Blade of Fortriu by Juliet Marillier

always cut such grooves between mouth and nose, nor bracketed his lips so severely. It seemed to her there was suppressed pain in the dark eyes, and that he leanedon his staff as a far older man might; that he used it, not so much as the major tool of his craft, but as a simple support.
    “I—” she began, and fell silent at the look in his eyes.
    “As you said,” his voice was only a whisper, “Bridei is much concerned with the forthcoming endeavor of war and with the assembly, which will be challenging. We will not burden him with other concerns at such a testingtime. Speak to him only of his son; of what is best for Derelei.”

3
     
     
    F AOLAN WAS FOLLOWING a map he had in his mind, constructed from what little he himself had observed of the territories north of the Great Glen, and from what several informants had told him. It was enhanced by his sensitivity to warning signs in weather and terrain. He could read the moisture in the slightest of breezes, could sense the portent behind a shifting shadow, a coolingof the air. At Abertornie, he and Ged had sat up late with one of the expert guides and discussed the path this expedition would need to take through the mountains. They talked about the narrow defiles, the precipitous slopes where riding was not possible, the places where the track was all too easy to lose. Thus far the preparation had served the travelers well.
    There were certain shadowy placeson Faolan’s map, places he could not see clearly in his mind. Fords that had claimed lives. Hillsides with a reputation for rockslides. Hemmed-in valleys perfect for ambush. Lastly, there would be the forest itself: Briar Wood, a place with a reputation for oddity.
    He pushed his party on as quickly as he thought they could manage. The men were good, and the servant, Creisa, was at least morecapable than her predecessor. She could ride, and her brisk competence in camp was some compensation for her busy tongue and flirtatious manner. One could hardly expect a royal bride to travel alone among men.
    He did not quite know what to make of Ana. Sometimes she challenged him, showing wit and strength. More often she was quiet, docile, so accepting of her fate that it would have irked him,had such matters been of any interest to him. She was like a creature led to the slaughter, all big eyes and golden hair and fastidious attention to cleanliness, when she was about to be handed over to a warrior of dubious reputation who would probably use her as roughly as he might any filthy creature by the wayside … He was letting his mind wander; he was breaking his own rules. Faolan rode aheadof his party, fixing his thoughts on the here and now. He had not mistaken it, that slight hint of moisture in the air. Rain was coming, if not today, tomorrow; if not tomorrow, a day or two later. They had made good progress, and he judged they might reach Briar Wood close to dark of the moon or a little after, a matter of eight or nine days more. If he had imagined his map right, there wasa river to the northwest, and a ford of which Ged’s man had spoken in troubling terms. By the time the rain set in, Faolan wanted to be on the other side of it.
    He called Wrad and Kinet to ride closer; consulted briefly. Judging by the thickly wooded country they were passing through, the chain of small lakes to the south, the hazy contour of the distant mountains, they agreed on an estimateof two days’ ride to the place in question. Perhaps the rain would hold off long enough. Perhaps the horses would make sufficient speed. Had Bridei been here, he would have called down the aid of the gods to see them safely across the water and on to Briar Wood. Faolan did not believe in gods or in luck, only in good management. He gathered the full party around him on the forest track. The pineswere tall here, and in the shadows beneath there was a strange quiet, as if the woods were listening; breathing; waiting. He would be glad when this mission was