Disclaimer: Black Magician trilogy belongs to Trudi Canavan
All magicians listen to me!
Rothen froze, his hand outstretched toward the sumi utensils. He blinked in surprise at Lorlen's mental voice.
All mental communication must cease from now on, unless in an emergency. If you are unable to avoid conversing in this way, be mindful of what you reveal. If you hear another magician communicating mentally, please inform him or her of this restriction.
"Well," Dannyl said after a moment. "I have to say it, considering what you've set out to do, but every day I grow more worried."
"Of what?"
"That what Akkarin told us is the truth."
Rothen shook his head.
"No, it was Akkarin's trick. A way to escape with Sonea in tow."
Dannyl whistled, deep in thought.
"Sonea believed him. Do you think she could be fooled?"
The older magician grimaced at those words. He knew only too well how hard it was to persuade Sonea to change her mind about anything.
"I don't know," he admitted. "But hadn't he managed to deceive us all for years?"
Dannyl nodded and sipped some sumi before replying.
"He certainly had, and yet," he paused, choosing his words with care. "It seems too easy to explain Sonea's behavior; abandoning her family, the guild, you, and going into exile in a foreign land with a man that she, until recently, believed to be her enemy. No, there is more to it. Oh!" his eyes twinkled with amusement. "Do you think Sonea might be in love with Akkarin?"
Rothen turned pale and then tomato red as he comprehended Dannyl's insinuation. He glared at his ex-novice.
"No! She hated him!"
Dannyl rolled his eyes.
"The past tense is most appropriate here, my friend."
He stood up.
"Come to the Night Club with me," he offered. "I think I'll need help warding off awkward questions."
Rothen snorted, disbelieving, but allowed himself be herded out of his rooms.
Thank you for the first reviews. I'm glad you like it so far. I think this story will keep my writing skills well-honed. And that's just as well since my English suffered greatly from disuse. I'll try to update as often as possible, but I'm afraid they'll all be short. I'll keep it to one POV per chapter. This one is very short – only building up an atmosphere.