Oathblood

to snare him -- well, that solved the problem of where the new Clan Tale'sedrin was going to get its new shaman when the time came to form it up. Jadrek the younger certainly wasn't going to be old enough in time.

Ah, but that will give us a shaman-in-training under Ah'kela. Shamans are always in demand as spouses, and the twins will have no difficulty finding mates, not with every Liha'irden girl over the age of ten petting them and admiring their golden hair and green eyes ... ]adrie was the one that might have been too much for most boys, just as I was. Hah! I should have known she'd solve her own problems!

Justin burst out laughing, interrupting her reverie. 'Tarma, you look like the most self-satisfied matchmaker I ever saw in my life!'

'It can't hurt to think about these things, can it?' she protested.

'Yes, but you look like a cat who's stolen an entire pitcher of cream,' Dean teased. 'You should see yourself!'

'Piff,' she scoffed, and glared at Justin. 'Just you wait until your babies are grown! If you don't turn out worse than me, I'll be greatly surprised!'

Estrel giggled, and Justin turned beet-red. 'He already is, Tarma. He already is!'

She didn't elaborate, much to Justin's obvious relief, but Tarma could well guess. Like every male with strong bonds to his children, he was probably planning who was and was not a 'worthy' prospective mate for his little boy, and worrying about the possible consequences. 'Well, unless you want to lose your son and heir to the barbarians, better not plan on a betrothal to Jadrie -- or any other girl-child Keth may conjure up,' she teased.

'And have you as an in-law?' he shuddered. 'Perish the thought!'

She mimed throwing a dagger at him, and the evening broke up in laughter.

* * *

After the official 'lights out' time, Kira waited until the last sounds of the grown-ups checking on all of the students faded, then for good measure, waited another one hundred breaths, before reaching up with her foot and poking the bottom of her twin's bunk. Merili had been waiting for that signal; she slipped out of bed and slid down to the floor as silently as a kitten, and the two of them wrapped warm robes around themselves and slid their feet into sheepskin slippers, using only the light of the embers in their fireplace to see by. The pockets of both their robes bulged, hinting at something interesting inside. As Merili rummaged a carefully-hidden package out of her wardrobe, wrapped in paper she had saved from lessons and patterned with berry-juice ink, Kira got a similar package from under her bed. With Kira in the lead, scouting every step of the way, they made their way down the dark hallway each with one hand trailing along the wall to guide her. Both of them had made this journey innumerable times before, and they slid their feet soundlessly along the smooth wooden floor.

When Kira's hand encountered empty air, she knew she had come to the staircase, and she warned her twin with the merest thread of a hiss. She bent to pull off her slippers, picked them up, and felt her way down with her bare toes a step at a time, pausing on the landing to put her slippers back on and hiss the 'all clear' for Merili. She was glad to get her slippers back on; the floor was icy-cold and she wriggled her toes in the warm fleece while she waited for Merili.

When her twin's hand touched her arm in the dark, Kira led the way out into the second-floor hall, and onto the corridor where Jadrie and her twin brothers had their own rooms. Keeping to the left side of the hall, she felt her way along the wall. When her hand brushed the third door, she stopped and gave three very soft taps.

The door opened, swiftly and silently, and Jadrie grabbed both their hands and pulled them inside.

She had built up her fire to a cheerful blaze, had cleverly shrouded the window in a rug so that no light betrayed her, and had lit a single candle. As Kira and Merili took their places on sheepskin-covered cushions beside the fire, suppressing giggles, Jadrie rolled up a towel and stuffed it against the door sill, sealing off the crack at the bottom so that no light would leak out there either, to show that there was a cozy little clandestine party going on.

Only then did the older girl joined them, taking her own cushion and plumping herself down on it.

'There!' she whispered, looking very proud of herself. 'We should be safe as long as the boys don't wake up.' Then her face fell a little. 'But this is probably the last chance we'll get to be together before you go home.'

'Yes, but we'll be back soon enough! Look what I brought for our party-' Merili replied cheerfully, and began pulling handfuls of chestnuts out of the bulging pockets of her robe.

'I got apples,' Kira supplied, pulling three luscious fruits from her previously-loaded pockets, as Jadrie arranged the chestnuts close to the fire to roast.

'Oh, good! I've got spiced cider, and I swiped some honeycakes from the kitchen before study,' Jadrie said with satisfaction, pointing to the foot of her bed, where a jug with water beading up on its sides hid just behind the outer leg, and a plateful of slightly squashed honeycakes resided beside it. 'And I've got Midwinter presents for both of you.'

'Oh, but you open yours first!' Merili cried, ever generous, although Kira ached to see what hers was. 'Here-'