Let There Be Peace on Earth
Lorlen strode across the University, a heat shield helping to dispel the worst of the biting winter wind. If he walked quickly, he would be able to make it to his parents' house before 9:00 and hopefully avoid the worst of his mother's lectures about overworking himself. He had attempted to point out to her that the work of an Administrator—a position about which she loved to brag—did not stop for Midwinter, but it had been of no use. As far as Emerelda was concerned, family came first, especially at the holidays.
As he passed a low grey building, he glanced up, noting a light on in the window upstairs. His steps slowed. He had not asked Akkarin to join him for Midwinter that year—the first year since they had met where he had not done so. Ever since he had learned about his friend's practice of black magic, he had been avoiding Akkarin as much as possible. Still, it was Midwinter's, and Lorlen felt that no one deserved to be alone on Midwinter's, no matter their actions. And Akkarin, despite everything, was his best friend. He simply could not throw away over a decade of friendship.
Lorlen turned, heading down the once-familiar path to the High Lord's Residence. Somehow, it seemed darker and more ominous than it had before. Lorlen hesitated at the door; for once, it did not swing inwards immediately. A slight smile formed on Lorlen's face as he considered that he had finally managed to surprise his friend, but it quickly disappeared as he reached out and knocked. He told himself that if Akkarin did not answer within a minute, he would assume his friend did not wish to be disturbed. However, after only a few seconds, the door swung open to reveal his friend at the bottom of the stairs, a globelight hovering over his head. Lorlen was not sure if he was glad or not that he had answered, but he forced his face into a smile. "It's Midwinter's Eve. I just wanted to see if you wanted to join me at my house," he said.
A half smile formed on Akkarin's face. "I would enjoy that," he agreed immediately, and Lorlen detected no insincerity in his tone.
"Well, we should get going then. You know my mother does not appreciate tardiness."
"I seem to recall something of the sort." Akkarin's lips twitched, and he followed Lorlen out of the Residence. They walked in silence, but it was more comfortable than Lorlen had expected. His mother greeted them both enthusiastically when they arrived, ushering them into the warm drawing room where one of his sisters already sat at the piano. Both Lorlen and Akkarin accepted a glass of wine before leaning against the sideboard to listen. When the song ended, Lorlen's sister consulted briefly with her sister-in-law before starting a new song. After the introduction, his sister-in-law began singing. "Let there be peace on earth/ And let it begin with me/ Let there be peace on earth/ The peace that was meant to be/ No matter our fathers/ Brothers all are we. . ."
Akkarin and Lorlen glanced at each other with the last line, and a small smile formed on Akkarin's lips. Lorlen immediately returned it. For the moment, with the joy of the season settling over him, he remembered better times, before he learned his friend was practicing black magic, before Akkarin's travels in fact—for in truth, that was when the troubles had started. For the moment, Akkarin was simply his best friend, as close as a brother, and there was nothing more complicated between them than a good-natured argument over a girl. "Happy Midwinter, old friend," Lorlen said, his smile broadening automatically.
Akkarin returned the smile, and Lorlen noted it was the first true smile he had seen from his friend in quite some time. "Happy Midwinter, old friend," he returned.
A/N: The children's choir recently sang this song, so my children have been singing it quite often and it fit well with this story. Yes, I did change the lyrics slightly to fit better with the Black Magician universe.