Page 55 of Compass Points
“What do we have here, Rose? Are we becoming a bit too good at acting out this fake relationship thing?”Arie crooned as his raven form landed in the camp.“No one is watching now. I’m sure you didn’t have to stay quite so close to him in the night.”
Rose quickly gave up hope of some miracle that her disentanglement would not be awkward and began prying herself out of Luc’s arms. He woke as she did so, half-hooded eyes meeting hers and that self-satisfied smile creeping up over his sleep-drenched face.
“Arie’s here. I’ll start breakfast,” she said matter of factly. She refused to discuss why she found herself in Luc’s arms with Arie before discussing it with Luc.
Luc looked briefly around the camp, saw the black bird, and let his head fall back to the ground for a few more minutes of sleep.
“I am not having this conversation with you,” she said to Arie as she started to move around the camp.
“It doesn’t look like a lot of conversation was being had at all,”was Arie’s smug reply. And then a little softer,“Do you know what you’re doing, Rose?”
She couldn’t help but thank Arie for his concern. He had always been in her corner, no matter how much he teased her. She picked her words carefully, knowing that Luc could hear her side of the conversation.
“I trust him.” She found the sentence to feel entirely accurate as the words came out.
The bird nodded at her and let her continue about her work.
After another day and a half of much flatter riding, Rose finally saw the city of Sandrin, and the surrounding bay, glimmering in the distance. Luc had a room in the military quarter, where they opted to stay.
The town itself wasn’t huge. It filled the small peninsula, stretching into a bay of water and the sea to the west. The military quarter was the farthest south. It comprised simple structures, buildings no more than three stories high, and each floor was lined with doors leading to their military accommodations.
Luc’s room had the same straightforward style as his room at Compass Lake but with even fewer trimmings. A few books were scattered by the bedside table and a single chair, but the room contained no other personal touches. Rose wondered a little at the persona he inhabited while he was here—she remembered that he said he spent quite a bit of time here. She couldn’t help but think it had to be lonely. It sure didn’t have the warmth she felt in the Suden house.
“I have to check on my people while I’m here. I think I’ll take care of it now,” Luc noted as they dropped their things on the floor of his room. He left her space to object, but she could tell he didn’t expect her to. They had a plan to find both practical and magical tools. While he said he’d take care of the dress she needed, she had ensured that she was left to search for the magical item on her own.
Now, she found that she wanted a partner.
Was she afraid that she would fail, that she was chasing a ghost story and that this trip would all be for nothing more than a stupid dress? Kind of-–but she realized she wanted his support to at least try and find the Norden artifact that she sought.
She shrugged as if what she was about to ask meant little to her. “How long will you be? I can wait for you if you want to come with me.”
His eyes lit up. “Give me twenty minutes, and I’m all yours.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
Rose and Luc headed north to the Norden quarter of the city. The Norden referred to this part of Sandrin as the historic quarter. It held few residences and many museums, bookshops, and a library. By the time they arrived from the Suden military quarter, it was getting late. Rose hoped they’d have enough time to find where they needed to go.
Rose gave Luc one last glance as she realized she wasn’t entirely out of secrets to tell him yet. She lifted the thin gold chain from around her neck, holding the small compass in her hand. Luc assessed her, probably wondering if she needed help with directions.
“You know that old story about Zrak’s sacrifice?” she asked.
“The one where the gods decide who should be sacrificed by using a magic compass forged by Aurora herself?” His eyes danced with laughter. He seemed to know already where this was going as he looked back to the compass in her hand. Once he’d decided not to underestimate her, he’d stuck with it. That was clear as he didn’t question she held a gods’ forged compass in her hand, he just accepted it as fact.
“That’s the one.”
“And you have it.”
“And I have it.”
His eyes lifted from the compass in her palm to meet her gaze. “You never cease to amaze me.”
Rose felt her cheeks warm.
“So, if I remember the story correctly, the compass was attuned to all four elemental magics. And it was meant to select the god that would sacrifice themselves to right the imbalance.”
“That’s correct. It directs based on the needs of the wielder.”
“Like the continent needed a god to sacrifice themselves?”
