Between The Lines

Writers: Yvonne, Eimi
Date Posted: 9th May 2008

Characters: Mariss, Shadux
Description: Shadux finds that he enjoys the book Mariss lent him more than he thought he would... and finds out something else, too.
Location: Amber Hills Hold
Date: month 9, day 3 of Turn 4

"Sir, we must change course!" Yusel cried as the gale picked up his words and tossed them overboard.

"Change course? Whyever for?" I called back as I tied off the tiller.

There was near panic in the young man's voice after yet another wave crashed over deck. Fish flopped across the wooden planks. Good eating, they would be. "But sir, the wind is against us!"

"Wind?" I laughed, tossing the anchor over. "Boy, I _am_ the wind!"

~*~

Shadux quickly flipped the page and stared into the shocking whiteness that covered it. That was it? It was over? But did they make it? Did they reach the black beaches of Fire Island? Did Yusel find his family?
Did Master Frukis get them through the storm? Shadux felt as if he had been snapped back into the real word with a rush, like he himself had been carried on the winds that had filled their sails...

"Whoa..." That was one sharding good book! _Mariss_ read that? He chewed his lip thoughtfully as he closed it and absently caressed its soft leather binding. Did she have another one? Would she lend him one?

**What time is it,** he wondered as he looked over at the window and was surprised to notice that the sun was already kissing the horizon.
**'Like a blushing maiden stealing away into the darkness to meet her lover...'** That was how Frukis had put it as he looked out at the sunset over the Bay of New Hope...

She might be still in her rooms. If he hurried, he could catch her before the evening meal!

Luckily for him, Mariss answered the door when he knocked. Her expression became carefully blank when she saw him, but Trouble left his perch on his shoulder and immediately disappeared /between/. "I'm glad to see you're up and about," she said by way of greeting.

He could tell she was less than thrilled to see him. Well, good to see things didn't really change. "Thanks. You're eye looks much better."

"Thank you." They stood awkwardly for a moment before Mariss remembered her manners and held the door open wide. "Won't you come in?"

"Yes, thank you." Shadux stepped inside, but made no move to take a seat. "Is your father here?" he asked before they could fall into another strained silence.

She shook her head and wished Trouble would come back. "No, he's still working. The tithe issue is taking up most of his evenings of late."

"Ah, yes, I heard about that. I was thinking maybe I shouldn't take the whole five days. I hate leaving him short handed." And Shadux loathed sitting out of all the action. Mariss smiled fondly as she reclaimed her seat by the fire. A book lay at her elbow and an empty glass on the small table next to her chair.
"No. Da would rather you whole and hearty than have you return early.
He'd never forgive himself if he worked you so hard that you didn't have time to recover!"

Well, he could argue the point with her, but he had already learned that arguing with her was futile. "So, you're reading another book?"

"Oh, this?" She glanced at the book. "I've read it before. Did you enjoy the book I lent you?"

He was not sure if she was asking just to be polite or if she really wanted to know. If she had only meant to be polite then she probably wouldn't appreciate an account of how he couldn't put it down, how he had spent all day imagining what it would be like to sail to all those distant places, that he hadn't even noticed he had missed the afternoon meal because he had just been so engrossed in each page. Something a bit more neutral was safer. "Yeah, it was pretty interesting. I finished it already. I wanted to return it."

"'Pretty interesting'? That's all?" It slipped out before she could stop herself - the book she'd lent Shadux was one of her favorites, and had been recommended to her by the harper she'd once been involved with.
"What more could you want in a book?"

Shardit all, were there no words that could come out of his mouth that she would not feel insulted by, he thought as he threw his arms up helplessly. "All right, fine, I loved it. I couldn't put it down. I didn't mean to offend you, I just didn't think you were really interested in my opinion."

"Of course I'm interested in your opinion! I wouldn't have lent it to you in the first place if you weren't. Why didn't you just say that?"
Shells, he was a hard one to figure out. He never said what he meant...
then again, he _had_ said what he'd meant the last time they'd met.
Although it angered her beyond belief that he thought of her holders as a black mark on Amber Hills Hold, she preferred that sort of honesty to snide comments and false smiles. "Because you never seem to be interested in anyone's opinion but..." He stopped himself before he could finish that sentence, took a deep breath and counted to three. "Because I thought you were just being polite by asking. The truth is I was reading it all day. It's probably the best book I've ever read."

For a moment she was speechless. It wasn't so much that Shadux had gone out of his way to insult her (again) but that he'd actually _agreed_
with her about something. Ever since they'd met he'd gone out of his way to oppose her, and then refused to listen if she tried to argue her point. After a moment's thought she decided to let the slur slide - for now. He had, after all, been kind enough to rescue her on that disastrous walk. "Then I'm glad I lent it to you. It's one of my favorites, too, and I love the end, even though most people find it jarring. It leaves it so open for... more. If you want, I have another book by the same author I could lend you."

"I was hoping you might have another," he admitted almost reluctantly. This new Mariss that he actually had something in _common_ with was rather unnerving. He didn't quite know what to think himself. "I do, actually. The same seacrafter wrote another book after he circled the third continent. Would you like to borrow it as well?"

"Yeah, I'd really like to read it." He offered her the book he had brought back with a slight reluctance. "I wouldn't have thought you were interested in adventure novels. It just doesn't seem..." Like something a woman would be interested in... Then again, she wasn't like most women, he had learned. "Your type of book."

"Really? Then what does?" she asked dryly. "I don't know, something a bit more... intelligent, I guess." Like dusty old Records and tithe reports...

Mariss smiled at the unexpected, albeit backhanded, complement. "I'll read just about anything. I had a small collection of books that ranged from the awful things you can pick up at Gathers to old Crafting texts, but I lost most of them in the earthquake. Thankfully most of my favorites made it through, though. Especially this one." She picked up the book she'd just lent Shadux and stroked the worn gilt on its cover.
"They're dreadfully hard to find now. The author died almost twenty turns ago."

"Oh, that's too bad," Shadux replied thoughtfully. He was sure the man had died in some terribly exciting way, though. "Well, maybe some time I can lend you one of my books."

"I'd like that." Even if she didn't like the man, she liked books.

He mentally ran through his list of books. There were so many good ones to chose from! "My favorite is about Ambers Undeniable. He was this incredible racing runner. At first the breeder's didn't think he would amount to anything, but then he became an unbeatable champion and now he's an ancestor of almost every racing runner at Amber Hills. I can get it for you if you like."

_More_ racing runners?! Mariss somehow wasn't surprised - or terribly interested - but she nodded anyway. "I'd appreciate that."

"I think you'll like it," he assured her with more confidence than he felt. She never really seemed to take an interest in anything associated with his home. But she had surprised him before...

"What other sorts of books do you read?" It would be best to change the topic before he got too involved with talking about runnerbeasts. "Adventure of course. And historical." A few books under his bed that a woman would _definitely_ not be interested in...

"Well then, you should enjoy the one I lent you, then," Mariss said.
"And you'll have to let me know if you like it. But I'm supposed to meet Da tonight for dinner, so I really must be going..."

"Right. I'll bring that book by in the next day or two then. That is if you're not too busy." At least she had not been put on temporary medical leave.

Mariss sighed, and it sounded of equal parts weariness and pleasure.
"Well, sort of... you're still healing and Zathris is working full time on the problem of the stolen tithe, so Da's got me back with the Understewards since they're so short staffed. I'll probably be free in the evenings after dinner, though, if you want to stop by."

Her father put her to work as an _understeward_? "So what, you're doing _my_ job now?" "Only part of it, and only until you're able to take it up again. You should be glad that _someone_ is taking care of things while you're laid up." Why was it she was always having to defend herself when she was doing nothing wrong?! So Cyrek thought he could move his daughter in while Shadux was conveniently 'laid up' and out of their way. They would just see about that! "Yes, well, enjoy your dinner."

"Thank you. You too," she said, and showed him to the door. Whatever he thought of her, Mariss was _determined_ not to ruin what had been a perfectly civil conversation, for once.

Last updated on the June 1st 2008

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Between The Lines