Chapter 6: At Last, Haven.
They started down the hill and into the city, the smell of clay and bread and any other tradeshop they could think of engulfed the air and hung there heavily as they rode through the city streets with peddlers and merchants locking up for the evening.
Lamps hung over the street, unlit now but they passed a man with a ladder and a mule carrying lamp oil and sparkers, someone Sophi assumed to be the lamptender. A small girl and a boy walked along side a woman who was carrying a pallet of bread, the girl giggled as she looked up to Sophi and blushed when Sophi looked back, giving her a little wave. It was a charming place, and this seemed to be all little shops that were owned by families, trade places that were all crowded together, not an inch of space was taken for granted here.
"Do you think the entire city is like this?" She called back to Tanja, slowing gradually to come up and ride next to her.
"I doubt it, remember, the outskirts are all trade places and crowded, then in the inner-city walls there are taverns and well off homing, then there's finally the castle gates. It gets a lot more spread out as well." Tanja nodded in a matter of fact way. "I studied up." She grinned to her, who in turn made a face at her, before grinning as well.
"Rub it in, why don't you."
"I think I will, thank you." She looked back ahead again as they closed in on a monster of a wall. "Whoa...Karal wasn't kidding when he said the outer city walls were huge." She blinked as she looked up over them, guards were guarding every inch of them as well, as they well enough proved as they were stopped a couple times inside of the large tunnel, but then waved through once they saw they were riding Companions.
"Another tunnel. They last time I let you drag me through a tunnel I woke up in a nightmarish ride through hell," Sophi grinned and cast a sidelong gaze to Tanja, who chuckled.
"I'm never going to live that one down, now am I?" Tanja shook her head as they walked out of the tunnel finally.
"Not likely," Sophi smiled a little as she looked down to the walkway now, hoping to get a look at the odd pavement everyone was always talking about. It looked an awful like cement to her, but smoother for some reason. "Huh, they were right about the paths too, they're really strange."
"Hmm?" Tanja then looked down as well. "Oh, yea they are kind of goofy aren't they. Like cement sidewalks but not quite."
"My thoughts exactly!" Sophi grinned up to her as she sat up again and looked around at all the taverns, which were all still buzzing busily with conversation. "Think the Compass Rose is around here?"
"Maybe, but you know that's where the blues like Natoli hang around. We wouldn't really fit in that well." Tanja shrugged and looked around a bit, pushing the mare back again.
Sophi looked up ahead as well, yawning as she realized she was really quite tired and truly wanted some place to sleep for a while.
::Don't worry, we're almost there, just a moment longer.:: Ezra spoke up suddenly, making Sophi nearly bite her tongue off. She nodded slightly and patted Ezra's neck softly, hoping that he was very right, but the way they were going they seemed to be twisting and turning in every direction except ahead.
She sighed and simply hung around for the ride, not really caring anymore if they got anywhere later, rather than sooner. Ezra's ride was so much nicer and smoother than the mares and she was simply grateful for that fact, she was so used to struggling to stay on, this seemed like a walk in the clouds for her.
"Ah! Who do weh 'ave 'ere!?" A loud voice boomed behind the two as they confronted a smaller gateway, presumably to the castle grounds.
Sophi and Tanja both nearly jumped out of their skin as the gruff voice addressed them. Laughing soon followed as a short, stubby man appeared at their side, holding a tin lantern up to them.
"Eh, hello," Tanja began slowly.
"'Allow Thea'! Who do weh 'ave?" He brushed of the hemming of Anaya's saddle and held the lantern to it, leaning close enough to where Sophi could even see his bristly orange beard and puffy eyebrows. "Anaya. Welcome home Lady-love!" He grinned at the Companion and walked to Ezra, repeating the same gestures. "Ezra," He paused a moment and tried out the name again. "Ezra, hmm, well, welcome home mi," he paused again and looked him over. "milord."
Ezra snorted and pawed the ground.
::See what I mean?:: Sophi playfully teased. ::Sounds like a girl's name.::
::Hush, now you see what I deal with!:: His voice was colored with impatience.
"An' the rider's names?" The guard's voice called her back to reality.
"Tanja and Solphin," Tanja responded quickly, just making a point to bother Sophi about her name. The guard took note of the names and made a face, leaning in close to Sophi.
"Solphin? Eh, well it seems yerself and Ezra are meant ta be togetha'!" He laughed a bit as Sophi and Ezra both snorted, glowering.
::How rude! Honestly!:: Sophi thought sharply to Ezra.
::No doubt his name is no better.:: Ezra told her gruffly, obviously annoyed by all this name business.
She nodded and sat back in the saddle, holding her reins in one hand as she looked down her nose at the guard, trying to seem taller than she really was.
"And what is your name, milord guard?" She asked him smartly.
"Ah, Carn be me name, aftah me gran'da." he nodded proudly and beamed, puffing his chest out.
Sophi heard Ezra grumble in the back of her mind as her scraped a hoof against the ground in a very annoyed fashion. ::Perhaps it is then.:: She simply nodded.
"Well-met then, Carn. We're rather tired actually and would like a bed and perhaps a bit to eat, if we could, that is of course," Tanja spoke up before Sophi and Ezra could get in another shot or two, or go into one of her long speeches.
He nodded and waved them through the privy gate. "O' course yewl 'ave food an' a bed! Where do yew think this be? Karse!?" He laughed heartily as he followed after with the gray mare as another guard locked the gate behind them with a heavy key.
There they found another two guards and two stable hands, one who took the gray mare, the other offered to help each of them dismount, murmuring softly to Ezra.
Sophi wrinkled her nose in suspicious as she looked over the young stablehand warily.
::Don't worry, Zephen is trustworthy. I've known him as long as I've been here.:: Ezra spoke up drowsily, his eyes already half closed. That was another odd thing, Ezra looked to be a little older, but this stablehand must've only been around eleven or so. Of course what did she know about Companions and how fast they grew?
::Tired already? You baby!:: Sophi teased a bit.
::You're not as light as you look.:: He turned his head a bit and winked before he let Zephen lead him away.
Sophi stuck the tip of her tongue out at Ezra as he left, swinging his hind half at her tauntingly, his tail still catching odd bits of light and reflecting them back at her.
"Befo'e we get yew to rooms, we must fin' the Orientation Instructah ta show yew about. That means we're off to the Collegium." Carn spoke up as he lead them away from the gate. "Dun't worry 'bout ya bags, they'll be taken apart an' cleaned an' brough' to yer rooms again." They nodded and followed quickly after Carn.
The castle grounds seemed so much larger than they looked. Companion's field was off in the left as well as the sheds and other small buildings, the Collegiums looked as if they were off in the back, to the right and left behind the castle. The gardens seemed to be, well...everywhere. There were paths cut into them that would nearly go everywhere and anywhere you wanted to go.
Sophi made an attempt at remembering the paths Carn took, but once again her memory failed miserably and she gave up somewhere between the back gardens and the Heraldic Collegium. So she simply followed him around blindly through the decorative shrubbery.
Carn talked happily about this and that, how they never thought Anaya and Ezra would find Chosen and how they were getting to be the oldest in the fields without Chosen and all of that. Sophi wasn't really paying much attention, but could fake with the best. Whenever Carn had asked a question, or laughed she nodded or chuckled politely, just to be kind, of course.
Tanja was a bit more reserved, watching the gardens and the servants quietly, returning a careful nod from another student in Grays every so often.
At one point, Carn stopped to talk to another wandering servant, or so it looked to be a wandering servant in the pale light. The two talked quietly a moment or two, the servant casting glances to them every once in a while.
::Well they seem to be having a lovely time.:: Tanja told Sophi, rather annoyed by the sound of it.
::So I've noticed, what could be so interesting from a servant?:: Sophi sent back bitterly, crossing her arms expectantly.
::Servant? Huh, I thought they looked like Grays to me. I could be mistaken in this light, though.:: Sophi scratched her head softly, running a hand through her hair. Tanja leaned a little closer in hopes to catch a better view from the light.
At that chosen moment Carn turned with half a gesture, almost hitting Tanja in the side if she hadn't moved out of the way at the last second.
"This be them. Tanja and Solphin, the two that came in on Anaya an' Ezra." He gave a sort of grin back to them. "This be Sheila, she can take yew to the Orientation Instructa. I need be gettin' back to the fron'." At that he nodded to them both and turned back down the hall the way they came.
They watched after him a moment, then turned back again to face Sheila. At a closer look, her student Grays shown against the pale light, plain enough to be mistaken as servant livery. Sheila smiled a bit to the two, speaking carefully to the two until she knew if they were used to the tongue.
"I don't know how much Carn told you about this place, but that can wait. Right now we need to get you to the QuarterMaster. After that, we'll see if we can find the Orientation Instructor, Dirk," at that she started down the hall at a quick pace.
Sophi paused, looking to Tanja in awe, wondering if she caught all of that. Tanja herself looked very wary and a bit confused. All the better, now Sophi knew she wasn't imagining things.
They started after Sheila quickly, so not to lose her in the halls, all the while something nagging at Sophi in the back of her mind.
They had understood Sheila quite well, perfectly as a matter of fact, but while Carn spoke one language to them, English, Sheila spoke another. Yet they still understood this new language, perhaps more of Vanyel's doing? That was the only solution she could think of, but what else had he done to help them? She furrowed her brows and stared ahead intently, thinking to herself as she listened to the tapping of feet along the halls.