She flushed slightly.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I haven’t seen him since he left our lands. That is why I am here now. This must be resolved between us.” She almost stamped her foot in emphasis.
“I don’t disagree. This training, though, is for safety. Consider a fire on the Plains. There’s a reason children are taught to tend a fire carefully. They must know how to judge fuel, to avoid a flare of flames and disaster.”
Her expression was most put upon.
“I don’t seek to hinder that. Only to be near him.”
Inwardly Lo’isha sighed; the girl wasn’t being unreasonable, just stubborn, and adamant, and unswerving in her intent. The Shaman said, “Well, then please let me start by offering a place to stay and clean up from the journey, in the embassy in the Hawkbrother ekele.”
She widened her eyes slightly.
“Thank you,” she said. “I will be comfortable with our cousins.”
“If you wait, I will show you the way. I and the Dean need to discuss how we can arrange this meeting for you.”
With a frown and flick of her eyes, she said, “You have only to tell me where he is, but clearly that is too simple for this city, with its costumes and rules and gates and castes.” She paused briefly, as if only then aware of her bad manners. “Forgive me. Thank you for your hospitality. I will leave you to your discussion, and I will await your direction, for now.”
For now, Lo’isha thought. This wasn’t over by far.
He watched her move a discreet distance away, enough to be in another tent, were there any tents here. She paid attention to some detail of the bricks and moss, and, while not relaxed, she was not intruding.
He turned to the Dean.
Teren asked, “How do we get her out of here?” in a whisper. He glanced over suspiciously at her.
“I don’t know that we can. It would be up to her and her pledged.”
“The distance should have made this impossible, especially for one so young.”
“For our people, they are man and woman grown. You mustn’t mistake her for a child.”
“I’m not mistaking her for a problem.” The Dean clutched his hands together.
“No, but you are mistaking her for your problem. I will show her to the ekele. Then we can talk.”
“Very well, and thank you. Then we can have Keth’ deal with the issue.”
Teren seemed quite exasperated, and Lo’isha surmised that by “issue” he meant “sending her home.”
He didn’t think it would be that easy.
“I will meet with you shortly,” he said. Then he turned, and to Nerea said, “Come then, and I will show you to the ekele.”
Teren was in his office when Lo’isha returned. He gratefully put aside his writing and said, “Please, have a seat.” Lo’isha sat in the one available chair in the cluttered and paper–filled office.
“Always one chair not used for storage, I see,” the Shaman offered with a chuckle.
Teren shrugged and nodded and chuckled back. “It’s my way. If anyone were to straighten my clutter, I’d never find anything again. But as to the other . . . Thank you for your aid in this matter. This is most awkward. Students are unaccompanied, and if they are not single when they commence training, they are by the time they graduate. This is how it is done, and most arrive knowing it. If he’s to be a Herald . . .”
“You are assuming he will complete the training and follow your chosen path. There are at least two people assuming his fate for him. It seems to me that is a question for him to answer.”
Teren looked startled at that. “How could he refuse to be a Herald?”
“Quite easily. Are you asking, ‘Will he be the first to refuse?’ ”
Teren had no response. He never considered that possibility. There were traditions and cultural assumptions at the Collegium. Those weren’t necessarily the traditions and assumptions of the boy, and they most definitely weren’t those of the girl.
By choosing him, Yssanda had thrown things into a fine tempest. Perhaps it was an amusement for her. Or, it might be a necessity. What would have possessed a Companion to go all the way to the Dhorisha Plains to choose a Shin’a’in child? What would Valdemar need him for, or was it that the Shin’a’in would need him more?
Regardless of the cause, this situation needed resolution.
“I suppose we should arrange for them to meet,” he said, leaning back and stroking his chin. “After that, we’ll see.”
“Are you going to warn the young man?”
“I’m not sure we should. He’ll want to meet at once, and it will distract him. I’ll arrange some time, and we’ll let them meet. He can explain to her better than we.”
“I’m not sure it will be that simple.”
“Oh, of course he’ll have second thoughts and some homesickness. However, he’s a fine pupil. He’s learned a lot of fundamentals quickly, and he’s even accepted the separation. It was long in his mind. They’ve both grown and changed, and this will make it clear.”
The next morning, Lo’isha met Nerea at the ekele entrance. She was staring wide-eyed at the lush and fragrant growth. It was very different from the Plains. and being surrounded by the local terrain only emphasized the differences. Hearing his footfalls on the graveled path, Nerea turned and greeted the Shaman.
“Bright the day, Elder,” she said cheerfully.
“Did you sleep well?”
“I did, thank you.”
“How are the younger-sibs?”
“They are comfortable and getting refreshed. How much is stabling? I have little money, but I can offer work.”
“Nothing is required for now. You are a guest at our invitation.”
“That’s gracious of you.”
Quite a few youths would have assumed hospitality without even thinking. They expected adults to manage things for them. The locals had trouble grasping that, by Shin’a’in tradition, she was a woman grown. Of course she asked about debts.
“Actually, it’s gracious of the Dean and of the Queen,” he smiled. “But it’s something they plan for, so you need not mention it.”
“I will do so, at least once, but I understand,” she said.
He sighed, slightly. Yes, the ways here were strange, but as a guest, one should learn and abide by the local rules. She was a headstrong and inexperienced youth, well-intentioned but fiery.
“If you are ready, then please come with me.”
They walked out into a damp spring morning. It had rained during the night. It might be warm and muggy later, but was clear and fresh now.
He led her through Companion’s Field, along Palace garden paths, and to the Collegium main hall. At a side entrance, Teren awaited, and with him Keth’re’son shena Tale’sedrin.
Nerea was not so formal with Keth’. She charged forward and threw her arms around him in a tackling hug, feet off the ground and looking melted in place. Lo’isha stood back and let them resolve that. Their embrace was one of innocent companionship, not of long-parted lovers, but it still held that same intensity.
Keth’s mind whirled. How did Nerea get here? But she was so warm, and her grip so tight. He could smell her hair and the scent of her leathers. He closed his eyes and hugged her closely.
When he finally bent to put her down and her feet touched the ground, she stepped back and grinned hugely at him, her dark eyes glowing.
She said, “It is so good to see you, my pledged. I have traveled far to keep our bond.” Her voice, that language, was music to him, after months of the strange tongue and stiffer rules it used. Shin’a’in flowed from the lips as was proper, Valdemaran seemed to march backward instead.
He remembered there were others here, and they were being watched. He kept hold of one of her hands and said, “I am so thrilled to have you here. But I must introduce you to someone.”