"I'll show you who the woman is here, Garstad," Thale said in a good-natured manner, striking the redheaded man with the shaft of his spear.
"Why did grandfather send you here to guard Tomas?" Tarrin asked curiously.
"You'll have to ask the king, my prince," Garstad said apologetically. "He didn't explain why. He just told us to do it."
"Of course. I'll ask him when I see him," Tarrin said. "May I pass?"
"Of course, my prince," Thale said with a bow. "We'd never bar your way. Please, go right ahead."
"Thank you," he said politely, stepping between them and looking back at Jesmind. "It's alright, Jesmind. They're from my mother's clan. They're friends."
" Yez-meen?" Thale said in heavily accented Sulasian, thoroughly destroying the pronunciation of his mate's name. "Ya is Ya-saw-na?" he asked, pointing at their daughter.
"What's he saying?" Jesmind asked quickly.
"Ya, ya is Ya-sahn-nah," Garstad said, then they both bowed to Jesmind and Jasana, which put a confused look all over his mate's face. At least Garstad got a little closer to pronouncing Jasana's name properly.
"Tarrin?" Jesmind asked in confusion.
"They're just showing respect for the mate and daughter of the grandson of their king, Jesmind," he told her with a sly smile. "My grandfather is their clan chief. I guess he told them about you two."
"Oh. Oh, alright," she said, relaxing visibly. "I had no idea what they were about. They don't speak Sulasian, do they?"
"I don't think so. Most Ungardt have alot of trouble with it," he said absently.
"With all those yergs and yuns, I'm not surprised," Jesmind snorted, coming up to them calmly.
Thale boldly reached out and took Jasana's little paw in his large hand and shook it lightly, smiling down at her from her position in Jesmind's arms. " Ya-saw-nah," he greeted her. " Suji Ya-saw-nah."
"Don't break his fingers, cub," Jesmind warned immediately. "It's not nice to hurt the humans when they're being friendly."
"I won't hurt him, mama, I promise," Jasana said, smiling shyly up at the Ungardt as he patted her paw. "He's nice, isn't he?"
"The children of the Family are everyone's children," Tarrin explained as he knocked on the door. "Think of Thale here as an uncle, cub. All my Ungardt relatives are your relatives too."
"Family? What does that mean?" Jesmind asked.
"Ungardt custom," he replied with his back to her. "The family of the clan king is the family of the entire clan. That's why we're just called the Family. Jasana is the niece of every clansman and clanswoman. You're the daughter of all of them, just like I'm their son. Mother is their sister, and my grandfather is their father. It's symbolic, of course, but when it comes to a small child, the clan tends to take it seriously."
"I never knew that about Ungardt," Jesmind admitted.
"Few outside the Ungardt do," he shrugged as the door opened. It was the maid, the same maid he remembered from his time with them. He wasn't sure what her real name was, but everyone called her Nanna. She was a portly, middle-aged woman in a maid's dress, with a gray bun held with a pair of pins behind her head. She looked at Tarrin's chest, but then looked up at his face and blanched. "Master Tarrin!" she gasped. "You're here! What happened to you!"
"Hello, Nanna," he said gently, warm memories of the woman flaring in his mind as her scent touched him. "You're looking well."
"And you're looking tall!" she said in a wondrous voice. "Did you drink some of Deris' miracle fertilizer?"
Tarrin laughed. "Nothing like that, but I'll tell you the story later. Are Tomas and Janine and Janette home?"
"Of course they are, what, with all the soldiers around and all," she said immediately. "Please, come in, come in! Oh, and who is your lady friend?"
"This is my mate, Jesmind, and my daughter Jasana," he introduced as Nanna moved back, to give them room to come in. Tarrin ducked under the door and led his family into the foyer. "Jesmind, Jasana, this is Nanna, the housekeeper. She's a very special friend," he smiled, remembering how she had turned down the opportunity for reward, had known that the Tower was looking for him, but had decided not to turn him in.
"Tarrin's talked about you," Jesmind told her with a nod as Thale politely closed the door behind them.
"I'm sure it was all about how I used to slip him food in the middle of the night," Nanna laughed. "Please, come this way. I'm sure they'll be happy to see you!"
It certainly seemed that way. Janette virtually bolted out of her chair, squealing in delight, when Nanna led them into the parlor, where Janine and Tomas were sitting on their favorite chairs facing the fireplace. The parents stood up and called his name, but he didn't hear them. He knelt down and caught Janette as she flung herself into his arms, taking in her lilac-tinged scent, almost being intoxicated by it. Janette held a very special place in his heart, right there with his family, his sisters, his mate and his daughter. She was one of the most loved people in his life, and seeing her again, scenting her, feeling her close, it made the long months since he'd last seen her dwindle away to nothing.
"What happened to you?" Janette asked when she pushed away enough to look up into his eyes. "You're all grown up!"
Tarrin laughed. That statement held so many truths. She would never fully know how correct it was. "It's a very long story, little mother," he told her gently, picking her up with him as he stood. "If you're good, I'll tell it to you." He looked to Tomas and Janine. Tomas was a bit thinner, had a little more gray hair, but still looked spry. Janine was even more statuesquely beautiful, wearing a very expensive green silk dress that went well with her brown hair. Her hair was tied up in that severe bun, an exterior mark of her polar personality. Janine was a very regimented woman, strict and proper. Tomas was much more laid back than his wife, with a keen sense for business and a charming personality that many found appealing, and also happened to help him get the better of more than a few business dealings. Janette, their daughter, resembled her mother, but had softer features. She had the same dark hair and dark eyes, but Janette's eyes were much more lively than her mother's, a mark of her youth. Janette was about ten now, maybe eleven, and had all the hints in her form and face that she was going to be a real beauty.
"What did happen to you, Tarrin?" Tomas asked curiously as they got up, and he embraced each of them in turn.
"A long story, Tomas," he repeated. "I'll tell you later. But right now, I have some people I want you to meet."
"That has to be Jesmind," Janine said to Tomas. "And the little girl is your daughter?"
"My parents had to have been here lately," Tarrin laughed helplessly.
"Just two days ago," Janine replied.
"This is my mate, Jesmind. And this is my daughter, Jasana."
"It's a pleasure," Jesmind said honestly, letting Tomas take her paw, which was about three times larger than his hand. "Tarrin speaks very highly of all of you."
"He should, he's the family pet," Tomas said with a twinkle in his eye. "I've heard quite a bit about you, Mistress Jesmind. At first, Tarrin's parents hated you. Now they can't stop saying good things about you."
"Well, that's encouraging," Jesmind said with a faint smile and a light flush. "I wasn't sure if they accepted me or not."
"I think we could all do with a spot of tea," Janine said brusquely, assuming the role of hostess. "Nanna, would you be a dear and bring us some tea?"