A Song of Snow and Ashes

to do," she scolded gently, looking at him over the top of the paper.

  He flushed sheepishly and was quiet.

  "There you go." She handed the paper back to him and recorded the result in her notebook. "You answered eighty-three percent of the questions correctly. I want you to look over the test and make sure you know what you did wrong."

  "Is that a passin' grade?"

  "In my classes, it's a good grade. However, it could be better. I wouldn't demand one hundred percent, but I encourage my students to aim for at least ninety-five percent."

  "So what do I get for gettin' better than ninety-five percent?" he asked.

  "My students get honors for graduating with high marks. Those I tutor must be content with my approval."

  "Say something!" he thought to himself. He steeled himself as they packed up their notebooks. "How 'bout if I do well, you let me buy you dinner or somethin'?" he asked hopefully.

  "Donnan, you're very sweet, but I don't think it would be exactly appropriate, since you're my student."

  He fought back his disappointment as they walked out the door. "You're not givin' me grades or anythin'. It's not like I'm bribin' you."

  "That's true. But I'm seeing someone else right now."

  "Well, we could just be friends," he offered, trying not to sound too desperate.

  "Friends?" she repeated, with a raised eyebrow.

  "Why not?"

  "You've already asked me out once."

  His jaw dropped in surprise. "You remember?" he stuttered.

  "Indeed I do. I'm not sure how friendship would work, since you are clearly attracted to me," she replied bluntly, but a delicate blush was rising on her cheeks.

  "Ah, damn. Well, you can't blame me for tryin'," he replied, crestfallen.

  She patted his arm sympathetically. "I'll tell you what. If you can pull your quiz average to above a ninety-five percent, we can go have coffee sometime. As friends."

  "You mean it?" he asked, brightening up considerably.

  "Well, we can try. I do have some male friends. Perhaps I won't be as attractive once you've taken a few more of my quizzes."

  He smiled. "I appreciate you givin' me a chance. A lot of people like you don't look twice at people like me."

  She sighed. "You mean wealthy people ignore the poorer ones. I try not to judge people by those sorts of things. But I admit I have biases. Sometimes I've gotten in trouble because I can't see past good breeding and family wealth."

  "I wonder if she means Reese. Maybe I can ask about that later," he thought. "Well, that's alright. Sometimes I think all rich people are snotty and stuck up. Then I meet nice ones like you."

  "Thank you." She looked up at the street sign. "Isn't this your street?"

  "Yeah. Too bad."

  She laughed a little. "I'll see you next time. And you make sure to study."

  "You're goin' to surprise me again with a quiz?"

  "Of course. If I told when I was going to quiz you, you'd only study for the test, not your own knowledge."

  "Maybe your kids are right about you bein' a harsh teacher."

  She laughed again. "See you next time."

  "Next time," he returned, and went home.

  That evening after Alain had left for work, he met Blake.

  "Did you say something today?" Blake asked immediately.

  "Yes, I did."

  "Well?"

  "She said she'd let me take her out if I did well on her quizzes."

  "Well, that's good."

  "But I told her I'd just be friends," Donnan added.

  "What? Why? Just be friends? Oh, gods, now you're doomed."

  "Well, I had to say somethin'," he replied defensively. "She's still seein' someone else."

  "This isn't going to make it easier to win her over. Gods, 'just friends.' What a stupid thing to say. It's obvious you're attracted to her."

  "Thanks for your support, Blake. She knows I like her. She agreed anyway."

  "Well, that's something, I guess. Are you still going to spend the night in the temple?" the acolyte asked with a smirk.

  "You're a jackass. Why do I talk to you?"

  "You know why. Now, are you going to discard, or just sit there with a stupid grin on your face?"

  And so the evening passed.

  The next week passed much more pleasantly for Eliora, although she still made sure she left the group early enough to study more of the language. Being immersed in Northern was aiding her progress, and she and Jomei discussed a possible trip to Mulago in the next few weeks to recruit a mage tutor.

  She was playing chess with Aidan that evening when she realized someone was missing. "Where's Davin?" she asked. He had played one game of chess with her every evening since he introduced himself.

  Aidan looked around. "Don't know," he shrugged, and moved a piece.

  "You don't know? Isn't he part of the group?"

  "He's char-kin. He goes off on his own all the time," he replied, disdain evident in his voice. "Not my business what he does."

  The others who overheard their exchange were nodding in agreement, and echoing his remarks, as well as his sentiments. A few even looked a touch jealous, including Aidan.

  "Don't worry about him. He'll come around. Or he won't. Doesn't matter to me." Then he took one of her warriors.

  "Well, that's interesting," she thought. "I guess not everyone is as close as I first thought. Don't they care that something could be wrong? They sound like they don't even like him very much. I wonder why that is." She pondered this for about an hour, until she won the game.

  "How do you do that?" he demanded, as he realized that she had once again beaten him.

  "Practice. It's getting late. Please excuse me."

  "We have got to teach you some other games," he sighed.

  She stood up and went outside. The lanterns from the demian city above illuminated the area with soft torchlight. It was a chilly night and it was getting late, but she decided to walk around and see if she could find the young man. "I'm being silly," she thought as she walked. "I barely know these people, and here I am looking for one in a strange city." She sighed. "I wonder why the others don't seem to really like Davin. That word they used, char-kin, it sounded like an insult. He's got those intense violet eyes, and he always seems so serious. Or so sad." She shook her head. "What am I going to say if I do find him?"

  She walked for nearly an hour, almost forgetting why she had set out as she explored the city. The dining hall was on the western side, and the majority of the cottages were to the east of it, a little distance away. Only about seven cottages were to the west of the dining hall, and they stood at the end of a broad but winding dirt road. There was also a large stable that seemed to serve just those cottages. She guessed that must be where the traders came in with their goods and stayed on their journeys. She already knew the gym and training area was to the south, so she headed east. Eventually she stumbled into a clearing that was on the edge of a steep rise, with the floor of the forest dropping several feet and then leveling out again. She looked up and realized that because of the topography, she could actually see the sky clearly. For the first time in nearly a month, she could see the moon and stars. "My gods," she breathed, staring at the unfamiliar constellations. Tears stung her eyes as she realized how much she missed the view of the night sky. She was startled by a creaking sound coming from the trees near her. Turning, she caught a glimpse of some sort of platform about thirty feet up the trunk, hidden by branches, but she was sure someone or something was up there. She walked around the tree looking for a way up. The closet branch to the ground was about ten feet up, but someone had nailed a ladder into the thick trunk.

  "I must be crazy," she thought, staring up the tree. "Here's hoping I don't break my neck." She climbed the ladder, and then noticed the branches were well spaced for climbing the rest of the way up. Holding the branches with a white-knuckled g
rip, she made her way up and onto the platform.

  It was semi-circular in shape, extending about four feet from the trunk and supported by a number of branches. It had a waist high guard rail at the edge of the platform, and there were hooks in the trunk to hold quivers of arrows. From one was hanging a lantern. In the dim light, she could see a young man staring up at the stars.

  "Hello?" she called.

  "Eliora? What are you doing here?" Davin asked, without turning around. He was leaning against the lower slat in the guard rail.

  "I was just taking a walk. That's all. Is this a watch tower?"

  "Sometimes. But not right now."

  She stood there for a minute as they lapsed into silence. "I'm sorry to have bothered you. I'll leave you to your grieving."

  His head jerked around. "Grieving? What makes you think that's what I'm doing?"

  "Just the way you're holding yourself, if that's the right term. You're all alone out here. You're clearly thinking about something. I'm sorry if I offended you."

  "No, no." He sighed and turned his attention back to the stars. "You are right. I'm surprised anyone noticed."

  "Well, maybe I did because I've been grieving a lot too."

  "I've noticed you seem awfully sad." He sighed again. "Well, you found me. Come sit down."

  She took a seat next to him, but wasn't quite brave enough to dangle her feet over the edge. Instead she half-crossed her legs and hugged her knees.

  "Can you understand me alright?"

  "Well, speak slowly and be patient, and I'll get your point," she answered.

  "Will you talk to me?" he asked.

  "Why wouldn't I?" she returned, surprised.

  "Because I'm a stranger to you. You've figured out that