"I haven't seen them since the morning," he answered abashed. He suddenly felt like a child being admonished, though he scarcely understood why. "I spent the day at the forge."

If he did not smell of sweat and grime, it was only because he had mercifully jumped into the river beforehand. That was becoming a favorite aspect of the Cothromach to Gendry. While he would never have any great love of bathing, there was nothing so satisfying as a cool and cold dive after the sweltering heat of the forge furnace. Troichean Beinn had many things, but it did not have this small network of subterranean streams to enjoy.