A/N: Yes, I know it's been the longest time ever, and I'm really so sorry! But I was re-reading the trilogy the other day (and am now reading The Ambassador's Mission), and remembered this story, which, if I'm honest, I had completely forgotten about! Thank you ever so much for the reviews you have left during my loonnnnggggg absence, please leave more now to let me know what you think!
"I've had an idea" whispered Elle across the gap between their two desks. Aurelia looked inquiringly at her friend, trying to look as though she were concentrating on Lord Morren at the same time. He was taking Rothen's class, as Lorkin was ill, and Aurelia was missing Rothen's reassuring presence.
"Do you?" Aurelia quirked an eyebrow, "Go on"
"It's about the Ambassador – "
"Gabrielle!" Lord Morren snapped, "I can see that you will surely fail the test I have put together for your class tomorrow"
The entire class groaned, "But, Lord Morren, we've hardly learnt anything! We've only been here a week!" one of the boys protested. Elle nodded, though she was too embarrassed to speak after her telling off.
"I will only be testing you on the basics. That is, if Lord Rothen is not back teaching you tomorrow. His Head of Alchemic Studies duties may be keeping him busy"
Aurelia glared at the teacher – it was comments like that that kept her from liking Lord Morren. He often seemed jealous of Rothen's position, and anyway, he knew very well that the only reason Rothen wasn't teaching was because he was helping Sonea to look after Lorkin. She felt a little flutter of worry as she remembered that Lorkin had still seemed terribly under the weather that morning, after three days of fever. Still, Sonea was a Healer, she would know what to do.
The signal for the end of classes rang out, and Aurelia hovered in the doorway of the classroom, waiting for Elle, who was still being moaned at by Lord Morren. When Elle came to join her, she linked her friend's arm and looked at her expectantly.
"Well?" Aurelia prompted, "What is your plan? And tell me quickly, I want to see how little Lorkin is"
Elle grinned, "My plan had a fault before. But now that Lord Morren has scheduled a test for us, it is completely flawless. Lord Rothen cannot help you study, can he, as he is looking after Lorkin with Black Magician Sonea? And Sonea is of the Healing discipline...well, she is the most qualified in that sense. So who is the only magician left who can help you study tonight...?" Elle's eyes were twinkling. Aurelia squeaked and beamed at her friend.
"You're a genius, Elle! Thank you" she untangled her arm from Elle's and went to hurry away, but Elle stopped her suddenly.
"Aurelia..." she began, slightly awkwardly.
"Yes?" Aurelia turned, jittery with impatience.
"It isn't a game to you anymore, is it? It's been a month since you met him and now it's stopped being a game" Elle's voice was understanding, even sympathetic. Aurelia blushed.
"You don't know what you're talking about" she replied at once, and turned quickly away.
"How is he?" Aurelia asked as soon as she entered the rooms. She had become comfortable with Rothen, Sonea and Lorkin more quickly than she had expected. She thought of Rothen as a kindly grandfather of sorts, and Sonea akin to a sister. It helped that little Lorkin really was related to her, so she felt calm around him. And it helped also that he was the loveliest baby boy in all of Kyralia.
Sonea smiled warmly at her, "He's getting better. I think it will have broken by the morning, but we shall keep an eye on him tonight, just to be safe. We have been healing him all day"
"That's good news" Aurelia smiled back – Lorkin was out of the woods and it would still be a good excuse for her to work with Dannyl rather than Rothen and Sonea.
"How was your day?" asked Rothen, "Shall I fetch Tania to make dinner?"
"I'm not hungry, actually" in this aspect Rothen also reminded her of a doting grandparent; he was always trying to feed her up! "My day was fine. Lord Morren is a ridiculous replacement for you, though. He's terribly grumpy. And he's set us a basic Alchemy test tomorrow"
Rothen looked abashed, "Oh, what timing! I can't possibly help you revise, not with Lorkin so ill"
"It's all sorted" Aurelia waved a hand airily, "I...I spoke to Ambassador Dannyl earlier. He offered to help me study tonight as he knew that the two of you would be preoccupied"
Sonea laughed, "Ah, we can always count on Dannyl. You'll give him our thanks, won't you, Aurelia?"
"Of course...I'm going to go in a minute, I've just got to..." she hurried off before she had finished her sentence, leaving Rothen and Sonea smiling knowingly behind her as she pinned up her hair using the hairclip that Dannyl had given her. She chewed roughly on her lips to make them all the more scarlet, and dashed away without so much as a goodbye, a pile of Alchemy books in her arms.
Dannyl was startled to hear a knock on his door. His Ambassadorial duties had not been piled on as heavily as he had expected, and he had been spending time looking at his old invention to convert mind images to paper. The time had flown by, and he was sure he was not expecting any visitors. Still, maybe it was Yaldin and Ezrille come to visit, or Rothen bringing him news of poor little Lorkin. He had meant to visit, but had completely forgotten.
He rose to open the door and was startled to see Aurelia, a pile of books in her arms. It looked as though she had just come from class...but surely she would have wanted to see how Lorkin was getting on? And she hadn't had her hair tied up like that that morning, when he had seen her from the window of his rooms.
"Good evening, Ambassador" she said prettily, tilting her head slightly, "I wondered if I could ask you a favour?"
Dannyl winced – coming from a young, pretty girl like Aurelia those words sounded sordid and wrong. But he smiled brightly at her.
"Come in. How's Lorkin?"
She gazed around his messy rooms with much the same fondly curious expression she had worn the first time, before locking her pretty eyes with his, "He's getting better. Sonea and Rothen think the fever will have broken by morning. But you see, the problem is...I have an Alchemy test tomorrow, and they are too busy looking after Lorkin to help me. And your chosen discipline is Alchemy, after all, so I wondered...if you might help me?"
Dannyl heaved a soft sigh of relief, "Of course, I'd be glad to help. Have you eaten?"
"No, but I'm not hungry" she smiled at him again, and something warmed within his chest. He pushed it away and cleared space for them both to sit at the circular table that contained all his work. He took the books from her and flicked through them, smiling.
"Wow, I'd forgotten a lot of this. I don't think I'm going to be much help" when he looked up, he was alarmed to see that Aurelia had angled her body so that she was closer to him, and was gazing at him. She tore her eyes away with what looked like a Herculean effort and looked down at the book. A curl of soft honey coloured hair had escaped from the clip and was delicately stroking her neck. Dannyl couldn't take his eyes off of it.
"It's this that I don't quite understand..." Aurelia pointed to the page, looking up at him innocently. He looked back at her, feeling horribly embarrassed by the intensity of her gaze.
"That was always my worst subject too" he said quickly, looking back down at the book, "I know it's only basic, but sometimes even the basics can get confusing...I think I can explain it to you now, though, if you'd like?"
"Please" she agreed softly, popping her lips on the 'p'. He swallowed.
And, quite suddenly, before he even had time to see her lurch towards him, Aurelia was kissing him.
Really, really kissing him.
And he kind of liked it. Infact, he really liked it.
But just as suddenly as it had begun, it ended, as Dannyl pushed Aurelia away. She stared at him, her eyes huge in her reddening face. She straightened in her seat, trying to hide her blush.
"Don't pretend you didn't like it" she said, almost cocky in her belief. Dannyl stared at her, horrified.
"You shouldn't have done that, Aurelia" his voice was firm, but quiet, and he could no longer meet her eyes, "Why did you do that?"
"Because you're not a lad" Aurelia retorted, just as firm, "I'm telling you right now that I'm sure you're not a lad"
"How do you...how do you know about that?"
"Sonea told me. About your friend Tayend. She knew I'd find out sooner or later, and she didn't want to cause you any embarrassment. So she told me. But I knew from the second she told me that it wasn't true"
"Well it isn't a lie, Aurelia" Dannyl was starting to get angry. Aurelia continued looking at him calmly, though her eyes were sparkling -with what, though? Mirth, or unshed tears? For a moment, Dannyl saw her Uncle Akkarin in her – in that moment, she was a mystery.
"You're lying to yourself and you don't even realise it. Because everyone around you was convinced you are a lad, you started to believe it yourself. And now you can't remember ever being unsure about what you are. But you're not a lad"
"Aurelia, this is none of your business. And you're a novice. If anyone had come in just then and seen you kissing me, we'd both be in a lot of trouble. I think it's best that you forget this theory of yours, because it isn't true" Dannyl was never good at being harsh or angry with anyone, but Aurelia presumptuousness had irked him. And the fact that part of him wanted desperately to kiss her again certainly wasn't helping.
Aurelia looked right into his eyes and reached out towards him, intending to take his hand. He pushed her hands away.
"Get out of my rooms, Aurelia" he snapped, his tangled emotions getting the better of him, "Leave"
Aurelia rose elegantly from her seat and managed to walk steadily to the door. It was only when she got outside that the facade crumbled and she crumpled outside Dannyl's door, weeping.
Dannyl pretended not to hear her.