The Rogue Guardian

Chapter 61: The Truth

So, long chapters totally make up for late chapters, right? (I swear I will get around to prewriting chapters so I can stay on schedule eventually...)

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It was sunset, and the river had turned to blood in the red light. Our boat headed upriver, farther from the capital and even farther from Maenar with every minute, heading into the night. I stood on deck looking back the way we had come, Joshua just a few feet away, neither of us entirely happy with the other's presence.

Fixing my eyes on the first faint stars, I asked, "Do you think Nemia and Irina make a good couple?"

The pain of admitting that the question had been bothering me ever since the night I'd seen them kiss on the battlements was made more bearable by the look of abject horror on Joshua's face.

"I--I--" He spluttered for several seconds before regaining a voice. "I am not your friend, Laerhart."

"Good to know, not what I asked."

"I am not going to stand here and gossip with you."

I couldn't help smirking slightly. If I'd known the great Captain Joshua Blaisze could be reduced to spluttering just by being asked about other people's relationships, I would have had much more fun when I was a few years younger. Hell, a few months younger. I braced myself against the rail of the boat, tilting my head up to the wind. "Not gossip, just an opinion. She's my friend, I have to look out for her."

He opened his mouth to retort again, then his indignation suddenly faded as he frowned.

"What?" I asked.

"I didn't say anything."

"That's the thing I'm questioning. Go on, I know you want to splutter angrily for a few more minutes."

He rolled his eyes. "Haven't grown up much, have you?"

"What can I say? You're just such an easy target."

"Well, try to fake maturity for a minute."

I looked at him thoughtfully, then straightened up, crossed my arms tightly over my chest, widened my stance, and leveled my head with the slightest tilt downward. With a stiff expression and in a slightly deeper voice, I said, "I'll try."

"For the love of... stop imitating me."

I couldn't help bursting into laughter, even though I'd planned on carrying the joke for a few minutes.

The corners of his mouth seemed to twitch momentarily, but I might have imagined it. "I'm being serious."

"I never doubted that."

He tapped his hand briskly on the rail. "Joke around if you need to, but I was going to tell you exactly what I think of Laycreek and the Assassin."

"But gossiping?"

"For the greater good. We're going to have a talk, Laerhart, and we're going to set some ground rules."

"Ooh, I'm not so good at those."

He raised an eyebrow. "Trust me. I know."

"Hmm." I considered him more seriously. "That means you want something from me, if you're willing to answer my questions."

"The ground rules," he said, without acknowledging that. "No lying. It's in both of our interests to be straight with each other right now. No judging the other person's questions, because neither of us knows why the other person may be asking."

That threw me off. Was he really saying the big ground rule of our conversation was "don't make fun of what I ask you"?

"And we'll alternate questions."