Chapter 10

'Yoam you must listen to me,' the great royal wife stared at her son in despair, 'you're twenty-five now, a man, and, as much as I hate to say it, your father might not be long for this world. You must settle down! You can't keep gallivanting off with, heaven only knows who, and expecting it to be all right. It's not, at least not anymore.' She took a deep breath. 'I want you to meet Toya; she's the daughter of a rich nobleman. They say she's a charming and beautiful young lady. From what I've seen of her, I believe she will make the perfect wife for you.'

'Why do I get the impression I'm not going to have a choice in the matter?'

'I'm sorry my son, but we can't wait much longer. You are the sole heir to your father's throne and we must ensure that our line continues.' She softened her tone thoughtfully. 'She is a beautiful young woman and she will make you a worthy wife. I am sure you will learn to love her in time.'

'And if I don't?'

'You're not Tao; you don't have the luxury of waiting to fall in love. Give her a chance; you haven't even met her yet.'

'But what if I see her and know that I don't want to marry her? You can't force me if I really don't want to.'

'I can't, but your father can.'

'You would really make me marry someone just to ensure our line continues!' Yoam shook his head in despair. 'That doesn't seem fair; don't I have the same right as everyone else to marry the person I love? Tao...'

'This isn't about your... cousin, this is about you. And we can't wait for you to fall in love, not anymore!' The level of anger in her voice was scary, but somehow she managed to pull it back. 'My son, you love your country, don't you?'

'Of course I do.'

'Then marry Toya for the love of your country. Please my son; this is only a small favour I ask of you.'

'I'll think about it.' Yoam glared at her, before storming out of the room.

Yoam was still reeling from his fight with his mother, when Lillyannu found him. He was sat in the shade of a tree by a small oasis halfway between Memphis and Lun. Without waiting for an invitation Lillyannu took a seat next to him and placed the strangest looking flower Yoam had ever seen on his lap.

'It's called a Simüte Kanikanin and it only grows in the shade of the Northern Palace on Silkoniousmacarmakay.' Her voice was soft and wistful. 'Bet Simüte never told you he was named for a flower, did he?' She smirked. 'The name is made up of the first two Silete words; Simüte, meaning new era and Kanikanin, meaning new life. Of course the words do have some roots in Odete, that's the Odraian language, but what can you expect.' She paused thoughtfully for a moment. 'The Lutoni's have slowly been losing their spirit and I think Simüte's mother was scared he would turn out like his father. New era, can you think of any better a name for him?' There was a momentary pause during which she gave a heavy sigh. 'I wanted to get you a lily.'

'Huh?'

'I wanted to get you a lily. But not just any lily. I wanted to get one with a flower as soft as satin and as pure a white as you can imagine. It would have had a steam so green you would think you were looking at something holy and the scent... But I couldn't find a lily, let alone one so perfect. Then I noticed the Simüte Kanikanin were in full bloom, but it's not the same.' She sighed again. 'Yoam I am to be married tonight.'

'What! To who?'

'His name's Kindred Tracker, another childhood friend of mine, someone who I love, but... not a quarter as much as I love Simüte and that pales in comparison to my love for you. If I were queen I would put it before my council to change the law so that you and I might marry. But I am not queen and who knows how long it will be before I am. But I do know that I am twenty-five and nearly past my prime; if I don't marry soon I'll never have any children. That's not aloud.'

'But it doesn't seem fair!'

'Nothing ever is.'

'I thought my mother trying to get me to marry was bad enough. You know she's arranged for me to meet my future wife for the first time tonight. It doesn't matter if I love the woman or not so long as I marry her.'

'That's wrong. At least I had some choice in the matter, even if it was restricted. I may not love my mate as I should, but I do have great affection for him. No one should be forced to marry.'

'It doesn't sound to me like you had much of a choice. In fact you sound a lot more forced upon than I do.'

'That may be true, but what can I do. My hands are tied; I can't marry the man I love and I can't marry my best friend.'

'Then don't marry.' Yoam found himself compelled to grab hold of her shoulders. 'Don't marry.'

'I can't do that.' Her face fell in despair 'I have a duty to my people and you have a duty to yours.'

'So you would betray your own heart for your people.'

'I must!'

'If that's the way you feel then... then before you make up your mind there's something I want to tell you. Something I have to tell you.'

With his heart pounding hard in his chest, Yoam pulled her into a deep, passionate kiss. It was the kind of kiss which could have lasted for an eternity and never be long enough. But even as they parted they just stared at each other as though they knew this was the end.

'I'm sorry Yoam,' Lillyannu lowered her gaze, 'but my mind hasn't changed.'