Several minutes passed and Jahrra busied herself with watching the arriving crowd to pass the time and keep her thoughts off of her battered conscience. It was chilly out, what with it being evening and the beginning of winter, so she wrapped her new cloak more tightly around her. The cloak Jaax had given her for her birthday.
Casting that thought away, Jahrra focused once again on those gathering for the play. There were plenty of elves, Resai and Nesnans present. Several centaurs and cenikets took up the section just below the dragons, while a few people belonging to other races she didn’t recognize sat intermingled with everyone else.
On the other end of the sitting area Jahrra caught a glimpse of gold. Her heart leapt to her throat when a familiar, scarred Tanaan dragon settled down to watch the play. She was just about to stand up and try to catch Kehllor’s attention when two other Tanaan joined him. Jahrra sank back to her seat with a dreadful knot of displeasure churning in her stomach at the sight of the red and black dragons. She watched as Shiroxx spoke to Kehllor, the younger dragon giving a stiff nod every now and again, his eyes stubbornly trained forward. Rohdann, as usual, sat quietly, surveying their surroundings like a great, doleful raven.
Jahrra watched them, her eyes narrowing. All of her determination to free Kehllor from Shiroxx’s grasp surfaced once again. It was at that moment that the red dragon turned her eyes in Jahrra’s direction. She had that wicked grin on her face but as soon as she spotted Jahrra, then Jaax just beside her, the ease in her eyes vanished and was replaced with fiery scorn. She whispered something to Rohdann and the black dragon eyed her with those icy eyes of his.
Jahrra grinned despite the uncomfortable feeling Shiroxx and Rohdann gave her every time they looked her way. Perhaps at some point tonight she would get a chance to talk to Kehllor alone, especially if Jaax was there to distract Shiroxx. Jahrra bit the inside of her cheek in shame. What was she thinking, imagining playing such games? She would be no better than Shiroxx if she took advantage of the female dragon’s weaknesses. And to use Jaax so blatantly, after all he had done for her tonight? She shook her head, casting such thoughts away as one would scrape leeches off their skin.
“Complimentary opera glasses for your enjoyment?”
Jahrra jumped. It was another usher who spoke, this one holding a box full of what looked like small binoculars.
“Thank you,” Jahrra said, taking the one he offered gingerly.
She heard the young man repeat the same inquiry to Jaax, but she knew her guardian would decline. Dragons didn’t need any aids for their eyesight.
As the usher walked away, Jahrra was determined not to glance back at the three dragons perched at the opposite end of the hilltop. Instead, she eyed the seats around her, wondering why they were empty. She turned to ask Jaax, grateful for something to say to break the strained silence between them.
“Do you see the short wall surrounding the area where you sit?” he asked in response to her question, his voice sounding bored.
Jahrra nodded.
“And did you notice how this area is a little higher than the area around us?”
Again, Jahrra nodded in agreement.
“This is one of the best sitting areas in the theater. There are two more,” he nodded to two other small platforms, the one occupied by Shiroxx and her gang and one in the middle of the top of the theater, “but I have always preferred this one. No one else will be sitting near us.”
Jaax said nothing more but returned to his stony position and Jahrra found no need to ask any more questions. Gratefully, the sound of trumpets put an end to their silent conversation. The great crowd, which had been chattering comfortably all around them, gradually ceased their talking as their eyes were drawn to the stage.
The circle far below them lit up as the props seemed to come alive. Jahrra nearly gasped when what she thought was a potted tree sprung forward and revealed itself to be one of the actors. The activity only increased from there. With the aid of a variety of instruments coming from some unknown location, the performers danced about the stage, twirling and leaping to almost impossible heights. Jahrra was riveted, her wayward thoughts about Tanaan dragons of every sort forgotten.
Torches flared for effect and the light pouring onto the stage shifted and changed color, making Jahrra suspect that magic was involved. Suddenly, voices were added to the lively music as several costumed people began singing a Sobledthe ballad.
Jahrra recognized several creatures Denaeh and Hroombra had once told her about, including the grouldahs she, Gieaun and Scede had once dressed as for the Fall Festival. The demons and denizens of the dark drifted about on a stage alit in shades of red, yellow and orange.
Gradually, the quick pace of the autumn song slowed and molded into a slower, crisper tune. The creatures of Sobledthe poured off of the stage or melted into the scenery and in their wake came several more performers wearing the blue, white and silver mantle of winter. Jahrra gaped.
The transformation had been so quick but it had also been smooth, as smooth as the passage of time between seasons. Following winter came spring, the actors adorned in greens and pastels, the music becoming sweeter and lighter. Finally came summer, the colors growing bolder and the music more languid. The scene concluded on a rather dramatic note with the fall denizens returning once again, crawling out from the scenery and frightening those of summer into the dark corners of the stage. The music stopped and everyone froze. Jahrra released a breath, not realizing she had been holding it.
The stage fell into darkness and a moment later the torchlight rose again to reveal a space empty of performers but filled with what looked like glittering stars. The music, which had slowed and all but disappeared, began to grow louder once again, playing a rather desolate tune, the violins gaining dominance over the flutes and other wind and stringed instruments.
A small glowing light, pale green in color, began growing off to one side of the stage. A figure stepped forward, a figure wearing an incredibly ornate, green gown. There was something strange about the costume and Jahrra wished she could see it better. Then she remembered the theater glasses in her hand. With their aid she could see the dress very clearly. The skirts were full with sleeves draping to the ground. Sewn over the entirety of the dress were streams of blue and silver fabric all patterned with vines and flowers. The woman wearing the dress began to sing a sad, sorrowful song and Jahrra realized with a strange thrill that this woman was playing the part of Ethoes, floating through the Great Expanse before the beginning of their world.
Jahrra wondered where Haelionn was but before she could contemplate it much further a golden light began to glow at the other end of the stage and a male figure, clad in brilliant yellows and golds, came forth upon the stage, singing his own tune. His song was morose at first but soon he and Ethoes spotted one another and their voices mingled, their song becoming more cheerful. The music followed them and Jahrra looked at them closely. They were both very beautiful, she noted, the makeup and glitter they wore adding to the effect.
The music started to change as more instruments joined the violins. Trumpets blared and the woman who portrayed Ethoes threw up her arm. Jahrra nearly shouted in delight. A burst of fiery sparks erupted then fizzled out and in their place a pale blue beam of light flooded part of the stage. The broad sliver was soon occupied by several water nymphs that danced and rejoiced.