by Robin Roseau
"We might be able to move on," Maya said, "but I think I am going to remember this day, the one Nori finally admitted what I've been telling her for twenty years."
"I will not have the two of you ganging up on me," Nori said.
"Well," said Rora from the other side. "They're kind of right. I say that with the deepest love and affection."
"That's enough," Nori said. She turned to face Rora. "You. Companion."
"Yes?" Rora said frostily.
Nori paused for a moment. "I love and adore you."
"You better," Rora said and smiled. "And don't you dare, 'You, companion' me again. Idiot."
"Oh, for crying out loud," Nori said. "I'll get our dinner."
Rora sat back with a smug look. "It's about time she got over this 'companion, fetch my meals, companion, bring me my slippers, companion, scratch this itch' thing she had going on."
"Oh," said Lia. "Beria has an itch she keeps asking me to scratch. Are you telling me I should stop?"
"Oh no," Rora said. "You scratch that itch all you want. You just make sure she scratches your itches at least twice as often."
"Ah, well," said Lia, "Then we're doing it right so far. But Beria keeps telling me she should lick my itches. Am I supposed to let her do that?"
I immediately began to blush while the rest of them laughed.
"I can't believe you said that!"
"Did Omie lick your itches?" Lia asked me. "I wonder if I should ask her."
"No, you should not ask her!"
"But how will I know if I'm being a good companion? Whom am I supposed to ask?" She looked at Maya. "You're the senior companion. Does that mean I ask you?"
Malora chortled. Maya smiled and said, "It is customary for each warrior to teach her companion about their relationship. Each warrior likes things done in a certain way, after all. However, you may come to me if you have questions about being the village chief's companion. I am pleased to discuss some of the less private duties."
"You know," Lia said, "I would like that a great deal. Maybe I could pop down the next time this one-" and she nudged me, "-is gone on patrol."
"You'll take an escort," I said.
"Afraid of bandits in the woods?"
"Afraid I haven't made sure you know your way without getting lost," I replied.
"I think I can find my way," Lia replied.
"Lia," said Maya. "She's an Amazon warrior. When it comes to your safety, she's going to be heavy-handed. This is the one area you're going to have to let her win. She'll probably let you win almost everything else, but let her have this one."
"But-"
"When you have led the trip back and forth several times in a variety of conditions, I will consider removing that restriction," I said. "And now you are going to experience heavy-handed. I am your warrior and your village chief. You will do this my way, period."
"But-"
"Lia," said Malora. "We're about to become sisters-in-law, or at least the closest thing to it amongst the Amazons."
She smiled. "I suppose we are. Imagine, sister-in-law to the Amazon queen. Does that mean I may ask favors?"
"Every Amazon may ask favors," Malora said, "although it would be highly unusual to bypass your warrior. Now, as your new sister-in-law, who is older and possibly wiser, I wonder if you would allow me to share some advice."
"I would be quite pleased to hear advice from the Amazon queen," Lia said.
"My advice is simple. Choose your battles. If you do not, this relationship will fail." She paused. "And now I am speaking as the queen. I need this warrior in top condition. If you intend to fight her about your personal safety, I would like to know."
The two of them stared at each other.
"Queen Malora," I started to say.
"You be quiet," she said. "Lia? I require an answer."
Lia took a large breath before answering. "No, Queen Malora. I will not fight her about issues related to my personal safety."
"I interpret that to also include, at least until they have warriors of their own, the safety of your daughters and the training of all three of you."
"Yes, Queen Malora," Lia said. "And on other issues?"
"Oh, on other issues, I have no doubt you will have her wrapped around your finger."
"Then I will do as you advise, Queen Malora."
Malora smiled. "Thank you. Lia, I am going to repeat myself for emphasis. I require this warrior in top condition. I expect us to share that goal."
"Yes, Queen Malora," Lia said, taking my hand. She raised my fingers to her lips and kissed them. "I'll be sure to keep her on her toes."
"Very good," Malora said with a grin. "Thank you, Lia."
"Now, it's time for your first lesson as the chief's companion," Maya said. "You don't wait in line."
"Except behind Maya," Rora said.
Maya turned to Malora. "I don't know the protocol between chief's, when they visit elsewhere."
"She is there as my representative," Malora said. "That means she outranks the local chiefs." She looked at Lia. "The other companions should defer to you. Some of them may not, especially those of chiefs that are significantly older than Beria. That is a grey area, and I would prefer you not press the point too hard. However, where that happens, I need to know."
"Wait," said Lia. "She coordinates patrols."
"That's her official job description," Malora said. "She is there as my representative. And if you are with her, then so are you. Keep your ears open."
"Debriefings can be extensive," I told her.
"I-" she looked between us. "I believe it is time to collect food for our warriors, Maya."
Maya smiled. "I believe you may be right." They both stood up, and as soon as Lia crossed around the table, Maya threw an arm around her, and the two headed to the kitchen. Moments later, Nori sat back down, setting a plate between herself and Rora.
"What is this?" Rora said.
"Dinner."
"What is this brown stuff all over the venison?"
"I believe it is called 'gravy'," Nori said.
"We've talked about this, Nori," Rora said. "Scrape it off."
"But-"
"Nori."
Nori sighed and began scraping the gravy to the side. I looked between the two of them.
"She's put on a few pounds," Rora said. "If she wants to get as fat as a cow, she can wait until she has retired. As long as she is still facing off against demons and the occasional camp of bandits, she will not get fat."
"And thank you for sharing," Nori said.
"If you hadn't tried to cheat," Rora said, "It never would have come up. You only have yourself to blame."
Maya and Lia returned. I noticed that the plate Maya set down also carried no gravy. And then I looked at my own plate, conspicuously void of anything remotely fattening.
"Hey!" I said.
Lia grinned at me. "Malora said she needs you in top condition." But she had set the plate down to be shared, something she hadn't done before.
Nori smirked at me.
"You see?" said Maya. "We let them win about that pesky personal safety thing, and we win on everything else."
* * * *
We collected in Malora's hut after dinner, just Malora, Nori and me. "All right," Malora said. "You said you wanted to talk further."
I relayed the agreement I'd made with Lia.
"I want you to give it a good year," Malora said. "Can you make it work for a year? If it's not working after that, we'll talk about it."
"All right," I said.
"I have something else. I want you to adjust your schedule. I want you to assess the abilities of the key people at each village. I need to know who the best fighters are and, if you can acquire it without giving away your own abilities, how they compare to you."
I nodded. "All right."
"Also, for all the village chiefs that are significantly older than you are, I want to know who you would pick for chief when the current chief retires. I need the best
analysis you can provide."
"I thought the villages picked," I said.
"I let them believe that. But I move people around ahead of time if necessary."
"Oh?"
"Yes. For instance, several years ago, Two Bends had a warrior who was making noises like she was going to challenge Chief Loren. I moved her."
"To where?"
"Lake Juna."
I laughed. "Is that why Astarine was so displeased when she arrived?"
"Yes," she said. "How badly did you have to put her down?"
"I didn't. She was crabby for a week or two, but then she asked Badra to let her run some of the patrols. Now she does double patrol duty. Malora, she'd be a terrible village chief. She's a good warrior, a good patroller, and she's okay leading a patrol, but if she were my village chief, I'd be asking for a transfer."
"That's what I told her when I moved her. Then I explained the headaches of being a chief. She admitted she hadn't thought about any of that." Malora shrugged. "It's not the first time someone has had ambitions without the skills to pursue them." She paused. "That analysis I asked for? I want it for Lake Juna, too."
"Lake Juna's chief isn't retiring any time soon," I pointed out.
"No, but I may need her elsewhere in a year or two," Malora said.
I frowned. "Further from Queen's Town?"
"No," she said. "In Queen's Town. Would you mind?"
I thought about being surrounded by all the people I loved most in the world. "Absolutely not. Would Badra and Tamma be able to come?"
"Yes, if they wish. I won't force them."
"Who would we be displacing?"
"No one," she said. "We'll build more huts if necessary. Anyone else you would want to bring with?"
"I like and trust most of them, but I didn't want to separate Tamma and Lia. Also, when the girls are ready for warriors, I want them kept close. It will be easier for Lia if her daughters are just across the village rather than three days' ride away."
"She won't be able to interfere with the way they are trained," Malora said. "You may want to get her used to that idea sooner rather than later."
"I believe you started that process tonight," I said. "Thank you. But did you have to suggest she be allowed to win everything else?"
Malora grinned. "I didn't tell her anything she didn't already know. You have enough to worry about. Let Lia run the household, Beria. Give her whatever she wants. Just trust her to handle it."
"Like you trusted me to handle my love life?"
"Oh no," she replied. "I'm the queen. It's my job to meddle from time to time."
"Anything else?" I asked.
"No. If you can send Maya in, I would appreciate it. We have a ceremony to make up."
"I'm sorry for dumping this on you. I thought you'd figure it out. But I didn't want to just come out and tell you in a note." But I turned to Nori. "Idiot."
"Hey!" she replied. "Enough." She paused. "I'm sorry. The voices-"
"Say no more," I said.
We got up, one of us somewhat more smoothly than the other two. Malora pulled me into a hug. "I'm so pleased," she said. "Thank you. And thank you for not resigning."
"Yet."
"A year. I need a year. Maybe a year and a half."
"She and I will work it out," I said. "It will actually be easier when the girls are older, but Annalise is only nine." I pulled away. "I'm not comfortable taking her with me. Sure, to the nearest villages, but not to all of them. Um."
"Not to the south?" Where Green Arrow was.
"No," I said, "Not to the south. And maybe not Blue Meadow." Blue Meadow was to the north, a few villages south of Northglen.
"What's up in Blue Meadow?"
"I thought I told you. The younger companions weren't, I don't know. Cheerful? It's like they're afraid of something, but none of them wanted to talk to me."
"Maya and I never stay overnight there," Malora said. "Maybe we should amend that."
"If you do, take Nori and me. And we stay together."
"You suspect something?"
"Leery, that's all. Everyone has been very proper. I've heard no muttering."
"Chief Nalatt has always been solid," Nori said.
"She has a new companion," I said. "I don't know her well."
"Krissa," Malora said. "She's not that new. She must be nineteen or twenty by now."
"Yes," I said. "And there are warriors there I don't know well, either. I don't stay overnight, either."
"I want more than Beria and I there," Nori said. "Who do you trust?"
"In a fight?"
She nodded.
"Separately, Glorana and Frida aren't very good, but together, they're deadly. They fight like one. It's almost like dueling with you, Malora. Not quite, but almost. And Badra is always solid."
"And from here?" Malora asked.
"Best fighter or most trusted?"
"Most trusted," Malora said.
"Anyone," I said. "If I were picking, I'd start with Omie and Vorine, but you could have guessed that. Bea, too, if you want trusted and a good diplomat." I paused. "In fact, if you wanted a diplomat, Bea might be perfect. She might not catch all the subtleties, but her joy is infectious."
"Bea is good for disarming a situation," Malora said. "But she's so trusting. She couldn't do your job, Beria."
"She could," I said, "but she wouldn't enjoy it, and she would hate always looking at people carefully. However, if I get some difficult situations to resolve, I might ask to borrow her."
Malora smiled. "Of course. All right. Get out of here. We'll be out as soon as I approve whatever Maya has already concocted."
I laughed. "Thank you, Malora."
"You are very welcome, Beria."
* * * *
Maya found Lia and me twenty minutes later. We were sitting at a table with, well, almost everyone, it seemed. She sat down across the table from Lia and me.
"It's still too cold for bathing in the river," Maya said, "even for me. But we have the baths. It's not the same. But the water is warm. We're going to bathe and prepare the girls, and then the two of you will bathe."
"Maya, I have a package. Lia hasn't seen it. It's in Omie's hut right now."
"Will I figure it out if I rifle through your things?"
I laughed. "Yes."
"Is there something white in it? If not, I have something."
"There's something white," I said. "You'll figure out the rest."
"You two are being awfully cryptic," Lia complained.
"Yes, we are," Maya said. "Beria, we're changing quite a bit. Lia, the companions of our combined village tonight will see to your daughters. However, two of us will see to you. Who would you prefer?"
"You and Tamma," she said immediately. "Is that all right? Or are you busy? Maybe you're going with your sister."
"No, she is going with two of the warriors."
"Three," I said. "Please."
Maya nodded. "I'll ask her," Maya said. "There is a portion of the ceremony for all of us, and then there will be a portion your daughters will not see. We have a couple of the companions who will bring them back here and entertain them."
Lia nodded.
"All right," she said. "Give me a few minutes."
She got up and stepped away, and a moment later I saw her whispering into Omie's ear, and then after that, Aren's. The three of them stepped away, heading for Omie's hut, and I didn't worry about it after that.
"Nervous?" I asked Lia.
"A little. Not about us. Just the ceremony. Will I know what to do?"
"Maya will make sure," I said. "She may tell you nothing more than do what you're told."
"And I'm supposed to."
"Yes, you're supposed to."
"All this ritual, all this mystery." She smiled. "It makes it seem very sacred."
"The bond between warrior and companion is sacred," I said. "We teach you; we train you; we protect you. We provide your clothing, or at least the materials to make them, and
your weapons. As your chief, I also provide your horse and arrange for her feed and care. In exchange for these things, you comfort us; you soothe our souls. You are only starting to see what that means." I paused. "You didn't see my breakdown a week ago."
"Breakdown?"
"Doubled over with my head in my arms, screaming at them to shut up."
"Oh Beria," she said.
"I'd been fighting Malora until then. I stopped fighting her." I paused. "Anyway, a lot of what you do for us are what partners typically do for each other, but without you, we can't be strong. We can't sleep. We can't function. To some extent, we can share a companion, but it's not the same, not even when it's my sister doing it. Yes, it's a sacred bond. And I swear, you will never, ever understand how sacred. I didn't until I took that first voice, and I'd been around it for nearly ten years by then, serving as Omie's companion and watching my sister helping half the warriors here."
Lia smiled and caressed my cheek. "I have a lot to learn." She laid her head on my shoulder. "I love you, Beria."
We cooed at each other for a while, everyone else leaving us alone, but then there were people at our backs. I felt hands on my arms, and I saw hands on Lia's.
"Come with us, Beria," Malora said. I let them pull me to my feet and realized it was Nori and Omie lifting me. Tamma and Aren had Lia, with Maya directing.
"Is this all right?" Omie whispered into my ear.
"Yes," I said.
They led me away to Omie's hut. I didn't see where they took Lia, but I presumed Maya's. Once inside, they released my arms but told me to sit, gesturing to a point on the floor. We sat in a rough square, me and the three warriors that mattered most to me.
"The ceremony won't be that different from the one you shared with Omie," Malora said. Malora told me what to expect, and when she was done, I thanked her.
Omie was grinning at me. "I'm pleased to see this, Beria," she said. "I like her. Aren wants to come up and visit in a few days, once you get a little more settled in."
Malora grinned. "Let her and Lia work it out. If you let them think they're in charge, it's a whole lot easier."
I laughed. "Maya is in charge."
"I let both of you believe that," Malora said. "But I get my way on everything that matters to me."
"It's just that almost nothing matters to her," Nori said.
I laughed.
