Radiance

Chapter Ten

She crouched down and laid a hand on his shoulder as she had the night before. At the connection of her palm to his cloak Tamar was thrown to the floor with his hand around her throat, there was no time to scream. As soon as it had happened it was over and he was on his feet, staring down at her in shock.

“I am so sorry Tamar.” Elior said in remorse. He rubbed his hand across his face and down his chin looking drawn. “So many here wish me dead that I am programmed to defend, it is instinctive. I fell asleep a while after you left.” He dropped his hand toward her. Tamar had raised herself to her elbows and could feel a sting at the corners of her eyes. Gingerly she allowed him to help her up and then wiped away the tears.

“I’m sorry Tamar. Are you hurt?” He asked.

“No, I’m fine. It’s my fault, I shouldn’t have caught you unawares like that, I should have called first or something...” She sniffled and avoided meeting his gaze.

“It is not your fault. Your innocence makes you naive, that is all. You forget where you are.” She squirmed at the word ‘innocence’. How true that was, Tamar thought. She was so far from home. “Come, let us walk.” Elior encouraged, “After all, young runaway, you need to explain to me why you are still here.” Tamar smiled a little at his attempt to tease her.

They walked side by side as they crossed the next bridge and wound their way through the tree tops.

“I wanted to talk to you again.” Tamar braved.  Elior sighed.

“Tamar, I am not worthy of any Clarities time, you know you need to leave.”

“I know, just not yet.” She replied. He shot her a sideways glance but didn’t respond so she changed tact. “Tell me more about the Radiance Lands, tell me what you remember.”

“Why do you want to hear my memories? You know of its beauty and the Clarities grace, why should I taint your home with my vague reminiscing?” he asked, genuinely intrigued. Tamar looked ahead into the leaves and continued casually.

“I’ve only ever known it from the inside looking out,” she lied, “I’ve never heard how it feels to have known and lost the Clarity. You seem to admire it more than many of those who have it.”

“A small gift for the outcast.” He processed. “A taste of something I can’t have; a torment.”

“I don’t get it?” Tamar blurted, “Why can’t you just go home if it’s where you belong? What’s the problem?”

“Why do you joke about such things?” He laughed at what he assumed was her down to earth humour. “You talk as if The Noble himself would open the gate and embrace me back into the fold! You Clarities are more wishful than I remember.”

But why wouldn’t he? Tamar thought. If The Noble was the one who set the laws of transfer and allowed there to be a brighter life trusting in his ways, why wouldn’t he welcome Elior? She held her tongue with these thoughts, afraid they would cause suspicion of her true ignorance to Elior’s world of which she had never been a part of.

They went quiet for a few moments before Elior gave in to her curiosity. He eased into a tale of the time he and his brother Ewan had broken into their mothers supplies determined to make a potion to help them run faster.

“We were young!” he defended when Tamar laughed at the idea of this pointless potion.

“Of all the things to wish for you chose to run a bit faster!” she mocked.

“When you are a child you are of simple joys!” He smiled with an innocence she hadn’t seen before. His violent reputation ebbed away. “It was all that mattered then. We caused enough mischief as it was but being able to run away at twice the speed was one of the greatest ideas we ever had! We raced everywhere, why walk when you could run, why feel the breeze when you could feel a storm blowing through your hair.” He slowed at the memory and Tamar was taken back to when she first rode a horse and felt that speed and power, she’d vowed as a child never to walk anywhere again if horse riding was an option. Her parents were pestered for weeks until she was officially given lessons at the farm.