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same.” He smiled quickly at Amia. “At least my father has something of value to pass on to me.” Rapen and Niles laughed with Lins.
    Amia watched him carefully, ignoring the smile Lins offered and the brutish forms of Rapen and Niles. Pressure built behind his ears again that passed quickly. She crossed her arms over her chest and turned suddenly to Lins, returning his smile with an almost feral one.  
    “And what have you done of value today, my lord?” Her voice retained its musical quality but carried an edge with it.
    Lins’s smile faltered. “I aid my father in the running of Nor.”
    “Oh?”
    Tan suppressed a laugh. If chasing the young women of Nor and bullying the boys helped his father, then Lins indeed aided his father. Lins glanced over to him and glared again.
    “The horses find value in what Tan has done today,” Amia said.
    “The horses?” Lins asked, laughing.
    Amia nodded.  
    “I’m sure the horses care that their manure has been shoveled.”
    The Aeta shrugged. “Perhaps, but they enjoyed the hay.” Her smile hardened. “There’s value in such work. I don’t know if there’s value in a pig-faced boy who thinks insulting others makes him appealing. I will ask the Mother.”
    Lins wore a look of shock that Amia would dare insult him. Tan felt certain he would not take it well. Rapen and Niles laughed in spite of themselves, stifling it suddenly when Lins glared at them. They both raised their hands in submission before backing away.  
    Lins looked from Amia who now smiled innocently, to Tan who had found the sense to close his mouth, his face reddening with anger. His jaw worked to speak before he finally found his words. “Minden,” he sputtered, focusing his rage upon Tan, as Tan knew he would. “I will leave you with this Aeta rat and will find you later.”  
    When Lins left, Tan sighed, fearing the truth of the statement. Lins wouldn’t rest until he felt this wrong was righted. Tan was certain it would be a painful correction. “Thank you. I’m not able to speak so freely.”
    Amia smiled warmly at him and Tan felt his heart race again. “I sensed that,” she answered simply.  
    She looked at him again and Tan remembered what she’d said before Lins appeared. “Why were you surprised that I tracked the creatures?”  
    Amia frowned. “They aren’t easy to track. Few manage to do so.” She paused, tilting her head and staring intently at him. “And I thank you.”
    “For what?”  
    “Tracking them. I think it scared them off.”
    “I didn’t scare them,” he began before a question came to him. “What are they?”  
    “They’re fearsome hounds. They followed us from Incendin.” She stopped at the sudden approach of another shadowed figure that suddenly appeared out of the fading light of the lamps and fire pits.
    “Amia,” a stern voice said, interrupting the young Aeta as she spoke to Tan.
    Tan looked up and recognized the regal features of the Aeta Mother, who stood staring at him while holding firmly to Amia’s arm.  
    “Mother,” Amia acknowledged.
    The Mother smiled though it did not reach her eyes. “Come, daughter. You’re needed to observe.”
    Amia considered the Mother for a moment and as she did, a rising pressure built behind his ears. She glanced to Tan before turning her attention back to the Mother. “I am?”
    The Mother nodded curtly. “You are. Come.” The Mother turned to Tan and nodded once. “Son of Ephra,” she said respectfully before turning away and leading Amia off.
    Amia looked back as she followed. Tan wondered if he would ever see her again.

CHAPTER 6
Stories of the Past

    Tan stopped in the manor house after leaving Amia, not wanting to stay and risk seeing Lins again. Lins could be cruel, especially when trying to prove himself to Rapen and Niles. He found the door closed and knocked, waiting for her to answer. When she didn’t, he pushed the door open.  
    A single lantern burned on her desk. A stack of