And there, I think I fell in love. As I beheld the avian princess sleeping so innocently, her cheek marked by a new cut  -  probably by one of my own people's blades  -  my hatred died, leaving only a desperate desire for peace in its wake. When the mad suggestion was made last winter that taking the enemy queen as my mate could end the war, it had almost seemed like fate. It had not been easy to bridge the gaps between us, but together we had managed.

Fate had given me many gifts. Danica Shardae was the one for which I would forever be most grateful.

Erica drew me from my musing as she offered tentatively, "The scholar Valene studied in falcon lands once. I lost touch with her after I joined the Royal Flight, but someone might know her whereabouts." Excellent.

"Danica?"

"Yes? Oh... sorry," she answered, smiling tiredly. "I seem to be a bit useless today. I haven't heard from Valene in years, but Andreios would probably be able to find her."

"You're dancing tonight, aren't you?" I asked. Though Danica had performed some simple improvisational dances at Namir-da eight months before, I had never been allowed to watch her practice with A'isha, leader of the dancers' guild and the only one daring enough to teach the serpiente art to an avian queen. That night was to be Danica's first performance of the more complex, traditional dances. Even if fatigue was her only ailment, that could stop her from taking the stage.

Danica nodded. "The thought has me so nervous I feel ill, even if the performance is only for A'isha, you and a few of the other dancers who have practiced with me," she confided.

""Why don't you get some rest? I can track down Andreios and ask him about Valene. If I see A'isha, I'll also find out whether her guild knows anything about a hidden falcon."

"Perhaps that's a good idea."

Without being told, Erica stayed beside her queen. I hoped this spell was truly a combination of nerves and fatigue, but I could not help the sense of unease gnawing at my mind.

I asked two people before I believed that Andreios was with A'isha in the synkal  -

where the reserved leader of the Royal Flight apparently spent most of his free time in serpiente lands. Despite the warning, the scene on the dais was a shock. A'isha and Rei were facing each other with their hands touching, poised to begin one of the simpler dances. I could barely hear the faint melody A'isha was singing, a wordless tune meant to imitate the flute that would normally play.

The two moved into the dance seamlessly enough to suggest weeks of practice  -  the last thing I would expect of the crow. I wondered if Danica knew that her teacher had found two students instead of one.

I closed the synkal door loudly behind me, as if I had just entered. Both dancers jumped and turned to face me.

A'isha recovered first. The viper slithered down from the synkal dais, the movement sliding the material of her dress enough that one of her legs was bared to the thigh for a moment.

Rei wasn't watching the show, which was obviously put on for his benefit. He descended the stairs with a haughty expression that dared me to comment. I knew better than to bait him now. If I even implied that I had been watching, A'isha would probably never get the conservative crow onto her stage again. Why she had made the effort to teach him in the first place was a mystery to me. A'isha was notoriously picky in her choice of students, and although I respected Andreios, he could not possibly share Danica's passion for dance.

Still, I was thankful that circumstances had put together the two people I sought.

"Rei, A'isha, we've just had a visit from Syfka."

All traces of defiance disappeared instantly from Rei's face. "What does she want?"

"She's looking for a falcon; she didn't say his name, or what he had done, only that he was a criminal. You wouldn't happen to know of any falcons in the avian court, would you?"

Rei cleared his throat, obviously suppressing a laugh. "The falcons are fastidiously purebred. Their kind doesn't mix with ours, no matter how similar we may seem." A'isha responded in the same way. "I can't imagine any creature with wings masquerading as one without, though I was once told that the falcons act more like serpents in their free time than like avian ladies and gentlemen." She shook her head.

"I've known most of my dancers since they were infants. No one could hide among them without being noticed. I can ask if anyone has heard anything in the market, though."

"Thank you."

"You're stealing my student, anyway. I may as well find something else to do." She kissed Rei on the cheek as she turned. "Don't work too hard." She fluttered away, leaving Rei shaking his head.

"You seem to have a new friend." I said the words with all the blandness I could manage.

"A'isha has kindly agreed to teach me her art. That is all." I debated asking more, but unfortunately, now was not the time to push Rei, no matter how tempting. "I came to find you because Erica suggested you might be able to help us find someone  -  a scholar named Valene, who she says once knew a great deal about the falcons."

Rei looked surprised. "Valene Silvermead is Erica's aunt. She was a well-respected avian scholar who specialized in knowledge of other cultures. I understand she has spent time in human lands, as well as with the wolves and the falcons. She was exiled by Danica's mother for her dealings with the serpiente and ended up living as a recluse on the edge of our land. I suppose the episode dimmed her faith in the avian court somewhat, since she has expressed no desire to return since."

"Could we get her here?" I asked. "I hope to gather as much information as possible before dealing with Syfka again."

"Valene's nephew was once a member of my flight, so I've stayed in touch with her despite the scandal," Rei admitted.

"I remember her as a strong flier. We could probably make it back here by the evening meal, though that's assuming she's home and not off investigating some new land."

"Danica is performing tonight, so we have been invited to dine in sha'Mehay," I said.

"When you two return, could you have Valene meet us there?" Sha'Mehay was the name for the local dancer's nest, where the members of the dancers'

guild lived, slept, dined, studied and of course danced. The name most closely translated to the ones who dance with illusions or the ones who dance with eternity. Outsiders were rarely allowed inside, and even for a cobra, an invitation was a rare honor.

Rei nodded. "I will come find you the moment we touch ground."

Chapter 2

Danica's normal glow had returned by the time evening fell, though her golden eyes still held traces of the nerves she had spoken of earlier. Her warmth helped soothe my tousled emotions as we walked together to the nest, her hand in mine. On the topic of falcons, Danica shared one memory: that of a child the falcons had sent to the Keep when she had been too young to realize he was there to check up on her kind.

"Sebastian was only twelve when he came to us, as a sort of ambassador," she explained. "I remember teaching him children's games, and wondering why he did not know them. When Syfka arrived to check on him, he announced that he wanted to stay and be my alistair. I can still remember her horrified expression before she ordered him to return home."

Danica smiled slightly, though there was a dark shadow of loss behind the memory.

"I learned to fear the falcons later," Danica added, "when my mother first explained to me how critical their help was, and how we struggled not to offend them... but I always remember Sebastian fondly. In a way, he was the last real playmate I had. Rei's father was killed right after Sebastian left, and finally the war seemed real to me. All my friends began to train as soldiers, and I began to walk the fields. Two years later, upon my sister's death, I became heir to the throne, and suddenly childhood was over." She shook her head. "No matter how much I've ever feared the falcons, when I think of simpler days, I still remember peregrine wings."

Danica paused, and I pulled her into my arms. She looked up at me with a smile.

"Peregrine wings and Cobriana eyes," she said, drawing herself out of the past and into the peaceful shelter of the present. "The two things that come to mind whenever I think of home and safety. Come, my love  -  let me dance for you." At this she led me toward the doors of the dancer's nest, a place that held no room for melancholy or suspicion.

Sha'Mehay had been built into the forest, the walls and ceiling formed by heavy nets strung between trees and then covered with leather, clay and finally ever-growing vines. The nets in the center of the ceiling could be rolled back to let sun or moonlight in and fire smoke out.

Even while standing outside, I could hear the rhythm of drums and the flutist's tunes. Once we were inside, the world was awhirl with sound and color and movement. I had come here only rarely before, but even if I had spent all my life in the nest, I did not think I would ever become immune to its wonder. The slate floor was almost entirely covered by layers of Persian carpets, pillows, blankets and other soft material the dancers had found. The only undecorated surface was in the center, around the bonfire that constantly burned to keep the nest bright and warm.

Some of the coven were working, teaching their students not only dances, but history. Among the serpiente, these dancers preserved our myths and most ancient traditions. A few, who had been born and raised in the nest, had also spent their lives studying the language that Maeve's coven had spoken thousands of years ago.

A'isha twirled up to us in a ripple of crimson and silver melos scarves belted around her waist to form an improvised bodice and skirt that alternately molded to and slithered away from her skin. Each flowing movement revealed bright symbols painted onto her body.

"Danica, ak'varlheah."

A'isha greeted her student warmly, kissing Danica's cheek as she drew her farther into the nest. "A gift, for each of you," A'isha said as she produced a pair of woven silks the color of beaten gold. She tied one around Danica's waist, then turned to do the same for me. The color symbolized an eternal tie to another; it was an instantly visible declaration of loyalty to one's mate. "Now, I must steal Danica from you," A'isha apologized, "if you wish to see her dance later."

In the back of the nest was a stairwell I had never descended. Danica stole a kiss for good luck before A'isha led her down those steps to prepare.

Meanwhile, one of the other dancers called me over to the fireside, where food was being passed in a ring around the flames, along with jugs of warm spiced wine.

"You made a good choice for your Naga," she assured me. "Danica is more graceful on a dais than half the serpents I know."

"Provided she isn't blushing too brightly to see," another quipped. "The first time I saw our queen perform, I thought she was a lost cause  -  far too uptight, like most avians  -

but I'm glad to be proved wrong."

I knew I was grinning. I had never doubted that Danica could learn the serpent art. Much of her loved my world; a part of her craved dance as surely as anyone else in this nest did. Perhaps that thirst came from her time dancing with the currents of air far above where we earthbound creatures roamed, or perhaps it came from the expressive nature her own world forced her to hide.

Similar conversation flowed among us until A'isha's musical voice commanded me,

"Zane, admire your queen."

The words brought our attention to the back of the room, where Danica had emerged, looking so beautiful that she took my breath away.

In response to her teacher's words, Danica smiled and shook her head, causing her golden hair to ripple about her face. It made my heart speed and my breath still, as if I was afraid the next movement would shatter the world.

She was a spark of fire in sha'Mehay. The serpiente dress rippled around the hawk's long legs, the fabric so light it moved with the slightest shift of air. The bodice was burgundy silk; it laced up the front with a black ribbon, and though it was more modest than many dancers' costumes, it still revealed enough cream-and-roses skin to tantalize the imagination. On Danica's right temple, A'isha had painted a symbol for courage; beneath her left collarbone lay the symbols for san

'Anhamirak, abandon and freedom.

"You dance every day with the wind. This is not so different," A'isha said encouragingly to Danica. "Now, look at the man you love and dance for him." The nest hushed, faces turning to their Naga. Her cheeks held more color than usual, which A'isha addressed with a common dancers' proverb. "There is no place for shame, Danica. If Anhamirak had not wanted beauty admired, she would not have made our eyes desire it. You are art."

Danica stepped out of A'isha's grip. "If my mother could see me now," she murmured, but she smiled as she said it.

"Feel the beat. It is the wind," A'isha directed. "Fly with it." The soft beat of a drum, paired with the lilting melody of a flute, filled the room as Danica stepped onto the dais at the back of the nest.

Closing her eyes, Danica stretched upward, moving onto the balls of her feet, wrists crossed high above her head, and paused there for a heartbeat. The pose was known as a prayer  -  a dancer's call for guidance from the powers that be.

She moved into the dance flawlessly, the sway of her body as fluid as water over stone. This was the magic of the serpent and the snake charmer combined, as pure and intense as a thunderstorm.

The first dance was soft and gentle, a common sakkri'nira.

I could feel the drive in the music, however, and knew the moment when the first dance would move into a more complex one.