Jewell had not even finished reading the letter before they were arguing: ?You are not coming with me and that is final.?
?I am not staying here.?
?Ishmerai,? she tried to be reasonable, ?I need you here. You know that.?
?No,? he shook his head firmly. ?You need me at your side. If you are going to Faerie, then that is where I will be.?
She threw her grandmother?s letter down, ?But your presence is unnecessary! There is absolutely nothing to worry about. You said it yourself that my grandmother simply wants to meet with me. Nothing nefarious. You know this is her signature. She would not lie.?
?I would never doubt the honor of the Lady of Ta-Neer. But you well know that she is not who I am worried about. You may just be going to see your grandmother, but there are other powers at work there, Mira.? Her scowl, a minor acknowledgement that he was correct, encouraged him to pursue the issue, ?If Muirenn were to somehow learn of your visit beforehand, she could very well have some plan or scheme awaiting you.?
?Well..? she turned away from him in her agitation, ?and who cares about Muirenn anyway? I will not let her stop me from visiting my family when I am needed.?
?I do not expect you to. I am asking you to use more discretion. I should not need to remind you??
?You don?t!? she snapped, glancing over her shoulder at him. ?Muirenn is a little snake, but she may have a tooth left in her yet. Yes yes. I know this. We?ve been over it many times, Merai. I will be entering Faerie with eyes wide open, I assure you.? Jewell turned towards him, more pleading than angry now, ?But you must understand why I need you here. My own safety is nothing. Let Muirenn do what she will. There is nothing she can take from me now except for the children. If you are not here to guard them.. if something were to happen..?
He sighed as she wrung her hands, ?Mira, we have taken every precaution against that. The wards. Spells. Everything we could think of and then some.?
?And I didn?t last time?? The sharpness of anger crept back into her voice, ?I did everything then, yet they still stole them from me.? The biggest failure of her life. Every day, when she stood in front of the portraits that hung on her wall, she asked the same question: How could you have let this happen? Never again. ?Whatever we have done? It is not good enough! The only way I won?t lose my mind with worry is if you are here with them, Ishmerai. You are the only one I have entrusted them to; you are the only one I know who will not fail me.? They would forever come to odds over this until her children were reunited with her or truly dead. Ishmerai may have pledged his loyalty and life in service to Jewell, but she saw the assurance of her own safety as secondary to the well-being of her children. This is what she asked of her knight: protect them even at the cost of my own life.
He would do anything for her, except that.
?Jewell..?
She cut him off less he attempt to change her mind and succeed, ?I don?t want to talk about it anymore right now.?
?I am not staying here.?
?Ishmerai,? she tried to be reasonable, ?I need you here. You know that.?
?No,? he shook his head firmly. ?You need me at your side. If you are going to Faerie, then that is where I will be.?
She threw her grandmother?s letter down, ?But your presence is unnecessary! There is absolutely nothing to worry about. You said it yourself that my grandmother simply wants to meet with me. Nothing nefarious. You know this is her signature. She would not lie.?
?I would never doubt the honor of the Lady of Ta-Neer. But you well know that she is not who I am worried about. You may just be going to see your grandmother, but there are other powers at work there, Mira.? Her scowl, a minor acknowledgement that he was correct, encouraged him to pursue the issue, ?If Muirenn were to somehow learn of your visit beforehand, she could very well have some plan or scheme awaiting you.?
?Well..? she turned away from him in her agitation, ?and who cares about Muirenn anyway? I will not let her stop me from visiting my family when I am needed.?
?I do not expect you to. I am asking you to use more discretion. I should not need to remind you??
?You don?t!? she snapped, glancing over her shoulder at him. ?Muirenn is a little snake, but she may have a tooth left in her yet. Yes yes. I know this. We?ve been over it many times, Merai. I will be entering Faerie with eyes wide open, I assure you.? Jewell turned towards him, more pleading than angry now, ?But you must understand why I need you here. My own safety is nothing. Let Muirenn do what she will. There is nothing she can take from me now except for the children. If you are not here to guard them.. if something were to happen..?
He sighed as she wrung her hands, ?Mira, we have taken every precaution against that. The wards. Spells. Everything we could think of and then some.?
?And I didn?t last time?? The sharpness of anger crept back into her voice, ?I did everything then, yet they still stole them from me.? The biggest failure of her life. Every day, when she stood in front of the portraits that hung on her wall, she asked the same question: How could you have let this happen? Never again. ?Whatever we have done? It is not good enough! The only way I won?t lose my mind with worry is if you are here with them, Ishmerai. You are the only one I have entrusted them to; you are the only one I know who will not fail me.? They would forever come to odds over this until her children were reunited with her or truly dead. Ishmerai may have pledged his loyalty and life in service to Jewell, but she saw the assurance of her own safety as secondary to the well-being of her children. This is what she asked of her knight: protect them even at the cost of my own life.
He would do anything for her, except that.
?Jewell..?
She cut him off less he attempt to change her mind and succeed, ?I don?t want to talk about it anymore right now.?