since learned that the first rule in dealings with Danae was
never to let her touch you. Once she touched you, you were
lost.
‘We all need some fresh air anyway, don’t we?’ Sarabian said
to the others. ‘We’ve been sitting in this room for more than a
week now. Why don’t we suspend our discussions and go find
Princess Danae’s cat. I think we’ll all be fresher when we come
back.’
Score one for Danae, Sparhawk smiled.
‘I’ll tell you what,’ Sarabian continued. “it’s a beautiful morning.
Why don’t we make an outing of it? I’ll send word to the
kitchens, and we can all have our lunches out on the lawns.’
He smiled down at Danae, whose hand might just as well have
been wrapped around his heart. ‘We’ll celebrate the return of
Mmrr to her little mistress.’
‘What a Wonderful idea!’ Danae exclaimed, clapping her hands
together. ‘You’re so wise, Sarabian!’
They all smiled indulgently and rose to their feet. Sparhawk
privately admitted that the Emperor was probably right.
The long day’s conferences were beginning to make them all
just a little fuzzy-headed. He went to his daughter and picked
her up.
“I can walk, father,’ she protested.
‘Yes, but I can walk faster. My legs are longer. We do want to
find Mmrr as soon as possible, don’t we?’
She glared at him.
‘You’ve got everybody under control,’ he murmured to her.
‘You don’t have to herd them around like sheep. What’s this all
about? You can call Mmrr back home anytime you feel like it.
What are you really up to?’
‘There are some’things I want to get settled before we get too
busy, Sparhawk, and I can’t do anything with all of you huddled
together in this room like a flock of chickens. I need to get you
all out of here so that I can straighten things out.’
‘is Mmrr really lost?’
‘Well, of course she isn’t. I know exactly where she is. I just
told her to go chase grasshoppers for a while.’
‘What sort of things were you talking about? Exactly what is
it that you want to get straightened out?’
‘Watch, Sparhawk,’ she told him. ‘Watch and learn.
“it’s just not done, Kalten,’ Alcan said in a sorrowfully resigned
voice as the two walked out across the drawbridge with Sparhawk
and Danae not far behind.
‘What do you mean, “not done?’
‘You’re a knight, and I’m only a peasant girl. Why can’t we
just leave things the way they are?’
‘Because I want to marry you.’
She touched his face fondly. ‘And I’d give anything to be able
to marry you, but we can’t.’
‘i’d like to know why not.’
“I told you already. We come from different social classes. A
peasant girl can’t marry a knight. People would laugh at us and
say hateful things about me.’
‘Only once,’ he declared, clenching his fist.
‘You can’t fight the whole world, my love,’ she sighed.
‘Of course I can – particularly if the world we’re talking about
consists of those butterflies that infest the court at Cimmura. I
could kill a dozen of them before lunch-time.’
‘No!’ she said sharply. ‘No killing! Can’t you see what that
would do? People would grow to hate me. We’d never have any
friends. That’s all right for you, because you’ll be off at whatever
war Prince Sparhawk or Lord Vanion sends you to, but I’ll be
completely alone. I couldn’t bear that.’
“I want to marry you!’ he almost shouted.
“it would make my life complete as well, my dear love,’ she
sighed, ‘but it’s impossible.’
“I want you to fix that, Sparhawk,’ Danae said out loud
‘Quietly. They’ll hear us.’
‘They can’t hear us, Sparhawk – or see us either for that
matter.’
‘You’re using a spell, I gather?’
‘Naturally. It’s a useful little spell that makes people ignore
us. They kind of know we’re here, but their minds don’t pay
any attention to us.’
‘I see. It tiptoes around the moral objection to eavesdropping
too, doesn’t it?’
‘What on earth are you talking about, Sparhawk? I don’t have
any moral problems with eavesdropping. I alw~ays eavesdrop.
How else am I supposed to keep track of what people are doing?
Tell mother to give Alcan a title so that she and Kalten can get
married. I’d do it myself, but I’m busy. Take care of it.’
‘is this the sort of thing you were talking about earlier?’
‘Of course. Don’t waste time on all these silly questions, Sparhawk.
We’ve got a lot more to do today.’
“I do love you, Berit-Knight,’ Empress Elysoun said a little sadly,
‘but I love him too.’
‘And how many others do you love, Elysoun?’ Berit asked her
acidly.
‘I’ve lost count,’ the bare-breasted Empress shrugged.
‘Sarabian doesn’t mind. Why should you?’
‘Then we’re through? You don’t want to see me any more?’
‘Don’t be ridiculous, Berit-Knight. Of course I want to see you
again – as often as I possibly can. It’s just that there are going
to be times when I’ll be busy seeing him. I didn’t have to tell you
this, you know, but you’re so nice that I didn’t want to go behind
your back to…’ She groped for a word.
‘To be unfaithful?’ he said bluntly.
‘i’m nev~er unfaithful,’ she said indignantly. ‘You take that back
right now. I’m the most faithful lady in the whole court. I’m
faithful to at least a dozen young men all at the same time.’
he suddenly burst out laughing.
‘What’s so funny?’ she demanded.
‘Nothing, Elysoun,’ he replied with a genuine fondness.
‘You’re so delightful that I can’t help laughing.’
She sighed. ‘Life would be so much simpler for me if you men
wouldn’t take these things so seriously. Love’s supposed to be
fun, but you all scowl and wave your arms in the air about it.
Go love somebody else for a while. I won’t mind. As long as
everybody’s happy, what difference does it make who made
them happy?’
he smiled again.
‘You do still love me, don’t you, Berit-Knight?
‘Of course I do, Elysoun.’
‘There. Everything’s all right then, isn’t it?’
‘What was that all about?’ Sparhawk asked his daughter. They
were standing fairly close to Berit and Elysoun – close enough
to make Sparhawk slightly self-conscious, at any rate.
‘Berit was getting just a little too deeply involved with the
naked girl,’ Danae replied. ‘He’s learned what she could teach
him, so it’s time for their friendship to calm down a little. I have
other plans for him.’
‘Have you ever considered letting him make his own plans?’
‘Don’t be ridiculous, Sparhawk. He’d just make a mess of
things. I always take care of these arrangements. It’s one of the
things I do best. We’d better hurry. I want to look in on Kring
and Mirtai. he’s going to tell her something that isn’t going to
make her happy. I want to be there to head off any explosions.’
They found Kring and Mirtai sitting on the lawn under a large
tree ablaze with autumn color. Mirtai had opened the basket the
kitchen had provided and was looking inside. ‘Some kind of
dead bird,’ she reported.
Kring made a face. “I suppose it’s civilized food,’ he said,
trying to put the best face on it.
‘We’re both warriors, my betrothed,’ she replied, also looking
less than happy with what had been prepared for their lunch.
‘We’re supposed to eat red meat.’
‘Stragen told me once that you ate a wolf when you were
younger,’ Kring said, suddenly remembering the story.
‘Yes,’ she replied simply.
‘Do you mean you actually did?’ He seemed stunned. “I
thought he was just trying to fool me.’
“I was hungry…’ – she shrugged – ‘and I didn’t have time
to stop. The wolf didn’t taste very good, but he was raw. If I’d
had time to cook him, he might have been better.’
‘You’re a strange woman, my beloved.’
‘That’s why you love me, isn’t it?’
‘Well – it’s one of the reasons. Are you sure we can’t talk about
our problem?’ He was obviously coming back to a subject they
had discussed before – many times.
‘There’s nothing to talk about. We have to be married twice
– once in Atana and then again when we get back to Pelosia.
We won’t be really married until we’ve gone through both ceremonies.’
‘We’ll be half married after the ceremony in Atana, won’t we?’
‘Half married isn’t good enough, Kring. I’m a virgin. I’ve killed
too many men protecting that to settle for “half married”. You’ll
just have to wait.’
He sighed. “it’s going to take a long time, you know,’ he said
mournfully.
“it’s not that far from Atana back to your country. I’ll race you
there.’
“it’s not the journey that’s going to take so long, Mirtai. It’s
the two months you’ll have to spend in my mother’s tent before
the wedding in Pelosia. You’ll have to learn our practices and