It was a bright spring day when Denil and Tir'ac borrowed horses from the university stables and rode out of Eto to meet Sai'em. The note giving her expected arrival time had appeared on Denil's desk two nights ago. He had been surprised to receive it. Six months ago Sai'em wouldn't have even thought to use magic for something so trivial. It was a sign of the changes in the elf that she was now comfortable enough with magic to use it for something as minor as a note. He suspected that she would still refuse to use it in her research, though.
The last of the snow had melted a couple of weeks ago and the air was now fragrant with new growth and spring sunshine. They halted about a mile beyond the city walls and settled to wait. There was still enough of a chill in the air to make Denil glad of his cloak, but the storms and icy weather of winter were long past. Tir'ac hadn't worn his armour or carried his staff since they returned from his plane. Denil had seen them both carefully stored in a corner of the rooms he'd taken over a bakery, but the Kyari seemed to prefer carrying his sword and occasionally a crossbow. His duties in the city guard never needed more and Tir'ac refused to use any more force than he absolutely had to. Although he wasn't on duty, Tir'ac was wearing the long green coat from his uniform with the city badge pinned to the lapel. People seemed less inclined to challenge a large man with a tattoo on his cheek if he looked like a local official.
"You are fortunate to live in such surroundings," Tir'ac said after a couple of minutes.
The Kyari rarely spoke more than he felt necessary and Denil had noticed that he was slowly attempting to learn the habit of making small talk. It was often stilted and showed signs of careful forethought, but it was obvious that Tir'ac was trying to fit in with his new society.
"It is lovely out here," Denil said with a slight smile. "I'm sure General Garma wouldn't mind if you want to explore now that the weather is better."
"I believe I shall do so, Denil of Errith. Your plane has much to see." Tir'ac's frown was only apparent to someone who knew him well. "I am beginning to understand why Lord Ayulphel wished to reclaim it. None of his domains are as fertile as this."
Denil nodded and they lapsed into companionable silence. It was an hour before two horses rounded the curve in the road ahead and Denil strained his eyes to see details. He pushed his wire spectacles up his nose and managed to make out a white horse with a white-clad rider next to a chestnut horse with a rider dressed in greens and browns. As they drew closer he recognised Sai'em's cap of blonde hair and her companion's auburn hair. Denil nudged his horse into a trot and quickly closed the distance. His grin was answered on Sai'em's face when he reached over to clasp her hand warmly. Tir'ac was more reserved, but there was a hint of a smile as he bowed to both women.
"Welcome home," Denil said with a wide smile.
Jyani looked much better than she had when they parted on the North Road a few months ago. Her hair was no longer dull and lifeless and the deep red tones shone in the sunlight. There was a flush of colour in her face and her brown eyes sparkled as she returned his smile. Even her clothes were different. Russet breeches and jacket and a pale green shirt had replaced the dark green dress. Distinctive elven embroidery twined around the sleeves and down the seams of her breeches. With some of her hair caught in a carved wooden clasp to show off her pointed ears, she looked every inch a wood elf.
"It's good to be home," Sai'em said, gesturing Jyani forward. "I've brought a friend."
"So I see," Denil said. "It's good to see you again, Jyani. You're looking better."
"I feel better," Jyani said with a smile. "And it's Jyanineha Winterleaf now, though Jyani will still do for friends."
Denil returned her smile. "Is this a visit or...?"
"I'd like it to be a long-term appointment, if the Dean can be persuaded," Jyani said. "Sai'em has told me a lot about Eto."
"And you still want to be here?" Denil asked, grinning to let her know it was a joke.
Jyani laughed. "Yes. I think I can be useful here. Humans and elves have different ways of healing and I'd like to see whether they could be combined. Sai'em thinks humans and elves could learn a lot from each other."
They chatted about inconsequential things as they rode back to Eto, the kind of light talk that old friends make when they've been apart for a while. Sai'em pointed out city landmarks to Jyani as they went through the streets and Denil was surprised to find that the wood elf had a bright, mischievous smile and a lively sense of humour. The time with her people had obviously healed some of the damage from her years of imprisonment.
At the stables they dismounted and grooms led the horses away when the elves had retrieved their saddlebags.
Tir'ac shook hands with the women. "It is good to meet you again. I hope that we may spend time together in the future."
Jyani smiled at him and stood on tiptoes to kiss his cheeks. "I'd like that, Tir'ac."
The Kyari didn't blush, but his eyes widened and he made a hasty goodbye and left.
"I think you embarrassed him," Sai'em said.
Jyani wrinkled her nose and shook her head. "He has the kind of face that makes you want to do something outrageous just to get an expression out of him."
Sai'em heaved a mock sigh. "I'm not sure I can cope with this."
Denil grinned. "It will be good for you."
He got an aggrieved glare as an answer and hugged her before she could say anything else.
"I'll be in my study if you need me," he said. "Go and get yourself settled."
"I have to see the Dean and then I'll take you up on that," Sai'em said.
It was a couple of hours past lunch before Sai'em knocked on the door and Denil opened it. She walked in and stopped immediately, both eyebrows rising as she took in the changes. Denil self-consciously led the way to the chairs flanking the hearth and put his kettle on the hook to heat over the crackling fire. Sai'em ignored the hint and strolled over to the bedroom door to peek through.
"I see you've been busy," she said, turning to face him.
Denil shrugged. "It seemed about time."
The sofa in the corner that had been his bed for five years was serving duty as a sofa again. The room was still cluttered with books and papers but it was no longer the mess of a man who didn't care, rather the mess of a busy man with no time to keep everything tidy.
"I've taken on a couple of extra classes," he said. "I'm thinking of asking Jame to be my apprentice when he's a little older."
"Ah."
There was a wealth of understanding in that reply. Denil knew that Sai'em had seen the large, neatly made bed and the clean hearth in the bedroom. He swallowed nervously.
"I see you fixed the chimney at last," she said with a gentle smile.
Denil returned her smile and turned to the boiling kettle to make a pot of tea. The unused bedroom had been a symbol of so much in his life. Making it liveable again had taken days of work but Denil was glad that he had finally made that decision. He wasn't ready to replace Jak, but he was no longer living with the ghost of his wife and he could at least envisage one day finding someone to share his bed again.
Sai'em sat down in one of the armchairs while he was making the tea. Denil poured tea into two mugs and handed one to her.
"Are you planning to request the rooms you're entitled to?" Sai'em asked, inhaling the steam from her tea.
Denil shook his head. "What would I do with a Master's suite? I'd just be rattling around in it."
"If you're taking Jame as an apprentice, you might need it one day."
"He won't be ready to leave the dormitories for a few years yet," Denil replied. "He may not even want to live with me. I didn't move into my Master's suite and my apprenticeship didn't suffer."
Sai'em raised a hand in defeat. "It's your choice."
"Thank you."
"Have you heard from him?"
There was only one 'him' she could be referring to.
"I received a letter a few days ago," Denil said, lowering his eyes to stare at the oily surface of his tea. "It was dated just after we left. I guess it takes a while to get letters this far. Everything seems to be going well and the wizards haven't taken any interest in Charry."
"That's good." Sai'em hesitated. "You miss him, don't you?"
Denil looked up, seeing only concern and empathy in her eyes. "Yes. It's crazy, I know. I only knew him for a couple of months."
"It's not crazy at all."
"I keep thinking that I should tell Jak something or that he'll find something funny, and then I have to remind myself that he's not here."
"Give it some time."
Denil cleared his throat uncomfortably and took a sip of tea. "So, why has Jyani come back with you? The real reason this time."
Sai'em allowed him to change the subject. "We spent a few months in Abéra Forest with her people and it seems to have helped, but those years in captivity changed her a lot. She doesn't feel that she fits in with her people anymore so she asked me about Eto. I told her what I could and she made her decision. The Dean has given her status as a visiting lecturer and she'll probably be added to the Masters permanently when he sees that she has knowledge and research that will be valuable."
"Where is she staying?"
Sai'em coloured slightly. "I've given her the floor below mine in the tower until we can get something more permanent sorted out."
"Wise decision," Denil said mildly, wondering at the betraying flush.
"It was the Dean's suggestion," Sai'em said. "I don't know how happy he is about having two elves in his university."
"He'll get use to it," Denil said.
"Hopefully. Eventually."
"Did you talk to your people about Ayulphel?" Denil asked.
Sai'em immediately became serious. "Yes. I spoke to my father and he met with the Council."
Denil decided that questions about how she talked to her father in the north when she had spent the winter in Abéra Forest could wait. "What did they say?"
"First they apologised."
"Apologised?"
She nodded. "If we had known that any of the plains elves had escaped, we might have acted differently. The Council seemed genuinely surprised to discover that any of them escaped the final battle. We knew that the plains elves had armies of human slaves, but the elves they captured must have been absorbed into the casualty lists. There were thousands of bodies and we always assumed that a lot of the humans had escaped before the last battle. We are truly sorry for not being more thorough during the aftermath."
Denil waved it away. "What else did they say?"
"Well, when they'd finished apologising - which took the best part of three days, apparently - they agreed that I should return this." Sai'em took Denil's sheaf of notes and the small book out of a pocket in her jacket and set them on a low table between their chairs. "It's a human work and you should have some record of the portal spells."
"I'll make sure it's put somewhere safe," Denil promised. "Was that it?"
Sai'em shook her head. "We've spent most of the winter discussing defences. Our cities have always been protected by spells that disrupt portal spells. The Council has agreed to erect similar barriers over Eto and as much of the Gilderaan Wastes as possible. The spells were cast two weeks ago."
"What about Genta?"
"We debated it for a long time, but it was agreed that it's too dangerous to cast such a powerful shield over a city filled with human wizards. We can't protect the whole world so we had to limit our attempts to those areas that were under the most immediate threat and where our interference won't be detrimental."
"You're worried that human magic might interfere with your spells."
She shrugged. "It's a valid concern. I wouldn't want to be in the vicinity if one of their 'experiments' interacted with our magic."
Denil hummed noncommittally. "Anything else?"
"Not much that was useful. They were intrigued by Charry, but he's out of our hands for now. They were trying to come up with a plan to fight the plains elves when I left. That won't go far. We've got no idea what their numbers are or how many planes they control. Even Tir'ac doesn't know."
"Maybe they won't try to come here."
"Maybe," Sai'em said uncertainly, "but I'm not putting money on it. Hopefully, it won't be in your lifetime, anyway."
They talked quietly for another hour, discussing the Council and possible defence plans and catching up on university gossip, before Sai'em stretched and smile apologetically.
"I should get back," she said. "It's been a long trip and I left Jyani alone in the tower."
"Of course," Denil said, standing as she did. "It really is good to have you back."
Sai'em pulled him into a tight hug. "I missed you."
Denil patted her back. "Same here."
They pulled apart and straightened uncomfortably. Sai'em moved to the door and rested her hand on the handle.
"It's been an interesting winter," she said thoughtfully.
"Yes, it has."
"I don't regret it, though," she added.
"Neither do I."
They smiled at each other and Sai'em gave him a small wave. "See you tomorrow."
Then she opened the door and slipped through. Denil put the dirty mugs with the remains of his lunch on a cluttered sideboard where a servant or student would take them to the kitchen later. Although the weather had improved, there was still a chill in the air so he threw an extra log on the fire before settling down at his desk to work. Taking on extra classes meant that the amount of time he had for personal research had reduced, but he was rediscovering the joy he used to take in teaching bright, eager young minds. In fact he was rediscovering a lot of things that he had put aside in the years after Sharra's death.
The day waned into evening and Denil was lighting the lamps around his study when there was a knock on his door. He frowned, holding his taper over the last lamp, and briefly wondered who it could be. No one usually came by for his mugs and plates until morning, but it could be one of the students wanting help with something. One of his older students seemed to come by every couple of days to ask for help with one translation or another. He had suspicions that her attentions were not entirely academic but so far none of her queries had been outside the bounds of her lessons. This was the first evening that he'd had free to work on an obscure volume of Arreish history and he was loath to leave it.
He ignored the knock, lit the last lamp and padded silently back to his desk. He was just about to sit down when the knock came again, more insistently. Denil sighed and scowled at the door. The persistent person on the other side of the door hammered at it again and, grumbling under his breath, Denil walked across the room and opened it. Anything he might have said died on his tongue and he stared wordlessly, drinking in the sight in front of him. For a moment he wondered whether he'd fallen asleep and was dreaming, but a dream could never have conjured up all the details his hungry eyes took in.
Jak looked tired and travel-stained, but he couldn't have looked better to Denil's eyes.
"Hi," Jak drawled after a long moment.
Denil tried to say something, but the words wouldn't come.
"A speechless linguist," Jak said. "Now there's a first."
Dark circles under his eyes testified to sleepless nights and there were a few extra lines radiating from his eyes. Jak's long coat was mud splattered on the hem and a couple of buttons were missing. Denil absently noted a faintly herbal scent and damp hair, evidence of a recent bath.
"Can I come in?" Jak asked.
Denil nodded and backed away to allow Jak through the door. Jak casually brushed against him as he went past and Denil's heart began to hammer so loudly he was amazed that Jak couldn't hear it. Tearing his eyes away to watch his shaking fingers turn the key to lock the door allowed him to regain some composure before he turned back.
"You've made some changes," Jak said, surveying the room before his gaze returned to Denil.
The scholar found that he was unable to look away, his eyes caught by Jak's and the emotions he could read there. Strangely, it was the hint of uncertainty that pushed him into speaking.
"What are you doing here?" he asked, cursing inwardly for being so blunt. "Not that it's not...I mean...I've...Jak?"
Jak shoved his hands deep into his coat pockets. "Our story didn't hold up. The wizards started getting too curious about Charry for comfort so we took a leaf out of your parents' book and snuck out before thaw. I sent Elsa to live with her sister and gave Paet a letter of recommendation for the Wolves. They need a good horse-trainer more than I ever did. Charry and I have been travelling for weeks. We went to the wood elves first and they gave us safe passage part of the way here. Then we've taken the back roads since." His harsh snort of laughter held no humour. "Charry's stronger than he looks."
"Of course he is - he's your son," Denil said.
Jak nodded slowly. "I guess so."
"In every way that counts, he is. You told me that months ago."
"I did. I think he's even believing it again."
"That's good." Denil pushed away from the door and took a step closer, his eyes never leaving Jak's. "So, where are you heading?"
Jak's smile was brief. "I enrolled Charry in the university. He's a bright kid and the elves told me this was the safest place for him."
"It probably is. The wizards won't be able to get to him without starting a war they can't possibly win and Sai'em's people have shielded the city."
"That's what they told me. Charry seems happy. I left him making friends with Sanna and Anna. He practically pushed me out of the door."
Denil's heart was in his mouth as he asked, "What will you do?"
"The commander of your city guard was looking for a second. I saw him as soon as I got Charry settled. I don't have any references from Genta, but he's an ex-Wolf and Tir'ac put in a word. General Garma seems like a decent guy. I start in a few days."
"Sounds fairly permanent."
"I hope it will be." Jak took a step towards Denil. "I've never really considered anywhere to be home, but I like this place."
Denil swallowed and took another step forward. He and Jak were only separated by a few inches of air.
"Where are you planning to live?" he asked.
"Well, Charry wants to live in the dorms with the rest of the kids." Jak suddenly gave Denil a shy smile. "I was hoping that I might be able to bunk down here. Just for a few days, until I'm settled. I'll sleep on the floor if you're not-"
Denil lifted a finger and cut Jak off. "You don't need to sleep on the floor."
"I don't?"
He shook his head. "I had the chimney in the bedroom fixed. Unless you're really attached to the idea of sleeping on the floor, you can sleep in there. With me. For as long as you want."
"I won't assume-"
Denil cut him off by the simple expedient of hooking his hand behind Jak's neck and pulling him into a kiss. He closed his eyes to savour the flavour that was uniquely Jak and felt all the hesitancy evaporate from the other man as Jak wrapped his arms around him and pulled him close. Denil kissed hungrily, revelling in the feel of Jak after months of missing him with an intensity that had almost been a physical ache. Jak's hair was as soft as he remembered, his skin was warm and his mouth was hot and wet. Denil wrapped an arm around Jak's waist and kept his other hand on Jak's neck to hold them together until they had to pull apart and catch their breath. Even then they only moved apart a few inches and Denil's eyes were immediately caught by Jak's again. He moved his hand to trace Jak's scarred eyebrow and Jak captured it and held it against his cheek.
"I missed you," Jak rasped, "so much."
"I missed you, too," Denil said shakily. "It felt like there was a part of me missing."
Jak softly kissed him. "I don't think I ever told you, but I love you."
Denil had never expected to hear those words, accepting that Jak cared for him without wanting to pressure the man into any declarations, so he was surprised to feel an aching hole he'd never been aware of before close as Jak spoke. He suddenly felt so light that he wondered why he didn't float and a grin spread across his face.
"I love you too," he said.
Jak released a breath, as though he'd been afraid that Denil would reject him. Denil watched in amazement as tension suddenly drained from Jak's face and he realised that the other man wasn't as confident as he always seemed. It was a strange revelation and Denil made a private vow never to take advantage of that knowledge.
"I'm not good at relationships," Jak said. "I can't promise that we won't fight-"
"I think we're guaranteed to fight sometimes," Denil said.
Jak grinned. "We'll get lots of practise at make-up sex."
"Sounds fun."
"I will probably be an ass every now and again."
"I guessed that."
"There are going to be days when I'd rather have hot pokers shoved up my ass than talk about my feelings."
"You will talk," Denil said firmly.
"Can I finish this? I practised it the whole way here."
Denil grinned and nodded.
"Good." Jak released Denil's hand and wrapped his arm around Denil's waist again. "This isn't going to be perfect. I have no experience with making relationships work and I'll probably make a lot of mistakes. I'm probably not going to tell you that I love you very often, but you should know that what I feel now won't change except to get stronger. All I can do is ask you to have patience with me and give me a good kick if I start acting like an idiot."
"Promise me the same and we'll be even." Denil rolled his eyes at Jak's surprised expression. "One marriage doesn't make me an expert with relationships and what I have with you is very different to what I had with Sharra."
"Good different or...?"
"Good different."
Jak grinned at him. "I'm glad."
"So am I."
"So, what do we do now?"
It was a strange echo of their conversation the first night they began their relationship. Denil leaned forward and brushed his lips over Jak's. "Did you bring much luggage?"
"We were in a hurry. Most of it is Charry's. The rest is sitting outside your door."
"It's safe enough for now, then."
"What are you planning?"
Denil gave him what he hoped was a seductive look.
"I've missed you," he said huskily.
Jak's grin was wicked. "I like where your mind is going."
All thought of students, work and wizards vanished as Denil moved out of Jak's embrace, took his hand and tugged him into their bedroom.
*fin*
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© Selenay 2004