~ Chapter 6 ~
Kenyon was standing in his stall when Keli finally found him. He said nothing as she gathered grooming brushes and set to work on his coat. She was so immersed in her task she didn't notice when Tristen started grooming Kenyon's other side.
"I'm sorry if I am hovering." Tris said suddenly.
Keli jumped and dropped her brush. "How long have you been there?"
"I thought you were ignoring me." Tristen admitted sheepishly.
Keli shook her head and willed her heart to slow down. "I am just used to being alone in the Stable. I am sorry if I am a little on edge."
Keli bent to pick up the brush and started grooming Kenyon again. She watched Tristen more than she watched what she was brushing. In her dream she had thought he was Rodry at first, even though he looked like Tristen. It was more than just his calling her Sia. Little Empress and Ice Princess were also names Rodry used for her for that matter.
Keli paused and stared at Tristen. :Solaris?: She called.
The Firecat walked nonchalantly in the door.
:Are you the Solaris, the one who is currently the leader of Karse?: Keli asked directly.
If Solaris had eyebrows they would have risen in shock. :Why do you ask?:
:I want to know if Reincarnation is possible.: Keli didn't break eye contact with the Cat.
:Why ask me?: Solaris stalled.
Keli levelled her best imperious gaze on Sola. :Because I am more likely to get a straight answer out of you than Kenyon.:
:Are you going to give up?: Soalris asked with a sigh.
:No.: Kali answered honestly.
Kenyon lipped at her tunic and suddenly her head felt a little funny.
"Hmm, odd." She frowned. She had the distinct impression that she had just forgot something.
"What?" Tristen looked up with concern.
"I just forgot something. This is going to bug me for days." Keli resumed brushing. "I rarely forget something."
Solaris padded around the stall until she was under Kenyon's nose. :She may have found some comfort.: She commented only to the Companion.
:You know exactly where she was going with that line of questioning.: Kenyon defended himself.
:She may be feeling guilty for all the people who will not be born because of her actions. Knowing they would still exist would give her some peace.: Solaris insisted.
:Perhaps. However, she wouldn't stop there. She beats an idea to death before surrendering it. You haven't been with her these last few years. This is the eighth time she has almost come up with the truth.: Kenyon responded, exasperated.
:Poor horse, he Chose a genius.: Solaris laughed. :Honestly, she isn't bonding with you very well.:
Kenyon hung his head slightly. :I know. She doesn't realise she is blocking me out.:
:What can you do?: Solaris asked and looked up at the silent Keli.
:I don't know.: Kenyon sighed.
"Do you need some help with your Companion?" Keli asked as they finished with Kenyon.
"I already groomed her but she says she would like to meet you." Tris led her outside where a delicate mare was waiting.
"Sia, this is Caewen." Tristen introduced.
"I am pleased to meet you Caewen." Keli greeted the Companion.
Caewen dipped her head in greeting.
"She says that she is just as pleased to meet you." Tris relayed with a laugh that told Keli that wasn't all she said.
"This has changed a great deal." Keli surveyed the field.
"How so?" Tristen surveyed their surroundings.
"The Collegiums were all gone. The palace was much larger. The stables were torn down a century ago. There weren't nearly as many people living here." Keli listed off.
"Home sick?" Tristen asked.
"A little." Keli shrugged. Tristen knew she was lying.
"Shall we go for a ride?" Tris suggested hoping to take her mind off the differences.
Keli shook her head. "No. I should go speak to Teren. It was nice meeting you Caewen. See you later Tristen."
Tristen watched as she walked away.
:She is very nice.: Caewen commented. :I like her.:
"So do I." Tris stroked Caewen's neck absently. "I like her a great deal."
:Hard to compete with a memory.: Caewen commented knowledgably. :We leave tomorrow.:
"I know." Tris sighed. "I wonder if she'll still be here a year from now."
~*~
Tristen was checking his bags one last time before going to lunch when someone knocked on his door.
"Come in." He called absently.
"I need to speak with you." Teren opened the door. "Would you mind if you don't go on Circuit immediately?"
"Why? Is this about Keli?" Tristen guessed.
"Yes." Teren was looking rather frazzled. "I still don't understand where she is from or how she got here."
"It is rather hard to believe." Tristen agreed.
"The long and short of it is we feel she needs someone here and the only one she has trusted so far is you." Teren ran his hand through his hair and started to pace. "Elspeth says she has unbelievable mage potential and if she lost control of it she could easily destroy Haven."
"So you want me to remain to keep her balanced?" Tris clarified.
"Something along those lines. Talia doesn't think she is ready to deal with a class yet, so we would appreciate it if you could start her teaching." Teren explained.
"I am not a teacher." Tristen protested. "I'll give it my best go but I don't know how effective I'll be."
"That is the best we can do for now." Teren sighed. "I have never heard of any Herald trying to reject her Companion. I wish I knew what to do about her."
Tristen thought for a moment. "Perhaps if she spent more time with her Companion and away from Haven. Every time she sees something that reminds her of her home she withdraws."
"Where would you recommend taking her?" Teren asked.
"My brother has a massive library, she could start studying there. He has been asking that I go for a visit." Tristen suggested after a moment's thought.
Teren nodded slowly. "That could work. Give her a chance to adjust to Valdemar."
"I'll talk to her if you want." Tristen offered.
"Thank you. I'll leave it up to you two as to when you leave." Teren said gratefully.
Tristen dumped the contents his bags on his bed and started to repack. He would need more than just uniforms for visiting his brother and he wouldn't need soap and such.
By the time the lunch bell rang he was completely repacked and went in search of Keli. He found her in the library half way through reading a heavy tome of history.
"Hitting the books already?" He asked as he took a seat across from her.
"Teren isn't certain when he can fit me in to a class but I see no harm in some studying ahead." Keli said explained.
Tristen leaned forward and was shocked to see what page number she was on. "Have you read that far already?"
"I am a speed reader." She explained. "It became a necessity if I was going to read everything I needed to and still have time to sleep."
Tristen decided to change the subject before she had a chance to withdraw again. "I am making a trip home, would you care to join me? I already cleared it with Teren."
Keli immediately shook her head. "I wouldn't want to impose."
"You could use a break before having to face classes and I would welcome some company. And the Midsummer break is in just a week or two, there wouldn't be any classes then." Tristen cajoled.
Keli hesitated. "If you are certain I wouldn't be in the way."
"You won't be." Tristen assured her.
"I could use them time to study." She closed the book.
"My brother is going to adore you." Tris laughed.
"He is bookish?" Keli asked.
"He has a massive library where he spends at least half his day there. The other half is in the Salle." Tristen explained.
"He sounds interesting." Keli noticed the fond note in his voice, obviously the brothers were close. "I hate to ask a favour, but is it possible for you to accompany me into the city this afternoon?"
Tristen was taken aback at the request. "Why?"
Keli blushed. "I am a little uncomfortable in the uniforms."
"Is it the lack of colour?" Tristen asked, he thought she looked good in the uniforms but he noticed women tended to have different notions of what looked good on them.
"No. It's nothing like that. I am used to wearing white every time I am official. It's partly the fit and I just don't feel right wearing them. Sola had the foresight to sneak some jewels into the packs, I can sell those to pay for the clothing." Keli explained.
"We can go after lunch. Speaking of which, the bell should ring in a few minutes."
Keli glanced at her watch. "You're right."
"What is that?" Tristen gestured to her watch.
"My watch, basically a little clock." Keli offered it to him.
"I thought they needed pendulums to keep accurate time." He examined her watch and returned it.
"Not in my time." Keli replaced the watch. She hauled the book back to its place on the shelf and replaced it.
Tristen let her lead the way down the stairs just as the bell rang.
Keli chose a seat in the corner away from many of the other students.
"What is your family like?" Keli asked.
"My parents died years ago. Before I was Chosen my brother was raising me, he is rather absent-minded but when you get him going on some of his pet subjects he won't stop for candlemarks. Just a warning, one is history." Tristen warned.
Keli grimaced. "I know if you don't understand history, you are doomed to repeat it, but I really dislike history classes."
Tris laughed. "Don't worry, our history classes are actually very interesting. Almost like listening to the Bards tell tales."
"Bards?" Keli asked dubiously. "I know I am going to sound foolish, but what is a bard?"
Tris was taken aback. "You don't have bards?"
"No." Keli admitted.
"Well, they are musicians, but they are much more than that." Tristen tried to explain. "You'd have to hear them to understand."
"I wonder how many other things I need to know about." Keli said absently.
"You probably have as much to teach us as we have to teach you, like your watch. Keep that away from the Artificers or it will go missing very quickly."
Keli glanced at her watch. "I could just tell them it is magic."
"Knowing them they would still want to take it apart." Tristen cautioned.
Keli pulled her sleeve down to cover her watch. "I'll be certain to keep it out of sight then."
"Are you trying to hide her again?" Deverell sat down next to Tris.
Tristen felt a stab of jealousy towards his friend.
"We aren't hiding. Tristen is helping me by explaining some of the differences of Valdemar." Keli explained.
"Like what?" Dev asked.
"Can you explain what Bards are?" Keli asked.
Deverell pondered it for a moment. "Well, they are musicians but-"
"But they are more than that." Keli finished. "That is exactly what Tris said."
"It is a little hard to explain." Dev admitted. "What other questions do you have?"
"What do you use to tell time? What is your currency based on? What are the main forms of communication? How wide spread is crime and where is it concentrated? What are the Healing gifts?" Keli started.
Dev stopped her before she continued. "I think Tris is better at answering these questions."
Tris nearly choked on his food. "Oh, I doubt I could answer the majority of those questions. We use special marked candles and clocks, but clocks are very expensive. Our currency is based on the value of metals, silver, gold copper and such. The rest you would be better off asking Talia or maybe Kyril."
"How about-" Keli started.
"Do you think we can answer it?" Tris stopped her.
Keli sighed. He was right. "Very well. What does the Heralds training cover?"
"You don't ask little questions, do you?" Dev laughed.
"There is history, law, jurisprudence, geography, and weapons. All of them go more in depth than you can imagine." Tris explained.
"Not to mention mathematics, and courtly manners." Deverell added.
"I have a great deal to cover then." Keli commented.
:Before you go running back to the library, would you mind sharing?: Solaris looked up at her from under the table.
"I wondered where you were." Keli greeted her and offered her some bacon.
Solaris gave her a 'mysterious cat' look and accepted the treat.
"Your cat again? I have never heard of any other trainee bringing a pet." Dev commented.
"Would you argue with a cat that size?" Tris asked.
Solaris took the seat next to Keli. :Of course not, only a fool would argue with me.: She said imperiously.
"Well, I have to get going. I have a class now. See you two later." Dev bid them farewell.
"Are you done?" Tristen asked.
"Yes." Keli pushed away her plate then looked down at Sola, "Are you done?"
:Don't you worry about me, the other students will share.: Solaris teased as they left.
"You have a saddle, right?" Tristen asked hopefully.
"Yes, I brought my own." Keli assured him.
Caewen and Kenyon were waiting outside the stables for them. They each retrieved their saddles and bridles and tacked up their Companions.
Keli noticed Tris casting questioning glances at her odd saddle.
"It was designed for me." She explained. "It doesn't fit Kenyon as well as it should. I'll have to see about having a new saddle made for him."
:It fits well enough.: Kenyon assured her. :I am certain Tristen could show you how to fix it later.:
"Kenyon suggests I ask you for help with fitting the saddle to him." Keli swung into the saddle.
"We can do that later." Tristen followed suit. "It shouldn't take us long to get to the shop."
Keli was honestly amazed at the differences in Haven. The buildings were packed tightly together and if the roads weren't so wide no light would reach the street because the buildings were so tall. She wondered what the architects were on when they created the additions to these houses. Whatever it was it should be banned.
"Are we going in the circle?" She asked after a while.
"The road spirals around the city. It is a defensive measure." Tristen explained. The longer they take to get to the palace the longer we have to prepare.
"Interesting. My Haven has more twists and turns and shows a total lack of forethought." Keli commented.
"Originally Haven was designed so if we were attacked everyone could seek shelter in the city and hopefully the walls and the road would keep the invaders out." Tristen explained.
"There are more walls? I guess because we were in the heart of an empire by then and we weren't thinking in terms of a defensible city." Keli
"There's the jewellery shop." Tris pointed ahead of them.
"Good." They dismounted in front of the store. Keli had the gems she was willing to sell in a pouch under her tunic.
The shopkeeper smiled a greeting. "What business would two Heralds have with a jewellery store?" She asked genially.
"I have some jewellery to sell." Keli said honestly. She pulled the plain necklace out of the pouch. While finely made, it was not very creative or remarkable. It was links of fine gold with small emeralds set inside each link.
"Finely made." The jeweller examined the gems with her instruments. "Quality gems too."
:Ask for 30 gold.: Kenyon urged. :Don't go lower than 25.:
"How much do you want?" The jeweller asked returning the necklace.
"Thirty gold pieces." Keli said.
"It isn't worth half that." The jeweller argued. "I can't go over fifteen gold."
Tristen watched, amazed, as Keli bargained like a horse trader and got twenty-seven gold pieces for the jewellery.
"Where did you learn that?" Tris asked once they were outside.
"I used to own some horses." Keli paused for her eyes to adjust to the light.
"Sia, watch out!" Tris called just as Keli was knocked down so hard she saw stars.