Chapter 21
COMPLICATIONS
It was something in the way Beite spoke about the coming dance, her fingers weaving strands of Lavinia’s hair into braids. Lavinia didn't wanted her hair braided, but after Darag left so abruptly, she wasn’t sure what to do with herself. When Beite came back to her house, she insisted on helping Lavinia get ready for the nightly community dinner.
Beite talked about Cuileann.
“I just hope he asks me to dance, just once. But all the girls flirt with him. I’ll never stand a chance! You know he can choose next year? He’ll never wait for me.”
Beite said the words lightly, but the word choose sent a quiver of turmoil through Lavinia’s stomach.
“How old are you then, Beite?”
“Only forty-five. I cannot choose for another ten years.”
Lavinia’s heart hammered. “So Cuileann must be fifty-four?”
Beite finished braiding and flopped on the bed next to Lavinia. She drew her knees up to her chest, face unusually troubled without her normal lighthearted smile. Up until that moment, the idea of choosing had seemed from Beite’s enthusiastic talk not so serious. An uncomfortable idea started to take root in Lavinia’s mind.
“Your brother could have chosen by now,” she said.
Beite sighed and picked at the coverlet on her bed. Loose strands rewove themselves under her fingers. “Oh, there is no reasoning with him. It isn’t even like he enjoys the attention. Half the girls moon over him, but he rarely dances and never flirts. Mother tells me to leave him alone, but I know she worries, too. He isn’t like Cuileann or Laireag. I know they will choose soon.”
“Well, we can at least see if they will dance with you tomorrow night.” The suggestion returned a smile to Beite’s face.
Darag wasn't at the dinner. For a few minutes, no one showed Lavinia any deference, as if they were waiting for something. Beite bit her lip and looked into the darkness. Then Laireag had invited Lavinia to sit with him. After that, the night had gone on as it had the last three.
Cuileann brought her mulled cider with a charming smile, but his eyes slid sideways as if he, too, was looking for someone. Lavinia spoke to the same Kith lads she did every night, Beite by her side. Suileag stopped by, her expression kind as she chatted with her daughter. Even she glanced toward Lavinia several times. Lavinia felt like everyone was holding their breath, waiting. She was aware of every look, every breeze, every laugh, the feel of grass beneath her feet, the solid wood of the table, and Darag’s absence most of all.
Laith Lus’s answers given the next day only helped to a small degree. Yes, Kith chose one love for life. And when life was measured in centuries, it was advisable to make that a careful choice. Yes, foreigners had been chosen before and had lived with the Kith in Lus na Sithchaine. It wasn’t unheard of, was even welcomed, but did not always work out. Without a tree, both partners relied on the health and longevity of just one. A troubled marriage could cause a tree to sicken. The sudden addition of years, outliving relatives and siblings, caused strain and sadness that had no cure. But it had also worked out enough times that such a match wasn’t forbidden.
Laith Lus had smiled at her warmly, taking her hand.
“There is no pressure, child. I did not invite you here to choose or to be chosen, but to spend time with us and take a break from the journey you have taken up. You are young yet, even if old enough for such things as love. It is not always necessary that we Kith be only serious. Laugh, flirt, bring us your joy, and we will be glad of it.”
The elder’s words helped soothe Lavinia’s growing unease, but he could not answer the questions that really troubled her. Why was Darag avoiding her? Because he didn’t want to choose her, or because he did? Only Darag could tell her, and he had disappeared.
Now it was early afternoon and Lavinia felt at a loss. Every day had been spent with Darag, and she was uncertain what to do with her time now that he was gone. Niri was under a tree reading about the war, reminding Lavinia of another worry and of what awaited at the end of another week. But it gave Lavinia an idea.
She found Beite encouraging her house to grow. She raised her hands slowly, spreading her arms wide with fingers outstretched. The tree in front of her obliged, stretching upward and wrapping a branch around the edge of the roof.
“Do you want to go to Drufforth to see the work on the boat?” Lavinia asked.
“Really?”
Beite’s excitement made the long walk to Drufforth feel much shorter. They emerged from the forest into sunlight and sea. Beite stopped at the edge of the forest, gazing at the harbor with wide eyes.
“I don’t leave Lus na Sithchaine that often,” she whispered.
Lavinia reached for her hand. “Come on, I’ll show you around.”
Ria ended up showing both of them around. Ty was off for the day along the shore. His absence left a hollow ache in Lavinia now, like after he had left for his apprenticeship. Only then she had dreamed great adventures for him. Now she hoped he simply came back in one piece. She had heard of his outbursts all the way in Lus na Sithchaine.
Ria had virtually been adopted by Kara, the innkeeper, and her older sister Tatla. They were trying to grow a small vineyard on the south side of a hill. The forest had been pushed back by the Kith to make way for a scattering of straggly vines. As the days passed, Ria had made herself useful by tending the young plants and helping in the inn.
“I’ve meant to come to Lus na Sithchaine,” Ria said in answer to a question from Lavinia. “But I got so busy here ...”
Beite flexed a grape vine in her fingers. “You’ve done a good job, as good as a Kith.”
Ria grinned.
“You should come tomorrow night at least, for the dance,” Lavinia said.
Beite rolled forward onto the balls of her feet. “Oh yes, you have to come!” It did not take any further convincing.
They walked to the boat after that, Lavinia straining her eyes to see if Darag was among the Kith working on it. Ria and Beite exchanged a glance, causing Lavinia to blush. Her hopes fell to her feet as she saw only Nuin and Cran Laoibhreil. She sighed, scuffing the sand for a moment.
“Say, Beite, have you ever been sailing?”
“You mean on water?” Beite’s dark eyes filled her face so that Lavinia laughed. She and Ria raced Beite to Skree’s skiff, and the three took the small boat out to the harbor for lessons for both Ria and Beite.
—
The light remained bright but shadows were lengthening as Lavinia and Beite walked back to Lus na Sithchaine. Lavinia’s contentment dissipated the closer they got to the city in the trees.
“Darag said he left twice,” Lavinia said.
“He told you that?” Beite asked. “Yes, he has always followed his own path. Restless.” She paused, frowning as she shook her head. “He said what he was looking for wasn’t here. But he came back without anything, so I don’t know if he found what he was looking for out there.”
Lavinia smiled at the tangled logic. “Well, maybe it is why he seems different.”
“Or he just is!” Beite said, laughing merrily. “He is the most skilled in Lus na Sithchaine. It is why Laith Lus includes him in council although he isn’t even a hundred, and why Nuin asked him to help on your boat. He won’t admit it, but I know he can even outmatch Laith Lus. He just says, ‘Laith Lus has more experience.’” Beite sighed.
Lavinia heard the words not as Beite said them with a mocking bite, but in Darag’s calm tone and timber. It gave her heart an ache, not a feeling she was used to.
“Well, there is no reasoning with brothers. I should know!”
Beite giggled.
Sunlight glinted ahead with the promise of the central clearing. Next to her, Beite stopped like she'd grown roots. Peering through the shafts of light, Lavinia found Darag in the broken shadows, arms folded across his chest as he leaned against the trunk of a tree. Her heart skipped a beat. He waited as they approached.
When she looked up
at him, Darag’s eyes were shaded. His expression flickered between an apology and something akin to sorrow. “I thought you would have asked Cuileann to practice with you,” Darag said, a rasp in his voice.
“No,” Lavinia answered. “I was waiting for you.” She couldn’t bring herself to be annoyed that he hadn’t shown up to practice with her. He appeared more bothered than she'd felt since he'd disappeared.
Darag closed his eyes for a breath. When he opened them, warmth was there again. Lavinia’s heart leapt toward her throat, drumming away with a pulse that made breathing difficult.
“We went to Drufforth,” Lavinia said, feeling detached from her words.
“She taught me to sail,” Beite chimed in, rocking forward on her feet. “You should have come!”
“Yes, then I could have taught you to swim.” Beite stuck her tongue out at her brother while Lavinia giggled. “I half wondered if you would come back," Darag said to Lavinia, tone light, although his words were serious.
“I think I need to protect Beite from you for a while longer.” Beite pursed her lips and raised her eyebrows at her brother, underscoring Lavinia’s words. Darag chuckled. “Besides, I thought you would still teach me while I’m here. It was your promise.”
Darag pushed himself away from the tree. “Come then.” He offered his hand.
Shadows scattered across the streamside clearing more than sun when they reached it, neither talking during the walk. Lavinia forgot to worry about her brother, about the journey, Ria’s gift, or Darag as she moved with the sword in her hand. Darag hardly had to correct her stance, but she found her heart fluttering each time his light touch adjusted her hand. Otherwise, she was fluid grace moving with a deadly certainty she had never felt before in her life.
The light was fading as she and Darag circled around the clearing, swords held at the ready. This was no longer instruction, but full-out testing. Darag waited until she moved, defending first and then moving smoothly to offense. She knew that and baited him, acting to strike fast and retracting when his sword moved to block. He found only air and overextended himself.
He gathered himself quickly, but was caught off guard. Lavinia’s volley kept him defensive. She left an opening, hoping he would take it. Again she wasn’t there when he moved to strike. Instead, she slid beneath his blade and lightly rapped hers across his stomach. She had won. Lavinia stood panting lightly in the cooling evening air. When Darag looked up at her in surprise, she was grinning.
He tossed back his head and laughed, scooping her up in a dancing hug. Lavinia laughed as well, full of the flush of having beaten her teacher. Until she became aware of his solid chest and strong arms against her back. They stopped moving, the laughter caught in both their throats.
Darag made as if to release her, then brushed the hair out of her eyes instead. They stood together for the space of five heartbeats, caught between letting go and holding on.
“Are we friends again?”
He blinked, startled. “I hadn’t realized we were not.”
Frustration made her frown. “I did not mean ... it is just that we should not ...” He couldn’t seem to finish either sentence. “The Kith rarely have action without intention. It is our way.” He paused again.
“I know.”
Darag raised an eyebrow.
Lavinia said quickly, “I spoke to Laith Lus this morning.”
Worry swept across his face. She held onto his upper arms as he moved to step back. “He said not to worry about everyone’s expectations.” Darag halted, watching her intently.
She exhaled a laugh. “Actually, I think he just said not to worry and try to bring some fun because the Kith tend to be too serious.”
“That is entirely true.” Darag breathed again, a slow expansion of his chest. “So, we are to be friends, then? Is that what you want, and not to worry what else is thought or ... expected?”
Lavinia smiled, her heart buzzing in her chest where she stood caught in the cage of his arms. “Yes, I think that is a fine place to start.”
Darag’s slow smile started from a wry twist but evolved to enfold his mouth and warm his eyes. “All right, then, we shall try that.”
He looked around the clearing now cast more in evening than afternoon. “It is late. Dinner will have started. We should go back.”
“Will you stay for the meal tonight?” Neither of them had moved yet.
Darag held her gaze, a glowing brightness in his eyes. “Yes, I will.”