by Laura R Cole
CHAPTER 11
Layna was busy scrubbing away at a particularly stubborn stain when she heard the front door open. The sound of Jezebel's voice filled the previously peaceful air. “You could have at least had the decency to dance with me.”
She was presumably complaining to Gryffon since he answered, “I didn't want to dance with you. Besides which, as I said, I don't dance.”
“You are such an insufferable pig!” she shot at him.
Jezebel began to rant incessantly about how inconsiderate and heartless he was. As they came towards Layna, she tried to blend in with the ornaments along the walls so as not to draw attention to herself. She discretely snuck Gryffon a pitying look, but he just shrugged, rolling his eyes at Jezebel's stream of abuse as she stomped down the hall in front of him. Jezebel turned into the library and slammed the door behind her, leaving a sudden silence in the hall.
“Well,” Layna said to break the silence, “sounds like you two had a blast.”
“I did,” Gryffon responded cheerfully. “I thought it was actually quite fun. I got some tips on a great new hunting ground from Lord Rubin and got to spend some luxury time at the palace. There's just no pleasing some people.” He grinned at her, jerking his head in the direction of the library. “And you?” he asked, joking, “Did you miss me?”
“I could hardly contain myself,” she answered gamely, playing into the teasing.
Just then, Jezebel opened the library door and said calmly, “Gryffon, dear, would you like to join me for dinner in the library?”
Gryffon exchanged a puzzled look with Layna before answering, “No, thank you.”
Jezebel followed his gaze, and her eyes narrowed as she noticed Layna for the first time. She didn't comment, but slammed the door shut again behind her. They could hear her muttering to herself on the other side.
“What was that?” asked Layna.
Gryffon simply shrugged again. “She's an odd one.”
Layna waved him further down the hall and moved closer so she could whisper in his ear. Her cheek brushed against his and it sent a shiver down her back. “I have something to tell you,” she murmured, “but we need privacy. Think you can spare a moment later and visit in my room?” She glanced down the hall towards the library door. “Discretely?”
Gryffon whispered back, his breath hot against her neck, “I can make time for you. I'll be there.”
Layna stepped back and nodded to him, then hurried along down the hall, hoping that he didn't see the flush that was threatening to extend all the way down to her toes. She sped through the rest of her chores, relieved that she would finally be able to tell someone her terrible secret. She had almost told Katrina, but she was so wrapped up in her own happiness that Layna hated to burden her with it.
She still couldn't quite believe it herself and had been pinching herself periodically ever since to make sure it hadn't been a dream. She was desperate for Gryffon’s advice, and fervently hoped that he wouldn't be angry with her, or worse yet, turn her in. It all seemed so surreal. It was one thing for Gryffon to do magic – he was a noble – but quite another to imagine that she had real talent. She still couldn't quite grasp the real meaning of it. She had debated the intelligence of telling anyone, but had to get it off her chest. And I know it's stupid, but I'm intrigued by the possibility of him training me! Not that I'd ever be able to do it in front of anyone else. It would just be our little secret, and a reason to see one another again. The thought gave her a pleasant tingle.
She made it through her chores in record time and sprinted back to her room to clean up. Just as she pulled a fresh tunic over her head, a soft knock sounded at the door. She ran her hands through her hair quickly before calling for Gryffon to come in. He opened the door and slipped inside, greeting her with his usual smile.
“So, what is it you have to tell me?” he asked, his tone hinting at impatience. “It's been driving me mad all day. I don't think that it was very nice of you to imply you had something interesting to tell me without then telling me what it was,” he accused, still wearing the smile.
“Sorry. I just wanted to wait until we were alone and could talk about it.” She drew a deep breath to steady her nerves. She had been unable to think of any better way to break the news, so she decided to simply spit it out, plain and simple. “I have talent. And I haven't told the priests.”
He stared at her unspeaking for so long she began to wonder if he was going to drag her to the temple after all. She bit her lip in an effort to fight back the tears that threatened to start pouring out. Oh no! He isn't going to help me! He's going to turn me in to the priests – and then I'll be in real trouble for not having gone myself. I wonder if they'll still kill me if someone else made me go? Maybe I can convince him to let me turn myself in.
“I suspected you might.”
Layna was ready to unleash the torrent of tears and beg him to not let them kill her, but his unexpected response stopped her short. She stumbled over her words. “W-what do you mean?”
“I couldn't be sure; talent is only really evident after it's been discovered by the user. But I thought I detected it in you. And very strongly too.” His eyes unfocused for a moment. “You have a lot of potential. How did you find out?”
Layna looked down guiltily, “I was really cold the other morning, and you know how you always heat up rocks for me? Well, I was lamenting the fact that you weren’t there to do it for me…and I just sort-of tried it myself. The water in my wash bowl had frozen so I tried reaching for the ‘river’ you explained to heat it.” She hurriedly added, “I didn’t think there was any chance that it would actually work! But it did. Even burned my hand,” she held it out for him so he could see the rapidly healing scar on her palm. He took her hand in his and she inhaled sharply.
“Did I hurt you?” he asked, concern plainly written on his face.
Layna’s face flushed and she looked down, saying vaguely, “It’s fine.” It was more than fine, she’d missed his touch.
“Does anyone else know?”
“A healer in town. I think her name is Mila. I didn’t tell her…she just knew somehow.”
“Mila.” Gryffon echoed absently, trying to place the name. “Charles – that's the woodsman – has mentioned her. He swears by her herbal remedies. What did she say?”
“That she wouldn't waste any talent on the priests and that I shouldn't go to them. She also said that maybe you would be able to teach me?” She looked up at him with wide eyes, hope creeping back.
“Teaching you wouldn't be the problem,” he said slowly, “it would be keeping it a secret that would cause us difficultly. When it's dormant, talent is hard to see unless you are specifically looking for it, but once you start disrupting the power...”
“Someone is bound to notice the ripples,” Layna finished for him. She tasted blood in her mouth, and realized that she had bitten straight through her lip. “Do you think I did the right thing not going to the priests?”
“Yes,” he replied without hesitation. “Mila's right, enough talent has been wasted on them. We need to figure out what to do.”
“We?”
“We,” Gryffon repeated firmly. He put a hand on her shoulder and gave her an intense look. Layna was touched by the conviction in his voice, and she gave him a small smile.
“What are we going to do? Run off into the wilderness together?” She said it jokingly, though the idea actually did sound appealing.
Gryffon grinned. “Maybe something like that, though hopefully we won’t have to resort to something quite so drastic. It certainly would be smarter to get a little farther away from the temples.” He paused a minute. “I have something that I need to take care of, but we really need to talk about this and decide what to do.” He must have seen the concern on her face. “Try not to worry too much in the meantime. As long as you don't try doing any more magic-” his b
row furrowed, “-you haven't, have you?”
“No.”
His forehead smoothed. “Good. As long as you don't, you shouldn't attract any attention and we'll have some time to figure this out.”
He gave her shoulder a reassuring pat, and left her to her thoughts. She found her thoughts much too confusing to deal with, however, and reached for her book to distract her. The bookmark was only a few pages from the end. She sighed and cracked it open. Well, at least I'll have a minute or two of distraction.
