With the eagerness of a child, Jala dropped lightly onto the stool and waved for him to start. Her smile wouldn’t seem to fade and her heart was lighter than it had been in days. She could feel the frustration at her failures already falling away.
“Look. Light!” She chirped happily to Finn. She was more skipping than walking and had been showing off her new found skills for most of the way back to the school. She beamed at the small globe of light cupped in her hand. It shown pale violet and clearly lit the way.
“Beautiful light,” Finn agreed good naturedly.
She let the light die away and abruptly summoned it again. “Light!” She chirped again, fully aware that she was making a fool of herself, but too happy to care. Finn gave a chuckle and shook his head. She let the light dim once more and gave him a hug on impulse. “Thank you so much, Finn,” she said in a voice filled with joy. She gave a slight bounce once she had released him and summoned the light back and dismissed it again with a giggle that sounded a bit mad, even to her ears.
“Sovann did everything. All I did was take you to see him, and that was the least I could do after you saved me from getting exiled.” He replied in a voice barely above a whisper. “And here you are, Milady. It has been a pleasure meeting you, and may we cross paths again.” He indicated the serpent marked door before them and gave her a slight bow.
“I hope we do, Finn. Next time, I’ll buy you the drinks,” she said happily. “But I won’t drink the potion,” she added, her voice firm.
He gave a soft chuckle and the door opened. They both turned to look, her with an expression of surprise and Finn with a guarded look. Shade looked between the two of them his eyes lingering for a moment on Finn before he turned to Jala.
“I’ve been worried sick, I sent Leah out to make sure you hadn’t gotten lost. Are you OK?” he asked in a voice filled with concern.
Her expression turned a bit guilty. “I’m so sorry, Shade, I expected to be back sooner. I should have sent word. But look!” Her tone went from somber to happy with the last two words and she held up her hands in front of him and summoned the small light back. “Light!” She exclaimed.
Shade’s expression shifted to amaze. “Congratulations, Jala,” he said with a smile, and moved aside so she could come inside the hall. “Thank you for seeing her home, Finn.” He offered in a voice that was grudging.
Finn had been smiling at Jala’s obvious joy, but the smile faded when Shade turned his attention to him. “Think nothing of it, Lord Morcaillo. It was done as a kindness to the lady. Congratulations to you, by the way, I understand this was an important dinner for you.” Finn’s voice was as cold as ice. “I must say, it came as rather unexpected gossip to me considering recent rumors I had heard of you.” He gave Jala a glance and a smile and then looked back to Shade. “But it’s late, and I’m sure the lady wishes to rest. Goodnight to the two of you,” he said in the same cold voice and walked back down the path.
Puzzled, Jala watched him go. Her hands had fallen back to her sides, and the light spell was all but forgotten. Finn had said he didn’t hate Shade, but that certainly seemed to be hate to her. “Should I offer you congratulations, as well? I’m not really sure what he was talking about,” she said at last, in a voice that had gone soft.
For another quiet moment, Shade watched the path Finn had taken, and then closed the door and turned to Jala. “No, of course not, it’s nothing. I’d rather hear about your magics and how you learned them.” He motioned her back down the hall and she quickly began telling him all about her night.
Chapter 13
Sanctuary
“I think I finally have it figured out,” Jala said to Shade as she fell in step beside him. They stepped out into the bright sunlight of a warm summer day. She stopped on the stairs leading down from their rooms and closed her eyes to bask in the warm sunshine. There was a gentle breeze drifting down the path and it hung heavy with the scents of the garden flowers.
Shade raised an eyebrow. “What?” he asked. He had stopped at the bottom of the stairs and stood waiting for her.
She opened her eyes and joined him once again, and they began to walk slowly toward the market district. She felt her pace pick up a bit in anticipation of the café they favored on free days. The nightmares had started coming nearly every night over the past month, and coffee seemed to be the only thing that kept her going throughout the day. She had even taken to wearing a bit of makeup so no one would notice the dark circles under her eyes.
“The Academy,” Jala answered finally, pulling her thoughts back to the conversation. “I’ve caught up on all of my classes and have high scores. I no longer get lost, and I’ve gotten my routine down perfectly now. Five days of nothing but study and two days of relaxing before the studying starts again,” she clarified.
“Then you have gotten it down faster than most. I’ve seen students that have been here for years, wandering around with the confused look that plainly says they have no idea where they are. You have scarcely been here three months.” He nodded his approval. “But then you seem to learn everything with exceptional speed,” he added with a smile. They walked for a while in silence, and she fairly sighed with relief when they reached the café and the waitress brought them their usual breakfast the moment she saw them. Jala sipped the coffee gratefully and took a dainty bite from the tart. As soon as Shade had discovered her love for blackberry tarts, this place had become a tradition every morning on the first of their two free days.
Shade took a sip from his own coffee and examined the Danish on his plate. “It’s amazing how she guesses which flavor to bring daily. It’s never the same and it always seems the right choice.” He shook his head and glanced at the waitress.
“Must be a diviner who awakens every sixth day and meditates on what to give Lord Morcaillo for breakfast,” Jala said with a perfectly straight face.
Shade rolled his eyes. “Please don’t call me that. I never want to hear you call me anything other than Shade.” His voice held a note of pleading.
“I was only teasing.” She squeezed his hand in apology and gave him a smile. “You want to see a play today?” she asked to change the subject.
He frowned. “I can’t today. I have things I have to do in my quarter. I have time for breakfast and then to walk you back to the Academy if you like, but other than that I have no time till this evening,” he said with clear regret. “We can go this evening if you like,” he offered.
“Maybe. I think I’ll study in the gardens until then, and we will see what kind of mood that leaves me in before I decide.” She paused for another sip of coffee and tried to convince herself that studying was the best use of the day. “It’s probably for the best that you have things to do. I have a test coming up in history, and while my marks are good currently, if I don’t study they could turn very bad, very fast.” She took another sip from her coffee and leaned back in her chair. “Will you be going by to see Sovann?” she asked.
Once Shade had learned she had been to meet Sovann, he took her with him on the few occasions he had visited the mage. On the last such occasion, Sovann had loaned her a couple of books to read on the different branches of magic. She had finished those days ago and should have gotten them back to him by now, but between school and other trivial things she hadn’t. She would have sent them with Finn to return to his brother, but since that first night they had met, Finn seemed to be avoiding her. She had noticed him a few times during her lunch break, but he always seemed to be surrounded by fawning girls. At most, he gave her a simple nod of greeting when he did notice her.
“I hadn’t planned on it, but I can if you’d like me to return the books for you,” he offered.
She smiled. Shade had a knack for knowing her line of thinking. He had, of course been with her when she had borrowed the books, but there was no way he could have known she had already read them all.
“That’s exactly what I was hoping. Thank you for offering,” she said. He gave a slight nod,
and they sat for a while in a peaceful silence. Unlike with most people she knew, when Shade was quiet it didn’t grow uncomfortable. It always seemed soothing or relaxing to her. Of course, there were days when she would talk nonstop about some current interest or something she had seen in one of her classes, but today this silence was perfect.
She hadn’t really made friends at the Academy, other than Shade and his household, but she didn’t notice it at all. She didn’t need any more than what she had, to be content. Shade kept her company most of the time, but on occasion, she would play a game of tiles with Oma, or gossip with Leah. Lex was usually quiet, and she didn’t know him as well as the other three, but the center of her foundation was Shade, without a doubt. Madren was still a pain, but she had learned how to avoid him, for the most part. She didn’t share any classes with him, thankfully, and when he was home he usually stayed near his rooms. She made it a point of going out or staying in her own room, aside from her tile games with Oma, which they played in Oma’s small quaint room.
“What are you thinking about?” Shade asked quietly. She looked up from her coffee cup and found him watching her with a gentle smile.
“How much I enjoy your company,” she answered honestly.
He raised an eyebrow and gave a slight nod. So we are of a like mind there,” he said. “I find myself reluctant to finish my breakfast because I know when I do I’ll have to part ways with you. So I’m ignoring this excellent Danish.” He gave the pastry a slight push with his fork and took a sip of coffee.
Jala gave a delicate snort of amusement. “It’s not as if you don’t know where to find me at the end of the day,” she replied in amusement.
He looked down at her own half-eaten tart and pointed at it with is fork. “And it’s not as if you don’t know I’ll find you,” he countered.
She gave him a grudging smile. “Point taken,” she said and lifted her tart to finish it.
The garden was filled with more people than she had expected it to be. Though, that really shouldn’t surprise her, because it was a beautiful day and all of the flowers were in full bloom. She scanned the area and noted Finn sitting beneath a tree, with a blond leaning against one arm and a brunette resting easily in the grass with her head balanced on his knee. She appeared to be reading a book aloud to her companions. Jala rolled her eyes. She had never seen Finn with the same girl twice. She wondered if his current company realized they were working on limited time.
She turned her attention away from them and continued her search for a quiet place to read. After a moment, she spotted a small table that was vacant under the drooping branches of a willow. She moved around the edge of the garden toward the table and tried to ignore how many watched her go. That was the most unsettling thing about the Academy. It didn’t seem like she could go anywhere without being watched. She heard a few whispered comments, followed by tittering laughter, but they were all spoken too softly for her to hear the jest.
She settled herself in the seat closest to the tree’s base and opened the history book. She had heard other students groan at the assigned chapters, but she had no complaints. She had lived so sheltered at the Temple, that any sort of learning, no matter the class, was fascinating to her. “The Scarlet Jungles” labeled the chapter, and she leaned in to read. A full-sized illustration of the famous Flame Riders covered one page, and she studied it closely. The artist had rendered them as if they were just emerging from a bonfire. The slender red horses and their fierce red armored riders had been done with such loving detail, Jala wondered if this was a smaller rendition of a famous work. She traced her finger along the line of fire at the bottom of the page and wondered if they could truly cross through flames. Her history teacher had said the Firym Flame Riders often used that tactic. A large bon fire would be erected behind their lines and their fire mages would hurl bolts of flame into the enemy lines. The Flame Riders would then ride through one fire and out another, scattering their enemies in the chaos. She found it hard to imagine a horse willing to set foot in fire. The beasts were typically terrified of it.
“There you are!” An all-too-familiar voice exclaimed happily when she was barely three pages into her reading. She looked up to see Madren grinning madly at her. Part of her was amazed to see him outside, while the other part was too busy contemplating hitting him with the book to be amazed. She was too tired to deal with him now. With a final longing glance back to her book, she closed it and wished wistfully a Firym were near at hand. She had an idiot they could use for kindling.
Madren dropped into the chair across from her, oblivious to her mood. He gave her another huge smile and set a rather large box down on the table in front of her. “I made this for you,” he said. “It took me all morning and the ingredients were not easy to get, but it’s worth it to see you smile.” He watched her expectantly, as if she would at any second burst into a smile.
How can he not read my expression, Jala wondered as she looked from him to the box. He honestly expects me to smile, she realized. He looked a little disheveled and appeared to have some sort of dark substance dotting places on his slightly wrinkled tunic. It was unusual for him, for Madren was usually tidy. She looked back down at the box, and with grim determination to be done with all of this, she opened it. Inside, resting carefully on colored paper, were little brown squares of what she thought was chocolate that alternated in design. The first one she saw was heart-shaped that read, “I love you” on the top. The next was two hearts squeezed together that read, “Marry me.” She stared in disbelief at the words. She looked back up from the box and her jaw dropped slightly. Madren clearly misunderstood her reaction. “I made the chocolate and the molds myself, and I know it’s soon. But when something is so right, you just have to act on it,” he blurted happily. She was trying to find the proper words when a third voice she didn’t know cut in.
“You! Out of here,” the feminine voice ordered, and Madren let out a short squeak and fled.
Jala watched him flee in disbelief. She had never seen him move so swiftly, not even when Leah threatened him. Jala looked back to the speaker, unsure if she should thank her or not. The girl was, in a word, perfect. By now, Jala had gotten used to all of the Elder Blooded being beautiful, but this girl seemed to go beyond that expectation. Her hair was a deep burnished gold with not a strand out of place. A jeweled hair net sparkled in the filtered light, showing motes of red here and there where rubies rested. Her face was delicate, her lips full, and her expression was very controlled. Jala couldn’t decide if it was irritation in her eyes, or fury. She wasn’t sure what she had done to earn either. The girl carefully lifted the skirts of her flowing red dress out of the way and sat down in the chair Madren had vacated. She tilted her head at Jala in a way that would have been fetching, had her blue eyes not been so stormy.
“Do you know who I am?” the girl asked, though her tone nearly making it a demand.
Jala shook her head slowly, with her emotions divided between curiosity and trepidation. “Should I?” she asked quietly. The girl had chased off Madren, but the expression on her face suggested Madren’s company might have actually been preferable. Then, with a sinking realization, she noticed the entire garden had gone still. Everyone else knew who this girl was, apparently, and they expected this to be quite the show.
The girl’s eyes narrowed. “You should, but I wouldn’t expect a peasant to know such things, so no harm done. My name is Cassia Avanti.” Her voice was clipped and filled with annoyance.
Jala searched her mind for why Cassia would be so upset with her, but the only time that she could remember she had even heard reference to Avanti, was from Finn. Surely this didn’t have anything to do with Finn. It had been some time since they had shared the drinks. Jala glanced in his direction, and found him watching the table, his expression guarded, but intent. She looked back to Cassia and raised an eyebrow, noting that no one had called her a peasant since she had arrived, nor had anyone really talked to her at all. This exchange had he
r completely off guard. “You are obviously upset with me, but I’m not sure why,” she prompted gently.
Cassia looked ready to spit, her expression no longer controlled. “He hasn’t told you?” She demanded.
Jala’s eyes widened. “Who? Told me what?” She asked.
“Christian. He hasn’t told you we are betrothed?” She responded with venom in her tone.
Jala felt her stomach drop and her throat grow tight, and was certain she had paled with the words. Cassia was watching her so closely she had no doubt the enraged woman had seen the truth written clearly on her face. She shook her head slightly. “I didn’t know,” she whispered.
“Obviously not, so let me explain why I’m so upset, peasant girl. Since the Spring Games, there have been rumors about the two of you, and since the last day of the Spring Games I have been his betrothed. I have waited patiently for over a month for him to stop prancing about with his peasant bed warmer on his arm, but as of yet, my patience hasn’t paid off. And then this morning I start hearing rumors about me and how I can’t equal up to your rustic charm. He is already a laughing stock over this whole fiasco, and now they are laughing at me.” Her words flooded out in a tirade.
Jala remained silent and let the words wash over her. She fought to keep her eyes from going glassy. How could he not tell her? As nasty as Cassia seemed to be, she had every right to be angry. One did not keep company with others when they were betrothed. She thought back on the plays and dinners she had shared with Shade over the past month and cringed inside. No doubt everyone had misunderstood their relationship. Though Shade was no more than a friend to her, others would think it something more. She felt herself crumbling inside. It was too much - Her nightmares and lack of sleep, Madren, and now this. She bit her lower lip and tightened her hand into a fist below the table. She would not cry in front of this crowd, nor would she show weakness to Cassia. She forced herself to swallow and took a deep calming breath.
The Elder Blood Chronicles Bk 1 In Shades of Grey Page 20