by B N Miles
The footsteps moved past his door without slowing, as they always did. His stomach settled.
He couldn't wait to get off this damned boat. Half an hour at most, he had to remind himself of that. The closer they got to getting off, the harder his heart pounded.
"Okay," Mattie brushed down her baggy green shirt and tucked a strand of auburn hair behind her ear. "How's this?"
She held her arms out and Sam gave her a slow once-over. He was fluent in Mattie-speak, so he knew that she was really asking, 'do I look like a middener?'
You look beautiful, he wanted to say. Instead, he gave her a lopsided smile. "You almost look as good as I do."
He forced himself to look away so that his eyes didn't linger on her. He'd been staring at her enough as it was. He'd never seen her so clean before, every speck of dirt and mud and grime scrubbed away like it had never been there to begin with. He didn't know her hair was so red. He’d never seen the little blushes of pink on the apples of her cheeks, he'd never known that she smelled like ozone and sea wind.
She rolled her eyes and turned toward her bed, rifling around in her closed pack while she spoke. "Considering how hideous you are, that doesn't make me feel very confident."
"Pft."
Another set of heavy feet came down the hall. Sam held his breath until they passed his cabin door.
Thirty minutes, he reminded himself again. Thirty, that's all. Once they got off the boat, nothing would ever be the same.
Sam buried his jitters underneath a roguish grin and an easy tone. He put his book down and stood up from the bed, grabbing the low beam that split the middle of the ceiling. He leaned all of his weight against it.
"It's okay, you can admit it," he said. "I clean up very well."
Mattie glanced over her shoulder, a wry smile pulling at her lips as she gave him a once-over in kind. Her smile dropped quickly and by the time her eyes met his, her expression had changed completely. It lasted only a moment, barely a breath, but there was something naked and hungry in the way she looked at him.
When she turned away, Sam realized that he'd been staring right back at her, a little lost in the look she’d given him.
What was that?
Had he imagined it? He’d never gotten a look like that from anybody, much less Mattie. He opened his mouth, he didn't know what he was planning on saying, but then there was a knock at the door and the spell was broken.
"Your royal highnesses must forgive me for interrupting what is surely an incredibly important matter, but the rest of us lowly peasants are gathered in full on the dock and have been awaiting your royal presence for neigh on fifteen minutes."
"Shit," Mattie hissed. Sam stared at her back, still trying to find the words to ask her why she had looked at him like that...to ask her to do it again.
Mattie hefted her pack over her shoulder and it knocked into his chest, pushing him out of his head and into the present.
He shook his head and moved to grab his things off the bed. It was probably just his brain playing tricks on him after being cooped up in one room for almost a week with nothing to stare at but Mattie. He'd counted the freckles along the bridge of her nose two days before. There were fourteen. He wanted to count the ones on her shoulders, but he was sure that she wouldn't appreciate it.
Sam followed Mattie out the door in a rush. They darted through the halls and up the stairs before emerging on deck, the sunlight washing over them.
The ship was docked at a grass port, which was to say that there was a tiny stretch of earth far from the mainland and that the ship was tied to a tree. The other passengers were standing on the grass and, once again, Mattie and Sam were the singular point of their collective focus.
So much for being inconspicuous.
Sam cleared his throat and marched past Mattie with his chin high despite his mind screaming at him to keep his eyes down and hurry off the boat. Fake it till you make it—if it worked for Tegan, it would work for him too.
He took confident, measured steps down the undocking plank and stared straight ahead without looking at anybody. Mattie's small feet padded behind him as he lead them to the tail end of the group.
Nobody made a single snide comment, though he did get a few nasty looks. After a moment, the group focused their attention on Lebert instead.
He was standing at the front of the group, closer to the mainland than the sea. Another man stood beside him, smaller and dark-featured. It was the man with the crossbow.
Lebert pursed his lips. "Now that we're all here, I'm going to give you a brief overview of the travel schedule before we head out."
Mattie moved close to his side and pressed her arm into his. He could feel somebody staring at him, and as Lebert continued to drone on about where they were going and what they were doing, the feeling didn't let up. Sam scratched at the stubble on his jaw and slowly rotated his head.
Two girls were looking right at him, well-dressed and fresh-faced despite the long voyage. One smirked when he caught them looking and whispered something to the other girl, who darted her eyes at Sam and gave him a venomous scowl. He made a mental note to stay well away from them.
"—we get to the campus, you will keep your eyes on the ground and speak to nobody unless spoken to. It'll take us at least a day to get there if we don't dawdle, two if we do. I don't like being late, so be sure to keep up. Any questions?"
A nobleman raised his hand and Lebert looked pointedly at him.
"Will we be using carriages, or . . ."
"We will be using our feet," said the man beside Lebert.
A collective groan went through the small crowd and Lebert smiled, big and wide. Nobles didn't usually walk miles and miles at a time, so it stood to reason that they would be quite irritated at the labor.
Lebert's associate spoke loud enough to overpower the swell of complaints. "Which is why we would suggest you make the journey barefoot. No doubt some of you ladies will be blistered and bleeding if you keep to your . . . elaborate footwear."
Sam hid a smile when the girls started clucking about that. Lebert's friend was right, and they'd thank him tomorrow, but it was still funny. The noblewomen in the capital had a fashion about them, and it was the height of impropriety for Varin women to be undressed at all in public, which meant that every article of clothing had to be accounted for. To go without shoes in the streets was as bad as going without a skirt.
Mattie rolled her eyes at them, but nobody noticed.
"Don't worry ladies," Lebert grinned, "you'll soon learn that having naked feet will be the least of your troubles."
"What is that supposed to mean?!" One of the girls put her hands on her hips.
Lebert's friend shrugged, "Avoiding certain death is much more troublesome, at least in my opinion."
Sam's expression dropped and Mattie stiffened behind him. The other prospective students threw out a few complaints and talked amongst each other like he'd been kidding. Lebert and his friend, however, weren't smiling.
They were almost to the school by the time night fell, and Lebert's associate—Synjon was his name—said they'd reach their destination by the fourth hour after dawn. They'd already walked thirty-two miles from their docking point, and it took them from noon to dark to get to the hillside that they collapsed on.
They were only six miles from the coastal town of Pell, but everybody was too tired to complain that they were being made to sleep on the ground instead of taking a bed at an inn.
Sam sat a little away from the fire that the others were huddled around and stared out at the valley below. He could see the school. It looked so close, but the space between the valley floor and the hillside was almost twenty miles, and nobody wanted to walk another four hours tonight.
He and Mattie were almost to their new life. It was within reach, huge and looming like a cursed castle over the green lands. The campus looked as wide as the valley itself, caged in by grey stone ramparts and thin, towering spires with sharp, pointed roofs. The huge mai
n building sat in the middle of a small collection of other buildings, white stoned and elaborate in their design.
"Here." Mattie stepped up beside him and held out a brown wrapped ration. Sam took it and tore in, his stomach snarling when he put the bread in his mouth. It was flaky on the outside and fluffy on the inside, and it tasted exactly how he always imagined good bread would taste.
Mattie folded her legs and dropped down beside him. "What are you thinking?" She took a bite of her own ration and chewed quietly.
That was a good question. Everything and nothing, he supposed, but she hated it when he was vague. "I'm thinking of a warm bed and supper every night. I'm thinking that after graduation, we will never need to worry about money again."
He looked at her from the corner of his eyes. She was staring at the ground, silent and thoughtful. "What are you thinking?"
She sighed quietly and leaned in a little closer, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I don't know if I'll make it to graduation, Sam."
He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and brought her into the hollow of his arm. She was so slim and fine-boned that people never guessed how deadly she could be. When she moved, it was like watching a river pouring downstream. She had a way of scaling walls and maneuvering around obstacles that was elegant in its own way, like a dance. Right now, though, as he held her, she felt as delicate as she looked.
"Those two were just pulling the nobles' legs earlier." He didn't think so, but it would soothe her for now. Even if the process was dangerous, Mattie would make it. She was more capable than she knew. He would have never survived without her. "Do you really think a bunch of wealthy families would send their children to a place where they might get hurt?"
"Grown children," Mattie said, "and have you noticed that when they talk about their families, they always mention their older siblings?"
Sam didn't answer her. He'd noticed, he was just hoping that she hadn't.
"They aren't heirs. They aren't even second or third in line, if I had to guess. Where else would their families send them so they're out of the way yet still able to bring glory to their houses?"
Sam finished his bread and put the brown paper to the side before turning fully to her, wrapping his other arm around her shoulder until he held her fully and she had to crane her neck to peer into his face.
"I will never let anything, or anyone, hurt you." Sam's eyes bore into hers as he spoke. He knew he couldn't make her believe him, but he needed her to understand it.
Mattie opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Instead, her eyes roamed all over his face. What are you thinking, Mattie?
Suddenly, she lurched forward and pressed her lips to his and his thoughts stuttered to a halt. She was kissing him, this was actually happening right now. He didn't know how to react. His stomach was filled with air and his arms were frozen around her. Mattie pulled away, just a little, and Sam moved before his mind could comprehend what he was doing. Sam pulled her tighter to him until her chest was pressed against his. He deepened the kiss, and his hand came up to grasp her hair, anchoring her to him. Their tongues danced against each other and Sam's face flushed with warmth.
Mattie broke the kiss. Their lips were still close enough to feel each other’s breath. Sam tried to find answers in her eyes. He didn't know why she'd done it, but he was glad she did. He'd been wanting to do that for years but never tried, he thought she wouldn't want him like he wanted her. Maybe she didn't and this was a one-off, but with the way she was looking at him now, he didn't think so.
Silently, Mattie stood up and took his hand, pulling him with her. Sam grabbed his pack and didn't ask any questions as he stood up and followed, he was too busy hoping she was taking him to the woods.
Instead, Mattie stooped at the campfire. "Let's go to sleep, Sam."
But . . . what? What was that kiss?
The nobles were starting to bed down for the night. He and Mattie were planning on sharing a palette, but now there was an extra danger in it. Sam wasn't sure if he'd be able to keep his hands to himself unless Mattie told him to cut it out. He needed to know what she meant by kissing him, if it was because she was scared or because she wanted to. If it was for his devotion to her safety or because she wanted him.
Wordlessly, Sam unpacked their bed. It was the same palette he slept in at home. Mattie left hers so their crew could split it up and keep warm.
He unfurled the bed beside the fire and as soon as it touched the ground, Mattie was burrowing inside of it with a contented sigh. Sam took a breath for composure and slowly slipped in beside her, keeping his back to the fire so Mattie didn't have to breathe in the smoke.
Sam pulled the blankets around his shoulder, trying to come up with the best way to articulate his thoughts, then he froze. Mattie flipped to face him and planted her small hand on his abdomen before it dipped into his trousers.
She wrapped her hand around the base of him and he let out a slow, steady breath. He didn't know why, all of a sudden, Mattie wanted to kiss or touch him, but he was definitely not about to complain. Her hand slid up and down his shaft, so slow that it was almost torturous. Sam stayed perfectly still as a bubbling heat began to grow in his belly, dropping lower by the second and swelling like a balloon. She gave him a few lofty tugs before her nimble fingers trailed along the crown. His hips jerked when her thumb suddenly swiped against the head, smearing the fluid beading at the tip.
Sam captured her mouth in another kiss, one hand slipping under her to hold her close and the other thrusting up her shirt. He yanked at the wrap binding her chest and when her breasts were free, he took one in his palm and circled her little pebble with his thumb. Mattie inhaled sharply and the hand working at Sam tightened. Her mouth went slack and her head lolled back, leaving him to trail little bites and kisses along her delicate jaw.
He wasn't thinking that there were dozens of other people near the two of them, he wasn't thinking about the sounds they were making as they touched each other under the blankets, he wasn't thinking about the suddenness of any of it. All he could think about was the hand wrapped around his length and the girl arching into his front, thrusting her chest out and quietly whining for more.
"Honestly, would you two cut it out?!"
They stopped completely. Sam felt himself twitch in her hand. He wanted to ignore the request and keep going. He didn't want to stop until he'd spent himself between Mattie's legs, but then she huffed and withdrew her hand, breaking the moment. He wanted to stop her movements and tell her not to worry about the others, but he knew he wasn’t thinking reasonably.
Mattie pulled his hand from under her shirt and flipped on her other side, pressing her back into Sam's chest. His hand twitched. It would be the easiest thing in the world to slide her trousers down her legs and slide into her from behind.
She sighed and pulled his hands around her until she was nestled in his arms. She held his hand and brought his arm under her chest, kissing his knuckles sweetly and snuggling into the curve of his body. She fit perfectly.
Sam sighed and wrangled his imagination before he actually did what he wanted to do, which would’ve been a bad idea now that the nobles had taken notice of them. Their job was to graduate from the Academy, preferably while keeping out of everybody's way and avoiding certain death.
"I've wanted to do that for years," Mattie whispered.
Sam's hand tightened in hers and he nuzzled into the crook of her neck. How did he not know that, considering he'd wanted the same? Maybe he wasn't as observant as he thought. Or maybe she just hid it well.
"Me too," he whispered back. "I wonder what took us so long?"
She huffed a quiet laugh, "You're dense and I suppose I got tired of waiting on you to make the first move. And now, being near the school... I don't know what will happen in the future, but I don't want to die without having you at least once."
Oh, wow. He was dense, wasn't he? Had she been giving him signals? What were they? How long had she been making them?
Damn it. They could have been together long before they got on the damn boat. Instead of telling her his thoughts, he smiled into her hair. "We won't die, but I wait in anticipation for your next move."
She ground her backside into his lap in response and he nipped her neck playfully. "You'd better quit before I do something drastic."
Mattie giggled and didn't do it again. She went quiet and still and before long, her breathing evened out and she was fast asleep. Sam watched her drift off, saw the tiny smile on her face that didn't go away until she was far away in her dreams.
This had been the best day of his life. It was almost as if somebody heard the wishes in his soul and decided to grant them.
He looked up and spied the tall towers of the Academy over the crest of the hilltop. Tomorrow was the beginning of the rest of their lives, and he dared anybody to get in their way.
3
When the sun peeked over the far northern mountains, Sam and Mattie rose with it. The two recruiters were already awake, but everybody else was sound asleep. It had been quite amusing to watch Lebert and Synjon rouse the camp. A few of the girls tried to negotiate 'five more minutes' while still half asleep, and one of them told Synjon to 'fuck right off.' Most unladylike, Lebert had said, right before threatening to make her walk to campus in her nightclothes.
That got her, and the rest of the girls, right up. The boys were harder to coax to their feet, some of them didn't even wake up when Lebert shoved their shoulders or shook them. Eventually, though, they were on their way to the campus.
As promised, the trip across the valley was near four hours. Sam figured that if they walked four miles an hour, that gave the valley floor a sixteen-mile diameter. It was a strategic position. If the campus were ever attacked, they would see the aggressors coming from the sea, and they would also have four hours to pick them off as they advanced toward the Academy.