Disclaimer – I do not own BMT world, it belongs to Trudi Canavan

Friends, Old and New

All the way back to her rooms, Sonea was in two minds. She was still angry at what she saw as Akkarin's insistence she stay in the shadows, leaving him to do all the important work, but in spite of all that, she missed being with him. She was sure he would have been amenable to her staying with him and right now they could have been engaged in some really pleasurable activities. Instead she was going back to that empty and very depressing room of hers to face a lonely night.

She opened her door and saw a note lying just inside. It was a message from Irun asking if she would be free at mid-day so they could have a meal together. At least, she thought, I can make a start, but Akkarin needn't think I'm going to keep away from Regin!

Despite her mingled anger and regret, and the turmoil it created in her mind, Sonea soon fell asleep and although she was aware of dreaming heavily, she could remember nothing when she awoke. She was shocked to find it was almost past the time for breakfast, so she washed and dressed in a hurry, using magic to hurry along the process. She didn't want to miss Akkarin.

But by the time she reached the Food Hall, she could see that it was already more than half empty. There was no sign of Akkarin, but she was hopeful that he too had slept late and would be along in a minute. She collected her rolls and honey and took a large mug of raka. She found a table in an out of the way corner and kept her eyes on the entrance as she ate.

There was no Akkarin among the latecomers, but she did spot another familiar figure. She smiled happily. Rothen she sent, I'm over here. The Alchemist looked around, appeared to hesitate for a second, then came over to her table and sat down. For a moment, he said nothing, but stared intently at her. Her welcoming smile faltered a little under his scrutiny and unbidden her mind flew back to her last meeting with him at her Hearing. She remembered the reproach in his eyes.

"Sonea," he said at last, a little awkwardly, "You're looking well."

"It's good to see you Rothen," she replied perhaps a little too eagerly. "It's been such a long time."

He continued to stare at her, "I often wondered how you coped, in the wastelands. I'm glad to see you weren't harmed."

His voice was carefully neutral, as was his expression. Sonea felt on the verge of tears. Rothen, her oldest friend in the Guild, the one who had tried to take care of her when she first arrived, the father figure who had hoped to become her father in truth when she married Dorrien, had no idea how to treat her. Does he still regard me as a criminal? she wondered. Does he still blame Akkarin for it all?

"Yes, it was difficult at first," she replied, forcing herself to sound cheerful, "but Akkarin looked after me and we survived all the dangers."

At the mention of Akkarin's name, Rothen's face tightened. "He treated you well, then?" he asked.

"I couldn't have survived without him."

"And you stayed with him, all these years?"

She looked directly into his eyes, "Yes."

Rothen's gaze slipped away from hers. It was obvious to her that he was uncomfortable with the implications of her answers. She wanted to tell him everything, their love, their life together and most of all, their child, but instinct told her he wouldn't understand and his next words confirmed it.

"I'd hoped you would begin to see him for what he really is, once you were out of here and he was no longer High Lord, once the glamour of the silken robes and everyone bowing and scraping around him was gone, but it seems I was mistaken."

"It isn't like that, Rothen…" she began, but he held up his hand.

"No, don't Sonea, I don't want to hear it. I shall never forgive myself for letting you go to live in the Residence. I should have told them what I knew and damned the consequences."

Rothen's voice was full of suppressed anger and it looked as if he would say more, but a shadow fell on their table, and Akkarin's quiet voice intruded, "Lord Rothen, renewing old acquaintances, I see."

Despite herself, Sonea jumped a little, startled that he could come upon them without her knowing. She smiled up at him, but he was staring at Rothen whose face had first whitened, then reddened under Akkarin's scrutiny.

The Alchemist got to his feet, "Lord Akkarin," he said stiffly, "There are some acquaintances one should not seek to renew."

Sonea watched him walk away from them and out of the Food Hall, as Akkarin slipped into the seat beside her. "I'm sorry to be so late," he said, "but I needed to see someone rather urgently. Have you finished eating or shall I fetch you some more?"

She glanced down at her plate and the crumbled remains of her roll, "I'm not hungry, just the raka will do."

"Don't let Rothen upset you," he said softly. "It's me he hates, he's still very fond of you."

"I want him to understand, about you, about me, and Justen, but I realise it's hopeless."

Akkarin didn't reply, but smiled briefly at her before going to collect his breakfast. Later, when he had eaten, she told him about the note from Irun, but not about her plan to spy on Regin and Kelda. He nodded approvingly, "Young magicians like Irun can be very useful to us and you are the best person to befriend her, I certainly couldn't. Try to find out as much as you can. I shall be with the Warriors all day, don't bother to wait for me at mid-day."

She watched him walk over to a group of Warriors lounging near the door. She noticed that hers were not the only eyes which followed his progress. Some of the watching magicians were openly hostile, some seemed simply curious, but many of the females were looking at him in a way she couldn't like. Once Akkarin and the Warriors left, many of the eyes turned in her direction. She hurriedly drained the last of the raka and got up, anxious to get away from the silent scrutiny.

She spent the morning in the Library, partly hoping Regin or Kelda would appear, but also to do some research. She worked her way through the volumes of information about the novices who had joined the Guild after she left. She also made careful notes about the magicians who were newly qualified and which discipline they had joined. Gradually a picture emerged of a slow but steady decline in the numbers of novices joining the Guild. This last year, for the first time in more than two decades, there were no foreign-born magicians accepted as novices and only three Kyralians. The other thing she noticed was the significant increase in the numbers of Warriors since Balkan became High Lord. Almost every newly qualified male magician had joined his former discipline and Warrior numbers were now at their highest level for decades.

It was obvious that Balkan feared something and was taking steps to protect himself and the Guild, but from what? Sonea puzzled over this for some time. She thought back to her meeting with the new High Lord soon after her capture. Yes, Balkan was obviously worried by something, but she just couldn't quite put her finger on it.

By the time she had finished making notes, it was time to meet Irun. Her message had not said where they were to meet, so Sonea sat outside the Food Hall and waited. It was a warm day, and it was pleasant simply to sit and let her mind drift a little.

"Sorry I'm late, hope you haven't been waiting long."

Sonea opened her eyes to find Irun standing in front of her. She was just about to reply when she noticed another girl at her side. Something must have shown on her face, because Irun hurriedly said, "This is Neeve, she's a final year novice. We come from the same village and she wanted to meet you."

Sonea looked at the novice. She was taller than Irun, with a sharp-featured face and curly brown hair. She was looking at Sonea with undisguised interest, a wide smile across her lips.

"Oh yes," Neeve breathed in a wispy little voice, "when Irun told me you had spoken and she was going to meet you for a mid-day meal, I wouldn't let her rest until she agreed to bring me along."

Neeve held out her hand so that Sonea was forced to take it. The novice had a surprisingly firm grip, so unlike her little girl voice, that Sonea was momentarily confused by the conflicting signals. She nodded at the novice and murmured a greeting before turning to the Healer.

"I'm feeling hungry, Irun," she said, "shall we go in?"

Today's meal was almost a replica of the one Sonea had eaten on the first day of her return. She took a small portion along with some bread and a cup of watery wine. They found a table in a quiet corner and sat down. Initially, the conversation tended to be limited to social pleasantries. Irun spoke about her work with a Healers' clinic in the city and Neeve talked about her classes. Sonea didn't quite know how to turn the conversation around to the things she was most interested in. Perhaps I should let this meeting be a getting to know you one and leave the difficult things to the next time, she thought. Hopefully Irun will be on her own then!

"So, Lady Sonea," said Neeve in her whispery voice, "tell us all about your adventures. You must have had some interesting times since you left the Guild."

The novice was smiling at her, but her smile didn't reach her eyes and all at once Sonea was on her guard. She returned a vague, non-committal answer. For a moment, she was sure she could see something in Neeve's eyes which didn't bode well, but it was gone in a flash and afterwards, she convinced herself that she had imagined it.

"It must have been difficult, being sent into the wastelands with nothing," the novice persisted. "How did you manage?"

Sonea smiled at her sweetly, "As you can appreciate, it was a dreadful experience and I don't like to talk about it. Tell me about your life in your village instead."

But Neeve was disinclined to talk about herself or her village. Using a forthcoming test as her excuse, she said she needed to go to the library. Watching her walk away, Sonea made a mental note to find out more about Neeve and the sort of plans she might have.

Soon afterwards, Irun too said she had to leave. "I've really enjoyed talking to you Sonea," she said. "I hope we can meet again soon."

"I hope so too, Irun."

Later, Sonea went back to the library and found the entry for Neeve in the Novices' Ledger. She had done well in her examinations during her time as a novice and would soon complete her noviciate. From comments in her record¸ it seemed as if Neeve would become an Alchemist once she graduated.

I wonder if she's a friend of Kelda's too, Sonea thought. I must try to find out.