For Wildmagesapprentice. Keeping the Ways (G)
Dec 13, 2013 21:02:02 GMT 10
mistrali and imaginemi like this
Post by Ankhiale on Dec 13, 2013 21:02:02 GMT 10
Title: Keeping the Ways
Rating: G
For: Wildmagesapprentice
Prompt: #3 - Kally in Carthak, learning to be Empress so far away from home.
Summary: The last fight she had with Fazia got under her skin, so Kally decides to do something about it.
Notes and Warnings: Um, I am really not sure this is what you wanted? XD Kally gets taken down a peg in the beginning, and I abuse italics.
*******
The words had stung.
”You know nothing of our lands! You come in here and start striding about upsetting everything just because it's not the way you do things in Tortall, as if we are nothing but savages just waiting for a northern savior to come rescue us from ourselves." Fazia's eyes had narrowed. "Maybe this is the way women do things across the sea, but here we have dignity, and we respect other people.”
It had taken every shred of restraint Kally could scrape up not to rudely snap back. From the contemptuous look on her mother-in-law's face, it hadn't been enough.
What really stung had been Kaddar's reaction.
Fazia threw up her hands. "You tell her," she commanded her son. "Talk some sense to your northern wife, before she ends up offending someone who you really can't afford to offend."
Kaddar's eyes slid from his mother to his wife and back again, nervously. He licked his lips.
He agrees with her, Kally realized with dawning horror. He agrees with her, but he's too scared to say so.
...To me? Or to the ghost of my father, or the lingering shadow of the last northern girl he had to accommodate?
"Kally..." Kaddar began finally, voice just shy of a rasp.
Kally bowed perfunctorily (Carthakis didn’t curtsey), mostly to her mother-in-law, turned on her heel, and stormed out.
When Kally had first contemplated a state marriage, her primary concerns had been securing a useful alliance for Tortall, and making sure her husband would treat her with reasonable kindness. In those regards, her marriage to Kaddar was a resounding success.
She had never really contemplated what it meant to leave her people behind, to become part of a new people, to serve as their empress. The lessons in statecraft she'd half received from her parents (Roald had been the heir; Kally they'd assumed would be a warrior of Tortall until it was almost too late) only half applied.
She couldn't be a Tortallan queen as Carthak's empress.
Skepticism that Kally would follow through warred with pleased surprise that Kally had even asked. Fazia handed Kally a leather tube stuffed with maps; Kally took it with a bow.
Fazia sniffed. "Even doing this won't make you Carthaki," she said.
"If I were completely Carthaki, I wouldn't be useful," Kally murmured in reply. "Besides, there is no such thing." Kally unscrewed the cap of the case.
Fazia's sheer veil couldn't hide the sliver of a smile. "You're learning, girl," she said, grudgingly.
Kally stared down at the maps, annotated with all manner of usefully wry notes in an unmistakable hand. She stared at her mother-in-law, who stared coolly back.
"The women are always the keepers of the ways," Fazia said. "This is another thing the Tortallans get backwards, I take it?"
Kally bowed, more deeply this time, gently put the maps away, and left.
At the start of the First Way of Carthak, Kally reined in her horse and smiled.
Rating: G
For: Wildmagesapprentice
Prompt: #3 - Kally in Carthak, learning to be Empress so far away from home.
Summary: The last fight she had with Fazia got under her skin, so Kally decides to do something about it.
Notes and Warnings: Um, I am really not sure this is what you wanted? XD Kally gets taken down a peg in the beginning, and I abuse italics.
*******
The words had stung.
”You know nothing of our lands! You come in here and start striding about upsetting everything just because it's not the way you do things in Tortall, as if we are nothing but savages just waiting for a northern savior to come rescue us from ourselves." Fazia's eyes had narrowed. "Maybe this is the way women do things across the sea, but here we have dignity, and we respect other people.”
It had taken every shred of restraint Kally could scrape up not to rudely snap back. From the contemptuous look on her mother-in-law's face, it hadn't been enough.
What really stung had been Kaddar's reaction.
Fazia threw up her hands. "You tell her," she commanded her son. "Talk some sense to your northern wife, before she ends up offending someone who you really can't afford to offend."
Kaddar's eyes slid from his mother to his wife and back again, nervously. He licked his lips.
He agrees with her, Kally realized with dawning horror. He agrees with her, but he's too scared to say so.
...To me? Or to the ghost of my father, or the lingering shadow of the last northern girl he had to accommodate?
"Kally..." Kaddar began finally, voice just shy of a rasp.
Kally bowed perfunctorily (Carthakis didn’t curtsey), mostly to her mother-in-law, turned on her heel, and stormed out.
When Kally had first contemplated a state marriage, her primary concerns had been securing a useful alliance for Tortall, and making sure her husband would treat her with reasonable kindness. In those regards, her marriage to Kaddar was a resounding success.
She had never really contemplated what it meant to leave her people behind, to become part of a new people, to serve as their empress. The lessons in statecraft she'd half received from her parents (Roald had been the heir; Kally they'd assumed would be a warrior of Tortall until it was almost too late) only half applied.
She couldn't be a Tortallan queen as Carthak's empress.
Skepticism that Kally would follow through warred with pleased surprise that Kally had even asked. Fazia handed Kally a leather tube stuffed with maps; Kally took it with a bow.
Fazia sniffed. "Even doing this won't make you Carthaki," she said.
"If I were completely Carthaki, I wouldn't be useful," Kally murmured in reply. "Besides, there is no such thing." Kally unscrewed the cap of the case.
Fazia's sheer veil couldn't hide the sliver of a smile. "You're learning, girl," she said, grudgingly.
Kally stared down at the maps, annotated with all manner of usefully wry notes in an unmistakable hand. She stared at her mother-in-law, who stared coolly back.
"The women are always the keepers of the ways," Fazia said. "This is another thing the Tortallans get backwards, I take it?"
Kally bowed, more deeply this time, gently put the maps away, and left.
At the start of the First Way of Carthak, Kally reined in her horse and smiled.