Akkarin heard the footsteps in the secret passages nearby and sighed. He had put off the conversation as long as he could, it seemed. He had noticed someone else had been exploring the passages a week before, and it had not taken him long to discover that it was Sonea. He was not overly surprised. Sonea had proven frighteningly clever and resourceful. When he had first realized she was travelling the passages, he had half-hoped she would satisfy whatever curiosity she had and then leave them, but of course, she had not. If he had been truthful with himself, he would have expected that. She was not using the passages out of idle curiosity–she was using them to avoid her tormentors. He had briefly considered letting her continue, but the rational part of his brain quickly rejected that option. The tunnels had too many secrets hidden in them, and he would not be at all surprised if she managed to discover them.

Pushing aside any regret he might feel with practiced ease, Akkarin strode quickly to where he had last heard Sonea. He saw her terrified look as he banished her from the tunnels, and he knew why even before he heard the thought flit across her mind. Does he not know they have me surrounded? For a brief moment, he feared his mask would slip. It seemed that the more time he spent around her, the more difficult it was for him to suppress his emotions about her.

He managed to hold onto his aloof demeanor until she exited the tunnels, but once he heard the secret door close behind her, he could hide the concern no longer. He followed the sounds of the confrontation, positioning himself behind a convenient spyhole so he could see what was going on. He watched as the novices wore down her shield, and his hands clenched into fists as he saw them prepare to douse her in the foul-smelling liquid. A large part of him wanted to stop what was happening, but he knew she would not thank him for the interference. And so instead he forced himself to watch as the other novices pulled back their arms, preparing to throw, only to see a shield surround her at the last minute. Akkarin smiled. Good girl. It seemed that Regin had once again underestimated her. Akkarin found he was more pleased than he had expected,. It was also getting harder and harder to convince himself that his interest lay solely in Sonea's potential usefulness as a future ally.

Akarin had an early morning meeting with the King the following morning, and as he left his house, he found himself needing to use quite a bit of Healing Energy to chase away the worst of his exhaustion. He briefly wondered if perhaps he was stretching himself too thin. Between his duties to the King, his duties to the Guild, his excursions to the city and now keeping an eye on Sonea, he was finding he had very little free time. His deal with Cery had helped with his work in the city since he no longer needed to spend long nights tracking down the slaves, but he was still feeling the burden of his other duties. Sometimes, he wished that he could take a holiday, but that was a risk he would not take.

He had received the summons from King Merin the previous afternoon. Given the casualness of the request and the early hour, Akkarin suspected that the meeting would be just him and the King. They had actually had quite a few similar meetings in the past, for King Merin seemed to find Akkarin easier to confide in than his other, much older advisors. For his part, Akkarin tried to use his influence as fairly as he could, ensuring Kyralia was always the King's number one priority. He suspected that was another reason Merin liked his company.

A page showed Akkarin into a meeting room where Merin already sat at a low table loaded with breakfast dishes. Noting that there was only one other place setting, Akkarin surmised that his assumption about the meeting's attendees was correct. "Please, sit, Akkarin and have some food," Merin remarked, gesturing to the table.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Akkarin said, taking the indicated chair and beginning to dish food onto his plate. The two ate in silence for a couple minutes before Merin spoke. "Have you discovered anything more about the Lonmar rumor?"

Akkarin swallowed before answering carefully. "My contacts had heard nothing when I first reached out to them, but two days later, they reported that they did hear such a rumor. They were unable to discover the origin, but they seemed surprised that we had heard it so much sooner since it was not even circling in their court."

King Merin was frowning. "Could you think of any reason why that might be the case?"

Truthfully, Akkarin could think of only one, but he knew he could not say it aloud. Instead, he hedged. "Perhaps my contacts were not in a place where they would hear of such rumors quickly."

"Have they always been reliable in the past?"

"Yes, I have received a good deal of timely information from them."

"And have their positions changed?"

"No."

"Then it would stand to reason that my source somehow heard of this rumor before it even existed."

Akkarin weighed his next words carefully. "That is one possibility, Sire."

Merin snorted. "You can speak frankly, Akkarin. That's why I wanted just the two of us here. I need your savvy insights, and I doubt they'd be as useful if you have to dress them up for Court." Akkarin let one eyebrow raise, a small smile on his face.

"The people I have in Lonmar are very good, Your Majesty. If they had not heard of the rumor until recently, it is likely it did not exist until recently, at least not in the Court. So that would indicate that the original source was either wrong or possibly the original source of the rumor, explaining his or her prescience."

Merin nodded. "I'm leaning toward the latter as well though i cannot think what he would gain from such a rumor."

"Perhaps the same thing a court gossip would gain from a rumor about a lover's tryst involving a longtime enemy," Akkarin suggested. Merin raised an eyebrow, and Akkarin decided that he might as well abandon the circular speech of Court. "Distrust between two allies."

"To what end?"

Akkarin considered for a moment before deciding to press his luck. "I could not say, especially not without more information about the original source."

"You know I could not reveal that."

He did. "In that case, I dare not speculate except to say. . . we should be wary of the original source. Even if the rumor did not exist when we first learned of it, it has since made its way to lofty ears." Merin nodded in understanding.

"Harris had an interesting suggestion. He feels that perhaps it is time to strengthen our connection to Lonmar." The king swirled the pachi juice in his glass, taking a large sip before continuing. "Their king has two unmarried daughters."

Akkarin let his grimace show on his face. "Better you than me."

The King laughed loudly. "You know, Akkarin, you act as if marriage is a death sentence. I've seen some of the women whose hands were offered to you. You would do quite well with a number of them."

Akkarin gave a slight smile, but it did not reach his eyes. "As you well know, Sire, my first loyalty is to the Guild. I do not believe it fair to take a wife who would always be second to that."

Merin considered his words before smiling slyly. "Well, regardless of my opinion on the topic, I am not the one you need to convince. I am sure your mother will have plenty of candidates lined up at tonight's festivities. Who knows, maybe you'll even find one that suits!" Akkarin groaned inwardly at the King's words. He had nearly forgotten about the Winter's End ball that night. Unfortunately, as High Lord, he had no choice but to attend, and Merin was correct in assuming that his whole family would be there–as well as their expectations.

Akkarin took a Guild carriage to the ball that night. He did not take them often, preferring to ride whenever possible, but his formal High Lord robes did not lend themselves well to riding. Though I would love to see Mother's reaction if I rode, he thought ruefully. His driver pulled up to the door behind two other carriages, and he thanked the man before exiting. The people exiting the carriage in front of him quickly recognized his robes and bowed hastily which Akkarin acknowledged with a slight incline of his head. He was slowly becoming accustomed to the bowing though it had taken him some time.

He found a glass of wine soon after he entered, knowing he would need it to make it through the evening. Fortunately, he had timed his arrival late enough that most people were already involved in their own conversations though early enough that he would not be considered rude, even if he left before the end of the ball as he intended to do. He had perfected that timing years before. With wine in hand, he therefore retreated to the side of the ballroom, observing the others around him. When he had first discovered his ability to read surface thoughts, he had amused himself at these events by casting his mind out to read the surface thoughts of others around him, but that had quickly lost its appeal when he realized they were much the same as the vapid gossip the Court enjoyed. Now, he typically spent balls such as the current one working through other problems in his head. His mother hated that he did so, claiming that he always looked like he was brooding in a corner. Of course, his mother's disapproval simply encouraged the practice.

He was contemplating the issues Merin had mentioned with Lonmar when a familiar voice remarked, "Better not let Mother see you with that frown on your face, Akkarin." Akkarin turned to face his middle brother, Edgar, a man three years his senior. Though he and Akkarin shared many features, Edgar was shorter and stockier with a more rounded face. Also unlike Akkarin, he did not hesitate to bow to his parents' will, even going so far as to marry a dull, rather plain-looking woman from one of the more prestigious Houses in the hopes that their son would be the heir of that Family.

"Are Mother and Father here yet?"

"I have not seen them, but you know how they are. I am sure they will make an entrance." Akkarin nodded, still frowning. It did not escape his notice that Edgar had not offered even a perfunctory bow though one was strictly required by social conventions, even among family members. The High Lord was considered the highest ranking member of Kyralian society except for the King and Crown Prince. Akkarin knew that rankled Edgar and his oldest brother, Beren. Typically, however, they played their part in public, pretending they were happy and proud to have a brother who had achieved such prestige at such a young age.

Akkarin had never cared for ceremony, however, so he made no comment on the bow. Akkarin did not even need to read Edgar's thoughts to know that his brother was disappointed that the slight went unnoticed, for the small frown on Edgar's face gave away his feelings easily. "They are livid with you, you know," Edgar continued, still trying to get a rise from his implacable brother. Akkarin simply raised his eyebrows.

"Oh?"

"Everyone in Court is talking about how you took that slum girl as your favorite. It's bad enough that you let her into the Guild but to actually take an interest in her studies and have her living with you? What would ever possess you to do such a thing?"

Oh, if only you knew. "It was the King who ordered us to admit her to the Guild."

"And to take her on as your Novice?"

"She has a good deal of power and potential and was not being trained accordingly." Akkarin had repeated the same line so many times in the past few weeks that he was even beginning to believe it himself.

Edgar's suddenly gave an oily smile. "Beren and I were wondering just how good she must be in bed for you to overlook her. . . origins. He even said he might be willing to give her a go though I could not stoop so low, no matter how good. Just think of the potential diseases!"

Akkarin really should not have been shocked. He had even heard hints of similar thoughts from others though no one would dare say anything to him. However, something about the supercilious manner in which Edgar spoke as well as the underlying assumptions set Akkarin's teeth on edge. "I am her Guardian," Akkarin said, his voice a low hiss. "She is under my care so that I can assure she reaches her full potential as a magician. That is all there is to our relationship, and I will not abide any hints to the contrary." Akkarin stared at his brother, a gaze that easily frightened far stronger and more powerful men than Edgar Devlon. Edgar was certainly not immune despite his long history with Akkarin; he cowered under the dark glare. "As to your other charge, from what I've heard, those not in the Houses have far more scruples about who they allow into their bedchamber than most in this room, so you may want to worry about your own. . . associations." Akkarin let the implication sink in before turning and striding quickly away from his brother.

Akkarin considered leaving, but he knew he had not yet spent long enough at the ball. Instead, he walked out to the balcony to clear his head. He had just started to relax when a commotion inside of the ballroom caused him to turn in enough time to see his mother's familiar figure in the doorway. She advanced on him, finger wagging as if he were a small child who needed scolding. Akkarin almost laughed but managed to contain it at the last minute. "Akkarin of Devlon," she screeched. "Please tell me that I heard wrong and that you have not taken on Guardianship of some slum whore, letting her live under your roof to do lord knows what!"

Something about that statement made Akkarin's control on his temper finally snap. He felt guilty enough for the real reasons he had taken over Sonea's Guardianship, and he certainly did not intend to have the action start vicious Court rumors concerning her as well. Not that she would likely care about those. "No, Mother, I have not taken Guardianship of some 'slum whore'. I have taken Guardianship of a girl named Sonea who is the most promising magician the Guild has seen in all my time there–and yes, I am including myself in that." With that, Akkarin strode back into the ballroom, ignoring the indignant shouts behind him.