The last time they had been out to their little lake, it hadn't started to snow yet, but now the ground was blanketed with it and the water had frozen over. It would be quite peaceful were it not for the sounds of the traverse. Though it wasn't as bad out here. Even in the Traverse souls seemed to congregate in the towns and cities, she wondered if they could feel the life on the other side or if they just lingered close to where they died.
They carefully made their way to the end of the jetty, where they pushed the layer of snow off the edge. She set down the towels from her pack for them to sit on, and they dropped down, feet dangling over the edge of the jetty. Under the ice, they could even see fish darting about.
With the basket between them, they both started going through it to see what they had.
"This is way too much for two people," Nick said.
"Yeah, they do that a lot at the manor. You should see the meals we're served."
While eating at the academy was good, everything the cooks at the manor made was just higher caliber. But Kalys did seem the type to only accept the best.
"But to be fair, if Zen were here, he could probably devour this. Where did he meet that girl?"
"In town, he said. She just came up to him and asked him out."
"Brave."
Sun didn't think she could just ask out a stranger like that. Dating in general had never really occurred to her.
The pair picked at the food while they chatted. With her moving out of the academy, they really didn't see each other as much as they used to, so there were actually things to catch each other up on. And when they ran out, they just settled into a comfortable silence.
A horrible cross between an agonised scream and an angry roar shattered that silence, and she jerked her head to the side. That had sounded bloody close.
"What is it?" Nick asked.
"You didn't hear anything?" She had never heard that sound before, in real life or the Traverse.
But if Nick hadn't heard it, then it must be from the other side. What in the hell could make a sound like that?
"The Traverse?" He asked.
"Must have been... I've never heard a sound like that before though."
She looked around, as if she might be able to locate the source of it, but with the exception of the sounds only she could hear, it was an idyllic place to be.
Looking back at Nick, she noticed how cold he was; there was even a bit of a blue tinge to his lips. His cheeks and the tip of his nose were turning red.
"Maybe we should go," she said, standing up and offering her hand down to him.
He didn't even have gloves on, and his fingers were like ice. While the Academy did give a small stipend to their candidates, it wasn't really enough to get much of anything without long periods of saving. She needed to get him some gloves, maybe a scarf and a hat. She'd only given them warm jerseys and jackets, some socks... Kalys gave her enough to buy anything she could imagine; she should be spending more of it on her friends and making sure they had everything they needed.
"You're freezing," she muttered, taking off her scarf and wrapping it around his neck.
"I guess we know now why the cold doesn't really get to you," he said.
"One of the perks, I guess."
"Until summer comes along and you start dying in a pool of your own sweat," he chuckled.
She hated summer. And she hated winter, but, of course, not for its cold. Autumn was pretty damn nice.
"A lady doesn't sweat," she said, mock indignation. "We glisten."
They started trudging through the snow, and she was relieved she didn't hear that sound again. It had sent chills down her spine in a way she hadn't felt since she was a child on the streets. Chills that meant danger, that something terrible was about to happen. Even if there was some kind of world barrier between them, she didn't want to be near the source of that sound.
"So will Zen and I ever have to call you 'my lady'?" He asked.
It sounded like a joke, but she picked up on something else in his tone, something close to worry.
"Never."
Whether he was joking or not, she wanted him to know she would never be anyone other than Sunny to him and Zen.
He nodded, looking down at the ground ahead of them.
"And you're still doing all right there?"
"Yeah, it's really not so bad once you get used to it. And I think Kalys might even be defrosting a little. He actually helped me out last night, took me down to the cellar."
He shot her a questioning look.
"I told him about my... hearing problem; he took me to the cellar, and it's quiet down there. No voices. Still the other sounds, but no voices. He... I'm just really grateful for that."
It was a huge relief to have gotten a mostly decent sleep last night, and she had softened to the man who'd been responsible for it.
"This midwinter thing I'm organising, will you and Zen come?"
"Would we be allowed?"
"Yes."
She didn't know. But she didn't care. They were coming—if they wanted to.
"I'm planning a feast, and there'll be Commanders from the Revenants there; it could be a good networking opportunity..."
"You don't have to convince me; you had me at 'feast," he laughed. "But seriously, you want us there; we'll be there."
She let out a breath. She would talk to Kalys—tell, not ask. If she worked up the guts, he still intimidated her a bit. Or maybe just not tell him anything at all and let it be a surprise.
This would be her first formal, official event; having them there would be a great comfort. And maybe even make it bearable. No doubt they would probably make fun of her, maybe for her dress or the etiquette she'd have to adhere to, but it would be worth it to have them there.
Nick walked her all the way back to the manor, carrying the basket for her. He followed her inside, and they made their way to her room. She wasn't sure what to do with the picnic basket and left it on the desk for now.
"Take a look at the book shelf; I found some in the Illusen library you might like," she told him.
He could devour books, that boy; even if he actually managed to live a hundred years, he still wouldn't have read enough. With his advanced classes and extra work he got assigned, he didn't get as much time to read as he would have liked.
He crouched in front of her shelf to browse the titles. He didn't have too much of a preference when it came to genre, or whether it was fiction or nonfiction. He tried to make up for all the time they spent living in illiteracy and ignorance. Sun and Zen probably should have tried harder too, but the written word just sort of... bored her, and Zen didn't really have the attention span to sit still for that long.
As she lit the fire for him, she watched him pick up one of the books from the corner of her eye. The Illusen library was extensive, not quite as big as the academys, but titles that certainly wouldn't be found there. Kalys did mention the main Illusen library back at the estate in the Capital was much larger. Nick would probably love it.
He flicked open the book and started skimming the first page.
"Can I borrow this one?" He asked.
"Of course. Will you read it to me?"
He seemed a little surprised by the request before he smiled. She liked listening to his voice; there was a smooth, soothing quality to it she had been drawn to since childhood.
Before they settled into the cushions in front of the fireplace—mostly for his comfort—she grabbed her embroidery practice. It was one area of the 'gentle arts' she was failing at abysmally. Mostly because she despised it. Listening to him read her a book while doing it, though, would surely make it a little more bearable.
-
When Kalys arrived home, he made his way straight to his room to remove his uniform and try to wash off the day. It had consisted entirely of paperwork; the reports of the uprisings to the north were becoming daily and worsening. There was talk of his division mobilising and heading out to quell them. He was reluctant to leave any time soon, to leave Sun without any supervision, but he may just have to.
As he passed Sun's room, he caught Mika and a couple of maids peeking through a crack in her door. There were hushed whispers and quiet giggles.
He silently swept up behind them.
"What is going on?" He kept his voice low—quiet but stern.
The maids gasped, whirling around. Mika was the only one to look him in the eye, a faint smirk playing at the corners of her lips. He was well aware she wasn't as intimidated by him as he would like. But a hardened assassin was hardly going to wilt like the maids she worked with.
With a look, he dismissed them; they were more likely to stutter and make excuses than provide any answers of value. Mika would at least be direct. Once the maids had scurried out of earshot, he looked expectantly to his sister's bodyguard.
"We were just admiring the adorable couple they make," she replied, her head tilting slightly in the direction of Sun's room.
He clenched his jaw; he had a good idea of who she was talking about. He took a look through the gap in the door. Nickolai and Sun had made themselves comfortable on the cushions in front of the fire, where the boy was reading to her from one of Kalys's own books. She was lying on her back, head in his lap, while she worked on her embroidery and the fingers of his free hand played with her hair.
There was an intimacy there that was hard to watch; he didn't like it at all.
He took a step back. He knew they were close, that all three of them were. It was hardly befitting of her station to be flitting about with these two uncouth boys; it flew in the face of convention, to be sure, but so did her existence. And he had felt safe in the knowledge that Mika was always watching.
"You're supposed to be protecting her," he uttered quietly, casting an accusing stare towards Mika.
"From would be assassins, not... whatever that is," she gestured dismissively towards the pair.
His glare hardened, and he turned towards the door. He slid it open with a bang, neither one of them startling at the sound. He had expected them to guiltily jump apart and was sorely disappointed.
They just stared up at him curiously as if they weren't doing anything wrong. Did they do this so often? They had grown up together with no parental oversight; perhaps they had no boundaries with each other. That bothered him more than he would ever admit out loud.
"Is everything all right?" She asked him, like butter wouldn't melt...
"Will your friend be joining us for dinner?" He asked.
"Can he?"
"I would not ask otherwise."
She looked up to Nick, silently questioning. How Kalys had made the invitation sound like a threat was impressive.
"If it's not an imposition..."
"It's not," he said, turning on his heel. "The door stays open."
With that, he left them, casting a harsh glare at Mika's smirking face.
"That didn't go the way I thought it would," she said quietly.
Back in Sun's room, Nick looked down at her, eyes a little wide. "Why would he invite me to dinner? He can't stand me."
"I don't know; it could be some kind of trap," she replied. "Be ready to teleport out if you need to."
She was only half joking.