For mistrali. Stepping Up (PG-13)
Dec 10, 2013 19:26:25 GMT 10
mistrali, skylar, and 1 more like this
Post by Ankhiale on Dec 10, 2013 19:26:25 GMT 10
Title: Stepping Up
Rating: PG-13 to be safe
For: mistrali
Prompt: #4 - Fix-it fic for Trickster - mainly in terms of giving Aly a lesser or less successful role
Summary: Aly chooses to go home when she wins her bet with Kyprioth. Someone else steps up to fill her shoes.
Notes and Warnings: Character death, and people being very unhappy with Aly. Kind of weirdly structured, but I hope it works.
*******
At the autumn equinox, Aly vanished. Nawat, bundling up the last of his arrows, explained, "She has won her bet with the Trickster, so he took her to her home as promised." He handed the whole bundle of crow-, stormwing-, and griffin-fletched arrows to Dove. "I am going to meet her, as I promised," he said. He paused for a moment, considering, then leaned down and whispered, "My people are always up for more bargains and games."
Dove nodded. Nawat stood back, then leaped into the air, and by the time a human would have started to fall back to earth, he was a crow. He headed east, away from the setting sun.
Dove carried her arrows up to the room she shared with Sarai. There Boulaj, a new maid recruited from a farm near Inti, sat, a small book in her hands. She trembled, just a little.
Dove set down the arrows. "What's wrong, Boulaj?"
The maid jumped. "Nothing, Lady Dove. How may I help you?"
Dove tapped her foot. "You can start by not pretending with me, Boulaj," she said sternly. "I've had my fill of pretense for the moment. You're in here, you're nervous, and that's Aly's notebook, isn't it?"
Boulaj looked down at the book, then nodded. "You've seen how frantic she was, these past few weeks," she said. "She said I was her most promising student, and so she left me this."
"May I?" Dove inquired. As Boulaj hesitated, Dove said, "I do know, you know."
Boulaj handed her the notebook. Dove paged through it.
The whole book was filled, with all of Aly's notes and tips and tricks. It started out in a clear hand and well-organized, then devolved into a jumble of random notes jotted as Aly thought of them in a rushed mess. The whole shape of the conspiracy laid bare, Aly's many thoughts on where to take it, Aly's clever little ways of seeing and doing, and there, jotted at the back and almost stricken through, Aly's real name and fief. Dove raised an eyebrow and closed the notebook.
She smiled at Boulaj, who watched her nervously. "Don't worry, Boulaj," Dove said with all the authority she could muster. "I'll handle this."
It must have been authority enough, because Boulaj nodded, looking relieved.
***
"Sarai, listen to me," Dove said, and there must have been something in her voice, because just as Sarai was gearing up to give her "the One Who Is Promised is a myth" speech, she halted. Dove hung onto her older sister with one small but strong hand. "You may not believe the prophecy, but that doesn't matter. They do. And they've been conspiring since before we were even born for this - possibly even before Mother married Father."
"So?" Sarai whispered, fiercely.
"So I know you want the Rittevons gone, Sarai, just like I do. Just like they do. Just like any sane person does. Sarai," Dove said intently, "they can win."
"They can?" And there it was - hope, faint but there, trembling in her sister's voice.
"They can. It'll take hard work, still, but if anyone has a shot at all, they do." Dove eyed Sarai intently, then let her go and stepped back.
Sarai grabbed her arm. "What do I do?"
Dove graced her with a razor smile entirely unlike the polite curve she showed everyone else. "Play the game."
The smile Sarai met Dove's with matched hers perfectly.
***
It wasn't until they were back in Rajmuat that Dove let Ulasim know she was in on the conspiracy. She found him speaking to his mother over tea; when they paused to greet her, Dove leaned down and whispered, "Do you know of anyone who can speak to crows?"
Ulasim jerked, nearly spilling his tea. Ochobu glared.
"You know?" the mage asked crossly.
"I know," Dove confirmed. She tugged one sleeve of her gown gently. "A certain former maid of ours left me her book of little tricks."
Ochobu's glare could have melted lead. "We don't need any more of that luarin chit's meddling," she hissed.
"Well, that much is correct," Dove replied coolly. "We don't need any more of Aly's meddling. We just need someone to take Aly's place. Let me ask you again, Duani Ochobu, do you know of anyone who can speak to crows?"
Ochobu looked at her son. Ulasim ran a hand over his beard and stared at Dove for a moment, then said, "I am fairly certain Aly trained a few of her recruits in basic crow calls." He nodded towards Dove. "Didn't she list who in that book of hers?"
Dove smiled her politician's smile. "She was apparently quite rushed."
Quedanga coughed from behind them. "I can speak to them," she said. The housekeeper smiled crookedly; Dove noticed the woman looked exhausted. "A word to the wise: don't pray for guidance. You never know what'll get dumped in your lap."
Ochobu took a hasty drink of her tea to muffle her laugh.
***
Unmarked boxes began appearing, addressed to the Twice-Royal and sent where they would reach the conspiracy. A box full of mixed coins was sent to the Temaidas. A bunch of shiny baubles "for bribes" ended up in Tanair. A sheaf of notes ended up at Quedanga's sister's house. And a small box was sent directly to the Balitangs, ostensibly a sample of fine teas from a Tortallan merchant.
Winna, bemused, passed the box to Sarai, who sniffed and nearly threw it away. Dove took it from her sister with a blank face and carried it back to her room, just as she had taken the roll of papers Quedanga had given her. It was beyond obvious who was behind all this.
Dove slid the box open and stared in puzzlement at the inky blackness inside. A tiny chorus of hellos met her, and she raised an eyebrow. "Hello," she said tentatively back.
A small head reared up from the mass. "We are darkings. What one knows, all know. We help. Funfun." During the little speech, about two dozen other heads popped up; at this last, they all bobbed.
"Funfun," Dove echoed. Gingerly, she extended a finger. The first head shrank back and a ball of darkness rolled up onto her hand. It felt like warm fog; looking closer, Dove could see that this darking had peony petals inside of it.
"I Peony," the darking said. "You?"
"I'm Dove," Dove replied. On impulse, she stroked the darking. Peony hummed in happiness.
"Tell Aly something for me," Dove said. Peony squeaked. Dove stared down at the darking in her cupped palm. "I know she kept one of you with her. This is exactly the kind of thing she couldn't resist. Tell Aly that we will happily keep taking whatever money and supplies she feels like sending us, but that if she expects anything in return she is sorely mistaken."
Dove tipped the darking back into the box and shut it tight, then carried the whole thing to Ochobu, ignoring the chorus of protests from inside.
***
"So you really do love him," Dove murmured.
"I really do, Dove," Sarai replied, furiously scrubbing the tears off her cheeks. Even with all her control - control as good as Dove's, born out of the same necessity - some had leaked out, and that more than anything told Dove Sarai was serious.
"Well. You could ask him to stay," she said.
Sarai stared gloomily out at the garden. "He's to be the Emperor's personal physician. How can I ask him to give that up?"
"How can he ask you to give up the Isles?" Dove retorted.
"He doesn't know what he's asking," Sarai shot back. "He's not part of your conspiracy, remember? He just thinks he's asking me to escape all this, this mess."
Dove frowned at her hands. "So tell him."
Sarai, caught off-guard, turned to stare at Dove. "What?"
"If there's one person who's proved himself over the past few weeks, one person who'd be at the top of my recruiting list, it'd be Zaimid," Dove said. "And Carthak's got its own history of bad rulers who needed removal. Sound him out. Try to persuade him to stand by your side here."
Sarai was silent for a long moment. "What about this marriage to Dunevon? Imajane isn't going to let me avoid that."
Dove was silent even longer. "Don't worry about Dunevon," she said finally. "You won't ever have to marry him, I promise."
***
"Bright One," Dove said to her otherwise-empty room. "Everyone tells me you're quick to answer."
Kyprioth appeared. Dove knelt, but refused to hide her face.
"What is it, my bird? Make it fast, if you please, I don't want any of my siblings catching on."
"You rule the seas of these Isles."
Kyprioth inspected his fingernails. "Stop dancing around and get to the point, little bird," he said. "I know that it's terribly rude to rush our first meeting like this, but I really can't linger."
Dove stared at the god's bejeweled toes. "The king will be going for a birthday cruise in his new ship," she said at last, voice as even as if she talked about the weather.
"And?" Kyprioth asked idly.
"I'm sure the regents are already planning to have him drown."
"You won't come out and ask directly, will you?" Kyprioth said, sounding amused. "But you want me as your hired killer."
"No," Dove retorted, "I want you to put some work into your own damned rebellion."
Kyprioth slammed a hand down on Dove's nightstand. The wood cracked. He caught Dove's eyes with his own, gone fathomless jet black. "You have no idea what work I've put into this," Kyprioth said in a whisper somehow much more menacing than any shriek of rage. He smiled humorlessly. "And all my work was almost ruined by one selfish luarin bitch. I will help you, Dovasary Balitang," he said, "but you owe me. I'll take the life you want me to take - but you must make sure Elsren is on that boat, or you get nothing. And you may never ask me for a favor again."
Dove fought to hold that hollow black stare. She sat back on her heels. "No deal," she said, fighting against her own locking jaw to get the words out. "You need Sarai and me more than we need you. I can find a different way to get rid of Dunevon. It'll be slower, though."
The immense pressure snapped off. Kyprioth sat bolt upright, no longer lazing, back to his elder raka statesman look. He stared down at Dove as if he'd never seen her before.
"I really didn't need to go so far afield, did I?" he asked, wonderingly.
A surge of anger gave Dove the strength to rise. "The fact that you've only just realized that is rather disturbing," she said, then turned on her heels and walked out.
***
The day of Dunevon's outing dawned bright and clear, and it remained so. The seas were normal. Everything was perfect. When the Balitangs went down to the docks to join the Prince's birthday entourage, however, the boat never returned. Elsren, up far past his bedtime, fidgeted.
Dove watched the regents from the corner of her eye. They put on a good show of concern, but when Taybur Sibigat and the handful of other survivors made it ashore, Dove noticed that their actions were a touch too smooth, too perfect. Too practiced.
"We hit rough seas not far out of the harbor," Sibigat rasped. "The boat ... We tried to save them, but..." He trailed off, watching the regents warily.
That's two thorns down, Dove thought. Either he ends up an Example for this, or he ends up on our side out of necessity.
When the letter arrived the next day, Dove smiled her razor smile and reached for a pen.
***
The fighting in Rajmuat started, like most fighting in Rajmuat, with a mob of hotheads and the King's Watch. This time, though, the conspirators fanned the flames and turned the mob into a concentrated attack on the palace. The Rittevons, already horribly overstretched, had no choice but to face down the mob-turned-rebel-army with the few men they had.
It took the combined efforts of both Dove and Zaimid to get Sarai back to the nearly-empty Balitang House. Sarai fought like a wildcat, trying to get free and help.
Dove, too stressed to be gentle, slammed Sarai back against the wall of the entryway. "Sarai!"
"People are dying!" Sarai snarled.
"Yes. Dying for you. Don't you dare let that be in vain," Dove snarled back.
The sounds of fighting were heard even there, in the noble district, as the whole city took sides in the struggle for the throne. Aunt Nuritin swept out and ordered the girls back away from the doors; Dove waited until Nuritin glared Sarai into graceless submission, then followed as her sister stormed out to the pavilion.
Several large kudarung, including the ones who Sarai had befriended in the previous weeks, stood about the garden. They seemed at peace, but for the way their ears pricked. The miniature kudarung, flocking like crows, were much more outwardly agitated.
Sarai paced like a caged tiger. "I can't stand this. I can't do nothing."
Zaimid placed his hands on her shoulders, holding her still. "It's the hardest lesson to learn," he said gravely, knowingly. "Sometimes all you can do is nothing."
Sarai jerked around and glared, but her glare softened instantly at the set of his mouth and the distant look in his eyes.
They really are good for each other, Dove thought. She opened her mouth, but a loud noise from the front gate drew her attention. From inside the house, near the front door, Aunt Nuritin bellowed something.
Dove turned to run in. Strong arms clad in peach silk yanked her off the ground; Sarai spun, whickering to the kudarung, and unceremoniously deposited Dove onto the back of a cinnamon mare. Zaimid unraveled a roll of linen bandage and with a murmured apology secured it around the kudarung's neck as makeshift reins; he thrust the ends into Dove's hands. Before Dove could give more than a startled shout, Sarai ordered the kudarung to fly; squeaking, Dove could do nothing but hang on as it took off. She tried to force her mount back down but the kudarung had clearly understood the underlying meaning of Sarai's order and insisted on keeping Dove out of range of danger.
Dove could only watch from above as a squad of soldiers invaded Balitang House. They must have been sent by the regents, she thought numbly. Someone - probably Imajane - was looking to take advantage of the fighting and eliminate the Balitang threat once and for all.
She couldn't see inside, of course. She could see outside, though, and that was more than enough. Most of the household guard was out fighting the regents; only a few had been left to guard the house. No one had seriously thought anyone would manage to get around the mob-turned-army; no one had thought Balitang House faced more than some looters.
The squad that made it out to the back was much depleted; only a handful of determined men had made it past the much-more-determined defenders. Dove blinked. Aunt Nuritin and the household staff had put up a very good fight. Dove hoped they were okay.
Dove circled above their heads, staring coldly down at them, watching them yell and gawp. Then she flew up, over the city, ignoring the other flyer trying to get her attention, flying high enough that anyone who looked up would assume she was Sarai.
She stared into the wind, down at the roiling city, up into the eerie sky. Anything, anything to avoid seeing stained peach silk in her mind's eye.
***
Petranne and Elsren had both survived, thanks to Nuritin's cunning: she had squirreled them away in her own supposedly-empty townhouse the moment the fighting broke out, and had sent Winna with them. Nuritin herself had suffered a stroke; ironically, it was the only thing that saved her life, as the attacking Rittevon soldiers thought she was dying and left her alone.
Ochobu had overstressed herself and died of a heart attack. Ysul was alive, but had burned out his magic; it took weeks for him to recover. Quedanga was alive, barely, more a testament to Zaimid's skill than anything else. Fesgao had died. Ulasim had lived, but lost a hand. Chenaol walked out from invading the Gray Palace with a long scratch down her cheek and a cracked cleaver; she seemed more upset by the cleaver than the injury.
Sarai had died; not far enough off the ground yet to avoid the arrows of their attackers, she had accepted the inevitable and dove for their faces, buying Dove and Zaimid the last bit of time they needed to get out of range. The gray kudarung she had mounted had fought and died with her; Dove insisted they be buried together on the palace grounds.
Dove flipped to the next paper. Crows still mobbed Rittevon supporters on the outer isles, aided and abetted by the local raka; everything was going as smoothly as possible, and the island commanders had things well in hand. All the same, Dove made a note to get more baubles for the crows; they were as greedy as the next mercenary and needed paying.
A respectful knock on her office door caught Dove's attention. "Come in."
Taybur Sibigat, captain of the palace guard, entered and bowed his head. "Your Majesty."
Dove had a little notebook of her own, now, one that was nothing but sentences and names written in blood. Elsren's was in there. So was this man's.
"Yes?"
"The Tortallan ambassador has arrived and requests an audience."
Dove raised an eyebrow.
Sibigat chuckled with a ghost of his old good cheer. "All Tortallans have an impertinence about them, but I've never met one quite this bad," he remarked.
"Send her in," Dove commanded.
Both of Sigibat's eyebrows rose towards his hairline. "You sound like you know her," he said, a query in his voice.
"I do." Dove paused, then rose. "On second thought, don't send her in here. Ask Ulasim to escort her to my private sitting room."
Sibigat bowed, then left. Dove followed him out.
A few minutes later, a blank-faced Ulasim ushered a Tortallan noblewoman into the sitting room. Dove, settled on a plush emerald chair, cradled a cup of tea and watched her lazily.
If I didn't know who it was, I'd never recognize her, Dove thought. Dressed in a slightly-loose luarin-style silk gown, blond hair neatly pinned up, a wide necklace of pearls tight on her throat ... it was about as far from homespun Aly Homewood as a body could get.
Aly surveyed Dove, then caught Dove's eye and curtseyed low. "Your Majesty," she murmured.
"Alianne of Pirate's Swoop," Dove replied evenly. "I believe these are yours." She tossed a box at Aly, who caught it on instinct; Aly's eyebrows rose.
"What did you do to them?"
"I had Ochobu and Ysul seal the box so they could not escape, then keep them in a silenced cabinet." Dove met Aly's outraged stare levelly. "And you are being awfully familiar."
Aly's mouth curled; she curtseyed again. "Oh, forgive me, Your Majesty," she said mockingly.
"Maybe when you've earned it," Dove replied.
Aly, never able to keep up a pretense, straightened and glared.
"Tortall sent us no aid," Dove murmured. "We found caches of unmarked coin, from an anonymous source. Untraceable. We found baubles for the crows, likewise. Someone even had the audacity to send us plans and notes; I burned those personally, like I burned other notes that had been unwisely left behind. Don't think that presuming on a friendship you walked away from will get you any further. If that's what you've promised your king, you should turn back now."
"You're being awfully frank for a queen to a foreign ambassador," Aly said primly.
Dove smiled her razor smile. Aly took an inadvertent half step back, before checking herself. "Consider it a warning, to someone who was once almost a friend. That is all I owe you, Lady Alianne."
Aly stared at her, knuckles whitening on the hand that clutched the darking box, then curtseyed low. "Thank you, Your Majesty." She started to turn, then paused, waiting for Dove.
Dove gave her a gracious smile and waved at the door. "Ulasim will escort you and the rest of your embassy to the pavilion set aside for you. I hope you will take advantage of the many pleasures of our beautiful capital," she said, just loud enough to be heard outside the room. "You must be tired. Please do not let me keep you from your rest."
Aly curtseyed again, then turned to leave. Ulasim was opening the door for her when Aly stopped and turned back.
Dove waited.
Aly licked her lips. "I'm sorry about Sarai," she said softly.
"So am I," Dove said, softly and steadily.
"Please pass that along to your physician as well. I understand he was Sarai's betrothed."
"I will be sure to do so." As Aly started to leave, Dove called, "Aly?" The older woman paused, looking over her shoulder at Dove. "Congratulations are in order, I believe. Please pass that along to your husband."
Their eyes met. "I will be sure to do so," Aly murmured. "Good day, Your Majesty."
Ulasim raised an eyebrow at Dove as he closed the door behind Aly.
Dove smiled into her tea.
Rating: PG-13 to be safe
For: mistrali
Prompt: #4 - Fix-it fic for Trickster - mainly in terms of giving Aly a lesser or less successful role
Summary: Aly chooses to go home when she wins her bet with Kyprioth. Someone else steps up to fill her shoes.
Notes and Warnings: Character death, and people being very unhappy with Aly. Kind of weirdly structured, but I hope it works.
*******
At the autumn equinox, Aly vanished. Nawat, bundling up the last of his arrows, explained, "She has won her bet with the Trickster, so he took her to her home as promised." He handed the whole bundle of crow-, stormwing-, and griffin-fletched arrows to Dove. "I am going to meet her, as I promised," he said. He paused for a moment, considering, then leaned down and whispered, "My people are always up for more bargains and games."
Dove nodded. Nawat stood back, then leaped into the air, and by the time a human would have started to fall back to earth, he was a crow. He headed east, away from the setting sun.
Dove carried her arrows up to the room she shared with Sarai. There Boulaj, a new maid recruited from a farm near Inti, sat, a small book in her hands. She trembled, just a little.
Dove set down the arrows. "What's wrong, Boulaj?"
The maid jumped. "Nothing, Lady Dove. How may I help you?"
Dove tapped her foot. "You can start by not pretending with me, Boulaj," she said sternly. "I've had my fill of pretense for the moment. You're in here, you're nervous, and that's Aly's notebook, isn't it?"
Boulaj looked down at the book, then nodded. "You've seen how frantic she was, these past few weeks," she said. "She said I was her most promising student, and so she left me this."
"May I?" Dove inquired. As Boulaj hesitated, Dove said, "I do know, you know."
Boulaj handed her the notebook. Dove paged through it.
The whole book was filled, with all of Aly's notes and tips and tricks. It started out in a clear hand and well-organized, then devolved into a jumble of random notes jotted as Aly thought of them in a rushed mess. The whole shape of the conspiracy laid bare, Aly's many thoughts on where to take it, Aly's clever little ways of seeing and doing, and there, jotted at the back and almost stricken through, Aly's real name and fief. Dove raised an eyebrow and closed the notebook.
She smiled at Boulaj, who watched her nervously. "Don't worry, Boulaj," Dove said with all the authority she could muster. "I'll handle this."
It must have been authority enough, because Boulaj nodded, looking relieved.
***
"Sarai, listen to me," Dove said, and there must have been something in her voice, because just as Sarai was gearing up to give her "the One Who Is Promised is a myth" speech, she halted. Dove hung onto her older sister with one small but strong hand. "You may not believe the prophecy, but that doesn't matter. They do. And they've been conspiring since before we were even born for this - possibly even before Mother married Father."
"So?" Sarai whispered, fiercely.
"So I know you want the Rittevons gone, Sarai, just like I do. Just like they do. Just like any sane person does. Sarai," Dove said intently, "they can win."
"They can?" And there it was - hope, faint but there, trembling in her sister's voice.
"They can. It'll take hard work, still, but if anyone has a shot at all, they do." Dove eyed Sarai intently, then let her go and stepped back.
Sarai grabbed her arm. "What do I do?"
Dove graced her with a razor smile entirely unlike the polite curve she showed everyone else. "Play the game."
The smile Sarai met Dove's with matched hers perfectly.
***
It wasn't until they were back in Rajmuat that Dove let Ulasim know she was in on the conspiracy. She found him speaking to his mother over tea; when they paused to greet her, Dove leaned down and whispered, "Do you know of anyone who can speak to crows?"
Ulasim jerked, nearly spilling his tea. Ochobu glared.
"You know?" the mage asked crossly.
"I know," Dove confirmed. She tugged one sleeve of her gown gently. "A certain former maid of ours left me her book of little tricks."
Ochobu's glare could have melted lead. "We don't need any more of that luarin chit's meddling," she hissed.
"Well, that much is correct," Dove replied coolly. "We don't need any more of Aly's meddling. We just need someone to take Aly's place. Let me ask you again, Duani Ochobu, do you know of anyone who can speak to crows?"
Ochobu looked at her son. Ulasim ran a hand over his beard and stared at Dove for a moment, then said, "I am fairly certain Aly trained a few of her recruits in basic crow calls." He nodded towards Dove. "Didn't she list who in that book of hers?"
Dove smiled her politician's smile. "She was apparently quite rushed."
Quedanga coughed from behind them. "I can speak to them," she said. The housekeeper smiled crookedly; Dove noticed the woman looked exhausted. "A word to the wise: don't pray for guidance. You never know what'll get dumped in your lap."
Ochobu took a hasty drink of her tea to muffle her laugh.
***
Unmarked boxes began appearing, addressed to the Twice-Royal and sent where they would reach the conspiracy. A box full of mixed coins was sent to the Temaidas. A bunch of shiny baubles "for bribes" ended up in Tanair. A sheaf of notes ended up at Quedanga's sister's house. And a small box was sent directly to the Balitangs, ostensibly a sample of fine teas from a Tortallan merchant.
Winna, bemused, passed the box to Sarai, who sniffed and nearly threw it away. Dove took it from her sister with a blank face and carried it back to her room, just as she had taken the roll of papers Quedanga had given her. It was beyond obvious who was behind all this.
Dove slid the box open and stared in puzzlement at the inky blackness inside. A tiny chorus of hellos met her, and she raised an eyebrow. "Hello," she said tentatively back.
A small head reared up from the mass. "We are darkings. What one knows, all know. We help. Funfun." During the little speech, about two dozen other heads popped up; at this last, they all bobbed.
"Funfun," Dove echoed. Gingerly, she extended a finger. The first head shrank back and a ball of darkness rolled up onto her hand. It felt like warm fog; looking closer, Dove could see that this darking had peony petals inside of it.
"I Peony," the darking said. "You?"
"I'm Dove," Dove replied. On impulse, she stroked the darking. Peony hummed in happiness.
"Tell Aly something for me," Dove said. Peony squeaked. Dove stared down at the darking in her cupped palm. "I know she kept one of you with her. This is exactly the kind of thing she couldn't resist. Tell Aly that we will happily keep taking whatever money and supplies she feels like sending us, but that if she expects anything in return she is sorely mistaken."
Dove tipped the darking back into the box and shut it tight, then carried the whole thing to Ochobu, ignoring the chorus of protests from inside.
***
"So you really do love him," Dove murmured.
"I really do, Dove," Sarai replied, furiously scrubbing the tears off her cheeks. Even with all her control - control as good as Dove's, born out of the same necessity - some had leaked out, and that more than anything told Dove Sarai was serious.
"Well. You could ask him to stay," she said.
Sarai stared gloomily out at the garden. "He's to be the Emperor's personal physician. How can I ask him to give that up?"
"How can he ask you to give up the Isles?" Dove retorted.
"He doesn't know what he's asking," Sarai shot back. "He's not part of your conspiracy, remember? He just thinks he's asking me to escape all this, this mess."
Dove frowned at her hands. "So tell him."
Sarai, caught off-guard, turned to stare at Dove. "What?"
"If there's one person who's proved himself over the past few weeks, one person who'd be at the top of my recruiting list, it'd be Zaimid," Dove said. "And Carthak's got its own history of bad rulers who needed removal. Sound him out. Try to persuade him to stand by your side here."
Sarai was silent for a long moment. "What about this marriage to Dunevon? Imajane isn't going to let me avoid that."
Dove was silent even longer. "Don't worry about Dunevon," she said finally. "You won't ever have to marry him, I promise."
***
"Bright One," Dove said to her otherwise-empty room. "Everyone tells me you're quick to answer."
Kyprioth appeared. Dove knelt, but refused to hide her face.
"What is it, my bird? Make it fast, if you please, I don't want any of my siblings catching on."
"You rule the seas of these Isles."
Kyprioth inspected his fingernails. "Stop dancing around and get to the point, little bird," he said. "I know that it's terribly rude to rush our first meeting like this, but I really can't linger."
Dove stared at the god's bejeweled toes. "The king will be going for a birthday cruise in his new ship," she said at last, voice as even as if she talked about the weather.
"And?" Kyprioth asked idly.
"I'm sure the regents are already planning to have him drown."
"You won't come out and ask directly, will you?" Kyprioth said, sounding amused. "But you want me as your hired killer."
"No," Dove retorted, "I want you to put some work into your own damned rebellion."
Kyprioth slammed a hand down on Dove's nightstand. The wood cracked. He caught Dove's eyes with his own, gone fathomless jet black. "You have no idea what work I've put into this," Kyprioth said in a whisper somehow much more menacing than any shriek of rage. He smiled humorlessly. "And all my work was almost ruined by one selfish luarin bitch. I will help you, Dovasary Balitang," he said, "but you owe me. I'll take the life you want me to take - but you must make sure Elsren is on that boat, or you get nothing. And you may never ask me for a favor again."
Dove fought to hold that hollow black stare. She sat back on her heels. "No deal," she said, fighting against her own locking jaw to get the words out. "You need Sarai and me more than we need you. I can find a different way to get rid of Dunevon. It'll be slower, though."
The immense pressure snapped off. Kyprioth sat bolt upright, no longer lazing, back to his elder raka statesman look. He stared down at Dove as if he'd never seen her before.
"I really didn't need to go so far afield, did I?" he asked, wonderingly.
A surge of anger gave Dove the strength to rise. "The fact that you've only just realized that is rather disturbing," she said, then turned on her heels and walked out.
***
The day of Dunevon's outing dawned bright and clear, and it remained so. The seas were normal. Everything was perfect. When the Balitangs went down to the docks to join the Prince's birthday entourage, however, the boat never returned. Elsren, up far past his bedtime, fidgeted.
Dove watched the regents from the corner of her eye. They put on a good show of concern, but when Taybur Sibigat and the handful of other survivors made it ashore, Dove noticed that their actions were a touch too smooth, too perfect. Too practiced.
"We hit rough seas not far out of the harbor," Sibigat rasped. "The boat ... We tried to save them, but..." He trailed off, watching the regents warily.
That's two thorns down, Dove thought. Either he ends up an Example for this, or he ends up on our side out of necessity.
When the letter arrived the next day, Dove smiled her razor smile and reached for a pen.
***
The fighting in Rajmuat started, like most fighting in Rajmuat, with a mob of hotheads and the King's Watch. This time, though, the conspirators fanned the flames and turned the mob into a concentrated attack on the palace. The Rittevons, already horribly overstretched, had no choice but to face down the mob-turned-rebel-army with the few men they had.
It took the combined efforts of both Dove and Zaimid to get Sarai back to the nearly-empty Balitang House. Sarai fought like a wildcat, trying to get free and help.
Dove, too stressed to be gentle, slammed Sarai back against the wall of the entryway. "Sarai!"
"People are dying!" Sarai snarled.
"Yes. Dying for you. Don't you dare let that be in vain," Dove snarled back.
The sounds of fighting were heard even there, in the noble district, as the whole city took sides in the struggle for the throne. Aunt Nuritin swept out and ordered the girls back away from the doors; Dove waited until Nuritin glared Sarai into graceless submission, then followed as her sister stormed out to the pavilion.
Several large kudarung, including the ones who Sarai had befriended in the previous weeks, stood about the garden. They seemed at peace, but for the way their ears pricked. The miniature kudarung, flocking like crows, were much more outwardly agitated.
Sarai paced like a caged tiger. "I can't stand this. I can't do nothing."
Zaimid placed his hands on her shoulders, holding her still. "It's the hardest lesson to learn," he said gravely, knowingly. "Sometimes all you can do is nothing."
Sarai jerked around and glared, but her glare softened instantly at the set of his mouth and the distant look in his eyes.
They really are good for each other, Dove thought. She opened her mouth, but a loud noise from the front gate drew her attention. From inside the house, near the front door, Aunt Nuritin bellowed something.
Dove turned to run in. Strong arms clad in peach silk yanked her off the ground; Sarai spun, whickering to the kudarung, and unceremoniously deposited Dove onto the back of a cinnamon mare. Zaimid unraveled a roll of linen bandage and with a murmured apology secured it around the kudarung's neck as makeshift reins; he thrust the ends into Dove's hands. Before Dove could give more than a startled shout, Sarai ordered the kudarung to fly; squeaking, Dove could do nothing but hang on as it took off. She tried to force her mount back down but the kudarung had clearly understood the underlying meaning of Sarai's order and insisted on keeping Dove out of range of danger.
Dove could only watch from above as a squad of soldiers invaded Balitang House. They must have been sent by the regents, she thought numbly. Someone - probably Imajane - was looking to take advantage of the fighting and eliminate the Balitang threat once and for all.
She couldn't see inside, of course. She could see outside, though, and that was more than enough. Most of the household guard was out fighting the regents; only a few had been left to guard the house. No one had seriously thought anyone would manage to get around the mob-turned-army; no one had thought Balitang House faced more than some looters.
The squad that made it out to the back was much depleted; only a handful of determined men had made it past the much-more-determined defenders. Dove blinked. Aunt Nuritin and the household staff had put up a very good fight. Dove hoped they were okay.
Dove circled above their heads, staring coldly down at them, watching them yell and gawp. Then she flew up, over the city, ignoring the other flyer trying to get her attention, flying high enough that anyone who looked up would assume she was Sarai.
She stared into the wind, down at the roiling city, up into the eerie sky. Anything, anything to avoid seeing stained peach silk in her mind's eye.
***
Petranne and Elsren had both survived, thanks to Nuritin's cunning: she had squirreled them away in her own supposedly-empty townhouse the moment the fighting broke out, and had sent Winna with them. Nuritin herself had suffered a stroke; ironically, it was the only thing that saved her life, as the attacking Rittevon soldiers thought she was dying and left her alone.
Ochobu had overstressed herself and died of a heart attack. Ysul was alive, but had burned out his magic; it took weeks for him to recover. Quedanga was alive, barely, more a testament to Zaimid's skill than anything else. Fesgao had died. Ulasim had lived, but lost a hand. Chenaol walked out from invading the Gray Palace with a long scratch down her cheek and a cracked cleaver; she seemed more upset by the cleaver than the injury.
Sarai had died; not far enough off the ground yet to avoid the arrows of their attackers, she had accepted the inevitable and dove for their faces, buying Dove and Zaimid the last bit of time they needed to get out of range. The gray kudarung she had mounted had fought and died with her; Dove insisted they be buried together on the palace grounds.
Dove flipped to the next paper. Crows still mobbed Rittevon supporters on the outer isles, aided and abetted by the local raka; everything was going as smoothly as possible, and the island commanders had things well in hand. All the same, Dove made a note to get more baubles for the crows; they were as greedy as the next mercenary and needed paying.
A respectful knock on her office door caught Dove's attention. "Come in."
Taybur Sibigat, captain of the palace guard, entered and bowed his head. "Your Majesty."
Dove had a little notebook of her own, now, one that was nothing but sentences and names written in blood. Elsren's was in there. So was this man's.
"Yes?"
"The Tortallan ambassador has arrived and requests an audience."
Dove raised an eyebrow.
Sibigat chuckled with a ghost of his old good cheer. "All Tortallans have an impertinence about them, but I've never met one quite this bad," he remarked.
"Send her in," Dove commanded.
Both of Sigibat's eyebrows rose towards his hairline. "You sound like you know her," he said, a query in his voice.
"I do." Dove paused, then rose. "On second thought, don't send her in here. Ask Ulasim to escort her to my private sitting room."
Sibigat bowed, then left. Dove followed him out.
A few minutes later, a blank-faced Ulasim ushered a Tortallan noblewoman into the sitting room. Dove, settled on a plush emerald chair, cradled a cup of tea and watched her lazily.
If I didn't know who it was, I'd never recognize her, Dove thought. Dressed in a slightly-loose luarin-style silk gown, blond hair neatly pinned up, a wide necklace of pearls tight on her throat ... it was about as far from homespun Aly Homewood as a body could get.
Aly surveyed Dove, then caught Dove's eye and curtseyed low. "Your Majesty," she murmured.
"Alianne of Pirate's Swoop," Dove replied evenly. "I believe these are yours." She tossed a box at Aly, who caught it on instinct; Aly's eyebrows rose.
"What did you do to them?"
"I had Ochobu and Ysul seal the box so they could not escape, then keep them in a silenced cabinet." Dove met Aly's outraged stare levelly. "And you are being awfully familiar."
Aly's mouth curled; she curtseyed again. "Oh, forgive me, Your Majesty," she said mockingly.
"Maybe when you've earned it," Dove replied.
Aly, never able to keep up a pretense, straightened and glared.
"Tortall sent us no aid," Dove murmured. "We found caches of unmarked coin, from an anonymous source. Untraceable. We found baubles for the crows, likewise. Someone even had the audacity to send us plans and notes; I burned those personally, like I burned other notes that had been unwisely left behind. Don't think that presuming on a friendship you walked away from will get you any further. If that's what you've promised your king, you should turn back now."
"You're being awfully frank for a queen to a foreign ambassador," Aly said primly.
Dove smiled her razor smile. Aly took an inadvertent half step back, before checking herself. "Consider it a warning, to someone who was once almost a friend. That is all I owe you, Lady Alianne."
Aly stared at her, knuckles whitening on the hand that clutched the darking box, then curtseyed low. "Thank you, Your Majesty." She started to turn, then paused, waiting for Dove.
Dove gave her a gracious smile and waved at the door. "Ulasim will escort you and the rest of your embassy to the pavilion set aside for you. I hope you will take advantage of the many pleasures of our beautiful capital," she said, just loud enough to be heard outside the room. "You must be tired. Please do not let me keep you from your rest."
Aly curtseyed again, then turned to leave. Ulasim was opening the door for her when Aly stopped and turned back.
Dove waited.
Aly licked her lips. "I'm sorry about Sarai," she said softly.
"So am I," Dove said, softly and steadily.
"Please pass that along to your physician as well. I understand he was Sarai's betrothed."
"I will be sure to do so." As Aly started to leave, Dove called, "Aly?" The older woman paused, looking over her shoulder at Dove. "Congratulations are in order, I believe. Please pass that along to your husband."
Their eyes met. "I will be sure to do so," Aly murmured. "Good day, Your Majesty."
Ulasim raised an eyebrow at Dove as he closed the door behind Aly.
Dove smiled into her tea.