Tarashana by Rachel Neumeier (little red riding hood ebook TXT) 📕

I said to Tano, “We all agree. Perhaps the inTasiyo have a different standard for their young warriors.”

He was trying not to show his surprise, but plainly he was as taken aback by our judgment as we had been by his. “I—you—he had to help me,” he protested. “Twice you had to stop and wait.”

“Twice forty is very severe. That would be severe for an older man than you. It would be severe for anyone.” I met his eyes. He was breathing fast, looking at me, still not certain whether we were mocking him. I said firmly, “You did not do badly. You do not need to be ashamed regarding anything that happened today.”

He ducked his head. That did not prevent me from seeing how he flushed, and paled, and then flushed again. That reaction made me think I was right about the decision I had almost made. Since the moment would not improve, I said, “Tano inTasiyo, all day I have been considering what I should do with you. I am not certain whether I should let you go, or whether I should take you to my father, or whether I should do something else. It may take me some time to decide what I should do. While I consider the matter, I want you to take oath to obey me. I want you to swear that until I release you from your oath, you will obey me as though I were your eldest brother. You may have this whole night to consider the matter. At dawn, I will hear your answer.”

That made him forget the other things that had worried him. He stared at me. Then he said, “I do not need the night to think. Until you release me from this oath, I will obey you as though you were my eldest brother—as though you were your eldest brother. I swear it before the gods. I—” he took a breath. “I will keep this oath. I will keep it.”

My eldest brother was warleader of the inGara. He must know that. I was certain he knew exactly what he had sworn. He had given me a much stronger oath than I had asked, even though he could not possibly have guessed what I meant to ask him to do until I asked him. That told me something about him I had already suspected: this was a very intelligent young man. It told me something new as well: he made important decisions very fast. That is something that can be good or bad.

He had not sworn by his father’s honor or by his mother’s name. That told me yet another thing about him.

I said, “I take you into my honor. The touch of your foot does not offend inGara land. The touch of your hand does not pollute inGara possessions. You may eat our food and drink from our streams without giving insult to inGara. I will deal with you exactly as I would deal with a younger brother. I swear this before the gods.”

He was staring at me in astonishment.

Rakasa shook his head. “I cannot wait to hear what you tell your father, Ryo.”

“I will tell him the truth,” I answered. “That it seemed good to me to make the decisions I made. I do not imagine he will be pleased. If he is sufficiently displeased, I may need to ask you to help me to stand. Fortunately, you seem practiced at that task. I wish to speak to this young man alone. Perhaps everyone else will withdraw.”

“I have no doubt you have many things you wish to discuss,” Rakasa said, but he walked away. Everyone moved away and went about other tasks and pretended not to be interested.

I studied Tano for a moment. He waited, tense and quiet, his gaze lowered. Finally, I said, “You have learned somewhere to tell lies.” I did not say anything about how I thought that might have happened. I said instead, “This is not remotely acceptable in any brother of mine. You will not lie to me again. Never. Nor to anyone else while you are my brother.”

“Yes,” he said, very quietly, acknowledging this order. The color had come up into his face again.

“We are going north, to my mother’s camp, which is at this time as far north as one can go, at the foot of the Fangs of the North. Now you are going there too.”

“Yes,” he said again. He did not ask any questions.

“I told you that you were stupid to think of going into the summer country. I was wrong. It was a bad choice, but for an inTasiyo warrior in your position, it was undoubtedly the best choice you had.”

He glanced up, then immediately dropped his gaze again. This was not what he had expected me to say.

“Most Ugaro would be nervous about going into the summer country south of inGara lands. Everyone knows inGara extended friendship to a Lau sorcerer. This did not concern you?”

He shook his head. “I ... I was much more concerned about other things.”

“Yes. But you see these Lau travel with us. You have realized one of them is this sorcerer.”

“Aras.”

I nodded. Anyone who was not very stupid would have realized that. I said, “Yes. He cannot help but see into your mind. He does not reveal to anyone the things that should be private. You may have realized this, as he has already obviously declined to tell me some things he must have seen in your thoughts. Is that why you were not too afraid of him to take the oath as I asked?” I thought of another reason and went on. “Or did you fear your own people so much that you were less afraid of Aras than of returning to your own tribe? Your lord is