Ch 3.6: Guest


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I’m sorry?” ina said.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“The Kaldish rebellion,” Alonse said, returning his attention back to his food. He didn’t eat though, just moved it around a bit with his fork. “Our northern border. There has been unrest there for some time, and with growing need for soldiers domestically the kingdom is stretched thin.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“I don’t— We’re first years, second years at most…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“A fact I’m well aware of.” Alonse ced his utensils down and emptied his drink into his mouth before filling it up again. “I bought you a month. The ministers weren’t even happy with that, but it was all I could get.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“So, a month from today…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“A month from three days ago. They wanted you sent off this past weekend.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">ina could barely understand what she was hearing. She’d heard of Kaldish of course, lived near the northern border her entire life, but she wasn’t exactly that close to the country. And there was some rebellion there? She’d never heard of that either. “I don’t really know what this all means…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Right, of course.” Alonse took another drink. “You aren’t going to be on the front lines of abat zone, not really. Just an upied area with some minor peace disturbances.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">The quavering tone of his voice did little to soothe ina’s pounding heart. “So we’re…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“More like town guards than soldiers,” Alonse said, nodding as if he were trying to assure her, or maybe himself. “It’ll be a good experience, honestly. And you won’t be alone, either. A few groups of third-years and two or three professors will be there too. Those have yet to be selected, but I’ll let you know as soon as they have been.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">And with that, Alonse kept nodding as he resumed eating again. ina sat there for a while before she went back to her own meal, but what had tasted like the height of luxury only a few minutes before now tasted like pig’s slop.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“How have your rtions with other students been?” Alonse eventually asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Huh? Oh, uhm, fine, I guess.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Good. I was hoping that incident at orientation would’ve been moved past by now. Prisma Fireguard hasn’t given you anymore trouble about that?”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Prisma?” ina said, trying to refocus her thoughts. Had he known about what happened between them before, after? “I don’t really understand the question…”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Then nevermind,” he said, waving his hand like that somehow exined everything. “It’s still very regrettable that ever happened, and I could see why she would feel slighted by my decision, but I’m happy she’s not taken it out on you.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Right,” ina said, drinking her water again. At least that didn’t taste awful. Still, she couldn’t help but wonder why Alonse had singled out Prisma instead of Waine there.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Are you perhaps not very hungry?” Alonse asked.


    <span style="font-weight:400">ina looked down, noticing the discrepancy between their tes. Alonse hadn’t exactly been scarfing down his food, but his te was cleared off now, and hers barely half so. “Not really, sorry,” she said. It was a minor etiquette mistake to not clear your te, but tonight she couldn’t help that.


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Very well then. You make take your leave when you wish, and I’ll call the servants.”


    <span style="font-weight:400">“Sure,” ina said, pushing herself up. “I think I’ll go now then.” Alonse nodded, standing up and walking to the door, opening it for her with a wide smile.


    <span style="font-weight:400">Not finishing your food was one thing; staring was another entirely. But ina couldn’t help but stare at his bearded face right now, that wide smile. He’d seemed genuinely upset earlier, talking about sending them off to some rebellion, but he’d been able to ignore that before he brought it up, seemed to convince himself mid-conversation that actually it was a perfectly fine thing to do, now was acting like nothing had ever been wrong. She’d been on the fence about how she felt about him before, but this was something else entirely.


    <span style="font-weight:400">There was acency in his smile she just couldn’t stand.