Alberiecht followed Kero away from the cluster of stretching students.
"Beautiful, isn't she?" Kero said suddenly. "Not the type I'd expect to have a yearning towards weaponswork. She's almost to beautiful for words."
Alberiecht shrugged. "Lovely she is. Long have a watched her training in the shadows while my classes I taught. Thoughts, at first, occured to me that a passing fancy she had. But skill and dedication was not lacking. It was when she ventured boldly from her shadow that my attention was caught. A warrior she is. Regardless, glad I am to have found her."
Kero pondered his words for a moment then nodded. "Certainly if more beautiful maids learned to defend themselves we would have fewer cases brought before the Queen."
Kero watched her new pupil spar with unvarnished interest. Even though she was clearly more skilled than the young princess, the girl did not set out to humiliate her, or show off her skills. She kept her bladework tailored to the princess' own capability. Not to say she was easy on Lytha. To the contrary, she kept the the princess constantly on her toes, correcting her even with the flat of her blade if necessary. Much the same way Kero herself would, now that she thought about it.
"You were quite right to assign her to Lytha, Albereicht. She may yet be able to get that girl in line."
"It is my hope."
Lytha was drenched in sweat, her muscles quivering visibly, while Salora herself was barely winded. Salora noticed her partner's fatigue and stopped her advance. Lytha bent over slightly, panting to catch her breath, and turned to Kris and Jeth who had finished their own session and were waiting for Salora and Lytha to finish.
"You guys want to walk with me?" she huffed between breaths. "My slave driver of a sparring partner has me exhausted. She's as bad as Kero!" Upon finishing her sentence she quivered on her rubbery legs and nearly fell. Jeth moved forward swiftly to help steady her and shot Salora a look laced with reproach.
"She isn't used to this kind of exertion! You shouldn't have worked her so hard."
Salora's eyes flashed angrily. "And if I was easy on her, who would thank me then? Only the assasin that crept up to have her life!"
Kris stepped between them, wondering again at Jeth's behavior. It was entirely unlike him to...he cast Jeth an inquiring look, with one brow raised. Jeth flushed both in reprieve and anger. He opened his mouth for an angry retort but stopped at the look on Kris' face.
:We need to talk. Later
Kris sent, his mind voice conveying his bewildement and concern.
:Fine
Jeth's reply was clipped and brusque, with definite overtones of annoyance and something else Kris couldn't quite place. Certainly in all his years of friendship with Jeth he had never recieved a sending like that before...out loud he said:
"Why don't you go on ahead with Lytha, I'll meet you later."
Jeth looked at him oddly, a mixture of curiosity and annoyance on his face. "Aren't you coming?" He said shortly.
Kris cast a backward glance over his shoulder at Salora. "No. You see to Lytha. I'll be along after awhile."
Jeth's face darkened, his eyes clouding, but he sighed and nodded, taking Lytha's arm and helping her to walk step by shaking step up the path towards the palace. Kris had little time to ponder his friend's change in demeanor, for Salora was already walking away from him, in the opposite direction.
"Hey!" He called after her, rushing to catch up. "Wait." She kept walking, refusing to look at him. He grabbed her arm and pulled her around to face him. "What's wrong?"
She gave him a dark look. "I wouldn't want to damage your reputation should someone accidentally see you in my presence." She crossed her arms.
He could have laughed. Of all the ridiculous..."Is that what you think?"
She turned away from him, but not before he saw the obvious hurt in her eyes, which gave him all of the answer he needed. He dropped his voice into tender and caressing tones. "Salora. 'Lora listen to me. There are those among the court, even among the Trainees, who would whisper bitter rumours about you. I have...something of a reputation at court. If people saw you with me...I just want to spare you the stares and the back -biting. That's all." She fixed her silver eyes on him, telling him quite plainly without the aid of words that she did not believe him. He bit his lip in vexation then grabbed her in sudden a sudden fit of inspiration and kissed her until she returned his caresses with hesitant ones of her own. When they finally broke apart, she cast him a lop-sided grin.
"That's hardly fair, you know. How can I hope to win an argument if you end them like that?"
He grinned back. "What can I say, I'm not a man of words, I'm a man of action."
She pouted prettily at him. "Never-the-less. I'm still mad at you."
"Nonsense." He said dismissively, pulling her along the path. "I'm far too attractive for you to stay mad at."
"Modest too." She said cheekily, falling into step beside him.
"Oh you noticed!"
"How could I not when it is so obvious!"
He favored her with a laugh.
"You, woman, are going to drive me crazy!"
"Short trip." She returned.
He stopped and bowed to her. "Enough! I'm man enough to admit my total defeat. And since the victor gains the spoils, would you like to join me for dinner?"
"I'd love to. But I can't. I need to talk to Ella. To see how she's handling...all of this." Her eyes filled with genuine regret. "But I'll take you up on it another time."
"I'll insist on it."
Kris made his solitary way back toward's the Trainee's wing, a bottle of wine in hand. He paused momentarily before Jeth's door before opening it with out knocking. Jeth sat at his desk pouring over their history lessons, seemingly oblivious to Kris' rather dramatic entrance. Kris flopped into the arm chair and popped the cork on the bottle.
"Are you going to pretend to ignore me all night, or are you going to come and join me?"
Jeth sighed and dropped his quill onto the pile of parchment.
"We have class tomorrow, you know. They'll kill us if we turn up hung over. Again." But he sat in the chair opposite Kris and accepted the glass Kris offered him. He worried it in his hands for a moment before downing it in one gulp.
"So.." he said, not meeting Kris' eyes.
"So what? What's going on with you?" Kris sipped his own wine, his eyes never leaving his friend.
"What makes you think something's going on?" Jeth replied evasively.
"Jeth...come on..."
Jeth sighed. "Fine. I'll tell you. I don't like what you're doing."
"What I'm doing?" Now Kris was confused. Jeth shifted in his chair uncomfortably.
"Yes. Look. I know that we've been through this before. You meet a lady, woe said lady, dump said lady, usually followed by lots of tears and shouting..."
Kris felt his cheeks heat in embaressment. Was he really like that? "I--" Jeth held up his hand.
"Let me finish before my wine emboldened tongue loses its nerve."
Kris nodded, falling silent.
"As I was saying, usually followed by tears and shouting. But..." He looked up at Kris, his brown eyes dark and serious. "This time it's different. I think you could really hurt her."
"Salora?"
Now it was Jeth's turn to fix him a look. "Yes. Salora. Look, it's none of my business. But don't you think this has gone on long enough? Isn't it time to try and salvage whats left of your reputation before it's broken beyond repair? You'll be King one day, Kris!"
"I...look. If it makes you feel any better, I think this one is different...she's..." He stopped, because the expression on Jeth's face was far from pleasant.
"Fine." Jeth said shortly. "Fine. I'm done talking. But I hope that you don't do something that you'll regret."
Kris watched his friend's expression carefully, trying to place it.
"Jeth, why...now? Why her? It never seemed to bother you with the others."
Jeth shrugged in a nonchalance that didn't seem quite genuine and replied, "It did bother me. I just never said anything."
Kris sighed. "Fine. Look, I'll keep what you said in mind, alright?"
Jeth stood. "Fine. I think we're done then?" Knowing a dismissal when he heard one, Kris rose and allowed Jeth to show him to the door. But he couldn't help but think that their chat had raised far more questions than it had answered.
