Page 32 of Tiger's Tale
Content with their morning meal, the twins flicked their tongues over their crusty jaws and then proceeded to help one another clean their faces. Stacia realized then that though their tongues were indeed rough, they could control the pressure, so they didn’t tear each other’s faces off. Once they were clean—or at least, clean enough—they stood panting, both needing water.
Grateful she would not be needing to solicit Nik’s help in stitching her wound, nor would she need to tolerate a censure from her sestra’s lovestruck sycophant, Stacia picked up the large chunk of meat meant for Nik in her jaws, and the two tigers began the journey back, easily following their own trail.
When they arrived at the tree where they’d left the young man, the fire was cold, as was the scent of any food he’d eaten. He’d been missing for several hours and was likely out searching for the two of them. Though it wouldn’t be impossible for them to find the young man, it would be more difficult than it should be under normal circumstances. The moment he donned the tunic and boots, his scent and his trail disappeared. Even as tigers the only way to track him was to keep him close, to listen for his footsteps. Sometimes, even with their enhanced hearing, they couldn’t see or hear him until he removed his boots or tunic. They often depended on the scent of his food or the sound of his voice to point them in the right direction. With those boots, he didn’t even leave tracks.
Prior to the awful week of their mother’s death, Stacia had no idea that Nik was anything other than the bumbling young man he showed the world. As for Veru, she had always known there was more to Nik than met the eye. She was aware that there was a part of his life he hid from her, but she’d always assumed that he’d share that with her someday. He had a difficult time with trust, but then so did she. When he arrived at the palace with the dangerous monk in tow, to say they were shocked would have been an understatement.
When the twins had demanded that Nik explain where and how he’d met the man just after their mother’s funeral, he’d been truthful, but they both knew he wasn’t telling them everything. The doctor had informed them that the mysterious man remained nearby, and it worried them.
Then after it was announced that a new king and his son were arriving from a place neither of them had ever heard of before and at such an inauspicious time, they prepared for the worst. They recalled their top advisors and surrounded the palace with guards. When the king and his son got through all the checkpoints with their trusted men unable to answer the most basic of questions about them, the twins knew something was very, very wrong.
The odd thing was, there were no signs of revolution. There was no army accompanying the so-called king’s entourage. He flew no banners of any kind. Nothing added up. They had never seen anything like it before. After consulting with their mother’s closest advisor, they decided to allow the man and his son entry, knowing the two of them and their guard could handle themselves well enough.
Their parents had taught them that in matters of diplomacy, trust was never given outright. Not to anyone. Betrayal was the expectation. You prepared for it. You planned for it. And if it didn’t happen, you counted yourself lucky. Despite this fact, a royal was never allowed to show distrust outright. Instead, royals needed to become skillful at hiding their true thoughts and feelings. They were taught to play a dangerous game in which they appeared on the surface to trust everyone and take them at their word.
Comparing it to the sea, their parents taught them that a skilled mariner considers everything—the dangers above and the possible threats below the water. They must plan for every contingency they see in the sky above, which might come from storm clouds or thundering waves, as well as those they don’t see, such as icebergs or deadly sea creatures.
It doesn’t matter how much a person loves the sea or even how expertly they navigate its waves. The moment they are wrapped up in its beauty or lulled by its calm waters is the moment it will reach up and destroy you. The same is true when working in politics. Every negotiation, every meeting, every discussion and interaction were like those ocean waves. Always be on alert. Remain focused. Take your eyes away or allow yourself to trust and lean upon others and you will find yourself sinking in the depths with no one to save you.
Both of the tsarevnas were thinking of this when they entered the room and sat before the king and his son. They had been prepared for a shock, but what neither of them had expected was to see Nik. Still, they schooled their expressions and allowed them to pitch their proposal.
The two sisters watched Nik closely for signs of betrayal, listening as the man began weaving his lies. They could both tell that none of it was Nik’s doing. It was easy to see the naked fear on his face and his distrust of the man. It pained him to be there, and he was obviously uncomfortable in the clothing he wore. Nik was no prince. That much was obvious.
What they didn’t know was why. Why did Nik go along with the man’s plans? Why didn’t he come to them in the first place? What power did the man have over him? More than anything, they wished they could talk to him, especially seeing as how there was much more going on with Nik than they ever suspected.
Maybe it was the magic that tied him to the other man. But it was certain that Nikolai possessed a magic all his own. If they hadn’t seen his reaction to them when they’d turned into tigers, they might have thought it had been him who had cursed them to their current form. The fact that he was more frightened of them than anyone else assured them that he hadn’t. Nor did they believe it had been the stranger impersonating Nik’s father. He seemed almost as shocked by their transformation as Nikolai.
Truthfully, they didn’t know what to make of it. If it hadn’t been for that hussar, the older soldier with Evenki heritage, they wouldn’t have been able to form a plan of any kind. He seemed to think it was some sort of spirit possession or animal protection. Perhaps he was right. Whatever it was, the twins were trapped. And now Nikolai was gone. And with no scent of food or tracks, they had no idea where to go other than the direction they’d been headed—the great mountains.
Stacia dropped the hunk of meat, wishing, above all else, she could talk to her sister. How ironic. They’d fought each other most of their lives, and now that they couldn’t communicate, what wouldn’t she give just to share a few words with her twin? She growled softly into the air, hoping that if Nik was somewhere nearby, he’d hear. Trying again, a bit louder, she stopped, listening, but heard nothing in reply.
Verusha had certainly thought she’d like to talk with her sister as well since their transformation, but at the moment she was circling the tree, searching for some sign or signal left behind by her friend. At last she found it. Letting out a snort, she pawed the tree and huffed until her sister joined her. Carved into the bark was a small arrow pointing east.
With a happy sort of chuff, Veru took off at a leap, almost galloping along the creek, only stopping long enough to drink deeply first. Stacia was about to follow but turned to look at the hunk of meat she’d dropped. It was really too big to bring along for any distance and too big to swallow, not to mention that she was still full of her dinner and hasty breakfast. With a small growl at the stupidity of the young man for heading off without them, she hurriedly stuffed the morsel under a raised root and scraped some leaves over it with a paw.
The human part of her knew it was highly unlikely they’d be back before the meat spoiled, but there was a cat instinct that told her to save the meal for later, that she just didn’t know when the next kill was likely to happen. With a quiet growl, she darted off after her sister, easily following her trail, and splashed through the water, cold droplets running down her red coat.
* * *
It took two days for Nik to find them, and during that time he learned something very interesting. Two things, really. First, he’d assumed the twins, as tigers, could track him. It seemed they couldn’t. Even though they were magical creatures, they appeared to be unable to find him when he was wearing his boots and tunic. That was a good thing, he supposed. It meant the Death Draughtsman wouldn’t be able to find him either.
The second thing he discovered was that as he tried to hurry ahead to find Veru, since he’d decided that she must have gone ahead without him, his speed increased and increased, to the point where the things around him became a blur. He also found he didn’t need to stop for rest or food, and within just a day he’d reached the foothills of the mountains, something that should have taken him more than a month.
Turning around, he headed back, careful to listen for the sound of a tiger’s cry. Luckily for him, he heard them from quite a distance off and was able to slow himself in time to find them facing down a lone wolf. Their roars had scared off the poor creature and served as a signal to him. It took only a few minutes to race into the glade where they’d cornered the creature, and he arrived in time to watch him run in the other direction.
Nik realized by then that it was the boots and tunic causing the problem for them and hastily sat on a log, removing the tunic. “There you are,” he cried as he tugged off the boots that showed no signs of wear, despite how far he’d traveled. “I’ve been looking for the two of you. You’ll never guess where I’ve been.”
Quickly the two tigers chuffed and trotted over to him. The golden one pressed her face into his chest, nudging him so hard he fell over the back side of the log. He laughed, but it sounded nervous even to his own ears as he climbed back up and sat again. “All right, Veru. Calm down. I’m here. Sorry I took off like that. I didn’t realize you couldn’t follow me. I’ll be more careful from now on. I’ve got good news though.”
The golden tiger laid down next to him with paws outstretched in his direction while the red tiger merely sat on her haunches, watching him intently.
“I’ve been to the mountains,” he exclaimed. “I know. It sounds crazy, but it’s true. These boots can travel fast. Quicker than horseback or by carriage, or even water. As far as I can tell, I spanned leagues in just a few moments.”
Nik paused. He wasn’t certain why. He knew the sisters couldn’t talk back, and yet he felt like he needed their approval somehow. “The thing is,” he said. “I don’t know if there’s a way to make them work for all three of us. Maybe if I touch you at the same time, or something?”
He rubbed his stomach. “Huh. I wasn’t hungry before, but suddenly I’m starving.” Nik licked his lips. “Thirsty too. I haven’t eaten or drank anything in the last two days. You two wouldn’t happen to know where there’s any food nearby, would you?”
The tigers looked at one another, and both cats rose to their feet. Nik reached into his bag and slipped on a different pair of shoes. “Guess I’ll use these for now, so you’ll know where I am. We’ll try out the other pair after we eat. Da?”
