After a moment, Varen sniffled and pulled a hand away to wipe his eyes. Then he stood, eyes glassy, and sat back down in his chair, before taking a long sip of his tea.
“So,” Korik said, still anxious. “What does this mean for... for us now?”
Varen’s relieved expression faltered slightly, and he seemed to think it over before responding.
“Will you stay in Drol Kuggradh?” he asked quietly, looking back at Korik. “Will you reconsider?”
For all that Varen had moved him, Korik didn’t hesitate before shaking his head.
“No. I still plan to leave, although I realize leaving during the middle of winter would be unwise. I intend to return to the mountain clan in the spring,” he said. Varen’s expression crumbled, making his heart hurt with guilt, but his mind was made up in that matter.
“But,” Varen started, but Korik held up a hand, and the elf immediately fell silent.
“It wasn’t just...usthat made me want to leave,” he continued. “Iwantto travel more. I was telling the truth that being out in the wilderness with you made me realize how much I had missed it. It’s not a coincidence that Drol Kuggradh is the only proper city of orcs. Wanderlust is in our blood. I’d ignored it for so long I’d forgotten how it felt, but after being back out there... I can’t ignore it any more.”
Varen was silent for a long moment. He was looking at Korik with an expression that he couldn’t place: some strange mix of apprehension and admiration and yearning and uncertainty all at once. He took a sip of his own tea, as Varen seemed to consider his words. For once, he could understand why Varen had often seemed so impatient in their conversations, waiting for Korik to think through his words before speaking. Being on the other side of things was less comfortable.
“In that case,” Varen finally said, his voice soft. “If you will not stay... Will you allow me to go with you?”
Even after all the revelations so far today, this still took Korik entirely by surprise. He stared at Varen for a long moment, heart pounding, mind racing.
“Go with me?” he repeated, sure he had misheard. But Varen nodded.
“I enjoyed traveling with you, too,” the elf said softly. “If you’d have me, I’d like to continue to do so.”
“But—your position. Your responsibility,” Korik protested. Leaving his own life behind was proving to be more difficult than he initially thought, and hewasn’tin the elven military. How much more complicated would things be for Varen?
But, shocking him all over again, Varen only laughed.
“They’ve gotten nearly a century of service out of me,” the elf scoffed, shaking his head. “I can start the process to retire at any point now, especially now that the danger of rebellion seems to have been quelled for the moment. We’re no longer at war for the first time in living memory. And, besides—I was Head Ranger for many years. I liked that. Being Commander is much less enjoyable.”
“And they’ll just... Let you leave?” Korik asked. He realized he knew little about the logistics of the elven military, but when the former warlord had mounted armies to fight against the elves, the warriors of the clans loyal to him—which had been nearly all clans—were honor-bound to obey. They would only be relieved of their duty if they were permanently injured, or otherwise no longer able to fight. A warrior could petition to leave for certain extenuating circumstances, but these were uncommon, and less common still for their request to be granted. Perhaps the elves were more lenient.
“Of course,” Varen replied, frowning. “I mean, there is a mandatory service period when you first enlist, but I am long past that now. They start pushing you toward retirement once you hit a hundred and twenty most of the time, anyway. It isn’t immediate, but once I give notice of my intention to retire, my service would be concluded within three months.”
Korik remained silent, absorbing the information. He would not leave for a few months anyway, to avoid traveling through another winter storm. But did he want to make such a commitment to Varen right away? An hour ago, he had truly believed that he would never see Varen again and would be better off for it. It was far too soon to decide on such a thing, tempted as he was.
Varen’s expression had softened the longer Korik thought, and eventually the elf added,
“I intended to take some leave in the spring anyway, when Enriel has her baby. I want to go see her and the child. So I might retire then, regardless.”
“I will consider it,” Korik finally said. Varen nodded.
“There’s no rush,” he agreed. “Think it over.”
They sat there, looking at each other in silence. Korik could sense Roz watching with intense interest from the stairs; he breathed in slowly and deeply to calm himself, feeling her relax as well.
“Well,” Varen finally said, smiling nervously at him. “That was what I came here to say. This went... better than I was hoping for, really. Thank you, Korik. For giving me a second chance. I won’t waste it.”
Korik managed a nervous smile back. “You might as well stay for dinner.”
Varen’s smile widened, but suddenly grew hesitant again. “Could I perhaps stay the night, too?”
“Yes,” Korik answered—before he really processed the question, before he could even consider if maybe that was a bad idea.
But he was quickly realizing how much he had missed Varen: how much he had grown used to the other man’s presence beside him. The world was so much quieter when he wasn’t there. He had always preferred a quiet life, but now the silence felt empty.
Varen smiled at him, his hazel eyes shining.
