We Will Hunt Together (9 page)

Inside were Helgaer's practice sword, and a similar, older, wooden sword. Helgaer stared at Camille in astonishment.

"I bought this with me all the way from the Gharaj camp," Camille said, holding her sword up to examine it. "It's still good." She stood up, holding both swords. "Do you feel like some sparring?"

Helgaer stared at her for a second, then began untying pouches from her belt.

Helgaer took her vest off before accepting her sword from Camille.

She had not truly analysed Camille the way Tola had taught her to analyse opponents. She had seen the way Camille moved, and how she placed her feet, and knew she had not ignored that, but she had not truly studied Camille. She studied her now.

Camille moved lightly and smoothly, as Helgaer had been expecting, her feet gliding lightly over the ground, reacting instantly to obstacles. She held herself loosely, giving herself room to move.

Vreelanders fought with strength and precision, preferring simple and direct movements to clever tricks. Girls and boys are both taught to use staves, but not to try and spin them or lose sight of the ends. Every movement should be an attack or a defence—both, if possible.

Camille moved more than Helgaer. She was happy moving her wrist, the point of her sword pointing at Helgaer while she moved the hilt to angle the blade.

Helgaer, not one to wait for her opponent to make the first move, attacked strongly, cutting up at Camille's wrist.

Camille beat the blade aside easily with her own, riposting but withdrawing the attack when Helgaer easily pulled back out of range. She moved her entire body, lots of little movements all adding together.

Camille probed Helgaer's defences, the tip of her sword darting for Helgaer's chest. Helgaer twisted away from the attack as she cut at Camille's wrist.

Camille's eyes widened slightly as she leapt sideways away from the counter-attack.

Helgaer swung to follow her, keeping her shoulders and hips aligned, the point of her sword tracking the centre of Camille's sternum now.

Camille twisted her sword around to catch and divert Helgaer's blade. Helgaer pulled back just far enough to disengage, then attacked again.

Camille tried to disarm Helgaer by binding her sword. Helgaer retreated, face neutral but giving Camille a nod of recognition.

Helgaer knew she was stronger than Camille, and almost faster, but Camille was a trickier swordswoman who presented less of a direct danger and was easy to block, but might trap Helgaer's blade or, if they fought with shields or daggers in their off-hands, might be able to get around Helgaer's guard and attack her from the side.

Camille tried rapid, probing attacks, seeing if she could sneak through Helgaer's guard, but Helgaer deflected or evaded each one with ease. Camille had to retreat in frustration.

Helgaer attacked while Camille was still stepping backwards, catching her wrong-footed and pressed her backwards. Camille cut Helgaer's first attack to one side but found her riposte counter-attacked. Helgaer continued pressing as Camille retreated in a wide circle to stay in the clearing as she tried to keep Helgaer's sword off her arm or body.

Helgaer finally broke through as a stone turned under Camille's foot, pulling the attack at the last second to tap lightly between Camille's breasts.

Camille staggered, looking ungainly for a brief second before finding her balance again.

She saluted with genuine respect.

When they closed again, it was Camille who tried to press an advantage, her lighter sword flickering around Helgaer's but never managing to dodge it entirely. Helgaer made Camille leap sideways with an occasional probing counter-attack, but Camille was quicker on her feet this time and did not let up. She barely seemed to use the same technique twice, but she found Helgaer's short, direct movements, although they seemed so easy to evade, impossible to escape.

A look of disbelief crossed Camille's face for an instant as Helgaer managed at last to cut at her wrist, numbing Camille's fingers.

They stood in silence for a while, both breathing easily, as Camille massaged her wrist.

"Again," Camille said when she was ready.

They cut back and forth a few times before Helgaer struck Camille's sword so hard, with what seemed just a flick of her own wrist, that Camille lost her grip long enough for Helgaer to lightly tap her on the side of her neck.

"How long was Tola teaching you?" Camille asked as she found her water skin.

"Everyone in Vreeland learns to fight." She had sparred without expression or any emotion, but there was definite amusement in Helgaer's voice now.

Camille shook her head as she replaced the skin's stopper. "With staves, you said."

Helgaer held her sword up to examine it, lightly turning the grip in her hand. "They are not so different. How long were the Gharaj teaching you?"

"Four months, but after them, I have had lessons from hunters and my friends in the village. I thought I could look out for myself." She shook her head again. "How hard are you trying?"

Helgaer merely grinned at her.

They squared up again. This time, Helgaer knew she had Camille's measure. She could not see an easy opening all the time, but she knew she could weather any of Camille's attacks and find a way through. Without having to use her left arm, her wound was not paining her much. She broke through Camille's attack three more times before Camille conceded.

"I thought I would be able to teach you something," Camille said, staring at Helgaer with a mixture of respect and disbelief.

"There is much you would be able to teach me about the bow, and you have been teaching me even more about hunting."

Camille shook her head. "You fought with your brother when you were children, didn't you?"

"I always beat him then, as well."

"Did you ever manage to beat Tola? Fairly?"

Helgaer shook her head, her triumphant grin gone. "Only while wrestling. Never with any sort of weapon."

"By the gods. Yet you hope to take revenge on her killers."

"That is why we will have to kill them one by one."

"Well, I'm glad I could teach you something, then."

Helgaer nodded gravely. "When we find him."

Camille only frowned at that.

They were silent for a little while, each alone with her own thoughts. Helgaer studied Camille while Camille stalked to the edge of the clearing to look out across the forest. "You must get lonely, living there."

Camille hesitated a heartbeat too long before answering. "Living alone suits me. People have not treated me well."

"People are like wolves, always searching for a pack when they don't have one."

"Oh, I thought you were going to say they were dangerous, territorial and had valuable skins."

Helgaer did not laugh. She stepped up to Camille, who seemed suddenly wary.

"I know the look on your face. I saw it in Tola. She admitted it to me, not long before she died. You pride your loneliness, but you desire company."

"You think I helped you because I was lonely?"

"I think you helped me while you were lonely. No man or woman can know her own mind fully."

Camille cocked her head on one side. "You put great stock in destiny and obligations. Why do you care about my destiny?"

Helgaer shook her head in frustration. "Because, for at least a little while, I am part of it. You say I put great stock in obligations. I do. You saved my life. Even if you just did it to kill bandits, that is important. In a storm, even enemies are friends."

"The Gharaj have a saying: The enemy of my enemy is my friend. But you have to choose which one is your enemy."

"People can put aside their quarrels. The weather is not so considerate. Make your decision when the skies are clear again."

"But Captain Koda?"

"He dies before I seek shelter. Vengeance is more important than personal concerns."

Camille appeared about to say something, but did not. She raised an eyebrow. "You are part of my destiny?"

Helgaer raised her own eyebrow.

Camille waited until it became clear that Helgaer was waiting for her. Then, she kissed Helgaer.

All of Camille's self-control seemed to be unleashed. Without stopping the kiss, she started scrabbling at Helgaer's belt.

After six months with Tola, Helgaer was no stranger to passion outdoors. With awareness born from habit, she steered Camille towards a flatter patch of ground.

Camille dropped Helgaer's belt, then pushed up her shirt. Helgaer pulled it off, still wincing as her left arm rose too high, as Camille's mouth pressed into the skin over her belly.

Camille moved up, lapping at Helgaer's sweat. She made a frustrated sound when she encountered the breast binding, then dropped back down towards Helgaer's waist.

Helgaer dropped her shirt carefully behind her while Camille untied her pants. She stopped Camille long enough to lie down.

Helgaer's wolf-skin pants were too thick to slide far down her legs. Neither of them cared to spend the time unlacing her boots.

Helgaer impatiently reached down to pull Camille up towards her.

Camille ducked under Helgaer's hands. She knelt over Helgaer's legs, pinning them down. Helgaer's head dropped back to the ground, her hands going automatically to her tightly bound breasts.

Camille had enough access for her tongue to wet along the outer lips of Helgaer's kunta, then probe between them. Helgaer moved her hands to under her buttocks, lifting her hips up towards Camille's mouth.

With her saliva adding to Helgaer's own growing lubrication, Camille wriggled two fingers inside Helgaer's kunta, wetting them thoroughly and then working them in and out until they moved easily.

Helgaer closed her eyes and tried to relax.

Camille's persistence almost overshadowed her skill. Helgaer was sure she would have no trouble finding a climax from Camille's relentless stimulation alone, but there was a subtlety in the way Camille used her fingers and her tongue that exceeded what Helgaer knew how to do to herself.

She didn't shout—she was too used to hiding herself to be loud—but the muscles in her neck and jaw bulged and she arched off the ground between her feet and her shoulders.

Camille sat up, licking her fingers clean. Helgaer grabbed her arm. She tried to pull away, but not even she was a match for Helgaer's strength.

Helgaer held Camille against her, on her right side, staring into her face.

"You do not want to take pleasure."

Camille froze.

"Tell me," Helgaer said. "I will not force you, but I would like to know." She let her arm relax, so Camille could leave if she wanted to.

Camille started pushing away, but the expression on Helgaer's face seemed to make her slump. She sagged, her head dropping to Helgaer's shoulder.

"I can't trust it."

Helgaer felt moved to gently stroke her hair, but said nothing.

"Katrin taught me that. She didn't mean to, but she taught me a lot without meaning to. I realised, before anything else, that she only ever pleasured me to catch me and then to keep me. She lost interest in my pleasure early on. Whenever she deigned to let me enjoy my body instead of hers, she lost interest in me almost immediately. Do you know what being left like that feels like?"

"No."

Camille's hand had slid up Helgaer's body, but seemed to lose interest when it encountered the binding flattening her breasts against her chest. It slid back down to tickle the thick hair at the top of Helgaer's kunta.

"You are not the first woman I have lain with since Katrin. Never more than once and only while travelling. I have never taken my pleasure from them. Only given."

Camille paused, but Helgaer said nothing.

"I met a woman once, a matriarch of a respectable family. We both ended up frustrated. Neither of us would submit to the other. I think she would not have respected me as much as she did if I had given in."

"Not everything should be a fight."

Camille twisted around until she could stare Helgaer in the face. "You say that?"

Helgaer grinned back disarmingly. "Oh, I won't try and claim Tola and I didn't treat it as wrestling, but we were happy to lose."

Camille snorted and dropped back down to her place on Helgaer's shoulder.

"'Pleasure'," Helgaer mused. "We call it the brief death."

Camille froze for a second. "Your people think death is glorious."

Helgaer grinned. "Yes."

Camille laughed, just enough for Helgaer to feel it against her body.

*~*~*

On the way back to the cabin, over different paths, Helgaer killed a pheasant with her sling.

Helgaer prepared food while Camille checked and adjusted the wolf skin, then prepared some feathers for arrows.

Camille changed Helgaer's dressing. She also untied Helgaer's breast binding. Helgaer nearly protested, but did not let it get past her lips.

Helgaer put the farmer's linen shirt on for the cold, but took her time and let Camille see her.

She did not feel self-conscious about the way the linen showed her breasts, or about her nipples becoming visible as the air cooled.

When they went to bed, there was no suggestion that Camille would sleep on the furs.

Helgaer took her boots off quickly. Camille removed her shoes.

Camille was kneeling on the side of the bed, about to blow out the last candle where it sat on the table when Helgaer stopped her.

"Undress."

Whatever Camille was about to say died in her throat when she saw Helgaer's expression.

They both stood very still for a long time before Camille slowly pulled her shirt over her head.

Helgaer's hands wrapped around Camille's rib cage. She pulled them together, kissing Camille lightly and slowly, lingering on her lips until she felt Camille relax.

Her mouth followed the line of Camille's jaw to her neck, then down to one shoulder. She moved down, bending forwards and hunching her back, her lips alone touching Camille's skin until they sealed over a nipple. She sucked it into her mouth, her teeth closed gently over it, and her tongue massaging it.

Camille shuddered, letting out a groan that was equally desire, release and relief.