The trips to RhyDin had grown ever more infrequent as she?d come to think of Matlal as ?home? rather than her adopted place in the Nexus. But she?d forced herself to leave the seclusion and tonight she found herself seeking an empty table in the Inn. Alais knew immediately that Tass was also there.

Tass had settled himself onto his recliner and gave a wave of his hand which brought him a bottle of scotch from its customary place. He made himself comfortable as Alais approached, leaning her hip against the rail of the bar, which brought Tass out of his own world, or someone elses, it was never easy to tell with him, and he blinked when he found himself hewn in by several ladies, including his lovely lady wife. He sent a kiss off to tackle Alais because she was there, and then craned his neck to look at Fio and Kitty.

Alais quirked a sable brow at him with a chuckle, ?Tass, yer effer sae much more demonstrative.?

He grinned and winked, ?of course I am, who would I bee if I wasn?t??

Alais winked back, catching his reference to the Elder, ?mayhap ye shouldst share some wi? another?? She whispered in Annaran to bring the crystal snifter into her hands.

He grinned, ?I doubt the gods could, I?m not even sure I can.? He gave her a lifted brow, ?Perhaps I should say the same for you? Welcome to my family.? There came that smile of his that spells nothing but trouble.

Alais sipped her liquid fire and refrained from commenting. The Elder hadn?t brought her ?into the family?, far from it, he seemed almost to avoid her.

Kitty broke the moment when she pounced into Tass? lap, and he grinned, ?And speaking of family?what has one of my nieces done??

Alais quirked a brow at him, ??t was nae yer nieces tha? Ah was ref?rencin?.? She gave a mellifluous laugh and took another sip of the liquid fire.

Tass smirked, ?Oh? Well, it that?s the case, I?m not sure I can help with the sharing.? He winked at her.

Alais gave Kitty a nod of greeting before saying ?Tha? ?opeless ye thin??? She was teasing, they both knew that The Elder was far from hopeless, but he certainly was enigmatic and often times difficult to comprehend. Kitty waggled her claws at Alais with that smile that clearly said she had no idea what she and Tass were talking about.

Tass glanced again at Alais, ?You do more than I do hun, and you know it.?

She sipped the amber liquid thoughtfully, clearly not buying Tass? deferral.

He lifted a brow at her expression, and gave Kitty the same quizzical look, he then looked back at Alais, ?You know it?s true. He actually seems more? alive.?

Alais canted her head at him slightly, and her hip length silver hair shifted like liquid silk with the movement, ?more alive ye thin??

He studied her briefly, ?You haven?t noticed it??

Argentine eyes slid once more toward Tass, She seldom actually saw Khirsah. Oh, she knew he came to the Isle, but he seldom chose to let her see him. ?Wha? Ah?ve noticed oonla jus? clicked auld friend.?

He lifted a brow, ?And what?s that??

She swirled the liquid thoughtfully, ?Ye jus? said tha? ?e ist more ?alive?, nae??

?Seemed more, yea,? he confirmed for her.

Kitty fell silent as Tass and Alais talked about something clearly important to them

Alais pondered, ?As ist th? Isle, auld friend, Matlal ist more alive?s well.?

Tass gave her a look and lifted a brow, ?And what about you??

She studied the crystal snifter intently, ?Ah?m intrudin? auld friend, prithee, forgiff.? Alais decided that the Inn and all of Tass? new family wasn?t the place to hold this discussion, and besides, she had a lot to consider.

But Kitty shook her head suddenly at her, ?No you?re not!?

Tass frowned, ?You?re wha? Since when? On what?? He eyed Alais, waiting for an explanation.

Alais glanced at Kitty, ?forgiff lassie, yer mate hath mayhap hit ?pon soomethin? Ah?d nae though? aboot.?

Kitty waved it off, ?Nothing to forgive Alais, you two are talking about important stuff.? About then, Taneth crashed into she and Tass. ?Ooooph!?

After Tass took the brunt of the Taneth crash, he looked at Alais intently, ?So what have I hit on, and what have you intruded upon??

Alais tapped her fingernail lightly on the crystal snifter, ?Tass, prithee, ?ow much change dae ye feel ?n th? Isle??

Tass smiled, ?Question is, what do you feel? As I recall, that Isle is yours, hrmm??

She leaned her hip more comfortably against the bar as she studied Tass, ?Ye?ve granted me th? Isle, aye, an? Ah?ve spent great time ?n energies tryin? tae bring th? land tae life once again, yet ?t doth absorb ?t, an? nae giff me th? ?xpected r?sponse.? She knew the huge expenditures of energy that had already gone into the island, and Amanda and Xenograg?s efforts, but the response was nothing like she expected it should be. Anywhere else, the land would be green and thriving under that much magic.

Tass gave her a half grin, ?Have you given it the right energy? So I ask again, how are you feeling??

Alais sidestepped the question, ?th? question ist, ?ow doth yer brother feel?? She was beginning to wonder if Khirsah?s ties to the isles might be the source of the energy drain.

Tass chuckled, ?Why would it matter? The isle is not his.?

Alais turned silvery eyes on Tass, ?b?cause ?e ist tied tae ?t ?as ?re thee auld friend.? She knew Tass and the second were intimately tied to the creation of the isle.

?Perhaps, but he is not the reason for the Isle?s health.? Tass simply smiled at her.

He could be just as maddening as the Elder when he wanted to be Alais decided. ?Mayhap nae, bu? ist th? Isle sharin? wi? ?im tha? ?e mayst nae notice?? She wondered if his ties to the land might be such that he wouldn?t even notice a minor increase in magical energy from the land.

?Are you?? He asked her simply.

She lifted a sable brow at him, ?Ah was ?opin? ye?d be able tae answer tha?.?

Kitty looked back and forth between Tass and Alais, then gave an exasperated noise, ?Doesn?t it drive you crazy when he?s all vague like this??

?I can presume to understand your feelings? but only you can say the truth of them. Hun, the Isle is yours. It is tied to you, not the Elder.? He poked Kitty in the ribs playfully, ?I haven?t gotten vague yet.?

Alais gave Kitty a quick nod, ?Aye lassie, bu? ye didst get th? least frustratin? one! ?t least froom th? outside lookin? in ?t doth appear tha? way.?

Kitty chuckled, ?Don?t be so sure!? She grinned and elbowed Tass lightly in retaliation for his poking her.

Alais gave Tass a searching look, ?Tass auld friend, dae ye thin? ?t ist possible??

?That you?re happy, finally, after so long? Yes.? He told her, but failed to answer the question she most truly wanted an answer for.

Kitty added, ?Yanno, it would make sense if that old dragon was feeling more alive, it would make you feel happier, and then in turn the Isle was perking up.? Kitty was always to the point.

Alais shook her head with a mellifluous laugh, ?Och, ye nae gaein? tae giff me yer best guess ?pon this Tass, ?re ye??

He gave a point toward Kitty, ?I don?t need to hun, she?s the straight forward one, not me.? He winked at them both.

Alais nodded at Kitty, ??t was neffer a view tha? Ah?ve entertained b?fore this nigh?.? She hadn?t even remotely considered the implications until tonight.

Kitty smirked at Tass, ?One of us needs to be.? He snorted and told her that it was no fun that way.

Alais took a thoughtful sip of the amber liquid, ??t ist a fione thin? thence Tass tha? yer mate doth nae beat aboot th? bushes.?

Tass opened his mouth to comment, but then abruptly snapped it shut, on second thought, that bottle of scotch of his looked awfully good to him. His expression brought a ring of laughter from both Kitty and Alais.

Kitty looked at Alais, ?My tutor is always saying I need to practice tact. I think he?s fighting a losing battle on that front.?

Alais chuckled, ?Lassie, yer tutor ist missin ?th? fioner points o? bein? straight speakin?.?

?Of course he is, he?s a dragon!? She gave a big grin.

Tass spoke simultaneously, ?He?s a dragon, what do you expect??

Kitty looked at Tass and snickered as Alais slid silver eyes once more toward Tass and his bottle of scotch as she subconsciously curled her fingers over the mark, ?Dae ye ken Tass tha? Ah?d nae though? such possible, bu? ye may haff ?it th? nail ?pon th? ?ead sae tae speak.? He simply smiled and winked.

Kitty abruptly departed, leaving Tass and Alais, ?so have you come to accept that the Isle is tied to you?

Alais paused, she hadn?t. Oh, they?d ?given? it to her, but it was made for the dragons, not for misplaced elves.

Alais? delicate elven hands still rested atop the table as she studied him, ?Ah?m seekin? answers tae a mystera m?lord.? She turned one hand palm up, ?Yer part o? a livin? world, d?stroyers always are?. Wouldst ye allow me tae try soomethin??? It didn?t trouble her that he was a destroyer. Before she?d studied with Morrin it would have bothered her, but she?d come to look at the world with a much wider view than she?d had as an elf.

?That would depend on what you intend to try.? He watched her, knowing that she always pushed the limits of her physical form.

She smiled at him, ?M?lord, ?t ist jus? a wee thin?, ye ken Ah cannae ?arm thee, an? Ah?ve nae d?sire tae harm thee.? She?d misunderstood his concern, and she sought to reassure him that she had no intention of hurting him with her experiment.

?But I can harm you.?

Alais blinked, he never had harmed her. In fact, he had saved her from herself. ?Aye, ye couldst, bu? ye neffer haff. Ah?d li? tae giff th? table some o? mine energies an? see ?f ye ?bsorb ?em by touchin? th? table, Ah?m seekin? th? answer tae th? question o? affinity b?tween yer d?struction ?n mine attempts tae r?new.? She gave him a soft chuckle, ?bu? ?t wouldst haff been more interestin? nae tae ?xplain ?t first, now ye ken mine plan, ?t ist easa enou? tae nae absorb ?t.? She had planned to send her renewal magic into the table and have him touch the table, and see if he drew from it.

He looked from her eyes, to the scarred hand, and then back to her eyes, ?Have you come to master the mark??

She curled her fingers over her palm, ?Master?d ?t? Ah?m still learnin? froom ?t.? A brow winged upward suddenly, ?Ye?ve nae need tae master yer oon, dae ye?? She was the one that had to learn the intricacies of her ties to Khirsah, not the other way around, but she still wondered if he might no longer feel her touch. ?Prithee, ?s it possible tha? ye wouldst nae feel th? touch??

?I know your touch.? He again shifted his gaze to that mark as she slowly uncurled her fingers to expose it to his study.

?Aye,? she gave a slight shake of her head, ?Sae much fer tha? idea.?

?So what is it you have not accepted,? he pressed again.

She lifted silver eyes to his, ?Yer brother said soomethin? intriguin? m?lord Khirsah.?

?Which would be??

?Tha? yer more alive. Ah?d though? mayhap tha? th? work ?pon Matlal migh? haff contributed.? She looked down at her hand and didn?t meet his eyes.

There was almost a curl to a corner of his lip that some might consider a sneer as she clearly avoided his query and asked if he disagreed. Still she didn?t answer him and he pressed, ?It hasn?t. so again, what are you not accepting??

She slid her gaze toward the fireplace with a soulful sigh, ??t wouldst haff made sense tae me ?f ye?d absorbed some o? th??.? Her voice trailed off, clearly it was a dead end if he had not.

?That would be the second,? he told her before asking yet again, ?What are you not accepting??

?Tass hath claimed tha? Matlal ist mine oon, bu? ?t was made fer dragons, nae fer misplaced elves.? She told him with a hint of sadness in her tone.

?Have not the dragons accepted you??

?Moost o? ?em, there?s one ?r two Ah?m nae certain aboot,? She wasn?t going to tell him that he was one of those she was uncertain about.

?And do you believe that they would allow you to lay claim to their home if they did not believe you belonged there??

Alais quirked a pale brow, ?Aye, they wouldst ?f giffen th? righ? encouragement. Dae ye thin? they?d gae against thee ?r Tass??

His brow lifted again, ?Garl.? There was no need for him to say more.

Alais reached over and gently touched the sleeve of his robes with the scarred hand, ??e?d nae realla gae against thee.? Her voice dropped even softer, ??e?s passionate aboot yer sanctuara Khirsah.?

?Which means he would, if he thought I was a threat,? Khirsah told her pragmatically.

??re ye a threat? Dae ye plan th? d?struction again o? th? isles?? she challenged him at that. She couldn?t imagine Garl facing off against The Elder, but perhaps if provoked far enough, he might.

?I have never destroyed the isles.?

?Thence Garl hath nae reason tae thin? yer a threat, doth ?e?? She challenged right back.

?That would be a question you would need to ask him,? Khirsah stated simply.

She smiled, ?Sae Tass ist mistaken??

?About? He is mistaken about a great many things.?

Alais wanted to smile, she knew that Khirsah?s views came from his logical views that lacked the color of emotion. ?Ye bein? more alive?? She had to admit, she?d hoped perhaps Tass was right, but this meeting was quickly convincing her that there was little change in the Elder.

?I am not dead,? he said simply.

??e didst nae say tha? ye were. Oonla tha? yer more alive, ?s tha? true?? Her slight elven fingers still rested lightly on the sleeve of his robe. She had taken a liberty again with the Elder, but he was apparently disinclined to object to her temerity.

?One is either alive, or dead. One cannot be more of either.?

Alais pounced on that one. She passed through both realms, and there was very clearly shades and grades of life and death. ?Ah, m?lord, there yer trula mistaken.?

?Even a corpse, though animated, is still dead.? He stated. He remained unruffled by her ascertion.

She studied him a long minute before letting the warmth of life slip from her, replacing it by the chill of death, and the realm of Annara, now relegated to the sixth level of the hells. Her silver eyes faded, turning a dull grey, ?An? which ?m Ah?? The cold permeated through her fingers and the cloth of his robes. She knew she couldn?t hurt him with this change, and she didn?t have to retrieve her hand from him, for he too could traverse through both realms.

He glanced at her fingers where they rested on his sleeve, then lifted his eyes to hers, ?Although you can play with the dead, you are still alive.?

?Bu? nae more alive whence Ah take ?n th? guise o? bein? elven?? She knew that when she ?played? with the dead, she passed for dead herself.

?Your heart beats, your eyes shine, your mind works on your own will. No matter the guise you take, alive is alive.?

Frost crystals formed in the cloth of his sleeve, her pulse slowed to non-detectable, and the appearance of death replaced the vibrancy of life, she let the full appearance of death take her as she would be in Annara, they were, after all within the shelter of the shadows she?d arrived with some time ago. ?Ye dinnae thin? this ist more dead thence alive? There?s varyin? d?grees o? life ?n death m?lord. Sae Ah dae ask thee again, art thou more alive ?s Tass hath claimed??

His gaze settled on her eyes, his eyes seeming to pull in all life and light, ?Do you wish to see the other side of dead??

She blinked at him, the idea of seeing beyond death, to the farthest reaches was what he offered her, and she couldn?t resist the lure, ?Aye.? She trusted him now as she?d trusted him when she sought him in the Primordial Darkness.

He lifted a brow, then looked once more at her hand, still resting on his sleeve. His other hand lifted, his fingers coming free of the sleeve, ?As you wish.?

Lifeless, silver grey eyes followed his movements as his hand came down, wrapping around her own, and the cold that she exuded seemed like a warm summer?s day. His touch grew colder still, and the moments grew longer. Alais let the cold slide through their connection as she studied it the way Morrin had taught her. She slid ever deeper into the chill, deeper into death?s realm, looking at it with the attention she had always paid to her lessons with the Necromancer. But this was very different. Time began to have no meaning, and she no longer knew, nor cared how long she?d been here, and she slid further away from the world of living things.

Khirsah lifted his gaze from her hand to her eyes, letting the cold settle in, stealing the warmth and the life from her. He drew these things into himself as surely as a black hole consumes everything within its gravitational pull.

A tremble rippled through her, instinct telling her to pull away from Khirsah, but the necromancy lifted its head, responding ot the presence of death and the darkness. It seduced her into slipping deeper into it?s realm, much further from living things than she?d ever been. His dead eyes continued to watch as the hand that touched hers continued to draw off all heat, all life. He was a great vacuum that pulled each thread of living essence from her.

Magic began to fade, the chill robbed her of that next. She watched disembodied as her magic flickered and bled away. A moment of fear rattled her curiosity as she felt magic dying. It wasn?t something she?d ever experienced, and it frightened her. ?Khirsah?? It was more of a thought than an actual word, in reality, she could no longer speak words as everything that she was methodically dismantled.

He lifted a brow at the thought, the faint echo of his name, but his grip remained, and he did not relent. She made a faint effort to pull back, to break the connection as her magic flickered dangerously low, but it was only a thought that pulled back, the body was no longer capable.

Alais was unaware now of the arrival of the old man. Tass stepped through the door of the Inn, almost as if he were in a rush, and his gaze moved quickly to the shadowed table where he knew The Elder and Alais sat. His steps were purposeful, deadly, as he strode toward the table. As he arrived, his hand slammed over the Elder?s, his voice was soft, but lacked none of the menace of the threat of death, ?Enough.?

Khirsah looked up at Tass, his eyes settling on the Younger.

Alais was aware of Tass? presence, and his fury when he touched Khirsah. She tried to shake her head no, tried to stop Tass, but her magic dimmed further, pulled into the cold, diluting itself in the magnet that was Khirsah.

Tass? hand gripped down, and curled into Khirsah?s tendons on the hand that held the connection to Alais.

Alais knew what Tass was doing, and through his connection to Khirsah, she managed a very slow curl of her fingers around Khirsah?s hand. It was slow motion, and no words formed, but she tried again to stop Tass from breaking the connection. But to no avail as Khirsah?s hand slowly uncurled from its hold on Alais with the pressure of Tass?s fingers digging into tendons.

A grim smile played on Tass? lips, ?This time, Elder, you have gone too far.? He stepped then, slamming a palm into his chest and sending Khirsah slamming into the wall and well away from Alais.

The connection severed, and the slow drain into the chill ended. It took several moments for Alais to realize that she still existed, and even more before she could focus enough magic to form one word to Tass, ?Why?? Her lips moved faintly, but no voice accompanied her question.

Khirsah stopped himself short of actually slamming into the wall, and settled his feet under himself. He said not a word now.

Alais remained unblinking as the otherworldly chill slowly receded. She wasn?t going to recover on her own, at least not in this lifetime, but she managed to form 2 inaudible words, ?Tass, stop.?

He turned his back on the older brother, focusing his attention on Alais as he settled his hands over where *his* had gripped. He couldn?t think of Khirsah this moment as his brother. He poured his own warmth into the elf at the same time he wove the cold and darkness into himself. She could feel him draw the cold dark away.

Finally she managed to shake her head at Tass, ?Tass, Ah didst ask,? she tried to explain in whispered words as warmth returned, and with it, her voice. ?Dinnae blame ?im.? She began to try to extricate herself from Tass? grip.

Tass? eyes lifted and settled onto Alais?, and there within those purple hues was a fire that would destroy worlds. ?then you are as foolish as he is.? His grip didn?t relent, not until all that had been given was taken.

Alais blinked and pulled again, ?Tass, ?e?ll giff ?t back? dinnae dae this.?

Khirsah folded his arms into his sleeves, watching the two with those same dead eyes. Still he had uttered not a word.

Tass snarled, ?He won?t, not even for you.?

Alais slid silvery grey eyes toward Khirsah, then back to Tass, ?Aye, ?e will.? She gave a gentle tug once again, then softly said, ?Tass, Ah asked ?im fer tha.? She would defend Khirsah for something he was innocent of instigating.

As the last of the Darkness was drawn, he let her hand go free. Tass left the scar, and that which it connected to, but what was given this night by the Elder to her was removed entirely.

She rose slowly to her feet, giving Tass a gentle hug and saying very quietly, ?Yer wrong aboot ?im Tass.? Then she took a step toward Khirsah.

Tass snarled and then he moved toward the bar, he couldn?t remain this close to Khirsah. He?d gone much too far tonight.

Khirsah?s gaze leveled itself on Alais as she moved toward him.

?Ye did naught wrong?? she said as she came to pause before him.

?He?s correct,? was all he said.

She deliberately put herself between Khirsah and Tass now, ?Aboot?? She wasn?t prepared for Khirsah?s agreement with the Younger. He simply lifted a brow, expecting her to answer her own question. The grey faded from her eyes, replaced with silver once more, ?Ye?d consume me? All tha? Ah am??

Tass settled at the bar, his hand giving a quick flick and a bottle of black appeared. He pulled the cork and took a long drink, drawing upon the darkness that poured from that bottle.

?It was your request.? His answer was quite simple.

She took a deep breath, still not certain that he wouldn?t have given her life back to her, ?Coome back tae th? Isle m?lord?? She wanted time away from others, away from the anger that still radiated from Tass.

He lifted a brow at her.

?Yer needed there,? she said simply.

?Am I??

She gave him a single nod as Tass turned to watch, his body already taught as a tightwire.

?By whom?? He seemed puzzled by her

She held out her hand, uncurling her fingers toward him, ?Ah dae.?

There was a brief moment when it ssemed that Tass would turn and remove the arm that was attached to the uncurling fingers, but it passed as his eyes moved to the owner, and there, for the first time this night, there was a hint of a smile, small though it may be.

Khirsah nodded, ?As you like.? Other than that, he gave no hint of pleasure nor displeasure at her request.

She however gave him a quicksilver smile smile, ?Ah?ve learned soomthin? verra important this e?en.?

He raised a brow in inquiry.

She moved a step closer, ?aye, Ah didst, an? Ah?ve thee tae thank fer ?t.? She glanced toward the bar where Tass was now speaking with another, then back at Khirsah, ?Yer a verra s?prisin? soul Khirsha, as ist yer broother.?

He continued to watch her, waiting for an explanation as she curled one arm around his, ?Ye?d trula nae haff stopped, wouldst ye??

His answer was the slashing of the fabric of time and space, which elicited a slight quirk of her brow. She reached out with her other hand toward the tear as the other side opened up onto the black sands of Matlal. She let her fingers brush the edges of the tear, ?Shall we??

He stepped toward the tear, leading her toward her home.

Alais gave Tass one last look before she stepped through the tear, still linked arm in arm with The Elder.