Natheniel went along with Tavin to Missa-Sidyn for one reason: to try to flirt with the cute college girls. Well, technically he was there for tutoring, but he liked to pretend that no one knew that part… no matter how obvious it was, especially when it also involved sitting in on his own brother’s lectures. At least they let Ihu in (after they realized it was the only way he was going to stay there, that is).

Tavin’s tendency of fidgeting did him well here; the mindless messing with the edge of his shirt became broad gestures with so many people looking. And despite his preference for small groups and the company of books, he was a good public speaker.

“When a spirit attaches themself to a person, they gain a part of the spirit. Take those with Saint-King Lucas’s spirit, for example; they’re often noted to have his sense of charisma or recklessness. Beyond their notable similarities, there are other preferences. Statistically speaking, almost all of the people with Saint-King Lucas’s spirit preferred homemade pastries and most ended up marrying a redhead.” There was a brief pause before he declared, “I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.”

It wasn’t long after he left that the room filled with mumbling.

“What was that about?”

“Maybe it’s just another one of those dizzy spells. Happens all the time, from the sounds of it.”

“Is it just me or are they getting more frequent recently?”

“Who cares? We’ve got all this time to ourselves!”

“That’s a little inconsiderate…”

Natheniel shrugged, making himself known among them. “It’s fine. Give it a couple of minutes and he’ll be back.” He thought for a moment. “Or he realizes he should’ve stayed home.”

The comment got mixed responses.

“My papa said it was admirable to come into work no matter what.”

“Yeah, but for someone like him, is it worth the risk?”

“If he’d stayed home I could’ve worked on that essay a little longer…”

“You know, he’s younger than any of us. This is a lot for us, imagine what he has to do.”

“So? He was the one to sign up for this.”

Natheniel just listened to them. Then he sighed, got up, and mumbled to whoever cared to listen, “I’ll see if he’s alright.” For the few that heard him and acknowledged it, he gained at least one admirable glance. They wouldn’t be doing that if they knew everything else the brothers did away from the general public.

Natheniel wandered through the halls, gave a lazy excuse to anyone who asked, and finally stopped at what had been declared Tavin’s office. He made no intention of knocking and simply let himself in, to the apparent chagrin of the younger.

“You’re part of the problem, dreamer,” Tavin mumbled. “Go away.”

For the most part, Natheniel chose to ignore him. “I wish I could’ve been the one to say it so I can say I told you so, but I wasn’t. So, Dimas told you so.”

“I felt fine up until now…”

“Really? Because at this point, I pretty much expect it. Either you’re going to be doing something important or I’m getting attention for once, then, just like that, you’re right back in the spotlight and I’m thrown away.”

“Are you really trying to make this about you? After—”

“After what? What else could I have possibly done?”

Tavin went silent and, after a moment, changed the subject entirely. “Can you go back to the castle and tell Step-Father to come here? Unless this gets any better, I’m going to leave, so I need to let everyone else know…”

…

“I don’t get it. Why does he get to be so damn special?”

“You’re hurting my feelings,” Kiah joked as she stepped out of the way of his sword. “I’m giving you the special treatment over here and you don’t even appreciate it.” She tried making a jab at him, but he dodged. “Really, though, believe it or not, I have work to do. I’m going out of my way to let you blow off some steam.”

Love what you're reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

“I wouldn’t even be here if they hadn’t decided I wasn’t even worth keeping around!”

“They’ve got more important crap to worry about. Like your brother that’s going to work himself to death before he’s twenty.”

“That’s not helping, Kiah.”

She laughed. “Look, I’d suggest you get in a bar fight to make yourself feel better but you’re a little too young for that. You’re stuck with me and sword training for another three years.”

He stopped mid-swing and lowered his sword completely to ask, “Do you know why they never want me around?”

“How the hell am I supposed to know? I’m not Tavin.”

“You know that’s not what I asked.”

“Alright, fine, yes. But you’re not getting any more out of me.” More quietly, she mumbled, “That’s a conversation for your fathers…”

“Why are you never going to tell me anything?”

She glanced at his sword, picking up on his more subtle signs of irritation. “Okay, maybe it’s time to relax…”

“What other important things are you going to make sure I never know?” He’d lunged, he knew, but he hadn’t thought about it; all his thoughts blurred together until they didn’t really exist at all.

He didn’t realize what he did until he heard Ihu’s distressed chirp. Then he noticed the cut on Kiah’s cheek.

“I did that?” He dropped his sword and staggered back. “Gods, I—I didn’t think—I didn’t mean—“

“Calm down, I’m fine,” she said quickly. “I know it looks bad, but it’s fine, really!”

“I think I screwed up. You never sound like that.”

“Well, I don’t want you to think that this was something you could control so I—” She stopped and took a deep breath. “Look, let me see if I can get someone to pick you up.”

All he could do was wait in silence for her to return. Kiah came back and announced that he was able to return to the castle, but more surprisingly that she was going to go with him. She admitted on the way there, though, that it was for more than just taking advantage of Dimas’s magic—she was going to try to talk them into actually explaining things to him.

She’d also told him not to listen in case he heard something he wasn’t supposed to but, really, she shouldn’t have expected that to work. Natheniel pretended to go to his room long enough for the adults to get comfortable, then he crept as close as he dared to the door. He only got slightly ashamed when Ihu gave a disappointed chirp, but that feeling was gone as soon as he offered them a few treats to keep quiet.

“I’ve seen you do impressive stuff with that, so do you think you can just make sure it doesn’t scar?” That was Kiah, back to the uncaring tone. It was comforting, in a way, being what he was most used to.

“I’ve been helping Tavin all afternoon,” Dimas sighed. “All I want to do is rest, then you come in here with a bloody cheek…”

“Zofie is your sister. Her twin protection instincts are nothing compared to what Mom’ll do next time I visit and she sees it.”

Then there was Imre’s voice, cold and distant. “You said… it was Natheniel?”

“Yeah, but only because of all the crap you’ve been keeping from him is starting to add up,” Kiah responded simply. “He needs answers. Especially with his feather necklace gone, don’t you think he should know the kind of power he has?”

“He’s not ready…”

“But if he doesn’t know what he has, then how the hell is he supposed to know how to control it?”

“I said he’s not—”

“Be honest, Imre. Were any of us ready for the shit we’ve had to put up with?”

“That doesn’t make me any more willing to subject my son to it!”

“I think you’re forgetting which one of us was in the closest spot to his situation. I know I’d be no better than he was if I was never told what was going on.”

“You’ve also been a borderline alcoholic since before I met you.”

“That’s going to be the least of your problems if you don’t talk to him. He’s got your self-destructive attitude. Do you even have an idea of what you’re doing to him?”

“I—”

“The longer we keep him in the dark, the more we’re risking. If you keep dancing around the truth, it’s only going to make things worse. You don’t have anything else to lose by talking to him. You’ve already lost his trust.”

Then Samone’s voice cut through the growing tension. “I’d hate to interrupt your argument, but I have another question that’s worth just as much consideration. Given he’s doing exactly what we thought he would without the feather necklace, are we still going to drop him off in Qizar next week?”

“That’s… actually a good point,” Dimas remarked. “We can’t risk him accidentally hurting Zofie or, gods forbid, Philyra.”

“We don’t have a choice,” Imre sighed. “I have to talk to Lady Enuolare and Lustris. Even if we tell him, at least Muriel’s going to be there—just as much as we can’t risk him hurting anyone, we shouldn’t try to find out what happens when two dreamers are together. Kiah and Samone will be busy trying to figure out where the crystal is and if we can take it back. Let’s just… see how it goes. Tavin will be there, and so will Dimas and Domenique if anything happens.”

“What about telling him?” Kiah prompted. “Don’t you think that might help?”

“I need to think about it, but you know how I can’t make promises.”