60, Puppy eyes and kisses

Ayya smiled as Anna took out pears soaked in wine and sugar and whipped cream. It was nostalgic eating dinner here. And she loved that she got to share it with Tenac. Even if Zerden was acting a bit unusual. But then it couldn’t be easy for him as he was the castellan. His private and work life had just mixed when he was hoping for a quiet evening with his parents.

“This is amazing,” Tenac said to Anna as he ate the dessert.

“Thank you,” Anna smiled.

“Anna has always had the most amazing desserts,” Ayya told him.

“Oh, hush,” Anna said, blushing. “Do you still cook, Ayya?” Anna asked.

“I do, not as often as I might like to. It’s mostly when I’m at home with my mom, or when I’m with the tribe. When I’m in the sanctuary, it’s much easier to just go down to the dining hall,” she admitted.

“You don’t live at home?” Zerden asked. Ayya could see his brows furrowing.

“All aari have an apartment in the sanctum. It’s just easier to stay there when I’m working,” she said.

“And do you also live in this sanctum?” Anna asked Tenac.

“No, the riders have their own quarters in the city,” he smiled. Ayya insisted on helping Anna clear the table. She trusted Ken to keep Tenac and Zerden from staring at each other like they both were possessed. She had to ask Tenac about that when they were alone. Ken had brought out the Kai board and asked Tenac if he played.

“Do you want to save him?” Anna asked quietly, looking at Tenac.

“No, he knows what he is doing. I introduced him to Kai when we met,” Ayya smiled. She stayed and helped Anna do the dishes and talked about people in the castle. When they were done, she walked over to the table and stood behind Tenac. He was playing Zerden and Tenac was winning. Ayya placed a hand on his shoulder. Three moves later, and there was no way Zerden could win.

“Ready to go?” Tenac asked as he looked up at Ayya and smiled. She still had her hand on his shoulder.

“Yes, it’s best we return before the others send a search party,” Ayya smiled. Everyone around the table stood up to say goodbye.

“You are skilled at Kai, and I have enjoyed our talk,” Ken said as he shook Tenac’s hand.

“I can say the same. We will have to do a rematch,” Tenac nodded.

“Thank you for looking after Ayya,” Anna told him and pulled him into a hug. Ayya smiled at his surprised expression.

“It’s my privilege. Thank you for the food. It was the best I had for quite some time,” Tenac said. Tenac and Zerden nodded at each other.

“I’ll get your cloak,” Tenac said to Ayya and left her to say goodbye.

“It has been a pleasure, as always,” Ken smiled at her.

“Thank you for letting us stay and take up your evening,” Ayya smiled at him.

“Ayya, thank you for coming,” Anna said, hugging her tightly.

“Thank you for having us, and for dinner,” Ayya told her.

“Anytime. If you have some spare time, you are always welcome. And that goes for Tenac as well. I like him,” Anna told her.

“That means a lot to me. I will definitely be by at least one more time, and where I go, Tenac follows,” Ayya laughed. “Zerden, we’ll see each other sooner or later,” Ayya smiled.

“Have a good night … Ayya,” Zerden said with a small smile.

“You too,” Ayya nodded and walked to where Tenac stood, holding her cloak. He helped her on with it and she waved to her friends as Tenac made sure there was no one outside the door. When he nodded, she left the apartment and closed the door.

---

Anna smiled as she put on the kettle to make some tea for them. She smiled as she made the tea and served it to her husband and son.

“I’m so happy that she came by,” Anna said, still smiling.

“It was nice of her. She has become a remarkable woman,” Ken nodded.

“Hasn’t she? I always knew that there was something special about her. She is so beautiful, and she has such confidence. And I liked Tenac as well,” Anna gushed.

“Yes, he is a good soldier. The way he made sure she was protected by placing himself between the door and her, how he was ready to defend her as the door opened and he was very knowledgeable on strategy and training. A good man,” Ken nodded again. Anna saw her son scowl, and she frowned.

“Zerden, remember the lessons from when Ayya was here last time,” she told him.

“I don’t know what you mean, mom,” he said.

“Oh yes, you do. Let’s not pretend we don’t all know why you don’t like Tenac. I’m sorry you are disappointed that you are too late. But Tenac is nice to her. He treats her well, and he makes her happy. Anyone can see that,” Anna told him. Her husband nodded. “I know he is protective of her. He is her bodyguard. But she is just as protective of him. When we first invited him in, she wouldn’t let go of his hand until she made sure he was comfortable,” she continued.

“Yes, that was endearing,” Ken agreed. Zerden scowled again.

“You better stop that right away, young man,” Anna told him. “We have lost her once because you couldn’t accept her new life. Don’t make the same mistake again,” Anna warned her son.

“I just don’t get why things have to change,” Tenac sighed.

“That is life, son. We grow and evolve, we have to grow with the people we love,” his father told him, and Anna smiled at her husband.

---

Tenac had taken her hand, and Ayya smiled as she led him a different way back. She was happy with the way she had spent her afternoon and evening.

“This is not the way back,” Tenac pointed out.

“It is. It’s just not the same way we came. I thought we would take the way that’s not so crowded, even if it’s slightly longer,” she explained.

“That’s a good choice, since we don’t have an escort,” he agreed.

“And it has another advantage as well,” she smiled.

“And what is that?” he asked.

“This,” she said, pulling him forward. They came out on the wall surrounding the castle and had a perfect view of the city. The streets were lit by lanterns and the night sky was clear and showed the stars and the moon. It wasn’t as remarkable a sight as that on the plains. But it was still amazing.

“This is beautiful,” Tenac said as he looked out. “But not as beautiful as you,” he added. She looked up at him and smiled. He smiled back and lowered his head to kiss her. Ayya let the feeling of the kiss take her over. When they broke apart, he was still smiling at her. “I don’t think that will ever get old,” he said.

“I hope not,” she smiled. They stood looking out over the city for a while and Tenac drew her in closer and put his arm around her. His body heat mixed with hers and made the winter cold less invasive. It reminded her of the cold nights on the plains when they used to sit under the wool blankets. “Do you think the others have lost sight of why we came here?” she asked Tenac.

“Maybe,” he admitted.

“I don’t blame them. There has been a lot going on since we arrived and the politics of it all can get overwhelming,” she said.

“They were all upset when they heard how you were treated, and then the assassination attempt. It can have a cooling effect on anyone’s will to help,” Tenac told her. Ayya nodded.

“I feel like we need to find a way to remember why we are here,” she mused.

“You have a plan, don’t you?” she could hear him smile.

“I do, but you are going to hate it,” she said.

“I am sure I will,” he chuckled.

“If we have another free day tomorrow. I want to take Hinat, Firlea and a couple of riders out in the city,” Ayya said and held her breath.

“You want to do what? No Ayya, there is no way I’m going to agree to that,” Tenac objected.

“But that’s the only way they will get to see why we are doing this. They need to meet the people,” Ayya pleaded and turned around so she could look at him.

“Don’t give me those puppy dog eyes, Ayya,” he told her.

“Please, just in the morning,” she said.

“Fine. We will take all but five riders and the carriage,” he agreed.

“That won’t do. We don’t want to watch the people from the window. We want to talk to them. Five riders and no carriage,” she smiled.

“I’m not falling for that smile of yours. Ten riders and the carriage,” he growled.

“Ten riders, but no carriage?” she asked as sweetly as she could.

“Fine, but you are going to be the death of me,” he sighed.

 “Thank you Tenac,” she smiled and kissed him.

“Please don’t make me regret this. I don’t want to tell your father you got hurt because I couldn’t resist your smile and your kisses,” he told her as they broke apart. Ayya giggled.

“I would advise you to never say anything like that to dad,” she told him and took his hand to lead him to the tower. As they entered the common room they were greeted by their friends and Hinat and Firlea wanted to know how the visit had gone. Ayya and Tenac sat down, and they talked for a while. She also told them about her plans for the next day. To her relief, they seemed really excited about it.

“Come on, I have one last thing to show you before it’s time for bed,” Ayya told Tenac as people started heading off to bed.

---

Tenac followed Ayya into her room and Ayya walked to her chest and started looking for what she needed. Tenac watched her with a smile as she searched through her things. It hadn’t sunk in completely that she had feelings for him as well.

“When I was leaving this place, Anna told me a lot of things I really didn’t understand back then,” she told him and sat on the love seat and patted the seat beside her for him to sit down. He sat down and let his arm rest on the back and his hand on her shoulder.

“And you understand them now?” he asked.

“Yes, for some time,” she smiled.

“Like what?”

“I know you have already figured this out, so I’m just going to say it. It was Zerden that broke my heart back then,” Ayya confessed. Tenac had known it the moment he had seen the two of them together. But hearing her confirm it made it more real, and he had a sudden urge to hunt down the castellan and hurt him. He knew Kopa would be okay with that. But Ayya probably wouldn’t, so he remained seated and nodded.

“What did he do?” he asked. Ayya smiled at him, the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. He regretted asking the question.