“I’d like to keep the shy one for myself,” he finally said, deciding in the spur of the moment. “But you can keep the other.”
Myrla’s eyes sparkled as she smiled. “I think that sounds like a very fair trade.”
Korik suddenly became aware of Varen’s eyes on him. He’d been speaking with an elf who had escorted them; when he looked over, Varen had a stricken expression on his face, but quickly turned away when Korik’s eyes met his.
Korik’s heart hardened with indignation. Varen had wanted him to leave the kits behind and now was upset to leave them here? It didn’t matter. Korik was the one who had been taking care of them—the decision was his. Varen hadn’t offered to take them, even the one he had bonded with more, and Myrla was surely a better caretaker, anyway.
Korik turned away. “Then I entrust it to you.”
“I think they’re both boys,” Myrla said, leaning down to look more closely at Korik’s kitten. She picked it up, and it let her handle it without complaint. “Yep, two boys. It's tricky to tell when they’re young, but I’m pretty sure.”
Korik nodded. “I suppose I can start thinking of names, then.”
Myrla smiled. “You can name them both, if you’d like. A parting gift for the one you’re leaving with me.”
That seemed fitting. Korik managed a slight smile in return. “Sure. I’ll think about it.”
“I figured you both will be here for at least a few days, so no rush,” she said, turning to go. She picked up the kit that she would be taking and stepped away. “I won’t keep you any longer. Apologies, Commander.”
Korik picked up his own kitten, which mewled plaintively at being separated from his brother, but didn’t struggle. When he turned back to Varen, he kept his eyes downcast to avoid looking at the elf’s face—it was easier to ignore any emotions that might be in his expression. The elf said nothing as he rejoined the group, and the same two soldiers led them further into the outpost.
They entered the tower and were brought to a room near the back. Someone must have gone ahead to tell the commanding officer about their presence, as the elf behind the desk in the office that they were led into looked entirely unsurprised at their presence.
The commander was a male elf with a stern face and long brown hair pulled into a smooth, simple ponytail. He looked at each of them without expression. Varen bowed his head as he addressed the other elf.
“Thank you for meeting us on such short notice, Commander Eldren,” Varen said, head still bowed. “I’m Commander Petkas, and this is Healer Korik.”
Eldren nodded at each of them. “You and Healer Korik are welcome here, Commander Petkas, but I must admit I am perplexed as to how you ended up in Solitude in the first place.”
Varen grimaced. “It’s a long story, sir.”
Korik waited silently as Varen briefly recounted their adventure. He described their encounter with the orc raiders on their way to Castle Aefraya; and how, when they arrived, King Ruven tasked them with tracking down the larger group that the band had come from. He explained how one elf they rescued had been a High Sorcerer, who gave them a teleportation rune—this was the only time Commander Eldren made any expression of surprise—and Varen had needed to use it when they were ambushed. The rune had been meant to take them back to Drol Kuggradh, but Varen had been unfamiliar with the magic, forced to use it in a moment of panic; and they ended up far from their intended destination.
“I once trained here in Solitude when I was much younger. I spent a month in the forest just a few days west,” Varen concluded. “I think that’s why we ended up here. I remembered enough of the location to get us off the mountain and the rest of the way here.”
Despite how much he had been trying to close himself off from his feelings about Varen, Korik couldn’t help but feel relieved that the elf’s explanation skimmed over everything he wanted to keep to himself—his own druidic abilities, and even that they had encountered the orc clan on their way down the mountain. But Varen had said he wouldn’t tell anyone, and even if he was an asshole, he at least seemed to be a man of his word.
“I see,” Commander Eldren said when Varen was done. “Then I’m glad to hear you survived your ordeal. You are welcome to rest and resupply here.”
“We’re grateful for your hospitality, but I have an additional request, Commander,” Varen said, bowing his head again. “If it would be at all possible to spare a scout to accompany us back to Drol Kuggradh, just to help ensure we arrive safely, I would greatly appreciate it.”
Korik glanced sidelong at Varen. A scout would be helpful, but probably unneeded—yet the thought of being alone with Varen all the way to Drol Kuggradh seemed unbearably painful, so maybe that was for the best.
“It will take a few days to make the necessary preparations,” the commander finally said, after considering it for a moment. “But we can spare two to accompany you, I think.”
Varen managed a small, tired smile. “I’ll put in a good word with the prince for you if I can.”
Eldren chuckled at that, a smile splitting his serious features for the first time. “Very kind of you, Commander. I enjoy my post here, though, so maybe not too good of a word, hm?”
“Noted,” Varen smiled.
“If that’s all, I’ll have Scout Kelyn take you to the guest rooms,” Eldren said. After a pause, he added, “It’s been a while since we’ve had guests. If there’s any dust, let me know. It means someone’s been slacking on their cleaning duties.”
“Will do, Commander,” Varen replied. He stood, and Korik followed—he hadn’t spoken to the other commander once, but he preferred it that way. The less any of the elves knew about him, the better.
A different elf was waiting for them outside the office, and led them back out of the tower to a building on the far side of the courtyard. The barracks were relatively quiet, which Korik supposed was the norm for the middle of the day; the elf led them up to a second floor, which appeared to have several empty rooms for guests. They were shown to two rooms side-by-side; the rooms were small and sparsely decorated, but at least there would be a wall between them.
The bed would be too small for Korik, but it looked to be a thin mattress he could pull off the wooden frame easily enough. He would just sleep on the floor with the mattress for some padding. Neither Varen nor the scout seemed to notice, or care.
