Still posting from Book Two of The Other Mages trilogy this month, mostly because I’m too lazy to pick something different. (This is also why the same CD stays in my car’s player for months on end.)
Character introduction:
Trebor is an Empath.
D’Laron is his best friend and a Healer.
(They are both university professors as well as Mages.)
Katheri is a student at the university and has Mage potential.
Ellinea was D’Laron’s Questora, now deceased.
Xooshemi is going to get a name change. She’s a member of the Mage Guild (an archivist), and was D’Laron’s Saja.
A few vocabulary words for now and for future reference.
Qestora is a female apprentice
Qestoro is a male apprentice
Qestori is the plural and can refer to males, females, or both.
Mentors/trainers are:
Saj (singular, male or female)
Sajo (male)
Saja (female)
Sajen (plural, male or female)
Picking up from last week.
“Xooshemi?” Trebor’s distress was so obvious that D’Laron couldn’t dismiss the accusation. His mind played back over the preceding years, and a small shudder ran through him. He knew that Xooshemi had been hard on Ellinea, and looking back, in light of what Trebor had said, he began thinking that it wasn’t just trying to teach and mold her. How could he have missed it? “I was too blind to see it,” he whispered, feeling ill. “Why – why didn’t you tell me what was going on?”
“Toward the end, I barely saw Ellinea, and neither did you. Xooshemi saw to it that she was isolated from you, and thus from me. I thought it was unusual, but… Xooshemi was your Saja and Ellinea was your Qestora and I had no place interfering in either end of things.”
D’Laron swallowed hard, suddenly realizing how isolated Trebor must have felt, and how helpless. At last he rose and placed a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “From now on, Treb, we share suspicions.”
Trebor nodded. “You’re right. I should have said something then, and I should never have pulled away.”
“And I shouldn’t have let you.” He gave Trebor’s shoulder a squeeze. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
“But –?”
“I just don’t feel up to talking to her right now. Not after what you just told me.”
Trebor nodded and rose. “I’m sorry, Del.”
“So am I, Treb, for a lot of things.” He hesitated for a moment. “Treb, from now on, nothing comes between us. Certainly not Xooshemi.”
Novel Notes 
Pretty difficult discussion they had to have! I thought it flowed smoothly – excellent excerpt.
Honesty and forthrightness is always the best policy between friends. Great snippet, P.T.