The Words Between - part 16

Stefahn coughed raggedly, struggling to pull in air against Kyn's weight, and rasped, "Get offa me...'fore I tear your head off!"

Kyn had to give the trainee credit for bravado. He had seen the naked fear in the blue gaze as the knives came down, but it was all but nonexistent now beneath a thick layer of contempt and fury. "Do you think you're really in a position to make threats like that?" he asked quietly, shifting his knees and planting them carefully in the hollows of the shoulders just below the collarbone, easing his weight onto them.

Stefahn gasped, squirming as nerves were mercilessly pinched. "Bastard, I'll - !"

"Such language, from a supposed highborn," Kyn chided, tugging one of the knives out and shaking off what gravel and snow had clung to it. A person lying prone did not have enough leverage to rise if their head or shoulders were held down, and the only concern of being knocked over by an arm or bucking was effectively neutralized with the limbs half-numb and tingling from the pressure of Kyn's knees and his weight tilted forward. "You are supposed to set an example for society. Such benefits as your rank accrues you demand certain responsibilities."

The trainee blinked back reflexive tears of pain, lips peeling back in a snarl. "Don't try to put yourself over me, gutter trash! You can scrape and grovel the rest of your life and nev - " He shut up, mid-word, as the poniard's gleaming tip tapped gently against his cheek.

"Thank you, for being so accommodating with a loose tongue," Kyn purred as he saw the fear begin to surface again, coaxing it out carefully with a slow, sly smile. "Unfortunately, it's wandered a bit from what I would like to hear from you. Let me set a few rules first, so that there are no misunderstandings between us. I would hate to damage you permanently due to a simple a mistake."

"Liar," Stefahn still had enough gall to snarl. It was clear that, uncertainties aside, he still didn't quite believe Kyn would be willing to go as far as he intimated.

Kyn shrugged unconcernedly at the accusation. "I was only trying to put you at ease, but as you please. I am first going to ask you some questions, and you will provide me with the answers promptly, truthfully, and as thoroughly as you are able. After, I will be giving you some instructions, which you will carry out to the best of your ability. Should you stray in any way from what I have just outlined, I will dig out an eye, starting with this one..." The poniard's point dimpled the skin just below the trainee's left eye. "Should you stray again, the other one will be forfeit too. Should you be foolish enough to stray yet a third time...well, I will have to get creative then, but I sincerely hope you will not put me through all that effort."

There had still been signs of struggle despite the futility, little minute twitches and jerks as Stefahn tested his limits. All such movements ceased, however, as soon as the blade was set to his face, and he stared incredulously at Kyn. "You...you wouldn't...they'll never let you get away with it!"

Kyn allowed his smile to stretch. "No, they won't," he agreed amiably. "But perhaps with the right words, a few years' penance, I will be free once more. You, however, will be scarred and blind. Can you imagine living the rest of your life in the dark? Needing someone to lead you by the hand, unable to perform the simplest tasks without aid? Feeling their pity..."

"Get off him, Kyn."

"Do not interfere, Brianna," Kyn called back coldly without breaking Stefahn's gaze, pushing for that mental breaking point where the boy's will would fold before his, feeling it approaching - oh so close. "If you step within reach of me, I will take his eye regardless." The slightest of pressures slid the poniard's well-whetted tip infinitesimally into the skin, drawing a ruby drop.

The folding point arrived sooner than even Kyn had expected when Stefahn abruptly called out with a tinge of panic, "Don't move! Don't go near him!"

"Kyn won't do it. He's smart enough to know that he'll never - "

"He's insane! Of course he'll do it!" Stefahn hollered, expression wavering between terror, shame, and fury. "I'll do what you want, just get it over with!"

Kyn released a slow breath, his relief at the boy's easy acquiescence enough to almost make him dizzy for a moment. He had never delighted in the extraction of information, though he had been forced to use such methods on occasion, and liked it even less when forced to ply it on someone who was so obviously an uninformed pawn. He had little tolerance for tormenting those caught by bad circumstances - if he was forced to act, he would rather it be clean and quick, with one sure stroke. "Who sent you to kill Mennifei?"

There was a startled gasp that, from its position, sounded like it had come from the unknown trainee that Stefahn had been speaking to, still standing a little behind and to the right. A flurry of whispers arose at the same time, traded between what sounded like Brin's roommates, quickly hushed by a sharp word from Brianna. Stefahn stiffened, and Kyn could visibly see the denial that was about to emerge.

He shifted his weight subtly, enough to put pressure on the joints themselves, and the trainee snarled, writhing. "Promptly," Kyn hissed in reminder when he was sure he had Stefahn's complete attention. "Promptly, truthfully, thoroughly."

The boy swallowed, hatred plain to see, but that didn't matter so long as the fear reigned, and there was plenty of the latter to work with. "I don't know. She didn't give a name."

Something inside eased somewhat as the gender of the word-carrier was revealed. "What did she look like," he asked quietly, free with his questions now that he knew Master could not be directly implicated by whatever Stefahn babbled before witnesses.

"She...she looked like a tavern wench. Still had an apron on. Light brown hair, blue eyes; pretty for a commoner."

"Did she have any other identifying marks? A mole or freckles, perhaps?"

"I-I don't know. I didn't notice."

Not very descriptive, but then, he wasn't planning on tracking her down anyway. All he had wished to have was a general description to be wary of, in case she should be used again. "What did she tell you to say to me? What did you mean when you talked about redemption and masters?"

"I...I don't remember exactly," Stefahn said warily, squirming slightly when Kyn narrowed his eyes, gasping out hurriedly before the knife could lower, "I'm telling the truth! I didn't really pay attention to all that she was babbling...it was some fancy talk about masters and slipping leashes and stuff. Made you sound like some sort of...'pet'."

Kyn ignored the sneer that accompanied the last word and continued, "What had you been promised in return?"

Stefahn's lips thinned, jaw tightening, and Kyn shifted the blade just enough so that the bright spot of reflected light flashed across one blue orb. The boy flinched and squeezed his eyes shut. "She said this entire thing would be smoothed out! That there were people who would be able to redirect the accusations, but that Fei had to stop spreading hers first. And...and she said that they had already tried to reason with Fei before, but the only way...the only way to silence her..."

"You were willing to kill someone for the sake of your reputation?" Brianna asked with deceptive calm.

"Not my reputation, his! Pa's ready to kill me by now!" Stefahn shouted. "It was all Fei's fault, why couldn't she just keep her mouth shut? You'd think she was the queen the way she holds herself above all the others! I'm not going to marry that whore just because Fei likes the sound of her own voice, I don't care what anyone says. But Pa, he wouldn't listen to me, he - "

"I think we've heard enough for now," Brianna interrupted before calling out, "Are you finished yet, Kyn?"

Kyn ignored the censure in her voice and carefully considered the trainee he had pinned beneath him. Bending forward, he whisper for Stefahn's ears alone, "Mennifei is beyond your grasp now, but you are not beyond mine, nor those who had approached you through the tavern wench. Walk carefully, Stefahn, and don't look back. If you do, you might lose more than just your eyes if you see too much." With a last warning tap of the poniard on the boy's cheek, Kyn rose smoothly to his feet - and closed his eyes, sucking in a sharp breath as he felt his balance sway with the abrupt change in orientation. He strangled a sudden, instinctive urge to reach out to Sianni and took two rapid steps back, trying to cover the lapse by making it seem as if he was moving to give the trainee room to rise.

"Get up. Go to your room, and stay there. Someone will be sent to speak with you." There was a pause, sounds of scuffling as Stefahn presumably did as asked, and Brianna continued in a softer voice, "I mean it. If you are there, we can determine exactly what is going on, without any...distractions. If you are not...there is nowhere you can hide."

Kyn opened his eyes warily, blinking as they focused to see Stefahn nod his head sullenly. Shooting Kyn a venomous glare, the trainee brushed crusted snow from the back of his head and shoulders with short angry gestures before walking stiffly away. Brianna watched the boy depart, unmoving until he had turned around a building and disappeared from sight. Then she bent to retrieve the throwing knife from the ground, brushing it off and looking toward Kyn with an unreadable expression.

Suddenly feeling uncertain, Kyn dropped his gaze from hers to focus on the blade, wincing when a shard of light from the metal seemed to stab straight into the back of his head. Stupid, stupid... But sometimes things can't wait, opportunities won't come again, and there's so little time left, so few paths...

"My knife, please."

Kyn started, glancing up in spite of himself.

Brianna had taken one step toward him and held out her hand. "My knife," she repeated in the same, patient tone, and added pointedly without rancor or any other ill feelings that he could detect, "please."

Kyn clenched his jaw, willed the trembling from his hand, and placed the hilt in her palm. "Thank you," he husked, retracting his hand rapidly and clasping it with the other behind him.

Brianna nodded, sheathing the poniard with a smooth motion. Never taking her eyes from him, she held out the throwing knife in the general direction of the boys. "Nathannel, I suggest you listen to Dhorin in the future and refrain from any more practice indoors. I'm sure your weapons instructors would be happy to accommodate your enthusiasm if you wish to continue pursuing the...'hobby'."

"Can they teach me what he did?" The woman turned a puzzled frown on Nathannel, and the trainee nodded toward Kyn with a wide grin. "I wanna grab knives out of the air like you did! Will you teach me? I'm sure I can find a way to compensate you for the time."

Kyn sighed, feeling his face pull into a sour look that only deepened at the faintly amused look Brianna threw him. "No," he stated flatly, and hurriedly overrode when he saw Nathannel girding himself for a round of protests, "Go find some street entertainer."

Nathannel blinked. "What?"

Kyn waved a hand vaguely, wishing he could dispel all of them with the gesture, like errant mosquitoes. Poof. All the recent troubles? Wave, poof. His head hurt...wave, poof. For one near-hysterical moment, he considered whether it would be more convenient to have just the headache poof, or for it to take his whole head with it. "I have seen jugglers accomplish the same or better tricks in their routines," he belatedly responded. "Go beg one of them." He began to pick his way carefully out of the alley, feeling just disconnected enough to be unsure of his movements. Nadia...he should find Nadia. He doubted that the day's exertions could have helped in any way. There were low, terse instructions from Brianna as she scattered the group of gawking boys, and Kyn rubbed a hand over his face before shivering. Halting at the alley's mouth, he tried to recall where the cloak had gone to before heading resolutely back for Brin's dorm.

"Child, that was quite a stupid thing you did, though I don't fault you for your motives. Just leave the defending of the ladies to others next time."

Kyn nearly laughed aloud; the statement seemed so absurd on so many levels. He was tempted to let her continue thinking as she did, but...he wasn't sure he would be able to keep all of the fabrications and lies straight at this rate. Best to make sure that nobody had any expectations. It would be far less painful to weather distrust than disappointment. "Why do you insist on calling me that ridiculous appellation? And my motives concerned nothing of Mennifei's benefit."

"Then why did you do it?" Bryn's voice piped up. Apparently, the boy had managed to worm his way into Brianna's good graces enough to warrant exception from the dismissal.

Kyn bit back a growl, nearly tripping over the first step into the dorm in his preoccupation. How cold was it supposed to get in Haven? They were barely into winter, and he was already damned near shaking apart! "I do not have to explain my reasonings to you."

"Then why did you bother correcting our assumptions?" Brianna asked in a far too reasonable tone of voice. "It would've been far more convenient if you'd just let us continue thinking you were the altruistic soul that you insist you're not."

The headache was lurching toward the forefront, doubling in size along the way, insisting on being acknowledged. Kyn caught at the doorjamb, taking a deep, trembling breath. "Listen to me. I don't care what you think. At all. If the results we wish for happen...happen to coincide, I suggest that you don't...do not protest too much or too loudly." He really should call out to Sia - to Nadia. Either he had just reached the end of his vastly reduced resources, or he had been a little too good at denial. Perhaps both. But either way, he would require a visit with the healer, the sooner the better, except suddenly he just couldn't dredge up enough will to do much more than stand there and try to remember what he had been doing.

"Of course you don't. Which is why...Child, Kyn, what's wrong?"

He shook his head, realized what a horrible mistake that was when the whole world spun around him, and leaned hastily against the jamb, one hand shielding tight-closed eyes. There was a tentative touch against his elbow, Bryn, he somehow knew, and he tried to shove the hand away with a snarled, "Don't touch me!"

He never knew if any of the words even made it past his lips. He was unconscious before the first syllable would have impinged on his ears.

Kyn knew of only two other times in which he had fainted. Oh, certainly, he had been knocked into unconsciousness before. Most of them, it had been his own instructors who had done it, out of exasperation or to teach a lesson - or, once, by accident. The instructor with staffs and polearms had been very apologetic when Kyn had come to again, and Master had stood quiet and still behind the man. After that day, Kyn had not seen the instructor again. Instead, four days later, another man had taken his place and continued where the lessons had left off. Accidents were not allowed to happen, were not tolerated, and it was one of the small comforts that Kyn had held to himself, one of the ways in which he knew that he was precious to Master.

Two other times unconsciousness had taken him through no abrupt physical trauma that he could remember. The first time that he had ever woken up in the manse, and when the withdrawal had been allowed to take its course to teach him respect and futility. And now, he was able to add another time to the list. As his senses began to return to him, as he realized what had happened, Kyn could feel a tiny pulse of fear lodge itself just beneath his heart. His body had betrayed him, luckily only after his confrontation with Stefahn, but there was no guarantee that it would not happen again at a critical moment. Certainly, he had stressed its limits lately, but...surely it could not have taken so little to bring him down like that? His skills were all he had left to depend on with his decision to estrange himself from Master.

"Go on and get the door, Child, I've got him. He's little more than skin and bones anyway; doesn't he know enough to feed himself?"

Brianna's voice, smooth and rolling with its own subtle, lazy drawl, floated in and out of Kyn's consciousness like a tide before steadying into a muffled hum, as if he had ducked beneath a thin blanket.

"Uhm...Kyn's been...he's been sick lately."

"Ah. That might explain some things. So what in havens was he doing traipsing around taking dips in the midst of winter and trouncing fellow trainees?"

Kyn felt something give on his left side, a warmth he hadn't noticed suddenly vanishing, and then he was uncomfortably jarred farther into consciousness when his weight was hefted even more to the right, balanced against something ‑ someone. The sound of a latch uncatching and the soft whisper of a door opening preceded the redistribution of his weight once again as the warmth of another body returned. Together, Brin and Brianna dragged him into what he presumed to be a room, relatively small judging by the way the sounds they generated sounded within the enclosure.

"I...I really should leave all that to Kyn, or maybe Alberich. But...it all has to do with why you're here as his guard."

There was a soft, derisive snort as Kyn was eased onto a bed, and he finally began to take his own body into hand, not liking the idea of being handled like a side of beef.

"Right. His guard. I don't know yet if I should be thoroughly embarrassed for being made redundant twice in the past candlemark, or furious with Alberich for assigning me to ‑ ah, His Highness has rejoined us. How are you feeling, Child?"

"Kyn! You're awake!"

"Need you ask?" Kyn rasped, a little startled in spite of himself by how truly miserable he sounded, and scrubbed at his eyes with a grimace. The headache was still there, a prickly, sullen thing that squatted in the center of his skull. His innards were just beginning to develop knots amongst themselves, and he hoped sincerely that they were merely protesting a lack of food rather than warning him of impending cramps. All in all, he wondered if it had been a good idea regaining consciousness, even if he had only just berated his body for collapsing in the first place.

"Well, he is nothing if not consistent."

"What, being high‑handed, pig‑headed, utterly frustrating when it doesn't suit his purposes, and generally a pain in the behind? That would be an unqualified 'yes'."

"Good to see you again too, Healer," Kyn muttered beneath his breath, finally daring to crack his eyes open and squinting at the slant of sunlight flowing through the single window, the day nearly gone from the sharp angle of the beams' slant.

"Really, Kyn, if you don't like me that much, you really shouldn't place yourself into my care so often. People might talk," Nadia sniped back, closing the door behind her. She frowned at him pensively for a moment before turning to set her satchel on a nearby cabinet‑and‑shelves combination along with a gently steaming kettle. "Who are you?" she asked with a quick glance toward Brianna, her hands already moving quickly to sort out packets from her bag.

The guardswoman drew herself to attention, tipping her head slightly to the healer. "Brianna Tannin, currently under Herald Alberich's direct command."

Nadia arched one brow as she retrieved a mug from one side of the cabinet, barely glancing at the packets' labels as she began to mix various herbs, eyeballing the amounts. "So you're one of the new guards? Why are you here?"

It was Brianna's turn to scrutinize the healer as the guardswoman asked, "What do you know of my role?"

Nadia shrugged as she contemplated one last ingredient, pursed her lips, and set it aside instead of including it. Taking the kettle, she carefully poured the mug nearly full, covering it to let it steep. Walking over to the bed, she perched on its edge and reached out to peremptorily lay a cool hand on Kyn's forehead. "I know why you were assigned, though not why you have decided to shadow him so closely, rather than from afar. What happened, Brin?"

Kyn closed his eyes as he felt the tingling sweep of Nadia's surface scan and forced himself to follow Brin's slow, halting account of the day's events, starting with what the trainee knew of the confrontation at the sinkhole. He could hear the unusually subdued quality to the boy's voice, the uncertainty haunting the recounting of Stefahn's interrogation. Hopefully, Brin was finally reconsidering his dogged attachment after that little display of ruthlesness, though hopefully not enough that the trainee wouldn't still be willing to continue acting as informant. Kyn could all but feel Brianna's silent presence nearby, assessing and absorbing. He had the strange impression that she both knew more and less of his particular situation than Nadia or even Brin did, and was rapidly filling in what gaps that Alberich had left in her briefing with her own observations.

Nadia tapped lightly on his shields and he lowered them for her, frowning at their almost fragile feel. Even after assiduous practice, it seemed he couldn't quite leave the garden behind yet, not if he wanted to maintain any sort of balance within himself. And yet, to reach for the pool was to invite the retaliation of whatever suppressed his Foresight.

Frustration didn't quite cover what he felt about his predicament.

"So what's the prognosis, Healer Nadia?" Brianna asked after a moment.

He felt Nadia's surprise when her name was used without introduction, but other than a brief flicker of wariness and annoyance ‑ at the Alberich and the guardswoman ‑ she continued with false lightness, "If you would please step outside, mer Tannin, there are aspects of Kyn's condition that I am not at liberty to reveal."

"No," Brianna responded pleasantly ‑ and unequivocally. "I need to know what is wrong so that I can do my job properly. Is he likely to be keeling over again in the near future?"

Kyn's jaw tightened and he husked waspishly, "You need not concern yourself with my 'condition', Brianna, as you will not be assigned to me long enough for it to become a concern."

"Oh, pardon me, Your Highness, but I had not yet been informed that Alberich had handed you his job."

There was a Brin‑like cough, and Kyn knew without needing to open his eyes that Nadia had been surprised into a brief grin, though she managed to suppress an outright laugh by the lack of sound. Releasing a breath, he tried to shift his head into a position that didn't ache quite as much. :The sooner you're done, Nadia, the sooner you can wash your hands of me.:

:Not so fast, Kyn. I think I'm actually beginning to enjoy myself.:

Kyn gritted his teeth. :I am happy that you are amused, I truly am. But if you do not mind, I need a few more candlemarks of lucidity. After that, I am more than happy to spend the rest of the time up until reaching the duke's holdings drooling in a corner.:

Nadia paused, deepening her scrutiny, and then she said aloud, "Brianna, if I understand the arrangements correctly, even if Kyn's guards are not on rotating shifts, he is to depart Haven in the next handful of days. Your services are not needed after that, and what is occurring really should be contained ‑ "

Nadia trailed off, the silence odd enough that Kyn slitted his eyes open in time to catch Brianna's slow shake of head and small, mirthless smile. "Healer Nadia, my orders had been perfectly clear. As soon as events warranted my presence, I was to stick to his side like a burr. I don't know anything about a trip, but I'm interpreting those orders as meaning that I'll be taking the same trip with him. Which means that if he's liable to take another nosedive toward the ground, I would like to know before I start depending a little too much on his homicidal reflexes."

Nadia's eyes narrowed before she turned to Kyn. "Is this true?"

He curled his lip. "How am I supposed to know?" Silently, he added, :And please, either knock me out or head off the the fit. I really don't care which just so long as you make a choice within the next five seconds.:

It was said as sardonically as he could manage, but evidently something else slipped through enough to bring a sharp look from Nadia, one that might have been overshadowed by genuine worry. :Sorry. Can you really blame me for becoming distracted when the chance to make fun of you arises?:

Kyn was still wondering whether he should bother with a retort or not when he finally felt the blessed relief sweeping through his body. Aches he had not even noticed beneath the larger pains were extinguished, the headache reduced to a low murmur, clenched muscles soothed into exhausted limpness as he relaxed with an unconscious sigh. He couldn't help reveling in it for a moment; the peace was always the most complete right after Nadia treated him. Even a bare handful of candlemarks later the complaints from his body would begin creeping in again, but usually few enough that he barely noticed them until they accrued into the next day.

"How long has this been going on?" Brianna's voice was quiet as she watched them.

"A couple of weeks," Brin hedged when the silence stretched and it became apparent nobody else was likely to speak up.

"What sort of sickness causes this? Is it contagious?"

Brin fidgeted before self‑consciously straightening, trying to attain a more confident air as his eyes flicked rapidly between all those in the room. "It's...it's not a sickness, exactly."

Brianna turned to stare at the boy, but before the trainee could do more than blanch, Nadia leaned back with a weary sigh, absently patting back a few loose strands of hair that had escaped her typical braid. "Kyn, how much longer do you need?"

Kyn released a long, slow breath, eyes slipping closed, feeling remarkably...mellow. He might have felt alarm, if he hadn't been so determined to hold on to the fleeting sensation of wellbeing. How much of the antagonism that he felt toward and from others, how many decisions that he had made in the last few days, had either originated or been influenced by the withdrawal? He, of all people, raised by the refined tastes and habits of a nobleman, should know the benefits of compliance. Agreeableness. Charm. There were always subtler, easier ways of getting people to do what one wanted than throwing a tantrum. It was disturbing to realize that his performance and methods had been so drastically affected by his mood...and he had not even noticed it until Nadia had provided him with a temporary relief. "A day."

"You've got until the eighth candlemark of the evening." The bedding shifted as Nadia stood, the sounds of the steeping mug being uncapped soon following.

Cracking his eyes open, Kyn frowned toward her silhouette, figure blurred and unfocused through his lashes. "A day," he repeated with a little more strength.

"Evening," Nadia snapped, sniffing at the mug's contents before bringing it over. "Can you sit?"

Kyn stared at the cup enfolded in her hands, steam still curling from its lip, and wondered briefly if it was worth the effort. But remembering that there was still the matter of the maps that needed to be taken care of, he grudgingly raised himself onto his elbows, shaking his head clear of a bout of dizziness before waving Brin back and sitting up completely. "What would be the difference, a few more candlemarks?" he asked as he reached carefully for the mug, wrapping his hands around its warmth and basking momentarily in its heat.

"Your health," Nadia stated succinctly as she returned to the bureau, cleaning up. "I would prefer that you slept all the way up until the last mark before we had to leave ‑ does that tell you anything about your current state?"

He sipped warily at the liquid, suppressing a grimace at its bitter taste though he did not hesitate to breath in its aroma, finding the equally obnoxious scent oddly soothing, enough to make his chest feel less constricted. "It could not have deteriorated so quickly. For the last three days I was being maintained by a single visit ‑ "

"You know perfectly well I was pushing for more even back then," Nadia rounded on him, paper crackling as her grip tightened on a fistful of empty packets. "And it was only a matter of time. You are not well, Kyn! Stop pretending that you are, and maybe there'll be some hope."

Kyn's eyes slanted toward her, unconvinced, but his gaze was drawn toward Brin unexpectedly as the boy stood. "Kyn," the trainee began, almost painfully straight‑postured, but grave and dignified all the same. "Would it be so bad, to rest and build your strength for the meeting with the duke? I don't think there is much more you can do now anyway, is there? If there is, I'm sure I could help you carry out some of the tasks ‑ enough for you to get at least a full day's rest."

Kyn unconsciously straightened as well, an ingrained response as his subconscious noted the effort at civility and genteelness and prodded him to accord the boy the same respect. Master had emphasized the reciprocity of respect. "True, there's little more I can accomplish from afar, but there are still a few small tasks that might give me an edge."

Brin's brow furrowed with a rare frustration, but his voice remained level as he countered, "An edge that is worth exhausting yourself? You won't be able to stand up to the duke if you can barely stand at all."

There was a snort of amusement from the other side of the room, Brianna not at all shy about pitching in her own two pence. "Brin's got a point, Child. And though I think the healer would be much improved if she spent more time with her bondmate, I trust her judgment in this."

There was an incoherent splutter from the maligned woman, and Kyn studiously kept his gaze averted from Nadia as he retorted, "And I'm supposed to trust your assessment of this just as much or more than theirs?"

Brianna shrugged with a disarming air and flashed that particular smile again.

And, finally, we'll reach Lynxfinn Holdings next time. =)

Anwen - Hee! Whoa, never realized there was so much mixed up in that name...blush Actually, I literally just pulled the name out of my head, and got a little creative with the spelling. Didn't do any research on any of the names, just kind of made them up as I went along. Hope you'll forgive me for that little faux pas? And thank you so much for the wonderful compliment.

ola - laughs And thank you very much for making that effort.

UrsaWolf - I don't know if this is *very* soon, but hopefully soon enough. =P And thanks!

Megan - lol. Oh well. We all know the next generation is hopeless, right? ^_~ snickers And thanks. =) Brianna really popped out all on her own, didn't know where she came from. Hope a further glimpse here hasn't changed your opinion of her. Woohoo! The more the merrier! Thank you very much. ^_^

SCWLC - No, he hasn't. ;) But then, he hasn't had a lot of practice dealing with a public in the first place. Hopefully he'll catch on soon, though. =P And you're half-and-half right. Yes, when I read Thief, I did wonder about that remark about murderers and assassins, and my imagination played with the idea for a little while. Honestly, though? I didn't start out with the intention of writing The Words Between *because* of it, if I'm making any sense. It kind of just veered in that direction (but maybe my subconscious is just playing tricks on me, neh?). It was actually the reading of some other fics (the titles of which I don't even remember now) that inspired me to start, but yes, in certain ways Thief did inspire me in the sense that it opened up the 'possibility' that such a premise as someone like Kyn might eventually be accepted would work.

Soulshadow - Thank you very much! Although, don't hold me to that 'well thought out' part yet. ;) I'm still fine-tuning as I go along, and you'll find that I occasionally go back to tweak things as I go along. Casualties of a mind that refuses to work linearly.

me ^.^ - Always happy to oblige. ;)

M'cha Araem - removes your mouse's button We really need to find ways of preventing you from accidentally removing your own posts. =) ROFLOL! Hmm...I *do* love brie. Maybe there was a subconscious suggestion somewhere in there. ^_~ And no, no, don't stop about the in-depth suggestions! I really should get someone to read my stuff and do exactly what you just did, but I'm afraid that I'm usually too impatient for something like that. I snatch times to write in between classes (heck, *in* classes too) and work and everything else, and by the time I finally get something finished, I don't want to wait any longer to just throw it onto the web. So all the reviewers get to act as my beta. =) I looked over what you pointed out and decided that I really liked what you had suggested, and made changes accordingly. I do believe Brianna's gonna be sticking around for at least a little while more, considering people's responses to her so far, though I'm not going to make any promises concerning the sequel right now. ;)