A/N – Thanks again for the reviews…. I'm glad that last chapter turned out OK, I wasn't completely certain about it when I posted it, and you've all made me feel much better! This one is a bit shorter, but then it's only a kind of in-between chapter (I'm just stalling 'cause I'm not entirely sure what's going to happen next!)

Chapter 12

When Illa returned from Shadowflax the week after Midwinter, it was in the aftermath of one of the biggest blizzards in living memory. Still shaking snow out of the hood of her travelling cloak, and stamping her feet and rubbing her hands against the cold, she entered her quarters, gratefully eyeing the blaze that had been kindled in her fireplace. She changed into her dressing gown, and sat down before the fire to wait for the maid who was supposed to be bringing up hot water for her bath. Presently, there was a knock at the door, and Illa hastened to open it, stifling a gasp as she recognised the visitor. The woman standing on her doorstep was perhaps forty years older than the young serving-girl she had been expecting, but though her dark hair was streaked with grey, and her face was slightly lined, Queen Thayet was still undeniably beautiful.

Mithros, thought Illa as she struggled to curtsey, Why is it that every time I meet someone of any importance at all, I'm wearing this gods-cursed dressing gown! Aloud, she said, 'Your Majesty. To what do I owe the unexpected honour?'

'May I come in?' asked Thayet with a smile, 'I believe, attired as you are, it might be more appropriate for you to receive me in the privacy of your own rooms, instead of in this very public hallway.' Blushing slightly, Illa stood aside to let the Queen enter, then ushered her to a cosy armchair beside the fire. Feeling unusually inadequate, she handed Thayet a plate of Midwinter fudge that she had brought back from Shadowflax (which was all she had in the way of refreshments), before sitting down in an adjacent armchair herself. Seeing no fault with the provisions, the Queen took a piece of fudge, and consumed it with obvious appreciation.

'Lady Illinen, I must say that it is a pleasure to meet you. I have been hearing great things about you for some time.'

'No, Your Majesty, the pleasure is all mine…'

'Stop that,' said the Queen sharply, 'my name is Thayet, please use it – if you won't I'll make it an order. Anyway, from what I've heard, such stiff formality goes against your nature, and I assure you, I'm not here to question you, I'm not reporting to anyone. In fact, I just stopped by,' she paused dramatically, 'to congratulate the great hero who put Mr Pain-in-the-Behind-of-the-Prawns back in his place.' Illa was momentarily astonished by this quotation, but then she remembered that Thayet was, after all, Aubrey's godsmother. She had only just recovered from that shock, when another confusing thought struck her.

'Your Ma– I mean, Thayet, when you say 'put him back in his place,' do you mean…'

'You didn't really get much news at Shadowflax, did you?'

'No, the roads were blocked because of the blizzard, they've only just opened up again today. Please, elaborate, if you will!' The Queen's face showed what could only be described as an interesting hybrid between a gleeful grin and a warlike snarl,

'Jon talked to Emperor Kaddar, who talked to the army, who told him their plans. Illinen, you were right all along, and El Adymibad has been demoted and the Carthakis are thinking of reverting to their former policies regarding military leadership!' Illa was astounded, almost but not quite to the point of speechlessness. She'd had no idea that things could happen so quickly, especially over a restful (and stormy) holiday period. But instead of revelling in 'her' first political victory, she asked uneasily,

'Why are you telling me, this? Shouldn't you be congratulating Sir Charlemagne? After all, it's his portfolio. He made all the big decisions: I'm just his clerk.'

'I've already been to congratulate him,' Thayet revealed, 'And he said that you were just as responsible for the victory as he was, perhaps even more so, because you were the one who convinced the council, and he thinks you probably saved his job, as well.'

'But it's not really a victory, is it?' asked Illa sadly, 'Even if the noble hostages are returned-,'

'Which they have been,' Thayet interjected.

'-The economy of the south coast will be in utter ruins for years. Hundreds of people died pointlessly, and there's no saying what a madman like El Alymidad might do next, even if he has been stripped of his position.'

'Illinen,' said Thayet gently, 'people may have died, but people do die, every once in a while, when they live in Realms where power is gauged by strength in battle. Wherever and whoever we are, living in these times is a risk. But remember this: by preventing outright warfare, you and Sir Charlemagne have saved the lives of countless others, possibly the whole realm, and, unlike many of my dear, knighted friends, you didn't have to kill anyone to do it.'

'But it was an accident! I fell out of a cupboard!'

'Did you really?' Thayet sounded rather impressed, 'they never told me that much of the story.'

'Yes, it's true, and I would have scurried right back into the cupboard without saying a word, unless the King had explicitly ordered me to talk. Then nothing would have happened, and Tortall may well have been invaded in earnest by now!' Thayet rose from her chair and walked over to where Illa sat, taking her hand with a motherly air. 'Illinen, when you're sixteen years old and holding no position of power, saving your country from utter annihilation is something to be very proud of, even if it did only happen by accident.' Illa smiled, her worries eased for the time being.

'I suppose it would be kind of fun to tell someone, 'Oh, guess what. Last week I fell out of a cupboard and prevented a war!' Thayet gave an unexpectedly girlish giggle.

'That's more like it. Oh, and Illinen-'

'Call me Illa. 'Illinen' makes me feel guilty!'

'Well, Illa, the other reason I'm here is that I thought you might have needed someone to talk to. You probably have friends here at court, but really, in both your work and your studies, you're something of a woman in a man's world. I thought you might be a little lonely.'

'I never really thought about it like that,' answered Illa slowly, 'but I guess you're kind of right. I have Aubrey –' Thayet smiled at the mention of her godschild, '-But I can't tell him everything, and sometimes he gets into 'moods' and isn't much use to anyone, and my best childhood friend, Liesel of Kettlewreath, is still at the convent school so I don't see her all that often. I always thought I was too busy to be lonely, but now I'm thinking that I may be wrong'

'Come and find me, then, if you ever feel like a chat. Believe me, I know what it feels like to be a woman with responsibilities!'

'I don't have responsibilities, though.'

'You're in charge of keeping the foreign minister from making a fool of himself in public. I'd consider that to be a great responsibility.' Illa laughed in agreement.

The Queen of Tortall and her young subject chattered blithely and irrelevantly for some time, discussing everything from the state of the snowy roads between Corus and Shadowflax, to the prospects of a good barley crop in the north next summer, to the latest court scandal, involving a young nobleman and a pretty but suspiciously pregnant-looking laundress. Finally, there came another knock on the door.

'That must be my bathwater,' said Illa, springing up to answer the summons, as her guest rose to leave. As the maid entered and lugged her heavy copper tub towards the bathroom, Illa and Thayet found themselves alone in the doorway. They looked at each other awkwardly for a moment, and then embraced. Each of the women could see something of herself in the other, and their acquaintance had blossomed quickly into a strong, albeit slightly unusual, friendship. As Thayet turned to go, Illa voiced a question that she had been wondering about for some time.

'Thayet?'

'Yes?'

'Does it make it easier to get your political opinions heard if you sleep with the King?'

'You impudent hussy!' But Thayet was laughing.

'Don't worry,' said Illa chirpily, 'your marriage is safe. I was sort of intending to wait until your grandson took the throne, anyway. Much more dashing, don't you think?'

'You know,' reflected Thayet amusedly, 'we don't really discuss that sort of thing in the bedroom. The mind tends to be rather more fixated on-'

'Enough!' Illa exclaimed quickly, 'I don't think I really need to hear that,' and she rushed back into her chambers. When she emerged again, only a matter of seconds later, she was bearing a large platter of fudge.

'If you wouldn't mind, could you take this to His Majesty for me, just as a thank you for not throwing me in the dungeons, and assure him that I have no desire to seduce him!'

o o o o o o o o

Later that night, full of fudge and the peace of mind that comes from being the ruler of a realm that is not being attacked by soldiers playing dress-ups, King Jonathan settled himself beneath his covers. It had been a long day and now he wanted nothing more than to sink into the pillows, shut his eyes, and go to –

'Jon,' came a plaintive voice, 'why don't we ever discuss foreign policy in bed?'

A/N – Sorry, I think that was a kind of boring chapter, but I needed to introduce some more female characters, and Thayet is one of my favourites… I thought she'd be a good friend for Illa, even if she is in her late-fifties by now. Oh, and I'm also sorry if anyone wanted the pirate thing to go further, but I decided to end it here, with the good guys winning, as an all-out war threatened to take over the plot and I didn't want that to happen. Reviews, please… they are nearly as good as fudge.

Lady Muck