This chapter is dedicated to RooenEnnyte, who gave an uplifting review, and to all those who have added the story to their alert list.
The next few days took on a steady pace, and the pages settled into an orderly routine. They hadn't pulled off their prank yet, no. No one wanted Schuylar on high alert, ready to warn his precious Master Radzimierz at the slightest hint that they were ready to pull it off. And so, Friday approached more quickly than expected.
After washing up for supper, Eleni was once again before her mirror, running her slender fingers through her sheared locks. Never one to confused for being as vain as the annoying teacher, but she was starting to miss her long hair. Realizing that there was nothing she could do about it for a long time, she set to brushing out her hair once more before dinner.
That was when she heard a knock at her door. Letting out a loud gasp, Eleni bolted upright. She still wasn't fully dressed!
The person on the other side of the door heard her gasp and chuckled quite boisterously. She let of a sigh of relief at the sound. Eleni would hate the man for a few more hours, but he would always be her best friend.
"Lokejo you are a dead man," she sqwauked, every bit the crow. She swiftly bound her chest and threw on her shirt and tunic. Taking one more look in the mirror, this time out of necessity and not vanity, she sprang for the door. The man wouldn't stop stop banging on the door and she was ready to tear the man's head off.
Eleni unlocked the door, only to have it slammed open by the brawny Raka. Lokejo gave Eleni a crushing embrace and lifted her off her feet, his usual way of greeting his young charge. Although she giggle, as was her custom, he kept her in his grasp and he carried her back into her room. Once there, he let her fall to her feet, even if it meant a fall of more than a few inches.
"Miss me?" The tone would have vexed Eleni had it come from anyone else, but Lokejo was different. The man had been her guardian since the day she had been born, and her best friend. At six foot eight, the man was an intimidating colossus, but he was nothing but a gentle, over-sized puppy to his tiny charge.
Pushing the big man away, and kicking his shin for good measure, Eleni walked to her dresser and began searching for her bruise balm. Lokejo had a history of forgetting his strength, and she knew she knew it would be better to take care of the bruises before they started to form. Once satisfied that her arms wouldn't be purple in the morning, Eleni took a good at Lokejo.
The immense Raka had sat at her feet, a habit that had evolved because of their height difference. Eleni had always complained that he was too tall for her to speak to him properly. And so, a sort of unspoken agreement had formed between guard and child. He was still his burly self, grinning at her with a toothy smile.
Ending her examination, she finally spoke to him, "And just what are you doing in Corus, Master Magcalas." Another habit of theirs. She would act the petulant child and he would act the part of stern keeper. They both had a penchant for play-acting. "I was under the impression that you were staying at the Swoop with the Lioness."
If possible, Lokejo's smile got wider, almost spanning from ear to ear. "My little dame, your dear grandmother wanted to see you as soon as possible. So I, your guardian, have been returned to you." He gave her a heartsick look and lowered his head in dejection.
Eleni knew better than to buy into his act and cuffed him. Then the whole of the tale sank in. "Tell me you're joking," she pressed her palms against her eyes, already feeling the headache to come. "The Lioness is here?"
Knowing that his mistress was becoming tense without having seen her grandmother, he ended their play and settled into his customary task: keeping Eleni out of self initiated trouble. "Calm down, little one." He ruffled her short, red hair. "She just wanted to see you is all."
"Does she suspect anything? Did you interrogate you? Will she make me go back?"
"If you get hysterical with me, Iwill personally put you on the first ship headed for the Islands." He handed her a bright red cloth, his handkerchief that was frequently handed to her in such times. "Are we ready to calm down?" Eleni furiously dabbed her eyes, and Lokejo was forced to do that task for her, fearing she would damage her eyes. "Now listen to me, little chick, and listen well. When I asked permission to come with you to this frozen country," Eleni let out a watery chuckle at his description of Tortall. "I made an oath to protect your dream, and I intend to fulfill that oath."
"Thank you, Lokejo." Eleni hugged her longtime friend's solid arm. "I'm glad that you came with me."
"Someone had to keep you out of trouble," he said, giving her face a final dab.
As he did this, the palace bell rang. Eleni jumped off her bed and ran to her washroom, raving about having only fifteen minutes to prepare for dinner. When she re-emerged, her face had been scrubbed free of tears. She kept looking in her mirror and kept fussing over minor details. The whole spectacle caused Lokejo to snicker at his young charge.
"You look very masculine, running that brush through your hair," he chuckled. Taking the brush from her firm grip, he set to fixing her clothing. "How have you managed for a week without me?" He gave her a firm nudge with his leg and pushed her towards the door. "Go to dinner. When you get back, I'll have put away the remainder of your belongings." At her less than amused look, he insisted again. "I promise to not expose your secret while everyone who lives in this hall is away at dinner."
Once composed, Eleni gave Lokejo a sidelong look, begged him to not mess up her room too badly, and headed off to dinner.
Closing the door after the wayward crow, and locking it for good measure, Lokejo cursed under his breath. "Trickster, you owe for this." As he set about making the bed Eleni had mussed, he thought back to the day he first met the girl. The task of organizing her dresser-turned-vanity made him remember the subsequent decade. He smiled at individual memories, and recalled why he was still looking after Eleni: the tiny girl was worth it. "On second thought, you don't owe me anything at all. Just keep me alive long enough to see her earn her shield."
Convinced that the room was tidy enough and that he knew where to store the new items, he set off to retrieve the five trunks full of belongings the girl had insisted on bringing. She might have wanted to play the role of male knight, but she still packed like a lady.
Another chapter, another piece of the plot. So glad to have so many people adding this story to their alert list, it only makes me want to type faster!
Interesting tidbit: Lokejo's surname is an authentic Filipino surname. I looked for a culture that seemed similar to that of the Raka, and I figured the Philippines was a good choice. The name Magcalas means "to unshackle" and comes from the Tagalog tribe, the second largest Filipino ethnolinguistic group. Just found that name fitting for a man whose people were once enslaved.