Kira watched as he and the girl faced her. They bent in small, identical bows.
Her lips quirked. How adorable.
"Lady, we wanted to thank you for your kindness," the boy said, the words oddly formal. It was a marked difference from the suspicious, fierce thing who had challenged her when she'd pulled them from the burning sailboat.
She watched the two, not knowing how to respond. She hadn't saved them to receive their gratitude. Granted, her actions had consequences she had not foreseen then, but she didn't blame either of them for that.
"What are you doing?" Kira asked, ignoring the thank you.
The two exchanged a look before focusing on Kira. As before, the boy was the first to speak. "I am training."
Kira could see that, but she didn't know the reason why, or why he seemed so desperate. The emotion fueled every move he made.
"Why?" she asked.
The boy's mouth flattened into a stubborn line as he stared up at her. It was an expression she'd seen on other faces, ones who haunted her nightmares. Something about it said he'd had the innocence torn from him, and knew the only person he could count on to protect him from now on, was himself.
That expression kept her rooted in place instead of following her normal routine of retreating to her room as soon as her run was done.
"Joule has to be ready," the girl said.
"For what?"
"To protect us."
Now wasn't that an interesting answer, especially given the phalanx of protection currently circling them.
Baran, seeing the question on her face, stepped forward. "Joule and Ziva are the last of House Maxiim’s future. Joule will either demonstrate his fitness as a House overlord or seek to dissolve his House and swear fealty to another House."
"He means give up our name and lineage," Joule said angrily.
That was what was fueling him? A desire not to lose his family name?
Boring. Kira had expected more.
"A name is merely a bunch of letters strung together and given meaning by someone else," Kira said, her eyes never leaving his.
He scoffed. "You areluijan, outsider. You don't know what you're talking about."
Perhaps not. Kira had chosen her name from a book, thinking it meant rebirth. Instead, she'd been off by a letter and ended up with a name with a different meaning. She'd taken her surname from the forest where Himoto had discovered her.
"Maybe, but this outsider knows you're doing that move wrong," Kira said.
Insult flashed across Joule's face. "One of theoshotataught me this. They’re the emperor's best warriors. Undefeatable in battle. What would aluijanknow about this?"
Kira's mouth quirked up.
Maybe so, but whoever had taught him that move hadn't done him any favors. She doubted they'd intended to help him at all. Not many people could pull off a direct attack on an opponent that size. He was trying to sink all his power into one thrust. Doable, if you were a lot bigger with a strong foundation to work from.
Graydon and his people all could do it. Liont could, Fari too, she suspected. Kira might be able to, if pressed, and if she didn't have to fight afterward.
For someone the size of a child? Impossible. That technique was unsuitable to his small frame and would be for many years. If he was serious about learning to fight and protect himself now, he needed to adjust his style to one that would work for him instead of against him. If he continued in this vein, the only thing he would walk away with at the end would be a bunch of bruises.
"Suit yourself," she said, giving him a bland smile before turning and heading back to the track. It was his life. She might have saved it, but that didn't give her the right to stick her nose where he didn't want it.
Baran kept pace with her, glancing at her occasionally. He wanted something. She just couldn't be sure what.
"Our names define our loyalties," Baran explained when they were halfway around the track again. "If he loses his, he'll lose the last link to his family and ancestors. Those men and women you’ve seen protecting him would be cast upon another House’s mercy, dependent on their goodwill for survival."
