Jala nodded slightly and studied the man by the gate a bit longer while his attention was away. She hadn’t had a chance to meet any of the Shifters yet and while the Blackwolf line was rumored to be very strong in the Shifter powers she could see no sign of animal traits on Sebastian - well, at least not from this angle.
“He looks perfectly normal aside from the shade of his eyes,” Finn said as if reading her mind. “And Chastity looks far primmer and much more proper than she actually is, so be prepared. She is the female version of me I think. Bluntly honest and totally uncaring if she offends.”
Kicking his horse forward at last, Valor approached the corral with Jala and Finn close behind. “Is that anyway to treat your liege, lord Honor?” He called loudly to the man still managing his hold on the horse that appeared to be wearing down.
“I have the easy job Val,” the man holding the rope called over his shoulder without taking his attention off the horse. “It’s Honor that will carry the bruises from this.”
Shocked, Jala looked closer at the man standing in the center of the corral. She had thought him a groom or perhaps a horse trainer and hadn’t paid much attention to him. He was dressed plainly in rough linen and covered with dust and splattered with mud up past his filthy boots. He wore gloves that looked more fitting for a field hand and his long dark hair was pulled back loosely with tangled strands sticking to his sweaty face.
“This one is going to be his pride and joy, Val,” Chastity said sweetly, walking over to stand by her brother’s horse. The little silver-haired girl followed her meekly, stopping to stare up at Valor with wide blue eyes nearly the same color as his. Jala watched the child nervously as she approached Vanguard’s dancing hooves but neither her mother nor her uncle seemed the least bit troubled. Leaning out of his saddle Valor held his arm down for the girl, keeping his balance perfectly despite the horse’s continued motion. The child grinned with delight and wrapped herself around his arm, giggling as he drew her up into his saddle.
“Uncle Val,” she cooed and hugged him, her cherub-like face lit up with delight.
“And how is my favorite niece?” Valor asked, giving her a hug.
“Don’t try to buy favor like that Val, she is your only niece,” Chastity said dryly and leaned back on the rail. “That mare he is breaking is Arovan mustang stock. Honor caught her near the Black rock cliffs. To hear the stories, Honor actually went over one of the cliffs in pursuit of her, nearly killing himself and his horse.” She paused and looked up at her brother, blue eyes alight. “Father was furious,” she purred and smiled.
“Why would he bother with a mustang?” Valor asked, distaste thick in his voice.
“One of our scouts swears they have traits unlike other horses. He says they are being affected by the elemental works we do. I don’t know if he is right but Honor seems to think he is,” Chastity explained and casually looked past her brother to where Jala sat watching the horse that now trotted in circles her head held low. “Are you going to introduce me to your friend?” she asked sweetly and glanced briefly at Finn. “Hello, Finn, so glad no one has killed you yet. Amazed, yet glad nonetheless.”
Valor flushed and cleared his throat. “I’m sorry Jala, I was rude. Jala this is my sister Chastity, her Lord Husband Sebastian and their daughter, Devony.” He motioned to each as he spoke and then waved a hand graciously toward Jala. “This is Jala, Finn’s wife. She is a fellow student at the Academy and a very impressive Sorceress I might say. The Bendazzi beside her is her familiar, his name is Marrow.”
“So good to meet you,” Chastity said with a smile. She looked her over once, then flicked her gaze back to Finn. “How did you convince her to marry you? A lot of strong alcohol?” she asked sweetly.
“I’m much nicer to her than I am to you Chas. You are like a bossy older sister to me. There is no reason whatsoever to be nice to you,” Finn answered with the same sickeningly sweet tone.
Pushing off of the gate Sebastian approached slowly and stood by his wife. He was tall and well-built, standing a good six inches over his wife’s more petite frame. She understood what Finn had meant about the Shade of his eyes when she locked gazes with the man. They were a bright green with flecks of gold, almost the color of a cat’s, too vivid a color to be considered normal. His expression was calm and serene but Jala could see darker emotions lurking in that gaze. Probably due to the troubles in his own lands she decided, and bowed her head respectfully to him.
“Finn married? That is an unusual announcement. I would have bet good money that he would have died single,” Sebastian said in a quiet voice. “You must be exceptional,” he said, his gaze still on Jala.
“She is,” Finn agreed, drawing the lord’s attention away from her.
“Did you meet at the Academy?” Sebastian asked, his tone suggesting he was asking out of courtesy rather than interest.
“At the Spring Games actually. She saved me from some planned mischief by the Justicars,” Finn explained.
“She is far too beautiful for you Finn,” another voice broke in, and Jala turned to see Honor sitting on the exhausted grey mare near the rail. The horse stood placidly, her head low and breathing heavily. Up close, Honor looked so much like his brother they could have passed for twins. They had the same fine bone structure to their faces, giving them features that would leave most girls swooning. Had she not been told in advance that Honor was years older, she would have never guessed. He had more of a roguish look than his younger brother, though with shorter hair and one ear pierced with a decently sized diamond.
“Thank you,” Jala said bowing her head with a smile. She was rather glad she had taken the extra time fixing her hair and choosing a dress today. Valor had given her no indication that she should expect to meet so many influential people.
“So what did you want to see me about, Val?” Honor asked, allowing himself to relax back in the saddle. One of the mare’s ears twitched but other than that she showed no sign of moving.