17. The Apology and Thanks
Evin watched Alanna as she examined the ground of the forest that surrounded the village. The knights and Riders were prepared to leave for Corus, but Evin had decided to hang back to check the forest one last time. Evin fiddled with an arrow he had found embedded in a tree while he waited.
Alanna finally got to her feet and shook her head grimly. "If this was someone with the gift, then it is someone who is powerful enough to hide their magic from me."
Evin watched Alanna's face carefully. "But you don't think that someone with the gift caused this." He guessed.
Alanna gave him a bleak smile. "No. Because if they had someone with a gift that was that powerful…"
"They would have used the mage during their raids, just as they used Thorn." Evin finished gravely.
She nodded.
"But there were no tracks here. No footprints. No signs of anyone wandering through here." Evin said with frustration. "The Riders and I checked this area quite thoroughly. There were no bandits here waiting for us during the attack." Evin snapped the arrow he held in hands in half angrily.
"Do you think that it was her then? You think that it was just a trap?" Alanna asked quietly.
"No. Thorn is a good actor, but not that good. She wasn't faking that scene back in the village." he refuted. He let the arrow pieces drop to the ground.
"But if there were no bandits here waiting to attack us after seeing a signal, like Torhte and Asianna said, and there is no mage who is powerful enough…than who sent those arrows flying into the village?"
~~~~~~
"Tell me about your past, Thorn. The past you had before you ended up with the bandits." Alanna asked her curiously.
The company of knights and Riders had decided to stop for rest and lunch. Evin had suggested that he, Thorn, Brecc, Miri, and Alanna should go on a picnic.
"Well, there's isn't that much to tell." Thorn said slowly. "My father was the town drunk. My mother died when I was a little over five and Asianna only four. I don't remember much of her." Except when I dream of her, she thought silently to herself.
"Did you inherit your power from your mother then?" Miri asked.
"I suppose so. I'm not completely sure. However, my father always did refer to my mother as 'that strange witch'." Thorn's gaze fell to where her staff lay on the blanket beside her.
"That must have been very hard on you, to live a life like that." Miri shook her head. "I can't imagine myself living a past like that."
Thorn just shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I've gotten used to it. I haven't got anything to compare it to anyway."
Evin smoothly chose to change the subject right then, and he and Brecc started to banter with one another, bringing smiles to the others faces. And when it was time to set off again, Thorn was surprised to find that she had enjoyed the brief picnic.
"Lady Alanna." Thorn quickly stopped the knight before she was able to leave.
"Yes?"
"I--I just wanted to apologize. About what happened. At Pirate's Swoop." Thorn said haltingly. "About the roses and all."
Alanna smiled a rueful smile. "Not to worry. We were more surprised by it than anything else."
Thorn shook her head. "I shouldn't have done it. I was just…desperate to get to my sister." Thorn's voice faded into silence.
Alanna gave her a reassuring pat. "I completely understand. Don't worry." She turned to leave.
"Lady Alanna?"
She turned back to Thorn again.
"Do you think the king is …horribly angry at me for what I said?" Thorn asked hesitantly. It wasn't that she regretted angering him, it was just the fact that he was king and all…
The knight laughed. "Don't worry about Jon. Thayet and I got into him real good about losing his temper." She shook her head. "And they say that I have a horrible temper."
Thorn must have still looked a bit uncertain, because the knight came over to give her a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder. "Stop worrying. I'm sure that once you get to have a good talk with Jon, you'll both have better understandings of each other. He will be more understanding, Thorn. Don't worry. At least, just as long as you don't run off to the bandits again." Alanna gave her a wink.
"I also wanted to thank you. That was your shield that kept the arrows away when we were back at the village, wasn't it?"
"Yes, it was my protective shield. But you don't have to thank me." Alanna gave her an apologetic smile. "Let me be honest with you. Looking back at it in hindsight, I'm glad I was able to protect you, but at that moment, the only reason I made that shield was to protect Evin. If it was just you who had stood in the village center, I am not completely sure that I would have constructed my shield to protect you." Alanna glanced at her uncertainly. "I'm sorry, but --"
"There's no need to apologize, Lady Alanna." Thorn gave her a small, sad smile. "Besides. I wasn't thanking you for saving my life." Thorn said quietly. "I was thanking you for saving Evin's."
Alanna seemed to start in surprise at Thorn's words. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and then she gave Thorn an appraising look. Then she smiled. "Your welcome."
Thorn stood, watching the knight walk away. She felt more than saw Evin come to stand beside her.
"Alanna isn't the only person who deserves an apology. And a thanks." Thorn said quietly before turning to face Evin.
"Oh?" he said lightly.
She glanced at him nervously. "Thank you for protecting me, Evin. I probably would have died if you hadn't." She stared down at her hands and suddenly realized that her fingers were trembling.
She took a breath. "I'm sorry for what I said to you before. Back at Pirate's Swoop. I shouldn't have said those things. I shouldn't have taken my anger of the situation out on you. I'm sorry."
He put a finger to her chin and lifted her face until she was gazing into his serious blue eyes. "Never apologize for saying the truth."
She blinked. "What?"
He gave her a tired smile that was not at all like his usual roguish one. "The words…they were the truth, were they not?" he said. "You didn't feed me because you wanted to help me, you fed me because you wanted to arouse Torhte's anger."
"Evin--" she started to say.
Evin placed his fingers over her lips. "Truth, Thorn. Truth."
She stared at him. "All right, Evin. What I said was true, but I shouldn't have used the words to hurt you--"
"Shh, Thorn. No more words are necessary." He then leaned down and placed the softest of kisses on her lips.
