silverchain.
chapter three: mysterious parentage is not on some men's checklists for sons-in-law
outerelf: it's fine! i promise i won't do that...i may add to the ships, but i'm not going to change them. and yes! Amiti needs encouragement, he's too polite for his own good.
FlameUser64: makes sense, and i do believe they mentioned something about Matthew having his mother's fire (personality-wise) in-game?
anon: you have no idea how happy that makes me. thanks so much! i'm constantly worried about the right amount of description, especially because i tend towards more dialogue. i love dialogue. i could just endlessly write conversations, haha.
"I think you're overreacting," an offhand voice said from behind him. Ivan spun around to face Jenna; his eyes were steely and his mouth was set in a firm line. He glanced nervously at the door. "Don't worry, she's still asleep."
"This isn't some joke, Jenna," Ivan replied with evident irritation. "We're talking about my daughter's life."
Jenna's expression was incredulous. Her hair, tossed back, caught the sunlight as she demanded, "You think he's going to hurt her in some way?"
"I didn't say that, but the chance is too great—"
"Chance of what?" The woman's eyes were dark and accusing. "Chance that you just might be wrong about somebody?"
"Jenna, you have to remember what Alex did to us—" Ivan tried.
"So you're accusing Amiti of something just because of your guess about his father? You're ridiculous, Ivan."
Pulling himself up to full height (he was still rather short for a man, but he was at least taller than Jenna), he said angrily, "Do you realize how serious this could be? What if he's working with his father?"
"Why would he have told you all that information if he was working with Alex?" Jenna asked. Ivan didn't allow her a victory.
"He probably wouldn't know any of the information. Alex could be manipulating him from behind the scenes, just like he manipulated us. I just have this feeling he's still alive..."
"You never used to be this paranoid," said Jenna in a low tone. "If you're so worried about Amiti, why don't you Mind Read him?"
Ivan went pale at this below-the-belt hit. "You know that I swore never to use Mind Read again," he said, struggling to keep his voice sane and even.
She did not relent. "Using Mind Read is better than making yourself miserable with paranoia, Ivan!" For the first time in years, Ivan caught a few sparks flitting around her fingers, and he knew provoking her further would be an unsafe idea. The man sighed.
"I'm just going to see how this goes. And while we're talking about this, why don't you tell me why he's really here?"
The sparks faded. Jenna didn't meet his eyes. "I think he should be the one to tell you, but please...promise me something." The woman looked so crushed and dejected that he had to comply. Ivan nodded slowly. "Promise me, for Karis' sake, you'll be rational about it. Amiti's a good kid, and even if Alex is his father—"
"He is," Ivan said resolutely.
"That doesn't mean he's bad. He's just a confused young man, rather like you were. You didn't know your heritage for quite awhile, remember that, Ivan? You were so happy to have family when you found out about Hama." He flinched, but remained silent. Jenna took this as permission to continue, not that she usually waited for permission. Dark eyes flashing, this time with care and worry instead of anger, she said, more gently, "If you judge Amiti too quickly, you'll regret it. He means a lot to Karis."
Ivan nodded again, slowly, and the Mars Adept left him to his tumultous thoughts.
"Good morning," Karis sang, setting down two plates stacked with sourdough bread and fruit, so caught up in her joy that she hardly noticed her father's agitated expression.
Ivan forced himself to smile, and said calmly, "You're in a very good mood today, Karis." She giggled in response, in a way that was quite unlike her. The older man tried not to care.
"I thought," Karis said carefully, sitting down to breakfast, "that I might show Amiti around today. Did you have any other plans?"
"No, no, that's fine. I'm supposed to meet with Master Hammet this afternoon." He bit into a peach, and sighed. "He is not doing very well at all, quite honestly." The young Jupiter Adept, while of course concerned for her adoptive grandfather, had inherited perhaps a bit too much cunning, and the cogs in her brain were beginning to turn.
"Will Lady Layana be free, then?" she asked nonchalantly.
"Hm? Oh, yes, I suppose so. I don't believe there are any exceedingly important matters for Kalay at the moment...why?"
"Well, Amiti wanted to see her..."
"Oh. I remember now. Of course, as soon as possible." Rather satisfied, Ivan set down the peach core and started on the bread. Karis smiled to herself.
"I suppose Isaac and Matthew will be returning tomorrow?" the young woman asked, with a glint in her eye.
Ivan, rather preoccupied, nodded. "I believe that was the plan."
Karis sipped her water sedately for a moment, until a huge, foxy grin took hold of her face and she tore out the door, a whirlwind of boisterous energy; her father began calculating the odds that some horrible disaster would take place while Amiti stayed in Kalay.
Meanwhile, Jenna was fussing over that same young man who was the subject of so much drama soon to turn the ear of every gossip in the area. "I'm sure Karis is planning something for today, so I hope it goes well." The woman smiled sunnily, and Amiti couldn't help but grin back. The excitement of the trip and the joy of seeing Karis again had cut through the layers of the young king's royal facade, and the cheerful, friendly personality of the man was shining through every pore of his body.
"What are you planning today, madam?" he asked politely, never one to forget his manners. Jenna made a face and clucked at him.
"For the last time, Amiti, call me Jenna or I'll boot out of this house. And as for what I'm doing, well, I need to stop by and see poor old Gracie...then I'll probably stop at that little blue restaurant you probably saw, for lunch...some foreign art should be coming in sometime in the middle of the day, I'm supposed to look at that and pick one out for the palace...oh, and my little art student, Autia, actually has a recital today, I need to see that...and then back home to fix dinner." She listed these items not without some pride, and her face was flushed with anticipation.
Amiti blinked. "Well, it seems that you will be busy. I hope that your day is productive."
Jenna winked. "You too." A knock at the door interrupted their conversation, and the woman pushed the young Mercury Adept to it. "That'll be Karis," she whispered, "so I'm just going to leave by the other door." She snuck off, and Amiti had no choice but to answer the door.
Karis' face reddened at the sight of him. "Hi," she managed, tucking a strand of her hair behind an ear. The young woman was more nicely dressed than she had been during their travels, since she didn't have to worry about practicality, and he thought the blue sundress complemented her dazzling eyes perfectly.
Realizing he was staring, the young king stammered back a greeting and stepped outside, closing the door tightly behind him. He leaned against it for a second, looking at the young woman's sunny expression, before catching himself. He looked away, and cleared his throat nervously. "Ready?" she asked brightly, and he nodded, his sea-green eyes warmly but quietly watching her.
"I thought first we'd visit all the merchants, that's always fun, we get a lot of imports here, and then maybe go get some lunch? Oh! My father says that Lady Layana should be free, so we might want to go see her today, you know, since you wanted to do that. Or, I mean, whatever you want." She smiled apologetically. "I didn't mean to plan the whole day—"
"Karis." Amiti looked at her seriously. "That sounds wonderful, and it was very thoughtful of you to suggest it. I would love to do all of those things with you." He smiled gently at her, and almost got caught up in the moment again until he felt a sharp tug on his arm.
"Well then, come on! We don't have all day," the Wind Adept said teasingly, and began to move away. He quickly caught up with her, and they engaged in idle conversation, remarking on the beautiful trees and various little remembrances from their adventures.
Karis glanced at the ornate jewellery on display with a look that Amiti was quick to label as 'longing', but he feared it was only his hopes talking. Nevertheless, he also examined the lovely decorations, offering to buy her a particularly fetching pair of earrings, but she declined. "That's too much, Amiti!", and he did have to agree, when he had not so much as obtained her father's permission to court her. What was Jenna planning?
The pair had a nice lunch at the blue restaurant recommended by Jenna, but the woman herself was nowhere to be found. Karis teased their server, apparently a friend of hers, terribly about her lack of honorifics when addressing Amiti, a king. The young man himself felt mildly uncomfortable, both by the joke and Karis' friendship with the server, but he brushed it off. He'd been raised as a nobleman, someone who would likely ascend to the throne, and he did not need to condemn the way commoners' behaved, especially in a completely different culture. It was difficult for the king to even consider Karis as a commoner; a certain grace permeated her every action, and she held her head high walking the streets of Kalay. It completely enchanted him, he had to admit, and he felt humbled that sometimes she seemed more royal than he.
When they reached the palace, Karis turned to him with a slightly sad smile. "You should probably go in to see her yourself."
Amiti was puzzled. "I was under the impression that you were close with Lord Hammet and Lady Layana...do they not regard your father as their son?"
"Exactly," she said. "I don't want anybody to talk, or for anybody to think that the treaty stayed because of my connection to them. You're the king; this is your duty."
He nodded once, feeling rather shamed that this hadn't occurred to him. "You seem born for this sort of thing," he said softly. Karis looked at him.
"You're the one who was born for it. Now go on in there and make your uncle proud." She put a comforting hand on his shoulder and nearly pushed him through the door.