โW
hat do you want?โ Max demanded.
Nura gave him an icy smile. โMay I come in?โ โIf I say no, are you just going to wander in anyway?
Because that seems to be how these things go around here.โ
โYes, probably.โ
โYouโre that determined to lecture me?โ
A low laugh unfurled from her breath. โDonโt be so self-important, Max. Iโm not here to see you.โ
I tried not to look surprised. They both turned to me โ Nura with her mouth twisted into a little unreadable smirk, and Max with a hard glint in his eye that echoed of nervousness.
โWhy?โ he barked.
โLet me in and youโll find out.โ Max hesitated, then stepped aside.
Nura strode across the room and slid into the chair near me. She was wearing a variation of the same uniform she donned every time I saw her โ the long, white jacket buttoned all the way up to her throat, moon insignias on her lapel and across her back. I was once again struck by how graceful and deliberate her movements were, as if every muscle worked in perfect unison, even in the tiny expressions of her face. She was actually quite beautiful. As
she moved to sit down, her white braids fell over one shoulder, rippling light from the windows across her face in a momentary softness. Then she settled and that glimmer was replaced once again with steel.
โIs your training going well?โ she asked.
โVery well.โ I would have given her that reply regardless, but I couldnโt help but glance at Max as I answered โ pleased I didn’t have to lie.
โGood. Iโve come because the Orders request your help.โ
I blinked, refusing to allow myself to look surprised even though a wild hope leapt to my skin. This had to be goodโฆ didnโt it?
โFor what?โ
โLord Savoiโs son in Tairn is refusing to abdicate power, even though his family has been removed from leadership. Itโs merely a tantrum. But we need bodies to march upon the city gates and scare him out of his hideout, and I would like for you to join. It will not turn to bloodshed. He simply needs to be scared.โ
โThe Guard doesnโt have enough people to do this as is?โ Max cut in. โOne Fragmented girl will make all the difference?โ
โOne Fragmented girl and one ill-tempered, moderately famous Solarie, if youโre cooperative.โ
She said the word โcooperativeโ so drily that it cracked and scattered across the floor.
โBut again, youโre too self-important,โ she went on. โWeโre sending letters to many people in the area, since the Guard is preoccupied in Vernaya.โ
โThe war hasnโt even started yet and youโre already overtaxed?โ Max needled. โAnd what happened to the Orders being politically neutral? Or have you given up that farce now that one of your own is driving this mess?โ
But I let Maxโs ranting fall into the background, watching Nura, thinking.
I would take any opportunity presented to me. I couldnโt afford not to. But I didnโt give up anything for free.
โI will go,โ I said.
Max, who had been mid-complaint, snapped his mouth shut.
โI thought you would seize the opportunity,โ Nura said, looking pleased.
โI will go,โ I repeated, โifย Zeryth Aldris will bring my friend back to Ara with him when he leaves Threll.โ
I spoke smoothly, confidently, even though I felt just like I had when I was a little girl demanding my freedom from Esmaris with my fifty sad silver pieces. Iโm sure my presence at this city was nothing of value to them. But if it was, they wouldnโt get it without giving me something in return. Not when there were so many things I still needed.
I carefully avoided Maxโs gaze, though I could feel it searing a charred hole in the center of my forehead โ stark contrast to Nuraโs, glassy ice that glistened with faint sheen of amusement.
โMembers of the Orders need to follow directives without the luxury of conditions,โ she said.
โFirstly, that does not seem to be true.โ I gestured to Max. โSecondly, you made very clear that I am not member of the Orders. Not yet.โ
Nuraโs eyes betrayed silent laughter. โOh, Max. She really has learned a lot from you, hasnโt she?โ Then, to me, โEveryone in this room knows that you need us more than we need you. And yet, if I understand you correctly, youโre asking me to inconvenience one of our most important members on one of our most important missions for you?โ
โYou ask for my help, so I ask for yours.โ I leaned forward. Maxโs words still pounded in my ears.ย I would never leave him there. Well, I wouldnโt either. Never. โAnd this is not forย me. This is for decency. You already denied thousands of people help. You said it was too much. Now I
ask for one person. Is that still too much? Or are the Orders less powerful than they say to be?โ
Silence. I half expected Nura to look angry, but she didnโt. Instead, she peered at me with one shallow wrinkle of thought between her eyebrows, a faint smirk tightening one corner of her mouth.
โFine. Give me a name and weโll see what Zeryth can do.โ
My heart lifted.
โAnd in return,โ Nura went on, โI expect to see you tomorrow at the gates of Tairn. Is this a deal?โ
I did not hesitate. โYes.โ
Max stood there in rare, conspicuous silence.
โYour friend is lucky to have you.โ Nura crossed her arms, tilted her chin thoughtfully. โBe careful, though, Tisaanah. Itโs easy to manipulate people who want one thing more than anything else.โ
I nodded solemnly as if this were new information, happy to be underestimated. But really, I knew this better than anyone. I just didnโt have the luxury of choices.
The sun beat down on the back of my neck as I squinted at the cottage. Beside me, Miraselle cooed over some peonies, gently stroking the petals between her fingers. I had no idea where she went when she wasnโt wandering around Maxโs garden, but she always seemed to materialize whenever I was outside alone. This suited me fineโodd as she was, I liked Miraselle. She was easy to be around and one of the few people who didnโt make me painfully aware of my accent, because her vocabulary was even smaller than my own.
Shortly after I made my agreement with Nura, she had turned to Maxโwho had been unusually quietโand asked to speak with him alone. It was an obvious signal for me to leave, so I retreated to the gardens to practice on my own.
Still, I kept glancing at the house as the minutes ticked by. My curiosity gnawed at me.
Eventually, they emerged. Nura only waved to me from a distance before whisking herself away, which I chose not to take as an insult. Max didnโt look at her before striding toward me.
Miraselle jumped to her feet. โGood morning, Max! Isnโt it a beautiful day?โ
โWhat. The hell. Were you thinking?โ Max snapped, turning his face toward me with a set jaw, his words sizzling between clenched teeth.
โWhat was I thinking?โ I almost laughed. โWhat else was I supposed to do?โ
โThatโs not how this works. You think you won something in there?โ
โNo,โ I said. โNot entirely. But I had to try.โ
Miraselle edged closer, her beautiful face contorted with exaggerated concern. The woman had no sense of personal space. โMax, why are you so upset?โ
Max held up his hands, gently pushing her away. โMiraselleโโ he snapped, then caught himself, letting out a breath. โThree steps, please. Thatโs all I ask. Three steps of space.โ
Miraselle took one, two, three steps backward. โWhat would you suggest I do?โ I asked.
โSay no. Thatโs what Iโd suggest.โ
โI canโt do that.โ
โYou donโt make deals with the Orders. Never. And itโs not even a Blood Pact or anything that would stop Nura from going back on her word. Not that she even gave you her word. Sheโll try.โ He scoffed. โPlease.โ
I regarded Max quietly. His reaction made me nervous, but his words werenโt new. I knew there were no guarantees. I had noticed Nuraโs distinct lack of promises. I knew I had only secured Serel a slim chance, and nothing more.
But it was something. It was all I had.
โMy friend needs a chance,โ I said. โI have no other option. Even if Nura had said no, I would still have agreed.โ
I couldnโt quite interpret the look Max gave me at that. โYou shouldnโt.โ
โI need to impress them. You know this.โ I flinched as Miraselleโs hands began combing through my hair, and I had to resist the urge to swat her fingers away.
โMiraselleโโ Maxโs voice sounded strained as he struggled not to snap at her. โGive us a minute.โ
Miraselle looked briefly hurt before wandering back into the rose bushes.
โWhatโs a Blood Pact?โ I asked once she was gone.
โA deal sealed in magic so neither party can break the terms.โ
โWhat happens if they do?โ
โThey canโt.โ
โBut what ifโโ
โTisaanah, thatโs beside the point. You canโt trust them. They will use you.โ
I was using them too. And besides, what possible use could I be to the Orders, organizations filled with the worldโs most powerful wielders? โFor what?โ
โI donโt know yet.โ Max looked at me, his strange eyes bright beneath a furrowed brow, his mouth twisted in thought, shoulders tense. His concern settled heavily in my stomach.
โI can do this,โ I said quietly.
โThatโs what Iโm afraid of.โ He took a deep breath, his nostrils flaring as he exhaled. โI hoped Iโd never find myself on a battlefield again.โ
I blinked at him, surprised. โShe said you must go too?โ
Max snorted. โNura? She can try and see how far that gets her. But if youโre going, then Iโm going.โ
โYouโโ
โIโm not letting you go out there alone, Tisaanah.โ
The realizationโthat my goal and the sacrifices I made for it were no longer mine aloneโhit me so suddenly that I felt myself swaying beneath this new responsibility. I looked at Max in silence, lips parted, groping for words and finding none.
I had been nervous about marching on Tairn, but only in a resigned, distant way. Now something sharper pierced my heart as I realized that, intentionally or not, I was pulling Max back into everything he had fought so hard to escape.
โYou donโt have to.โ
โDonโt be ridiculous. I didnโt graduate from the Zeryth Adris school of shitty friendship.โ
โMaxโโ
โNot a discussion.โ
Max continued to regard me with that contemplative stare, and I just stared back, two realizations dawning on me.
The first was that I wasnโt going to talk him out of this.
The second, which hit me harder, was that something had shifted in the nature of our relationship, and I had simply failed to notice. But I understood with a resolve that settled deeply in my chest that I had been given something precious in this fragile, tentative friendship. I closed my fingers around that delicate gift and drew it close.
โThank you,โ I said, and Max nodded. One look at his distant expression, and I knew he was already on that battlefield.