Wind Rider's Oath

to do enough odd jobs to earn the money she needed to pay the portion of his stabling fees not covered by her work as one of the stable master's part-time grooms.

Money wasn't something Lady Leeana Bowmaster had ever worried about particularly, but it had become a matter of rather burning urgency to Leeana Hanathafressa.

Fortunately, Leeana had discovered one area in which she could save some of the time she needed so badly elsewhere. It wasn't as if she really needed more than five hours of sleep a night, after all.

She turned another corner and picked up her pace a bit more as she saw the weapons salle before her. Garlahna was waiting on the wooden porch, and she looked up and waved as Leeana pounded down the last dozen yards or so and dashed up the steps to the porch.

'Running late, girl!' Garlahna observed, and Leeana stuck out her tongue at her mentor. 'Go ahead,' Garlahna shrugged. 'Make faces at me. But I'll bet you Ravlahn works you a bit harder than usual for it!'

'Hah!' Leeana snorted, passing her friend at a dead run. 'That's an empty threat if I ever heard one-she can't work me any harder than she's already doing!'

'Oh, can't I?' another voice inquired, and Leeana skidded to a halt with an almost comical expression of dismay as Ravlahn Thregafressa smiled at her. The assistant training mistress stood just inside the salle door, hands propped on her hips, and Leeana managed to give her a smile that was only slightly sickly.

'Uh, I hope you aren't going to take any silly jokes I may have made to Garlahna seriously?' she said.

'Oh, of course not,' Ravlahn agreed with a broad, toothy smile, and waved Leeana courteously past her into the salle.

* * *

'Dear gods,' Leeana groaned to Garlahna as she dragged herself into the welcoming steam of the training salle's attached baths. 'Remind me to never, ever say anything Ravlahn could take as a challenge again!'

'She did seem just a tad inspired,' Garlahna agreed with a chuckle. She stopped Leeana by one of the big, communal tubs and began helping to unlace her yathu. Leeana sagged bonelessly, leaning gratefully back against the raised, masonry lip of the poollike tub.

'Yes, she did,' someone else observed, and Leeana turned to look at the speaker. It was a war maid she'd seen once or twice before, but hadn't actually been introduced to. The other woman was probably a few years older than Ravlahn, with short blond hair. She was soaking in the slightly cooler tub beside the one Leeana was leaning against, and it was obvious from her hard-trained muscles and scars-most of them small, but including one or two which were fairly spectacular-that she was one of the true war maids.

'Soumeta Harlahnnafressa,' the other woman introduced herself with a lazy smile, then raised one arm from the water to wave a dripping hand at the other two women-both somewhere between her own age and Leeana's-who shared the tub with her. 'Tharnha Garhlanfressa,' Soumeta said, indicating the dark-haired, dark- complected woman to her right, 'and Eramis Yohlahnafressa.'

Eramis' complexion was as fair as Tharnha's was dark, and the long hair, temporarily done up in a knot atop her head, was a platinum blond so pale it was almost white. All things considered, Soumeta and her companions made a striking trio, Leeana thought.

'Leeana-Leeana Hanathafressa,' she said, politely introducing herself in return. It still took her a moment or two to remember to use her matronym, and she felt her face go just a little pink over the embarrassing hesitation.

'I know,' Soumeta said with a smile. 'Everyone in Kalatha's been talking about you ever since you arrived, you know.'

'Oh.' Leeana felt her blush darken. She half-turned away from the other woman and busied herself peeling out of the rest of her clothing. She'd spent enough time undressed in front of maids and seamstresses and in Hill Guard's women's baths not to be particularly bothered by her nudity under normal circumstances. At the moment, however, she felt sufficiently embarrassed by Soumeta's comment to climb into the water more quickly than usual.

And, of course, the water is hotter than usual, she thought, trying not to squeal and leap back out as the stinging tide enveloped her. She managed to settle down almost normally, up to her neck in steaming water, and after the first second or two, the liquid heat began its magic and started sucking the aches and pains out of her muscles.

Garlahna joined her a moment later, considerably more cautiously.

'I did notice that they've built the fire under the water heater a bit higher than usual today,' Soumeta commented to no one in particular. Leeana darted a look at her, and then found herself forced to chuckle at the older woman's knowing expression.

'Yes, they have,' she confirmed feelingly, and Soumeta smiled at her.

'Actually,' Leeana continued in a more normal voice, 'it's probably a good thing they did. I can use the extra heat after the way Hundred Ravlahn just spent the last decade or so chasing me around the salle. And beating me senseless whenever she caught up with me!'

'Oh, I think you may be being a bit too hard on yourself,' Soumeta replied. Leeana blinked at her in surprise, and Soumeta laughed. 'I'm not saying you're ready to go out and begin slaying brigands-not by a long chalk! But I've seen quite a few new girls do a lot worse than you were doing out there today.'

'Like me, for example,' Eramis agreed with something like a cross between a giggle and a chuckle. She shook her head. 'It took me weeks to get to the point of actually swinging back at Erlis-she was still doing all of the training herself, one arm or not, when I arrived. At least you were trying, Leeana!'

'And she actually got through Ravlahn's guard-once, anyway,' Garlahna pointed out.

'I noticed,' Soumeta agreed with a nod.

'Oh, she just let me do that!' Leeana protested, turning pink all over again. And, she thought, looking down at her half-submerged breasts, I really am pink all over. Wonderful.

'The Hundred doesn't 'just let' people get a pop in past her guard,' Soumeta told her. 'I won't say you didn't have the element of surprise on your side, but you're quick, Leeana. Very quick.' She considered the younger woman appraisingly. 'I think you could work out very well in the Guard after you've completed your probationary period.'

Leeana looked up, certain Soumeta was teasing. But the older war maid's expression was completely serious.

'Oh, I don't think-' Leeana began, then stopped herself, suddenly aware that she didn't have any idea what she wanted to say.

The last thing she'd ever wanted to be was some sort of female warrior. Not out of any sort of physical fear, but because it had simply never occurred to her that she might. And, she added honestly, because the fact was that the thought of hurting other people frightened her much more than the thought of being hurt herself. Nor did she cherish many illusions about the 'glory' of combat. She was the daughter and granddaughter of warriors-heir of a tradition of women who'd sent generation after generation of husbands and sons off to war . . . and all too often never gotten them home again. The notion of charging into battle held very little allure for Leeana Hanathafressa.

Yet the truth was that she'd discovered she was one of those cheerful lunatics who actually enjoyed physical exercise. Not only that, but she found a strange, obscure, but solid enjoyment in the challenge of Hundred Ravlahn's instruction. They were working almost entirely without weapons at the moment, but she'd also discovered that she was looking forward to the day that that changed.

And, she thought, there really are some things important enough to fight for. 'Glory' might not be one of them, but that doesn't mean they don't exist.

'Well, it's not as if you have to make up your mind tomorrow,' Soumeta pointed out. 'For that matter, it's not as if Five Hundred Ermath was going to invite you to take over her duties next week!'

'I'm sure she'll wait at least, oh, a month or two,' Tharnha agreed with a laugh, and Leeana had to grin