A tantalizingly delicious scent woke me from my dreams the following morning. Avani was already up, and I could hear her bustling about the kitchen. I rose and pulled on my robe, then went to see what she was up to. She was chopping ingredients for miso soup when I walked in, rice was steaming on a burner, and a couple pieces of fish rested on a wooden slab, salted in preparation for grilling. The kettle was just beginning to whistle on another burner, so I started a pot of tea brewing, then I came up behind her and wrapped my arms around her, kissing her neck as she worked. "Mmm, my second favorite way to start the day. It smells wonderful."
She grinned, saying, "I'm glad you approve," but didn't stop her preparations. Soon we were sitting down to breakfast, which was every bit as delicious as it had smelled.
As we ate, Avani paused and said, "Will you do me a favor, Leo?"
I looked up at her, and smiled. "Certainly, if I'm able, but that rather depends on the favor."
She toyed with a morsel of fish for a moment before saying, "I'd like you to be here when I talk with Dylas. Will you stay?"
I set down my fork as I watched her fidgeting nervously, and asked quietly, "Are you afraid of him? Of what he may say or do?"
She looked up in surprise. "No, I'm not afraid of Dylas. But... he and I are both so stubborn and hot-headed. I'd like to have a calm, rational conversation with him, but I don't know if we can manage that. You're so cool and collected, I'd feel better having you there, keeping us in line."
"So you want me to act as a referee?" I said, amused.
She laughed. "I guess that's one way to put it. But yeah, pretty much that. Will you? Please?"
"If My Lady wishes, I will stay," I replied with a smile.
"Thanks, Leo. I appreciate it very much. I'd better get going now. I want to get my morning work out of the way quickly. Just leave your dishes, and I'll wash up when I return. I'll see you in a while," she said gathering up her dishes and stacking them by the sink. She kissed me between my ears and darted out the door.
************
I had finished my breakfast and was just starting to wash dishes while waiting for a pot of coffee to brew when I heard a knock coming from the main chamber. Looking at the wall clock in surprise, I saw that it was not quite 8:00. It was too late to be Vishnal's wake-up call and too early to be Clorica wanting to tidy.
Then the knock came again, a little louder this time, and I realized it was coming from the front door, not the side door to Venti's chamber as I had thought. I unlocked and opened the door, and Dylas was standing there.
"Is... Is Avani here?" he asked, frowning at my attire and the implications thereof.
"She's out doing her morning chores," I replied, letting him in. "Have a seat; she'll be back shortly. I just made coffee, if you're interested." He nodded, then stopped and frowned again, his nose twitching, as he stared at the disheveled bedding. Turning abruptly away from the sight, he sat in one of the chairs next to the fireplace, his back to the back door.
I returned to the kitchen and finished washing up, then poured two cups of coffee. I set one on the table and handed the other to Dylas, saying, "If you'll excuse me a minute, I'll just get dressed." He scowled and nodded curtly, and I walked over to the wardrobe.
I had a few items of clothing there, so I pulled some out and proceeded to dress. I was aware that Dylas seemed uncomfortable, but I ignored him. It hadn't bothered him before—only now that Avani and I had become intimate did it seem to disconcert him—and I had a low tolerance for such priggishness. Sooner or later, whether he liked it or not, he was going to have to come to terms with the alterations to our relationships.
As soon as I sat down on the sofa and picked up my cup of coffee, he looked over at me and said, "I guess what she said before about me being her only lover, physically, isn't true anymore."
I smiled, then leaned back and grinned as I thought back over that first time with her. "You've got that right," I said a moment later, still grinning. Then I looked over at him, took a sip of coffee as I watched him thoughtfully, and said, "But you knew it was just a matter of time, anyway. The timing was purely coincidental—it had nothing to do with your behavior."
Dylas looked skeptical, saying, "Oh? How can you be so sure of that?"
I shrugged. "For one thing, if it had been some sort of retaliation, Avani would have initiated it. But instead it just started off with me teasing her, as usual, only I allowed things to escalate beyond the usual level. Far beyond. Besides, you know she's not that petty."
"Still," Dylas said, looking away, "she might not have wanted to if we hadn't... if I hadn't...."
"No," I replied, shaking my head, "if that was the case, she wouldn't have sought me out as a lover in the first place, would she? Our friendship would have more than sufficed if chaste companionship was all she desired of me."
Dylas looked down at the floor and sighed. "I suppose you're right. I... I wanted to believe that if anyone else ever came along, I'd be able to let her go... that I could be... I guess, more noble about it. Happy that she's happy—that sort of thing. But now that it's really happening... it's not as easy as I'd hoped."
Before I could reply, Avani burst through the back door.
************
Avani never managed to simply walk into a room, or enter a room. Whenever she appeared, she somehow did so with such energy, such vivaciousness, that one almost expected to hear trumpets blaring or fireworks exploding or a choir singing something loud and triumphant. It would almost be comical, if it wasn't so damned endearing.
I stood up to go get her some coffee, but she tackled me before I'd taken more than three steps towards the kitchen. "Leeeooo!" she exclaimed, leaping onto me and wrapping her arms and legs around me. "I'm back! Did you miss me?"
I laughed at her enthusiastic greeting, saying teasingly, "The ninety minutes you were gone were the longest of my life, My Lady. But I should warn you, we aren't alone."
She slipped down, looking behind me with a surprised look, then blushed slightly as she saw Dylas rising from his seat. "O-oh! Dylas, you're here already? I didn't expect you this early."
"So I noticed," he said, flatly.
I cupped her cheek in my hand, murmuring, "Why don't you tidy yourself up, My Lady, while I get you a cup of coffee?" before kissing her forehead.
She nodded, smiling up at me, and said, "Would you also bring me some of those cookies that Kiel brought us yesterday, please? I had a lot to do this morning, and I hurried as fast as I could, so I'm already hungry again!" I laughed again as she opened her wardrobe, then I headed to the kitchen.
************
When I returned a few minutes later with a tray containing the coffee pot, a cup for her, and a plate of the delicate little butter cookies, she had changed into clean clothing and sat down in the chair opposite Dylas, who was looking even more ill at ease by then. I set the tray on the table and poured a cup. "My Lady," I said, handing the cup to her.
"Thank you, Leo," she said with a smile.
"Refill?" I offered Dylas. He nodded and thanked me as I topped off his cup.
I filled my cup, too, set the pot down, and sat back down on the sofa. "Well," I said, picking up my cup and slowly taking a sip. "I believe you have something you wish to discuss?"
"Wait, what? Avani, can't we go somewhere more private? Why is he here?" Dylas said, looking at Avani and then at me, frowning.
"I am Acting Princess of Selphia, Dylas, in case you'd forgotten," she replied coolly. "My rooms are about as private as I am allowed to get. And Leo is here because I asked him to stay."
"Why?" he said to her, bluntly, though he stared at me with a resentful air.
"Avani asked me to... referee. In case tempers flare."
He looked away, then after a moment's hesitation, nodded curtly in either agreement or acceptance. Avani reached for a cookie and leaned back in her chair, nibbling at it and sipping her steaming coffee as she watched Dylas. Her face was expressionless, except for her eyes, which betrayed a variety of conflicting emotions. And so she sat and waited for him to speak.
Clearing his throat nervously, Dylas began. "Avani... first let me just say that I'm no good with words—you know that. And I'm bad-tempered and stubborn—you know that, too. And I often don't think things through, just act without thinking.... But you know that, as well. So with all that in mind, I want to say that I'm... I'm sorry, so very sorry, for what I did. And I hope you'll give me a chance to explain..."
"Like you did me?" Avani interrupted, coldly.
Dylas winced, and said, "I know, I know. I'm asking you to be more generous to me than I was to you, and I know it's unfair of me to even hope for that. But all the same..."
He stood up, walked over to her chair, and knelt down in front of her, hanging his head as he spoke. "I was stupid, and a dick, and I treated you horribly. I was so, so wrong. I was unfair to you, and you have every right to hate and despise me. But..." he looked up to her, and I could see tears in his eyes, "but please don't. I couldn't bear it if you hated me. You're the one really good thing in my life, and even if I've lost any claim to your affection, please don't hate me. I really want you back, Avani, more than anything else in the world. But if you don't want me anymore, please at least let me be your friend. But if there's any chance—any chance at all—that you'd take me back in spite of it all... I'll do anything you ask, anything at all." He looked back down at the floor, waiting for Avani to say something, his hands clenched tightly on his knees and tears slowly trickling down his cheeks.
Avani sat, giving him a long, appraising look. After a moment, I saw a gleam in her eyes, and smiled to myself, wondering what mischief she was thinking up. Finally she said, "Anything?"
Dylas nodded, saying without looking up, "Yes, anything. If it's at all possible, I'll do it. And even if it's impossible, I'll try my hardest anyway."
"You'd bake me a cake every day and eat it with me?"
"Yes," he replied, "as many as you wanted."
"You'd give up fishing?"
"I'd break my poles and give you the pieces," he replied without hesitation.
"You'd make friends with Doug?"
He hesitated ever so slightly. "That might be impossible, since he'd have to be willing, too. But I'd try my hardest to be friends with him, if you asked me to do it."
"You'd... wear a saddle and give me horsey rides through town?"
He winced at that, but still replied in a quiet voice, his head hanging even lower, "I... I'd even wear a bridle, if that's what it took for you to forgive me." Then he looked up at her again, saying, "It doesn't matter what you ask me to do. I don't care how badly you humiliate me, or how difficult or dangerous a task you ask me to do. I said I'd do anything to win you back, and I mean it."
Her eyes softened then, and she reached a hand out to gently wipe the tears from his cheeks. "I forgive you, Dylas..." He rocked back on his heels, his eyes widening in surprise, and he opened his mouth to speak, but Avani place a finger on his lips to quiet him. "But I'd be lying if I said everything was back to normal. It isn't. And I'd also be lying if I said I wasn't hurt and angry. I'm not quite so angry anymore... if I don't think about it too much, at least. But you did hurt me, terribly. And you lost my trust. So the only task I have for you, I suppose, is to earn my trust again. In the end," she added somewhat drily, "you may find that far more difficult than wearing a saddle or befriending Doug."
"So then...." Dylas started, trailing off as he looked anxiously up at her.
"So I'm willing to be friends with you. I still care about you, but I don't know if I'll be able to trust you again, or if I'll ever love you again in the same way I did before. Trust can be earned back, if you're willing to work for it. But love is another story. It gives itself as it will and to whom it will, and I can't control it. So knowing that—knowing you could try all your life and never succeed, and knowing that, in the meantime, you're no more than a friend to me, and knowing that I will have other lovers—and that you will inevitably see me with them, and that you will have no right to be upset or hurt or jealous.... Knowing all these things, do you still want to try to win me back?"
He looked into her eyes for a long moment before replying, "Like I said, even if you ask the impossible, I'll still try my hardest."
"There is, however, something thing you need to attend to before I can truly consider you my friend again...." Avani said after a moment. "Illuminata. You treated her despicably, you know—you used her and lied to her. She didn't deserve that, and you need to make it up to her. Just apologizing and asking her to forgive you isn't enough, though certainly you need to do those, too. You need to make amends for your actions. I'll leave it to you to decide how best to accomplish that, though naturally you're welcome to seek advice—from anyone but me or Lumie herself, that is. Once you've accomplished that, I'll consider us friends again. Just think of it as the first step in winning back my trust."
She stood up, and looking down at Dylas thoughtfully, she said, "Do you remember how hard I had to work to earn first your friendship, and then your affection?" Dylas cringed and nodded, not meeting her gaze as she continued. "How rude you were, especially at first? The hurtful things you said to me, the way you'd just walk right by me, ignoring me completely? The way even your tail would switch in irritation whenever I'd approach you? Befriending you was one of the hardest tasks I've had since coming to Selphia. Defeating your Guardian monster was far easier than winning you over afterwards. Well, after all the effort I put in, you've set us back to square one. To get past that, you need to take care of Illuminata. Once you've settled things with her, I'll be willing to give you my friendship—which was more than you did for me—but love will be much more difficult to win."
She gestured for him to stand up, and as he did, she added, "Oh, and there's one last thing I want to clarify. I quite frankly don't care if you take other lovers. It won't affect how I feel about you one way or another. I can't imagine why you'd think I did mind—if it bothered me, I would never have taken two myself. All I ask of you—and this goes for you, too, Leo—is first, if you are taking someone as your lover, it's because you truly love and care for that person—and yes, I really believe you can love more than one person at the same time, since it happened to me, after all —and second, that you are, in this and in all matters, honest and forthright with me. I was so hurt by your... your fling with Lumie because of how you behaved throughout the whole misunderstanding, not because I was jealous. You ought to know me well enough by now to know my attitude towards sex and relationships is far more relaxed than your own."
She walked over to her wardrobe and opened it, removing several articles of men's clothing that were not mine. "Here, you still have a bunch of things in my wardrobe. You've more or less switched positions with Leo, you know—now he's my lover, spending nights here with me, while you're the friend who maybe sometimes sleeps on the daybed in my study. So you really don't need to keep extra clothes here... for now, anyway. You can keep any equipment that you want here in my storeroom, though—that is, if you want the three of us to go back to working together again? After you've settled things with Lumie, that is—not before."
Dylas looked away, saying, "I-I'd like that. To be able to go out and fight with you again, I mean. I always loved that...."
Avani looked at him for a moment, then walked over to him and gently put her arms around him. "I'm glad you still want to be friends," she said in a soft voice. His face reddened, and he awkwardly returned her embrace. A moment later, she stepped back, saying, "You'd better get going. You still need to figure out what to do about Lumie. I'll be busy for several days yet, training some of the others here to help with the defense of the town. As soon as I've finished with that, however, I plan to see what I can do to get into Sechs territory and begin hunting Ethelberd down. So if you want to join us for that, you need to wrap things up as quickly as you can. But no shortcuts! Do it right or not at all."
Dylas gathered up his clothing, leaving the equipment for now, and turning to Avani, he said, "I'll do my best to make up for everything, with you as well as with Illuminata." And with that, he left.