Ch 3
Kaddar Iliniat waited for his wife to arrive, so they could enter the banquet room and begin the feast. It was unlike her to be late, but he imagined she had been chattering with her sister so long that she lost track of time. Kaddar knew how badly she missed her home and family. He was pleased beyond measure that one of her sisters had been spared from duties at home. He had written an enclosure suggesting that Kalasin would appreciate seeing a family member. It was a good sign that his in-laws had respected his opinion enough to honor his request. Relations between the countries were still strained, but he and Kalasin were mending it.
He was surprised the Lianne had come instead of the older sister, Nora. Lianne was all but engaged to a Maren prince, while as near as he could tell, Nora had run wild. It wasn't his business, considering he had never met the girl, but he couldn't help comparing her to her illustrious kin. She was the only one in the family who hadn't chosen a path of study and discipline. He knew that she was intelligent enough to be the Prime Minister's assistant, and that she had received special instruction in using her Gift. But the girl lacked self-control. She played pranks and deliberately offended foreign guests who came to the Court to offer for her hand in marriage. She certainly wasn't a Duke Roger of Conté, but she was fonder of power for the sake of power than her siblings.
The door to his suite opened, and he turned expectantly to greet Kalasin. Instead, Lady Buriram Tourakam of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak stood in the doorway, looking awkward and angry. "My lady." He greeted impassively.
She inclined her head, as she ran her eyes around his room. He thought he could detect her scrutinizing every inch, as though she expected and was prepared for armed mercenaries to fall through the roof at any second. "Your Majesty." She replied.
"You found your quarters adequate?"
"Quite." Buri said shortly. An uneasy pause hung between them. "I am a woman of actions, not words." She broke the silence. "May I speak plainly?"
"By all means." Kaddar said, wondering what she could have to say to him.
"What in the name of the Horse Lords have you put Kalasin through in the last four years?" Buri demanded. "She has the look of a soaked cheesecloth, about to fall apart at the seams."
Kaddar stiffened defensively. "The empress is the most beautiful woman in the world."
Buri rolled her eyes. "She looks like a doll, not a real woman. She could barely breathe today, and I'm certain those shoes are hazardous to her health."
"My wife clothes herself in garments befitting her rank." Kaddar said stiffly, defensiveness and wounded pride mingling in him. "As do I. I have been given to understand that ceremonial clothing is not designed for the wearer's comfort, even in Tortall."
"You're stifling the child." Buri accused.
Kaddar sighed. "The empress of Carthak is no child."
Buri looked furious and impotent, as her protective instincts warred with practicality. "She's miserable." The woman who had been both surrogate mother and bodyguard to the eldest princess of Tortall alleged.
"You make this judgment on the basis of what? Three seconds of sight across a crowded dock?" Kaddar attacked. "You haven't even talked to her yet."
"I raised her." Buri said fiercely. "I know what's in her heart and her letters, even at a distance. Her family may have let it slide, but I shall not. She is unhappy."
"She is happier now than I have seen her in the past four years." Kaddar argued. "She's eager for the baby, for the reforms she is instituting, for the learning she does with the University. She has come to love me, and this palace, and her people. Given the choice to return to Tortall or continue her work in Carthak, she would stay here."
Buri hissed, producing a sound that would've been appropriate had it emerged from the throat of a large predatory animal. "What have you done to her?"
"I love her. If she is unhappy, it is not my doing!" Kaddar insisted, allowing passion (or was it panic?) to enter his voice and eyes.
Buri squared her jaw. "What has happened to her?"
"She has seen despair and what causes men to turn to evil deeds." Kaddar said darkly, adopting the flowery language of poet and scholar. "She has condemned prisoners to die, and sent men to battle on her behalf."
Buri barely flinched.
"She has freed slaves and listened to their sorrows. She has built schools and temples and watched them burned by rebels and raiders and pirates."
Buri's jaw worked. "She never wrote that in her letters."
"Would you expect her to include bad news? She only tells you what she thinks you need to know, or what you can't help learning about. She doesn't want you to worry." Kaddar hurled the words at the embodiment of what his wife yearned to return to. He resented the looming figure of Kalasin's memories of home, which divided them. "She has eaten strange food and slept in unfamiliar beds with a man she has learned to love." Buri moved as though to protest, but Kaddar did not heed her. "Kalasin has lived in air that reeks of foreign spices, and bathed in seawater warmer than she ever imagined it could be."
Buri settled back on her heels to take in Kaddar's words with an impassive face. She had helped Thayet teach the royal children how to swim in the freezing water by Pirate's Swoop, one summer many years ago. Roald had wanted to know what was across the water more than he wanted to play in it. Liam had been more interested in the sandy rocks and the creatures than the ocean, but Kalasin had loved the waves and the tide. She would spend hours at a time, coming in only when her small body was so chilled that even in the full heat of a summer day she shivered with a blanket. Now, the threat of a chill was probably erased, but the love of the salt water remained.
"She has worked around nobles whose ideas are so antiquated even Carthaki conservatives condemn their ways." Kaddar allowed sarcasm to seep into his words.
Buri's expression grew wry. Mother and daughter were not so different after all. With work, Thayet had maneuvered diplomatically around Tortall's conservatives for any number of years.
"She has gone four years without hearing her families' voices, hugging her mother and father close, or seeing the glitter of Corus at Midwinter." Kaddar's gaze bore into Buri. "You ask what has happened to her? Kalasin has grown from the sweet and dutiful adolescent you knew to a formidable, powerful and gracious woman."
Buri inclined her head. "You love her."
"Yes." Kaddar confirmed simply.
Buri sighed, and the silence was easier. "I worry about her." Buri said, finally. "She is—Thayet's children are like my own." The confession wrung something from the petite K'miri woman, who was silent for a long moment. "Kalasin has always been special to me. She was always so sweet. And I compounded it. We all did. Her innocence was so beautiful. We sheltered her where we could. She was probably less prepared for the injustices in the world than she could've been. I was sorry when she left her home to come here." Buri bit her lip. "I do not mean to offend you."
"You have not." Kaddar tried to say, but Buri's words were too true. When Kalasin had arrived in Carthak, her innocence had been so strong it was almost tangible. She'd lived through the Immortals War in Tortall, Stormwing siege and assassination attempts, but in her heart she had believed that people meant the best for herself and each other. Those beliefs had eroded slowly, until that horrible moment when she saw her own blood on her legs and realized that it meant the child was lost. Her innocence was gone in that second, but her faith in the goodness of those around her had endured until she realized that someone had intentionally murdered the life inside of her.
"I knew she would be lonely. She didn't bring anyone with her. She didn't want to force anyone to rebuild her life in a foreign land. Thought it was unfair to ask." Buri's face quirked in a painfully amused expression. "She thought nothing of doing it herself, but would not ask another. I've always hated that. I know how hard it was for Thayet and me, and we had each other. At least Kally brought her horse. I'm sure that's been some comfort to her."
"Chavi died in foaling two years ago." Kaddar informed Buri. "But she does like the little filly. She named it Bian. I'm given to understand that the horses are named for gods her mother celebrated?"
"The K'miri Horse lords." Buri's face turned dark. "No, I suppose she didn't want to give us bad news to worry us, now did she?"
"No." Kaddar said, thinly. "No, she doesn't."
"No wonder she's so thin and stretched looking." Buri sighed. "She hasn't talked to anyone, has she?"
"She talks to me." Kaddar said, feeling strangely wounded.
"Nobody female." Buri amended. "It makes a difference. Even the most wonderful men only have so much patience for women's talk. Plus, your mother is probably the trial of her life."
"You know nothing about my marriage. You knew Kalasin as a girl, but since the miscarriage, she is a different woman."
"Miscarriage?" Buri breathed.
Kaddar winced. Had he met to let that fly? He had never agreed with Kalasin's desire to keep that secret, but he had meant to honor it. "Caused by an evil mage. He's been destroyed already." Kaddar explained coldly, as he inwardly quaked in anticipation of the reaction of Kalasin's family and Kalasin herself.
Buri's face contorted for half a second in grief. "She suffers then, and in silence."
"Not silence, but close enough."
"Who else knows?" Buri demanded.
The emperor answered. "I do. No one else, save the healers and the mage who cast the curse. Now you."
Buri sighed. "No wonder you wanted one of her family here for the babe's arrival."
"She's so hopeful for this try, but she's afraid at the same time. She's afraid now, of how much evil and ill will is aimed at herself and our heirs." Kaddar told the older woman. Then, because she had wounded him, he lashed out. "She really wanted her mother, you know."
"I know. But Thayet couldn't be spared for as long as we're visiting." Buri admitted. "Thayet will be here for the naming, though the Great Gods themselves stand in her way."
"The queen misses her daughter as much as my wife misses her mother?" Kaddar asked, pleased in a roundabout way.
"More." Buri said. Roald, Liam, Nora and Jasson were still in Tortall, but Roald was married and had his own life, Liam was leaving for Galla, Nora was not in Corus, and Lianne was preparing to leave. Thayet had not been there for every moment of her children's lives, but she still hated to have them so scattered.
Kaddar expressed disbelief.
Buri shrugged. "I've brought special foods with me. That's why unpacking the ship took so long. They'll be a taste of home for her. She's probably longing for some of it."
Kaddar's face eased into a pleased expression. "If you managed to bring some potatoes and the ingredients for sticky buns I might be able to award you an honorary nobility in Carthak."
Buri's lips twitched. "I'd rather you didn't. My husband might wonder how I pleased the emperor so mightily."
Kaddar coughed to mask a chuckle.
Buti nodded. "When Thayet's time came, she dreamed of mushroom and venison stews till her husband was ready to send an army to Sarain to fetch some for her."
"Cravings for food of the homeland runs in her veins then?"
"During pregnancy, aye." Buri said. "She'll also be pleased to taste some of the candies her aunties remembered to send."
"Who'll be pleased?" Kalasin asked, entering the room.
"You, my Empress." Kaddar took her jeweled hand and kissed it affectionately. "There'll be a feast of food from your homeland, thanks to the Lady Buriram of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak."
Kalasin threw herself at Buri, who caught and clutched at the young woman who was almost her daughter. "I thought you were still unloading the ships! Why didn't you come to me immediately? Oh, I missed you." Kalasin babbled against the shorter woman's hair.
Kaddar blinked at the undignified outpouring. Even in private, his wife was usually a model of restraint and dignity. This helpless, passionate joy at reunion took him aback.
"And I you, little one." Buri responded. She took a step back to look at the Empress of Carthak. "You look like a fashion plate." Her tone was not one of approval.
"I feel like a doll." Kalasin complained.
"You look like a vision though." Kaddar told her. Buri sent him an evil look. Kalasin smiled weakly. "We should prepare to enter the banquet." Kaddar tried to extricate himself from the mess he was about to unleash.
Kalasin nodded. "My crown is in this room, yes?"
Kaddar indicated the box waiting on his desk. Kalasin lifted a thin tiara of braided silver, gold and copper from within the box. "Oh thank you." She murmured. "The rubies would've been unbearably heavy tonight." She fixed the crown in place, using a polished mirror to adjust a lock of hair.
The emperor held out his arm. Kalasin lightly rested her fingers on his forearm. "My lady would be well advised to enter the ballroom before the emperor." Kaddar intoned formally, unsure about the etiquette of the situation.
Buri made a face. "Must I attend?" She gestured to her clean, but practical clothing. "I'm not dressed for the occasion."
Kalasin's face displayed shock.
"I know it's just going to be a bunch of nobles ready to jump on me about anything they dislike in Tortall." Buri explained defensively. "And I'm not in the mood to hang a stone collar around my neck in order to show I'm as good as they."
"The banquet is in your honor." The empress's voice was thin, but not shrill. She invoked a patient, reasonable tone. "Everyone will be there to see you."
"And compare me to their memories of the Lioness and Wild Mage, no doubt." Buri sighed. "Relax young one. I'm not serious. Of course I'll attend this evening's gathering."
Kalasin sighed. "You'd better go first then. They'll really gossip if you come late. I sent Lia straight there."
Buri nodded. "We'll speak more later, in private."
Kaddar wasn't sure who she was addressing her comment to, but when he met her eyes he had to remind himself that he was not one of her trainees for the Queen's Riders. She couldn't order him to run laps or do some monotonous task in order to punish him for not forcing Kalasin to disclose the truths about her life in Carthak. He was the emperor of an enormous amount of land, diverse and numerous people and the most righteous descendant in a hundred years. He was not a schoolboy who could suffer for telling falsehoods. And yet, he would almost rather face a fleet of pirates than the short, stocky, overprotective K'mir who was the closest thing to a mother-in-law that he'd had to deal with in the last four years. Kaddar flinched internally. Maybe his mother was more of a trial to Kalasin than he'd realized before.
Kaddar turned to study his wife's serenely elegant profile. He knew she tried to shield her family from worry and pain on her behalf. Did she do the same for him?
She met his eyes and tried to smile for him, but he suddenly saw the exhaustion etched into every feature. He stopped walking. Confused, she paused beside him. He leaned down and brushed a kiss against her cheek. He was careful not to smudge her face paint. "I love you." He murmured in an undertone. "I don't tell you often enough, but I am grateful that you came to Carthak."
Confusion clouded her face, but she managed a pleased expression. "I'm glad too." She said honestly. "There's no one else I could love as I love you. And there's no other place where I could do this work to make a better world."
Kaddar nodded, and they resumed their stately procession through the corridors. "Have your clerks cancel your appointments for the next two days. You should rest and enjoy our guests." He told her high-handedly.
She allowed her smile to become as brittle as the glass artwork she loved. "I'm having a tea in the solarium for the Ladies' Aid to the Illiterate tomorrow. If I could cancel, don't you think I would've by now?"
"Your sister will be there. You can make an appearance and then go rest."
"I enjoy the Aid to the Illiterate." Kalasin made a moderately annoyed sound in the back of her throat. "You can't afford to coddle me, and I can't afford to be coddled."
"You're exhausted." The emperor hissed. "It isn't healthy for you to work so hard. Take a few days to rest, so you can be strong again. That's all I ask." He changed tack in mid stride, from ordering to entreating.
Kalasin sighed. "It is kind of you to think of me, but I can't stop completely."
His frustrated sigh softened her expression. He did care, even though he was brusque about expressing it. "I have already canceled everything I can. I'll rest soon, I swear." She assured him. "Soon, I'll have to stay at the palace and not go out to the people at all."
He looked surprised.
She sighed. "I won't endanger the baby by riding over rough roads in a bumpy carriage or on the back of some half-tamed Carthaki horse."
"Half-tamed?" Kaddar pretended affront. "Why, my lady, I'll have you know that Carthaki horses are the finest in the Eastern Lands."
"Perhaps while Buri and my sister are hear they may demonstrate K'miri riding techniques. It's quite different than anything you've seen me do, I assure you." Kalasin said, her tone almost screaming 'I know a secret.'
Kaddar sent her a puzzled glance, before the role of the emperor overtook the concern of the man. The royal couple entered the banquet hall.
TBC
Thank you Tailyn and Quatre-Sama. My first reviewers for a Tamora Pierce story! :)
Tailyn: Thank you for your feedback! I'm love hearing that you think it's "lovely." :) I'm glad you approve of my creative canon interpretation. I don't think Nora will appear directly, but I needed to reconcile it somehow mentally. Sorry if it's confusing. By the way, I read Smaller Stars and it's wonderful! I'm really impressed by your characterizations (Particularly Liam, Alan and Jasson.) You've given them such individuality that I can't wait to read more. Thanks for adding me to your list of favorite stories. I'm touched!
Quatre-Sama: Thank you for your kind words of encouragement! I know it's bitter right now, but I'm going to work on that. I'm glad that you felt it fit the situation. Thanks for the compliments, I'm really glad that you think I'm doing justice to the originals. I've always admired your interpretation of canon and your stories, so thanks again! Hope this chapter lives up to expectations.
Kaddar Iliniat waited for his wife to arrive, so they could enter the banquet room and begin the feast. It was unlike her to be late, but he imagined she had been chattering with her sister so long that she lost track of time. Kaddar knew how badly she missed her home and family. He was pleased beyond measure that one of her sisters had been spared from duties at home. He had written an enclosure suggesting that Kalasin would appreciate seeing a family member. It was a good sign that his in-laws had respected his opinion enough to honor his request. Relations between the countries were still strained, but he and Kalasin were mending it.
He was surprised the Lianne had come instead of the older sister, Nora. Lianne was all but engaged to a Maren prince, while as near as he could tell, Nora had run wild. It wasn't his business, considering he had never met the girl, but he couldn't help comparing her to her illustrious kin. She was the only one in the family who hadn't chosen a path of study and discipline. He knew that she was intelligent enough to be the Prime Minister's assistant, and that she had received special instruction in using her Gift. But the girl lacked self-control. She played pranks and deliberately offended foreign guests who came to the Court to offer for her hand in marriage. She certainly wasn't a Duke Roger of Conté, but she was fonder of power for the sake of power than her siblings.
The door to his suite opened, and he turned expectantly to greet Kalasin. Instead, Lady Buriram Tourakam of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak stood in the doorway, looking awkward and angry. "My lady." He greeted impassively.
She inclined her head, as she ran her eyes around his room. He thought he could detect her scrutinizing every inch, as though she expected and was prepared for armed mercenaries to fall through the roof at any second. "Your Majesty." She replied.
"You found your quarters adequate?"
"Quite." Buri said shortly. An uneasy pause hung between them. "I am a woman of actions, not words." She broke the silence. "May I speak plainly?"
"By all means." Kaddar said, wondering what she could have to say to him.
"What in the name of the Horse Lords have you put Kalasin through in the last four years?" Buri demanded. "She has the look of a soaked cheesecloth, about to fall apart at the seams."
Kaddar stiffened defensively. "The empress is the most beautiful woman in the world."
Buri rolled her eyes. "She looks like a doll, not a real woman. She could barely breathe today, and I'm certain those shoes are hazardous to her health."
"My wife clothes herself in garments befitting her rank." Kaddar said stiffly, defensiveness and wounded pride mingling in him. "As do I. I have been given to understand that ceremonial clothing is not designed for the wearer's comfort, even in Tortall."
"You're stifling the child." Buri accused.
Kaddar sighed. "The empress of Carthak is no child."
Buri looked furious and impotent, as her protective instincts warred with practicality. "She's miserable." The woman who had been both surrogate mother and bodyguard to the eldest princess of Tortall alleged.
"You make this judgment on the basis of what? Three seconds of sight across a crowded dock?" Kaddar attacked. "You haven't even talked to her yet."
"I raised her." Buri said fiercely. "I know what's in her heart and her letters, even at a distance. Her family may have let it slide, but I shall not. She is unhappy."
"She is happier now than I have seen her in the past four years." Kaddar argued. "She's eager for the baby, for the reforms she is instituting, for the learning she does with the University. She has come to love me, and this palace, and her people. Given the choice to return to Tortall or continue her work in Carthak, she would stay here."
Buri hissed, producing a sound that would've been appropriate had it emerged from the throat of a large predatory animal. "What have you done to her?"
"I love her. If she is unhappy, it is not my doing!" Kaddar insisted, allowing passion (or was it panic?) to enter his voice and eyes.
Buri squared her jaw. "What has happened to her?"
"She has seen despair and what causes men to turn to evil deeds." Kaddar said darkly, adopting the flowery language of poet and scholar. "She has condemned prisoners to die, and sent men to battle on her behalf."
Buri barely flinched.
"She has freed slaves and listened to their sorrows. She has built schools and temples and watched them burned by rebels and raiders and pirates."
Buri's jaw worked. "She never wrote that in her letters."
"Would you expect her to include bad news? She only tells you what she thinks you need to know, or what you can't help learning about. She doesn't want you to worry." Kaddar hurled the words at the embodiment of what his wife yearned to return to. He resented the looming figure of Kalasin's memories of home, which divided them. "She has eaten strange food and slept in unfamiliar beds with a man she has learned to love." Buri moved as though to protest, but Kaddar did not heed her. "Kalasin has lived in air that reeks of foreign spices, and bathed in seawater warmer than she ever imagined it could be."
Buri settled back on her heels to take in Kaddar's words with an impassive face. She had helped Thayet teach the royal children how to swim in the freezing water by Pirate's Swoop, one summer many years ago. Roald had wanted to know what was across the water more than he wanted to play in it. Liam had been more interested in the sandy rocks and the creatures than the ocean, but Kalasin had loved the waves and the tide. She would spend hours at a time, coming in only when her small body was so chilled that even in the full heat of a summer day she shivered with a blanket. Now, the threat of a chill was probably erased, but the love of the salt water remained.
"She has worked around nobles whose ideas are so antiquated even Carthaki conservatives condemn their ways." Kaddar allowed sarcasm to seep into his words.
Buri's expression grew wry. Mother and daughter were not so different after all. With work, Thayet had maneuvered diplomatically around Tortall's conservatives for any number of years.
"She has gone four years without hearing her families' voices, hugging her mother and father close, or seeing the glitter of Corus at Midwinter." Kaddar's gaze bore into Buri. "You ask what has happened to her? Kalasin has grown from the sweet and dutiful adolescent you knew to a formidable, powerful and gracious woman."
Buri inclined her head. "You love her."
"Yes." Kaddar confirmed simply.
Buri sighed, and the silence was easier. "I worry about her." Buri said, finally. "She is—Thayet's children are like my own." The confession wrung something from the petite K'miri woman, who was silent for a long moment. "Kalasin has always been special to me. She was always so sweet. And I compounded it. We all did. Her innocence was so beautiful. We sheltered her where we could. She was probably less prepared for the injustices in the world than she could've been. I was sorry when she left her home to come here." Buri bit her lip. "I do not mean to offend you."
"You have not." Kaddar tried to say, but Buri's words were too true. When Kalasin had arrived in Carthak, her innocence had been so strong it was almost tangible. She'd lived through the Immortals War in Tortall, Stormwing siege and assassination attempts, but in her heart she had believed that people meant the best for herself and each other. Those beliefs had eroded slowly, until that horrible moment when she saw her own blood on her legs and realized that it meant the child was lost. Her innocence was gone in that second, but her faith in the goodness of those around her had endured until she realized that someone had intentionally murdered the life inside of her.
"I knew she would be lonely. She didn't bring anyone with her. She didn't want to force anyone to rebuild her life in a foreign land. Thought it was unfair to ask." Buri's face quirked in a painfully amused expression. "She thought nothing of doing it herself, but would not ask another. I've always hated that. I know how hard it was for Thayet and me, and we had each other. At least Kally brought her horse. I'm sure that's been some comfort to her."
"Chavi died in foaling two years ago." Kaddar informed Buri. "But she does like the little filly. She named it Bian. I'm given to understand that the horses are named for gods her mother celebrated?"
"The K'miri Horse lords." Buri's face turned dark. "No, I suppose she didn't want to give us bad news to worry us, now did she?"
"No." Kaddar said, thinly. "No, she doesn't."
"No wonder she's so thin and stretched looking." Buri sighed. "She hasn't talked to anyone, has she?"
"She talks to me." Kaddar said, feeling strangely wounded.
"Nobody female." Buri amended. "It makes a difference. Even the most wonderful men only have so much patience for women's talk. Plus, your mother is probably the trial of her life."
"You know nothing about my marriage. You knew Kalasin as a girl, but since the miscarriage, she is a different woman."
"Miscarriage?" Buri breathed.
Kaddar winced. Had he met to let that fly? He had never agreed with Kalasin's desire to keep that secret, but he had meant to honor it. "Caused by an evil mage. He's been destroyed already." Kaddar explained coldly, as he inwardly quaked in anticipation of the reaction of Kalasin's family and Kalasin herself.
Buri's face contorted for half a second in grief. "She suffers then, and in silence."
"Not silence, but close enough."
"Who else knows?" Buri demanded.
The emperor answered. "I do. No one else, save the healers and the mage who cast the curse. Now you."
Buri sighed. "No wonder you wanted one of her family here for the babe's arrival."
"She's so hopeful for this try, but she's afraid at the same time. She's afraid now, of how much evil and ill will is aimed at herself and our heirs." Kaddar told the older woman. Then, because she had wounded him, he lashed out. "She really wanted her mother, you know."
"I know. But Thayet couldn't be spared for as long as we're visiting." Buri admitted. "Thayet will be here for the naming, though the Great Gods themselves stand in her way."
"The queen misses her daughter as much as my wife misses her mother?" Kaddar asked, pleased in a roundabout way.
"More." Buri said. Roald, Liam, Nora and Jasson were still in Tortall, but Roald was married and had his own life, Liam was leaving for Galla, Nora was not in Corus, and Lianne was preparing to leave. Thayet had not been there for every moment of her children's lives, but she still hated to have them so scattered.
Kaddar expressed disbelief.
Buri shrugged. "I've brought special foods with me. That's why unpacking the ship took so long. They'll be a taste of home for her. She's probably longing for some of it."
Kaddar's face eased into a pleased expression. "If you managed to bring some potatoes and the ingredients for sticky buns I might be able to award you an honorary nobility in Carthak."
Buri's lips twitched. "I'd rather you didn't. My husband might wonder how I pleased the emperor so mightily."
Kaddar coughed to mask a chuckle.
Buti nodded. "When Thayet's time came, she dreamed of mushroom and venison stews till her husband was ready to send an army to Sarain to fetch some for her."
"Cravings for food of the homeland runs in her veins then?"
"During pregnancy, aye." Buri said. "She'll also be pleased to taste some of the candies her aunties remembered to send."
"Who'll be pleased?" Kalasin asked, entering the room.
"You, my Empress." Kaddar took her jeweled hand and kissed it affectionately. "There'll be a feast of food from your homeland, thanks to the Lady Buriram of Goldenlake and Malorie's Peak."
Kalasin threw herself at Buri, who caught and clutched at the young woman who was almost her daughter. "I thought you were still unloading the ships! Why didn't you come to me immediately? Oh, I missed you." Kalasin babbled against the shorter woman's hair.
Kaddar blinked at the undignified outpouring. Even in private, his wife was usually a model of restraint and dignity. This helpless, passionate joy at reunion took him aback.
"And I you, little one." Buri responded. She took a step back to look at the Empress of Carthak. "You look like a fashion plate." Her tone was not one of approval.
"I feel like a doll." Kalasin complained.
"You look like a vision though." Kaddar told her. Buri sent him an evil look. Kalasin smiled weakly. "We should prepare to enter the banquet." Kaddar tried to extricate himself from the mess he was about to unleash.
Kalasin nodded. "My crown is in this room, yes?"
Kaddar indicated the box waiting on his desk. Kalasin lifted a thin tiara of braided silver, gold and copper from within the box. "Oh thank you." She murmured. "The rubies would've been unbearably heavy tonight." She fixed the crown in place, using a polished mirror to adjust a lock of hair.
The emperor held out his arm. Kalasin lightly rested her fingers on his forearm. "My lady would be well advised to enter the ballroom before the emperor." Kaddar intoned formally, unsure about the etiquette of the situation.
Buri made a face. "Must I attend?" She gestured to her clean, but practical clothing. "I'm not dressed for the occasion."
Kalasin's face displayed shock.
"I know it's just going to be a bunch of nobles ready to jump on me about anything they dislike in Tortall." Buri explained defensively. "And I'm not in the mood to hang a stone collar around my neck in order to show I'm as good as they."
"The banquet is in your honor." The empress's voice was thin, but not shrill. She invoked a patient, reasonable tone. "Everyone will be there to see you."
"And compare me to their memories of the Lioness and Wild Mage, no doubt." Buri sighed. "Relax young one. I'm not serious. Of course I'll attend this evening's gathering."
Kalasin sighed. "You'd better go first then. They'll really gossip if you come late. I sent Lia straight there."
Buri nodded. "We'll speak more later, in private."
Kaddar wasn't sure who she was addressing her comment to, but when he met her eyes he had to remind himself that he was not one of her trainees for the Queen's Riders. She couldn't order him to run laps or do some monotonous task in order to punish him for not forcing Kalasin to disclose the truths about her life in Carthak. He was the emperor of an enormous amount of land, diverse and numerous people and the most righteous descendant in a hundred years. He was not a schoolboy who could suffer for telling falsehoods. And yet, he would almost rather face a fleet of pirates than the short, stocky, overprotective K'mir who was the closest thing to a mother-in-law that he'd had to deal with in the last four years. Kaddar flinched internally. Maybe his mother was more of a trial to Kalasin than he'd realized before.
Kaddar turned to study his wife's serenely elegant profile. He knew she tried to shield her family from worry and pain on her behalf. Did she do the same for him?
She met his eyes and tried to smile for him, but he suddenly saw the exhaustion etched into every feature. He stopped walking. Confused, she paused beside him. He leaned down and brushed a kiss against her cheek. He was careful not to smudge her face paint. "I love you." He murmured in an undertone. "I don't tell you often enough, but I am grateful that you came to Carthak."
Confusion clouded her face, but she managed a pleased expression. "I'm glad too." She said honestly. "There's no one else I could love as I love you. And there's no other place where I could do this work to make a better world."
Kaddar nodded, and they resumed their stately procession through the corridors. "Have your clerks cancel your appointments for the next two days. You should rest and enjoy our guests." He told her high-handedly.
She allowed her smile to become as brittle as the glass artwork she loved. "I'm having a tea in the solarium for the Ladies' Aid to the Illiterate tomorrow. If I could cancel, don't you think I would've by now?"
"Your sister will be there. You can make an appearance and then go rest."
"I enjoy the Aid to the Illiterate." Kalasin made a moderately annoyed sound in the back of her throat. "You can't afford to coddle me, and I can't afford to be coddled."
"You're exhausted." The emperor hissed. "It isn't healthy for you to work so hard. Take a few days to rest, so you can be strong again. That's all I ask." He changed tack in mid stride, from ordering to entreating.
Kalasin sighed. "It is kind of you to think of me, but I can't stop completely."
His frustrated sigh softened her expression. He did care, even though he was brusque about expressing it. "I have already canceled everything I can. I'll rest soon, I swear." She assured him. "Soon, I'll have to stay at the palace and not go out to the people at all."
He looked surprised.
She sighed. "I won't endanger the baby by riding over rough roads in a bumpy carriage or on the back of some half-tamed Carthaki horse."
"Half-tamed?" Kaddar pretended affront. "Why, my lady, I'll have you know that Carthaki horses are the finest in the Eastern Lands."
"Perhaps while Buri and my sister are hear they may demonstrate K'miri riding techniques. It's quite different than anything you've seen me do, I assure you." Kalasin said, her tone almost screaming 'I know a secret.'
Kaddar sent her a puzzled glance, before the role of the emperor overtook the concern of the man. The royal couple entered the banquet hall.
TBC
Thank you Tailyn and Quatre-Sama. My first reviewers for a Tamora Pierce story! :)
Tailyn: Thank you for your feedback! I'm love hearing that you think it's "lovely." :) I'm glad you approve of my creative canon interpretation. I don't think Nora will appear directly, but I needed to reconcile it somehow mentally. Sorry if it's confusing. By the way, I read Smaller Stars and it's wonderful! I'm really impressed by your characterizations (Particularly Liam, Alan and Jasson.) You've given them such individuality that I can't wait to read more. Thanks for adding me to your list of favorite stories. I'm touched!
Quatre-Sama: Thank you for your kind words of encouragement! I know it's bitter right now, but I'm going to work on that. I'm glad that you felt it fit the situation. Thanks for the compliments, I'm really glad that you think I'm doing justice to the originals. I've always admired your interpretation of canon and your stories, so thanks again! Hope this chapter lives up to expectations.