"Beautiful," Talamir finally said.
"Thank you." Subikahn slammed his sword back into its sheath. "Now what did you think of my svergelse?"
Talamir laughed. "You did a fine job, Kahn. You'll definitely pass."
"You're sure?" Though he knew he had performed well for several months now, Subikahn still worried about his manhood testing.
"No doubt. They'll pass you."
A man. The words sounded wonderful from the mouth of one who would certainly know. "You're not just saying that because-"
Talamir interrupted, his tone gaining a note of irritation, "I would never say something that important just to please anyone. You know that."
"Of course. I'm sorry." Subikahn could not stop grinning. "I didn't mean to impugn your character. I'm just so excited." Suddenly seized by the desire to share, he raced toward the gate. "Let's tell my papa. Everything."
"Everything?"Talamir scurried after his student. "Subikahn, wait. What exactly do you mean by everything?"
"I mean everything." Subikahn tripped the latch and yanked on the heavy portal. "He's a wonderful man who deserves to share my every delight. The most understanding father in the world will find joy in whatever makes me happy."
"I'm not so sure," Talamir said, his soft reply lost beneath the squeal of massive hinges. Closing his eyes, he followed Subikahn into the castle.
Sunlight glinted from bits of quartz and mica in the mortared stone construction of Stalmize Castle. King Tae Kahn clung like a spider to the courtyard wall, directly below the library window. Above him, his constant feline companion, Imorelda, watched him through the window, tail twitching daintily, her paws tucked calmly beneath her.*You have a visitor,* she said in the mental voice only he could hear. *Who's there?* he sent back. *Not here. Down there.* The silver tabby glanced past him to the ground, five stories below.
Tae followed the animal's gaze to a plump maid arranging blankets on the ground beneath him. Alneezah. He knew her at once, from her actions alone, and he could not help smiling. The servants had grown used to their king's strange antics. The son of a crime lord who had survived his youth by his wits, quickness, and wiles, he suffered from a restless need to know the location of every exit and to practice using them on a daily basis.
Tae's guards and butlers had requested the right to cushion the entire base of the castle, in case their king lost rooftop footing or a grip on a window, niche, or ledge. Afraid to lose his edge, Tae had dismissed their requests as unnecessary. Still, Alneezah always found an excuse to keep Tae safer. She also knew Imorelda's favorite treats and somehow always had them on hand for chance meetings in the corridors.
"What are you doing down there?" Tae called to the maid.
Alneezah did not bother to look up, though she did grant the king a respectful curtsy. Tae hated formality, but his advisers assured him of the necessity. Without it, they told him, he could not command the respect required to run a single country, let alone the entire Eastlands. "I'm airing out some quilts,Your Majesty."
"In the central courtyard?"
"Yes, Sire."
"On the ground?"
Alneezah finally glanced up. Though not traditionally beautiful, her features were becoming in their own way. Shiny black hair fell in waves past her shoulders, hiding her ears, and bangs eclipsed her gentle, brown eyes. The pink circles of her cheeks gave her a look of constant coyness, and her small nose seemed to disappear above full, heart-shaped lips. "Yes, Sire. On the ground."
"Directly beneath my dirty feet."
Alneezah bit back a smile. "Oh, I hope they're not dirty, Your Majesty. Some dignitary may wish to kiss them."
Caught off guard by the unabashed banter, Tae had no retort. *She's good.You should marry her.*
Tae felt his cheeks warm. When Kevral had chosen Ra-khir as her husband, she had devastated Tae. It was not that he had expected anything different. At that time, Ra-khir had everything he did not: striking good looks, impeccable honor, and a romanticism Tae could only watch and envy. Also, Ra-khir had just single-handedly gone to war against the entire country of Pudar to win Kevral back from their custody. Since then, Tae had devoted himself entirely to their son and never considered courting another woman.
Not that Tae had had no opportunities. The lesser kings of many countries had offered their daughters to him, and nearly every unattached woman in his own kingdom batted her eyes and giggled around him. He had a trove of barren concubines who happily shared his bed to satisfy their urges as well as his own. But, his deep love, and most of his attention went solely to his son; and only Imorelda consumed as much of his time. He had brought the boy into the world and swore to any gods that might exist that he would do a far better job raising Subikahn than his father had done with Tae.
Tae reached for any excuse to silence the cat.*Alneezah? She's too young for me.* *She's nearly thirty. You're thirty-seven.* Imorelda rose casually to poke her furry head out the window. Shed hairs swirled through the sunbeams, making her appear to grow an unearthly halo.*Close enough.*
Tae ignored the animal to call down to the maid again. "You don't need to protect me, you know." His toes wedged into comfortable ledges in the mortar, and his fingers looped around irregularities in the stone.
Alneezah continued spreading blankets as if Tae had never interrupted. "Who said anything about protecting you,Your Majesty? You have two competent guard forces for that."
It was true. In addition to the main army, his father commanded an elite group of men. Organized criminals, they penetrated every area of the world with ease and acted on information with a swift efficiency the guards would not dare to emulate. Though no one other than Tae knew it, Imorelda acted as a third line of defense. Only four other people in the world would even believe he could communicate with a cat. Queen Matrinka had had a similar relationship with Imorelda's mother, Mior, and only Darris, Kevral, and Ra-khir knew about it. All three of them, as well as Tae, had needed serious convincing despite trusting Matrinka implicitly. Eventually, Tae's uncanny knack for languages had allowed him to communicate with Mior also and, later, with the kitten she had gifted to him. Few humans seemed able to resist Imorelda's charm, and they all spoke openly in her presence. *She's cagey and cheeky. Qualities I adore.* *Then you marry her.* Tae shifted fingers that had begun to cramp.*Most humans look upon those as character flaws, not qualities.* *Most humans wouldn't know quality if it scratched their eyes out and batted them around the floor.* *An interesting turn of phrase.*
Imorelda sat on the window seat and licked one gray paw.*Yes, isn't it? I made it up myself.* *I would never have guessed.*
Imorelda stopped her bath suddenly, and her head disappeared from the window.*Subikahn's here.* Her face returned, her little black nose crinkled.*And that yellow-furred one who always smells like metal and oil.*
By "yellow," Tae knew she meant blond. She always identified humans by the color of their hair, which she interchangeably referred to as "manes" or "fur."*You mean the Renshai.Talamir?* *Yes, that one.They're looking for you.*
Tae skittered back up the wall to the window ledge.
Imorelda yawned and stretched before moseying out of Tae's way and allowing him to duck inside.
"Ah, there you are, Papa." Subikahn showed no surprise at finding the king of Stalmize dangling out of a tower window. His thin black hair was disheveled, like his father's always was, his cheeks still pinkish from exertion. His olive skin always seemed darker in the presence of his pale Renshai torke. Subikahn's lips held a smile that seemed permanently glued there, while the Renshai looked more nervous than excited. He shifted from foot to foot, his hands hovering above his swords. He would not touch a weapon in the king's presence, but he seemed incapable of putting his hands calmly at his sides.
Tae spun toward them on the window seat, preparing to dismount; but Imorelda stomped into his lap before he could drop his feet to the floor. Effectively trapped, he sat. "Hello, Subikahn." He nodded toward the other Renshai, "Talamir."