KERK LOOKED UP from the hearth as Tiwaz strode in with an expression as dark as a thunderstorm. Without a word, he took the tea kettle off the hook to pour tea. Doom ducked the archway slightly, his hands held out imploringly. The man looked away to hide his grin at the incongruous image of the smaller woman befuddling the demonic-like gromek. “Be reasonable, Ti. You have plenty to do right now learning from Kerk. There is no need for you to worry about hunting with me right now. I need time to get familiar with the area before I can teach you more.”

She spun on her heel, hands on her hips. “I am being reasonable! I am healed and I am rested. You promised you would teach me to hunt.” She waved her hands aimlessly. “What if something happens to you and it is you who needs to rest? Do you want me going out knowing nothing about—”

The gromek growled in frustration, the spines along his back rising slightly. “I promise I will be careful so you don’t need to. But you are just barely recovered from all the injuries and illnesses you have had since we escaped him. I want you to get your reserves back.”

“He has a point, lass,” Kerk interjected, glancing up while pouring the hot water into the teapot. “The winters here can be ruthless and you’re just skin and bones. You need to fatten up a little more.”

The woman looked affronted. “'Fatten’ up?’ I cannot fight effectively if I am fat and lazy!”

He waved a hand impatiently. “A figure of speech. Have you looked at yourself lately? You still look sickly. Damned near skeletal, to be blunt. You can’t fight effectively if you could be carried away in a stiff breeze. Anything out there’ll take advantage of any hint of weakness.” He sat the plate of bread, cheese and jam on the table, turning to get the plates from the cabinet. “It won’t be long. With old Kerk cooking for you, not to mention going to eat at the Wolf’s Den Inn,” he added with a blissful sigh. His nostalgic wistfulness finally drew a smile from the obstinate woman. The spines along Doom’s back relaxed. “You’ll be back to your old self in no time.”

“Fine,” Tiwaz sighed in resignation. “I’ll wait.”

She leaned into Doom’s side as he put his arm around her, hugging gently. “I promise. As soon as I’m ready and you’re better, I will start teaching you to hunt.”

“I’ll remember that,” she stated pointedly.

“You are certainly the quickest study I ever had,” the blacksmith commented. “I think after we deliver the tools I made for the farrier, I’ll have you start on your first knife.” He noted her suspicious expression and snorted. “I am not patronizing you, lass. I know I said it’d be a month or more before. But your discussion got me thinking about it. You are not like others I have taught. Most start out young and doing nothing but carrying and fetching things, cutting wood, or manning the bellows just to get their physical strength up. Then I have to teach them about the tools or weapons themselves so they understand the reason for the process to make them.”

He waved his free hand while draining his tea. “You have the physical strength and knowledge of weapons that might very well exceed mine. You know the basics of metal working after the past couple weeks in the forge with me. No sense putting off your first forging to see how you do.” He said as he rose, “I’m heading out to take stock and get that delivery ready. Meet me out there when you are finished in here, lass.”

The pair did not speak nor meet eyes for several minutes after the outside door shut. “You know I am only worried about you,” Doom said in a low voice. “It isn’t that I think you are incapable.”

“Then why do you think I am not ready? I have always had to be able to do anything at any time when we were—”

“Ti, we are not slaves,” Doom stated firmly. “Alimar never allowed you quite enough time to recover when you were hurt. You just got better at avoiding getting hurt in the first place. Until…” His voice drifted off, throat tightening at the memory of her lying in the sands. He looked up at her light touch on his chin.

“I can choose for myself now,” she said gently. “I do not like feeling inept and helpless and I do not like seeing you have to do everything to take care of me because I am ignorant.” He met her eyes as she continued in a soft voice. “I can choose to do anything I want, and I choose to be ready and able to help you. But if you need more time to be ready to teach me, then I will wait.”

He clasped her hand, pressing the back against his cheek. “I have never minded taking care of you, Ti. But I understand.” He looked towards the glowing embers in the hearth. “I hated being ignorant. I hate being ignorant now. There was so much that Urbin was forbidden from teaching me. And so little he was able to sneak past Alimar. I felt guilty knowing he was risking his life to teach me even what little he managed and not being satisfied with what he could. I always wanted to learn more.”

He sensed an abrupt shift in his companion, and looked up. “Ti,” he stated sharply, drawing her hard, distant focus back onto him. “Ti, don’t go after Alimar without me. Promise me. We will go after him together.” He squeezed her hand hard. “Promise me!”

She nodded once, her voice hard and emotionless, a mask for the fury burning inside he could see glittering in her eyes. “I promise. I will wait.”