Thanks to you,Shazeera said.
Thanks to manipulative Queen Samira, really,I said, barely able to hide my smile.
Emperor Altair returned to his throne and gestured for me to join him. I left Shazeera at the bottom of the dais, my back prickling at the many unfriendly eyes that watched me walk to the smaller throne beside him.
“Let the zither player come and entertain us,” Emperor Altair said.
An older man came forward then, his beard neatly styled and shot with gray. He wore a black tunic with silver embroidery, black pants, and boots trimmed in fur. In his hands was an instrument with many strings, small enough to fit in his lap. As he bowed to Emperor Altair just as Lord Heron did, I could better see the beautifully carved instrument. The reddish-brown wood was polished to a high shine, and beneath the numerous strings were hand-painted images framed in gold: an eagle, the mountains, and little curlicues of blue and silver that I think must have represented the wind.
The man settled the zither carefully in his lap, his posture impeccably straight, only his neck bent gently toward the instrument.
Everyone else in court sat in wooden chairs facing the throne and the zither player. The music came then, tinny and spidery, like an arachnid making its way across its web. The sound increased in intensity until it was a strong, driving rhythm, to the point where the audience could clap along, but they did nothing even close to that. Emotionlessly and without moving, they watched him play. It was so far removed from the music of my people, with its primal drums and vocals that forced my blood to pump faster and compelled my feet to move. This was a lullaby in comparison. A beautiful lullaby.
After a time, some of the women who had been seated off to the side stepped forward, dressed in flowing white robes with subtle embroidery. They moved like swans, elegantly graceful. Slowly, and with arm movements that were as smooth as water cascading over rock, they danced. They moved around one another in time to the music, their feet hidden by the folds of their clothing, which trailed behind them. They kept their faces absolutely still, and I came to realize it was like an art form to them.
Though it was beautiful at first, the zither player continued to play, and the dancers to dance, until my eyes grew heavy. I was tired from the stressful journey, and I hadn’t eaten since breakfast. I glanced at Emperor Altair several times, but he always seemed entranced. Who would have thought it possible to be bored to tears in the palace of my people’s enemy?
Beside me, Emperor Altair shifted so that he was leaning closer. “Do you like music?”
“I do, but ours is very different. This is beautiful, though.”
He looked at me with interest. “What is yours like?”
“Much faster, with drums. We dance with our horses.”
He raised his eyebrows. “I would like to see that.”
We could dance now, if you’d like,Shazeera said, amusement filling her tone.
I barely restrained letting out a laugh.Can you imagine what they’d do?
Already, the crowd kept stealing glances at Shazeera with varying degrees of disdain. I thought of their jaws dropping with horror at Shazeera’s and my fast-paced dancing and had to bite my lip to keep from laughing out loud.
To Emperor Altair, I said teasingly, “That could be arranged.” When he smiled back at me, I added, “Though I have to admit, I’m surprised you’re even interested.”
Even before our peoples had been at war, the Zephyrians had never made any attempt to travel to our lands and learn about our culture. Even in the common port cities, they treated our people with contempt. To my knowledge, Commander Talon had been the first to ever attend one of our feasts.
He didn’t say anything to that, so I decided to ask him what I really wanted to know. “What made you sign the treaty with us?”
“This was my ancestors’ war—not mine. In truth, it’s been a colossal drain on our resources. I want to rebuild my empire’s coffers.”
“So you decided to tax my people to do that.”
He gave a small shrug. “It’s better than being at war, right?”
Queen Samira certainly wouldn’t agree, but I tended to think he had a point. Maybe in time I could change his mind on the percentage. The Zephyrians controlled so much of our continent already—how many more resources could they need?
I glanced at the man who was supposed to become my husband. In this unfamiliar place, I didn’t know what to expect. Wetreated relationships so differently on the plains. “Can you tell me more about royal marriages here? What are the expectations?”
He looked momentarily stunned. “You agreed to this without knowing what would be expected of you?”
“I would have agreed to almost anything to save my people.”
“That’s very brave,” he said, and when I searched his face, he looked sincere. “Usually, the goal is to produce an heir as soon as possible.”
Now it was my turn to be blindsided. Somehow, I hadn’t thought that far ahead. I had only imagined how difficult it would be to leave my people and live here amongst my enemy, but my imaginings had never gone so far as to think of what it would be like to have ababyhere. A baby without Ama or any of the other daughters, who wouldn’t be there to help. We never raised children alone. Everyone helped. Everyone shared the knowledge of their mothers. I knew in this cold place that none of that would be the same.
Never mind that I didn’t want to have a baby for many more years. And certainly not here.
