The Empty Ones (Fantasy Romance)

10. Never forget

My head felt extremely heavy but I could slowly distinguish some voices nearby.

"She is only a child," whispered one.

"She was really brave. Stupid, utterly unskilled and untrained in anything involving battle, but brave. She did save me, actually both of us."

"You should never have engaged in that, stupid."

"Shut up. I couldn't have let you die, as much as you annoyed me, and you know that. We are in this together, and little Weedie too, seemingly," sighed Mairi, who's voice I finally recognized. "Why didn't you tell me? About what happened with him, I mean. I am going to kill him. It doesn't matter how much time it will take but I will kill him for what he did."

"Precisely that's why, you idiot. He is dangerous and I don't want you to die. Whatever happened was awful and if I ever get the chance, I will take my revenge, but it's in the past, while you dying would be an even more awful pain that I would have to face in the future. He could just call on the stone and you would pierce your own heart. I don't want you to die at all and even less for nothing."

"Your honor is not nothing."

"Honor is in our souls. Or do you also think that this is making me unworthy?"

"No... Absolutely not," answered Mairi abruptly. "How can you think I would..."

It was the first time Mairi's voice was trembling as if she was about to cry.

"So you promise me you will always tell me if you plan something? You need to swear. Like a blood oath."

"I swear by The Great God or Everything."

"Good." A smile could be senses in Chioma's voice.

Mairi sighed deeply.

"Honor is in our souls? That's a good line."

"It sounds... Hopeful. Zara told me that, when I was really sad and strangely it helped. It was a good thing to say."

"She is weird but has a way with words."

"Yes, maybe a bit of book smarts is not a bad thing to have."

"And cunning. I think I am cunning to make up for the battle skills," I said finally. It was nice to hear what they actually thought.

"Remember that cunning part the next time you try to attack a warrior with a butter knife."

It frustrated me endlessly that I didn't have any shitty reply to counter that.

"I just wanted to help," I answered almost crying.

That was a time in my life when I still cried a lot. Now I hope to have grown out of that habit.

"Mairi!" Chioma voiced her name in a plainly disapproving way.

"What? She might have died too and I don't want that either."

"I still need to get used to your really strange way of expressing feelings," I said but dried my eyes. "Are you finally friends again?"

Chioma nodded and smiled. With that smile I realized how much I rejoiced seeing other people happy and how much the proximity of persons my age lacked before my time there. Despite having lost most of the privileges that status brings I had also found a strange type of happiness at the priory.

My arm didn't hurt anymore, which was strange, it was a bit bruised but not broken anymore. The White Grace must have healed it but it seems she didn't heal everyone, just a few.

Since I wasn't wounded I had to return to classes and chores the same day.

The first thing I noticed was that there were men inside the monastery. At first it came as a shock, thinking we were attacked again but then I realized they were dressed differently and their clothes were familiar. They were wearing the blue and golden uniforms of the Imperial Guards.