Page 66 of Phoenix's Fire

"It's after dinner," I assured him. "Only the girls on dish duty will be in there. We can sit over by the tail. No one will hear us, and everyone will assume you're trying to impress me, because that's where weddings are held."

He laughed once. "You're really good at this."

"I'm a woman," I pointed out. "My survival depends on always making the right impression."

"Yeah, but you're still good at it," he said. "And you're making me feel like the idiot everyone thinks I am."

"Are you?" I asked back.

He glanced over, those unique hazel eyes of his finding mine. "No. I just learned that since I'm big, everyone assumes I'm stupid. If I play into that, I get away with more, get bullied less, and my mistakes are overlooked much easier."

"Which makes me think you're smart," I told him.

His lips curled into a little smile. "Not as smart as you. I didn't figure out a way out of here."

Together, we made our way to the back of the large space that was the dining hall. One elderly man sat near the kitchens. I noticed at least three girls moving behind the counters, likely cleaning up. Yet just as I eased myself down into my chair, my stomach rumbled loudly. The water hadn't satisfied it after all.

"Give me a moment," Tobias said before turning away.

Confused, I watched him walk up to the serving counter, then lean over it. One of the younger girls noticed him. She moved closer and words were exchanged, but I couldn't hear it from over here. But whatever Tobias had said made the girl nod, then she hurried off. A few seconds later, she returned with a bowl. Taking that, Tobias picked up two spoons, then made his way back.

"It's just the leftover grains," he said as he set the bowl between us, "but hunters are allowed as much as we want."

"You'll need it for your strength," I said politely.

So he nudged it towards me. "I'm sharing, Callah. I've seen the portions women are given."

My eyes locked onto the food and my stomach growled again, louder this time. "Are you sure?" I asked.

"Eat," he ordered.

That was the last encouragement I needed. Shoving the spoon into the porridge-like mess, I popped a heaping spoonful into my mouth and moaned softly in appreciation. Across from me, Tobias smiled, but it was a sad look.

"Sorry," I mumbled.

He waved that off. "Think of this as my way of showing I'm a good prospect or something. I'm also sorry you're not being fed."

"The Devil has been testing our hunters, and too often defeating them," I quoted. "We are not yet worthy."

"Do you really believe that?" he asked.

I glanced up as he leaned in to rest his elbows on the table. The intensity of his gaze and soft tones of his words made this conversation nearly private. And yet, I still glanced around us before replying.

"No. I think Ayla is helping them."

He nodded. "Me too. So what are we going to do about it? You only have a few months before you'll need to be married."

I scooped up another large spoonful of the mash. "All I know is Ayla left, she promised to send back something yellow, and then Jamison returned with those arrows. Tobias, I don't have a clue what the surface is like, where she is, or how that even works."

"It's not burning," he said. "In fact, it's green. Plants grow everywhere, but most aren't safe to eat - or very good. To the east, there's a farm. Wild men work it, and they leave bags of food for gatherers to carry back. To the north is where the Dragons live, but I've only heard about that."

I nodded. "So you think Ayla's with the Dragons, not the wild men?"

"Mhm."

"Why?"

A little smile curled the corner of his mouth. "Because her yellow arrows are just like the Wyvern's blue ones. Seems there are some black and grey made the same way."

---