Kel and Neal walked into the dining hall. It was filled with chattering
pages. They scanned the room quickly for their friends, and, seeing no
one, they left.
"Well" commented Neal as they trudged back to their rooms "That was a complete waste of time"
"When I want your opinion-" Kel began, prodding Neal in the chest.
"Excuse me" boomed a man they had not seen earlier "could you direct me to the training master's office?' he continued in his deep baritone.
Kel gave him directions, then studied him as he left. He looked to be about forty; his dark brown hair was flecked with grey. His face was weathered, and his eyes were dark, and forbidding.
"A warrior, that one" Neal remarked "we're lucky to get him"
Surprised, Kel turned to him.
"What do you mean?" she asked
"You mean to say, Lady Knight, that this was your first glimpse of Padraig haMinch?" asked Neal, his slightly husky voice teasing.
"Well, we aren't all as educated as my lord of Queenscove" Kel retorted
"Sorry, sometimes I forget, you would've been in the Yamani Islands"
"What happened Neal?" Kel asked. She loved the way Neal re-created battle stories, the way he made them come to life. She sat with him in the stairwell, as he wove a tale of Scanrans and the NorthWatch Tower. She listened, eyes shining, as he spoke of the battle, which was a terrible risk for the Tortallans. They drove the Scanrans off, but they risked the capture of the border's first line of defense. When he had finished, he marveled at the look on her face.
"I thought everyone knew about the Battle of NorthWatch" he said finally.
"Well, now that you mention it," Kel said "I remember hearing something about that, but I was very young, about seven, and more concerned with fitting in on the Islands."
She smiled at Neal, that slow, sweet smile that made him catch his breath. Then she turned and continued climbing the stairs. He followed her, feeling his heart sink with every step as she began to talk about Cleon. How much she missed him, how she couldn't wait until he came home. And, the most hurtful, how love was right under her nose all along, and she couldn't see it. Neal walked her to her room, and stood there for a minute after she had closed the door. " I love you" he whispered under his breath.
"Well" commented Neal as they trudged back to their rooms "That was a complete waste of time"
"When I want your opinion-" Kel began, prodding Neal in the chest.
"Excuse me" boomed a man they had not seen earlier "could you direct me to the training master's office?' he continued in his deep baritone.
Kel gave him directions, then studied him as he left. He looked to be about forty; his dark brown hair was flecked with grey. His face was weathered, and his eyes were dark, and forbidding.
"A warrior, that one" Neal remarked "we're lucky to get him"
Surprised, Kel turned to him.
"What do you mean?" she asked
"You mean to say, Lady Knight, that this was your first glimpse of Padraig haMinch?" asked Neal, his slightly husky voice teasing.
"Well, we aren't all as educated as my lord of Queenscove" Kel retorted
"Sorry, sometimes I forget, you would've been in the Yamani Islands"
"What happened Neal?" Kel asked. She loved the way Neal re-created battle stories, the way he made them come to life. She sat with him in the stairwell, as he wove a tale of Scanrans and the NorthWatch Tower. She listened, eyes shining, as he spoke of the battle, which was a terrible risk for the Tortallans. They drove the Scanrans off, but they risked the capture of the border's first line of defense. When he had finished, he marveled at the look on her face.
"I thought everyone knew about the Battle of NorthWatch" he said finally.
"Well, now that you mention it," Kel said "I remember hearing something about that, but I was very young, about seven, and more concerned with fitting in on the Islands."
She smiled at Neal, that slow, sweet smile that made him catch his breath. Then she turned and continued climbing the stairs. He followed her, feeling his heart sink with every step as she began to talk about Cleon. How much she missed him, how she couldn't wait until he came home. And, the most hurtful, how love was right under her nose all along, and she couldn't see it. Neal walked her to her room, and stood there for a minute after she had closed the door. " I love you" he whispered under his breath.