Forged in Fire, page 23
“Normal people, or healers?” Teva asked.
Owyn laughed. “You’re saying that healers aren’t normal?”
“No!” Teva laughed with him. “At least, not where Risha can hear me. No, I’m saying that healer normal isn’t the same as regular people normal. And regular people normal, for me, is Earth. Which might not be the same as Fire normal.” He shrugged. “I know how we’d handle it.”
Owyn nodded. “All right. Tell me that.”
Teva smiled. “All right. How old are you?”
Owyn blinked. “Twenty-two, we think.”
“Close enough. Anything over twenty is good. At twenty, you’re an adult, under Earth tribe law,” Teva said. “So there’s nothing that says you have to stay with him. Lots of people tell their parents they want out when they’re legally old enough. Here, you go to the dispensary and tell them you’re setting up housekeeping for yourself. They’ll assign you a place and get you set up, the same way they did here.” He looked around. “Although, you might want to tell him to move out. This place is assigned to the Heir, not to Memfis.”
The idea was startling — tell Memfis to move out? Owyn shook his head. “No, I can’t do that.”
“Sure, you can,” Teva said. “Or you can ask Aria to do it. It’s technically her house. I saw it in the notes at the dispensary.” He tipped his head back, then raised his voice without turning around. “Did you know that?”
“That this house is mine? I did not,” Aria answered, coming out of the corridor. She set a full bowl down in front of him, then poured a cup of tea. “How did you know I was there?”
“Something was rustling. I think it might be that you fidget.” He smiled up at her. “Are we friends, too?”
She returned the smile and went back to her chair. “We were already friends, Teva. And Owyn is right. We can’t ask Memfis to leave. It’s complicated, but we need him.”
Teva nodded. “So do you have a plan? About what to do when he comes back?”
Owyn shrugged. “No idea. I’m thinking that when he comes back, the very first thing he’ll do once he wakes up is apologize.” When Teva looks confused, he grinned. “He took his smoke blades. He went off looking for visions. Which means when he comes back, he’s going to eat and sleep, in that order. Possibly eat, sleep and eat again. Then he’ll apologize. And we’ll talk.”
“He went looking for visions?” Teva repeated. “Where? I don’t think you can find those in the dispensary.”
Aria giggled. “That would be very convenient.”
“He’d go looking for caves,” Owyn answered, throwing his napkin at Aria. She caught it and tossed it back, and he laughed.
“So, he’d go into the tunnels?” Teva asked. He nodded. “Then that’s a thing I can do. I can make sure you have warning for when he’s coming back. One of the tunnel guides is a friend of mine.”
“Teva, you don’t have to—”
“I want to,” Teva said. “I want to make it up to you.” He looked down at his bowl. “What am I eating here, Owyn?”
“Owyn did not cook. I did. And this is barley porridge,” Aria answered. “There is honey here.”
Teva dolloped some honey into his bowl, then took a bite. He took a bigger bite and grinned. “This is good. Thank you. You both have plans for the day?”
“We’re meeting Rhexa,” Aria answered. “I am to start learning from her.”
“And I need to take Aria to the dispensary to be measured for clothes. We both need to go, actually.” He glanced at Aria. “And we need to see Aven.”
“I should come and meet him properly. Not when he’s unconscious or screaming his head off.” Teva took another bite of porridge. “You sure you don’t need another man around the house?” he asked. “You can feed me this any morning. You’re a good cook, Aria.”
“Thank you. And I’ll need all the help I can get. But not yet.” Aria reached out and picked up the teapot, freshening her cup and Owyn’s. “Owyn, do you want anything else to eat?”
Owyn looked at the plate of flatbread, tried to judge how full he was. “Split a loaf with me?”
“If she doesn’t, I will,” Teva mumbled around a mouthful.
“Go ahead,” Aria said. “I will go and clean up, and we can go and start our day.”
AVEN JERKED AWAKE WHEN someone knocked on the door. Before he could collect himself to say anything, the door opened and Treesi came in. She was carrying a tray, and she sounded unnaturally merry as she called out, “It’s time to start the day!”
Aven blinked, and looked at Alanar, who came in behind Treesi. “Is she always this happy in the morning?” he asked, his voice scratchy.
“She’s almost always this happy,” Alanar answered. “You learn to live with it.”
“I have your breakfast,” Treesi added. “Sit up and eat. Alanar has your uniform.”
“Can I have my arm back?” Aven asked, shifting around to sit on the edge of the bed. He yawned, and looked at the tray. “And is there tea?”
“You didn’t sleep well, did you?” Alanar asked.
“Not really,” Aven answered. “I’m getting used to it, but I’m still not really sleeping until I pass out.”
“We’ll work on that hammock,” Alanar said. “Ah... no, I’ll ask you later.”
“What?” Treesi set the tray down on the bed and looked up. “What are you asking... oh. Oh!” She giggled. “Allie!”
“What?” Aven looked from Alanar to Treesi, then grinned. “It’s something to do with sex, isn’t it?”
Both Treesi and Alanar burst into laughter. “You’re learning,” Alanar wheezed. “And yes. What’s sex in a hammock like?”
“I’ve no idea,” Aven admitted. He thought about it, then chuckled. “I’d end up on the floor, I think.”
“That’s what I was wondering. You’ve never tried it?”
Aven bit his lip, and saw Treesi’s eyes widen. “Oh,” she murmured. “Oh, that’s right.”
Alanar frowned and turned toward Treesi. “What’s right? What didn’t you tell me?”
“I’m surprised Aria told her,” Aven murmured. Then he paused and thought about it. He shook his head. “Actually, no. I’m not surprised. You’re her Earth. You should know. Alanar, I promised Aria that she would be my first woman. And Owyn... well, there’s been no time.”
Alanar’s brows rose. “You’re a virgin? And you’re how old?”
Aven snorted. Aven snorted. “I’m not. Not entirely. Ah... it’s complicated, Alanar. And I’m twenty-five.”
“Complicated. I understand that.” Alanar nodded slowly. “You can explain later. Or not. I don’t mean to pry.” He held up the bundle of cloth he was still carrying. “These are for you. Treesi guessed at your shirt size, but she’s pretty good at that.”
“Let me get your arm, first,” Treesi said. She moved to Aven’s right side and started untying bandages. “You might be sore at first. That’s just from the healed muscles. Move slowly—”
“And it will pass. I know,” Aven finished. “My father taught me that.” The last bandage fell away, and Aven gingerly moved his right arm, testing the range of movement, stretching out, then up. The muscles were tight and sore, just as he’d expected. But there were no unusual aches, and he said so.
“Good!” Treesi beamed at him. “Now, eat your breakfast. Then you can bathe and dress.”
“Yes, Healer,” Aven replied, and laughed when Treesi poked him in the ribs. He turned to the tray and started uncovering bowls. The second one stopped him.
“Is this... this can’t be fermented sea oak?” He looked up. “I haven’t seen this in ages! Sea oak doesn’t grow out in the deep water where we lived, so I only ever saw it when we were with the family canoes. Where did you get it?”
“There’s a village up the coast a few miles. They make it there, and we used to trade for it, back when there were more Water tribe living here. There are jars and jars of it in the dispensary,” Alanar answered. He set the bundle of clothes down on the bed, then dragged one of the chairs over to sit with them. “There aren’t many left who like it. So enjoy it. There’s plenty where that came from.”
Aven stopped in the middle of mixing some into a bowl of oat porridge. “Not many left? Where did they go?”
Alanar shook his head. “I don’t know. No one does. The Water folks just started leaving. Not a word to anyone. There was a passage down to the sea caves, and we think they went that way. Can’t really be sure, because the tunnel there collapsed about a year ago—”
“Allie!” Treesi sounded almost shrill. For a moment, Aven wondered what had upset her. Then he realized she was looking at him.
Aven swallowed. “That wasn’t a dream?”
“No, it wasn’t,” she answered gently. “You were so scared. Owyn got you calmed down, and I put you back into trance. He explained after we’d gotten you settled.”
“That’s probably for the best,” Alanar said. He leaned forward and rested his hand on Aven’s knee. “We’ll make sure that Risha knows, so she doesn’t assign you anything in the tunnels.”
Aven nodded. He took a bite of his porridge and smiled at the taste of the seaweed. A taste of home. “Would either of you like some?” he asked after he’d swallowed. “There’s plenty.”
“There’s a reason there’s plenty where that came from,” Alanar answered. “No one else likes it. Well, Marik likes it. But he’s... what? Quarter Water?”
“I think so,” Treesi said. She sat down next to Aven on the bed. “Once you’re done, you can take a bath. Then you can get dressed.”
“Alanar said you guessed at shirt size. What about trousers?” Aven asked. Treesi frowned.
“You want trousers?” She looked past him at the bundle. “We brought a kilt, but if you want trousers—”
“You brought a kilt?” Aven gasped. He turned to look at Treesi. “I can wear one here?”
“If that’s what you want to wear,” she answered. She looked confused. “You couldn’t in Forge?”
“I’d have stood out like a beached whale in Forge if I’d worn a kilt,” Aven answered. He took another bite of his breakfast, then picked up a cup of tea and took a sip. It was salted, but also heavily sweetened with honey, and he shuddered.
“Too sweet?” Treesi asked. “Allie, I told you. Not everyone likes tea with their honey.”
“It’ll help wake you up,” Alanar said with a shrug. “The sugars will help perk you up.”
“And then I’ll fall over when they burn off.” Aven sipped the tea again. The second sip was more palatable, and he finished his oatmeal and seaweed concoction, as well as the small loaf of bread. He ignored the accompanying small bowl of honey. There was something that looked like the red fruit that Owyn had given to him back in Forge, but this one was green. “Is this an apple? It’s not red.”
“It’s a different variety,” Alanar said. “This one isn’t as sweet as the red ones.”
Aven nodded. “I’ll save it. I’m full. Where’s the bath?”
Treesi pointed, and got up. “I’ll show you. If you’ve never used a sluice boiler before, you might burn yourself. And I just finished putting you back together.”
Aven chuckled. “You sound like my Fa.”
“Careful,” Alanar called as Aven got up and followed Treesi to a door on the far wall. “You’ll turn her head with compliments like that!”
“Compliments?” Aven stopped and turned around. “Saying she sounds like my father is a compliment?”
“Comparing me to Healer Jhansri?” Treesi said, turning in the open door. “That’s the highest compliment.” She stopped, and wrinkled her nose. “You don’t know. His books are required reading for healers-in-training. You’ll get copies of them. Or you can use ours.”
“Books,” Aven repeated, following her into the bath. “My father wrote books. I... he never told me.”
“He might not have known that they became part of the healers’ canon,” Alanar said. He got up from his chair and followed Aven to the bath. “If I remember properly, he finished the second one right before he left.”
“What are they about?” Aven asked.
“First, bath,” Treesi said. She showed the tub to him, and pointed to the levers. “The blue one is the cistern. The red one is the boiler. You can either fill the tub part way with hot water and cool it down, or fill it part way with cold water and warm it up. But be careful with the boiler lever. It’s hot.”
Aven played with the water controls, and learned quickly that he needed to test the water temperature at the far end of the tub, not where the water mixed. He swirled one hand in the water to mix it, then looked up. “So, the books?”
“A treatise on mountain fever. That one is required reading,” Alanar answered. “And a treatise on anatomical differences between the tribes.”
Aven blinked. Then he laughed. “Well, I suppose he’d know,” he said. He slipped into the bath and relaxed in the warm water. “He only lived with members of the other tribes for five years. If anyone knew the differences, it would be my Fa.” He looked around. “Is there soap?”
Treesi reached across him and handed him a block of something. When he just looked at it, she laughed. “You’ve never seen soap before?”
“Not like this. The soap in Forge is like sand.”
She handed him a rough cloth. “Get the soap wet, and rub it with this.”
“And it’ll start doing soap things?” Aven asked, only to have the others burst into laughter.
“Hey, what’s so funny?” a familiar voice called from outside the bath. Owyn peered in through the open door. “You’re having far too much fun without us, you know. Aria, he’s got both arms!”
“And we should let him bathe and get dressed,” Treesi said. She escorted Alanar out of the bath, and came back carrying the bundle of clothes. “If you need anything, shout. Otherwise, take your time.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
BY THE TIME AVEN WAS bathed and dressed, and had come back out into the bedroom, the room had gotten very crowded. Aria and Treesi were sitting side by side on Aven’s bed, and Owyn was sitting on the floor at Aria’s feet, his head resting on her knee. Alanar had taken one of the two chairs and was talking with Risha, who was seated in the other chair. There was a stranger leaning against the wall near the bed talking with Aria. He was the first to see Aven enter the room, and he grinned.
“He cleans up nice, your Water,” he said to Aria. Aria smiled and touched Owyn on the shoulder. He shifted and she got up and came to Aven. He pulled her close, feeling her arms around his neck, breathing in her scent.
“I missed you,” Aria whispered in his ear. He nodded, her hair brushing against his cheek, and started to let her go. She moved back only far enough to shift and kiss him, sliding her fingers into his hair as she pulled his head down to hers. He tasted honey and tea on her lips, and tightened his arms around her. He never wanted to let go.
But he had to. He couldn’t stay kissing her for the rest of the day, no matter how much he wanted to do just that. He pulled back, but she didn’t let go, touching his forehead with hers, breathing with him. He smiled, and loosened his arms.
“I missed you too,” he whispered to her. She smiled and stepped back. Her smile widened.
“It’s good to see you in a kilt again,” she said. “You look much more yourself.”
“It looks good on him,” Owyn called from the floor. He got up and came closer. “She’s right. You’re more comfortable like this. Your shoulders are down.”
Aven blinked. “What?”
“Something I noticed,” Owyn said. “After we got you wearing trousers back in Forge, your shoulders started creeping up to your ears. It never really went away, even when you were relaxed. Now it’s gone.” He grinned. “Is there a kiss in there for me?”
“You even need to ask?” Aven said with a laugh. He reached for Owyn, tugged him close, and bent down to kiss him. There was something tentative about the kiss — none of Owyn’s usual enthusiasm. Was something wrong? Aven closed his eyes, shifted, and tipped his head to get a better angle to kiss Owyn, taking it a little deeper; Owyn sighed and relaxed against him. Better.
Owyn finally pulled back, but not before he repeated Aria’s gesture — breathing with Aven for a few breaths before moving away. “I like that,” he said softly. “Breathing with you. It’s like kissing, but it’s more.” He grinned. “Not that I don’t like kissing.”
Aven laughed and pulled Owyn to him, turning the other man so that his back was against Aven’s chest. He wrapped his arms around Owyn’s shoulders and just held him. “Are you all right?” he asked softly. “You seem off.”
“Still not all right in my head from yesterday,” Owyn answered, leaning back into Aven and holding on to Aven’s forearms. “I’ll be all right.”
Aven kissed the top of Owyn’s head, and looked around. Treesi had moved to Aria’s side, and had taken her hand. She smiled at Aven, seeming to be happy with that much. And there was still the stranger, who Aven had forgotten. “Who is our new friend?” he asked.
“Oh, right,” Owyn said. He laughed and pulled gently from Aven’s arms, moving to stand next to him. “This is Teva. Teva, this is Aven.”
Teva pushed off the wall and came over to them, holding his hand out. “Nice to actually meet you when you’re awake,” he said. He clasped Aven’s wrist, the way someone from the Water tribe would. Then he laughed. “Yes, I know how Water says hello.”
“Because there were Water here?” Aven asked. “And we met when I wasn’t awake?”
“I was in the rescue team. And a good friend of mine is part Water. His family is from up the coast a bit, and I spent time with them back before things got tightened down here.”
Aven frowned. “Tightened down?” He looked at Owyn. “What does that mean?”
“After the last round of purges, when we moved the main healing center here, we made changes to make sure that we were safe,” Risha answered. “We keep a close watch on who leaves through the tunnels, and the only ones who know the way through are the tunnel guides.”
