Tivi's Dagger Read Online Free Page A

me Ned, everyone else
does.”
    “ Nedim is a beautiful name. In our
language, it means something close to proud one .”
    I gave him what I hoped was a modest grin.
“Not me at all, then. Just Ned, that’s fine. Really.”
    “ As you wish, just Ned .”
    There was a silence as we looked at each
other in the creeping dusk. Pale birds were gathering in the
branches above us, chattering and flapping as they settled for the
night. Kari’s eyes seemed to change color to match the sky, just
like the sea. I found it very difficult to look away from that
exotic gaze.
    “ You have a beautiful face, Kari. I
wish you didn’t cover it so fully.”
    The smile never left his eyes. “You
will see it every day from tomorrow on. Come the morning, the
Mother will release me from the Temple and then I’ll be just a
pilgrim, as you are. If you happen to get up with the dawn, you may
come and watch the ritual. It would be an honor, tiyal .”
    I stretched and felt the weariness in my
limbs. “Perhaps. My body is tired and unused to such exercise. If
the dawn will wake me, then I will come.”
    “ To the dawn, then.” He bowed slightly
and walked away.
     
    ***
     
    It was not yet light when I awoke to the
sound of the pale birds circling outside the window, calling out in
their harsh voices that the day was about to begin. Rubbing the
sleep from my eyes, I sat up. Lana and Kel were snoring softly, and
my brother’s bed was empty.
    I found it unlikely that Brin would have any
interest in watching Kari’s ceremony. Intrigued to see where he had
gone, I slipped out of bed, pulled on my clothes, and tiptoed
outside. The sky was brightening with a purple pre-dawn haze that
penetrated the fog with hints of sky. The trees clawed at the mist
as if to part it but without success. The sleeping monastery was a
beautiful sight with its ancient wooden beams and sloped slate
roofs, and I was tempted to linger in the yard just to gaze upon
it, but my bladder had more pressing demands. I took a lungful of
the fresh mountain air and walked toward the latrines, trying to
ignore the irritating rub of my boots against my feet.
    After I had relieved myself, I washed my
hands and face in a freezing fountain and walked toward the main
building, where I assumed the ceremony Kari had spoken of was to
take place. The goat was grazing lazily under the tree, surveying
the scene through bright amber eyes. I spotted Mother Kiti and some
other elderly-looking monks kneeling on straw mats in a
semi-circle, all dressed in shining silver. In front of each of
them there was a glass tumbler of wine. I hoped that Brin was also
seeing these monks drinking alcohol first thing in the morning;
imagining the shock on his face brought warmth to my heart.
    I sat on the milking stool near the goat.
Mother Kiti waved and called out a greeting that I returned with a
smile. The wind was cold, and my breath made shapes in the air, but
it was pleasant weather all the same. The monks began a melodious
chant and, as they raised their glasses to the sky, Kari appeared
from a nearby door and went to kneel in front of the small
gathering. He was dressed head to toe in his monk’s garb, face
covered in silver, but when he glanced in my direction I saw the
smile in his eyes and just for a moment, my heart thumped a little
faster.
    It was a short ceremony and I did not
understand what they were saying, but the elder monks spoke one by
one until finally Mother Kiti got up and stood in front of Kari.
She raised her palms to the sky and then pulled a knife from the
belt of her robes. Kari unwound the covering from his head and
allowed his hair to fall down to the base of his spine. Then the
Mother moved behind him and, handful by handful, sliced off the
ringlets until his hair reached just above his shoulders. When it
was finished, he stood up and the elder monks unwound his silver
mantle until he stood in his undergarments, unshivering despite the
chill in the air. They dressed him in dark