TEMPLAR'S LOUNGE

"You awake?"

Solana rolled over, kicking at her sweaty sheets.

"Yup. It's too hot to sleep."

The circle tower simmered in the summer heat. The small windows barely admitted a breeze, and the mage quarters always seemed to be the worst part.

"You hungry?"

Solona sighed and propped herself up on her elbows. Obviously it was going to be long night.

"Why Theris? Are you hungry?"

"Yeah. I mean I went to supper, but mutton? In this heat? Barf. I just couldn't. And I missed lunch anyway. So I'm really hungry now."

Solana was determined to be the voice of reason. "Just try to go to sleep. The next thing you know it will be breakfast.

"Somebody could sneak down---"

"No."

"Oh, come on, you know they have bread and cheese in the exemplar's lounge."

"Absolutely not." Solona sat up. "Theris, I am not doing that again. The knight commander almost caught me last time. He was in there eating cheese sandwiches. If you want to get up in the middle of the night, you go ahead."

"But---"

"No way. No."

"You know that you are more quiet than I am. And you can get away with more. All you have to do is make goo-goo eyes, and the templars let you slide"

"That's not true.'

"Oh? What about Cullen?" Theris said his name in an absurd sing-song.

"Theris, stop."

"I'll be your best friend."

"You are my best friend."

A third voice cut in, older, sleep thick, and exasperated."

"Will you both shut up? Some of us have class in the morning. Solana, nobody cares who you like, and Theris, go get your own food, you fat cow!"

Somehow, in the insulted silence that followed, Solona found herself agreeing to sneak down. It was all about friendship and cheese sandwiches. It had nothing at all to do with the gentle templar with the kind eyes. She had never been alone with Cullen. They had never exchanged more than a few words. Why did he make her stomach feel like she was falling out of a tree?

These were questions with no answers. Anyway, she reminded herself, she was going to try very hard not to run into anyone.

Her long white nightgown obscured everything but her toes. Solona supposed that a very modest mage would have put on a cloak, but it was just too hot.

She crept along the wall, there was a little shadow there, on the side away from the lamps. It was so humid that she could feel herself leaving damp footprints behind her. The sky pressed down like an iron. If only it would rain.

She passed the closed doors of the apprentice corridor. Halfway there. There was a small alcove at the head of the stairs. She stopped a moment to breathe So far she had seen no templars. The trouble was, they made no noise at all, until they moved.. And they were entitled to go anywhere, unlike student mages.

Solana went down the stairs, and gained the main floor without being seen. She was moving quickly now, coming up on the senior mage offices. Just as she was about to cross the light of an open doorway, she heard voices. Quickly, she ducked into the shadow of a book-case. The voices were indistinct at first, but as she crouched against the wall she could hear them more clearly. Had this been an adventure story, Solona thought, this would have been the time to overhear something exciting. A brave girl mage in a story-book would learn plans for an invasion, or perhaps and illegal tryst. As it was, Solona heard two instructors bickering about the next day's lesson plan.

She waited, wiping her sweaty palms on the hem of her nightgown. After some time, the voices trailed off. The instructors had left by another door.

The next door was the lounge. Food was kept there at all times, for templars who missed meals while on watch. In the winter the little room was fragrant soups and hot tea. Now, in the miserable heat, it was stocked with cool drinks, and sliced cheeses and meats. All completely forbidden.

She peeked around the door. The room was empty, for now. She sidled in, and took a deep breath. In the corner was a table. It was covered in a white cloth, and shone crisp and clean with knife edged creases. Templars were champions at ironing.

More relevantly, the table was covered with food. Templars were champion eaters.

She had her basket half packed when she head the voices approaching.

"Good evening knight-commander."

Knight-commander! Gregoire seemed to have real weakness for midnight cheeses.

A wide eyed glance showed no very good options. Solona ducked under the table.

She saw two sets of booted feet approach. They came closer to her than she would have liked, but now she could not move at all without being heard. She muffled her breath against her knees.

After some time, she heard Gregoor bid the other templar goodnight. There was an indistinct murmur of reply from the younger man. Then he too turned to leave the room. She was going to make it, she could see herself so clearly, walking up the stairs, and eating snacks in bed. Another breath or two, or three, to make sure he was really gone...

The thunder came with no warning, it slammed just outside the window, with a sound like someone throwing plate mail off the roof. Solana started in alarm, and smashed her head on the underside of the table. Maybe this, on it's own, would not have been enough to alert him. But to her horror, she knocked over her basket, and a succession of apples and eggs rolled forth.

The tablecloth lifted.

"You." He didn't sound surprised.

"Cullen?" Those kindly eyes were disapproving, but maybe just a little amused. Solana's middle did the tree-falling thing.

"You shouldn't be here."

"I know, I do know. But my room-mates got so hungry – and we couldn't sleep, and--"

"Really, really, shouldn't be here."

Outside the window the rain began. She could hear it roaring in the gutters, streaming from the tower, from the mouths of the blank eyed gargoyles, and slamming the ground with a sound like falling coins.

"Wait." Cullen went to the window and closed the shutters. The rain sound muffled. Then he closed the door. "That way we'll hear them at least;" He said.

He came back to the table, and lifted the cloth again. He sat down on his haunches and looked at her. Solana huddled in the darkness under the table. Suddenly she felt very small.

I"m sorry." She tried, resting her head on her knees.

"I'll walk you back." He said, finally.

"Do they really not feed you enough?" Cullen's forehead wrinkled.

"No, well, yes, but nothing like this." She gestured.

"Wait there." He stood up, and she saw those boots cross the room again. He came back carrying a small box.

"H-here's something for you."

The box was filled with small sticky cakes, studded with nuts.

Cullen smiled encouragingly, "H-have one." His stutter was back, Solana noticed.

"One of the other templars got theses from home. He put the box out for everybody."

"That was nice."

"Yes. He is."

Cullen poked the box toward her encouragingly. Solana hesitated.

He reached into the box and pulled out one of the cakes, he held it out, moving his hand toward her slowly. The wrinkle in his brow was back. She leaned forward. She could feel the wrinkled crumple of her nightgown, bunched under her hands. She could see the shining perfection of his breastplate, with herself reflected in it, distorted and small. She leaned toward his hand, letting her hands take her weight, and took a bite.

She heard the song intake of his breath as her mouth came close to his fingers. The little cake was crisp and delicious.

Cullen brought the remaining half of the cake to his own mouth and ate it.

"It's good, isn't it?'

"Yes"

His hand came forward again, and stroked under her chin. His eyes were dark and wide.

"Come out from there," He said, "I'll walk you up.

And he did.