"Who," the commander said, "is this child?"
Leyla opened her mouth to speak but stopped.
"She’s with ." Ezra’s tongue had started swelling where he’d bitten it. "Legally."
"He kissed a woman," the girl said again, nodding to herself. She was convincing herself more than anything at this point.
Ezra raised his hand this ti. "I didn’t kiss anyone."
Theron lowered his spear, and in fact the shift had nothing to do with Ezra at all because the accusation had beco more interesting than the threat. Even the demon helt tilted sideways and stayed there.
"The healer," Neve said, her green eyes steady. "The one I sent?"
"She ca to the kitchen because your guy over there blocked from the healer’s building." Ezra jerked his chin at Theron. "It was a dical visit. She checked my spine, told the bruise was deep but the bone was intact, and she left." He looked at Neve who did not seem convinced in the slightest. "That’s it."
"He’s lying," the girl said with her arms crossed. "She took off her clothes."
"Okay, that part I don’t have an answer for."
Neve sighed into her palm, actually sighed, and Ezra had to double take to make sure he didn’t imagine it.
She turned to the commander and spoke quieter than she’d talked the entire eting.
"I’ll speak with the healer myself."
"You do that," the commander said, and that was the end of that.
The commander stood and walked around the table until she was standing directly over the girl. For the first ti since the door slamd open she actually looked at her. Her eyes went to the little girl’s bruises on her wrists and stayed longer than they needed to.
"You’re the little troublemaker from the commons."
"I have a na," the girl said and looked at Ezra. Like he was supposed to know. Ezra shrugged and mouthed good luck.
"I’m sure you do. You also bite my guards. And the Harkenian folks."
"They grabbed first. And... the others tried to touch ." The girl held her ground, feet dangling off the chair and chin up. "Biting them keeps them away."
The commander turned to Ezra. "You tad this little thing?"
He shrugged again. "She’s been staying at the kitchen."
"Along with the jackal?"
"Patches sleeps by the coal pit. Hasn’t bitten anyone important. At least not that I know of."
"That will be a problem," the commander said, and Ezra couldn’t argue with that.
She went back to the head of the table and put both palms flat on the map. None of it had slowed her down. "The Ossalaka proposal. I said I’d consider it."
Neve straightened up, and her eyes eting his across the table suggested he did the sa.
"I will formally write off a contract. Leyla, docunt this." Leyla was already scribbling away. "This will be a three-day journey to the Ossalaka tribe. The Erald Avian will translate."
"Mother, if I may object." Theron cracked the knuckle of his right pointer finger. "This man-child has touched three won now. One being the Honored Slayer, secondly being my sister, and third, a helpless Harkenian healer. Give the authority to execute him on these charges and I will end it swiftly."
The commander’s face had already gone cold the mont Theron said "mother". That much Ezra knew from the half smile buffering on her lips. It was too late now.
"As for you, son. You will formally accompany the Honored Slayer and her companion to the Ossalaka tribe and ensure their safety to and from."
’Fuck yeah. Wait, fuck no. What the hell?’
Theron went stiff, his demon helm sweating out the cracks under his chin. "Mother, I should be on the western watch if a nine-star is—"
"You lost your composure in my briefing room, Theron." Her voice stayed level. "You pointed a weapon at an unard man in front of the Honored Slayer. You’ll escort them into the desert, you’ll keep watch, and you’ll do it without opening your mouth unless I ask you to."
Theron’s spear ca off the table fast and wild, and the tip ended up pointed at the little girl.
The room went blue. Neve’s Aerobow materialized before Ezra could blink and the bolt caught the spear mid-air. It clattered to the floor and the little girl scread a second too late.
Theron took off his helt and the color was gone from his face.
"I didn’t an... It was an accident." He turned around and stomped out of the room. His spear followed after him, slow and sluggish. Floating towards its owner nonetheless.
Leyla sank into her chair, while the commander put her gauntlet over her face.
Neve unsummoned her bow and sighed. "Slower than I used to be."
"That’s a cri right?" Ezra said. "I an, an actual one this ti." He was talking to Neve more than he was the commander.
"My son is an idiot. But he hasn’t earned his rank yet, and he needs a Slayer’s sign-off to get there. I’m asking you to let this go, Erald Avian."
"Already did," she said. "The girl is fine, aren’t you?"
The girl nodded, a little too many tis. Dazed, maybe.
"If the Ossalaka agree to dig, they camp outside the settlent walls, not inside. They eat what he cooks and they answer to him," the commander pointed at Ezra, "which ans they answer to... him," she pointed at Theron’s empty chair, "which ans they answer to ."
"And I trust the Erald Avian has her own reasons for making this work."
"Correct," Neve said.
"And you, Frontier Chef? Will you provide aid to the people of Harken?"
Ezra nodded.
"Then that is all, dismissed. I will see to my son that he is fit for deploynt. You leave at dawn, when it’s coolest and the beasts aren’t awake."
The commander left first, followed by Leyla who t eyes with Ezra for a mont before stepping out into the sun.
Neve was still at the table, looking at the girl then Ezra who sat still like furniture.
"That’s not like you," she said.
"I don’t know what you’re talking about."
"Your hands were hot. I felt it from here. What were you going to do?"
To be honest, he was really fucking angry.
"Nothing," Ezra said. "Ti for a catch up? Or is the Erald Avian too busy for common shit?"
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