Anders rushed into the common room, his hair mussed and his robes wrinkled. He eyed the room wildly, and then saw her. Auria wanted to melt into the floor. He knew, he had to know. And now she'd have to explain. She'd wanted it to be a surprise. He'd think her so foolish.
"Auria!," he said, sitting down next to her and kissing her furtively on the cheek. He kept his mouth there and whispered, "I've lost my earring. Someone stole it! Have you see any of them bragging?" He nodded his head toward the table of immaculate apprentices, and their supercilious stares.
"No, I… is that why you're in such a state? I've never seen you with your hair so wild. Well, I have, but…" she gave a little pause and pressed her knee against his under the table, "Not quite in this context."
He squeezed her knee, and she felt the queer fluttering he always brought about in her. Sometimes she looked at him and couldn't believe he was with her. Her.
"Auria…" his voice was a warning. She schooled herself. Mages weren't supposed to have relationships, but everyone knew they did. As long as you weren't too blatant about it things usually went smoothly. The problem was, she was having a harder and harder time following their "rules". She couldn't set aside the love she felt for him, and knew it reflected in her face. She hoped she hadn't looked like a lovesick puppy. Her ears still burned remembering when Jowan had teased her with that.
"Maybe the earring just fell out, and it's by the bed somewhere."
"You know as well as I do, it can't fall off. It was magicked into a solid circle of gold. Someone had to use magic to take it off." He leaned his head into his hands. "I have to get it back. I have to." His voice almost broke on the last words.
She'd never seen him like this. Was he playing a joke on her, knowing she'd taken it? Or did the loss of the earring hurt him this badly? If it did… a pain pierced her chest, like someone had put that gold band around her heart, and was tightening it.
"You said you'd won the earring in a wager. That it was a symbol of good fortune and freedom. But… it was a woman you'd won it from, wasn't it. You're still in love with her."
Anders lifted his head and looked at her blankly. "I said that?" he laughed suddenly, "Were you listening at my door while I played cards, little cat?"
Auria blushed. She had spied on him for months before working up the courage to find him, one afternoon while he was alone.
"Maybe. Wouldn't you like to know what else I learned?" She gave him a sly look, and he raised his eyebrow.
"Hmmm… what would it take to elicit such information?"
"I think you would need to be quite inventive," she let her voice drop to a husky whisper, and licked her lips, "to elicit such secrets."
He stared at her bemusedly for a moment before his face fell into a rakish grin, a wicked light coming into his eyes. "I look forward to elicting you."
"Anders." It was her turn to scold him, drawing her face into a mock serious expression. "What would Irving say!"
"Irving!" Anders suddenly breathed out. "He has my earring. He knows!"
"Knows what?" Auria asked, grabbing his arm before he could rush away. He looked down at her, searching her face, as if looking for some critical answer there.
"I didn't win the earring in a bet," he said, sitting back down. "I won the right to it in a bet. And with a woman, yes, but an old woman. You know pirates wear earrings, yes?"
Auria nodded her head. She'd never seen a pirate, but she'd read about them in books purloined from the kitchen maid.
"They believe piercing the ear will improve their eyesight. There's also some who believe piercing a mages ear will not only increase the eyesight, but… increase other things as well."
"They have mages on the sea?"
"They have many things on the sea. Mages are one of them. They keep the secret close. Sailors are a superstitious lot, and they don't want anyone interfering. That includes the chantry. But mages are special… not any mage is accepted, and not any one can win his own earring." He paused for a moment, as if remembering. "I had to search out the old mother. And she was old, older than any person I'd seen before. Living in a cave on the coast of the sea. I healed her pains, and she'd cackled, gripping my head faster than I thought possible. I thought then she was mad, and that I'd just given her enough power to snap my neck."
He paused again, fingers automatically starting to straighten his hair, pulling it into a semblance of order. "But she didn't. Instead the world went black, and I woke with a burning pain in my ear. 'Heal yourself' she'd told me, and so I did. She gave me tea. And cookies. And told me she'd seen my future. The earring would give me long sight, but not only in my vision, in my magic, also. And she said one more thing – that my future would always be reflected in the gold. The brighter the gold, the brighter the future. Never let it tarnish, she said. But now it's gone. I've lost it. What does that say for my future?"
His voice was rising again.
"Irving must've found out. He must know. Maybe he thinks if he has my earring, my future will end here." He stood up again. "He's going to give it back." Little flickers of magic danced over Anders clenched fists.
"I didn't know… I'm sorry. Anders, Irving doesn't have your earring. I do."
He turned to her, eyes wide, uncomprehending.
"I took it… I didn't know how you felt. I thought I'd find a match for you, so you could have a pair. I wanted to match the color of the gold… I'm so sorry."
"You have it?" he asked, his voice full of some emotion she couldn't quite read.
"I do, its right here." She pulled a leather thong from around her neck, the round circle of gold hanging from it. "Are you mad? I'm sorry."
She held it out and he took it slowly, their fingers touching. "You wore my future around your neck," he said. She still couldn't quite read the emotion there, but he smiled at her. In a small flash of magic, the earring was back on Anders ear. Auria sighed softly. She'd have to come up with another idea for their six month anniversary present.