It seemed to Henry that he was almost awake for quite a long time before he finally opened his eyes. He closed them again immediately, the reaction headache slamming into his brain with such force that he wasn't at all surprised that his body had been trying to keep him unconscious. When he slit his eyes open again, just a little, Henry was both relieved and surprised to see Cedric leaning over him, a cool cloth in his hand.
"So this time you'll take pity on me?" Henry asked, his voice sounding hoarse. He closed his eyes again as Cedric laid the cloth across them, and he realized that his throat was very dry, and he wondered how long he'd been lying here.
"This time it wasn't your own stupidity that caused the headache," Cedric replied. Henry could hear the smile.
"So are you here to gloat?" the prince wanted to know.
"No."
At the very short answer, Henry reached up and removed the cloth from his eyes. Squinting, he looked at Cedric carefully.
"So I passed then? I don't even really remember what happened..."
"Yes, you passed," Cedric replied tersely. Henry could tell by the tightness around his eyes that the older boy wasn't happy, and he felt the urge to say something. As he opened his mouth to gloat in turn, Cedric turned away.
"And you'll remember all about your test, eventually," Cedric told him as he stood and moved toward the door of the workroom. "It usually comes back to you in nightmares. I'm going to go get some food."
Before Henry could say anything, Cedric was gone. He let the cloth fall back over his eyes, and started to mull things over. He was a journeyman mage now. What, exactly, did that mean?
When Cedric came back into the room a little while later, Henry was happy to see that he was feeling well enough to sit up. His head still ached, right behind his eyes, but the pain was fading. He knew from experience that the reaction headache would be gone soon, and he wondered again what he'd done to himself in order to spark the reaction in the first place.
"I'm assuming I don't need to tell you that you're not allowed to talk about your test to anybody who isn't already a journeyman," Cedric stated without preamble as he laid out a small meal for them to share. Henry recognized a few of his favourite dishes, and wondered if the kitchen had prepared them with a specific purpose in mind, or if it was just good luck.
"So I'm a journeyman now?" the prince asked, needing to hear someone actually confirm his new rank.
"Not exactly," Cedric answered with another smile. "You need to go through the promotion ceremony first, which will happen tomorrow morning."
"And then what?"
"And then you will begin your first walkabout," he was told, "so tonight is all about packing up whatever you're bringing with you and getting a good night's rest. You'll leave right from the promotion ceremony."
Henry wasn't sure what to think about that. On one hand, getting out of the building he'd basically been confined to for five years was incredibly appealing, but he had no idea what to expect. He didn't like not knowing what to expect.
"What about my parents?" Henry asked instead of asking the questions he truly wanted the answers to.
"They'll be here tomorrow to see you off, and to witness your promotion, of course. That's part of the reason the ceremony isn't until tomorrow. Master Rylan sent his fastest courier when he knew of your success, and I expect your parents are already on their way here."
Cedric pushed another plate in Henry's direction. "Now eat up, and I'll take you to the quartermaster to get you some of the supplies you'll need for travelling. Then it's up to you to go through your belongings. Make sure that you box up anything you're not planning to take with you tomorrow, and remember that you'll be travelling the better part of the year, so bring heavier winter clothing too."
"Why do I need to box everything else up?" Henry asked around a mouthful of meat pie.
"Because tonight is your last night in the apprentice wing. When you return from your walkabout, you'll have a new room, with your boxes waiting for you to unpack."
Henry nodded, the extra packing making sense now. As he finished eating, he started to go through his clothing and possessions in his mind, sifting through five years of accumulated stuff to try and determine what to pack. He suspected that packing up for a year's worth of travel wouldn't be an easy task.