjen. Make me hard for you.”

Leyjen couldn’t smother his laugh but he obeyed, opening his mouth wide and taking Polinues in to the roots, playing with his stretched hole with one finger for good measure.
Leyjen worked his mouth and tongue to the limit of his talents, enjoying the sight of Polinues arching and stretching above him.
Once he had worked Polinues to full hardness and the teen was trembling from head to toe, Leyjen let him slip out of his mouth and moved his attention to Polinues’ sack, giving it a few good licks, rolling one ball over his tongue and then the other, sucking lightly.
Polinues grabbed Leyjen by the hair and tugged hard upwards, forcing Leyjen to take him deeper.
Leyjen stopped him with gentle hands, and with a smirk smacked his lips.

“My come is leaking down your balls.”

“Ah, you don’t like the taste of your own come?” Polinues chuckled, but crawled down on the bed, pulling a pillow with him, his eye smoldering with desire.
Leyjen raised his legs without a word, helping Polinues to position the pillow under his hips, then let out a heavy sigh as Polinues started to twirl a finger around his entrance.

“You’re so wet it’s amazing you haven’t slipped out of the bed yet.” Polinues said with badly subdued laughter, and Leyjen guffawed, swatting at Polinues.

“Don’t. Come in, I just want you inside me.”

“But I need to stretch you…”

“No, just come in, I can take the burn. Just do it slow and I’ll be fine. Please. I just want to have you inside me.”

Polinues shrugged, licking his finger slowly, enjoying the taste of Leyjen’s fluids, as he pressed the head of his cock against the tight opening.
Leyjen hissed at the burn and for a few moments it looked like nothing was going to happen, then suddenly the round muscle stopped resisting the intrusion, and the head of Polinues’ cock sank into Leyjen’s body.

Polinues almost came apart right there and then, as he watched himself sink inside Leyjen’s body, the twitching hole seeming to suck him in with every pulse of his heart.

“Stop.” Leyjen moaned when Polinues was all the way in, and pulling the teen down for a heated kiss, Leyjen tried to blink back the tears that threatened to spill over.

“Am I hurting you?”

“No. It just burns a bit. Give me a moment to adjust.” Leyjen breathed back, drawing him into another kiss.
Polinues stayed like that for a long time, the pulse in his cock the only movement between them, then finally Leyjen’s muscles relaxed, and Polinues pulled out slowly, sinking in again even slower.

Leyjen’s back arched off the bed and his voice broke over the name of Parlamet.

“I love your ass, Leyjen. It’s so fucking tight and wet… I love it.” Polinues moaned into Leyjen’s mouth, the amber eyes distant with pleasure.
Leyjen only gasped and kissed him, his voice lost to the haze.

“Tell me again why I’m your burden.”

“Because I love you so much. You weigh on my heart. Every breathing moment of my life revolves around you.”

“Why? Why do you give your life over to me so easily?”
Polinues canted his hips slightly, drawing his cock over Leyjen’s prostate in a hard slow thrust, repeating as he withdrew, making Leyjen moan long and loud.

“Because I love you.”

“What do you mean that you are here to protect me?”

“I can’t… Ilithil, please don’t… ahh.” Leyjen moaned, squeezing his eyes shut to try and regain his focus, but Polinues nibbled at his neck, suckling at the connection between neck and shoulder, then asked again,

“What do you mean that you are here to protect me?”

“I must keep you safe… They can’t get you… the war is lost if they do. He sent me to protect you …Ahh, I’m going to come.”

“No, you won’t, not yet. Who sent you to protect me?”

Leyjen mewled, trying desperately to protest, but Polinues angled his hips, thrusting a little harder and repeated his question.

“My father. My father sent me.”

“Who is it that’s after me? Why do they want me? What war?” Polinues increased his momentum, making Leyjen arch off the bed with every thrust.
He knew he was pushing it, but he needed to know the truth.

“We don’t know… ahh, we don’t know what they want… ngh… Ilithil… please, let me come.”

“Answer me, Leyjen. Tell me the truth. Don’t lie to me.”

“We don’t know. I don’t know what the Vampyr want. Father never told me. Please, please make me come, I can’t take this.”

“Answer me, and I’ll make you come so hard your head will explode. What war?”

“The war between the Aaenda and the Vampyr. The Vampyr are trying to take over… please fuck me. Let me come, please, I’m begging you.”

Polinues grabbed Leyjen’s thighs in a vice grip, and pounding into the tight heat at just the right angle, he watched with awefilled admiration as Leyjen’s irises devoured the pupils and whites, his fangs springing from his gums, and that dark light shone from his core, illuminating his skin.
Leyjen’s back arched off the bed, his arms braced against the headboard as he spilled himself all over his own chest, with a hoarse cry.
The round muscle clenched hard around him in an erratic pulse and moments later Polinues came with a scream, Leyjen moaning at the warmth filling his gut.

Polinues collapsed ontop of Leyjen, and suckled at the purple mark he had made on Leyjen’s shoulder.

Leyjen brushed the hair out of Polinues’ face, raining kisses down his scarred right cheek, whispering between his lips as he drew the teen in for a kiss.

“Helot ika praatlen brisner. Ilithilin serom baakhom.”

Polinues kissed him back with possessive eagerness, his flacid cock slipping out with a wet plop, and Leyjen shivered at the loss.

“What was that? You speak Senizjan now?”

“Nah, just that one line. Please stop that though.”

“Stop what?”

“Using sex to torture information out of me. I don’t like when you do that. There are some things that I can’t tell you. You’re getting me into a shitload of trouble.”

Polinues pouted a little, and tried to smother the admonishment with a kiss, but Leyjen stayed him with a firm hand on his chest.
“I mean it, Polinues. I don’t want you to do that again.”

“Alright. But just for future reference. I wouldn’t need to do it if you just came clean with me, instead of always sneaking around on me. I’m not a child any more, you know.”

Leyjen sighed with irritation, and rolled over on his side, his back to the teen.
“I’m going to sleep. You can stay if you want to. Good night, bed bug.”

Polinues tried to thaw the anger out of Leyjen by kissing his neck and shoulder, but when Leyjen shook him off, Polinues relented and snuggled up behind him, his face buried between the sharp shoulderblades.

After almost an hour he was still unable to fall asleep, his guilt gnawing at his insides, and with a soft kiss his whispered into Leyjen’s fragrant skin,
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to get you into trouble. I just want to know who you are. I just want to know the truth.”

Leyjen’s soft snores were his only answer, and eventually he drifted off to sleep.


Leyjen hid his smile behind the large mug of ale, patting Polinues hip gently under the table in an effort to calm him down, but Polinues’ leg just twitched a little more, his hands whiteknuckled around the mug of honeybrew infront of him.

Brigale’s rumbling voice rolled over the tavern as he argued with one of his friends whether his dart had hit the board or not, the fourth mug of ale was going to his head as per usual, but Leyjen was more concerned with the deal transpiring at the table.

The saddlemaker and his leatherworker wife were still studying the drawing Polinues had presented to them, but the blacksmith and his apprentice were returning from the bar with another round of ale.
The saddlemaker took his mug and downed half of it before he laid the parchment down and nodded his head.

“I think it’s doable. We’ll need measurements of his arm, and if possible I’d like to meet him, but I think we can do this.”

Polinues’ smile lit up the room, and as he spoke Leyjen realized the teen had been holding his breath for a long time.

“Really? I’ll talk to his mother and have her get the measurements. Just tell me what you need, and I’ll send them to you.”

“I’ll draw you up a picture of what I need, and you can fill in the numbers, then send it back to me.” The saddlemaker’s wife said, studying the picture once again.

It was a day before Polinues’ Life day and they were sitting in the tavern in Marinesse.
Polinues was negotiating with the saddlemaker and the blacksmith on a job he had for them.
He had been designing it for over four moons, and finally he had a chance to talk to the people he thought would be able to create what he had designed.

Polinues nodded vigorously, and after one more round of ale they had settled on the work. The four villagers shook hands with Polinues and left, and with that Leyjen emptied his mug and stood up.

“Alright, boys. Time to go back to the castle. Brigale.”

Polinues and Leyjen got a hold of the knight and dragged him out of the tavern, kicking and screaming for the money he had just lost on his bet.
The following day Leyjen played buffer between the twins, Brigale chased most of the skirts at the Life day party, despite a hangover larger than his ego, and by nightfall Leyjen passed out on his bed, still half dressed.


In the middle of the night he jerked awake with a shout, fear tugging at his heart.
He pulled his unlaced robes off as he jumped out of the bed, and sprinted through the dark corridors to Polinues’ room.
The door was locked, a faint light shining under the door, and muted voices hissed at each other on the other side.
Leyjen whispered a spell and burst through the door without warning.

Polinues didn’t move where he stood by his bed, his feet planted firmly on the floor, slightly apart, his hands raised infront of him in a defensive position.
A couple of meters away stood Arlathi, his hair tangled and his nightshirt torn open, a wicked look in his eyes and a small sharp boline in his hand.

“What the Hell is going on here?” Leyjen hissed, laying a hand on Polinues’ back as he came up behind him, and noticed a small cut on his shoulder.

“Nothing that concerns you, servant. Get lost.” Arlathi spat out, his grey eyes pale with hatred.

“I woke up to him waving that knife in my face. He nicked me when I pushed him off.”

“What were you doing, Arlathi? Were you trying to kill him?”

“If I wanted him dead I would kill him in his sleep, from a safe distance.”

“What do you want, Arlathi?”

“That pendant!” Arlathi shouted, pointing at Polinues’ naked chest where a small silver crescent moon hung on a leather thong, a tiny dragon sleeping in its embrace, magical runes carved into the soft metal.

“What? You want my pendant? What the Hell for?”

“It’s none of your business, Polin. I want it, and I was trying to get it from you. You never take it off so I had to do something.”

Leyjen restrained Polinues with a firm hand, and stepping between the teens he pushed Arlathi back towards the doors out of the bedroom.

“Arlathi, get out of here, right now, and I won’t tell your parents. You only have to share this house this one day out of the year, so please try to be civil. You can’t have that pendant, it’s Polinues’ and has been forever. Now get lost, or I’m getting your father.”

Arlathi growled, but backed away from the imposing cleric, until Leyjen closed the playroom doors in his face.
Polinues watched from the door of his sitting room as Leyjen cast four diffirent barring spells on the double doors, and then went from room to room, repeating the spells.

“There. That should keep the little bastard out of here. At least until he learns how to break them.” He said with a smirk, but his eyes were cold with anger.
Leyjen pulled Polinues into an embrace, and suckled at the small cut on his shoulder, sighing at the warm blood.
Polinues let himself rest against Leyjen’s body for a few moments, then he pulled away and climbed into bed, sitting down with his back against the headboard and his knees tucked under his chin.
Leyjen sat down on the bed as well and ran his fingers over Polinues’ arms, waiting for him to talk.

“Why does he hate me so much?” Polinues’ voice was flat and indifferent as he asked the question, making Leyjen shiver slightly.

“I honestly don’t know. I’ve never understood it. When you were little I always thought it was jealousy, but now I’ve started to suspect it’s something far deeper than that. And darker.”

Polinues shrugged his shoulders, and ran his fingers through his hair, combing it slowly.
Pulling his long brown locks infront of his face he froze, his grey eye trained on the ends.
eyjen was about to ask what was the matter when Polinues pulled the hair on the left side of his head forwards as well and both of them saw that the right side was a good five centimeters shorter than the left.

“My pendant, my fucking ass.” Polinues screamed and before Leyjen could stop him Polinues was bursting through the doors, running towards his twin’s bedroom.

Arlathi jumped away from the desk in his bedroom with a squeal, as the double doors slammed against the walls, and Polinues rushed into the room with a scream.

“What the Hell are you planning, you little shit?” He shouted, taking in the spellbook, the small stone dish on the middle of the desk, and the smoldering lock of hair.

Arlathi’s dirty grey eyes went round with alarm as he saw Leyjen following on Polinues’ heels, and stepping infront of his desk, he stuttered.
“Nothing, I’m not doing nothing. It’s nothing.”

Leyjen shoved him aside with a growl.

The lock of hair burned up just as Leyjen took in the spell Arlathi had been working on.

“It’s a tracking spell.” He gasped, and turned on Arlathi with a vicious look.

“What are you doing with this kind of magick? This is golden arts shit. Why are you casting a tracking spell on Polinues?”

“I’m not!”

“Who made you do this?” Leyjen screamed, shaking Arlathi by the arms, the teen crying out in pain.

Polinues stopped Leyjen with a firm hand on his back, and one whispered word,
“Father.”

Leyjen let go of the youngest son, and the two of them retreated to Polinues’ rooms, as the sound of Lord Marines’ hurried footsteps entered Arlathi’s bedroom.

Leyjen slipped out of Polinues’ bedroom and ran to his own room, falling asleep to the sounds of father and sons screaming at each other down the hallway. He had stopped interfering after Wrailan had split the twins up.

They spent the carriage ride to the Temples in relative silence, each thinking their own thoughts about the severity of Arlathi’s spell.
The rest of the summer and the following autumn they spent trying to figure out exactly what spell had been cast and how to break it.

Polinues convinced Owain’s mother to help him on his little mission, and Brigale was used as an errand boy whenever he visited the Temples. By the time Samhain rolled around, and they went back to the castle for Brigale’s Life day and the New Years celebration, Polinues was writhing in his skin with anticipation.

Polinues held his breath as he knocked on the heavy wooden door, the voices within silencing and someone hesitated before the door was pulled open.
He stared up at the massive man inside and tried to speak, but the lump in his throat was too large.
The man stepped over the threshold and Polinues swallowed hard.

“Evening, mister Bronwey. My name is Polinues. Temple novice Polinues Marines. I’m the boy who saved Owain after the accident.” His voice was too high and he spoke far too fast, but the executioner’s harsh face softened, and a broad smile parted his lips.

“We know who you are, son. Don’t be afraid. Owain may not want to see you, but I have been hoping for a chance to meet you. I wanted to thank you for saving my boy’s life. He’s my first born, and I’ve almost lost him once before. So, thank you, young master Polinues Marines.”
Polinues blushed crimson for a moment, then he noticed Owain standing inside the kitchen, the hatred in his eyes so intense that it made Polinues’ heart bleed.

“I’m sorry that I’m interrupting you like this, but I’ve been working on something for the last five moons now to help Owain. I worked with the saddlemaker and the blacksmith in Marinesse on this, and I’m hoping that it will help.” Polinues bowed slightly as he handed Bronwey the large sack he had been holding.
The man accepted it, his face puzzled as he looked inside.

“When I was a little boy I saw a troupe of jugglers in the village. One of them had a wooden leg that he strapped on to his thigh with a harness of sorts. That’s what gave me the idea. See here. There are three diffirent types of hooks that he can interchange, and the saddlemaker’s wife tried to make it as comfortable as possible. They are all willing to make whatever adjustments that might be necessary.”

“This is far beyond anything that we could have imagined.”

“The blacksmith’s apprentice offered to make an axe for Owain. An executioner’s axe. They are working together on making an axe that Owain can use with this hook.”
Polinues tried to contain his smile as he showed Bronwey one of the three hooks, and then blushed crimson again when he noticed that the executioner’s eyes were moist with tears.

“Thank you, Polinues. You may just have given us hope again. Thank you. I will make sure Owain learns to use it.”

Polinues yelped as Bronwey pulled him in for a quick bear hug, thanking him profusely.
Polinues bowed again, and took off into the gathering darkness and Leyjen who stood at the top of the hill between the cottage and the highway.
Polinues crashed into his embrace, his eyes sparkling with excitement, and Leyjen pulled him down the hill towards the road.

“So? They accepted it?”
Polinues was too winded to answer, instead he nodded his head and smiled.

“Fantastic. Now all we can do is hope Owain will use it. Let’s hurry, or we’ll miss Yule dinner. I know they’re going to serve cherry pudding.” Leyjen kissed him on the side of the head, squeezing him reassuringly.


Tilting his head a little to the side Polinues tried to get more of the feeble light to shine on the page, but the street lamp was too far away, and the evening was getting too dim.
He sniffled, and the frost made him cough, but still he had no desire to go inside to read his homework.
He liked sitting outside in the cold with the blue moon full above his head.
Leyjen had taught him long ago that the blue moon was the greatest source of power for the NightMagi, and he always felt more energized when the blue moon was full. And since it only happened three times a year that the blue moon was full and the white moon new, he didn’t mind suffering through the frost to sit in the pale light.
Shifting a little again he jumped when large heavy winter boots came stomping through the drifts of snow, right into his field of vision, and just stood there quiet and a little threatening.

Without taking his one eye off the brown boots Polinues pulled the bookmark into place and closed the book, trailing his eye slowly upwards, over the thick winter trousers, the long wool lined coat and the gleaming steel hook that peeked from underneath the right sleeve, to the violently purple scarf and the shock of chestnut brown hair that stood up in all directions.

Polinues crushed his book against his chest and stared round eyed up at Owain, fearing the worst.

Owain stood stiff for a few moments, worrying his wool hat in his hand, then sat down heavily beside Polinues, and cleared his throat, never looking Polinues in the face.

“I’ve broken four of mother’s plates. And a mug. I nearly poked my brother’s eye out, and yesterday I got tangled in my sister’s hair and nearly tore one of her braids off. I haven’t heard her scream like that since she was just a toddler.”

Polinues held his breath, the sound of Owain’s hoarse voice making his heart thunder in his chest.
Owain sighed, the muscles in his left arm working non stop, as he massaged the edge of the stone bench, his right arm resting in his lap.

“The blacksmith’s apprentice from Marinesse brought his apprentice piece over to the cottage a fortnight ago. It’s an executioner’s axe for me. Specially designed just for me.”
Owain’s hazel eyes were distant, trained on a single spot somewhere out on the white space in front of them, and Polinues could see how much effort it took to get the words out.
The thick pink lips trembled as Owain continued.

“I’ve been practicing every single day, since Yule. Last week I buttoned up my own coat without help. This morning I could dress completely without help. I even laced up my trousers without mama needing to help at all. She’s put little loops on the laces of all my clothes, and it helps, but I did it myself. Yesterday father had me practicing with the axe for hours. I hit the mark seventeen times out of twenty. The other three were only a fraction off, and father says with a little more practice I’ll be even better than him.”

A large tear tumbled out of Polinues’ lashes and froze on his cheek, a smile spreading over his lips as Owain looked up at him.

“Back home in Calmarthae, I owed someone my life. I want to believe that I am still repaying him, if I haven’t already. And now I owe you my hope. The hope of my family. The hope of my future and my family’s future. Thank you, Polinues, for giving me hope, and for being my friend.”
Owain’s hazel eyes sparkled with warmth and he smiled at Polinues, reaching out an arm and pulled him in for a quick hug.

Polinues finally dared to breathe again and let out a gasp.
“You’re welcome, Owain. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being my friend after all.”

“Don’t be silly. I’ve always been your friend. I was just scared and angry, and you were a convenient target to take it out on. I’m sorry I’ve been such a jerk for the past year. Father has been telling me off for it since I got home after the accident. Mama hasn’t slapped me since I was about ten, but in the passed year I think I’ve been slapped more than a dozen times. Forgive me for being a frightenend jerk?”

Polinues threw himself around Owain’s neck, sobbing once or twice, and then blushing crimson he pulled away, wiping his tears on his sleeve, and putting up a bit of bravado he nodded, his voice hoarse,
“Of course I forgive you for being a jerk. What are friends for, if not for being jerks every once in a while?”

Owain smiled back and patted Polinues’ shoulder, looking up as someone approached them out of the shadows.

Up the path came Tiensin with Leyjen following him close behind, but both stopped short when they noticed Owain.
Polinues stood up and waved them closer, introducing them to Owain.
The three clerics offered Owain to join them for dinner, which he accepted, and the four sat up in Polinues’ room playing cards well past curfew.
Leyjen snuck Owain out through the Garden Gate and walked him through the forest, until they had the cottage in sight, there he bid good night and watched after Owain until the boy was inside, before he went back himself.