Day 41: Breakfast

[oftemptation]

Endrance turned his head to look at the intercom, giving it a look that would wither an entire rose garden in an instant. He would never get used to ending up in his room again from somewhere else in the Institute

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[notmyfather]

[For Keman!]

Valyn wasn't sure entirely what had happened over the last two days. He knew that a day or so had passed because the nurse that roused him had mentioned it. Something about being ill. He couldn't quite remember being ill - and elves didn't get sick anyway - but his room was different and time was strange and he was too tired to worry about it.

He didn't feel ill, but he did feel tired. He was rather certain nothing had been done to him, and he felt fine other than that. He supposed it was another odd quirk of this hellish place.

Ah well, it wasn't as though anything had changed drastically, at least from what he could tell. And he was starving, he realized, as he was escorted into the dining hall. He grabbed his breakfast, found an empty seat and sat down.

Hopefully a familiar face or two could assure him he hadn't lost too much time....

[notmyfather]

"Ancestors, no," Valyn said, shaking his head and looking startled. "I've...been sick, apparently. With what, I've no idea, but elves don't get sick. They moved me to a new room, I think I've been asleep for days even though I feel like I haven't slept in days...."

He shrugged, as apologetically as he could manage. He didn't rise to Keman's anger, for once. He felt badly that he'd made the dragon worry. Especially as he was beginning to think they were all they had left.

"I don't even know how long it's been, Keman. I'm sorry to have worried you, but it was out of my hands."

[notmyfather]

"No." Valyn shook his head. "They don't exactly tell us much here." He poked at his food and sighed. It was an honest expression of exasperation and exhaustion - something he never would have bee capable of letting slip so naturally before he came to this place.

"Well, whatever their reasons, it doesn't matter. I'm not going anywhere, Keman. Except in the event we escape this place." Which left the question of what to do afterwards, but Valyn hadn't been feeling too worried about that lately. Elves had a history of traveling through worlds. Dragons, too, from what he understood. He was sure they could somehow use magic to get back home.

"We're going to be alright," he added, reaching over to squeeze Keman's shoulder.

[notmyfather]

"We will be." Valyn squeezed his friend's shoulder, offering comfort as well as taking it for himself. "We need to stay together, Keman. I know I've had a habit of...wandering off on my own and not letting anyone know, but I'm not going to do that anymore."

He couldn't lose Keman, too. They'd become close over their stay here, not in the same manner as Shana and Shadow, but still close. He was a friend, and a good one, and Valyn was going to do everything in his power to keep his remaining friend healthy and safe.

And not alone.

"What are your plans for tonight?"

[notmyfather]

"Then I suppose I'll have to be extra careful - I've grown rather tired of murder attempts." Valyn did smile, but it was an Elven smile. He was joking, in his own way, but there was a bitterness underneath.

"As for tonight, I don't have anything specific in mind, but...have you been outside the walls yet?"

[notmyfather]

Valyn blinked, and then nodded.

"Ah, that is what they...target?" That was going to be a problem. "Heh, yes, I suppose that's nothing I have to worry about." He had the decency to flush, at least. "They're difficult to fight. We may have some trouble getting past them, in that case. But if there's a chance to get beyond the powers of this place...."

He shrugged. It was worth the risk. If the power of this place worked at all like the magic he was used to, it couldn't cover the entire world! If they ran far and fast enough...

"Between the two of us, I think we can get away from them."

[notmyfather]

"I wouldn't find anything strange about that sort of thing here," Valyn agreed, nodding.

"I wasn't bothered by them, but I saw the damage they could do." He pushed his food around his plate, thinking. "They have the advantage being airborne - something I suppose I don't have to tell you. And they're large. I wonder if I'd be able to shield us magically long enough to make it over the wall..."

He did have that ring, after all. Maybe tonight would be the night to use it.

"Or I suppose we could always just make sure you aren't appetizing to them before we head out," he teased, jabbing his fork almost playfully in Keman's direction.

[notmyfather]

"Either way, I'm going to use up my magic," Valyn pointed out, logically. "And I can shield us while you can't. Besides which, I have a very effective dagger." Logically speaking, it would be best for him to do what he could defensively with his magic before they were forced to fight. At least in his mind.

And then he blinked, a look of shock coming over his features at what Keman had just said.

"What?" he sputtered, wrapping his mind around the idea of Shadow attempting to seduce Keman. He couldn't even fathom why his cousin would. Not why his cousin would sleep with someone else, but why Keman. "Ancestors! What on earth happened to bring that on?"