I was especially missing the good food and soft beds.
Not to mention a roof over our heads.
Tonight was our second night back in Chahir, and we were outside of Jarrell's territory, which unfortunately meant we were back to hiding. Xiaolang hadn't liked the look of the last town that we had passed—something about the enclosed look of the walls and the hyper-paranoia of the people struck him as wrong—so we were camping out of doors tonight. It was unseasonably cold, even for fall, so we were all huddling in warm cloaks and jackets. Hayate, as usual, was curled around the fire, hogging its heat.
Also as usual, Night and I were curled up together in order to keep each other warm.
It was chilly enough that even Didi, with all his fur, was feeling it. He had snuggled his way in between Night's folded legs, and was snoozing peacefully. I made a mental note on that one. A cold Meuritta is a good Meuritta.
Shad, without any warning, slid his way under the blanket Night and I were sharing, sitting close enough to where he was pressed against my side. "This is much warmer," he sighed happily. "Does the Dragoo usually hog the fire like this?"
"He has no cold tolerance," I groaned. "I keep forgetting to have Chatta attach some sort of untraceable heating charm to a blanket for him."
"I'll remember for you," he volunteered in a drawl.
I grinned, but didn't respond. With Shad here under the blanket, we were getting much warmer. Not precisely warm enough to be comfortable, but pretty close.
"Garth."
Shad sounded somewhat serious, which was disconcerting. He's hardly ever serious. I looked at him, arching an eyebrow in silent question.
"Xiaolang and I have been talking about this. You said that the Mages in Bromany could see Chahir because of a huge scrying pool they have, right?"
"That's what they told Chatta and me," I agreed. Where was he going with this?
"I never understood how magic worked," he said slowly, like he was thinking something through out loud. "I know the limitations, and some of the possibilities, but I never understood the mechanics, y'know? But I remember being told once, before the war started, that the Chahiran magicians had a way of seeing the entire country. That way they could keep an eye on everyone, and respond faster if some situation arose."
Theories started spinning madly in my head, and I stiffened as I realized what he was getting at. "You think there are scrying pools in Chahir."
"At least, there were," he amended quietly. "I'm not sure if they would have survived the purging that went on after the war was over."
I shook my head quickly, disagreeing with what he was saying. "No, they kept things that could detect magic. I had one used on me about five months ago, in Tobadorage. What you're saying makes sense. It could explain why people are sometimes caught, and why others manage to slip over the border undetected. If you're depending on a person, or even a group of people, to scry an entire country, things are going to slip through the cracks."
"But can the scrying pools even be used by normal people?" he asked. His forehead was furrowed a little as he thought it through. "It takes magic to use, doesn't it?"
"Small, portable scrying pools have to be used by a Witch or Wizard." That part I was sure on. "But a permanent pool? If it was powered by a ley line, it might be possible for it to be used by anyone."
"You don't sound sure of that," he pointed out.
"I'm not," I admitted. "But I have an expert handy. Chatta!"
She had been talking to Hayate, apparently trying to convince him to move a little (I wish her luck on that one) but at my hail, she straightened and looked up. "What?"
"Come here, we have a question."
It only took her about three strides to reach us, and as her eyes took in our arrangement, they narrowed speculatively. "You guys look cozy."
"Come join us," I invited.
She didn't even pause to think about that one. I barely had the blanket up before she was burrowing under it. As typical for Chatta, she decided that I was a comfortable pillow, and without any hesitation she snuggled in next to me. I didn't mind her head on my shoulder, but the icy hands on my chest were definitely a problem. I hissed at the touch. "Chatta, your hands are freezing!" I complained.
She had the absolute gall to giggle. "Sorry." Her hands didn't deviate an inch, but they were definitely warming. I sighed, and let her use me as her personal heater.
Resigned, I wrapped an arm around her waist, watching her with one eye as she squirmed around, getting completely comfortable.
Shad tapped a finger against my arm to get my attention. As soon as he had it, he inclined his head toward the woman so comfortably situated in the crook of my arm and then gave me an elaborate look.
I realized that by Chahiran standards, we looked very intimate, but my relationship with Chatta had always been like this. Still, I didn't want him to leap to any conclusions and muttered lowly in Chahirese, "Not what you think."
"You read minds now?" he muttered back, amused.
"Will you two stop talking in whispers?" Chatta requested in irritation. "I can't understand what you're saying. Now, what was your question?"
Shad repeated his theory about the scrying pools. I half expected for Chatta to shoot the idea down, but she didn't. "That's actually plausible," she concurred slowly, staring absently at the fire and snoozing Dragoo. "Anyone can use a permanent pool, if they know how. And it would certainly explain quite a bit. Like why all of the people that made it over came from large cities."
My ears perked at that. "All the Chahiran magicians that made it across are from cities? I didn't realize that."
"I hadn't noticed it either," she admitted. "It was Xiaolang that pointed it out to me. He thought it an odd coincidence at the time. But if this theory about the scrying pools is true…"
"…then it isn't a coincidence," I finished for her thoughtfully. "And if that is true, then using magic in this country isn't always dangerous."
"If you knew that no one was looking in your direction," she corrected.
"Oh, I know," I assured her hastily. "I'm just saying that we might have some leeway, especially in cities."
"The enemy has a blind spot," Shad agreed, backing me up. "That's always a handy thing to know."
"If only there was some way to prove it…" she trailed off.
"Until we do this is only conjecture." I thought we were right, though. It made too much sense.
When I woke up the next morning, my right arm was killing me. It was all pins and needles. I stifled a groan, opening my eyes and looking around for the cause of this agony…
…only to stop short, when I realized the reason.
Um…how did this happen?
I was still half-reclining against Night's side, as I had been last night. Shad was gone, but Chatta was still curled up against me, her head pillowed on my shoulder. I cast my mind back on last night, but the last thing I remembered was talking to her and Shad. I must have fallen asleep at some point.
From this angle, I couldn't see much of her face, just the crown of her head and the tip of her nose. Judging from the deep, even breathing, she was still asleep. That was very much a good thing. I wasn't sure how to react just now. Huddling under the same blanket to get warm was one thing, but sleeping in my arms all night? That was something else entirely. I felt like I had crossed a line, even if it was completely innocent and we hadn't done anything.
Lifting my head completely, I looked around the camp. Nearly everyone else was up, aside from Hazard. I wasn't surprised by this. Hazard was never really awake early in the morning. I was uncomfortable to note that everyone was shooting these amused glances in my—our—direction; looks that said "That's so sweet."
Busted buckets.
I didn't even bother trying to deny anything at this point. It would only have made the situation worse.
I carefully untangled myself from Chatta, slipping free. The cold morning air was unpleasant, but it definitely helped me to wake up. Chatta
grumbled when I moved, shifting so that she was closer to Night. Her eyes never opened.
As soon as I was free, Shad appeared from thin air. Without saying a word, he grabbed me by the arm and promptly dragged me away from camp.
“Shad, what are you doing?” I protested, stumbling along in his wake.
When we were a few feet away from everyone, out of hearing, he finally let go, whirling around to face me. The expression on his face was tight, with worry or irritation, I wasn’t sure which. “Garth, what do you think you are doing?”
I sighed. Apparently this was going to be a Meaningful Conversation. “Be more specific,” I requested, stifling a yawn.
“With Chatta,” he clarified shortly.
I didn’t quite know what to say to that. For one thing, I wasn’t precisely sure what it was that I was being accused of. I’ve discovered with people that if you just look at them, without saying anything, they usually keep talking in order to prompt a response. I just stood there and watched him, eyes level and noncommittal, waiting.
Shad continued, as predicted, irritated and uncomfortable. “Garth, I know that Hainian culture is more open, all right? And Chatta is more affectionate than most. And I know that you two have been through a lot together, and you’re close, but do you realize what that looked like?”
“Yes,” I said shortly, hoping he’d drop it. He wasn’t the only one feeling a little uncomfortable. And while I knew that his intentions were good, I didn’t like being questioned about my decisions like this.
“And do you realize the side-effects?” he persisted.
Now he had completely lost me. “I didn’t break any rules,” I pointed out, a bit more sharply than I intended. My head was starting to pound, probably from the effort of being coherent and alert at this insanely early hour of the morning. Dealing with emotionally charged conversations like this, before I had breakfast, was a bad idea. I made a mental note to not do it again in the future.
Shad stopped short, just staring at me for a long moment. “You really have no idea, do you?” he murmured, almost as if he were talking to himself. “Garth, do you realize the reputation that you have in Del’Hain?”
“The Advent Mage reputation?” I admit it, I was fishing.
“No, your personal reputation.”
It’s official. He’s lost me. I just shook my head helplessly.
“Gorgeous was filling me in while we were waiting for you to wake up.”
I blinked at this. “Gorgeous?”
“Aletha,” he clarified impatiently. “Focus, Garth.”
I was! I can’t help it if he’s confused me with nicknames.
Shad wasn’t waiting for me to mentally catch up, and kept right on going. “She told me that you have quite the reputation in Del’Hain among the women. Apparently you are considered one of the most eligible bachelors in Hain.”
My jaw hit the ground so hard it made a dent in it. “Are you serious?!”
Shad rolled his eyes expansively. “How can any person be this oblivious?”
“Shad, I’m never in Del’Hain for any length of time; day old bread is around longer than I am!” I protested. I felt like someone had tilted the world on me, and then started shaking it at random angles. “How am I supposed to know what rumors are going around about me? And how did they come up with this opinion anyway?!”
“Garth, you’re not thinking about this,” he informed me with forced patience. “You’re a Mage, the first in two centuries. You have the ear and confidence of the King. You are accepted by the Delheart family, which Gorgeous informs me is a very prominent figure in Hainian politics.”
They are?
“And you’re helping to actually shape the foreign policy of Hain when it comes to dealings with Chahir. You’re a handsome, unique, powerful, influential man, Garth. Of course women are going to be interested in and attracted to you!”
You know, when he put it like that, I felt stupid for not realizing it sooner. “All right,” I said slowly. “I have a reputation in Hain. What does that have to do with me and Chatta?”
“There are a lot of rumors about the two of you.”
I nodded in understanding. Those rumors, at least, I’d heard something about.
Shad’s next statement was said very slowly, as if he were carefully weighing each word before it left his mouth. “It would be very dangerous to encourage those rumors, even by a seemingly innocent occurrence. People adore jumping to conclusions, it’s their favorite sport.”
My temper, a little strained already by this well-intended interrogation, snapped like a dry twig. “Shad, what do you want me to say?” I demanded in a low growl. “You know that I’d never hurt her, she means more to me than my own life. You are fully aware that I’ve sworn an oath to that effect. And you also know that I don’t dance attendance on other people’s opinion of me!”
“I also know that you’re oblivious!” he growled right back at me, like a wounded tiger. “Garth, seriously, do you realize what it looks like from an outsider’s perspective? You two are physically comfortable with each other. I’m not talking about just last night, although that certainly illustrates what I’m talking about. You were comfortable enough to just drift off to sleep with her in your arms. You’re just constantly in each other’s personal space; sometimes it’s hard to tell where one of you starts and one of you ends.”
I opened my mouth to protest this (how, I don’t know, because he was right in many ways) but he didn’t pause, just ran right over me.
“But it’s more than that!” Shad was really getting into his subject now, and growing a little louder with each sentence, like he was gathering momentum and energy as he laid out his argument. “You’re just in perfect harmony with each other. And yes, I realize that you’re close friends, but you’re even finishing each other’s sentences, all right? Half the time you don’t bother to talk at all! You’re just doing some sort of silent straight line communication that the rest of the world can’t hear. And I’ve never seen someone so unflinchingly protective as you are! It’s not just when she’s in danger, it’s all the time. You always have at least one eye on her to make sure she’s safe and comfortable.” Heaving out a breath like a heavy stone, he demanded again, “Garth, do you realize what this looks like?”
I had my mouth open, supposedly ready for some sort of retort, but the words had all dried up. I hadn’t really been doing all of that… had I? I mean, some of it made sense just because we were friends, and had spent a lot of time together.
But some of it wasn’t so easily explained or rationalized.
I was still mentally scrambling for a response when Xiaolang drifted up to join us. He had this small, enigmatic smile playing on his lips. I expected for him to start in on me, too, but he barely gave me a glance. His eyes were zeroed in on Shad. When he spoke, it was soft and calming and final. “Shad, it’s all right.”
Shad’s eyes nearly fell out of his head. “Are you serious? But Xiaolang, can’t you see—”
“Better than you, my friend.” There was confidence in Xiaolang’s face, and wisdom. Looking at him, it was obvious that he knew something that we didn’t. Shad snapped his mouth shut, staring back in bewilderment and growing suspicion.
Then those unfathomable eyes of Xiaolang’s turned in my direction, and his enigmatic smile grew a notch wider. “Indeed, I do know what’s going on much better than you.”
The way he said this made cold chills run up and down my spine. Empaths were scary people, sometimes. I was torn between asking what it was that he knew…and burying my head in the sand.
Xiaolang clapped me on the shoulder, leaning in close to murmur, “Think about what Shad said, Garth. Not as an accusation, but as an observation.”
I stared at him, bewildered. And yet there was a part of me, small, and always hushed, that knew exactly what Xiaolang knew. I just hadn’t wanted to admit it—had forced myself, in fact, to not think about it at all. EVER.
In sheer reflex I tried to bu
ry it again, shove it to the very back of my head where I wouldn’t have to acknowledge it. Xiaolang’s hand on my shoulder tightened in warning. “Garth,” he reprimanded quietly. “You owe yourself more than that. You owe her more than that.”
I couldn’t take it. I simply couldn’t stand there, looking at the knowing expression on Xiaolang’s face, or the growing suspicion and enlightenment on Shad’s. I spun on my heel, almost jerking free of the restraining hand on my arm. “I need breakfast,” I said shortly, as an excuse for me to flee.
Behind me, I could hear Shad whisper to Xiaolang, “What do you know that I don’t?”
I didn’t hear Xiaolang’s response—for that matter, I didn’t want to hear his response. I had been given about as much as I could handle for one morning. I wasn’t sure if I could take any more.
As I came back into camp, my eyes met Night’s. He was watching me calmly, as if he knew exactly what was going through my head.
And he probably did.
I tensed, still on edge with the last conversation, and not particularly ready to rehash it with someone else.
“Relax,” he assured me. “I won’t gang up on you, too.”
I felt sheepish for even thinking he would. Night could tease a body to murder, but he wasn’t cruel about it. I thought back carefully, Sorry. I guess you were listening in?
“Yes, I heard the conversation.”
His mental voice was neutral, but there was this slight vibration of amusement in it. I almost didn’t ask the question because I wasn’t really in the mood to talk about this subject anymore, but I couldn’t restrain myself. Is Shad…right?
“Actually, what he said was rather mild.”
That wasn’t the tiniest bit comforting.
I went back to hunting up breakfast. Food was much safer.
~*~
Later that morning, on the road, we filled our illustrious Captain in on the discussion last night. Xiaolang was very interested in our theory about the scrying pools. Of course, he asked the one question that none of us really had a good answer to. “So how do we find them, if they really exist?”
Magus (Advent Mage Cycle) Page 18