“You may go,” Ruven said, waving one hand in dismissal. Varen stood quickly and bowed again; Korik did the same, then followed him back out of the room. The soldier who had escorted them was gone, but the same elf was standing guard. This one only nodded at him and Varen, watching stoically as they departed.
Korik remained silent as they made their way back out of the castle, so caught up in his own thoughts he almost didn’t notice that Varen been uncharacteristically quiet, too. It wasn’t until they had passed back through the massive castle doors, walking back through the grounds, that the elf spoke. His voice sounded a little strained.
“I wasn’t expecting him to ask you to accompany me,” he said, not looking at Korik. “I… can imagine that isn’t exactly what you wanted. Sorry.”
Korik didn’t know how to respond. It was true that he just wanted to go home and be done with all this, but he hadn’t expected Varen to apologize. After a beat, he shrugged.
“Can’t say no to a king,” he sighed, shaking his head.
Varen let out a small huff of a laugh. “That’s the truth.”
When they reached the courtyard that led to the city gate, Varen stopped. Korik paused to look over at him.
“I’m going to speak to the quartermaster, so you can go on ahead. Do you know how to get back to the house?”
The walk had been straightforward, and Korik was sure he could find his way back. Still, he was already a ball of nerves, and the thought of walking alone through the streets of Aefraya made him feel more nervous.
“Yes,” he said, pushing down the thought. “I’ll see you there, then.”
Varen’s expression softened. “Try to break the news gently to Enriel. I don’t want her to worry about me. Either of us.”
Korik nodded, but he had no idea what that meant. He didn’t get the chance to ask, though, as Varen turned and walked toward the barracks, leaving Korik alone in the courtyard. He watched the elf for a moment longer, then turned to the gates and left the castle grounds.
Chapter Thirteen
Korik
Varendidnotreturnfor several hours, but when he did, he was leading a fresh horse laden with supplies. This one was a roan, taller and broader than the mule he’d been riding previously. As Varen unloaded its pack, he explained that he’d traded the mule to the barracks stables and taken this horse in its place.
“We’ll take today and tomorrow to rest, then head out the day Enriel leaves,” Varen said to Korik. They were both out in the yard, brushing down the horses. Korik thought the elf looked more tired than before; but when he noticed Korik’s attention, that same familiar smirk returned to his face. “Unless you’d like to leave sooner.”
Korik shook his head, looking away. He hated that Varen seemed so much less insufferable when he wasn’t putting up this strange front—why did he revert to acting like this? Was it something about Korik, or was he just always this way?
Either way, he was just as tired; and a day or two of rest would be very welcome, even if he had to sleep on the floor.
When they went back inside, Enriel approached them, looking concerned. Korik had given her a brief summary of what had transpired, but told her that Varen could explain things better. Just as Varen had warned him, though, she had seemed upset at the news. She and Varen now spoke in hushed tones near the door, as Korik awkwardly went back to his makeshift bed, tidying his clothes and the blankets to keep busy. He did his best not to eavesdrop; luckily, they were speaking quietly enough that he couldn’t quite understand what they were saying.
Eventually, Enriel came walking up to him, rubbing her arms self-consciously. “I’m sorry, healer. I feel like it’s my fault you’ve gotten roped into all of this.”
Despite his own thoughts on the matter, Korik let out a small huff of a laugh. “Don’t blame yourself. You couldn’t have known.”
The elf looked miserable, clearly unconvinced. “No, but... I don’t know. If I hadn’t been captured, or if I hadn’t asked to have a healer accompany us... I know you didn’t really want to come all this way in the first place.”
“Enriel,” Korik interrupted. His voice was soft, but she immediately fell silent. “This isn’t your fault. Your request was entirely reasonable. I would much rather go home, yes, but I don’t blame you for any of this.”
After a beat of silence, she slowly nodded. Her eyes looked watery, and she took a long moment before she spoke again.
“Alright,” she finally said, her voice wavering. “Well, I hope you and my brother can get some good rest before you head out, and I will pray to the gods for your safety and quick return home.”
“No need to concern yourself over it. Try to focus on your health. And your child,” Korik replied softly. “We will be fine. I’m not worried.”
She laughed at that. “Varen said the same thing.”
Varen must have been serious about getting his rest, as Korik barely saw him at all over the next two days. He also tried to rest up while he could, but he had a harder time staying idle. Never quite comfortable sleeping in the sitting room during the day when the elves were around, he ended up helping around the house when he could. He sliced vegetables for meals; cleaned up after the horses and made sure they were ready to depart; chopped and piled firewood; and dusted all the hard-to-reach places around the house.
Laena and Beren were grateful for the help, and Enriel was often sitting nearby, chatting idly with him. It took him a while to pick up on it, but after the first day of her hanging around for no apparent reason, he realized she was still nervous about leaving them behind and departing on her own. So Korik tried to engage her in conversation as much as he could manage. He asked if she knew a healer in her hometown to monitor the remainder of her pregnancy, which she did; and if she had picked out names for her baby, which she had, but didn’t want to share in case she changed her mind. Korik did not ask about her child’s other parent; but she mentioned once, wearing a glum expression, that she was disappointed that the father had no interest in being part of the child’s life. It seemed a heavy topic, so Korik didn’t ask any details.
He did ask her, though, about something King Ruven had said during their conversation: that Varen was a renowned ranger. When he thought about how easily Varen had traversed the wilderness while they were tracking the orc camp, he supposed it wasn’t a complete surprise. Still, it was strange to think that Varen could stop talking long enough to be a scout or tracker. Enriel had laughed, but then agreed—he didn’t always look the part, but Varen had once been among the very best rangers in the ranks of Aefraya, which had largely contributed to his promotions into leadership. He was, apparently, a highly skilled hunter and tracker, and had been on many solo tracking missions even she had no details of.
