Chapter 11: Unmarked

THE FINAL CHAPTER! Now all the chapters of Hawk and Rabbit have been edited and patched together and ready to go :3

enjoy! The sequel is now coming!

Lucia was nervous and filled with apprehension as her pegasus touched down in Phonecisis. The news had spread far and wide from one end of Tellius to the other faster then the wind it seemed yet no one had confirmed what was going on. Was it true that Elincia had born Tibarn a child and yet he still flew?

Was it true the baby was born with the features of a laguz but yet had no mark upon its skin...an unmarked laguz child? Begnion politics bubbled and nearly boiled over at the news, it was said in Gallia the beast laguz where scoffing the notion, and in Crimea many wondered if it was just a rumor.

It was news everyone knew but never confirmed. The blue haired woman slid off her pegasus and looked up at the palace of Phonecisis a little uncertain as to what she would find.

"Hey Lucia. Elincia will be glad to see you made it in one piece," the familiar voice of Janaff said as he landed next to her, "We've been keeping an eye out for you...she's all nervous you got blown out to sea!"

Lucia chuckled a bit, "Oh Elinica...always worrying over such small things," she said with a sigh, "So...the rumors..."

"Believe me when I say this Lucia...for the first two days we didn't even believe it," Janaff said as he headed to the palace, "I think it was the first time Naesala was speechless and in absolute shock,"

"So she did have a child then," Lucia said quietly, "She didn't' say much other then to come in her letter,"

"Yes. A handful already her little Anil is," Janaff said with a smile, "He's already trying to get out of the crib,"

"Anil? So she has a son then," Lucia said walking with the hawk through the hallways, "So is Tibarn no longer a laguz?"

"That is still a mystery right there. Tibarn is fine without a feather out of place and Elincia seems to be fine as well...the only odd thing is that Anil doesn't have any markings. Odd for a laguz child,"

Lucia raised an eyebrow at him, "then where is your mark?"

Janaff grinned, "I would have to take off my pants to show you. It is on my upper leg. Ulki has his on the opposite leg same spot. Weird right?"

She shook her head, "No wonder no one has seen it,"

"Well I wouldn't say no one, " Janaff said putting a hand to his chin, "there was that time Ulki and Tibarn stole my pants and had me flying after then in my underwear..."

Lucia giggled a bit as she pictured the scene, "Tibarn never took me as the type to do something like that. Same with Ulki,"

"Don't let Tibarn kid you...he can be very sneaky and devious when he gets an idea into his head. Same with my brother. They play it innocent and then when you look the other way, "Janaff snapped his fingers, "they are causing trouble!"

Lucia smiled at him liking his companion as they now headed up to the personal quarters, "And here it seems Tibarn and Naesala have nothing in common no?"

He grinned a bit, "Don't let Tibarn hear you say that or he will get quite cranky,"

The comment earned another laugh from Lucia as they finally reached the queen of the skies chamber door, "Well, I'll see you around Janaff. I'll be sure to have a few more conversations before I leave,"

He blushed a bit rubbing the back of his head, "it was an honor to walk with you Lucia. I'll catch you later," with that the eyes of the king ran off a blush on cheeks.

Lucia smiled again and gently knocked on the door, "Elincia?"

A slight gasp was heard and the coo of a baby, before the door opened with a smiling Elincia standing there radiant as the dawn, " Lucia! It is so good to see you again my dear friend!" she said taking Lucia's hands in her own.

The two then smiled wider and gave each other tight hugs finally seeing each other after so long, "Oh Lucia I've missed having you around...not that the people of Phoenicisis are unkind but it is so good to see a familiar face of a dear friend!"

Lucia smiled with a nod, "It has been too long and too many rumors as well in my opinion. So where is your little tyke?"

Elincia's smiled increased as she led Lucia into the room to a small crib, "My dear son Anil,"

The child was innocent looking, curled up on its stomach eyes closed in sleep. The few wisps of hair seemed black much like his fathers but when the light played over it, the faint traces of green could be seen in the locks.

Her eyes went to his small wings, "An odd color for a hawk I think no?"

The wings where dark brown flecked with whites and grays and when the tyke fluffed his wings in his sleep, it could be seen that the undersides where white with flecks of brown opposite to the top. Elincia nodded gently putting a hand into the crib to stroke his small wings, "That is what Tibarn said, but hawks don't really pass down wing color from child to parent so variations show up,"

The babe yawned the wings stretching out a bit as he opened his eyes and looked up curiously at his mother and the new visitor. Lucia glanced at Elincia with an arched eyebrow, "He inherited his father's eye but what is with the other one?"

The child's left eye was a wild yellow color while the right eye was a deep red color in a rare spliced eye color, "We aren't sure. It may just be a rare inheritance...I believe my great grandfather had one blue eye and one brown eye so it isn't a big surprise,"

Lucia nodded as the babe whimpered a bit. Elincia made a soft hushing sound reaching down to pick up her son cradling him against her, " I'm so glad I was able to bear a son to Tibarn without him loosing his abilities. I thought it wouldn't work at first but the more I read..."

"So nothing was lost?"

Elincia gave her friends a smile, "No...if the laguz parent doesn't bare the cost then the...the beroc parent has to bare that cost. Lucia...I can no longer do magic. All my healing spells even the simplest of catnips I cannot pull off. Even weapons have become unfamilar tools in hand,"

She looked up at Lucia, " I do not regret it. A little magic over loosing your identity? I will gladly bare the price,"

Lucia nodded as she watched her dear friend cradling the child closer to her the babe making happy cooing sounds the little wings spreading out a bit showing the odd coloration, the fluffy dow feathers making him seem more a ball of fluff then actual wings.

The two of them had come a long way in the time that had transpired from when they had first met to now as Elincia stood with their son in her arms, a bird laguz, although not quite a laguz since the mark that the all laguz carried was missing. Perhaps another new splice between the two that favored for once the laguz. Yet something about the boy put Lucia on edge like a nagging feeling and she wondered if this was the same kind of feeling laguz gave toward the branded. Whatever it was, the blue-haired woman pushed away and smiled, happy for her dear friend.

Nothing could upset the mood of the world as it was now.

~0~

"My lord? More wine?"

From the high backed chair carved of black ash wood, a nobleman frowned waving his hand dismissively, "No. That will be all thank you,"

"As you wish Lord Rapine," the servant said giving another bow and scurrying away, bottle in hand.

As far as Begnion politicians went, Lord Rapine was an odd specimen. He was lean, and cut out from angles that stuck out like jagged thorns yet not a trace of age could be seen in his countenance. They said he looked a model of his father from the black oily hair, slicked back to the well kept mustache and beard that graced his features. There was something off in the uncanny likeness between his now deceased father and himself. They could've been the same person and those who had known his grandfather would comment about the same thing.

However such worries were unfound. Lord Rapine was a cool head of a senator and never rushed to war, never rushed into anything actually unless it fit to whatever game he played. Not much was really known about the lord who lived on the boarder between Daein and Begnion. Thus people were content to forget he was out there or what his family life was like. All they knew was he was married and he had a son.

The boy was said not to look a thing like mother or father hinting perhaps at the boy being adopted.

Lord Rapine sighed as he looked over the tapestries in the room, many faded with incredible age hinting at his family perhaps being around for more then just centuries. He chuckled in the dark interior of the room and got to his feet, the heavy black robes swirled about him giving an appearance of a hunched vulture getting to its feet, "It is nearly time. Yes. It has been far too long but now...now things are all ready and in motion. Just a few more years but I can wait...I've been waiting longer then that for this day,"

His cold laughter echoed in the dark chamber.

~0~

And done ^-^ thanks for sticking with me for this story. The sequel will be up soon. ^_^

some notes on names...

Anil means of the wind, a fitting name I thought for a bird laguz and his coloration is based of the Ferruginous hawk so it is a common coloration for a species of hawk XD

The sequel is coming and actually starts in the past and works alongside Hawk and Rabbit for a bit, before making a time skip. It will make sense XD

see you all soon in reading it ^^