Jenn was surprised when Saelea took most of the day to return. She wasn't sure how long she'd expected the task to take, but it certainly wasn't that long. Which merely made her rather quite interested in finding out exactly why that was.
"So, was there really that many names that it took you this long?" Jenn asked when she saw Saelea enter the inn directly ahead of Jeliup, where she had been having a late lunch, almost an early dinner, of a cheese sandwich she'd fashioned out of some bread she'd gotten from a nearby bakery and cheese she'd gotten from the innkeeper.
"Actually, it was the scribes that kept it taking longer than it should have," Saelea complained as she sat next to Jenn, placing her head on the table, looking more tired than she had when she walked into the inn. "I think they kept thinking that I wasn't going to have so many names, so they kept not bringing enough parchment to write on."
"So, you did finish, right? You won't need to go back tomorrow?" Jenn asked, feeling like that was what Saelea was going to say next, at least with how she'd been talking.
Saelea shook her head. "Fortunately no, we finished. Though, I think the scribes were more relieved than I was. Besides, if I hadn't, I suspect I'd still be there until I finished. Even if it took until after the sun had gone down."
"Well, get something to eat. You look like you need the energy," Yaelish commented from a nearby table.
Saelea shook her head. "I'm good. Whie the scribes were constantly complaining about how much parchment I was wasting with how many names there were, the duchess did send us food to eat, so I'm not really that hungry."
Jenn nodded to herself as she let Yaelish take over the conversation. She wasn't that worried about if Saelea needed to eat anything, as she expected that Saelea would have said something if she wanted anything.
While she didn't mind some of the benefits of having someone guard her, there were other point that she could do without. The constant worrying about her health, such as if she needed something to eat or if she got enough sleep was getting on her nerves. Though, the only positive about it was the fact that it wasn't something that they were doing all the time. Such as how it wasn't until she'd gotten back from her errand with Yaelish that she'd started getting pestered about getting something to eat.
While she hadn't been hungry then, she eventually relented and agreed to have something, even if she didn't completely feel like getting a bit to eat. Although, it wasn't until she took the first bite that she realized just how hungry she really had been. It was more that the feeling of someone looking after her in a way that she'd never experienced before, as even when she'd had a babysitter as a small child she hadn't been looked after like that.
She wasn't sure how Saelea felt about it, as she couldn't bring herself to ask about it, since she wasn't sure if it would be rude or not. Even though she suspected that as the Blue Rose, they wouldn't care and she could be as rude as she wanted to them. Which to Jenn wasn't something she thought would be a good thing if that was actually the case. As if she allowed herself to be rude to whoever she wanted, at the very least, then she couldn't say what she'd do if she was rude to the wrong person or at the wrong time.
"Jenn? Jenn??" a voice asked loudly, startling Jenn out of her thoughts, nearly making her fall from her seat in the chair at the table.
"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you like that," Saelea said apologetically.
"It's okay. I was lost in thought," Jenn replied, a little surprised that she'd let herself get so wrapped up in her thoughts that she'd gotten as startled as she had. "What did you need?
"I was wondering if maybe we could talk about… you know, what we agreed to talk about later?" Saelea asked hesitantly, her eyes glancing at the Silverthorns by them.
While Jenn immediately knew what Saelea was talking about, she didn't like the looks the others were giving them. It felt too much like even if they went to their room, that they wouldn't really get any actual privacy, that the Silverthorns would be listening in as closely as they could through the thin walls. At least that's the suspicion she had from the expressions on their faces. Or at least enough of them, which included Yaelish.
"Maybe later," Jenn said, not sure how to refuse Saelea's request without making those who clearly wanted to eavesdrop from getting even more curious about what Saelea had referred to and why she was nervous about it; assuming that's what had them so curious about it, that is. "I just think we should talk about it when we don't have to worry about prying ears trying to intrude."
Jenn gave the Silverthorns a pointed look, doing her best to let them know that she recognized what they were thinking, even if they likely wouldn't admit to it. Though most at least had the sense to look like they recognized what a mistake doing that would have been. Although, she could tell that her words hadn't quite reached everyone. Such as Yaelish, who she let her gaze linger on, hoping that she'd at least think twice about doing that. However, it grated Jenn's nerves when Yaelish had the audacity to chuckle.
"Okay," Saelea said, sounding a little disappointed, but Jenn wasn't going to let that sway her.
Instead, she wracked her brain trying to think of the best time to discuss that topic. After all, since those who were supposed to be guarding them knew that there was something that the two of them wanted to discuss without the others knowing about, it seemed to make them want to know what it was. Which Jenn certainly didn't want known. Especially since she couldn't say how far that knowledge would spread or even how it might mutate with each telling. Especially with what she knew about what actually happened. She didn't need rumors 'spicing' it up or embellishing what happened.
Just the thought of it happening that way made her want to leave and hide until that knowledge faded from living memory. Despite the fact that she knew she'd likely remember it for longer than she'd like herself.
"Let me just say that if we talk about it now, that we might as well discuss it here with how much privacy we'd be able to find anywhere around here," Jenn replied flatly. "I'd rather not having the discussion over that event become gossip for everyone to enjoy talking about."
Saelea looked at Jenn like she didn't understand what Jenn was getting at, but she supposed that she wouldn't. Not with how she didn't seem to pick up on what exactly Jenn was referring to when it came to the lack of privacy they'd find.
"So, is there anything else you'd like to talk about? Something that wouldn't matter if it got out?"
"What do you mean 'get out'?" Saelea asked, looking confused, which Jenn wasn't that surprised about, as it did occasionally happen when she used expressions that she hadn't heard on this world.
"I mean that everyone would know," Jenn answered flatly, wishing that Saelea didn't look so surprised. It made her wonder if she might eventually get like that. Where those around here didn't even reach her radar.
"How would everyone know? I'd be willing to discuss this in our room so no one's around," Saelea said, sounding like she still didn't understand.
"Simple. The walls here are so thin that they wouldn't have to try hard to eavesdrop," Jenn explained, partly wondering why she was explaining things to this detail to her friend. "And looking at those around us, there's several candidates who would love to listen in on what you were talking about."
"I thought you were lost in thought."
"I don't need to know what you've already said to know how interested those around us are in what we'd actually say when we think that they can't hear."
Saelea looked at the Silverthorns around them, many of which gave her a look of such innocence that Jenn felt like finding some way to get back at them, even though they hadn't actually done anything just yet. Although, some at least looked annoyed by the reactions the others had, which Jenn couldn't help but smile at. Especially since it let her know that there were at least some who weren't interested in listening in on what she and Saelea had to talk about.
"Are you sure that they'd do something like that? They seem like they'd likely stay down here, just like last night."
"How do you know that they were down here all night?" Jenn asked, feeling a little unsure at how Saelea would respond to her question.
"Because I didn't hear any of them come up there…" Saelea said but then trailed off. Jenn hoped that it was because she realized the implications of what she'd said.
Jenn sighed. While Saelea might have come up with the reason why that method wouldn't work, she still felt an urge to say something about it, feeling like she'd need to spell out the reasons why relying on that as a method to know if anyone is trying to eavesdrop on them wasn't a good one. "That may be the case, but if you think about it, at this time there could be other people in the other rooms so if we hear someone coming up the stairs could be someone else, since we'd have to look in order to see. Plus, there's no guarantee that we'd hear anyone if we're engrossed in any conversation that we may have," Jenn said.
Saelea looked as if Jenn had insulted her, though Jenn wasn't sure how she could have avoided it and made sure that her point was made secure. Though, at that moment, she wondered if maybe this would be a good opportunity to work on Saelea's magic training. While she'd rather have Saelea proficient in talking mind-to-mind in order to have a discussion of this nature, she supposed it would at least be better than talking about it out loud.
Not to mention that she would know for certain that they wouldn't be able to be overheard.
"As I think about it, maybe there is a way that we'll be able to talk without anyone being able to overhear us," Jenn said as she took another bite out of the cheese sandwich. "Though, maybe you wouldn't be up to using this method to discuss what you want to talk about, it would at least give you something to do while we wait here for a few days at night."
"We're not heading back right away?" Saelea asked, sounding startled, though Jenn felt a little surprised at Saelea's surprise, given how part of the plan had been to stay for a little bit to let her see the sights of this city.
Or at least she thought that Saelea had been aware of that part of the plan.
"Well, unless I'm told about anything that requires us to head back right away, when I check in with Zirisia, Tchisa, Polelin, and Maelia, among the others tonight, I thought we were staying here for a little bit so you could at least see the sights."
Saelea blinked. "That was part of the plan? I thought that was just wishful thinking."
Jenn couldn't help but smile in amusement. She wasn't sure where Saelea had gotten that impression, but she couldn't help but find it amusing.
"Well, think of where you'd like to go. Although, probably best not to go to the castle. I mean not only have you already seen it but we wouldn't want the duchess to question what we're doing. After all, I get the feeling that it's best to keep from dealing with her as much as possible."
"Is there any of that left? It looks good and I think I'd like something to eat myself," Saelea asked, motioning towards the sandwich Jenn was nearly done with.
Jenn motioned to Yaelish. "Yeah, we should still have some bread left and we can always buy some more cheese from the innkeeper here."
"Need something, Jenn?" Yaelish asked as she walked from the table she'd been sitting at. While Yaelish had used her name, Jenn could tell that she still wanted to say 'my lady' instead, which Jenn couldn't help but feel a little grateful for, even though she still could recall how eager Yaelish looked when it came to possibly overhearing what Saelea wanted to discuss with her.
"Saelea would like some bread and cheese. So, would you get some cheese from the innkeeper? Also, I think we should have some bread leftover from the bakery but I can't remember where it was put."
"Don't worry, I know right where it is," Yaelish said, saluting Jenn.
It felt a little over the top, but she supposed that it wasn't exactly out of place, since she was Yaelish's superior officer. Although, she suspected that it was Yaelish's way of getting back at her for not allowing her to be more respectful with her words towards Jenn. Which she supposed was a small price to pay, as the salute certainly didn't draw as much attention as being called things like 'my lady' would have drawn.
"So, what is this method that you mentioned?" Saelea asked, her eyes showing how skeptical she was about what Jenn had promised. "It better not be something that is just you and me walking around with no one around us."
It now felt like it was Jenn's turn to feel insulted. She wasn't sure If Saelea meant to do that, but she supposed that it'd be fair if she did. "Actually, it's something that involves your magic. After all, it's long past time I helped you learn to use your magic than I had before. The method is where we can communicate with our magic, essentially talking with our minds."
"That? Didn't you teach us to do that already? I could have sworn you'd said something about it, even though we don't use that method that much," Saelea replied, looking a little confused.
Jenn felt stunned. Did she teach them to do that? She wasn't sure. Though, if she'd at least taught her the basics, then it was something that would allow them to talk without worrying about who was around them, and if she was proficient enough then they could have that discussion sooner than Jenn had expected.
"Well, maybe you could show me how much of what I'd taught you before stuck," Jenn said. "My friends and I used it to communicate periodically, which was useful, since we could do it without being directly by each other and without worrying about who was around us."
Saelea nodded, looking thoughtful. "I guess it is something that maybe we should have practiced more than we had, but when would we use it? It's not like we're around other people that much when we need to talk."
"Well, if you find a difficult problem before you, you could look like you're considering how to respond while asking Roesadra and Oleania what their thoughts on the matter are. That way you could be more confident in what your decision would be. Even if it's to delay making a final decision until you're able to discuss it with me."
Saelea looked thoughtful for a moment and Jenn could only assume that she was thinking over what she'd just said. "That does sound like it'd be useful to know, but even still, it doesn't sound like it'd be very often that we'd be able to use it."
Jenn shook her head. "Don't think like that. If you only use a skill when you think it'd be useful, then you might miss other opportunities that the skill might help out on. Especially when you don't have times you think it'd be useful come up that often. Some skills should be perfected so when you need to use them, they'll be ready for you to use, no matter how often they come up in. Otherwise you'll find that you might not have what you need when the time comes."
"I'll take those words to heart, my lady," Saelea said, whispering the last two words to Jenn.
Jenn sighed. While she supposed it wasn't as bad as saying it at a regular volume, she still wished she could get those around her to stop calling her that when there were people who didn't know she was the Blue Rose around.
Yet, she didn't see the point in bringing that up right then. After all, it could give the others ideas that she'd rather they didn't have about calling her that.
"Well, at least think about it. Though, we could work on talking mind-to-mind so we can have that discussion whenever you feel up for it. Just so that way you won't be trying to tell me an important point but are unable to get it to me."
Saelea smiled, looking more relaxed than she had since before that accident that morning. Which also made Jenn feel a little better. She hadn't felt very good with how they'd left things that morning, but circumstances prevented them from being able to talk much about it then. Circumstances that had been set in motion well before they'd even had that accident.
The thought of which made Jenn feel embarrassed, even though it had been several hours since it had occurred. She just hoped that none of those with them would ever learn about what had happened. She was pretty sure that she would seriously consider abandoning her people if something like that were to ever happen.