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General Kirigan took Katya to the stables and selected two horses, a nearly black one for himself and a bay for her.

At first they cantered through the park along a raked gravel path. They passed several lawns framed by evergreen hedges and onion shaped topiaries, the latter matching the towers on the Little Palace, and in the flowerbeds grew late-blooming marigolds.

At the end of the park came a forest. The branches were getting bare and the ground was littered with fallen leaves in golden hues, rustling under your horses' hooves. It smelled fresh and earthy, and was a pleasant contrast to the rather stuffy air indoors. Being from the country, Katya felt a lot more at home out here.

Filled with a sudden burst of energy, she nudged her horse into a gallop. The tree trunks rushed by and the wind whipped her face, whirling up a cloud of leaves in her wake. Aleksander followed her example, and suddenly their ride had turned into a friendly race. With adrenaline flowing through their veins, they drove their horses faster and faster.

Over the wind Katya heard Aleksander laugh; a hearty, truly joyful sound that made her chest swell with happiness.

When they finally slowed down, the horses were steaming. Continuing the ride at loose reins to let them stretch their necks and catch their breaths, Aleksander led Katya onto an old, nearly overgrown path.

"I used to run here when I was young," he said, breaking off a low-hanging branch and tossing it to the side.

"Why?"

"Because I needed it. All my life, I..." He broke off, and then started again. "You wouldn't understand what it was like growing up a Grisha with powers nobody had ever seen before. They feared me. And therefore they hated me." He sounded bitter.

"What do you mean, nobody had seen it before? What about the Black Heretic? He was a Shadow Summoner too." The Black Heretic, also called the Darkling, was a Grisha who lived over five hundred years ago. He aided the king in a great war, and in payment he was allowed to build the Little Palace as a sanctuary for his order. But later the Darkling rebelled against the king, and using forbidden powers he tried to convert the king's soldiers into his slaves, inadvertently creating the Shadow Fold and getting killed in the process.

"True," Aleksander replied curtly, not really answering the question.

The path ended at an old stone well. They tied their horses to a tree, and went to peer into the murky water. It looked deep, but dead leaves and branches littering the surface made it hard to tell.

"It's a wishing well," said Aleksander. "Though, it probably doesn't work. I've dropped a great many coins into it but it never granted my wish."

"What were you wishing for?"

He met her gaze. "To be normal."

Feeling her heart constrict in sympathy Katya nodded quickly. "I understand." After all, that had been her own wish too, every day of her life before coming to the Little Palace.

"I've never brought anyone else here." He sat on the edge of the well.

"I'm flattered." She sat beside him.

Their hands were close enough to brush against each other. Now that Katya was not summoning, it did not feel quite the same way, but even now some sort of connection began to form where their skin touched.

"When can we summon again?" she asked. She longed to repeat it, craved it even.

He raised his eyebrows. "You really do like it?"

"Yes. It's... I can't even describe it. The power... Your power and mine working together... It feels like I can do anything. Like nobody can resist me." Just thinking of it made her heart beat faster.

Placing a thumb on Katya's wrist, he felt her quick pulse. "You're hard to resist." He moved his finger, tracing the inside of her arm. Her skin felt alive where he touched.

Was he flirting with her? She felt a flutter in her stomach.

"Yesterday, you seemed to be startled by me," she mumbled.

He stiffened. "Yes. You look almost uncannily like a Grisha I knew a long time ago."

She had suspected as much. Who had it been? Suddenly Katya itched to know.

"Your lover?" she guessed.

He did not deny it. "A healer named Luda. One of the best..." His eyes grew distant.

"What happened?"

"The king's men happened," he spat.

"The king?" She stared at him in disbelief.

"Not this king. But he got what he deserved in the end." His face had become distorted with hatred. She had never seen him angry before, and for the first time she felt a twinge of fear. She was reminded of her earlier assessment of him: he was a dangerous man.

"What did you do?" she whispered.

"You don't want to know that." He abruptly rose, and busied himself with tidying the well from debris.

"Yes, I do." Katya tried to catch his arm, but he shook her off.

"I will continue with your training, and if you learn to summon a sun then you shall help me work on the Fold. That's all. You don't need to be corrupted further." His voice was cold and uninviting.

"Corrupted? Aleksander, what are you talking about?" Again she tried to get a hold of him, and this time he allowed it, meeting her gaze. His eyes were hard and sharp like smooth onyx.

"Tell me," she pleaded.

"No. It's time to return. Lunch is due." He mounted his horse, and Katya had no other option than doing the same.

They spent the ride home in silence.

A/N:

Why is he so secretive? If you saw the series you probably know. ;)

Thanks for votes and comments! *hugs*