Note: Just a little filler. Sorry it's so short.
Two weeks later, Daine opened the door to the rooms she shared with Numair in the palace. He was sitting at his desk, translating a spell, leaning over it in a tensed way. His long, black hair was unconfined and getting in his way. Daine walked over to put it up for him. He jumped at her touch, not having noticed her until then.
"Oh, Daine." His dark, sensitive face was flustered, his voice tight. "Will you grab a book off the bookshelf for me? The blue one? Yeah, thanks." Numair thumbed through it eagerly, Daine already gone from his mind. She was about to ask how it was going when George's head popped into the room. Seeing Daine he grinned.
"Geez! Daine, you haven't been helping another barn cat give birth have you? You need to air this place out."
Numair grinned, showing white teeth, but he didn't look up from his desk.
"They should have killed you when you went back into battle," she mumbled.
"They almost did," George said, rubbing his bandaged arm. "Besides, you'd miss me sorely if I died, admit it."
Before Daine could retort, Numair looked up and said in a warm voice, his frustration gone, "What can we do for you George?"
"I was visiting Stefan and heard one of the horses was badly hurt." He looked at Daine.
"I'm coming."
When Daine got to the barn she saw a short woman with bright copper hair. She was short and muscular.
"Alanna!" Daine cried. The women hugged.
"My arm's fully healed," Alanna replied to the question yet to be asked, "but Darkmoon's another story."
Daine had recognized the dun horse. She set straight to work. Darkmoon had a badly broken foreleg. It took Daine hours to fully mend it. When she opened her eyes she was soaked with sweat.
Numair was sitting next to her. He gave her a napkin full of food. She ate it as if she hadn't eaten in days.
"You idiot," Numair growled. "You couldn't have taken even a little break? What possessed you to work so hard for so long?"
"Numair, you're scaring the horses." He was famous for his temper when he was worried about Daine. Of course, she had brought dinosaurs back to life and destroyed a whole palace when she thought Numair had been killed, so she was really a pot calling the kettle black. "I'm fine," she reassured him.
Getting up, she felt Darkmoon's leg. The break was fully healed.
George stepped out of the stall that held Beauty's Prince. He gave Daine one of his famous smiles that could melt even Queen Thayet's heart. "You seem surprised that she didn' take a break Numair. Don' you know her better'n that?"
Numair sighed.