I do not own The Inheritance Cycle.
This was a outtake for the last chapter that I edited and turned into a Side Story.
Anyhow, enjoy, and tell me what you think,


A Somewhat Promise

Cai nodded dumbly, not entirely understanding the question. He had never felt so self-conscious in his life. He had been forced to take a bath, which he hadn't minded much, and then put into some fine cotton blue breeches and a long-sleeved crimson tunic, and soft black leather boots. He wasn't all too sure he liked the boots, it felt strange to enclose his feet in something. The woman, she had told him that her name was Rohosia, had done something to his hair too, it was shorter than before and, free of dirt, an appreciably lighter color, and it now no longer fell into his face like he liked it to. He tugged again at his hair with dislike, and perceiving this Rohosia gently pulled his hand away from his hair, and said quickly: "I had asked if you would like to break your fast. You are hungry, are you not?"

Cai blinked and stared. The grumbling movements in his belly told him that he was very hungry. He hadn't eaten properly in days, having only hard, tasteless bread and a dried fruit and once an apple.

More than food, Cai wanted to go home. Ever slowly, as it always was when thought about his home, an anger build inside his chest and his eyes prickled with tears. It wasn't fair that no one listened to him even though he knew he couldn't return him, he had asked countless times. He saw what had happened but Cai knew that it couldn't be true. Things like that just don't happen, and Dunion promised that he would keep them safe this time... Cai wiped his eyes with his sleeve and pinched himself.

"Yeh," he said. "After I eat, can I go home?"

"Where's your home?" she said, moving to sit next to him of the bed. It was a big bed, bigger than Cai had ever seen before, that stood proudly in the corner of the room with a soft, embellished cover.

He leaned back on the bed, running his hands over its softness. "Far from here." He yawned. "And the bed isn't so big."

Rohosia fought back a smile. Cai thought that she was a pretty enough lady, with twisted up light brown hair and bright eyes but she wore strange clothing; a delicate colorful dress with tiny patterns stitched into it. It would be ruined within moment when she went outside to work. He didn't understand why she was wearing it.

"I'll see what I can do," she said. "Why don't we get something to eat until then."

She led him down the stair, which Cai negotiated hesitatingly, looking around in wonder. He found the house bewildering: there were too many chambers, too many passages leading to unguessed-at destinations. He was used to small places, with one or two rooms, and no stairs anywhere.

At last they reached a small dining room, where there was a dark wooden table set with plate, fine and plain, and piled high with fruits and breads and other goodies. There were people already seated, in the middle of their meal, and they looked with he and Rohosia entered before bowed their heads in greeting and then returning to their meal. Cai faltered, feeling awkward and coarse, and Rohosia had to nudge him forward before he would sit down and eat. It wasn't long before he completely captivated by the food in front of him.

After breakfast Cai returned to his room, as he was very tired and his sick leg was very sore from climbing all those stairs and walking so far. For a time he just sat in silence, he didn't want to go to sleep each time he did he got bad dreams and then he'd wake up feeling woozy and unsettled. He sat for what seemed like ages, debating on how tired he really was, when he heard steps in the corridor and a knock on the door. "May I come in?" Cai didn't move, unused to such courtesies, and a knock sounded again. "Cai?" He did nothing, and after a time he heard an impatient sigh. He smiled slightly to himself. "Cai, I'm coming in," she said and then the door opened.

Rose stood in the corridor dressed in a long green tunic with red pattern on the borders, with a dark shirt under it. Her hair was braided down the front and tied back with a piece of cloth. She looked, he thought hesitantly glancing at her face, very tired as she shifted from foot to foot, with a long winding staff in her hand.

"What do you want?" he asked rudely.

She frowned and closed her eyes for a short moment. "I didn't wake you, did I?"

Cai shrugged, and waved her inside. She came in hesitantly and set the staff on top of the bed not far from him. Cai turned and studied it with interest. "What is it?" he said, poking at it.

"I believe that it was your brother's," she said. "I thought that you might want to have it." She looked over him and bit her lip as if she was going to say more.

He glared at her angrily, and kicked his feet out. "Give it ter Dunion then," he spat. "I an't wanting it."

"I would like you keep it all the same," she said without emotion.

"No, you don't." He pushed the staff away from him as if would burn him.

"You should keep it, then," she said, leaning down to look at him in the eye. He flinched away from her. She had a distant look about her, like she wasn't speaking with him only. "I'm going to leave, Cai, and you have to stay here." There was a pause and she smiled slightly."The staff would be much safer here with you, anyhow. It brings good fortune, and I cannot risk the wrong person getting ahold of it. Will you keep it safe for me?"

"So that you can it to Dunion?" he asked, suddenly happy, pulling the staff onto his lap. "You're going to look for him? And then I can go home."

Rose looked mildly shock, but slowly she nodded. "You'll stay here until then, won't you?"

Cai nodded excitedly. Of course he would, he could wait for Dunion. "Do you promise to look for him?"

"I promise to try," she said after a slight hesitation. Her eyes became focused again as she stood up. "Farewell, Cai." And then she was gone.

Cai looked over the staff, he knew it wouldn't bring him luck and that his brother wouldn't come for him and that Thelma and Mathon were gone forever and he'd likely never see Abagail and Namma again, and that he it was foolish to believe that it wasn't so but he wanted to. And so he did. Sometimes the untruth of delusion was better than reality.