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“I yield,” I said. Tallu began to put his plate down, but I turned to him, raising a finger. Then I closed my hand, trying to remember the motion in the imperial manner. Pointing at him with three fingers, I waited to see the slightest crinkling in the corners of his eyes that indicated he was amused. “I will avoid this meeting, as long as my beloved husband eats a full breakfast. Surely we can spend even the finite resource of time making sure His Imperial Majesty doesn’t collapse in front of his subjects? Perhaps you would enjoy some food as well?”

Saxu bowed his head, acknowledging the point. He made himself a plate while I waited for Tallu to sit down before fetching him another. When I handed it over, I leaned in close, whispering against his ear, “And you promised that I could do something to you before we started any work.”

Tallu looked at me, his expression amused and he picked up one of the small round fruits that grew on vines. He placed it between his lips, pointedly sucking on his fingertips.

“Was this what you were expecting?” he asked.

I shot him an amused look. No, but if I were to explicitly talk of healing him in front of General Saxu and the rest of Tallu’s servants, it would encourage too many questions.

“Let us not be cruel,” I said. “Your servants just got you dressed.”

“I am sure they have time to fix my clothes before I meet with one of Kacha’s traitors.”

But, Tallu obediently finished his plate of food. I let my fingers linger as they touched his when I accepted his plate. Although I kept a smile fixed on my face, I couldn’t help but look Tallu over, worried that I was making a mistake by letting him go before I healed him.

After a full night’s sleep, he looked healthier, and the food did seem to make a difference, but his color was still slightly off, the warm bronze of his skin faded nearly to matte.

“I will see Kacha’s man,” Tallu said. He stood, using his fingertips to flutter his robe behind him. “Where is he?”

Saxu directed Tallu to one of the tents toward the edge of camp that they were using to house military officers. Four of Tallu’s new Dogs arrived just in time to escort him. Saxu’s men had taken their training as Dogs well, and I could only believe it was their experience under Saxu’s judicious leadership that helped them make the adjustment.

I waited until they were both out of the room, then walked out of Tallu’s tent, pretending to make my way to my own but instead waiting until I was alone to climb up the nearest tree, leaping from branch to branch, knowing exactly where they must be heading.

“What? Has all this time in the forest turned you into a monkey?” Terror asked.

“Not a monkey,” Dawn said. “Too incompetent.”

“I think you can do it,” Ratcatcher encouraged. “Be a monkey if you want!”

By the time I made it to the tent, Asahi was waiting on the ground, his eyes fixed on me. There was nowhere to hide.

His arms were crossed, and he raised one eyebrow. The hand motion he made wasn’t one I was familiar with, but I could read in his expression what he was saying.

I wasn’t supposed to be here. So what was I doing above the tent where an enemy combatant was held captive?

Twisting my lips, I shrugged, raising one of my hands in a gesture I hoped conveyed my innocence. Asahi’s brows tightened, and I knew only his honor prevented him from rolling his eyes. He moved his head just slightly, and I swung down from the tree and followed him around the tent.

Asahi climbed the nearest tree and I followed him. There was a small ventilation flap open in the top to give the space some airflow. Settling on the branch next to Asahi, I let my body go still, knowing that even a single wrong move would attract attention from those inside.

Our angle was from above, but we could see nearly the entire space, and I relaxed knowing that if something went wrong, I could reach Tallu in moments.

At first, all I could see was the chair placed in the center of the space; the man strapped in it was slumped forward. Then someone crossed in front of our vision: one of Saxu’s guards. He spoke quietly with someone else, but both of them immediately tensed when the flap opened, letting in a blindingly bright light.

Tallu was silhouetted in the doorway. The man in the chair straightened, wincing back from the light, but then leaning forward into what I assumed was an attempt at a bow.

“Your Imperial Majesty, Emperor Tallu,” the man croaked. It had been hours, and from his hoarse voice, he hadn’t been given a single drop of water since he arrived.

I wanted to feel pity for him or worry for his safety, but I could not get the scream of the forest out of my head, the sound as real as my own voice. This man would have burned us if he had thought he was able to.

Tallu remained in his position, still backlit. His robes fluttered in the breeze, and he said nothing. It was almost as though he was a waking dream, as though Kacha’s man and I both shared the same delusion.

Then Tallu walked through the door, his steps deliberate, and one of the soldiers rushed to present him with a chair as soon as the flap closed behind him. The same entourage that had accompanied him to the tent came inside; with the addition of Sagam that made six of them.

Four Dogs spread around Tallu, shadowy and nearly invisible. General Saxu stood near the door, hands clasped behind his back. Sagam stood just behind Tallu, his expression grim. Without his mask, he looked different, almost as though he had hardened himself, forced himself to become more and more like the Kennelmaster whose title he claimed.

The man slowly straightened in his chair, his attention fixed on Tallu.

“I am Emperor Tallu, son of Emperor Millu. You said you have something to say to me.” Tallu’s words felt relentless, each one taking up all of the space in the tent.