Desiderius had a way of entering a room as if he owned the place. Even when he was newly awakened, he still somehow managed to exude that same kind of brisk, masculine confidence. Tsu Lai watched as Desiderius’s adolescent form strode manfully into the sun-room and stopped in front of Aterat. He dropped to one knee and gave a short bow with his head, then stood back up. Aterat’s face glowed at this unexpected display of fealty. She gestured for him to sit in the wide wicker chair across from hers.
Precia had entered just after Desiderius, but she had remained by the door. Tsu Lai poured tea for Aterat and Desiderius, then quietly made his way to the wall where Precia was standing. She was looking well. Her dark brown ringlets were pulled back into a messy knot at the back of her head and she wore a simple grey dress that matched her eyes and complimented her olive complexion. Precia appeared to be in good condition, judging by the well-toned muscles that he could see in her bare arms and calves. Her shape was no real indication, though. No matter how muscular she got, Precia always had those wide, round hips and that small chest. She was tall for a woman, or maybe her height was about average now– her head almost reached the center of Tsu Lai’s chest– she was about half a head taller than Aterat’s current form. He couldn’t see any weapons on her, but with Precia, one never saw the blades until she was using them. Sometimes not even then. She had a way of hiding them so that they appeared to just materialize in her hand when she needed them. It was the kind of deceptive tactics that always made Tsu Lai nervous.
Once they had both finished looking each other over, the two of them turned to watch Aterat and Desiderius.
Aterat picked up her cup and swirled a spoon around in it. “You look very handsome this time, Desiderius,” she said.
“Thank you,” he replied. “You are very beautiful, yourself.”
Tsu Lai looked at him again. He had a Polynesian look to him– dark olive skin, dark hair and eyes, high cheekbones. He had a smooth face and an athletic-looking body. But he was still a boy. It was difficult to say for sure, at this point, whether or not he would keep his good looks when he reached maturity.
Aterat smiled. “How long were you dormant, this time?”
Desiderius leaned back in his chair. “I turn fourteen in three months.”
Aterat beamed at him proudly. “Less than fourteen years!” she gushed. “You’re growing so strong!”
Tsu Lai’s mouth twitched slightly at one corner. Aterat was obviously patronizing the boy. Aterat herself had awakened at the age of nine this time. But then, hers was a much older soul than Desiderius’s was, so of course she would be the stronger of the two. He wondered briefly how long Shepetheleh had stayed dormant the last few times, but then he quickly pushed that thought out of his mind. He must never compare Aterat’s strength to Shepetheleh’s, even in a passing thought. It would upset her if she knew he even considered such things.
Tsu Lai and Precia stood silently near the door and listened as Aterat and Desiderius talked. Desiderius asked after several of the others and Aterat told him what she felt he needed to know. He was the first of her own who had awakened in the fifteen years that had passed since her own awakening. The three who had left her cause had all been reborn, but so far none of them had awakened. Konrad was still dormant.
“Jaira?” Desiderius asked.
“She has not yet returned.”
Desiderius sighed. “And once she does return, how long before she awakens?” he muttered. “We are weakened without her.”
Tsu Lai gasped quietly and glanced at Precia, who tensed her shoulders and watched Aterat’s reaction with worried eyes. The idea that Aterat might ever need to rely on the strength of anyone but herself was one that must never be implied in her presence. Tsu Lai knew she was struggling to hold in the sudden fury that Desiderius’s words had triggered. He could feel the adrenaline pulsing through his own veins.
Aterat closed her eyes and pursed her lips, but otherwise she maintained her outward composure. “Jaira is strong,” she conceded with a nod, “but I am here, so her absence makes little difference.”
The color left Desiderius’s face as he realized his mistake. “Of course,” he replied hurriedly. “I only meant . . . ah . . .”
“It doesn’t matter,” Aterat cut him off with a wave of her hand. “We are in the better position right now anyway.”
“How many do they have?”
“One or two. No one important. That fool Shepetheleh has not returned yet.”
Tsu Lai felt a slight movement beside him and caught Precia stealing a glance at him. From her smug, amused expression, it was clear that she had heard about his recent failure in Switzerland. Did everyone know about that? He sighed softly and unconsciously brushed his fingers against the spot on his hip where he had been shot. How long until that humiliating episode would be forgotten? He focused his attention back on Aterat.
Desiderius leaned forward slightly in his chair. “So then I guess we won’t be making many big moves anytime soon. Do you know what you want to do now?”
Aterat gave a small smile. “Actually, I’ve been toying with an idea recently . . . But I’ll tell you about that later. For now, you must be tired. I’ll let you get settled in.”
Desiderius thanked her and excused himself, and Precia followed him out.
Aterat leaned back in her chair with a groan. “Well, I suppose that could have gone a lot worse,” she muttered.
Tsu Lai nodded slightly. She had been so nervous about this reunion, and now that it was over, he could tell that she was exhausted. He quietly removed her outdoor shoes from the small cabinet beside the outer door and brought them to her. She gave a little sigh and lifted one foot up as he knelt to remove her sandals. An hour or two spent relaxing in her garden would relieve most of the tension that had built up over the past few days.
Aterat wandered over the winding path toward her favorite little grotto. When she entered, she found a book on the seat of the wooden swing there. She glanced back at Tsu Lai for a moment, her face completely blank, then sat down with the book.
He gave a short, silent bow and left her to her reading. As he walked away, he just barely heard her whisper, “How did he know this was exactly what I needed, when I didn’t even know it myself . . . ?”
Tsu Lai ducked his head and allowed himself a wide smile.
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