“You said it could be dangerous, Eanrin. A dangerous new gate opening on our watch.”
“Could be. But won’t be. We have to check it, and if it ever fully grows, make certain it stays locked.” He hopped down from the stool then and approached Imraldera, who stared down at the floor, her brow deeply furrowed. He reached out and playfully tapped her chin. “Not to worry, little princess. You’ve certainly seen worse than Faerie Circles. You’ll be fine while I’m gone.”
Imraldera jerked her face away, rolling her eyes, though she had long since given up trying to convince her comrade-in-arms that she was no princess. Changing a cat’s mind once it had fixed upon an idea was about as possible as changing the dance patterns of the stars. She watched Eanrin set his hat on his head at a rakish angle, but he was nearly to the door before she said, “Gone? Wait a moment, where are you going?”
“Ah, so you weren’t listening.” He paused at the door and grinned back at her. “I’m off to Rudiobus and the court of my good King Iubdan and fair Queen Bebo. I’ve not seen the Hall of Red and Green since we came to this Haven, and it’s high time the Merry Folk heard the golden tones of my dulcet voice ringing once more through the mountain corridors!”
“But . . . but you can’t just leave,” Imraldera protested. Though she had received her knighthood and entered the service of the Farthest Shore at the same time as Eanrin, she had not lived in the Between or known the ways of the Far World for nearly as long, having been born a mortal. Ever since establishing her place in the Haven and this library, she had relied on her fellow knight and his cheeky confidence, not to mention his knowledge of those things that seemed so strange to her but were as natural to him as night and day. Indeed, she needed him (though she might well have died before admitting as much).
She stood now, her frown lost in an expression of openmouthed worry that she battled to disguise behind another frown. “You have a duty, Eanrin,” she said. “A duty to the Farthest Shore, to the Lumil Eliasul. You cannot leave all this behind and return to Rudiobus!”
Eanrin continued to smile, though more gently now. “There, there. Is that what you fear? That I’d abandon you?” For a moment he almost recrossed the room to reach out to take her hand. It was a foolish moment, and he stopped himself by a firm grip on the doorpost. “I’ll be gone only a short while. You’ll not even notice I’m missing! I’m not giving up my knighthood or our work. But I am Iubdan’s Chief Poet, and I can’t ignore my duty to Rudiobus. Besides,” and here his eyes twinkled with redoubled mischief, “I’m certain my Lady Gleamdren has come to miss me while I’m gone. You wouldn’t want me to drop my suit now, would you?”
“Oh. Yes. Lady Gleamdren.” Imraldera returned to her desk and picked up her quill with the same aggression with which she might have unsheathed a blade. “I wish you the best of luck in your wooing, Sir Eanrin, and will see to it that our watch is well tended in your absence.”
Eanrin eyed her carefully, searching for something in that irked face of hers. Jealousy, perhaps, though he couldn’t quite convince himself that he saw it. He sighed a little but waved nonchalantly. “Everything is locked and safe for the time being. Be sure to watch that new gate. Cheery-bye, old girl! Try to miss me a wee bit.”
With that, he was gone.
Imraldera took her seat before her work and toyed with the quill in her hand. The Haven had been her home for some time now. (Quite how much time, she couldn’t begin to guess, for time was an inconsistent element in the Between, timeless though most considered it.) And she was used to being on her own, having grown up solitary and silent with only her baby sister for company. Lumé above, how long ago that seemed now!
She sighed and opened the book again to see if the blotting was as bad as she’d thought. Possibly she’d only need to remove a single page after all, not several. Dragons take that cat and his games!
Intent upon her work, Imraldera almost missed the sound of footsteps until they drew quite near her library door. Surprised, she sat up and turned around. The light falling through the library window was so bright that it was difficult to see into the shadows by the doorway. But she knew who it must be. None but a Knight of the Farthest Shore could enter the Haven uninvited.
“So you’re back already?” she said. “That was fast! Or did you forget something?”
“No, I don’t think I’ve forgotten anything,” said a strange voice. “And it’s been a long while, actually.”
Imraldera was off her stool and crouched behind the desk in a second, grabbing her penknife as her nearest weapon. Her heart ramming in her throat, she stared into those shadows, trying to force her eyes to see what they could not. She did not struggle long, however.