A/N Wherein I get to write interesting phrases such as "voyeuristic mathematician" and have it make perfect sense.
Chapter 24
Randen, Derris and Kyminn slowly made their way across the grounds. Evin had offered to show Kyminn to his new quarters, but Randen had pointed out that he was going in that direction anyway.
Derris carefully lowered his forequarters down, just far enough for Randen to swing his shorter leg over. Once Randen was settled, Derris carefully returned to his feet. The Companion's expression dared Kyminn to protest. Kyminn wisely chose not to do so. Instead, he took the crutches from Randen "To keep Derris from getting clouted upside the head by accident". He debated mentioning that one was likely to want to clout Derris upside the head on purpose but refrained.
"I never asked how you're making out Kyminn." Derris was keeping his pace down to a slow amble so that Kyminn could keep up.
"Alright, I guess." It was noncommittal. "I've only really been awake and present for a few hours. All I've done so far is have a bath, eat breakfast and get interrogated. I'm not sure what to make of it all."
"I can see how that would be the case. How about if I start by showing you around?" Without waiting for a response, Randen launched into explanations. Fortunately for Kyminn, he'd heard enough stories and descriptions over the last few months that it was more a matter of placing buildings and locations in context rather than starting from scratch.
"Healer's you've seen, or at least this wing. Heralds and Bardic are there and there," Randen pointed. "The classrooms are over here – that bell you just heard marked a class change. See how the trainees are all in the uniforms of their disciplines? Grey for Herald's whites, light green for Healer green, rust red for Bardic scarlet. I think I mentioned the Blues before – those are the students who are either sponsered students of particular promise or whose parents have paid to enroll them." Randen paused, "Most of them are pretty decent, but sometimes you get a few highborn with more arrogance than sense. We try very hard to clamp down on that when we find it, so if you see it, speak up, alright?"
As Kyminn wasn't particularly fond of bullies, high born or otherwise, it was easy to agree to Randen's instruction.
"Actually, the Blues are quite relevant to you, although no one has probably mentioned that to you yet."
"Ah?" Kyminn ventured cautiously. "I thought we had a deal about surprises." Derris produced a snort that was decidedly mirthful.
"No surprises, not to worry," Randen grinned down at his friend. "Trying to figure out where to put you was a bit of a headscratcher and the Blues provided an answer. It's like this – most people come to the Collegiums as trainees. They get assigned a room in the appropriate wing, problem solved. But you're not a trainee, so that's not a good choice for you and would probably be awkward for you and everyone else. A few of the Blues board here, generally the ones who are from outside the area, and we considered putting you in that set of dorms but, again, you're not a student. In fact, you're essentially a full Healer and that makes you senior – and older – than the student Blues. So…not a good fit." Randen looked a bit smug and patted Derris's neck. The Companion tossed his head and curvetted, clearly pleased with himself.
"It was Derris who hit on the solution. Not a student or trainee, nor a guest of the court proper. Also not a servant but, since you are assigned to Derris, you could be considered as staff."
This was such an odd notion that Kyminn stopped dead in the pathway. "Uh…"
"Not to worry, it's temporary. There's a small set of rooms off of the college which are used to house visiting scholars or guest instructors. The residents usually either eat in their rooms or in the city proper at the Compass Rose. Since there's usually only a few at any one time, there's no point in trying to maintain a dining room in that section. I checked and right now there's actually only one other person there. She's a mathematician who is apparently working with one or two very advanced students in the plumb-bob and ruler crowd. I doubt you'll see very much of her, I gather it's all very involved stuff."
"Ah. I see." Kyminn gestured weakly for Derris to lead on.
The 'small set of rooms' appeared to have had a former life as a storage shed, an impression confirmed by Randen. "This was a temporary building, used to store materials used during a renovation back in the king's grandfather's time. Sendar finally got tired of it being the palace's junk heap and ordered it cleaned out and torn down. After they got it cleaned out though, it turned out that the building was very sound and beautifully built, although no one is sure why they put so much effort into what was supposed to be a temporary shed. At any rate, it seemed a shame to waste it and since we're always short of room, it was converted into housing. Someone suggested using it for guest accommodations a few years later, and well, here we are."
Randen neatly slid down off Derris and took the crutches from Kyminn. Derris settled in to graze, clearly planning to wait for Randen's return.
The woodcrafter in Kyminn recognized the quality of workmanship in the building. He ran an admiring hand over the finely joined panels in the entry way and nodded to himself in appreciation of the workmanship. "All this for a shed?" he murmured.
"I know, it came as a surprise to everyone. Maybe there's an answer in the chronicles somewhere, but who knows?" The entry way opened up into a corridor, the floor tiled in cool slate. A count of the doors in the hall suggested there were only half a dozen rooms, all well spread apart. The far end of the corridor opened up into what appeared to be a sitting room of some sort. A glimpse of a fireplace and bookshelves suggested it might be a good place to curl up.
Randen stopped at the far rightmost door. A small bracket on the door held a neatly lettered sign bearing his name. Randen opened the door and gestured Kyminn inside.
"Uh…Randen…are you sure?" Kyminn took two steps inside the room and stopped. The front room – and it had to be a front room because there was no bed visible – held a comfortable pair of chairs, arranged in front of a small wood stove. Along the back wall was a tall window, heavy with thick glass. Positioned under the window so as to take full advantage of the light was a large desk, complete with pens, ink, parchment and sand – everything a visiting scholar might need to record midnight inspiration. Lamps with highly polished reflectors were strategically placed to maintain illumination. A door in the right hand wall presumably lead to the bed chamber.
Randen prodded Kyminn forward. "Acting as a full Healer, remember? This is pretty reasonable for someone of that rank if you were working for a baron or someone like that."
"Um." It seemed to be Kyminn's word of the day so far. He cautiously opened the second door and confirmed his suspicions that it led to a bed chamber. The bed was the largest he'd ever seen, and he had a wild urge to measure it to see if, in fact, it was larger than the wagon or whether it just seemed that way.
Kyminn was a bit surprised to note that there was a small sliding door on the far side of the bedchamber. Fearing that it might lead to yet another space he couldn't justify requiring, he cautiously slid it open. Much to his relief, it was a bathing room, along with a curtained alcove that his nose told him was another of the miraculous indoor privies. Randen thrust his head around to corner and caught sight of Kyminn. "Ah. Found the bath, have you?" The Herald pointed to a sliding door on the far wall, identical to the one Kyminn had opened. "Shared facilities, I'm afraid. Hope you don't mind."
"Ah…no…oh…what about the other…resident?" Kyminn had a sudden vision of being chin deep in the bath and being accosted by an irate -or voyeuristic – mathematician.
The Herald gave him a sly grin, but relented at Kyminn's blush. "Don't worry. The other guest is across the hall and has her own facilities. Plus, the door to the hall can be latched," Randen demonstrated, "and when latched, a notch on the hall side indicates that its occupied. You are asked to unlatch it when you're finished though – the palace servants come in here to clean and it causes them problems if they are locked out." Randen paused, and then added. "The servants keep a low fire burning here if there's anyone in residence. If you want them to heat the water for your bath they will, but please let them know in advance."
Kyminn tried – and failed – to wrap his head around the notion that there was a servant available to draw his bath. "Uh…if it won't cause any problems for the palace staff, I think I'd rather just see to it myself if that's alright."
"Hah. I win." Randen crowed in triumph. "I bet Derris that's what you'd say. He thought you might be so tickled at the novelty of everything that you'd let the servant do it."
"Hmph. Aside from his choice of you as his Herald, I'm starting to seriously doubt Derris's ability to judge character."
Randen pealed laughter and moved back into the sitting room. Kyminn followed more slowly, peeking into the various drawers and cabinets of his new quarters. He was a bit surprised to realize that someone had already put away all of his things.
"Oh, by the way, I forgot this," Randen tossed a bag at Kyminn. The healer caught it by reflex, surprised both by the weight and the metallic clink from within. Kyminn twitched open the bag, raising his eyebrows in surprise. "Randen! What's all this?"
"Your fee." Randen said blandly. "As one retained here by the crown to care for Derris, you're entitled to a stipend. This is that and your back pay for mine and Derris's care. Plus, a bonus from the crown and another from the circle." He was grinning again.
"I can't accept this! It's far too much! And I didn't do it to get paid for heaven's sake!"
"The king knows that, ninny! But Healers have to eat too – your mother and grandmother get paid for their work don't they?"
"Well, yes, but…"
"But nothing. In case you missed the memo, you did a damn fine job on us. We're grateful, the circle's grateful, the crown is grateful. You deserve to be either paid for your work or rewarded for your services – doesn't matter which one you pick, either way you've earned that money."
"Uh…" Kyminn's resolve was weakening. "It just seems like an awful lot…"
"With great risk, comes great reward." Randen snorted. "It's yours. If you really feel like it's too much, put it some of it in the poor box or something."
"Ah. Well, thank you then." Kyminn tucked the bag into a drawer, determined not to waste any of the largesse.
Kyminn glanced around the room again, suddenly at a bit of a loss. "I'm really not sure what I'm supposed to be doing. You're fine, Derris is fine. Aside from you two and Jannen, I really don't know anyone here. I guess I could go into the city if that's allowed, but I'm not even sure I could find my way back here!"
"Easy. Just keep going uphill." Randen pondered a moment. "Maybe there's a guide available…" He paused, consulting with Derris. "Problem solved! Derris tracked down Niko to see if Jannen was free. Jannen is on leave for the next fortnight so he's not too busy. He was planning on looking you up anyway and he says he'd be happy to show you around the city this afternoon."
"That would be perfect! Please have Derris convey my thanks. Um…where should I meet him?"
"Derris says done. He also says that Jannen will meet you here, one mark after the noon bell." Randen eyed Kyminn thoughtfully, "It occurs to me that we were on the road a lot longer than we expected. Your gear got a lot more wear and tear than we planned." Not to mention a sleeve torn off by a berserk Derris. "Jannen can help you find some new cloths that won't cost you your shirt."
"Thank you Randen. Are you coming with us?"
A mournful shake of the head. "'Fraid not. Derris and I both have exercises this afternoon and I've got another round with Crathach. After that I have session with the Weaponsmaster. He wants to figure out what I can do in terms of self-defense with my reduced mobility and bum shoulder. I'm sure it will all be properly sadistic." Randen gave a mock shiver.
"Ah. Sounds like fine. I certainly wouldn't want to keep you away from your fun then."
"Coward." Randen made a very unHerald-like face at Kyminn. "Before I head off, I'll finish getting you settled. Follow me."
Randen led the way to the far end of the building, via the sitting room. A small side door proved to lead to a covered walkway that connected the instructor's lodgings to the Herald's wing. "With only a few rooms in this visitor's section, the servants of the Herald's wing take on the cleaning and other chores. We found that the guest scholars tend to get so caught up in projects and what not that they don't keep any regular schedule. It was hard on the staff to try to anticipate their requirements, so instead we ask the residents to bespeak the servants when they need anything."
Randen pushed open the door and nodded to a youngster in blue livery who was seated in an alcove. The lad popped to his feet and gave the Herald a polite bow. "Kyminn, there is a hall boy stationed here at all times. Simply let him know if you need anything in the way of meals or supplies and he will carry the message to the appropriate person. You are asked to please remember that the hall boys are members of the household staff and should not be asked to perform personal errands."
Kyminn blinked a bit, trying to parse out the meaning to the Herald's words. Since he had absolutely no requirement for any errands – personal or otherwise – Kyminn didn't think he'd have any difficulty with that rule.
The youngster was still standing there, patiently attentive, awaiting instructions. Randen smiled warmly at the boy. "Master Danner would like a small luncheon brought to his room please. Nothing too heavy, he's going out and about later."
"Of course m'lord Herald. Will the sir be wanting dinner brought this evening?"
Randen glanced over at Kyminn, then shook his head. "I think not, thank you." To Kyminn, he added, "You and Jannen will probably run late, I expect you'll end up eating down the hill somewhere."
"Will there by anything else sirs?" At Randen's headshake, the boy gave another brief bow and trotted off into the interior of the building.
"There you go. He'll have the tray for you in a quarter mark or so." Randen looked satisfied. "And on that note, I'm off for my next session." He spun off, crutches clattering, leaving a bemused Kyminn in his wake.
True to Randen's prediction, a tap at his door a bare quarter mark later proved to be the lad with a small tray.
"Ah…" Kyminn glanced around, unsure of whether to take the tray or ask the boy to set it down.
"Would you like this on the table sir or somewhere else?" The hall boy took Kyminn's vague nod as a yes and set the tray down, taking care to rearrange the dishes which had shifted during their trip.
"Thank you…uh…I'm sorry, what is your name?" Kyminn wondered if he sounded as flustered as he felt.
"My name is Lev, sir. I'm assigned to the halls in Herald's wing four afternoons a week."
"I see. Thank you Lev." Kyminn took a closer look at the youngster, taking in the now-familiar blue livery and an equally familiar shock of hair. In Lev's case, it was shorter and someone had attempted to confine it, but the frazzled-cat springiness was definitely familiar. "I don't suppose that you're related to a fellow named Evin are you?" Kyminn felt his mouth twitching into a grin.
Lev, who couldn't be more than seven or eight years old, beamed. "He be…I mean," the boy paused and then continued with careful diction, "I mean to say, Healer Evin is my uncle sir. My ma...mother is the Healer's sister."
"I see." Kyminn puzzled this over for a moment. "Maybe I don't see. How is it that you came to be here at the Collegium? If it's alright for me to ask that." Kyminn had a sudden thought that asking personal questions of a servant might be considered an abuse of his status as a guest.
From Lev's ready answer, it seemed he needn't have worried. "My father was in the Guard sir. He was killed last winter on the border. My mother and aunt keep a small house and let rooms to Guardsmen. My little sister stays there with them. Uncle Evin found me a place here and so here I be…am."
"Do you like it here?" Kyminn wondered how he himself would have felt at the same age, to have lost his father and be uprooted to the chaotic bustle of the palace and collegium.
"Yes sir, I do. I mean," and he raised his chin in a bravely adult gesture, "I miss my mother and sister sometimes, but Uncle Evin takes me to visit them when he can. The other pages and hall boys are pretty nice and the work isn't too hard. It's warm here and the food is good." Clearly this last was important to a growing lad!
Kyminn smiled. "Thank you Lev. I'm sorry if my questions troubled you. I'm very new here myself and my home is also very far away. It's nice to know I'm not the only one!"
The boy flashed him an impudent grin, but simply said, "Thank you sir. When you're done with the tray you can leave it in here for the morning servant to collect, or set it outside in the hallway if it's in your way. Will there be anything else sir?"
At Kyminn's headshake and murmured "No thank you," Lev bowed again and took himself out.
In spite of the fact that he had eaten only a couple of marks before, Kyminn was surprised to find himself hungry again. Apparently his body was keen to make up for the past few months of abuse. He was contemplating the last two sausage rolls and wondering if he should indulge when someone tapped on the door.
"Come in," Kyminn had decided not to waste the sausage rolls and thus had his mouth full when Jannen sauntered in.
"You look better, lad!" was the Herald's cheery observation. He grinned as Kyminn struggled to swallow the flaky pastry and meat concoction. Jannen shook his head and grabbed up the last roll, solving Kyminn's dilemma for him. "Ah. I always forget how good it is to have all the little treats and variety of menu we get back here at Heralds. A few weeks here and you take it for granted – and then you get back out on the road and realize how lucky you were!" He popped the last bite in with a beatific smile.
Airway finally clear, Kyminn managed to get out a greeting. Jannen, like Randen, was looking better than he had in some time. He'd replaced his much-abused and travel worn whites with new and looked every inch the dashing Herald. Rested and with the strain lines vanished from his face, he appeared to be back in fighting trim. Heralds, it seemed, were made of stern stuff.
"So," Jannen borrowed Kyminn's cup and washed down the roll. "You need to do a little shopping do you?"
Kyminn spread his hands ruefully. "Well, yes. Some of my things got pretty badly worn and I should replace them."
"Destroyed you mean," Jannen corrected him. "I've a chit here," he brandished something from a pocket, "from the crown to replace your boots and two complete sets of clothing."
"But they already gave me money for that! That's too much!" Kyminn squawked in protest.
"You were paid your stipend and a bonus for service. Had you been a Healer assigned to the Guard or Circle, the crown would have provided your equipment and uniforms. This is what you would be allocated each half year. And given it's what you used up in that time…" Jannen shrugged. "However, there's nothing that says you can't use your funds to get something a bit nicer than you might otherwise get. Fair?"
A reluctant nod. "I guess."
With Jannen's guidance, Kyminn counted out a portion of his funds and tucked the rest back in with his things. "That way, if it gets nicked, you haven't lost it all," was Jannen's only comment. Kyminn also followed the Herald's suggestion about how to tuck his pouch inside his waistband, out of sight.
As the two of them made their way towards the gate where Kyminn had passed out a few days before, Kyminn looked around, puzzled. "Where's Niko?"
"Dozing up in the Field," came the laconic reply. "Unless we're working, the city's a bit crowded for a Companion to wander around. He tends to stay back if I'm headed into town."
This time, Kyminn was able to take in an appreciate a great deal more of the city. Jannen proved to be a good tour guide, pointing out interesting buildings and explaining their route. The Healer in Kyminn was particularly interested in the many fountains, taps and sewers that served the population. Kyminn also got to see first-hand what Randen had meant by "little countries". Each district seemed to have its own style and conventions.
A candlemark of walking brought them at last to what Jannen called "the tailor's district." As he explained, "A piece of clothing can pass through several dozen hands in its lifetime. A shirt made for an earl might be worn only a few times and then set aside. It might go to a less-wealthy cousin, or be cut down for a younger sibling or child. If it becomes too worn or dated, then it may be sold or donated, depending on the family's means. Buttons, lace, bullion and embroidery can be picked out and reused. The earl's housekeeper may keep the silver buttons and replace them with lesser ones before sending the shirt on.
"The next stop is usually a higher end used goods store. In these stores the shirt may be taken apart and remade again, usually to remove worn spots. Cuffs and hems are turned to tidy them up. When it comes to used clothing, there's a very real ranking system in place. An article too worn for one of the higher end shops might be still too good for the clientele of the poorer shops to afford. So our shirt gets sold and resold, each time to a cheaper shop as the shirt wears. Eventually, it's bought by the ragman and resold as cleaning clothes. That earl's shirt may end its days as chinking in a shanty, keeping the winter winds out of someone's home."
"I didn't know that. I guess we do something like that at home, but not on such a scale. Plus, we certainly don't have as many choices of fabrics, nor need to have them done so fancy!" Kyminn felt suddenly very provincial and grubby beside the well-groomed shoppers bustling past.
"Well, you have no need of fancy things. Come to think of it, I suspect the nobility really don't need such fancy things either – they just wear them because they can. Ah! Here we are!" Jannen paused before a shop that seemed much like the others, gesturing for Kyminn to proceed him.
'Here', was a handsome storefront, back walls lined with bolts of coloured fabric in a dizzying array of hues and textures. Wooden forms, hung with samples of the shop's work, dotted the floor. At their entry, a tall, dark haired man came around the counter to greet them.
"Good day Herald Jannen! We are, of course, pleased to see you again. How can we help you today?" The proprietor's tone was polite and respectful, with none of the cloying obsequiousness that people seemed to offer Heralds.
"Good day Bern, this is Master Kyminn. He is in need of some new clothing. We've been a little hard on him I fear." Jannen smiled.
"I see. Good day to you Master Kyminn. What is it that you require?" Bern smoothly transferred his attention to Kyminn.
Kyminn was getting used to being totally out of his depth, but in this case, he wished he could drag Jannen in with him. "Some new shirts and trousers, depending on the cost." Kyminn wondered if he was supposed to mention that cost was an issue. He had the idea that it probably wasn't for the nobles and wondered if he was being rude to bring it up. A mental shrug – cost DID matter and he wasn't going to pretend otherwise, convention be damned.
The tailor didn't seem to mind. "Of course sir. What did you have in mind?"
Here Kyminn did haul Jannen in with him, since he himself had absolutely no idea what to ask for. As far as he was concerned, a shirt was a shirt was a shirt. He had only vaguest idea as to what fabrics one could wear and even less as to what options there might be as to cut and style.
Fortunately, Jannen was quite willing to come to his rescue. The Herald and tailor were soon engrossed in a deep discussion filled with esoteric terms regarding hems, collars, cuffs and what not. Kyminn wondered if this what it sounded like to others when Healers got into technical discussions. Only with less blood.
They eventually settled on three shirts, two sets of trousers and two complete sets of small-clothes. Two of the shirts were of a fairly straightforward style of crisp linen. One was to be creamy yellow, the other a dark grey. The third shirt, "Because you'll want to dress up once in a while", was a stunning cobalt blue with a high collar. Kyminn almost balked at the cost, but relented when Jannen pointed out that part of the cost came from the clothing chit. The trousers were to be both the same style, but one in tan the other in the dark grey.
Bern produced a length of chain from one pocket and proceeded to measure Kyminn. Twice. Kyminn was intrigued to realize that the chain had small bead spacers every ten links, with every tenth bead being larger still. It seemed a very clever way to keep track. A young girl, heretofore silent, recited back the numbers as Bern called them out, recording them on a slip of paper. When the measurements were complete, Bern carefully wrote the details of the order on the slip, reading it back to Kyminn and then requesting that Kyminn sign it as correct.
"The small clothes can be ready in two days; the remainder can be ready by the middle of next week. Is that acceptable?" Bern inquired.
"Yes, thank you, that would be fine. Shall I come and pick them up?" Kyminn suddenly wondered if, in fact, he'd be able to find his way back to the store.
"If you wish sir. However, we can deliver if you would prefer?" A raised eyebrow of inquiry.
"Yes, thank you, if it's not too much trouble." Kyminn's relief at not having to find his way back overcame any reluctance he might have at the odd notion of having anything delivered.
Another careful note on the order slip, with Bern reading back Kyminn's address to confirm it was correct. If he was surprised to discover that Kyminn lived up at the Collegium, he gave no sign of it.
Jannen produced the chit, which Bern recorded and added to the order. Kyminn paid the balance, simultaneously aghast at the total bill and meekly gratified at how reduced was his own portion.
Returned to the street again, Jannen had every evidence of being pleased with their trip thus far. "Well, that was a good start." He moved off into the crowd, beckoning for Kyminn to follow.
"Start?" Kyminn scampered to catch up.
"Of course. Those are for going out, or times when you need to make a good impression – say if you and Healer Delassia were meeting with other Healers. Now you need decent day to day stuff, clothes that won't be harmed by a little dirt." Jannen cast a critical eye on Kyminn's current apparel. "Keep what you have now, we'll just add to it. You and I both know that Healing is messy work."
Their next stop was a series of used clothing stores. Jannen had a keen eye for good value and helped Kyminn pick out some heavy canvas trousers and linen shirts. While clearly used, they were clean and the seams were well-made. The clothes had been dyed neutral blues, greys and browns that would take dirt well. Like Bern's higher end shop, these shops were willing to deliver the packages. The difference being that for the smaller shops, the delivery fee was negotiated separately. Kyminn was more than happy to part with a few coppers if it meant not lugging packages around.
By the time they had finished with the bootmaker (to be delivered next week also), the sun had set and Kyminn was more than ready to sit down and eat. Jannen clearly felt the same way for he'd planned their route to finish up only a block away from a small ale-house.
The tap room was moderately full, but Jannen's whites ensured they got a small, quiet table to themselves not far from the hearth. Jannen requested 'the house pie' and a small beer. At his inquiring glance, Kyminn nodded agreement at the selection.
As they savored their drinks while waiting on their dinner, Jannen regarded the tired healer. "So?"
"So what?" Kyminn looked baffled.
"First impressions. How are things going? How are you feeling? How are you doing?"
The ale stein spun slowly in Kyminn's hands as he considered the questions. "I think things are going alright so far. Randen asked me the same things and I'll tell you what I told him – I've really only been awake and present for part of a day. I really haven't had a chance to get much an impression of anything yet."
Jannen let the comfortable silence draw Kyminn out.
"I guess…first impressions are good so far. Mostly. The Heralds and crown have been incredibly generous. Those rooms are far more than I need and I wasn't expecting the money." He looked up at Jannen. "I understand that all these things are…normal…for the situation. I mean, yes, Healers get paid and the accommodations are probably what people here would consider average. It's not what I'm used to, but 'not used to' doesn't equal 'wrong'. It's an adjustment is all.
"Healers…well, I've really only met two other Healers so far. Evin seems like a nice person and all. Healer Delassia…well…" he trailed off, reluctant to disparage a senior Healer to Jannen.
A sigh. "Yes. Well, she's not typical. What she is, is very, very good at what she does. You might want to think about spending some time with her. If you can look past her…personality…and lack of social skills, you could learn a lot from her."
"I probably could. And believe it or not, I sort of understand that kind of focus. I'm just not sure yet if I feel like subjecting myself to that kind of environment." This was wry.
"Can't blame you. Kind of like one of those foul-tasting but good for you concoctions you Healers are so fond of foisting on everyone."
Kyminn's smile slipped away again. "I'm supposed to see Evin tomorrow for training in my Gifts."
"And? You have concerns?"
A shrug. "Maybe. Sort of. I'm not sure what that entails. How involved with Healers do I have to be?" Kyminn continued to make rings on the table top.
Jannen started to speak, but paused while their dinner was delivered. In between bites of a truly delicious meat pie, he addressed Kyminn's questions.
"Evin is a very highly regarded Gift teacher. I checked once I found out he had been asked to help you. Normally, a Healer of his age would be assigned somewhere or have found a position. He was asked to stay and teach. He's an Empath, among other things, so you can trust that he's going to work for what's best for you. Being trained in your Gifts does NOT mean you are enrolled in Healer's. It's like any other Gifted who presented themselves to us. Your gifts are assessed and you are trained in their use and the ethics of your gifts. If there was any sign that you were the kind of person to misuse your gifts…there are procedures in place to handle things like that.
"In your case, you have a good grounding. However, with your grandmother's Gift being quite different from yours and she not having a back ground in the teaching of gifts, there are a few gaps in your knowledge." Jannen raised an eyebrow as an invitation to comment.
"Like my shields. And my Foresight," Kyminn winced.
"Exactly. Evin will help you master those. It will take a week or so. If you want to learn more about applying your gift - that is, using your Healing Gift – then that's something else entirely." Jannen picked up his ale and leaned back in the chair with a replete sigh. "Kyminn, can I give you some advice, speaking as a friend?"
"I'd appreciate it, to be honest."
"See Evin and get your Gifts sorted out. Ask him what your options are about further training. I can't imagine you have to be enrolled in Healer's to develop your Animal Mindspeech or learn more about it. Spend the rest of your time working on Derris's care. And observe. You have a unique opportunity to move in and around the Healer's Collegium, part of it and yet apart. Take advantage of that to answer your questions and decide your course. Yes?"
Kyminn blew out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Yes."
