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Heartburn (Attn Edana)


Sangreal

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Dante Kaldun finished his training for the day and took his bath enjoying the harmless banter between trainees and Guards in the Bath house. It had been a good day. He was getting along with Rasheta Sedai and was finally advancing again. He walked across the yards towards the mess hall with his usual group making cracks about how the others must have been in a cold part of the baths and getting the same back about a duel he had totally messed up earlier that day. The mess was serving his favorite foods and he loaded his plate up on chicken that was grilled with spices usually only a borderlander could eat and a white fish cooked in salt and lemon juice. He was eating enough to feed three.

 

He sat at the usual table in the corner with his friends who were busy staring at some of the female guards at the table next to them and comparing features of their bodies. He had to smile at their vulnerability to a pretty face... or some other part.

 

None of those women could compare in looks... or meanness with the one approaching the table. He had not said a word to Edana in many months and he hoped she wouldnt come to him for her issues with Sandre. That was a mess he was avoiding. The look in her eyes made him push the plate away and stand under the pretense of assuming she was joining them... he knew she wasnt. He knew she was a fighter. He prepared by making sure she didnt get the drop on him and waited.

 

"Good evening Edana. Do you care to join us?"

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Edana narrowed her eyes at the guards who’d decided to sit with her this evening. They were an annoying lot who seemed to get louder with age. She’d been anything but her usual laughing self since the day Sandre left and she was glad they’d finally gotten over discussing that with her. Or at her, because she was surely not participating in any conversation with them!

 

“I heard a little of what they were saying,” one of them was blathering. Apparently, it was gossip day. Lovely. “He said that he’d heard that you were sleeping with someone and the rumors were starting to get a little too lively. He shot me a look about then, so I had to go, but…” He shrugged and Edana realized he’d been talking to her. Light, when were they going to drop this? “I thought you should know.”

 

She sighed inwardly, debating whether to ask him for clarification or not. Apparently, someone specific had been seen telling Sandre the rumors she’d already heard that had been floating around about her at the time of their last fight. She’d sworn there was closure that night, but apparently only Sandre benefitted from it. It was still gnawing at her. “Who?” she asked. Her voice sounded strange to her ears, possibly because she didn’t use it that much, anymore. Who did she have to talk to? The rumors had alienated most everyone and, those who didn’t look at her with pity, looked at her with scorn. Idiots.

 

“Dante Kaldun, his brother!” the gossip monger clarified. “I saw him talking to Sandre before he disappeared. A few times actually, though I only heard that little piece of the first conversation. They stayed away from people after that, I think. I can tell you that it was Dante spreading the rumors about you, at least to his brother.”

 

Edana narrowed her eyes on the kid. He was too afraid of her to lie, right? She narrowed her eyes and raised them to Dante where he sat across the mess hall. She thought back over the last year and realized that Dante hadn’t had a single cordial thing to say to her since Sandre left. It might’ve been a little family loyalty, since she’d apparently broken Sandre’s heart. Had it been more than that? She didn’t remember anything specific from before Sandre left, but she hadn’t really spent much time lounging around the Tower for the six months before that. Every spare moment she had was spent at the smith’s. She shut off the wave of irritation that always came with that thought. She had to be content that the Swordsmith had fired Bryiam before she could get her hands on him again. She hadn’t seen him again on subsequent trips, so it was easy enough to accept.

 

She turned her thoughts back to the present and pushed herself to her feet. Now was as good a time as ever, she supposed. She tried to force her emotions into the Stream again, praying for the ebb and flow of the water in her head, but it wouldn’t come. He stood when she came close and she arched her eyebrow at him. He was expecting trouble. A year of pent up anger surged forward and she had him pinned to the wall behind him in a flash. She leaned close to his ear so only he could hear her, though they were already starting to get some attention from the onlookers in the mess hall. “What did you tell him, Dante? What lies did you fill his ears with? Was it just breaking us up you were after or were you only trying to get rid of him?”

 

~Edana

Hell Hath No Fury...

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Edana was fast to slam him in the wall but while that hurt he was more concerned about what she was saying. Had she waited all this time? When she was done he flipped the hold around and slammed her face first into the wall and painfully wrenched an arm behind her. Already people were backing away quickly. Some tumbling clumsily over benches. No one wanted to be in this fight. Dante used hands and fists more than his blade and Edana seemed to solve her problems with a fist where yelling at whatever bothered her wouldnt work.

 

"No for your information I was telling him only what he had already heard after I traced it back to the source as far as I could go!" he said as his other arm yanked a handful of hair to hold her head back so she could hear him. "I was trying to save your bloody relationship by allowing him to deal with the rumor starters but I never got a chance to finish before you blasted it to the pit of doom by actually doing what the rumors said.!"

 

He pulled her off the wall and intended to shove her away from him to get some distance. He did not want to fight her. Instead she fought him and he sent her onto the table he was just eating at covering her in food. He sighed and put his head down for a moment as she got up. This would not end well.

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Edana gasped at finding her face against the wall, but it did nothing but fuel her anger. His answer didn’t help, either. She was half turning as he released her arm, intent to prove that she wasn’t just going to let him manhandle her, but she found herself laying on the table, instead. She sat up, taking her time and stretching her neck until she was sitting upright. There was quite a mess already littering the floor of the mess hall, since she’d knocked plates off as she landed. Quite a bit of food was coating her clothes.

 

This did little to improve her mood. He was standing, ready to take whatever she was throwing at him and she was more than willing to oblige. She thought she was over this, had settled her anger into a grim distrust. Apparently she was wrong. “You are a blathering idiot, just like the rest of these gossip mongers, Dante Kaldun,” she spat, easing off the table. “Nothing but backing up lies with moronic theories.”

 

She advanced on him, moving quickly and feinting to the left while swinging hard with her right fist. He was ready for that, though. She knew he would be. She’d spent a bit of the last year learning how to fight dirty. When she saw his weight shift to counter the blow she was throwing his way, she squatted and swiped a kick across his legs, instead, buckling his knees. Once they were bent, she took another swing, knocking him off balance and into the table behind him. She wasn’t sure why, but the women sitting at that table hadn’t moved when this started. They didn’t move fast enough when they saw him falling his way, either. She muttered under her breath as one woman in particular broke his fall. It was annoying.

 

She gripped the front of his shirt and leaned in, her fist ready. “I never did anything to hurt your brother. Thanks to likes of you and the rest of these wool-headed gossips, he put all of the rumors together and damned me from them, believing everyone who thought to offer one word of condemnation. He couldn’t believe in me, though. Not with his brother spewing venom in his ear.  Saving our relationship, indeed! He dealt with the rumors by accusing me of cheating on him and then he left! Is that how you save a relationship in the snooty world of nobles?”

 

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A she hovered over him he looked back defiantly. "Im the liar am I?!" His knee landed solid in her backside and flipping her back on the table on her back. A quick push of his hands and his legs went up and over his head so he could land on top of her she swung for his face but he grabbed her her wrists and pinned them down hard. A fork stabbed her hand but his guilt was only momentarily.

 

"Maybe you should check yourself on that Edana! He came to you just to have you tell him everything is ok. To have you explain why when he went to the smithy to pick up his armor he saw you bent over an anvil with Bryiam moving his hips behind you while his tongue and hands explored your body!"

 

She tried to shoot her head up and Dante foolishly released a wrist to slam her head back down on the table shaking the plates and forks. Her hand now free she hit him square in the jaw knocking him off her and table. He was up before she was and rubbed his jaw to make sure it wasnt broken.

 

"Fine... you want to do this we will do this. You were not even going to tell him you were at the Smithy that night. You had not touched him in months. What would you bloody do in his position?! He was going to let you have your apprentice if thats what it came to!"

 

She came at him again and a kick to the stomach sat her back on the bench. She seemed surprised he would inflict such a strike on her but he was not playing any more. "He bloody loved you! He still does! You dont have read the letters of a broken man every week! Come at me again hag! But you better kill me because I will kill you!"

 

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Edana gasped at the fork stabbing her hand, but she was reeling from the words leaving Dante’s lips even more. Sandre had seen that? Apparently he hadn’t stayed to see the rest. She reared up, but Dante pushed her head back down. Men! She swung at him, happy to have landed a punch on his jaw and back him off of her. When she came at him again, he kicked her in the gut, sending her back to the table. She was really getting tired of this. Hag, was she?

 

Her heart lurched hearing he wrote every week and she paused as she made her way to her feet. Broken man? She shook her head. He’d done all the breaking that night. She’d sworn off loving anyone ever again and he had the audacity to be the one upset about it?

 

“You know nothing, boy,” she said, her voice dropping to the cold fury that pounded in her veins. “I pounded that no account apprentice to a pulp for laying his hands on me that night. I had to hide my hands from Sandre so he wouldn’t ask me about them. I actually feared that he cared so much, he’d exact his own penance from the whelp. Wasn’t I the fool!” She shook her head, circling Dante. There was enough room now that everyone else had moved back quite a bit to give them room. There was no stopping this and they knew it. “I’ve never looked sideways at a man that wasn’t your brother and he leaps at every chance to believe the worst of me. Have either of you ever asked me what I was doing in the smithy to begin with? Of course not. You assume that you know everything, assume that what you think you see is what is really going on. I have been going to that smithy every single night after my duty was completed. Do you know why?”

 

She advanced on him, catching him with a shoulder in his gut. He reached to brace himself so he didn’t fall, but she wasn’t having that. Her anger wasn’t allowing her to let up. She lit into him, her fists flying. He didn’t allow half of the blows to land, but the ones that did were damaging. Being powered by a year of anger, hurt, and the twisted remains of the love she felt made each punch a loaded weapon. She let up and pushed away from him, watching him warily. He wasn’t going to just take that beating and she knew it. “I have learned your family’s trade, Kaldun. I learned sword smithing from a Master so I could better fit into your family, so that I wouldn’t be the weak link in the chain of the great Kalduns.” She nearly spat the name at him. “This peasant worked her tail off for six months, hoping to surprise the man she loved with what she’d learned. I slaved over that anvil, hammering steel until I had it right. I learned braiding and grit weights, I sacrificed every waking moment I had to earn the respect of your family. Before then, I had nothing to offer him and I knew the feelings he had would not be enough for the rest of you. But this, this gave me a value, which is far more important to your little band of noble vermin.”

 

She shook her head, pulling a short blade from her belt and throwing it at his feet. It landed precisely where she aimed it, dead center between his ankles. “I went back after he left me. I finished what I started.” Her masterpiece was standing between his feet, the first perfect blade with an intricate hilt, the family crest of the Kaldun’s raised in the ivory inlaid in the handle. She’d carved every bit of it herself. She’d worked shifts all over the city to get the money for the jewels in the hilt. She didn’t have to tell him that, though. She was a peasant and he was no idiot. He knew what he was looking at. “May you all rot in the Dark One’s prison for it,” she ground out as she looked down at her hands. She’d broken the skin again, bringing a flood of memories of that night crashing back to her.

 

She laughed grimly, shaking her head. She saw him moving out of the corner of her eye and lifted her eyes to watch him again. “Your brother doesn’t understand love any more than you do, whelp. He’d never have believed the rumors, would never have demanded that I answer to them, would have come to my aid in that smithy, if he did. If he’s as broken as you say, he’s only himself to blame for it. Just like the fool I was, believing that loving him would make everything alright. The next letter you send him, please send along my thanks for keeping me from making a huge mistake. One that I will never have the misfortune to repeat!” Her heart was dead inside. All that remained was the soldier she’d been raised to be. Perhaps she should remember that from now on… “Come then and kill me if you can, Kaldun. Your brother started the job for you, it should be easy enough to finish.”

 

~Edana

 

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Dante was not about to let this stand. It was one thing to attack Sandre and him for being involved... but if she wanted to bring family into it... "Like you know something of love Edana? Your brothers I am sure are a great example of love. Or perhaps you take your example from your father? Did he dote on you Edana? Did he still try to be the soldier in public? Do you know why men do that? Because they failed with the mothers. Be glad hes gone so he doesn't have to see this. You are going to be just like him. Your going to die alone and unloved and forgotten because you couldnt stop being a soldier long enough to love someone."

 

She came at him but he wasnt going to block he returned her attacks not letting up an inch pummeling her her body as he would an enemy. Striking places that even should she kill him she may not survive the internal damage. They would both need a yellow tonight or they would both be dead by morning.

 

"The family you hate loves you still. My Father and Eldest are in Caemlyn this very night trying to get your father's sacrifice to be reason enough for you to be enobled on your families own merit. They dont care that you might be the death of Sandre. Would your brothers do that? And Sandre... hes going to die clutching a lock of your hair because he cant bare a life without you. He wants to die and very soon he will get his wish because you refused to reassure him and be there when he needed you. But me... I hate you... everywhere you go there is trouble. Everyone you meet you hurt."

 

She came at him again and dealt with a second pummeling ending with her against a wall. "Damn you to the pit for making me care about you. I waited for you to come to me so we could try to save you both. I thought you were better than this. He didnt believe you in the face of overwhelming evidence and you broke him for it and now you wont even take my word when your faced with no evidence at all?" A Guard friend of his tried to pull him off as he approached for the kill and got an elbow to the nose and second guard a kick to the stomach. It became apparent the guards were not going to let them continue their fight for too much longer.

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Edana’s head snapped like he’d struck her as he drug her family into this. Very few people here knew what her family had put her through, who she had been before walking through the doors and into the Yard. Yet here he was laying it out for everyone to see. Anger pushed her forward, the heat in her blood kept her from caring as she felt the blows he threw back at her. She aimed for his body, throwing her weight into her blows until she felt the bones underneath starting to give way. She backed off only when the pain in her side was too much. She stood back, her breath panting as she clutched her ribs.

 

“Love,” she spat back at him, shaking her head. “What do you know of it? You’re pining after a woman from a distance because you’re afraid she might not love you. You’re willing to spend your days and nights being her dog and for what?” She laughed, but it was a cruel sound, not her usual merry laugh. That person was pretty dead, now. “You know nothing of my father, so don’t even lower his good name by allowing it to pass your lips. I never asked your family for anything, so don’t think their devotion to my ‘cause’ is going to sway me. They’re likely only after raising my family up because your brother was sleeping with me. Is that what you’re little herd does, Kaldun? Buy off the mistresses of their ill begotten sons?”

 

She ignored his jabs about Sandre dying. Once, she’d have felt responsible for that. After he’d walked out on her, she’d given up that responsibility. If he chose to die, so be it. She jumped at him again at his crack about her hurting people. The resulting fight was a blur and she hissed as he slammed her against the wall again. Her head struck the stone and she closed her eyes as her head swam. His words filtered through her thoughts again and that cold laugh slithered from between her lips. “Don’t pretend you care, Dante, it’s really not your style. I don’t need saving,” she said, lifting her knee in a sharp jab that had him falling backwards. It was a low blow, but she was beyond fighting fair. She looked up at the guard that had tried to pull Dante away and glared at him until he backed away. She didn’t have much more time to get her point across, for a host of reasons, not the least of which was her vision blurring quite badly.

 

She reached down to clutch his shirt with her left hand and let her right fist fly in a right cross that caught him squarely on the jaw. She knelt, but hands were starting to grab her from behind. She’d always heard people say they reached a point where they saw red and lost control of their anger. Edana was officially at that point as she rounded on the Guards pulling her away from the Kaldun she had every intention of finishing off. The look in her eye gave them pause, but it wasn’t enough for them to back off completely. “I’m in no mood, Junior,” she eyed the tallest one. “If you want a piece, you’ll have to wait in line with the rest of the men in this world that wouldn’t know how to treat a woman if she handed him written directions!”

 

 

~Edana

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"You are right. I do watch from a distance. I am nothing more than her dog. When you care for someone you will be what you must." Guards were circling them now rather than them circling each other. "Its you who dishonors your father if you believe that his death wasnt a deed worthy of nobility." He turned his head to look towards her. They would be upon them soon. "Believe whatever you want about me and my family Edana... believe every bit of it. But he loves you even now, you can run from it if you want but dont you dare deny it."

 

The guards set in on them before they could get back to killing each other. Dante was punching and kicking so quickly he was not sure who he was hitting or what body part he was striking. When one face disappeared another quickly reappeared. A man came up behind Edana intent on using the hilt of his sword to knock her out and Dante was determined to knock everyone of these guards out before he set back on Edana, but he couldnt do it alone...

 

Stepping into the kick sent the guard to the wall clutching his ribs. He wasnt going to get back up. His vision blurred as a blow to the head nearly knocked him out. He broke that Guards nose before a second blow caused him to collapse still swinging. As he laid there unable to move blackness came in from his peripheral as he saw Edana was not faring any better. He had only stalled her own subdual.

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Edana didn’t get to answer him as the Guards decided to step in at that moment. Her already bloody hands struck out at her attackers. Her mind was a running litany of He’s still standing and I won’t rest until he’s not! She didn’t want any of these louts to get the pleasure of putting him there, either! Every chance she got, she hauled a guard off Dante and lit into him. She saw a flash out of the corner of her eye and turned to see a guard falling behind her. Dante kept turning, but she could see that he apparently had the same idea about who was going to get the privilege of knocking them down. She felt a smile stretching on her lips, then, but the swelling already ballooning off her face must’ve made that a ghastly sight.

 

She laid another guard out, turning to see where Dante was and who she could hit next. She gasped as a fist connected with her jaw from the side and knocked her down. She reached her hand out for the table on her way down, determined not to hit the ground. Once you hit the ground, it’s over, her father told her once. You’re at the mercy of their feet from there. She groaned, having misjudged the table. Her head hit it, instead of her hand and she felt the wind get knocked out of her as she hit the ground. She smiled as she noted that Dante was already out, sprawled in the floor beside her. At least she’d lasted longer than he had! It was the last thought she had to deal with for a while…

 

********************

The dull ache in her head was nothing compared to the pain in her ribs and she coughed to make it worse. The annoying tickle in her throat was too much, though, and she sat up to bend over as the cough produced blood. She spit it out on the floor and looked up. Her vision was still blurry, but she didn’t have to see clearly to know this wasn’t the infirmary. She took in the bars surrounding her on three sides and groaned, seeing her nemesis in the cell next to her. This day was just not going to get better.

 

“Wake up,” she said loudly. It made her head pound, but it was worth it if it made his hurt, too. “You’re about to fall off the cot, you lout.” He was, too. She shook her head at him and eased herself back to the cot, praying she didn’t have to cough again. She wasn’t sure her ribs could take it…

 

~Edana

 

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Dante was too sore to move and kept drifting in and out of consciousness. He didnt really care to be awake he was so sore but Edana apparently had other ideas about that.

 

“You’re about to fall off the cot, you lout.”

 

Really he wouldnt have cared if he did. Realizing all the horrible things he had said to Edana... some true some not, he really didnt want to be awake. For all of that guilt though he felt a million times better about the other things he had been holding inside.

 

Sitting up gently he leaned back against the wall. "Im sorry Edana... I didnt want to be mean to you and I didnt mean some of the things I said." He didnt bother looking at her. Silence passed for awhile before he smiled.

 

"We should do that more often."

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Edana sighed, closing her eyes. She’d expected a lot of things, an apology wasn’t one of them. Now she felt bad about jumping him to begin with. Lovely.

 

“I apologize, too,” she said softly. “I shouldn’t have attacked you for trying to protect your brother. I’d have done in the same, in your position.” She didn’t move, though she’d really rather sit up. It just hurt too much.

 

“I don’t think my bones would agree that this is something we should do more of, either. I’m pretty sure whatever penance we’re slapped with for venting ourselves all over the mess hall will reinforce their complaint.” She shook her head, a laugh… a real, normal laugh… passing her lips. It hurt and it made her cough, but it felt good. She turned her head and looked at him. Or, she looked at the blurred shape that she assumed was him. “I was never unfaithful to him,” she said softly. “I’m sorry if I just got tired of justifying myself to him and didn’t fight this time.”

 

She closed her eyes again and looked away. “Did he really see that mess in the smithy?” She could understand his anger if he had. It must’ve looked pretty damning from his perspective. She sighed and shook her head. If he’d only waited half a breath more…

 

~Edana

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Dante nodded at first until he realized she probably couldnt see him. "He saw it... he came before he left and told me... I was going to kill Bryiam even though he said not to... he told me that if Bryiam made you happy then Bryiam was doing what he could not and to leave the two of you be. I hunted Bryiam through taverns, a bank, and finally to the docks. I know he was there but the dockworkers denied seeing him. The skinned knuckles and soot spots told me they had."

 

Picking a piece of chicken off of his shirt he threw it in a bucket by the bed and removed his shirt... painfully.

 

"Still have the guards who spread the rumors though. I didnt find them in time before Sandre saw... whatever it was he saw. Sandre was supposed to be picking up his armor that night... I know your attractive when your not beat up but I didnt think THAT attractive."

 

It was a full blown conspiracy just to get Bryiam in bed with Edana. It sickened him. His brother had finally found someone who was worth spending his life with and the whole world seemed to be against them.

 

"What are you going to do now?"

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Ed winced and shook her head. Then stopped because that hurt. She'd known the smith would get rid of Bryiam when she'd left the shop. He'd been offended at the man's scheming and had apologized many times as Ed had left. It was the only reason she'd gone back to finish her training with him.

 

  "I know your attractive when your not beat up but I didnt think THAT attractive." Edana snorted at that. It made her cough again, which negated any answer she could've given him. When she'd stopped coughing, he asked, "What are you going to do now?"

 

She sighed, a deep heavy sigh of someone who just didn't know which step wouldn't land her in a pit too deep to climb out of. "I don't know," she said simply. "On one hand, I want to find him and explain everything. He's the only person who's made me happy in more years than I can count. But then I remember that he didn't believe me. If he truly loved me, wouldn't he have stepped into that smithy? Wouldn't he have believed me, over anything else he'd seen or heard? Wouldn't he have asked me what was going on?" She opened her eyes and focused on the ceiling. "He jumped to the conclusion that the rumors were correct, simply because I didn't tell him about the smithy. I wanted it to be a surprise, so I didn't tell him. I even hid my hands so he wouldn't ask me why they were cut up. I didn't want Bryiam's blood on you brother's hands."

 

She took a moment to breathe, feeling a tear slip from the corner of her eye and into her hair. "If he loved me, he'd have given me a chance, right? More than just expecting me to tell him that I'd been mauled by an apprentice in a smithy because I was trying so hard to impress him?"

 

~Edana

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Dante smiled. He was glad she probably couldnt see him. "Thats the problem with love... its blind. You dont see the flaws in each other, when the object of your love hurts you all you can feel and see is more pain. Such a pure thing... its too bad we are the ones who mess it all up."

 

He sat up so he wouldnt have to lean against the wall again. "You were both blind and foolish in this case. Him for leaving, you for not seeing that you were his weakness. When you were the one who was hurting him thanks to rumors and liars... who was he to turn to that could give him the strength you did? He was alone, scared, and has never had the ability to handle emotional pain. You knew that though."

 

Overcome with queasiness he laid back down and rolled over not facing her. "Edana... I meant what I said about him being in danger... hes headstrong. He has nothing to lose... if you decide to find him hes somewhere in the Blight. So now you know."

 

He heard voices coming towards the cell and looked to see a yellow walking in not looking at all happy about being disturbed.

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Edana heard him move and could tell from his voice that he wasn't facing her, anymore. She sighed inwardly, absorbing the information he'd given her. Sandre was a danger to himself. He was in the Blight, which he hated.

 

She closed her eyes as the blurry sight of a woman appeared in the dirty cells they'd been dropped into. The lineless face didn't match the wisdom in her eyes, so Ed knew immediate who this was. Aes Sedai, she muttered in her head. Come to fix the idiots who start a fight in the middle of the mess hall.

 

"From the sound of the moaning upstairs, I expected you two to look worse than you do. Are you really the ones who started the mess?" She looked from Ed to Dante's back, but neither answered her. With a grunt, she laid her hand on Ed. "You're broken up pretty badly, but you'll heal. This one might leave a scar, though. What did you hit?" She was pointing to a gash bleeding on the corner of Ed's forehead.

 

Ed turned her head and smirked at Dante's back. "I'm not sure. Dante, which do you suppose it was? The wall, the table, your fist or that ox who thought to hit me with a chair to knock me out?"

 

~Ed

Now, this is funny...

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Dante smiled. At least her old mood was back. She had been intolerable to be around for a very long time. She still didnt have Sandre back but she understood why she didnt. Maybe that is what did it. Maybe with that understanding would come another chance. Here was to hoping.

 

"That was not my fist. Your head is so hard I would have broke a knuckle. You didnt hit the table or wall at the right angle so those were not it leaving only the chair. I assure you though Aes Sedai that the chair got the worst of it."

 

Even the Aes Sedai had to smile sensing that the humor was light. Yet they had started that fight. They had to be an odd looking group to be smiling at one another after fighting each other while guards upstairs were not terribly happy with their own wounds.

 

Dante waited while Edana got her healing and then got his own. Compared to the pain the cold freeze of healing was welcomed. "Thank you Aes Sedai."

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Edana laughed, which turned into a coughing fit and spurred the Aes Sedai into Healing a little faster than she had been moving. Edana laid her head back, exhaustion pulling on her quite heavily. "I appreciate your help greatly, Aes Sedai," she said, her voice sounding thin and wispy. It annoyed her.

 

The woman only nodded and moved on to Dante, leaving Ed to hover in the half-sleep of someone too tired to stay completely awake, but unwilling to give in to the peace that sleep would offer. She waited until she heard Dante thanking the Aes Sedai, waited until she heard the woman's skirts brushing their way back upstairs before she gave in. "Thanks, Dante," she said, her voice soft in the dim light of the brig. It wasn't a perfect peace, but anything was better than the gnawing turmoil that had been eating away at her since her fight with Sandre.

 

***************

 

"WAKE UP!" Yelled a voice she barely recognized. She jerked awake, taking stock of where she was, since she didn't recognize it right away. "Get up, both of you!"

 

The sun was up, which meant she'd slept through the night. She eased herself to her feet, testing limbs that had been terribly pained when she'd waken up down here the evening before. They were a little tired and sore, but otherwise, the worst of the pain was gone. She was truly grateful for that. She turned towards the voice and winced. The Captain stood on the other side of the bars of her cell, staring her down with an incredulous expression. "What were you thinking?"

 

His question was reasonable, but she couldn't for the life of her think of a reasonable answer. She turned to Dante a moment, then back to the Captain. "I was thinking it was high time he started answering questions, Captain." she answered. It as the best she could come up with. She hadn't been thinking very much, it seemed. Her answer didn't help her, either. He turned to Dante, though, which gave her a chance to relax a moment.

 

"And you?" he asked. "What were you thinking; beating up your brother's woman?"

 

~Edana

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Dante laid there with a smile and his hands tucked behind his head with his boots crossed. "Oh Captain... since Sandre's been gone she hasnt been getting laid so we have to beat her on occasion to keep her in line... it was just my turn this week."

 

The sharp look he got from her said he was likely going to get hit again later... but she didnt deny it either...

 

"She wasnt the only one hitting her fellow Guards though Kaldun... care to explain that?"

 

"I wasnt so much as trying to hit them Captain as they kept trying to hit my fists, feet, and elbows with their heads, groins, and stomachs. Personally I think its a failing on their part to grasp how hand to hand combat works. They should be reprimanded for being too lazy to learn how its done."

 

Had it been any other Captain or any Sergeant at all he would not be joking around... well not all of it was a joke. Hand to hand in Dante's opinion was very neglected in favor of weapon training. The Captain shook his head and looked at the ground trying to suppress a smile.

 

"Dante if it wouldnt tick off so many Aes Sedai who come out each day to watch you train I would take you out into the yards for a detailed discussion on hand to hand. The Captain then looked over at Edana. "As for you..." he said as he kicked a bar to Edana's cell "You being here doesnt surprise me at all, nor does your choice of men. When your done pouting over your argument let me know.. I need someone to go to the Borderlands soon. If you can behave in that time until you go I also have three guards coming up for review and I want you to test their skill... not my favorite guys... spread some nasty rumors awhile ago about about a couple Tower Guard lovers."

 

The Captain looked back at the cell guard. "Open the cages." The cell guard moved as though he was on fire. "So... your both being docked in pay until the damages are paid in full... you both will be working the garbage carts until further notice. Feel lucky you two." He stared at them both making sure to make eye contact to emphasize that they were very lucky. "When I did this say some ten years ago I came back from the carts and had to wake up every morning, throw on my boots and sword belt and walk the walls." He started walking out as the two got up. Dante's curiosity was killing him though. "Whats wrong with that Captain?" The Captain stopped and looked at them both with a smile. "All I was wearing was my boots and sword belt." Dante burst out laughing as the Captain walked away shaking his head.

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Edana jerked her head towards Dante at his lewd comment, but bit her lip to keep from saying anything in response. She didn't deny that when Sandre was around she was in a better mood. Whether it had anything to do with THAT was anyone's guess.

 

Edana listened to their punishment and stiffened her posture. Her pay being docked would hurt, since she still had the smith to pay back for his allowing her to use his smithy. She'd have to get creative with her finances for a while, but there were worse punishments. As for the carts, she'd rather be doing something else, but even that wasn't as bad as it could've been. She grinned at the Captain's back as he left, trying to imagine him guarding the wall in his boots. Light, but that was an entertaining mental image.

 

She turned to Dante, her smile still stretched across her face. "Do you suppose he means us to start today?" She asked, tilting her head to the side. "I think you owe me a drink for the trouble you've caused me yesterday..."

 

~Edana

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Dante's head turned as he gave her a wide eyed look. "I owe "YOU" a drink for the trouble "I" started?" he said as he collected his sword and knives from the guard. They didnt take his bracer only removing the knives from it. He looked at the guard. "Next time look for the lock picks in the bracer." he said as he pulled a pick from the bracer. He put it back and shook his head. (Just sloppy.) he thought. Already Guards seemed to be relaxing so soon after the murders.

 

"Without Sandre here to be an ass towards everyone who doesnt try harder..." he shook his head. He didnt like that he had found a reason to miss his brother.

 

As they walked into Tar Valon with a drink and food in mind Dante turned again to Edana. "I wasnt being dishonest with you when I said I cared about you... your like a sister to me. Perfectly healthy for us to have an argument. I just regret I lost my temper like I did. Seems like Sandre has better control than me now. Never thought I would see that day." To emphasize his point he pulled h Edana close and wrapped his arm around her shoulder for a quick tight hug without stopping then let her go.

 

They walked into the Tavern and Dante waved to Black Bart the Bouncer who just narrowed his eyes at the two of them. Sitting at a table where Dante could get a look at the pretty little thing on stage without Bart taking offense he ordered food and drinks for both of them.

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Edana shook her head at the Guard on duty, but didn't say anything until they were in town. Dante turned to look at her and she was left open mouthed at the words that came out of his. "...your like a sister to me." When he pulled her in for a sideways hug and stumbled. She didn't say anything as they continued through town and into a tavern she didn't usually walk in to. She winked at the bouncer, though, since the few times she'd come in here, he usually had something to do with her leaving. He stiffened up and looked away, but it was enough to bring Ed's good mood back.

 

"I am starving," she said as she slid into a chair. "The worst part about Healing is that I can't seem to eat enough afterwards!" She chose to let his words drop, not trusting herself to say anything about them. She was dangerous to family and she knew it. Did she dare let herself get any more comfortable with this family than she already was?

 

She scoffed, picking up the newly left mug of ale and taking a drink. As if Sandre would even give her the chance...

 

~Edana

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Dante missed the smiles of the tavern maids and patrons as soon as he saw a plate of food in front of him. He plowed through the first plate and a bowl of beans and beef that was mixed with onions, garlic, peppers and enough spices that even he turned red... it was his favorite dish and he ordered it enough for them to know how he liked it. He ordered a second bowl, and an entire chicken for them both to share and handed a handful of coins to the tavern maiden that made his missing her advances forgiven if the bright smile was any indication. He ate until he was miserable but knew he would likely eat that much again before they left... darn healing.

 

"Do you want to get back at him?... I can write him and give the letter to the Captain to send to him explaining everything. You can bet your shift he will be up for days feeling really stupid about choosing to leave... and likely trying to find a way back before his time."

 

Dante wasnt too anxious to go through with it but simply having her walk up to him and surprise him with the knowledge wouldnt give him time to think clearly to get her back. Edana seemed happier now but now that she didnt hate Sandre... well anyone would miss what those two had. (Crazy fools.) he thought. (Both are so in love with each other they are looking for imperfections to prove to themselves it was too good to be true. Left themselves wide open to this.)

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Edana's eyes widened at his suggestion and she stuffed bread in her mouth to give herself some time to answer. She shook her head, finally. "No, he made his decision, Dante." She eyed the plate in front of her, not remembering eating half of what was missing. "We'll talk when he comes home."

 

That is, unless she ran into him on that trip to the Borderlands the Captain mentioned. She turned the idea over in her head, knowing it was nearly her turn for her year along the Border. The Borderlands were big, though. She'd probably never see him. She shrugged inwardly and turned her thoughts to other things.

 

"You really think that you'll eat a whole other plate of food?" She was starting to get full, finally. This bout of Healing wasn't the worst she'd endured. She just didn't want to go back just yet...

 

~Edana

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Dante nodded. "I know I will want more shortly. I didnt get to eat much of my dinner last night either." he said with a grin. "I do not think you will have to wait long to see him. I worry about it though. The wheel put you two together. Have you looked at everything that has happened?"

 

She looked at him so he waited until he finished his mouthful of food before he went on.

 

"You both were born almost at the same time. Your fathers were best friends. My father was going to try to arrange a marriage between you two in the first place. You had a decent childhood despite your Father's death until Sandre made his bargain which took him out of Caemlyn and hence the Queens Guards where you were. When he left for the Tower you shortly after left Caemlyn for whatever reason. Now hes gone to the Blight to fight and you unless you screw it up will be there soon. Even if you did I think he would be called back early. Too many coincidences Edana. Im worried that if you both keep resisting and dont learn that you will only lose each other if you allow it to happen that I will lose you both."

 

He waited for a moment for everything to sink in for a moment before he drove it home. "If you cant see that everything gets worse when you are not together then... no offense but you would have to be blind. Even Sandre has seen this already. Hes losing his fight in the Blight. Hes stretching the small amount of men they have to save the Borderland villages and cut off the Trollocs from their food sources. You are miserable here. The pattern continues."

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