Apprentice? That was almost worse than the truth. Darin had already told this man she wasn’t used to riding, and it was obvious what kind of apprentice Ridahne would take. Darin looked to be the furthest thing from a warrior. If it did come to a fight Darin’s two biggest hopes were to not get in the way and not die. How was she supposed to make it seem like she could be Ridahne’s apprentice?

Mark dropped his hand, “I wasn’t aware that the Azurei took human apprentices; much less ones that don’t seem accustom to riding.” Without asking Mark sat down across from them, “May I ask how that happened?”

Darin wanted to scream at him. She wanted to shout at him to leave them alone. However, she didn’t want to draw attention that didn’t need to be drawn. So, she simply brought her cup up to her lips to hide her face. She was prepared this time, so she didn’t sputter. That was one good thing. She didn’t want to let Mark think she was even more incompetent than she already let him know. Her mind jumped from point to point in order to find a way to answer the question. She didn’t know enough about Ridahne’s culture to answer that question. She might have to leave it to her.

She was in danger and she knew it. Mentally she was kicking herself. Darin had known that this day was coming. People were going to want her dead. Naïvely she had assumed that it wouldn’t happen until her mission became public knowledge. It was possible that Mark had guessed that she had The Seed, but how had he done that. It was just as possible that he marked her as an easy target. Darin didn’t think Ridahne’s presence affected Mark’s plans, whatever they were. He had sat right down without even asking for permission. It was slightly alarming how comfortable he was making himself.

Darin looked up at Luke and Sara. They had not sat down. In fact, it looked like Luke was trying to circle around them. He wasn’t doing it quickly, but even Darin’s untrained eye could tell that he wanted to behind them. This was not looking good at all. Sara looked extremely uninterested in the events. Darin couldn’t tell if that was a ruse or not, but she had most of her attention focused on the entrance. Darin hoped that they weren’t expecting more friends. Darin didn’t like the odds now. Ridahne might count as two, but the human was sure she counted as a detriment. So, it was one against three. Granted Darin wasn’t sure what use a bow would be inside, but Sara might have hidden weapons. So, could Mark.

They were surrounding them, and Darin knew that couldn’t be allowed. She quickly finished her drink. She didn’t like it at all. She stood as smoothly as she could. Maybe getting some more would at least keep her out of the way should Ridahne decide she needed to fight them.

She held out her free hand towards the Elf, “I’m getting some more. Would you like some?”