"OK then," he said, and reached for his pocket. "But Dana... could you come to spend the night at my apartment?"
I didn't think I'd have the energy for anything else, and I guess Jack could see it.
"No, not for that. I can sleep on the sofa if it helps you sleep better. I'd just like to see you, talk to you, and know you're safe. You are still attractive, but in your current state, it would feel wrong to have sex." And with that, he offered me, on the palm of his hand, a set of keys.
"Are those the keys to your apartment?" I asked.
"Yes," he said, with the keys still in his palm. "But don't worry, I have another set. Always keep it in my office, in case I lose mine."
I took the keys, briefly caressing his palm as I took it. It felt quite electric, even after all the hugging.
"I may not come today," I said, putting the key in my pocket. "But I'll give you a call if I can't make it."
He nodded.
"Of course, I'll understand if you are too tired to come," he said.
He was so... understanding, and patient. I expected something different after he stood me up at the train station, but I guess seeing me like this made him think of me like some kind of damsel in distress. And being angry at a damsel in distress or taking advantage of her would not be the kind of thing Jack would do. But I'm not weak, and I don't want him to think of me as some kind of asexual, ill child who needed help. Yes, I had taken this relationship slowly, but that was when I wasn't sure. Seeing how he really respected my boundaries and let me develop my feelings at my own pace, his concern at my wellbeing, and his ability to forgive, made me more confident in our relationship than I was.
So I stepped towards him, putting my hands up, towards his head, and bringing it down, for a fierce, passionate kiss. I may be skinny, and I may have lost my boobs and ass together with all the belly fat, but I was still alive, and healthy enough to have some fire in my bones. I didn't want just sexless cuddles and bone broth; I wanted meat and passionate, mind-blowing sex. His lips, at first, barely parted. He seemed to have cleansed his desire with his concern. The passionate force of my kiss soon enough melted the icy barrier he built around his feelings, though, because soon enough, he was kissing me back. We continued on, kissing, stopping for a moment to breathe. By the time I released my hands from his head and he straightened up, he definitely was looking at me with passion instead of concern.
"The day I come to your apartment," I said, "you definitely won't be sleeping on your sofa."
After dropping my bag at the dorms, I went to the healer who wrote me the note that allowed me to escape arrest. He'd saved my life then. Had I been arrested, I would have been unable to defend myself, in that state. The investigators could make me admit anything they wanted. Let's face it, these may not be the times of the Inquisition, but investigators haven't gone too far from the methods that were used back then. I hope I didn't create too much trouble for him.
At the hospital, I asked for the healer by name, saying I was a former patient, who came for a checkup after a procedure. The nurse escorted me to a waiting room and told me to wait. I sat down.
I had always avoided hospitals and healers. The Floyd fund covered all medical expenses incurred during my studies, but those bills just got tacked to my debt. I already owed such massive quantities of money, it would take me ten years to work it back. Adding extra time for medical expenses seemed just unnecessary. So I looked around the room, furnished only with soft chairs. I was the only magical in here. That's just normal; magicals, both light and dark, are actually quite rare. The only reason I encountered so many in Ashford is because of the university. As for Crow Hill... Well, Caerland is called the land of witches for a reason.
There were quite a few people in the waiting room, so I braced myself for a long wait when the nurse called me.
"Miss Bedwen," she said. "You can go to Doctor Onnen's office."
When I came into Doctor Onnen's office, he greeted me quite happily.
"Ah, Miss Bedwen," he said, making me sit on a high chair he had for examining patients. "I see you came back. In a much better state. Time at home has been good for you."
"Yes, doctor. Thank you for helping me with the paperwork, by the way. As you see, I am not yet fully recuperated, but ready to go back to school."
"Let me check that for you," the healer said, directing a scanning artifact towards me. "Do you have any magical devices on you? Any metal?"
I took off my coat, which contained a wallet with coins, and a couple of hidden pockets for knives. He then scanned me, making notes on a form. I handed him the empty medical form the university required from us for medical leave. It's good that I kept it since the freshers' welcoming week. Try to get anything from the dean's office!
"Could you please fill this form, too, doctor? It's for school."
"Right, Miss Bedwen," he said, as he started filling the form with the incomprehensible scribble that is a doctor's handwriting. As far as I know, the secretaries in the dean's office didn't even bother reading them, just checked the dates and approved them.
"Thank you, Doctor Onnen," I said. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here."
"Well, Miss Bedwen, it's any healer's duty to take care of their patients."
"I wasn't referring to the healing," I said. "Thanks for helping me recover in peace. I'll deal with all the questions the authorities have for me now, in a better state. I wouldn't have been able to survive an investigation in the state I was in. So thank you. And, if you ever need my help, either in my personal capacity or as an alchemist or mage, you can always come to me."
I always repay my debts, whether to friends or enemies.
The healer looked up from the document he was filling.
"I wouldn't have been a very good healer if I saved you just to let those butchers destroy my work," he said, harshly. "But I'll remember your words, Miss Bedwen, if I ever need your help."
Well, I offered it. I kept sitting, as he completed the form and signed it.
"Here," he said. "And I hope you'll never need to see me again, Miss Bedwen. Eat well, and get better."
I left his office, feeling small. The debts I had accumulated over this time had but grown. The healer, grandpa. The debt I owed to my parents was already unrepayable.
After getting all the paperwork done, I went to grandpa's house. Billie was quite happy to see me, and we played together until the afternoon, taking a break from lunch.
Grandpa came back home at mid-afternoon. As he sometimes did, he stood quietly in the corner, observing us, before I noticed him.
"Oh, hey, Gramps," I said.
"Hello, Dana. Have you done everything you were going to do for today?" grandpa asked.
"Well," I said. "I've done all the paperwork, but I haven't settled some personal issues. So I'll go see Jack after he finishes work."
"Will you be staying at his house?" grandpa asked.
I raised my eyebrows, surprised at his curiosity. This was the first time grandpa asked me such a personal question.
"I will," I said. "Why?"
"I'm glad you won't be in the dorms," grandpa said. "After everything. But make sure to adequately inform your beau of the danger involved. Young men don't tend to be discouraged by danger when it comes to love, but make sure he's prepared."
"OK. Thanks, Gramps," I said.
He had definitely changed since the visit home. Maybe becoming the head of the family changed him.
Grandpa nodded, and went to his office, as I resumed playing with Billie. At around 4 o'clock, I told him I was leaving, and headed towards grandpa's office. I knocked.
"Come in," I heard.
I came in, and sat on the chair, as I always had done before. The office was the same, although it felt like ages had gone by since our last meeting in this very office.
"I'll come back tomorrow," I said, "after classes. Have the gendarmes come to you yet?"
"Not yet," grandpa said. "But I expect they'll come tomorrow.
I've contacted an experienced lawyer, and he'll come with us when you get arrested."
"Us?" I asked.
"Well, I have to accompany you, as your legal guardian. That's one of the reasons I'm hiring a lawyer. Sometimes the requirements of a lawyer and a guardian differ, and I would not want to short-change you by trying to fulfill both tasks."
Meaning, he didn't want to lose his license defending me. Well, that was reasonable.
"Thanks, Gramps," I said. "The debt I owe you..."
"Dana," grandpa said, in a curt voice. "You're my granddaughter. I have a duty to protect my family, and you're part of it. My failure in my duties has led us to this situation, so don't think you owe me anything. Other than what is owed to family. That's more than enough for me."
"Still," I said. "After I finish repaying my scholarship, I'll make sure to..."
"Dana," he said. "If you want to repay me, just promise me you'll become Billie's guardian after I die."
"I will become Billie's guardian after you die," I promised. "But I would do it anyway."
"And I was going to help you anyway," grandpa said. "That's what family's for. Now, go see your beau, if you don't want to stay for dinner."
"OK, Gramps," I said. "See you tomorrow!"
30
Before I went to Jack's apartment, I went to the dorms to take a few of my clothes and toiletries. I had only come here briefly, to leave the bag in my room, so this time, when I started opening the dresser, I noticed that my clothes weren't folded in the way I usually did.
Most people who had seen the contents of my dresser would assume that I used no order or logic, mixing underwear, shirts, and trousers in different drawers, and they'd be wrong. I categorized my clothes by use: the clothes for alchemy, the clothes for fancy events, the clothes for fights. Yes, I had special underwear for the lab. Everything I used in the lab required better cleaning, as students tended to be rather lax about health and safety. But, when I opened the drawers, I noticed articles of clothing that did not belong. They were all black, so, understandably, whoever went through them did not notice the subtle differences. I went through all the drawers, checking every nook and cranny in the room. I could notice they had searched everything, and gone through all my notes; everything was slightly off. Thankfully, I had left all the more incriminating notes on mind magic in grandpa's office. He expressed no interest, but I wanted to tempt him, so I left them on the desk of his office. I checked my notes, my books. They had gone through everything.
More reason to move, I guess. But, since grandpa had started looking for a better-defended house first, it probably made little sense to move before he found a house. Oh, well. I could stay with Jack, for the time being.
Although he gave me the key, I still knocked on his door when I arrived at his apartment's door. He opened it quickly.
"Dana? You didn't have to knock," he said.
"I just wanted to see whether you were already home," I said, entering and leaving the small bag by the door. "Have you thought about what you'll make for dinner?"
"I'm not much of a cook," Jack confessed. "So I thought I'd just fry some steak and some potato fries."
"Sounds good," I approved. A man who understood my feelings about food. Lots of meat, no veggies. That's what it's all about. "Let me help you peel the potatoes."
I hang my coat in the corridor and accompanied him towards the kitchen, where I started peeling potatoes.
"You're so fast," Jack observed.
"Lots of practice," I explained. "Potatoes are the basis of my diet, after all."
Jack just sat there, observing me, as I quickly peeled the potatoes and cut them into wedges. The simple potbelly stove he had was already warm enough, so he just put the pot with the oil on top of it. I then got to sit, quietly observing him, as he fried the potatoes and seared the steak.
When dinner was ready, he served it with some red wine. As he poured both of us a glass of wine, we sat in front of each other.
"Let's eat first," Jack proposed. "I feel like the story you're about to tell me is better heard with a full belly."
I nodded, and we dug into the food, stealing glances from each other, without saying another word. When we were done, Jack quietly collected the dirty dishes and cutlery, and went to the kitchen to clean, as I sat on the sofa, trying to figure out how to tell him the whole story.
When he came back from cleaning the dishes, I had organized my thoughts enough to tell him the full story.
"So remember that background check you told me about?" I asked as he sat on the chair in front of me.
I told him everything, including my blood relationship with grandpa.
"That explains a lot," he said when I told him about grandpa's visit to Crow Hill and his meeting with my brothers.
"What?" I asked, confused.
"How he tolerated you. You know he isn't the kind of person you think he is."
"Explain," I demanded. "I told you everything, you should tell me everything you know too. Especially if it concerns my family."
So he told me about the rumors he'd heard, about his conversation with grandpa. Learning those things about my grandfather was... nice. It's good to know I was right about letting him become the head of the family, that he could defend it. But all those times I reminded him of his failure, he never corrected me. It made me feel so embarrassed at my self-righteousness.
"He always seemed so... harmless," I said, trying to remember all the conversations I'd had with him. "Always talking about how I should let the authorities handle things, do everything by the law. I really thought he was just another typical light mage."
"Because that's the way he wanted to appear to you," Jack said. "And he's an Inquisitor. Never practiced it, but he got all the training, and grew surrounded by their values."
"Well," I said, trying to decide how I felt, "I think he did the right thing, obviously. He's a proper leader."
"Many would consider what he did barbaric," Jack observed.
"Most people don't have to suffer what he went through," I replied. "And you know I'm a gal from another century. Saint Conrad's time, maybe. Anyway, thanks for telling me."
"So you're still moving in with him?" Jack asked.
"Of course," I answered, inviting him to sit next to me with a hand motion. As he sat next to me, I leaned on his shoulder, while he put his arm behind my neck. "It's safer. I'm sure he'll choose the right house. And it will make it easier to learn magic. And now that he's my master, it's all OK."
"Most masters don't live with their apprentices," Jack grumbled.
"But some do," I pointed out, "and there's nothing improper in that."
"So when will that happen?" Jack asked, caressing my hair.
"As soon as grandpa finds the right house. In a week, maybe? Or it could take longer. I don't know."
"And where are you going to be living until then?" Jack asked.
"I was thinking of staying with you," I said, pulling out of his embrace to look him in the eyes. "If you're OK with it, that is."
"I'd like to," Jack said, "as long as you don't expect me to cook much. Steak and fries are about the limit of my cooking skills."
"Oh, don't worry," I said. "I can cook a variety of dishes. Steak and potato mash, steak and hash browns, bacon and fries, bacon and potato mash, fish with potato mash, fried eggs with fries..."
He laughed. I hugged him, and, as he stopped laughing, kissed him. It felt good to be with him like this, relaxed and happy.
Getting out of Jack's embrace in the morning, I washed up, putting on the clothes I brought in the bag. I had a long day ahead of me, with lots of things to do. Now that my health had improved, I went back to being an early riser; the habits of a lifetime were too ingrained in me for a few weeks of illness to change that.
Checking the cupboards in Jack's small kitchen, I looked through the pantry. No bacon; I would have to fix that today. There was oatmeal, though, so I started cooking some porridge. Heating the stove by adding f
resh coal to the ambers took the longest; the porridge itself was ready in about five minutes. I heard steps. Jack was awake.
He wasn't dressed yet, wearing only a robe he put on his naked body.
"I thought you said you only know how to cook potatoes and meat," he observed, sitting on the chair in front of the dining table. Wise choice; there wasn't enough space in the kitchen for both of us to walk around.
"I also know how to make amazing sandwiches," I added, serving two bowls of porridge and giving Jack a spoon. As the teakettle was boiling, I took out some jam and prepared some tea.
"And tea," Jack said, adding a generous dollop of raspberry jam to his porridge, taking a sip of the really milky tea he liked.
"You've seen the whole extent of my culinary abilities," I admitted, as I started eating the porridge. Made of milk and oats, it felt as comforting as when mother would make it in winter, before the house was heated, to warm our bellies.
"There are always restaurants," Jack said.
"And grandpa's house, if you ever feel like going there again."
"You think he'd invite me there again?" Jack asked.
"Well, he knows you're my boyfriend, although he calls you my beau. So old-fashioned, my grandpa."
"He told me not to tell you about what he did with the people who harmed Billie," Jack said.
It almost seemed like Jack was... scared of grandpa?
"Oh, he won't mind," I said, with more confidence than I was feeling. I didn't really know the man who was my grandfather, after all. "And it's not like he could keep that a secret forever. I'd have heard the rumors, I'm sure."
"If you say so," Jack conceded.
I finished eating breakfast and cleaned up. Jack kept drinking tea, having finished breakfast, too.
"I'll go now," I said, giving him a quick kiss. It was quite convenient, with him seated, as I didn't have to tiptoe.
"This early?" Jack asked, taking out my pocket watch. "It's only half-past seven. Even I don't start work this early."
The Apprentice's Path: The Alchemist #1 Page 22