5. Too Smooth
TOO SMOOTH
The chair Aaryn sank into was not very comfortable, and the investigator's gaze was not kind as he took her in from behind his spectacles.
It all felt very serious and heavy as he adjusted his impeccably organized notes with labeled tabs and waited for the guards who often accompanied Jarrick to leave the room.
The three of them remained, and the silence was tense.
She felt as if she'd done something wrong. The note weighed in her pocket. Surely they could see it dragging the pockets of her dress to the floor?
The investigator spoke, pulling her from her thoughts, and she forced her hands to relax where they rested on her knees.
“The king has tasked this investigation with the utmost importance. Solving this quickly is in our best interests, and knowledge is power,” he said.
He was dressed sharply in rich, warm colors, but his voice was empty of emotion.
“Do you vow to tell the truth as you know it to be, with the understanding that any information at all could be vital to this investigation?”
Aaryn swallowed as the weight of what she’d agreed to settled on her shoulders. She had nothing to hide; she was guilty of no crimes, and yet she was… nervous.
What if she wasn't any help at all? She and Thea hadn't even known each other a full year. Was what they ate on their picnics really going to offer much clarity? Maybe she'd oversold her insight.
Finally, she pinned her finger on the squirming sensation in her chest. Divulging such things about Thea felt like… betrayal, in a way.
But Thea had betrayed her first.
And Aaryn wanted Starspark back where he belonged.
With me.
“I vow it,” she said, and sat up straighter, resolved.
The investigator looked right at her, practically into her soul. “When did you first meet Thea?”
“Around eight months ago,” she answered, and he began to write in a little book.
Jarrick placed a steaming cup of tea before her, and Aaryn curled her shaky hands around it.
The warmth was almost too much against her right hand, but on her left hand, where her scar was, she hardly felt it at all.
It was hot and comforting, even if the taste didn’t quite agree with her palate.
“How did you cross paths?”
“Well, I suppose the first few times I saw Thea around the castle, we just passed one another in the halls. Polite nods, like I give all the guards. The first real interaction I had with her was… in the market.”
Aaryn furrowed her brow, lips strangely loose, as the memory came to her.
“And I’ll have six of those, please,” Aaryn told the elf. All around her the market was busy, bustling with citizens and vendors and carts.
A few stray dogs and cats lingered around, the scent of fresh-baked goods and fish and meat calling to them. The sun speckled the ground through the trees that lined the carts and kiosks, and the breeze was playing with Aaryn’s long hair even though she had it tied back.
The six pastries were handed over in a paper bag and added to Aaryn’s basket. It weighed on her arm already, but this baker was her last—and favorite—stop. It was for a special occasion with the other Tethered, and Aaryn wanted to arrive with treats.
“And actually, could I get one of these cookies?” she asked, pointing to a cookie with white icing.
She deserved a little treat to get herself back to the castle, didn’t she?
“Of course, madam,” he said, and passed her one in a bag. She paid the elf properly and he nodded his head. “Great Dragon’s blessings to you!”
“And to you,” she finished, and turned to leave, letting him help the orc peering at his cart.
Aaryn made her way out of the market and lifted the lid of her basket. “Okay,” she mumbled to herself, “Cheese, fruit, pastries. That’s all we were in charge of, wasn’t it? Why didn’t you make a list?”
She was so caught up in her musings, Aaryn wasn’t aware of her surroundings. She paid for her ignorance, because one moment she was peering into her basket, and the next she was staring down at her empty arm as a man snatched it from her person.
“Hey!” she shouted, and caught the attention of a nearby knight.
Without pause, the knight took off, limber and swift as they chased after the man.
Aaryn winced. “Oh, that’s alright!” she called out, but the knight continued on.
As they disappeared from sight, Aaryn propped her hands on her hips and…
waited. The few people milling nearby had already returned to whatever occupied them.
The knight returned shortly, but empty-handed and out of breath.
“Apologies, miss, he got away,” she said. Her dark hair fell about her face, and two short horns glimmering with a pale purple rose from the crown of her head. Her breath puffed from her full lips, her armor clinking a bit with every inhale. “Would you like to file a report?”
It's her.
Aaryn shook herself out of her stare. “Oh, uh—no, that’s not necessary. I’m sure he needed it more than I.”
The guard seemed taken aback at that, but then took in her dress, which consisted of fabrics that only could’ve come from the castle. Then she spied the jeweled wristlet that all Tethered were asked to wear out of the castle.
“Tethered! Forgive me,” she said, and bowed her head as was custom.
Aaryn dismissed it. “Oh, please, none of that,” she said, waving a hand. “Thank you for at least attempting to retrieve the basket.”
“Of course,” she said. “I’m sorry I couldn’t bring it back for you.”
Aaryn smiled. “It’s fine, really. The Tethered will do without their pastries for one afternoon.”
Then again, she could do another lap around the market and replace the goods, and even purchase a new basket from the weaver down at the end. She certainly had the means, since the Tethered were paid well for their work.
The ritual was referred to as the lottery for a reason.
“Are you telling me I’ve not let only one Tethered down, but the whole lot?
” the knight exclaimed. “Great skies, this is the end for me!” She brushed her forehead with the back of her hand and gazed in the direction the thief had gone, as if she could bring him back through sheer force of will. “Forgive me, Tethered.”
Something fluttered through Aaryn as her voice dipped with the apology. “I promise it'll be alright. They’ll never know.”
“When you return empty-handed, I’m sure they will.”
“Well, then I won’t return empty-handed,” Aaryn said, and made like she was going to re-enter the market. “I’ll get to visit my favorite baker twice today.”
The knight’s gray eyes widened, and as she turned with Aaryn, the sun caught them, and they glimmered like dew in the mornings. "Well, at least—I mean, if you’d like, I can accompany you. Help you carry your things and make sure no one else takes off with your goods.”
The tips of her ears turned a deeper color the longer she spoke, and Aaryn had to bite her cheek to keep from beaming. The knight wanted to walk with her! The same knight Aaryn had spied around the castle about a month ago, but certainly never collected the bravery to speak to.
“I’d—I'd love the company,” Aaryn told her, and couldn't go a second longer without knowing her name.
Their steps fell in sync as they walked back toward the opposite end of the market. “Thea,” she answered. “Thea of the Fourth Guard.”
Ah, that’s it.
The guards that stayed nearest the king were First Guard, the dragons Second, the gates Third, and so on, rising in number to correspond with the distance from the castle. That would explain why she hadn’t seen this particular guard many times.
“I’m Aaryn. Nice to meet you.” Aaryn held out her hand, expecting a shake. Instead Thea paused, and took her hand like a—oh my skies, was she—
Thea bowed her head and placed a soft kiss on the back of Aaryn’s hand.
“A pleasure.”
Aaryn’s cheeks were probably as deeply flushed as Thea’s had been that day as she finished recalling the story.
The hand kiss was probably a detail no one needed—why had she blurted that out?
They’d practically floated through the market together and then Thea had escorted her all the way back to the castle, despite Aaryn’s lighthearted protests.
Skies, she’d been so smitten with Thea from the moment she’d met her, hadn't wanted to part ways even then.
“Smooth,” Jarrick noted, and Aaryn glanced at him. He was stroking his chin while the investigator took notes. “Maybe too smooth.”
Aaryn’s heart sank. “What do you mean?” But she feared she might already know what he was insinuating. Her stomach turned, and she sat the tea down with a soft click against the table.
“The Tethered don’t leave the castle very often, do they?” the investigator asked.
Aaryn tilted her head back and forth as she considered. “Well…” The others had been Tethered for a lot longer than Aaryn had, and the crown met all of their needs. Everything they could ever need was already within these walls. But Aaryn liked knowing there was a world that existed outside.
"I like going to the market for our brunch, but I don't necessarily know what the other Tethered are doing in their free time."
“Would it be too much to presume maybe Thea waited for such an occasion to introduce herself?”
Aaryn’s pulse began to race. Was that it?
She tried to look back on their time together with a more critical eye.
“It’s written here that you were one of Thea’s references when she applied to the Second Guard.”
Aaryn swallowed, nodding. “Yes, we… wanted to spend more time together,” she admitted quietly. The Second Guard were in charge of securing the dragons and their caves, after all. What better way to see her crush more often?
Thea had worked her way up to Second Guard in a matter of months.
Aaryn wondered if that was due to her proximity to the castle—to spending time with Aaryn, putting Thea in the line of sight of the guards with more authority.
The silence in the room was deafening. Aaryn hung her head and felt the weight of their judgment, shame curling up beneath her ribs and making itself at home like a dragon on a sun rock.
“I’ve been played for a fool,” she said, balling her fists in her lap.
From the beginning.
“It's certainly starting to paint a peculiar picture,” the investigator said, glancing at her scarred hand.
Jarrick sank into the chair next to her. “Aaryn.”
She managed to lift her gaze.
“It’s important if you can recall anyone else who has grown close to the Tethered. Any other love interests or friends that have been hanging around the others recently?”
Aaryn thought back to her conversation with Rose. She recalled the last time the Tethered had one of their picnics with the dragons. It was always filled with gossip and giggles, and quickly Aaryn had learned that… acquainting oneself with the guards and knights around the castle was nothing new.
Like Carissa, with that daringly undefined thing with that one guard. Was that recent enough? Why, just recently, Wilma had recounted the tale of a guard they had familiarized themself with. Was she expected to reveal every occurrence?
It didn’t sit well with Aaryn to reveal the Tethered’s secrets, their love lives—but hadn’t she promised to tell the truth, not to omit it?
“If Thea wasn’t working alone, another traitor could be using them in the same way Thea used you," the investigator pressed.
Her lips thinned at his blatant words.
The Tethered were not required to marry, as their first duty was to the crown, the dragons.
Carissa had come from a noble line, and had been thrilled when a guard—oh, could Aaryn even recall his name now?—had shown interest in her.
Maybe Aaryn should speak to Carissa first. But what if she spooked her, and Carissa told him, and he ran?
Aaryn wanted to groan with the indecision, but instead she adjusted her skirts and—well.
She did not want another lost dragon on her conscience. And what if it wasn't just a dragon next time, but a Tethered as well, like Rose had hinted at? She took a sip of tea and the truth spilled from her.
“I will tell you what I know, but you must promise me, Prince,” she said, pausing to catch his gaze. It looked hopeful. “Please don't conduct your search in such a way that casts suspicion on me. I don't wish to cause the Tethered strife.”
“Aaryn, we’ve already begun questioning all guards. If we need to look into any of the names you give us, we will pass it off as proactive conduct after the recent attack.”
Aaryn sighed. That sounded believable.
“Alright,” she agreed. “It’s no secret the Guard and the Tethered get on well, since we cross paths so often. I don’t know all of their names, so your random questioning might prove more fruitful than this anyway.”
“Anything will help,” the investigator told her, pen at the ready.
Carissa, forgive me, Aaryn thought, before letting what she once had considered sacred gossip leave her lips.
For Starspark.
And yet… Aaryn did not give the investigator the note in her pocket, the one Rose had gazed at so heartbrokenly.