Though he was trying very hard to ignore it, something was tickling the edge of Farad'n's consciousness. Realizing that it was not going to go away, he begrudgingly opened his eyes. Over Ghani's head, which rested, as usual, on his chest, he saw Scamander loitering in his doorway.

"What?" he asked in the loudest whisper he felt comfortable giving, irritation evident in his tone.

"The Atreides guards are trying to move the girl. You had better come."

Farad'n sighed and flopped his head back down on the pillow. He was going to have to deal with this. Trying to jostle Ghani as little as possible, he slid out from under her and crouched down to grab and don his discarded shorts. As silently as possible, he acquired fresh clothes from the bureau and put them on while walking to the door.

"How did you get in here?" he asked once he had reached the threshold, "I'm quite certain I locked that door last night."

"Tez and I have many, many skills, Noble Born. Her majesty charged us with the task of keeping you safe precisely because of those skills. I doubt there's a lock anywhere in the universe that wouldn't fall by my hands."

"Wonderful."

Scamander looked briefly over Farad'n's shoulder and grinned like a schoolboy, making Farad'n wonder exactly how old he was.

"She didn't even move," Scamander commented, "you must have really tired her out last night."

"Quiet," Farad'n commanded, trying desperately to quell the blush that was crawling up his neck. He shoved the other man in front of him to have space and softly closed the door behind him.

TLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTL

Ghani awoke slowly and stretched out, enjoying the rare opportunity to have the entire bed to herself. She was enjoying herself until she began to wonder why she had the bed to herself.

Where had Farad'n gone?

Waking up alone had taken on a negative flavor.

Sitting up, she curled herself into a ball. Before she could think too much about it, a lady's maid arrived to help her bathe and dress. As was the Caladan tradition, she was brought a tray of breakfast and ate, alone, trying to savor the different delicacies, but feeling the food turn to grit in her mouth.

After she was bathed, dressed, and the tray was removed, she found herself with something she had never really had before: time on her hands. She decided to do some exploring of the gardens beyond the patio and savor some time alone to think. For a brief moment, she considered leaving Farad'n a note, then decided against it.

He would just have to find her.

TLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTL

Farad'n heard the altercation before he saw it. Molochi, who rarely spoke, ever, was in a raised voice debate with an Antreides guard with gold bands on his sleeve, something Farad'n assumed designated that he was in charge.

"What is going on here?" he projected his voice to ask once he turned the corner and saw the guard with a finger in Molochi's face.

"My apologies, sir, but we need to remove the criminal to a more appropriate facility."

"And what will you do with her there?"

"Execute her," the Atreides man certainly seemed to have no qualms about killing someone.

"After her Imperial Highness explicitly told you that she wanted the girl spared?"

"Sir, we have our laws here, which supersede those of the Imperium. Atreides law saws that any peasant who harms the Family must be put to death."

"And what if the matriarch of this House commands otherwise?"

Apparently, the guard had no answer to this, not having realized that as Leto's legal wife, Ghani was the female head of the family, whose word was just as much law for them as her word was for the Imperium.

"I applaud you for your dedication to your duty, Commander," Farad'n continued, making up a title for the man, "but not only has her highness decreed the girl live, but she is also an Imperial prisoner, and no longer the concern of Atreides law enforcement."

"But, sir!"

"I will ask her Imperial Majesty to write you an excellent recommendation after your work here today, but I am sure by now there are other tasks you must accomplish." Farad'n raised an eyebrow at the man, trying to reinforce that he and the other Atreides guards should be on their way.

Finally understanding that the argument was over, the Atreides guard turned to the other men and signaled them to file away.

Farad'n breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't like to think about the fact that, on paper, Ghani was the wife of another man, but sometimes it did come in handy.

"Will you be alright?" he asked Molochi, mostly in jest. He was given a sour look in reply. Sweeping past his bodyguards, he entered the small room that held the girl.

"I just had an uncomfortable argument with the security detail of our hosts," he began in lieu of introductions, "whatever you're about to tell me had better be impressive, since I've just saved your life."

The girl blinked up at him, uncertain hope beginning to dawn on her face.

"What is your name, girl?"

"Ruth, your majesty."

"I'm not a majesty, I'm a scribe and advisor," he considered sitting, but wanted to maintain his air of intimidation, which was easier to do standing up since she was cowering on a bench, "why did you attack the Empress?"

"I wasn't attacking her; I was trying to throw myself at her feet. I was calling for sanctuary."

"You understand that her Imperial Highness is under almost constant threat of assassination? Approaching her in such a manner spoke of danger."

Ruth sat back and appeared to be considering what he said. "That's a sorry way to live. How can she bear it?"

"She lies!" Scamander interrupted, speaking to Farad'n in Fremen, "There's no way she could possibly be that naïve."

Farad'n didn't respond, but he did consider it. "My men tell me that you are, as they put it, 'at the end of an amazing run of ill luck.' Explain it to me."

"All of my family are dead; I am the last of my line. And the man I thought loved me stole what remained of my belongings and cast me out into the street," she hung her head and breathed deeply.

"That is unfortunate, but sadly, very common. Your actions are uncommon," Farad'n continued, "they tell me you were a maid here."

"Yes, sir. And it was a very good job. But I had lost it…so I was out on the streets with no work, and no real chance of finding new decent employment."

"Why did you lose your job?"

"The head housekeeper and steward discovered my background. They said they couldn't in good conscience keep me on."

"Are you a thief?"

"No, sir," she looked genuinely horrified at the thought.

"Some other type of criminal, then?"

"No, sir. I am from Gitan stock. My people are not welcome in many places on Caladan."

"Gypsy," Scamander said, again in Fremen, "I told you she couldn't be trusted."

Farad'n ignored him. "Molochi," he said, instead.

Molochi stepped forward, looking at Farad'n, confused.

"Attack the girl," he commanded, in Fremen, so that Ruth wouldn't understand.

"What?" Scamander asked in shock, matching Molochi's silent expression.

"I want to see if she can handle herself," Farad'n elaborated, "don't damage her, but lunge or something. Let's see what she can do."

Molochi's response was to shrug and throw his body toward the girl. Her eyes grew wide when she realized what was happening, and she fought him off as best she could. Even when he had her pinned, she still continued to struggle. What Farad'n found most interesting was that she was fighting with intelligence, if not skill. She knew that she couldn't overpower him, so she was systematically attempting to hurt different parts of his body to find a weak spot and gain the advantage. The other thing that he noticed was that unlike what he expected, she didn't scream. She hardly made a sound.

"Enough," he commanded, and Molochi immediately rose from where he had her on the floor, reaching a hand down to help her up. A hand she refused.

"What is the matter with you?" she screeched, "is this what you do for entertainment in the Capitol?"

"No," Farad'n replied calmly, "that was a test. I have a staffing need, and I wanted to know if you would be capable of filling it. Are you injured?"

"No," she admitted sullenly, giving Molochi a nasty look.

"Don't blame him; he was only doing as commanded, despite his better judgment," he continued, "let that be a lesson to you."

"What? To blindly follow?"

"Of course not. The lesson here is that I have gained Molochi's trust, and therefore, he knew that even though I was asking him to do something out of character, I must have had a good and logical reason to do so."

"And you'll explain it eventually?" she asked, no longer looking quite so put out.

"Exactly," he turned to Scamander, "Please see that she is given some appropriate clothing and fed. I can't imagine this has been a comfortable stay."

"Where shall I put her?"

"For the time being, in the room for Lady Irulan's maid. We'll begin her training tomorrow."

"Very good, Noble Born."

"Welcome to the Imperial Entourage, Ruth. I hope you don't get sick from space travel."

He left her there with Molochi, and beckoned Scamander to follow him. When they were out of earshot, he spoke to his companion.

"Ghani has no lady guards, no real protection."

"But the Fedykin…"

"…Are all male, and cannot be with her like her lady's maids are. I want someone with military training that can infiltrate her personal staff. I believe Ruth can be that agent."

Scamander nodded.

"Your job, starting tomorrow, will be to begin training her. Teach her Fremen battle tactics, weirding way, whatever you think will help protect Ghani."

"Yes, Noble Born," here Scamander hesitated.

"What is it?"

"How will Her Majesty take the news?"

"With any luck, she'll never know," Farad'n replied dismissively.

But they both knew that was a lie.

TLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTLTL

They had been on Caladan less than twenty-four hours and Farad'n had decided that he already hated it. He was unfamiliar with the layout of the palace and had no idea where to find Ghani. After leaving Ruth in Scamander and Molochi's capable hands, he had immediately returned to his rooms, expecting to find his wife there. All he found were a pair of maids and a half made bed.

Mentally, he reviewed Ghani's itinerary. Nothing had been planned for that morning since they didn't know how the party would react to space travel. It had seemed a good idea at the time, but now it made him want to grind his teeth in frustration. No plans meant no idea where to begin looking for her.

Instead of heading back into the fortress behind him, Farad'n decided to venture outside. The land here was so different from Dune, perhaps Ghani's curiosity had caused her to explore outdoors?

His theory yielded positive results as the sound of her laughter greeted him once he was past sight distance of the castle. He stopped by a tree to observe when the back of her head came into view. She was on the sandy banks of the sea, playing a game with some children. They were holding hands in a circle and spinning around, singing a song until at the last moment they fell to the ground. The children had pails and spades that they had brought with them littering the nearby area. Every so often, one of the other children who were investigating tidal pools nearby would bring her some sort of ocean treasure. She would thank the child profusely and ask the child to return it to its home, since many of them were living creatures.

Before long, an older woman appeared, calling the children to her. They merrily waved goodbye as they ran off, some needing to return to get their tools. After her companions had left, Farad'n moved forward to join her on the beach.

"Making friends?" he asked, smiling at her, trying not to burst with how happy he was to see her.

"Yes, well, I found myself all alone, and they were helping to cheer me up," she replied, not looking at him, instead following the children with hand-shaded eyes.

"I'm sorry about that. I was hoping we could have had breakfast together, but I was suddenly called away."

"And what came up that was important enough to call the Court Scribe away?" Still, she refused to look at him.

Farad'n frowned. She rarely referred to his official title. Her tone was dripping with venom.

"Are you angry with me?" he asked in surprise.

Finally, she looked at him, crossed her arms over her chest, and took in a great breath of air. He prepared himself for a verbal onslaught, but all that came was a heavy sigh.

"Maybe? I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"It's complicated."

"So, explain it to me."

"What am I doing here?" she asked, confusing him even more.

"You're on a Good Will tour. Easing ruffled feathers, et cetera. Remember? We've been planning this trip for an age."

"But what does that mean? What am I supposed to be doing?"

"What you just were doing."

"Playing with children?"

"Yes. Ghanima, most of the people living under Leto's rule will never set eyes on him. Most will never leave their home world and travel to Arrakis. But those children that you met today? They'll tell their grandchildren about the day the beautiful Empress came to visit Caladan and played with them on the beach. They'll remember this day for the rest of their lives and think of it fondly. That's what you're doing here. Putting a happy, pretty face on the Imperium and showing your subjects that you are interested in them and care about them."

"It just seems so useless."

"Trust me, it's not."

"So then what were you doing?"

Now it was Farad'n's turn to sigh. "I've found you a new lady's maid."

"You found me a new lady's maid. Without consulting me?"

"This isn't just any lady's maid. She'll really be more like a body guard."

He expected her to fight with him about the guard, but she was curiously silent.

"Who is this new lady's maid?"

"The girl who threw herself at your feet yesterday," he replied, "her name is Ruth."

"Is she trained as a body guard?"

"Not yet, but Scamander and Molochi have taken her under their wings."

"Hmm…" she replied, then turned and walked away from him, back up to the palace. He hurried to catch up with her.

"No arguments?"

"Do I typically argue with you?" she asked with an irritated tone.

"No, but you seem particularly put out this morning."

"How else would I be? When I wake to discover that my husband has left me alone in our bed with no indication of where he has gone and I later learn that he has been making decisions for me."

"We make decisions for each other all the time. I don't remember asking you to find me body guards, either."

"I know, which is why I'm not arguing with you about Ruth."

"And the rest?"

"It's complicated, Farad'n. We were actually able to make love last night and I didn't really expect to be finding myself in an empty bed this morning. It was…off-putting," she answered lamely, not really knowing how to express her varied emotions in words.

"I know, and I'm sorry about that. I certainly didn't want to leave you, either. But the Atreides guards were going to kill her, and you had clearly stated that you wanted her spared. I didn't want to bother you about it, and honestly, having the actual Empress weighing in on such a small matter would have caused more problems than it would have solved."

"Sometimes I wonder what I'm supposed to be doing," she lamented, "I certainly wasn't trained for any of this."

"I know, but I was. And you are doing exactly what you should be, and more. Just keep being your genuine, enthusiastic self, and the people will love you."

She looked at him and shrugged. He was right, he had been trained for this life, something she had just been thankful for.

"And do you forgive me?" he asked.

"There's nothing to forgive."

"Then will you have lunch with me?'

"Certainly."

"What about a nap afterwards?" There was something in his tone…

"Do you really want to sleep, or are you just trying to get me near a bed again?"

"I am a bit tired, can't imagine why," he added, giving her a cheeky grin, "but if we didn't end up sleeping, I wouldn't complain either."

She had to laugh about that. Then, taking his arm, led him back into the palace.