Kaden carefully rubbed the astringent gel into his shoulder where a nice bruise was forming. He may have won his bout with the Coccodrillo but not without cost. The man hit hard and Kaden’s torso was a map of his bout this morning to anyone who knew how to read it. The matches after that one had only been more difficult than the first but none of the later opponents had left such deep and obvious marks.
“Those look bad,” Jaxon said as he came into the room their House had rented for them for the duration of the festival. He was carrying a platter stacked high with festival treats and was contently munching on a few. He held out the platter to Kaden but Kaden just shook his head and turned back to rubbing the gel into the bruise.
“I’ll live,” Kaden responded through gritted teeth as his fingers dug into the tissues of his muscle, trying to work the gel in as deeply as possible. It would help the bruise heal faster and hopefully he wouldn’t be as stiff in the morning. There was still an entire day of competition left to survive and tomorrow bouts didn’t end until first blood was drawn.
“Well hurry up and finish. Some friends and admirers want to take you out to celebrate your victory today,” Jaxon continued around a mouth full of sweets as he neatly dropped down to the sleeping cushions still spread around the floor, the motion managing to look ungraceful and yet alluringly indolent despite the fact that he was in no danger of falling over or misstepping.
“Admirers?” Kaden asked as he dipped his fingers into the small container of unguent and moved to a large bruise on his ribs. He saw Jaxon wrinkle his nose at the smell before picking up another pastry and putting it into his mouth whole. Kaden held out the jar to him since Jaxon still had healing bruises from his brawl with the Coccodrillo the night before and he’d picked up some bruises of his own today but he just waved Kaden’s hand away.
“No thanks, I don’t want to go out smelling like an apothecary since the Falco you beat this afternoon and some of his friends want to take us along to a Tryst.” Kaden’s head came up quickly when Jaxon said the last word, surprise evident on his face. Jaxon just smiled and nodded smugly.
“A real one? How did they find out about it? How did they get invited?” Kaden asked quickly, bruises forgotten as he pulled his shirt over his head. Trysts took place in every city on Three Kings but this was the first year Kaden had been old enough to attend one. They were special, small parties and they could only be found out about via word of mouth. Kaden knew logically that Trysts would be happening all over the city tonight but he hadn’t expected to get an invitation to one. The parties were legendarily exclusive, normally organized by a small group of young women and only those they were interested in were invited. They were special because they allowed young men and women to meet and interact unsupervised by anything but their good sense. Kaden had long ago decided that the Elders of the cities must silently approve of them since they continued to occur every year. It made sense since a lot of engagements were finalized in the informal atmosphere of a Tryst. Still, the parties held on to the allure of the forbidden and Kaden, who normally got no rush or thrill from breaking rules, found himself slightly excited at the prospect of attending one.
Anyone ever tell you not to begrudge gifts freely given? I don’t know how they found out about it and I don’t care, let’s just go. So get up, take a shower and get that awful smell off your skin, put on something presentable and we’ll go meet them downstairs.”
A grin of boyish delight spread across Kaden’s face as he pushed himself to his feet and headed for the showers. “You’re a genius Jaxon,” Kaden said as he rummaged through his bag for something suitable to wear.
“Yes, I know, now hurry up. They won’t wait for us forever.” Jaxon brushed a few crumbs off of his shirt and Kaden noticed for the first time that it was one of the nicer ones Sable had picked out for him when they’d visited Grua earlier in the summer.
“Is Sable ready?” Kaden asked as he headed to the adjoining bathroom after laying his desired clothing out on the floor so that he could easily change into it when he was done.
“Oh, he’s not coming with us. Had something else to do tonight,” Jaxon said too casually as he pretended to study a flyer he’d probably gotten on the street. Kaden stopped in the doorway to the bathroom and looked back at his best friend. Jaxon, aware of his gaze, at first refused to meet it, still pretending to be engrossed in the poster, but finally he turned, a defiant look in his eyes, daring Kaden to question his motives or to ask him any questions. Instead Kaden just turned away and walked into the bathroom. It was none of his business if Jaxon wanted to act like an ass. Kaden just hoped he wouldn’t find himself in the middle of a falling out between them. They were both his friends and he had no desire to be asked to take sides.
He showered quickly and was soon dressed and ready though the smell of mint still clung lightly to his skin. They met their Falco guides in the lobby of the inn Leone had decided to rent rooms in and Kaden shook the hand of the man who he’d sparred with earlier. He was glad there were no hard feelings between them though there was a comment made about the tournament that would take place the next day, something about a rematch. Kaden agreed to it easily enough, not really worried. The competition wouldn’t take place until tomorrow and it would take place whether there were challenges made this night or not. There was no point in thinking about it.
They made their way through the streets of the mountain city on foot, the group of young men laughing and joking but by no means the only source of noise in the streets that night. They passed many similar groups made up of young men from all different Houses and they hailed them good naturedly as they made their way through the streets. Kaden began to relax surrounded by his peers in a way he could never do surrounded by his elders. He allowed Jaxon to drag him to stall after stall where aspiring merchants tried to sell them small trinkets. Kaden took note of the things he liked and resolved to come back the next day since he didn’t want to be weighed down with packages tonight.
Eventually their Falco guides turned down a small side street. The usual street lamps that brightly lit the main streets of the Lair with the added help of festival lights strung from the surrounding buildings and lampposts this time of year were nowhere in evidence. This street was only lit by one lamp half way down the block and the tall surrounding buildings blocked out most of the ambient light from the surrounding city. At the end of the street Kaden could see a gate strung with small white lights and what looked like ivy from this far away. Trees flanked the gate on each side, separated from the main street by a wrought iron fence. Fairy lights were hung on the branches of the trees and as they came up to the gate Kaden recognized one of the small parks scattered all throughout the city. He could distantly hear music coming to them from somewhere deeper inside the park and he exchanged a nervous but excited grin with Jaxon as the group filed through the small gate and began making its way down the small dirt path that started at the gate and led deeper into the park.
The path curved a few feet away from the gate and was swallowed by the grove but the trees that flanked their way were all strung with fairy lights and Kaden didn’t worry over much about taking a wrong step as the group made its way towards the sounds of music and the smell of food. As they got closer to the party Kaden began to see the red-orange glow of firelight reflected off the leaves and trunks of the trees and he could hear the low level of chatter associated with any gathering of people. Soon the path opened up on a small meadow. In the center of the party there was a modest and carefully tended bonfire and it was obviously there more for illumination and decoration than to serve as a source of heat or to be used for cooking.
“Welcome kais,” a young woman said, coming over to them with a platter of food comically similar to the one Jaxon had brought into the room an hour earlier. As she walked up to them Kaden found himself wishing he’d stayed in the warm, well lit security of their room instead of venturing out into the chill night with no idea about how the night would turn out. His sense of adventure had compelled him to accompany Jaxon but as the young di held out the platter to him he was uniquely aware of the fact that he had never had a significant interaction with a woman that was not his mother. He had no idea what to say to her or what was proper and as he took a pastry off the offered platter with a small and muttered thank you he made the decision to leave as soon as courtesy allowed. His decision was only confirmed when she smiled at him before turning back to the party and he felt as if his stomach was momentarily flipped.
“Relax will you,” Jaxon whispered in his ear before returning the young woman’s smile. “You look like you’re about to bolt. Here, drink this,” Jaxon said, shoving a glass of something into Kaden’s hands. Kaden looked around for where the glass could have come from only to see another young woman with yet another serving platter handing out the cups to some of the surrounding Falco men. She chatted and flirted with a few before making her way back into the party.
Kaden took an experimental sip of the drink and felt the burn of alcohol in his mouth and throat. He didn’t spit it out but only because a life long habit of stoicism would not allow him to embarrass himself so. He did cough a little and felt a hand pound him on his shoulder which only caused him to cough harder for a moment because the hand had hit one of his many bruises.
“First drink?” He heard a deep voice ask and Kaden turned to see who had spoken only to find himself forced to look up at the man standing next to him. He quickly composed himself as the Coccodrillo from this afternoon smiled down at him, a similar cup to the one Kaden was holding dwarfed in his large hand. “You get used to it though this Drago stuff was distilled from mountain fire I swear. It’ll keep you warm on a cold night but it’ll burn you on the way down.” The man put his arm around Kaden’s shoulders and pulled him into a tighter embrace and that was when he realized that the Coccodrillo was already much drunker than he was. “They say the same thing about the Drago women you know,” he continued in a voice that was surely meant to be quiet and conspiratorial but easily carried. “Burn like fire but a man keeps going back for more. Name is Ruaidhri. What’s yours little lion?”
Kaden glanced to the side to catch Jaxon’s eye only to see that Jaxon had moved away and was conversing with some of the Falco that had brought them. In fact, without knowing quite how it had happened, Kaden found himself in the middle of the party and no longer standing by the entrance and the path that led out of the park.
“My name is Kaden. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance Ruaidhri,” Kaden pronounced the odd name with care but apparently not enough because Ruaidhri quickly corrected him.
“ROR-ree, like a lion roars and then ree,” Ruaidhri explained. “And it’s a pleasure to meet you Kaden,” Ruaidhri continued, pronouncing Kaden’s name easily despite his slight accent. “I guess this is your first year out?” Kaden nodded as the large man led him towards the table with more food on it. It was odd to be walking next to him instead of trying to defend against the man’s attacks. The serious and agile fighter from this morning was almost invisible inside the large and friendly man in front him whose pale cheeks currently competed with his shockingly red hair for color.
“Yes it is,” Kaden said, carefully taking another sip of his drink only to find it burned no less in small amounts. He looked over his shoulder and saw that Jaxon had noticed his predicament. A raised eyebrow was enough to let Kaden know Jaxon was asking if he should intervene. Kaden shook his head slightly and Jaxon shrugged and turned away. Kaden returned his attention to Ruaidhri as they reached a table with more substantial food than the girl had been offering. Ruaidhri set about making himself a large plate and Kaden used the time to look around.
He saw that his group was not the first to arrive by any stretch of the imagination. Young men of every House they had visited this summer and others they hadn’t roamed the meadow. He realized the space was larger than he’d first taken it for. The bonfire they were near was not the only one. There was another one close by and a few more in the distance. All in all the meadow stretched for what would be a good city block outside the park and Kaden realized this must be one of the major parks instead of the minor one he had taken it for. The gate they had come through must have been one of its smaller entrances and it made him wonder who spear headed the planning of this particular Tryst and why they had enough influence to secure one of the larger parks for it.
Whoever it was they also hadn’t had a problem securing enough guests to fill the space up, both male and female. The women were all Drago of course but they were as varied in their looks as any young man could hope for. And there were many young hopeful men circulating among them. Music played loudly enough to be heard over the sounds of conversation but it still managed to fade into the background though he noticed the shadows of dancing men and women silhouetted against one of the farther fires.
“First Tryst too,” Ruaidhri asked as he finished making his plate. Kaden turned to look at him and he saw that Ruaidhri had a small plate with only a few pieces of chikor and some vegetables on it. For some reason it surprised him. He’d expected the man to have as large an appetite as Jaxon or more.
“Yes. First everything I guess,” Kaden said with a polite smile that hid the fact that he didn’t appreciate how inexperienced he was being the main topic of conversation. Ruaidhri completely missed the vein of frustration in Kaden’s voice and just nodded.
“Ah, well then you should meet your hosts,” Ruaidhri said before popping a pastry into his mouth. “Follow me. I’ll make the rounds with you.” Kaden looked around the party with apprehension. He had hoped to stay on the outskirts and escape as soon as possible but Ruaidhri’s course only led deeper into the meadow and the party. His face must have betrayed his thoughts, a phenomenon that rarely happened, because Ruaidhri felt the need to say, “would you enter a house, eat their food, drink their tea and not introduce yourself?” There was no need to give an answer since it was obviously ‘no’ so Kaden didn’t give one, just resigned himself to making polite conversation. Ruaidhri nodded, seeing his change of mind if not heart and then set off for one of the far fires.
“So,” he continued in his lightly accented voice, “the way these things work is that you introduce yourself to the hosts, normally three women, sometimes one but usually no more than five. You make pleasant small talk. Usually the ones who throw parties this big are either really rich or really well connected or both. As such they probably have engagements already in the works so if you have your heart set on one of them I’d pray for you,” he said, looking over his shoulder with a sympathetic expression. Since Kaden didn’t have his eye on anyone he just shrugged and nodded to indicate that he’d been listening. Taking note of Kaden’s indifference Ruaidhri nodded and continued his Tryst etiquette lesson. “They throw these things because it buys them good will with the rest of the Drago women. A lot of unmarried women do not have the resources to put on a party like this but they are more than happy to help out if they get a chance to meet some of the eligible kais and make a good match for themselves.”
Kaden nodded along. It all sounded like politics to him. He was tangentially interested in politics but only as an offshoot of sociology. He liked to understand why the community of life worked the way it did and that included humans. But often the small details of day-to-day politics left him bored. Still, it was always good to know what situation he was walking into.
“Right, well, you meet the hosts. They might introduce you to a favored friend or not. Either way, after that your job is to circulate and chat with a few women. Try not to stay with your friends too much. Look,” Ruaidhri motioned with his chin toward a group of young men laughing and engaging in some sort of game of chance. “That is a sure way to tell who is a new comer. Most inexperienced men come here and spend the whole night with their friends. It’s one way to have an enjoyable evening but it won’t get you a bride, which is what we’re here for. More importantly, it won’t endear you to your hosts. If they take note of you at all it will be to make sure you aren’t invited to any more of their parties. The women are much more practical about these little gatherings. They know what they’re here for and if you aren’t here for the same there is no reason to invite you back. The Drago women are especially unforgiving,” Ruaidhri added as an aside.
Kaden nodded and took note, looking at the man that walked at his side. He had thought Ruadhri was drunk and he could certainly smell the alcohol on his breath and yet he was giving Kaden a detailed breakdown of Tryst politics with a surety behind his words that told Kaden he’d be a fool to doubt him. Before they could reach the fire and the gathering that Ruadhri seemed to be heading towards Kaden decided to try to get some information of his own.
“I take it this isn’t your first Tryst. Have you,” Kaden paused and wondered how to word his question. He didn’t want to imply that anyone had found Ruaidhri unsuitable. “not found anyone to your liking?” he finished, looking up at the man who had spent a portion of his morning trying to beat Kaden into the ground or out of the ring.
Ruaidhri shrugged and took another gulp of the drink in his hand. “No, I suppose not. But I’ve only been to Drago once before, years ago. My House does not often venture this far from our shores. We are happiest by the sea and most of my brothers married into Grua or Maschio. I am one of the oldest kais to come out this season.” This confirmed Kaden’s impression of him. He seemed a little older than the others Kaden had seen and he certainly sounded like he had experience. “I hope the Kings favor me,” he said, raising his glass to the crown of stars that hung above the far trees, low in the sky this early in the evening.
“I as well,” Kaden said, raising his own glass before taking another careful sip of the contents. He didn’t think he would ever get used to the taste, however, he didn't have long to try to figure out how to politely get rid of the cup before they reached the fire Ruaidhri had been aiming for.
Kaden, taking stock of his senses and finding them disturbingly dulled, wasn’t paying attention to the people gathered around the fire until a soft, alluringly husky voice called his attention back to his surroundings. “Back so soon kai’Coccodrillo?” Kaden looked up at the woman who had spoken and when she caught his eye he found himself having quite an embarrassingly juvenile reaction. His eyes widened slightly and he felt the entire lower half of his body tighten. He felt like something was squirming around inside his stomach and the alcohol didn’t help at all. For a moment he wondered if he would completely embarrass himself and throw up but the feeling was momentary. His heart was beating faster and his breathing was slightly shallow as if he had just run here from the entrance of the park instead of walked at a sedate pace but the rest of his body seemed to be behaving itself.
He saw the woman smile and it erased the rest of his reaction, at least for the moment. There was something predatory and knowing in the soft curve of her lips and light in her eyes. She knew what effect she had on him, she’d seen his reaction, and he had a feeling that it amused her as a trapped mouse would amuse a cat. He didn’t like feeling like a toy, so easily manipulated, and he shut out whatever chemicals his body wanted to flood his brain with.
“I could not stay away from such beauty for long,” Ruadhri responded, flirting with an ease that surprised Kaden but seemed to be accepted easily by the Drago women. “I have brought another to be witness to your generosity and grace. Di’Dragos, may I introduce Kaden kai’Leone. Kaden this is the honorable Sanaa di’Drago,” he said, motioning to the one who’d spoken first, “Kelsi di’Drago and Miara di’Drago.”
He bowed to the women gathered around the fire, really noticing the others when he tore his eyes away from the first. He used the polite gesture and the short time it bought him to compose himself. He knew that this would happen at some point. His reaction was a natural and purely physical one and had absolutely nothing to do with who he would marry or even like. He just had to keep that in mind and remember not to stare.
When he straightened up he had a neutral smile on his face. “Good evening di’Dragos. It is a pleasure to share this evening with you.” He let his eyes move easily from one woman to another and refused to let them get fixated on the one who had spoken first, not that it saved him from much.
All three young women were beautiful, at least in his eyes. He had always wondered how women found the time to make themselves much more attractive than their male counterparts or even how they did it period. Tonight he found himself wondering how women could possibly come out to a gathering in the middle of a park, travel over grass and dirt to stand next to smoky fires and still look like works of art created out of firelight, starry skies and the women themselves. They looked like they belonged to this meadow instead of just being one time visitors as he and Ruadhri were. And yet, there was something off putting about that. They seemed unreachable, meant to be seen but never touched, just another part of the beautiful landscape to admire and cherish the memory of.
“Kaden kai’Leone, it is our pleasure to welcome you to our gathering.” Sanaa responded with a slight inclination of her head in his direction. When she spoke he became aware of the fact that he had begun to stare once again, though this time the stare was contemplative and not star struck as he tried to imagine what type of training they had undergone to produce appropriate adults. He had never seen a girl child on the streets but he had been dimly aware that they were taken from the parents the same age as boys were, he had just never wondered where they’d gone.
He replaced the curious expression with one more appropriate and took refuge in his cup even if the contents didn’t agree with him as Sanaa continued. “We are glad you have had the chance to enjoy the hospitality of Drago. Please, consider us at your disposal. Our gathering would not be a success without interesting guests to attend it. We are in your debt.”
“Debt is not held between friends di’Drago,” he responded automatically. “And I would hope to be a friend by the end of the night.” He only realized after the words came out that they could have more than one meaning. He almost tried to take them back but then he remembered how easily they had accepted and disregarded Ruadhri’s flirtations. Ruadhri was right. They were here for one thing and it would be a mistake to pretend otherwise. His possible flirtation would be taken at face value and would probably do less to get him in trouble than a completely platonic attitude would.
“As do we,” Sanaa replied, no hint in her voice to tell Kaden how she had interpreted his comment or how she felt about it. Not that he expected there to be but he did find he felt slightly disappointed. He reminded himself again that this House was known for being dangerously manipulative and he wanted to escape as soon as possible. Even if that danger came in the form of beautiful eyes that were attempting to look through him and dissect him in the process.
Instead of turning away he met her gaze and she was the one who looked away lest she be thought to be staring. The corner of his mouth twitched in amusement but he didn’t break out into a smile. Instead his attention was redirected to the woman on Sanaa’s left.
“However did you find him Ruadhri?” Kelsi asked, speaking to Ruadhri almost as if Kaden were not standing there. “Did you drag him from his bed to satisfy our curiosity?” Kaden looked over to Ruadhri before looking around at the group he’d found himself in, wondering now what he’d walked into. He had thought it odd that a complete stranger would make conversation so easily but he’d attributed Ruadhri’s friendliness to be a side effect of being drunk. However, the longer he spent with Ruadhri, the less drunk he seemed.
“While I would go to great lengths to satisfy you I’m afraid I can claim no credit for the kai’Leone’s presence at your event. I simply spotted him in the crowd and brought him to your attention,” Ruadhri responded with a slight pat on Kaden’s shoulder and a smile as if they were long time friends. But Kaden was feeling less and less like he was among friends as this conversation went on.
“How fortunate that you should find him.” Kelsi’s voice was louder and more assertive than Sanaa’s had been. It was also more expressive and it was obvious to Kaden that she didn’t believe Ruadhri had found or brought Kaden over by accident. He’d had enough. He wasn’t the best at these games of etiquette on a good day and this day, while good, had been long. He had wondered what a Tryst would be like, well now he knew. His curiosity satisfied he was ready to leave.
“Excuse my interruption, but was I the subject of previous conversation?” Kaden asked in a politely mild tone, hoping to clear the matter up and to be allowed to leave.
“Indeed you were.” Sanaa’s quiet and strong voice caught his attention and caused his knuckles to go bloodless for a moment as he gripped his cup, trying to ignore the sense of attraction and of danger that her presence seemed to inspire. “When we met with kai’Coccodrillo earlier we were discussing this afternoon’s match.” Kaden glanced at Ruadhri. His expression stayed the same open cheerful one he’d seen the man wearing the whole night but he saw him swallow at mention of the match that hadn’t gone well for him.
“A good match,” was all Kaden offered, not wanting to go into the sensitive subject further lest it lead to a confrontation. He had no desire to get into some duel over honor when the match had been fought and decided in a proper tournament already and he still had bruises fading from it.
But Sanaa either missed his desire to avoid the subject, which he doubted, or she had her own reasons for poking at sore spots. “Do you think so? And you Ruadhri, would you agree?” Her expression was one of simple curiosity but Kaden still didn’t believe she was unaware of what she was doing.
“A fair match,” Ruadhri answered after a moment where he looked over to Kelsi. He glances at Kaden but it was no longer the glance of old time friends. Now it was as wary as Kaden was sure his own expression was. “though I look forward to tomorrow’s competition.”
“As do I,” Kaden added quickly before this could be taken any further. “and I believe I should retire early if I am to be ready for it.”
“Indeed you should,” Sanaa said softly, looking over at him, “but not quite yet.” It was said very calmly but it obviously wasn’t a request or a suggestion. He was in Drago, at a tryst hosted by a woman he had to assume was influential by the size of the gathering. It was clear then to him who held the power here. He could no more walk out of this park than he could have walked out of the arena this afternoon without losing a lot of face for himself and possibly gravely insulting the entire Drago House in the process. Houses had gone to war for less, especially Drago, especially if you had something they wanted. He did not know where Leone stood in relation to Drago and he couldn’t risk causing an incident that they could point to as an excuse for war.
“Of course,” he said with a slight bow in her direction. Sanaa had her own plans and he was on her territory. Kaden clenched his teeth but forced himself to smile. Sanaa smiled as she saw the acceptance and acknowledgement of power on his face.
“This realm of competition is of great interest to me. I plead your indulgence Dragos, Coccodrillo, Leone. Can you tell us how you defeated Ruadhri. He is obviously much larger than you, the odds favor him.” Kaden could almost feel Ruadhri tense up beside him. He didn’t bother glancing at the other man. He knew how he would have felt if someone had pointed out that he should have won when he’d lost. He disliked this Sanaa woman more and more the longer the conversation went on. She was needlessly provoking them both.
“It was a fair match. We both did well,” Kaden responded, meeting her eyes. There was no worry of impropriety now. If she wanted to play games with him he was going to let her know he didn’t like it. His stare said as much and he gave her the simplest answer he could manage and still be diplomatic.
“How humble,” Sanaa said with a smile, switching tracks easily to compliments instead of prods. “Are you saying it was only luck?” she asked and once again her tone was open and curious. If she hadn’t just suggested that he was incompetent he would have believed her only curious.
“I believe conditions favored me. Different conditions could have led to a different outcome,” he said with dwindling patience, his annoyance starting to bleed into his voice. They didn’t seem to have eyes for anyone but each other now, engaged as they were in their little battle of wits and dominance, at least on Sanaa’s end. For Kaden, he just wanted to escape without incident.
“I suppose we shall see tomorrow,” Miara, the woman who had been silent up until this point, spoke up. It gave Kaden and Sanaa a reason to look away from each other and Kaden silently thanked her in his mind for lancing the tense situation. At least not all Drago women were intent on causing problems. “Perhaps you will not be as,” she paused as if searching for a word and when she continued he realized she was looking for alternatives to foolish or stupid, “daring when you’re facing a knife instead of a fist.” He had obviously given her too much credit. Her comment was worse than all of Sanaa’s combined. It was a more direct insult and he’d have to answer it somehow. While he was trying to figure out how to respond Kelsi came to his rescue, if unintentionally.
“You insult his bravery?” she asked with what sounded like genuine surprise in her voice. She looked between Kaden and her companion. Sanaa stayed silent and the pleasant mask that served as her face gave nothing away as it was designed to do.
“I suppose the existence of his good sense,” Miara answered tersely. Whatever side of this she was on she seemed to have lost patience with the game. Perhaps that was why she had spoken so brazenly.
For a moment silence fell around the fire. Miara was looking at Kelsi, waiting for further comments. Kelsi shrugged and looked away, staring into the bed of coals at their feet for lack of any where else to divert her attention. Ruadhri was looking at Kelsi and Kaden kept glancing around at them all, wondering what exactly was expected of him in this situation. It was Sanaa that finally broke the silence.
“Perhaps a test is in order.”
“Hmmm,” Tamrin said, game momentarily forgotten. It was almost over anyway. Some time during the last section of his story, Kaden had begun losing. Not badly, he’d held his own. But the game had entered its last stages and it was now obvious who the winner would be.
“Hmmm, what?” Kaden asked, more interested in his chess partner than the game. So far she had always managed to provide unlooked for, insightful opinions.
“Oh,” Tamrin shrugged and moved a knight on the board. “Check,” she said as a courtesy. Kaden reached out without much thought or interest and moved his king out of the way. It would only delay the inevitable and he wanted to hear what she was thinking. She moved her queen and Kaden looked down at the board as he briefly entertained the idea of just giving up and turning the kind over. But he was the one who had wanted to play this game so he better finish it. He moved his king again. She smiled and moved a pawn into place. “Check mate.”
“Yes, I realize that. Now would you enlighten me? What was the meaning of your Hmmm sound?” Kaden said as he turned his king over and then began resetting the board. He didn’t really plan on playing again but it would have been impolite to leave it in a state of disorder.
“Well, I don’t want to offend you or anything but I don’t like Sanaa so much. She sounds like a,” Tamrin paused. It was not in her upbringing to mince words but a couple of hours into this story a bit of Kaden’s home world had rubbed off on her. “well, not the nicest person.”
Kaden smiled but continued to pay attention to the board in front of him as he set each piece back into its place. “No, she doesn’t. Honestly, I did not like her much either at that point.”
“Sounds like you liked her a lot,” Tamrin said with a smile and a significant glance to the lower half of his body. Since she couldn’t actually see the lower half of his body due to the table, and there wouldn’t have been anything for her to see even if she could, he assumed she was drawing conclusions from his descriptions.
“Are you equating physical desire with love?” he asked, mildly surprised. He hadn’t learned much about this culture of his fellow pilot, or at least he felt he hadn’t, but he did not think she would take such a stance.
“Point,” she admitted with a nod before standing up and walking a few paces away from the table. She stretched and he heard a few joints pop and crack. The corner of his mouth twitched but he wasn’t sure it was due to his expected disgust. He found it almost amusing. She leaned against the nearest wall and looked back over at him. “I’ve been sitting down too long so I hope you don’t mind if I stand.”
“Not at all,” Kaden said easily as he leaned back in his chair. He tapped the clock display and brought up the time. It was long past due for one of them to do rounds but he found his need to adhere strictly to the rules had lessened in the past few hours.
“Good. So, you gonna keep talking? I mean, what did she mean by a test?” Tamrin asked as she dropped her cigarette to the ground and ground it out with the toe of one standard issue boot. She flicked the butt into the darkness of the barracks before reaching into her pocket to pull out the pack.
“You know, those are bad for you,” Kaden remarked as he watched her.
“Not dead yet,” she replied as she put her lips around one small cylinder and pulled it from the box. “Besides, this is the only time I can smoke. They’re illegal during the day.”
“They’re illegal during the night as well, there is just no one here to stop you.” Kaden pointed out as he stood up and stretched as well. He felt his shoulders pop with the motion and sighed slightly at the release of pressure.
“You’re here. You gonna keep trying to protect me from cigarettes or are you going to answer my question?” Tamrin asked as she pulled out her lighter and lit the cigarette. Kaden didn’t respond right away, walking back and forth to get the blood flowing in his legs while he put his thoughts together.
“Well the test was what you’d expect it to be. She wanted us to spar again, with knives this time. All Safi men are taught to use knives,” Kaden said, fingering his own. They were strapped to his belt, two dark and used hilts sticking out of worn but serviceable sheaths. “Our art,” he continued, hoping to explain, “our fighting, it is all without hands. We believe the hands are for creation, the feet are for destruction. So we use many handstands, sweeps, kicks. We are often on our hands and holding many types of weapons would be difficult. But knives are small enough to make this sensible.” He struggled slightly with the description, not sure of the proper adjectives to use.
“Interesting,” Tamrin answered as she watched him pace. “So why did she want you to fight? In fact, why did that guy find you at all? Did he know that was going to happen?”
Kaden shook his head and sighed. “It is all very complicated. I did not figure it all out until later. You see Ruadhri was in love with Kelsi-“
“The Drago woman?” Tamrin asked, interrupting him and pushing off from the wall.
“Yes. I remember our conversation well enough to repeat it to you because I always remembered what he’d said as we walked to the fire. The part about needing prayer if you had your eye one of the hosts. Ruadhri was 26 when we met. That is very old for one of us to be unmarried. But he’d met Kelsi on his first visit to Drago years before and decided he wanted to marry her, only he hadn’t shown well in the tournaments that year. And, as he said, his House does not often travel as far as Drago.”
“You’re sounding like a soap opera,” Tamrin remarked as she settled back against the wall.
“A what?” Kaden asked, turning to her, momentarily distracted from the web of connections he’d been trying to remember and recount accurately.
“Nothing, nevermind, keep going.” Kaden nodded and continued.
“Well, when he’d finally gotten the chance to come back to Drago he’d expected to do much better and win enough renown that his suit would be taken seriously.”
“And then you beat him in the first match,” Tamrin said with a small laugh. “I’m guessing he wanted revenge?”
“No, it would have done him no good. No, he went to the Tryst and he found Kelsi and made conversation. He honestly had no intention for things to unfold as they had but he played his part. As you heard, when talking to him our match had of course come up. So when he saw me enter the party he decided I would be a good excuse to start a conversation with Kelsi again. He had no way of knowing that Sanaa would do what she did.”
“So why did she do it? If you don’t mind me asking,” Tamrin asked, intrigued once more.
“Years later I’m still not sure. But I think she was honestly curious in her own way. She really didn’t understand why I’d won and her way of satisfying her curiosity was to manipulate us into a rematch where she would have a closer view.” He saw Tamrin’s look of disgust and he felt the need to defend Sanaa though he shouldn’t owe her anything. “It is what she was raised to do. It was not,” he paused, at a loss for words. “It was not uncommon, it was not that bad. Such matches are common things, she didn’t overstep that much.”
“If you say so,” Tamrin responded though she didn’t sound very convinced. Kaden shook it off. He wasn’t sure if she would ever understand and he realized he wanted her too. He wanted someone to understand the place he’d come from, understand how different it was for him here. But maybe she would understand if he told her more.
“Well I know why I agreed to it. Jaxon. He had gotten into that fight the previous night. And when I had decided to take Sanaa’s foolishness any further but before I could voice that a fight broke out at a nearby fire. Some of Ruadhri’s brothers had found Jaxon and decided to take matters into their own hands. Ruadhri and I helped break it up but there was bad blood after that. We figured a little demonstration between us would settle the matter for both Houses and satisfy our host’s curiosity at the same time.”
“How did the match go?” Tamrin asked, seemingly willing to suspend judgment of Sanaa for now.
“We fought well but to a draw. To others it looked like an honest draw but…Ruadhri is a good sparring partner, and neither of us really wanted a fight,” Kaden said carefully, looking at Tamrin to see if she caught his meaning. What he was admitting to would shame him and Ruadhri both if it were discovered. Even such impromptu matches for sport were supposed to be taken seriously and a participant was supposed to give the match his all.
“You both threw the match?” Tamrin asked as if the idea was a common one. Perhaps it was. Kaden just nodded and moved on. He didn’t want to dwell on the moment. It had been an odd night for him and he hadn’t liked being forced into the confrontation though, in the end, it had been Jaxon who had forced his hand more than Sanaa.
“So please explain how you went from this to marrying the woman because I just don’t see the connection,” Tamrin concluded as she pushed off the wall and went to sit back down at the table. Kaden followed her and sat down in his previous seat.
“Ah. Well…it was Sable who convinced me of it. But, let me go back. We got home that night and the next morning I had an invitation waiting.”