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olive-skinned cheek. "But..." I replied, and found I simply couldn't finish. There really wasn't much I could say. They were right - if Dyarzi truly loved me, she would accept the change that had happened to me. I sighed again. "Perhaps..." "You're afraid she might reject you anyway," Joy said, her gaze penetrating. "I was a queen for nearly five decades, Old Man, and as such I learned much of the hearts of men. That's your real fear - that you will bring her back, and find she doesn't want you as you are, and will not touch you or lie with you." I was silent for a long moment, then finally nodded. "Yes." "She won't reject you like that, Eddas," Pelia said, stroking my cheek softly. "Perhaps she was not a sapphite, and perhaps she might be uncomfortable, or even unwilling to lie with you. Still, I imagine that if she ever was truly worthy of your love, she won't refuse to touch you. She may or may not couple with you in the manner of sapphite love, but if she was ever worthy of your love, she would not let you sleep alone," she said, then reached out and placed her hand on Joy's shoulder. "Now, come, the both of you. Let's get some food and drink into this starving little body you've abused, Eddas." "And you will eat, Old Man, even if I have to spoon-feed you pap, as I once did my own children. You said I had a destiny - well, I can see that part of it is to make sure you don't starve yourself or suffocate yourself or do any number of other terrible things to yourself just because you are feeling miserable about the lot fate and the gods have handed you and want to join Dyarzi in the afterlife," Joy growled, and shook her head. "You really are a foolish old man at times, Eddas Ayar." I smiled. She could never know just how much being thought of as a man, truly as a man, meant to me at that moment. "Thank you." Twenty-Five. "A knight without a horse is like a wizard without a tower. Certainly one can be the former without always having the latter, but the peasants will tend to assume you are very poor - and usually, they'll be right." - Hyperborean Proverb Pelia's tower was a simple one, made of granite stones, and really more symbolic than anything else - hand-made and rough-hewn, it was hardly two stories high. Surrounding the tower were the small huts the women of her order lived in, and surrounding that, the fields they tended. In truth, the home of the Mountain Healers looked, just as Gorol had once said, much like a small nunnery. For nearly an hour after we arrived, I had to endure the joyous greetings of each of the women. They all marveled at my appearance, and all wanted to touch my gloved hands, or hug me. Joy, fortunately, spared me from the worst of it by insisting I first be given a bit of food and some water - unfortunately, she watched over me like a hawk to make certain I indeed ate every bit of the small bowl of gruel Pelia conjured. The 'feast' Pelia and her women had prepared was, as she said, not much. A bit of rabbit-meat, wild berries, a root-soup, and some conjured gruel, served on a rough-hewn table set in the middle of their little village - and, judging by what I could see of the women around me, it was rather hastily prepared. They had apparently been planning something for when I came back, but had not known when that might be. My return had come as a bit of a surprise, then, and they had hurriedly prepared what little they had. I could see in their eyes and hear in their voices, however, that it was presented with great love and respect, so I smiled politely and ate with them quietly. Joy again watched me closely, making certain I did, indeed, eat and drink. Slowly, the sun crept towards the horizon, and evening was upon us. I wanted to simply leave and sleep - I found I was exhausted after two days of trying to starve this body out - and Joy, seeing my exhaustion, asked Pelia to transport the two of us back to my tower, where she could care for me. I suppressed a sigh. The last thing I wanted was to be cared for, really. Still, I could tell by the look on Joy's face that arguing would be pointless. Page 136 ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html Shortly, the deed was done, and Joy and I had returned to my tower. The days slowly turned into weeks, and soon, a month had passed. With Joy's help, I slowly began adjusting to my new situation. Joy hoped that I might once again become comfortable with myself, but the truth was that I simply became resigned to my situation. Of course, having Joy nearby almost every waking moment had helped - she refused to allow me to become maudlin, and she knew exactly how to speak to me to rouse my spirits. Still, she couldn't be [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ] |