TWO
June 453
As Mara walked back to her rooms from her lessons, she heard shouting. She knew it came from her parents' room, which must mean her father returned from six weeks with the King's Own. Part of her wanted to turn and run in the other direction, maybe to one of her friends, but she wanted to see her father. So she approached with caution, thankful for her flat shoes. The nearer she got, the louder the shouting became. She winced at her mother's harsh words. Alanna and Raoul have been fighting the same fight for as long as Mara could remember – he would rather stay far away from Court, while she enjoys being there. (When they visited her Uncle George at Pirate's Swoop, Raoul had a hard time swallowing his jealousy. Everyone saw how close Alanna and the former king of thieves were.) Mara's urge to turn and run in the other direction grew stronger, but her mother blew out of the room and stormed down the hall, nearly running into her daughter in the process.
"Mara!" Alanna's eyes were wide, with an odd combination of guilt and horror. "How long have you been standing here?"
"Long enough to hear you and da fighting again," Mara answered casually, shrugging her shoulders in an effort at teenage nonchalance. "Everything all right?"
"Fine." Alanna took a deep breath, trying to settle herself. "I just need some air, that's all. He's missed you. Go say hello." She continued down the hall, muttering something Mara couldn't – and didn't wish to – hear.
Mara knocked softly on the door. Her father looked up from his desk and smiled broadly. "Mara!" He opened his arms to allow her to leap into them. He spun her around. Sometimes she resented how often he went away, but she always loved when he came home. "How are you? You've grown!"
"No I haven't." She sighed and frowned down at her feet. "I think I'm all finished growing. How come I can't be tall like you?"
Raoul smiled and kissed the top of her head. "I think you're perfect." He sat back down, pulling a second chair for her. "What have you been up to recently?"
"Nothing, really." She folded her legs underneath her. "Everyone is trying to clean up after the war. But Neal started page training. Not that it matters, because I don't really see him."
"Training is time-consuming," her knight father reminded her gently.
"I know that," she sighed. "But he tries to make time. But he has his own friends, so I don't always hang around. I don't really understand what they're talking about most of the time."
"I'm glad you're making friends. Do you ever see Jasson anymore?" Mara shook her head. In the three years since he began his training, the two drifted apart. Jasson always seemed to disapprove of what she did, and it bothered her.
"Tell me what you've been doing!" Mara said, eyes shining. "Have you been keeping us noble ladies safe?"
Raoul laughed. "The noble ladies I know best hardly need me to keep them safe, but, yes. That and recruiting men." His eyes became distant as he remembered the men lost in the short war during the spring. Mara bit her lip and looked at her lap. She'd been sent to Pirate's Swoop, which hadn't seen as much action. She still resented it. "I have to leave again next week."
"What? You just got here!"
"I know." Raoul sighed and looked at the papers on his desk. "It's… complicated."
"I don't see what's so complicated about it!" Mara jumped to her feet. "Just tell Uncle Jon you don't want to go! We never see you anymore. You and mama are always fighting about it. The whole palace can hear you. Don't you like seeing us?"
"I love seeing you, Mara," Raoul said gently, holding her eyes steady. "But I have a job to do."
"Other people can do it," she told him bitterly. "Maybe not as well, but certainly not badly. You have a family, da! We're supposed to come before the rest of the country."
October 456
In honor of the Prince's sixteenth birthday, the king and queen held a massive celebration complete with a feast and ball. Mara tried to beg out of going – she claimed she had work to do, which she did, but not enough to warrant missing the festivities. "This is going to be so boring," she told Neal, in Corus for the celebrations.
"Cheer up, Mar," he said with a grin. "Maybe I'll get to dance with you this time."
"You always step on my toes," she countered. "Why would I want to be in pain in front of the whole court?"
He pressed a hand to his chest. "Ouch. You have wounded my fragile pride."
"You mean, time with Uncle Thom hasn't done that enough?" Neal glared at her. Thom, normally one of the instructors at the University, had agreed to spend some time traveling around the country so he could take a squire for the first time in his life. It was plain that Thom did not enjoy having a squire, especially not one as sharp-tongued as Neal. But the arrangement allowed Neal to have a University-quality education while still undergoing the knight training he chose.
"I hold out hope I'll be able to get out of it," Mara explained to her friend as they wandered the halls to the practice courts.
"And how are you going to arrange that?"
Mara gave him a triumphant grin. "My father's back, isn't he?"
"Oh, and you think he'll let you out of going Prince Jasson's birthday celebrations when he has to go?" Neal laughed. "Good luck."
"I don't need luck." Mara fixed her violet eyes on him and fluttered her lashes. "All I need are these."
"Can I be there when he says no? I want to see your face."
Mara made a face at him. "If I had my mother's temper, I would scorch you."
"You do have your mother's temper. And I'm too pretty to scorch."
"We'll see about that."
I'm having some trouble hitting a stride with this, and finding Jasson and Mara's voices. Hope you enjoyed it anyway!