Knock

I deliver three, slow knocks on the wooden door. I hear rustling from inside, then steps, then the door opens and a blonde woman opens the door. She is a little taller than me, her skin a little older. Her piercing blue eyes stare at me, her lips stuck in a cold resting expression. Brynhildr, the Valkyrie. Namesake of our squad, and the glue holding it together.

“Hi,” I say.

She steps aside and waves me in.

Opposite of the door there is a big open window, and a change of clothes is folded right next to it. Bryn’s wearing a robe, presumably with nothing underneath.

“Exposure again?” I ask.

“Yeah,” she sighs. Her shoulders are slouched as she collapses on a small couch to my right, her eyes have dark circles under them.

“How did it go this time?”

She takes out her wooden pipe from the inside of her robe. She nods and I look for her tobacco, finding it in a little leather baggy on a table at the left side of the room. I throw it at her.

“Like every other time,” she replies after a few seconds. She loads the pipe and touches the runes to the sides of the bowl with her index and thumb. The tobacco lights up.

“Damn. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” she waves her hand around. Judging by the volume of smoke she’s swallowing, it's safe to assume that it's not okay.

I sit next to her on the couch, my butt squished between her and its arm. I put my arm around her and she leans into me.

“What's on your mind?” I ask.

“Lots of things,” she extends the pipe towards me. “You.”

“Me?” I take the pipe but don’t smoke.

“It's been ten days,” she says solemnly. “Finch said you should have been back a week ago. You’ve never been gone for this long.”

“Shit…” I sigh. The thought of sharing my almost deadly comeback crosses my mind, but she’s worried enough as is. “I’m sorry, Bryn. I know how much you worry about me.”

“Someone has to,” she reaches for her pipe again. “I couldn’t bring myself to face you today. Those empty eyes of yours… Gods, was I scared. I didn’t know if you’d ever be back.”

“I’m back though. And this time… I won’t leave you again,” I lie.

She grins. “Yeah, I’m sure you won’t.”

We stay like that for a while. Her smoking, me holding her.

“You shouldn’t bully the Loinsteak, though,” I say.

“And he shouldn’t snitch,” she jokes.

“I’m serious. He’ll die for you if you ask him. And he’s worried about you too, you know.”

“I know. I’ll make it up to him later.”

She pushes my hand away and gets up. She walks to the window to empty her pipe and unbutton her robe. I look away.

“The Brighton Bash is due,” she says as she gets dressed.

“Fuuuuck,” I groan. “I hate the Bash.”

“Come on, dear. We are getting honored this year. Besides, I heard one team Dessert Fox will be there.”

"Saladin?" I exclaim, a thick blush firing up my cheeks.

Bryn chuckles. "He wouldn't miss it."

“So what's the plan?”

“Me and Finch. I’ll drop him off at Ravenbloom and go to High-Oh alone. Then we’ll hitch a ride down the river. If you leave early you should have enough time to get your papers and catch up with us at Glassham.”

I shake my head. “You’ve spoken to the Scouts, I take it?”

“I sent Finch, he should be back soon.”

As if on cue, the main door downstairs audibly opens and closes. There is some barely legible conversation between two men, it's probably Finch. Bryn is done putting on her pants and turns her back against me, so I turn towards her.

“What about Loinsteak?” I ask.

“He’s with you, I can’t have you out on the road alone with that wound.”

I open my mouth to protest, but I decide against it. “So that's what you had in mind to make it up to him,” I joke.

She chuckles, throwing on a dress shirt over her shoulders.