LilyFields Entertainment

When Jonnuh woke up, he was confused for a few moments. The last thing he remembered was opening up the book Master Wizard Ringgil had ordered him to copy and thinking that if he weren't so tired that he'd be hungry. Even now, lying in his bed in the dark of his little room, he was still too tired to be hungry.

After a little while, his mind focused enough for him to guess that he must have fallen asleep at the desk and someone had put him in his bed. He wiggled his toes to be sure that his sandals were off (they were), and he shifted a little to feel if his robes were still on (they weren't). So someone had put him in bed just like Da used to, even pulling up the blankets to his chin.

Blearily, Jonnuh sat up and blinked for several moments. Then he groaned. He was stiff and sore from head to toes. It took him even longer to remember why he felt so badly. The session in the salle came back to him slowly, like sunrise over the horizon.

That thought got him up and out of his cot; it must be close to morning, which meant he needed to get ready for laundering duty.

No, he didn't do laundering anymore; he was Master Wizard Ringgil's student now. But he still had to get up and tend the plants. Blinking and yawning, Jonnuh fumbled his way to the lavatory. His hands weren't completely dry when he stumbled out to the main room and found the watering canister.

About halfway through his watering chore, Jonnuh's stomach woke up enough for him to be hungry. In fact, it woke up in a bad mood and growled so loudly half the turm must have heard it. Jonnuh winced, not just from the sound but from how much that rumble had hurt. But he wasn't allowed to have breaksfast until all the plants were cared for, so he kept at it.

He clamped his lips together while he pinched off the dead and dying leaves and put them in the little basket he used for that purpose. He couldn't remember ever being this hungry! He checked the protective spells, adjusted a few, and collected bugs from the trap to feed the eating plants. As he watched the leaves close over a fat fly, he wondered what they tasted like. He also wondered how much trouble he would get in finding out.

First duties complete, Jonnuh scurried over to the food cabinet. He tugged on the doors, but they didn't budge. Grumbling, he trudged back to the little canister and basket, emptied both into the drain and compost respectively, and put them back in place. After that, the cabinet opened.

There wasn't much in the cabinet, since most of the meals came up fresh from the kitchens, so Jonnuh ate every piece of fruit and all the biscuits and drank all the cold water. Sometimes, there were leftovers from his teacher's breaksfast that Jonnuh got to snatch, but he usually had to be content with the cabinet, which the kitchen drudges refilled every day. Since Jonnuh had eaten everything, he wouldn't have a snack to get him through the late morning or afternoon. His stomach was quiet now, but Jonnuh had the feeling that it would be a long, long time until luncheon.

If Master Wizard Ringgil had given him any new instructions for this morning, Jonnuh didn't remember them. He checked the little desk to see if there was a note of any kind left for him. Nothing but the books and pages he'd been working with. So Jonnuh started in on the last lesson he'd been set. The aged Wizard did not often rise early, but Jonnuh had learned that he would know if his novice were not "appropriately engaged." The last thing Jonnuh wanted was to give any Wizard a reason to punish him further.

Maybe the Master would decide that they would go to the hot houses today; that was always a treat. Jonnuh learned lots and lots from the books and the lectures, but there was nothing like getting his hands in the soil and feeling the leaves between his fingers. Plus, there were others in the hothouses; even if he couldn't talk to them, Jonnuh could at least hear them talk and know that he wasn't alone. Sometimes, being in Master Wizard Ringgil's quarters for bells or days on end felt like being back in that locked chamber.

After nearly a bell of practice, rewriting, and re-reading, Jonnuh heard the door to the quarters open. He twisted around to see who had entered and gasped with pain. His whole body hurt like fire!

"I told you to take breaks and stretch, lad," a quiet voice chided him. Jonnuh wanted to turn around and look, but he thought that if he did, he'd likely break something. Strong hands helped him off the stool.

"Come, then. Just like yester." The quiet voice and gentle hands guided him through the stretches. After a few minutes, Jonnuh could look up at Uliab's face.

"Thank you, Sword Uliab."

The man smiled down at him. "No good to anyone, least of all y'self, if you don't have a care. Now, let's complete the set, and you can get back to your books and parchments."

A quarter-bell later, Jonnuh felt almost like himself again. As he thanked the sword again and settled back on his stool, a thought popped into his head and jumped out his mouth before he could stop it.

"Aren't you really late today? Master Wizard Ringgil will be up soon, and you're supposed to be here long afore that."

Uliab looked at him sideways, as if he wasn't sure Jonnuh was fibbing. Then he said, "Lad, it's bare on sixth bell. Even the drudges are just now stirring."

Jonnuh blinked. "Really?"

The sword looked around the chamber for several breaths and sighed. "The Master doesn't keep a chime in here, and you can't hear the chimes outside. Small wonder you didn't know the bell. No, lad; you rose far sooner than you needed to."

"Oh." Jonnuh looked down at the book and tried not to feel foolish.

"No harm done, lad. Since there's time yet, why don't you write your notes? Before you're needed for other duties." The sword gave a wink, which reminded Jonnuh of what "notes" he meant.

"Oh! You're right! I should write those. Thank you for reminding me, Sword Uliab."

"Certainly, Novice Jonnuh."

They shared a smile before Jonnuh hunched over his desk and pulled out fresh pages. A loud noise stopped him.

"Was that your tum, lad?"