The days on the road passed almost in a blur to Kit. Talin had guided her through the proper use of a Waystation, so most of their nights were fairly comfortable. Frequently, they arrived early enough for Kit to set a snare or two for a rabbit, which was a nice change from traveling rations for dinner. She also spent some time every evening stringing and drawing the bow that had belonged to Herald Tarin. Powyll had been right, it was a difficult draw but the frequent practice was building her strength and three quarters of the way into their journey, Kit was easily able to draw it and hold it steady.
After the first few days, she had carefully cleaned and put her black jerkin and breeches away, wanting to keep them nice for her arrival in Haven. Perhaps it was being vain, but Kit did want to be a credit to the Brightwoods when she arrived.
As her father had told her, getting fresh provisions was as easy as riding up to a Guard post and requesting them. Talin always drew a lot of attention from the children they met in the towns and the two of them would happily spend a few moments letting the young ones stroke the Companion's coat and tell him how beautiful he was. It suited Talin's conceit to be admired and helped Kit overcome missing her siblings and cousins.
At long last late one afternoon, they trotted up to a Waystation as Talin informed this would be their last stop before arriving in Haven. Kit had fed Talin, groomed him, struggled through washing her hair and was skinning a huge rabbit for dinner when the Companion made another announcement.
:We will have company shortly. Fala with Herald Jarel and Parlin with Herald Rhys.:
"How long before they get here?"Kit asked anxiously, as she was suddenly aware that her hair was still hanging in damp ringlets and that the shirt she had on was rather travel-stained.
:You have time to change your shirt and braid your hair. You are as vain as I am.:
"It's not vanity!" she protested. "I've never met a Herald before, I don't want to look like a ragamuffin when I do!"
:Be quick then, I haven't seen Fala in quite some time and I'm certain my mane has a few tangles from rolling.: Talin sent, his tone teasing. :She's quite pretty, I want to look my best too.:
Kit dashed inside the Waystation, changed her shirt, braided her hair and was grooming Talin for the second time that evening as she heard the sound of hooves approaching. Two Companions trotted in, along with two pack-laden horses. Kit stood up straight and hoped her hurried braid didn't look too messy as the men in Whites approached. Both men were well-armed as well, with swords and daggers on their belts in addition to the bow cases on their saddles.
The older Herald, with dark brown hair and gray eyes in a pleasant round face, smiled as he saw her with Talin. "Hello there," he called, his easy tenor ringing in open area around the Waystation. "When Fala told me Talin had at last managed to leave the ladies of Companions Field long enough to find a Chosen, I thought she was joking." He dismounted and offered Kit his hand. "I'm Herald Jarel Linden and this is Fala. This is my intern; please meet Herald Rhys Hawksworth and Companion Parlin."
The Herald's friendliness had put Kit instantly at ease and she smiled back at Jarel as she took his hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you all sir. I'm Kitain Brightwood."
"Any relation to Arianwen Brightwood?" the second Herald asked as he joined Jarel, his resonant baritone sending an unaccustomed thrill down Kit's spine.
"She's my older sister!" Kit exclaimed. "You know her?"
"Not well, but she helped one of the other Healers patch up my year-mate Galen and I after one of our more rambunctious escapades last winter. Apparently your sister doesn't agree that practicing sword work on ice was a good idea."
"I'm sure she did not," Kit giggled as she tried not to stare at Rhys, the thought registering in her mind that he was one of the best looking men she had ever seen. He was taller than Jarel by half a head and broader in the shoulder, with black hair and amber eyes. Something in his bearing reminded Kit of the fierce wolves that would descend on the farmsteads during hard winters at home. "Ari doesn't have a lot of patience when someone gets hurt because they didn't use their common sense."
"She has you there," Jarel chortled as Rhys looked faintly insulted. "That wasn't the smartest thing you and Galen ever did. The Herald-Captain chewed them up good over it too."
Catching the look on Rhys' face, Kit added, "I suspect Ari was much nicer to you than she always has been with me and my brothers...and my cousins." She was rewarded when the grin returned.
"Brothers and cousins?" Rhys asked. "Do you have a large family?"
"Big enough," she giggled. "Besides Ari, I have two brothers, Kye and Bran. Then there are my three cousins, Gareth, Gwyan and Lenor. Gareth's in Haven too, I think he fancies himself as the captain of a Guard troop one day. That, or he's using the opportunity to find himself a rich wife with lands of her own so he won't be beholden to Father granting him some."
"Grant him some land? I should have known Talin would Choose himself a highborn girl," Jarel chuckled. "He's too conceited to settle for plain shepherd's son like my Fala did." Indignant snorts from two Companions told the human trio Fala's and Talin's opinions.
Kit was puzzled by Jarel's words. "What's wrong with being a shepherd's son? Without shepherds to tend sheep no one would have wool. Father and Uncle Sean would have our hides if we treated anyone on our lands without respect."
Jarel looked a trifle surprised. "You have some interesting opinions for a lord's daughter. It often takes some time for highborn Chosen to lose their ideas about a person's worth based on his birth. Just ask Rhys."
"Maybe it's because Kitain wasn't raised as a Court brat like me. I was a pretty arrogant fool at fifteen, fortunately Parlin saw some worth underneath," Rhys said wryly. Parlin nudged his Chosen affectionately. "Yes, I know, you were wiser than I," he told the Companion as he scratched Parlin's neck. "Let's get you comfortable, shall we?"
Kit volunteered to help with the pack horses, knowing that it would leave more time for the Heralds to look after their Companions, something she would like in the same situation. "Leave the packs here," Jarel told her as he brushed Fala. "We'll tote them inside in a bit."
"Yes sir," Kit said, a bit relieved as the weight of them had been a lot for her to ease off the horses.
"And you don't have to call me sir. Jarel is fine, but if you must be formal, Herald Jarel will serve," he chuckled.
"Yes s--Herald Jarel," Kit corrected herself, "but only if you call me Kit. Kitain is usually what I hear when I'm in trouble. Do you like rabbit? I was feeling guilty because I snared a big one and it was more than I really needed."
"A highborn girl who knows how to snare and cook rabbits?" Rhys asked with a laugh. "The only thing I ever learned to hunt was deer and we had servants to dress and serve it."
"Father says knowing how to hunt does you no good if you don't know how to use your prey," Kit told him primly, a little shocked at the idea of a servant dressing her kill.
"Your father sounds like a more practical man than mine," Rhys assured her. "Don't lose that wisdom, you will find your years as a trainee will go much easier with it intact."
Being just out from Haven, the Heralds had fresh bread and cheese, so Kit's last supper on the road was more of a feast than she anticipated. They stayed up past moonrise while Jarel and Rhys told her about life at the Collegium and what she could expect her first days to be like. Rhys would be serving his internship along the western border and they talked about how the area was different than where Kit had grown up. Jarel also shared his experiences growing up in the east.
"I will have to wait for years before I get to see that much of Valdemar," she sighed regretfully. "I don't know if I can stand it."
"They'll keep you so busy in training you will barely realize time is passing," Rhys said. "You'll get out of Haven some too, trainees do have to learn tactics and training that can't all be taught in a classroom."
"Good, too much book study makes my eyes cross," Kit laughed through a stifled yawn.
"Classes are not all books," Jarel told her. "I suspect you will like it better than you think. You won't have long to get started either, Talin was the only Companion still out when we left, so Orientation for you and your year-mates will begin once you arrive." The Herald's eyes grew distant for a moment and then he smiled. "Fala tells me that Talin isn't pleased that we are keeping you up so late. Go to bed Kit."
Kit didn't really want to go, but she suddenly realized that her eyes were heavy. She was so sleepy she barely managed to take off her boots and brush out her hair as she crawled into her bedroll.
:Good night, beloved.: Talin's Mindvoice brushed through her as gently as a whisper as Kit drifted off into slumber.
As the door shut behind Kit, Jarel realized that Rhys was looking after her with a strange expression on his face. "She's a bit young for one of your usual conquests," the older Herald teased, knowing how popular his intern had been with the girls at the Collegium.
"Conquest?" Rhys glared it his mentor. "I'm hardly going to pursue a first-year, besides most of my so-called conquests were pursuits that I finally gave in to, rather than the other way around. I was actually thinking how much easier my early years of training would have gone if my father were more like hers."
"Good for you!" Jarel exclaimed as he got to his feet. "We may make a fine Herald out of you yet."
"Which of the seven hells would you like to find yourself in?" Rhys growled in mock threat, drumming his fingers on the hilt of his sword. Jarel didn't bother to reply, thinking Rhys was perhaps protesting too much. Not that it mattered, since with his intern year ahead, Rhys' romantic activities would be have little time for indulgence.
In the morning, by mutual consent, the two Heralds had broken their fast and made ready to leave without waking Kit, both knowing from experience that she had a long day ahead of her. The girl surprised them, awakening just as they were taking their packs out of the Waystation.
"We left you some hot tea, porridge and the last of the bread for breakfast," Rhys told her quietly, trying not to stare at how Kit looked with her disheveled hair tumbling over her shoulders as she blinked sleepily and stretched after she got up. Damn it, she's still a child, he told himself firmly, even you aren't that bad. "Consider it payback for serving us rabbit last night."
"You are welcome," Kit yawned, realizing as she looked up at him that Rhys was taller than her father. Lady-Bright, she thought, Father's over six feet himself. After pouring herself some tea, she wandered outside to scratch Talin's favorite spot on his back as the Heralds tacked up their Companions and made ready to leave. "Safe journey," she told them as they mounted, "and thank you for telling me a little about what to expect in Haven."
"You come from a large family, you'll fit in fine," Jarel reassured her. "Heralds are all big family too."
"Wind in your hair, little bit," Rhys said over his shoulder with a smile that left Kit dazzled as he turned Parlin down the path from the Waystation. She stared after him until they were out of sight.
:You like him. I knew you would, he's much like me, except that he has two legs rather than four. You couldn't be expected to resist.:
Kit found herself blushing at Talin's words. "Don't be silly, I like both of them, they were very nice."
:Of course.: was Talin's only comment as his Chosen flounced back into the Waystation to finish her breakfast. The Companion's next thought was not directed at Kit, but further away. :That went well don't you think? It's convenient that Rhys just happened to be leaving for his internship yesterday, I feared we would have to wait longer for introductions.:
:Fala helped a lot with the leaving part, she knew you were coming long back before I did, she's better at those things than I.: Parlin admitted. :The seed was well planted, my Chosen is still thinking about a young red-head from the north. See you in a year or so, little brother.:
:Aye. Watch yourself in the Comb, the winters are vicious there.:
:As we both know from experience.: Parlin laughingly sent back. :Get your Chosen to Haven, so our plan can move along.:
"Lady-Bright!" Kit gasped as she stared down at the city of Haven, its walls gleaming in the late afternoon sun. "It's huge!"
:Your father's holdings are bigger than Haven is, why do you say that: Talin asked as he started down the hill toward the gate.
"But it's a city and filled with more people than I have ever seen in one place." Kit was awestruck by the vista before her. She was not so awestruck once they entered however, the stenches of a big city were overwhelming to a girl raised in forests and fields. The crowds and noise were a new experience to her as well and equally unpleasant. The only good thing she noticed was that people tended to move aside for a Companion, so their progress toward the Collegium grounds was fairly swift. At last they approached a small gate where a woman in the midnight blue and silver of the Palace guard stood. The guardswoman opened the gate and smiled.
"Welcome back, Companion Talin," she said and her smile was friendly as she looked up at Kit. "Greetings to you also Kitain Brightwood."
"How did you know my name?" Kit asked in astonishment.
"We have our ways," the guard chuckled as she raised a clipboard in her hand. "You're home now, young one. Come on down." Kit dismounted as she waved them through the gate. "Welcome to the Herald's Collegium."
A second guard met her just inside. "Here, I'll take Talin for you and Sheyna will get you where you need to go."
"But—" Kit began in protest, unable to bear the thought of not caring for Talin herself.
:All is well, Chosen. Go with the guardswoman.:
At the same time, Sheyna assured her as well. "Don't worry, Talin will be taken care of and your things will find you shortly. Now come along."
A candlemark later, Kit was laden with Grays and following her mentor, a third year Trainee named Valya down the hall of the girl's dormitory to her new room. Valya was a fair-haired young woman with eyes almost as green as Kit's and a bubbly personality that reminded Kit so much of her cousin Lenor that she had liked her immediately. She also liked the way Valya had wrinkled her nose and insisted that she preferred to be called Val when the Dean had introduced them.
"Phew, it's a little stuffy in here," Val stated as she opened the door. "Let's get a window open and it won't be so bad." By the time Kit's uniforms were put away and her personal items mostly unpacked, the room had freshened up considerably with the breeze coming in. "What's this?" Val asked, holding up one of the bottles from the bottom of Kit's saddle bag.
"It's a rosehip rinse. Mother makes them for our hair, keeps the red bright, she says. It smells good too." Kit giggled as she broke the seal and offered the uncorked bottle to Val.
"Oh that is nice!" the girl agreed. "Does it work for blondes?"
"Marigold and calendula flowers are better for that color. Mother makes those for Aunt Gillian and my cousin Lenor," Kit told her. "I know how to do those too; I bet I can get Ari to help me find the right things to make some for you."
"Who is Ari?" Val asked.
"My sister Arianwen, she's at the Healer's Collegium. Oh," Kit gasped, "she doesn't even know I'm here! How do I find her?"
"I can help you with that after dinner," Val told her, "but first you have to have a bath and get into your uniform. Baths every day before dinner, that's the rule."
"A real bath? That sounds so good, I haven't had one in weeks," Kit groaned. "Trying to wash up in one of those tiny little pots at the Waystations was an ordeal, let alone washing my hair."
"Weeks? Where are you from?" Val asked.
"The northwestern edge of the Forest of Sorrows," Kit told her.
"That is a long way," Val agreed. "I was lucky, I'm from Haven. My father is head of the blacksmith's guild here. Nestor just had to trot me through the city when I was Chosen. I'm surprised you can sit down."
"I'm used to riding, Father insisted that we all be good at it, but a long day hunting hadn't really prepared me for weeks in the saddle. My backside is going to be as happy with a bath as the rest of me," Kit chuckled ruefully.
Val laughed with her. "I'm sure it is."
By the time the dinner bell sounded, Kit was gloriously clean and in her first set of Grays. Val guided her to the dining hall and over to a table with four boys about her age. "Everyone, this is Kit, Talin's Chosen, she just got in this afternoon." Kit took her seat as Val completed the introductions. "Meet Solon, Cory, Mikel and Joren, your year-mates. Joren's my little brother, so if he bothers you too much, I'll take care of it."
"Thanks sis, we'll take it from here," Joren stated, his green eyes twinkling at Kit. "Welcome to your new home."
Before dinner was over, Kit knew that Val and Joren were the youngest of five children, that the dark-haired Solon was from a farming family near the Karsite border, that the sandy brown-haired Cory had a mother who was a Healer teaching at the Collegium and that freckle-faced Mikel was the son of one of the Palace Guards.
Since Orientation had been held awaiting Talin's return, none of the year-mates had any studying to do, so after dinner they had all gone to see their Companions. Kit was quite taken with Joren's Companion Safira, the mare's regal carriage and elegant beauty reminding her a bit of Jada. She also fell in love with Companion's Field, the trees and meadow reminding her of home
:There are lots of places to ride here, Talin promised, it won't be so bad.:
:I know, I just miss it a little, she told him, but this will help a lot.:
Joren showed her the way to the Healer's Collegium and told her he would see her in the morning at breakfast. A nice older woman in Greens greeted her and directed her to Ari's room. Kit hesitated for a moment before knocking on the door, she hadn't seen Ari in almost four years and she wondered if she would find her much changed.
She should have known better than to worry. When the door opened, Ari shrieked with delight, threw her arms around her sister and pulled her into the room. "Kittycat! What are you doing here?" she asked before the color of Kit's clothes sank in. "Lady-Bright, you've been Chosen? Oh Kit," she gasped, "you're going to be a Herald!"
"That's what Talin tells me," Kit giggled, still happily wrapped in her sister's arms.
"Let me look at you, you've grown so much!" Ari pushed her back to arms length as she spoke and looked her sister up and down.
"You too and you're prettier than ever," Kit exclaimed, studying her sister in return. Ari was now their mother's height and the pale green of the Healer-Trainee uniform suited her wonderfully. Kit had always thought Isolde was beautiful but now she saw what her mother must have looked like when she had first come north to help with the fever. No wonder her father had fallen in love the moment they met.
"Tell me everything, how is everyone at home?" Ari asked, drawing her to chair.
"Good, they all send their love," Kit said.
"Is being Chosen as wonderful as they say?"
"Oh yes," Kit sighed. "It's amazing, Talin is amazing." She told Ari all about him, their journey and the news from home, the words sometimes falling over themselves as she sought to explain everything. "What about Gareth? Is he well?" Kit asked, realizing in horror that she had forgotten to ask news of her favorite cousin.
"He's thriving and he can barely fight the women off of him," Ari laughed, "though I don't think he fights too hard. We can find him tomorrow, it's getting late and you don't want to get yourself in trouble by staying out."
"Oh, sooner or later I'll get in trouble somehow," Kit told her, "you know me too well to think otherwise."
"Too true, Kittycat, too true," Ari sighed in mock resignation. "But perhaps it would be best not to start your first evening in Haven."
"Probably," Kit giggled, "you have always been wiser than me."
"I'm just older, wisdom comes with experience," Ari said affectionately as she guided her sister to the door. "Find me after your classes tomorrow and we'll surprise Gareth."
She was unable to resist another trip to Companion's Field as the long summer twilight faded into darkness. Talin met her and together they wandered through the trees until he sent her off to bed. :Tomorrow will be a big day for you Chosen, you need your rest. Learn now to get rest whenever you can, Talin advised her. At times rest is hard to come by for a Herald and a Companion. And do not feel neglectful if you cannot come see me until later in the day, I am always with you.:
"I know," she said, wrapping her arms around the Companion's neck. "You rest too, we have had a long journey."
:I will beloved.: Talin stepped back and nudged her gently in the direction of the dormitory. Kit kissed him on the nose and returned to her room, warmed by his love and the delight of seeing Ari again. She fell asleep as soon as her head touched the pillow, her dreams filled with visions of a long road in front of her and a Companion to share the journey.