Eon: Dragoneye Reborn

'They are very beautiful, are they not, my lord?'

I turned. Lady Dela was standing on the platform, flanked by her Shadow Man guard. In the daylight I could see he had the look of a Trang Islander about him. Perhaps he was one of the cattle-men. They both bowed, Lady Dela dropping to one knee and folding her hands in the bend of her hip, the pearl and gold hem of her cream robe pooling heavily at her feet.

'This, my lord, is the formal court bow of a lady to a lord. In response, the lord nods his head.'

I quickly nodded.

'Excellent,' she said, rising gracefully

Although her every move was that of a woman, I could now see the man beneath the careful paint and rich clothing. And yet she was not a man. She was Lady Dela. It was very confusing.

'Ryko here is on duty,' she continued, 'therefore his bow is from the waist and does not require him to lower his gaze. Off duty, of course, he is required to drop to both knees and bow until his forehead is a hand's width from the floor, eyes lowered.' She stepped to one side. 'Show him, Ryko.'

The big man bowed from the waist again. 'I beg pardon, my lord,' he said softly 'But I am on duty and unable to bow as my lady requests.'

Lady Dela clapped. 'See! He is a very good guard. Even if I order him, he will not do it.'

I saw the hint of a smile twitch at Ryko's lips.

'If you order me, lady, I will be in a grave dilemma,' he said.

'How so?' she demanded. Her sharp features had softened with amusement.

'To upset a lady or follow my orders. Both are terrible crimes.'

'Ha,' she said, the black pearl at her throat quivering. 'The terrible crime is your attempt at gallantry'

As you say, my lady' he said meekly

She turned away from him, her lips pressed together to stifle her own smile. 'May I enter, my lord?' she asked.

'Of course.'

She stepped out of her slippers and crossed the room, the Shadow Man taking his position at the doorway.

'Lord Eon,' she said, returning to business, 'all of lower rank are required to bow to you. That is everyone except the Imperial family and the other lords. You only need to acknowledge lower ranks with a brief nod. In a situation where you are of equal rank, say another Dragoneye lord, the younger lord nods to the elder. You will always bow to the Emperor or one of his family by dropping to both knees and bowing from the waist at the angle of the crescent moon.'

She stopped and looked closely at my robe, her thin eyebrows arcing upwards. 'My goodness.

Is that "A Summer Waterfall Brings Harmony to the Soul"?'

'It was a gift from the Emperor,' I said.

'Indeed,' she said, walking around me, her reddened lips pursed with thought. 'Indeed. A most interesting gift.' She flicked open a fan that hung from a ribbon around her wrist and waved it gently in front of her face. Above the finely painted edge, I saw shrewd calculation in her eyes. 'Now that the Harmony robe is yours, you should know its history Perhaps, if we have time, I will tell you at the end of our lesson.'The fan snapped shut. 'There is one thing, however, we must attend to before we resume.' She turned her head away politely, pointing the fan at the pouch hanging from my sash. 'Ryko, perhaps you could assist Lord Eon?'

The guard hurried over to me.

'My lord, may I suggest you fold that under the sash?' he said. "The Emperor has recently ruled that the court ladies should not look upon such a necessity. Allow me to help you.'

He untied the strings and rolled the leather around the horn, quickly working it under the edge of the stiffly pleated sash.

I couldn't help the rise of heat to my face. 'I did not know'

He bowed. 'My lord, it would be my honour if you felt free to come to me with any questions about…' He lowered his voice. About the way of the Shadow here at court.'

I could not meet the kindness in his eyes. 'Thank you,' I whispered.

Ryko nodded in salute and returned to his position at the door.

Lady Dela swirled around to face me again, her face overly bright. 'Now, my lord, what have you learned so far?'

I repeated her instructions back.

'Very good. I am so glad you are quick. The new Rat Dragoneye apprentice is too terrified to retain anything at the moment. Poor child.'

'You mean Dillon?' I stepped forwards. 'You've seen Dillon?'

'Of course, you would have studied together,' Lady Dela said smoothly 'I have been instructing him in court protocol. Is he a friend?'

I saw her note my hesitation.

'He is,' I finally said. 'Can I see him?'

It would be good to see Dillon and clear the air between us; his small betrayal meant nothing now. We had both won the prize. And I wanted to see his face when he saw me in a Story Robe.

'He is at his Dragon Hall, my lord. But you will see him tonight at the banquet. It is as much a welcome to him as it is to you, and he will be officially third guest of honour. In fact, I may be able to arrange the places so that you can speak to one another during the feast. Would that be agreeable?'

'Yes. Very agreeable.'

'That is settled then,' she said, and I sensed I had entered a bargain without knowing the price.

'Now, let us continue. When you leave the presence of the Emperor or one of his family, you must never turn your back. It is an Insult of Death. "You must learn the way of backing out of a room. Come, we will practise.'

It was a long lesson. We stopped for the tea and moon-cakes that Rilla brought in, and Lady Dela made the refreshment part of my instruction. She showed me how to kneel in the Story Robe and take tea in the formal manner of the nobles; which guest drank from their porcelain bowl first, when to eat the tiny festival cakes, and what was said at each stage of the ritual.

Although I only ate two of the delicious cinnamon pastries as prescribed by the ceremony, they added their weight to my unsettled stomach.

Finally, after I had mastered the formal and informal greetings and the backward kowtow out of the Emperor's presence, Lady Dela nodded her approval.

'Enough for now, I think,' she said. 'You have done very well.'

I bowed slightly, relieved that the session was over. But I could foresee a very large problem ahead of me.

'Lady, you will think me very stupid,' I said, 'but I have only ever seen the Imperial family and the Dragoneye lords from a distance. I will not know which bow goes with which person.'

She shook her head, the gold hair ornaments chiming. 'Not stupid at all, my lord. When I first came to the court, I also did not know. It took a long time and many mistakes before I found my footing.' She smiled, leaning towards me, and I smelled the sweetness of frangipani. 'Don't worry, I will accompany you to the court banquets and gatherings for a while and whisper names in your ear. And also some pertinent information that will help you through the maze of personalities.'

There was a small grunt from Ryko at the doorway

Lady Dela unfurled the fan and hid us behind it. 'Ryko thinks my mouth runs as fast as a rickshaw's wheels,' she said in a loud whisper that easily carried to the guard.

'No, lady. I think that if Lord Eon is under your instruction in matters of court intrigue, he could not have a better teacher.'

She widened her eyes at me. 'Now he thinks I am an intriguer.'

'I certainly find you intriguing, lady,' I said, attempting to match their banter.

Lady Dela nodded her approval. 'A deft deflection, my lord.' She shut the fan. 'I think you will do well at court. Now, would you like to hear the history of your robe? It is something you should probably know before you enter the banquet room tonight.'

She took my hand and held it out so that the wide-cut sleeve fell freely.

'This robe was designed and woven by Master Wulan. It was commissioned as a gift for the Emperor by the family of Lord Ido when he was chosen as apprentice.'

I flinched at the Dragoneye's name. Lady Dela nodded at my reaction, tracing her finger along an emblem woven into the sleeve.