The Immortals, Tamora Pierce

Chapter 20: Time Apart

"You've been rather distracted lately Numair," Jonathan Conté commented as he looked at him with twinkling blue eyes.

Alanna who was nearby heard of the conversation flow, walked in their direction as a smile of mischief tugged at the corner of her mouth as she joined in on the conversation, teasing Numair along the way.

"Really you two, she's just someone I'm hoping to accept as my pupil," Numair tried to reason, though he had to admit that much as he would like to take her on as a pupil, she might be unwilling about it and have yet to contact him after so long.

"Oh? This really is a surprise," Jonathan says as he stopped and looked at Numair with a surprised look on his face.

"Is she someone that we know of from there?" Jonathan asked as he looked at Numair with more curiosity upon his face.

"No," Numair said with a shake of his head as he told them of his answer, further explaining a little about her current stand and acceptance.

"Good luck, she sounds like a great person, we can't wait to meet with her when the time comes," Jonathan told him as he patted Numair on the side of his arms as he walked out of the conference room by his side, changing the subject as they talked about other things.

"You know how the people here are Numair, perhaps you should show her a little more than just your Gift to built her trust in you," Alanna told him after Jonathan had parted ways with them. "I don't know, but it does sound like she has a lot to deal with," she added, "Well, good luck with her Numair," Alanna said before leaving him on his own.

Numair looked at Alanna as she walked away waving to him without turning her head in his direction with her hand still holding onto a file of documents that they were reviewing in the meeting. He thought back on what the two had said and wonder about it base on Daine's personality that he knows so far.

Looking at his phone that he had taken out from his pocket, Numair contemplated if he should give her a call, and perhaps follow through what Alanna had suggested. His thumb hover above the blackened screen as he wondered about how he should start the conversation with, or should he perhaps ask her out to discuss about this in somewhere more private, away from prying ears.

Shaking his head, he realized that perhaps he was thinking a little too much, and dialed her phone number after a few short scrolls into his list of contacts. She did not pick up her phone, making Numair frown a little as he hung up the phone without leaving a message at the end of the ringing.

"You looked bothered," a voice said as the red headed woman in a smart and sharp suit leaned against the frame of his office door.

"It's nothing," Numair said as he gave his phone a last look, seeing the time remaining the same as he put his phone into sleep mode.

"Don't seem like nothing," she said, entering his office space as she took the chair opposite of him.

Numair looked at her helplessly, knowing that the stubborn redhead was not going to let it go at least until he gives her something.

"She's just a little bit difficult to handle," Numair told her with a sigh as he threw a few glances over to his phone.

Alanna followed his eyes movement and could only smile helplessly as she shook her head.

"Oh?"

"It's fine, she'll come round from it," Numair said as he sat back in his chair, in a slightly more relaxed position as he entwined his fingers together, eyes looking at his phone in contemplation.

"Well, don't push her too much, she might crack before you could even get close," Alanna advised him, seeing that there was no need for her to continue pushing forth for an answer, having more or less already guessed it.

"I think she will," he added, as though to comfort himself after Alanna left his office, closing the glass door behind of her.

He sighed and looked to his phone again, this time contemplating again if he should give her a call again to try his luck.

"You left in a hurry," Kaddar commented, making his presence known to Daine as he came up behind of her.

Seeing her looking startled at someone calling out to her name, Daine turned as her untied mess of brown curls nearly whipped him in the face. Her eyes opened wide as she looked at him, delightedly surprise to see him, another familiar someone as she welcomed him with a bright smile.

"Kaddar," she called out to him friendlily as she turned her body towards him.

"You look beautiful," he told her, looking at her from top to toe, and causing Daine to shift shyly away from his look as she pulled at her rather tight white blouse top, beautifully showing off her womanly curves.

"I'm sorry for being rude," Kaddar apologized with a shy embarrassed smile as he turned his head away for the moment before looking into her eyes again respectfully.

"Erm…it's alright," Daine said as she avoided his eyes, glancing at her watch before shyly meeting his eyes again.

"Erm well yes, you look very beautiful today," Kaddar repeated himself as he looked deep into her blue grey eyes.

"Thank you," she shyly replied a bright shine in her eyes as she looked into his.

"It's for a photoshoot," Daine added on as though to justify herself.

"I'm sure you will dazzle them," Kaddar added on politely with a smile upon his lips as he reassured her.

"T-thank you…Well erm I have to go," Daine said as she smiled awkwardly, not knowing where the conversation is going on, but instead chose to end it and said her goodbye.

"Yes, well erm, goodbye, I hope we get to meet again, soon," he told her, giving her a wave as he watches her leave with a smile upon his lips, not stopping her.

Kaddar saw her leave as he stood there watching her tried hailing a cab from the corner of the street that he could see from where he is standing whilst she seem reaches into her pocket front pocket jeans as she looked at her phone before lifting it to her ears as he watches her answered the call.

It was not until for a while later did he draw his gaze away from her as he turned to continue walking into the building where he was originally headed towards to.

A/N:

Hello
Happy 2017! I hope that you guys are having a great start to the new year, and sorry about the delay in update for this fanfiction, I've just been rather dry in thinking up for the next chapter or a few more or so. I hope that you guys enjoy this new update though! Enjoy.