Page 104 of Raven's Dawn

“I don’t hate you at all.” Just didn’t particularly like her. “Graham’s not here. I guess he went to take a bath at the castle.”

“I ken. I’m here to talk to ye.” She gestured inside. “Can I come in?”

Holding the door open, I waved to the bed.

She took a few steps inside, but she didn’t sit. Didn’t look me in the eye either. Not even when she said, “Look, I’m a bitch. I know that. I run my mouth, and I say things under my breath, and I make snap judgments, and I’m working on it. Really, I am.”

That really wasn’t information she needed to share with me. “Yeah, I’ve noticed. The first part. The second part…”

She narrowed her eyes. “I’m trying to be nice.”

“By saying that you’re a bitch?”

“That was just the opener.”

Since she didn’t sit, I did. “Alright. I’m listening.”

“I made a snap judgment against ye.” She said those words as though they tasted like lemon on her tongue. Sour, acidic, and a bit painful. “That was wrong. I was wrong. Ye proved yerself yesterday. Ye proved yerself this whole trip, and I’m sorry.” That last line came out quieter than the rest. “I’m sorry I was a bitch to ye. Ye didn’t deserve that, and I’m sorry.”

There was no stopping my smile. “Aw, is this the part where we hug?”

“Touch me, and I’ll stab ye.”

“Well, that’s not the best way to make amends.”

“Neither is teasing someone when they’re trying to.”

Fair enough.

Sighing, I leaned back and propped myself up on my hands. “In that case, I’m sorry too. Sorry for teasing you, anyway. But you clearly mean a lot to Graham. You guys have a history together that I never will, and I respect that. I know how much friendship matters to him, and since you guys are so close, it would be nice if we could maybe take it a step past cordial. Get to know each other. Become friends. At least for his benefit, you know?”

“I think we can be.” Her arms were still tucked beneath her cloak, but something big moved beneath it as she shifted. “Obviously, ye mean everything to him. Ye make him happy, so I’m grateful to ye. He told me about how ye and yer family took him in when he moved to Earth, and I’m grateful for that too. He really was like my brother once.”

“I’m sure in no time, he will be again.” I paused. “Hey, since he’s like your brother, and he’s my partner, does that mean we’re kind of like sisters?”

“Don’t push it.” Pulling her cloak aside, she dropped a pile of linen onto my lap. “Consider this a token of my appreciation.”

It was a cream burlap material with buttons ascending from top to bottom. “What is it?”

“Everyone gets dressed up for the solstice festival,” she said. “I’ve seen what ye wear. Ugly, bland human clothes. I think this’ll look nice on ye. And I know what Graham likes on a woman, so it’s a favor to him too. It was gifted to me by a neighbor a long time ago, but I’m too short for it. Also not a big fan of dresses. Better it stops collecting dust in my wardrobe.”

Aww.

Tears gathered in my eyes. I hadn’t even opened it yet, but it gave me hope. This was Amara’s peace offering, and on a land like this, where so many things were scarce, this felt like an extravagant gift.

A bit choked up, I said, “That’s so sweet of you. Thank you.”

“Ye’re doing me a favor getting rid of it,” she said, tone sharp. “Just enjoy it. And tell Graham we’re going to try to be friends, so he doesn’t think that I hate ye.”

“Ah, so that’s what this is about. Kissing his ass after our fight.”

“Aye. Precisely.” She glared, but the smile at the edge of her lips told me that, even if she wouldn’t admit it, this was an act of kindness. “So put the damn thing on, make yer face look good, and let’s carry on to the festival.”

37

RAIN

Enchanting.