A Simple Darkness (The Young Ancients: Tiera) (38 page)

The rest of the day went better at least, no one either lecturing her or calling her names, with Sorenson even praising her in singing class, which Instructor Crane agreed with, if only a bit. It was nice to hear she was doing alright at least. It was clear that she wasn't exactly a wonderful singer, but she was going flat less often and managed to keep to the tune most of the time. True, when it came time to pick partners for the duet they were to do next, no one exactly wanted to work with her, but that could be due to her bad reputation, not just lack of skill.

In the end no one picked her at all, and the boy she asked, another first year student, looked as if she'd hit him in the liver a few times. It wasn't exactly a great thing to see, but he nodded and mumbled something that she took to be positive in nature. After class he did walk up to her, and even gave his name, which was Roland. He had slightly reddish blond hair and dusty looking skin. He was tall enough that she'd guess him to have relatives that were nobles if nothing else. His clothing looked like silk and unless he was practicing to be a spy, it probably wasn't magical in nature. A lot of the upper classmen had them, but only a few of the younger kids did. Tor had handed them out the year before, since a lot of people had been hurting, coin wise. He was nice that way. Probably too much so, but no one complained about it overly. Not around her at least.

The boy in front of her wasn't
rude
at any rate, bowing a bit as he looked down at her.

"We should meet sometime to practice. I'm planning to go into town tomorrow evening, but I have the early part of the day free, is that good for you?" He sounded bored, but was doing his part, so she smiled and tried not to be ungracious.

"Well, I have a class in the morning, it's a special thing, not a regular one. That should be done by noon though, is that early enough? Maybe we could meet in the commons at say, one? That way you won't have to miss luncheon." The larger people needed to eat a lot more than she did and got grumpy when they missed their meals. She did too, but it took longer.

"That sounds fine. Do you have plans for after that? We could go to the tavern together. It's more fun when you bring your own girls, or so I hear. So far I haven't had a lot of luck with that."

Tiera nearly blinked at the boy, not knowing if it was just a regular invitation, or one for a date. She didn't even know how to get at that information.

The boy winced, "that's alright, you don't have to come if you don't want to. It was just an idea." He started to walk away then, which got her to reach out and touch him on the back of his right arm.

"Actually, I was just wondering if I could bring a friend with me? Regina Helmsley? I... this is embarrassing, but where I come from we do thing pretty differently, so I don't know if you're asking me out on a date, or just as friends, or even just to be polite. Any of those is fine, but I have no clue what to do. Would it be alright?"

The boy stopped for a second and then, instead of mocking her, he simply nodded.

"Sure. I was suggesting it as fellow students, but having extra girls around never hurts. Even if you don't want me for yourselves, talking me up to your friends will help. I've seen that work at least." Roland gave her a very strange look and then smiled at her. "Is that, things being different where you come from, why you were so rude to everyone the first week? You did a lot better this time. I'd fancy that meant I was better looking than the rest of those fellows, but that just isn't true."

"It was pretty much that. I can explain it all, but the main idea is that I sort of misunderstood the ranking system and thought that if I was with anyone too far out of station, my family might be angry with them. It was never about those boys themselves. They were all fine looking and seemed most proper to me, I just... didn't know enough. Now a lot of people aren't that fond of me. I'm working to get past it, but that looks like it's going to take some time."

That got a general agreement and they parted ways with a wave, but without saying anything in particular. It was nice that someone seemed willing to at least let her be friends now. Other than Regina that was. She was special though, so in a way that didn't count. It mattered
more
, but wasn't the same thing. A wonderful and unexpectedly different thing.

Before she could get more than two bites of food down, Karen walked in.

"We need to leave,
now
. We're due at a meeting in the palace in an hour. Secret. We need to get Kolb and Hardgrove first, since the point of us going is to give them a ride without it seeming too strange. If anyone asks you're in trouble and those two are meeting with the King about it. Count Lairdgren too."

That bit of news got her to cross her arms and tap her foot at the larger woman.

"Really? I mean, it
has
to be about me being in trouble? It can't be about my birthday coming up or anything positive, it has to be that I'm in trouble? I'm getting sick of this. Really, if they all think it's so funny, why don't they just do without me? You don't need me to give you a ride. I won't be needed at this meeting and pretending that I am is silly. If they have messages for me to take, then they can just pass them along, or tell me that I have a fare for Timon's business. In trouble? For
what
?"

Karen smiled at her and threw her hands out, as if pushing the idea away.

"I don't know. I didn't come up with it. Maybe you can talk to them about it at the meeting? I was just asked to get you to come along. Now."

She nearly told the older girl to forget it, since she had meditation class, but then she looked away and tried to get her irritation under control. It wasn't rage yet and she was set up to make deliveries. Maybe it was just that. It made a good excuse to get people down there at least.

The knock at the door got Karen to spin in place, opening it as if expecting Sir Kolbrin to meet them there. Which he was, with Dean Hardgrove and a very shy looking Reggie standing behind them. Tiera moved past the men, almost as if ignoring them.

"I have to take these people down to the Capital. Emergency run. Apparently the King can't go even a moment longer without scolding me. It isn't about school things, but the Dean and Master Kolbrin have agreed to go with me to help make sure I don't get locked up in prison. I... sort of broke a few laws the other day, down in Galasia. I don't think it's that big of a deal, though I do wish my apology to Baron Gala was delivered already. Can we meet later? Tomorrow, if I'm able to? We're both supposed to go to the tavern. A classmate invited me and thinks it's a wonderful idea, having you along. We can drag Karen and Ali with us too maybe, so we'll know people."

Her friend looked scared suddenly, and her eyes went, not to either of the men, but to Karen, who she actually knew. The larger girl nodded and waved at Tiera.

"It was a bit worse than that. She helped cripple four men and killed another. That wouldn't normally be that huge of an issue, since Baron Gala is an easy going person, but his Barony is in County Harris and Countess Harris is Countier Scotland Ross's second cousin and they're close enough that Tiera getting in his way the other day is causing some waves." Karen stared directly at the girl and shook herself, as if worried. "They can't easily go after her for that, the Countier was in a combat rage after all, so the rules change and pretty much almost anything is fair game. He was trying to kill Count and Countess Ward, and since they're in doubt again Tiera's heroism is being looked at with suspicion as if she were working against the King."

Making her face as hard as she could, Tiera started to leave the room.

"Which is just people being stupid. The King and I, we don't always agree on everything. He's a bit of a stupid head at times, and I'm sure he thinks even worse of me. Probably with good reason, from time to time, but if he gives me too much trouble on this, I'm going to make sure he gets an earful."

Everyone followed her then, and Regina came along too.

"Fine... I'll go and talk to him then. I don't know if it will help, but..."

Dean Hardgrove put a hand out to stop her.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry too much for Tiera here. She might be scolded, possibly even removed from the school, but King Richard isn't an unfair man. Neither is Countier Ross. This will turn out to be fine."

For some reason Sir Kolbrin didn't seem to agree, shaking his head a little instead.

"Don't paint the picture
too
brightly, Kyle. Miss Baker might end up in severe trouble for her actions. The pure truth of the matter is that having another schoolgirl there won't help at all. It won't be easy, but you need to stay here and ready yourself for whatever may come. We can't know what the punishment will be, but the men in Galasia, they had their arms and legs removed and were sentenced to perpetual rape for their crimes. It isn't impossible that Tiera will face the same thing now."

Her friend gasped and looked half panicked.

"
No
... We'll run away." Jumping forward awkwardly she tried to grab the Weapons master around the middle. It didn't work very well, and she slipped her arms ending up around his knees. "Run Tiera! I'll hold them while you get away!"

She nearly cried and patted her friend on the shoulder instead.

"Don't worry, Kolb here was just having you on. It's his version of being funny. I'm sure later on when he regales all the other weapons instructors with the story it will be a comical farce. Sir Kolbrin, that really isn't very nice." She tried to make her intention clear, but the man just stood there for a bit, his face blank.

"Oh, well, I suppose I shouldn't play that way with you then, Miss. It really isn't that big of an issue, as you can tell by mere school officials being called to the Capital. My jest was a bit coarse and as I can see now, unwelcome. I'm a fighter first, and we do tend to run toward hard humor. Please forgive me."

Looking up at him, Reggie slowly let go.

"Truly? You were simply making fun with me?"

"Poorly, as it turns out. This will be fine, I'm certain. Perhaps a few beatings for your friend here, but nothing too harsh to survive." Then he helped the orange eyed and pretty girl to her feet. "I
mean
that part. About beatings. That really could happen. She tends to be a bit flip with authority figures. That doesn't always end well."

With that she got her Fast Craft set up on the stones of the common area, letting it float about a foot off the ground. It took less than a minute for them to get loaded and in less than two they were several miles away.

"That..." Tiera said, her voice calmer than she felt. "Was
mean
. I don't have so many friends that I can afford to lose them by having my other friends causing problems. Just for that you have to have all the poor flyers on your team tomorrow during my special class. Hmph!" The words would have been more menacing if Karen hadn't laughed then.

"Seriously Kolb. What was that? I get playing into the story, but you
could
have just told her no. Regina isn't used to that kind of thing, and she'll actually worry about it. Not everyone knows the King personally you know. She doesn't get that he'd never allow that to happen and that the worst he'd do is have Tiera beheaded."

Tiera wished him the best of luck with that one, if he wanted to try it. Implanted shielding would make it pretty difficult to do. Really, it would make it hard to even spank her. She'd have to focus pretty hard to keep her shield off all the time it was happening after all.

It was Dean Hardgrove that spoke then, as they flew toward the Capital at thousands of miles per hour.

"Miss Baker, if you could detour toward the south west? We aren't actually meeting in the Capital proper, but about ten miles outside of the city, in the surrounding area. There will be a beacon set out for us." His voice was calm and steady as if it made sense for her school's Headmaster to know things like that.

"I can do that."

The beacon was a set of magical lights, six of them, set in a large circular pattern on the ground. It could be seen from the air, but that was the point. They were in multiple colors, so hard to miss, and none of them were the white or bright amber of fire in the night. There was purple, blue and green. No one coming in would be able to mistake the meaning. Of course if they were being watched from space, they could have as easily just done it all in town, couldn't they? If that was the case, then it wouldn't matter, but all they could do was try.

She settled in the middle of the lights, that area visibly being empty. It was still a slow movement, so that she wouldn't smack into the ground, since it was harder to do in the dark, even with the guides that had been put out. That would be embarrassing, especially since there were at least ten other vehicles set up, all of them magical in nature.

Most of those were set off to the right, and half of them were the older, but very reliable, focus stone type that Tor had made first. The rest were either the regular magical carriages, which most people didn't know could fly, even if they had one, and two other Fast Craft. You could tell the difference, because the faster ones felt like they were moving, even as they sat still on the ground. At least to her they did.

It was a large collection of big people, at least fifty of them, most sitting on blankets, or standing near the large fire that was set up some two hundred feet from the ring of lights. That was probably to keep people from being crushed if there was a minor misplacement of one of the flying vehicles.